Disciple of The Three Kings [EN]: Chapter 58

The martial artists lined up, and even Kang Eun-ha and Do Mu-seong joined in the commotion.

“We greet the Guild Member-!”

Eunha was no longer a small-scale guild in Gyeonggi Province.

It had grown into a force large enough to be called one of the three major powers in South Korea.

Naturally, many eyes and ears followed.

“Ha, that’s enough.”

However, Lee Ro-woon brushed his hair back, looking annoyed.

He could see from Kang Eun-ha’s face that she hadn’t done this without thinking.

Although he had secluded himself, he hadn’t completely shut his ears.

‘Eunha’s guild member.’

He knew that such rumors were circulating.

And those in power would realize it was true.

He had shown himself before secluding himself, anticipating this situation.

If he had wanted to hide completely, he wouldn’t have stepped forward like that.

After all, all Lee Ro-woon wanted was to remain hidden until a certain time.

“Well, it doesn’t matter. Not anymore.”

Now that he had the power to protect himself, it didn’t matter what happened.

From the beginning, Lee Ro-woon had been waiting for this moment.

‘Of course, the Blood Demon shouldn’t be revealed yet.’

The existence of a unique guild member, one whom even the guild leader Kang Eun-ha treated with respect, wouldn’t be particularly strange in Eun’s world.

“Does that mean…”

Kang Eun-ha approached, unable to hide the tears welling up in her eyes.

“You have achieved something!”

“Why are you crying? Yes, I have.”

At Lee Ro-woon’s words, Kang Eun-ha bowed again, clasping her fists in respect.

“Congratulations!”

“We congratulate the Guild Member on their achievement!”

Lee Ro-woon made an annoyed face again but soon relaxed his expression.

‘Whatever happens, happens.’

It was inevitable.

The stronger he became, the stronger the blood bond would also become.

Their loyalty would deepen, whether they wanted it or not.

Lee Ro-woon was satisfied that they called him a guild member instead of a Blood Demon in this place.

Then, Lee Ro-woon’s eyes turned somewhere.

“It seems we had a guest.”

Before Kang Eun-ha could nod, Lee Ro-woon’s voice continued.

“A rather familiar guest.”

“…Did you know them?”

“It’s nothing for you to worry about.”

As his gaze turned towards Nam Ho-jeong, Nam Ho-jeong trembled and raised his head.

Seeing him fidgeting nervously, Lee Ro-woon gestured slightly, and Nam Ho-jeong quickly brightened and hurried to stand before Lee Ro-woon.

“Y-Your reputation is…”

Nam Ho-jeong had grasped the truth of the rumors.

Moreover, the person before him was someone even the Iron-Blooded Witch Kang Eun-ha and the Bloodthirsty Swordsman Do Mu-seong bowed to.

That meant he was a powerful figure who could crush him with a finger.

Tense and choosing his words carefully, Nam Ho-jeong opened his mouth.

“We greet the Guild Member.”

Nam Ho-jeong waited with his head bowed for a response.

He soon received the answer he had been waiting for.

“You’re an idiot.”

“… !”

“Who are you to call me Guild Member?”

“W-Well, that is…”

Nam Ho-jeong was about to cry.

Then what should he say?

“Well, it’s not like we’re strangers, so it doesn’t matter.”

At the following words, Nam Ho-jeong was startled and involuntarily raised his head.

But soon, he felt a sensation as if his heart was freezing.

“D-Do you know me?”

A completely unfamiliar face.

But in those narrow eyes, Nam Ho-jeong somehow felt that the other person was harboring a faint killing intent towards him.

“Of course, I know you.”

Smirk.

Lee Ro-woon curled up the corners of his mouth with a languid look.

***

“In the meantime…”

Kang Eun-ha began to report on Eunha’s activities to Lee Ro-woon, who was sitting in the guild leader’s seat, respectfully.

The control of Gyeonggi Province that the Iron Sword Alliance had held.

The fact that they had completely absorbed the businesses and forces that Iron Sword, Docheon, and Cheonin had in Gyeonggi Province.

And that they had created a corporation, brought it under Eunha’s name, and started managing it.

As Kang Eun-ha was the granddaughter of Kang Han-cheol, who had originally run the Kangha Group, and had been studying the world outside, she was quite capable.

Also, in this era of force, taking over the businesses of fallen powers was not difficult for Eunha, the victor of the war.

If they didn’t willingly hand over their businesses, they could just be crushed and taken by force.

“You’ve done well.”

He already knew from the reports.

But seeing it in person, Kang Eun-ha had handled things even better.

“Now that the Blood Demon has returned, I will step down from the guild leader position…”

“What are you talking about?”

Lee Ro-woon rebuked Kang Eun-ha.

“I have no interest in such bothersome things.”

“But! For the Blood Demon to be just a regular guild member…”

“I’m not just a regular guild member.”

Lee Ro-woon chuckled and said.

“I’m a hidden regular guild member. Isn’t that what you wanted?”

At Lee Ro-woon’s words, Kang Eun-ha’s face turned red.

It was as Lee Ro-woon had said.

Kang Eun-ha knew about the rumors of Eunha’s legendary guild member.

“You know I don’t want a guild leader position or any other title, right?”

He knew that Lee Ro-woon would be reluctant to receive a guild leader position or any title.

‘But if that’s the case…! The Blood Demon’s dignity won’t be upheld.’

No one in Eunha would dare to ignore Lee Ro-woon, but ignorant people who didn’t know anything might commit a discourtesy just by looking at Lee Ro-woon’s title.

Kang Eun-ha could never let that happen.

That’s why she had declared that the rumored guild member was real in front of Nam Ho-jeong.

“You did well. Thanks to you, no one will ignore Eunha’s regular guild member.”

Unless they were from the Association or those who held information, they wouldn’t know who Eunha’s legendary guild member was.

From now on, everyone who met Eunha’s guild members would be cautious, wondering if even a regular guild member might be that legendary guild member.

“T-Thank you.”

Kang Eun-ha had to control her emotions, clenching her fists tightly at Lee Ro-woon’s words, which seemed to acknowledge her efforts.

Otherwise, she felt like she would collapse from the overwhelming sense of fulfillment.

“H-However.”

Kang Eun-ha, who had barely managed to control her emotions, spoke.

“Do you know that person?”

She was referring to Nam Ho-jeong, the branch manager of the Player Association in Gyeonggi Province.

In the South Korean Association, there were only eight branch managers.

Nam Ho-jeong, who had risen to the position at the young age of thirty, might seem impressive to the average person, but to those who knew the circumstances, he was someone easily ignored.

“Nam Ho-jeong?”

“Yes.”

“We have a small connection.”

At Lee Ro-woon’s words, Kang Eun-ha’s face turned bright red.

This time, it was not because of fulfillment but because of guilt.

“I-I have committed a grave sin. I didn’t even know…”

Kang Eun-ha recalled herself spouting nonsense to Lee Ro-woon’s acquaintance.

“It’s a bad connection.”

Kang Eun-ha’s face turned cold at the following words.

“I will kill him.”

“Shut your mouth.”

“…”

“What…”

Lee Ro-woon’s eyes narrowed.

‘Nam Ho-jeong.’

He definitely had a bad connection with that guy.

He might not recognize him now, but he was different.

From the beginning, he was involved in the reason why he became a branch manager.

“It would be more fun to do it myself.”

“Such a profound meaning!”

“So, why did Nam Ho-jeong come?”

Kang Eun-ha returned to her reporting posture and said.

“He came with information that an Unranked player is hiding in the Gyeonggi region.”

Unranked.

At that word, Lee Ro-woon’s eyes sank.

“As you may have heard, the Association’s gaze is unusual. Most think it’s suspicion towards the rapidly rising Eunha, but…”

“That’s not it.”

Suspicion, such things were not important to the Association.

Those with overwhelming power were always careless.

Moreover, Eunha had separately proven that they had inherited the lineage of advancement, and Namgung Mu-jin, who had traded with the Black City King, had guaranteed Eunha’s existence.

The Association’s gaze.

“It must be because of the players.”

It must be because of the players.

“That’s how we understand it.”

Kang Eun-ha nodded and said.

“The player guild Baran is growing rapidly. It’s rare for a player guild to grow like that in Asia.”

That was true.

“Moreover, we, Eunha, who control Gyeonggi, are also giving players unique opportunities. We’re not particularly discriminating against them either.”

It was because of Lee Ro-woon.

Although he hadn’t given any specific orders.

He knew that Lee Ro-woon was a player.

“You’ve done something unnecessary.”

“…”

“Well, I’m not blaming you.”

For Lee Ro-woon, players were also people who gave him complex feelings.

“Unranked…”

Indeed, the existence of an Unranked player was a double-edged sword.

If they left them alone, the Association would become even more suspicious.

‘If they catch and kill them.’

The Association would finish their verification of Eunha.

“What about Ha Se-min?”

At Lee Ro-woon’s words, Kang Eun-ha looked troubled.

* * *

‘We can’t reach him.’

Only a few people within the Blood Cult knew about Ha Se-min’s true identity.

If the identity of the Black City King was revealed, the relationship could become complicated, and if they didn’t say anything, someone might make a mistake towards the Black City King.

Lee Ro-woon didn’t fear the Black City King, but as the leader of a separate force, the Black City King deserved a certain level of respect.

However, shortly after Lee Ro-woon went into seclusion, Ha Se-min disappeared.

He hadn’t returned since then.

‘I can guess where he went, though.’

He probably went to meet his master.

Even so, the fact that he hadn’t returned meant that something had gone wrong.

However, the Black City hadn’t stopped its activities.

The Black City’s branches continued to invest in the Blood Cult and were cooperative.

‘I should leave the Black City alone for now.’

Without knowing what problem had occurred with Ha Se-min, it wasn’t a good idea for Lee Ro-woon to directly contact the Black City.

The problem was the information gap that had arisen because of that.

Even if the Black City was cooperative with the Blood Cult, it was different from the Black City King directly cooperating.

That’s why Lee Ro-woon called someone else.

Another information organization.

“It’s been a while.”

It was the Beggars’ Sect.

The Beggars’ Sect he had formed a small connection with in the East Sea.

The player branch leader Yoo Do-hyung was the main character.

His face was greasy, and the suit he wore seemed more expensive than before.

“You look good.”

At Lee Ro-woon’s words, Yoo Do-hyung straightened his back and smiled.

“It’s all thanks to Eunha.”

Yoo Do-hyung, who had little time left in his term as branch leader.

He was destined to be removed after his term if he couldn’t prove his worth.

But his fate changed when he joined hands with Lee Ro-woon.

“Who would have known that Eunha would replace the Iron Sword Alliance?”

Yoo Do-hyung, who had a monopoly on information about Eunha, had literally soared.

From the beginning, he was a player who had the ability to become a branch leader.

He knew how to use the information that Eunha gave him to increase his value.

“Thanks to you, I’ve reached the Sixth Knot.”

Sixth Knot Beggar.

Indeed, there were six red tassels on his belt.

Originally, a branch leader was a Sixth Knot Beggar with six red knots, but as a player, he would have only had five.

He had received another knot for his achievements.

With this, Yoo Do-hyung’s value had increased even more.

“But.”

Lee Ro-woon’s languid voice froze the air.

“It seems your head has grown bigger.”

At Lee Ro-woon’s voice, Yoo Do-hyung’s gaze moved sharply.

“Or is the head of the Player Association’s Gyeonggi branch manager bigger?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Unranked.”

Yoo Do-hyung felt something tickling his cheek.

“You’re not going to say you don’t know, are you?”

Trickle.

A stream of blood flowed down from his tickling cheek.