Chapter 26: Everyone Wants the Buffer

“Ju-an!”

The moment the conference room door opened, Gong Se-yoon sprang up from his seat and came charging over at full speed.

With his flushed expression and raised voice, he looked exactly like a puppy greeting its owner who had come home late after working overtime.

“Did you wait long?”

When Seong Ju-an went over and sat down, Gong Se-yoon immediately scooted close and plopped down right beside him.

The way he smiled softly with his eyes curved upward was honestly adorable.

“No. I waited a little. But I wasn’t bored.”

“That’s a relief. The reason I asked to see you today is… I’m in a bit of a dangerous situation right now.”

Gong Se-yoon blinked, focusing intently on Seong Ju-an’s words.

“They say everyone’s going to covet an S-Rank Buffer, so Mo Jun-young handed me this kind of contract. Could you take a look?”

Ju-an took out the contract he had stored in his inventory and slid it over to Gong Se-yoon.

Worried he might offend him, Ju-an nervously watched his expression.

His eyes lifted and lowered, the corners of his mouth relaxed and then tightened, his face changed moment by moment even during the short time he spent reading the contract.

“Hm… So basically, the four of us take turns living with you, Ju-an, one at a time? And we party together.”

What?

‘Was there something like that in there, ah, he means guarding me.’

Maybe because he gets lonely easily, Gong Se-yoon seemed more focused on how much time they would spend together than on clauses related to parties or hunting.

It was a relief that he seemed easier to persuade than expected.

“Yes, yes, that’s right. Just the two of us in the Awakeners’ residential facility. Eating together, sleeping- uh, sleeping… anyway!”

Before Ju-an could finish, Gong Se-yoon answered quickly.

“I’m fine with it! Where do I sign?”

“…Already? There’s nothing you want to negotiate or adjust?”

Gong Se-yoon looked at Ju-an steadily and interlaced his fingers.

He clasped them so tightly it looked like his fingers might ache.

“Yesterday, when Joo Ji-chan took you away, I thought I might never see you again. I wondered if you’d gotten tired of me. But we met again like this, and we can even live together regularly, there’s no reason not to sign.”

‘What am I supposed to do with this kid…?’

He looked like the type who’d immediately follow anyone who offered to buy him something tasty.

A sudden wave of anxiety washed over Ju-an.

Until now, he’d been a little worried about Gong Se-yoon’s excessive innocence, but since he was an S-Rank Hunter, Ju-an had only worried about him being scammed financially.

He’d never worried about physical danger, until he heard there were people actively targeting S-Ranks.

There were anarchists opposed to the current social system, and foreign hunters who hunted S-Ranks.

‘What if he actually gets kidnapped?’

Ju-an swallowed hard and tightly grabbed Se-yoon’s hand.

Se-yoon’s cheeks flushed red as he looked at Ju-an.

“Se-yoon, listen to me carefully. Not everyone is as pure as you. There are lots of people who approach others with bad intentions. So read the contract properly and calmly. Check whether there’s anything that could disadvantage you.”

Gong Se-yoon blinked as he stared at Ju-an, then nodded seriously and began reading the contract closely.

After a long while, he finally spoke.

“There’s something important missing from this contract.”

“What is it?”

“There’s no clause about quest reward distribution, and no mutual non-aggression clause.”

Ju-an’s mouth fell open in shock at the precise observation.

He hadn’t expected Gong Se-yoon to be this sharp.

Well… Gong Se-yoon really was a cheat character in every sense.

Ju-an looked back over the contract.

Sure enough, there was nothing about how rewards would be divided, nor anything about not attacking each other for safety.

For someone as smart as Mo Jun-young to overlook that, guess even monkeys fall out of trees.

Seong Ju-an added those clauses to the contract and handed it back.

Gong Se-yoon beamed and signed it without hesitation.

“So, are we going home now?”

“…Pardon?”

“Didn’t you say you’d eat with me once everything was done?”

Ah.

‘So that was why he rushed to sign.’

What should Ju-an do?

If he handed this contract to Mo Jun-young, Joo Ji-chan’s signature would sort itself out, but Baek Eun-hoo would probably need personal persuasion…

When Ju-an hesitated, Gong Se-yoon’s gaze slowly cooled.

“What? You’re going to use me and then eat with someone else?”

“No, no, that’s not it-! Ah, I know. e-yoon, if you look at the contract clauses, we agreed to take turns guarding each other, right?”

Gong Se-yoon smiled brightly and nodded.

That clause clearly seemed to be his favorite.

“How about we put Se-yoon first in the rotation? I’ve only just awakened, so I have a lot to take care of right now.”

That sounded more convincing than saying he was going to meet Baek Eun-hoo.

…Though, thinking about it, wasn’t this a bit strange?

Did he really have to go this far?

It’s not like he was Se-yoon’s boyfriend.

Still, Ju-an decided to think of it as natural jealousy from the youngest child in a big family.

After all, they were practically children he’d created with his own hands.

Gong Se-yoon narrowed his eyes at Ju-an for a moment, then finally relented.

“Alright. But keep your promise. I’m number one.”

“Of course. Of course. I guarantee that promise.”

“Then it’s settled.”

At last, the safe contract with Gong Se-yoon was complete.

And yet, it was only one person down, cold sweat streamed down Ju-an’s back.

After coaxing Gong Se-yoon into going home instead of staying at the center, Ju-an immediately called Baek Eun-hoo.

Baek Eun-hoo said he’d come right away, and true to his word, Ju-an soon got a message saying he’d arrived on the first floor.

Waiting in the conference room, Ju-an’s heart started pounding for no clear reason.

Was it because he knew Baek Eun-hoo was a character who caused fractures among Awakeners?

An uneasy chill crept up his spine.

Soon, the conference room door opened, and Baek Eun-hoo entered in a black suit.

Every long stride he took emphasized his towering height and broad shoulders, completely dominating the room.

His shining silver hair was brushed back, revealing a clear forehead, a sharp nose standing proudly at the center of his face, and lips tinged faintly red, giving him an even more mature air.

Ju-an stared for a moment, spellbound, then violently shook his head.

‘No. Get a grip.’

Him dressing this well could be part of a strategy.

Steeling himself, Seong Ju-an hardened his expression.

At that moment, Baek Eun-hoo, seated across from him, leaned forward.

He raised his hand toward Ju-an’s face as if to cup his cheek, and Ju-an was so startled he couldn’t even dodge.

‘W-What…?’

Ju-an tensed, afraid he might get slapped, but instead Baek Eun-hoo lightly brushed a finger down Ju-an’s right cheek.

When Ju-an finally let out the breath he’d been holding, Baek Eun-hoo examined the hair stuck to his fingers and smirked.

“Looks like a brown puppy rubbed against you. Gong Se-yoon?”

“…It must have stuck when we briefly ran into each other.”

“Well, that happens. Still, be careful. You know Gong Se-yoon is stronger than he looks, right?”

Ju-an knew that better than anyone.

But careful of what?

The kid seemed too kind to even kill an ant…

“Anyway, you didn’t call me here without a reason, did you?”

He was only asking a question, yet the pressure was overwhelming.

Ju-an hesitated briefly, then steeled himself.

‘Don’t back down. He’s someone you’ll need to keep a friendly relationship with going forward. Get it together. Baek Eun-hoo is just a character you created.’

Thinking that way eased his nerves a little.

“Baek Eun-hoo, I’ll be direct. Please contract with me.”

Baek Eun-hoo’s eyes curved with interest.

“…That’s unexpected. You’re the one proposing first. I have no reason to refuse a contract with an S-Rank Buffer. Especially since, until that Constellation appeared, I could use the help.”

Things seemed to be going surprisingly smoothly, but Ju-an couldn’t afford to let his guard down.

“Of course, I’m not contracting exclusively with you.”

Baek Eun-hoo nodded as if he’d expected that.

As always, he caught on quickly.

“Of course not. There’s no way only one hunter would want you.”

His gaze dropped to the contract spread across the table.

“So this is a contract for jointly owning Seong Ju-an, the buffer.”

“Yes. For me, it’s honestly a relief in a life-threatening situation. But there’s one thing I’m curious about.”

Baek Eun-hoo scanned the contract and nodded.

Maybe because he was responding more amicably than usual, Ju-an blurted out a question he’d been holding back.

“I don’t understand why Awakeners would choose to contract with a buffer like me instead of perfectly fine Constellations. I mean, I’m grateful, but I don’t quite get it. Are Constellations that difficult to deal with?”

Baek Eun-hoo replied with a meaningful smile.

“You know that all Constellations used to be Awakeners like us, right? They were people who contributed greatly to humanity. But after gaining power, they began to change.”

“In what way…?”

“In a word, greed. We saw through that greed. Constellations see us as tools for realizing their ambitions. They want to clear dungeons, reap rewards, and take first place in the Constellation War.”

That made sense.

The climax of the game came after clearing all dungeon stages, gaining powerful skills, and moving on to the Constellation War.

Of course Constellations were desperate to secure excellent hunters.

Their goals and Ju-an’s were different.

“I’ve been postponing contracts, claiming my skills aren’t fully developed yet, because I don’t want to be used by Constellations.”