“Oh yeah?”
Behind the Purification Team gathering up the neatly severed monster corpses, Ryu Tae-ha, who had just finished clearing the gate, wet his throat. Every one of those perfectly cut bodies was his handiwork.
“Yes, exactly. These days everyone's singing Esper Jung Da-woon's praises.”
The Esper from the support team who'd handed him a chilled bottle of water answered with an easy, good-natured grin. Called supporters, they didn't take part in combat; they handled supply runs and moving the wounded.
Supporters were chosen mainly for being quick and nimble on their feet. And every last one of them talked so much you'd think “chatty personality” was one of the qualifications.
“Everyone's amazed, saying it's like he's become a completely different person. I saw him working in the field myself, and the vibe was totally different from usual.”
The supporter standing before Ryu Tae-ha now was likewise rattling on into a second and third verse of things no one had asked about. If Ryu Tae-ha hadn't shown interest, he'd have read the room and shut his mouth, but since Ryu Tae-ha was responding, he belted out a fourth verse without tiring.
“People's way of talking and their expressions don't change that easily, right? But Esper Jung Da-woon's suddenly using a way of speaking he never used before. Kind of like... military-style...?”
“Our Da-woon never served, though.”
“Right? That's why everyone found it even stranger.”
Taking back the empty bottle Ryu Tae-ha had drained, he offered an energy bar. Ryu Tae-ha, who didn't eat much while working, shook his head and listened to what came next.
“His rank's low because his body's weak, but going purely by Healer ability, his level's exceptionally high. People used to say it was such a waste, him letting that ability go to rot. But these days, well.”
Substituting applause for the rest of his sentence, the supporter shot up a thumbs-up. Yet even at this enthusiastic praise heaping glory on one of his own guild members, Ryu Tae-ha's expression wasn't all that bright.
“I got curious whether there's a reason for the sudden change. And a little worried, too, wondering if he's been through some big emotional shift lately.”
Worried, my ass. Ryu Tae-ha knew well that the question had been raised out of nothing but simple curiosity. Whether the newly motivated Jung Da-woon overworked himself into coughing up blood and dropping dead, nobody else gave a single damn.
“If you see it, stop him.”
“Sorry?”
Pulling out his pager, Ryu Tae-ha gave the flustered supporter a firm instruction.
“Pass it on to your colleagues too. If Da-woon looks like he's overdoing it in the field, make him stop right away.”
“Ah... yes. But will he listen to us?”
“Use my name. Or call for me.”
Could I really call away Guildmaster Ryu Tae-ha, the busiest man in the country, over something like that...?
The supporter hesitated a moment, then gladly accepted the order. If anything it was a good thing, since it might earn him another chance to see Guildmaster Ryu Tae-ha.
“Then I'll be off! Call on me anytime!”
Shouldering his big bag back into place, the supporter left, beaming from ear to ear.
Left alone, Ryu Tae-ha slipped the now-silent pager back into his pocket.
The pager that had been buzzing noisily until a few hours ago had gone quiet. The gates that had opened in a flood seemed to have been more or less dealt with by now.
Since he'd already taken charge of the highest-ranked gate, he hadn't been able to answer the support requests.
Fortunately they were all A-rank or below, so it wasn't a situation that absolutely required him.
That didn't mean it was safe, though. High-ranking Espers sometimes get attacked and killed by weak monsters too.
And the reason for that, well, it's obvious.
“Looks like you let your guard down, for once.”
The owner of a calm voice approached at Ryu Tae-ha's side. It was Nam Seok-gwan, leader of the Horyeong Guild.
He ran his eyes over the monster bloodstains on Ryu Tae-ha's jacket and stood beside him.
“It's novel, seeing marks on the clothes of a man who usually doesn't get so much as a drop of blood on him.”
“Gotta show a human side now and then.”
Ryu Tae-ha deliberately displayed the traces of battle left on his jacket and gave a soft snort of a laugh. For a multi-ability user like him, it was extremely rare for a monster to leave any mark on his body. Practically unheard of, really.
“Something you needed?”
He cut straight to the point with Nam Seok-gwan, who'd come to him out of nowhere. Neither of them was the type to make small talk.
“Is there something on your mind these days?”
Tilting his head at an angle, Ryu Tae-ha raised one eyebrow. His expression said, You came all this way to ask me that?
“You've seemed unable to focus in meetings lately, so I'm speaking on everyone's behalf.”
“Oh, me? Did I now.”
Ryu Tae-ha rolled his eyes nonchalantly, pretending to chew over his recent conduct. Long used to that attitude, Nam Seok-gwan calmly steered the topic elsewhere.
“Do you actually have a way to meet the Beastman chief?”
That was the real reason he'd come. The matter had already been settled in the meeting, but the situation was too dire to simply keep biding their time.
“Gate occurrences are increasing by the day. You'd know better than anyone that danger zones are rising in civilian areas, too.”
When a gate burst open in a civilian area, the report went to Ryu Tae-ha first. He was the only one who could deal with the monsters fastest and cleanest before citizens got caught up in it.
“Meeting them isn't the problem.”
Ryu Tae-ha broached it slowly, murmuring in that characteristically unhurried tone of his.
“The problem is how to persuade the chief after we meet.”
The blunt features of Nam Seok-gwan, watching him, hardened further.
It seemed Ryu Tae-ha intended to keep the method of meeting the Beastman chief to himself to the very end. He'd known the man had a strong autocratic streak, but on this matter in particular he was sharing no information.
Just what kind of scheme is he putting together alone again? It's utterly impossible to gauge. Where on earth does that certainty that they'll definitely meet even come from?
Nam Seok-gwan gazed at the leisurely smiling Ryu Tae-ha as though studying him closely.
As if answering that gaze, Ryu Tae-ha met his eyes and went on with the talk about the Beastmen.
“They've lived clustered tightly among themselves for over a hundred years, so their insular tendencies must have deepened all the more. The old texts say they're a stubborn lot, generation after generation.”
It was something Nam Seok-gwan knew as well, so he nodded silently. Among the countless tales about the Beastmen, the trait most commonly brought up was that they were insular and stubborn.
And one more thing.
“I plan to rely on the records that say they're deeply greedy.”
Ryu Tae-ha spoke as if there were no other way, and smiled as if that alone would settle it.
“A being with power close to a god's having so much greed... it's generally a misfortune for ordinary people like us, but every now and then it can become a stroke of luck.”
Who in the world would call Ryu Tae-ha of Sawoo Guild ordinary? Rather than refute it, Nam Seok-gwan chose, as always, to listen.
“Because there's nothing easier to grab and shake around than a greedy creature.”
Ryu Tae-ha sought agreement with a flick of his eyes. Nam Seok-gwan, who had been listening calmly without betraying any emotion, opened his mouth slowly.
“Do you think we have something the Beastman chief would covet?”
“We will. Probably.”
At the vague answer, Nam Seok-gwan closed his mouth again. Pressing someone who had no will to answer would only waste time.
“Guildmaster Ryu Tae-ha.”
Still, he decided to make at least this one point clear.
“Let's say, on the off chance, we do.”
If, miraculously, the Beastman chief appeared at just the right time and demanded something in exchange for helping us.
“What if they want something we can't give up?”
Ryu Tae-ha let out a short scoff. As if it weren't even worth the consideration.
“The safety of the nation is on the line. What could there possibly be that we couldn't give?”
Contrary to the light gesture of his shrugging shoulders, his golden eyes were as solid as if bound to bedrock.
Nam Seok-gwan read the sincerity in those eyes. It didn't seem like something thrown out carelessly just to wrap up the conversation quickly.
The instant he was about to open his mouth one last time, Ryu Tae-ha's phone rang.
Ryu Tae-ha left a light nod of farewell and pulled out his phone. To the back of the turning Ryu Tae-ha, Nam Seok-gwan added one final piece of business.
“Esper Jung Da-woon's looked to be in bad shape.”
Though he'd clearly heard Nam Seok-gwan, Ryu Tae-ha showed no real reaction. He simply took the call, as if the vibrating phone were more important.
“Hey, Jin.”
“H-Hyung...”
Ryu Jin's frail sobbing came through the phone. Even hearing his younger brother's sudden weeping, Ryu Tae-ha didn't panic and soothed him calmly.
“What's wrong? What happened?”
For Ryu Jin to call rather than text while he was working in the first place was itself a sign that something unexpected had broken out.
“H-Huk... th-, hk....”
Ryu Jin couldn't manage to get the words out. Ryu Tae-ha knew well that once his brother burst into tears, he couldn't easily calm down. That was why, whenever his brother cried, he always waited patiently until the emotion settled.
“Jin.”
But this time was a little different.
“Just tell me. Hyung will take care of it.”
Choking back his hiccups, the sobbing Ryu Jin forced out something. Amid the words breaking off in stutters, smothered by his crying, was a familiar name.
“D-Da-woon... Esper Da-woon.”
The moment Ryu Tae-ha heard that name, he created a teleportation gate.
“The guiding won't work.”
