By Zephyria Bang—
The door to the Guild Leader’s office was thrown open roughly. Eui-jae staggered in and collapsed straight onto the sofa. He buried his face in the leather seat, lying prone as stiff as a wooden doll. Min-gi Seo, who followed behind, pushed up his sunglasses and began to nag.
“Thirty-four seconds have passed while you’ve been lying like that, sir. There’s still a lot of work to do.”
“What is it now…”
Min-gi Seo swiped through the tablet screen he was holding. His indifferent voice began to recite the schedule mechanically.
“I’ll start with the urgent matters. The research team wants you to come to Incheon. Seems like there’s been some progress. Oh, and the Rift Management Bureau contacted us for a visit regarding the recent Rift, and there are also interview requests from the subcontracted Guilds.”
“……”
“Ah, and… we also need to clean up the plants that Hunter Kang Ji-soo planted during the ‘Catch Me If You Can’ incident. We pulled out everything visible, but sprouts keep popping up everywhere. The cafe staff is complaining incessantly. Even if we ignore the floor and pillars, they say sprouts keep growing even from the roasted coffee beans. Hunter Kang Ji-soo doesn’t know what’s going on either, so we’ve contacted a Guild specializing in building repairs…”
“Stop, stop!”
Eui-jae quickly cut him off. Min-gi Seo asked with a puzzled look.
“Yes? There’s still a lot left, though?”
“Bae Won-woo. Pass it on to Bae Won-woo-ssi.”
“Oh dear, the Vice Guild Leader is already handling most of the paperwork. If we dump more work on him, he’ll collapse from brain overload.”
“How can an A-rank Hunter be so weak!”
“Isn’t it typical for Awakened to be physically strong but mentally weak? In today’s terms… it’s an Awakened’s inherent trait.”
The black lenses of Min-gi Seo’s sunglasses gleamed under the fluorescent light.
“One minute and thirty-five seconds have passed while we’ve been talking. In this time, the Guild Leader could have reviewed five approval documents and rejected them while talking to the Rift Management Bureau. Get up now!”
Eui-jae clenched his fist tightly. Damn it.
‘I miss Lee Sa-young!’
During the hospital visit, Very Small Miracle Mingi Seo listened carefully to all the methods Eui-jae had used to bring Lee Sa-young out. And step by step, he began to formulate a plan. For his own worker’s compensation.
“Yoon Ga-eul needs to recover, and the seafood market is closed… In the end, we’ll need Mana Stones to physically bring the Guild Leader out. I’ll put in a request for Mana Stones on the Hunter Market. Of course, I don’t think there will be a Mana Stone as big and clean as the one you have, sir.”
“What about the money?”
“We’ll handle it with Wave Guild funds for now.”
“Split it fifty-fifty. Then we can get it regardless of the price, right?”
“As expected of Hero J, you’re too generous.”
The two shook hands immediately. The negotiation was settled.
Very Small Miracle Mingi Seo was discharged from the hospital that day, and Bae Won-woo, Kang Ji-soo, and Romantic Opener, who heard the news, brought a van and came to pick him up in front of Seowon Guild. They even hung a roughly written placard on a cardboard box on the rear window of the car.
COME BACK! YOUR SEAT IS STILL AVAILABLE!
THE GUILD WILL COLLAPSE WITHOUT YOU (REALLY)
It looked more like the struggles of a black company than a welcome back, but it seemed different to the eyes of a workaholic, a work Addicts. The moment Min-gi Seo read the words on the placard, he covered his mouth. It seemed like tears were welling up in his eyes beneath his sunglasses.
“To think they need me this much…!”
“…I don’t think those are very touching words.”
“Doesn’t it say the Guild will collapse without me? What greater praise could there be?”
It was a pleasant sight. Until Min-gi Seo and Eui-jae got into the car and closed the doors.
Bang, the moment the van doors closed and the two fastened their seatbelts. Bae Won-woo and Kang Ji-soo, who were sitting in the driver’s seat and the passenger seat, turned around at the same time. It was like a scene from a terrifying horror movie. The atmosphere inside the car changed. Especially Bae Won-woo, whose cheeks were sunken in, looked like a zombie, adding to the horror.
“Seo Min-gi, and J.”
“Yes?”
“Please, please work!”
Six hands reached out from all directions. They were too desperate to avoid.
According to what Bae Won-woo and Romantic Opener said, sobbing, it was like this.
The reason Wave Guild could operate as a small, elite Guild was entirely thanks to Lee Sa-young. It was possible because Lee Sa-young handled most of the work alone. Of course, the workload had decreased a bit after meeting J, but he still did his job diligently.
Then Lee Sa-young fell asleep for three months. It was okay, because Min-gi Seo and J were there.
After he woke up, he kept going off on tangents instead of working, but it was okay. Because Min-gi Seo was there.
But then Lee Sa-young and J got trapped in the Invasion Dungeon. From this point on, things slowly started to go wrong. Everyone was busy in the field, so there was no one to handle the desk work.
In this situation, Min-gi Seo was seriously injured and hospitalized. J was also busy doing his own thing and didn’t even come to Wave Guild. This was the final blow. The accumulated work exploded.
Romantic Opener grabbed Min-gi Seo’s arm and sobbed.
“I thought I was going to die… There was so much work… It never ended…”
“Have you finally realized how important I am?”
“So. So very.”
Min-gi Seo stroked Romantic Opener’s head with a proud look. Eui-jae dodged Bae Won-woo’s hands, which were reaching out to him, and asked.
“Even if we consider Min-gi Seo, why did you look for me? I can’t do desk work.”
“Of course, we know. But… we’re in a situation where we need to borrow even a cat’s paw. Won’t you help us just a little? Focusing on field work.”
“No, first we need to get Sa-young out…”
“Ah, of course, we definitely need to get him out! We’ll help with all our strength too. He’s our Guild Leader, after all.”
The moment Eui-jae stuck to the back of the chair, Kang Ji-soo, who had been quiet, threw out a word.
“Wave Guild might collapse before Guild Leader comes back.”
“……”
“Th, that’s right. We have to show him a healthy Wave Guild when he comes back!”
It was an impossible thing to refuse. Wave Guild was practically created to wait for Cha Eui-jae. They couldn’t let such a Guild collapse.
Min-gi Seo, who was enjoying the hands reaching out to him with a proud look, chimed in.
“Either way, we can’t get the Guild Leader out right now. It will take time to find the Mana Stone and for Yoon Ga-eul to recover. How about working with us for a while?”
I, is that so? But the last remaining bit of reason grabbed Eui-jae. What work, I’ll cook abalone porridge for Student Ga-eul during that time.
At that moment, Min-gi Seo held out his hand.
“Instead, we’ll cover the cost of the Mana Stone. Wave Guild will bear the full cost.”
Eui-jae grabbed that hand as if possessed. It’s always good to save money.
And back to the present. Eui-jae was regretting it.
‘I should have just split it fifty-fifty.’
Wave Guild had a lot of work. A lot. The title of one of the three major Guilds in Korea wasn’t given lightly. Calls, requests, Dungeon raids coming from all directions, and how many people to meet and contact.
‘Did he work like this every day?’
And he went to the Hanover Soup Restaurant every day to provoke them? He kept coming to see me?
‘Crazy bastard.’
“Um… J. Are you really okay? You look very tired.”
Ga-eul, who approached on her knees, asked carefully. Eui-jae was lying on a blanket spread out in the middle of the classroom. He answered in a voice that seemed about to fade away.
“I’m okay. I was just thinking.”
“Are you, are you really okay? I can’t call a doctor in here…”
“Yes. Is Student Ga-eul’s body okay?”
“Of course. I’ve been meditating lately. I’ll be able to connect for longer than last time. …Maybe!”
Ga-eul answered cheerfully and placed her hand on Eui-jae’s solar plexus. Eui-jae clenched his black gloves tightly.
They had put in a request for Mana Stones not only on the Hunter Market but also through dark routes, but there were no results. The distribution of Dungeon byproducts has decreased significantly as even ordinary Dungeons have been recently invaded. From herbs that are ingredients for potions to Mana Stones, which are the cores of Monsters. Whitened Monsters don’t have Mana Stones.
In the end, the only thing he could rely on right now was Student Ga-eul.
‘I’m sorry to Student Ga-eul…’
I have to find some clue to survive. Whether it’s because of work or because of Lee Sa-young. Ga-eul’s hand began to shine with thousands of colors. Eui-jae closed his eyes. The back of his eyelids sparkled. His consciousness gradually sank deeper.
Eui-jae opened his eyes.
It was a cramped room filled with books, papers, and various junk. Where am I again? Eui-jae scratched his head and looked around. Then, he saw someone sitting at the desk. Shaggy curly hair, a broad back. A familiar back, it was Lee Sa-young.
‘I found him properly.’
Eui-jae stealthily approached Sa-young. And he craned his neck to see what he was doing. Lee Sa-young was holding a thick black magic marker, and on the desk…
A notebook was open. The tip of the magic marker was gradually moving towards the notebook.
A chill ran down his spine. Nam Woo-jin’s face, distorted like a goblin, flashed through his mind. From that moment on, his body was faster than his thoughts. Eui-jae slapped Sa-young’s wrist with all his might.
“Hey, you crazy bastard!”
Slap!
Thud, rolling…
“……”
“……”
The fingertips that hit his wrist tingled. Eui-jae looked alternately at the magic marker rolling on the floor and his hand. It didn’t pass through… I hit him?
Eui-jae slowly turned his gaze. Fierce purple eyes shone brightly. Suddenly, a strong grip snatched Eui-jae’s hand. The moment his upper body leaned over, another hand dug under Eui-jae’s mask. A hurried hand groped Eui-jae’s face. And, A thick thumb dug into Eui-jae’s mouth.