Chapter 18. The Corroded Staff

As Kim Do-Joon took down the last remaining team, a voice sounded from the drone filming him.

— The exam has now concluded.

He straightened up and looked around. The contraction of the circular barrier around the forest had shrunk the once-vast battlefield to a small arena that forced the last five teams into conflict. To the surprise of the guild managers watching the exam, Kim Do-Joon was the only one of the final fourteen fighters who remained standing.

This is unbelievable... Just how many did he defeat on his own?

The other examinees didn't stand a chance—not even with seven of them working in tandem!

At one point, two teams had joined forces to engage Kim Do-Joon. However, it was an exercise in futility. Although numbers were on their side, they were still nothing more than a disorganized group of strangers. Their flimsy coordination was no threat to Kim Do-Joon, a fighter long seasoned against hordes of enemies.

He casually brushed the dust off his shoulders as his gallery of thirteen fallen examinees peered up at him with uniform expressions of shock and defeat. Before them was an immense wall of talent that no amount of effort could overcome.

They didn’t realize that, in stark contrast to their nurturing inside a greenhouse, Kim Do-Joon had already grappled with death multiple times. Moreover, he had his additional effects at his disposal.

"Thank you for your hard work," he told the medics. With the other contestants carted away for healing, Kim Do-Joon was the only one to board a helicopter back.

The moment he disembarked at the headquarters, he was swarmed by guild managers, each showing the same fervor they had shown Kang Jae-Jun.

"I'm Seo Jung-Woo from Gukseon! Could I give you my business card?"

"We're from the Barriers Guild! We might not be the cream of the crop, but we have a long history!"

"Mr. Kim Do-Joon! Congratulations on achieving first place! Could you spare me a moment of your time?"

Kim Do-Joon calmly accepted their business cards, but his response was firm.

"Thank you all for your interest, but I cannot provide you with a concrete answer at the moment. I will contact you later, so please, why don't we call it a day?"

His words, though polite, made his stance clear. He was taking their cards and no more. The managers were impressed by his attitude.

Just as expected!

How about that? Thanks to his age, he's far more composed than a certain somebody.

He carries himself with confidence and has the skills to back it up!

Exhibiting standard courtesy was normally nothing to write home about. However, Kim Do-Joon's professionalism was a breath of fresh air when compared to Kang Jae-Jun’s insolence.

"If that is all, I'll be heading in."

The managers watched Kim Do-Joon leave. Lee Ji-Ah naturally fell in step behind him. Just before they made it out of earshot, he heard someone call out to him.

"Please wait a moment, sir!" Oh Sang-Jin exclaimed, smiling affably as he approached. He had just returned from bringing Kang Jae-Jin to Director Jang. "I saw how you did in the exam. You were outstanding!"

Oh Sang-Jin’s obsequiousness made Lee Ji-Ah's eyebrows twitch with annoyance. Due to past experiences, she was not the biggest fan of the Karma Guild.

Thankfully, he did not glance her way.

"And you are?" Kim Do-Joon asked, his tone unchanged from his talk with the other managers.

"I'm Oh Sang-Jin from the Karma Guild. The Guild Master’s my father."

"Oh," Kim Do-Joon said with a hint of surprise. "So you're his son."

Seeing Kim Do-Joon's reaction, Oh Sang-Jin's smile widened.

That's right, be surprised. I was worried he held a grudge, but his reaction wasn’t half-bad.

Thinking things would go smoothly, Oh Sang-Jin handed Kim Do-Joon his business card. "Mind if we talk in private, sir? I'd like to apologize on behalf of the guild."

"You want to apologize?"

There was no reason for the Karma Guild to apologize. They were one of the nation’s top five guilds, and a single Gatherer's disappearance would barely make the news. Rather, it was a personal incentive driving Oh Sang-Jin. He needed to preemptively appease his powerful brother, with whom he was already on thin ice.

If another mistake gets out...

Oh Sang-Jin could very well be tossed onto the streets with nothing to his name. His brother was more than capable of it.

"Yes, I'd like to formally apologize to you. Would you be available?" he asked. Suddenly lowering his voice, he continued, "I was also hoping to recruit you to our guild. As a glimpse of your future with us, Kang Jae-Jun, whom you defeated, signed with us for twenty billion!"

He had cast some irresistible bait: an apology sweetened with the mention of twenty billion won. Of course, he wouldn’t actually offer Kim Do-Joon the same amount. He'd find excuses to lower it significantly once Kim Do-Joon was hooked.

This should be enough to grab his attention.

Oh Sang-Jin was confident that Kim Do-Joon would take the bait. Who could refuse an offer for an apology sprinkled with money? Once hooked, Oh Sang-Jin would lead the man to the rendezvous where Karma’s subordinates were lying in wait.

"I'm sorry, but my answer remains the same: I'll contact you later if necessary. Thank you, and goodbye," Kim Do-Joon said.

"... What?" replied Oh Sang-Jin, blinking in disbelief. "Wait a minute!"

As Kim Do-Joon made to walk past him, Oh Sang-Jin grabbed his arm. Kim Do-Joon turned around and gave him a frigid look, causing Oh Sang-Jin to flinch and release his grip.

"U-uh..." he mumbled, stumbling over his words.

With his second look, Oh Sang-Jin saw that the coldness had melted off Kim Do-Jun’s face, making way for his usual calm demeanor. Confused and flustered, Oh Sang-Jin watched Kim Do-Joon walk away unimpeded. The inexplicable chill that ran down his spine prevented Oh Sang-Jin from getting in his way.

Oh Sang-Jin remained frozen and dazed until he heard the murmurs starting about him. The other managers smirked and whispered among themselves, mocking his failure. He gritted his teeth, the smarmy smile having long been wiped from his face.

That's fine. We'll see when you contact me.

Kim Do-Joon might have ignored him had he only brought up recruitment, but Oh Sang-Jin was certain that the word of an apology would pull him back. Kim Do-Joon didn't seem the sort to make a fuss on broadcast or online, so he figured that he would want to hear him out, then come to a decision.

Well then... I’ll await your call, sir.

After all, Oh Sang-Jin was a patient man.

***

Upon returning to Seoul, Kim Do-Joon treated Lee Ji-Ah to dinner. It was the least he could do after she had spent her day escorting him to and from the exam, with her manning the wheel for hours on end.

"Thank you for the meal," Lee Ji-Ah said.

"No, thank you for the ride."

After having dinner, Kim Do-Joon declined her offer to be soon off and went their separate ways from the restaurant. He enjoyed the evening air as he walked home.

On his way, he pondered the business cards that he had received earlier that day. No matter how much he thought about it, he didn't find value in joining a guild right out of the gate.

If I joined one now, I'd just end up being another garden-variety newbie. What support can I even get with that?

The benefits of not joining a guild were clear. He would have the freedom to move without constraint. Without the intricacies of guild bureaucracies to drag him down, he could focus on challenging labyrinths as he wished.

The only reason to consider joining a guild would be if he wanted to use dungeons instead.

As he walked under the streetlights, he sifted through the dozen or so cards, deciding to hold on to them for future reference. However, the one from the Karma Guild stood out from the rest.

Well... I won't need this one, that's for sure.

With a snort, Kim Do-Joon crumpled up Oh Sang-Jin's card.

If they were going to apologize, they should have done it sooner. Had they paid any attention to the incident, they would have already known he'd returned. After all, they were bound to have connections within the Association.

The fact that they had only approached him when the exam was over indicated that they either had no interest in the incident or initially had no intention of apologizing. Neither was acceptable.

Twenty billion is tempting, sure, but they didn't guarantee it.

Had Kim Do-Joon been an inexperienced youth, he might have fallen over himself in his excitement. The thirty-five-year-old man of today, however, knew the con. Recruiters would cast some enticing bait, only to lowball on their offers later.

He was not someone to be fooled by hollow promises.

I'll send my rejections to the other guilds, but Karma? I'll just ignore them.

In the end, only the most desperate would make their move first. Kim Do-Joon was in no hurry.

As he left, the streetlight cast its light upon the crumpled business card rolling on the ground.

***

The next day, Kim Do-Joon woke from a long and restful sleep. He went for a quick morning workout and then entered the labyrinth.

[You have defeated a monster. You have gained Experience Points(EXP).]

Every mob he had come across inside the Tier 3 Collapsed Temple had a Compatibility of thirty-seven percent. They were much stronger than any other monster he had faced yet, and they swarmed in great numbers.

His options were limited, leaving him unable to clear the map. Instead, he decided to pick off stragglers one at a time.

That way, I can still gain Experience Points.

For now, that was his limit. Trapped in the courtyard, he could not dream of approaching the massive temple standing tall in the distance.

Thankfully, the courtyard had plenty of structures in the form of giant pillars and small outposts he could use to hide.

They're called the Corrupted Disciples...? Honestly, they look more like ghouls.

With their rotting skin, hollow eyes, and tattered monk-like robes, the Corrupted Disciples wandering the courtyard looked like zombies and ghouls from movies.

So, zombies clad in monks' wear, huh?

Robed up, their appearance felt genre-breaking. Then again, there were plenty of movies with nuns turned demons, so perhaps it wasn't as odd as he thought.

Maybe I'd be better off finding a weapon imbued with divine power...

As Kim Do-Joon looked for a place to hide, he contemplated his strategies.

Then, he noticed something.

Huh?

[Corroded Staff of Faith]

Inside one of the small outposts, he found an item.