09. 3,827th Class Enrollment
09. 3,827th Class Enrollment
As soon as Sihwan acted like he knew her, her face twisted up like she'd just bitten into shit.
To think that someone she knew had caught her living in this filthy, rundown dump. And of all people, Ryu Si-hwan!
Was there any greater humiliation than this?
She didn't respond, hoping Sihwan would just let it slide, but unfortunately, he wasn't the type to pick up on those cues.
"Feels kinda nice seeing you here."
Sihwan walked toward her with a faint smile playing on his lips.
Even with dozens of beastkin and nearby residents on high alert around him, he showed zero hesitation.
"Don't come any closer, human."
One of the beastkin stepped forward.
He was pretty young, one of the earners pulling in income for the Ho-in Tribe.
Not quite on Rihana's level, but among the Ho-in Tribe, he was considered fairly strong, and he brought in decent money too.
"Who the hell are you? Move."
But Sihwan had no clue about any of that, and he wasn't the type to pay attention to some random guy anyway.
Just like always, he ignored him and shoved at the man's chest.
Normally, a push from a mere human wouldn't faze a Ho-in beastkin at all, but after consistent training from Yu Ina and Eleonore, plus gobbling up those stat orbs that popped up in every class, he'd grown quite a bit.
Not enough to cut it in a proper Academy full of aspiring Tower Warriors, but at least he could shove around these 'Outer Race' nobodies scraping by in the boonies.
Of course, that didn't mean he could win in a real fight.
His body was still fragile, nowhere near tough enough to withstand a Ho-in Tribe's claws.
The beastkin Sihwan shoved reacted instantly.
He bared his sharp nails and claws, swinging wildly like he was about to rip Sihwan to shreds right then and there.
"Take this!"
"What? You eyeballin' my boss with that mug?"
Sihwan wasn't scared one bit.
Even knowing objectively that he couldn't win a fight, he was always brimming with confidence.
He had Bari, after all.
Plus, he had Eleonore half-enslaved and Yoo Eun-hye plus one more as bodyguards, so even if every last slum-dweller here rushed him, not a single one could touch the hem of his clothes—that was the reality of this backwater hellhole.
Jjaak!
The beastkin snarling at Sihwan was pinned in an instant by the suddenly appearing Bari and Eun-hye, then flung far away.
No one could say exactly what happened, but judging by that crisp smack, at least one part of him had taken a solid hit.
"What the...!"
"What the hell do you think you're doing!!!?"
The beastkin who'd attacked first were now pissed that their guy got tossed.
But Sihwan took it magnanimously. Or rather, he just straight-up ignored them.
"Hey, Rihana, why're you ignoring me?"
"...What're you here for?"
She reluctantly opened her mouth and stepped forward.
In the process, she shot calming glances at the watching beastkin and their representative, the Tribal Chief, making them back off.
Like she was protecting them.
"I'm warning you upfront: I won't tolerate any pointless commotion here."
"That's not for you to decide. I decide."
"What?"
"Looks like you live here, huh. Lemme see... All the beastkin bunch up and live in places like this?"
"What're you here for?"
She bared her teeth while sneaking glances at Bari and Eun-hye.
Her slightly revealed fangs looked wickedly sharp.
One bite to the throat and instant death, probably.
Sihwan wagged his finger at her teeth.
"You better watch those. Bari's counting every single one."
"Just answer me."
Sihwan smirked at her icy attitude and held out his hand toward Bari.
"I made you a proposal yesterday, right? How about working security for my shop?"
"..."
Bari placed a neatly prepared contract into his hand.
"Sorry, but I'm withdrawing it. No need anymore."
"..."
He held out the contract to her as she bit her lip.
It was written in the name of Ha Yeon-seo, the owner of this city, permanently ceding the entire area called the 'Slums'—including the place where the Ho-in Tribe lived—to Ryu Si-hwan.
Up to that point, it looked like a standard real estate deal, but there was a clause that made it impossible to just gloss over.
"The slum-dwellers living here, that means you and all these folks included, total..."
"1,932 people."
"Yeah, right, 1,932 people are classified as 'unregistered objects' in this contract, so per Article 17 Section 1: 'All unregistered objects in the relevant area and its airspace belong to Party B.' As of right now, you're all my property."
"......What?"
Her face went utterly blank.
He'd seen that look on plenty of beauties since coming to this world, but this was the first time from Rihana.
Made it all the fresher and more satisfying.
'Who'd have thought Rihana was crashing in the Slums.'
Rihana was a mature beauty with red hair and coppery skin.
Like a Latin beauty back on Earth.
If Eleonore was all haughty and fresh-faced charm, Rihana crushed with sultry allure.
Total opposites, perfectly.
And now she'd fallen right into his lap, vines and all.
'No loss here.'
He'd borrowed 100,000 gold from Ha Yeon-seo and handed over 10% of the Factory shares in return for the Slums.
The area itself was huge, and the attached manpower was substantial, but above all, having Rihana in there was the real jackpot.
"Oh, by the way, Master."
"Yeah?"
Lost in pleasant fantasies, Bari suddenly cut in.
"Rihana-ssi is registered at the Academy, so she wouldn't count as an 'unregistered object.'"
"Oh. Really?"
"Yes. That's just considering her alone, though. Her house, the dishes and stuff she used, and crucially, every single tribe member except her—they're all unregistered, so they're rightfully your property, Master."
"Got it."
He almost felt a pang of disappointment for a sec, but this was no big deal.
Nah, if anything, it was even more thrilling for him.
'Beastkin forced to submit to me because of their tribe... This has its own appeal.'
If she ditched her tribe and went full lone wolf, that'd be a problem, but she didn't seem that cold-blooded.
"Some human thinks he owns us?"
"The fuck you spouting!!"
"Kill him! Kill the bastard!!!"
Meanwhile, the beastkin who heard Sihwan and the slum onlookers were all furious.
Some random human shows up claiming to be their owner—how could they not rage?
They whipped out their weapons, looking ready to lynch him on the spot.
They'd just seen Bari and Eun-hye's power, but still charging in? Brave in all the wrong ways.
"Anyway, that's the deal, so you know now. Bari, since we're here, let's bulldoze all the buildings. And deal with that crap too—the shit flowing like a river is way too much."
The mood was straight-up riot territory.
But Sihwan wasn't just fearless; he barely glanced their way.
"You lot, I'll throw up a temporary dorm or something for now, so crash there decently."
"This fucker says what!!"
On the verge of exploding.
Bari swept her hand, and in a blink, the crumbling buildings, the muddy ground, and the disgusting sewage all vanished, replaced by clean asphalt.
"!!"
Once only the buildings in the area Ha Yeon-seo had handed over were cleared, the sheer scale hit everyone at once.
Bigger than expected—you had to look pretty far to see the end, and on one side loomed a grand city wall.
"Build a building too."
Bari gestured again, and this time, a massive mansion started rising from the empty lot.
In seconds, it filled out with frame and flesh.
Fancy calling it a mansion—it was a boxy, no-frills rectangle since they'd skimped on resources for design.
"That's your place for now. Split up by gender and tribe or whatever and live there."
Way too small for 2,000 people.
But Sihwan wasn't about to worry over that.
'If there was a hottie, it'd be different.'
Wouldn't Bari have tipped him off if there was?
At least among the slum-dwellers around here, Rihana was the only looker.
'Or maybe hookers.'
"Wh-what... What the hell have you done!!!?"
Right then, some old beastkin flew into a rage, raising his staff.
"Our... Our ancestors' souls were in that shrine...!"
Apparently, Bari had wiped out some shrine or whatever while clearing the buildings and junk.
Probably turned into Nanomaterials by now, padding Sihwan and her accounts.
"Who're you?"
"You filthy scum!!"
"Shut your trap, you're annoying."
"Mmph! Mmmph!!"
The old guy mid-rant suddenly clamped his mouth shut.
Bari's doing, no doubt.
"...Human!"
Not content with barging in and wiping out their homes and belongings, he'd even forcibly silenced their tribe's elder.
This whole chain of events fanned the killing intent toward Sihwan.
And Rihana felt it too.
"You really need a beating, huh?"
They said extreme rage brings cold clarity.
Rihana glared at him with zero humor, ice-cold.
"Ooh, that face is gold. Let's shoot an ad with you. 'Industry Awards' concept."
"This!!"
Sihwan's immortal aggro!
Finally, Rihana's rage erupted, and she swung her arm.