‘See me soon?’
Hyeonu ended the conversation with Reina and thought over her last sentence. She spoke as if they would meet in a few days.
‘Did she know I was going to call her?’
In fact, he had been thinking of assembling everyone in Arena in a few days. He planned to gather the guilds in advance to share information and make plans for the future.
‘But I didn’t even tell the Hyung-nims?’
The surprising thing was that he hadn’t told anyone yet.
‘It is something that might seem obvious.’
It had been this way so far, so it was possible to think so. Hyeonu usually gathered people within a few days whenever he gave out any information, or he would call and share the information after.
‘What about this? What does it matter?’
In any case, it didn’t matter. There was nothing wrong with it anyway.
***
Everything proceeded smoothly. The training of the Crescent Moon players that followed featured a line-up constant change due to Kim Seokjung and Gang Junggu using their connections to bring various rankers. As a result, the Crescent Moon players gained experience with many situations, and their most lacking aspects were gradually being filled. Apart from Hyeonu and Lee Hoon, the Crescent Moon players were absolutely inexperienced.
In the first place, they had neither extensively long nor deep experience with virtual reality games. Perhaps the current training was no different from building sandcastles on the beach. They were sculpting many things too quickly, but there was no solution other than this. This was a time when a cramming-type education was the most effective. They didn’t have enough time to hope for autonomous growth.
Nevertheless, the results were good. The Crescent Moon players made greater improvements than what Kim Seokjung, Gang Junggu, and Hyeonu had hoped for. The cramming worked well, but the players learned so many things that they needed a break. There were exactly three weeks left until Arena Week when Hyeonu finally declared they could have one. The break would be from December 24th to December 31st. In other words, the end of the year was designated as a rest week.
“I don’t know if I should throw a party,” Hyeonu pouted as he tucked away his disheveled hair.
It was annoying. Right until last night, he had been dealing with the Crescent Moon players for more than a few hours in a row. Considering the difference in level between him and them, Hyeonu fought with a proportion of his items removed. Therefore, it was natural for his fatigue to accumulate.
“It’s a party. Isn’t it just showing your face and having fun? I’m sure you’ve been under a lot of stress preparing for Arena Week. Use this to relieve it,” Yeongchan said.
He was also tired as he’d been called over to help Crescent Moon too. Although he couldn’t help with the siege, he was good enough to help with PvP. Yeongchan was on par with Lee Hoon and overwhelmingly stronger than the rest of the players. Additionally, he was a very good training opponent for PvP because he had a combat style that switched between the fixed standards and anomalies.
With a nod, Hyeonu confirmed Yeongchan’s words: “I guess so. I have to rest as hard as I practiced. If I keep running like this, it can affect Arena Week.”
Hyeonu knew better than anyone the importance of having proper rest, so he didn’t say anything about this party. He asked Yeongchan, “By the way, do you know who’s coming? I don’t know anything.”
Yeongchan replied with an expression like Hyeonu’s question was ridiculous, “Why are you asking me this? I’m just going as your friend. Isn’t it Mason who prepared the party?”
Yeongchan was absolutely dumbfounded. Why ask him this? He was just an invited guest. Hyeonu was more like the host of the party.
“I don’t know. It’s just that you... and only those who were originally gathered will come,” Hyeonu spoke without thinking. He assumed it would just be the group, and that would be it—like the party after the Winter League ended.
‘It’s just the usual thing.’
Thinking about the party like that, Hyeonu didn’t really dislike it. His perception of it changed to something more like a pleasant drinking party.
“Then let’s wash up and go. We have to get ready,” Yeongchan said.
He glanced at the clock on the wall. The meeting time was 7 o’clock in the evening. It was now 5 o’clock. Given the amount of time it would take to go to the hotel, they had to leave by at least 6 o’clock.
“Yes, we can’t be late. The Hyung-nims will be waiting.” Hyeonu nodded and turned toward his room. It wasn’t polite to be late to an appointment. There was no need to get there early, but at the very least, they shouldn’t be late.
***
Two well-dressed men appeared at the gorgeous entrance of the hotel.
“Hyung-nim, hello.”
“Long time no see, Junggu hyung-nim.”
They were Hyeonu and Yeongchan. Unable to stand the intense cold outside, they showed quick steps. The cold in December simply wasn’t tolerable even though they wore all the necessary garments, ranging from underwear to clothes with various thermal functions—a t-shirt, a formal shirt, a jacket, and coats. Just like in the news about the unprecedented cold snap, the winter wind was very intense.
“Yes, it is hard on such a cold day. The two of you are here,” Gang Junggu greeted Yeongchan and Hyeonu at the entrance of the hotel. There was no need for Gang Junggu to meet the two of them there, but he wanted to do so.
‘Fortunately, they came earlier than expected.’ Gang Junggu sighed with relief when he saw Hyeonu and Yeongchan who had appeared at the hotel faster than expected.
Two people—to be precise, the surprise guests for Hyeonu—hadn’t arrived yet. So, it was natural Gang Junggu felt relieved that their arrival didn’t overlap with Hyeonu’s.
“What floor do we have to go to, Hyung-nm?” Hyeonu asked Gang Junggu with trembling hands.
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