Chapter 136:

Chapter 136:

Chapter 136

“Why are you asking me that all of a sudden?”

Yu-hyun asked innocently, as if he really knew nothing.

Choi Jungmo hesitated again, wondering what to say.

Whether he was frustrated by his silence or not, Yuseonga, who had been sitting quietly and listening until now, stepped in.

“Okay, it’s my turn now.”

“Yuseonga.”

“Mister. Enough is enough. I’ve been quiet so far because you’re someone I know. You know why I’m here, right? And so does Teller hyung, right?”

Yu-hyun nodded.

Yuseonga was one of the best collectors in the association, and also had a reputation for being a mad dog.

He didn’t know why she was here to meet Choi Jungmo at first.

But as soon as he heard the question that Choi Jungmo threw, he understood.

He understood and regretted it.

Yuseonga smiled fiercely, showing her fangs.

“Have you heard the news? The Twilight Veil. Those bastards have been secretly hiding and using the world of thought, breaking the law.”

“I have ears too, so I know.”

“Yeah. And even the Hanul Clan guys were involved in it. Hanul said they didn’t know anything and they were innocent, but most clans lie a lot anyway, so let’s skip that.”

Then Yuseonga leaned forward, straightening her crossed legs.

“But there was something strange when I interrogated them. How did Hanul and the Twilight Veil end up fighting inside? How did Hanul find out about this place? Do you have any idea?”

Yuseonga’s eyes were like sharp blades sharpened on a whetstone.

His skin tingled where her gaze touched.

“You’re asking us if we have any idea...”

Yu-hyun answered as if he was clueless. Yuseonga didn’t let it go with just that.

“I questioned one of the survivors from Hanul. They didn’t want to open their mouths, but when they were abandoned by their clan, they felt betrayed or something and spilled some facts. Do you know what one of them was? They said they moved to get rid of a certain person from Baekhwa Management.”

“A certain person...”

“Yeah. You. The one who’s sitting across from me and having a conversation with me. They were targeting you.”

Yuseonga chuckled. It was a vicious smile that didn’t suit her pretty face.

“But what’s amazing is this. Why did Hanul target you and head to where the Twilight Veil had hidden the world of thought? That doesn’t make sense, does it? If they wanted to target you, they should have gone where you were.”

“Maybe they stopped by somewhere else before targeting me? How would I know what criminals think?”

“No, no. I’m not done talking yet, so listen up. So Hanul guys moved to assassinate a specific person. They must have obtained information on where that person was heading. But it turned out to be a place related to the Twilight Veil clan.”

Yuseonga began to piece together the puzzle of what happened then based on the data she had obtained.

“But neither Hanul nor the Twilight Veil knew that the other would come. The reason they fought was because of a misunderstanding. The Twilight Veil heard that there was an intruder in the world of thought they had hidden away, and Hanul came looking for someone they were targeting. Even the anonymous report to the association was like that. Don’t you see something?”

“Hmm. So what you’re saying is.”

Yu-hyun followed her reasoning as if to back it up.

“Hanul used the person they were targeting to make them fight with the Twilight Veil clan. And that person knew beforehand that the Twilight Veil clan was hiding the world of thought, and instead of reporting it, he used it to his advantage.”

“That’s right.”

“And to get rid of both clans at once, he borrowed the hand of the association at the last minute?”

“Exactly.”

Yuseonga smiled, but her eyes didn’t smile at all.

She was increasingly convinced that Yu-hyun was one of the three unidentified people she had missed then.

Yu-hyun looked at her eyes and smiled as if he was amused.

“This is really...”

Yuseonga’s reasoning was quite accurate. There were some sloppy parts in between, but he could tell that it was very similar to what actually happened.

Yu-hyun felt like admiring her.

Still.

“That’s a ridiculous speculation.”

“Speculation?”

“Yes, speculation. Do you think this is possible in the first place? That person noticed the existence of an enemy targeting him, and used it to make two clans fight each other? How did he know and how did he act on it, let alone whether this makes sense?”

Yu-hyun denied that it was him. Yuseonga’s eyes sharpened even more.

“Is that all you’re going to do to apologize?”

“No, that’s...”

When Yu-hyun said that, Yuseonga hesitated a bit on how to reply.

What else could she do here, other than apologizing with words?

Seeing Yuseonga flustered, Yu-hyun chuckled.

“I’m kidding. I know how busy you are, Yuseonga. You must have been confused by the chaos in your head.”

“That’s... true.”

“Well, I would have been upset if it was someone else, but since you’re also an acquaintance of Choi Jungmo and a collector of the association who works day and night... I’ll let it slide this time.”

“Thank you. I appreciate it.”

“And don’t frown so much. You’ll ruin your pretty face.”

Yu-hyun said that, and Yuseonga reacted strongly.

“What?”

“What’s wrong?”

“No, what did you just...”

“Say that you’re pretty?”

Yu-hyun asked, and Yuseonga couldn’t answer easily.

She was indeed beautiful. But the problem was that the people around her couldn’t recognize her beauty.

Yuseonga had a trait [Lady of the Bright Moon] that contained the story of Park’s wife from the Park family war.

Park’s wife had great strength and magic, but she lived like an ugly woman until she revealed her true appearance.

Naturally, the more she used the power of her trait, the more Yuseonga was affected by it.

No matter how much she dressed up, people would naturally perceive her as ugly.

She had some complaints about it at first, but now she accepted it as natural and didn’t care much about it...

‘That person, or rather that teller... can he see my real appearance?’

This was the first time this had happened. Yoo Seong-ah felt her face heat up involuntarily as she realized that Yu-hyun had seen her true self.

She had always acted with a sense of detachment in front of others, knowing that they would never know her real self no matter what she did. She was aware of that fact.

She even felt more comfortable without makeup.

But now, she had shown her true self for the first time.

Yoo Seong-ah was embarrassed by that.

While Yoo Seong-ah was flustered, Yu-hyun got up from his seat.

“Well, it seems like you’re done with your business. I’ll get going then.”

“Yes. You should do that. Thank you for your hard work today.”

“No, it was nothing.”

Yu-hyun said that to Choi Joong-mo and then greeted Yoo Seong-ah, who was still bewildered.

“Take care, Miss Yoo Seong-ah.”

“Huh? Oh, yes...”

Yoo Seong-ah replied in a dazed voice, as if she had been hit hard.

***

“...If this is how it’s going to be, then why did he call me?”

As soon as they left the association, Kwon Jia complained as if she had been waiting for it. The incident at the association did not require her help at all. It was torture for her to just sit there and watch the situation.

“The reason I called you, Miss Ji-a, is for what’s about to happen now.”

“Now?”

“I told you. I have something else to do after stopping by the association.”

“What is it? Is there something that needs my help so badly?”

Yu-hyun nodded. Kwon Jia straightened up a bit.

She seemed curious to hear what it was.

“You know most of the information related to collectors, right? Even if you don’t remember some things, you think you know most of them.”

“That’s right. I think I know most of them.”

“Then do you also know how to get to the black market?”

Kwon Jia’s expression hardened at the mention of the black market.