“I…”

Before answering, I had to think about it again because I obviously knew what kind of answer Kim Hyun-Sung wanted to hear. Personally, I didn’t want her to gain more power than she needed, so getting rid of her was the right thing to do, but I also wanted to show him that I didn’t want to push her out. It wasn’t easy killing two birds with one stone, but it was worth a try because I didn’t want him to think that I desired power.

‘The fact that he asked for my opinion is good.’

“Before I answer, could you tell me exactly which key position you want to give her?” I asked.

I already knew it was going to be the guild’s chief secretary, but I wanted to ask again because he had never mentioned which position it was and I was sure he was hiding something.

“I’ve thought of many different positions, but…”

“Yes?”

“If it’s alright with you, I thought about giving her the guild’s chief secretary position,” he answered.

“Excuse me?” I asked.

“The guild’s chief secretary,” he repeated.

“Oh… I see,” I said.

“I’ve… been thinking about many things and It'll make things easier for you as well since you've been taking care of many tasks. Miss Hye-Jin will be able to assist you in different ways,” Kim Hyun-Sung explained.

“Hmmm…”

“I’m sure you’ll be surprised once you see how she handles her tasks,” he added.

“I see…”

“She helped a lot in unimaginable things,” he said.

“Oh…”

I was definitely against it. While I was thinking about how I should oppose it, I noticed Kim Hyun-Sung’s anxious look.

‘Oh...’

I immediately realized why he had that expression. First, I was sure that my expression told him that I didn’t agree with his suggestion and second, he seemed bothered that he was trying to put her in a key position without discussing it with me first. Even though he asked for my opinion just now, he was bothered that he thought of doing it on his own and immediately gave her the offer.

‘This cute bastard…’

He thought I was going to be really happy and agree to his suggestion, but it ruined his surprise when I didn't agree. He probably couldn't help but panic when I, the recipient of the surprise, was unhappy with it. Actually, no. Not only was I unhappy, but I was showing an uncomfortable expression so he was probably anxious about it. Naturally, he thought that he made a mistake, which was possible because Kim Hyun-Sung wasn’t a self-righteous person. I didn’t know what kind of mistakes he had made in his first life, but since he had been backstabbed so many times, he took great care of the party’s mentality and condition especially when it came to me. It was obvious when I recalled the sad expression he had when I left for the Holy Empire.

Kim Hyun-Sung wasn’t a dictator and even though he was the guild master of the Blue Guild, he knew what he lacked and he always kept in mind that he needed the help of others. It was the ideal attitude, but… anyway, I was at the top of the list of people who could help him.

‘Obviously...’

I spoke after reading this expression again. “I’m not sure…”

“Oh…” he mumbled.

“It’s true that Miss Hye-Jin is competent, but I think it’s too soon and it would be better if we observed her a bit more… Oh! But I do understand your reasoning, Mr. Hyun-Sung. You made that decision because I had a lot of work… and… it’s somewhat of a reasonable decision,” I explained.

“I see…”

“But if she suddenly becomes the guild’s chief secretary, I think it could cause discomfort amongst the other guild members, but of course, this is just my personal opinion. We need more time… From the guild staff members’ point of view, they may see Miss Hye-Jin as a CEO who suddenly got authority when she was never involved with the company up until now,” I explained even more.

“I did have those thoughts as well, but I thought that they were getting along well while you were away so…” he started to explain.

“I’m the only one that hasn’t seen it…” I said, interrupting him.

“Oh.”

Even though I didn’t directly say it, it was only natural for him to figure out my feelings. When I looked at Kim Hyun-Sung with a really disappointed look, he flinched.

‘I’m pretty disappointed, Hyun-Sung.’

I was obviously acting, but he seemed more flustered than before. He asked about my opinion, thinking that it wouldn’t be a big issue, but I didn’t think he imagined things would turn out like this. The corner of my lips went up at the thought that Kim Hyun-Sung was being considerate of me, but I didn’t make it obvious. Sighing, giving short answers, or showing him that I was disappointed was pretty effective and he must have realized the atmosphere around us was becoming strange as we discussed Jo Hye-Jin’s position.

“That’s not what I meant,” Kim Hyun-Sung said.

“No, I trust you, Mr. Hyun-Sung. You’ve made all the right decisions up until now. Personally, I think it’s a bit too much, but I’m sure there’s something I’m not aware of,” I told him.

“That’s not it…”

“It should be fine. I’m grateful that you asked me, but you’re the guild master, so you can do whatever you want,” I added.

“I think there’s a misunderstanding,” he started to explain.

“No, no. There’s no misunderstanding…” 

“I personally thought of this because you seemed like you were having a hard time, Mr. Ki-Young. I wasn’t going to give her the position right away and since Miss Hye-Jin seems burdened by it…”

“I see…” I nodded, interrupting him.

“Yes...”

I expected him to react that way because people in this kind of situation usually said things like ‘It was all for you,’ but he wasn’t comforting me regarding his attitude earlier. I wasn’t angry or frustrated, but when I continued to express my disappointment, Kim Hyun-Sung seemed frustrated. Being generous not only applied to couples but in every human relationship, too.

‘He probably doesn’t know why I’m acting this way.’

If I had to give an example, it was like a girl asking her boyfriend why he didn’t know the reason she was mad at him and of course, it was more effective than I imagined. It did break my heart seeing my regressor suffer, but I had to delay Jo Hye-Jin’s rise to authority as much as possible.

“Mr. Hyun-Sung… you can forget about what I told you earlier since it was just my personal opinion. If you believe Miss Hye-Jin is the right person for the role, you can give her the role,” I told him.

‘Take this!’

“There isn’t any kind of misunderstanding because it’s understandable for you to think that way, Mr. Hyun-Sung,” I added.

‘I’m totally misunderstanding. Hyun-Sung! I misunderstood what you’re saying!’

“I’m not disappointed either,” I said in a low voice.

‘Your hyung is disappointed; very disappointed!’

I was saying the opposite of my actual feelings. I was saying that I was fine, but from Kim Hyun-Sung’s point of view, I was certain it would be difficult to appoint her because no matter how stupid he was, he wasn’t this slow. I was sure he was thinking about a lot of things right now.

‘I managed to buy some time...’

It was confirmed that Jo Hye-Jin was going to eventually take a key position and I believe I needed to possess a certain amount of power to utilize her properly in the future because it would be a waste to not use a competent person like her.

Her image as a whistleblower helped. If she officially settled in the Blue Guild, then Jo Hye-Jin could be used as a marketing tool to appeal to the public. Using such a powerful and smart person as only a party member was a stupid thing to do. The problem was the time she would take on that position. In the current situation, she and I were basically playing tug-o-war over power. As someone making assumptions, I was basically shadowboxing because even though I didn’t have a definite method, if the issues around her got resolved, then I was prepared to use her more than anyone else in the guild—I would treat her like a dog.

“Well, I’ll be going now, Mr. Hyun-Sung,” I told him.

“Excuse me?” he asked.

“I’m done eating and we need to make preparations for the expedition,” I explained.

“I understand…”

“I’ll make the order to include basic items, but if you need anything else, please send me a document of what you need,” I said to him.

“Well…”

It was time for me to go and when I slightly opened the door, I saw a guild staff member.

“Mr. Ki-Young!”

That was when Kim Hyun-Sung called out for me and grabbed my arm. For some reason, my attention was on him. I wasn’t sure why, but even the guild staff member blushed. Usually, female staff members would scream in situations like this.

‘What the…’

“There’s… something else.”

The people around us noticed that something was going on because they made comments like, ‘I told you!’ or ‘Oh my gosh!’ I even heard someone say that our girlfriends were just a front and I immediately realized what they were talking about.

‘That’s not it… shit…’

“It… It was wrong of me to think that way, Mr. Ki-Young,” Kim Hyun-Sung mumbled.

‘I got it, so please let me go of me...’

“I didn’t have any other intentions and was simply thinking about making your workload lighter, Mr. Ki-Young…” He continued.

‘They’re going to have weird thoughts...’

When I heard someone scream, I immediately closed the door. Despite that, I could still hear Kim Hyun-Sung talking. “As you mentioned earlier, I think it would be best to delay it. If you had been surprised, I sincerely apologize. I also thought it was strange to talk to you about this since you’ve just returned to the guild,” he explained.

“No, that’s…”

“I’m sure you need time to get to know Miss Hye-Jin and I understand the other guild members feeling out of place because of it. Of course, I’m sure you feel the same way. It’s natural for you to be flustered and disappointed. I don’t know what I was thinking,” he added, apologetic.

Kim Hyun-Sung was sincerely apologizing and even though there had been a strange misunderstanding, it wasn’t that bad. Now, it became clear that Jung Ha-Yan wasn’t the only one who didn’t know how to maintain a relationship. Despite living another life, the regressor still struggled in maintaining a relationship. He was inflexible with a simple personality.

‘Kind-hearted mediator.’

It was amazing how he maintained his humanity despite experiencing many things in his past life. When considering the fact that the way Kim Hyun-Sung looked had changed compared to when I first met him in the tutorial dungeon, he definitely looked like someone who was trying to find the thing he had lost in his past life.

‘Not bad…’

An affectionate regressor was a good thing, but if I were in his position, I wouldn’t directly apologize in a strange situation like this.

‘Still, it’s not that bad at all.’

I spoke while looking at him. “No, it’s really fine, Mr. Hyun-Sung.”

It was half-true.

‘This hyung will forgive you…’