Meeting Lee Su-yeon at Levant Neutral: the first task was done. Now it was time to move on.
“So, where’s the challenger?”
Unique Skill b Planet Guardian}. This was what Yoon-seok must get his hands on during this Seheranbad trip. It was said to be the only way to prevent or manage challengers from other dimensions coming to Earth.
Lee Su-yeon scratched her cheek at Yoon-seok’s question.
“First of all, I think it’s definitely in the Levant.”
She ‘thought’ it was definite… what an ironic expression.
“You don’t know the exact location?”
“Yes. The tracking that I set was abruptly lifted three days ago. After that, his whereabouts are unknown.”
“But how can you be sure that he’s in the Levant?”
“There’s a person who can destroy the tracking I’ve put up. I don’t know if the future has changed or if I didn’t know they met at this time previously….”
“Cut to the chase.”
Lee Su-yeon continued with a slight sigh.
“I think they have already met.”
“With whom?”
“Ragna Hambledon, the Levant Neutral chairman’s daughter.”
He didn’t know why, but it seemed like things had become troublesome, although it was nothing new.
b Planet Guardian}. The challenger with this Unique Skill was famous. No, to be exact, he would become famous in the future with Ragna Hambledon, who would be the leader of the Seheranbad Alliance at tonight’s meeting.
“Before regressing, b Planet Guardian} first appeared about three months from now. But if both of them have already met, it’s a headache.”
“In what way?”
“It won’t end just by killing him.”
He was no longer alone. If Ragna found out that Yoon-seok killed their challenger, Earth would turn the Seheranbad Alliance into enemies. Also, that wasn’t the only problem.
“Maybe Ragna knew that man’s value. That’s probably why he completely disappeared.”
They needed to find the vanished challenger and acquire his skill without anyone knowing.
“Is there a way to find him?”
“…I think we can look into it.”
“How?”
“Ragna Hambledon. I’m going to investigate her first.”
“Where is Ragna right now?”
“…We have to find that out too.”
“How?”
“…I’ll probably hide until the meeting, so first of all… why don’t we start with asking around…?”
Lee Su-yeon’s voice grew smaller and smaller with each of Yoon-seok’s questions. The current situation came at quite a loss for her despite her future knowledge. With a sudden thought, Yoon-seok took an item from his subspace bag.
*Hambledon Seal – This is a seal made by James Hambledon for his one and only savior.
The reward was earned by saving James Hambledon from the 8th-floor mission along with the Dragonian Pledge Ring. When he saw this, Yoon-seok was surprised. Because it was a useless item, however, it didn’t take up a lot of space, so he carried it in his bag like a souvenir.
“Can I use this?”
Yoon-seok also explained how he got this seal. Then Lee Su-yeon looked unsure.
“A seal her ancestor made for his savior… it’s worth a try.”
It felt a little vague. All items were objects made by the Tower. In reality, this may not have existed, even if there was an object like this. It was also possible no one would have remembered this for over 500 years, but it was better than starting from scratch.
“Let’s go.”
Lee Su-yeon boasted about what she knew and immediately led Yoon-seok to a mansion located in the highlands of the port. This was the house of Count Hambledon, where the current chairman of the Levant Neutral resides. Lee Su-yeon briefly explained it to him.
“Count Hambledon is a typical case of the benefits of raising a good child. He became chairman due to his daughter’s contribution.”
“His daughter’s contribution?”
“Yes.”
Upon listening, Ragna quickly returned to the real world as soon as she gathered sufficient points and used their family’s wealth to support challengers. As a result, she created a challenger organization before others and successfully prevented the rifts that began to form.
‘So she’s an amazing person….’
It was kind of interesting. She became such an influential figure, when the person he met was just a rookie who gave him sincere advice about Lee Chang-hoon.
“Who are you?”
When he arrived at the magnificent count, a guard stopped Yoon-seok at the entrance. Yoon-seok took out the seal he had prepared. The guard accepted it with a frown.
“Where did you get this?”
“I want to meet the Count and tell him in person…”
“You want an appointment… I will deliver it for you. Tell me where you are staying, and I will send it to you later.”
It was a very strange reaction. It didn’t look like he was unfamiliar with the seal or thought it was a fake…
Yoon-seok took a step back.
“Please do that. How long will it take to get a reply?”
“It will take at least fifteen days.”
“Can’t it be done faster?”
“Hey! Count Hambledon is the chairman of a country.”
“It’s okay if it’s his daughter, not the Count…”
When Yoon-seok mentioned Ragna, the guard’s eyes quickly turned cold.
“Are you aiming to get information about Ragna?”
He was generous about the Count, but he was insanely sensitive about Ragna. Lee Su-yeon quickly stepped up to take care of it.
“No! It’s not like that! Just it’s just urgent… anyway; I’ll write down the name of the inn, so let me know if things change.”
“…I will.”
Yoon-seok turned back down the path after receiving suspicious looks from the guard. They thought it was possible, but it was just a waste. The seal was useless. Perhaps it would be better to skip the formal procedures and just cross the wall to meet them…
“You can’t do it like that.”
Lee Su-yeon shook her head firmly.
“Didn’t you see the response from the guard? Ragna Hambledon won’t be there anyway because she has a lot of enemies. She’ll probably be hiding in a place where no one knows until the meeting.”
“But the chairman would know where she is, though?”
After going through so many incidents, Yoon-seok now knew. Once they could meet eyes and questions were asked, they would usually tell the truth. However, Lee Su-yeon only sighed at the Cheonma-style socialization method proposed by Yoon-seok.
“If you do something like that, you’ll only make more enemies.”
“But if we break in after covering ourselves…”
“Huuu. I know. Instead, let’s do it when we run out of ideas.”
After agreeing, both of them returned to the inn to work together to find a solution. To find the {Planet Guardian}, they must first find Ragna Hambledon because it was highly likely that she hid him. However, the problem was that there was no way to find Ragna.
“Probably, only close associates will know her location until today’s meeting takes place.”
Until then, she was like a ghost. Combining information and tracking someone was Lee Su-yeon’s specialty, but… it was impossible to find her in a day.
“It’s better not to waste more time. At this point, it’s better to prepare to sneak into the meeting.”
Soon, Lee Su-yeon offered her judgment. Hiding their identities, getting an odd job or something, and approaching Ragna at the meeting.
“In addition, there is a possibility that the {Planet Guardian} will be at the meeting. Ragna Hambledon will probably be extra careful about the escorts, but she might think it’s safer to leave him next to her rather than hide him far away.”
After finishing her speech, Lee Su-yeon immediately stood. Every second was tight if they needed to prepare. Yoon-seok tilted his head.
“Instead of pretending, can’t we participate in the meeting?
“How can we do that? You probably don’t know, but you can’t participate in this meeting as someone from Earth. There is no way to prove our identity in the first place.”
Every word she said was right, but… Yoon-seok recalled the princess he met on the trade ship. She was also one of the people participating in the meeting. Furthermore, she was still seeking a reliable escort now.
‘It’s exactly me, right?’
Escort. Coincidentally, it was a field that Yoon-seok was very confident in.
It was extremely easy to find the princess’s companions. Lee Su-yeon found out in less than thirty minutes. She had rented a whole luxury inn located in the port highlands. Suddenly, he wondered if she would let them stay at the inn since they were an official group of envoys…
When a meeting involving several countries was held, it was said to be a continental tradition not to meet until the day to avoid silent agreement. Well, they could play innocent.
“You, you…!”
As Yoon-seok approached the inn, the knight guarding the door stepped back with a pale face. It was the hot-blooded knight who yelled at Yoon-seok on the ship.
“Why is he so surprised?”
“…Nothing.”
Really. He didn’t do much. He just loosened up his magic a little to soften the atmosphere. Magic had a property that varied widely depending on the owner, so, in other words, showing one’s magic was the same as revealing who you are. And wasn’t it basic manners to introduce each other before talking?
“…W-why are you here!”
“Forget it. Is the Princess inside?”
“I-I won’t tell you unless you reveal your business!”
He could still show courage, even knowing that his head might roll… well, Yoon-seok didn’t come for something bad.
“Just go and inform her. It’s good news for the princess.”
Soon, his colleague, receiving a gesture from the hot-blooded knight, entered the inn. Then he rushed out and whispered in the hot-blooded knight’s ear. Of course, there was no way Yoon-seok couldn’t hear it.
“S-she wants him to come in?”
“…I’ll guide him.”
The hot-blooded knight opened the inn door. On the first-floor lobby, far more knights were camped out with weapons aimed at the door. Yoon-seok didn’t think they were gathered because of him, however.
‘Does she always have to stay on guard daily…?’
Knock, knock.
After climbing the stairs and arriving on the third floor, the hot-blooded knight knocked on the door.
“Thank you for your hard work. Lord Lett, you may return to your post.”
“…Yes.”
Then the hot-blooded knight left at the command heard through the door. The Count and a few knights stood in the room around the princess. But, unlike when he met her on the ship, she was dressed in fancy clothes that revealed her identity.
“Is the woman next to you the colleague you mentioned?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Nice to meet you. Orlene Versiache Kartan. The fourth princess of the Empire.”
Princess Orlene raised her skirt slightly with one hand, putting a hand on her voluptuous chest. It looked like a greeting from her country.
“I’m Lee Su-yeon.”
At the end of the introductions, the princess looked to Yoon-seok. She must have wanted to ask something as soon as they met, but was it their culture to finish greetings first? The Princess quietly asked.
“I know it’s not polite, but I want to ask you something first. I heard you’re here with good news. Is that what I’m looking forward to?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
The Princess smiled at Yoon-seok’s immediate answer. But at the same time, she also seemed anxious. She didn’t know the motive for changing his mind.
“But, can I ask why you changed your decision?”
Yoon-seok used the excuses he had prepared.
“After consulting with my colleague, our situation is difficult.”
“I won’t deny that it could look like that.”
The Princess nodded with a bitter look, and there was silence as if she waited for Yoon-seok to continue. Yoon-seok ended the conversation with a snap.
“That’s all.”
Their situation was difficult. That was all.
“…W-what did you say?”
As a result, the princess forgot about her dignity and was greatly flustered. She quickly realized one thing and lowered her head. Even if she was powerless, the princess was still the princess. Money, honor, status, power. She could give Yoon-seok anything.
However, if she asked if it was enough to satisfy a powerful person like Yoon-seok… it wasn’t. Moreover, wasn’t Yoon-seok a challenger from another dimension, not Seheranbad?
“Is the reason hard to believe?”
The princess bit her lip. It was so funny that she was miserable and couldn’t help but hope that Yoon-seok’s sympathy was the truth. Soon, she made her decision.
“No, I trust you.”
She suspected that there might be other reasons, but she couldn’t choose from the start. She would die anyway, so it wasn’t a loss to bet on Yoon-seok.
“Anyway, now that I’m your escort…”
Yoon-seok smiled, trailing off. Something had been bothering him since he entered.
“Then we can finally kill you.”
There was no time for anyone to say anything. The moment Yoon-seok’s swung his blade, the ceiling split in two, and assassins poured down.
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