Chapter 269
Chapter 269
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 269
Chapter Title: Return (3)
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“I heard. Jeon Do-jin, that friend of mine, is dead. I couldn’t even see him off.”
Choi Dae-han said with a bitter expression.
It was the first time the guild masters had gathered in a while.
Kim Ji-hyeon was still nowhere to be seen, likely still handling the aftermath in Busan.
“A transcendent-grade monster… To think something like that existed. It's unbelievable.”
Lee Min-hwa, having heard about the events in America, shook her head.
“Even with the Disaster of Defiance, we would have suffered immense damage if not for Kim Se-hyeon-nim. But to think that even that was only a mid-tier disaster… I can't even imagine how strong a transcendent-grade, the next level up, would be.”
Seong Woo-hyeon let out a long sigh.
Neither the Primeval Fiend nor the Dragon of Demise had been able to use their full power.
It was also true they were so focused on attacking each other that they paid little attention to their surroundings.
And yet, the aftermath of their battle alone had decimated Washington and its vicinity.
‘If my judgment had been even a little late…’
The Primeval Fiend might have become incomparably stronger, reaching a point where it truly couldn't be stopped.
“Hmph.”
“Where are you going?”
“We've heard everything we need to. I'd rather spend this time getting stronger. If what Kim Se-hyeon says is true, we need to overcome our limits as soon as possible, don't we?”
Having stood up, Kim Hyo-jong's eyes turned to Choi Yeon-soo.
“You're no exception. Even if you're shifting your focus to being an information guild, as the master of one of the five major guilds, you must possess martial strength.”
Although she was officially recognized when she took over the vacant guild master position of the Taegeuk Guild, Choi Yeon-soo's personal strength was far from sufficient for the role.
In terms of raw power, she could, at best, barely hold her own against a C-rank.
‘Her other abilities are outstanding enough to compensate for it, so it's fine, but…’
That was giving her a generous assessment.
Strictly speaking, considering the Taegeuk Guild's current situation, she was indeed lacking in stature.
Not outstanding, yet not falling behind—an ambiguous position.
That was the current state of Choi Yeon-soo and the Taegeuk Guild.
“I'll keep that in mind.”
“That guy is strong. Get some tutoring from him or something.”
Kim Hyo-jong gestured toward me with his eyes and walked out.
Tutoring, huh.
Come to think of it, I did teach the twins and Jeong Ha-yeon before to help them quickly raise their mana proficiency.
‘She's not here.’
After she obtained the ‘Eye of Justice’, her animosity toward me had decreased significantly.
If the right opportunity arose, we might be able to close the distance between us again.
“Min-hwa unni. Where did Ha-yeon unni go?”
“She's on a mission. Unofficial guilds have been getting active again lately, so she's busy maintaining public order. She went to another region to attack their main base and root them out, so she'll probably be back in a few days.”
“I wanted to see her…”
“I'll let you know when she gets back.”
Listening to Lee Min-hwa and Jo Min-ah's conversation, I turned to Seong Woo-hyeon.
“Hwang Chan-jin was part of Jamryong, wasn't he?”
“He's a member in name only. He always operates alone, so it hardly feels like he's one of us.”
Seong Woo-hyeon smiled wryly.
Jun Bo-ra at least helps the Hongryeon Guild from time to time, but Hwang Chan-jin seems like the type to just take the support upon joining and then do nothing.
Choi Dae-han was talking with Cha Eun-ha about something.
If I strained my ears, I could tell they were talking about Jeon Do-jin.
Since Jeon Do-jin and Choi Dae-han were old friends, he must have had many stories to share with Cha Eun-ha.
“Choi Yeon-soo. What happened with the thing I asked you to look into?”
“I ordered them to finish the investigation before I left for Busan. They should have found something by now.”
“Then I guess we should stop by the Taegeuk Guild.”
The real regressor who appeared in EOA.
He didn't have a trait like Mysticism that prevented others from checking his information, so confirming his status would make everything clear.
Whether the leader of Salvatio truly possessed the regression ability or not.
‘Among all abilities, the only one related to regression is the one the regressor possesses.’
That was a law without exception.
The five EX-rank unique abilities: ‘Regression, Reincarnation, Transmigration, Possession, and Future Sight’.
No other powers with similar effects existed, and they all already had owners.
In other words, if the original regressor still had his regression ability, then that man’s words were a lie.
“We'll be heading out first. Oh, and Seong Woo-hyeon-nim, you might be having a welcome guest soon.”
“…?”
***
“An applicant?”
As soon as we arrived at the Taegeuk Guild, a flustered guild member led us inside.
“An applicant suddenly showed up… but, um, he's a bit stubborn. He says he doesn't need to talk to us and just keeps demanding to see the guild master. He insists he has to speak with her directly…”
Joining a guild had its procedures.
Given how busy a guild master was, it was rare for them to conduct the interview themselves.
Moreover, the Taegeuk Guild wasn't in a position to be picky if they wanted to regain their former size.
Anyone could join after passing a simple test.
In other words, there was no reason to demand a private meeting with the guild master just to apply.
“His personality is already showing. Hmm. What should we do, Lea… Kim Se-hyeon?”
“Weren't you the one who said you'd recruit someone with outstanding abilities even if their personality was trash?”
“That's true, but there's still a line. Well, I guess we'll meet him and then decide. What's the applicant's name?”
“His name is Kim Hee-chan.”
“Recruit him.”
The moment I heard the name, all hesitation washed away.
Meanwhile, Choi Yeon-soo and the others looked dumbfounded.
“What's with the sudden change? Shouldn't we at least meet him first?”
“No need. If it's him, recruit him unconditionally. A diamond just rolled in on its own.”
Kim Hee-chan.
Min Gyeong-hoon's lifelong rival, an eccentric whose thoughts were impossible to read. A recluse who would vanish without a trace if you looked away for a moment.
And, a once-in-a-generation genius.
Just when I was considering recruiting Min Gyeong-hoon, a true genius even greater than him appeared.
And of his own accord.
“It might not be the person you know. It could be someone with the same name.”
“We're going to meet him anyway, but I'm sure it's him.”
That name, and that eccentric behavior born from confidence in his own skills.
In EOA, there was only one person like that.
But with this, would it be a little harder to draw in Min Gyeong-hoon?
‘No.’
I smirked.
If Min Gyeong-hoon heard that Kim Hee-chan joined on his own, there was no way he would stay put.
A hundred out of a hundred times, he would storm in, declare that he was more capable than that guy, and demand to be recruited too.
It was like getting two of the best talents I needed at once without lifting a finger.
One of my worries vanished just like that, without me doing a thing.
“Then let's go see him.”
“Ah, this way.”
“For you to say that, just what kind of person is he?”
“He's incredible. Especially for the direction the Taegeuk Guild is heading, he's a necessary talent.”
Following the guild member's lead, we entered a reception room and saw someone's back.
“…Ah. You're Kim Se-hyeon?”
A skinny man with prominent dark circles barely sipped his coffee as he nodded his head.
“I figured you'd be here soon, but my prediction was a little off.”
“Something unexpected came up.”
As if greeting an old friend, I answered familiarly and pulled up a nearby chair to sit.
Speaking informally to someone he had just met, as if he had known them forever, was a trait of Kim Hee-chan's.
Matching his tone would give off the nuance of ‘I know you, too’.
Choi Yeon-soo, seemingly deciding to leave it to me for now, took a seat a short distance away.
“Still, it was within the margin of error.”
Kim Hee-chan put down his empty coffee cup.
“So you knew when we would arrive?”
“A calculation, to be precise. The reason for an action. The destination. And the time needed to resolve the incident. Analysis and prediction based on a lot of information can let you see a little bit of the future. It's on a completely different level of difficulty than a weather forecast, but it's not impossible.”
I let a slight smile play on my lips.
Choi Yeon-soo's expression had already changed.
“And I came looking for the person with the real power, not the superficial guild master.”
Kim Hee-chan yawned languidly and watched me.
Although Choi Yeon-soo maintained her poker face, she couldn't hide the twitching of her eyebrow.
“What are you talking about…”
“It's fine. No use trying to hide it. You must already be certain.”
Only the guild masters knew about that.
Even the twins, Jun Bo-ra, and Hwang Chan-jin all believed Choi Yeon-soo was the Taegeuk Guild's master, so there shouldn't have been anyone else who knew.
But for Kim Hee-chan, it was possible.
As he himself said earlier, Kim Hee-chan was someone who could make predictions bordering on prophecy based on various pieces of information about a person: ‘They will make this judgment, and as a result, they will take this action’.
In truth, it probably wasn't that difficult a deduction.
Knowing that Choi Yeon-soo followed me and called me ‘Leader’ would be enough to reach that conclusion.
I clasped my hands together and asked.
“Then, may I hear your reason for wanting to join the guild?”
“My younger cousin told me you helped her out a lot.”
“Your cousin?”
“You might not know her. She's just one of the many people you've saved. But to me, she's my only cousin. The important thing is that you saved her; that's all that matters. We lived nearby since we were young and were like real siblings, so she's quite precious to me. She's a very delicate child, so it's a miracle she's even survived this long. With that much explanation, you should get the gist of why I'm here, right?”
Kim Hee-chan stood up from his seat.
Then, he walked a few steps toward me and readily extended his hand.
“From now on, I'll work for you. No, won't you let me work for you?”
I quietly looked down at his hand.
His words, his actions. There wasn't a hint of falsehood in any of it.
There was no reason to refuse.
I took Kim Hee-chan's hand.
At that, Kim Hee-chan gave a faint smile.
“By the way, could you tell me when I saved your cousin?”
“There was that time you and Kim Ji-hyeon struggled to save those students, right? It was then.”
“…A student from that middle school?”
I wondered if she had managed to escape the stadium safely.
It had been weighing on my mind.
How many of those kids had actually survived?
Even if this was a world where you had to survive on your own, I wondered if I had abandoned them too easily just because the situation was difficult.
Suddenly, a hollow laugh escaped me.
I had resolved to become ruthless, but it seemed I hadn't quite managed it.
“According to her, you saved her twice.”
“Did I?”
I wasn't sure, but there was no need for me to give a specific answer here.
“Kim Hee-chan!!”
Just then, someone burst through the door.
It was Min Gyeong-hoon.
I had only sent him a text telling him Kim Hee-chan was here as soon as I confirmed it, but at this speed, he must have run here immediately.
“Perfect timing! Let's settle the score we couldn't finish back then!”
“Ah…”
Kim Hee-chan's face was practically radiating annoyance.
His eyes met mine, as if reproaching me for telling Min Gyeong-hoon he was here.
When I gave a slight smile, he sighed as if he understood what had happened.
Soon, Kim Hee-chan pointedly ‘provoked’ Min Gyeong-hoon.
“If you're that desperate for a match, it's better to do it with clear standards. I'm a member here now, so you should join too and we can compete with our results.”
“That's what I was hoping for!! Huh?”
“We always welcome talented people.”
Choi Yeon-soo, who had been waiting for this, quickly grabbed Min Gyeong-hoon's hand and stamped it with the seal.
A bewildered Min Gyeong-hoon was stunned for a moment before shouting that it was invalid, but his attitude changed immediately after Choi Yeon-soo whispered something in his ear.
It had only been a few minutes, but it seemed Choi Yeon-soo had already figured out how to handle Min Gyeong-hoon.
Kim Hee-chan gave me a look that said, ‘Is this good enough?’ and I gave him a thumbs-up.
“First, this is the information about the regressor I asked you to look into.”
Choi Yeon-soo handed over a stack of papers.
Then, Kim Hee-chan silently offered something similar.
“I heard the Taegeuk Guild was asking around about someone called a regressor, so I looked into a few things myself. Since I caused a scene demanding to be let in, I figured I should at least bring this much.”
“What's that!? Wait! I'll go investigate and be right back!”
“You can use a computer on the third floor.”
“Thanks!”
At Choi Yeon-soo's words, Min Gyeong-hoon hurriedly left the room.
An employee so eager to do company work.
I chuckled and checked the documents.
The regressor, Nakajima Kibou.
The documents detailed not only his movements and the powers he used, but also the current situation in Japan.
The regressor himself wasn't much different from in EOA, but the circumstances surrounding him were the problem.
‘I wonder how the sponsors in Japan will try to use the regressor…’
As I slowly read through, my eyes stopped at a sentence about the Yamato Guild's movements.
“…What is this.”