Chapter 94 : Ma'am. You really have an amazing husband, don't you?
Ma'am. You really have an amazing husband, don't you?
The moment the broadcast aired, Kwon Yongha and Kwon Yongjun rose from their seats immediately.
They sensed instinctively that it was not the time for a father and son to be eating together amicably—they had to move at once to the Hwasan Guild headquarters.
If the image of the Hwasan Guild, which had been restored thanks to Kwon Yongjun's League activity, were to be dragged through the mud again because of that broadcast, it would be a big problem.
Fortunately, the boy and girl who'd appeared on the broadcast had reportedly been caught by the local guard.
However, considering their abilities, it was more accurate to say that they'd allowed themselves to be caught.
Especially that boy wearing the Hahoe mask.
His voice sounded very familiar, but meeting him in person had come as a shock.
That was why the boy had been called to the Guildmaster's office at headquarters.
"I'm sorry. I never thought things would turn out that way."
The boy, who introduced himself as Ma Seongjin, sat awkwardly on the sofa in the Guildmaster's office, bowing his head in embarrassment.
Next to him sat Kwon Sang-ah, whom they hadn't seen in a long time.
"'You're sorry?' Do you think just saying that is enough? Because of you, this is a national-level mess right now!"
Kang Minji, seated next to Kwon Yongha, was red-faced with anger as she scolded.
Truthfully, anyone would be angry in this situation—it was the equivalent of creating havoc on a broadcast airing nationwide.
"I said I'm sorry. How was I supposed to know there were cameras back then?"
"Wow! Look at this rascal's shamelessness! Honey, we can't just let this go. We must use this opportunity to teach him a proper lesson!"
At Seongjin's excuse, Kang Minji clicked her tongue in outrage and, as if seizing an opportunity, continued,
"Wasn't your father a prosecutor in the prosecution office? With just a word from us..."
"Enough."
"Honey, come on..."
"I said quiet."
"...."
But with just a single word from Kwon Yongha, both of them instantly fell silent.
It felt like a raging waterfall had suddenly stopped.
"All right. I've heard the circumstances. It's... our guild members made some kind of crude 'dead parent' jokes, didn't they?"
The Hwasan Guild's hunters had approached Sang-ah as soon as they saw her.
At first, it looked like they were just greeting her after a long time apart, but right after that, they had said things like, "When is your mother going to die?"
In the end, Sang-ah got into an argument with them, and things nearly went out of control again.
"If I hadn't intervened then, something truly terrible would have happened."
Seongjin added, saying it almost turned into a monster movie with a dragon running wild in the middle of town.
After calming Sang-ah down, Seongjin suggested a different kind of contest instead of a fistfight.
They went to a nearby eating competition at a special event.
Over twenty hunters participated, but Seongjin and Sang-ah were just two, so the hunters were overwhelmingly favored.
However, the result was a crushing defeat for the hunters.
They collapsed after only two bowls, while Sang-ah piled up a literal mountain of empty dishes.
Onlookers were so impressed by Sang-ah's binge-eating that they crowded in to take pictures.
"So, you won. But why cause such a scene in the first place?"
"Why?"
Wasn't that enough?
Was there really any need to keep making the sick hunters eat?
With that question in mind, Kwon Yongha asked, and Seongjin replied,
"I just couldn't let what Sang-ah went through slide."
"...."
"It reminded me too much of those people who used to say things like, 'you have filthy blood' and 'what a dirty race' to me in the past. I wonder if those bastards can eat with their torn mouths now."
If what he said was true, then the hunters who got sick this time were lucky.
Just getting an upset stomach instead of a torn mouth could be considered a blessing.
"All right, then. If you were offended, I'll apologize on their behalf."
"Honey!"
Kang Minji shouted at him, but Kwon Yongha continued nonchalantly.
"I already called the station and asked them to blur your face. I anticipated this and had Yongjun handle the aftermath."
"Honey...?"
"Of course, since you were wearing a mask then, your face won't be easily revealed."
Although Seongjin's face hadn't been shown, Kwon Yongha also directed that all related photos circulating online be deleted.
As Kang Minji saw her husband giving such orders to their son, her expression froze.
How could he remain so calm even when his own guild members had been targeted?
But she knew what her husband was probably thinking right now:
It was the victim's fault for being weak.
"But separately—about our guild members you knocked out. Of all people, they just happened to be members of a team under our Yongjun."
"Were they important personnel?"
"Right now, our guild is short on people as it is."
This time, Kwon Yongha spoke seriously to Seongjin.
Noticing there was something important, Seongjin furrowed his brow.
"Exactly! Those guys could be called our guild's elite! Were you planning on sabotaging us?"
"...."
"I just checked on them—after how much they ate, they'll have to stay in the hospital for weeks!"
Kang Minji suddenly got agitated again, claiming they were her son's subordinates.
And it didn't seem her words about sabotaging their guild were just an exaggeration.
After all, Kwon Yongha had just mentioned they were short-handed.
"Did something happen recently?"
When Seongjin asked, Kwon Yongha explained everything.
China's top guild was targeting Poison Guild, and since Hwasan had a strong alliance with Poison, they had become a target as well.
"Seongjin. If it's the Sura Guild..."
"Yeah."
That was the guild Ah-rin belonged to.
Ultimately, it meant that Ah-rin's guild and Sang-ah's guild would be clashing—unpleasant news.
"Honey, is it really okay to tell him this?"
"What does it matter? It's not like he's a complete outsider."
Again, Kwon Yongha answered Kang Minji's question nonchalantly.
Telling unrelated people about guild matters didn't seem like a good idea—especially not to just a middle schooler.
Then again, this wasn't a normal middle schooler.
"Honey, think. Do you really think he'll help just because we told him? We should take this chance to cut him off for putting our hunters through hell!"
"...."
"Your name's Ma Seongjin, right? I don't know how you got close to that horn-headed girl, but you'd better stay away from her. If we say the word, your family could be ruined in an instant."
Seongjin could tell what Kang Minji was getting at.
Though she acted arrogant, there was a faint quiver in her voice—
She'd been afraid of him from the moment she first met him.
"Ma'am, weren't you once an Assemblywoman?"
"Yes, so?"
"And you're also the eldest daughter of the Poison Guild's leader, right?"
"Th—that's right?"
"With the fallout from the Golden Gate incident, I suspect your guild is in danger these days, isn't it?"
The 'Golden Gate' rampage terror incident.
Because it was revealed that the Poison Guild collaborated with the Holy Church on that act of terrorism, poison had been driven to the brink.
Because of her marriage to Kang Minji, poison became naturally allied to Hwasan, so Hwasan couldn't just ignore their troubles.
"So, let me ask. What if I offered to help Hwasan Guild?"
"What...?"
"If I rolled up my sleeves to help poor ma'am's guild, what would you do then?"
"...."
At these words, Kang Minji was left speechless.
Would he really help? What would he want in return?
No matter what, in a situation where their elite fighting force had shrunk, they desperately needed outside help.
Various calculations raced through her mind.
"You want to help us?"
"Why, am I not allowed?"
"...."
"I am responsible for knocking out your subordinates, after all. Isn't that a fair trade?"
Kang Minji wasn't able to refute, as it was perfectly reasonable,
But what was the real reason?
"What's in it for you, then?"
That was the problem.
Kang Minji's heart pounded at the thought that this boy would not act for nothing.
"Don't worry. I won't ask for anything big."
"...."
"I just want to know every secret you have about Poison Guild."
"What?"
"Every confidential and special piece of information."
At that, Kang Minji's eyes grew wide, and she responded uneasily.
"Th-that'd be a bit difficult..."
"What? You can't even do that for someone willing to help you?"
"You don't even know how our Poison Guild operates..."
"So, will you agree or not? Yes or no?"
The only answer Seongjin wanted was a simple YES or NO.
At that forceful attitude, Kang Minji began to feel dizzy and clutched her head.
"And, among us here, at least a few know already, don't they?"
"...."
"That I was the one who calmed the rampaging gate."
"...!"
Unlike Kang Minji, Kwon Yongha didn't seem especially surprised.
He'd already suspected that there was a connection between Ma Seongjin and the resolution of the Golden Gate rampage.
"A kid who's only a middle schooler gave me a wound. And I heard you were in that gate, and after that, everything calmed down. Doesn't that tell us enough?"
Since Kwon Yongha had experienced a bit of Ma Seongjin's power,
He knew: the rampaging gate had been calmed by Ma Seongjin's power.
"What do you think would happen if I, who took care of that rampage, helped out?"
A being capable of the impossible for ordinary humans.
If they could borrow Ma Seongjin's help, there'd be no need to fear the Sura Guild.
And what he was asking in return was a bargain compared to his true value.
"So, just tell me. Yes?"
"...."
Finally, Kang Minji had to nod.
She wasn't comfortable making him an ally, but making an enemy out of him would be far worse.
"And one more thing."
When Seongjin said this, Kang Minji's expression became even more worried.
Then Seongjin stood and positioned himself behind Sang-ah.
"I'm thinking of staying in town for a while. In the meantime, I'd like to set a rule here."
Based on what Kwon Yongha had just said, a full-scale confrontation with the Sura Guild would happen within a few weeks.
The elite troops of Poison Guild would gather in Hwasan Town in the meantime.
While staying here, Seongjin had no intention of being treated like royalty.
On the contrary, the one who deserved such treatment was—
"Please treat this friend here well."
Seongjin placed a hand on Sang-ah's shoulder as he spoke.
Kang Minji's pupils shook with shock.
"No matter what else, this is the place where she grew up. She was born with uncle's blood—doesn't she at least deserve the bare minimum of respect?"
Even Kwon Yongha looked taken aback, his mouth falling open.
"S-Seongjin...?"
Sang-ah also gazed up at him, as if she couldn't believe it herself.
Seongjin only looked back at her as if reassuring her to trust him.
"I know what most of the hunters here have done to her. That's why she couldn't set foot in here during summer break. Isn't that so?"
Sang-ah was the guildmaster's daughter.
Given that Hwasan was Korea's top hunter guild, her position was like that of the daughter of a conglomerate chairman.
Someone like that deserved to be treated courteously—yet, she'd endured abuse and crude insults all her life.
"So, please treat her like a young lady in front of everyone. No—like a princess, okay?"
It was a simple request.
And even if they disliked it, it was only for as long as Ma Seongjin was around.
However—
"Shut up, you little bastard!!"
Came Kang Minji's enraged outburst.
"Don't be ridiculous...! Why should we bow and scrape to that girl?!"
With a horribly contorted face, Kang Minji was furious.
She, along with her own son, had tormented Sang-ah the worst.
So, to her, this was absolutely unacceptable.
But—
"So?"
"...?"
"So what?"
"What...?"
"So what? Hmm?"
Seongjin stood before Kang Minji and looked down at her face.
He was still a student, much smaller than an adult.
But hearing him suddenly speak down to her like that, Kang Minji stood with rage, veins bulging on her forehead.
"You—!!"
Overflowing with anger, Kang Minji gathered magic power in her hand.
She raised her arm, intent on slamming it down on his head and trampling him beneath her feet—but suddenly, her arm freeze.
What stood before her wasn't just some brat.
She saw a colossal monster—like something that could swallow all the world's oceans.
"Ah..."
"Anything else to say?"
"H-honey...! Please, do something about this kid—!"
Scared out of her wits in an instant, Kang Minji turned to her husband.
He was her last hope, but her wish didn't come true.
"Hahahahaha! All right. Let's go with that."
"You...! How can you laugh at a time like this?"
In fact, Kwon Yongha was just as complicit as the others.
He'd simply stood by and done nothing while Sang-ah was bullied.
"What's wrong? Honestly, I think this might be pretty fun."
But Kwon Yongha instead burst out laughing, as if something fresh and amusing had happened.
Kang Minji could not comprehend how the man she called her husband could be this way.
But knowing what kind of person he was, it wasn't that strange.
Even when his own legs were severed and blood was everywhere, he'd just laughed and said he was having fun—a lunatic.
"Wow, uncle, you really do know how to have a good time, huh?"
Seongjin walked to Kwon Yongha's side and casually slung an arm around his shoulder.
Kang Minji was even more shocked by seeing her husband—the guildmaster of one of Korea's top four guilds—being this chummy with Seongjin.
"S-Seongjin..."
Sang-ah, witnessing all this firsthand, was no less dumbfounded.
Such a scene had never occurred in the Hwasan Guild before, and she was left gaping.
But it wasn't over yet.
"Uncle, how about a toast?"
"Sounds good."
Seongjin and Yongha chinked the teacups on the table with a resolute "clack!" and took a sip.
Then, Seongjin eyed a particular item on Yongha's hand.
"By the way, uncle, can I try this on?"
When Seongjin pointed to the ring on his finger, Kang Minji quickly reached out.
"N-no, you can't!"
Kang Minji also had an identical ring on her own hand.
She frantically tried to stop him, but it was already too late.
Seongjin had already slid the ring off and put it on his own finger.
He then smirked, showing the ring to Kang Minji.
"Ma'am. You really do have an amazing husband, don't you?"
"...."
Kang Minji collapsed onto the floor, completely broken.
Her legs had given out from the psychological shock.
"I wanted to show this to your son as well, but what a pity. Hahahahahaha!"
"Hahahahaha!"
If her son, Yongjun, came back and saw this scene, what would he think?
For Kang Minji, it would be a hell she couldn't even imagine.
Meanwhile, Kwon Yongha was laughing heartily as if he found it all thoroughly amusing.
"Ahahahahaha!"
"Hahahahahaha!"
Laughter—warped but friendly(?)—rang out through the guildmaster's office.
'What am I even watching right now?'
In the midst of the madness, Sang-ah looked on with a lost expression.