Chapter 135
Chapter 135
“Miss Jia. Today, you’re coming with me.”
“Me?”
Kwon Jia looked a bit flustered when Yu-hyun pointed at her, and asked with a strained expression.
She still felt awkward facing him after what had happened between them.
Kang Hye-rim, who usually had no sense of the situation, noticed something odd in Kwon Jia’s attitude, and glanced back and forth between her and Yu-hyun.
“Then I’ll go!”
“Miss Hye-rim, you can’t. I need Miss Jia for this.”
“You need me? I thought we were just going to the association.”
“We’ll meet the people from the association first. The important thing is what we’ll do next.”
“What next?”
Kwon Jia didn’t know what Yu-hyun was planning to do. But judging from his words that he needed her help, she guessed that it had something to do with his knowledge of the future.
“Sigh. Fine. I’ll go with you.”
“Yay.”
Kang Hye-rim realized that she couldn’t go this time either, and made a pouty face.
Yu-hyun gently stroked her head.
“Don’t be like that. It’s not like we’re going to the mental realm or anything.”
“But still…”
She couldn’t help feeling disappointed. But Yu-hyun had made this decision because he knew that taking Kang Hye-rim along would attract too much attention.
‘This is hard work.’
He only had one more collector, but it felt like the things he had to care about had increased by more than three times.
[Why? You look busy. Isn’t this something you’d love to do? You’re perfect for being a nanny, you know.]
Baekryeon seized the opportunity to tease Yu-hyun.
‘Why are you suddenly like this?’
[Wow. Why am I like this? Are you really asking because you don’t know? You’ve been ignoring me while pretending to care for those three.]
‘No, that’s not…’
Yu-hyun tried to say something, but closed his mouth.
He realized that it was true that he hadn’t paid much attention to Baekryeon lately.
[Hey. Even if I’m a badass sword, I still need some maintenance. If you don’t take care of me, I’ll rust and stuff, you know? Have you ever taken care of me since you woke me up, except for learning the engraving?]
Yu-hyun shook his head.
As Baekryeon said, he hadn’t taken care of him much even though he used him frequently.
He was a sword with a self-awareness, so he was unhappy about it, and finally exploded now.
‘I’m sorry. I’ll take care of you soon.’
[Is that true this time? Can I trust you?]
‘Yeah, true. I’ll really take care of you.’
Baekryeon was different from ordinary swords.
He was made of the essence of the best magic engineering in the mixed world, so taking care of him was also very different from other weapons.
When Yu-hyun woke up Baekryeon, he got the title of [Engraver].
That wasn’t for nothing.
Only those who could engrave could properly handle the Salio sword.
‘I’m busy. So busy.’
There were too many things he had to worry about.
If he were an ordinary person, he would have been crushed by the workload and stressed out every day.
‘But this is what makes life worth living.’
Yu-hyun liked moving, thinking, and doing things like this.
The more he did this, the more he felt that he wasn’t wasting his time, and that he was living honestly.
This was a kind of obsession.
“Well then, we’ll be back.”
“Go ahead.”
“Yes. See you later.”
“Have a good trip.”
He received farewell greetings from Baek Seo-ryeon and Kang Hye-rim, and headed to the association with Kwon Jia.
This time, it was a dignified visit, so he didn’t need to wear glasses to hide his identity.
The reporters who were waiting outside rushed over to Yu-hyun and Kwon Jia as soon as they saw them.
“Ka, Kang Yu-hyun Teller-nim!”
“Can we have a brief interview with you!?”
They were people who had been wandering around this area for days, waiting for him.
They couldn’t enter the office without permission, and they couldn’t see inside through the windows because of some treatment.
He was a gold mine of material just by hearing his name.
And he came out like this.
With Kwon Jia too.
“What should we do? Should I get rid of them?”
Kwon Jia asked Yu-hyun as she looked at him. She knew better than anyone how annoying these reporters were. If they left them alone, they would bother them even more.
“I’ll handle it.”
Yu-hyun stopped Kwon Jia and stood in front of the reporters.
The reporters swallowed their saliva as Yu-hyun approached them.
Kang Yu-hyun, an assistant at the Story Room of the Celestial Corporation. A teller who also fought in the mental realm with a collector. A freak among freaks.
Wasn’t he a source of drool just by hearing his name?
“I’m surprised to see so many people here. I appreciate your interest in me.”
“But.”
Yu-hyun cut off the reporters who were trying to shout urgently.
The reporters all closed their mouths. Yu-hyun’s voice was not loud, but it had a strange force. It was a power that naturally seized the atmosphere.
Everyone rolled their eyes and looked at Yu-hyun.
“I have someone I need to meet urgently, so I’m afraid I can’t answer your interview.”
“Wh-who are you going to meet?”
“I can’t say who it is because of their personal information, but, um. You just need to know that they are someone high up in the Association.”
“Gasp!”
“Someone from the Association?”
The reporters all held their breath.
They were not fools who gathered here. They did not take lightly who Yu-hyun was going to meet.
As reporters, they had keen eyes and ears on the current situation.
They knew about the invisible power struggle between the Association and the Clan, and which politician from which party was behind them.
And a little while ago, they saw Kwondongjin come out of Yu-hyun’s office.
‘Could this be…?’
‘If it’s the Association, does that mean he’s joining hands with them?’
‘This is huge.’
Yu-hyun’s existence was very interesting, but this situation that struck their heads like lightning was much more important.
They had to report this right away!
The reporters lit up their eyes and scattered in all directions.
Kwonjia, who was watching them from a close distance, stuck out her tongue.
“You’re still a great talker. Are you okay with that? They might make wild guesses and spread rumors about you.”
“I did that knowing that.”
“…You planned this.”
“Maybe, there will be articles about this soon?”
“Then, are you thinking of joining hands with the politician who backs up the Association?”
“Me? Of course not.”
Kwonjia narrowed her eyes at Yu-hyun’s answer.
“Then why did you say that to them?”
“Oh, that? I didn’t really say anything about joining hands with anyone. I just gave them a ‘nuance’ that it looked like that.”
It was different to say something directly and to act like it looked like that. Kwonjia also realized what Yu-hyun meant.
“So you didn’t say anything yourself, and they just made wild guesses. So whatever happens later, the responsibility lies with them. Is that it?”
“Well, there’s that too. But more than that, I made a declaration to those who would react sensitively to this rumor.”
Yu-hyun deliberately spread the rumor that he was associated with that politician, warning the pro-Clan politicians, including Kwondongjin, not to act rashly.
The pro-Association politicians who would hear the news would be confused, but they would not mind if Yu-hyun favored them, rather than thinking badly of him.
“Of course, I don’t really intend to get along with them. I’m not running for any election, why would I make friends with politicians? This is all for show. If I pretend to be close to the pro-Association side, it will prevent the Clan faction from bothering us.”
“If you’re careless, they might try to use us or become hostile to us from the Association side.”
“No. That won’t happen.”
“Why are you so sure?”
“That’s because they are politicians.”
Politicians were people who would join hands with their enemies for their own benefit, even if they fought and tore each other apart until a while ago.
Their morality was flawed, but their judgment of reality was something Yu-hyun acknowledged.
“Politicians are people who can easily throw away their pride for their own interests. You can’t judge them by the standards of ordinary people. I acted like this knowing that, and they will let us go knowing that too.”
“…Phew. You’re really a man who can’t let his guard down for a moment.”
“Thank you for the compliment. Now, the annoying troublemakers are all gone. Let’s go quickly.”
They soon visited the Association.
There were not many people as it was close to noon.
Some collectors recognized Yu-hyun and Kwonjia and whispered among themselves.
“Welcome Mr. Kang Yu-hyun Teller. We’ve been waiting for you.”
The person who greeted them was someone from the Association sent by Choijungmo.
They followed him into the inside of the Association, where ordinary collectors could not enter easily.
“Please come in.”
There were two people who welcomed Yu-hyun there.
One was Choijungmo, whom Yu-hyun knew and got along with. But the other one was someone unexpected for Yu-hyun.
“You are…”
“Oh, this is Yoo Sung-ah, who is in charge of the special affairs team of the Association.”
Yoo Sung-ah, who crossed her legs in a bad manner and chewed gum, was someone Yu-hyun knew.
Of course, she was the one who raided the scene when he stole and escaped the hidden worldview of Twilight Veil.
Yu-hyun greeted her with a smile without showing any sign of surprise.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Kang Yu-hyun.”
“It’s Yuseong-ah.”
“I’ve heard your name a lot. You’re the one who has the special trait of Moonlight Lady, right?”
“You know everything. Ha, sigh. This is supposed to be a collector’s secret. But it’s all exposed now.”
“Well, you’re quite famous.”
“Whatever, you’re not so bad yourself.”
She looked rather rebellious, but there was no hostility in her voice.
Yu-hyun thought that was a relief.
Yuseong-ah didn’t know that the three unidentified people who ran away from the scene were Yu-hyun’s group. If she knew, she would have immediately left her seat and attacked them, given her personality. Mrs. Park, who captured the dragon bone, never forgave injustice.
“So, why did Mr. Jungmo call me here?”
“That is… well…”
Choi Jung-mo hesitated on what to say first. He was fine with calling her, but he felt a bit awkward to bring up the main point.
“Mister. Why are you so worried? Hey, Teller hyung-nim. Didn’t you meet Kwon Dongjin today?”
“Miss Yuseong-ah!”
“Ah, sigh. Mr. Jungmo. I’m not deaf, so don’t be like that. He probably doesn’t like beating around the bush either.”
Yuseong-ah’s fiery attitude made Yu-hyun smile slightly.
He agreed with her words deeply. Kwon Jia, who sat next to Yu-hyun, also seemed to know Yuseong-ah’s personality well, as she didn’t look surprised.
“Well, it’s as she said. They came to me early in the morning.”
“What did they talk to you about?”
“Nothing much. They just asked me if I wanted to join them.”
“Really…?”
“Of course, I refused.”
“Hoo. I see.”
Choi Jung-mo let out a sigh of relief.
Yu-hyun asked him casually.
“Did they ask you to confirm it with Mr. Choi Jung-mo as a favor?”
“No, that’s not it…”
“There’s no need to hide it. Well, it’s already a known fact that the political circles are divided into pro-clan and pro-association factions. So I want to make my position clear by using this opportunity. I have no intention of joining them or anyone else.”
“Then…”
“And, the opposite is also true. I don’t want to join anyone.”
Choi Jung-mo looked a bit flustered, and Yuseong-ah chuckled as if she liked Yu-hyun’s answer.
“Mr. Choi Jung-mo. I understand your concern. You must be worried that I might join them. But I don’t have any plans to do that. No, actually, I’m more likely to be hostile to them.”
He had openly rejected Kwon Dongjin in front of him and crossed the boundary of Twilight Veil.
They were like water and oil that could never mix from the start.
“If Mr. Yu-hyun says so, I can relax a bit.”
“Oh. You seem to accept it easily. I thought you would be more persistent, did they tell you not to do that?”
“That’s not it. It’s just that my superior, a congressman I know, told me not to bother Mr. Yu-hyun too much.”
Choi Jung-mo called him for partly confirming that, but he had another important agenda.
“Mr. Yu-hyun. There’s something else I’m really curious about.”
Choi Jung-mo swallowed his saliva and brought up the main topic.
“About the previous incident related to Twilight Veil… was White Flower Management involved?”