“Oh! Would it be okay if I told you our conditions first?” Lee Ji-Hye asked.

“Of course,” I answered.

“First, you need to make a public announcement.”

“For example?” I asked.

“About how you accepted Black Swan Guild’s Jung Yoo-Ra’s apology and that you two worked things out and that you were never physically threatened… I’d appreciate it if you could add that as well. Other than that, you can say whatever you want… well, as long as you say something that’ll calm the people down, it doesn’t matter what you say,” she answered.

“Hm… even if I do that, it won’t be easy,” I told her.

“Additionally, I’d like you to mention how the Black Swan Guild is changing,” she added.

“Are you trying to use me as a marketing tool?” I asked.

“Of course! Some people are calling you Lee Ki-Young, the symbol of resistance… after some time passes, I’m sure you’ll earn the title as well. There should be a certain image that you want to portray, so the additional conditions are optional, but… I hope you’ll mention it at least for me. You can say something like, ‘it’s all of you that forced a large guild to change. This is your victory. I’m not the only winner!’ or anything else,” she explained.

“Winner my ass…”

I couldn’t help but laugh at her devious idea. The reason why the Black Swan Guild’s power system was changing was that there were a lot of political relations involved. Of course, I couldn’t deny the fact that this situation was what sparked the change, but if it weren’t for the internal issues that the Black Swan Guild had, then there was a good chance that nothing would have changed. As such, I couldn’t help but laugh because, despite that, Lee Ji-Hye asked me to make an announcement that focused on the victory that the public earned for themselves.

“The truth doesn’t really matter, right? I’m sure you already know that it’s important to make the public think that they’ve won…” Lee Ji-Hye said.

“That’s why I’m laughing,” I told her.

“Well, we’re not just going to sit by and watch, so you don’t have to worry about us. As long as you don’t pour more oil into the fire with your remarks, we’ll be fine. Please be careful about saying things like you understand the public or using the word, wickedness,” she said.

“I understand. I’ll think about it,” I said.

“For old times’ sake, okay?” 

I noticed her smiling, but I didn’t care.

“Anything else?” I asked.

“Yes. You may not have the authority for this, but… we’re currently promoting a three-power alliance between the Red Mercenary Guild, Black Swan Guild, and the Blue Guild. I’d like it if you could make an official announcement about this as well. This won’t put you at a disadvantage anyway, oppa,” Lee Ji-Hye requested.

“So you’re saying that I’ll be able to expand my influence within the guild, right?” I asked.

“Yes, but I won’t ask you to announce it right away since the situation’s still chaotic. However, I do want you to mention the friendly atmosphere that we have and how you want to maintain a good relationship with the Black Swan Guild since we’ve changed or something like that,” she answered.

“You’re asking for a lot of things… you’re going to reward me properly for this, right?” I asked her.

“Yes. All the items and materials we received from the Garden of Horror will be personally given to you, oppa. This also includes any share from the dungeons we have completed along with a few land documents,” she answered.

“Considering the public’s opinion, the rewards don't sound that great,” I told her.

“In the official announcement, we’re going to say that we donated them,” she said.

“Ahhh, now I understand,” I said.

“No one will know what you received from our guild, oppa.”

I couldn’t trust her completely because Lee Ji-Hye was definitely capable of backstabbing me. If the public found out that I somehow received a huge benefit from this incident, then she could use the press to her advantage and I wouldn’t be able to avoid the public’s criticism about it.

“Even if the public did find out, I believe you’re more than capable of fixing it,” Lee Ji-Hye said.

‘She’s right.’

Many media outlets were already on my side and even if something like that did happen, fixing it shouldn’t be a big problem. The majority of the media outlets in Lindel had already decided to side with the Blue Guild and the Red Mercenary Guild, so it was only natural for the Black Swan Guild to want to work with us, but that was only if Lee Ji-Hye and the members of the Black Swan Guild knew about it.

“The guild will also provide support to Kim Hyun-Sung’s party,” she said.

“Isn’t that too generous?” I asked.

“That’s because we want to look good in front of you, oppa,” she answered.

“I’m not happy with this kind of attention…” I told her.

Even though she didn’t say it, I was certain that she exaggerated her description of me to her guild members. My value had to go up so that Lee Ji-Hye’s position could go up since we had a connection. It was basically a win-win relationship. I didn’t feel good about it, though, but I didn’t feel bad either. Just by looking at the results, I had a lot to gain from this.

“If there’s anything else you want, we’ll try our best to…”

“I’ll leave that up to you. I’m sure your guild has an idea about how much they want to give me, so it doesn’t matter what they give me for now,” I said, cutting her off.

“That’s a bit burdensome. It sounds as if you’re going to test us,” she said.

“Not at all. To be honest, I don’t understand why you guys are offering me this much. I’m not saying that the Black Swan Guild is doing this for attention, but it’s a bit too much. I’m sure that I’m not the only person that you need to take care of. You also need to take care of the Red Mercenary Guild as well, so all I’m saying is that this doesn’t seem like a profitable endeavor,” I explained.

“I’m a bit embarrassed to say this, but I did slightly influence their decision,” she confessed.

“That’s why I’m more curious about it. You’re too rational to say that you’re tied down by the past, noona. I’d appreciate it if you could tell me what you really want,” I said.

There was silence. Lee Ji-Hye’s expression didn’t change and she didn’t seem shocked either. She remained calm as she continued to talk and to be honest, her answer was far from what I expected.

“Didn’t I tell you last time?” she asked.

“About what?” I asked.

“That ambitious men were my type,” she answered.

“Stop joking arou…”

The moment I saw her eyes, I couldn’t finish my sentence because the way she looked straight at me told me that she wasn’t lying. I couldn’t see the smile she always had on her face.

“Do you think I’m joking?” she asked.

“...”

“I’ll tell you a funny story,” she said.

I quietly nodded because I felt like that was what I should do.

“Have you ever heard of the former U.S. President Clinton’s couple story? Even though it’s fictional, it’s still interesting…” she said.

“No,” I answered.

After breathing out, she started to explain. Even though it was a random story, it was interesting.

“During Bill Clinton’s presidency, he and Hilary Clinton visited a gas station to get gas and supposedly, Hilary Clinton gave an unfamiliar man a big hug.”

“That’s interesting,” I commented.

“He later found out that the man at the gas station was Hilary’s ex-boyfriend… the couple talked about the man on their way back and Bill Clinton made a slightly mean comment. He said… if you were still dating that man, I’m sure you would be working at the gas station with him,” she said.

“...”

“What kind of answer do you think Hilary gave him?” she asked.

“...”

“No, I’m sure he would have become the president of the United States, not you,” Lee Ji-Hye answered.

It was definitely an interesting story. If I were to substitute Bill and Hilary Clinton with me and Lee Ji-Hye, then it was no different from her telling me that she would make me the president.

“It’s a relatable story, but personally, I want to add one more pre-requisite to the story,” she said.

“And that’s?”

“How ambitious a man is,” she answered.

‘Wow…’

“People say that men are animals that change depending on how the woman acts, but a man who acts with no ambition isn't attractive at all,” she explained.

“You do understand the situation that I’m in, right?” I asked.

“Of course. You’re the Mercenary Queen’s lover… not only that, but you have a ticking bomb named Jung Ha-Yan that you’re raising by your side. But a woman’s charm is based on either their looks or power,” she said.

“Huh…”

“I’m not desperately clinging onto you and asking you to go out with me, oppa because I already know that those types of women aren’t popular. I don’t care how much you bite, suck and roll around with the mercenary that’s crazy for blood or with that weird and crazy mage. If that’s the course I need to take in order to climb the ranks, then I’ll welcome it because I already know that women like me will be chosen in the end,” Lee Ji-Hye said.

“...”

“A woman that can turn men like you into kings.”

‘Pffft…’

I was so shocked that I couldn’t speak properly. I understood her character since I saw her selfish and ambitious nature in the tutorial. But I didn’t think that she was this ambitious and selfish. I wasn’t surprised by the fact that she told me she liked me. It was all because of her strange confidence. After all, Lee Ji-Hye’s stats and talents weren’t that good. Of course, she didn’t know about her growth limit, but I was sure that she had an idea about it. The fact that she chose Leader as her job was proof that she knew about her limits and despite that, this woman that resembled me remained confident. Not including the stats and the force that had to be used in that endeavor, she was still confident that she could turn the man she chose the king.

‘What…’

Of course, I didn’t know when she started having these kinds of thoughts but considering her nature, there was a good chance that she thought about it from the start.

I had no idea how I should react to what she said. As I was simmering in my thoughts, I saw that Lee Ji-Hye was quietly standing up. She started touching my face cautiously.

“Why me?” I asked.

“Who knows? But If I had to come up with a reason…”

“...”

“Because you told me back then that you hoped to see me again?” she answered.

I didn’t bother avoiding her light kisses because I had more than enough reason to use her.

“This is the end of our conversation. Don’t just think about the conditions that the guild made, but also the things I personally told you about, oppa,” she said.

“I’ll think about it, noona,” I answered.

‘Everything that I heard was good.’

She slightly frowned, but after seeing the smile on her face, I guess she was satisfied with the conversation we had. Just when she was about to open the door…

‘Oh.’

I noticed Jung Ha-Yan waiting for me outside the living room. Unlike me who was kind of surprised, Lee Ji-Hye didn’t look surprised at all. She spoke while looking at Jung Ha-Yan. “It’s been a while, Miss Ha-Yan.”

“Yes… it’s… been… a while, Miss Ji-Hye,” Jung Ha-Yan said.

‘Shit.’

“I heard you’re dating Ki-Young oppa. Are Mr. Hyun-Sung and Mr. Deok-Gu doing well too?” she asked.

“Yes…” Jung Ha-Yan answered.

“Oh my, congratulations! Seeing you two in love makes me happy. I think we’ll be seeing each other often… so I look forward to working with you,” Lee Ji-Hye said.

“Me too…”

“Goodbye.”

I wasn’t sure if I was seeing things, but Jung Ha-Yan’s condition seemed very different. I was certain that she had no idea what Lee Ji-Hye and I were talking about in the living room because they used a spell on the room so that others wouldn’t be able to disturb them. But I guess Jung Ha-Yan must have discovered the strange air because I noticed her looking at Lee Ji-Hye the same way she looked at Park Hye-Young.

I was certain of it. Jung Ha-Yan had gone mad.

‘Shit.’

To make things worse, she was staring at me as if she was interrogating me.

Lee Ji-Hye raised the corner of her lips and smiled at me.

The world was big and there were a lot of women.

However…

I couldn’t understand why I kept getting entangled with all these crazy women.