Chapter 36

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The Orhe Academy was an educational institution whose motto was the best facilities, welfare, and education.

In fact, living up to its motto, Orhe Academy was referred to as the number one educational institution in the world, and of course, the professors in charge of educating the students were the ones who contributed the most to its fame.

Most of them consisted of former famous heroes and hunters, and sometimes they even brought in outside instructors to match their caliber.

The fact that Lee Myung-Joon, one of the ten strongest and the head of the Thunder Lord's Hammer Guild, was serving as an external lecturer alone could confirm the prestige of Orhe Academy.

“….... .”

In a space so luxurious that it seemed more like a hotel suite than a lodging place for professors, Lee Myung-Joon placed a small terminal in front of him and crossed his arms.

He was famous for his sharp impressions.

As he was staring at the terminal with a stiff face, a woman's voice that seemed to be sarcastic flowed from the terminal.

[The weak-hearted people will die. Why don't you unwind your face a bit?]

“… It's too late. It's already been two hours since our appointment."

[Hey, Thunder Lord's Hammer guild leader. We don't have enough extra time to comfortably teach the kids, unlike someone else.]

"Yeah. If you've been scratching people that much, you'll be feeling better now, so why don't you shut up?"

Lee Myung-Joon's reply was met with a burst of laughter.

Then he sighed in relief when he saw that the lights on one side of the terminal turned on one after the other.

“Now we are all gathered.”

At his grumbling words, a loud, annoyingly loud noise flowed out of the terminal.

[Why do you ask busy people to come when it's such a hassle?]

[Ah, Myung-Joon said he was dying teaching the kids. You should at least listen to him complain.]

[What the… The kids who see the face of this blind bastard are going to die.]

Of course, a man as powerful as Lee Myung-Joon did not simply accept the invitation of the Orhe Academy.

It was almost semi-forced due to political intentions and calculations in many ways, such as monitoring, protection, and checks on the Academy.

And such roles were taken in turn by the heads of the six guilds, including Lee Myung-Joon's Thunder Lord's Hammer Guild.

It was only Lee Myung-Joon's turn this time.

The voices coming out of the terminal were all people with social status and strength that were second to none compared to Lee Myung-Joon.

Like Lee Myung-Joon, each of them was a member of the Ten Strongest and led a guild.

“Then let’s start now.”

The six guilds were allies.

And they had been in this way for years, meeting in this manner, when their judgment dictated that it was necessary.

“… A lot of strange things are happening this time.”

As Lee Myung-Joon started to speak, the terminal that had been so noisy not long ago was as quiet as if it had broken down.

“Starting with the giant spirit that appeared during the mock dungeon class, the Thorns Cross Society launched a terrorist attack on five streets. I haven't found a connection point yet, but I didn't think we could just leave it alone, so I asked for this meeting."

When Lee Myung-Joon finished speaking, each voice expressed their opinions.

[Aren't you being too sensitive? The mock dungeon incident is a rare but not impossible thing to happen. Above all, there is a precedent, and it may be negligence in management on the academy side. And then there's the Thorns Cross Society...… Those weed-like bastards were always pulling out again and again, and then quickly growing in strength.]

[All heroes and hunters know that they are crazy. This is not the first time terrorism against civilians has occurred. From what I've heard, the scale was small and there were no fatalities even though there were injuries? What's the matter?]

[Tsk tsk…… Why do you have a head?]

Then, the woman who first teased Lee Myung-Joon clicked her tongue as if it was pathetic.

[Myung-Joon, didn't you kill Isabelle Gaudi a few days ago?]

“…… .”

Lee Myung-Joon remained silent.

The reason was that of the six of them, he could assure, none of them could keep up with this woman in her ability to get information and use it to draw conclusions.

[Perhaps that witch bitch had escaped from the Red Case and also had a connection to the Thorns Cross Society. Am I right?]

As expected.

Lee Myung Joon murmured inwardly.

It was only after he had killed Isabelle Gaudi that he had learned the information.

[That's why an official letter was sent from the association to capture her alive as much as possible... .]

[Just get to the point. Just the point.]

[Aah! Anyway, did you know that there was a commotion in one of the archives not long after that witch bitch died? But oh my, the culprit was a member of that Red Case? Isn't that strange?]

[No way… .]

[That's probably it. Besides, it is said that the criminal was captured, but there are no details about what happened and the disposition. When I tried to find it, it was cleverly hidden. And which of us has the best place to interrogate or imprison someone?]

[Horie Yuzuki…! Yeah, I'm starting to get the hang of it now.]

The voice emanating from the terminal asked Lee Myung-Joon.

[You must have figured out something? That's why you called us together so suddenly for a meeting on a matter that you would have handled alone at any other time.]

“… That's right."

Lee Myung-Joon nodded honestly.

Clearly, the information he obtained from Esmeralda Lysnerger's interrogation was confidential, but there was no need to hide it from them.

It had been a long time since it had gone beyond the scale of a problem he could handle alone in the first place.

“I can't talk on the line, just in case. You know there's going to be a small event at the academy in a few days, as a guild invitation ceremony? Let’s meet then and talk in person.”

[What? I said I won't be going there.]

“At least send a proxy. Let me rephrase, this is really important, so if possible, come in person.”

When Lee Myung-Joon finished speaking, a man muttered with a yawn.

[Well, okay. See you then. I still had a reason to visit this time, but I think I can listen to the story as well.]

[Oh? What's wrong? Did you hide some woman?]

[How great would that be? I want to be in a relationship, too. Really.]

The man, who had been lamenting for a while, spoke out as if it were nothing.

[I haven't seen my nephew's face in a long time, and a request came in from a guild and company affiliated with us. After his son went through a mock dungeon class, he is in a strange state, so he asked me to take a look at it.]

[In a mock dungeon? Ah, maybe it’s because of that giant spirit.]

[That's true, but...… I don't know. He said it's not a physical problem, it's a mental problem.]

He rustled for a moment, looked at something, and murmured.

[Let's see, his son's name is...… Yes, it's Na Il-jun.]

The moment he heard the name, a student instantly came to Lee Myung-Joon's mind.

A student who had an unclear past, who had warned of the threat against Isabelle Gaudi, had been at the scene of today's Thorns Cross terrorism since the time of the mock dungeon incident, and finally had extracted information by fooling Esmeralda Lysnerger with just a few words.

'Yes, come to think of it, definitely….. .'

He clearly remembered Alice Blesbuck saying that he had a lot of ties with a student named Na Il-Jun.

He heard that his father was quite petty and obsessive...….

"No way."

He shook his head a little.

How could a person who is not a child and the head of a company do such a stupid thing?

It wasn't that Yoo Ji-Hyuk was the culprit, he just had a bad relationship.

‘… I hope it's just an unnecessary worry.'

With that in mind, Lee Myung-Joon turned off the terminal.

Just the thought of the guild's invitation event and meeting in a few days' time was already more than complicated in his mind.

* * *

“Do you like it?”

I asked as I watched the mandragora float leisurely in a large fish tank.

At my question, the fellow who was floating as if he were swimming, nodded slowly.

'I bought these together while I was buying.....  .'

After installing things such as filters, water plants, and heaters, it was a fish tank.

The only difference is that they are growing herbs, not fish.

“Ug… .”

I got up from my seat and headed to the sink to drain the water that the Mandragora was in.

Then, I suddenly noticed that the water that had been stagnant for days was not turbid, but rather had a sweet smell.

Just in case, I secretly appraised the water.

"Ho."

[Water made with Mandragora (consumable, Material / Rare)]

[It is water made from the legendary medicinal herb Mandragora. It is not as good as the original Mandragora, but the medicinal effects and efficacy of mandragora are dissolved in water. It seems to be good for health.]

After snickering for a while, I glanced at Mandragora's eyes.

He was still floating around with a relaxed attitude.

“Hmm, hmm….. .”

Just by looking at the description, I could tell that it was too wasteful to just throw it away.

I took it straight to my mouth and immediately began to drink it quietly.

It wasn't just my imagination, there was definitely a bit of sweetness to it…...

“…... .”

“Pooff!”

In the meantime, I made eye contact with the guy and instantly swallowed and spat out what I had drunk.

Maybe it was just my imagination that he was looking at me with a pathetic gaze.

“Oh, no. Hey. This is medicinal water. Then it's a waste to just throw it away. Right?"

“…… .”

For some reason, I was making excuses to him.

The gaze of the guy who I didn't know what he was thinking was a bit burdensome.

I wiped my mouth, sneaking out of his sight.

‘Next time, I’ll have to suck it up with the branches of the World Tree.’

Branch of World Tree.

As soon as I thought of it, the events of today came to mind one after another.

There were so many things I couldn't understand.

‘It was like a parasitic plant.’

The problem was that I had never seen a case like that before.

Above all, the branches of the World Tree were currently dormant.

‘And then.....'

[― ??? (It is growing due to large nutrient intake)]

Judging from the circumstances, it might be that another characteristic would bloom after growth was over.

The only two ways I knew of awakening the World Tree were to overcome trials or use an awakening potion.

There were only these two.

I had never seen a way to awaken by absorbing the opponent's power.

Even the man who was the head of the Thorns Cross Society did not have this ability.

"That's right."

The Thorns Cross Society.

Come to think of it, there were a lot of questions about how they moved so quickly.

From some point on, the story of the original was moving quickly and I was feeling it directly.

‘… I need to move a little faster.’

The thing that worries me the most was the event at the festival that would be around a month or two away.

In the original story, the seal of the Seven Evils was broken at the festival that commemorates the sealing of the Seven Evils.

Thanks to this, the scene was turned into an uproar, and most of the heroes and hunters who were sent in to prevent the Seven Evils from being released from the seal died on the spot.

And as the strength of the association and guild weakened by that, all kinds of villains and monsters ran rampant as if this was an opportunity.

'It was said that the preparation of the Red Case was so thorough that they couldn't even use their hands.'

In particular, the biggest cause was the breakdown of the defense system that protects Seoul and intercepts large monsters.

If the Aegis system was intact, there would not have been much damage.

And knowing that, Red Case focused on destroying the Aegis system.

‘But now Esmeralda is caught, and Lee Myung-Joon knows most of the circumstances.’

So I vaguely thought it would be okay.

Anyway, when Lee Myung-Joon was killed, the other five guilds allied with him issued an order to catch the culprit.

He was such a popular man.

He had a better reputation than anyone else, and he had many talented colleagues, so I thought I could trust him and leave it to him, but after seeing the situation play out like this, I couldn't just sit back and let it happen.

The problem was that the hero who managed the Aegis system and its location were confidential secrets, so I couldn't meet him blindly.

That's why even she, who was the leader of the infiltration and espionage team from Red Case, invested many months to infiltrate the association and locate them.

‘Of course, I already know the location…… .'

The problem was that it was not something you could meet just because you knew it.

From the point of view of having to persuade them and convey opinions, this was very difficult.

'I'm going to have to meet Lee Myung-Joon one more time.'

Lee Myung-Joon personally owes me.

There was also my contribution to the 'Thunder Lord's Hammer' guild itself, so I thought that if I could use this point to my advantage, I could at least convey my opinion.

‘Let’s use the Designated Right, there as soon as possible.’

I couldn't help but sigh in a future where I have to move around busily in many ways.

Because I was the one who was going to lose out if I took my time and things got screwed up.

At the very least, before the end of this month, I had to meet the hero who manages the Aegis system and prepare for the attack.

I fiddled with my phone, determined to make this my top priority.

‘So Cass Lyle or Alice Blesbuck. I need help from one of them..... .'

There were only two alchemists who were competent and reliable.

Shall I go to the club and talk to Cas Lyle?

I was thinking like that.

Vrrrrr.

"Huh?"

My cell phone vibrated and a message arrived.

Is it Choi Hyun-Woo or Han Soo-Young?

Having checked the message with that thought in mind, I had no choice but to tilt my head as I saw the message that arrived from a completely unexpected person.

"What is this again?"

[from ― ???]

[Hello. junior. This is Lee Ye-Eun, we met at the archery club before.

If it's okay, can we have a little talk tomorrow morning in the club room?]

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