"If you want to join the guild, submit your resume and let’s do an interview. It’s for an immediate opening, anyway," Kim Do-Jin said coldly after considering these things for a moment.

“Isn’t the ability what matters for a hunter’s resume?”

“I don’t want people who have the ability but have a bad personality," said Do-Jin.

“You’re quite different from what I saw on TV. Doesn’t that standard apply to you too, president?”

“What I mean is, one person with a bad personality is enough in my company.”

Kim Do-Jin wavedhis hand and turned to go back to his office. Cha Sun-Wook continued.

"There are fifteen others besides us."

For a moment, Do-Jin stopped.

"I assume the top ten guilds are making things quite annoying for you. Wouldn't it be quite advantageous for you if thirty talented hunters entered your company?”

The reason why Kim Do-Jin hesitated after hearing Cha Sun-Wook's proposal was that the top ten guilds were trying to keep him and his guild in check.

‘It's been a long time since I officially posted a job opening, but we only got five resumes.’

Do-Jin also hadn’t been quite satisfied with those five applicants, but he was still hopeful, which was why he had come to interview them in person. He believed that although there weren’t any results yet, he might meet talented people with unexpected potential, and he could raise them himself.

‘It's a pain in the ass, but I have no choice, since Baek Ah-Rin is busy right now.’

Recently, Baek Ah-Rin's main task was to deal with the constraints of various guild activities due to the top ten guilds’ accusations. If even the tiniest problem or conflict with the law occurred, the other guilds instantly started wildly criticizing them. She was extremely busy blocking their attacks one by one.

If Kim Do-Jin hadn’t come to work, and instead remained busy clearing the dungeon, it would have been hard for Baek Ah-Rin to keep her position because of the fight with the top ten guilds. Under such circumstances, Cha Sun-Wook's proposal was definitely pleasant.

"I agree that there should be a procedure in place, this is a guild after all, but you know… beggars can't be choosers,” said Sun-Wook.

In the end, Kim Do-Jin looked at Cha Sun-Wook again.

"Who the heck are you guys?"

Cha Sun-Wook wasn’t talented enough to be instantly recognized by name alone, but he appeared to be pretty useful, even by Do-Jin’s standards. Also, Do-Jin quite liked the guy’s cool impression.

"We’re in a similar situation. People who want to do…personal activities, but can't do anything because of the top ten guilds’ pressure. We’ve gathered and formed a group,” Sun-Wook said.

"Then, why do you want to join our guild?" asked Do-Jin.

“Don’t you get it? It’s because we lack strength. But that doesn’t mean we want to stick with the top ten guilds,” Sun-Wook replied.

There were about twenty B-rank hunters and five or six A-rank hunters. Obviously, they were not a weak group, but their power wasn’t even half that of the Gorilla Guild, which was the weakest of the top ten guilds. However, what if they joined Kim Do-Jin and Baek Ah-Rin, who would both surpass the A rank in the not-so-distant future?

'Not bad.’

In fact, only taking into account the number of people and their ranks, the guild would grow enough to put together a raid team, albeit a small one. sᴇaʀᴄh thᴇ N0vᴇlFire(.)nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

In the end, Kim Do-Jin nodded, and Cha Sun-Wook, who seemed somewhat nervous, also smiled peculiarly.

Do-Jin said, "All right."

"Of course, there are conditions on our side before that,” said Sun-Wook.

"My skills?"

"Exactly. I've heard rumors about you and have watched your videos, but we're also pretty confident in what we can do. If we experience your skills in person and you don’t meet our expectations, it’s going to be too much of a loss for us.”

"Who's the opponent?"

"You're still in the C-rank, right? We have a conscience. I'll get a man at B-rank, level 50 or so to test you. If you can beat him, then...." said Sun-Wook.

"That won’t do. Aren't you the captain?” said Do-Jin as he looked directly into Sun-Wook's eyes.

"What?"

“Soldiers should fight soldiers, generals should fight generals.”

"...Well, well." Cha Sun-Wook smiled crookedly. Clearly, his pride was hurt. He pointed out, "I'm an A-rank hunter and my level is over 50."

"Do you think I can't win?" asked Do-Jin.

"What a big ego," Sun-Wook sneered.

"No, I just have great ability," said Kim Do-Jin.

Their eyes met fiercely in the air.

"I’m quite offended. If you lose…"

“Both I and Baek Ah-Rin will become your subordinates," said Do-Jin.

"What?” said Sun-Wook.

“It means that you can be our company’s president. And I'll do what you want. Will a minimum of five years be enough for the contract?"

"Are you confident that you won't regret saying that?” asked Sun-Wook as his eyes sparkled. He also had pride. No matter how much potential Do-Jin had, he was only a C-rank hunter right now, after all. Also, Sun-Wook’s own decision to go under Kim Do-Jin had not been an easy one to take.

"Rather, I hope you understand that if you lose, you won’t only lose a match, but also your current status,” said Do-Jin.

“Well, that wouldn’t be a problem. In the first place, I didn’t have any expectations from a company that doesn’t even have a raid team yet,” said Sun-Wook.

"Then do you accept the bet?" asked Do-Jin.

"Don't regret it."

“You too.”

“So, when and where?”

"Is there a reason to drag it out? Let’s do it right now. Follow me," said Do-Jin as he took the lead, heading toward the hunter-only gym.

In the distant future, when Sun-Wook recalled this day again, he would always start to explain himself with an absurd-looking smile.

- His face might trick you, but our boss is an absolutely insidious person. No one knew until then that he could use magic. Damn it, I was totally swindled back then. I wouldn't have lost if I had known that he could use magic. You don't believe me? Hey, I mean, otherwise, how could an A-rank hunter lose to a C-ranker? Oh~ You gotta believe me, it's a true story. If I had known, I would have won!

Of course, the milk had already been spilled by then.

***

After Choi Byung-Chan's death, Choi Min-Seok's life had gone downhill. He struggled with panic attacks, social phobia, and alcoholism. He was wary of all who approached him, and he could not sleep without being drunk… It all started out from a place of fear.

‘Yu-Seong… he's the one who killed him.’

Min-Seok remembered the last time he had seen Byung-Chan. As always, Byung-Chan had been strong and scary right until the moment…he died.

The criminal was said to be the Slaughter Queen, but mysteriously, Choi Yu-Seong had survived that entire incident.

‘This is not the first time Yu-Seong has survived after meeting the Slaughter Queen.’

Would this just be a coincidence? Min-Seok did not believe that for a second.

‘There must be something between the two…’

And sooner or later, the Slaughter Queen would come to visit him. Why? It was because Min-Seok had been the one who bothered Yu-Seong the most when he had been down.

Not long after Yu-Seong had Awakened, Min-Seok had hired Lee Jin-Wook to cripple or even kill Yu-Seong. If he put himself in Yu-Seong’s shoes, there was no reason not exact revenge.

Even though Byung-Chan had been scary and violent, if he had been still alive, Min-Seok wouldn’t have been this scared. It was because Byung-Chan had been his strong supporter. However, now he was completely alone.

Feeling scared, Min-Seok had called Choi Woo-Jae, crying and praying for his life, but he had heard absolutely nothing except the sound of a slight click of a tongue. The call had cut off, and Min-Seok had gone back to his routine of falling into a deep sleep, struggling in hellish fear, and thinking of numerous possible death scenarios.

Swoosh-!

The thick blackout curtains were set swept aside, and sunlight suddenly jabbed the sleeping Min-Seok’s eyes. Normally, he would have raised his voice in irritation, but for some reason, he opened his eyes quite calmly. He soon stiffened when he saw the long, brown, wavy hair of the woman in a tight dress in front of him.

"Are you awake? Oh, my. Look at you…what happened?" the woman, Choi In-Young, asked in a soft voice. She saw a messy-looking Min-Seok sitting around with a strong alcoholic odor.

She dragged a chair that was randomly thrown about in the room, sat down, and asked, "Can you hear me?"

"In-... In-Young noo-nim," Min-Seok replied.

In-Young smiled with her big eyes.

Min-Seok didn’t snap at his sister for waking him up like that, but it was not because he had changed his mind or because he was surprised. Rather, it was more of a survival instinct. He was not even fully awake yet, but he had a strong feeling that if he had shouted, he would have lost everything.

‘In-Young noo-nim came to me.’

When In-Young asked if he had woken up, Min-Seok was even touched by her words. He was relieved, thinking that he was not completely abandoned. He thought that, since In-Young was visiting him now, he probably still had a chance.

The power structure within the Comet Group, especially the Choi family, was set in stone. As of now, the person at the peak was definitely Chairman Choi Woo-Jae. The second most powerful was Choi Jin-Woo, the third son. Third place was held by Choi Seok-Young, the fourth son.

Choi In-Young was the fifth child, and she had the same mother as Choi Seok-Young. Therefore, there was no one who could ignore Choi In-Young in the family, even though she did not have a direct relationship with any executives or figures with power.

The reason why Choi Mi-Na's name was not included in Min-Seok's assessment was simple. She was clearly the most individually powerful among the siblings, but she didn't have decent supporters to support and share the power with. Unlike other siblings who subtly competed and secretly fought to take over as much of the family’s wealth as possible, she was completely alone. Therefore, in Min-Seok's mind, Choi Mi-Na was simply a scary and powerful sister rather than a person with authority.

Of course, there were signs of change in terms of the power hierarchy after Mi-Na's participation in the Comet Group’s guild project. However, by Min-Seok's standards, the situation had merely gained one rather volatile variable, nothing more.

It was wishful thinking that Min-Seok wouldn’t face problems, since he had been alone all this time. He was foolish, ignorant to the reason why the other siblings with high authority were trying to keep Mi-Na's guild business in check. Although, in this situation, that fact was pretty irrelevant to both Min-Seok and In-Young.

Min-Seok was delighted to find a stronger-than-expected lifeline, and In-Young was satisfied that he was not completely ruined yet when she saw light returning to his eyes. She called out, "Min-Seok."

"Yes!" answered Min-Seok in a strong and energetic voice.

"Do you want to live?" Choi In-Young asked and twisted her lips.

Although her expression was closer to a sneer than a smile, and there was a hint of death in her voice, these minor details were not important to Min-Seok. He just nodded crazily at his sister’s question. Of course, he wanted to live. Who wouldn’t have wanted to live, in his place? He was too scared to die.

"I don't want you to die, either. Even with all that happened, you're my younger brother, right?”

"That means..."

"But helping people for free is not our family’s style, is it?”

"I'll do anything. I'll do exactly what you tell me to do."

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