Koong. Koong. Koong. The HUV violently shook every time the tires hit a rock. Just how old was it to not even have a steady driving module? Yoo Yeonha felt shocked and confused.

“Sigh.”

Why did I ask to follow them? She regretted it after just five minutes.

“… So why are you here?” Kim Hajin asked from next to her as she balanced herself in her seat.

Yoo Yeonha retorted, “Vacations are useless if you want to grow and improve.”

“Oh.”

Kim Hajin agreed and simply faced forward. He looked average no matter how many times she saw him. If he wore glasses, he would look like an average salaryman.

“Hmm…”

However, she found one or two things suspicious about him. He was full of secrets. Unfathomable was too grand a word to describe him, but he felt mysterious. Suddenly, she felt her smartwatch vibrate. A message came from Chae Nayun.

[Alright, I’ll take on his bet. Looks like he needs to be put in place.]

She sounded quite angry. Yoo Yeonha spoke with a snicker.

“Hey.”

“Hm?”

“Nayun says she’ll do it. The bet.”

Kim Hajin’s smartwatch also vibrated. Yoo Yeonha was curious.

“Show me too.”

Kim Hajin displayed the message.

[Sure, let’s fight. I’ll give you a month. I’ll bet everything that I win. What are you going to bet?]

A duel between an archer and a gunner. Yoo Yeonha found it ridiculous, but also intriguing.

“By the way, why are you doing this?”

Why did he keep provoking Chae Nayun? 

Kim Hajin spoke as though it was an obvious truth. “Chae Nayun’s real talent isn’t in bows.”

Yoo Yeonha couldn’t understand.

“If she gives up the bow, she can grow much further.”

Yoo Yeonha felt he sounded somewhat bitter. Then she slowly understood. Criticism also meant he cared. He had to carefully pay attention to spot her flaws. Just how long has he watched Chae Nayun to be so sure? Three months? Half a year? A year? Or perhaps even longer? Come to think of it…

Kim Hajin and Chae Nayun were in the same third year class at the Military Agent Academy. They would have been only 11 years old. Could it be that for six years, this guy…

Clunk!

“Ak!”

The HUV violently shook and stopped. Yoo Yeonha hit her head against the front seat.

“W-What’s going on!”

Yoo Yeonha wasn’t as experienced as Park Soohyuk and Kim Hajin. Park Soohyuk turned off the engine and spoke.

“This is the monster point. We’re getting off.”

“Monster point?”

“Ah, yes, it’s a place where many monsters appear…”

“I know what it is, but how do you know this is a monster point?”

“Monsters become more active near the end of April. The weaker ones will be pushed out, and this is a natural escape route. There are a few more places, but they’re all famous and crowded,” Park Soohyuk replied without hesitation as Yoo Yeonha stared at him in surprise. Her gaze fell back onto her smartwatch because of a message.

“Hmm… Well, I’ll be going now.”

“Huh? Didn’t you want to hunt with us?”

“Something came up just now. Plus, I only said I wanted to come with you, not that we would hunt together.”

Yoo Yeonha got out of the car. Essence of the Strait members came running from a distance.

“Then I’ll be off.”

“Yeah, see you later.”

“See you back at Cube.”

Yoo Yeonha turned back after looking again at Kim Hajin’s average appearance.

“Ah, by the way…”

She turned around as though she forgot something and reached out to Park Soohyuk.

“Can I get your business card?”

***

I focused on hunting and training for a week. I went to Wonju every day and hunted 15 monsters per day on average. The combination of aether and the Desert Eagle was undoubtedly overpowered. Even if I didn’t aim at any vital point, I could one or two shot any monster under low-intermediate rank, grade 6.

“Hm… It’s not going up by much.”

Wednesday arrived, and classes would resume in two days. Cadets returned and the archery bet between Chae Nayun and me had already spread.

[Master Sharpshooter] [Low-intermediate rank] [Spirit attribute] [Evolving — Grade 7] [Proficiency EXP 75%]

Master Sharpshooter was only 25% away from grade 6. I shot monsters for an entire week, but it didn’t even increase by 10% as the requirements rose exponentially.

“Will I be able to reach grade 6 in a month?”

I had to win the bet, but I felt uneasy at just grade 7.

Drrrr—

The room suddenly rumbled. Was it an earthquake? I quickly looked around, but it felt like I was at the center of it.

“Eh?”

The seed on my desk fiercely shook. I noticed that the blood had disappeared from the gauze I wrapped it in.

“Is it hungry?”

The shaking suddenly stopped when I asked. I was dumbstruck, but took out another gauze soaked with Rachel’s blood. Immediately, the seed happily trembled before burying itself into the gauze.

“Interesting.”

Was Rachel’s blood that delicious?

“Oh right.”

Soon, the traveling club would go on their next trip. I checked my smartwatch for an announcement.

[Traveling Club – There will be a trip this weekend.]

Unfortunately, the academics club ended because of Yun Hyun, and the hunting club was suspended because of Sven. I only had the traveling club left. Everything had happened according to the original story.

During this trip, another incident would occur. The traveling club would get caught up in an assassination.

The traveling club’s leader was kind and gentle, but his naivety made him the target of a French conman. The conman disguised himself as a wealthy businessman and coaxed the club leader into bringing the members to his giant mansion, saying that he would pay for all expenses. The club leader agreed after visiting France and enjoying his time.

However, the wealthy businessman was an infamous conman constantly under threat of assassination by individuals he previously conned. Although he didn’t care because most were powerless, he accidentally provoked a dangerous group called Shadow Step.

— Your life will be taken when Saturday turns to Sunday.

He received an assassination notice from Shadow Step, a notorious group known for targeting criminals.

The conman despaired. He couldn’t receive help from the Hero Association as a wanted criminal. He also didn’t have enough time to liquidate his assets and hire mercenaries. After pondering, he invited cadets to protect himself over the weekend. However, the event also held another secret.

“Hmm.”

I should be correct since the incident was supposed to happen a week after the combat exams.

Ding dong—

An alert from Violet Banquet popped up on the corner of my laptop screen. I clicked on it and received my first customer as the Truth Agency.

— Here is detailed information on someone I wish to find. He’s an evil man who conned my family and ran away. Can you tell me his location?

“What’s this?”

The stereotypical appearance of a conman with a beer belly, snake-like eyes, and chubby cheeks. This man was Belbet, the assassination target who would orchestrate the traveling club incident.

***

In a dark, abandoned factory, the Chameleon Troupe gathered for the first time in a while. Ten shadows stretched across the floor. All ten colors besides Black gathered to discuss the open seat, which had been empty for three years.

The shadows sat around a round table and watched a video projected by Droon. Droon’s gift could project or materialize anything he experienced with his five senses. It showed a person that he had observed. The ten shadows watched the video, some with curiosity and some with disapproval.

[KWANG—!]

“Oh geez, that surprised me.”

A thunderous gunshot with a brilliant white flash marked the end of the video. The leader of the shadows called for a discussion.

“Raise your hand if you see potential.”

However, the voting didn’t immediately begin as a high-pitched female voice quickly cut in.

“By the way, Boss…”

Boss stared at the beautiful Caucasian woman.

“When did we need to meet to analyze some greenhorn?”

Her complaint clashed with a man’s gentle voice.

“I think he has potential. Most importantly, I like that he doesn’t have parents or significant others.”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“If you don’t have anyone by your side, you start to indulge in other things. We might not be able to give honor, but we can give money.”

The Chameleon Troupe was one of the few groups on the Hero Association’s violet list. However, all their members remained anonymous.

The Chameleon Troupe guaranteed the freedom of its members. They could live their lives however they wished. The members only gathered to complete missions.

“So what, you want to recruit him? A kid who can be sent flying with a little nudge?”

“We’re strictly talking about his potential…”

“Quiet.”

Boss crushed the rising debate between the two members.

“From this young man…”

In truth, the Chameleon Troupe functioned like a mercenary group. Of course, their goal was much grander than just money. They always did what was necessary to achieve their goal. Currently, it was to kill the traitor.

“I confirmed the power of anti-magic.”

Boss glanced at Droon as he projected another video. The young man used an ordinary gun to fight an opponent using qi reinforcement. When his bullet shattered the qi reinforcement, the air felt heavier than before.

“… It’s illogical to think the same thing would work against that guy just because he managed to break a qi reinforcement on that level.”

“As I said, Jain, Boss didn’t say we were recruiting him right away. She asked if he had potential. At least in my eyes, he seems to have it.”

Jain glared at the man after his snarky rebuttal.

“Fine, let’s say we bring him in after he grows up. Black is the only color left, so is he getting that seat?”

Black wasn’t a color suitable for a greenhorn. It belonged to the man who betrayed the previous boss. The color black always belonged to the strongest member. This rule remained unchanged for over 20 years.

“Then I’ll take over that color.”

A giant man spoke up. Cheok Jungyeong had stayed silent this entire time.

“Rejected. You’re too stupid.”

“I also reject. I’m stronger.”

“Then what do you bastards want to do?”

“Aren’t there others? Are we just going to ignore Kim Suho and Shin Jonghak?”

“We’re going to vote on them next. This discussion is for who we’ll select as candidates.”

The members who had remained silent began to speak up one by one. Voices overlapped and caused a headache for Boss. She spoke in a subdued voice.

“Show of hands.”

Everyone quieted down.

“We’re voting.”

The troupe members voted 8:2. Jain already voiced her objection, and Cheok Jungyeong didn’t like the young man. The rest of the members voted in favor.

“Hmph.”

Jain snorted in dissatisfaction.

“By the way, Jain, take this. It’s an invitation letter for the VVIP masquerade party in France.”

“Oh, stealing that ring, right? Don’t worry.”

Jain didn’t sulk for long as she took the invitation with a bright face.