Everyone Has a Plausible Excuse (4)

Even in South Korea, a country with limited land, there existed imposing and majestic buildings.

Most people would think of something like the 63 Building, but after the Gate era began, new locations appeared.

In the early days, hunters, taking advantage of the unique job of hunting monsters, were able to amass great wealth.

Among the guilds they founded, the four that grew the most became as powerful as major corporations.

Though they may not have been as massive as the 63 Building, they held overwhelming strength within Korea.

Among them, the Hwasan Guild always gave off the feeling that it was about to explode.

Even now, it was the same.

“How the hell did you handle this!”

Pow-!

The sound of a beating rang out in the guildmaster’s office, which was decorated in a reddish-brown hue.

A young man was beating an older-looking guild member with his fist.

“I’m really sorry! I have no excuse!”

That Hunter had to bow his head to the much younger man.

That young man was none other than Kwon Yongjun, the guildmaster’s son and an S-rank Hunter.

“What exactly are you sorry for?”

“I failed to properly manage those guys! They’re always blinded by money, so I…!”

“Do you know how much of a loss we’ve suffered because of that?”

“…”

Recently, a dismemberment murder had occurred in Hand.

The horrific incident was perpetrated by a student at Hand Middle School, who even attempted to kidnap and murder a classmate.

To make matters worse, it was revealed that some Hwasan Guild Hunters had helped the student’s crime after receiving bribes.

“I truly regret it…! Please…”

“Please what, you want me to forgive you? Huh?!”

Pow-!

“Agh!”

Kwon Yongjun stepped on the Hwasan Guild executive who had managed those Hunters.

He slowly infused his foot with magic power. Suddenly, a searing heat radiated from his shoe.

“Ugh… Aaaagh! Aaah…! Just once! Please, just this once!”

“If you were sorry, you shouldn’t have done it in the first place! Huh?!”

“Aaagh… Huuuh…!”

Like a heated poker pressed to his chest, the guild member felt searing pain.

Kwon Yongjun seemed intensely angry as he interrogated the employee who had ruined the family’s business—though, ironically, his face was smiling as he tortured his subordinate.

“That’s enough.”

“But… because of this bastard’s men, we can’t get any potion supply…”

“Yongjun.”

“Yes.”

At the few words from the man sitting in the guildmaster’s chair, Kwon Yongjun stopped the torture.

With just a few words, the look of delight he’d shown while enjoying the pain disappeared completely.

“I was wrong, guildmaster. Please, just give me one more chance…”

“…”

Guildmaster Kwon Yongha stared coldly at the guild member begging and rubbing his hands together.

Then, stroking his chin, he said,

“Who was present at the scene?”

“Sorry…?”

“I mean, at the forest where that attempted murder happened.”

Reportedly, that Michael student had kidnapped and tortured three of his schoolmates.

One of them, unfortunately, was the daughter of the president of a potion company that had a partnership with Hwasan Guild.

The contract was broken in an instant, and Hwasan Guild lost an important asset.

“The names of the students kidnapped then?”

“Sung Chohyang, Park Sumin, and… Kwon Sang-ah. Those three.”

“I see a familiar name in there.”

Kwon Yongha let out a bitter smile at the realization that his own daughter was included.

But even though his daughter was involved, he showed no surprise at all.

If you’re weak, you’re abandoned. That was his only philosophy.

“I don’t care that the contract with that Taiwanese company was broken. What I care about… is why the Hunters at the scene were knocked down.”

It was not only his own Hwasan Guild, but also the Sura Guild—China’s largest—who were present.

Even if some guild members there had lower ranks, it was not a scale that just three students could possibly handle.

“The police suspect it was internal strife.”

“That’s correct. Perhaps it was a conflict with Sura Guild because of Miss Sang-ah…”

“What? A conflict? For that nobody?”

At the guild member’s words, Kwon Yongjun clicked his tongue in disbelief.

He mocked the guild member, poking him in the head with his finger.

“Hey, have you completely forgotten our guild’s code? If you’re weak, whether you’re family or not, it’s out, right there. Don’t you get it?”

Kwon Sang-ah’s outcast status wasn’t limited to the mansion.

It was common knowledge in the guild as well that Kwon Sang-ah was an abandoned child.

“So, do you think Miss Sang-ah took out all of them?”

“Take them out? Even if she went berserk, she couldn’t take down an A-rank.”

Among his A-rank Hunter subordinates, there was one who bullied Kwon Sang-ah.

No matter how much she challenged that Hunter, she never won.

There was simply no way she could have handled that incident on her own with just that level of strength.

“Don’t you think you’re evaluating that girl a little too highly?”

“…”

“Tell me. Do you feel sorry for her?”

Once again seeking pleasure, Kwon Yongjun grabbed the guild member by the hair.

“Yongjun.”

“Yes.”

At a single word from his father, he calmed down again.

“To put it simply, our guild members had no reason to fight Sura Guild just because of Sang-ah.”

“Then…?”

“There must have been an intruder.”

Someone who took out all the guild members present at the scene and rescued the three students from the perpetrator.

“What did our guild members who were there say?”

“They… they say they can’t remember.”

Kwon Yongha’s eyebrow twitched at the guild member’s testimony.

“I went to visit and asked, but they just kept saying… they don’t remember what happened.”

“What is this, men in Black?”

The fact that they couldn’t recall made Kwon Yongjun scoff.

“I’m becoming more and more curious about who it was.”

In contrast, Kwon Yongha was intrigued by this mysterious existence.

“Maybe, like Sang-ah’s mother… it’s an ‘Outsider’. Hoohoohoo.”

He smiled, already thinking about a new prey, following the previous one.

****

A tranquil breeze blew through a temple in Hand.

The rustling of trees blended with the sound of wooden bells being struck.

Listening to that sound, it felt as if a weight was lifted from one’s chest.

But even in that serene atmosphere, Kwon Sang-ah, sitting in the temple, still felt nervous.

“…”

Because of the recent incident, Kwon Sang-ah’s anger had grown enormous.

Because of that Michael, a senior she was close to had lost her wings, and those who collaborated in the crime were actually Hunters from Hwasan Guild.

Regardless of their rank in the guild, they were under her father and brother’s command.

Responsibility for them lay with those who managed the Hunters—and, being family, with Kwon Sang-ah herself.

“Haa…”

Kwon Sang-ah didn’t know what to do with her anger toward herself.

Buddhism calls this sort of thing anguish.

She’d thought her mind would be at peace if she came here, as Chohyang-sunbae had advised.

But her anguish, now stronger than before, couldn’t be so easily shaken off.

“I’m sorry, sunbae.”

Since that day, Kwon Sang-ah’s training had become even more intense.

If she struggled against just an A-rank Hunter, how could she ever beat those damn people?

Because of this incident, the guild suffered a huge loss. They might see her as a thorn in their side now.

That means she must get stronger, fast…

“What are you sorry for?”

At that moment, a boy appeared, breaking her train of thought.

Kwon Sang-ah was surprised at the familiar appearance of Ma Seongjin.

“How did you…”

“I go to temples too. I also go to cathedrals and churches at the same time.”

“…”

Ma Seongjin said this, showing the prayer beads on his wrist.

If an inquisitor had been present, it wouldn’t have been strange for them to cut Ma Seongjin’s throat right then and there.

Kwon Sang-ah couldn’t help but look baffled.

“But really, what do you have to be sorry for? You protected Chohyang-sunbae.”

“You know half of them were from my father’s guild.”

“So, you feel responsible because it’s your family’s fault?”

“…”

It was true that while Sung Chohyang’s wings were torn off, her own family’s guild members had participated.

But beyond that, it’s no one’s fault.

Blaming Kwon Sang-ah was absurd.

“You’re not in a position to be hated, but rather to be thanked. The sins committed by Hwasan Guild don’t become your own.”

“…”

“And I especially hate that guilty-by-association nonsense.”

Sins of the parents must be paid for by the children.

Having seen that most in Mewzealand, Ma Seongjin knew just how ridiculous that was.

There was once a human in Mewzealand who showed Ma Seongjin kindness unlike the rest.

But the moment others found out, they mercilessly killed that person for making a deal with a demon.

It didn’t stop there.

Even that person’s children were publicly executed for being ‘demon spawn’.

“If the father is a demon, then the children are demons too? Hah… damn.”

There was emotion in his voice.

Sensing it, Kwon Sang-ah asked with a suspicious gaze.

“What are you, really?”

“…”

Kwon Sang-ah had definitely seen it.

The figure of Ma Seongjin disciplining Michael.

At that time, something had sprung from Ma Seongjin’s head.

And the moving shadow seemed anything but human.

“It was the same when you fought the Hunters. You’re not just any student like the rest of us.”

“…”

“Are you really human?”

Ma Seongjin had delayed answering until now.

He had asked Kwon Sang-ah to keep it a secret, so it hadn’t gotten out.

But as the only one who knew, Kwon Sang-ah’s curiosity was only natural.

“Actually, I’m a Mutamit. A very special kind, too.”

“Special?”

“Have you heard of the Demon King?”

Should she just understand it as a Mutamit of the demon kind?

But being a Mutamit alone didn’t explain his strength.

Above all, every time she spoke with him, she felt as if she was talking to someone with decades of life experience.

“Maybe you could call me a special Mutamit who can hide his horns.”

“With all that power, why bother attending Hand?”

“It’s simple. Just following the law.”

No matter how much Ma Seongjin was a monster beyond imagination, as a minor he couldn’t get a real job.

Especially not as a Hunter, which required a license.

The best place to earn one was Hand.

“And to live a comfortable life without discrimination. That’s my goal.”

“…”

He didn’t feel the need to mention Mewzealand.

Even if Kwon Sang-ah or others knew, it wouldn’t help.

Unless Mewzealand itself were to cross over to this world, that is.

“So, I’m the type who opposes discrimination on the surface, but doesn’t leave those who incite hatred from behind—like Hwasan Guild—alone.”

Living comfortably didn’t just mean lying in bed.

Resolving discomforts could also be counted as comfortable living.

“Just as well, senior Chohyang asked me from her hospital bed, so this is perfect timing.”

“Asked what?”

As a gentle breeze blew, Ma Seongjin stood up.

“I’ll personally coach you from now on.”

****

A gigantic temple in China.

The building, resembling a cultural heritage monument, was the headquarters of Sura Guild, China’s largest.

Below it was a dark room where Hunters held secret meetings, and there, a man knelt.

“I am sorry.”

He was Haolin, an A-ranked Hunter from Sura Guild. He was one of those who sometimes did dirty work behind the scenes.

“So, you abandoned your comrades and ran away alone?”

“I have no excuse.”

Haolin couldn’t raise his head in front of the Hunter who seemed to be an executive.

He had assisted that student Michael in his crime as an A-rank Hunter.

As long as no one found out, he thought it was fine.

But because of an intruder, they failed, and the dark side of Sura Guild was exposed to the world.

“The other comrades were arrested, but you alone survived.”

“…”

“There’s no point in speaking further. The sentence is death.”

Haolin accepted this, resigned. Because he had failed, he had brought huge disgrace to the guild.

Paying for that sin was only right.

“Still…”

“Hmm?”

“To face my end before Sura-nim is a great honor.”

Before Haolin stood a young girl in splendid attire.

Her dress, in red and gold, resembled that of a Chinese princess, and a golden crown with a white veil covered her face.

Sura Guild gathered many Awakened, using a kind of magic relic to select the proper successor.

That relic, the ‘Demon God’s Orb’, chose a worthy inheritor of ‘Asura’s’ power.

The chosen became the incarnation of Asura and was revered by the Sura Guild.

“Glory… to Sura-nim…”

With an expression of fervor, haolin accepted his fate.

But—

“Wait.”

The girl saw Haolin’s face and halted the execution.

At her single word, the burly man with a raised sword froze.

The girl approached Haolin and brought her face close to his.

“Ahh…”

Haolin shed tears of emotion at Asura’s messenger approaching so closely.

But, unconcerned, the girl asked,

“That wound on your face. Who gave it to you?”

“Pardon?”

Haolin’s face was full of bruises.

They were marks from being struck while defending that boy Michael.

The opponent had been a monster, able to block his ultimate swordsmanship with their teeth.

Yet…

“I can’t remember.”

“…”

“Your face is really…”

His memory had been tampered with.

That fact left Haolin troubled.

What if he had angered Sura-nim?

“But, why do you ask…?”

A smile emerged on the veiled girl’s lips.

“Because… that wound smells really good.”

Someone’s fist mark embedded into Haolin’s face—

the scent left there invoked a sense of longing in the girl.

Churp-

Then she licked her lips, savoring the taste.

————-= Clacky’s Corner ————-=

【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】

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