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There were two of them.
A middle-aged man who seemed to be the superior, and a younger man who was paired with him.
「𝙎𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩.」
Ding!
【Baek Tae-gang】
▶Level 51
▶Ability Scores
【Stamina: C-】
【spiritual power : B+】
【Spellcraft: A-】
【Mental Strength: B】
▶Traits (5/10)
【Conduction (A+)】
【Critical Strike (A)】
【Tool Creation (B)】
【Synesthesia (B)】
【Eagle Eye (C+)】
※
【Baek Ji-woon】
▶Level 43
▶Ability Scores
【Stamina: B】
【spiritual power : B】
【Spellcraft: B】
【Mental Strength: C】
▶Traits (4/10)
【Cursed Hand (A-)】
【Quick Draw (A-)】
【Accelerated Growth (B)】
【Precision Manipulation (C+)】
「𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙩’𝙨 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙞𝙩.」
Baek Tae-gang was quite strong.
Baek Ji-woon is also not to be trifled with.
The middle-aged man standing in front, Baek Tae-gang, continued speaking.
“I heard they installed it recently. Those bastards on your side.”
“There’s no one on our side who deserves to be called that.”
“Is that so? If we look at the results alone, it was enough to worry us. . . . . . .”
At those words, Cheong Ji-yeon’s eyes twitched.
The recent casualty incident and the conflict caused by the performance competition were all caused by the 1st Defense Corps.
“Let’s just let it go.”
Cheong Ji-yeon ended the conversation and strode forward, and we obediently followed behind her.
As we passed the members of the 1st Defense Corps, something ominous washed over me, who was at the very back.
Whoosh.
“Six-Syllable Truth Mantra.”
Bang!
Probably a curse-type technique. It’s not a very powerful kind. If I had to put a price on it, it would only be as powerful as a mischievous prank.
I had blocked it in advance with my reflexes trained from the game, but it was clearly an attack.
“What is this?”
“. . . . . . .”
Baek Ji-woon, the caster of the spell, grimaced as if he couldn’t imagine that I would block it.
And, as if waiting for that moment, Cheong Ji-yeon, who had stepped forward, spoke sharply.
“Huh. I guess the rumors about you guys picking fights over everything like gangsters were true?”
“What? It was just a greeting. Wouldn’t it be absurd to say that you protect the citizens if you’re bothered by an attack of that level in the first place?”
He said that, but Baek Tae-gang glared at Baek Ji-woon with a dissatisfied look.
It is not known whether he is blaming him for acting rashly or for failing miserably against a student.
Cheong Ji-yeon glanced at Baek Ji-woon and smiled broadly before continuing.
“Is that guy the rookie they’re talking about?”
“. . .He’s still just a bloody rookie.”
I’ve definitely heard that too. I heard that an outstanding rookie had entered the 1st Defense Corps. Because of that, I had to listen to Seo Ji-hye, the youngest member of this group, complain about being jealous.
“What do you think? It seems like a good opportunity.”
“. . .What do you mean?”
“Your rookie and our rookie. Let’s put them together.”
It was this side that was taken aback by those words. Cheong Juhwa and I glared at Cheong Ji-yeon, wondering what she was talking about, but she didn’t care.
“1 on 1. A light match. Of course, there’s a price to pay.”
At Cheong Ji-yeon’s words, Baek Ji-woon, whose pride was hurt, stepped forward.
“What nonsense. Isn’t your rookie a student? I’m sure he’s out on a field trip. . . . . . .”
“So, are you scared?”
When he said that, Baek Ji-woon shut his mouth and looked at Baek Tae-gang behind him. At the same time, Baek Tae-gang’s eyes changed.
Baek Ji-woon, who must have had the qualifications of a 3rd-grade exorcist, and us, who are students. Of course, this side is at a disadvantage. For Baek Tae-gang, it was a golden opportunity.
“. . .I was definitely going to refuse out of courtesy.”
“It’s good to rush in. Then I’ll take it as accepted.”
Snap.
Cheong Ji-yeon took out something shiny from her bosom. It was an oddly shaped necklace.
“You. . . . . . . Are you in your right mind?”
Judging from Baek Tae-gang’s surprise, it seemed to be no ordinary item. I examined it carefully.
「𝙎𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩.」
Ding!
【Blue Heart Jade】
▶■■■■
「𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩?」
I felt my heart sink when I checked the contents.
The notation that the content cannot be read. And the name Blue Heart Jade. As far as I know, there is only one item that fits the above conditions.
「. . .𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙩’𝙨 𝙙𝙚𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙞𝙩𝙚𝙢 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙙 𝙚𝙥𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙙𝙚.」
I stared at it with a dumbfounded face.
It wasn’t something to bet on, as Baek Tae-gang said, and it was a treasure that shouldn’t have been here in the first place.
「𝘼𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩 𝙚𝙥𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙙𝙚, 𝘾𝙝𝙚𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙅𝙞-𝙮𝙚𝙤𝙣 𝙝𝙖𝙙 𝙞𝙩.」
It was mentioned in the first episode of Exorcism, but it never actually had an impact on the story. It was just one of the teasers for the next installment.
Such an item was now, unexpectedly, right before my eyes.
「𝙄𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙬𝙤𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙘𝙧𝙖𝙯𝙮?」
Blue Heart Jade is one of the three main items of the Cheong. It is a treasure among treasures, worth no less than the Blue-White Sword possessed by Cheong So-ha, and is definitely not something that should be used in such a cheap bet. I seriously doubted Cheong Ji-yeon’s mental state.
Regardless, Cheong Ji-yeon continued to speak her mind.
“Why don’t you take it out quickly too? The Piece Pile. You always carry it with you.”
“Surely you’re not talking about the White Piece Stake? What are you talking about! White Piece Stake is just something to bet on. . . . . . .”
“You’ll know when you see it, but this thing is really precious. Since I’m the one who’s at a disadvantage anyway? Well, if you don’t want to, you don’t have to.”
At those words, Baek Tae-gang hardened his expression and fell into thought.
And, after a while, he made up his mind.
“It will be irreversible.”
“Okay. That’s the way it should be.”
And so, a very sudden betting match was made.
Behind him, Cheong Juhwa whispered.
“What are you going to do?”
“. . .Well.”
It’s clear that there’s some kind of trick up her sleeve. I don’t know who it’s aimed at. But I didn’t want to be swayed by whatever it was.
So, I decided to take advantage of this situation.
“So you were going to do this from the beginning.”
“I’m sorry for the suddenness. I’m going to have to ask you to suffer a little.”
“We won’t do it.”
“Huh?”
“Even if you look at it that way, there’s no reason for us to accept?”
It was certainly true. Cheong Ji-yeon smiled meaningfully and asked a probing question.
“. . .Really? I thought you guys liked this kind of thing. I heard you already had a go with a yokai.”
“It depends on the situation.”
In other words, this was a kind of deal. If there was something she wanted from us, it meant that she would naturally pay the price for it.
“Huh.”
Cheong Ji-yeon sighed as if to see a brash guy. As she was considered a real power around here, she must be quite unfamiliar with this kind of head-on response.
“So, what do you want?”
Finally, when the words I had been waiting for came out, I smiled lightly and got to the point.
“Let’s make a bet.”
“A bet?”
“Judging from the fact that you’re putting up a real treasure, you must think that our side will win, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Let’s each set a time limit of one minute, and the side that’s closer to the point where the match is decided wins.”
In other words, it meant that we would bet on when the match would be over.
“. . .What’s the price?”
That’s the main point.
This time it was my turn to look at the other side.
Without hesitation, I offered an outrageous price as a commodity.
“If I win, I’ll take the White Piece Stake that the opponent bet on.”
Cheong Ji-yeon’s expression darkened at those words.
Cheong Ji-yeon, who frowned slightly, spoke up.
“Aren’t you being a little greedy? Do you know how valuable that is?”
“I think it’s within the acceptable range.”
Cheong Ji-yeon looked at me with cold eyes.
Just that alone made me feel goosebumps all over my body.
「. . .𝙄 𝙬𝙤𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙧 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙞𝙩 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙣 𝙤𝙪𝙩.」
If she refuses, I’ll just ask for another reward.
The answer here is more important. I thought I could get a rough idea of Cheong Ji-yeon’s intentions from this.
And Cheong Ji-yeon, after much deliberation, gave me her answer.
“Okay. I’ll accept it.”
“. . . . . . .”
I didn’t show it, but I clicked my tongue inwardly at that moment. That’s because the answer came from the side I didn’t want.
“Instead, I’m the one who gets to set the time first.”
“. . .Okay.”
The target was not the main character’s treasure or the two people from the 1st Defense Corps.
If the White Piece Stake was the purpose in the first place, it would not have been so easy to offer it up again as a reward.
「. . .𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙖𝙘𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖𝙘𝙘𝙚𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙢𝙮 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙢𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙨.」
It means that there is another purpose.
I was convinced as I looked at her attitude.
What Cheong Ji-yeon was trying to see through this bet was definitely us.
And, in a very dangerous way.