𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟑𝟕: 𝐆𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝 2
〈Korea Hunter Association〉 Conference Room.
There, the big shots were gathered and filling up the seats.
Association President Chae Woo-dam and the six Guild Leaders of Heptagram, President Choi Dae-soo, and even Siwoo.
The men sitting around the large round table faced each other in a somewhat heavy atmosphere.
The meeting was smooth-sailing since Ryu Ji-hwan, who always dampened the mood, wasn’t present.
“. . .That’s the recent situation in East Asia.”
Chae Woo-dam, who was running the meeting, briefly finished his report and sat down.
Sunken eyes and a lifeless gaze.
After the death of Vice President Hunter Kim Eun-ju, Chae Woo-dam had never been seen smiling.
His transformation from his usual bright and gentle expression to a cold, grim look was heartbreaking to those around him.
“It seems like China will be in turmoil for a while. It’s already such a mess here even though we lost a rank 5.”
Choi Dae-soo said, chewing the end of his cigar.
“Kukukuku! That little brat is amazing, though. It feels like just yesterday when he was tagging along behind Min Siwoo, and now he’s already the number 2 in China causing accidents.”
“Xiaolong was the most useful among that disciple of his. He would’ve been better off under me.”
Do Kyung-hoo burst into laughter, and Choi Dae-soo nodded in agreement.
“Ex. . . Excuse me. Was Hunter Xiaolong a disciple of Hunter Min Siwoo?”
Choi Sung-il asked carefully.
“You guys from the younger generation might not know. Xiaolong, Min Si-joon, and Kang Yeo-hwa are schoolmates. They all learned how to be Hunters under that bastard.”
“Hey, you old geezer. Who are you calling a bastard?”
“Kukukuku! You all better watch out for this bastard. If you mess with him, you won’t get off with just a few bruises.”
“Do you want to find out the hard way?”
Siwoo glared at Do Kyung-hoo and clicked his tongue.
Choi Sung-il and Lee Ye-ji felt anew that this was an incredible gathering.
The legendary Three Venerables, three of the strongest Hunters, were sitting at one table and growling at each other.
Furthermore, Min Siwoo, who looked quite young, was not being pushed back by Do Kyung-hoo or Choi Dae-soo, who were considerably older than him, and was actually going on the offensive.
‘He really is a monster. . . .’
Judging by his appearance alone, it was hard to believe that Siwoo was one of the Three Venerables who had dominated their generation.
That was to be expected since Siwoo’s face looked like he was the same age as Kang Yeo-hwa or Min Si-joon.
“Hey, Min Siwoo.”
“What.”
“Kukukuku. It’s funny how being President doesn’t mean anything to you.”
“Who said I’m being forced to be President?”
Choi Dae-soo’s lips curled into a smile at Siwoo’s cynical response.
“Xiaolong shouldn’t have been an easy opponent. Did you go easy on him because he was your disciple?”
“If he was an easy opponent, then the level of Hunters these days must have really gone down. I didn’t even shed a drop of blood.”
“Kukukuku. . . Xiaolong, an easy opponent. That’s quite a bold statement, considering that he took down the 18th ranked global powerhouse.”
“That global ranking is only for reference. In reality, there are probably more Hunters out there who aren’t registered.”
Siwoo was skeptical of the ranking system.
The ranking system run by the 〈World Hunter Association〉 was operated by a machine called ‘Gaia,’ which was created using magic stones, magic, and applied mana studies.
When an Awakener who wanted to be tested poured their magic power into Gaia as instructed, their control, mastery, utilization, and firepower were comprehensively measured, and their rank was determined by comparing it with other data.
But had every Awakener in the world taken that test?
Take Siwoo, for example. He was someone who hadn’t taken the test, so the answer to that question would be no.
And as expected, none of the people from IZIZ or the upper echelons of 〈Pandemonium〉 were ranked.
That was because that system wasn’t a requirement to live as an Awakener, but rather just a convenience.
“Well, there’s no denying that the ranking system is full of loopholes. There are some people in ‘Misteltein’ who suddenly rose to the top without any prior ranking.”
Choi Dae-soo recalled someone he had met once.
Kiplagat from Kenya, also known as Ngai, the absolute strongest in Africa.
In countries where the system was relatively underdeveloped, Hunters and rankings weren’t a concern—or rather, they didn’t have the resources to be concerned.
Because of the civil wars, rebellions, and fights between tribes that happened every day, they didn’t have the time to establish guilds or run Gates.
Therefore, even if Africans awakened, they didn’t become Hunters, but rather joined rebel groups or terrorist organizations.
In such a harsh environment, Kiplagat, who had risen above it all and pacified countless civil wars, was the true god of Africa.
His alias was Black Diamond.
He was a prime example of the ‘loophole’ that Siwoo had mentioned.
“So what is it that you wanted to put on the agenda for today’s meeting?”
“It’s not an agenda. I called you all here because I need your cooperation.”
Siwoo looked around at everyone.
Aside from Kang Yeo-hwa and Min Si-joon, who knew the situation, the others looked at him with curious eyes.
He coughed lightly and opened his mouth.
“I’m buying [Gold River].”
There was no response.
Even Gi Il-lyeon, who had been listening to Siwoo’s story silently, had her eyes wide open in surprise.
“Um. . . Hunter Min Siwoo, Guilds are incredibly expensive.”
Hunter Lee Ye-ji raised her hand and spoke carefully.
“First of all, the Hunters’ salaries, as well as the rental fees for Gates and dungeons, are astronomical. It would easily be in the tens of billions. . . .”
Do Kyung-hoo, who had heard her opinion, agreed.
“I run a Guild myself, but the amount of money that goes out every month is no joke. If you need somewhere to belong, come to our [Brawler Guild]. I’ll give you a good position.”
“Do Kyung-hoo is right. But why are you suddenly talking about buying a Guild? I thought you weren’t interested in those things.”
Choi Dae-soo asked with a questioning look in his eyes.
“That’s my business. So, are you going to sell it or not?”
“As Hunter Lee Ye-ji said, Guilds are incredibly expensive. Do you think you can afford it? Or have your disciples agreed to pool their money?”
“Master is the one paying for it. Unlike some people, he doesn’t leech off of his underlings.”
Kang Yeo-hwa responded to Choi Dae-soo’s sarcasm with a sharp tone.
Choi Dae-soo raised both hands in a calming gesture at the sight of her sharp glare.
“Kukukuku, your disciples are defending you fiercely. Since he’s a favorite of the government, I suppose you can buy it if you want. But is there any reason you have to buy [Gold River]? You could just make a new one.”
“I’d rather buy one with a solid system that I don’t have to touch. The problem was with the leader there, not with the Guild itself.”
As [Gold River Guild] was a large Guild, its overall corporate structure was solid.
It also had many dungeons and Gates, as well as items, artifacts, magic stones, and well-equipped research labs.
“Do as you wish. The government welcomes it.”
“Before that, I want to make one thing clear. If I buy [Gold River], will I still keep my position in Heptagram?”
“Hmm. . . I guess I should ask the Guild Leaders here about that. What do you guys think?”
Choi Dae-soo glanced at the people and asked with curious eyes.
“I approve.”
The first to raise his hand was surprisingly Gi Il-lyeon.
She even took off her mask and gave her vote of approval in a deep voice.
“I approve.”
“I approve as well.”
Min Si-joon and Kang Yeo-hwa raised their hands one after another.
“Now that we know that Sir Hunter Siwoo is one of the Three Venerables, who would dare to oppose it? I approve as well.”
“I’ll approve as well.”
Choi Sung-il and Lee Ye-ji also gave positive signs.
The people turned their gazes to Do Kyung-hoo, who had yet to give his opinion.
“Kukukukuku! The Mad Dog has gone crazy! What would you have done if I didn’t approve?”
“What do you mean what would I have done. I would have beaten you up or. . . .”
Siwoo glared at him quietly and then relaxed a little bit, just a little bit.
“I would have made you understand with my body.”
Click, click, click. . .
A strange sound rang out from the ceiling of the conference room, and a slight tremor was transmitted.
Choi Dae-soo and Do Kyung-hoo were taken aback by Siwoo’s strengthened magic power, and the rest hurriedly activated their magic shields with panicked faces.
“. . .This is my conference room.”
Chae Woo-dam, who had been silent the whole time, said quietly.
“My apologies.”
Siwoo immediately retracted his aura and apologized to him.
“So, Do Kyung-hoo, do you oppose Mad Dog maintaining his position in Heptagram?”
“Kukukukuku! What does it matter if I oppose it? No, I actively approve. A new wind is about to blow through the Hunter world of our country.”
“Right. What do you think, Min Siwoo? It’s unanimous.”
“That’s how it should be.”
“Kukuk. What an impudent bastard. But is it okay for the HSIU Headquarters Hunter to become a Guild Leader?”
“I’m not going to be the Guild Leader.”
“???”
The people looked at him with expressions of confusion.
What had they been talking about until now?
“I’m only going to buy the Guild. Not as the Guild Leader, but as the president. I’ll leave the Guild management and operations to someone else. And I already asked Edwin, and he gave me permission, so you don’t have to worry.”
“That’s unusual. What do you have to gain from doing that?”
“I’m curious about everything. It’s the authority of the Guild.”
The authority of the Guild.
Was he planning on supplementing the limited authority he had as HSIU with the position of Heptagram?
‘He’s like a tiger with wings on both sides.’
Choi Dae-soo showed an amused expression and got up from his seat.
“This has been a fun meeting in a long time. I’ll call [Gold River] for you. Go buy it and sit in the president’s seat or whatever you want.”
“Thanks. Thank you to everyone else as well.”
Siwoo smiled at everyone.
🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷
Han Tae-chi.
He was a Korean S-rank Hunter and ranked 6th in the country, but not many people knew him.
He didn’t like fighting, and his skills weren’t suited for combat, so he was always in the lab or workshop.
But a few weeks ago, he was captured by Choi Dae-soo and locked up in this place.
Strictly speaking, he wasn’t locked up, but his thoughts didn’t change.
‘How is this any different from prison!’
Han Tae-chi slammed his fist on the desk.
He was currently in the office that Ryu Ji-hwan used to use.
━You’re going to manage and operate the Guild for the time being. Since you’re a ranker, no one will mess with you, and you need to gain some experience like this.
Choi Dae-soo had left him with those words and abandoned him here.
“Of course, I’m good at managing numbers and documents. . . But, but I want to do research too.”
Han Tae-chi looked at the pile of documents and collapsed face down on the desk.
Knock knock.
“G-Guild Leader? You have a visitor.”
His temporary secretary’s voice could be heard from beyond the door.
“Get lost. . . Tell them to get lost! I’m not the Guild Leader here!”
What kind of Guild Leader was he if he wasn’t even getting paid and was only doing menial tasks?
Creak.
But contrary to Han Tae-chi’s words, the door to the office opened.
“Hey, what the hell? I told you not to come in. . . . Who are you?”
He asked the unfamiliar man who appeared before him through his frizzy, curly hair.
“Are you the temporary Guild Leader here?”
“Uh, yeah.”
Han Tae-chi sighed and got up from his seat.
Even if his skills weren’t suited for combat, he was a ranker in South Korea.
Of course, he didn’t become rank 6 because he was strong, but because of his high level of understanding and utilization of magic power. . . . Anyway.
“These days, the crazies are really getting out of hand. Ryu Ji-hwan was like that, and so are you.”
Han Tae-chi laughed scornfully at the man standing before him.
He was determined to use the new invention he had recently made to take this guy down.
“You won’t die, but it’s going to hurt like hell!”
Siwoo grabbed his arm and twisted it behind his back before he could even finish speaking.
“W-Who are you!! Who the hell are you!! Ow!”
“Who do you think I am? I’m your president.”
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