Ch.94. Free Trade Zone (1)

Arin subtly rose from her seat and placed her hand on my desk.

“Yuri Tarkovskaya, the Guild Master of Flame and an S-rank hunter. It’s strange that such an important Guild Master would send a direct message to a mere intern, don’t you think?”

Of course, as Arin said, the rank difference between a Guild Master and an intern is significant. But Arin must know that Yuri and I have a deep connection as former classmates.

‘Her gaze is intimidating.’

Arin seems displeased, probably suspecting that Yuri sent me a personal message. But I was curious about the matter too.

“Well, the Guild Master probably has some task for me.”

“Really? Maybe she wants you to fetch coffee? I’m much better at that than you are, senior.”

Arin subtly moved closer to me. Today she was wearing her usual pure white nun’s habit, but it somehow seemed tighter than usual.

Back at Aince Academy, many female students would alter their uniforms to fit better, even though they were all the same uniform. Arin was no exception. She was slightly shorter than average, but had a good figure.

As her body drew closer, the familiar scent of her body wash wafted over.

‘This isn’t the time for idle thoughts.’

Yuri’s message was a question, not an order. So I needed to reply quickly.

‘I’m not particularly busy right now.’

It seemed they wouldn’t assign any work or simple projects during the first week. In fact, all I’d done today was some basic cleaning and document copying as instructed by Team Leader Seo.

Just then, Team Leader Seo, who had been watching the two of us with interest, spoke up.

“Is it Guild Master Yuri? Reply quickly. We don’t have much to do today anyway.”

Arin’s expression momentarily hardened at his words, but she quickly put on a bright smile.

“Is that so? Guild Master Yuri seems quite considerate, personally contacting even interns like this.”

“Well, according to the intern program guide, meetings with senior department heads like the Guild Master are recommended. I’m sure Guild Master Yuri will contact not just Minsu, but also Arin and Donghyuk. She’s good at separating work from personal matters.”

“I’m not saying this out of jealousy…”

“Yes, yes. Anyway, if she called you, it means she has business with you. Minsu, you may go.”

Ignoring Arin’s grumbling, I replied to Yuri.

—————————–

Lee Minsu: I’m not busy, Guild Master. ┛

┗ Yuri Tarkovskaya: Then please come to my office right away.

—————————–

Yuri replied immediately, just as Team Leader Seo had predicted. I said to him:

“Team Leader, the Guild Master is calling for me. I’ll be back shortly.”

“Take your time. You can be gone for as long as needed. Oh, but if you stay past closing time, please send me a message to report in.”

Arin glared at Team Leader Seo for his casual remark, but fortunately, he didn’t seem to notice.

I left the field team’s office. Next to it was the waiting room and the field team’s break room.

Hearing sounds coming through the open door of the break room, I glanced inside.

‘It’s Soso.’

Soso was sprawled out on the sofa, fast asleep and snoring. She looked so defenseless that I couldn’t help but smile.

‘Such a grown woman.’

Though it was winter, Flame’s interior was kept warm with generous heating, but her fitness attire of a tank top and leggings still looked inadequate.

I covered her with the flight jacket she had kicked to the floor.

‘When did I buy that for her? Why is she still wearing it?’

Then I promptly left the break room.

‘Soso will be on standby for a while.’

I’d heard this from Team Leader Seo. Soso’s limit line was currently at 35, so on Yuri’s orders, she was excluded from all field missions.

Apparently, there had been quite an argument between Yuri and Soso about this. Yuri was an S-rank hunter, but Soso was still an A-rank hunter.

It seemed Soso wanted to catch up to Yuri as quickly as possible. Team Leader Seo’s words came to mind:

– If a guild has two S-rank hunters, its value skyrockets.

Ultimately, Soso’s goal was also to grow the Flame Guild.

‘A place where the Heavenly Demon resides should not be so humble.’

That’s what Soso supposedly said, but Team Leader Seo mentioned that her ultimate goal was also the annihilation of the Red Lake.

– Well, anyway, it seems she can’t forgive those who put you in that state, Minsu.

I thought it wasn’t just about that, but it was enough to know that was what Soso wanted. I had a responsibility to fulfill her wishes.

‘I’ll get Soso back in the field. Definitely.’

With that resolve, I headed to the 32nd floor, to Yuri’s office.

***

Yuri and I entered the private elevator once again.

Unlike during my interview, this time the elevator was heading to the underground parking lot, not the rooftop.

As an awkward silence fell between us like before, I spoke first.

“Um, Guild Master. I was hired as an operator intern, not a driver. Am I to serve as a driver as well?”

Despite being alone together, I didn’t speak informally.

We had spoken casually only during that interview. Since then, in our communications, we had agreed to maintain formal speech with each other.

For now, that distance was necessary for both of us.

“No. As you said, you’re an operator. But it would be good for you to get used to driving. Flame Guild doesn’t use self-driving cars.”

Yuri answered seriously. As she said, a driver’s license was required when applying to Flame.

In the world of Aka Hunter, where self-driving cars were commonplace, a driver’s license wasn’t as common a qualification as one might think.

Not only job seekers but I too had found it strange, but after joining, I learned the reason from Team Leader Seo.

– Vehicles with semiconductors are easily hacked by information manipulation villains. Even hunters fear traffic accidents.

Especially guilds like Flame, which frequently carry out missions against major villains, didn’t use self-driving cars. Yuri continued:

“Gates and dungeons can appear anywhere. And Flame is an association-certified guild that can take on nationwide missions, not just local ones. We need to go wherever the mission takes us, so driving is essential. Especially for the field team.”

I had recently checked the mission locations of the raid team. As Yuri said, Flame operated all over the country.

‘So the rumors about her being a workaholic are true.’

Given that Yuri had just returned from a mission yesterday, she probably didn’t call me for something trivial. Her tone was serious.

Perhaps, as she said, she wanted to help me get used to manual driving.

‘Well, I practiced hard while preparing for the job, so it shouldn’t be a problem.’

After exiting the elevator, we stood in front of her car.

“This is my car. Here’s the key. Take it.”

She handed me the key. It was an old-fashioned physical car key that seemed completely out of place for someone as sophisticated as Yuri.

It was a relic from a bygone era. And the car in front of us was a rugged SUV. I recalled the car Yuri used to drive during our academy days.

‘It was a supercar worth over a billion won even with basic options.’

Coincidentally, there were many such supercars in this Gangnam building’s underground parking lot, making this rugged car stand out even more.

However, around Yuri’s car, there were surprisingly many similar old-model cars.

‘Those must all belong to Flame.’

Still, once I got into the driver’s seat, it had a substantial feel that wasn’t bad. Yuri then climbed into the passenger seat beside me.

“Guild Master? Wouldn’t the back seat be more comfortable for you?”

“No, I’ll sit here.”

“But you’re the Guild Master. The passenger seat doesn’t seem appropriate.”

“Flame doesn’t need such formalities. I’m not a corporate CEO. And this is work hours. I have things to discuss with you as an operator. This seat is better.”

“I understand.”

With those words, it finally hit me that Yuri was the CEO of a successful guild. And suddenly, I remembered something from our time at Aince.

“Where shall I take you, Guild Master?”

Back then, I had also become her driver after losing a bet with her.

Of course, at that time, Yuri had arrogantly sat in the back seat, like a queen. Completely different from the composed Yuri sitting beside me now.

But unlike me, Yuri seemed unaffected by the memory and spoke in a businesslike tone:

“Ah, wait. This car doesn’t have a navigation system. Because of hacking concerns. So I’ll use my smartphone for navigation…”

Saying this, Yuri placed her phone on the car mount.

At that moment, I inadvertently saw her phone’s wallpaper. It showed a younger-looking Yuri and me in a photo.

‘That’s… from winter break of our second year…’

It was from our special advanced training. I couldn’t be mistaken, as I had once kept that photo with me too.

“Wait. Just a moment.”

For an instant, I saw Yuri’s eyes waver. She hurriedly opened the navigation app and entered the destination, covering the wallpaper.

“Um, let’s go quickly. We’re on duty, so leisurely dawdling would be a waste of time.”

Pretending not to notice Yuri’s inability to hide her embarrassment, I replied:

“Understood. I’ll drive you safely.”

***

The destination Yuri specified was an unexpected place.

‘Incheon Free Trade Zone.’

It’s a lawless area. In the port city of Incheon, there’s a hunter market that operates without the Hunter Association’s certification.

From hiring personnel to trading all sorts of hunter-related items. Most of the traded goods in this high-crime area are illegal, but…

Since gates and dungeons are dangerous, and association-affiliated hunters alone can’t handle all security matters, the association turns a blind eye to this black market.

‘Well, they’re still using those items to hunt monsters.’

And during my days as an Aince student, I frequented that place. It was the best place to dispose of artifacts I didn’t need.

‘But it’s a dangerous place. Especially for a young, pretty woman like Yuri…’

There are many awakened ones there—hunters and villains living recklessly. Naturally, it’s dangerous for a young woman like Yuri.

Of course, Yuri is an S-rank hunter, but I was still concerned. While stopped at a traffic light, she crossed her legs the other way, seemingly uncomfortable in the passenger seat.

Then, unaware of my thoughts, Yuri spoke from beside me.

“I need to buy something there for the guild. I could go alone, but I also had something to discuss with you as an operator intern.”

Yuri seemed quite busy, so I understood her reasoning.

“What did you want to discuss with me?”

“Your answer in the practical interview. Or more precisely, the latest paper by Dr. Sung Chaerin that formed the basis of your answer. I have a few questions about it.”

Now I understood Yuri’s intention.

That paper was so recent that even Executive Director Maria didn’t know about it during the interview.

I knew about the paper before Flame’s main operator because of my connection with Dr. Sung Chaerin.

Or more accurately, because I had helped with that paper to some extent. I mentioned this fact.

“I see. Since Flame bases its operations on Dr. Sung Chaerin’s theories, it was quite surprising for Maria to learn there was a newer theory than what Flame had. As expected of you, Minsu. To think you helped Dr. Sung Chaerin.”

“Well… she’s just an acquaintance…”

“No need to be modest. Even at Aince, your grades in MCI-related subjects were excellent. You always beat me.”

Having inadvertently mentioned something personal, Yuri cleared her throat.

“Ahem. That’s… I mean, I saw your academy grades in your job application. No, more importantly, I wanted to ask about that theory.”

“Yes, what would you like to know?”

“The relationship factor mentioned as the most important variable in the latest theory. I’d like to know more about it in detail.”

Yuri was right. I scored perfectly in the practical interview because I considered that relationship factor and made tactical judgments different from conventional wisdom.

“The term ‘relationship’ seems too broad to grasp easily. When I read the paper, I understood it as saying that the social relationship elements of an awakened person… affect their MCI during raids. But the term ‘relationship’ seems too vague.”

As Yuri said, relationship cannot be defined in a single way. It’s not just about emotions between people like affection or hatred, but also complex relationships like love-hate.

I spent some time explaining the theory as I understood it to Yuri.

“Judging an individual is the domain of psychologists, but in this case, it’s more of a technical issue. Dr. Sung Chaerin’s theory approaches from the detailed factors of MCI that change during magical contact…”

Yuri didn’t seem to understand everything, but she appeared to have found something useful for Flame from my explanation.

“Then can this theory be applied to Soso, I mean, Team Leader Yeon Soso?”

After a moment’s thought, I replied:

“Yes, it’s possible.”

“Could her limit line increase too?”

“Probably.”

At my answer, Yuri let out a relieved sigh. It seemed Soso was a very important employee to Yuri as well.

“Phew. That’s a relief. Having a skilled main dealer like Team Leader Yeon unable to participate in raids is a big loss for Flame. I can’t handle it alone.”

Despite saying this, Yuri’s recent raid records without Soso were quite impressive. I’d heard that’s why Soso was feeling more urgent.

Perhaps Yuri had been pushing herself too hard lately.

As if confirming my thoughts, Yuri, who had been listening to my continued explanation of MCI theory, was now quietly breathing beside me, fast asleep.

***

Yuri Tarkovskaya was dreaming.

Since graduating from Aince, she had always suffered from severe insomnia. So even now, rather than a proper dream, it was more like a daydream at the boundary between consciousness and unconsciousness.

But the voice of a man reaching her ears was soothing her nerves, which had been on edge due to excessive work and missions. She felt comfortable and drowsy.

‘If we apply the relationship described in this paper to the detailed variables of MCI… the indicator changes…’

The man, Lee Minsu, continued talking beside her, but in her dreamy state, Yuri couldn’t hear the details.

Only the word “relationship” kept floating in her mind.

‘Relationship…? Then what about Minsu and me?’

Lee Minsu and Yuri Tarkovskaya.

If one were to define their relationship, in the past there was an easy answer: classmates and friends. And now, a guild master and an intern.

But in reality, it wasn’t so simple to define.

Around the time of their graduation from Aince, the feelings that had sprouted within her were far too tender to simply call it friendship, and Yuri still knew this well.

In her drowsy daydream, Yuri inadvertently began to recall that graduation ceremony and those emotions.

It was a very brief reminiscence.