Perfect World [EN]: Chapter 41

It was mid-August at the Lima City Citizens’ Sports Park. The training field was already scorching under the morning sun. Without a single breeze, the artificially created forest was eerily still, and the nearby lake remained undisturbed. Heat haze shimmered between the buildings, a constant reminder of the ongoing heatwave, and beads of sweat glistened on the foreheads of elderly people taking their walks.

“Alright, everyone, let’s focus on training.”

The Gods Knights team, training just three days after the GA Cup ended, still had a relaxed atmosphere. This was partly due to the hot weather and the citizens watching in the park, but the recent internal conflicts within the team were a major factor. If things continued this way, their performance in the Avand Semi-Pro Tournament in the fall would suffer, which was a significant concern. While the tournament itself was small and the prize money wasn’t substantial, it was a crucial stepping stone to the promotion/relegation tournament in early spring. It was important to focus. All the teams participating in the semi-pro tournament had previously faced the Gods Knights in the promotion/relegation tournament, making it a good opportunity to assess their chances of moving up.

Feeling that the situation couldn’t continue, Beom-seok called out to a slumped-over blonde elf.

“Stephanie, come over here.”

Stephanie put down her Azure Dragon Blade and approached him.

“Yes? What’s the matter?”

“I want to talk to you about the transfer offer. Let’s chat for a bit.”

Her face brightened at his words. She had vaguely heard that a professional team had made an offer, but Beom-seok hadn’t mentioned it, causing her considerable anxiety.

Unlike professional gladiators, amateur gladiators could be recruited easily. They weren’t bound by the complex regulations of the Professional Gladiator Association but followed general social norms and civil law. Usually, they could simply leave the team. If a contract existed, they only had to pay twice the contract fee as compensation for termination.

It was similar to an ordinary person leaving a neighborhood soccer club because of a move. The soccer club couldn’t prevent the move simply because the departure would weaken the team.

However, there was still a code of conduct. If a professional team poached a player from a semi-pro team striving to turn professional, it would be unfair to the semi-pro team that had invested in developing the player. Therefore, the professional and amateur leagues had provisions to prevent such unethical transfers, imposing administrative penalties on professional teams that engaged in them.

Therefore, Stephanie couldn’t simply transfer to a professional team.

“A-are you going to let me transfer?”

“Hmm, that’s what I’m thinking. We’ve received transfer offers for three people, and I’m going to let them all go. After all, everyone’s playing on our team to go pro. A good opportunity has come up, so I can’t stand in your way.”

Stephanie immediately bowed deeply. After her previous team was relegated, she had played in the amateur league for nearly three years. Now that he had given his permission, she could become a professional and save face for her master [a term of respect for her mentor].

“Beom-seok-nim [a Korean honorific]. Thank you.”

Beom-seok nodded and rummaged through the business cards in his pocket. He picked one and handed it to her. It was the business card of the transfer manager from the Devil Snake Gladiator Team.

“But only one professional team has contacted us. They gave the impression that several teams had made transfer offers, but don’t play hard to get too much and just sign. You have nowhere else to go. But don’t contact them first. Once I accept the transfer offer, they’ll contact you right away, so talk to them then.”

“Yes, I understand. Thank you so much.”

“Alright, go on.”

Stephanie hurried toward her bag, which was placed on one side of the training field. Because she was wearing a suit, she didn’t have a place to store the business card safely. It would be a problem if she lost it during training.

Ring. Ring.

Beom-seok, watching Stephanie’s energetic back with a satisfied smile, took out the electronic notebook ringing in his arms. Judging from the specific phone number displayed on the small LCD screen, it seemed like a call was coming in. However, the number was unfamiliar, so Beom-seok didn’t recognize it.

He opened the notebook and launched a holographic video call.

“Hello? Who is this?”

The person who appeared in the video was a slender man in his 30s. He bowed slightly to Beom-seok.

“Hello? My name is Julian. Are you Mr. Oh Beom-seok?”

“Yes, that’s me. But what’s this about?”

“Actually, I have a question about a transfer matter.”

Beom-seok subtly frowned. He wasn’t happy about any transfer inquiries right now. With three vacancies about to open up, if another team member left, it could negatively impact the team’s morale.

However, he couldn’t simply hang up, so he decided to listen. Most transfer inquiries were about him, Oscar, or Soyu Elf, so he could immediately refuse if it was about them.

“What transfer matter are you talking about?”

“I saw on the team’s website that Emma is listed as released. I’d like to know if that’s accurate.”

Emma was the woman who had joined his team as a member of the Black Society [a criminal organization]. There was a conflict with the Black Society, so Beom-seok terminated her contract and put her on the release list. This meant anyone could sign her without any conditions.

“You can talk to Emma directly about matters concerning her without consulting me. As you’ve confirmed, she’s not only on the release list, but her contract with our team was terminated a while ago. Well, I’ll be going now.”

Just as he was about to end the call, Julian reached out his hand.

“W-wait a minute. I still have something to say.”

“Didn’t I just tell you? You can take her as you please. There won’t be any repercussions.”

“It’s not that I’m trying to recruit her, but I called to ask Mr. Beom-seok a few questions. I’m actually a member of the Young Entrepreneurs Association.”

“Young Entrepreneurs Association? Is there a gladiator team like that?”

“Hahaha. It’s not a gladiator team. Just think of it as an association for young businesspeople.”

Beom-seok’s forehead twitched. He was incredibly busy, and now some irrelevant people were calling to bother him.

“Why is a businessman calling me? And what does Emma’s transfer have to do with you guys?”

After a moment of awkwardness, Julian spoke.

“Hmm. A while ago, Mr. Beom-seok, you received subsidies from several corporations and public institutions, right?”

Beom-seok’s expression twisted. Knowing that meant he was connected to the Black Society. He didn’t want to even speak to those people.

“Hey! You bastard! I already returned it! I don’t even want to see your Black Society faces. Don’t contact me again! If you contact me again, I’ll track you down and beat you half to death! Got it? Or not!”

“W-wait, you seem to be misunderstanding something. We’re not the Black Society.”

“Then who are you!”

“I told you, the Young Entrepreneurs Association. We have absolutely no connection to the Black Society.”

Beom-seok took a long, deep breath and calmed himself. He realized he had overreacted.

“Ah. Is that so? But why are you bringing that up, knowing that fact?”

“We learned about it through an internal report. When there was a transfer of funds without documentation, a conscientious employee of a corporation found it suspicious and informed us.”

Beom-seok scoffed inwardly. He wasn’t naive enough to believe that. If someone were going to make an internal report, they would report it to a public institution like the police or the media, not to some organization with a strange name. Something fishy was going on.

“Ah. Then I have nothing more to say. I already returned all the money, so I haven’t done anything wrong. And I don’t feel the need to discuss that with you guys, who aren’t the police. Is that all?”

“You keep misunderstanding, but we’re not calling to interrogate you. As I said before, we just want to ask you a few questions.”

It definitely seemed like they had an ulterior motive. To figure out what it was, he had to listen.

“Go ahead. I’ll answer if I can.”

“Thank you for your understanding. Then, first, I’d like to ask why Emma is still with the team. It seems like you’re not on good terms with the Black Society.”

“What do you mean? Emma is a member of our Gods Knights team. We’re not paying her a salary or covering her food expenses, so it’s hard to coldly kick her out, as a matter of human decency.”

“Ah, yes. I understand what you mean. Then, I’ll ask my second question. You put her in the game in the 4th round of the last GA Cup. What was the reason for that?”

Beom-seok snorted. He felt annoyed that a stranger was interfering in the team’s affairs. But there was nothing he couldn’t talk about, so he answered immediately.

“At the time, Emma played in the 4th and 5th rounds, but those rounds were rounds we had essentially given up on. So it didn’t matter who played, so we just sent her out.”

“Ah, I see. So you didn’t use that strategy specifically for the Black Society.”

“Look here. Can you please stop talking about them? It makes me uncomfortable.”

“Ah, yes, I’m sorry. Then, I’ll ask one last question. Are you going to keep Emma on the team like this?”

Beom-seok scratched his head and licked his lips. That was a genuine concern.

“Well, considering the team’s atmosphere, I’d like her to leave, but she keeps staying without saying anything… It’s a bit difficult to kick her out. Anyway, I’m really worried about that.”

“I fully understand. But shouldn’t Mr. Beom-seok be a bit more decisive? It seems like you’re aiming for a professional team, but how can you be so sentimental?”

‘Oh ho. Look at this. He’s finally showing his true colors.’

It seemed like he was giving advice, but in reality, he was telling him to kick Emma out. He could just be a nosy person, but the previous questions were too pointed for that.

But Beom-seok didn’t reveal his thoughts and joked.

“So, someday, I’m going to fill our entire team with only my lovers. Then there’s no reason to transfer to another team, so there’s no need to be sentimental. Hahaha.”

“Hahaha. That’s a funny joke.”

“Hahaha. It’s not a joke.”

Silence hung in the air for a moment. Julian seemed to have something left to say, but he couldn’t bring himself to say it. Beom-seok guessed that it was probably a request to kick Emma out. But because he had been so vague, he didn’t know how to phrase it.

If you only listened to what he had said so far, it seemed like he was going to let Emma go, but if you analyzed it further, it could also be interpreted as saying that he would continue to tolerate the situation.

“W-well, I’ll hang up now. Thank you so much for answering my questions.”

It seemed like he was retreating for now. Beom-seok also wanted that, so he decided to let him go.

“Don’t mention it. Goodbye.”

Beom-seok immediately closed the electronic notebook and looked at Emma, who was practicing her swordsmanship in the distance. He needed to figure out what those guys were up to. Their organization had a grand name, so he needed to be cautious.

============================ Author’s Notes ============================

I’m thinking of uploading Perfect World twice a week. I think it’s possible because I’ve built up a stockpile and have more time. Please give me a lot of support. Have a meaningful holiday.