The Only Sane One
Indeed, it seemed I was the only normal person left in this team. SC's normalization was nearly complete, and the AD Carry's condition was stabilizing nicely. Still, I couldn't shake the feeling that I was overlooking something important. Securing a top laner for next year? The upcoming scrims against ZX? Both were high priority, but neither required immediate action. We could fill the top lane with prospects from the third team that SC was already grooming as future stars. As for the ZX scrims, the Worlds patch hadn't even dropped yet, so there was no need to worry.
Whenever it feels like this, something big always happens...
While I was mulling it over in the company lounge, Jaehyun knocked and stepped inside. In that instant, I realized exactly what I'd been missing.
"Saintess... would you have a moment to talk?"
Jaehyun still wasn't used to seeing me outside the game. The moment our eyes met, he froze and spoke formally, but then he seemed to remember I'd told him to drop the honorifics even in daily life and switched to casual speech.
"...If you're busy right now, we can talk later. Just message me whenever you're free."
"No, I actually needed to talk to you too. Sit down. Let's chat properly."
Satisfied that his overall demeanor and tone had softened considerably compared to our first meeting, I gestured for him to speak first. Jaehyun immediately brought up the topic I'd been meaning to discuss.
"You remember that guy Shin Hojin who tried to ruin my career, right? He's actually my cousin. We trained together to become pro gamers since we were kids, but in the end he ended up inheriting his father's business."
So Shin Hojin had probably exploded with jealousy toward his younger cousin who was living the dream he'd failed to achieve. That must have been why he'd bribed STD's top laner, mid laner, and support.
What a pathetic piece of work.
An executive at an STD affiliate, still clinging to old grudges and taking it out on his innocent cousin. It was both pitiful and disgusting.
"Um... are you listening?"
"Yeah. Keep going."
"Anyway, the reason I brought up Shin Hojin is because it looks like he's connected to an actual criminal organization."
"Seeing how Jeon Ganghyuk and Choi Minjun got completely shut out of the entire VA scene, not just our team, it seems like you've been indirectly pulling strings. But if the other side is moving as an organization, one wrong move could backfire on the people trying to handle them."
"That's why I came to tell you we should be a little more careful from now on."
Hold on... an organization? I recalled that the match-fixing incident had also involved a related group. Their name was definitely Quadra something. Back then, the ZX coach Shin Jaejun had been at the center of it. If Shin Jaehyun and Shin Hojin were cousins, and both had the massive corporation STD behind them...
Then Shin Hojin and Shin Jaejun were almost certainly connected, and it was basically confirmed that the organization backing them had ties to STD's affiliates. That meant the match-fixing and the recent solicitation incident were likely the work of the same group.
So what we caught last time was only part of the organization... It's bigger than I thought.
"Why the sudden serious face?"
Jaehyun looked puzzled by my intense expression. I brushed it off and quickly stood up.
"It's nothing. I just need to think about something."
"I should go check on a few things right now. Let's continue this at lunch or during break."
"Oh, and thanks for the info."
Jaehyun tried to stop me as I rose abruptly, clearly sensing something was off.
"...No, I'm telling you it's dangerous."
I appreciated the concern, but the moment criminal organizations entered the picture, the real danger lay with STD's affiliates and that group—not with us.
* * *
The organization's name, which I'd looked into with my sister, was Quadra Ground. On the surface it was a mid-sized agency representing players and coaches, but in reality it was a criminal syndicate steeped in match-fixing and tampering. With one of STD's affiliates already involved behind the scenes, its growth was clearly alarming. We needed to uproot these organizations before they grew larger and sank deeper roots into the VA scene.
"So how long do you think it'll take to deal with them properly?"
I asked my sister, wanting it handled as quickly as possible. She replied that some delay was inevitable.
"We could expose them anytime, but if we do it now it'll damage STD's other affiliates too. We also have to consider the sponsors coming in after SC's rebranding..."
"I think we should notify STD first, reach an agreement, and then gradually dismantle them once the league season starts in earnest."
That meant we'd have to keep an eye on them until the league opened.
Nothing major better happen before then.
Waiting passively wasn't in my nature, but the situation left me no choice. With a hint of reluctance, I headed to the cafeteria. There, Shin Jaehyun and Kim Yohan—who still had to play as bot duo for SC—were eating while debating the draft meta. Those two are really something, I thought, then glanced at the next table where Park Seongjun sat eating alone.
"Is there anything making you uncomfortable?"
The moment I sat across from him and spoke, he jumped in shock and responded with explosive formality.
"Y-Yes! Saintess! Nothing is uncomfortable!"
Since he seemed to have a good grasp of the players, I'd given him the role of coach and analyst. Whether or not he'd truly earned the title of S-tier jungler in his past life, he was throwing himself into the job with genuine passion and competence. The only problem was...
He's way too much when it comes to me...
He seemed to like me to an excessive degree. The man who'd once been infamous for his foul mouth and venomous personality had apparently changed after I gave him financial stability. He analyzed players' strengths and weaknesses in meticulous detail and suggested ways to compensate for their flaws, yet the only time he showed any lack of manners was when he spoke a bit harshly to Jaehyun. Even that could be excused now that I'd more or less confirmed Jaehyun as a starter.
In some ways he'd improved dramatically, but the moment I remembered he was still staring at me with that same crazed look in his eyes, it became clear the man was still twisted somewhere inside.
Yeah, I'm still the only normal person on this team.
While I met that gaze with a somewhat complicated expression, Park Seongjun suddenly seemed to remember something and asked a question.
"Saintess, if it's not too rude, may I ask you something?"
Good grief. The guy was twenty-two this year, yet he spoke so formally to a nineteen-year-old... Well, Kim Yohan did the same. Why did every older person around me insist on using honorifics? Was I that hard to approach?
"You can speak casually."
Unlike Shin Jaehyun, who had obediently switched, Park Seongjun thought for a moment before shaking his head, determined to maintain his own firm stance to the very end.
"No. This formal speech is both a way to keep myself from losing my initial resolve and an expression of my respect for the Saintess. I can compromise on everything else, but not on this."
Just as the nickname "Pope" suggested, he had a history of only doing the craziest things. Even when the Saintess he served gave a direct order, he refused outright. The sight of that madness made my head throb.
"...So what did you want to ask?"
"Ah, right. That was it."
"I've been watching for several months now, and it suddenly occurred to me—do you not eat meals separately, Saintess? I've never once seen you eat."
Huh...? Did that mean he'd been watching only me every single meal? While I was still processing the ridiculous question and about to brush it off as his imagination—
"No, Saintess, you're far too thin. You really must eat something and take care of your health."
Before I could even say I was fine, he'd quickly wrapped up a ssam and shoved it into my mouth.
"Ugh...?"
When I glared at him like he was insane, he wore an oddly serene yet pitying expression.
"Since you've been skipping meals for months, today you'll be eating with me until the end."
What...? I frantically signaled Shin Jaehyun at the next table with my eyes for help, but he looked just as resolute as Park Seongjun—er, the Pope. In a way, these were people I'd personally recruited, yet this felt a bit excessive. Thus began the full-scale meal torture. And the worst part was realizing, midway through, that the food actually tasted pretty good.