Chapter 55: Bound To Win (2)

After leaving the Sanctum, Kwon Oh-Jin returned home.

Song Ha-Eun, smoking on the stairs, noticed him and got up.

“You really did come back quickly.”

“Told you.”

“You lie all the time. How am I supposed to trust you?” she asked, walking over to him. “How’s Vega?”

“She reacted just like you did.”

When he woke up a few days ago after being unconscious for three whole days, she burst into tears and embraced him tightly.

“F-Fuck off!” she yelled, her face flushing red. She kicked him in the shin.

Smack!

“Ow!”

“My god, stop overreacting. Oh, right, someone named Han Jun-Man from the association came by while you were gone. He kinda looked like a gorilla.”

He stopped by? Well, he has been coming over almost daily to check on me lately.

“What’d you tell him?” he asked.

“What do you think? I told him you're still in and out of it, then sent him off.”

“Nice. Good job.”

He was still avoiding the association under the excuse that he hadn’t fully recovered his senses yet.

There are some things I need to handle in the meantime.

If word got out that he was awake, he would be flooded with calls and inquiries given his central role in the demonic beast incident. Only Song Ha-Eun and Vega knew he was completely fine now.

Oh, and Riarc too.

He had managed to take care of some preliminary tasks in the last few days.

“What’re you having for lunch?” Song Ha-Eun asked.

“A protein bar.”

She frowned. “Hey.”

“

Hahaha!

Just kidding. I’ve got some stuff to do today, so I’m skipping lunch.”

“Really?

Hmm...

then I guess I’ll eat later too.”

"Why?”

“I have things to do, too,” she said as she walked toward the door to head outside.

“Where are you going?”

“It’s a secret.”

“Since when do we keep secrets from each other?” he asked.

“You’re one to talk,” she retorted, flipping him off. “Anyway, I’m heading out, so behave yourself while I'm gone.”

“Hmm.”

He wasn’t really in any situation to behave.

“Oh, right, Ha-Eun,” he called out, suddenly remembering something.

“Hm?”

“If something happens to me, don’t worry, okay?”

Her eyes narrowed as she turned to face him. “What are you planning this time?”

“

Haha!

I’ve got some things to take care of, that's all," he replied. "Just letting you know in advance so you don’t worry too much.”

“What kind of things?”

“It’s a secret.”

“You little brat.”

She pestered him for a while, but he didn’t budge. Eventually, she sighed in defeat. “It better not be anything serious.”

𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

“It’s not.”

“Alright then, I’ll trust you on that. I’ll get going now.”

She walked away, glancing back anxiously before fading out of sight.

She’s sharp enough to pick up on what I meant.

Song Ha-Eun knew him and his antics better than anyone. He was sure she wouldn’t panic now, no matter what happened.

“Now then, before I get started...”

He reviewed all the intel he'd gathered over the last four days.

First, there's that thing buried in the center of Sokcho.

The black haze that Song Ha-Eun had destroyed was still an enigma. By the time he returned to investigate, there was no trace of it left.

Could it be connected to the monster beneath Seoul Station?

While nothing like the grotesque, fleshy monster had appeared this time, both incidents involved some mysterious power hidden beneath a city.

“I have no idea, honestly.”

The link between them was too thin to draw conclusions. Without knowing what kind of power had been buried in those places, making assumptions was risky.

At the very least, I know that both are tied to the power of the Black Star.

The Black Star Society likely wasn't worshipping just one entity. Just as there were multiple Celestials in the Sanctum, there could be several deities associated with the Black Star.

Vega also mentioned that the energy she felt under Seoul Station was different from the gate in Mokdong. Let’s just move on from this for now.

“Next is...”

Kwon Oh-Jin opened his skill window, reviewing the three skills he had acquired during the subjugation mission: Exceed, Transformation, and Water Affinity.

Exceed is not something I can test right now.

Vega had firmly stated that it wasn't a skill to be used recklessly.

Transformation is exactly what I imagined.

He turned to the mirror and activated the skill.

Crack!

He shrank in size and then expanded again. He transformed his face to look like someone else, then reshaped his vocal cords to change his voice.

“This skill is insane.”

Although it consumed a fair chunk of mana, it wasn’t overly burdensome. If used cleverly, its potential applications were endless.

Especially for me.

It wasn’t like just giving wings to a tiger but strapping jet engines onto it. Honestly, he felt like acquiring Transformation was a bigger gain for him than obtaining the Stigma of Aquarius.

He grinned brightly. “Very nice.”

And lastly...

He frowned slightly. Thinking about the final skill made him sigh deeply.

“Water Affinity's kind of a pain in the ass.”

When I first read the description, I thought it was an OP skill.

However, after testing it, it was entirely different from what he had imagined. While the skill could indeed absorb water to heal injuries...

“It needs way too much water.”

Even healing a minor scratch needs dozens of liters of water. A bleeding wound requires over a hundred liters.

As impressive as the skill was, lugging around hundreds of liters of water wasn't exactly practical when he could just carry a few high-grade potions instead.

It’s not like I’ve got a game inventory on me.

Trying to pull a trick like absorbing moisture from the air doesn’t work either.

“This is only useful near a river or the ocean. Otherwise, it’s pretty much impractical in battle,” he remarked.

It seemed handy for quickly treating injuries after a fight. If he could find a nearby bathhouse and soak himself in some water, he would be able to heal most of his injuries.

Even then, it only works for external wounds.

He had discovered that the skill couldn’t heal internal injuries caused by excessive mana use.

“

Tsk...

Still, it’s better than nothing, I guess. All right, that’s enough reviewing.”

It was time to deal with the Pandinus Guild, but that was actually laughably simple, so much so that it felt anticlimactic.

Clearing his throat, he dialed Han Jun-Man’s number.

—

Oh-Jin?

Is that you? Have you regained consciousness?!

“Yes. I’ve recovered significantly, though I'm still a bit hazy.”

—

Whew

, thank goodness.

Wow, that’s actually touching.

Kwon Oh-Jin was a little moved by the genuine relief in Han Jun-Man’s voice, but now wasn’t the time for sentimentality.

“I caught up on the news as soon as I woke up. Seems like a lot happened over the past week.”

—Are you referring to the Pandinus Guild?

“Yes.”

—There’s a lot I wanted to ask you about that. Can you come to the association right now?

“Actually, I need to ask for a favor first.”

—A favor?

Kwon Oh-Jin calmly responded, "Please prepare a press conference. I have definitive proof linking the Pandinus Guild to Choi Jong-Cheol.”

A gasp of disbelief echoed through the line.

—W-What?! Oh-Jin, are you serious?

“Yes. Choi Jong-Cheol was not connected to the Starlight Lake Guild at the time of the incident.”

—This is...

Han Jun-Man trailed off, shocked. If Kwon Oh-Jin was telling the truth, it would dramatically overturn public opinion on the issue.

—Understood. I’ll make the arrangements immediately. How about holding the press conference in Yeouido?

“Yes, that would be safe and convenient.”

—Please be careful, Oh-Jin. If this information spreads, there’s no telling what might happen.

Han Jun-Man sounded tense, indicating the seriousness of the issue.

“I understand. Oh... in that regard, could you arrange a bodyguard for me at the press conference since I haven’t fully recovered yet?”

—A bodyguard... All right. Leave it to me.

Han Jun-Man spoke with confidence.

—I know just the guy.

Kwon Oh-Jin already knew he was referring to one of the top three Awakeners in the association.

“Got it. I’ll wait for your call, then.”

—I’ll get back to you within an hour.

The call ended.

“Well then, I should get ready too.”

Not that there's much to prepare for.

Woong!

The Stigma on his chest began to glow—not with its usual crackling blue lightning but a quiet luminescence instead.

***

Before entering the press conference venue, Kwon Oh-Jin exchanged greetings with the bodyguard from the association.

“I’m Special Agent Choi Woo-Jin,” the man said, his eyes sharp and cold.

“I’ve heard a lot about you.”

Choi Woo-Jin was a famous special agent known as the Hunting Dog for relentlessly pursuing cases till the end.

“It’s a bit odd for a special agent to be guarding another special agent, but given the circumstances, I’ll let it slide,” Choi Woo-Jin said. His cold gaze made it clear he wasn’t thrilled to be working with Kwon Oh-Jin.

Fair enough. It's no surprise he doesn’t like me.

From Choi Woo-Jin's perspective, Kwon Oh-Jin had become a special agent by leveraging his connections and his title as an apostle of the North Star. However, Kwon Oh-Jin wasn't concerned; Choi Woo-Jin wasn’t the type to neglect his duty just because he disliked someone.

“This way,” he urged, guarding Kwon Oh-Jin as he entered the press conference venue.

Camera flashes burst in rapid succession.

Click! Click! Click!

“Mr. Oh-Jin! Could you explain what happened that day?”

“Is it true that it’s only been six months since you awakened?!”

“You're being praised as a national hero! How do you feel about that?”

Kwon Oh-Jin stepped up onto the podium, ignoring all the questions. After scanning the crowd of reporters, he said, “Nice to meet you all. I’m Special Agent Kwon Oh-Jin from the association.”

He bowed before continuing, “I won’t be taking any questions today.”

“You’re not accepting questions?”

The reporters looked at Kwon Oh-Jin, baffled. If he wasn’t going to take questions, what was the point of holding a press conference?

“I’m here today because there is a crucial truth I must share with all of you,” Kwon Oh-Jin calmly said. “When I fought against Choi Jong-Cheol, who had transformed into a demonic beast, I discovered an important fact about him.”

“What is this fact?!” a reporter yelled.

“Choi Jong-Cheol... was not a member of the Star Lake Guild. He belonged to the Pandinus Guild.”

Kwon Oh-Jin’s statement sent shockwaves through the press conference.

“What?!”

“I-Is that true?!”

“D-Do you have evidence to prove this?!”

Evidence? Obviously—

“Of course I do—

Kugh! Agh!”

—he had no such thing.

Screams echoed through the venue.

“

Aaaaaah!

”

“B-Blood! There’s blood!”

“What’s happening?!”

Kwon Oh-Jin coughed out dark red blood clots.

“Kugh! Kgh!”

He collapsed on the spot, convulsing violently as his eyes rolled back. Choi Woo-Jin urgently rushed over.

“Damn it!”

A surge of intense energy erupted from Choi Woo-Jin.

Rumble!

“What the hell is going on?! What’s happening?!”

“H-He’s not dead... is he?”

“Just get it on camera, quick!”

Though panicking and confused, the reporters kept taking photos and videos.

“Mr. Oh-Jin! Are you okay?! Wake up!” Choi Woo-Jin shouted.

“Kugh!”

"Damn it! Call the emergency team! Now!”

His gaze dropped to the dark red blood pooling on the floor. He dipped a finger into it and brought it to his tongue, causing him to frown.

Spitting it out, he muttered gravely, “This is... poison. He’s been poisoned.”

His eyes sharpened as he turned to the association members nearby.

“Seal off the entrance," he ordered. “From this point on, everyone here is a suspect.”

Choi Woo-Jin’s cold, piercing gaze swept across the reporters in the room.