Power

The negotiation with the Blue Guild went smoothly, almost as if the whole thing had been carried along on calm water.

At the same time my personal account was opened and the down payment arrived at once. The Heroic-grade item was still pending, but I had already been granted a position far beyond what I deserved.

It was exactly as promised.

To be honest, I had hesitated, however briefly, about whether I should go with Blue right to the end, but the more I learned, the more their advantages came into focus.

In the Red Mercenary Guild, authority was concentrated in the Guild Master, but Blue’s organizational structure was much more subdivided than I had expected.

There was the Guild Master, the Vice Guild Master, and beneath them six teams along with several administrative ranks.

In simple terms, Blue Guild was made up of six parties.

Each party ranged from five people to as many as fifteen.

I had no way of knowing how the other guilds were arranged, but I could understand why Kim Hyunsung had taken such a liking to Blue.

It’s easier when you move as a group.

Just as he wanted, the moment we entered, Blue established a new party.

Kim Hyunsung became the leader of the seventh party.

It was still too early to say that it had been officially approved, but it would settle into place soon enough.

That was everything Blue had originally ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠promised us.

What remained were the Heroic-grade item that had not yet been delivered and the position I would be given.

They must have agonized over where to assign me.

After all, they had to prepare a post that would not be outclassed by someone like Lee Seolho, a fossil who had outlived his time.

Of course, before long, a position was prepared for me.

Special Administrative Officer for Non-Combat Personnel.

It was the sort of title that looked vague and hastily stitched together at a glance.

It was unusual enough for someone already assigned to a party to be seated in an administrative role, but it was also Lee Sanghee’s way of making sure I had a foundation to grow alongside Kim Hyunsung’s party.

Good enough.

In any case, because of me, Blue Guild had taken on one more administrative post.

No one knew what duties had been assigned to me.

It was probably meant to mean general support across administrative work, but for the moment there was no way they could actually hand me much.

Even so, the fact that they had split up the position so urgently told me they were definitely hoping for something in return.

Well.

“Kiyoung, your present has arrived outside.”

“Ah. Thank you, Kim Hyunsung.”

I was the Red Mercenary Queen’s lover.

Shit...

I had known something was off the moment she said she’d do whatever she wanted, but I hadn’t expected her to storm in so blatantly like this.

I wondered whether this was her petty revenge on me for being so arrogant, but the fact that she was sending enormous gifts every day along with handwritten letters made it clear that, having decided to invest, she intended to do it properly.

And of course, she had gotten exactly what she wanted.

There would be at least no lunatic in the Holy Empire willing to pick a fight with the Red Mercenary Queen’s lover.

Still...

“This isn’t it.”

This kind of approach was a little different from what I had intended.

Of course, unlike the slightly frazzled me, Blue Guild was enjoying a sudden boom.

It had begun to grow rapidly closer to the most influential guild in the Holy Empire, the Red Mercenaries.

And since I was at the center of it all, my standing in the guild had risen too.

Still, that also meant I had no choice but to attract some unpleasant attention.

Because rumors like this were now spreading:

“The Red Mercenary Guild’s Mercenary Queen, Cha Heera, has fallen head over heels for a rookie who just came out of the Tutorial Dungeon. That rookie is now an executive in the Blue Guild, and he’s receiving the Mercenary Queen’s endless pursuit.”

There were other ridiculous rumors too.

That I was the kind of man who kept a hidden lover on the side while still doing this sort of thing. That I was excellent at getting people into bed. That Cha Heera and I had known each other since Earth. Nonsense, all of it.

Of course.

Every one of those rumors had been spread internally by the Red Mercenary Guild.

The gossip had already been completely saturated throughout the limited space around the entrance to the Tutorial Dungeon, so it had probably reached all the way to the Holy Empire’s doorstep by now.

Damn it...

While I stared blankly at the mountain of piled-up gifts, Kim Hyunsung, who was standing beside me, quietly spoke up.

He was probably just as flustered and bewildered as I was.

The Cha Heera he had in mind was surely nowhere near this.

“Would you be able to tell me what you discussed with her?”

“It wasn’t anything much. I only asked her to sponsor us. I don’t know why she’s doing this, but it’s probably some nasty joke.”

“Hmm... perhaps. But looking at these gifts, it does seem that you made a strong impression on her.”

At his words, I glanced toward the supplies stacked in front of the building and could only realize why this kind of misunderstanding felt so convincing.

This wasn’t all.

All sorts of catalysts used in alchemy were stacked up by the boxful.

On top of the highest box lay a handwritten letter, laid out as if to make her feelings impossible to miss.

This... damn it...

Of course, I didn’t hate it.

There was no way I could dislike being showered with free gifts and expensive goods.

To be honest, I didn’t even care that much about other people’s opinions.

The problem was Jung Hayan.

Obviously, it was only Jung Hayan.

The look on her face when the first gift arrived and the rumors began to spread was beyond words.

I had worried she might actually hurl magic at the presents Cha Heera had sent, but instead she simply filled her eyes with tears and tried not to look at them at all. It seemed she was stressed by the fact that she had nothing she could give me in return.

She knew better than anyone that, right now, she couldn’t do things like that for me.

Of course, I kept trying to reassure her that I had nothing to do with Cha Heera and that I loved only her, but Jung Hayan had begun spending more and more time alone in thought.

Her frantic devotion to magic had become so intense it looked almost as if she were punishing herself.

Other than the brief time she spent with me, she barely slept at all.

The same went for skinship.

Without even that, Jung Hayan probably wouldn’t have been able to endure.

It had been a time for us to reaffirm each other’s feelings, but from her perspective it was also a time to cleanse me of filth.

“What about Hayan?”

“Miss Hayan is probably by the lakeshore in the back. She seems to be training in water-based magic lately. You should be able to find her there. As for Deokgu... ”

“Deokgu?”

“Deokgu seems to be building a boat by the lake as well. He started this morning, it seems...”

“A boat?”

“Yes. Miss Hayan seems to think that because he keeps looking out over the lake, he might ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠want to go boating or something like that... For now, I left him to it, since it seems like it’s helping his training.”

For some reason, a chill ran down my spine for no apparent reason.

Park Deokgu...

I had no idea what kind of scheme he was cooking up this time, but it didn’t sound good. When I swallowed unconsciously, Kim Hyunsung spoke again.

“More importantly, how is your work going?”

“Yes. Of course. It’s still difficult ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to keep up with the meetings, but... I think I’m beginning to understand Blue a little. It seems that other places are now opening new Tutorial Dungeons as well. I think a transfer market will open before long, but unfortunately the guild itself doesn’t have the capacity to invest heavily in the conquest teams... At most, it’ll be one or two people. They seem to think there are more promising survivors, so they’ve decided to invest a little more in that direction.”

“I see... because of us.”

That was exactly right.

“You could put it that way. Still, if possible, I’m thinking it might be best to use the down payment for the people who’ll join our party...”

“That wouldn’t be a bad idea. The guild would probably be pleased as well.”

“Then that’s a relief. How about your side?”

“I think they’re considering sending Blue out into dungeons in collaboration with other parties. From the guild’s perspective, it would be the quickest way to make this side grow. Of course, that would only be after this matter is settled, but it would be best to prepare in advance.”

“Any idea which direction...?”

“That hasn’t been decided yet. Personally, I think it would be worthwhile to seek out an undiscovered dungeon, but it seems the guild is leaning toward basic hunting runs first.”

“Ah, I see.”

“Then I should head back for the meeting first. What about you, Kiyoung?”

“Ah. I’ll be leaving first.”

“Very well. Then I’ll see you shortly.”

It had been a surprisingly useful conversation.

When I glanced at Kim Hyunsung, I saw him nod slightly.

If Kim Hyunsung was the one thinking through where we should head next and moving us in that direction, then I would support him in everything outside that.

That meant bringing in people after the Tutorial was over, people who hadn’t been chosen at the market or had failed to choose, and sorting out those who had completed their training so we could bring them into our party.

Since we also needed to check whether any of them had past connections with us, Kim Hyunsung would have to look into the others as well, but at the moment it felt as though he wanted to leave the basic legwork to me.

I could tell I was doing better than he had imagined.

Even though it had only been a short time, I had already produced results beyond expectation, and it was a little amusing to see him think his instinct had been right.

I need to earn even more trust.

It was better if he thought I was useful in more ways than one.

Kim Hyunsung would undoubtedly come to think I’d gained a mind worth using.

As I moved my feet, I headed toward the training grounds where the people currently undergoing instruction were gathered.

It was the place where the survivors of the Tutorial Dungeon were being managed.

As I had discussed with Kim Hyunsung, basic training was nearly finished.

It was only natural that I should leave a little earlier than the others, both to prepare for recruitment and to draw up the list I would send to Cha Heera.

Of course, the people from the other Tutorial Dungeons were more important than these, but I thought it wouldn’t hurt to check in case there were survivors I didn’t know about.

“Blue Guild executives will be visiting today. After this short but long period of training, you will receive offers from each guild or submit applications. I would appreciate it if you all behaved in an orderly fashion.”

“Yes, sir.”

The training grounds ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠were in the middle of today’s instruction.

As I quietly moved, I could feel people greeting me from this side. Naturally, they weren’t the ones lined up on the grounds.

“You’ve been working hard.”

“Ah! N-no, sir, Team Leader.”

“I haven’t even been formally appointed yet, Instructor.”

“Haha. Still, aren’t you the one who’s going to become one of Blue’s pillars soon?”

“Thank you for saying that.”

“More than that, what brings you here...? There’s still a little time left...”

“Ah. I thought it would be good to take a look around in advance. Since you’ve granted me such an excessive post, I should show that I’m doing my best.”

“I see...”

It had been a brief conversation.

But it had definitely reached the people standing out in the glaring sun.

Those who didn’t know me merely looked tense, assuming some important figure had shown up, while the ones who had come out of the Shelter with me were unable to make sense of what was happening.

Power is a wonderful thing.

People who looked as if they couldn’t believe their eyes came into view.

So this is what it means to stand in line.

We had all fallen together, and we had all entered this place together.

And yet their position and mine had already changed by more than a hundred and eighty degrees.

Extremely so.