Chapter 43: Compensation
A week passed—a period that felt long or short, depending on one’s perspective. During that time, I enjoyed a truly restful vacation in the luxurious VIP hospital room.
Min Chorong stayed by my side almost 24/7 after regaining consciousness, and I treated her affectionately like a younger sister.
Well, it was a simple act of building rapport. Given that she was practically guaranteed to be the next Saint, there was no harm in getting close to her.
Min Chorong was inherently friendly, and her resemblance to my younger sister made it feel more like spending time with family.
Gundan, on the other hand, only regained consciousness after five days. He was in a state so severe that it would not have been an exaggeration to say he had come back from the dead, having held back the Ganggwi at the cost of his own life.
There was nothing surprising about him suffering long-lasting aftereffects. Yet, true to his nature as someone who awakened a mythical-grade unique ability, he was remarkably unaffected, so much so that he started exercising immediately after regaining consciousness, complaining about muscle loss.
Every day after his workout, he would come to my hospital room, stare at me with an intense gaze, then leave—a routine he repeated daily.
Finally, the long-awaited moment came when Gi So-young, the Guild Leader, paid me a visit.
“Hello~! How have you been? I heard your physical condition is fine, and it seems like you’re mentally doing well too, without any trauma!”
Despite her bright demeanor, there was an unmistakable trace of guilt and gratitude in her eyes.
I made an effort to ignore that gaze. It was only natural for her to feel that way, yet, in a sense, what happened was indirectly my fault, which made me carry a slight burden of guilt.
Even so, it was minor. In any case, she sat beside Min Chorong, who was peeling an apple with great concentration, and cheekily stole a piece.
Min Chorong, who belatedly noticed that her hard-earned result was taken, puffed up her cheeks, but Gi So-young merely smiled, finding her reaction cute, and handed me a document.
“The first page is a report on the post-incident measures, and the second page outlines the compensation and apology we’re offering.”
I accepted the document from her and began reviewing it.
The post-incident actions were thorough. To take responsibility for what happened, every staff member who was on duty as security was dismissed.
Of course, I don’t mean they were killed; they were all fired. Only Gundan, who had stayed till the end, was spared.
‘There were even members from the Dangun Guild involved.’
The Dangun Guild was the number one guild in South Korea, led by the nation’s top hunter, the SS-rank Dangun Genius.
‘They even disciplined members from the Dangun Guild?’
It was clear that Gi So-young had wielded her authority decisively. The dismissed individuals would find it difficult to join another guild or continue as hunters from now on.
The news of their dismissal and the fact that they were blacklisted by both the number one and seventh-ranked guilds must have already spread through the hunter community.
Essentially, they had been marked. Unless they risked their lives exploring the Abyss or dungeons to become so powerful that they couldn’t be ignored, their careers as hunters were essentially over.
Well… considering they were mere security staff or disposable members, it was unlikely that they had either the potential or courage to grow stronger.
Even though the events were influenced by misfortune, the accounts I heard from Gundan and Gi So-young about their behavior painted them as irresponsible fools, leaving me with no sympathy for their fate.
Moreover, Gi So-young used her connections, built through the Miracle Hospital’s reputation, to prevent the incident from leaking to the media and erase it from everyone’s memory.
It wasn’t difficult. The incident had been covered up well from the start. Everyone had survived, and while some reporters sensed something was off, they had no concrete details.
Still, Gi So-young took it a step further, blocking even gossip columns from mentioning the event. Thus, the incident disappeared from public memory.
“Nicely handled. The dismissed ones won’t talk, will they?”
“Hehe. Of course not. Those fools? Unless they’re planning to quit being hunters entirely and live on the streets, they won’t dare breathe a word. We even used oath-binding items to ensure their silence.”
I nodded and turned to the next page.
The moment I saw the first line, my eyes widened.
“An honorary director position in the Miracle Guild? A 1.5% stake in the guild?”
Like any business, guilds also had shareholders and issued stocks to assess their value.
A guild leader was akin to a corporate chairman. Naturally, a board of directors existed within guilds as well.
The 7th-ranked guild was comparable to the seventh-largest company in terms of financial power. While the total value might be less than that of some major conglomerates known for raking in vast profits, in the current era dominated by hunters, the intangible value far exceeded the visible worth.
The Miracle Guild, in particular, was immensely valuable. As the only guild specializing in healing with such unique capabilities, some considered it among the top three most valuable guilds, despite its 7th place ranking.
Hence, a 1.5% stake translated to at least several billion won in value.
I couldn’t help but be surprised. Even if they gave me this amount of compensation, it would be more than enough to seal my lips, but was this just the first part of the compensation?
I stared at Gi So-young with wide eyes. The original owner of these shares was most likely her, the Guild Leader and major shareholder.
“What are you thinking? You’re offering 1.5% of the shares as compensation? And an honorary director position at the Miracle Guild? I know that becoming a director at the Miracle Guild has very strict conditions.”
As if expecting my question, Gi So-young smiled and answered.
“You saved the life of my only blood relative, who is poised to become the next Saint. This level of compensation is only natural! And while it’s true that the requirements for becoming a director are strict, Shin Juha, you meet the criteria. As long as one possesses divine power, they can qualify as a member of the Miracle Guild. Plus, you prevented an incident that could have been a significant blow to the guild. And who would oppose someone endorsed by me, the Guild Leader? Besides, it’s just an honorary director title, with your name on it for prestige.”
So, it all boiled down to her decision. Why the elaborate explanation?
“How did you know I possessed divine power, anyway?”
Surprisingly, it wasn’t Gi So-young but Min Chorong who reacted with astonishment at my muttering. Realizing something odd in the conversation, she looked between her aunt and me, unsure of what to do. That alone was enough for me to piece things together.
She must have seen me using Lucifer’s First Wing inside the dungeon.
It would be stranger if she hadn’t noticed since I deployed it almost continuously whenever its cooldown ended.
I turned my eyes back to the document and moved to the second item. My jaw dropped in disbelief.
-2. Provision of “The Lost Wing of Darkness” (Normal-F).
I looked at Gi So-young and back at the document. Was there more than one of these here?
At this point in time, there was only supposed to be one in existence, wasn’t there?
Later, whether it was good or bad luck, up to two more were discovered on Earth, with another found by a hunter in the Abyss, eventually making three that humanity possessed.
Of course, at the time, it was merely considered an ornamental item or trash and occasionally appeared at auction houses before finally ending up in a hunter’s possession.
That hunter, however, never uncovered the secret of the Wing before all three were stolen by invaders who came from the Abyss to Earth.
It was because of that invader that even an F-rank hunter like me knew about the item, which became widely known.
‘And that’s the invader I have to face one day.’
He was strong. Even before he came to Earth, he already had three Wings.
In other words, to collect all 12 Wings, I would need to obtain the three he had as well.
‘But in the future I remember, there was only one. Was my information wrong?’
I swallowed hard.
I had to obtain this item. At this moment, I was the only one on Earth who understood its value, and it was a relic whose worth was immeasurable.
As I gazed greedily at the second item, Gi So-young let out a characteristic chuckle, nodding as if her assumption had been correct.
“It seems that this Wing item is one you’ve used before.”
Did she guess it? As expected of a leader of a major guild.
She was adept at strategy and reading situations.
With a sigh, I nodded and activated my skill.
〚The First Wing is being activated!〛
〚While the Wing is activated, the rare stat ‘Divine Power’ will manifest temporarily!〛
〚All stats receive a temporary boost of +10 while the Wing is active!〛
〚Due to low proficiency, the activation time is limited to 10 minutes! Cooldown time is 3 hours!〛
A radiant and divine wing appeared from my left shoulder. It shone with the power of Lucifer’s Wing, belonging to the seat of Arrogance and Pride among the Seven Deadly Sins.
“This is it. And I’m the only one who knows how to deactivate it.”
“Hehe. Don’t worry. I’ve already pulled it out of the guild vault as compensation to give to you. I’m not sure who originally obtained it, but if it’s in the guild’s vault, it means it was sold to the guild, so there shouldn’t be an issue.”
I nodded. With this, I had found two Wings, forming a pair.
I didn’t know which number this Wing was, but I’d heard that once the set effect was activated, the real potential of the Wings would be revealed.
Satisfied, I checked the third and final item.
- Eternal Alliance with the Miracle Guild
“Eternal alliance?”
“Yes, this compensation means that even if Shin Juha were to commit treason, both our guild and I, Gi So-young, would stand by your side.”
“That’s nice. But how can I trust what’s essentially a verbal promise?”
“Right? It’s not easy to believe, is it? Then how about this? Here! You can have our little darling!”
Gi So-young joked as she playfully pushed her niece towards me.
It was only natural that Min Chorong’s face turned bright red as she was pushed into my arms.
“Oh my! And to think you’re the same age! What a perfect match!”
“What do you mean! Wait, you’re the same age as me?”
I thought she was younger, similar to my sister’s age. So, she was 20, an adult?
“I-I didn’t mean to deceive you…”
“Hehe! What does it matter? You were the one who assumed wrongly. And what’s more trustworthy than a historical and factual alliance through marriage?”
All I could do was sigh at the chaotic scene. And with that, the compensation was decided.
The next day, upon being discharged, I headed straight to the Association.
“I would like to apply for the promotion exam.”
I registered for the promotion exam, which was just beginning.
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