Ring—! Ring—!

I heard my phone’s alarm ringing. Grabbing my phone I dismissed the alarm and got off the bed.

Getting off the bed, I stretched and dropped down on the floor and did a few push ups before getting up and changing into a pair of leggings and shorts, coupled with a hoodie.

It was currently 6:30 am.

Opening my door, I exited my room and walked to the door of the apartment.

Sitting down, I grabbed a pair of jogger out of the shoe stand and put them on.

“Huaam... where are you going so early?” I heard Jihye from behind me.

Her eyes still half open.

Tying the shoe laces, I stood up and turned around.

“I was thinking of going for a quick run.”

“Huaam... then be back around 8. I'll get breakfast done by then.” Yawning, Jihye turn over her heel and went back inside.

“Okay!” Opening the apartment door, I exited and made my way out of the complex.

***

Putting my hoodie over my head, I started my run.

Jogging along the sidewalk, I saw the empty streets and closed shops. Some were being opened now.

The shops blurred past as I jogged forward. Soon I entered a park.

The park was well maintained and big. The trees and flowers made the park look tranquil.

“Shall I?”

Then I started lapping around the park.

“Huff... huff... huff...” I exhaled and inhaled heavily after running twenty laps around the park.

Taking the water canteen out of the inventory, I took big sips, before putting it back.

After that I dropped down on the ground and started doing push ups

“1, 2, 3, 4, 5,......, 100!”

Completing a hundred push ups, I stood up from the ground and did one hundred squats.

“1, 2, 3, 4,5,......., 100!”

Afterwards, I walked up to the bar in front, and did one hundred pull ups.

I was covered in sweat afterwards.

“Huff... huff...”

Sitting down on the bench, I took heavy breaths and rested for a few minutes, before getting up and leaving.

Seeing the time on my watch, which Jiyoung had gifted me. I picked up my pace.

“It’s almost eight!” I said as I exited the park.

Taking a step out, I saw a black Mercedes stop in front of me.

Then the door opened and an old man exited the car.

His long white hair tied into a bun and his face which still harboured the looks of his younger age, despite the wrinkles on his face.

He wore an elegant black suit, which fluttered as he stepped out of the car and stood in front of me.

‘Come on, even the old man is more good looking than me? God, you bastard, you really are playing tricks on me!’ My inner thoughts were as such.

But nonetheless, at the end of the day I didn’t care about my looks, that much. Will your looks save you on the battlefield, huh?!

But his rank, made me put up my guard. He was at least rank.

“Are you Mr. Seo Jiwoo?” The butler asked me.

“Yes, that’s me.” I answered.

“My Master would like to have a word with you!” He respectfully said as he gestured with his hand for me to enter the car.

Heeding his gesture, I entered the car and soon he entered along with me.

Then the driver started the car and it disappeared into the streets of Seoul.

The interior of the car was just as magnificent as the exterior. It looked expensive.

Buzz—! Buzz—!

My phone started to ring all of a sudden.

Taking my phone out of my hoodie’s pocket, I saw who was calling.

It was Jihye!

I answered the call and heard Jihye’s voice.

[Jiwoo it’s almost 8! Where are you?]

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“Sorry Jihye, something came up so I’m gonna be a little late. Just eat by yourself, would ya?” I said.

[Is everything alright?] Her voice filled with worry.

“Yeah, everything’s okay!” I reassured.

[Okay! Then I’m going to work, be careful on your way back.]

“Okay, I will, bye.”

Then the call ended and I put my phone back into my hoodie’s pocket.

Then we reached our destination. On our way here, we stayed silent.

Opening the door, the butler exited the car. Exiting the car, I followed him from behind.

In front of me stood a building! Which was the Guild house of the ‘Shadow Guild’!

“Please follow me!” The Butler’s crisp voice entered my ears as I stepped forward and followed him from behind.

Following from behind, I stepped inside the Guild house of the Shadow Guild.

On my way inside, I saw a pair of guards outside.

Both of them were on the rank.

Then I was met with a beautiful reception.

Be it the marble floor, the ceiling, or the walls or the furniture inside, everything indicated one thing. Expensive!

Everything here must be worth millions.

But being the strongest Guild in the country, this much was a given.

Soon the butler and I stopped in front of the elevator. The doors of the elevator opened and we quickly stepped inside.

Pressing the button where the number Eighty was written. Soon the elevator started to ascend and in less then thirty seconds we reached the top floor.

Exiting the elevator, I saw there was a door in front.

There was plate on the door, which had something written over it.

“The Guild Master's Office!”

With a nimble step, the Butler approached the door and knocked twice.

But he was met with no response. Despite that, he grabbed the door knob and opened the door.

He entered and I followed suit.

The office didn’t have much to it. The black marble floor, pair of sofas and a table between them, a closet in the middle on the left side wall and the desk and chair on which sat a man. The office wasn't as extravagant as I had in mind.

“Master, I have brought him.” The Butler respectfully bowed to the man.

Getting up from his chair, I saw him walk up to the sofas and sit on one of the them.

I walked forward and sat down on the other one.

The man’s features looked handsome, no, he looked extremely handsome.

His jet black hair and ocean blue eyes, coupled with his sharp jawline and the solemnness over his face.

He looked like someone out of a painting.

‘Now I see who Jiyoung and Jihoon take after in looks!’

“So you are the boy who saved Jiyoung and Jihoon?” He asked. His voice solemn.

“Yes?” I said.

I saw the Butler approach us with a tray held in his hands. He put the tray over the table and poured tea into both of the cups before placing one cup in front of Park Yujin and the other in front of me.

Then he turned over his heel and stood behind Park Yujin.

Yes, right now I was in the presence of Korea’s strongest hunter.

The powerhouse of Korea, the strongest ranked hunter in the country. Who was also on the verge on breaking through to rank.

I could tell he was about to break through to the rank, because my perception and understanding of Mana was top class.

Because I learned from the best teacher and mage in my past life.

He was a weird asshole, but a prodigy in that field.

He was the one person on Earth, whose perception and understanding over Mana was even more profound than that of Adam Griffin’s!

And the Mana around Park Yujin was dense.

The higher a person’s rank goes the more the Mana around them become denser. Because their control over Mana becomes more profound.

“Before I ask you anything else, first answer me something?” Park Yujin asked.

“And what is it you want to ask me?” I said in reply.

I kept my cool in front of him. It felt like an unclimbable mountain was in front of me.

Even if he was a rank hunter who was about to break through to the rank, I had been subjected to more terrifying aura that his presence didn’t even make me flinch.

But even if that was the case, my body was still weak.

I was nowhere near his level. It would at least take me a few years to reach his level of strength.

But guess what? I had a cheat system!

“You were the one who defeated the demon which appeared inside the dungeon owned by the black market?”

I was left dumbfounded with his next words.

But nonetheless, I kept my cool and answered.

“If you mean, the Devil’s Whisper dungeon, then the three of us together defeated that demon.” I solemnly said.

But right now I was on my guard. Even the black market questioned me about it, and I gave them the excuse that the demon was not at his full strength. And they didn’t persuade us longer.

Leaning and inch closer he grabbed the tea cup and took a sip.

“...And the ranked demon was not at his full strength, so we were somehow able to kill it.”

“I see...” Park Yujin said as he put the tea cup on the table and crossed his legs.

“I know best what my children are capable of...”

His voice echoed inside the office.

“...and even if you give me the excuse that the ranked demon was not at his full strength, it’s not a good one. Do you want me to believe that one and two ranks, killed a demon, who was a ranked one, and at that was equal to a rank hunter?”

His voice authoritatively echoed inside my ears.

“And as I recall, you were the only one who was the most gravely injured?” Grabbing the tablet on the table, he tapped on it and a holographic image appeared in front of me.

The image displayed my rank, stats and information.

“Your assessment rank was , and even if you somehow reached the rank, the injuries you sustained were much worse than, Jiyoung’s and Jihoon’s?”

Every word he spoke, made me wary of the next words which would come out of his mouth.

Currently I was suppressing my mana, which displayed my rank on the stage.

“A broken arm, six broken ribs, and cracks on the bone of your left leg, and a concussion which lasted for five days!”

He solemnly looked at me, telling me about my injuries, which I received from my fight with the demon.

“So, my question still stands? Were you the one or not the one who killed the demon?”

Park Yujin, I really underestimated him.

He even had connections with the black market. And to get this much information, which was made a classified matter.

I really underestimated him.

“I-I...”

But he cut me off, and spoke again.

“Enough of that! I already have a clear answer.”

He grabbed the teacup and leaned back into the sofa and took a sip of the tea, before continuing.

“...What reward do you want for saving Jiyoung and Jihoon?”

He caught me off guard. Seriously, this man was more sly than I had thought.

But grabbing the teacup, I sipped the tea and solemnly answered.

“I don’t need a reward for something I didn’t do...”

I put the teacup down and looked Park Yujin directly in the eyes.

“...And even if I did save them I wouldn’t have wanted a reward in return. Because I saved my friends.”

“I saved them because I wanted to, not because I wanted something in return.” I said with my face solemn and voice serious.

Park Yujin’s brows knit together as he heard my words.

A look of surprise harboured his face. But it disappeared just as soon as it came.

“Haaa...”

With a sigh, he tapped on the tablet and handed it to me.

Taking it from his hand, I looked at the contents.

It was a document containing information about a specific guild.

“What is this?” I confusingly asked.

“I’m going to start a Guild war with this guild.”

What? Why tell me something like this? Many thoughts crossed my mind as my eyes lingered between the tablet screen and Park Yujin.

“This guild has been a nuisance to me for a while, they have been provoking me, so it’s about time I got rid of them.”

“Why tell me this?”

“Because your sister works for this guild!” Taking a piece of paper out the stack on the table, he handed it to me.

I looked through the contents.

It was a contract. But a rigid one.

“This is the copy of the contract which bounds your sister with that guild.”

He already had all the inside data about the guild and even a copy of the contract.

His influence has no bounds.

This contract was full of holes. Why would someone even think of signing this?