Chapter 23 - Business Ethics (2)

Chapter 23: Business Ethics (2)TL: SHW

“Be honest with me.”

I glared at Hong Seok-young, who couldn’t stop laughing even after the class had ended.

“You’re doing this because you find getting your collar grabbed amusing, aren’t you?”

“No, ha. Why would that be the case?”

“Then why do you keep repeating the same pattern?”

“It’s not your collar, it’s mine. So what’s the problem?”

His smirking face was oddly annoying.

When I looked at him silently, Hong Seok-young finally wiped the smile off his face and spoke.

“Ahem. Teacher Kim is an Archmage, but honestly, she still lacks experience as a mage. Teacher Kim started her life as a Hunter after becoming an Archmage, so it’s only natural. It’s rare, but it happens.”

“And what does that have to do with you… teacher, getting grabbed by the collar?”

“But that doesn’t mean she lacks reputation as an archmage. Did you know what I mean by that?”

Hong Seok-young ignored my question.

“Did you know what I mean?”

“What does that have to do with the collar…?”

“Did you know what I mean?”

I can’t believe I have to deal with this nonsense even after traveling back in time. I sighed.

“…What are you talking about?”

Hong Seok-young excitedly began to explain.

“Teacher Kim’s master and father, Kim Kang-yeon, is an Archmage. Kim Kang-yeon also received teachings from his father. And who do you think Kim Kang-yeon’s master, that is, Teacher Kim’s grandfather, is?”

“…Who is he?”

It’s hard to make a living.

But it’s true that I don’t know. Even I don’t have every Hunter’s lineage memorized. By now, Kim Chae-min’s father, who was her master, has been dead for a long time. Let alone her grandfather? Grandfather?

But seeing Hong Seok-young talk so seriously, I must have missed something. What is it? Was there any special detail in Kim Chae-min’s information?

“Archmage Kim Young-heon.”

I frowned. It wasn’t a completely unfamiliar name.

If my memory is correct, Kim Young-heon was a mage who led the Druid magic school in our country. Any Academy student would have seen his name during mage exams. Of course, I wasn’t an Academy student, so I only saw it while preparing for the civil service exam.

“Three generations of Archmages with the same attribute. This is rare even abroad. The magical legacy Teacher Kim inherited isn’t just unique magic. She might still be lacking as Archmage Kim Chae-min, but the reputation of the Archmage family, which has continued for three generations, is already more than enough.”

“I still don’t understand what you’re trying to say.”

“So, it’s a rune vouched for by an archmage from such a family. They won’t be able to ignore your rune.”

“…Ignore?”

“You’ve been with Ark for a long time. So, you don’t know how scary the outside world is. That’s why you said to reveal the rune freely, right?”

Is that… the problem?

Does it warrant Hong Seok-young clicking his tongue and looking at me with such pity?

What’s this? Why does this hurt my pride? Why is he looking at me like that? Who’s been supporting him all this time?

“Those mage bastards are so vicious. Why do you think I brought Teacher Kim?”

“To teach the students?”

“…Well, that’s part of it, but no mage can ignore the knowledge accumulated over three generations. Since the conversation with Teacher Kim is somewhat settled, you don’t need to worry. By the way, it was Teacher Kim’s idea to include Hunter Lee too.”

Hong Seok-young even mentioned the training center.

“At the training center, you erased the rune. Well, back then, there were other Hunters besides this one, so it was right to erase it.”

I still don’t get it.

Can’t we just reveal it? Is this complicated process really necessary? Why?

Seeing that I still didn’t understand, Hong Seok-young sighed deeply.

“Teacher Woo, what do you think will happen if the rune is revealed?”

“The rune will be revealed?”

“Right. Then what will change?”

What happened when the mana concealment rune was first revealed? The French Archmage shot to stardom. It changed the paradigm of dungeon raids.

Of course, he was also attacked a lot. Mages felt their positions were being threatened.

Ah. Is this what he means?

But that’s why I intended to use Hong Seok-young as a shield.

“Do you understand? Besides, didn’t you say the rune was developed in Ark?”

In Ark, runes were often used unlike outside… I had a feeling things would get tangled if I made a mistake. Somehow, I had that premonition.

I corrected Hong Seok-young’s words.

“Some of them. Not the concealment rune.”

Only release runes with confirmed developers.

“Really? Anyway, since Ark can track it, it’s better to be cautious. If you want to save many people as you wish, you need to prepare from multiple angles.”

“Um…”

“Even if Lee Mi-seon acts prickly, she’s smart. She’d understand the value of the rune immediately. If she can’t understand when it’s spoon-fed to her, she shouldn’t be a guild master.”

Hong Seok-young said sharply.

“She knows a lot of people too, so she’ll help. Didn’t you save Seung-yeon anyway?”

“…Didn’t you call Hunter Lee Mi-seon because of the Bangi-dong Dungeon?”

“Partly. It saves time to handle it all at once.”

Hong Seok-young shrugged.

“Anyway, with Teacher Kim and Hunter Lee, adding my name will ensure everything goes smoothly.”

However, a fundamental question still remained for me. After a moment of contemplation, I asked.

“It doesn’t have to be announced under my name. Why not just announce it under Teacher Kim Chae-min’s name? As you said, with a family of three generations of Archmages, it would reduce troublesome matters significantly.”

“……”

“……?”

“You.”

Hong Seok-young grabbed my shoulder firmly.

“You can’t live like that.”

What is he talking about?

“This is your achievement.”

Seriously, what is he talking about?

“You and the mage you know. Teacher Woo, why do you think I have told the kids to keep quiet?”

“Hunter Lee…”

“No. The timing doesn’t match. I was holding back the Minotaur, and the kids arrived at the defense line with the civilians.”

“……”

“They made the decision on their own. Not to talk about it.”

I don’t get it.

“Why do you think the kids didn’t even mention it to their families? Because your rune is an achievement that will remain in Hunter history forever.”

“……”

“I have business ethics too. I can’t steal this from you.”

If you put it like that, what am I supposed to become? I briefly thought of the face of the French Archmage.

Since he’s a kind-hearted person, he’d understand, right? He would, wouldn’t he?

“…You don’t have to.”

“Hey. I told you not to live like that.”

Hong Seok-young patted my back vigorously. He was trying to cheer me up, but every time my back hurt, my conscience ached too.

“You don’t need to worry about anything. I’ll make sure your name is etched in history books.”

After the French Archmage’s face, I also thought of adult Park Seo-hyun, who created the Shadow Rune. Then the faces of other mages and magic engineers who created runes that were useful…

And the royalties those thieves took…

…

The French guy didn’t take royalties, but I’m planning to release the rune early to save more people as he wanted. I’ve put a lot of thought into it.

Park Seo-hyun also released the Shadow Rune for free, didn’t she? And I’m praising her for it now. So that’s settled.

The rest?

How much royalty has the Ability Management Agency been offering up till now? That astronomical number. With that money, I could get new equipment for the Agency Hunters, build a new Hunter Academy building, and not have to beg Lee Mi-seon to donate…

I felt at ease.

Since I’m releasing it for free, those guys should be grateful to me.

“Got it.”

I nodded. Hong Seok-young seemed bewildered by my sudden change in attitude.

I still avoided the hand of Hong Seok-young, who was patting my back, and moved my body to the side before asking.

“But if you called Teacher Kim Chae-min and Hunter Lee Mi-seon with that intention, couldn’t you have just explained it to them first and then brought them along? Showing the rune without saying anything first…”

I squinted my eyes and looked at Hong Seok-young.

“Are you sure you didn’t enjoy getting your collar grabbed?”

“Well…”

Hong Seok-young cleared his throat and looked away.

“No, well. It’s just that seeing those usually meek kids get riled up and charge at me is fun.”

What a bad personality.

When I frowned, Hong Seok-young waved his hand frantically.

“Alright, alright. Don’t glare at me like that. Because of the rune you showed today, our Lee Mi-seon has been all fired up.”

“What I showed? The Shadow Rune?”

“There’s a dungeon Daseon took over that was deemed unraidable. That rune might make it possible. She’s probably racking her brain right now.”

With a hint of suspicion, I asked Hong Seok-young.

“You’re not planning to hire Hunter Lee Mi-seon as a teacher at the demonstration school, are you?”

“Huh? Would you like that?”

“No.”

“Actually, I’ve considered it, but…”

Hong Seok-young answered while stroking his chin.

“It wouldn’t work since all the kids would be dragged off to Daseon after graduation.”

“No worries about employment then.”

“We’re not an industry that should be worried about post-graduation employment rates, are we?”

“We should be lowering post-graduation mortality rates.”

“…Phew. That’s a hard-hitting point. Let’s take it easy, Teacher Woo.”

Hong Seok-young shook his head and took a piece of bulgogi from my lunch box.

The lunch break was just ending.

* * *

When I exited the container used as the teacher’s office, an unexpected scene greeted me.

“Wh-what is this…?”

It was so unexpected that even the usually unflappable Hong Seok-young stuttered in surprise.

“Oh, are you done with your meal?”

Lee Mi-seon, who was giving various instructions to the hunters, waved her hand. The hunters who had followed her were unloading ice coolers from an SUV.

In the middle of the empty lot, there was a proper wooden parasol, not the plastic one Hong Seok-young had picked up somewhere. And it wasn’t just one. Around the parasols were sunbeds that looked like they belonged in a resort.

While other kids stood awkwardly in the corner, Lee Seung-yeon and Soon Soon-jin were lying on the sunbeds with sunglasses, enjoying the sunlight. Sᴇaʀᴄh the NƟvelFɪre.ɴet website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

Where on earth did they get all that…?

“This is a sacred school!”

“If you call a place like this a school these days, you’ll get reported.”

“I told you we’re building a proper building next year, didn’t I?”

“Our Soon-jin is a girl, so rolling around in a place like this will ruin her skin.”

“Auntie, what about me?”

“You… Who are you again? Are you Soon-jin’s friend?”

“Auntie!”

Ignoring her nephew’s outcry, Lee Mi-seon spoke to the hunters.

“Is that the last box?”

“There’s one more left, Master.”

“Good. Arrange everything properly.”

Now, a wooden coffee table was coming out of the SUV trunk. No matter how you looked at it, it seemed too big to fit in the car.

As I stared blankly at it, Lee Mi-seon approached me slyly.

“I set up a pocket space.”

“Ah… what?”

“A pocket space. It’s not fully commercialized yet… but since our company developed it, I’m using it first. There’s nothing better for carrying large items.”

“Oh, I see…”

A pocket space big enough for furniture existed even at this time?

Feeling somewhat betrayed, I looked at Lee Mi-seon. The money she received every year as rental fees for the pocket space…

Forget it. What’s the point of bringing it up now?

“If you need it, let me know. It’s tough to get it this big, but I can get you one backpack-sized at a discount.”

“No, I’m fine.”

I already have one. It’s in my pocket right now. I put the ID card from 2041 and the old man’s dog tag inside. It looks just like a wallet from the outside and has a lock, so no one but me can open it.

“Let me know if you need one later.”

Lee Mi-seon tilted a plastic container of gum onto her palm and then smiled brightly.

Instead of chewing the gum, Lee Mi-seon tucked her stray hair behind her ear and extended her hand to me.

“We haven’t formally introduced ourselves, have we? I’m Lee Mi-seon. I’m the master of the Daseon Guild, and currently, I’m helping Hunter Hong with…”

Lee Mi-seon glanced at the kids.

“Various tasks.”

Then, she lowered her voice and whispered softly so only I could hear.

“And I’m planning to help Woo Hwijae with various things in the future as well.”