Chapter 101

As I walked out of the building, I caught the envious gaze of a male employee but ignored it. There was no such thing as what he was imagining.

The morning air felt refreshing, clearing my head a bit. Maybe it was the hangover, or maybe it was the situation, but it had a good effect on my cluttered mind.

“Phew… Breathing in the morning air makes me feel a bit better.”

“Hehe, right? Feels like today’s going to be a good day!”

Just like yesterday, Yoo Ju seemed to be in a good mood today.

Even though there was a bit of a… hiccup earlier, seeing Yoo Ju happy naturally made me smile too.

‘Well, as long as you’re happy.’

Considering the situation where I was stuck next to a Returner, taking some time like this felt like a fair trade.

“But… sigh… I’m worried.”

“Huh? About what…”

“Well… I didn’t tell the royal palace in advance that I’d be staying out. I hope I don’t get in trouble…”

“Ah… that, that’s…”

“Sigh…”

As I sighed and walked, Yoo Ju hesitated and spoke up in a tiny voice.

“…Um… you don’t have to worry about that…”

“Huh?”

“…I already told the maid beforehand. That I might stay out…”

‘…What?’

At my dumbfounded look, Yoo Ju shyly lowered her head.

Well… her words implied that she had planned to stay out with me from the start.

“I-it’s just… in case we both got drunk and something happened… I just prepared in advance!”

“…….”

“I-it’s true!”

“Ah… okay.”

‘…Yeah, sure it is.’

******

Well… on the way back, we passed by a fountain plaza and took in the sights of the capital, eventually making it back to the royal palace.

But the problem was… the timing of our return couldn’t have been worse.

The clan members were all gathered for a meal when Yoo Ju and I returned, so naturally, the atmosphere turned awkward when they saw us.

“Ah… Brother, Sister, you’re back?”

“You’re back.”

“……”

“Haha… e-everyone’s eating, huh?”

Even though I hadn’t done anything wrong, I found myself stumbling over my words.

“…Oppa, you and Yoo Ju unnie probably haven’t eaten yet, so sit down.”

“No, we already ate…”

“Hehe, really?”

Of course, this situation was incredibly awkward, so I was about to lie and say we’d already eaten, but Yoo Ju, oblivious, answered for me.

‘You crazy woman!’

I never expected her to say something like that in this situation.

And so, an uncomfortable meal began because of Yoo Ju’s words.

Even though I hadn’t done anything wrong, I couldn’t tell if the food was going into my mouth or my nose.

The food from the royal palace should’ve been delicious, but my tongue couldn’t taste a thing.

‘…Why is she acting like this?’

I don’t know why, but across from me, Kang I-seo had her arms crossed and was clearly unhappy.

“…What’s wrong?”

“……..”

“…What is it?”

“Sigh… You’re really living it up, huh?”

“…What do you mean?”

‘What the hell is her problem?’

“Staying out all night…? And just the two of you?”

“No, that’s not…”

“Having fun? Huh? Yeah, I bet you had a great time. Really burned it up, didn’t you?”

“…I know what you’re thinking, but it’s not like that, so don’t misunderstand…”

“Misunderstand? You reek of alcohol, you know?”

“No… we just drank at a restaurant.”

“Ha, do you sleep at restaurants too?”

“Well… Yoo Ju and I both got drunk, so we had to stay at a motel…”

“…What? A motel?”

‘Damn it, why am I the only one explaining? Yoo Ju, say something, you idiot!’

I glanced at Yoo Ju, but she was just happily eating her food without a care in the world.

For a moment, I felt like exploding, but I held it in and spoke calmly.

“Y-Yoo Ju? Say something…”

“Huh?”

‘Damn it, stop playing dumb.’

I don’t know why Yoo Ju is acting so sly today.

“Haha… we just got drunk and slept in separate rooms, right?”

‘Please, read the room!’

“Ah, we slept. In a double room together…”

‘What the hell are you doing?!’

“What?… A double room?!”

It wasn’t just Kang I-seo. Everyone had assumed Yoo Ju and I had slept in separate rooms, so hearing we shared a double room made them all freeze.

‘Yoo Ju, what are you doing? You’re not this clueless, damn it!’

At this point, I was starting to suspect Yoo Ju was deliberately setting me up.

Everything about her behavior and words felt off. It was like she was intentionally saying these things.

‘Did I do something to her?’

Yoo Ju’s face looked like she was enjoying this misunderstanding.

“Hey, you…! You slept together in the same room?! What the hell…!”

“No, wait…!”

Honestly, whether I slept with Yoo Ju or not, I don’t know why it’s any of her business, but I instinctively knew I had to calm down the furious Kang I-seo.

“Damn it! The quiet ones are always the sneakiest! Turns out Tierra wasn’t the problem!”

“Just calm down! What the hell are you even saying? Why are you bringing her name into this…?”

“You’re the problem, you jerk!”

“Ah! My hair! Stop pulling my hair…!”

I don’t even know what’s happening anymore.

Thankfully, no one from the royal palace was around to see this, or it would’ve been a huge stain on the clan’s reputation.

After a long while of chaos, things finally calmed down after everyone heard that nothing happened between Yoo Ju and me.

Yoo Ju had a victorious smile on her face, while Kang I-seo kept a displeased look as she continued eating.



The meal is over.

Thud.

“Phew… Damn it, why am I so tired from the morning…”

There’s a basic etiquette training session scheduled for the royal court, but that’s in about two hours.

Since there was some time left, I was lying down in the guest room.

‘…Not much time left until the audience.’

Honestly, meeting the king didn’t really cross my mind right now.

Ray Hakter is a bit of a concern, but unless the king is particularly sociable, the audience should be brief.

‘He’ll probably throw some rewards at us, give some praise, maybe talk about protecting the clan, and that’ll be it.’

From what I know, the current king hasn’t been on the throne for more than a few years and isn’t known for being talkative.

‘If I had to categorize him… I’d say he’s on the serious side.’

Our clan hasn’t committed any crimes; in fact, we’ve done something good for the neutral country, so there’s not much to worry about.

******

So, my clan members and I underwent basic etiquette training for about two days.

Etiquette training was just that—etiquette training—nothing more, nothing less, just a formal procedure.

‘They’re being considerate of us foreigners, I guess.’

As Ray Hakter said, as long as we don’t swear in front of the king, there shouldn’t be any major issues.

After all, even if he’s the king of a neutral country, foreigners are only half-subject to continental law. It’s not a vertical relationship.

Now, we were moving to meet the king, guided by someone.

“…Your Majesty, I have brought the members of Eternity.”

– Bring them in.

Slowly, the servant opened the door, and we stepped into the king’s office.

“So, you are the foreigners from the Eternity Clan. Welcome, please have a seat.”

‘This guy…’

The current king, Alfreha.

A king who deeply cares for his people… no, his subjects.

The king’s appearance… a young man with blond hair and blue eyes. He looks about my age.

When the king greets you, you can’t just stand there dumbfounded. We each greeted the king and took our seats.

“First, let me express my gratitude. The drug problem needed to be addressed as soon as possible. Thanks to your quick actions, a weight has been lifted.”

Our clan representative, Yoo Ju, responded to the king’s words.

“Not at all. As a clan belonging to Baronia, it was our duty.”

“Thank you for saying that. By the way… are you the new Clan Master of Eternity, Yoo Ju, who’s been the talk of the town lately?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Hmm… Indeed, your aura is extraordinary. The rumors weren’t exaggerated.”

“You flatter me.”

“There’s no need for such formalities in front of me. I’m not one for unnecessary rituals. Especially since you’re foreigners.”

It seems so. Just as Ray Hakter said, he doesn’t seem interested in etiquette or unnecessary formalities.

“…And the person who made a significant contribution this time… is it you? Your name is Lee Yun-seong, right?”

“Ah, yes. That’s correct, Your Majesty.”

“I’ve heard about you too. If the new Clan Master of Eternity is in charge of military power, then you, Lee Yun-seong, are said to be the brains of the operation.”

‘That’s an overstatement…’

Yoo Ju, sure, but the rumors about me are a bit exaggerated.

“Anyway, I’m grateful to everyone in the Eternity Clan. It’s not easy for foreigners to take an interest in such matters.”

‘That makes sense.’

From the players’ perspective, there’s no real need to concern themselves with the natives’ affairs, so I understood what the king was saying.

That’s probably why the royal court didn’t have high expectations even when they made requests to some clans.

“Sorry for the long talk. What you’re most interested in is probably the reward for this mission, so let’s talk about that now.”

Of course, the reward discussion couldn’t be skipped.

Since our clan isn’t a volunteer group but one that takes on requests, it’s only natural that the members’ eyes sparkled at the mention of rewards.

“First, the reward is items. You can go into the royal treasure vault and take out up to two pieces of equipment or weapons.”

‘…This is insane.’

The royal treasure vault is filled with all sorts of rare weapons and equipment. I’m not sure about Myth Grade, but there should be plenty of Legend Grade items. So, this means we can get up to two Legend Grade weapons or equipment.

“The second reward is a relationship with the royal palace. It’s not exactly that the palace will back you up, but more of a cooperative relationship.”

‘Sort of like a partnership, huh.’

This was probably the reward Yoo Ju was aiming for.

But I had a strange feeling about it. No, more precisely, it felt odd.

‘The rewards are too generous.’

Solving the drug problem is certainly worthy of a good reward, but getting two Legend Grade items as part of the reward felt excessive.

It’s possible that the royal court is just being generous to our clan, but my gut feeling says it’s not that simple.

Legend Grade items aren’t something you just hand out like candy, and giving two of them feels too much.

Of course, receiving a lot of rewards is a good thing, but it’s natural to feel that something’s off.