Where were they surprised?
It was difficult to guess which of the three facts I mentioned had surprised them.
Regardless, I hadn't expected them to be this startled, so I simply fiddled with my necktie. My bewildered gaze met Hahyuk and Taekju's.
Wasn't it somewhat anticipated?
After the return of Gula, quite some time had passed, so I thought someone must have wondered if there was a key to solving this situation.
And that someone, I presumed with high probability, would be well-informed high-rank Awakeners like Hahyuk and Taekju, thought Sihyun as he slightly moved his lips.
If the key was a person, it inevitably had to be narrowed down to two candidates.
The one recognized for the strongest force and the one with the highest potential for growth.
Anyone would think of me and Ruth. So, I thought they would have at least considered the hypothesis that if such a key existed, it would be either me or Ruth, but it seems that was not the case today.
Missing the mark, plus the deathly silent reaction, made me awkward, prompting me to moisten my dried lips with my tongue. Enduring the awkward silence, Taekju suddenly burst into laughter.
Haha.
A resigned laugh echoed in the room. Finally giving up on that bizarre concept, the man who laughed not with a giggle but a hearty "haha," ran his thumb over his lips.
"Sihyun is an interesting person."
"What?"
"Throwing a bombshell and then looking puzzled as if you don't understand. What does that make us?"
"…?"
"Sihyun being the savior... I'm not sure if that's fortunate or unfortunate."
It's ambiguous, so ambiguous.
The man, seemingly not expecting an answer from me, mumbled to himself as he rested his chin on his arms propped on the desk. His scrutinizing gaze was uncomfortable. Turning away from it, my gaze immediately met Hahyuk's.
"This is interesting."
What is, I nearly asked but swallowed the words instead. Hahyuk, giving a suspiciously meaningful smile, raised a finger and drew a circle on the table.
"I expected to learn something new, but I didn't expect it to be this grand and unfamiliar."
"……."
"I haven't told everything yet."
Tap, tap, the sound of tapping the table echoed. I hadn't seen Hahyuk for long, but I'd seen this gesture every time we met, so it had become a familiar action.
Thinking I might be called to his office again for an unwanted meeting, Sihyun took a breath. Convincing Hahyuk, who looked like he'd been betrayed by someone he trusted, was a concern to be postponed.
For now, there was something more urgent.
"It seems you were quite surprised, so let's make just one promise before I go. The information I just shared was known only to me and Ruth. Both of us being targeted by the Irregulars due to having three exposed cores. Now that you're aware, I hope this information doesn't spread any further. Is that possible?"
It was information that wouldn't do any good being known by others.
The only people here I could trust to be on my side were, at best, the kids from Class A, Haru, Hamin, and Seowoo, but even then, I spoke because I trusted Hahyuk and Taekju's judgment. Wanting to affirm that trust, I looked back and forth between the two guild leaders, with Hahyuk slowly nodding first.
"Surely, now that it's out, some might say handing over Sihyun would solve everything."
"It's just the right time for a witch hunt."
Taekju also nodded, stroking his chin and accepting Hahyuk's words. Inside, Sihyun sighed in relief.
Fortunately, both seemed as sensible as I had thought.
Right now, not just Korea, but the entire world was in a precarious balance between Awakened Individuals and Irregulars.
The citizens had long lost their faith in the government and the Awakeners amidst the continuing crises, and had given up hope of surviving the onslaught from the Irregulars. Releasing this information now would only serve as fodder for those looking for a target for their anger and frustration.
At least until the world becomes a bit more stable.
And after gaining a bit more strength.
When people would hear this information and harbor hope that humanity could overcome the Irregulars.
That was when this information should be shared.
If they had any understanding of what I meant, there wouldn't be anyone who didn't get it. In fact, seeing everyone's agreeing nods made it unnecessary to say more, so I saved my breath, and Taekju, after a long hum, lightly tapped the table.
Tap, tap.
The popping sound spread through the room, lightening the previously heavy atmosphere.
"
Let's keep the information we just heard to ourselves and return to the main topic. The meeting was about the route forward, not about Sihyun. Regardless of the backstory, we gathered here to discuss defeating Titan, didn't we?"
"Things did get a bit sidetracked. Let's get back to the discussion."
The two guild leaders reminded us of the meeting's purpose, overshadowed by Sihyun's confession.
"So, the conclusion is that since the Irregulars are targeting Sihyun, if we just head out to sea, Titan will naturally come to us, right?"
Taekju asked, covering the map with his hand. Sihyun, snapping out of his bewilderment, looked anew at the two guild leaders performing their duties and nodded slightly.
"Based on the hypothesis we've established so far, yes."
"Then we don't need to set a specific sailing route?"
"…When you put it that way, yes."
"Then it's settled."
"What?"
What's settled?
All that was decided was that I was the savior, yet the man announced it was over. My eyelashes fluttered in confusion at him. Catching his blue gaze, Taekju curved the corners of his mouth upward.
"If just heading out to sea will bring Titan to us, what more plans do we need here? Anyway, today was supposed to be just the first meeting, thinking of setting a simple course. Does Redem have any other plans?"
"At least how to respond when Titan appears should be…"
"That can be discussed on the boat. Besides, our team hasn't even been selected yet."
"Ah."
Right, that was the case.
Given Taekju's overwhelming presence, I had completely forgotten that more guild members from Muam were supposed to join.
Considering it hardly seemed polite, my gaze sharpened. Here we had gone through interviews to select our team members, yet the other side, having casually mentioned good fortune and such from the first meeting, hadn't even finished selecting their guild members.
Sending a discontented look his way, the man shrugged. The one who had been folding his sunglasses slowly unfolded them and put them on before standing up.
"Let's consider this pre-meeting over and move on? Sitting in one place for too long just makes your backside sore. Let's shift to the restaurant I've reserved."
With a flick, he gestured towards the door. Indicating we should follow with just a thumb pointing at the door, Hahyuk joined in.
"Muam's treating, so that's one less worry. Let's all get up."
"Just a moment. Shouldn't we decide when to leave?"
"That can be decided after our team is finalized. Anyway, this meeting was just a formal pre-meeting. Think of it lightly, very lightly."
Giggle.
The unwanted laughter spread. Sihyun, frowning, looked back and forth between Hahyuk and Taekju before reluctantly standing up.
Isn't Hahyuk going to say anything?
Curious why a person who values manners is silent on Muam's rudeness. Were the guild leader of Muam and he close from before? From the way they treated each other, it seemed possible. But even so, should the guild leader remain silent when his guild members are disregarded from the first meeting and the cooperating guild hasn't even formed its team?
I felt unjustly aggrieved.
"Both of you might as well rip each other's hair out."
I muttered this half out of impulse, knowing they could hear me from this distance, and Hamin and Haru approached me from the opposite side.
"Why suddenly talk about hair?"
"Just. Annoyed. Are those two always this close?"
Pointing with my chin, I asked, and Hamin clicked his tongue. He seemed displeased with Taekju, and perhaps Hahyuk by association.
"Redem grew with debts owed to Muam. Hahyuk got a lot of help from the Muam guild leader when he was first setting up the guild. But I heard they settle their accounts thoroughly behind the scenes."
That cleared up some of my questions. Though I understood the situation, it didn't dissipate my displeasure, so I swallowed my discomfort when suddenly my shoulder felt significantly heavier.
"But the problem doesn't seem to be with Muam right now."
"Exactly."
"…Is it because Down is missing?"
The words came in turn from Hamin, Seowoo, and Haru.
"Got nothing to say, Kang Sihyun?"
Hamin, draping his arm over my shoulder and leaning in heavily, whispered as if picking a fight. The tone made it sound like a challenge, but realizing the bombshell I'd dropped, I avoided his gaze and then felt unjustly treated, biting my lip. I was sorry for not keeping the promise, but this felt unfair.
"It wasn't that I wanted to keep it hidden. It was unavoidable."
"And
you decided to hide it because?"
"……."
"So noble, Yoo Sihyun?"
Did he learn to be sarcastic from Down?
Hamin's tone overlaid with Down's seemed to mock me. Having been caught after promising not to hide anything, I swallowed the words of protest brewing within me. Instead, my eyes conveyed my feelings of injustice, causing Hamin to snort and pinch my cheek hard.
"Now you're even glaring. All grown up, aren't we?"
He spoke like a thug from some back alley, pinching my cheek painfully. As I tried to remove his hand, a white hand intervened.
"Let's not pinch. It leaves a mark."
Seowoo, unusually firm, pushed Hamin's hand away and smiled warmly at me.
Then, commenting that my cheek had reddened, his demeanor changed drastically from when he was dealing with Hamin, gently rubbing the affected area. Haru asked if it hurt, concerned enough to grab my hand and pull me towards him, causing me to chuckle.
Giving a problem then offering a remedy.
I was about to ask what they were doing when Hahyuk's voice, conversing with Taekju, caught my attention.
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