The sweet scent of sweet potatoes gently filled the air.
Unlike regular sweet potatoes, the delicious sweet potato candy made from magical sweet potatoes had an unmistakable luxurious sweetness.
“Wow, what is this smell?”
“I can’t stop drooling.”
Seeing people’s reactions, I internally apologized for unintentionally causing a biochemical attack.
‘If I take out the World Tree mushrooms, it’ll cause a commotion.’
This time, thanks to Gomgom and Ara, we harvested quite a lot of mushrooms before leaving the dungeon.
I brought one as a gift, but it seemed too much to give it now.
“Brother Hanul, can we move to another place? There are too many people here.”
“Hm? Haha! It’s fine! It’s not uncomfortable at all, so just continue!”
No… I’m the one who’s uncomfortable.
Glancing at Jeong So-yeon, she was too engrossed in the sweet potatoes to hear me.
Well, there’s no other way.
I had to proceed while feeling all these eyes on me.
“Seon-ah, let’s start the interview.”
“Huh, now?”
“Yeah. They’re busy people, so they don’t have much time.”
“Oh, right. I’ll get ready.”
Seon-ah, having regained her composure, hurriedly urged the team. Despite the chaos, the interview began.
“Thank you for joining us today. We are from the Dungeon Monster Research Department of Korea University…”
The interview progressed quickly.
Other students who weren’t part of the interview also gathered around, watching with interest.
“Wow, you received scouting offers from other places! So, Ms. Jeong So-yeon, why did you choose Ara Hongryeon?”
“Because the conditions were good? Haha, just kidding. It’s because of connections.”
“Connections?”
“Yes. Someone I knew before I awakened is there. I’ve had a connection with the Ara Hongryeon Guild since middle school.”
“Oh, I see. That’s quite a story.”
Except for the record of being the youngest 6th rank awakened, there wasn’t much information about Jeong So-yeon.
Since she became a high-ranking awakened at a young age, she had been cautious, so little-known stories began to surface, causing even the awakened enthusiasts around us to perk up their ears.
Most of the formal interview questions were over, and now there were some personal questions when a student asked,
“I have a question for Mr. Kang Hanul.”
“Ask away.”
“Ask away!”
“Mr. Kang Hanul, as a first-generation awakened, do you have any plans to train a successor?”
“A successor?”
“What’s a successor?”
Hanul, who was eating the tomatoes I brought, suddenly looked at me.
“Hmm…”
“Hmm!”
“Haha, Brother, why are you looking at me like that?”
“My successor is this little one!”
“I am the successor!”
Everyone’s eyes widened at Hanul’s sudden declaration. Even Hanbyul Yu, who had been with us, widened his eyes.
Wait a minute.
Why are you lifting Ara and calling her your successor, brother?
Ara was lifted by Hanul, looking as bewildered as a baby lion from an anime.
“So cute…”
“But who is that kid? Why is she with Kang Hanul?”
“Could she be his daughter?”
As the murmurs continued, Hanul laughed heartily.
“Hahaha! Just kidding!”
“Ha! Ha! Ha! It’s a joke!”
“Um, Mr. Kang Hanul, is that child your daughter by any chance?”
With someone finally mustering the courage to ask, everyone’s attention focused back on him.
“Of course!”
“Of course!”
And then Hanul made another misleading statement.
“What are you saying! Ara is our child!”
“…Seon-ah….”
While I assumed it was another joke, Seon-ah, who was wrapping up the interview, shouted with fiery eyes.
Thanks to her, the confusion among the people intensified.
“Seon-ah? Why are you suddenly saying that?”
“Yeah, it’s not like Seon-ah to make such jokes….”
Seon-ah’s friends were flustered by her sudden behavior. It was a natural reaction for those who didn’t understand Hanul’s joke.
Finally, Jeong So-yeon sighed and put her hands on her hips.
“Team 2 Leader.”
“What?”
“Stop teasing people. Can’t you see you’re putting Kyu-seong in a tough spot?”
“Oh no! Kyu-seong, were you having a hard time? My bad!”
Brother….
At least look at me while you’re talking. If you keep anxiously eyeing the sweet potatoes, it makes me look bad.
It seemed like he was nervously rolling his eyes, afraid I might take the food away. Was this really the same great awakened being known as the predator?
“My dad is Kyu-seong!”
“Er, ahem.”
At that moment, Ara suddenly shouted, freeing herself from Hanul’s grip, and ran over to me.
I suddenly found myself perceived as a man with a child, but upon reflection, Ara was indeed like my child.
‘Not born from my body, though.’
Hanul, Jeong So-yeon, and Seon-ah, who knew Ara was a slime, smirked, but the rest looked at us with curiosity.
“There must be a complicated story.”
“No, just look at that girl. She has tiger ears.”
“Could she be an early awakener?”
The Ara Hongryeon Guild was already creating a separate identity for Ara. I heard it would be good to register her as a familiar with the government too, so it might be a good idea to do it while we’re out.
“Your daughter is very cute.”
“Huh? Oh, thank you.”
Suddenly, Hanbyul Yu approached and spoke.
She seemed genuinely interested in Ara, waving her hand and greeting her.
“Who are you?”
“Haha. Her speech is cute. Did your dad teach you that?”
It was the first time someone pointed out her speech.
Unfortunately, that way of speaking wasn’t taught by me.
“My way of speaking? It’s cool! It’s dignified!”
“Hahaha. Yes, yes. It’s very cool! What’s your name?”
“I am Ara!”
“Ara? What’s your surname?”
“What is a surname?”
Ara tilted her head and looked up at me.
“Our Ara’s surname is Lee. Lee Ara.”
“Lee Ara! I am Lee Ara! I had forgotten!”
Ara proudly puffed out her chest and spoke.
Hanbyul Yu laughed again.
“Can I hold her?”
“If Ara is okay with it.”
As Hanbyul extended her arms, Ara approached her without resistance and nestled into her embrace. It’s clear that our Ara is very affectionate.
Zing!
Hm? Suddenly feeling a chill, I turned to see Seon-ah and Jeong So-yeon glaring at Hanbyul.
I understand Seon-ah’s reaction since she loves Ara, but wasn’t Jeong So-yeon busy eating with Hanul?
‘…Well, it seems I’ve made an impression.’
I guess I’ve done my part as an older brother by giving Seon-ah some recognition.
* * *
“What’s this?”
Kim Yura, the guild master of Oseong Guild, was reading an online article and tilted her head in confusion.
“A surprise interview with Ara Hongryeon executives at Korea University? Isn’t that where Hanbyul went?”
Hearing her question, her secretary also looked puzzled.
“Exactly. Hanbyul mentioned she was going to do an interview as a favor for an acquaintance.”
“But wasn’t that interview just for a college project? Did the team leaders of Ara Hongryeon actually go for that?”
“Wasn’t it for a college project? Let me check.”
“No, it says here they visited for a college project. Seriously, what a surprise. Are they free these days?”
Kim Yura chuckled incredulously and continued to scrutinize the article. As expected, not just her, but many people were making a fuss about this.
The biggest topic was who could have mobilized such connections.
“Does Korea University have a relative of someone in Ara Hongryeon?”
At that moment, someone knocked on the door.
Knock, knock.
“It’s Hanbyul! I’m back!”
“Oh, Hanbyul. Perfect timing. Come in.”
“Huh?”
Hanbyul Yu entered with a puzzled expression.
“What’s up?”
“What’s up? I heard Ara Hongryeon executives were at Korea University?”
“Oh! That.”
Despite her initial excitement when she first saw Kang Hanul and Jeong So-yeon, Hanbyul now shrugged as if it was no big deal.
“They suddenly showed up. I even got their autographs. Ta-da!”
“…Good job, kid.”
“I’ve always admired Jeong So-yeon and the others. Of course, I respect you too, Guild Master.”
“Oh? You call her Jeong So-yeon now? You must be close.”
“Hehe.”
Hanbyul’s awkward smile was an unspoken confirmation of Kim Yura’s remark.
With that charming smile, Kim Yura could only shake her head in defeat.
“Sigh, fine. It’s not a big deal, but I am curious. Who called them?”
“Um, I think it was a student named Lee Seon-ah.”
“Lee Seon-ah? Never heard of her.”
“Oh, she’s related to the new recruit in Ara Hongryeon.”
“Huh? Oh! The one who’s been stuck at Level 1 for a while despite awakening some time ago? It was quite a stir when he joined Ara Hongryeon since they don’t just take anyone.”
“Yes. I believe he’s the one who asked. His sister is Lee Seon-ah.”
“What?”
Kim Yura thought she misheard but then chuckled.
“You must be mistaken. How could he mobilize those two? And for a mere college project.”
“What?! It’s true. Wait, that’s not even the important part!”
Hanbyul suddenly remembered something urgent.
“You know, that thing!”
“What thing?”
“Um, ah, that…”
Hanbyul Yu, who had suddenly faltered in her speech, brightened up as she remembered and shouted,
“Food items!”
“Oh, that?”
But why is she bringing that up now?
Feeling puzzled, Kim Yura quickly made a natural deduction.
“Could it be that the Level 1 awakened made those?”
“Huh? Oh, I’m not sure. But it probably is.”
“Why do you think so?”
“That awakened gave food to Kang Hanul and Jeong So-yeon like a tribute! You know the sweet potato candies we tried? They brought out other things too!”
“Oh, then it must be true. It’s that person.”
Two mysteries were solved at once.
There had been a lot of talk in the awakened community about food that displayed item properties. Finding out who owned those items also explained why Ara Hongryeon had recruited an awakened stuck at Level 1.
“Wow, even so, a Level 1 awakened having a 7th and a 6th rank awakened at their disposal is hilarious.”
“But they seemed to get along well. It didn’t feel like that Level 1 was bossing them around. It felt more like Kang Hanul and Jeong So-yeon were being nice to him.”
“Anyway, you’ve brought back some valuable information. Good job, kid.”
“Haha! Praise me more, Guild Master.”
Food items with buffs and various effects, and incredibly delicious too.
Kim Yura, the guild master of Oseong Guild, immediately began searching for Ara Hongryeon’s contact information.
Cliche Novel 