#054
Hyun Dowoon responded to my words with a shocked expression.
“You’re saying you’ll attack a dungeon alone…? Will that be okay?”
“If I want to do what I want, isn’t this something I have to go through? I’ll end up attacking alone anyway.”
I answered with a shrug. Hyun Dowoon then looked at me with worried eyes and tried to persuade me.
“Don’t do that, just come to my team. I’m taking the team leader position for convenience, but when actually leading the team, it’s fine if you take the initiative.”
Hmm, it wouldn’t work to join anyone’s team since that’s against the quest and my goal. But I wondered why Hyun Dowoon was trying so hard to persuade me.
“Why are you going this far?”
Hyun Dowoon tilted his head and looked at me, as if he didn’t understand the question. His fingers were tapping his thigh, as if it was an unconscious action.
“What do you mean by ‘this far’?”
“You’re the Center Director, and an S-class esper, right? Why are you speaking as if it doesn’t matter to give me the team leader position? I don’t understand why I absolutely need to join that team.”
“Didn’t I say I wanted you to have a fulfilling life?”
Hyun Dowoon muttered, “I’m sure I said that.”
Of course I heard that… but what I’m asking isn’t that, but why he’s thinking of creating a team just for me.
“Ah.”
Hyun Dowoon nodded slightly, as if he realized the meaning of my question from my expression.
He looked at me with a serious face.
“I like you, Jaeha. I want to change your mind, and I’ll do everything I can for that… but even if you don’t look back at me, I wanted to create a team for you.”
“That’s a bit strange.”
The words came out of my mouth without time to think. Hyun Dowoon looked at me, seeming a bit surprised by my words.
“Have you always changed your routine for people you know?”
“I don’t do such things! I didn’t receive power to protect specific individuals.”
“What you just said is changing the system to protect a specific individual, isn’t it?”
The Center Director basically has a lot of routine work overseeing awakened ones, so they’re supposed to enter dungeons only once a month.
The fact that he said he would change that routine because of me was so different from the Hyun Dowoon I knew.
‘Wasn’t he someone who cared about things like fairness, efficiency, impartiality?’
Changing that for just one person like me didn’t make sense.
Hyun Dowoon seemed to realize his strange attitude only after my point. He blankly raised his hand to cover his mouth.
“Even you think it’s strange, right, Center Director?”
“That… I’m not sure. It’s true that it’s not the way I’ve lived my life. But it seems you’ve become someone more precious to me than that.”
“I appreciate the sentiment, but I can’t accept your feelings, and I don’t intend to receive special treatment alone. My intention to create a one-person team means I’ll forge ahead with my own abilities.”
Maybe Hyun Dowoon is still feeling the aftereffects of the mercenary contract termination. Honestly, I didn’t think he was doing this because he truly desired me. If he were that kind of person, I thought he wouldn’t have created this situation in the first place.
Anyway, I was genuinely grateful. I knew that even considering changing the system for me was a huge deal for Hyun Dowoon.
“That’s why I requested an interview with you, Center Director. I don’t want anything else. Just give me a chance to prove my abilities.”
“First, we need to check the Awakened Person Act. We need to review the legal aspects to see if there are provisions for one-person teams.”
“Should I go find a lawyer?”
“No, let’s check with the association’s legal counsel.”
“Seeing you do this… does it mean you support my decision?”
“I couldn’t stop you from the beginning.”
Hyun Dowoon whispered with a bitter smile. As I tilted my head, not quite understanding what he meant, he bit his lip and let out a small sigh.
He didn’t seem to want to explain in detail what he just said to me.
“What does that mean?”
But there’s no rule that I shouldn’t ask just because he doesn’t want to say.
Since Hyun Dowoon seemed strange, I thought I should check his condition. Given that there weren’t rumors about the Center Director going crazy, it seemed he had only lost his rationality in matters related to me.
Hearing my question, Hyun Dowoon hesitated before speaking honestly.
“I don’t know why… but when I’m conscious of you, I want to do anything for you.”
“What?”
“If you say you need me, I want to grant everything, and if I think something will help you, I want to do that too.”
While I was blinking, not quite understanding what he meant, Hyun Dowoon took out his phone, saying he would call the lawyer.
He soon scanned through his contact list and made a call.
“Hello, this is Hyun Dowoon. I need some consultation.”
As the lawyer seemed to answer, Hyun Dowoon briefly raised his hand to me and moved near the desk to talk on the phone.
Since Hyun Dowoon would handle the legal issues anyway, I decided to wait until he finished the call. As I was sipping the slightly cooled coffee, suddenly my phone rang with a notification sound.
‘What’s this? There shouldn’t be another quest while one is in progress…’
Nine had only given one quest at a time until now. Maybe he had something personal to say?
I hurriedly took out my phone and opened the game app with the new notification.
: I’ve appeared briefly for an explanation!
I can’t speak to Nine out loud here. I waited for Nine to unilaterally display text.
Judging by Nine’s expression, it seemed like something not good, which worried me a bit.
: It seems the Center Director’s affection was too high! He’s experiencing serious side effects from the mercenary contract termination!
‘What?’
I was shocked and my eyes widened. It was surprising that his affection for me was even higher than I thought, but the mention of side effects worried me.
He doesn’t even know that I made and terminated a mercenary contract, so if he’s experiencing serious side effects because of me, it would be very regrettable.
: It’s a disease where he wants to give everything for the owner of his soul! It’s a serious side effect!
The owner of his soul… me?
A disease where he wants to do everything for me?
: It will get worse from now on! He might even die for Yeonsoo if needed?
What? That’s too extreme! I was startled and shook my phone vigorously. Nine displayed a spinning emoticon and said, ‘Don’t shake!’
Experiencing such severe side effects, I don’t know how to resolve this without even being able to tell Hyun Dowoon.
It would be a big problem if he ends up disrupting social order by trying to do something for me. I glared at Nine.
: Until side effect termination… ??? days!
If you want to remove it right away, contract again! Quick solution~☆ Yeonsoo is popular!
This is really maddening. How can he tell me to contract again when I just terminated the mercenary contract. That was something I really wanted to avoid.
Above all, making a mercenary contract is just a temporary measure. The moment I make the contract, the affection would pile up again in the system, and it was obvious that terminating it later would cause an even bigger problem.
As I stared intently waiting for another solution, Nine just disappeared with a poof. Only the normal game screen remained, making further conversation impossible.
While I was staring blankly at the screen, Hyun Dowoon approached with some notes, seemingly having finished his call.
“I’ve checked all the legally necessary parts.”
“Ah… thank you.”
I need to manage my expression for now. Knowing that the person in front of me was experiencing serious side effects because of me suddenly filled me with guilt.
I should have made decisions more carefully… The problem was that I made decisions without thoroughly questioning Nine about the system.
‘Sigh… all because of trying to complete that quest…’
I learned an important lesson that from now on, I should always check the surrounding situation first when something new comes up.
Perhaps because I was making a strange expression, Hyun Dowoon looked at my face with a worried expression.
‘Oh no, is that a side effect too?’
Having heard the truth, all of Hyun Dowoon’s attitudes seemed like side effects. Even though he was originally a thoughtful and kind person.
“What did the lawyer say?”
I asked, pretending to be okay for now. Hyun Dowoon then handed me the memo. He seemed to have taken notes to make it easier for me to remember.
1.There are no legal restrictions on establishing new teams yet
2.While entry of ordinary people into dungeons is strictly prohibited, there’s no regulation stating one can’t enter a dungeon alone
3.However, entry is only possible in team units
4.Only espers can enter dungeons alone, guides are legally prohibited from solo entry
Overall, the content was favorable to me, but the problem was item 4.
If guides can’t enter dungeons alone, it’s impossible for me from the start.
“Number 4 is the problem.”
“That’s one of the clauses in the Guide Protection Act. It was created after guides were sent into dungeons to confirm their abilities in the early days of their discovery, resulting in mass casualties.”
“Then I…”
“It’s certainly impossible for you alone, Jaeha. But what if we bend the law a bit?”
Hyun Dowoon’s following explanation was not just innovative, but bordering on breaking the law.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
