Chapter 148
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 148
Chapter Title: Eroph Being Harvested (1)
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"Ji-ham! Ahh.... To meet again so soon like this, this must be Lord Chronos's will too......."
Hye-jeong clasped her hands together in prayer toward me.
She brought her forehead to her joined hands and bowed her head slightly.
Ha-yoon, who had been sitting beside her, glanced back and forth between me and Hye-jeong before mimicking her exactly, clasping her hands together as well.
'Why are Hye-jeong and Ha-yoon here? No, more importantly, why is Hong Ha-yoon dressed as a priestess?'
That didn't change my impression of Hong Ha-yoon right away, though.
Her bangs hung low enough to cover her eyebrows, and her side hair was tied into twin tails.
The bridge in her hair and the cubic stones embedded in her black-painted nails.
No matter how I looked at her, she just seemed like a mentally unstable college student cosplaying as a priestess.
"I was just about to call you—perfect timing. Have a seat here. Hunter Jeong Ji-su, come sit down too. Seol Yi-seom Hunter, feel free to stand if sitting's uncomfortable."
No sooner had Riyo noona finished speaking than Ji-su took the seat in front of Hye-jeong.
I plopped down next to Ji-su. Hong Ha-yoon was sitting right in front of me, so our eyes met naturally. She hurriedly dropped her gaze.
As her eyes drifted downward, naturally scanning my body, it seemed like she was recalling last night on the bed, our bodies entwined together.
"You're not strangers to each other, right?"
Hye-jeong answered Riyo noona's question.
"Of course not. We're much closer than that."
"Hmm.... Then we can skip the introductions. To make a long story short, as of today, Hong Ha-yoon will be joining our guild."
"What? You don't mean this woman.... No, you're not saying Ha-yoon should live with us too, right?"
"No. Ha-yoon will stay in the guild dorms. You're a late awakener, Ji-ham, but that's not the case for her. It'll be better for her to grow steadily through our guild's official program."
Ji-su let out a short sigh of relief.
I could understand how Ji-su felt.
We already had Seol Yi-seom, Park A-young, Bae Da-hye, and even Mi-ho crashing with us—three women and one beast. She probably didn't want to add another.
"Instead, please live together with Hunter Ya Hye-jeong here."
"Huh!? With Hye-jeong unnie? But she's from another guild. Why...?"
"Taking in Hong Ha-yoon is a burden for our guild. Even if she left due to an unfortunate incident, accepting her right away would make it look like we snatched an A-rank awakener amid the chaos."
It was harsh, but Riyo noona was right.
I'd heard Hong Ha-yoon had been in the same guild as Kim Cheol-su.
Their guild was already in disarray after Kim Cheol-su's death. To them, it would look like we'd poached their A-rank awakener.
"We decided to accept her anyway because Hunter Ya Hye-jeong offered to stay with our guild for a while and work for you, Ji-ham. With the Saintess of the Battlefield by your side, we can ensure your safe growth. It wouldn't be right for a guild master to pass up an opportunity like this."
Hye-jeong picked up where Riyo left off.
"Truth be told, I wanted to leave my current guild and transfer to Raider, but.... ties like these aren't easy to sever."
"No, you don't have to go that far.... That'd be too much pressure. If you've been with them for years and suddenly quit, how confused would they be?"
"Ahh....... If that's what you wish, Ji-ham, then so be it...."
Her prayer-like pose made me uncomfortable, so I quickly changed the subject.
"By the way, why is Ha-yoon wearing priestess robes?"
"Ah! She was saved by you yesterday and converted. She's now officially a priestess serving Lord Chronos."
"Con...converted? You mean she changed religions?"
"Yes!"
When I looked at Hong Ha-yoon, she flinched and trembled, mumbling softly, 'Please take care of me.'
At that moment, Riyo noona, who had been quietly listening, cut in abruptly.
"Speaking of which.... Did everything go smoothly at the association?"
"There was a minor issue, but I got registered properly."
"An issue? You didn't grab some random person and do something lewd, did you?"
"As if. What do you take me for......."
Of course I did.
I'd gone through the receptionists at the Hunter Association—the faces of the place—one by one, fucked their pussies, and even given them points before leaving.
But rather than confess that here, it seemed better to play dumb and deflect.
"Riyo nu....... No, Master? Right, Master. Including that, there's a bunch of stuff I want to talk about......."
I glanced at Ha-yoon while giving Riyo noona a subtle hint.
It'd be fine with anyone else.
Ji-su or Hye-jeong wouldn't go blabbing my secrets anywhere.
Riyo noona and Yi-seom noona had been with the guild long enough not to spill anything damaging outside.
But not Hong Ha-yoon.
I still didn't know what kind of person she was.
We'd only spent one wild night fucking like animals.
Even with Hye-jeong under our wing now, I wasn't keen on revealing all my secrets to Ha-yoon.
Perhaps sensing my intent, Riyo noona smoothly followed up.
"Hunter Seol Yi-seom. Could you escort Hunter Hong Ha-yoon to the dorms? Talk to the dorm head and get her a room."
"Sure. Will do."
"Ah....... Uh......."
Hong Ha-yoon sat frozen on the sofa, unsure what to do, so Riyo noona continued kindly with a smile.
"Just follow the white hunter there. She'll guide you to the dorms."
"Ah, yes! U-understood!"
"Sister. Contact me anytime if it's tough."
"Th-thank you, Sister...."
Once I confirmed Hong Ha-yoon shuffling out awkwardly, I began recounting what happened at the association step by step.
The story of how some old man named Kwak Tae-il showed up out of nowhere demanding to see Mi-ho, apparently tipped off somehow.
How things escalated into a fight with the old man, and Mi-ho casually beat him down.
And finally, how I'd gotten the old man's contact info.
"And the reason I came to see you, Master, is......."
"You can call me noona now."
"Huh?"
Riyo noona chuckled softly and continued.
"Ya Hye-jeong and Ji-su are seeing illusions, so feel free to be casual."
"Oh, then I'm grateful!"
"Hey. You trashed my room completely and ran off?"
The aura emanating from Riyo noona made me shrink back for a moment.
"Didn't I tell you to mess it up just a little?"
"Th-that's.... I was training Mi-ho...."
"Broadcasting live from my house, you having sex with a villain? That's your idea of training?"
"......."
Shit, I'd slipped up.
I had no idea how she'd found out about something like that when she was so busy with guild work.
Did she have CCTV in her house or something?
"Normal people might not notice, but hunters who've tangled with Amazones villains plenty of times might recognize Mi-ho's face or appearance. I told you clearly: Mi-ho's villain identity must stay hidden."
"B-but.... When Mi-ho turned into her baby fox form.... My face wasn't shown.... Even if someone recognizes her, they might think it's a fake...."
"Jeong Ji-ham. I'm not Jeong Ji-su or Ya Hye-jeong."
"......."
"You don't catch hints, so I'll spell it out. We're together because it's mutually beneficial."
"......."
"If you become a hindrance to our guild or my path forward.... If I conclude that cutting you loose is the clear win.... Then my skill will probably crush you."
Riyo noona spoke calmly in her usual neat and refined manner.
Her expression and voice betrayed little emotion.
Only the pressure radiating from her body lent weight to her words.
"I've managed to suppress the videos and photos circulating online. So be careful. If Mi-ho being an Amazones villain gets out, I'll abandon her. I'd save you, but.... If this keeps happening.... Yeah. Better not say more."
Riyo noona reined in her aura and asked me.
"So, what's the real reason you came to see me? You're not here just to report a scuffle with some old man, right?"
"Uh.... About providing semen to Eroph."
"Why? Isn't that already settled?"
After the veiled threat, words weren't coming easily.
But a mistake was a mistake, and I needed to push for what I wanted, so I steadied myself.
"Ji-su seems to hate the idea of another woman carrying my child...."
"......."
"We can get Amazones info through Mi-ho anyway. So is there really any need to give my semen to Eroph just to extract it?"
"Hmm.... That's tricky...."
Riyo noona pondered for a moment.
Maybe, like Ji-su said, Eroph had her sights set on bearing my child.
"How about this? Eroph can produce a unique poison. The one that weakened tanker Kim Cheol-su and drove him to death. Find out how it's made."
"......Me?"
"You made a verbal contract with me and signed the paper. And not just that—you flooded my insides with your cum as payment."
"......."
"Now you want to unilaterally change the terms and expect me to accept? Isn't that a bit shameless?"