‘Why is she crying?’

I couldn’t see Yuno’s eyes, so I wasn’t certain, but it seemed like she was blind. Despite that, she was looking straight at me. Naturally, I looked around because I couldn’t understand the situation, and seeing her continuously cry made me feel flustered to the point that I found it hard to endure. I desperately looked away, but I started to feel nervous when she started approaching me.

‘What the…’

When I looked away, she stopped. I guess she didn’t realize that she was crying because she quietly wiped her tears with a handkerchief.

I just couldn’t tell what she was thinking. Finding out the meaning behind her ‘fallen seeker of truth’ nature was difficult and I had no idea how her crazy attribute, eyes that can see the essence, past, and future, functioned. The only thing I knew was that her eyes were way better than mine, so basically, I had met a person that I couldn’t understand or read at all.

‘Shit.’

There was nothing more frustrating than meeting someone unpredictable. It made sense why Cha Hee-Ra felt a bit uncomfortable when she saw Yuno since she had no idea how Yuno was going to act. Jung Ha-Yan was excluded because she had at least expressed her feelings.

I couldn’t calculate the actions of the shaman who was in front of us and obviously, I became wary of her unpredictability.

When I quietly took a step back, I saw the lovely Cha Hee-Ra in front of me.

‘I can only trust Hee-Ra noona right now.’

“What are you up to?” Cha Hee-Ra asked.

“It has been a while, Miss Cha Hee-Ra,” Yuno said.

“Let’s skip the greeting… what brings you here all of a sudden? You’re even crying…” she said.

“It’s nothing. I just came here to greet you,” she answered.

“Really? We’re not even that close to greet each other. Actually, it seems like you have business with my darling more than me… I’m right, aren’t I?” she asked.

“No, that’s not true. I just… really wanted to come and greet you, Miss Cha Hee-Ra,” Yuno answered.

“You know that we’re feeling a bit sensitive because of what those bastards from Celia had done, right?” Cha Hee-Ra asked.

“...”

“I’m not sure if you’re involved in that attack or not, but the pests there are in a bad spot right now and we don’t know what kind of stupid things they’re going to do again. Despite that, you came to greet me at a time like this… you stupid woman. If we weren’t inside the castle, you would’ve been dead by now,” she threatened her.

“What exactly happened for you to… act this way…” Yuno asked.

“If you don’t know, just shut up and get out of my sight. I don’t care if you really don’t know or you’re just pretending not to know, but my darling seems a bit anxious,” she said.

Cha Hee-Ra was trustworthy, and she seemed on edge. I thought that they didn’t have a bad relationship based on the reaction she showed when Yuno’s name was mentioned earlier, but I guess she was a bit sensitive recently thanks to the terror attack that happened in Lindel. Obviously, if that shaman usually acted differently, then I would understand Cha Hee-Ra’s reaction. Based on the conversation between Cha Hee-Ra and Victor, it sounded like the shaman wasn’t all that interested in this meeting. Despite that, not only did she suddenly come here early, but she even gave the excuse that she came here to greet Cha Hee-Ra, so naturally, I became suspicious of whether she had other intentions or not.

When Cha Hee-Ra spoke violently, the shaman’s lackeys started talking as well but the way they stood up for the shaman like this didn’t affect Cha Hee-Ra in a positive way.

“Your words are too harsh, Miss Cha Hee-Ra.”

“Miss Yuno was just…”

“I told you to be quiet, you trash,” Cha Hee-Ra said, cutting them off.

To make things worse, Cha Hee-Ra started casting her magic and that was when Yuno spoke up after staying quiet. “I-It’s fine everyone. Please stop. I guess all of this was so sudden,” Yuno said.

“...”

After slowly bowing toward us, she spoke very calmly. “Miss Cha Hee-Ra and everyone else… I sincerely apologize for making you uncomfortable and if there’s something that Celia did wrong… I would like to apologize in their place.” 

I noticed Victor staring at Cha Hee-Ra and he was signaling her to respond to Yuno’s sincere apology. As a person that worked for the empire, there was no way that Victor would be happy to see a fight between two powerful people.

Now, it was up to Cha Hee-Ra.

“I accept,” she said.

‘That wasn’t bad, Hee-Ra noona.’

“I’ll be on my way now. Please have a good time…” Yuno said.

The Mercenary Queen nodded and the shaman quietly went back the way she came from. Strangely enough, it was at that moment when I heard a voice.

- When you have time, please come to my room. My room is located on the second floor of the west building.

‘Um…’

I was sure that I was the only one that could hear it.

- I really hope you’ll come.

‘What kind of shitty situation is this?’

This was beyond ridiculous because I couldn’t understand a single thing. Why did she want to see me? Was she really crying while looking at me earlier, and why did she invite me to her room? It felt like everything was hidden behind a veil.

‘And I don’t think she wants to have a one-night stand either…’

It would have been enjoyable if I got this offer in a hotel bar.

Obviously, I needed more information. That was when Cha Hee-Ra complained while looking at me. “I’m getting goosebumps because I have no idea what she’s thinking.”

“Do you know her, noona?” I asked.

“This is my second time talking to her and it’s really interesting seeing her talk like that… that was the first time she talked that much,” she answered.

“...”

“Yuno came here about five years ago and made a guild in Celia… and now she’s the owner of Yozora, a new guild that has been very successful. I’m not sure why she’s here. Some say that she’s able to see the past and future and others have said ridiculous things like she’s able to see things others can’t, but considering her actions so far, I don’t think she was lying… honestly, I don’t know much about her either,” Cha Hee-Ra explained.

“...”

“Don’t look at me like that, darling. I’m sure my men and the Black Swan Guild are trying to get more information, so we can ask when they arrive,” she said.

“Okay,” I said.

“But there is one thing I’m sure of,” she said.

“What is it?”

“That woman is blind,” she answered.

“I knew that, too,” I told her.

As expected, relying on her for something like this wasn’t a good idea.

‘Maybe I should’ve gotten a report or something.’

I should have prepared more before coming here.

“That woman is a bit strange, oppa,” Jung Ha-Yan said.

“You think so?” I asked.

“Yes, she’s a bit odd. There’s something… strange…” she said.

Jung Ha-Yan wasn’t wrong, but she already didn’t like Yuno and the way she stuck closer to me made me feel a bit embarrassed.

“Hey grandpa, we can go to our rooms now, right?” Cha Hee-Ra asked.

“Of course. Where will you eat?” Victor asked.

“We’re just going to eat at the cafeteria here. Actually, can you ask people to bring food to our rooms in two hours? I’m a bit tired because of the long trip,” she said.

“Didn’t you just say that you wanted to spar?” he asked.

“I’m upset,” she answered.

“Well, you can do whatever you want, but as I said before, causing trouble is…”

“I know. I shouldn’t fight, but you already know that I’m in a sensitive mood. You know what happened in Lindel, right?” Cha Hee-Ra asked.

“I do, Hee-Ra, but if you have a complaint, it’s better to do it officially through the organization. You’re too hot-headed…” he explained.

“I know that,” she said.

“Tsk. Go to your room,” he said.

“See you tomorrow.”

She walked around as if this was her own house and seeing her walking around the huge castle gave me an idea of how Cha Hee-Ra was treated within the Holy Empire.

“The food here isn’t that bad. It’s a bit greasy, but it’s not bad to have it once in a while. Let’s go to our rooms for now,” she suggested.

When the door opened, I saw a large area, but the word large wasn’t enough to describe it. There were rooms within the room and there seemed to be four to five rooms inside this massive space. I had never been to an expensive hotel, but I was certain that this couldn't be compared to any hotel.

“There are a lot of rooms, so just pick one. There are two bathrooms by the way,” Cha Hee-Ra said.

“This is nice,” I commented.

“The empire provided this room… not bad, right? It’s not bad to come once in a while and rest here and although I’m not the type that really likes these things, I feel like being extravagant sometimes feels nice. Since we have two hours, you can stay here until the food comes. I have some business to take care of so I’m heading out,” she said.

“Okay,” I said.

“If you’re bored, you can look around the place since no one will complain about it and it won’t be dangerous either,” she suggested.

“Sure.”

I noticed her looking at me while talking in a straightforward manner.

I was sure that there was a reason why Cha Hee-Ra came here in a hurry, and I was certain that it had something to do with her work. The way she grabbed her things and left the room made it seem like she was in a bit of a hurry. Jung Ha-Yan must have felt better after she left because she jumped on the comfy bed and I recalled a few of the warnings Cha Hee-Ra gave, but I stopped thinking about them.

‘She’s doing fine so far…’

I didn’t have the time to focus on Jung Ha-Yan right now and it was obviously because of the shaman.

‘When you have time, please come to my room. My room is located on the second floor of the west building.’

Her desperate voice kept playing in my head and I thought that it could be a trap, but I didn’t think that she was stupid enough to do something like that inside the Holy Empire’s castle. More than that, it was likely that she knew about Mind’s Eye, so I had to go and see her. I thought that it would be best to talk to her at least once. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that Mind’s Eye was the source of my livelihood. As someone whose stats were trash, it was a weapon that only I could use and I wasn’t happy about the fact that someone knew of its existence.

‘And Cha Hee-Ra is out…’

This was my chance to go and see her. If the worst situation that I imagined came true, then I had to get rid of her no matter what.

“Ha-Yan,” I called out.

“Yes?”

“I’m going to go out for a little bit,” I told her.

“Oh… okay.”

“You don’t mind waiting for me here, right?” I asked.

“...”

“I won’t be long,” I said.

She didn’t seem happy about it, but Jung Ha-Yan didn’t suppress my freedom. It only took a moment for me to leave Jung Ha-Yan who nodded while looking at me with the eyes of a puppy that had been abandoned.

I asked questions and left a good impression on the servants and the maids of the castle so that I could stand out in case an accident happened. Moreover, I needed people that could explain what happened.

‘In case it’s a trap…’

I was nervous, but what I was imagining probably wouldn’t happen and if something strange happened to my body, then Jung Ha-Yan would definitely be notified immediately. I touched the bag full of potions that I had brought with me as well as Juliena. Now that I thought about it…

‘Juliena didn’t react when that woman approached me.’

Juliena must have not categorized her as a threat and based on the situation earlier, I didn’t think that she was targeting me. Now that the issue with Lee Seol-Ho had been taken care of, I wasn’t planning on dying anytime soon and if she tried to hurt me, it would only make things worse.

When I slowly walked toward her room, I started seeing the members of the Yozora Guild standing outside. They greeted me as if they were waiting for me.

‘What the…’

“You can enter this room,” they said.

“Okay.”

“Your weapon…”

The man that noticed Juliena said that they would hold onto it for me, but it was impossible for me to comply with their demand. Fortunately, I heard a voice at that moment.

“It’s fine, please send him in.”

“Yes, Lady Yuno.”

The moment they nodded and opened the door, I saw the blind woman kneeling with her eyes closed. I touched Juliena in case there was an unknown threat, but she didn’t respond.

“I’ve been waiting for you,” Yuno said.

“Why did you want to see me?”I asked.

“My…”

“...”

“Lord,” she said.

‘What the hell?’

The way she slowly took off her outer clothes and walked toward me was a sight to behold. I didn’t think that she was lying because her face was trembling as she cried tears of joy. This was a ridiculous situation. I couldn’t think for a moment.

“Ahhh… my lord. I’ve waited for you for a long time,” Yuno said.

‘C-Crazy woman…’

“Please punish, punish this naughty servant of yours… my lord,” she said.

‘Shit…’

When I glanced over, I saw bizarre tools that I had never seen before.

“Please punish me… my master, m-my master.”

“You’re crazy!” I yelled.

I tried opening the door again because of the unexpected situation, but it simply rattled without opening at all.

“Please punish this humble pig…” Yuno said.

“Go away!” I screamed.

I couldn’t help but scream.