Chapter 143 : Chapter 143

Chapter 143

I ‍​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌‌​‌‍returned to the dormitory before meeting Cha Yeri.

As ‍​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍I went up to my room, I also collected Evergreen Mercy from the parcel locker.

I ‍​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍removed the packaging and placed it casually beside the television.

At ‍​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍once, the environmental mana that had been drifting in the room began to stir with lively movement.

If ‍​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍I were to exaggerate, it was as though the mana were starting to condense, like the environmental mana of Gangwon-do.

“What ‍​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍if I were to brew that little tree like herbal medicine and drink it?”

No. It would be better to keep it displayed beside me for the rest of my life.

At the very least, it would raise my magic power by more than 10.

While thinking such things, I showered and came out.

Then a message arrived, telling me to collect an item from the parcel locker in the lobby.

“I already picked up Evergreen Mercy. What is this?”

I threw on some clothes and went down to the lobby, only to find that a new item was indeed sitting in the locker.

The sender was Giant Needle, the Production Guild that handled Hero Prep’s uniforms.

Inside was a high-end suit suitable for a banquet.

“Do not tell me…”

At that moment, my phone rang.

As expected, it was Cha Yeri.

“Hello?”

─Did you receive the clothes?

“So it was you who sent it. But this seems a bit excessive.”

─That is ordinary at that level. Today, you are going to make your debut in high society.

“…What?”

─There is a banquet at my house today, and we are hosting it.

A banquet hosted by the Hyeonseong family meant a large-scale party where Seoul’s influential figures gathered…

“Why would you do this without even discussing it with me?”

─If I discussed it, would you have agreed so readily? Besides, did you not say you would yield to me today? Do not worry. I will only introduce you as a fellow cadet from the same year. I do observe that much restraint.

How generous of her.

─So take those clothes and leave for the location I send you. Do not think about running away. If you even try to disappear, I will hire every Hunter I can and tear Seoul apart searching for you.

“…”

A threat on an entirely different scale.

I barely managed to suppress the hollow laugh that rose in my throat.

Because she meant it.

“Fine. So where am I supposed to go?”

***

Following the location Cha Yeri sent, I arrived at a hair salon in Seoul’s District 2.

The moment I stepped inside, a designer greeted me warmly, as if he had been waiting.

He sat me down in front of a mirror without hesitation and draped a cutting cape around me.

Then he asked whether I had indeed reserved a hairstyle with a name I could not even understand, and I nodded as though bewitched.

It seemed Cha Yeri had even booked the hairstyle.

“Excuse me, but are you not an investigator from the Special Affairs Division?”

“Yes.”

“Wow! I am a fan! After the cut, could you take a photo with me?”

“If it is only one, then yes.”

The designer’s scissors began to move with practiced ease.

At first I thought grooming would have little to do with superpowers, but the designer displayed incredible speed and precision based on an awakened person’s stats.

A seasoned skill—cutting hair to uniform lengths without even a comb or guide, down to the millimeter…

The two-block hairstyle I had grown out for nearly a year, counting even the time from my previous world, was transformed into a clean cut in a mere five minutes.

“Time for a shampoo!”

After my hair was washed and dried, he set it with spray.

A simple style, neat and clean, with my forehead exposed.

So tidy that I almost wondered if my face had always looked like this.

Looking at it made me realize just how disheveled I usually was.

I had practically been some shaggy mutt…

After asking for permission, I changed into the banquet suit, took a photo with the designer, and left the salon.

But in front of the shop, a familiar car and a familiar-faced woman were waiting for me.

“Are you finished? Please get in. The young lady is waiting.”

It was Kim Songi, Cha Yeri’s aide.

A gentle woman who always accepted Cha Yeri’s complaints without complaint herself.

“Then I will trouble you.”

Following her, I arrived at a grand mansion in Seoul’s District 5.

The Hyeonseong family’s estate, which had remained at the heart of District 5 like an old resident ever since the Great Rift.

“Please step out. I will guide you to the young lady’s room.”

“Ah, yes.”

Perhaps because the banquet had not yet begun, the hired staff were moving briskly.

So busy that I almost felt sorry to speak to them.

As an aside, District 5 had become a residential area for the upper class because the Hyeonseong family had settled there first.

The influence of the nearby 4th Scholastic District mattered, but the greater reason was that the first Director-General of the Bureau had been Cha Jaehee, the founder of Hyeonseong.

Wealthy awakened individuals flocked to District 5, and with time, it naturally came to be treated as a rich district.

Given the prestige of being the neighborhood where the head of the world’s number one company by market capitalization lived, it was unlikely that District 5’s status would ever be overturned.

“Unless there is a war.”

“Pardon? What did you say just now?”

“No, it was nothing. A habit of speaking to myself.”

“I see.”

Under Kim Songi’s guidance, I stepped into one of Hyeonseong’s many mansions.

“Should I not greet the head of the family first?”

“The young lady’s parents are abroad. Her grandfather, the Chairman, is still attending to work in District 2.”

The one handling domestic affairs was the Chairman, Cha Myeonghan.

Cha Yeri’s parents managed overseas operations.

That was because Hyeonseong did not conduct business solely for awakened individuals.

Rather than making items for awakened individuals, it applied that power toward electronics, construction, and the automobile industry.

As a result, it influenced numerous industries, boasting overwhelming performance outside the Korean Peninsula—so dominant it could be called absolute.

With Hyeonseong having built twenty percent of the buildings in Seoul’s inner city, introducing the company in this world was almost tiresome.

After a short while, Kim Songi stopped before a door at the end of a corridor.

A lavish door, as large as the entrance to a building.

“This is it. The young lady is waiting inside.”

When the door opened, two people who had been speaking turned their heads toward me.

One was Cha Yeri, still in her cadet uniform.

And the other…

“Finally, we meet!”

Master Jang Incheol of Ironflame.

“Welcome. Ah—rather, Cadet Ji Seok…hyeon?”

Cha Yeri greeted me with an unusually different reaction.

An expression as though she were looking at something unfamiliar.

Even though her throat was not visible, I could see her swallow hard.

“Hello. I am Ji Seokhyeon. And Cadet Cha Yeri, you said you had business with me?”

Despite my formal greeting, she remained frozen for quite some time before finally parting her lips.

“Ah… Ah! Would you like to sit first? And, aide—please bring one more glass.”

“Yes, young lady.”

As soon as Kim Songi closed the door behind her, I sat on the sofa.

Then Jang Incheol spoke to me with a peculiar smile.

“I am Jang Incheol. I run a small guild.”

“Ah, yes. I am Ji Seokhyeon.”

“I am the one who called for you. I asked Hyeonseong for the favor because I wished to meet you. Ah! Before we begin, let me first express my thanks for what happened a few days ago. Thank you. If it were not for you, it would have been disastrous.”

If he meant the incident a few days ago, it was surely the airplane terror in District 8.

His thanks meant he knew I had been involved.

He might have heard my conversation with Lee Eunho inside the plane, or perhaps he had seen me before Monica took me away.

More than that, I did not understand why he was here at all.

Because Jang Incheol was one of the most notorious Galápagos of the awakened world.

Even if Hyeonseong, the leading force in the production industry, hosted a banquet, he would not so much as spare it a glance—unless it involved striking an anvil in his workshop.

As though he believed hammering an anvil was his destiny.

That was why every item he produced surpassed even the standards of luxury goods and was spoken of as the highest honor a Hunter could receive.

In the Hunter world, there was hardly a clearer proof of ability than saying, “I possess a weapon made by Jang Incheol of Ironflame.”

And yet this man, dressed in a banquet suit he had evidently put effort into, had asked Cha Yeri to arrange a meeting with me?

…Had the Avid Reader painted him with a different color?

To better understand the situation, I shifted my gaze toward Cha Yeri.

But she was still staring at me as though she meant to bore through me.

It took roughly eight seconds before the sharp-witted Cha Yeri noticed my glance and opened her mouth.

“Ah! This is Master Jang Incheol of Ironflame. And…”

“We already exchanged greetings.”

“Pardon? Ah…”

Jang Incheol spoke as though he did not care.

“No need for flowery words. The reason I agreed to attend this banquet today is that I wish to propose a condition to you, Ji Seokhyeon.”

A condition?

He soon held out a document.

The title on the front page read: Equipment Sponsorship Contract.

In other words, a contract in which a Production Guild provided equipment exclusively to a promising Hunter in exchange for publicity.

The problem was that such contracts were usually offered only to “promising Hunters.”

There was no publicity more effective than a handsome Hunter wielding a fine weapon while hunting vicious monsters.

Moreover, Ironflame imposed such strict standards that it had sponsorship contracts with fewer than ten Hunters.

Naturally, every one of them was a top-tier A-Rank Hunter.

“You look surprised. Even I know that sponsorship contracts are unfamiliar in the investigative world. Compared to Hunters, your equipment exposure is far lower, so the effect is minimal.”

“Then why are you making such an offer to me? There are many other Hunters who are far more prominent.”

“I am sorry, but I do not judge sponsors by fame. Until now, I have selected only those capable of using Ironflame’s equipment to its fullest. Well, within the guild, there is talk that we should take on more sponsored Hunters, but as long as I remain Ironflame’s master, that philosophy will not change.”

“Then are you saying I can use the equipment to its fullest? Compared to other A-Rank Hunters, I do not think I measure up…”

Jang Incheol nodded as though it were obvious.

“Of course. I know your rate of growth is frightening, but there is a portion that conflicts with our philosophy. However, that is Ironflame’s stance.”

“…Pardon?”

“Read the document carefully. The party entering this contract is not Ironflame. It is me, Jang Incheol.”

It was true.

There was nothing about the guild—only terms stating that Jang Incheol would provide equipment to me exclusively.

In other words, humanity’s greatest blacksmith would personally craft gear for me.

“They call me stubborn, but I have quietly pursued what I believed was right. This proposal is no different.”

“…”

“You saved my life. Because of you, I can sit before an anvil for decades more. You may find this disappointing, but this contract is largely meant as repayment. After all, there is nothing more foolish than offering a sponsorship contract to the Special Affairs Division, which operates in secrecy.”

Jang Incheol’s opinion was firm.

So firm that he had left only my decision, without any further questions.

For a moment, my eyes met Cha Yeri’s.

She was smiling with her eyes, but to me, her fluster was painfully obvious.

Had she introduced me, yet not expected him to go so far as to offer a sponsorship contract?

Well, setting that aside—

What I truly noticed was that she had used me as bait to get Jang Incheol to attend the banquet.

It was, undeniably, the mark of a businesswoman.

For Ironflame, which maintained neutrality even within the production industry, to attend Hyeonseong’s banquet was an implicit declaration that it would build ties with Hyeonseong going forward.

Unlike the production guilds of District 7, whose symbiosis was openly defined, Ironflame had operated independently—a genuine article that had carved its way forward by skill alone.

In fact, by refusing to stand on anyone’s side, it had lived without major turmoil.

But the moment it stepped into Hyeonseong’s fence, those benefits would end.

Had Jang Incheol truly considered that and still chosen to attend?

Just to sign a contract with me, a mere cadet of Hero Prep?

“…”

No.

A man who had spent his life battling heat could not possibly be aware of such inner workings.

To begin with, his wife handled the actual operation of the guild.

Which meant that this situation was being driven one-sidedly by Cha Yeri, the “businesswoman,” from Hyeonseong’s perspective.

I could understand her position, too.

Because Hyeonseong, which counted non-awakened people as its primary customers, tended to treat production guilds as heretical—mere makers of magical engineering byproducts.

With the exception of Hyeonseong Construction, of course.

But still.

I did not want Jang Incheol to be dragged into the struggle for spoils in this world.

I wanted him to devote himself to what he wished to do, and to strive for greater achievements.

As the original author.

Unfortunately for Cha Yeri and Hyeonseong, I would have to repay the audacity of using me as bait.

I opened my mouth with resolve.

“I am sorry, but I will not sign the contract.”

“Why? Are the conditions insufficient?”

“Yes.”