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Episode 37
“Thank you for saying that.”
Instead of taking away the signed document immediately, Saebyeok pointed at a specific section and added an explanation.
“I talked with the Association President. Registering as co-representatives isn’t difficult, but if only one of you is an Awakened, they don’t recommend it.”
“Is that so.”
“It’s not because of regulations or anything like that, but apparently there was a bad case in the U.S. before.”
Today, she had learned something new from the Association President that she hadn’t known before.
“A married couple—one Awakened, one non-Awakened—founded a guild together. But since people took the non-Awakened less seriously, everyone approached and pressured them instead.”
If they had both been non-Awakened, maybe it would’ve been fine. But the imbalance brought tragedy.
“In the end, the non-Awakened partner suffered extreme stress, had to receive psychiatric counseling, and finally transferred the guild to the Awakened partner.”
“Is that so.”
“Hearing that story, it made me worried.”
“…You mean because you think I won’t be able to endure the pressure?”
“Of course, I’m sure you could endure it, Mr. Kang. But I’d feel upset watching it happen.”
“…”
“So for now, I’ll register as Guildmaster, and you as Vice-Guildmaster. And once you awaken, then…”
“Vice-Guildmaster is fine.”
Kang Suho spoke before Saebyeok could offer again to make him co-master.
“Even if I became co-Guildmaster, I would still follow all of your decisions, Ms. Han.”
He planned to run the guild strictly by her judgment and preference.
His own opinion didn’t matter.
That night after eating samgyeopsal, Kang Suho had already made up his mind completely.
She claimed her kindness wasn’t baseless, but he didn’t believe her. Surely, it was just a lie to ease his unease.
And honestly, even if she did have ulterior motives, it didn’t matter.
On the contrary—it was welcome.
If she had motives, then all of this was nothing but a transaction with costs and rewards.
That’s why he no longer intended to pry into her intentions. He wouldn’t wonder what her goal was.
Whatever it might be…
‘Even if I do have ulterior motives, I will never betray you. I swear it.’
That alone was enough reason for him to stake his worthless life on her.
“So rather than co-leader, it’s better that I firmly support you as Vice. That’ll also be smoother for business.”
“…”
“Is there anything else you’d like to say?”
“…Don’t you think you could talk a little less formally with me?”
“…”
“I’m actually a year younger than you… and since we’ll be leading the guild together for a long time—maybe a lifetime—wouldn’t it be kind of distant if you kept calling me ‘Ms. Han Saebyeok’ for 10, 20 years?”
“Then… should I just call you Guildmaster?”
“What?! That makes it sound even more distant…!”
Flustered, Saebyeok clutched her head.
Her expression was so cute that Suho couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.
He quickly ducked his head and covered his mouth with his hand when he felt the breath slip through his teeth.
But Saebyeok had already seen it.
Blinking in surprise, she stared at him blankly.
Suho brushed down the corners of his lips with his fingertips and spoke calmly.
“It’ll take me a little time. Can you wait for me?”
At his polite question, Saebyeok nodded, looking half-dazed.
“Anything else besides that?”
“Ah…”
He slid the document a little closer under her hand, snapping her back to her senses.
“This.”
Instead of storing it in her inventory, Saebyeok handed him a phone.
“It’s the guild-issued work phone. Please use it freely.”
She added quickly, in case he refused out of courtesy.
“I already saved my number in there. Sejin’s number too. If you can’t reach me, call him.”
“…Understood. I’ll use it well.”
“And this, too.”
On top of the phone, she placed a black key laced with a faint blue glow.
“Is this for the new house?”
“Haha, no. The Hunter District uses fingerprint entry. Think of it as a… contract gift.”
“What kind of key is it?”
“Mm… I’ll tell you once you awaken. For now, just don’t lose it and carry it with you.”
“Got it.”
He didn’t ask further.
Those small gestures, piling up, clearly showed the trust he had in her.
“For reference…”
Saebyeok tilted her head slightly and tapped her earring to deactivate its transparency.
Hanging from her ear was the exact same key, only with slightly different coloring.
Suho’s eyes widened round as plates.
A stunned “Ah” slipped from his lips as he forgot to blink.
“It’s not that you have to make it into an earring.”
She thought maybe he had misunderstood.
“You can carry it however’s convenient. A necklace or bracelet would be safer, though, so you don’t lose it—”
But before she finished, the key in his hand flared with light, stretched into a long chain, and instantly turned into a key pendant necklace.
At the same time, a notification popped up before Saebyeok’s eyes.
“…What the?”
**!! Notification !!
<n/a> Kang Suho has requested registration of <Safehouse Key Copy 2 (B)>.Registered Copy (1/3): <Dragon Warrior> Hwang Taesan
But Suho wasn’t even Awakened—so why did this show up?
She reactivated her skill, <Cleopatra’s Insight>, which she’d turned off after leaving the Association building.
And she was shocked.
<Status Window>
Name: Kang Suho
Rank: >>In Preparation<<
Server: Earth (S3-EH)
Affiliation: None → Dawn Guild
Title: >>In Preparation<<
‘Wait—why can I see the status window of someone who hasn’t even awakened yet?!’
When they’d left the measuring chamber, her skill had been off, so she hadn’t noticed.
‘Could it be… that I can even identify pre-Awakened candidates?’
If that were true, it was terrifying.
To spot Awakeneds before they awakened?
That meant she could pull every potential Awakened in the world into Korea.
So she quickly turned her head toward Han Sejin and Shihu.
But nothing showed above them.
‘So maybe not…?’
Shihu wasn’t even alive at this point in her past life, so that was uncertain. But Sejin had awakened before.
Three years later, true—but he had, and as an A-rank.
Yet nothing appeared above him.
‘So maybe it’s because it’s still too far away? Or… is it just because Suho is S-rank?’
After all, Suho was supposed to awaken within weeks, whereas Sejin’s awakening was still three years off.
That was the only difference she could think of.
‘Anyway… the lie I told Suho to persuade him… has turned into the truth now.’
Once again, the <Server Administrator> title proved overwhelming.
“Is something wrong?”
Suho looked at her with concern.
“Ah, no. I just didn’t expect it to turn into a necklace right away, so I was a little surprised.”
“Ah… I’m surprised too. I just thought of a necklace, and…”
Suho hesitated, then slipped the chain over his neck.
The long, comfortable necklace hung down to his chest.
The key, glowing with a bluish light, matched well with his dark navy eyes.
“Um, Mr. Kang. Do you… see anything floating here in the air?”
“…What should I be seeing?”
He followed her gesture seriously, eyes scanning the space with deep focus.
“Ah… never mind. Nothing.”
She had meant his status window—but clearly, he couldn’t see it.
‘I’ll need to test with others, to confirm if they can see it too.’
If it appeared to others, that would mean it wasn’t because he was S-rank, but simply because he was about to awaken.
‘And if it shows up… maybe I could make some nice side income with this.’
Every normal person wondered if they would awaken. Rich or poor, the curiosity was the same.
So if she played the fortune-teller in some alleyway, she could charge wealthy clients eager to know their awakening fate.
Hunting would always be a Hunter’s main income, but extra profit was never unwelcome.
Especially now, with a new house bought and a guild just founded, she needed plenty of money. Extra income would always be welcome.
While thinking it over, Saebyeok manipulated the system.
**!! Notification !!
<Safehouse Key Copy 2 (B)> is being registered to <Atlas’s Safehouse>.
<n/a> Kang Suho is being registered as Manager.**
The instant she registered not-yet-Awakened Suho as a Safehouse manager—
“…Was that what you meant earlier, asking if I could see something?”
His finger pointed straight at the door of <Atlas’s Safehouse>.
