Chapter 245

The day after delivering the news to Yoo Ju about successfully recruiting Han-sol.

‘Hwan-Young Clan, huh…’

Han-sol’s request wasn’t particularly difficult, and from my perspective, it was something very easy to resolve.

‘Most clans can’t even hand out their business cards in front of Eternity’s name.’

The term “Four Great Clans” carries that level of prestige and power.

From what I’ve gathered about Hwan-Young Clan, they’re a fairly respected mid-tier clan.

‘Almost close to the size of a large clan.’

In front of Eternity’s name, they’re just another name, but at least within Baronia, they’re a clan that makes some noise.

‘That’s probably why they approached Han-sol so aggressively.’

Even a clan like Hwan-Young has plenty of trainees hoping for offers.

That instructor guy must’ve been trying to sweet-talk Han-sol.

‘Looks like he’s done this before.’

He’s probably pulled this stunt every time the training facility operates.

From what I’ve heard, even when Yoo Ju and I were trainees, Hwan-Young’s instructor was at the training facility.

Back then, seeing how our party didn’t make any moves…

“Pfft…”

I couldn’t help but let out a chuckle.

‘Back then, yeah, we weren’t at that level.’

It was a time when every clan in the training facility was desperate to recruit us.

That instructor guy probably didn’t dare to pull any tricks back then.

‘Hwan-Young Clan wasn’t even close to being able to recruit us.’

Frankly, they should’ve been begging on their knees for us to join.

‘Ah, there she is.’

As Han-sol mentioned, I approached her after the common lecture ended.

According to her, the instructor would quietly approach her after the lecture.

I caught Han-sol’s eye as the trainees were leaving, but we both pretended not to see each other.

‘Did she ask me to peel him off if he clung to her?’

Sure enough, someone approached Han-sol as she was heading back to her dorm.

“Haha, Trainee Han-sol.”

“Ah…”

“Can we talk for a moment? I’d like to have a private conversation.”

‘Smooth talker.’

He had the face of someone who’s done this a lot.

It’s a bit awkward to say, but it reminded me of when I tried to flirt with Tierra or Yoo Ju.

He casually wrapped his arm around Han-sol’s shoulder as he spoke.

That level of physical contact is in a gray area for a trainee.

‘That’s why he’s doing it.’

“Ah… Instructor Jin Hyun-soo. I’m actually…”

Han-sol tried to refuse with an awkward expression, but he was quicker.

“It’s a very important matter. It’s about the clan and some things at the training facility.”

‘Important, my ass.’

It’s obvious nonsense. If it were that important, he would’ve approached her before the lecture ended.

Just as I was about to step in, I overheard some other trainees talking.

“Ugh… She’s acting all high and mighty. She’ll give in eventually.”

“What a bitch. Some of us haven’t even gotten a single clan offer.”

‘Hmm…’

Curious, I stopped and listened.

“Hey, I heard she got an offer from the Eternity Clan master.”

“What? Really?”

“I don’t know. But I heard Instructor Yoo Ju talked to her.”

“Hey, you idiot, stop talking nonsense. Her grades are just average. Why would Eternity recruit her?”

“I don’t know either. And it’s not like she was recruited, just that Instructor Yoo Ju called her personally.”

“When? I’ve never seen that.”

“After Instructor Ha Yu-ri’s lecture, I think.”

“Even if that’s true, she probably just wanted to say something. You think Eternity would recruit her?”

‘Actually, they did.’

It seems Han-sol hiding her true strength is causing these misunderstandings.

‘Pathetic, really.’

Human jealousy is such an ugly thing.

People love to tear others down when they see them doing well.

In life, instead of comparing yourself to others, you should focus on doing your best.

‘If Han-sol showed even half her true strength, they wouldn’t dare say a word.’

I guarantee if Han-sol hadn’t hidden her abilities, those two wouldn’t have dared to speak like that.

Even among trainees, there’s an invisible hierarchy.

Those included in the raid teams or noticed by top clans are the nobles.

Those with average grades who barely keep up with lectures are the commoners.

And those who can’t even kill monsters in the tutorial, rely on artifacts, and lack talent or effort are at the bottom.

In other words, considering Han-sol’s true strength, she’s at least a noble.

‘Sigh…’

The conversations I overheard were filled with envy and jealousy.

‘Look at their eyes.’

The way they looked at Han-sol was filled with envy and spite.

‘Kids, get a grip, okay? This isn’t the time for that.’

If they’ve been at the training facility for two months, anyone with half a brain wouldn’t be acting like this.

‘Who has time for that? They should be busy trying to impress the instructors.’

They need to showcase their usefulness.

With only about a month left, there’s no time to waste.

‘Well, it’s not really my business.’

Honestly, what they do doesn’t concern me. As long as I get Han-sol, that’s all that matters.

I calmly approached Han-sol.

“Huh?”

Some trainees finally noticed me.

As I got closer, I saw Han-sol subtly push the instructor’s hand away and speak up.

“…Instructor Jin Hyun-soo, I’ve already decided to join Eternity Clan. So…”

The instructor looked stunned at Han-sol’s words about joining Eternity.

The other trainees around were equally shocked.

“What the hell? She’s just average. What’s she talking about?”

“Hey, leave her alone. It’s not like she’s the only one bluffing.”

“…Haha!”

The instructor, who had looked momentarily surprised, laughed as if he thought it was a joke.





“Trainee Shin Han-sol, you really shouldn’t make jokes like that. You almost had me fooled.”

Somehow, it feels like the guy thinks Shin Han-sol is lying to shake him off.

‘Well, she is trying to shake him off, but it’s not a lie.’

“No, it’s not a lie, really…”

“Hey, if you keep this up, I might get angry, you know?”

‘What an idiot.’

Looks like his pride got a little scratched.

I mean, the Hwan-Young Clan is pretty well-known, but Shin Han-sol keeps refusing to join, so I can kind of understand where he’s coming from.

He glanced over Shin Han-sol’s body once and then continued.

“Anyway, for now, come with me…”

“Trainee Shin Han-sol.”

At the sound of my voice, both she and the instructor turned their heads toward me.

“I came here to talk to you for a moment, but it seems you already have a guest?”

Seeing my face, the two of them had quite an interesting reaction.

Shin Han-sol had a look of resentment, as if asking why I only stepped in now after watching from the sidelines…

And that guy, Jin Hyun-soo, was staring at me with wide eyes, looking completely dumbfounded.

“L-Lee Yun-seong… sir?”

‘What the hell.’

“Ah, yes. And you are…?”

I deliberately acted this way to scratch his pride a bit.

You know, like I’ve never even heard of him.

“Ah, I’m Jin Hyun-soo, an instructor from the Hwan-Young Clan. Nice to meet you.”

‘What a moron.’

Seems like his brain is too stiff to even think that far.

“B-but, Mr. Lee Yun-seong, what brings you here…?”

‘I already told you. Making me repeat myself twice.’

“I came to see Shin Han-sol.”

“Huh?”

“Eternity has already made an offer to Shin Han-sol. I’m just here to recruit a new clan member.”

Silence fell around us after my words.

Most people probably thought Shin Han-sol was lying earlier.

Especially those two who were badmouthing her earlier—their faces were priceless, looking at me like they couldn’t believe it.

‘Or wait, maybe they’re looking at Shin Han-sol.’

Jin Hyun-soo was also muttering with a look of disbelief.

“N-no way… so it wasn’t a lie?”

‘That’s what I said.’

There was no reason to wait for him, so I spoke up regardless of whether he was flustered or not.

“Uh, Instructor Jin Hyun-soo?”

“Ah, yes, yes?”

“Would it be alright if I take our new recruit with me? It seemed like you had something to do earlier.”

“No, no! Haha… go ahead. It wasn’t anything important.”

‘You said it was important earlier, you little…’

I almost burst out laughing at how quickly his attitude changed.

Holding back my laughter, I turned to Shin Han-sol.

“Trainee Shin Han-sol, shall we get going?”

“…Yes, Instructor.”

Just as we were about to leave with Shin Han-sol…

*Thud.*

Shin Han-sol took a few steps, then suddenly stopped and glanced around.

“….!”

All the guys who were badmouthing or mocking her earlier were now either bowing their heads or avoiding eye contact.

‘Well, I guess it was pretty annoying.’

Shin Han-sol must have felt pretty awful.

She told the truth, but everyone around her accused her of lying without even checking the facts.

Shin Han-sol didn’t say anything to them. She just ignored them as if they weren’t there and followed me.

Once we arrived at the office and sat down, I spoke to her.

“You must have had a tough time.”

*Creak—*

“No, it wasn’t that bad…”

“Is that so?”

“But… um…”

‘Ah.’

I could tell she had a slight complaint.

“…Instructor, you could have helped me a bit earlier.”

“Haha… I’m sorry. I have no excuse.”

‘What can I do? Watching was fun.’

“Anyway, the Hwan-Young Clan won’t bother you anymore, Trainee Shin Han-sol.”

“…Yes, thank you.”

‘If they still try to approach her after I said Eternity has already claimed her, they must have guts.’

They probably don’t have the courage or the resolve for that.

‘More importantly, the smarter clans will start to notice now.’

The news that Eternity made an offer to Shin Han-sol will spread in no time.

Most clans will probably wonder why Eternity would do that, but the smarter ones will think differently.

‘The big clans or the top four clans aren’t stupid.’

They’ll definitely think there’s something special about Shin Han-sol for Eternity to make an offer.

‘Or, like that guy earlier, they might think I have a personal interest in her.’

I expect most will think the latter.

Shin Han-sol hasn’t shown any notable achievements, and she’s not even part of the raid team.

But since she’s decent-looking, they might misunderstand that I brought her in because I have ulterior motives.

Honestly, I don’t really care if they get the wrong idea. Recruiting Shin Han-sol is already a done deal.

‘That’s why I brought her here.’

“Trainee Shin Han-sol, as I mentioned before, I brought the contract today.”

“Ah…”

“If you need more time, feel free to say so. There’s still time before the graduation ceremony, so take your time…”

“No, it’s not polite to make you wait any longer, and I like Eternity.”

Shin Han-sol seemed to hesitate for a moment, but then she spoke up, as if she had made up her mind.

“If you haven’t changed your mind, Instructor, I’ll officially join Eternity. Please take care of me.”

‘Bingo.’