Academy’S Gumiho Is A Magical Genius [EN]: Chapter 273

Academy Gumiho is a Magic Genius – Episode 273

Academy Gumiho is a Magic Genius 273

Bite the Bait (3)

A big one.

A very big one took the bait.

Now, all that’s left is to drag the caught one ashore.

“The problem is how to reel them all in at once… What should I do?”

Even the 8th Elder, who was originally the only target, was a huge figure.

If compared to a fish, he was a tuna. The last line of defense that could be caught with a net. But now, not only a tuna but also a whale and a shark are on the hook.

‘I’ll never let them go.’

The initial goal was just one tuna.

But with a whale and a shark also caught, there’s no way I’m releasing them.

Who knows when I’ll get to catch those things again?

I’ll sweep them all away this time.

From whales to shrimp. I approached the plan with the mindset of capturing an entire ecosystem.

‘It’s good that they took the bait. But what comes next is the problem.’

Though I used a whale as an analogy, the Nine Tails Guild is not comparable to that mammal. It is one of the only three S-class guilds in South Korea and one of the most highly praised groups in name and reality.

To cook those guys, a thoroughly prepared trap is needed.

There was a need to massively discard and modify existing plans.

─Why don’t you just kill off a large number of key figures?

‘Are you suggesting a purge? If I do that, what’s in it for me?’

─If it’s too big to swallow, you have to cut it up so you can swallow the guild properly. In your analogy, wouldn’t it be tastier to prepare it in bite-sized pieces?

Does she mean to cut up the Nine Tails Guild into easy-to-eat pieces?

I admit it. That method might be the most reasonable in the current situation.

Cut off and discard the unnecessary flesh, except for the most delicious parts.

It would be easy to eat if I prepared it that way.

But you know.

If I prepare it that way, it won’t be the Nine Tails Guild anymore.

‘You know what? Once you hunt a whale, you can use it really efficiently.’

─A whale?

‘Unlike ordinary meat, once you whale, you don’t just get the flesh. You can use the oil, skin, bones, and even the blood and excrement.’

Use the oil to light fires, and make clothes and houses with the skin.

You can make ornaments and pillars with the bones, the blood is for stomach medicine, and the excrement, in very rare cases, can yield ambergris [a waxy substance used in perfumes].

Like this, there is nothing to throw away from a whale.

The same was true for the Nine Tails Guild.

There are slightly rotten parts, but if you cut those parts out, you can eat the rest without leaving anything behind. And you’re telling me to prepare such a coveted group into easy-to-eat pieces?

‘The reason I compared the Nine Tails Guild to a whale isn’t just because of its size.’

─The endless uses. That’s why.

‘That’s right. Once I get my hands on it, the world’s best group becomes my property, so there’s no reason to lower its value.’

─But that’s only possible if you can swallow them.

If you can’t swallow them, it’s better not to eat them at all.

Tamamo was saying that.

‘What if I can swallow them? What if I have a way and the confidence to swallow them?’

─…What’s the method?

‘You just have to watch.’

Seungwoo said with a smile.

It would be less fun if you knew the method, right?

Seungwoo smiled broadly as he looked at the numerous messages he had received.

It was a slightly exaggerated smile, but his smile contained undisguised joy and greed.

* * *

An ordinary weekday morning.

“I’ll be back early today. I’ll buy some snacks on the way.”

“Come back soon. Oh, buy two cakes.”

“Have a good day.”

“Bbaa!”

Seungwoo, who had finished preparing for work, stepped out into the street.

He received the same greetings from his family as usual, but the direction he was heading was the opposite of his commute. His footsteps stopped at a cafe located quite a distance away.

The interior was luxurious and the atmosphere was elegant.

It seemed popular with women, but there were hardly any people inside.

It wasn’t just because it was early.

“Ah! You’ve arrived. I’ve rented out the cafe and was waiting.”

“You’ve rented quite an expensive place.”

“Haha, I spent some money.”

Yeah, it looks like you spent some money.

As expected of a person dispatched from the Nine Tails Guild.

But.

“Why did you rent a place in the downtown area of all places?”

“Well, there weren’t any good spaces around here.”

“Didn’t you think about looking for a secluded place?”

“The atmosphere of a space reveals the dignity of the person. I also live off the Nine Tails Guild, so how could I guide the chairman, who is the largest shareholder, to an isolated place?”

His words are fluent, as if he had oiled his tongue, but well.

Even if he doesn’t know how to rent a space with a good atmosphere, he’s still unskilled at grasping the atmosphere of a conversation.

“What a load of crap.”

“!!!!”

“What I said is not something to be said expecting a plausible excuse.”

I didn’t expect such a low-level opponent to come out.

Last night, Seungwoo expressed a positive intention in his conversation with the Nine Tails Guild.

That’s how the meeting was set up overnight. Until then, I thought a slightly capable guy would come out.

‘What is this fool?’

This meeting.

It’s a situation where the gap between the parties is clear.

A person who has something they want and a person who can grab anyone’s hand.

Among the two, the latter is overwhelmingly superior, and that’s me.

“Did you come out today thinking of having an aristocratic quarrel? Did you expect a war of words, hiding daggers in brilliant words, and desperately looking for opportunities to attack each other?”

If so, let me tell you firmly.

“Little boy. This place is not a place for a kid like you to come.”

“…You! What outrageous remarks are you making in front of someone you’ve just met!”

“First time meeting? Outrageous remarks? Neither is true, is it?”

“…!”

That stupid face.

It wasn’t a particularly memorable face, but that’s why it was easy to grasp its characteristics. A stupid and blank-faced man. He is the third tail of the Nine Tails.

“You did a background check on me. Once, right?”

“H, how did you know…?!”

“How else? That’s how this industry works. Do you think I wouldn’t know the face and identity of the guy who’s following me?”

“…”

“Nine Tails Guild, third tail. Choi Jun.”

Seungwoo stared straight at Choi Jun’s face.

From his expression, absolute confidence and undisguisable arrogance were being emitted.

Choi Jun was sweating at that sight. Knowing the identity of himself, the top executive of the guild, and still confidently crossing his legs, felt very foreign. He couldn’t bring himself to say anything.

“Don’t you dare lead the conversation. This place is not a place made with your money.”

A cafe rented with expensive money.

If it were someone else, they would have been intimidated by the fact that someone had rented such a space for them, or admired the other person’s sincerity, but not Seungwoo.

He glared at Choi Jun with a matter-of-fact look.

As if this level of sincerity was basic.

His eyes had not changed at all since he first entered this place. No, rather than feeling good.

It seemed like he was feeling worse.

“And you guys are pretending to have spent a lot of money, but that’s not really the case, is it? Isn’t that right?”

“T, ten million won…! We rented it for a whopping ten million won per hour because it’s a place that has appeared in various movies and dramas!”

Ten million per hour?

It’s expensive by ordinary people’s standards, but it’s a cheap price for the world’s best guild to bear. What, it’s not that expensive.

I thought it would cost hundreds of millions per hour.

“It’s super cheap.”

“Hmph! Isn’t that because you’re a chaebol [a wealthy person or conglomerate]? Do you know how many months a normal office worker has to endure without spending a penny to save ten million won?!”

“Of course, I know. But that’s not the point.”

“What on earth are you talking about now…!”

“You guys. Did you really rent this place at the proper price?”

“…”

“I don’t think so at all?”

This place is said to be a famous cafe as much as its elegant atmosphere.

There was one thought that came to mind when I heard that fact.

That thought gradually became a certainty as I looked at Choi Jun’s expression.

“It’s a sponsorship, isn’t it?”

“Pardon?”

“A cafe visited by an executive of the Nine Tails Guild and Baek Seungwoo. You said it was okay to promote it under this name, so you drastically reduced the rental cost, right? If not, you borrowed it for free. Look over there.”

An air conditioner that cools the inside of the cafe.

He pointed to the center of it with his hand.

Then Choi Jun covered his face with his hand.

He was trying to hide his bitter expression with his hand. Because, as he said, he had installed a cell phone camera in the center of the air conditioner.

“The intention is too obvious. If you really wanted to hide it seriously, you should have stirred up the atmosphere from the beginning.”

“…Would it have mattered anyway?”

“Well, it wouldn’t have mattered at all. No matter what you do, this is a place where I win from the start, even before it begins.”

Rather, an awkward atmosphere would have been poison.

“Now you’re making a slightly more pleasing expression.”

Choi Jun’s face, who had been drained of energy after a short conversation, had withered.

He was in a state of great mental exhaustion. Seungwoo smiled brightly as he looked at him. A truly pure smile.

That’s why, on the contrary, Choi Jun felt a chill down his spine.

What on earth is he thinking this time?

Why is he smiling so brightly?

A creeping sense of unease began to rise.

‘What should I do? Should I cause a ruckus?’

In fact, Choi Jun tends to dislike these kinds of situations.

He is the third tail of the Nine Tails Guild.

He didn’t win the position of top executive by playing ttakji [a Korean game similar to Pogs or milk caps].

Entirely by force. He won it with pure power.

If he caused a ruckus with his specialty, strength, he could change the atmosphere, and even aim for more than that. But the problem is.

‘The external image is the first problem, and the person in front of me won’t leave me alone.’

Choi Jun is not a criminal.

A high-ranking executive of a prestigious guild.

That’s why he couldn’t act recklessly.

Causing a ruckus with such a body. Unless he wanted to be killed by the guild leader, who is called the first tail, it was absolutely impossible.

Above all, what makes this idea meaningless is Baek Seungwoo right in front of him.

Because of his ridiculously high force.

It was really unbelievably high.

Choi Jun still remembers that day.

Just a few weeks ago. A message appeared in front of him, who was satisfied with his own growth while training.

It was a blessing from the system announcing the birth of a new ranker, and at the same time, a warning that a new competitor had appeared. The owner of that warning was none other than Baek Seungwoo.

His ranking was in the middle.

It was a decent score for someone who had just entered the rankings for the first time.

But the problem was that Seungwoo had an abnormally high force compared to his achievements. If I remember correctly.

‘A force just one level higher than the guild leader.’

The guild leader is among the top 100 high rankers.

He was like a king inside the guild.

A force ranking higher than such a guild leader.

The moment he causes a ruckus in this place, Choi Jun may have to be prepared to die. He recalled the guild leader’s force, and he didn’t have the courage to pick a fight with Seungwoo, who was evaluated to be stronger than him.

His motivation also disappears.

If I raise my magic power, my waist will definitely fold in half.

All sorts of worst-case scenarios unfolded in his head.

Choi Jun bowed his head and couldn’t even think of straightening his back.