The disciples do not want the intervention of Jeongal Jaegyeol.

To prevent that, Hong Gyubin worked overtime without hesitation, and Kim Chanwangchan and his group did something crazy.

Even in matters unrelated to Jeongal Jaegyeol, Hong Gyubin still had to work overtime, while the seniors went wild.

‘At this point, preventing Jeongal Jaegyeol's involvement is impossible. If I try to block him clumsily, Jeongal Jaegyeol will act alone to gather information and end up in a dangerous situation.’

Given that Jeongal Jaegyeol is already being targeted by the demons who are wary of the Enchantment Sorcerer, things would get more dangerous if he digs deeper into the shadows alone after this.

It would be even more dangerous if it involves the Namgung Group.

In the previous world, I had already experienced how a huge corporation uses its power over an individual for very personal reasons.

If Jeongal Jaegyeol hadn’t been involved, Hong Gyubin would still be hiding his special abilities, living as Namgung Gyubin of the Namgung Group. So, from Namgung’s perspective, it would be natural to have a supervisor.

Thinking about the time when Hong Gyubin was Namgung Gyubin, something unsettling crossed my mind.

‘Why did Hong Gyubin oppose it so strongly, yet allowed his younger brother Namgung Gyoyeon to become a player?’

Namgung Gyoyeon, the same age as Jang Namuk and Do Sihoo, is currently attending the Player Military Academy.

Perhaps because there was an age gap between him and Hong Gyubin, the recognition of players improved in that period, which led to a change of attitude?

Or maybe, like Hong Gyubin, he was given some leeway, fearing the possibility of digging into the family register?

Both possibilities weren’t out of the question, ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) but considering Namgung’s actions, it still bothered me.

‘I need to focus on the differences between them. They were treated differently because there was a difference.’

The most obvious difference was age and gender.

It could have been because of those differences that he was treated more leniently, but I didn’t think that was the only reason.

Then, the next thing worth noting is their special abilities.

‘Blood relatives often have overlapping abilities, but sometimes they don’t, like Yoo Sanghee and Yoo Sanghun.’

Yoo Sanghee and Yoo Sanghun both control the wind, but in completely different ways.

While Yoo Sanghee has the power to heal others, Yoo Sanghun was born with the ability to take hits on behalf of others.

As for Hong Gyubin and Namgung Gyoyeon, their abilities seem to have little overlap.

‘Hong Gyubin possesses a rare ability that can enhance the power of item cards beyond their rarity. He also has a foresight skill, although his level is low.’

As a member of the regulations enforcement, Hong Gyubin possesses excellent abilities.

Thanks to his foresight skill, he claims he knew from the beginning that he would get involved in what Jeongal Jaegyeol would face someday.

While it is said that prophecy has disappeared in this world, foresight still exists.

To put it simply, even though the ability to predict storms from distant places and know where they are heading has disappeared, people can still intuitively feel where the winds are blowing close by. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Now that prophecy has disappeared, foresight skills have become even more precious.

Currently, aside from Hong Gyubin, the only other being I can think of with a foresight skill is Hyeonmu.

‘And Namgung Gyoyeon is said to have the power of the earth. Considering the status of intellect in this world, there are almost no humans who can manipulate the earth, making it a rare ability, just as precious as foresight.’

Jang Namuk mentioned that Namgung Gyoyeon controls the power of the earth.

When the freed Muji instinctively followed the source of the chains that bound him and attacked Do Sihoo, Namgung Gyoyeon was able to stop him.

Namgung Gyoyeon was capable enough to block Muji’s strike, showing how well he handles the earth.

Both Hong Gyubin and Namgung Gyoyeon possess rare abilities, and they have value in hiding or developing these abilities without others knowing.

If I want to make further speculations, I’ll need more information about Namgung.

“Wungnyeo-nim, have you finished confirming the insects?”

“Yeah.”

While I was lost in thought, Wungnyeo and Eunho were discussing something else.

The topic that came up during the operation meeting, which was held in Wungnyeo’s absence, was about the insects that had been collected from the hydrangeas in Jeju.

Eunho had received a few of the insects from the designated person and had shown them to the noble clan for confirmation.

Now it seemed like it was Wungnyeo’s turn.

“According to Dongha-hyung, the students who experienced the ‘Gaechun Myth’ through the otherworld simulator mentioned that they felt like they had seen these insects before. Wungnyeo-nim, what do you think?”

“I know what answer you’re expecting.”

The aura of Wungnyeo, which usually burned like fire in front of Jeokho, felt icy cold now.

From the way she acted, it seemed like I didn’t need to hear an answer from her.

Wungnyeo glanced at the box containing the insects with a steady gaze.

If she had just infused a little of her magical energy, not only would the box, but the insects inside would have turned to dust and disappeared.

“They are indeed insects from that era. Not only that, but I can feel the disgusting and filthy bear-like energy.”

“It’s not that strong, but is it possible that the Wung tribe is nearby?”

“It's unlikely. If that were the case, these insects would have reacted to my magical energy.”

One of the Jinwongpalseon, the bear of Tam-ae, dealt with insects.

It’s possible that these insects were raised and bred by the bear of Tam-ae during the Gaechun Myth.

Upon hearing Wungnyeo’s answer, Eunho spoke.

“If Tam-ae’s bear is cooperating with them, things would have become more troublesome. I think the bear of Tam-ae has a separate purpose and is acting on its own. Of course, that purpose would be related to you, Wungnyeo-nim.”

“Whatever the purpose may be, I will kill it.”

“Yes, please wait until we obtain the necessary information before doing so.”

Since Wungnyeo had been looking at the insects with cold eyes, she didn’t try to hide the fiery killing intent in her words.

Her declaration to kill was full of sincerity.

‘Unlike the bear that disappeared with the black shadow, the bears of Tam-ae, Hwanye, and Uigu’s whereabouts remain unknown. I don’t even know if they are acting together. And their purpose is still unclear.’

The bear of Tam-ae is certainly moving towards obtaining Wungnyeo in the end, but I still couldn’t figure out what it would do to achieve that.

Still, securing the insects it controls and confirming the locations of their activities had been a major gain.

After that, Wungnyeo, Eunho, and I shared the information we had gathered from the Jeju incident and discussed it further.

Once the conversation was nearing its conclusion, Eunho and Wungnyeo silently watched me, as if they were waiting for me to say something.

“Yi-shin-hyung, don’t you have something to say?”

At Eunho’s words, a few points I had been considering came to mind, still processing in my head.

Hong Gyubin, Namgung Gyoyeon, the whereabouts of the Jinwongpalseon—those were among them.

I hadn’t sorted out my thoughts yet, and there was no immediate need to act on any of them, so I didn’t speak up.

Not knowing what they were expecting me to say, I waited until Wungnyeo directly spoke.

“I thought you would have something to say about the furnace we developed that burns clouds and fog.”

Did they think I would press them about the furnace?

I couldn’t exactly blame them for hiding the experiment, as I had also kept it from them. I had no right to interrogate them.

Besides, compared to me, who had only recently gotten to know them, I couldn’t even imagine how much thought they’d given to the furnace and the urn.

Without the supervisor, it would have been far more efficient and safe to accept the furnace.

Seeing that I hadn’t even thought of it, Eunho softened his gaze and spoke.

“I thought you had something you wanted to say since this morning. Maybe you missed the right timing. I thought it would be about the furnace, but it seems I was wrong.”

“I also thought it would be difficult to speak up in the presence of the urn master and the white tiger, but I guess I was wrong as well.”

The words I wanted to say this morning.

Hearing that made me briefly reflect on the devices in front of me and Jeongal Jaegyeol’s poison, followed by thoughts from the past. For a moment, the deep anger I had forgotten about surged within me.

Why had I forgotten about that?

I had planned to hear what the white tiger had been up to yesterday after waking up, but the tiger just left!

At the same time, Baekho heard Jo Yi-shin’s inner shouting and smiled.

Baekho had said he would pass on the message after speaking in the dream, but as soon as Jo Yi-shin woke up, he didn’t say anything right away.

Knowing that Jo Yi-shin would get frustrated when he realized what he was thinking, Baekho’s laughter deepened.

Jo Yi-shin, now awake, was grumbling loudly enough for Baekho to hear.

Baekho’s friends watched this in real time and got frustrated.

“Baekho, are you listening to me now? I asked, while the Dragon Tribe’s benefactor was going through that difficult experiment, why didn’t you stop him and what were you doing?”

“I’m sure I was laughing like this, even though it wasn’t a laughing matter.”

Seeing Baekho, Cheongryong and Hyeonmu voiced their displeasure.

Although Cheongryong didn’t like hearing Jo Yi-shin bring up the Dragon Tribe’s benefactor all the time, Baekho knew that the more he held back, the more upset his friends would get, so he chose to remain silent.

Having exchanged for a long time, Hyeonmu, who understood Baekho’s frustrating thought process, sighed.

At the end of the day, Baekho was in a good mood because of their actions, even though he tried to show concern for Jo Yi-shin.

“The morning star isn’t something to laugh about, and what we’re about to talk about isn’t either. This concerns the well-being of our friends.”

Hyeonmu openly gave Baekho a look to stop laughing.

Baekho, acting as if he had never laughed, wore a blank expression.

His friends, familiar with his shameless behavior, gave up and started talking.

“We’ve either collected or destroyed all of Zhuque’s feathers. The feathers tainted with dark energy had to be destroyed immediately.”

“Of course. I know very well that the feathers were processed recklessly.”

“Was it really reckless? When you look at the quantity, Zhuque had provided feathers enough to the point that it would be hard for him to fly for a long time.”

At Hyeonmu’s words, Cheongryong fell silent.

The True Clan had excellent regenerative abilities, but they were not infinite.

In particular, parts of the body that carried special powers took longer to heal.

The same went for dragon scales, so Cheongryong had an inkling of what was going on.

“I got an introduction to the morning star and made contact with the board of directors of the Zhuchai Concern. He was a high-ranking human who met Zhuque in person.”

Kim Chan-sol’s relative was part of the board of directors of the Zhuchai Concern.

Jo Yi-shin had introduced this matter to Hyeonmu before the incident.

At Hyeonmu’s words, Cheongryong excitedly asked.

“Did you contact Zhuque? He occasionally sends gifts, but it’s been quite a while since I heard his voice.”

“I couldn’t contact him directly, but he let me watch a recorded video call. It was mixed with some idle chatter about the recent shadow play.”

Hyeonmu wore a nostalgic expression.

Cheongryong felt the same way.

After learning about Zhuque’s feathers, Cheongryong had tried to contact Zhuque, but couldn’t reach him.

It seemed like Zhuque was reluctant to show his face or let his voice be heard.

“So, was there anything strange?”

“A little.”

Baekho and Cheongryong narrowed their eyes at Hyeonmu’s words.

Hyeonmu often took on the role of thinking ahead for his friends who were prone to act recklessly.

And whenever Hyeonmu said “a little,” it usually meant something important.

Hyeonmu’s instincts and thoughts were usually right.

“The shadow play that Zhuque watched was about our old journey. Cheongryong, do you remember?”

“Of course. Didn’t the Chinese students with connections to you put it on recently?”

“When Zhuque talked about the shadow play, he seemed to be enjoying it very much. There wasn’t even the slightest hint of nostalgia or lingering thoughts.”

Cheongryong couldn’t understand Hyeonmu’s words.

If Zhuque was enjoying it, wasn’t that a good thing?

But Baekho’s thoughts were different.

“Zhuque, like Huangho, cares for his friends and comrades, but ends up bothering them. It’s been a while since I’ve seen his face, and I can’t imagine him just enjoying the old stories.”

“Baekho, you’ve been thinking of Huangho that way....”

Cheongryong sighed, but Hyeonmu nodded in agreement.

Hyeonmu’s voice sounded lonely.

“Zhuque’s friendship has faded, or something has replaced it, and that’s why he was laughing.”