Chapter 33
“No, Chairman!”
“Oh. You’re loud. What number secretary are you?”
“I’m the 6th secretary.”
“What are you responsible for?”
“I’m in charge of the chairman’s parties, receptions, and guests...”
“Ah. I remember. I asked you to bring all the Playboy models to the party and you were the idiot who left one out.”
“C-Chairman. I called all the models from January to December. The April models were twins, so one was missing...”
Hwang Gyeongryong raised his hand, signaling the secretary to stop talking.
“Would you rather be the one who makes excuses or the one who gets things done?”
“The one who gets things done!”
“Good. Then move!”
Hwang Gyeongryong looked at Choi Yeonseung after giving the secretary an order.
“For now, you should listen to what happened in the meantime. Wouldn’t that be better?”
“Wow. Hyung, you’ve really turned into trash.”
“How… How am I trash?”
“Didn’t you just fire a person for no reason?”
“No... Do you know how much I paid him? Hey, you. Come back.”
Jackson, the 7th secretary, came back with a sullen expression as he was preparing to leave.
“How long have you been working for me?”
“Two weeks.”
“How much have you earned so far?”
“Around two hundred and thirty thousand dollars...”
“See? I gave that much!”
“What does how much you paid him have to do with firing him?”
“I definitely warned him before hiring him that If they ever make one mistake, then they’ll be fired! They all know that!”
Hwang Gyeongryong had more than 10 secretaries. There were so many things for him to do... No, it would be more accurate to say that Hwang Gyeongryong often fired his secretaries. All the secretaries knew this, but they applied regardless because of the huge salary and the expectation that they could rise higher if they endured it. They could get any position they wanted once Hwang Gyeongryong had organized them.
“I see. That’s disappointing.”
“N-No, really... Aish. I understand. Get back to work!”
“T-Thank you!” The 7th secretary, Jackson, bowed excitedly and backed away. He didn’t know who Choi Yeonseung was, but he was really grateful!
“Did you really have to do that? Huh?”
“Hyung. As a clan leader, you should set an example for others.”
“......”
At the words he was hearing for the first time in 30 years, Hwang Gyeongryong didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry.
***
“I majored in artifacts and dungeons at Stanford University. I was also the manager of two B-grade hunters and one A-grade hunter.”
“Hmm. Is that so? I once did 500 kilos for the big three workouts.”
He benched, deadlifted, and squatted a total of 500 kilograms! Choi Yeonseung’s words flustered the person who came as his tutor.
“I-I see. In any case, let me briefly describe what happened in the 30 years.”
30 minutes had passed since then.
“China, North Korea, Europe, and South?America?have been conquered?”
Choi Yeonseung was taken aback by the tutor’s words. He was aware that the evil god constellations occupied parts of Earth, but this was too much!
The tutor spoke to him with a puzzled expression. “To be precise, they’ve taken Northeast China, the British side of Europe, and Mexico in South America.”
“And all of North Korea?”
“Yes.”
“The Korean people are suffering a lot... No.”
Now that he had thought about it, North Korea didn’t seem like it would change much if it was occupied by an evil god constellation. Rather, wouldn’t they?become better?
‘The evil god constellation will keep their oaths...’
Choi Yeonseung looked at the map to check Earth’s condition. Every part of the world sustained damages, but China suffered the most bloodshed. The northern part of China had been captured by an evil god constellation along with Beijing, its capital.
‘They're probably suffering.’
The Chinese government probably gritted its teeth when it was forced to move its capital to the south.
“Is South Korea safe?”
“South Korea is one of the countries that handled things relatively well during the invasion of the evil gods, but...”
“But?”
“Many South Korean hunters moved overseas back then. The United States in particular benefited a lot from it.”
“?”
“The hunters risked their lives to stop the invading monsters, but the government allegedly treated them poorly in return. Disappointed, the hunters moved away in droves...”
“... Really. I can’t even imagine it.”
Choi Yeonseung scratched his head. He then remembered the South Korean government constantly emphasizing passion pay when he was still there. The members of the National Assembly didn’t consider stopping it and just said, ‘Be patriotic!’
‘Why was everyone like that back then?’
It seemed that all the hunters around him were full of patriotism!
“Wait. My clan leader hyung... Did Hunter Hwang Gyeongryong leave South Korea and come to the United States at that time as well?”
“That’s right.”
“Hah.”
What made his clumsy clan leader do that? No, he succeeded in a way, but...
[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ says it went well. It is telling you to bring that hunter into your household.]
‘My household?’
[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ is wondering if he is reliable.]
‘He is, but... I don’t know where to start explaining.’
-Hyung. The reason why I disappeared from Earth was to train to prevent the destruction of the world. As a result of wandering in the Abyss for over tens of thousands of years, I became a constellation. Come under me and become my household member.
-Yeonseung, did you take a new drug in the Abyss?
[... The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ says it wouldn’t be to that extent.]
‘Indeed, he’ll understand if I explain it properly.’
Choi Yeonseung realized why he was hesitating. He didn’t want to involve Hwang Gyeongryong in the fight between constellations. Hwang Gyeongryong might be the strongest hunter on Earth, but he was a mortal. There was nothing good about him becoming involved in such a war.
Moreover, Choi Yeonseung didn’t feel the need to create a household even when he was still fighting as a wandering constellation. He found it much more comfortable to be the one fighting than using his power of existence to develop others. Choi Yeonseung was more of a warrior than a king.
[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ says that you will need followers on Earth. It says that you should get used to it.]
Choi Yeonseung traveled around the Abyss and engaged in an all-out war with the constellations he met. However, it was actually rare for constellations to fight directly in the Abyss.
They had too much to lose! If so, how did they solve problems? They sent their household members to fight and compromise with each other. The method was?different every time, but it was clear that the household members’ powers were needed.
[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ says that Earth will constantly have those types of constellation battles. If you have no household members, then you won’t be able to join them.]
‘... Um...’
The cat constellation’s words troubled Choi Yeonseung. If the constellations competed against each other in that way, Choi Yeonseung certainly wouldn’t be able to join. He only had?Odaigon!
‘Can’t I pretend to be a household member and enter?’
[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ says that’s a?really underhanded?tactic, but?it should be worth a try for?as long as you don’t get caught.]
Most constellations were born as constellations. Perhaps that was why they couldn’t come up with crazy ideas like Choi Yeonseung. A god-like being pretending to be a household member so they could join the fight? Putting aside saving face and their pride, it was a matter of undermining their own power of existence.
‘... Is it that bad? I don’t really care.’
[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ says that is your strength.]
The strength of a mortal constellation! Choi Yeonseung wasn’t aware of it, but both the cat constellation and the manipulator agreed. He wasn’t born a constellation, and that made it possible for him to act more freely.
[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ advises that even if you don’t necessarily take them as a household member, it is still beneficial to have many talents that can be used as one.]
‘Ugh. I’m not fit to be a leader.’
Choi Yeonseung was disgusted. Back when he was still in a clan, he was in a position to follow orders, not give them.
-Yeonseung. Now that you are quite a senior in the clan, it wouldn’t be bad for you to teach new hunters.
-Yes. I promise to work hard at it.
One week later…
-Yeonseung. Do you know why all the new hunters left the clan?
-Let’s see? The clan’s name is tacky...
-... Hey! It’s because you trained them too hard!
-?I gave them a much lighter training than the one I do
-...
-... Alright. You’re no longer in charge of training. Just focus on the raids!
The clan leader didn’t argue further because he knew how sincere Choi Yeonseung was. He naturally didn’t entrust Choi Yeonseung with training and would often tell new members, ‘Don’t ask him to teach you.’
The rookie hunters were puzzled, but they soon figured out why the clan leader stopped them.
-He’s that crazy about training?
-Shh. If you make eye contact with him, he will drag us to do a hundred and seventy hours of training a week.
-H-How is that possible...
-I heard he didn’t even cry when he was born, but he does whenever he suffers muscle or internal energy loss.
-I’ve even heard rumors that he broke up with his lover because he was afraid of losing muscles and internal energy.
-I don’t want to train that hard! I became a hunter to make money!
‘Umm. Now that I think about it, I didn’t help at all.’
[’Cat of Lava and Magma’ is bursting into tears!]
‘Why are you crying?’
[Sob sob sob!]
‘In any case, I have to do it.’
Even if he didn’t want to, he had to do it for his goal. Hwang Gyeongryong would be more upset anyway if Choi Yeonseung hid this out of worry. It would be best to tell him!
***
The mansion grounds had all types of facilities.
Choi Yeonseung entered one of them—a training ground—and found a huge ring-like space. He could immediately feel the powerful magic power.
[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ is surprised to see ‘Otherworld’ magic!]
-Why are you surprised? Is it a difficult magic to use?
[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ says that it isn’t that it’s difficult to use. However, it was made by the constellations and is also popular among them. It says it just didn’t expect it to be used here.]
Otherworld magic. Some constellations initially made it to train and entertain their subordinates. However, it was so useful that other constellations followed suit. Soon, it became a trend. After going inside, they entered a virtual space where?they could take damage but remain completely uninjured when they leave!
-There are many constellations on Earth, so maybe they told their household members?
“Did you learn this from a constellation?”
“Huh? What are you saying? Constellation?”
Hwang Gyeongryong was warming up when Choi Yeonseung’s question puzzled him.
“That Otherworld magic.”
“That’s just common magic, dude, but... The constellations likely passed it on. You don’t know how dark they are inside.”
Hwang Gyeongryong’s face showed hostility toward the constellations. He had heard and seen many things about constellations while rising to his current position, leaving him no choice but to distrust them.
‘Umm. I am also a constellation.’
Choi Yeonseung felt as if he had been stabbed for no reason.
“You probably don’t know why we use this magic.”
Choi Yeonseung replied, “Why are you treating me like a country bumpkin? Aren’t you training your subordinates to prepare for war?”
“... What are you talking about? No! Dude, it’s for sports!”
Hwang Gyeongryong shouted, seemingly dumbfounded.
“What sport? Do you play soccer here?”
“I don’t know why you keep saying such strange things, but no. I’m talking about a hunter sport.”
Hwang Gyeongryong flicked his fingers, and a hologram unfolded and played a video. In the video, several hunters were fiercely competing against each other.
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