n

n—Kill them.

n

nI could hear their communication. Immediately, I felt a chill run down my back.

n

n“…Are you sure?”

n

nThe Caucasian man asked again. However, the answer was the same. The Caucasian man calmly nodded, gripping his greatsword. The baldy grinned as he held up his double-edged axe.

n

n“Blame your curiosity.”

n

nThe moment the Caucasian man muttered, the surroundings changed. A tide of darkness shot up from the right side, engulfing everyone.

n

nKim Suho disappeared into the darkness, and I was left alone with the bald barbarian.

n

nIt was an isolation barrier.

n

n“…Haha, big bro always leaves me with the boring work.”

n

nBoring work. He was obviously referring to me, but I couldn’t refute him either.

n

nTwo golden axes were engraved on the chest region of his leather armor. It was a symbol used by Heroes to denote their rank. Two golden weapons indicated intermediate rank. Since there was nothing else other than the two golden axes, he was a grade 9 hero.

n

n“…Why is an intermediate rank Hero doing something like this to a cadet?”

n

nAlthough I knew the answer, I asked anyway. The baldy smiled without replying. Unlike what his appearance might suggest, he didn’t seem to be the talkative type.

n

nThe baldy collected his magic power silently. A powerful current of magic power rose up around his axe, heating up the space within the isolation barrier.

n

nSweat formed on the tip of my nose, and a cold sweat dripped down my back.

n

nI couldn’t win against that baldy. His axe could easily split my skull in half, and with the isolation barrier surrounding us, I had no way to run.

n

nBut there had to be something I could do….

n

nSuddenly, I had a flash of insight.

n

nI didn’t know much about that baldy’s personality.

n

nBut from his barbaric appearance, I could surmise that he was belligerent, prideful, and reckless.

n

nIt wasn’t a really logical deduction, but people like him usually looked down on their opponents. He was a typical cliché character that would have appeared several times in novels I’ve read and written.

n

n“…Huu.”

n

nI sighed almost subconsciously.

n

nI bent down and pretended to pick up a rock as I molded Aether into the rock.

n

n95% of Aether was turned into a rock, while the remaining 5% was used to form a transparent thread that wrapped around my wrist and was tied to the rock.

n

nThen, I muttered softly.

n

n“Scan.”

n

nThe result was 30%.

n

nAlthough it was above the average, I was less fortunate than normal. The difference in 14% was huge in practice.

n

n“What are you going to do with that?”

n

nSeeing me holding the rock, the baldy showed interest. I fell into thought. Should I just throw it at him? Or tick him off a little more?

n

n“…I just thought this would be enough.”

n

nI chose the latter. Immediately, his veins popped up in anger.

n

nMy lips dried up.

n

nWill he charge at me in anger? Or will he examine me more closely?

n

n“Where is your confidence coming from?”

n

nThe baldy widened his eyes and stood on guard. He seemed to be searching me for hidden weapons. Of course, with not even a tiny movement of magic power within my body, the baldy could only frown.

n

n“…You little brat.”

n

nI stared at him as I fiddled with the Aether rock. The baldy stood still with his double-bladed axe. Though he called me a brat condescendingly, he seemed to be wondering what I would do.

n

n“I’m gonna throw this.”

n

nSince he was letting me have the first attack, I accepted it gladly.

n

nI threw the rock with all my strength. It flew quickly and accurately.

n

nHowever, before the rock could reach his head, he leaned slightly to the side. The rock easily flew by him.

n

nA big smile emerged on the baldy’s face.

n

nHowever, I wasn’t disappointed. This was within my expectations.

n

nHe easily dodged the rock. Me acting like there was something about the rock had forced him to dodge it. Since he could see that there was nothing to it, he undoubtedly had his guard down now.

n

nI had saved Stigma’s magic power for this exact moment.

n

n“Huup!”

n

nI poured all of Stigma’s magic power into the Aether thread that connected the rock and my wrist. Then, I yanked it with all the strength I could muster.

n

nStigma’s magic power flared up explosively on the transparent Aether thread. This burning of magic power could undoubtedly be seen with the naked eye.

n

nImmediately, the leisurely smile on the baldy’s face disappeared. Taken aback by the sudden eruption of magic power, he readied his qi reinforcement. However, it was too late.

n

nBefore his qi reinforcement could fully form, the rock that flew by his head came back with even more power, striking his head like lightning.

n

nThwack.

n

nWith the sound of a rock cracking, the light disappeared from the baldy’s eyes.

n

nThud.

n

nHis muscular body fell to the ground.

n

n“….”

n

nI staggered toward him. He wasn’t dead yet. Djinns had abnormally high recuperative power. I had to end him quickly…

n

nI aimed my gun loaded with a light bullet at the back of his head. I didn’t have the magic power to transform it into the shotgun mode.

n

nWithout even a moment of hesitation, I pulled the trigger.

n

nKWANG!

n

nThe light bullet struck his head squarely.

n

nPsssh…

n

nHowever, the bullet was blocked by his dense skull and was unable to pierce through.

n

nThe baldy suddenly raised his head.

n

n“GAAH!”

n

nHe then let out a loud roar. The soundwave struck my stomach. Although Aether formed a barrier before it was too late, a huge shock shook my body nonetheless.

n

nI was sent flying back and struck the wall. Immediately, my vision grew thin. A mere sound attack without physical contact transmitted shock that seemingly ruptured my organs.

n

n“…You son of… a bitch…”

n

nThe baldy staggered up as he cursed. His face didn’t seem human. His skin turned pitch black, his eyes were glowing red, and most importantly, sheep horns had grown on his head.

n

n…Devil Transformation.

n

nI closed my eyes and sighed.

n

nNo matter how lucky I was, this was the end of the line. I should have ended things before it got to this stage, but I couldn’t.

n

n“I wasn’t going to use this, but you…”

n

nAt that moment, the sound of something cutting through flesh rang out in the empty cave.

n

nPuzzled, I opened my eyes.

n

nA black blade going through the baldy’s chest.

n

n“What…?”

n

nThe baldy stared at the blade piercing through him, then fell down and lost consciousness. Before his body could touch the ground, it transformed into black dust and scattered.

n

n“….”

n

n

nIn place of the baldy was Chameleon Troupe’s Boss.

n

nStunned, I stared at her in a daze.

n

nShe let out a dry cough, then spoke briefly.

n

n“Nice to meet you.”

n

n“…Yes?”

n

nBoss stared at me with a very calm expression.

n

nChameleon Troupe’s boss. I somewhat understood why she was here. Chameleon Troupe was supposed to interfere with Packhorse Master.

n

nBut what I couldn’t understand was why she kept appearing in front of me.

n

n“…We’re running into each other rather often, huh.”

n

n“Of course.”

n

nBoss answered sincerely at my somewhat sarcastic remark.

n

n“Because I was watching over you.”

n

n“…Yes?”

n

nBoss approached me silently, then handed me a business card. This time, it wasn’t a guild business card belonging to Li Xiaopeng.

n

nJeronimo Mercenary – Yi Saeyeon.

n

nJeronimo Mercenary. Although it was a mercenary group second only to Vast Expanse, in truth it was Chameleon Troupe’s disguise. In other words, Jeronimo Mercenary Group was Chameleon Troupe.

n

n“Jeronimo…?”

n

nMy eyes widened.

n

nI wasn’t pretending to be surprised. I truly was.

n

nOne of the important events I wrote was unfolding in front of my eyes in a completely different way.

n

n「…She stood before Shin Jonghak. He already knew who she was as he had seen her many times before.

n

n“Nice to see you.”

n

nAfter appearing out of nowhere, she greeted him out of the blue. Shin Jonghak laughed, unable to comprehend the situation.

n

n“Aren’t you showing yourself too frequently?”

n

n“I couldn’t help it.”

n

nShe made a small smile.

n

n“Because I was watching over you.”

n

nThen, she handed Shin Jonghak a small business card.

n

n‘Jeronimo Mercenary’.

n

nWhen Shin Jonghak saw this, his eyes glimmered with a bright light.」

n

n**

n

nYoo Yeonha’s room, Dorm 6’s penthouse.

n

n“….”

n

n“….”

n

n“….”

n

nThree people were sitting in a circle, watching each other silently.

n

nNone of them wanted to lose an inch, leading to the creation of this ill-matched group.

n

nIt all started with what Yoo Yeonha said out of courtesy.

n

n‘Since we ran into each other, would you like to come for a night snack at my place?’

n

nAnyone could tell these were empty words. In reality, there was only a single bag of chips on the table in front of them.

n

nHowever, Rachel accepted this offer.

n

n“…Would you like some juice?”

n

n“No thanks.”

n

nUnable to endure the awkward atmosphere, Yoo Yeonha made an offer, which Rachel refused.

n

nAfter that, another 10 minutes of silence continued.

n

nWhen the bored Chae Nayun sprawled down on the couch and scratched her belly half-asleep…

n

n“I want to ask.”

n

nYoo Yeonha opened her mouth. She was talking to Rachel.

n

n“How did you find out?”

n

nIt was a vague question, but Rachel knew what she was referring to. She was asking about Kim Hajin.

n

n“…I found out naturally.”

n

nAt Rachel’s nonchalant answer, Yoo Yeonha smiled somewhat scornfully.

n

n“But you don’t know why that person is hiding his power, right?”

n

n“….”

n

nRachel closed her mouth. She was convinced that Kim Hajin was hiding his power, but she didn’t know why.

n

nAt that moment, Chae Nayun woke up from her sleep and interjected.

n

n“Hey, what are you talking about? “

n

nThen, Yoo Yeonha made a triumphant smile.

n

n“Well, that’s not something that’s easy to find out.”

n

nRachel glared at Yoo Yeonha, annoyed by the triumphant air she put on. Yoo Yeonha got up leisurely. She then brought orange juice and poured it into wine glasses.

n

nStaring at the glass of orange juice, Rachel asked.

n

n“Does knowing that change anything?”

n

n“It changes everything. Isn’t that obvious? It’s like how Essence of the Strait is bigger than most government guilds.”

n

n“No, what I’m talking about is…”

n

nIn truth, Rachel wasn’t too concerned about Kim Hajin. However, she didn’t want to lose to Yoo Yeonha.

n

n“Rather than finding out about it myself, it’s better to wait until that person tells me about it himself.”

n

nYoo Yeonha’s face immediately turned cold. Her investigation had been done in private. Kim Hajin didn’t ask for it, nor was it for the good of the public.

n

n“At least, that’s what I think.”

n

nWith that, Rachel got up from her seat.

n

n“Then I’ll be off. It’s gotten too late.”

n

nRachel walked to the front door. Yoo Yeonha glared at her exiting form with strange eyes.

n

n“…Wait, why am I the only one out of the loop? Hey, Yoo Yeonha, are you sure you were speaking in Korean?”

n

nMeanwhile, Chae Nayun grumbled in frustration.

n

n**

n

n“Huu….”

n

nThe barrier shattered.

n

nSoon, Kim Suho appeared with a haggard expression. James was sprawled on the ground, unconscious, and Kim Suho was holding a branch in his hand.

n

nI immediately had a hunch.

n

nThat Kim Suho won by himself.

n

nOf course, Misteltein was an amazing weapon even without being awakened. Since that Djinn was also a sword user, Kim Suho would have been well-suited to fighting him.

n

nI spoke to Kim Suho.

n

n“You won?”

n

n“…So did you.”

n

nWe looked at each other and laughed.

n

nBut soon, Kim Suho put on a serious face.

n

n“…Anyways, Hajin, I don’t think this is an ordinary branch.”

n

n“Oh yeah? To me, it looks amazing at first glance.”

n

n“Really? How?”

n

n“Take a seat.”

n

nFirst, I sat Kim Suho down. I had trouble staying standing as I felt a bit dizzy.

n

nBoth physically and psychologically… I was quite exhausted.

n

n