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Red Lion Team Building, the territory of the Dragon Clan.

In the place where only the Red Lion Team and some of the dragons can enter, a guest had arrived.

“I see Yong Jegun’s only friend is here again.”

“It’s nice seeing you often. You said you’re using the name Kim Shinrok now, right?”

“Welcome, Shinrok-ah.”

“Hell. It’s quite shameless for me to come here again.”

“Shame? I see you’ve really grown up. You’ve picked up on those useless things.”

As Kim Shinrok smiled awkwardly and responded to their greetings, their surroundings became noisy.

Yong Jegun and Yeom Junyeol, after changing into comfortable clothes, arrived side by side.

The dragons disregarded Yong Jegun as they greeted Yeom Junyeol warmly.

“Oh… Our Junyeol-ie is here too! Have you two greeted each other?”

“…Yes.”

“Yes, Professor Kim Shinrok and I exchanged greetings from school.”

Yeom Junyeol’s smile didn’t reach his eyes as he responded to the dragons who welcomed him.

Kim Shinrok swallowed a bitter smile when he saw it.

Seeing a descendant being loved like so, he felt a bit bitter.

‘I wished he hadn’t known me like this until after he graduated…’

Not long ago, Hwangho asked Kim Shinrok whether he would accept a dispatch mission.

His mission was to interrogate Cadmus, the dragon slayer bound to the territory of the Dragon Clan.

Having ties to the Dragon Clan himself, Kim Shinrok readily accepted.

Upon receiving the news, Cheongryong ordered Yong Jegun to bring Kim Shinrok to their territory.

— Thanks for helping the Dragon Clan, Shinrok-ah. Now that you’re in our territory, I have a suggestion…

Yong Jegun spoke with a unique tone.

It hasn’t been long since they made up after arguing about the Sung Gukeon issue, but the shameless Yong Jegun was at it again.

— Why don’t you talk to our Junyeol-ie?

— …Why?

— You’d go in and out of the Dragon Clan’s territory often, so you’re bound to run into Yeom Junyeol someday. Don’t you think it’s better to come clean beforehand?

To Kim Shinrok’s annoyance, Yong Jegun had a point.

There was a good chance that he’d run into Yeom Junyeol when going to and from the dragons’ territory.

How fazing would it be if the two descendants meet each other by chance?

It was impossible to avoid the Dragon Clan’s precious descendant forever, given that the head of the Tiger Clan sent him on this mission.

Kim Shinrok nodded reluctantly.

— …Okay.

— Alright, let’s go home with Yeom Junyeol today. That’s great!

Thinking about what would happen after school, Kim Shinrok’s mood plummeted.

On the other hand, Yong Jegun was very happy.

Seeing that just made Kim Shinrok feel even worse.

He didn’t want to keep seeing Yong Jegun’s smiling face, so he lowered his head and kept himself busy with some documents.

— About the kid in my class I told you about, the one I was intrigued by — Hani … She and Miro had a battle today. Are you curious about the result?

— …!

At the mention of Hani’s name, Kim Shinrok raised his head in surprise.

One of the papers he was organizing fell to the floor.

His reflexes kicked in, but it was already too late.

— About the Eungwang One Light Nursery that Hani came from, I think Cheongho’s disciples often visit there. The artist Kwon Jein whom they like so much is in Korea too. I didn’t know they’d be more enthusiastic about volunteering at the nursery instead of Kwon Jein being back in Korea.

Snap! Fwaat!

Yong Jegun snapped his finger and created spaces around the pieces of paper that Kim Shinrok dropped, organizing them in a second.

It was quite annoying, but it was a wonderful skill.

Yong Jegun handed the organized documents to Kim Shinrok, and the latter just snatched them from his hands.

Not caring much about the rude attitude, Yong Jegun laughed and continued to talk.

— It looks like the Tiger Clan is putting surveillance on that nursery.

The sharp-witted Yong Jegun noticed that the Tiger Clan was keeping an eye on the nursery.

‘I’ll have to report to Hwangho-nim that this dragon noticed something. But… I wonder what happened to the battle…?’

He wonders how Hani, the reincarnation of his old teacher Cheongho, did in her battle with Dokgo Miro.

However, Yong Jegun didn’t tell him anything further.

Kim Shinrok calculated in his mind how many pins and tacks were left in his pocket and how many would be stuck in Yong Jegun’s forehead if he threw them all.

— Hahaha! Don’t make that face. I’ll stop playing around. Let’s have lunch together while watching the battle’s replay.

Kim Shinrok felt like he was being played in the palms of Yong Jegun, but once he saw the video of the battle, he decided to move on.

While Yong Jegun added some comments, Kim Shinrok was impressed at the movements of Hani, reminiscing about his teacher Cheongho.

‘… Cheongho-nim’s spirit remains the same even in her reincarnation.’

The similarity became even more prominent when he thought about Hani and Dokgo Miro’s relationship.

Cheongho wasn’t very good at expressing her feelings with words, but she used to express her faith and friendship through her actions.

And then, after school.

Yong Jegun introduced Kim Shinrok to Yeom Junyeol, who had just finished his student association activities.

Yeom Junyeol seemed a bit surprised that Kim Shinrok was a descendant, but he soon spoke brightly.

— I didn’t know Professor Kim Shinrok and Jegun hyung were friends! I’ve heard the kids of Jiikhoe brag about you a few times, but I never imagined it!

— The Jiikhoe kids brag about Shinrok-ie?

— Yes, they always leave a portion for their adviser whenever they get snacks. I heard that you like sweet stuff, Professor.

Whenever he visited the Jiikhoe office, the kids beg him to eat snacks together, but Kim Shinrok wasn’t aware of such a back story.

Kim Shinrok’s day brightened when he remembered the strangely warm expressions of the children who offer him snacks.

— So the Jiikhoe’s adviser is a descendant just like me. I look forward to meeting you often, Professor Kim Shinrok.

Yeom Junyeol’s innocent words made Kim Shinrok’s cheeks feel cold in a second.

Although the two of them were both descendants, he and Yeom Junyeol weren’t the same at all.

Seeing Yeom Junyeol being welcomed warmly by the Dragon Clan, the thought was further resolved in Kim Shinrok’s mind.

He took his eyes off Yeom Junyeol.

“Please guide me to where the dragon slayer is.”

“Alright, Cheongryong is up ahead waiting.”

Yong Jegun took the lead.

As they walked deep into the realm of the Dragon Clan, Kim Shinrok strengthened his mind and energy wave.

Not having experienced torturing a dragon before, there were many things he wanted to try.

That’s when Yong Jegun suddenly asked a knife-like question.

“Shinrok-ah, how’s your talk with Gukeon?”

“You, how did you…!”

Kim Shinrok stopped talking when he saw Yong Jegun’s ecstatic smile.

That damned dragon must’ve baited him again with a bluff.

Seeing Kim Shinrok grind his teeth, Yong Jegun’s smile deepened.

“I’m rooting for you, Shinrok-ah. Tell me anytime you need my help.”

Kim Shinrok said he didn’t need it, and Yong Jegun just kept laughing.

***

Yoo Sanghoon and I decided to head to the restaurant we reserved in advance.

After hearing that Yoo Sanghoon wanted to eat meat, we decided to go for a steak.

“I wanted samgyupsal though.”

(T/N: Pork belly meat.)

“We reserved a place that has private rooms.”

“Oh… right.”

The place we booked had room reservations, and security is quite thorough.

It was a dry-aged steak restaurant located at Hwangmyeong Tower, one that was recommended by Hwang Jiho.

Yoo Sanghoon quickly accepted.

After that, we were both silent for a while.

The conversation continued after Yoo Sanghoon tried the fennel soup served as an appetizer.

“Your assistant homeroom teacher seems to keep picking a fight with our homeroom teacher.”

Yong Jegun and Kim Shinrok?

Their long history probably dates back thousands of years, so it’s hard to keep it a secret.

I thought they made up after a fight not too long ago, but it seems like they fought again.

‘They said he’d be heading to the dragons’ territory today to deal with Cadmus.’

It’s possible that the excitement from his friend coming to his home would’ve prompted Yong Jegun to start picking on Kim Shinrok again.

“Our homeroom teacher has a lot of fans. If he seems to be having a hard time, his fans might attack Yong Jegun. I’m not going to stop them.”

…I thought Yoo Sanghoon’s class was well-behaved.

Hearing something that sounded like a Class Zero might do, I was dazed for a while.

I was more distracted by something I realized.

‘Wait, isn’t Ahn Dain Class One’s president? That plan was floated even though Ahn Dain was there?’

Maybe the odds of their attack would succeed if Ahn Dain joined?

Thinking about the marksman Ahn Dain and Yong Jegun, I felt like I wanted to cheer both of them on.

In any case, our meal continued while talking about other matters.

When all the main dishes were emptied, Yoo Sanghoon brought up the main point.

“I have something I want to consult with you.”

Yoo Sanghoon said so, but he couldn’t seem to speak easily.

He seemed confused about where to start and how to talk about it.

I decided not to push him.

I thought there was nothing I could do even if Yoo Sanghoon and I left the place without talking about what he wanted to talk about.

“…Remember when I said I was weak as a kid?”

Yoo Sanghoon seemed determined to talk.

When I nodded, he calmly summarized how he fought this disease.

He said the full truth, neither adding nor redacting anything, and hearing about it felt so terrible.

Having emptied several plates of steaks just now, I think his disease really might be completely gone.

“I got better from that disease after my abilities awoken. But something is weird about how that happened.”

“What do you mean?”

“The timing of it all.”

Yoo Sanghoon explained how Yoo Sanghee held her hand as she led them to an energy center.

“Days before we went there, I had a seizure. I don’t remember much, but I heard that my heart stopped and I was resuscitated by CPR. I haven’t returned right away, and my ribs were cracked.”

I imagined the scene described by Yoo Sanghoon.

The image of his heart not beating for a while as people continuously put pressure on his chest was vivid in my mind.

He survived, his ribs cracked from the continuous minutes of CPR.

“They said it would be difficult to resuscitate me again if I had another seizure. And two days later, I was suddenly put in a wheelchair and brought to an energy center.”

The subject was omitted, but it would’ve been Yoo Sanghee who took him.

It’s clear that Yoo Sanghee moved with the assumption that Yoo Sanghoon might really die.

“I don’t remember what happened at the energy center. I’ve been trying to remember some parts and some are slowly coming back to me but…”

Yoo Sanghoon explained what he saw and heard at the energy center.

“There weren’t any employees there. But I think I saw a researcher from TC Research Institute.”

Yoo Sanghoon detailed what he saw;

The logo of TC Research Institute.

Yoo Sanghee, desperate for any help she could get for her brother.

And someone wearing a robe with a mysterious logo.

“Do you remember the logo?”

“…Maybe not accurately.”

Yoo Sanghoon floated a hologram, sketching the logo that he saw.

The image was distorted, making it a bit difficult to recognize, but I immediately recognized it.

One of the Demon Gods of the Seven Deadly Sins, Avaritia of Greed.

Yoo Sanghoo drew the pattern engraved on his robe.

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