54. Severe loneliness and regret
Yuhanbeom’s office.
Instead of sitting down, he stood and gathered his thoughts.
‘Lee Hyunseung…’
He already knew that Lee Hyeon-seung had excellent abilities and went to meet him. However, when I actually saw it, I realized that what I had grasped was only a small part of it.
– What I want is to find out why I was suspended from the academy. President Choi Isul is not the one to arbitrarily punish in the absence of clear evidence. Please check if there is external pressure. using your powers
What he demanded in exchange for passing Yuhan-beom’s test was extremely simple. If there was external pressure from someone, please check. You had to see it with your own eyes. After checking, he did not ask for any punishment or anything.
Just, Hyunseung Lee said. [Check] if there was external pressure.
He didn’t bother to add that the target of external pressure was suspected to be Kim Hee-ra or Yoo Hee-yeon. And he didn’t even tell me how to act after checking. But even without saying it, I could see his intentions.
test.
Rather, it was a notice to test himself in reverse.
[How are you going to act? I’ll watch.]
It was as if he was saying that.
Lee Hyeonseung reached out his hand to Yuhanbeom and said.
[My actions will change in the future depending on your actions.]
He refused the opportunity to become a member of the Artemis Guild, as well as billions of dollars. In other words, Lee Hyeon-seung clearly conveyed the fact that he was not moved by money or power, without bothering to explain in a complicated way. It was expressed so that you can intuitively realize that the way to move yourself is not money or power. I didn’t feel bad or uncomfortable at all. It was amazing. I was rejected unilaterally like this, but how can I not feel unpleasant? Rather, I just admired his distribution.
The more you know, the more coveted he is. Originally, I was coveted for his outstanding ability, but I liked the way he treated people. A man who treats people in a completely different way from Yuhan-bum, who subdues them with power and authority. I wondered how far he could go.
-Sueug
As he thought of Lee Hyeon-seung, he also remembered Yoo Hee-yeon, whom he had shouted earlier.
-What do you want me to do… I just wanted to be acknowledged by my father…
It was the first time he saw his daughter in tears.
The feeling of guilt, thinking that I may have gone astray because I was lacking in myself. Or, due to the responsibility that comes with family love and similar emotions, Yuhan-beom’s mind is complicated. However, he soon made up his mind quickly. From the moment I had these feelings, my heart was agitated for no reason, so I couldn’t handle the things I had to do in the future and made mistakes.
-Koo Woo-wook
He rubbed his throbbing head and suppressed his emotions.
‘As long as I am there, the Artemis Guild must maintain its position in public. Private feelings are just a luxury.’
In the first place, the Artemis Guild was established for no other reason. He wanted to go up. An unknown man who beat himself to the point of becoming a half-asshole for stealing a piece of bread. He had to beg on the street, and the money he stole from the evil water owners, and he was cornered into a mining operation that he risked his life in the labyrinth.
The persecution he received from society because he had no power, and the contempt, ridicule, and neglect, and the terribly painful poverty and servile life. Money you can’t get no matter how hard you work. To him, the law was just a fence, and he resented the world.
-I’m so…so hungry…please…please help me…
-Where does such a beggar cling to! f*ck you f*cking go away-!
-Sorry…sorry…sorry…sorry…
The naive life of that time when I knelt down and begged in front of a man I hadn’t seen before to get money that I couldn’t even buy a loaf of bread. He established his own guild to get out of the yoke of an unreasonable life in which no matter how much he worked, he never got his share. Because the only way to protect oneself was through one’s own power, not the law or adults.
He built a sand castle that no one could surpass. So that you won’t be hurt by anyone anymore. In this place, no one can ignore you.
The shabby sandcastle of Artemis has now grown into a building. No one could ignore the guild he had built with all of his unfortunate childhood and youth. However, at the same time, it began to devour him.
‘Someday… the Artemis Guild will also collapse.’
I was anxious. Fearing that the Artemis Guild, which he raised, protected him, and could be called his life, would disappear. He knows. that nothing is forever That if one day he resigned, this guild, which had maintained its shape with his own force, might collapse. If that happens, the castle that protects you and the people you cherish will disappear.
He knows better than anyone else that his end, which rises upward while suppressing people with force, will be tragic in the end. Right now, he’s trying to kill people with his overwhelming strength and power, but there will be many people who will aim for his neck later when he’s weak.
That’s why Yuhanbeom wanted to make Yoo Heeyeon the head of the Artemis Guild. Because the guild leader has absolute power. Even if you collapse, Artemis Guild will be your daughter’s fence.
However, at the same time, Artemis’ guild leader had to prove his abilities every moment. On the other hand, if you have the ability to be a guild leader, you don’t have to worry about the worst.
‘Heeyeon, you also don’t know my heart…’
Objectively, Yoo Hee-yeon belongs to Su Jae-in’s side. However, from the perspective of the Artemis guild leader, it was extremely below the level. If she stood in the position of guild leader with that level of ability, hyenas mad with power would try to swallow her whole. It was one of the problems that arise because we recruited talented people with thorough consideration of ability.
It is not easy to be kicked out of the guild if it is obvious that there is no ability. When the moment comes when Yuhan-beom can’t protect her, Yoo Hee-yeon may really get caught up in a tragedy and die. Therefore, Yuhan-beom had no choice but to be more strict.
– Must be the best. Being the daughter of Artemis’ guild leader is such a position. You must become a person who cannot be overlooked.
There was an omitted word after that.
‘So…you can live.’
It should be overwhelming. In the eyes of others, you have to be strong enough to not be able to climb up, and you have to look perfect. Just like myself now. For a simple person to write, the weight of the crown of Artemis was too heavy. Enough to crush the person who wrote it. Yuhanbeom knew this very well. The strongest guild in Korea with the most money. There were overflowing people who wanted to take it even at the cost of their lives. Because it is a group that has been raised that way.
That’s why Yuhanbeom did his best. I couldn’t make time for Yoo Hee-yeon, but I’ve attached numerous tutors to Yoo Hee-yeon, and I’m paying ridiculous amounts of money and artifacts periodically.
Within the Artemis Guild, he made his position more public and increased its power like crazy. After that, Yoo Hee-yeon, Yu Hee-yeon, inherited Yuhan-beom’s influence. The more Yuhanbeom gets scared and the stronger he holds power, naturally, the stronger Yoo Heeyeon’s power and authority become. However, it was rather painful that this way was eating away at her daughter.
‘rather….’
a different way from yourself. Hyunseung Lee is making friends based on trust. If he had established the Artemis Guild the way he did, he wouldn’t have worried about it. If it is a group founded on trust, no matter how weak the leader becomes, they will rather protect those under them than betray him. You will want to repay the favor you have received.
For a moment, he smiled and shook his head.
‘I guess I’m old too. I’m sorry to say that now.’
Regret is what Yuhan-beom thinks most pathetic. Even if you regret it anyway, nothing will change, and you will only consume useless emotions.
However, today he felt a particularly strong regret.
He muttered as he looked at the few photos taken with Yoo Hee-yeon when they were young.
“I was hoping for the best, but it only hurts you.”
He doesn’t know what to do at a time like this. I have never received love or comfort from anyone. I’ve never wanted someone to understand my feelings. I don’t know how to improve the broken situation. It’s because I’ve been able to solve everything with my power until now.
‘Oh, I spent too much time without realizing it. I have a lot of work to do, but I can’t do this.’
He headed to his office desk with a grave expression. In a cold space with no one there, only thousands of documents greeted him.
Amongst several documents, Artemis formally requested the use of the Mana Database by the State. Even though he acted as if he wasn’t, it was because he was insecure at the thought that there might be a mysterious group that secretly stalked Yoo Hee-yeon. He wanted to find the culprit quickly.
Ironically, leaving those worries behind, Yuhan-beom moved back to the paperwork piled up with business details. Until today, there were many things that required approval requests and issues that required mediation of disputes. He was too busy to pay attention to one thing, including adjusting the price and quality of weapons with the Blacksmith Association for the forthcoming journey to subdue the labyrinth.
His daily life was always the same as now. I wanted to take care of Yoo Hee-yeon, but I couldn’t just hold on to that.
-Charleuk
In his silent room, only the sound of flipping papers could be heard. I was used to it. It was the solitude he always went through even without anyone noticing. Those long hours of solitude were the driving force behind Artemis Guild’s overwhelming 1st place.
***
Time passed, and it was the day before the class annihilation battle.
Already, the eyes of numerous celebrities began to focus on the Broad Academy, and numerous reporters flocked to it.