With Yoo Ah-Young being the last one, the Red Mercenary and the Blue Guild had used all of their priority negotiation rights. The Blue Guild did have one more left, but the problem was that we didn’t think there was a need to use it, and since we knew it was rude to make other guilds and clans wait any longer, we had no choice but to open up the transfer market. Naturally, the clans and guilds that had been waiting anxiously came rushing into the training camp. Personally, the stats of the rookies this year weren’t that great, but since the Red Mercenary Guild was in charge of the training, the reactions of the clans and guild were great.

‘Everyone is in a good mood.’

Mid-sized guilds like the Blue Guild, Red Mercenary, Black Swan, and even the Devil’s Guild weren’t impressed by the trainees, but the smaller-sized guilds were happy about being able to recruit the trainees. Those who didn’t have any potential were treated the same way, but those who could at least wield a sword got treated pretty well and thanks to the Red Mercenary Guild, a recruitment boom occurred at this training camp.

The Red Mercenary Guild shared information about the training camp and the trainees with the other clans and guilds, and they did the same to the trainees by providing information about the other clans and guilds. A guide that was like a catalog was being handed out, and the trainees would either discuss it during their break time or contemplate between the two catalogs. The information that the Red Mercenary Guild had kept under control was now spreading all over the place.

The training camp was pretty noisy despite the fact that the training period wasn’t over yet. I was worried that it was going to affect the training, but nothing really happened. For the sake of getting noticed by the recruiters who visited the training camp several times a day, the trainees who hadn’t received an offer just yet gave it their all during their training, and the trainees who had been chosen to join an organization were doing their best to increase their worth.

The completion ceremony was approaching, and excluding the training time, everyone seemed a bit relaxed, but there was still some competition in the air, and it wasn’t just the trainees who were competing. The other clans and guilds were also competing to the point that I thought maybe they were overdoing it. Basically, the recruitment war had started. They would either give gifts or talk badly about the other clans, and they would do whatever they could to increase the members of their organization. The guild masters and recruiters would wear luxurious clothes, and they would enter the training camp with a well-trained elite member to show off their power. They would then boast about the guild’s cafeteria, the guild’s benefits and budget, the quality of the dorms, and even the future plans of the guild.

It seemed effective, but the Blue Guild didn’t bother to compete with them, and we also didn’t even bother to hand catalogs out.

‘There’s no need for us to promote our guild.’

The Blue Guild’s recruitment was over with Lee Chang-Ryeol and Yoo Ah-Young. Since we didn’t need to recruit any other trainees, there was no need to create a presentation and promote our guild. Rumors were going to spread anyway within the training camp since information about our guild continued to leak.

After the market opened, this place no longer became a closed space. After reading the recruitment offer and information about the guilds, the trainees spoke with the recruiters, and during that, they discovered exactly what kind of position Kim Hyun-Sung and I were in, and naturally, that type of news spread like wildfire within the training camp. That rumor caused many to see me in a different light. Not only was I the Blue Guild’s sub guild master, but I was also selected as one of the Eight Seats, was given the title of Honorary Bishop, and was also the Mercenary Queen’s lover. From the titles I was proud of, I wasn’t sure how many the trainees knew and how well they understood them, but I didn’t bother thinking about it, as I was sure they had to be feeling something whenever they saw me recently.

As expected, I started to hear people whispering amongst themselves.

“That must be the griffon…”

“Does it belong to Mr. Lee Ki-Young?”

“I heard there’s only four in Lindel… the guild masters of the Red Mercenary Guild and the Black Swan Guild each have one, and the guild master and sub guild master of the Blue Guild have the remaining two…”

“Who did you hear that from?’

“From a noona from my clan…”

“Aahhh… so you decided to join them.”

“Yeah. Thanks to them, I heard a lot of rumors, and I realized I shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.”

“That’s amazing. With cars, you can at least figure out their value, but I heard a griffon’s worth is difficult to quantify…”

“He was given the title of the Holy Empire’s Honorary Bishop. I’m sure that’s normal.”

“What?”

“That’s not all. Well, this hasn’t been confirmed yet, but…”

These were the type of conversations they were having, and naturally, Whitefall wasn’t the only thing I showed off. Luxury brands were in this world as well. I had been wearing my alchemy lab coat up until now, but since we were getting close to the end, I intentionally picked out expensive-looking clothes. I didn’t think the trainees had the ability to tell the difference just yet, but since my clothes looked luxurious, I was enjoying the attention.

‘Classes are almost over as well…’

There weren’t any classes today, and since I came to the training camp due to personal reasons, I was used to this kind of attention. When I stood in front of the training camp door, I noticed the trainees either returning to their dorms or leaving the camp.

When I focused my mana on my ears, I heard voices.

“I guess it’s today, too.”

“I’m jealous…”

“I’m not…”

“Stop lying. I heard polygamy is common here…”

“But there’s no love…”

“If you have money, you’ll end up having love, you silly. This place is dangerous anyway… I’m sure you’ll be a thousand times happier being in the arms of Mr. Lee Ki-Young than in the arms of a beggar looking for love. Want to hear something ridiculous?”

“What is it?”

“I don’t know about you, but I prefer being Mansour’s third wife than being with a talented romanticist.”

“I can relate to that…”

“You’re not becoming the third wife of some parvenu, but the third wife of Mansour…”

I had done nothing but raised my hand to the trainees greeting me. Since I had created that kind of atmosphere myself, barely any trainees approached me. The few female trainees glancing at me didn’t bother talking to me, as they knew who I was waiting for, and after waiting for a bit, I saw Yoo Ah-Young slowly walking toward me with a smile.

‘Is she Moses or something?’

It only took a moment for the trainees to create a path for her. Unlike the first time, Yoo Ah-Young seemed pretty confident, and being burdened by attention and envy had become a thing of the past. I couldn’t help but laugh because she seemed like she was enjoying the attention. Many things had changed, but it probably wasn’t as much as the changes Yoo Ah-Young had gone through, and you could tell just by her outer appearance. The majority of the clothes she was wearing were luxury brands, and no one would think she was a trainee.

When I spoke while everyone was watching, I heard her answer immediately.

‘She really is a princess…’

“Shall we get going?” I asked.

“Okay, Mr. Lee Ki-Young,” Yoo Ah-Young replied.

She didn’t look like she was acting when she smiled, and obviously, the majority of the things she was wearing were gifts from me, including the rings on her fingers. When I recalled the first time I gave her a gift, I chuckled, and it wasn’t because of Yoo Ah-Young’s reaction but the reaction of those around us.

Yoo Ah-Young continuously rejected the Blue Guild’s offer, and when I started sending her those types of gifts, everyone assumed it was a small bribe from the Blue Guild, but as time went on, they started to think they were more than just simple gifts.

‘Obviously...’

It may not seem that way at first, but when she started to receive more and more gifts, even an idiot would change their mind about the situation, and naturally, a strange rumor started to spread within the training camp.

‘Mr. Lee Ki-Young is interested in the trainee named Yoo Ah-Young.’

That was how it started…

‘He wants to recruit her so that he can keep her by his side.’

There was that kind of rumor as well, but not all of them were positive rumors. It didn’t really matter to me since there had always been rumors about me being lustful anyway, but Yoo Ah-Young started to feel uncomfortable when she was suddenly being treated like a princess. Naturally, it only took a few days for everyone’s uncomfortable gazes to turn into envy because she was too high-leveled for them to criticize just because they were jealous. After all, expressing their jealousy would only work if they were on the same level as her.

From the trainees’ point of view, Yoo Ah-Young’s presence was so great that all they could do now was look up to her. Normally, there weren’t slaves that were jealous of the leader of a conglomerate. They were usually jealous of shackled slaves, not the people above them.[1]

Yoo Ah-Young was now used to grabbing my hand and getting on the griffon, and when I laughed at how much she had changed, I immediately heard her talking.

“Does it… not look good on me?”

“No, it’s because you’ve become a natural,” I replied.

“It’s embarrassing hearing you say that,” she commented.

Despite saying that, I noticed her glancing down.

“How are you feeling?” I asked.

“I feel good. I was honestly skeptical when we were doing it for the first time, but I felt better than I thought, so I was surprised,” she answered.

“That’s a relief. Do you have anything special you need to report to me?” I asked her.

“A few people asked me if I’m really dating you, and they even asked stupid questions about Miss Jung Ha-Yan and what happened to her. They were surprised when I told them we weren’t dating yet,” she reported.

“I see...”

“And that man…” Yoo Ah-Young continued.

“Yes?” I asked.

“He said there was no need for me to see you anymore,” she finished.

“I guess he must be anxious, haha,” I laughed.

“He didn’t say it, but I’m sure he’s anxious. He even tried to make physical contact with me when he had never done that before… Of course, I felt annoyed, so I told him I was feeling sick and left, but… pffft. He was the one who told me I should get close to you, but now that we’re here, I guess he’s scared that I might abandon him. Because of that, the way he’s been trying to approach me recently has gotten annoying,” she complained.

The situation was obvious. Before sending her the gifts, Kim Ki-Chul had been telling her it wasn’t a bad idea to get close to me, but the fact that he was now telling her to not meet me was proof that he was anxious.

‘It would be strange if Kim Ki-Chul wasn’t anxious…’

It was natural for him to think that way because a rich and competent man was trying to take away his only lifeline. I was the same way. If a smart guy started to get friendly with Kim Hyun-Sung, I would definitely get nervous as well.

“Do you know what else he said? He said I’ve changed recently, and he started scolding me that I wasn’t the same Ah-Young he used to know. Honestly, I was so shocked that I wanted to pull his hair out,” she added.

“You should’ve punched him,” I told her.

“Can I really do that? The plan you told me…” she mumbled.

Yoo Ah-Young had also become more talkative.

‘She’s enjoying it.’

This part of the plan was the fun part, but it seemed like she was enjoying it more than I expected.

“You can do whatever you want. The plan I originally made was simply an outline… The most important part of this plan is helping you feel better, Miss Ah-Young,” I reminded her.

“Okay!”

I heard her cheery voice.

1. The author is figuratively saying that people are usually jealous of people of similar status. A slave isn’t going to be jealous of their owner, they would usually be jealous of their fellow slave ☜