Chapter 789: The Last (22)

-What are you talking about…

Cho Hyejin seemed surprised. She looked visibly shook. At this point, I thought it wouldn’t be strange if Elios ran away at that moment, to be honest.

“You’d better make a scouting offer.”

I didn’t know what kind of possibility I saw in Elena, but Belial, who was applauding with admiration, started to contact someone. I wanted to tell them to stop, but I couldn’t take my eyes off the morning drama happening right in front of me.

It was heartbreaking. There was no one willing to interrupt the silence that had surrounded them.

Hwang Jeong-yeon, who was famous for being a drama lover, was looking at the two with apparent interest. Meanwhile, Elena had no intention of letting the situation pass. Was she still not aware of what she had done wrong? She seemed to be out of her mind due to her brother’s shouts.

-This has happened before! This isn’t right. Even if you hunker down and make a cage like that, you know better than anyone else that that’s not going to solve anything.

-…

-It’s never beneficial to hide a problem. I can’t believe you’ve already forgotten the lessons you’ve learned from the past! I knew your spirit was weak from the beginning, but I didn’t expect you to insist on your stubbornness even under such a dire moment.

She was pushing him into a corner. Sh*t. Wow…

-…

At first glance, it seemed like a simple argument, but in my mind, she seemed to be beating an opponent who had lost the will to resist.

-It’s always been like that since we were kids. Even if you take matters into your own hands, you won’t be able to solve this.

-Elena.

-What are you going to do now? Are you going to make the same choice as last time? You have to tell the soldiers! Come on, give them your orders! Shouldn’t you have told them to detain us? Are you going to keep Cho Hyejin, your crush, bound and caged in Eberia?

‘Don’t say it twice, damn it… Don’t remind me again.’

-Humans and elves are different from the past. You should know that best! Less than a year has passed since we joined forces to protect the continent! You still don’t believe in humans! Cho Hyejin is also a human being. She’s a human being!

‘Okay, stop it… Please stop…’

-Sigh… Sigh… Sigh…

-…

-Please get out of the way. Eberia isn’t the only one suffering from this problem. The loss of the World Tree is detrimental for all of us.

There was no answer, but Elena began to step forward. The Blue Guild members followed her after making eye contact with each other once. Of course, Elios couldn’t stop Elena. He was already in a state where he couldn’t even stand up.

Apart from the merciless mental beating Elena did, he would have realized that there was nothing wrong with what she said. There were no other means.

The Blue Guild members would’ve been forced to subdue them. Meanwhile, Hayan had her eyes wide open.

It was a good thing that Eberia didn’t disappear like dust under the weight of gravity. All he could do for Elena was say a word quietly as she passed by.

-I also understand humans. I understand them better because of the last war, Elena.

-…

-What they can do, how strong they are, how strong they can make themselves… that’s what I’m talking about.

-As long as my colleagues are around, their blades won’t be heading towards the elves.

She looked pretty cool as she walked past him lightly with firm steps.

Cho Hyejin was also trying to pass by Elios with a wary look. She spoke awkwardly due to what happened earlier. Anyone would’ve noticed she felt uncomfortable.

-I want you to forgive me for being rude, Elios, but this issue is… I just want you to know it’s a big issue of great importance…

-No. I’d like to apologize. You must have been very shaken.

-It’s okay. I’m sure Elena was mistaken. Ha… ha… That was ridiculous, wasn’t it? I know better than anyone else that it’s nonsense. I don’t care at all, so Elios…

-Not really.

-What?

-What she said about me having something for you. I don’t think that’s nonsensical at all.

-Ah…

‘You sh*t…’

-Yeah…

‘You son of a bitch.’

The son of Elune spoke the same gibberish.

-Then… please excuse me.

He turned around and went inside as if he didn’t have any regrets.

Cho Hyejin was visibly confused. Standing in place as if shocked for a moment, she seemed surprised rather than shaken.

How could that happen in such a chaotic time? Sh*t, I was so speechless that I had to cough to break the silence.

“What is it?”

-I… I don’t know.

“Have you two ever met?”

-No, I haven’t met him privately. We would just meet in a public place and have a cup of tea or a meal together… Of course, we were with others. I don’t know. I…

“It’s both shady and insidious.”

-…

“Well, it’s pointless to talk about this right now, but he doesn’t seem like a very healthy person. Just keep that in mind. I’m saying this as a friend. I’ve had a few drinks with him, so I know. There’s an insidious side to him.”

Her silence was almost the same as saying, “It’s none of your business, Vice Guild Master.”

“Just think of it as a friend’s advice and let it slide. I don’t want to talk about this extensively at a time like this. Let’s hurry up and go in. We need to see what exactly is going on.”

-…

“Hurry up.”

-Yes.

One step behind the other guild members, she entered Eberia.

I thought about what to do if she couldn’t concentrate on her work. Cho Hyejin slowly looked around the city.

Elena, who was the first to enter, was already kneeling on the floor and shedding tears. Other guild members’ reactions weren’t much different.

I already checked the image of Eberia with a telescope, but I was still a little shocked by the scenery that had changed so much.

No elves were living around the World Tree, the Tree of Life. I didn’t know if it was burned or rotten, but it had been twisted into a bizarre shape.

The faces of the other elves were all painted with anxiety and worry.

‘Ha…’

What was a bit of a relief was that the detained people seemed to understand the situation.

They seemed sympathetic to the bad luck that had happened to the elves and why they had no choice but to take such measures. The elves also seemed to be holding them as humanely as possible and were demanding cooperation rather than coercion.

Of course, not everyone was the same.

-You’ll have to explain what’s going on right now. Our guild would’ve never let this happen.

-Do you have any idea what you guys are doing? This is a violation of continental law, you pieces of sh*t!

-Oh, sh*t… I had an important meeting. Damn it…

-I don’t know what you’re doing right now, but I assure you, your entire race will be responsible for this.

Some dangerous individuals were certainly holding on too forcefully.

-The Blue Guild!

-The Blue Guild is here! Jung Hayan! Jung Hayan! Please help us!

They were yelling at the party that suddenly appeared. It seemed like they were hoping that we could solve the situation, but that wasn’t our concern.

-Cho Hyejin!

Their anger was understandable. It wouldn’t have been nice to be held there on purpose. Ah, except for those who were spouting some tribal chauvinist remarks.

‘Sh*t, there are still people like that?’

Cho Hyejin looked at them with uncomfortable eyes.

-Do you have any idea who’s making a good living here or even know what you’re doing? Do you want to go back to the old days, you filthy elves?

‘He’s just gonna have to die.’

-Cho Hyejin! Cho Hyejin!

Cho Hyejin kept being called out. She was making the same face as to when we first met.

“Please say something, Hyejin.”

-The Blue Guild can’t solve your problems.

-…

-I’m here to investigate the great loss of the continent. I understand that you are experiencing inconveniences, but the least you can do in the Kingdom of Eberia is to keep calm. The loss of the World Tree is a loss not only to the Kingdom of Eberia but also to the entire continent. I don’t want to believe it, but there is a possibility that some of you here may have done it.

-What do you mean?

-I’m just saying there might be a suspect here. Of course, it’s unlikely… As far as it goes…

-What are you talking about? Are you crazy?!

-Oh, now I know what happened, you little sh*t. The Blue Guild, those bastards, had sided with the dirty elves. They still think Blue Guild is still the old Blue, guys.

‘…’

-Do you think we’ll stay still if you come out like that? Do you have any idea what I mean when I say I know the Republic’s giant guilds well? Not all the people here look like commoners, do they? Do you want to lose all of your clients? If you’re a hero of the continent, you better act like a hero! You crazy bitch!

Cho Hyejin bit her lips tightly.

I felt like her eyes were going to spin, too.

‘Ha… Sh*t… Really…’

It was ridiculous, so I couldn’t even speak properly.

I knew the guild was a mess, but I didn’t think the Blue had fallen to this level.

There were crazy people everywhere, but at least in the past, they wouldn’t say such things so openly.

Was it because of the problem within the guild? Even though Jung Hayan was there, such insane remarks still came out.

Was it because Kim Hyunsung only acted like a Guild Master on his business card? Did they want him to retire?

Or was it because of the news that Jung Hayan was moving to the Magic Tower? Maybe because of the financial collapse and sh*t’s inexplicable apocalypse? Or maybe it was because I got busted?

What was even more absurd was that Cho Hyejin couldn’t say anything. I didn’t understand what she was thinking about. Why didn’t she know that we didn’t have to worry about what would happen next? Sh*t.

-…

“…”

“Kill him, Hyejin.”

-What?

“Kill him.”

-What are you talking about?

“No, don’t kill him. Just scare him. Don’t hold back and do what you want. You don’t have to put up with it. Why are you holding it in? It’s a really sh*tty view. I don’t like our guild being put to shame like that. It’s ridiculous to think that we’ve fallen so low that we’re being treated so poorly. Sh*t. Republic? The Republic?”

Being treated like that by a useless extra was embarrassing.

‘Why were these bastards allowed to live?’

In fact, manager Kim Mi-young wasn’t the one to blame, but the reality made me grind my teeth.

-But…

“I’ll take responsibility, so do as you please.”

Soon after, Cho Hyejin, who bit her lips tightly, slowly approached the man.

The pig looked at her with a triumphant expression and thought something different would come from her.

However, it didn’t take that long for his expression to change.

His face, which had a dirty smile, began to turn cold and sweaty, and his legs were shaking uncontrollably. It was also noticeable that his whole body was trembling and that he couldn’t breathe properly.

In the end, he even wet the floor.

Cho Hyejin was pressuring him.

-Say that again.

-Kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk…

-I told you to repeat what you said.

-…

‘You’re going too easy on him.’

However, Cho Hyejin’s stress seemed to have been relieved to some extent. I could take care of him anyway.

-Please keep the order and comply with the command. If you follow them, there will be no harm to your safety.

‘It’s too weak.’

I thought the picture that Lee Jihye wanted would be completed. The Red Mercenary was now closing their doors, and the Black Swan was silent.

The Blue Guild had fallen to the ground, which in turn meant that Lindel’s three major guilds weren’t keeping the center.

The guild led by Yuno Kasugano had also been disbanded.

The country had been patched down, and hidden bugs were crawling out.

Of course, none came out from Blue. There wouldn’t be anyone who wants to beat up Kim Hyunsung.

However, it was likely that they were secretly moving for their own benefit. I thought the work would start here, but…

The news that came soon gave me no choice but to reconsider the hypothesis so far.

-It… it might explode.

-…

-It might explode like this. If the remains of it do… The whole area will be blown away.