The Healing Solaris Cleric

Chapter 224: Relief Pitcher (3)

"Hmm. This must have been hard for those Nihonichi guys."

Han Jung-Woo began his morning with a familiar scent of instant coffee. The reason he wasn’t logged into the game and was sitting in the living room watching the news was simple.

I wonder when it will come.

He was waiting for a specific call. In fact, the appointment made unexpectedly the night before still had him slightly bewildered.

Ding dong!

The doorbell to his studio apartment rang.

"Hm?"

Glancing at the clock, it was nine a.m. There was no one who would be visiting him at this hour.

Are they delivering the kimchi from the grocery store?

Rushing to the intercom, Han Jung-Woo pressed the button and asked. "Who is it?"

"It’s Seol Eun-Yeong."

"Who?"

"Seol Eun-Yeong."

Han Jung-Woo stared at the intercom, rubbing his eyes, puzzled.

It’s really her. Why did this woman come to my house?

Of course, there wasn’t any specific reason she couldn’t come to his house. Technically, she was the head of the management company Han Jung-Woo was affiliated with.

But she promised not to interfere with anything on that part.

In other words, there wasn’t any reason for her to be here.

Tilting his head, he opened the door. "Come in for now. It’s cold outside."

"Thank you."

Seol Eun-Yeong took off her shoes and confidently stepped past the entrance, when her eyes suddenly widened as if something had shocked her.

"Why are you so surprised?"

"It’s just... Nothing has changed since the last time I visited."

"Well, that’s because I haven’t changed anything."

"But isn't it tough living in a place like this without even unpacking properly...?"

"What? I’ve been settled in for ages now."

The two stared blankly at each other for a moment before Seol Eun-Yeong asked with disbelief across her face. "This is what you call being moved in?"

"Y-Yes, it is."

As Han Jung-Woo stammered instinctively, Seol Eun-Yeong lifted a hand to her mouth in apparent shock.

"I can’t believe it... No leather sofa, no chandelier, not even a painting on the wall, and you call this done moving in..."

Han Jung-Woo stayed silent. He thought it was weirder to expect those things in a studio apartment.

"That’s only possible for people like you who own an entire floor of a building. Have a seat. Would you like coffee or tea?"

"Espresso, please."

"... Instant coffee is all I have."

"Tea, then."

Offering her a seat, Han Jung-Woo soon brought over a cup of tea.

"So, what brings you here today?"

"I was gonna come sooner or later to report some stuff. Here, take a look at this first."

Han Jung-Woo read the document she handed over.

[Unknown signs exclusive contract with major entertainment agency CL.]

[Chinese platform Tintents stirs buzz as they mention 'We want Unknown as our model'.]

[CL management officially announces, Unknown wishes to refrain from any public activities for the time being.]

The document was a collection of scraps from newspapers and articles summarizing the events after Han Jung-Woo signed with Cheonhwa.

He put the document down and said, "Thanks for showing me. You’ve done a great job. So, is this what you came to talk about?"

"Partly. What have you been up to lately?"

"Just hunting, doing quests... Oh, and babysitting someone while playing."

"... Babysitting?"

Seol Eun-Yeong’s eyes scanned the room. The barren interior made her wonder if anyone even really lived there, let alone a child.

"Oh, in the game. Nothing you need to worry about. But why do you ask?"

"If your schedule isn’t too packed, we’d like you to collaborate with us on something."

"With Cheonhwa? Ah..." Han Jung-Woo trailed off, his expression showing he knew what this was about.

It must be the Zatan raid.

A number of guilds, including Nihonichi and even a collab of smaller guilds, had attempted to clear Zatan but all failed. The general consensus was that wrapping up the main episode was a task for the nine major guilds.

A new episode needs to open so there’s more content to enjoy. @@novelbin@@

When a new episode began, locked regions became accessible, and new classes, quests, and items were released. Naturally, casual players were eager for more content, which was why they supported the nine guilds in leading the main episode progress.

Hmm. I don’t have any complaints about working with Cheonhwa itself.

In fact, Han Jung-Woo had no reason to refuse. Cheonhwa wasn’t dirty about money, and they offered good settlement rates.

But that’s not the issue I need to consider right now.

What concerned him most was public perception. He was fine with being perceived as collaborating with Cheonhwa, but he wanted to avoid being seen as being in the same boat with them.

It could become a hassle down the line.

There was always the possibility of someone dragging him into a conflict with Cheonhwa in the future.

I really don't stop people from coming, nor do I hold onto those leaving—as long as they’re decent people.

Some could see this approach as selfish, but it was a solo player’s greatest asset. The flexibility to work with anyone was an invaluable advantage.

I’ve already worked with Cheonhwa during the Black Bees hunt and the Battle of the Bir Plains.

People were already starting to associate him with Cheonhwa, and that was dangerous.

Unless they joined me like the Pray guild did.

Even that was circumstantial, and they only accepted because of the situation.

And he knew better than anyone that the Iron Blooded Queen in front of him wouldn’t take such a step.

After some deliberation, Han Jung-Woo made his decision. "I’m sorry, but I’ll have to decline this time."

"Why? I haven’t even explained the details yet."

Seol Eun-Yeong’s eyes slightly twitched, clearly not expecting her proposal to be outright rejected.

"You were going to talk about the Zatan raid, weren’t you?"

"That’s right. It’s not a bad opportunity for you either."

"No, it’s not bad at all. My recognition would grow, I’d earn more money than I could spend, and my level and fame would increase too."

"Then why are you refusing? If it’s money, we can offer as much as you want."

"No, it’s not about money anymore..." Just as he was about to continue speaking, his phone buzzed. "Excuse me for a moment."

He smiled as he read the message on the screen. "Well, this settles it. It seems I’ll be tied up with other plans for a while."

"That’s unfortunate, I guess." As Seol Eun-young rose from her seat, she seemed to recall something and issued a quiet warning. "The guilds have been moving strangely lately."

"By guilds you mean..."

If she was bringing them up directly, there could only be nine groups she was referring to.

"The world’s top nine guilds?"

"Excluding us, eight... no, including us, ten."

"Hm?" This time, Han Jung-Woo’s eyebrows slightly twitched. "That’s odd. Are there ten guilds I need to keep an eye on?"

"They say even a wealthy family takes three years to fall apart."

"That’s a saying that applies in the real world. In games, no matter how strong a faction is, the moment they fall behind in growth..."

"That’s exactly what seems strange."

"Pardon?"

"Sting and Goliath. Since you defeated them, they’ve been steadily declining. But recently, they’ve been regaining their pace. Even their closest subordinates are leveling up at speeds comparable to their prime."

"Hold on a second, let me check." He picked up his phone and scanned through the rankings. "Sting, level 299. Goliath, level 305... They’ve gone up a fair bit, but it’s not particularly threatening."

"There are rumors circulating that they’ve joined forces. And alliances never form without a purpose."

"And you think that purpose is me?"

"Who knows?"

Perhaps upset by his refusal, Seol Eun-Yeong showed a faint smile as she finished her tea and stood up.

"Thank you for the tea. I’ll see you next time."

"I think that next time might be sooner than you think."

"What do you mean by that?"

"You’ll find out sooner or later. When that time comes, try not to hate me too much..."

At Han Jung-Woo's mysterious remark, Seol Eun-young furrowed her delicate brows and exited the house as gracefully as she had entered.

Just before she left, she added, "It’s unfortunate that you won’t be participating, but Zatan will still fall to Cheonhwa."

"Did you already sign with Yoo Ha-Rin or something?"

Seol Eun-Yeong stayed silent, shocked he already knew about their plan.

In this field, the major players were all interconnected in one way or another. Moreover, Cheonhwa and Yoo Ha-Rin had already worked together successfully in the past.

If Cheonhwa and Yoo Ha-Rin team up, they could take down Zatan without much trouble.

Of course, that was assuming there were no unexpected variables.

"Well then, take care."

Seol Eun-Yeong returned to her apartment upstairs, and Han Jung-Woo immediately made a call.

“Apologies for the delayed reply. I had a guest at home.”

—No problem. It was my fault for not setting a specific appointment time.

“I read the message you sent. The terms you proposed were shocking—are they real?”

—I’m not one to go back on my word. Also, hiring the number one ranked player as a mercenary naturally requires such terms.

“Alright then. Let’s proceed with the contract.”

Han Jung-Woo smiled at the shocking conditions proposed by the other party.

***

“Yoo Ha-Rin?” Seol Eun-Yeong asked.

“She agreed. Honestly, I feel like she has a bit of a foolish side every time I see her,” Boyd replied.

“Even if you feel that way, don’t let it show.”

“Of course. Just saying—after all, she’s Yoo Ha-Rin.”

If they were to face each other head-on, Boyd wondered if he could last even three minutes as he recalled his past duel with Unknown, showing a bitter smile.

“Oh, should I delete my Wizard character and start raising a Warrior instead?”

“Stop dreaming. You’re only holding your position because you’re a Wizard.”

Boyd put on a hurt expression at her harsh comment. “Holding my position because I’m a Wizard? Ouch. Anyway, did Unknown backfire?”

“He said no.”

“Man, I didn’t see him that way, but he’s pretty heartless.”

“Don’t bring personal feelings into contracts. It’s natural for a professional to reject an offer if the terms don’t fit.”

“Our queen must really have fallen for Unknown. Here you are defending him even after getting rejected.”

“Shut up. What about the other guilds?”

“Same as always. Other than those Pray guys holed up in the main church of the Church of Solaris, making it hard to get a read on them, everything else seems fine."

“Hmm...”

Despite Boyd’s reassurance, Seol Eun-Yeong couldn’t shake an inexplicable feeling.

Why do I feel like this?

An unexplainable sense of unease washed over her body.

She quietly organized the documents, checking what she might have overlooked.

The guild’s hunting grounds are fine, the newly acquired territories are well-managed, there haven’t been any incidents with guild members, and most other guilds have given up on the Zatan raid. Ah, could it be?

Then she asked, “What about the Warriors? I saw in an interview they expressed intent to join.”

“Yeah. As you know, their strength is about equal to ours. They’ve got more agile warriors than we do, so their situation might be slightly better, and they’ve probably secured at least one reliable mercenary too.”

“Are you sure they’re preparing for the raid?”

“Yes. From the reports coming from the support team, they’ve been clashing with our people at the auction house lately. Everyone’s been scrambling for potions.”

“Make sure we proceed with the raid first.”

“Huh? Even if it’s the Warriors, they won’t be able to clear Zatan in one go. We should gather more data on the patterns and take it slow.”

“I’ve got a bad feeling. Just do it.”

Seol Eun-Yeong wondered what was causing this unease, but attempted to calm herself.

It’s fine. We’ve got Yoo Ha-Rin on our side.

Though Kai reigned supreme as the overwhelming number one ranked player, his dominance had somewhat decreased compared to before. However, Yoo Ha-Rin was known as the ranker of the rankers, boasting exceptional skills.

“Right, there’s no need to worry.” Seol Eun-Yeong repeated the words to herself as if casting a self-hypnotic spell.