Loyalty Test (2)
A day had passed.
Replies had come in from each of the guilds, but every last one was nothing more than a polite check-in asking if everyone was all right.
Aside from Midas's Hand, not a single one had mentioned the Owl.
Hyun Si-woon nodded to himself and sent a message to Yoon Tae-shik.
Proceed with the plan as arranged.
"Tsk."
Yoon Tae-shik clicked his tongue the moment he received the news.
Truthfully, he had expected as much.
In the face of crisis, human nature always showed itself.
He dispatched the pre-written mail he had already prepared to the three guild masters.
The attached footage was something Hyun Si-woon had filmed in advance.
A dark basement. Glowing orbs of radiant light scattered across the floor. The moment a hand picked one up, it transformed into an item. A short, devastating clip.
Lumi's figure had been carefully edited out of existence.
Anyone who watched it would have no choice but to believe that place was the true source of the miracle—an irresistible, fatal temptation.
Medalist Guild.
Leader Won Seong-jun shared the contents of the mail with the core members gathered in the conference room.
"The Owl contacted us again. What do you all think?"
Tension settled across the faces of athletes who had once stood at the absolute peak of their respective sports.
"It's a trap."
A burly man stated it flatly.
"The timing is far too perfect. The moment the Wandering Merchant's supply cuts off, the Owl makes this offer. That means this entire situation was orchestrated by someone."
"I agree. It could even be… the Wandering Merchant testing us."
A sharp-featured woman who had once been a fencer nodded in agreement.
Won Seong-jun wordlessly inclined his head. He held the same suspicion.
But not everyone was convinced.
"A test?"
Gwak Cheol-san—former weightlifter and the guild's action captain—snorted.
"Make sense for once. If this really is a test, shouldn't we have reported it to the Wandering Merchant the first time the Owl contacted us? We just sat on our hands back then."
His point was sharp. The fencing woman countered at once.
"We didn't have enough information then. Moving rashly would have been stupid. But this is different. The Owl is actively soliciting betrayal. That crosses a clear line."
"Line? Stop talking like you don't understand how the world works."
Gwak Cheol-san tapped the table with his fingers.
"This is an opportunity. An opportunity! Did you even watch the video? With that thing we could rake in insane amounts of TC! We could equip every guild member with rare items! How long are we supposed to tiptoe around the Wandering Merchant and settle for scraps? It's time we make our own move!"
"Gwak Cheol-san!"
Won Seong-jun's bark silenced the room. Gwak Cheol-san clamped his mouth shut, but resentment still burned in his eyes.
Haa…
Won Seong-jun clutched his head. This was exactly the Medalist Guild's greatest flaw.
Every member had once stood at the summit of their field, so every last one of them had an oversized ego. Their individual physiques and competitive fire were outstanding, their judgment and breakthrough power in crisis situations excellent—but their pride soared into the heavens.
And there was another reason for his headache.
Kang Si-a…
The legendary archer who had once approached them seeking a partnership contract. She was unmistakably a member of the Wandering Merchant's team.
Won Seong-jun recalled their brief meeting—the overwhelming presence, the absolute trust shining in her eyes whenever she spoke of her leader.
Would a team that includes her really collapse this easily?
He found it hard to believe.
If this truly was a test, and if they made the wrong choice here, their connection with Kang Si-a and their entire relationship with the Wandering Merchant would be finished.
Won Seong-jun closed his eyes.
What was the most correct move?
At first he had considered simply forwarding the Owl's proposal to the Wandering Merchant. But that was far too naïve.
If the Owl really is receiving information from an insider on the Wandering Merchant's side…
The moment they reported this, the Owl would sever contact with them at once. Then the chance at the "vending machine" might vanish forever.
Conversely, if this really was a test?
Probing half-heartedly could cost them the partnership entirely.
Caught between a rock and a hard place.
After a stretch of silence, he finally spoke.
"Gwak Cheol-san, your point has merit. But the risk is far too high."
Won Seong-jun rendered his final decision.
"For now, we remain silent."
"Silent?"
the woman echoed.
"Yes. We never received this mail."
His eyes turned cold and sharp.
"We just so happened to begin climbing the Tower yesterday. That is why we never checked the mail. A natural alibi. From here on we thoroughly observe how the Wandering Merchant side reacts."
It was the most cunning yet safest method—leaving room open toward both sides.
A two-handed strategy that would preserve both loyalty and opportunity.
No one raised further objection to Won Seong-jun's decision.
Dandelion Seed Guild.
"…What should we do about this?"
The young mother's voice—the guild master—trembled with anxiety.
Angry-faced guild members pressed in around her.
"What do you mean, Guild Master?! We obviously accept the offer!"
"Did you see the video? With that we can feed every single one of our members and still have leftovers! We don't even know if the Wandering Merchant is alive or dead—how long are we supposed to sit here sucking our thumbs?"
"But… that would be betrayal. The people who reached out to us first…"
"Betrayal my ass! This is business! Business! They need our strength too, don't they? This is a legitimate transaction!"
The man's agitation rapidly tipped the internal consensus.
"He's right. Let's at least meet and hear the conditions."
"If we stay like this we'll all starve together."
Under the pressure pouring in from every direction, the guild master's face drained of color.
In the end she abandoned resistance.
With trembling fingers she managed to send a reply.
Passive, but she had ultimately fallen for the temptation.
And finally—
Unity Guild conference room.
Cheers erupted inside.
"Hahahaha! Heaven itself is helping us!"
The guild master roared with laughter after reading the Owl's mail.
"Congratulations, Guild Master!"
"Looks like the world is about to become ours, doesn't it?"
They were not fools either. They understood the circumstances strongly suggested a trap laid by the Wandering Merchant side.
But that doesn't matter.
Only one thing mattered to him.
The Owl Guild truly knew the Wandering Merchant's location!
The video cannot be fake.
It had been recorded through the status window and sent via the community system—manipulation was impossible. In the footage, an absurd volume of items was clearly pouring out like a vending machine.
If that was real, everything else was secondary.
"First we make contact with the Owl. Tell them we'll take care of the profit split or whatever else. What matters is seeing it with our own eyes."
Once they saw it, the rest would be simple.
Threats, force, any means necessary—they would make it theirs.
I feel bad for the Wandering Merchant who first extended a hand… but it can't be helped.
Their guild numbered twenty members. Every one of them was an elite special-forces veteran.
This world is already ruined. To grow stronger we can't just live as nice people forever.
A warrior must not become a dog.
He must become a lion.
"A lion does not wait for someone else to hand him food. He hunts it down and rips it apart himself."
The guild master's gaze dominated the room.
"The vending machine the Wandering Merchant possesses. Once we seize that, we will never again need to watch anyone's face. We will become the kings of this country. We will monopolize every resource and establish the order ourselves. That is the position we rightfully deserve."
Truly enormous ambition.
"Haa."
"So in the end…"
Sighs escaped inside the Eden Camp conference room.
"…they want to meet and talk."
Deep disappointment colored Baek Do-hee's voice.
Dandelion Seed. She had discovered them herself and had empathized with their pitiful circumstances more than anyone. Yet they had still wavered under temptation.
Passive or not, they had clearly set foot across the threshold of betrayal.
"Noona, the ones I picked are even bigger trash."
Hwang Dae-un spoke with self-mocking bitterness.
Unity Guild's reaction had been blatant—an aggressive desire to meet. Greed and ambition glittered openly inside it.
"…"
Kang Si-a simply closed her eyes.
From her perspective, even sitting on the sidelines counted as betrayal. It was not as brazen, but they had clearly failed the qualifications of a partner guild.
Baek Yeon-ho let out a long sigh.
"In the end the only ones we can trust were Midas's Hand."
"Right."
Hyun Si-woon nodded.
"Well, it's actually fortunate. We only selected them as a trial run from the beginning. The faster we cut out the ones who aren't fit, the better."
Still…
He could understand Medalist. Greed was something anyone could feel.
"Si-a."
"Yes."
"Notify Medalist that their partnership qualification is revoked. As for the profits they've earned so far… well, they put in some work, so we'll let that slide."
"…We're just letting it go?"
"Why?"
"It's nothing."
Kang Si-a bit her lip lightly.
Si-woon might say he was letting it go, but she absolutely could not. Betraying their guild master and deceiving her—whatever the cost, she would make them pay.
Hyun Si-woon tilted his head slightly, then continued.
"The real problem is the other two guilds."
Dandelion Seed and Unity.
Their greed had crossed into pure gall.
They're seriously planning to meet the Owl Guild?
In truth Si-woon's anger burned hotter toward them than toward Medalist. Simply tearing up the contract would not be enough for these ones.
We can't just let this slide.
At the very least he intended to force them to spit out every last coin of profit they had earned so far.
Barely two weeks. Not a long period, yet the TC they had made through distribution could not have been small.
"We're going further with these two."
"Further?"
Baek Yeon-ho asked back.
"Yeah. We actually set a real appointment through the Owl. We'll tell them the Wandering Merchant is at an abandoned factory on the outskirts."
"So we confirm with our own eyes whether they actually show up at that place?"
Baek Yeon-ho's eyes glittered.
"We have to teach them thoroughly that betrayal carries a price, don't we?"
At Si-woon's words the gloomy atmosphere of the conference room flipped in an instant.
"Khh, now that sounds good, hyung-nim!"
"We have to cut the sprouts clean. Make an example so they never even think of stabbing us in the back again."
"Agreed. I can't just swallow this sense of betrayal either."
Jang Cha-yul lifted the corners of her mouth in agreement. The earlier disappointment had vanished from her eyes, replaced by a sharp gleam.
"I agree as well. This isn't something we can forgive out of pity. The knot has to be tied cleanly."
Even Baek Do-hee nodded.
Hyun Si-woon rose from his seat.
"Everyone, gear up for combat and prepare to move. Cha-yul-noona, contact the Owl and set the meeting place and time."
"Okay!"
"Understood, hyung-nim!"