“President Oh, do you still have something to discuss with the Gwangcheon team?”

Riyu asked.

“……”

Without answering, Oh Seongcheon suddenly sprang to his feet and strode toward the door.

Just before stepping out, he glared straight at me.

I met his gaze head-on, and his lips twitched as though he meant to say something—yet in the end, he left without a word.

Bang!!

The heavy door slammed shut behind him.

“What a temper.”

Riyu’s voice came from behind.

“Then you lot should wait here. I’ll bring Crystal’s president.”

He could have easily sent someone else, but instead he rose himself and headed for the door.

“Thank you.”

I bowed, and he gave me a small smile before leaving.

“Now then, care to explain?”

When I turned, Meiling was standing with her arms crossed, eyes fixed on me.

“We never agreed on that. Lumina even said she wouldn’t mind joining All-Around. So why did you just blurt that out?”

“I-I don’t mind if we all join the same guild… actually, I’d like that…”

Lumina mumbled.

“When Abel suggested joining All-Around, you also said it’d be nice if we could all be in the same guild.”

I reminded them.

Meiling’s cheeks flushed faintly.

“T-that’s true… but still, you can’t expect me to understand if you don’t explain first.”

“Yein, I want an explanation too.”

Seo Yui looked at me as she spoke.

I nodded.

“It was to stop Forward from taking Lumina. If she entered the Black Hounds, she’d suffer for it.”

“W-what??”

Lumina’s face turned pale with surprise.

“She’s right. If Lumina joined the Black Hounds, she’d lose her mind in no time. One of their main jobs is hunting people down and killing them.”

Meiling said flatly.

This time, Lumina’s mouth fell open.

“And what I said earlier—I meant it. We won this award together. I couldn’t accept that some of us would get contracts while others wouldn’t.”

“I see… yes, I agree. I only panicked earlier because I didn’t know what you were thinking.”

Panicked?

Yet she had played along so perfectly. Seo Yui’s ability to act never ceased to amaze me.

“I’m sorry, senior. I know you may have had other plans, and I just made the decision on my own.”

I bowed my head toward her.

“It’s fine. You did it for Lumina’s sake.”

Just then, Lumina came closer.

“Thank you, Yein. I had no idea about any of that.”

At that moment, footsteps echoed from outside.

All of us turned our heads toward the door.

It opened, revealing Ahn Hyunggi and Riyu.

Ahn Hyunggi wore a beaming smile.

So, Riyu must have told him we rejected Oh Seongcheon’s offer.

That explained his cheerful expression.

“Go on, talk.”

Riyu said, then settled once more into the single armchair.

“Thank you. Please, sit down.”

Ahn Hyunggi gestured warmly as he took his seat on the sofa.

Unlike Oh Seongcheon, who had arrogantly sat down without so much as offering us chairs, Ahn Hyunggi invited us properly.

Once we were seated in a row, he smiled at me.

“I hear you turned down Forward’s proposal without even asking for time to think. That means I still have a chance, doesn’t it?”

Though his face smiled, there was a subtle pressure behind his words, one I recognized well.

Feels just like when I first met Eleanor.

Back when Platinum Wing still belonged to the Crystal Hunter Mall, she discovered the items I sold were mine and tried to force me into being her assistant.

The result was Platinum Wing ending up in my hands.

In the end, all she really wanted was a supplier, so I handed it back after making a point.

“Then let me start by telling you what I want.”

Ahn Hyunggi leaned back into the sofa.

“Although I used the ticket, you don’t necessarily have to join Crimson Crystal or any of Crystal’s subsidiaries. If you want to, I’d gladly welcome you. But if you don’t, I won’t force you.”

What?

That was unexpected.

In the game, when Ahn Hyunggi used his ticket, the follow-up questline always began with becoming a Crimson Crystal recruit.

But now he was saying we didn’t need to join Crystal at all.

“Then what exactly did you use your ticket for, President?”

I asked.

“What I want is for you, Yein, to transfer to Crystal Academy.”

At those words, Lumina, Meiling, and even Seo Yui all flinched.

Déjà vu.

Eleanor had also tried to bring me into Crystal once she learned I studied at Gwangcheon.

“Of course, if your teammates transferred with you, I’d be even happier. After all, you four won both the individual and team championships at HAUT. News of that would be well received by many.”

“Not by everyone.”

I said, recalling a certain girl’s face.

“I won’t deny that.”

Ahn Hyunggi chuckled.

“If you came to Crystal Academy, I’d cover not just your tuition until graduation, but also all your living expenses. True, Chairman Porter already promised to sponsor you, but that arrangement would change if you transferred.”

For a moment, I was stunned.

Because even if both offered full tuition, Gwangcheon and Crystal were worlds apart.

Gwangcheon cost only tens of millions to graduate.

But at Crystal, a single semester ran into hundreds of millions.

And yet Ahn Hyunggi was offering to pay for all four of us until graduation, plus cover our living expenses.

“If you wished, I could also provide convenience for your families and support whatever majors or career paths you wanted. Standard hunter academy training is already meaningless for you.”

At that, both Lumina and Seo Yui reacted.

Lumina’s eyes lit up, while Seo Yui looked pensive.

But I still couldn’t shake my unease.

Why is he so desperate to pull me into Crystal Academy?

The first person Ahn Hyunggi targeted with his ticket had been me.

That much confirmed that I was his goal.

But the reason behind it—I couldn’t fathom.

After all, the character Nam Yein’s stats were pitiful at best.

If I didn’t have to join Crimson Crystal or become part of a Crystal subsidiary, then what possible gain could Ahn Hyunggi have in bringing me over?

At that moment, the words he had spoken earlier to Oh Seongcheon came back to me.

“On the contrary, I’m delighted with this result. Defeat is a gift that allows one to recognize their shortcomings and move toward perfection.”

I see now.

I looked straight at him and asked,

“You want us to come to Crystal for Iris’s growth, don’t you?”

“…Oh?”

Ahn Hyunggi’s expression shifted into one of intrigue.

“How did you know?”

“I remembered what you said earlier to President Oh of Forward.”

“Yes. As expected, you’re sharp.”

Ahn Hyunggi looked deeply satisfied, though his eyes burned with an even stronger desire than before.

“I plan to use you, Yein.”

He laced his fingers together and rested them on the table.

“Physical Strength, F. Stamina, F. Mental Strength, C. By rights, those are grades too low for someone to even dream of becoming a hunter candidate.”

“Are you trying to pick a fight right now?”

Meiling suddenly snapped.

“…A loyal companion, I see.”

Ahn Hyunggi chuckled and continued.

“Even so, you defeated my daughter in a duel. Of course, Iris underestimated you far too much. Had she taken you seriously and fought with her ability from the start, you wouldn’t have been able to use a single item properly before being crushed.”

He wasn’t being a doting father.

I agreed with him.

Even Meiling, who had flared up moments ago, only frowned with her lips parted, unable to deny it.

“But the fact remains—you did defeat Iris. That must have been a profound shock for her. Which is why I want you by her side. You can show her what she lacks, again and again.”

What she lacked—he meant defeat and reflection, no doubt.

“But if I fought Iris again, I’d surely lose. I wouldn’t be able to push her further.”

“No. I could feel it.”

Ahn Hyunggi’s smile vanished.

“You’re the perfect partner for her.”

The air on either side of me trembled.

I glanced over to see my three companions frozen in place.

“What I saw at HAUT isn’t all there is. You’re hiding something far greater.”

“I’m not sure what you mean.”

“Yein. Did you really think wearing a mask that day would keep your identity hidden forever?”

The others jolted at his words.

So he knows.

When he said something great was hidden, I realized he was referring to Valhall.

During Seo Yui’s rescue, I had borrowed the hands of Eleanor and Iris—more precisely, their attendants and Crystal’s manpower.

The reason he said nothing about “Valhall” and instead hinted about a mask was because Riyu was present.

“Did you hear it from Iris?”

“She was curious about you long before that. I’d already heard rumors of a peculiar hunter candidate apprenticing at Eleanor’s workshop. They said you were her assistant. But your performance at HAUT’s crafting exam makes that sound like a lie.”

“……”

A bitter taste filled my mouth.

I had botched my weapon crafting deliberately so Kim Hyeonseok, the master craftsman, wouldn’t notice my skill—but now that choice had come back around.

“But that’s not what matters now. I won’t dig further.”

Ahn Hyunggi unclasped his hands and leaned back against the sofa.

“There are other things too. You played a symbolic role during the Academy Union protests. You provided the item that stopped the Transfer, passing it to the mayor himself. You fought in the Porter Department Store terror incident alongside your comrades. Your contributions are many. All of that tells me you’ll be a powerful catalyst for Iris.”

His gaze fixed squarely on me.

“I’ve said my piece. Now I want to hear your thoughts. Will you transfer from Gwangcheon to Crystal?”

“I’m sorry, but right now it isn’t possible.”

“Hmm.”

He pursed his lips slightly.

“Are my offers not to your liking?”

“It’s not that. I can’t go into detail, but there are things I must finish in Gwangcheon. Once that’s done…”

I trailed off.

This wasn’t the first time someone had suggested I transfer.

First, Chen Kai had tried to send me away, thinking I was holding Meiling back.

Then Eleanor had attempted to bring me into Crystal.

I had refused each time.

After all, in Latessai, transfers didn’t exist.

No one knew what consequences might follow.

Worse, all the bonds I’d built—companion events and academy storylines—could crumble away.

But now I have Lumina, Meiling, and Seo Yui.

All the companions I needed from Gwangcheon were already with me.

Which left only the academy-specific storylines.

After how I confronted Oh Seongcheon today, life at Gwangcheon would no doubt grow difficult.

But I could never follow Forward.

If that were my plan, I wouldn’t have gone out of my way to win the favor of Mayor Cheon or Chairman Porter.

And HAUT, which normally only opened to second-years, had already ended for me in my first year.

On top of that, Ahn Hyunggi had placed shockingly generous terms on the table.

Which meant it was time.

Time to choose.

(End of Chapter)