The day for officially visiting the Fire Bird Guild arrived.
I had already spoken with Yerin Jeong, so she was scheduled to pick me up in a few hours.
Originally, I had planned to just take a taxi, but since they insisted on sending a car, I reluctantly agreed.
‘I can’t go empty-handed.’
I moved busily, starting by preparing a gift to bring.
Normally, I would have worried about what kind of gift to bring, but thanks to Celia, that problem was solved.
Celia had sent me a sacrifice before.
It was ‘high-quality liquor made with great sincerity.’
I didn’t know what ingredients were used, but the notification window said so, so it must have been made with a lot of effort.
It even tasted the best.
‘Wow, as expected, only Celia.’
She manages the dungeon for me, and even solves my worries.
Perhaps the recent decrease in adventurer interest in my dungeon was also Celia’s doing?
It was highly likely.
Whenever I was in trouble, Celia sent a helping hand.
In short, Celia was all-around capable.
Thanks to the reduced adventurer interest, I now had some free time.
When I have free time, why wouldn’t I visit the Fire Bird Guild?
I went to the kitchen and called Ciel and Coco.
“Ciel and Coco, divide the liquor and pack it. It’s all for gifts, so pack it prettily.”
“Yes, I understand.”
“Clang.”
Ciel was an elf I brought from the auction house. At first, she didn’t speak, so communication was difficult.
However, now, she was responding simply and slowly opening up.
Coco was a Skeleton Soldier responsible for household chores.
Maru had been doing so well that I brought another Skeleton Soldier, but Coco was practically a troublemaker.
Thanks to Maru’s strict training, he was made into someone who could handle 0.78 person’s worth of work.
Ciel and Coco started dividing the liquor into small vials for potions according to my instructions.
After confirming that Ciel and Coco were properly packing the liquor, I summoned Maru.
“Maru, get ready to go out.”
“Clang!”
Maru was a contradictory existence, a Skeleton Paladin, but he was my reliable escort knight.
Furthermore, due to the influence of the Demonic Sword, he was a 5-star ranked being, possessing power comparable to an A-Rank Hunter, making him a very important guy.
And I planned to visit the Fire Bird Guild together this time.
“Good, this is going smoothly.”
As I was leaving the house for the first time in a while, there were quite a few things to take care of.
No matter how important the gift was, there was something more important.
It was protecting the house.
“Gargoyle, keep a close watch. If anyone tries to intrude, subdue them immediately.”
“……”
I had also given orders to the Gargoyle.
Normally, it would maintain the form of a statue, but when an intruder appeared, it would respond immediately, acting as a guardian monster for the dungeon.
And to it, my current house was essentially a dungeon.
When Maru and I leave, only Ciel and Coco will remain at home.
‘Elves are a rare race.’
Elves, as a race, tend to reject other races and stick together, making them difficult to encounter.
Even if it’s different on the El Dorado Continent, on Earth, you have to enter a dungeon to see an elf.
It was indeed fortunate that I acquired Ciel at the Underworld Merchant Guild’s auction.
As such, if Ciel’s existence became known, not only she, but I myself could also be in danger.
To prepare for any unforeseen circumstances, I gave the Gargoyle another command.
Gargoyles operate by consuming mana, and it was maintaining its 5-star ranking by reacting to Ciel’s mana.
‘That means Ciel’s potential abilities are outstanding.’
Even just this showed that Ciel must be protected at all costs.
Now, for the very last preparation before leaving. It was dungeon management.
Most of the dungeon’s operations were managed by Celia, but there were cases where my opinion was needed.
This is one of those cases.
“So, you’re saying we need a guardian for the first layer?”
Celia’s suggestion was the selection of a guardian for the first layer.
Originally, Necros was the guardian, but with his recent acquisition of a Satellite Dungeon, the position became vacant.
Celia recommended the Goblin Lord for the vacant spot.
“Hmm.”
Celia’s opinion was valid.
The Goblin Lord was qualified to be a layer guardian. However, I was negative.
It wasn’t that the Goblin Lord was insufficient.
On the contrary, the Goblin Lord was responsible for too many tasks.
The Goblin Lord was the sub-boss of the first layer’s second sector, and at the same time, he led the Goblin Scout Team.
Of course, if he became the layer guardian, he would be freed from being the sub-boss of the second sector. However, the problem was that goblins followed the Goblin Lord more faithfully.
‘The Goblin Lord’s current position is better.’
There was no need to unnecessarily burden the Goblin Lord here.
Moreover, the Goblin Lord had a trait where he displayed greater power when surrounded by his goblin subordinates.
If they had suggested Baalcherit as the layer guardian, I might have considered it.
No, that’s not right either?
“He’s still not very trustworthy.”
Baalcherit was not a monster originally belonging to my dungeon.
Therefore, there were aspects that made him difficult to trust. Still, he had been working diligently recently.
He went out of the dungeon every day and diligently planted plant monsters, but that was slightly insufficient.
“Let’s put this on hold for now.”
Since adventurer interest in the dungeon was already decreasing, there seemed to be no need to rush a decision.
Recently, Skoll, who led the Orcs, evolved from 3-star to 4-star, and Ghouls also evolved on their own into Toxic Ghouls.
The dungeon’s combat power was already sufficient.
I took one last look around the dungeon.
The dungeon was truly peaceful.
The Death Knight was diligently working with the workers, holding a pickaxe.
‘The Death Knight seems to be good at labor.’
Every time I saw him, the Death Knight looked like he was working.
Seeing the Goblin Lord also commanding goblins and doing their best in their respective roles made me feel proud.
‘With this much, I don’t think I need to worry.’
There was nothing that required my immediate attention.
After confirming that the dungeon was operating normally, I pressed the exit button.
The appointed time was approaching.
“Let’s go, Maru.”
“Clang!”
As Maru and I went outside, three black luxury sedans were waiting.
“Greetings. I am Betta, Assistant Manager of the Fire Bird Guild. I will safely escort Advisor Kanghyeon Lee to the Fire Bird Guild.”
The people who got out of the cars were all Hunters belonging to the Fire Bird Guild, sent by Yerin Jeong. The vehicles other than the one I would be in were all for security personnel.
‘Isn’t this excessive escorting?’
Still, I felt good about it.
This alone showed how much Yerin Jeong cared about me.
* * *
The car carrying Kanghyeon Lee departed towards the Fire Bird Guild.
A man who watched the car disappear from view immediately made a phone call.
“Yes, they just departed. I will continue to report.”
After a brief report, the man began to drive towards the direction Kanghyeon Lee had left.
Meanwhile, the person who received the man’s report was none other than Betta.
Betta, a slime with the unique ability to transform freely, served as a subordinate officer in the dungeon ‘Illusionary Temptation’.
Betta immediately went to report this fact to Azmo, the dungeon’s manager.
“Azmo, I have received word that Master has gone outside.”
Hearing Betta’s report, Azmo’s eyes gleamed menacingly.
“Finally, the moment to repay Master has arrived.”
Azmo, an Incubus.
He harbored an ambitious plan. It was to create an organization similar to the Underworld Merchant Guild, which he had seen on the El Dorado Continent, on Earth.
With the Master Kanghyeon Lee’s permission, Azmo was able to establish ‘Dungeon Inc.’
However, Azmo’s ambition did not stop there.
Unlike on the El Dorado Continent, monsters faced many difficulties operating independently on Earth.
For monsters to operate outside dungeons, human assistance was essential.
So, he took it a step further and proposed the new concept of monster-human cooperation.
And then, he utilized Betta, who could transform into a human, to gain control of the Fixer group known as the Heukil Guild.
With this, Azmo became the head of ‘Dungeon Inc.’ and, for the first time on Earth, a monster who commanded a human group.
“Thoroughly track Master’s whereabouts and eliminate anything that could be a threat to him.”
Azmo’s ambitious voice echoed through the dungeon.
* * *
Thanks to the Hunters’ help, I was able to load the liquor into the car and arrive comfortably at the Fire Bird Guild.
As I got out of the car, I saw Yerin Jeong, who had come to greet me.
“I was waiting. Advisor Kanghyeon Lee.”
From now on, it was not a private engagement but a public one.
Yerin Jeong greeted me and then waved briefly at Maru.
Nominally, Maru was a familiar summoned with the Necromancer trait.
‘He is indeed a familiar.’
It’s just that there was no duration limit.
I also greeted her with the biggest smile I could muster.
“It’s good to see you after a long time, Team Leader.”
Yerin Jeong is a B-Rank Hunter with the Healer trait.
More importantly, she was also the daughter of the Fire Bird Guild Leader, Taesu Jeong.
As the Guild Leader’s daughter, she should have a strong voice within the guild, but she said that was not exactly the case.
‘Half-siblings…’
I heard about this when Yerin Jeong visited my house to recruit me as an advisor.
She revealed that while Taesu Jeong’s two sons, Vice Guild Leader Taeyoung Jeong and Manager Woojin Jeong, shared the same father, they had different mothers.
For this reason, Yerin Jeong’s team was being discriminated against little by little.
It was probably due to the Vice Guild Leader’s influence.
‘The Fire Bird Guild isn’t exactly righteous either.’
The Fire Bird Guild is one of the top guilds in our country.
However, its internals were already rotten.
Despite the discrimination, Yerin Jeong had two special abilities.
The first was her excellent leadership in leading her team.
Recognized for this ability, she was active as a team leader within the guild.
The second was that she was the only Hunter who had found a weakness in the Goblin Lord.
Actually, this was a happening that occurred due to Yerin Jeong misunderstanding my words.
Regardless, by subjugating the Goblin Lord, Yerin Jeong solidified her position within the guild.
Not only that.
It was said that Manager Woojin Jeong was attacked by an Incubus during a dungeon subjugation.
Of course, this was news that had not been disclosed to the outside.
‘To be attacked by an Incubus, not a Succubus. The world is really ending.’
As a result, Manager Woojin Jeong was effectively forced into retirement from the Hunter industry.
Therefore, Yerin Jeong’s value could only continue to rise.
‘It’s not bad.’
This was good news for me.
My position was an advisor to the team led by Yerin Jeong.
If the Team Leader’s status rose, the team would also receive various benefits.
I followed Yerin Jeong’s guidance, thinking to myself.
“Let’s go inside first.”
Nodding at Yerin Jeong’s words, I stepped into the guild.
As I entered the building, a modern yet antique appearance caught my eye.
“……”
As I looked around the interior of the building, I felt gazes directed at me.
“Oh, do you have any specific questions about the guild facilities?”
I shook my head at Yerin Jeong’s question.
In any case, I had been granted permission for remote work.
It was undecided when I would come back to work after today’s visit.
And if I moved around with her, I would attract even more attention than now.
“I’ll ask if I need to later.”
With a simple answer, Yerin Jeong smiled.
“As expected, it’s nice to be able to talk comfortably with Kanghyeon. Our team is on the 12th floor, so I’ll guide you there.”
I wasn’t sure what was comfortable, but we got into the elevator together.
As we rode the elevator up to the 12th floor, Yerin Jeong’s demeanor changed.
“Please just listen to this, Kanghyeon.”
She spoke to me in a low voice.
“There’s a Hunter in our team named Taesung Yoon. He’s B-Rank, and his trait is Body Reinforcement.”
Taesung Yoon? I listened to her story.
“He was originally part of Manager Woojin Jeong’s faction. Then, a few days ago, he came to our team.”
Manager Woojin Jeong is her younger brother.
However, Woojin Jeong no longer had a place in the guild.
Judging by this alone, it was natural to think that a Hunter who lost his team had come under Yerin Jeong.
That is, if there were no backstory from her.
“Then, just a little while ago, I confirmed some information. That Hunter Taesung Yoon had contact with the Vice Guild Leader. I apologize for not telling you sooner if I had known. There’s no concrete evidence yet, but I’ll handle it quickly.”
I just nodded appropriately.
Looking at the current situation, it seemed like her older brother, the Vice Guild Leader, was trying to keep Yerin Jeong in check.
The reason Yerin Jeong told me this was probably a warning to be careful.
Everything I did might reach the Vice Guild Leader’s ears.
‘Well, it’s natural, isn’t it?’
The Vice Guild Leader seemed excessively conscious of Team Leader Yerin Jeong.
Moreover, he would likely be curious about me, whom Yerin Jeong had recruited.
‘Taesung Yoon…’
Somehow, I had a feeling this visit to the Fire Bird Guild wouldn’t end quietly.
