Against the Clock: The Team Leader’s Pursuit of Glory

"What did you just say?"

As Pyo Beomhee glared at her, Go Eul-ji curled like a mouse in front of a cat.

'What's with this lady? Her lips look like she’s smiling. But her eyes are fierce.'

Perhaps because of Ju Se-ah’s military style discipline, Go Eul-ji quickly realized her mistake.

"M-Ma’am?"

"Yep, that’s right. Don't forget it now."

Kang Mu-hyuk steered the conversation back on track as it began to derail.

"Stop joking around and focus now, Go Eul-ji."

"Yes, yes…"

"Mr. Cho. Please proceed with the briefing."

Mr. Cho crossed her arms and began to break down the situation in a calm and orderly manner.

"Combining what the Captain heard and the intel I've obtained, our adversaries are from the Japanese Guild Alliance's assassination organization called Iga Clan. I've only heard of them in rumors, but they're notorious for being extremely cruel. They probably handle all the dirty work for the alliance. Anyway, they've entered Korea. On the face of it, they are here as entertainment industry professionals for on BTA's concert in Japan, but their real objective is to assassinate Captain Kang."

"What?! Assassins targeting my-... Yes, I'll be quiet. No, I'm not trying to be sassy. This isn't a defiant look in my eyes. My eyes just naturally look fierce."

Ignoring Go Eul-ji, who quickly backed down under Ju Se-ah's glare, Mr. Cho continued.

"The exact reason for the assassination isn't clear, but it seems to be a tactic to pressure Guild Master Ju Se-ah. Given that Iron Will is rapidly growing. The Japanese have always used all sorts of means to prevent Korean Hunters from rising."

"So, the entertainment company Iga Clan made contact with is 'BigBro,' right, Mr. Informant?" Pyo Beomhee asked, and Mr. Cho nodded.

"That's right. Your former workplace."

Mr. Cho was visibly tense in front of Pyo Beomhee.

Pyo Beomhee was oblivious of Mr. Cho's identity, but she, on the other hand, knew Pyo Beomhee quite well. In fact, the two once worked together at the same company.

'Back then at Titan, she was my superior.'

Mr. Cho had been hiding as an ordinary staff member in the management department of the Titan guild before his identity was exposed to Kang Mu-hyuk.

At that time, she was in a precarious situation. She had infiltrated the Slayer Guild to extract confidential information but nearly found herself on a one-way trip to the afterlife after getting caught by Sung Seon-jae. It was a blunder made by her at the last minute during her inexperienced years.

The place where she temporarily sought refuge from Slayer’s pursuit was Titan. Cornered and desperate, she immediately applied to a job posting for new recruits at Titan that came at the perfect time and even got accepted.

Even the Slayer Guild couldn't meddle within another guild's affairs, so they couldn’t use their influence inside Titan. It was a decent place to ride out the storm.

'But of all places, it was when Captain Kang was at the division.'

Back then, Kang Mu-hyuk was working in the management team. It was thanks to Guild Master Lee Cheoljung's consideration to have him experience various departments before letting him settle down into the strategy team.

‘And so, through various twists and turns of fate, I ended up here. I owe him from back then, and that’s why he still has a leg up over me.'

While Mr. Cho didn’t have a bad business relationship with Kang Mu-hyuk, there was a slightly unfair aspect to it.

As Mr. Cho was lost in thought, Kang Mu-hyuk explained the mission to Pyo Beomhee.

"Team Leader Pyo. Please go to BigBro Entertainment and check on the situation there. Pretend you’re visiting regarding Go Eul-ji's dining event, and we’d like you to also find out what kind of schedule Iga Clan has in Korea."

"Should I find out which hotel they're staying at as well?"

"Mr. Cho has already figured that out. Instead of hotels, they've bought a few apartments to stay in."

"They sure have a lot of money, those rascals. Some people have to live in a studio in the flood-stricken North Pocheon."

"Guild members' accommodations are safe, as far as I know. Did that area suffer damage from the flood too? If there's a problem, we can take immediate action..."

"I’m just saying. Jeez, can’t you take a joke? So, should I proceed right now?"

"Yes. We have a lot of work to do, and we can't have a sword hanging over our necks. The plan is to handle this quickly and quietly."

"You’re going to BigBro? Me too! I want to go too!"

Ju Se-ah immediately caught Go Eul-ji by the nape of her neck when she enthusiastically jumped with her hands up.

"You’re not going anywhere. You're going to train with me."

"Ueek! Tr-tr- training?!"

Go Eul-ji, had no say in the matter, and was dragged away by Ju Se-ah. Ju Se-ah planned to hear Kang Mu-hyuk’s request while also testing Go Eul-ji's abilities at the same time.

Watching Go Eul-ji being led away like a cow to slaughter, Pyo Beomhee commented, "She’s still in high school, right? I heard she’s the association president's granddaughter."

"Yeah. She's young, but her skills and potential are top-notch. She awakened at the age of 9, and I heard Han Byung-gu, the association president, trained her rigorously, Sparta style."

"How much did that old man push that little kid? Last time I saw her, she was beating those orcs to pulp. Seeing how she does everything as she pleases, she’s clearly a Hunter through and through. Judging from her audacity, she's S-rank material."

"Maybe."

"Huh? Do you really think she could become an S-ranker?"

"She's growing at a rate similar to Guild Master Ju Se-ah at that age. The world just doesn’t know it yet. Chairman Han Byung-gu, won't be able to keep her hidden and train her in secret forever. Now is the time for her to get some real combat experience and a great mentor. Of course, she’s gonna need protection too."

"Guild Master Ju is surely a good choice... Putting those together when they’re cut from the same cloth puts me on edge."

"I agree that there’s an aggressive side to her, but you could say Guild Master is the ideal when it comes to hunting."

"The i-ideal, you say... Haha. Our dear Captain, I guess you haven’t had enough of a taste of our Guild Master to know why she is called a witch or a disaster yet."

Meanwhile, Go Eul-ji, who already had a taste of that bitterness before Kang Mu-hyuk, was horrified on hearing the training routine from Ju Se-ah.

"Dig up the ground?"

"It's not simply digging. You’re finding the landmines that were swept away during the recent flood."

"How am I supposed to find those? I heard there's way more than just one or two."

"Aren't you a telekinetic? I know that your ability isn’t limited to just moving objects and beating monsters. To be exact, it’s about occupying space. Try using that power to its fullest."

"Still, doing it underground is a bit... And to search such a wide area..."

Go Eul-ji looked appalled at the sight of the vast expanse of land before her.

The range Ju Se-ah set for training was everywhere the water had swept through. You could say it was essentially the entire western side of Sanjeong Lake.

"This is not training. You’re just grinding me. Asking me to search for mines that you couldn’t take care of yourself. This is tyranny by an employer. It's underage child labor exploitation."

Ju Se-ah didn't stop Go Eul-ji's outburst. Instead, she tempted her with a method Kang Mu-hyuk had suggested.

"There's a BTA solo concert in LA a few months from now, right? Wanna get flight tickets for it?"

"Where should I start? Up to Cheolwon?"

Watching Go Eul-ji rush to find the mines without so much as a squeak, Ju Se-ah shook her head.

"Even with a carrot dangling in front of you, to think you could manipulate a top-class telekinetic using an idol... The Captain was right; this is a profitable deal."

"So, Chairman Tae suspects Kang Mu-hyuk?"

"Yeah, but that’s it. Beyond that, he didn’t show much of a reaction. After all, to the chairman, he’s a nobody."

Kim Myung-jun, mulled over the words of chairman’s secretary Jeong, whom he placed close to the chairman, while stroking his chin.

'Cho Choonghyun has disappeared? Well, given what she's done, no one would say anything if he did kill her. But would Kang Mu-hyuk really go that far? Or could she have run away in fear that she’d fail?'

Unable to easily come to a conclusion, Kim Myung-jun sought Secretary Jeong's opinion.

"What do you think, Secretary Jeong?"

"I'd say she's been killed. Don't you think the same, Director Kim?"

"You’re not wrong about that. But even though Kang Mu-hyuk is aggressive, he adheres to a fundamental moral code."

"Well, you are a great judge of character, so she must have fled."

"But the thing is, that guy nevers acts like you’d expect him to."

"So, you think he killed her?"

"I'm not sure..."

"Even if it’s not Kang Mu-hyuk, there’s plenty of people in Iron Will who could’ve done it. Guild Master Ju Se-ah took down many Hunters. And then there's Jang Deuk-goo, above all."

"That's right! Jang Deuk-goo! How could I forget him?"

Jang Deuk-goo never let criminal Hunters off the hook. Half of the hardcore criminals in Ujungdo twitch at the mention of his name.

Kim Myung-jun racked his brains once again.

'The question then is, 'Was it done on someone's orders, or did he just do it randomly?' This will determine who to get involved with and how?'

No matter how much Iron Will tried to break away from Taeseong, they couldn’t help but be affected by their parent company.

‘I wish it’s Kang Mu-hyuk. After all, I gotta have a card up my sleeve to play against him myself as well."

Aila convened the Elders of the World Hunter Federation.

This meeting, called the Round Table, consisted of seven permanent members, four non-permanent members who change every two years, and four subspecies members representing the federation's forests and lands.

Additionally, two non-Hunter members representing global politics and economics were summoned to the Round Table, making a total of 17 members.

"I apologize for having to meet you all through a video conference from afar, and not in person."

-It's alright. It's nice to have something to do when everyone is free.

The one to warmly welcome Aila was the chairperson, Exhisar, sitting at the head of the Round Table. He had long white hair and a long beard let down, with an intrigued look in his eyes.

On the contrary, the other members, excluding the subspecies, had an unhappy look on their faces. It was not that they disliked Aila, but rather the agenda she had mentioned beforehand did not sit well with them.

Aila, sensing the atmosphere, cautiously expressed her gratitude again.

"I know everyone is busy, so thank you for making the time despite that. Is everyone here?"

-It’s not like the world is ending. As usual, the two non-Hunter members are absent. They're quite busy people, you see.

"We can’t do anything about that."

-So, what's the reason for convening the Round Table, Ms. Aila?

"As I mentioned, it's to propose the entry of a new member."

Exhisar intentionally feigned ignorance and asked.

-But I was under the impression this isn’t the time for new members’ entry.

"Yes, I'm aware. That's why I've convened an emergency Round Table."

-But there's a regular meeting scheduled in three months.

"I came to the conclusion that this matter was too urgent to postpone."

-But what's so important that you'd call an emergency Round Table Meeting to have a non-Hunter member join?

"This candidate...has met the unknown being."

-Well, we already know that. Of course, surviving such an encounter is rare, but that alone hardly seems sufficient reasoning for making him a member.

"And this person has had a conversation with that being too."

At Aila's words, the look in the eyes of the members projected on the screen noticeably changed.

Exhisar straightened his robe and sat upright, then tapped his gavel, which had a black hue floating around it.

-Indeed, this is not a matter to be postponed. We will now begin the meeting to evaluate the entry of a new member.

-My name is Kang Mu-hyuk.

Hearing a voice he didn't particularly want to hear, Han Byung-gu responded curtly.

"What is it? Did you call because of the federation?"

-No. I reached out because I have a few things to confirm.

"What is it?"

-I understand you're somewhat of an expert on Japan. You have some former comrades there, right?

"So?"

-I was wondering if you might have any information on the recent activities of the Japanese Guild Alliance.

"The Alliance? What about those petty rascals?"

Han Byung-gu's eyebrows went up, his face expressing disgust just from hearing about it.

-We've received information that Hunters have come from Japan recently. Apparently, the overall atmosphere around them seems subtly different for them to be simple guild members.

"Atmosphere? What about it? It’s not the first time those Japanese brats are being … a nui...sance."

Suddenly pausing, Han Byung-gu’s intuition woke up.

'This guy wouldn't call for a stupid reason. I don’t have a good feeling about this. A matter related to the Alliance, huh... Could it be-?'

With a bad premonition, Han Byung-gu frowned and asked, "Where did you get this info? Through whom did you get it?"

-Purely coincidental.

"Yeah, so tell me what that 'coincidence' is?"

-It has to do with your granddaughter.

"Why would Go Eul-ji be involved?!"

-Your granddaughter was arranging a fan meeting and dining event with BTA, and the entertainment company responsible for it turned out to be Japanese. But the thing is, this Japanese company seems quite suspicious.

Han Byung-gu felt a chill down his spine.

'Could they be targeting Eul-ji?'

The Japanese Hunter community was always committed to killing the Korean Hunter community.

After the Great War, several talented individuals could have challenged for S-rank, but all of them retired or died under varying circumstances before reaching that stage.

Behind all these incidents was the Japanese Hunter community lurking in the shadows.

Although they had refrained from directly confronting Ju Se-ah, their malicious intent towards the Korean Hunter community remained the same.

That was why Han Byung-gu was so careful to hide and nurture Go Eul-ji.

He wanted to keep her hidden from the world until she became the best.

"Ah? And don't worry, your granddaughter is safe here with us. Well, then. Please contact us as soon as you get any information."

"What? Why is she there..."

Beep~ Beep~

"How dare this damn brat hang up on me again?!"

Han Byung-gu finally realized, "This guy is even more dangerous than the Japanese."

He resolved once again that he’d get his granddaughter to leave the guild.