[TL: Due to lacking support this series may be cancelled if you would be willing to pay for premium chapters (6 credits each message on discord or comment here.]

“Welcome.”

“........”

I had expected a reception room or an office, but what lay before my eyes was not an office, but what seemed to be this woman's bedroom.

Fortunately, there was a table and chairs, but the fact that she had called me to her personal bedroom was extremely disconcerting.

Seeing my expression, the woman let out a soft chuckle before speaking.

“Don't be so tense. Relax, make yourself comfortable.”

If it were someone else, I'd have wanted to shout if they could be comfortable in a situation like this, but I suppressed that urge.

“...Uh.. how should I address you?”

“Didn’t Kang Seong-jun explain earlier at the podium? Just call me Instructor Yoon.”

“Ah, yes. Instructor Yoon. So, what is it that you wanted to see me about?”

The woman crossed her legs as she sat in the chair and spoke.

“Do you really not know?”

This is bad.

If this keeps up, things will only go the way she wants.

I needed to stay focused.

Calming my trembling heart, I asked her directly.

“I’ll be honest. What do you want from me?”

The woman smirked at my question and answered nonchalantly.

“Now that's a gaze worth looking at. Honestly, I was almost disappointed a moment ago. Your eyes looked too scared.”

“...Instructor, try putting yourself in my shoes. Wouldn’t it be strange not to be tense?”

“That’s true. Anyway, you asked what I want? I don’t want anything, I was just curious about the newcomer called Yun-seong.”

‘...I’m supposed to believe that?’

“.........”

“Hm... That’s the face of someone who doesn’t believe me. Why would I bother messing with a rookie? It’s just my personal curiosity about you, Yun-seong.”

“I... saw your status window, Instructor.”

“Ahaha... Is that why? Well, we’re even then. I saw yours too, didn’t I?”

Bullshit.

There was no way the value of my status window, as someone who just landed here, was the same as someone playing at the top of this world.

“.......”

“You’re quite the suspicious type, aren’t you, Yun-seong? Well, being suspicious is a good thing here. It lowers the chances of getting stabbed in the back.”

“...There’s no way our status windows are of equal value, Instructor.”

Frankly speaking, if I were to sell this woman’s information, there would be a truckload of people willing to buy it. I don’t know if she belongs to a clan, but any enemies of hers would welcome such intel with open arms.

“Oh, a rookie with a sharp mind? Honestly, I wasn’t expecting much after seeing your status window. Your stats are pretty abysmal... Ah, if that offended you, I apologize. I’m just a blunt person.”

“I don’t mind, no one knows better than I do that I lack talent.”

“Hmm... Anyway, I hope you believe that I mean you no harm. You’re not going to go around blabbering about my status window, are you?”

“I’m not that stupid.”

“Good, that’s why I’m saying this.”

“Is that... all?”

“Initially, I had nothing I wanted. But now, there is something I desire.”

‘Now? You just said you didn’t want anything a moment ago!’

“Honestly, aside from your ability to see other people’s status windows, I thought you were just average. Oh, of course, I rate your unique trait very highly. But now I see you’re quick-witted and cautious, which I also like.”

“......”

“Hmm... By the way, did you hear about what I do besides being an instructor?”

“No, I didn’t. You were speaking into my mind at the time, Instructor Yoon.”

“Ah... Of course. I lead the Mythic Clan, we’re not quite one of the top three, but we’re right below them.”

That was unexpected. Honestly, I thought she would be leading one of the top three clans. Her stats were on par with Kang Seong-jun’s, after all.

‘...Is she hiding some of her true power?’

“The clan names are a bit confusing, right? Kang Seong-jun leads the Fire God Clan. I lead the Mythic Clan. No relation between the two, so don’t get the wrong idea.” (TL: Korean names are similar.)

“...So why are you suddenly talking about clans?”

“...Honestly, if I just looked at your stats, you wouldn’t be worth much, but my instincts are telling me to recruit you.”

‘What kind of nonsense is that?’

I couldn’t understand what she was thinking.

‘She’s offering me an invitation? Based on what? If she saw my status window, she should be thinking the exact opposite.’

“You look completely bewildered. Well, it’s only been a day, so it’s understandable.”

“Well... thank you for thinking highly of me. But honestly, I don’t understand your reasoning, Instructor Yoon. It’s a great offer for me, but what value did you see in me to make this decision?”

“In this continent, sure, strength is the most important thing. But strength isn’t everything, to be honest... I know this might sound arrogant, but I alone have enough strength. There’s no one out there who can push me around.”

Arrogant, but true.

After seeing her status window, I couldn’t dismiss her words as mere bravado.

Considering Kang Seong-jun was the chief instructor, his position was clearly among the absolute strongest. But based on status windows alone, Yoon Yeon’s strength was almost on par with his.

“I value people who are desperate or have something missing in their lives. This is just my personal belief, but... people who are lacking something fight harder, try harder and put their all into survival and eventually, they achieve something.”

“You think I have something missing? Are you talking about my lack of strength?”

“Well, lacking strength could be considered a kind of deficiency. But after talking to you today... I feel like it’s something about you as a person, rather than just strength.”

A sudden discomfort rose within me. I barely resisted the urge to get up and leave. But before I knew it, my expression had slipped and a cold response came out.

“What makes you think you know anything about me?”

The moment I said it, I realized my mistake.

The woman chuckled and replied.

“The way you reacted just now is proof enough.”

“.......”

“Hmm, maybe I was a bit rude. I just got interested in a new recruit for the first time in a while... If I offended you, I apologize. Anyway, I’ve said my piece. You can leave now, think carefully about my offer. Who knows, I might change my mind later.”

“...Then I’ll take my leave. I appreciate the offer, but I’ll need to think about it.”

“Oh!”

She suddenly acted like she remembered something, making me mentally curse.

When I turned my gaze back to her, she spoke.

“From now on, call me Noona.”

“...What…”

Yoon Yeon grinned mischievously and added, “It’s a privilege.”

‘What a crazy woman.’

“No thanks.”

Slam.

I shut the door behind me as I left her bedroom.

I nearly stopped breathing the moment I stepped out of Yoon Yeon's bedroom. Seo Yuju was standing right in front of me.

"........."

"...Y-Yuju-ssi?"

"...Why are you coming out of there?"

'What the... Was she following me?'

I hadn't sensed a single presence while coming here.

No way...

'Could she have deliberately hidden her presence to follow me? To see where I was going?'

My brain froze from the sudden situation. Even though I had done nothing wrong, I felt an overwhelming urge to explain myself.

"W-Well... The instructor called me because she had something to say."

"...Yoon Yeon, that bitch?"

"Huh?"

'Did I... hear that wrong?'

"Are you saying Instructor Yoon Yeon called you? At this hour? To her own bedroom?"

"...I didn't know it was her bedroom until I entered. But... we only sat and talked... That's all."

"What did you talk about?"

'Fuck, I didn’t do anything wrong, so why...'

"Uh... It's not really something I need to tell Yuju-ssi—"

"What did you talk about?"

I sucked in a breath involuntarily.

Like a mouse caught in front of a snake.

'Fuck... I have to... I have to say something...'

"...S-She offered me... a clan invitation..."

"You didn't accept it, did you?"

"...N-No... I just said I’d think about it..."

The tension that had gripped my entire body suddenly dissipated. The air around us shifted so quickly that I couldn't adjust in time.

She gave me a small smile and spoke.

"You did well, for things like this... you have to consult me no matter what. We're teammates, aren't we? Right?"

"Y-Yeah, of course."

'Fuck, what the hell was that just now...'

"Let's head back to the dorm together, everyone’s probably resting already."

"Y-Yeah..."

With that, the situation came to an end and Seo Yuju and I returned to the dorm. When we arrived, no one had gone to their rooms yet; they were all gathered in the living room, chatting.

"Ah... Yun-seong hyung, why are you so late? We were discussing our future plans."

"Haha... Sorry, Hyun-jin. So what were you talking about?"

"Obviously, the training we'll be receiving."

"Hey, Cha Hyun-jin, you’re overthinking it. They’ll probably just handle it on their own."

"...Noona, it's not that I'm overthinking. It's that you don't think at all."

"What? Hey! Get over here, you—!"

"Agh! My hair! Let go of my hair before you talk!"

The two of them dashed around the living room with boundless energy.

'Hard to believe they're twenty-six and twenty...'

Yu-rim was sternly educating Yu-hyun.

"Yu-hyun... You must never act like that when you grow up, okay?"

"Yeah, noona. I don't... ever want to be like that."

Ho-won sighed deeply as he listened to Yu-rim and Yu-hyun’s conversation, covering his face with one hand.

Once things calmed down, Seo Yuju gathered everyone's attention and shot me a quick glance before speaking.

"Ahem... I have something to announce. Yun-seong-ssi has received a clan offer."

At her words, everyone's expressions turned to shock.

"What... Hey, Lee Yun-seong. Seriously? Already?!"

"Wow... Yun-seong hyung! Is that true?"

'...Is she trying to make sure I don’t join the Mythic Clan?'

The fact that Seo Yuju was announcing my offer to everyone meant she really didn’t want me to go there.

She probably wanted to use the others to push my emotions and make me reject the offer. After all, I'm the only one who has received an offer from the Mythic Clan so far.

"Nothing's certain yet. I was just casually offered a position and I only said I’d think about it. That’s all."

"Hyung! But even getting an offer is amazing! That means the clan master recognizes how incredible you are! So, which clan is it?"

"...It's the Mythic Clan. Not quite on the level of the top three, but it's just below them."

"Hey, Lee Yun-seong. Are you... planning on joining them? Should we start thinking about joining too?"

They seemed to take it for granted that they would follow me. Their reaction made me feel a little happy. It showed how much they valued me.

I shook my head and said, "No, we still have three months left. We should see what clan offers everyone gets before deciding, there’s no need to make a big deal about it yet."

"Yeah, that makes sense. Hey... but can you pick one—are you speaking formally or informally? We've been through life-and-death situations together and you're still using honorifics with me? Just drop them already."

I couldn't keep speaking formally to Kang Iseo forever. This seemed like as good a time as any to start talking casually, so I nodded.

"Alright."

"You little—this is way better."

"...Anyway, don’t worry about the clan offer. I want to stick with you guys too."

Hyun-jin, Yu-rim and Yu-hyun looked genuinely touched by my words. When I glanced at Seo Yuju, she seemed quite satisfied.

Honestly, back in front of Yoon Yeon’s room, I was terrified.

'...Saying the wrong thing could’ve gotten me into real trouble.'

Seo Yuju smiled at our camaraderie before speaking again.

"Tomorrow, we’ll probably record our job classes and then begin training. It's late, so everyone should get some rest. Great work today."

[TL: Due to lacking support this series may be cancelled if you would be willing to pay for premium chapters (6 credits each message on discord or comment here.]