In the bleak atmosphere, no one could open their mouth. Eventually, a decision was made.
“We should go directly and apologize.”
Leon stood up with a somber expression. At the same time, Maria, who was sitting in front of him, stood up as well, looking dazed.
“I never imagined we’d end up doing something so reckless… But it’s not really our fault, is it?”
“They’ve probably figured out that we are from the Union by now. Of course, it’s unfair for us. We came here with good intentions, trying to do the right thing.”
The attack on Kyu-seong was something that neither of them, who had come from Austria, had anticipated. They only knew that another Union member was in the area besides them.
“If we go and apologize, it’s like admitting our fault. The Union will definitely find a reason to criticize us for giving them a pretext…”
“But it’s better than sitting around doing nothing while waiting for the outcome. We’re not in a position to fear the Union right now.”
Leon sighed and continued speaking.
“The buff item—we must bring it back to our home country at all costs. Even if the Union dismisses us, we need to elevate Austria’s status.”
It was true. The whole reason they had volunteered to come to Korea in the first place was for this.
Maria, her eyes filled with determination, lifted her head. She quickly began to prepare to leave.
“Let’s go!”
The two immediately headed toward Ara Hongryeon. The reason they could go there directly was that they had discovered who owned the buff item during this incident.
“What brings you here?”
A guild guard greeted them kindly at the entrance. Leon, with a stern expression, spoke to the guard.
“We’re employees from the European Awakening Union. May we speak with a superior?”
“May I see your identification, please?”
Handing over their passports and Union IDs, the guard checked them briefly before contacting someone.
“Please follow me.”
Fortunately, they weren’t turned away at the entrance. Relieved, the two followed the guard.
They took the elevator up. Soon, they reached the top floor of Ara Hongryeon.
“Mr. Leon, Ms. Maria? Welcome.”
“Ah, Guild Master, it’s an honor to meet you.”
The person they met was Han Seok-jun. His calm and relaxed demeanor made the two feel nervous as they greeted him.
“I’m surprised that guests from the Union would visit our guild so suddenly. What brings you here?”
As soon as Han Seok-jun finished speaking, Leon and Maria simultaneously knelt down. Even Han Seok-jun was surprised by their sudden action.
“Guild Master Han Seok-jun! We apologize! May we directly apologize to Awakener Lee Kyu-seong?”
“We’re truly sorry!”
Their unexpected behavior left Han Seok-jun momentarily flustered. He had expected them to deny everything, so he looked at them with interest and spoke.
“Please, stand up.”
“We’re sorry! We’re so sorry!”
“Let’s sit down and talk first. You’re making me uncomfortable.”
At his words, they quickly adjusted their posture and sat down, but they were still sitting on the floor. Han Seok-jun sighed, and they finally moved to sit on proper chairs.
“Let me ask first, what exactly are you apologizing for?”
“We heard about the recent attack on Awakener Lee Kyu-seong. We are here to apologize for that.”
“Were you involved in it?”
“No, not at all. We only knew that another member of the Union had entered the country, but we had no direct connection to the incident. Still, we are fully aware that, as Union members, we cannot avoid responsibility.”
Although not entirely sure, Han Seok-jun could sense some sincerity in their demeanor. He took a more serious stance and asked again.
“Understood. Then, what do you intend to do as a form of apology?”
“…Guild Master, are you interested in the Seven Deadly Sins strategy?”
***
While talking with actress Seo Ye-eun about the upcoming commercial shoot, the person we had been waiting for arrived.
“Oh, Mr. Kyu-seong! Haha!”
CEO Baek Tae-seop came running over with a big smile. Seeing this, Seo Ye-eun and her manager, who had been chatting comfortably with Ara, suddenly froze.
Even though they had been given a heads-up, they couldn’t help but feel tense.
He’s a giant in the political and business world… But after going through so many things together since our first meeting, he just feels like a close uncle to me.
“Grandpa!”
“Oh ho ho ho! Ara! Let Grandpa give you a hug. Ho ho!”
When Ara called him exactly what she wanted, CEO Baek couldn’t stop smiling. As Ara ran over and hugged him tightly, his expression turned into one of pure joy, like a traditional Korean mask.
Seeing this, Kim Tae-yang couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
“CEO, why are you treating someone else’s child like your own grandchild? When did Seung-hyun get married again?”
“Haha!”
Despite Kim Tae-yang’s teasing, the CEO continued to playfully bounce Ara in his arms.
“Oh dear, this isn’t the time for this. My apologies.”
“No need to apologize. It’s fine.”
When I waved it off and said it was okay, the CEO laughed heartily again and took a seat. Then he greeted Seo Ye-eun and her manager, engaging in some light conversation.
“There’s been nothing but praise for you as a rising star lately. We’re just grateful to have someone like you working with us.”
“Oh, not at all.”
It was refreshing to see Seo Ye-eun flustered. Just moments ago, she had seemed so confident.
Seo Ye-eun and her manager soon left, saying they needed to head to their next scheduled appointment. Once they were gone, only Kim Tae-yang, CEO Baek, and I were left, and the atmosphere became noticeably calmer.
Ara noticed and mumbled quietly, “It’s so quiet now.”‘
“Kyu-seong.”
“Yes, CEO.”
“As you might have guessed, the person who attacked you was from the European Union.”
“I see.”
I simply nodded.
Kim Tae-yang, who was next to me, chimed in.
“Kyu-seong, this isn’t something you can just brush off. This could easily escalate into a serious diplomatic issue that might lead to a war between Awakened individuals from different countries.”
“Oh…”
“Since the European Union is at fault, they’ll likely try to apologize in some way. They’re probably putting a lot of effort into this because of their anger.”
I nodded again. I just hoped this wouldn’t turn into a bigger issue.
“They’ll likely try to offer you various proposals or compensation as an apology. It might be a good idea to think ahead about what you want to get out of this.”
“Hmm, what I want to get out of it…”
What could it be? I had no idea what to ask for since I didn’t know what they had to offer. Money? Sure, money would be nice. But do I really need it? I already had enough money with my abilities. My frugality wasn’t due to a lack of funds; it was just my nature.
“Oh, Wrath.”
“Wrath? Oh, are you interested in the Dungeon of Wrath, Kyu-seong?”
“Yes? Oh, well, it would be a lie to say I’m not interested. After all, I did go to China.”
I tried to play it down, but I didn’t hide the fact that I was interested.
Wrath—according to Ara and Mammon, it’s the dungeon ruled by a boss named Ras. And it might just become a great miner…
‘What am I thinking? Planning to exploit the Seven Deadly Sins as workers? I must be crazy.’
But then again, Ara and Mammon were living quite well in our dungeon, weren’t they? Who knows? Maybe the beings in the Dungeon of Wrath were suffering. If so, moving them to our dungeon could be a win-win situation.
“Then targeting negotiation rights for the Dungeon of Wrath would be a good idea.”
“I’ll work with Ara Hongryeon on this. We might even get some help from the Terror Guild side.”
With just a few words, the conversation moved forward smoothly. As expected from people who had handled these kinds of situations many times, it was reassuring.
After a while, they both looked at me.
“What do you think, Kyu-seong?”
“Oh, yes. Please take care of it.”
“Haha! Leave it to us. You don’t have to do anything; we’ll handle everything.”
Well, that sounded good to me. I just nodded in agreement. There was no reason to refuse when they were offering to take care of everything.
“Now, I need to contact Ara Hongryeon. Director Kim, please escort Kyu-seong home.”
“Actually, we were planning to go look at cars together after this. At a dealership.”
“Oh? Kyu-seong, are you thinking of buying a car?”
“Yes.”
As I nodded, the CEO suddenly started making a phone call. I was beginning to feel a bit uneasy about how he always called someone whenever something came up. What was he planning to do this time?
“Pick anything you like, and it’ll be on the house. Uh-huh, right, let’s do that.”
After finishing his call, the CEO smiled and said goodbye.
“I’ve already made arrangements with the dealership, so feel free to choose whatever you like.”
“Th-thank you.”
Did he just say it would be free? Did I hear that right?
“Ara, let’s have some fun together again next time.”
“Okay! Come visit our house!”
“Oh, shall I? Haha. I’ll visit sometime.”
After finishing our conversation, the CEO also left. With just the three of us remaining, we headed to the car dealership.
“Do you have a specific car model in mind?”
“Not really.”
Actually, I did have one in mind. But since it was a Ironblood Motors car, I couldn’t say anything.
“Then may I make a few recommendations?”
“Of course. Oh, and something that Ara would like would be great too.”
“I’ll choose it!” Ara exclaimed with sparkling eyes.
Kim Tae-yang saw this and grinned.
“I’m confident that Ironblood Motors has many designs that Ara would love. In fact, there are quite a few flashy models that aren’t the best value for money.”
“Ahem.”
“But don’t worry. The performance is definitely not lacking. It’s just that they’re absurdly expensive.”
Ah, I remember the CEO mentioning something about it being free on the phone…
It will be free, right?
“Vroom vroom!”
***
In the end, just as I expected, I got the car for free. A luxury model with an incredible spec that costs a whopping 1.3 billion won.
My hands trembled as I gripped the steering wheel. Even sitting in the seat felt overwhelming.
“Then I’ll contact you again next time.”
“Yes.”
“Are you sure you can drive?”
Kim Tae-yang asked with concern as he looked at me.
“Of course, I can!”
“Why does that sound like a question?”
I had a license, of course. But I hadn’t done much driving. After all, I never owned a car.
Still, I needed to get used to it. Haha.
Vroom!
“Ugh.”
As expected from a Magic stone car, the acceleration was fast. It felt like the car was ready to take off with just a light press on the pedal.
Thanks to that, Ara, sitting in the passenger seat, was having a blast.
“Vroom vroom!”
I felt a little bad for Ara, but I drove slowly in the far-right lane, heading home at a steady speed. Even so, it was still faster than taking public transportation.
‘I’ll get used to it eventually, and then it’ll be comfortable.’
I tried to think positively. After all, it was a car that most people couldn’t even dream of driving.
“Wow, it’s so cool.”
When we arrived at the dungeon and parked the car, Ara got out and started patting it. It felt like Ara and I had swapped roles.
“Oh, did you buy a car?”
“Huh? Mom? Dad’s here too?”
And just then, I saw my parents walking up to the dungeon.
“Oh, you got a car. It looks expensive.”
“Great Lord! Look at this! It’s awesome!”
Before I could stop her, Ara grabbed my parents’ hands and started showing them the car. Standing beside them, I mumbled quietly.
“I got it for free. Though I still have to pay the taxes.”
“What? For free? How much is it?”
“What?”
“1.3 billion won.”
“1.3 billion…”
My father froze for a moment, then grabbed my shoulder with trembling hands.
“Take it back immediately.”
“You think that’s best?”
“What are you two talking about?!”
I really am my father’s son.
Cliche Novel 