Chapter 367

For the next few days, Jung Garam looked busy. He talked to Seo Dawon every night. But, because Dawon's expression was as tranquil as always, I had no idea if things were progressing well or not.

Rather than thinking about such uncertain matters, I focused all my attention in returning my body to normal.

And, the day Garam-ie finally found out more information about Moon Issak...

"There's someone named Lee Seol-hwa. Her class is tank-related, but she's somehow learned a [Top-grade Stealth] skill?" Garam-ie handed us a blurry picture of a User who had dark circles all the way down to her chin. "It's said that if they have the money, she'll protect anyone. She only accepts requests from the black market as well... Hm, but, no matter how much money she received from him, I don't think she'd be willing to make a deal with Moon Issak." 1

"Why?"

"She went to prison five years ago because of him."

Perhaps Moon Issak caught her for misuse of skills?

Apparently she had protected the leader of a Russian organization who smuggled drugs, escorting that person all the way to the Philippines while avoiding the eyes of investigative agencies.

'A member of an... *organization*.'

"She might have been intimidated," Dawon said, opening up the possibility of this plausible turn of events.

"Where is she now?"

"According to the information, she belongs to the 'Sun' guild. It's almost amusingly small, but, interestingly..."

Garam glanced at Koo Hui-seo before displaying a [Subcontract Agreement] before us. The contractor, surprisingly, was [Red Dragon], and the contractee was the [Sun] guild.

Naturally, everyone's eyes turned towards Koo Hui-seo. However, the man didn't panic; he merely lifted his eyebrows slightly, as if he had remembered something he had long forgotten. "Mmmm... This contract was made 15 years ago."

Dawon-ie immediately asked, "Then, does that mean you weren't involved?"

"Yes... But, I know the name of this Sun guild."

"Do you even know what they do?"

Koo Hui-seo closed his mouth at those words, as if he were swallowing a sigh. Then, after organizing his thoughts, he continued calmly, "First things first, I have to explain the relationship between that guild and the Red Dragon back in those days... To summarize matters, as our guild grew in size...we changed the direction of our business."

It was an open secret that, during its infancy, the [Red Dragon] guild grew in size from its illegal private loans.

Koo Hui-seo continued nonchalantly, "But... our guild, now a large company in the private loan business, couldn't take their fingers out easily."

Seo Dawon cut him off and said, "Did you divide the guild?"

Koo Hui-seo nodded, "Yeees... So, we created separate 'affiliates' or subsidiaries according to their business division. At that time, the guild's name may have been different, but they were essentially the same as the main body."

"So, the [Sun] guild was in charge of something."

"If I remember correctly, it was smuggling drugs..."

'Were they mafia?' Since I had thought they were some petty loan shark company, Koo Hui-seo's calm words felt eerie.

But, Koo Hui-seo remained calm.

"However... As we grew in scale, the public's eyes focused on us... The sunny, legal dungeon business was more profitable than underworld ventures. So, in my father's twilight years, we started to distance ourselves. I heard the [Sun] guild master moved his base abroad. Somewhere in the Philippines, I heard..."

Eventually, the connection between the Sun guild and the Red Dragon had long been severed. That's why Koo Hui-seo had momentarily forgotten about them.

Koo Hui-seo also reiterated, "So, after they moved their base, they had nothing to do with us... I don't even know who the master of that guild is anymore."

I asked him, "Then, is there no way to contact them?"

"... It can be done, but I don't know how cooperative they will be. Especially for me... Since I suddenly became the new guildmaster."

However, Dawon-ie seemed to think differently, "Actually, it might go better since you're not well known."

"......"

"Contact them about starting up trade once more. If you say it's a confidential request, they'll come to their own conclusions."

"If they don't agree?"

"Then trace their location again. After all, Moon Issak is the one in a hurry-not us. I don't know how he managed to escape from hypnosis, but if he's back to normal, he would have returned to business as usual. He wouldn't be wandering around looking for Lee-kyung."

Koo Hui-seo nodded.

At that nod, the nanny, standing behind him, quietly retreated without even making a single footstep noise.

* * *

The next day, Koo Hui-seo informed us that he was able to make contact.

"They asked to meet at Busan's port?"

"Yeees... I invited them here, but... Most of their guild members are wanted criminals, so they said it'd be challenging for them to come to a metropolitan area. Since Busan port is their base, they wanted to meet there... Should we go?"

Woo Ragi grimaced, "...What a nuisance."

Olim-ie also felt uneasy, "Koo Hui-seo. Can't we just dig up Lee Seol-hwa's location? At this point, I think it's risky to evacuate your well-equipped, fortress-like home and go down to Busan."

In fact, it was all because of Koo Hui-seo's financial resources and his home that we were able to train safely without being threatened by Bae Jaemin or Moon Issak.

Koo Hui-seo was unexpectedly in control of the Red Dragon guild and had no problem mobilizing the guild's finances or members.

Especially the many protective spells that hung over this house... of course, Dawon-ie supplemented the barriers, but each magic effect was worth hundreds of millions and created a fortress akin to a grand castle.

Even if a war erupted, once could survive a siege in this house.

Additionally, peculiarly, Koo Hui-seo was directly in charge of this mansion's protection. As it was powered by Koo Hui-seo's 'cursed blood,' anyone who wanted to do something insidious in this mansion was inevitably cursed.

All employees working in this house had to abide by the taboos that he created; if they broke those taboos, they would die on the spot. That's how those that weren't susceptible to being bought remained in this mansion's workforce.

Thanks to that, we were able to avoid exposure. Bae Jaemin, to some extent, might be able to guess our location, but he wouldn't be able to search a guild master's home without evidence. This house naturally became our safest fortress.

Koo Hui-seo knew that well; he nodded, agreeing with her, "That's why I wanted to invite them up here in any way I could, but... Mm, they were quite wary of me. They said they had a deal with my father and not me... Well, in any case, they didn't trust me at all."

Looking at his oddly sour expression, it seems that the other party was quite aggressive.

We looked at each other.

No, rather, everyone looked at Seo Dawon before glancing at me. It seems that he and I were the ones that would need to make the final decision.

Dawon-ie was silent, deep in contemplation. "......"

Choi Kyung-sik said, "Lee Seol-hwa is bound to be a key member of that guild. As a tanker, you can guard yourself...but a criminal specialized in security and stealth...You'd be wanted anywhere."

Garam also sighed, "Right. It was so hard to get this information, too. I had to turn the black market inside out to obtain it."

Eunji, who had been listening quietly, tilted her head and said, "Hmm... Would people like that willingly reveal information about Moon Issak? Perhaps they're in Busan with him right now."

"If he's there, then we have to go." Dawon replied. But somehow, his face showed great reluctance when he looked over at me. "It'd be dangerous to leave him alone. We need to check what he's up to."

"...Alright."

"I won't let you be in danger this time. I swear."

I smiled at Dawon-ie without saying anything. I had always trusted him, and there had never been a moment when that trust was betrayed. I couldn't put into words how much I believed in him, and there was no need for oaths.

And, I hoped Dawon-ie recognized that trust I had in him on his own, but...

'It must be hard.'

However, after killing Moon Issak properly this time, Seo Dawon might be able to retire his shame. So, I was actually rather looking forward to reuniting with Moon Issak.

Become a member!

TL: I appreciate hearing about Seo Dawon's insecurities compared to Lee-kyung's. The dynamic has shifted, ya'll.

Also, I'm ready for vs Moon Issak pt 2, electric boogaloo.