Chapter 23:

Chapter 23:

Chapter 23

The man was smiling as he spoke, but his eyes clearly harbored hostility and jealousy.

“It seems like the lady over there has cleared the World of Thought, but that’s a cruel joke. Who do you think you are, scamming your way into this place and bragging about your achievements?”

He was mocking us with his tone.

I glanced around.

The people who were watching us had no intention of stopping him.

They seemed to enjoy the spectacle.

His intention was clear.

He didn’t believe that Kang Hye-rim, a ninth-grade collector, had cleared the World of Thought, and if that was true... it would mean that she had ignored the rules among the collectors.

But Kang Hye-rim didn’t say anything to him.

She just stared straight ahead.

“You...”

Did he think that she was ignoring him?

The man twisted his face and then changed his expression to a sneer.

“Ha! You can’t even answer me. Of course. How could you? You’re nothing but a fraud. World of Thought clear? A ninth-grade collector? Even a passing dog would laugh at that!”

Hahaha!

The man’s laughter was echoed by the others around us.

He looked at me with a questioning gaze, but I shrugged my shoulders and said.

“Sir, I’m sorry, but our lady doesn’t want to have anything to do with you.”

“What? Who are you, you bastard who looks like a parasite? Are you her manager or something? How dare you interfere in the affairs of the collectors?”

“I’d rather be called her colleague than her manager.”

“Her colleague? Then you must be a fraud too. I don’t know where you heard those ridiculous rumors, but this is the Collector Association. If you don’t want to get hurt, get lost. You scum. Or do you want me to kick you out myself?”

The man leaned his face towards me and threatened me.

His muscular physique exuded a menacing pressure.

I smiled back and asked.

“What if we don’t?”

“You son of a...”

“Ah, by the way, our lady is quite fierce, so you’d better be careful.”

The man collapsed on the floor like a frog.

Kang Hye-rim grabbed his wrist and twisted his arm behind his back with a sharp jerk.

She also stepped on his back with one foot, preventing him from getting up.

“Aaagh!”

The collectors around them widened their eyes at the sudden turn of events.

But the most unbelievable thing about this situation was the man who was pinned under Kang Hye-rim.

I looked down at him with a small smile on my face.

“See, I warned you.”

That you should be careful.

***

Ko Junho couldn’t understand what was happening.

He remembered reaching out his hand, but then his vision flipped and he found himself on the ground.

He wanted to get up, but one of his arms was bent behind him and a foot was on his back.

It was the foot of the collector he had ignored and looked down on.

He couldn’t move at all.

‘Did I... just lose to a mere rank 9 collector?’

The moment he faced that fact, he felt an unbearable shame.

The people around him were also staring at Ko Junho, who had fallen to the ground.

They were witnessing the end of the guy who had picked a fight for no reason.

“What? Wasn’t that guy rank 7?”

“He acted so cocky, but what’s with that pathetic sight?”

“Did he let his guard down?”

“Let his guard down? There’s a four-rank difference, and he let his guard down? Even a passing dog would laugh at that.”

Ko Junho’s face turned red as he heard the conversations around him.

Humiliation, embarrassment, and anger.

He lifted his head and glared at the person who had made him like this.

The man in a neat suit.

Kang Yu-hyun was looking down at him with a smirk.

As their eyes met, Ko Junho realized something.

‘This bastard. He was aiming for this from the start...!’

‘That’s a good reaction.’

Everything went as Yu-hyun had expected.

He had deliberately raised his voice to imprint Kang Hye-rim’s low rank on the people, and he had intentionally acted relaxed to lure someone out.

Thanks to Ko Junho, a stupid guy who was easily swayed by his emotions, things went even smoother.

‘And now, it’s time for the others to step in.’

As Yu-hyun timed it again, he heard a noisy sound from afar, and soon people dressed like bodyguards came through the crowd.

“Stop right there! What are you doing?”

“Fighting is prohibited in the association!”

They were collectors affiliated with the association, who intervened in case something happened.

They should have stepped in sooner, but their timing was a bit too convenient.

‘They deliberately waited for the right moment.’

They probably knew about this situation from the beginning.

But they didn’t step in right away, which meant they had some intention.

‘There’s someone behind them giving orders.’

He quickly spotted the opponent.

“What’s going on here? How dare you start a fight in the association. Do you think we’re a joke?”

The one who said that was a skinny middle-aged man with glasses.

He seemed to be talking politely, but his eyes were sharply scanning the situation.

As soon as his gaze touched them, the collectors around him avoided his eyes or shivered.

He’s the boss.

Yu-hyun got up from his seat and approached him.

“Are you the person in charge here?”

As Yu-hyun spoke to him, the man threw him a sharp look.

A normal person would have been intimidated by his aura, but Yu-hyun shrugged it off.

The man asked.

“Who are you?”

“I’m a colleague of the person involved in the incident.”

“A colleague of the person who started the fight?”

“I think there’s some misunderstanding here. We didn’t fight.”

“Ha. You didn’t fight? Do you expect me to believe that?”

“Hey. Why would I lie so blatantly? We just had a ‘little’ disagreement. And then he started to act out unilaterally, so our lady had no choice but to subdue him. It’s self-defense.”

The man raised his eyebrows at Yu-hyun’s words.

“Subdue? This commotion?”

“Yes. Subdue. Our lady doesn’t have a scratch on her, does she? And nothing was broken either. Look at her face. Does that look like someone who fought? There wasn’t even anything worth calling a fight. We subdued the troublemaker out of goodwill. You should be grateful instead.”

“...”

Yu-hyun’s words had some bite to them.

The man stared at him for a moment, then looked around at the reactions.

It was Ko Junho who had picked a fight and used violence unilaterally.

And there were plenty of witnesses.

The man soon nodded and smiled.

“Heh heh. It seems like you’re right. I’m sorry for this.”

As if he had put on a mask, his attitude changed drastically from when he showed signs of anger before.

But Yu-hyun didn’t act surprised and accepted his apology as if it was natural.

“Well, things happen. It’s not like we’re doing anything wrong. But our lady needs to get her reward for clearing the Worldview, and it seems like it’s taking a bit long here. Did the person in charge take a vacation or something?”

“Ahem. I’m sorry for that. Actually, I’m the person in charge. I was behind on my work, and I was distracted by the fight. Please understand.”

“Oh, is that so? You look pretty high-ranking, I’m sorry for that.”

“I wish I could take you to a separate place, but can you wait a bit?”

“That’s fine. Hye-rim, that’s enough.”

As Yu-hyun called her lightly, Kang Hye-rim let go of Ko Junho.

Ko Junho immediately got up and tried to say something, but he was dragged away by the security guards of the association.

“Then, let’s go.”

The man who had watched the scene until the end led the way, and Yu-hyun and Kang Hye-rim followed him.

The gazes that followed Kang Hye-rim as she entered the association had changed.

The contempt and anger were gone, and what filled their place was awe and admiration.

‘She made a splendid debut as a collector.’

But the real important thing was from now on.

‘I’ll tear you apart.’

Yu-hyun’s eyes were cold as he looked at the man.