Chapter 78: Our Guild, For Real

“Ju-an, thank you for everything you’ve done so far. I’ll calculate the pay for watching the shop and transfer it to you.”

“Pardon? No, really, it’s fine! Between us, there’s no need for— I wasn’t even here the whole time, I just stopped by now and then.”

“Precisely because it’s between us, we should settle things properly.”

Factoring in a generous bonus on top of the hourly wage, Sung Ji-woo immediately sent the money via bank transfer. Gam Ju-an kept insisting it wasn’t necessary, but Ji-woo remained firm.

“If you use high-level talent like you, you should pay a fair price. Please go on in. I’m sorry I made you come all the way out again today for nothing.”

“No, really, it was fine. I honestly didn’t have much work anyway. The guild leader approved it too. He even said it was a relief to have somewhere to stay while everyone was inside the X-Gate. And the area in front of the shop finally got cleaned up today.”

“Oh—did Knocker already enter the X-Gate?”

He had heard that the X-Gate restrictions were lifted, but the hunters were moving even faster than expected. Well, for a gathering-focused guild like Knocker, securing supplies as early as possible was crucial.

“Yes. It’s been about three days now. I think they’ll need to stay at least another week. Even if the gate core is gone, an X-Gate is still an X-Gate. They’ll probably go down to around the 20th floor.”

Reaching the 20th floor in a week was definitely a brutal journey. That alone showed how fierce the competition was.

Still, once you went below the 10th floor, the value skyrocketed exponentially. Rough estimates said that from the 30th floor onward, even a single piece of ore could fetch its weight in gold. Below that, the profits would be high enough to dream of turning your life around.

Drops from dungeon gathering were random and depended heavily on luck, but from the 40th floor downward, even grabbing random weeds would earn you a decent sum.

‘…If I make a guild, I’ll have to go in too, won’t I?’

To move with the market, visiting the X-Gate was inevitable. Honestly, a guild that didn’t enter the X-Gate at this stage would just be foolish.

Sung Ji-woo’s expression darkened. The thought of walking back into a place filled with nothing but bad memories made him nauseous.

“Ji-woo… you don’t look so good.”

“Ah, I think it’s just because I drank too much yesterday. I’m fine.”

Forcing a smile, Sung Ji-woo hurriedly saw Gam Ju-an off. Even as he left, Gam Ju-an kept looking back worriedly, reminding him to make sure to take something for his hangover.

“How can someone be that nice…?”

Ji-woo shook his head as he watched him go. Gam Ju-an’s nature was so kind it was something Ji-woo couldn’t even dream of imitating.

“You think that guy’s nice?”

Yu Heero suddenly leaned in, as if he’d heard something odd. Ji-woo startled and stepped back.

“I mean his character. His character.”

“Ah… character. Mine’s pretty good too, isn’t it?”

“Yours?”

“…Isn’t it?”

His eyes seemed to say, I’m a national hero, you know? Ji-woo opened his mouth, then closed it again. He couldn’t refute it.

“Well… yeah. If we’re talking character, you’re kind of the best.”

Just how many lives had he saved? On top of that, he’d saved Ji-woo’s life too. Simply not blowing up the X-Gate would’ve been enough to end his mission, yet Yu Heero went further and removed the gate core perfectly and cleanly.

In game terms, it wasn’t just a normal ending—it was the best ending. Yu Heero smiled shyly, clearly pleased by the praise.

Pilgrimage, newly awake, came bounding over, tail wagging wildly, his face still plastered with sleepiness.

“Oh, there you are. You’ve been good? You missed hyung, didn’t you?”

Barely able to open his eyes, he enthusiastically licked Ji-woo’s face, which was almost pitifully earnest.

“Did you eat?”

Wong!

The answer was always the same, but Ji-woo kept asking Pilgrimage questions anyway.

Yu Heero’s expression soured slightly. Whether Heero liked him or not, Pilgrimage paid him no attention and clung only to Ji-woo.

“I’ll give you food. I’ll give it to you, so wait.”

He hadn’t planned on training him, but maybe because he was a divine beast, Pilgrimage understood commands surprisingly well. The moment Ji-woo said “wait,” Pilgrimage sat properly as if he’d never been about to pounce.

Watching that, Yu Heero calmly sat down beside him.

“What are you doing?”

Ji-woo froze, holding the feed bowl.

“…Don’t tell me you want this?”

The brown kibble rattled in the bowl. Yu Heero frowned as if that was absurd.

“No. I wasn’t planning on eating it.”

Ji-woo hurriedly spoke, worried he might look like some lunatic who fed dog food to people. Yu Heero brightened again and looked up at him.

“If I wait properly, you’ll praise me too, right?”

“…I guess?”

“You’ll dote on me, right? Like, pat me a lot.”

“…Don’t tell me.”

“I thought if I did ‘wait’ too, you’d praise me.”

Ji-woo stared at him in disbelief.

“You know you’re a human, right?”

“Yes.”

“…Right.”

He had reached the point where he felt relieved that Yu Heero at least recognized himself as human.

Ji-woo placed the bowl in front of Pilgrimage, told him to eat, and crouched down to pat his head.

Pilgrimage seemed more interested in food than affection, burying his nose in the bowl. Letting his hand fall away, Ji-woo looked at the fully grown adult man sitting beside him.

Even after driving through the night, this perfectly fine man somehow still wanted his praise…

Ji-woo sighed and, as requested, patted Yu Heero’s head like he would a dog. Yu Heero obediently closed his eyes.

From the way his eyelids slowly fluttered open again, he looked genuinely exhausted.

“Good job driving all the way to Seoul. Go inside and get some sleep.”

“…Together.”

“What?”

“Sleep with me, hyung.”

“I have to get the shop ready. You know exactly whose fault that is, right?”

“…Yes.”

With a dejected expression that showed he knew he was at fault, Yu Heero got to his feet. The way he staggered off looked oddly pitiful—like Pilgrimage after causing trouble and sneaking glances for forgiveness.

Sung Ji-woo called out to his back.

“When you wake up, let’s talk about this guild… or whatever.”

Yu Heero spun around instantly, his eyes lighting up.

“Yes!”

Ji-woo couldn’t help but laugh.

More people came than expected, but there weren’t many actual customers. Most had come after hearing Sung Ji-woo was back, hoping to ask about the guild’s founding.

All Ji-woo could offer was a vague answer—that nothing was decided yet and things were still being discussed.

He did feel a sense of obligation regarding the abnormal phenomena, but his heart hadn’t fully tipped over yet. He didn’t have the courage to make promises.

Yu Heero, more exhausted than expected, didn’t wake up even by sunset.

‘Does he sleep more than I thought?’

He hadn’t seen it many times, but once asleep, Yu Heero seemed to stay out for at least six hours.

Ji-woo stared at the quiet door. From the day Yu Heero rushed over at dawn looking for him, to the gate rampage, the hospital visit, the grave visit, and finally the drive back to Seoul after drinking—Yu Heero hadn’t slept even once.

Even considering that hunters generally slept less, what Yu Heero had endured could only be explained by sheer mental fortitude.

“Yu Heero, are you still asleep?”

It was past six when Ji-woo finally opened the door carefully. The room was dark and silent, like the dead of night.

There wasn’t even the sound of breathing. He lay flat on his back, utterly motionless, like a corpse. Ji-woo stepped closer and held a finger under his nose.

“What kind of kid sleeps like a dead body…”

At that moment, Yu Heero opened his eyes. Ji-woo sucked in a sharp breath at the sudden, soundless movement.

“…Damn, you scared me.”

Still half-asleep, Yu Heero blinked as if trying to understand the situation.

When he finally realized he was in Ji-woo’s general store, the stiffness left his face. Just knowing Ji-woo was nearby seemed enough to let him sleep that deeply.

Yu Heero looked at him with drowsy eyes and smiled softly. Simply seeing him upon waking made his heart feel at ease.

“If you’re up, go wash your face. I ordered food. We need to talk about our guild after we eat.”

“Yes. We need to talk about our guild.”

There was a strange emphasis on “our guild.” Yu Heero sprang up lightly and headed for the bathroom, looking much happier after sleeping well.

At the same time, the dinner Ji-woo had ordered arrived—jjajangmyeon and sweet-and-sour pork. A classic Chinese combo.

Biting into a piece of perfectly fried tangsuyuk coated in sweet-and-sour sauce, Ji-woo pulled out his laptop. On the screen was the guild application form.

The tangsuyuk crunched pleasantly in his mouth as he focused on the requirements.

Minimum number of guild members to apply: 5 (including Guild Master and Vice Guild Master)

The most urgent task was recruiting three members besides himself and Yu Heero.

“…You’re obviously going to be the guild master, right?”

He asked Yu Heero, who had come to stand beside him. Wiping water from his chin, Yu Heero answered,

“I’d like you to do it, hyung…”

Yu Heero’s goal was to belong to Sung Ji-woo. Ji-woo responded firmly, as if he absolutely refused.

“If you’re the guild master, don’t you have to show your face at events and stuff? I hate that. And I’m not confident I can manage guild members well.”

“Ah, guild members.”

Yu Heero muttered awkwardly, as if he’d never considered it. The thought of other people existing under Sung Ji-woo besides himself already made him feel on edge.

“Do we really need guild members?”

“What kind of guild doesn’t have members? It’s even listed right here in the requirements.”

“Three… three besides us…”

Suddenly, Yu Heero’s eyes sparkled, as if he’d had an idea.

“Don’t even think about pulling people who are already doing fine in other guilds.”

“……”

It wasn’t hard to guess what kind of plan Yu Heero had in mind. If you said three, that meant Koo Min-ah, Lee Hye-rin, and Shin Yoon-jae.

They would be safe choices—people you wouldn’t have to be wary of as guild members… but Yu Heero still looked disappointed.

After a brief discussion, Yu Heero ended up as the guild master. And thanks to his strong insistence that Sung Ji-woo couldn’t possibly be a mere guild member, Ji-woo became the vice guild master.

The next morning, a guild recruitment post appeared on an internet forum.