Chapter 228
Chapter 228
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 228
Chapter Title: Seven Stars Council (4)
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Murmurs rippled through the hall.
The banquet hall instantly fell into a state of disarray.
People cast sardonic smirks at Oh-jin.
Of course, some frowned, displeased by the atmosphere of mocking a single scapegoat.
But most simply sent looks of derision toward Oh-jin, the one person who didn't seem to belong.
Namgung-hui, who had been leisurely observing the reactions, let out a light laugh and took the microphone.
“Hahaha! It was a joke, everyone! Please, calm down.”
Namgung-hui turned to Oh-jin and continued.
“So what if he isn't a high-ranking Awakened? I believe he is more than qualified to become a member of the Seven Stars.”
After overtly slighting him, he nonchalantly tried to smooth things over.
“Haven't you all heard of the many great deeds he has accomplished over the past year?”
He clenched his fist, his passionate gaze fixed on Oh-jin.
“Though he may not have reached 9-Stars, he has already proven so much on his own. Don't you all agree?”
A chilly atmosphere descended upon the banquet hall.
The fact that not even a single clap could be heard subtly revealed how everyone truly felt about Oh-jin.
“Wait a minute. Isn't this a bit too rude?”
Director Han shot up from his seat, glaring at Namgung-hui with a fiercely distorted expression.
In truth, this was somewhat expected from the moment Oh-jin was chosen as a candidate.
To use a gaming analogy, it was like a rookie with only a year of experience suddenly applying to a tournament to select the world's best player.
Of course, if the news that Oh-jin had defeated Deneb's Apostles four times in a row had spread, the reaction would have been less severe.
But since the spectators of the proxy battles held in the Sanctum were mostly Constellations, the rumor hadn't spread much among ordinary Awakened.
“Ah, if you felt that way, I apologize.”
Namgung-hui bowed politely with an apologetic expression.
“I only meant to ask everyone not to judge Mr. Oh-jin with prejudice... but it seems my earlier joke went too far.”
“Ha, a joke, you say?”
“Yes. But if the person on the receiving end found it unpleasant, then it's right to apologize, no matter the joke. I am truly sorry.”
“……”
With Namgung-hui being so deferential, Director Han was left speechless and could only sit back down, fuming.
“Tsk, tsk.”
“Look at him getting all defensive because it hit a nerve.”
“Is Korea that short on talent? They have the Black Lion, Lee Woo-hyeok, so why send an Awakened who isn't even high-ranking...”
“He's the Apostle of Polaris, so maybe he wants to be famous like Deneb's Apostles.”
Director Han's actions only intensified the mockery.
A sharp, edgy atmosphere settled over the banquet hall.
Amidst the frigidly silent hall, Oh-jin…
“Wow, this steak is fucking delicious.”
…was calmly cutting a piece of the delicious-looking steak on the table with a knife and putting it in his mouth, as if he couldn't care less.
The medium-rare steak melted in his mouth like butter.
“Haha. Fortunately, it seems Mr. Oh-jin doesn't mind much either.”
Namgung-hui smiled brightly and smoothly changed the subject.
“This time, we candidates pledge here today to not only fill the void left by Cheonseongseong and Tamrangseong, but to become heroes who can save even more people…”
The trivial speech continued.
As is typical for opening ceremonies, the longer the speech went on, the more people began to show expressions of boredom.
Namgung-hui, who had been watching the crowd and waiting for the right moment, glanced at the cameras filming the ceremony and spoke.
“It seems everyone is getting bored. Ah, of course, I despise these tedious speeches myself.”
He gave a light hand signal to Wei standing beside him.
“In that spirit, I'd like to provide some light entertainment for you all to enjoy.”
Namgung-hui put down the microphone and stood in the center of the wide stage.
He took out a fan from within his robes.
“My skills are lacking, but I hope you enjoy the show.”
*Rumble!*
*Whoosh!*
As he finished speaking, a massive torrent of water shot toward him from the left, and scorching flames from the right.
Namgung-hui unfurled the fan in his hand and moved his body as if dancing.
A gentle breeze began to blow through the hall.
As the warm, soft, spring-like wind blew, the massive streams of water and fire pouring toward Namgung-hui began to move with it.
Water above, flames below.
The water and fire intertwined, forming a taegeuk symbol.
“Woah.”
It was a sight so beautiful that gasps of admiration escaped people's lips.
The water and fire, moving with the wind, danced through the air as if they were alive.
The astonishing part was that even though fire and water were mixed, the fire wasn't extinguished, and the water didn't vaporize.
Namgung-hui waved his fan as if painting on the air, using the water and fire to create human faces.
The one made of water was the face of Tamrangseong, Cheon Sang-gil; the one of fire was the face of Cheonseongseong, Demian Salvatore.
“May the two heroes rest in peace.”
As Namgung-hui snapped his wide-open fan shut, the faces of Demian and Cheon Sang-gil transformed into brilliantly shining constellations and slowly dispersed.
“Wooooow!”
“H-How can a person possibly…?”
“I heard he recently reached 10-Stars, and it seems he's completely mastered the Stigma of Leo!”
The people filling the hall cheered and burst into applause at the incredible display of skill Namgung-hui had shown.
“Haha. Thank you for enjoying my humble trick.”
Namgung-hui placed the fan back in his robe and bowed with picture-perfect posture.
After his bow, Namgung-hui handed the microphone to Wei, who was standing beside him, and stepped down from the stage.
“Everyone, plenty of food and drink has been prepared, so please enjoy yourselves to your heart's content today!”
With Wei's announcement, a small party began in the banquet hall.
Instead of the various delicacies on the tables, people began greeting those next to them and approaching famous Awakened to strike up conversations.
Since two of the twenty-eight people gathered here would become Seven Stars, they were likely trying to build connections in advance.
Of course.
*Slurp.*
Not a single person approached Oh-jin.
“…I'm sorry, Mr. Oh-jin.”
“Hm? For what?”
Oh-jin tilted his head, looking at the bowing Director Han.
Director Han clenched his cauldron-lid-sized fists, his face flushed red.
“If I'd known this would happen, I shouldn't have brought you to the opening ceremony…”
“Nah, I'm happy I got to eat some delicious food for free.”
“B-But!”
“If it's about what happened earlier, you don't need to worry about it.”
Oh-jin chuckled and shrugged.
Their loud yapping was a bit annoying, but not enough to truly bother him.
“Ah, there you are.”
Just then, Namgung-hui, who had been conversing with various famous figures, approached them.
“I am truly sorry about earlier.”
He extended a hand to Oh-jin with a good-natured smile.
“I don't care, so you can leave now.”
Oh-jin waved his hand dismissively while eating a dessert of thinly sliced tomatoes topped with cheese.
Namgung-hui's expression, his hand still awkwardly extended, twitched slightly.
But only for a moment.
He quickly resumed his bright smile and continued speaking.
“Given the circumstances, I hope you'll be patient even if people who don't recognize your qualities are rude to you.”
He bowed politely, a smirk playing on his lips.
“As the saying goes, three moments of patience can save a nation.”
It wasn't hard to understand his intention in changing 'person' to 'nation'.
‘Don't act up in front of China, is that it?’
A dry laugh escaped Oh-jin's lips before he knew it.
It was so blatant it was almost laughable.
“…Did I say something amusing?”
Namgung-hui narrowed his eyes slightly as he watched Oh-jin's wry smile.
Just as the atmosphere between them was growing hostile…
“Ah shit, how the hell is there not a single smoking room in this damn huge tower?”
The banquet hall doors burst open, and Ha-eun entered.
Dressed in a stylish black party dress, having clearly put some thought into her outfit, her eyes lit up when she spotted Oh-jin and she walked over.
“Hey, Oh-jini, you bastard, don't tell me you ate everything already?”
“The steak here is delicious.”
“Mine! Where's mine!”
“Eating two made it twice as good.”
“This fucking bastard.”
While Ha-eun was grilling Oh-jin, telling him to stop talking nonsense and give her her share…
“…Ah.”
Namgung-hui was staring intently at Ha-eun, looking as if he'd been struck by lightning.
The mouth that had held a smirk was now agape in shock, and his wide eyes couldn't seem to look away from her.
“How in the world could such…”
Namgung-hui trailed off, swallowing dryly.
Her beauty was so extraordinary it felt unreal, her body curved like the finest porcelain. Even the black eyepatch covering her left eye couldn't hide her beauty.
He had met countless women in his life, but never one so shockingly beautiful.
“Hm? Who's this guy?”
Ha-eun tilted her head, looking back at Namgung-hui, who was staring at her.
Namgung-hui cleared his throat with a small cough and approached Ha-eun.
“A pleasure to meet you. I am Namgung-hui.”
“Namgung-hui…? I feel like I've heard that name somewhere.”
“Haha. It's embarrassing, but I'm known by the title 'Wind God'.”
“Ah, now I remember.”
Ha-eun snapped her fingers and nodded.
She was sure she'd heard he was a pretty famous Awakened from China.
“If it isn't too much trouble, may I ask for your name?”
“It's Song Ha-eun.”
Ha-eun.
Repeating her name several times, Namgung-hui gave a faint smile.
The existence of Oh-jin had long since vanished from his mind.
“It seems there's no food left for you at this table, Ms. Ha-eun... How about joining me at mine?”
He didn't entertain the slightest thought that his offer would be rejected.
His natural good looks and a skill level high enough to be chosen as a candidate representative.
And what about his background?
Born as the eldest son of the Namgung family, China's most prestigious clan, he had reigned like a king within the country even before becoming an Awakened.
No matter if Oh-jin was the one and only Apostle of Vega, he couldn't compare to him.
‘It seems she has some kind of relationship with that guy, but…’
Still, if she'd heard of his title, 'Wind God', she must know.
That he was the most likely Awakened to become the next Seven Stars member.
There was no reason to refuse his offer—
“I don't want to.”
“…Excuse me?”
Not expecting such a clean rejection, Namgung-hui continued with a flustered expression.
“B-But there's no food for you to eat here, Ms. Ha-eun…”
“What do you mean there's none?”
Ha-eun sat on Oh-jin's lap and wrapped her arms around his neck.
“I can just eat my Oh-jini.”
“……”
Namgung-hui's expression twisted viciously.