novelraw Chapter 57 : Chapter 57
Chapter 57 : Chapter 57
Chapter 57: The First Mission (1)
“Oh! Yu-seong and Jin-oh, you were already here!”
The three arrived shortly after the employee delivered the message and departed.
While the others also offered their greetings, Kim Su-hyeok, in particular, ran toward us with a delighted expression.
I wondered why he was so happy to see us, considering we had sweated through training together just a few days ago. He was truly an impressive fellow every time I saw him.
After chatting with us for a while about various things, Kim Su-hyeok seemed to remember something and bowed his head toward Cha Yu-na.
“Ah! I am sorry. I was so glad to see the others that I failed to greet you properly. Thank you for inviting us today!”
“Hehe, yes. You are a very polite friend.”
Our Su-hyeok even has bright manners. Even though he is not my own child, a satisfied smile unknowingly formed on my face.
However, I was carefully managing my expression, fearing that I might be misunderstood if I smirked too much, when Cha Yu-na spoke to us with a bright smile after finishing her greetings with Oh Jin-eon and Do Gang-ho.
“Now that everyone is gathered, why don't we get straight to the point? Time is gold for all of you, after all.”
Since there was no reason to refuse, I immediately nodded to express my agreement. The other children did the same.
Satisfied with our reaction, Cha Yu-na continued speaking.
“Right. Then, it seems we will be having a conversation first. Is coffee alright for everyone?”
“Yes! We are fine with anything.”
“Good. Then we will go with coffee. Everyone, please take a seat.”
As she spoke, Cha Yu-na sat back down in the seat where she had been sitting earlier.
The other boys and I also took our seats around her.
Once she confirmed that everyone was ready to talk, Cha Yu-na immediately opened the conversation.
“Do all of you know how the structure of Glory works?”
“I do not know it that well.”
What I knew were the large and small incidents that broke out at Glory, not the structure of Glory itself.
Therefore, rather than pretending to know, I told Cha Yu-na the truth.
“I see. In fact, unless you have a lot of influence or come from a good family, you generally do not know about such things. Ah, Cadet Jin-oh, do you happen to know anything?”
“No. I do not have much interest in it either.”
“Fine. Then I will give you a brief explanation first. It will be better for you to hear it since it is related to what we are about to discuss.”
She was right.
Is it not human nature that knowing any information is better than not knowing?
Furthermore, since it was information provided by Cha Yu-na, it was certain that it would not be useless, so I listened closely to her words.
“First of all, you all likely know that external contact becomes possible for first-years once the first midterm exams are over.”
“Yes.”
“But in truth, saying that external contact becomes possible is just a formality. From this period, cadets who show potential receive missions or benefits from various guilds.”
“Ah….”
“Well, that does not necessarily mean you have to join a guild. It is more like, ‘Our guild is this good, so give it some thought.’ Does that make sense?”
“Aha, I see.”
“To put it simply, it feels like a one-month free trial. You can think of it that way.”
A one-month free trial. Was that not a bit of an odd expression for the guildmaster of the Horizon Guild to use?
However, it felt like her point hit home perfectly.
“So, I am planning to do the same with all of you. To be honest, this is a first for me, but there are so many exceptional children in this class.”
‘Then again, a place like the Horizon Guild would have no reason to do something like this normally.’
A place like the Horizon Guild would have people knocking on their door even if they did nothing.
They say that the supreme number one does not move, and the Horizon Guild was exactly like that.
This was a very special case.
‘They must have moved because of the special factor called Shin Yu-hwan.’
Of course, as Cha Yu-na said, it was also true that there were exceptional individuals like Kim Su-hyeok and Ryu Jin-oh in this class.
Even though the Horizon Guild soared to become the number one guild under Cha Yu-na’s leadership, a guild is strictly a group, not an individual.
No matter how much Cha Yu-na wanted to use the power of the guild to carry out such a task, there had to be a corresponding reason.
If the number one guild said they were doing this for people who had nothing, it was obvious that public sentiment would sour, even for Cha Yu-na.
In such a situation, Kim Su-hyeok and Ryu Jin-oh were perfect candidates to justify this action.
Think about it. Ryu Jin-oh of the Ryu family, whom even the head of a nation cannot treat lightly, and Kim Su-hyeok, who is evaluated by the public as someone who will surely reach the level of a Hero-Rank player in the future.
Who in their right mind would object to doing such a thing after bringing those two in?
‘That person would not be someone working for the guild; they would be someone trying to ruin it.’
I was nodding at Cha Yu-na’s words while thinking those thoughts when Kim Su-hyeok, who had been listening quietly, asked her a question as if he had remembered something.
“I… have one thing I am curious about.”
“Feel free to ask. What is it you are curious about?”
“Seeing how you called the five of us here, it seems like you invited us while considering our friendships as well. Is that correct?”
“Yes, that is right. While there seem to be some among you who still look awkward with each other, it seems like you are all friendly overall. Of course, you can rest assured that none of you were brought here as extras.”
What she just said was more unexpected than I thought.
It was even more so because it was a statement from Cha Yu-na, who might be vague if she had other intentions, but never told a lie.
Her words meant that she considered Oh Jin-on and Do Gang-ho, who were brought here, as cadets with talent worth nurturing.
‘Whatever the case, it is a good thing.’
I did not know the process of how she reached that conclusion, but the result was a good situation for me as well.
In particular, I was very pleased that Do Gang-ho, who did not receive any notable support in the original work, had caught Cha Yu-na’s eye.
However, at Kim Su-hyeok’s next question that followed immediately, I had to stop my thoughts and focus on Cha Yu-na.
“Then, may I ask why you did not invite Eun-ha and Ha-yeon? Honestly, I do not believe their skills are lacking….”
“Hmm, you were curious about that.”
“I am sorry if that was a rude question.”
“Not at all. Since they are also close friends of yours, it is only natural to be curious.”
Hearing Kim Su-hyeok’s words, it was indeed a situation worth being curious about.
It seemed that Ryu Jin-oh and the others also had expressions that said they did not know the reason, and I was the same.
‘If it is talent, those two would never fall behind.’
First of all, there was no need to say anything more about Ha Eun-ha.
Her talent was already enough to be called the strongest among the supporter roles.
It would be even more incredible after she grew in the future, so what more was there to say?
‘Furthermore, Ju Ha-yeon is also a high-level player.’
If the focus was narrowed down to Kim Su-hyeok, Ryu Jin-oh, or Shin Yu-hwan, it was true that she might fall slightly short.
However, that was only because the targets of comparison were monsters; from a general perspective, she also possessed a brilliantly shining talent.
Considering those points, it was quite suspicious that those two were not invited.
However, those thoughts were immediately silenced by Cha Yu-na’s words as she began to explain the reason.
“First of all, I explained it earlier, right? For the sake of guild recruitment, we let you experience missions that you cannot take as cadets and provide corresponding benefits.”
“Yes. I remember.”
“Right. So, in a word, it feels like the guild is investing for the sake of profit they might obtain in the future.”
After speaking that much, Cha Yu-na paused for a beat to heighten our concentration before continuing the conversation.
“However, is an investment not something you do when there is a possibility of profit? Aiming for a place where there is not even a possibility is something only fools do.”
“…….”
“First, regarding Cadet Ha-yeon, she does not seem to have much interest in the player side. That is why I did not invite her.”
‘That is definitely true.’
As Cha Yu-na said, Ju Ha-yeon’s goal was to inherit the family business, not to become a promising player.
Even in future events, she mostly took on the role of providing support from behind with the power of the corporation, and she rarely stepped up to the front lines.
‘In the first place, Ju Ha-yeon did not intend to step up during that tragedy either.’
It felt like she only stepped up because her precious friends were heading into a death trap.
Considering that, Cha Yu-na’s reason for not inviting Ju Ha-yeon was very valid.
As she said, investing in a profit that cannot be obtained is something only fools do.
“And in the case of Cadet Eun-ha… it is a bit ambiguous, but anyway, there was a reason I did not invite her either.”
“May I ask if it would not be rude?”
“There is no reason for it to be rude. To put it simply, that child is still too soft.”
Cha Yu-na answered Kim Su-hyeok’s polite question with all her heart.
Seeing Kim Su-hyeok’s expression, which suggested he did not quite understand, Cha Yu-na added a further explanation.
“The reason I called you here is fundamentally for your growth. You all likely want that more than anything.”
“Yes.”
“However, Cadet Eun-ha is still too soft to receive that. Unlike other guilds, I do not provide sampler-style growth guidance.”
“Ah….”
Kim Su-hyeok nodded as if he understood something from Cha Yu-na’s words.
Ryu Jin-oh did not say anything, but he seemed to agree with that opinion.
And I felt the same way.
‘Indeed. Ha Eun-ha still lacks a clear goal. Because of that, there are parts of her that are passive.’
The fact that Ha Eun-ha even enrolled in Glory was not because she wanted to become a player.
The reason she came to Glory was simply because all her close friends were enrolling there; it was nothing more and nothing less.
Therefore, Ha Eun-ha had no particular reason to work hard, and for that reason, she always engaged in Glory’s education passively.
Cha Yu-na probably expressed that point in a gentle manner.
Just as the atmosphere seemed to sink slightly while Kim Su-hyeok, who was usually the most energetic, fell into thought.
Cha Yu-na clapped her hands to gather our attention and spoke in a spirited voice.
“Well, that does not mean I have no interest at all, so you do not have to worry. So, should you not do what you have to do?”
“…….”
“If you recall what I have said so far, you will likely be able to guess what you will be doing. Is that not right?”
That was true.
As Cha Yu-na said, it was not difficult to guess what we would be doing.
Considering the keyword "growth" and the things Cha Yu-na first said, the next words to come out would be….
“You all will be going on a mission together with the Horizon Guild. Of course, we will only step in when you are in danger.”
‘As I thought.’
“When it comes to skill growth, nothing is as good as real combat. Humans tend to push their limits in the midst of life-threatening danger.”
She was not wrong.
It was also a laughable story if one’s skills did not improve in a life-threatening situation.
However, saying such things made it sound like she was going to work us to the bone… The other boys’ expressions were not very bright either, perhaps because they were thinking the same thing as me.
However, no one could say they would back out.
The words Cha Yu-na spoke next were enough to provoke the hearts of the proud fellows gathered here.
“Ah! If you are scared, it is fine to back out. It is only natural to leave if you are afraid.”
Cha Yu-na spoke with a playful smile that made me want to punch her.
It was an annoying smile that would make even a devil click its tongue.