“So you’re saying this kid Max has skills. Am I right, oppa?” Lee Ji-Hye asked.

“Yeah. It’s impossible to bring away the entire system inside the museum and I don’t have the skills to mess with the core panels that make up the system. I’m only Rank 4, but who knows? It might change once I become Rank 1 or 2, but I honestly didn’t have any interest in the other functions. The part that caught my attention from the start was the magic hologram,” I explained.

“It’s definitely… a technology that doesn’t exist on this continent, so it’s understandable. It would have caught my attention as well. After you fired up the press within Lindel, many guilds started to make their own research about the press… but I guess it’s no use now. The press is—”

“No, I was thinking about asking for help from the guilds researching that field. As I said, Max has the skills, but commercializing it is a different story,” I interrupted.

“Wouldn’t that put you at a disadvantage if you receive help from other guilds?” she asked.

“Not really. It doesn’t really matter if people discovered the technology involving the videos. But of course, the later they find out, the more beneficial it’ll be for us. However, the important part is not the video itself, but where that video is being transmitted from…” I explained.

“Ahh, so the control tower is inside the museum,” she said.

“Bingo. It basically means we’re going to be doing all the censoring because this isn’t like social media where we could communicate with each other. It may be possible to do that once our Max starts doing some research, but I don’t really think it’s necessary. There’s nothing better than television when fooling the public. Even those with power also used this method a long time ago,” I added.

“That’s true. They would spread rumors about celebrities and pass a bill as fast as possible. They would broadcast provocative shows to turn people into idiots and that’s probably the reason why they referred to the public as beasts,” Lee Ji-Hye chimed in.

“It’s ridiculous, calling the public beasts when they’re the customers who pay for the precious license fee,” I said.

“That sounds even more disturbing,” she commented.

“You’re imagining it,” I told her.

Maybe it was because the guild masters wanted us to talk more comfortably, but the guild masters left after they were done with their important discussion. Obviously, it wasn’t because they were annoyed or uninterested. It was more like they trusted us. To be exact, the museum’s control system didn’t belong to the Blue Guild, but to me, so Kim Hyun-Sung naturally gave me full control.

‘This is why I love you, Hyun-Sung.’

Kim Hyun-Sung wasn’t an idiot. He knew better than anyone how much money this project was going to bring and how much influence it was going to have. However, the fact that he didn’t talk to me about it separately showed that he wasn’t a greedy person. No matter how much I thought about it, I really made the right choice when I picked him.

Our guild masters trusted us, which was the reason why we were talking right now. Lee Ji-Hye may not have full authority like me, but…

‘She’s still amazing.’

If an ordinary person with no power was sitting at a negotiation table like this one, it would be difficult for them to understand what was going on with the common knowledge they had. This was possible not only because Park Yeon-Joo trusted her, but because she was known to bring results.

When I drank my tea, I heard her talk.

“So, how much will you give us?”

“I’m not sure.”

“I was given permission to not worry about the investment. Our guild master seemed like she wanted to be on the same boat as you no matter the cost and even the guild executives agreed with her… I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that the Black Swan Guild has high expectations for me, right, oppa?” Lee Ji-Hye asked.

“So you’re asking me to help you save face. Am I right, noona?” I asked.

“It’s basically because I think I deserve it. I did everything they asked me to do and even though I have fallen for you, if you abandon me, I think I’ll feel quite sad. But you’ll obviously have more to gain if I gain more authority, so we should help each other out,” she replied.

“Wow… You’re not wrong, but you should speak facts. I’m not the only one who benefited so far. You used my name several times too, noona… To be exact, we have been helping each other out, but you’re talking as if you’re the only one who made sacrifices. I’m kind of disappointed…” I explained.

“Geez, oppa…”

“You know that acting cute doesn’t work on me, noona,” I pointed out.

“I knew that. I was just clutching at straws. So, what are you going to do? Stop teasing me and decide.” She urged.

“Ahem…”

She looked anxious. Rather than thinking about failing to obtain what she wanted, it felt like she was testing me on just how much I valued her, and I obviously wasn’t planning on treating Lee Ji-Hye poorly. Aside from the fact that I had a connection within the Black Swan Guild, it would be really beneficial for me to keep her as an ally.

“Do whatever you want, noona,” I told her.

It was a line I wanted to use at least once.

“Really?”

“Of course I want you to be considerate about it,” I added.

“Naturally. I’ll call it three percent higher than what the guild expects,” she said.

“So how much is that?” I questioned.

“Five percent?” she answered.

“Hm…”

“Is that too high?” she asked.

“It’s the opposite. It’s too low. The Black Swan Guild did participate in the dungeon capture… Let’s add ten percent and make it thirteen percent in total,” I answered.

“Is that really okay?” she questioned.

“Yeah, I have been feeling pretty guilty about it. I’ll get a stomach ache if I keep it all to myself. It’s better to be safe and share it fairly. If I keep it all to myself, some beast-like guy who’s all about reformation may pop out from nowhere,” I explained.

“Your description is kind of strange, but I understand what you’re saying. Since you have been taking care of us, I’ll make sure to increase our investment. And regarding the dungeon…” Lee Ji-Hye paused.

“Ahh.”

“Even though the museum control system is my personal achievement, I can’t say the same about the museum itself since we captured the dungeon together. I wouldn’t have acquired it if it hadn’t been for the Black Swan Guild,” I informed her.

I honestly considered the museum as mine, but I couldn’t help but be conscious of my allies. In this kind of relationship, even the smallest issue could become a big issue, so it was better to give them what they wanted.

‘The control system belongs to me anyway.’

Even if we split a large boat in half, the boat’s steering wheel still belonged to me.

“Then, we’ll take a bigger portion of the Rift Museum’s remodeling cost. It’ll cost a lot of gold since we have to destroy the partitions,” she offered.

“Of course, it’ll cost a lot. It’s the first dungeon theme park to appear in this world, after all.” I pointed out.

“I think Kangwon Land[1] is more fitting than… a dungeon theme park,” she commented.

“Please don’t go around saying that to other people…” I requested.

“I won’t,” she answered.

“Anyway, I think that’s it for this conversation. Is that enough to help you save face?”

“Yes. It’s much more than what I expected,” she replied.

When I glanced over at Lee Ji-Hye, the corner of her lips was up, but she looked like she was trying to suppress her laughter.

‘Maybe she’s in a good mood.’

I didn’t know if she was happy because she saved face or because of the kindness I showed her, but personally, I think it was closer to the latter. She tried to maintain her usual expression, but I guess she couldn’t hide her smile.

‘I have never seen her with that kind of expression.’

Maybe it was because the system called us soulmates, but even though I hadn’t spent a lot of time with her, I still noticed many different things about her.

‘Maybe she and I shared a connection in my past life.’

I was only able to think about the useless thought for a moment because Lee Ji-Hye came closer to me.

“Why are you approaching me like that?” I asked.

“Who knows?” she replied.

“Don’t come too close to me, noona. There’s an eye that has been following me around. I don’t think I can see it right now, but I don’t know when it’s going to appear,” I warned her.

“An eye?” she asked.

“Yeah, something like that. I think we’re arriving soon, anyway. It’s not enough time for me to spend a passionate moment with my Ji-Hye,” I answered.

“You’re right. We talked so much that we’re already so close to Lindel. We should have spent some quality time since we haven’t been able to get some alone time for quite some time now.” Lee Ji-Hye agreed.

“Talking about work is spending quality time with you, noona. And about returning to Earth—” I added.

“Gossiping is the most fun,” she interrupted.

“I agree. Anyway, I’ll see you next time. Actually, I guess we’ll be seeing each other more often because of the museum. You’re going to be in charge of it, right, noona?” I asked.

“I’m not sure. The guild has some restraints against influence, but it’s likely that I’ll be in charge of it. After all, I was the key figure in this agreement, so I guess I’ll see you tomorrow. Since it might disappoint Miss Ha-Yan, I won’t come out to greet you,” she informed me.

“Alright…”

When I exited the large carriage after it stopped, I saw Ahn Ki-Mo and Sun Hee-Young saying their goodbyes to the Black Swan Guild members, and they weren’t the only ones doing so. Dialugia was awkwardly shaking hands with the others, while Park Deok-Gu was being surrounded by women. It felt like it would take a long time since there were so many people, but someone suddenly came up to me and gave me a gift.

“Uh… thank you very much for what you did during the expedition.”

Jung Ha-Yan ran toward me when she saw us, but the woman who gave me the gift got inside the carriage before Jung Ha-Yan could reach us. I couldn’t remember helping her, but I guess she thought I had helped her. It was a bit unfortunate that I couldn’t check her unique habit, but I felt kind of good about myself.

‘You still got it, Lee Ki-Young.’

It wasn’t as much as Park Deok-Gu or Kim Hyun-Sung, but overall, I still had women coming up to me.

Anyway, I waved my hand until I couldn’t see the Black Swan Guilds’ carriages, and when we returned home. Everyone had already become comfortable with their surroundings, but there was one person who still hadn't fully adapted.

“Come here, Mr. Max,” I called him.

- Okay…

It was his first time being in the outside world and it had to have been interesting because even after arriving in Lindel, he was still looking around. When I extended my hand out, he grabbed it and that was when I heard a loud voice.

“Dialuria!”

When I saw Dialugia shouting while crying, I knew very well who was running toward us.

“Smartie!”

Our daughter, who had been earnestly waiting for me, came out to greet us. She looked like she had grown up a bit, but she still looked cute when she came running on all fours. Obviously, she didn’t choose to have a touching reunion with her mother, and seeing her pass by her crying mother broke my heart a bit. When I opened my arms as if I didn’t have any choice, I saw Smartie changing her direction.

“Huh?”

And the next scene I saw was extremely unrealistic…

- Ahhh!

Smartie headbutted Max’s chest with everything she had.

“Kyaaaaaaaaaaaah!”

[Checking the Unique Habit of the Legendary-Ranked Named Monster, Black Dragon Dialuria.]

[A twisted and dangerous affection in the dark]

[#Mom came back too][#Who’s he?][#Who cares? Time to tackle][#Success]

1. Kangwon Land is a South Korean casino and resort company based in Gangwon Province, South Korea ☜