Chapter 125: Amazing News

<125 – Surprising News>

Shin Do-cheol, a B-rank awakened of the Taebaek Guild.

Thanks to Kang Taebaek’s equipment support, his combat power had effectively improved to A-rank.

He felt no pride in this fact.

Right before his eyes, equipment comparable to the armor he wore was being mass-produced like in a factory.

[Living Armor Unit 2187]

[Living Armor Unit 2188]

“Humanity has done well to endure against such monsters.”

Arachne, who dominated the boss room.

From her workshop, self-aware parasitic armors marched out one after another.

“Arachne. May I ask one question?”

“You’re quite demanding for a mere gatekeeper.”

Hae Eung Eung, realizing Shin had nowhere else to go, made him the gatekeeper of the boss room.

Officially listed as missing, he had essentially surrendered secretly to Hae Eung Eung.

Fighting would mean certain defeat, and returning would mean death at Kang Taebaek’s hands, so he had no other choice.

‘It’s wiser to stay quiet as a mouse and stand guard at the entrance like a gargoyle statue.’

He knew this.

He knew, but.

This time, he simply couldn’t hold back his objection.

“Did the ancient kingdom also have bikini armor?”

The issue was the appearance of these living armors.

He could somehow understand breastplates with sculpted abs or full plate armor protecting the entire body.

But bikini armor was a step too far, no matter how open-minded one tried to be.

“It’s knowledge provided by the Gate.”

“The Gate…!”

“It imparts knowledge so outdated monsters don’t fall behind due to lack of information. Knowledge of global languages and interests, for example.”

They understand languages from all over the world and receive knowledge in fields they had talent in during their lifetime.

For someone who had only thought of monsters as powerful beasts, this was truly shocking information.

“What, do you want to try it on?”

“What nonsense. I’m satisfied with the armor I’m wearing now.”

“Then let me ask you a question in return.”

“Go ahead.”

“Do modern human women prefer underwear to armor?”

Shin Do-cheol wore a blank expression.

‘How would I know that? I’m not even a woman.’

But he couldn’t just say he didn’t know in front of this monster. What if it decided “Then there’s no need to keep you alive” and chopped his head off?

Shuddering at the horrible thought, Shin gave a vague answer.

“Women naturally prefer underwear, don’t they? I suppose bikini armor is similar. Armor that’s like underwear. How nice that must be.”

Arachne nodded, saying this was helpful.

“Then I should make plenty of underwear-style armor for women.”

Wait, how did the conversation end up like this?

Shin’s eyes widened in disbelief.

But soon after, a satisfied smile spread across his face.

[Living Armor Unit 2205]

[Type – Micro Bikini]

[Living Armor Unit 2222]

[Type – School Swimsuit]

[Living Armor Unit 2254]

[Type – Reverse Bunny Suit]

A parade of living armors to delight the eyes! With so many dungeons in the world, surely it wouldn’t hurt to have one like this.

Shin Do-cheol’s job satisfaction at his new workplace skyrocketed.

The Asan Guild managed to salvage the situation just before sinking.

Guild Master Yoon Asan pinned all the blame on Vice Guild Master Jeong Ji-su.

They paid compensation to the casualties.

They ceded one administrative district to the Taebaek Guild.

Major concessions were also made to the Haenam Faction.

“The Asan Guild can’t interfere or indirectly pressure the entertainment activities of the Haenam Faction and Royal Club. We’ve signed a treaty to that effect.”

“That’s fortunate. Considering Asan Guild’s influence in the entertainment industry, you’ve really accomplished something great.”

With this, major obstacles to the Haenam Faction’s guild expansion have been removed.

With two of the top ten guilds broken, touching them would be an affront to the dignity of the top guilds.

Even though the Taebaek and Asan Guilds have lost face significantly, their underlying strength is still immense.

“Does the Guild Master still have no intention of overseeing internal affairs?”

“He said he’s leaving everything to us. Honestly, letting an executive from the Myeongho Guild and the CEO of another company make deals on their own. How much must he trust us?”

“Haha. That’s the charm of our Guild Master, isn’t it? Once he gives his trust, he gives it completely.”

It was far better to have someone so clearly hands-off than a type who only pretends to be generous and competent while meddling.

He removes his hands from areas outside his interests and delegates work to appropriate people.

Many people know this is wise behavior but can’t do it for one reason:

Lack of trust.

If you entrust a task involving enormous interests to a subordinate, won’t they just steal connections, experience, and business contacts?

Can such a high-stakes matter really proceed smoothly?

Can this person really be trusted with this task?

We can’t say they’re wrong to think this way.

Misplaced trust can cause tremendous damage to connections and assets.

That’s how weighty the value of trust is.

One must have an accurate eye for people.

And see through their abilities.

The person being trusted

is as important as the one giving trust.

“We must not let this trust go to waste. We must do our utmost to nurture the Haenam Faction.”

Shin Seong-gwak’s ambition.

Han Chae-rin smiled and asked about his bold intention.

“Will you utilize the connections you had in the Myeongho Guild?”

“New wine should be put in new wineskins. I’ll erase all traces of the Myeongho Guild.”

“Good thinking. We don’t know how far Kim Chang-sik’s influence might still reach.”

The meeting to discuss the Haenam Faction’s future continued for a long time, with meaningful conversations taking place.

By the time the meeting ended, the number of small and medium guilds allied with the Haenam Faction had greatly increased.

The Daesan Guild and the Awakened Association’s Vigilante Corps were at the forefront of these alliances.

Preparations began for establishing 7 new business entities to support guild operations, and a schedule was set for relocating the Royal Club’s office.

Procedures to rename the administrative district to Haenam-dong were also set to begin.

“It was a productive meeting.”

“What could possibly hinder a free and unrestricted meeting?”

“Hehe. That’s true. Ah~ how wonderful it would be to have meetings like this every day. I already feel like living in this neighborhood.”

“Are you so pleased because you’ve found a source for trainees?”

“Of course! Do you know what a gold mine the Awakened Academy is? Good looks, well-managed bodies, and even combat training. It’s like winning the lottery every time.”

The Myeongho Guild’s Awakened Academy was set to be transferred at a bargain price, using the academy director’s misconduct that Min Woo-sung had obtained from somewhere as leverage.

This was the result of covert support from the National Security Agency to keep Hae Eung Eung focused on stabilizing the guild and prevent him from causing trouble.

Thanks to this, CEO Han Chae-rin, who profited from mediating the deal, couldn’t stop smiling.

“Woo Ji-woo. Have you found out where the Guild Master is?”

Even if he’s not interested in business matters, we should at least report on the progress.

This was something Shin Seong-gwak couldn’t compromise on.

Shouldn’t Hae Eung Eung at least know what’s going on in his own guild?

“He’s started a game.”

“Ah, he’s streaming. It’s been a while since he played Half-Ogre Song.”

“Um, about that…”

“Is there a message from the Guild Master? Why are you being so evasive?”

“It’s not Half-Ogre Song.”

“Hm?”

“The Guild Master started a different game.”

At those words, Shin Seong-gwak and Han Chae-rin both wore expressions with question marks floating above their heads.

“What’s this nonsense all of a sudden?”

“That’s right. What is he playing instead of the game he was doing fine with?”

“Well… it’s Whip Simulator.”

The question marks on their faces doubled.

“Are you joking?”

“You have a talent for comedy. Want to be an entertainment show panelist?”

“It’s not a joke. It’s true.”

Woo Ji-woo held out his smartphone.

[New VTube BJ]

[Silent Swordsman is starting a broadcast]

[Game – Whip Simulator (Lupin Co.)]

[Playtime – 00:03:15]

[Broadcast time – 00:03:15]

The two were dumbfounded, wondering how this could be real.

But there was even more surprising news.

“And it’s his first collaboration stream.”

“Who? Who is he streaming with?”

“He’s collaborating with the whip manager Lee Sohye who visited recently.”

“What could our Guild Master possibly lack that he needs to do a collaboration stream?”

“Well, it seems he wants to learn Sohye’s whip techniques.”

Having filled his skill levels to the maximum, with only 10 levels of secondary martial arts and mastery of one martial art remaining.

As Hae Eung Eung was pondering which martial art to learn, Lee Sohye appeared at just the right moment.

-Silent Swordsman. I heard you’d teach one martial art to anyone who asks. Can I learn too?

Lee Sohye came seeking to learn martial arts.

Hae Eung Eung recalled something she had said.

-That’s not how you use a whip.

For her to say something like that

Meant she must be quite confident in her skills.

[This works out well. Please teach me whip techniques.]

-Huh? Wait, hold on. So suddenly? I came to learn, not to teach you?!

The final secondary martial art Hae Eung Eung chose was whip techniques.