“Are you really going?”
“Would I go fake-going?”
“Even if you’re going, at least read the materials before you leave! Don’t you know you can only see as much as you know?”
“And right now, I’m on the verge of blindness. Are we done? Stop being so clingy and get out of the way.”
As if the mountain of reports he’d brought yesterday wasn’t enough, Gyeongjin kept relentlessly shoving a damned file in his face. The concern he showed for his guild master, whose eyes felt like they were about to fall out from reading reports until dawn, was so touching it could bring a man to tears.
Clicking his tongue, Sa-yoon swatted the bothersome report aside. He started walking, ignoring the executives who were trailing after him, begging him to take them along, and stopped at the guild’s entrance. Chanhee was blocking the doorway. When he gestured with his head for him to move, Chanhee spread his arms with a woeful expression.
“Because we failed to control the narrative, everyone thinks you’ve betrayed them, and the atmosphere is really hostile. It’ll be dangerous if reporters swarm you!”
“Am I going to die just because it’s a little dangerous? Huh? If it’s that dangerous, you guys would die before I do.”
He thought it was an irrefutable argument, but the screw-loose bastards still clung to his words. Why were they making such a fuss when he was just going to the Association? As they kept begging to be taken along, Sa-yoon rubbed his forehead several times.
“You want our group photo on the front page¹ or something? We’ve never taken an executive photo, so you want to do it now? I guess the reporters’ cameras would make for some high-quality pictures.”
“Do you think we wouldn’t follow if you were in our shoes?”
“Yeah.”
Sa-yoon looked at his executives, who wanted to follow him to the Association like parents worried about their child running an errand, as if they were pathetic. He wasn’t a one-year-old kid. He sighed. This left him with no choice but to take extreme measures.
“You should have listened when I told you to, Chanhee.”
“Pardon?”
Sa-yoon looked at the bewildered man and grabbed him by the collar. He then threw him backward in an instant. Chanhee flew through the air with a cry of “Uwaaak!” Next was Gyeongjin, then Yen, and finally Jongsik. Sa-yoon, having thrown his executives one by one, watched Jaehee skillfully catch all of them, then dusted off his hands.
“You keep them here.”
“I will call if anything happens.”
“Don’t call, text. Text.”
“You won’t answer then, will you?”
“I’m leaving.”
Not answering disadvantageous questions was a basic tenet of a villain’s conversational style. He had no intention of living as a villain anymore, but it was more convenient to keep this particular behavioral pattern, wasn’t it?
Sa-yoon left behind a sighing Jaehee and got into the car with Geon-joo.
“This is exhausting right from the start.”
Geon-joo, who had watched the executives’ pathetic attempt to cling to Sa-yoon’s coattails, offered a simple review. Sa-yoon didn’t deny it and looked out the window.
Honestly, that damned separation anxiety.
How do I fix it?
It seemed something had definitely happened among the executives. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have all snapped like that in an instant.
The car’s wheels began to roll slowly. Sa-yoon decided he would have to investigate the state of the Night Rat Guild after he was done with his business and closed his eyes.
“We’ve arrived, Hyung-nim.”
Contrary to the executives’ worries, there were no reporters lined up in front of the Association, nor were there any citizens holding a protest. Well, it had only been two days since his return, so the news probably hadn’t gotten out yet.
Though it will, starting today.
Now that he was at the Association, he had to be prepared for media exposure. Steeling himself, Sa-yoon got out of the car with Geon-joo. Thanks to his advance notice, an escort arranged by Min-cheol was there to meet them.
“…I will guide you.”
As he was Min-cheol’s man, he must have been briefed, but he still flinched as if he never truly expected him to show up. The escort quickly regained his composure and bowed. Sa-yoon followed him down a familiar path and stood before a massive door. The Association President’s office was as unnecessarily grand as ever.
“Please call if you need anything.”
The escort politely withdrew. At that exact moment, Sa-yoon kicked the door.
Kiiiiik, Kwaaaang!
The heavy door slammed into the wall with a rough groan. Sa-yoon’s lips curled up at the wide-open entrance. The Association President was visible, directly in front of him.
“Kwon Sa-yoon?”
“Well, well. They say even a bad connection is a connection. It’s good to see you after so long.”
Muttering like a street ruffian, Sa-yoon entered the office and flopped onto a sofa. The President, who had been acting as if he’d seen a ghost, stared at the chuckling Sa-yoon and muttered blankly.
“Seeing that rude-ass attitude, you really are that goby² of a bastard.”
It was a welcome compliment.
The man, seemingly having given up on pointing out his impolite behavior, shook his head and sat on the sofa opposite him. He glanced once at Sa-yoon, once at Geon-joo, then clasped his hands together.
“Where in the world have you been? When all hell is breaking loose, you should make an appearance.”
“So I’m making one now.”
“Do I look like I’m joking?”
“Still as impatient as ever. I was in a Gate.”
“A Gate?”
The Association President raised an eyebrow as if he couldn’t understand. Sa-yoon, who had told the plain truth without a hint of a lie, simply nodded.
<‘Truth Assessment’³ hits. The target is reading your psychology.>
What a suspicious old geezer.
Sa-yoon snorted at the man who was using a skill to verify his words. The result would obviously be ‘true,’ so he remained confident. The president blinked a few times, then wiped his entire face with his hand and let out a deep sigh. It was the face of a man who had lost any grounds to be angry, now that he knew he had really been inside a Gate.
“Why were you in a Gate for so long? You had a return stone.”
“It was a Gate where return stones don’t work.”
“What kind of Gate was it?”
“An L-Rank Gate.”
“……?”
The President’s breathing stopped. Sa-yoon sat quietly, mulling over Gyeongjin’s words. My reputation has worsened due to my disappearance and absence, and my credibility has dropped. In that case, he just had to build it all back up.
And as it happened, he had the perfect weapon.
An experience that would serve as a pretty good pretext and boost his support.
“There’s a tower called the Fated Tower, a place that lets you get a taste of the Gates that will open in the future. It took a year to clear it. If you don’t believe me, ask Lee Jaehee. You know Lee Jaehee, right?”
He’s trustworthy, isn’t he?
He spoke with a lazy smirk, but the information he had just provided was so shocking that the Association President didn’t get angry. Another ‘Truth Assessment’ skill notification was simply exposed by his Genius’s Eye.
The man’s face turned to one of pure shock as he clutched his head.
“…So you’re saying, an L-Rank Gate has appeared?”
“Yeah. It’s closed now, though. Probably won’t open again.”
He couldn’t be certain, but from the three gods’ reactions, it seemed unlikely the Tower would open for anyone other than him, Geon-joo, and Jaehee.
After all, they had already cleared it.
The Association President let out a few hollow laughs, then set down the tea he had been about to drink without taking a single sip and looked up at the ceiling.
“…You make it impossible to even be angry.”
At the declaration of surrender, Sa-yoon smiled the smile of a victor.
“I hear we’ve been kicked out of Noah?”
“Not kicked out, a temporary withdrawal.”
“Same difference.”
“So, did you come here to leave Noah for good?”
The Association President’s eyes wavered with anxiety. Now that he knew he had cleared an L-Rank Gate, now that he knew he held information about future Gates, he seemed to desire him even more than before. His eye for recognizing a person’s value wasn’t bad. And Sa-yoon was generous to those who knew his worth.
“I can’t leave when you’re looking at me with those begging eyes. Announce my return. I’m not going to disappear again.”
At his cool declaration, a flicker of relief crossed the President’s eyes. But the expected positive reply did not come.
Even though he had agreed to rejoin, the President remained silent. Sa-yoon tilted his head. The President, who had been quiet as if troubled by something, took out a tablet and handed it to him.
“Take a look at this.”
He was suddenly shown an article. Sa-yoon took the tablet, perplexed. When he checked the screen, he saw it was an article speculating on the reason for his disappearance.
The content itself wasn’t bad. Unlike the absurd speculations about betrayal or immigration, the reporter who wrote this one was inferring that he had gone missing while clearing a Gate, possibly in connection with the newly updated ‘Apocalypse’ system.
What’s the problem with this?
“Look at the comments, too.”
Wondering what the fuss was about over such a mundane article, he watched as the President opened the comments section. Only then did Sa-yoon understand Min-cheol’s silence. Han Geon-joo, who was looking over his shoulder, let out a low groan.
“It’s a good article, but not a single person believes it.”
It was a roundabout way of saying public opinion was at rock bottom.
Sorted by Upvotes
Kim Kang○ (st**) 6 hours ago BEST – Missing while clearing a Gate? You’re raising all kinds of fucking hell just to defend him. Is this what the media has come to? People are saying the ‘missing’ Kwon Sa-yoon is in the US right now ㅋㅋ You should at least check the witness reports coming out of America before you write. This is why they call you trash reporters.
Jong Kwon○ (he**) 5 hours ago BEST – Instead of writing about a missing Hunter who fled to another country, please write about Mr. Lee Han, who is working hard to clear Gates at this very moment. I want to read good articles, not deceptive ones.
“What’s this about witness reports?”
“There’s no proof, but there are at least ten witness reports a day from all over the world claiming to have seen you. That’s why no one believes you were actually missing.”
It was ridiculous. As he glared at the tablet, wondering if this was happening because he had so many enemies, the Association President took a breath.
“And this is a news site, so the comments are relatively tame. On other sites, it’s a total warzone. In a situation like this, it’s honestly difficult to just let you return because you came back. Public opinion will be extremely hostile. There will be protests.”
“So?”
Sa-yoon tilted his head and looked at Min-cheol. The President met his gaze without wavering and picked up his phone.
“Prove it.”
“……?”
“You say you’ve returned from conquering a tower that shows future Gates? An L-Rank one, at that. To use that as your weapon to make a comeback, you need to prove you have the skills to back it up.”
Biiiiip!
The phone in the President’s hand vibrated violently, and a sharp warning sound blared. The President glanced down at the screen, then turned it to show Sa-yoon.
“It seems a good opportunity has just arrived.”
[Seoul City Hall. An S+ Rank Gate has appeared within 100m of City Hall. Citizens, please evacuate to a nearby shelter immediately. Nearby Hunters and Association-affiliated Hunters, please provide emergency support.]
Sa-yoon skimmed the alert message and his lips curled upwards.
“You’re setting the stage quite nicely for me.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
The Association President, still seated, said he wouldn’t go far. He told Sa-yoon to let this one slide, considering how much trouble he had caused. Sa-yoon let out a hum and rose from his seat.
“I wasn’t expecting anything in the first place. Let’s go, pretty boy.”
Proof.
That was what Sa-yoon had been doing, ad nauseam, for the past ten years.
There was no reason to be surprised or afraid now. With a deep smile, Sa-yoon exited the Association President’s office.
He would prophesy without a shred of doubt: soon, everyone would be seeking him out again. In a very positive sense. Begging and pleading.