Instructor Wiji Yeon
Hum.
It was an early morning.
Having finished the morning aerobics that had stretched my tall frame, I stepped out of the main building with a satisfied smile on my face and began to survey the new branch of the Shingyo Guild.
“The guild has finally started to look like it belongs to the Heavenly Demon Cult.”
A vast branch equipped with all manner of conveniences and training facilities, and the countless elites already flocking to swear loyalty to the Heavenly Demon Cult.
Every last bit of it was the result of me personally putting in the work.
But it was still far from enough.
The Heavenly Demon Cult needed to be raised into the nation’s foremost guild, to thunder with its name, and ultimately to keep rolling even without me. Only then could I wander the world at ease.
The Heavenly Demon Cult still required my power. I had the duty to lead the warriors to higher realms.
Finances were another issue. The system had begun to stabilize, yet with the guild’s body swelling larger I would need to work even harder for money going forward.
Of course, personally venturing into gates was the most efficient route, but right now I had far too many tasks. I could not wander outside every single day. I would have to conduct gate reconnaissance across multiple fronts, just as other guilds did, including deploying radars.
Transporting my body also consumed the manpower of the Left and Right Guardians. Since they would shoulder the brunt of the guild’s expanded operations, I could not waste their time on gate exploration for long.
In that light, the recently recruited A-rank hunter specialized in detection, Park Dong-hwan, would be an excellent asset. It was necessary to further hone his skills so that the guild’s primary source of income, the treasure-hunting department, could be strengthened.
“If only my body were not one and the same.”
“Yeon-ah, today is your training instructor day, right?”
“Oh, Unnie Na-yeon.”
Kim Na-yeon had somehow already appeared before the main building.
It seemed she had come to escort me to the training dome before starting the day’s duties.
I cleared my throat and put on a face that pretended to be annoyed.
“Hmph, even I can walk around inside the guild now. I just need a car to accompany me on external gate explorations.”
“Hehe, sorry Unnie hasn’t been taking care of you lately. With the guild’s scale growing, there’s so much work for me as deputy guild master.”
“You don’t have to feel that sorry.”
Even as I said it, I slipped my hand out.
Kim Na-yeon smiled brightly and took my hand.
“I’ll have Da-yeon send him too.”
“Mhm.”
I took Kim Na-yeon’s hand and set off for the training dome.
“Everyone’s training enthusiasm is tremendous. This seat is delighted.”
I gazed at the guild members lost in meditation and wore a pleasant smile.
The central training dome, shaped like a gigantic dome.
After moving this branch here, this training dome building had been the one thing I liked most.
Compared to the training rooms of the old guild buildings, it was over ten times larger. The scale rivaled the central dojang of a major murim sect or faction.
A vast dome that resembled a sports stadium, complete with barrier facilities allowing battles that used abilities. It also housed private training rooms, practice halls, and mana inspection chambers.
The grandmaster of martial arts, the Heavenly Demon Wiji Yeon.
Reinterpreting the ultimate formula of the Taecheon Jeon-gyeong Simbeop to adapt it to the world’s mana was child’s play for me.
Since the essence of inner energy and mana was the same, it was not difficult at all. However, because the final properties of naturally absorbed and recovered mana differed from refined inner energy, I had to process it once when teaching the technique to hunters who already possessed mana.
In practice, the warriors training here were steadily increasing their maximum mana capacity through the Taecheon Jeon-gyeong Simbeop.
The hunters who had only known how to wield the power of awakening as a gift would have to endure a tedious training process that might last decades or more before reaching realms beyond their current limits. It was still unknown whether they could do it.
But the mere fact that the path to hunter growth had been opened was significant. It provided a sufficient starting point to change the hunter community’s habit of relying only on mysterious level-uppers found somewhere.
At first the warriors had been surprised that a child who looked so small was teaching them, but over time they began to listen to my words and internalize the mysteries of the Taecheon Jeon-gyeong Simbeop into their bodies.
All of them had been permeated by this seat’s aura as grandmaster.
They gained strength when they did exactly as taught.
How could they not obey?
Still.
Today too I tilted my head at what I had sensed.
“Hmm, the gender balance is off again.”
Only on days of teaching the Wiji Yeon Inner Energy Lecture were there so many female hunters.
Did the male hunters only go out on actual combat days?
I would have to change the lecture schedule.
After the morning lecture, a little free time remained until lunch.
“Yeon-ah!”
Splat-splat, First Disciple Lee Da-yeon came running toward me with her snow-white hair flying wildly.
Thud.
“Little Cult Leader, shall we head to the welfare center again today?”
“Mhm. When lunch time comes, I’ll go to the main building to eat.”
“And, um…”
I glanced around casually.
The moment the lecture ended, the female hunters gathered around me began to sparkle with light in their eyes.
“Instructor Wiji Yeon, thank you for your hard work!”
“How was it today?”
I wore a gloomy expression.
“Unfortunately, there is still no money in this seat’s wallet today.”
“Really? Deputy Guild Master doesn’t give pocket money?”
“Even if this seat earns money, Unnie Na-yeon manages it all.”
“Uuu, Deputy Guild Master is so mean!”
“Exactly. Unnie Na-yeon is the worst.”
I nodded with a face that pretended to be angry.
It was outrageous that Na-yeon, who did not give a single coin to the me working so hard, refused.
Of course, allowance was allowance, but the snack time and its quantity were always fixed. This way I could not eat as much as I wanted.
“Unnie will buy you some today.”
“Instructor Yeon-ah, what do you want to eat? Like last time, strawberry parfait? Or, the dessert shop next door says their tiramisu is the best right now.”
“Oh, that sounds good too. Hmm… this is worrying.”
Da-yeon pulled at my sleeve with an anxious expression.
“Yeon-ah… will I be scolded again for leaving rice? And if Unnie Na-yeon finds out, I’ll cause trouble for the hunter unnies.”
“Little Cult Leader does not want sweet desserts?”
“…I do want to eat them.”
“Then let’s eat when Unnie buys. The Left Guardian is busy lately, so she won’t be able to monitor us.”
“I-I don’t know!”
Even as I said that, I squeezed the hands of the unnies.
My own hands were also now held by the female hunters.
Da-yeon and I headed to the welfare center, giggling.
***
“Hah, we may have to recruit more administrative staff.”
“With the guild’s scale growing, there really are far too many things to worry about.”
In the main building of the Shingyo Guild, the master’s office.
Today too, Kim Na-yeon and Kim Do-yoon, worn out by endless work, wore expressions of deep fatigue.
“Uwaa~! I just want a little rest!”
Kim Na-yeon threw herself face-down on the desk as if slamming the documents shut.
Kim Do-yoon kept typing on the keyboard.
“Now we have to constantly monitor not only internal guild matters but also the movements of the Jeokpung side.”
“Jeokpung? It has been quiet for a long time, hasn’t it? They got beaten by the Five Great Guilds and now aren’t causing any more trouble.”
“In the eye of a typhoon, things are calm. Lee Myeong-won cannot afford to be careless. He may be plotting something right now.”
“…Then is it alright to use Yeon-ah as the instructor?”
“He said he wants to do it himself.”
“I’m worried it might stand out too much.”
Kim Na-yeon’s concern was justified.
A brand-new child teaching hunters?
Even if everyone had accepted the situation and it now felt natural, with the guild’s scale increasing it was impossible to completely block leaks outside.
Word would definitely spread.
Lee Myeong-won would find out too.
Kim Do-yoon smiled wryly, as if telling me not to worry.
“It’s deliberate that we let Yeon-ah do what he wants. If we don’t keep him hidden in our arms forever, we’ll have to face it sooner or later, won’t we?”
“True, but…”
“Our guild is no longer easy. Yeon-ah is even more diligent than us? As long as the Heavenly Demon remains, the Shingyo Guild will grow stronger and firmer with each passing day.”
“Yeon-ah said he would help with that… ‘rebirth of bone and muscle’ soon, right?”
“Mhm. It’s the process that true S-rank hunters must go through.”
“Our oppa has become a complete modified human? You said you were stuffing level-uppers into his stomach, and he can actually do it.”
“Thanks to Yeon-ah, we’re strong. Lee Myeong-won has to be stopped by me no matter what.”
As said, the Right Guardian Raising Project led by Wiji Yeon was nearing completion.
Kim Do-yoon’s body, already stuffed with countless level-uppers discovered so far, was on the verge of becoming an S-rank hunter.
“Recently, veteran treasure hunter Park Dong-hwan and hunter Yang Tae-seon have joined. Our instructor’s capabilities will be even more needed going forward. Since Park Dong-hwan has been famous for detection since before, he could be utilized as a second gate-detection radar after learning from Yeon-ah.”
“Waa, treating hunter-unnie as if they were items…”
Kim Na-yeon, sticking out her tongue in disgust, sighed and headed toward the window.
And with a proud expression she looked out over the vast grounds of the Shingyo Guild.
The siblings’ guild, which had begun as a small building, had grown like this after picking up the girl named Wiji Yeon.
A dangerous experiment.
The girl’s knowledge, which would have caused a bloodbath if misused.
But the siblings were raising the girl properly.
Going forward, Wiji Yeon’s power would be used for the sake of humanity.
“Our little cutie, did her lecture go well today?”
“It’s almost lunch time, isn’t it? Let’s go eat with the kids soon.”
“…Huh?”
When Kim Na-yeon had been looking out the window at the guild, her gaze stopped in front of the welfare center.
Right in front of a cafe on the first floor of the welfare center, dozens of female hunters were bustling about.
“Why are so many hunters crowding over there?”
Just as Kim Na-yeon tilted her head, two fluffy black-and-white bundles appeared, slurping on their smoothies.
The bundles were surrounded by the female hunters and disappeared with a whoosh into a dessert shop nearby.
“…!”
Kung-kung-kung-kung-kung!
Kim Na-yeon stomped her feet furiously and stormed out of the office.
“Where is Na-yeon going?”
“To catch the troublemakers who won’t listen. …No wonder she hasn’t been eating lunch much lately.”
“Aigoo.”
Kim Do-yoon chuckled and prayed for the two girls’ good health.