“President Oh, do you still have sothing to discuss with the Gwangcheon team?”
Riyu asked.
“……”
Without answering, Oh Seongcheon suddenly sprang to his feet and strode toward the door.
Just before stepping out, he glared straight at .
I t his gaze head-on, and his lips twitched as though he ant to say sothing—yet in the end, he left without a word.
Bang!!
The heavy door slamd shut behind him.
“What a temper.”
Riyu’s voice ca from behind.
“Then you lot should wait here. I’ll bring Crystal’s president.”
He could have easily sent soone else, but instead he rose himself and headed for the door.
“Thank you.”
I bowed, and he gave a small smile before leaving.
“Now then, care to explain?”
When I turned, iling was standing with her arms crossed, eyes fixed on .
“We never agreed on that. Lumina even said she wouldn’t mind joining All-Around. So why did you just blurt that out?”
“I-I don’t mind if we all join the sa guild… actually, I’d like that…”
Lumina mumbled.
“When Abel suggested joining All-Around, you also said it’d be nice if we could all be in the sa guild.”
I reminded them.
iling’s cheeks flushed faintly.
“T-that’s true… but still, you can’t expect to understand if you don’t explain first.”
“Yein, I want an explanation too.”
Seo Yui looked at as she spoke.
I nodded.
“It was to stop Forward from taking Lumina. If she entered the Black Hounds, she’d suffer for it.”
“W-what??”
Lumina’s face turned pale with surprise.
“She’s right. If Lumina joined the Black Hounds, she’d lose her mind in no ti. One of their main jobs is hunting people down and killing them.”
iling said flatly.
This ti, Lumina’s mouth fell open.
“And what I said earlier—I ant it. We won this award together. I couldn’t accept that so of us would get contracts while others wouldn’t.”
“I see… yes, I agree. I only panicked earlier because I didn’t know what you were thinking.”
Panicked?
Yet she had played along so perfectly. Seo Yui’s ability to act never ceased to amaze .
“I’m sorry, senior. I know you may have had other plans, and I just made the decision on my own.”
I bowed my head toward her.
“It’s fine. You did it for Lumina’s sake.”
Just then, Lumina ca closer.
“Thank you, Yein. I had no idea about any of that.”
At that mont, footsteps echoed from outside.
All of us turned our heads toward the door.
It opened, revealing Ahn Hyunggi and Riyu.
Ahn Hyunggi wore a beaming smile.
So, Riyu must have told him we rejected Oh Seongcheon’s offer.
That explained his cheerful expression.
“Go on, talk.”
Riyu said, then settled once more into the single armchair.
“Thank you. Please, sit down.”
Ahn Hyunggi gestured warmly as he took his seat on the sofa.
Unlike Oh Seongcheon, who had arrogantly sat down without so much as offering us chairs, Ahn Hyunggi invited us properly.
Once we were seated in a row, he smiled at .
“I hear you turned down Forward’s proposal without even asking for ti to think. That ans I still have a chance, doesn’t it?”
Though his face smiled, there was a subtle pressure behind his words, one I recognized well.
Feels just like when I first t Eleanor.
Back when Platinum Wing still belonged to the Crystal Hunter Mall, she discovered the items I sold were mine and tried to force into being her assistant.
The result was Platinum Wing ending up in my hands.
In the end, all she really wanted was a supplier, so I handed it back after making a point.
“Then let start by telling you what I want.”
Ahn Hyunggi leaned back into the sofa.
“Although I used the ticket, you don’t necessarily have to join Crimson Crystal or any of Crystal’s subsidiaries. If you want to, I’d gladly welco you. But if you don’t, I won’t force you.”
What?
That was unexpected.
In the ga, when Ahn Hyunggi used his ticket, the follow-up questline always began with becoming a Crimson Crystal recruit.
But now he was saying we didn’t need to join Crystal at all.
“Then what exactly did you use your ticket for, President?”
I asked.
“What I want is for you, Yein, to transfer to Crystal Academy.”
At those words, Lumina, iling, and even Seo Yui all flinched.
Déjà vu.
Eleanor had also tried to bring into Crystal once she learned I studied at Gwangcheon.
“Of course, if your teammates transferred with you, I’d be even happier. After all, you four won both the individual and team championships at HAUT. News of that would be well received by many.”
“Not by everyone.”
I said, recalling a certain girl’s face.
“I won’t deny that.”
Ahn Hyunggi chuckled.
“If you ca to Crystal Academy, I’d cover not just your tuition until graduation, but also all your living expenses. True, Chairman Porter already promised to sponsor you, but that arrangent would change if you transferred.”
For a mont, I was stunned.
Because even if both offered full tuition, Gwangcheon and Crystal were worlds apart.
Gwangcheon cost only tens of millions to graduate.
But at Crystal, a single sester ran into hundreds of millions.
And yet Ahn Hyunggi was offering to pay for all four of us until graduation, plus cover our living expenses.
“If you wished, I could also provide convenience for your families and support whatever majors or career paths you wanted. Standard hunter academy training is already aningless for you.”
At that, both Lumina and Seo Yui reacted.
Lumina’s eyes lit up, while Seo Yui looked pensive.
But I still couldn’t shake my unease.
Why is he so desperate to pull into Crystal Academy?
The first person Ahn Hyunggi targeted with his ticket had been .
That much confird that I was his goal.
But the reason behind it—I couldn’t fathom.
After all, the character Nam Yein’s stats were pitiful at best.
If I didn’t have to join Crimson Crystal or beco part of a Crystal subsidiary, then what possible gain could Ahn Hyunggi have in bringing over?
At that mont, the words he had spoken earlier to Oh Seongcheon ca back to .
“On the contrary, I’m delighted with this result. Defeat is a gift that allows one to recognize their shortcomings and move toward perfection.”
I see now.
I looked straight at him and asked,
“You want us to co to Crystal for Iris’s growth, don’t you?”
“…Oh?”
Ahn Hyunggi’s expression shifted into one of intrigue.
“How did you know?”
“I rembered what you said earlier to President Oh of Forward.”
“Yes. As expected, you’re sharp.”
Ahn Hyunggi looked deeply satisfied, though his eyes burned with an even stronger desire than before.
“I plan to use you, Yein.”
He laced his fingers together and rested them on the table.
“Physical Strength, F. Stamina, F. ntal Strength, C. By rights, those are grades too low for soone to even dream of becoming a hunter candidate.”
“Are you trying to pick a fight right now?”
iling suddenly snapped.
“…A loyal companion, I see.”
Ahn Hyunggi chuckled and continued.
“Even so, you defeated my daughter in a duel. Of course, Iris underestimated you far too much. Had she taken you seriously and fought with her ability from the start, you wouldn’t have been able to use a single item properly before being crushed.”
He wasn’t being a doting father.
I agreed with him.
Even iling, who had flared up monts ago, only frowned with her lips parted, unable to deny it.
“But the fact remains—you did defeat Iris. That must have been a profound shock for her. Which is why I want you by her side. You can show her what she lacks, again and again.”
What she lacked—he ant defeat and reflection, no doubt.
“But if I fought Iris again, I’d surely lose. I wouldn’t be able to push her further.”
“No. I could feel it.”
Ahn Hyunggi’s smile vanished.
“You’re the perfect partner for her.”
The air on either side of trembled.
I glanced over to see my three companions frozen in place.
“What I saw at HAUT isn’t all there is. You’re hiding sothing far greater.”
“I’m not sure what you an.”
“Yein. Did you really think wearing a mask that day would keep your identity hidden forever?”
The others jolted at his words.
So he knows.
When he said sothing great was hidden, I realized he was referring to Valhall.
During Seo Yui’s rescue, I had borrowed the hands of Eleanor and Iris—more precisely, their attendants and Crystal’s manpower.
The reason he said nothing about “Valhall” and instead hinted about a mask was because Riyu was present.
“Did you hear it from Iris?”
“She was curious about you long before that. I’d already heard rumors of a peculiar hunter candidate apprenticing at Eleanor’s workshop. They said you were her assistant. But your performance at HAUT’s crafting exam makes that sound like a lie.”
“……”
A bitter taste filled my mouth.
I had botched my weapon crafting deliberately so Kim Hyeonseok, the master craftsman, wouldn’t notice my skill—but now that choice had co back around.
“But that’s not what matters now. I won’t dig further.”
Ahn Hyunggi unclasped his hands and leaned back against the sofa.
“There are other things too. You played a symbolic role during the Academy Union protests. You provided the item that stopped the Transfer, passing it to the mayor himself. You fought in the Porter Departnt Store terror incident alongside your comrades. Your contributions are many. All of that tells you’ll be a powerful catalyst for Iris.”
His gaze fixed squarely on .
“I’ve said my piece. Now I want to hear your thoughts. Will you transfer from Gwangcheon to Crystal?”
“I’m sorry, but right now it isn’t possible.”
“Hmm.”
He pursed his lips slightly.
“Are my offers not to your liking?”
“It’s not that. I can’t go into detail, but there are things I must finish in Gwangcheon. Once that’s done…”
I trailed off.
This wasn’t the first ti soone had suggested I transfer.
First, Chen Kai had tried to send away, thinking I was holding iling back.
Then Eleanor had attempted to bring into Crystal.
I had refused each ti.
After all, in Latessai, transfers didn’t exist.
No one knew what consequences might follow.
Worse, all the bonds I’d built—companion events and academy storylines—could crumble away.
But now I have Lumina, iling, and Seo Yui.
All the companions I needed from Gwangcheon were already with .
Which left only the academy-specific storylines.
After how I confronted Oh Seongcheon today, life at Gwangcheon would no doubt grow difficult.
But I could never follow Forward.
If that were my plan, I wouldn’t have gone out of my way to win the favor of Mayor Cheon or Chairman Porter.
And HAUT, which normally only opened to second-years, had already ended for in my first year.
On top of that, Ahn Hyunggi had placed shockingly generous terms on the table.
Which ant it was ti.
Ti to choose.
(End of Chapter)
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