Chapter 87 (2/2)

The master of the Star Guild: Chloe Rafferty.

The voices of the surroundings pretty much disappeared along with her entrance.

“He’s a guest here to help us, the Americans. I suggest that you watch your mouth,” replied Jordan.

“Will he even really be of much help, I wonder?”

“Have you not heard of the name Kim Su-hyeun before? He’s a genius who became an S-Rank in only two years.”

“He’s more like a little hatchling who’s been an awakener for only two years. To be honest, who knows whether he went through the normal process to reach the rank S or not?”

Chloe’s suspicion wasn’t just hers alone. That was the question every nation in the world thought about after hearing the name “Kim Su-hyeun.”

Did Kim Su-hyeun truly possess the qualification of an S-Rank awakener? Could it be possible that the South Koreans tempered with the evaluation process in order to create a new rising star?

“That guy, he’s only managed to reach the 30th floor, right? That’s like, right at the bottom….” muttered Chloe.

“He’s the only Awakener to pass the tenth level trials.”

“Even then, he’s an Awakener of the bottom floors.”

“Have you not heard it yet? For this dungeon raid, we need at least a minimum of three S-Ranks. If we can’t make up the numbers, then the Guilds will have to bear the brunt of the consequences accordingly.”

Jordan didn’t believe that the dungeon couldn’t be dealt with when there were only two S-Ranks present. No, the real problem to him was the extent of losses incurred before the dungeon was successfully raided.

The statistic of “minimum three, maximum five” only came about to minimize the potential losses to other awakeners, and that was all. Jordan’s Maximum Guild and Chloe’s Star Guild would have to shoulder the potential losses in full.

“Don’t you worry. My Star Guild also got ourselves a mercenary, too,” Chloe replied.

“…You did?”

Now that was unexpected.

The pride of Star Guild, especially of Chloe herself, was famously higher than anyone else’s. She was definitely not someone who’d ask for other’s help.

If the truth of an American guild lowering its head to an awakener from another country became known, the complaints from the American public would be directed solely to the Star Guild.

“I simply can’t turn my back when someone pleads so desperately with me to lend a helping hand. Maybe, that person charmed me….”

“Who is it?”

“I can’t say, since that person wanted to remain anonymous, but as far as skills are concerned, they’re the real deal. I confirmed it myself.”

“Skills, is it….”

Prioritizing one’s skills — that was a rather common story in this profession.

Though wanting to stay anonymous left behind this uneasy feeling, as Chloe vouched for this unknown mercenary, there should be no problem here.

<>

The situation became a lot better than expected.

<>

Just like how it was the case with every S-Rank Awakener, Jordan too was overflowing with confidence towards his own skillset.

There was the pride of being the part of the world’s strongest awakener powerhouse nation, as well as being that very nation’s top dog. As was the case with countless S-Rank Awakeners out there, both Jordan and Chloe confidently believed that they were the best of the best.

“As long as that person’s skills are the real deal, then it doesn’t matter to me. Not bad, auntie. You did something big this time.”

“…I told you this before, didn’t I?”

Killing intent began mushrooming all around Chloe. This killing intent permeated with magical energy caused the surrounding air to instantly freeze up.

“If you call me auntie one more time, I’ll definitely kill you.”

Other Awakeners in the vicinity could only hold their breaths at the battle of auras of the two S-Ranks. Jordan snorted derisively, as his relationship with Chloe had been poor for a long time already.

“I’ll fight you properly the next time after I clear up my schedule. You’re supposed to be a guild master, so act accordingly, Chloe.”

“Are you running away now?”

“Not that I’m running away, but….”

As the two began growling at each other, the noises from the surroundings completely died down. This was a situation where the slightest mistake might cause the two S-Rank Awakeners to tear out each other’s throats.

And in the midst of it all, Su-hyeun was observing Jordan and Chloe’s figures.

* * *

“…I can’t bear to hear those two talk anymore,” Su-hyeun muttered, prompting Hak-joon to ask, “What are they talking about, anyway? Other than your name and something about the 30th floor, I couldn’t understand anything they said.”

“Well, it’s about….”

Su-hyeun simplified the conversation Jordan and Chloe had and told it to Hak-joon.

“That’s what they talked about.”

“Wait, they can’t possibly fight each other in this place, right?”

“Who knows.”

“What will they do if someone gets injured….?”

“Well, they might be thinking that it doesn’t matter to them whether something happens to the raid or not. Or, they could be thinking that there won’t be any problems even if they behave like that.”

“Whichever it is, it’s a bit too much.”

“That’s the result of lack of experience as well as living in peace for too long as the top dog. Probably the half of all S-Ranks think the same as them.”

Su-hyeun then observed the humongous blue aura swallowing up a corner of the city in the distance.

“…Maybe they think that thing over there is a joke,” murmured Su-hyeun.

Nowhere in the conversation between Jordan and Chloe continuing with their killing intent could the worries regarding the blue-colored dungeon be found. The idea of the raid failing didn’t even cross their minds. This was the common trait of all the S-Rank American awakeners.

“But, that’s obvious, right? Jordan over there is a great man who successfully raided the world’s largest green-colored dungeon. Now that Chloe’s with him, what could possibly scare him?” Hak-joon asked.

“Is that what you think, too?”

“About?”

“That thing over there. You think that’s a joke, too?”

Both the look on Su-hyeun’s eyes, as well as the tone of his voice, gave off some strange vibes. Hak-joon didn’t know what Su-hyeun wanted to say, so he closed his mouth shut.

The latter quietly stared at the blue-colored dungeon, before continuing on. “Have you ever thought about the possibility of those things swallowing up this world sooner or later?”

“Dungeons…swallowing the world?”

It wasn’t as if Hak-joon had never thought about it before.

When dungeons first appeared in the world, such fears did circulate in the public, although they went away pretty soon afterward.

The dungeon’s first appearance did bring wariness and fear to the rest of the world. However, with the entrance of the awakeners, dungeons were soon seen as repositories of new types of resources.

The sense of danger Su-hyeun was implying disappeared not too long after.

No, it was more like it was forgotten.

“Bro, could it be that….”

“No, it’s nothing.”

Su-hyeun thought that it was still too early and shook his head.

Hak-joon, thinking that the atmosphere had gotten weird quickly tried to change the topic. “Besides that, what will you do now? I’m not sure if you can go there and say hi under the current situation.”

“Why not?”

“Didn’t that auntie talk crap about you, bro? So, like, wouldn’t stepping forward now only make matters worse and get people red in their faces?”

“You think so?”

Su-hyeun pondered for a bit, before softly nodding his head.

“You know, that…doesn’t sound so bad.”