Elysia’s group arrived at the Hong Clan’s mansion. Their arrival was greeted with proper formality and hospitality.
For some reason, the situation in that place was somewhat stiff and awkward. However, it wasn’t a problem for Elysia or anyone else in her group as they didn’t want to get involved in complicated matters.
Unlike Erina’s expectation, it wasn’t a banquet party to express gratitude but a dinner party attended by only Hong Clan’s core members, mainly the patriarch’s close ones.
Elysia and Erina exchanged some courtesy and pleasantries with the patriarch’s family, but they only ate a few dishes. They already feel full because of the earlier city tour, after all.
“Why did you barely touch your dinner? Did our dishes not suit your taste buds?” The patriarch asked in wonder.
“My apologies, we can’t afford another full course. We’ve had enough this afternoon.”
“Please pardon us because it’s getting late and we need to take care of our diet.”
Elysia and Erina responded politely as if they had the same consideration.
“Well, I once again need to thank you for your prompt assistance, Elysia. The situation might become unmanageable if it were allowed to remain for a few more days.” The patriarch sighed and clasped his hands on the table. He wanted to convey his meaning with dignity.
“Perhaps the will of fate wants your clan to remain strong and prosperous. I am just a doctor doing her job.” Elysia replied with a subtle smile.
“Elysia, can you tell me what the Minamoto Clan promised you? What advantages do they offer you?” The patriarch didn’t beat around the bush and went straight to the point. He intended to recruit this talented young doctor.
“!?” Erina was taken aback by that statement. She glanced at Elysia nervously.
“What do you mean by that statement, sir? I’m afraid I’ll misinterpret it.” Elysia patted Erina’s thigh from under the table, signaling her to remain calm.
“We have an interesting offer for you, more than what the Minamoto Clan can offer. I want you to come to my clan.” The patriarch made a steeple of his fingers.
“I don’t think that’s a good method to do. It’s fine if you want to build a good relationship with me or my background. However, you need to know one thing, sir… I can’t be in the banner of any country. We have to keep our status quo neutral.” Elysia heaved a subtle sigh and shook her head.
“You are pretty direct. Very well, we have good intentions. Your arrival is always welcomed in South Korea.” The patriarch closed his eyes for a moment and nodded. He then gave his grandson an eye signal.
Hong Ju-Won took a breath and spoke to the girl beside him. “Elysia-sama, this is what I promised you. Please take this as my gratitude to you. The pincode is printed on the back of the card.”
“Hmm?” Elysia felt that the sparkling blue card was so familiar. It was similar to the international bank card given by Erina.
“Please accept this.” Hong Ju-Won put the card in front of Elysia.
“O-oh, okay… Thank you.” Elysia accepts that.
“Also, can I have your contact number?” Hong Ju-Won felt a bit uneasy and embarrassed. This was probably the first time he asked for a girl’s contact number.
“…” Elysia didn’t answer immediately and glanced at the young master’s bashful face. She then took out her smartphone and placed it on the table with her number on display. “Sure, just don’t share my number carelessly.”
Hong Ju-Won immediately saved the number and tried to send a message for a test run.
“I may also need your help in the future, Young Master Hong Ju-Won. There are times when I’m out of network coverage. If you need my help and the Minamoto Clan can’t reach me either, then I’m really out of touch. Please pardon my situation.” Elysia asked for the other party’s understanding in advance.
“I understand your situation. You are the savior of my clan, so please just call me Ju-Won.” Hong Ju-Won felt relieved and calmed that his clan had survived that rotten scheme. Everything would be fine after this. Not to mention, he also received a wonderful connection, namely Elysia.
“You’ve regained your composure. Perhaps, it’s time for you to learn more about the grand scheme of things and reduce your martial arts practice a little bit for other essential matters, Ju-Won.” Elysia nodded slightly.
“Thanks for your advice. I’ll see what I can do in the future.” Ju-Won smirked subtly. Elysia guessed it right. He already had some plans changed due to the recent events.
“Mm, keep the spirit and keep moving forward to achieve your goals. Obstacles and problems will surely come your way, but it’s about how you overcome them. Anyway, it’s getting late and we should take our leave.” Elysia looked at the clock on her smartphone.
“The gratitude is ours, Elysia. How about you and Erina stay here tonight? You can come back tomorrow morning to Japan.” The patriarch suggested.
“I appreciate the offer, but our presence has been awaited by several individuals.” Elysia rose from her seat and bowed slightly to salute.
“That’s a shame. In that case, please allow my bodyguard to escort you back to the hotel.” The patriarch can’t force anything.
“Thanks for the consideration.” Elysia could only accept the offer out of courtesy.
Erina then gave a respectful bow before following Elysia away. Sylvia, Xentia, Gio, and Xentia followed in silence.
The dining room became silent for a moment. The patriarch looked at everyone around the dining table, and then his gaze fell on his grandson. “Ju-Won, are you interested in Elysia?”
“Why the sudden question?” Ju-Won got a bad feeling from this conversation.
“Just answer my question.” The patriarch changed his intonation into an authoritative tone.
“She, quite dangerous. For some reason, she looks too perfect for this world. I feel like she is either a witch or an angel.” Ju-Won gave an ambiguous response. He refused to talk about romance.
“Hmm, I see… Ju-Won, how much do you know about Elysia and her group?” The patriarch stroked his beard.
“She is a talented young doctor from a mysterious organization. Her bodyguards have immeasurable power for me to estimate. Apart from her good connection to the Minamoto Clan, she is also considered an important person to both the Alchemy and Esper Associations.” Ju-Won shared what he knew.
“You don’t seem to know yet. I will tell you then. Everyone, listen to me. Never offend that girl named Elysia under any circumstances. Do you know her real background and why they sent three bodyguards by her side? Can you measure those three true power?” The patriarch looked at everyone present at the dining table.
He then conveyed his intentions to everyone and explained the situation from what he knew last month. It was top-class secret information. Therefore, he had to inform his close ones to keep them safe. They would build a good relationship for everyone’s benefit, not invite disaster.
The Hong Clan was busy in their deep discussion, but Elysia’s group had already returned to their hotel room. Elysia felt enthusiastic, but Erina felt a bit sad for some reason.
“Ely, are you going to leave again after this? Are we going straight back to Japan?” Erina tugged at the hem of Elysia’s sleeve. She didn’t really care about anything that happened to the Hong Clan since everything was settled. However, she still wanted to spend time with Elysia and the others.
On several occasions, she felt happy and envious of Elysia at the same time. Elysia has many amazing friends, and she also got great companies because of Elysia. However, if Elysia left, then so would everyone else.
“Mm, we can go first. We’ll take you and Mio home in a jiffy, and your private jet can fly without passengers tomorrow morning. Hm, what’s wrong? You look sad. It’s not a farewell, though? We’ll see each other again soon.” Elysia turned around and was surprised to find Erina looking reluctant and sad.
“Could you spend the night with me? I feel reluctant to come back right now, Ellie…” Erina pointed at Elysia with a pleading look.
“…” Elysia weighed many things in her mind because of that ambiguous statement.
“Erina… I didn’t know you were so naughty. What do you want to do, hmm? I’m now wondering.” Sylvia came closer and whispered into Erina’s ear from behind. “Two girls lying on the bed, teasing at each other. Hmm, I don’t know you want to go that far, but Ely can be really cute when teased and blushed. Let’s tease her together~”
“Wh, wha-wawawa, what are you saying, Sylvia-san!?” Erina gasped and immediately took her distance. She was embarrassed by what Sylvia had just said.
“Mhm, good reaction.” Sylvia folded her arms with an understanding nod.
‘Ely, it’s fine if you want to invite Erina to meet us. She is our little golden swan, right? You also need to introduce our family to her. Do you know why?’ Elena made a suggestion. She was the one who asked Elysia to come to her location immediately since the work on her side was over.
‘Is that all right?’ Elysia didn’t feel sure about that solution.
‘Why not? Erina will keep our secret and fufu~ She probably won’t be able to get us out of her mind. You just need to make sure Erina and Mio promise to make this night encounter a little secret between us.’ Elena had a small brilliant idea flash through her mind.
“Erina, would you like to come with me to meet my other friends and family? We will drop you and Mio off tomorrow morning.” Elysia extended her hand in an invitation while smiling warmly.
“Eh? Mm-hmm, I’d be honored.” It was a pleasant surprise for Erina. She immediately nodded in agreement.
“My master gave me a message. You may spend the night with us, but you must keep everything about us at tonight’s event a secret. Not even to your family. You will offend many powerful individuals if you disobey. Can you promise me?” Elysia raised her finger while looking at Erina and Mio.
“I promise not to disclose our secret to anyone!” Erina put her hand on her upper chest.
“Affirmative. Only me and Erina-sama are allowed to know about it. We will sleep in the hotel tonight before heading back to Japan in the morning. Nothing noteworthy happened.” Mio stated her promise with a made-up scenario that would be included in the report.
Her mouth was silent about the actual event as she knew the risk was too big if she offended the Guardian of Dream.
The promise had been made, and Elysia believed the secret would be kept. After that, Elysia immediately took everyone away from the hotel room with a poof.