Chapter 581

〈 Chapter 581 〉 Part 2, Chapter 1, Section 11

“Yuna, do you know about Seok Harang?”

“Of course. How could I not know about the one and only <Snow Princess> in Korea….”

At my question, Yuna’s expression stiffened. She then carefully took out a notebook to communicate through written notes so that others wouldn’t hear.

– Are you planning to add Snow Princess to the next squad?

– Yeah, that’s right. From what I know, she awakened as an S Rank ability user and has been there for almost 12 years… Is that correct?

“…Yes.”

Yuna gave a bitter smile while nodding her head. Then, using Magical Gear, she pulled up information on Seok Harang.

<Snow Princess> Seok Harang.

Born in 2000, currently 26 years old in 2025.

The exact awakening time is unknown, but the date <Light Blade> discovered her at a Busan orphanage was in 2012—before the Pyongyang incident.

From the start, she awakened as an S Rank ability user and grew up as a hero from a young age. She’s so famous that it’s widely known: “If Light Blade exists in New Seoul, then Snow Princess exists in Busan.” A renowned S Rank ability user.

– And she represents the Korean Hero Association.

Since Light Blade has practically retired due to personal reasons, Seok Harang might as well be Korea’s representative hero. Adding such a representative hero to my squad would come with many difficulties.

– If Xian tries to recruit Snow Princess into the squad, people will rise up saying America is stealing S Ranks.

First drawback: public opinion.

People sensitive to the overseas drain of top talents won’t stay quiet. Even Baek Hee-a, who lurks behind political scenes despite disliking Sun Icheol, won’t let this slide.

– Moreover, recruiting an S Rank ability user requires astronomical amounts of money. Even if you call in billions per week, it’ll still fall short.

Second drawback: funding.

There’s a sort of ‘market price’ in this world. No matter how kind someone may be, contracts need to follow basic market economics. Hiring Korea’s representative hero Seok Harang at a discount would raise suspicions.

– People might even think Xian forced Snow Princess. Or… are you going to reveal your identity as Commander?

– No, I’ll keep it hidden entirely.

– Then it’ll definitely fail. If you reveal yourself as Commander and approach Seok Harang to promote her to SS Rank, it might work.

– How much would it cost?

– Hmm…minimum 1 billion per day?

“Insane.”

It was a contract so massive that gasps of astonishment slipped out naturally. Compared to other cost-effective teammates, this was just throwing money away.

– Yuna, did you know there are SS Rank ability users who can be hired for 30,000 won a day?

– What did you feed them to make an SS Rank ability user agree to that? Oh, wait…is this someone Xian has already cultivated?

– Nope.

She’s actually an assassin targeting my life.

‘Soon you’ll see.’

30,000 won.

An SS Rank ability user works over 52 hours a week, far exceeding the standard 40, when given six half-gallon containers of mint tea weekly. It’s neither a slave contract nor an unfair deal—it’d bury anyone socially once exposed—but since the contracting party isn’t human, it’s all fine.

– Anyway, to recruit Snow Princess, we need a proper market price.

– Do you have that kind of money?

– No. And why bother when we can take an E Rank and train them into SSS Rank for just 300 per month?

I subtly wrapped my arm around Yuna’s waist and whispered ‘300’ into her ear. Yuna smiled faintly and poked me in the ribs.

“My salary is 300?”

“I’ll renew it every time you level up.”

“…I guess I’ll have to work hard for re-signing.”

“Obviously.”

This level of conversation is perfectly fine spoken aloud. Of course, the content and substance can’t be discussed either verbally or in writing, but Yuna and I understand each other with just a glance.

– And the real issue is, we can’t secretly contact heroes like Seok Harang. There are reporters everywhere, and the government likely monitors them closely too.

– That’s true.

– So how do you plan to contact her?

“I’ll make her come to me. Bait.”

“Bait?”

Didn’t you say you wouldn’t reveal yourself as Commander? Tilting her head in confusion, Yuna questioned me with her eyes.

“Yuna, imagine if someone offered to make you D Rank. What would you think?”

“I’d be suspicious. How exactly do they plan to make me D Rank?”

“Exactly. Have you tried any spirit pills? Those things that supposedly boost magic power?”

“…Yeah. I bought a couple with money earned from part-time jobs, but they had no effect.”

Yuna sighed deeply. She must’ve bought expensive items worth hundreds of thousands, only to find them useless after consumption.

“That’s how it is for everyone.”

“Huh?”

“…Heh, actually, the bait has already been set.”

“Wha???”

Yuna was confused. I had already laid the groundwork long ago, both to build connections with heroes starting with Seok Harang and to form good relationships elsewhere.

Seok Harang. Yun Yuhwa. Baek Hee-a.

A truly excellent lure that none of them could resist.

“Yuna, here’s a quiz for you. What gets smaller as the alphabet increases?”

“…”

Yuna chuckled softly, pulling my hand toward her.

“You really match well with me. This was one of the quizzes I wanted to ask you.”

Of course. It’s one of the questions Yuna used to torment the protagonist. Unaware that I had turned her own quiz against her, Yuna guided my hand to the answer.

Thump, thump.

“About ten minutes until our history class arrives… Can we keep doing this?”

Yuna wrapped my arms around her back, placing my hands over hers, clutching her chest.

* * *

<January 3rd, 3 PM, Central Station Plaza, New Seoul>

Yuna left. As expected, her parents were waiting for her at the station concourse and greeted her.

[Please leave a message when you settle into your accommodation. Definitely!]

“Of course.”

For maximum efficiency, the cooldown timer should reset immediately after use. Since Yuna made efforts to get permission for an overnight stay, I need to prepare accordingly.

“Quest…”

The tutorial isn’t over yet. To complete it, I need to establish a personal workshop, a ‘base,’ where I can freely utilize the system.

<Notice>: Find an office and living quarters in New Seoul for daily life!

# [Office] is the place where you, the player, manage overall game progress.

# [Living Quarters] is the space where you, the player, can rest.

Mission Reward: Command Experience +100.

‘Once I secure an office and living quarters, the main game begins.’

From that point onward, players must recruit people themselves. Whether through job postings, legwork, or ghost companies, by March 1st, I need to gather as many high-quality teammates as possible.

‘Seok Harang will come looking if I draw enough attention.’

Not just Seok Harang, but Yun Yuhwa and Baek Hee-a too. I headed straight to an office to prepare for their arrival.

‘They’re already tailing me.’

As soon as I moved, people began following me one by one. They’re clearly monitoring why this blonde foreigner entered New Seoul.

‘That’s why I have a cover identity.’

Hollywood entry stimulating Korean vanity. Oracle Studio gives me legitimate reason to move around as a blonde Western man in New Seoul. Therefore, what I’m about to do is scout ability users aiming to become Hollywood actors.

“Hmph, not interested in idols? Haha, something like that.”

The man trailing behind is undoubtedly jotting down notes in his notebook.

Blonde Western man muttering about idols. Visiting for K-POP girl group recruitment??

‘They’re thinking I’m here to cultivate ability users, which is correct.’

Just not exporting them overseas; they’ll continue living within Korea.

‘Considering Sun Icheol’s intentions aren’t being followed, maybe taking talent isn’t entirely wrong?’

I chuckled involuntarily. Before I knew it, my steps brought me to a café I know all too well.

Café .

The world’s best barista, weary from long travels, settled in New Seoul and built this building.

“Excuse me—”

I opened the door wide and stepped into the coffee-scented café.

* * *

<At that moment, Hero Association, Busan Haeundae District.>

“Playing games caused delayed deployment…?”

The white-haired woman glared coldly across the table at the man, frost swirling around her. Fidgeting with her elegant OL-style suit’s white tie, the emotionless woman pushed papers forward.

“How many casualties?”

“…7 deaths, 18 severely injured.”

“For a dimensional gate opening at the airport, the damage was relatively minor.”

“Yes, yes. But…”

“If those overseas expedition hunters hadn’t been absent, casualties might’ve been tenfold.”

“…”

The man remained silent, unable to respond to the woman’s accusations.

“How was the emergency alarm for magical gear deactivated?”

“T-that’s confidential.”

“…Are you joking with me?”

The woman’s expression twisted in anger. Unable to contain her sudden rage, she discarded formalities, freezing the interrogation room window with a crack. She waved her hand to dissipate the magic.

“A dimensional gate opening is an urgent matter requiring all heroes to mobilize. You know very well the magical gear alarms are set to maximum output. Especially since the Kimhae International Airport falls under your jurisdiction. Did the alarm not sound?”

“T-that…”

“If the alarm didn’t sound, it means illegal modifications were made to the magical gear. If it sounded and was ignored, it’s a breach of hero duty.”

The woman decisively shook her head and lifted one of the seals beside her. The man slammed his desk and violently shook his head.

“Hold on! Give me another chance! Other heroes didn’t deploy either! It wasn’t necessarily me—”

“If you had acted promptly, those seven could’ve lived.”

“But, considering the circumstances with the dimensional gate at the airport, we handled it well—”

“Enough.”

Bang!

The woman stamped the seal. On the paper bearing the man’s profile, the two red characters ‘Cheongsong’ appeared.

“You’ll be sent to the correctional facility in Cheongsong.”

“Wait! Damn it! That’s a dogfight training camp for rookies! Princess, are you insane?!”

The man spewed curses and started gesturing wildly. The interrogation room door opened instantly, and men in suits restrained him.

“Hey! Princess! Just because you’re S Rank doesn’t mean everything! Don’t you have personal life too?! Are you seriously on standby 24/7 waiting for monsters?!”

“…As a hero, adjust your hobbies to allow for instant deployment. For example, reading or listening to music.”

The woman quietly stood up. Another hero accompanying her handed her a drink filled with blueberries.

“Here, Princess.”

“…Thank you.”

The woman called ‘Princess’—<Snow Princess> Seok Harang—took the tumbler and sipped briefly.

“It feels refreshing. How are the families of the victims compensated?”

“The association decided to offer financial compensation. Of course, it cannot compare to losing a family member…”

“There should be leftover cores from the last front line in Gangwon-do. Submit them to the government and request additional support for the victims’ families. Those bastards would otherwise just send flowers and do nothing.”

With her tumbler in hand, Seok Harang left and entered her exclusive personal room within the association. In the private space where no one else could see, Seok Harang conjured an ice balloon into the air.

Boom—!!

Seok Harang shattered the balloon with her fist. The broken ice turned into steam and dissipated, and she threw herself onto the bed.

“Being a hero…tsk.”

How could anyone excuse missing deployment because they were engrossed in a 5v5 game? The situation was dire enough that even Sun Icheol cut ties due to public backlash.

‘Something drastic is needed. A way to turn the public’s disappointment in heroes into hope.’

Seok Harang scoured the network. Though it only gave her headaches, she had to read online articles to gauge public sentiment.

“Later. Later.”

If she kept stressing over this, she might explode. Taking a deep breath, Seok Harang logged into the ‘auction house’ as usual.

“Is there any good gear today…?”

The freezing resistance coat she bought last time turned out to be useless. Checking her schedule until the next one, Seok Harang browsed the auction listings—

“…Wow, they’re selling this?”

Seok Harang couldn’t help but laugh at the seller’s audacity.

“Saying ‘Fengyuhuan’? Ridiculous.”

Seok Harang smirked and closed her eyes.

“Tch. What idiot dropped 200 million on such a scam item…? Waste of money.”

Seok Harang’s eyes lit up.

“I’ll buy it and expose the scammer.”

Absolutely, without bias.