It goes without saying, but Ronik hadn’t always hated Circle from the start.
It happened before I joined, so I don’t know the exact details, but at the time, Ronik and Circle didn’t have a bad relationship. Or more accurately—Ronik just didn’t care about Circle.
Around two years ago, Circle was a fledgling guild barely a year old, while Ronik had been established for over five years and already had a solid foundation. That was when Ryu Sunghyun suddenly awakened as an S-rank.
For someone who’d lived a relatively ordinary life, becoming an Awakener—an S-rank no less—wasn’t an easy thing to accept. There must’ve been no shortage of people trying to cozy up to him.
Among those people were Park Heeseok, Guildmaster of Ronik, and Kwon Taehyuk of Yesung. Ryu, a rising star with light-based skills, must’ve been insanely popular at the time.
He was caught at a crossroads—should he become a state-affiliated Hunter, or join a guild? And if a guild, which one?
As an S-rank dealer, there was no way he could avoid bloody combat, regardless of where he ended up. The world was in chaos, and for someone who’d lived as a civilian, it must have been a terrifying decision. He probably didn’t have enough information to make a confident choice.
And in the end, the place he chose was the Circle Guild. A tiny, barely-known group most people didn’t even know existed.
That decision clearly didn’t sit well with Ronik.
If he’d chosen Yesung, it would’ve made sense. But choosing some tiny guild led by a Supporter? Considering Park Heeseok’s twisted personality, he must’ve taken it as a personal insult.
From then on, every time Heeseok saw Ryu Sunghyun, he picked a fight. What started as petty provocation only escalated over time, eventually growing from a personal grudge into full-on guild conflict.
Thinking back on it brought one question to mind:
Why Circle, of all places?
According to Ryu Sunghyun, he’d met Song Jiwoon by chance, had a conversation with him, and then decided to join Circle.
Unfortunately, he never told me what exactly happened between the two of them, so I’m still in the dark.
The Song Jiwoon I met recently wasn’t the same Song Jiwoon I knew before regression. And yet, Ryu still joined Circle... Does that mean the past didn’t change much? Or did the swap happen after Ryu had already joined?
If I’d known, I would've pressed him harder, even if it made things awkward.
It hit me again—how little I really knew.
Sighing, I unwrapped a lollipop I’d bought for Cha Sahyeon and popped it into my mouth. Since I quit smoking, I needed something to chew on.
Rolling the tangy lemon candy around in my mouth, I opened the item shop. Things had been too hectic to check lately, but since I cleared the Wuidong Rift quest, there should be rewards to collect.
Might as well grab a few useful items while I’m at it.
With a cheerful fanfare, the system window popped open.
《Cash Box: Main Quest - Enduring the Second Rift (8,000,000 Cash)》
Eight million cash. The same amount I got for ranking first in the leaderboard quest. So, the higher the quest difficulty, the more cash I earn—it tracks.
《Cash Box: Hidden Quest - Earning Kwon Taehyuk’s Trust Part One (S-rank) (150,000,000 Cash)》
That one was for the hidden quest I completed during the Wuidong Rift incident too.
I had skipped past it in the chaos, but now that I look again... that “Part One” bit really bothers me. Does that mean there’s a Part Two? Part Three? With other people besides Kwon Taehyuk?
...Just imagining it is hellish.
I took a deep breath and closed the window, refocusing on the shop.
Now that I had some fresh cash, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to browse a bit—especially with the upcoming match.
Since I’d already decided to play fair, just as Ryu Sunghyun wanted, I wouldn’t be using any buff items. But that wasn’t what I was worried about.
If possible, I need an effect item that looks like a skill.
The fight at the Wuidong Rift had already marked the third time people had seen me in combat as Cover.
First during the ranking match with Kwon Taehyuk, second with Eun Woojeong, and third at Wuidong. Even if each encounter had been brief, repeatedly showing up without using any noticeable skills was going to raise eyebrows.
And this time, the match was being held in a proper stadium. I’d drawn a lot of attention, so the number of eyes on me would be even greater.
I really need to make it look like I’m using a skill. Some flashy effects would help.
Eun Woojeong, ever perceptive, was already starting to suspect I might not have a skill at all. Ideally, I wanted to be fully prepared before the match.
“Nothing...”
I scoured the item shop with laser focus, but of course, there were no items that were all flash and no function.
I already felt the pressure of going into this S-rank match skill-less, and now this. Nothing was going right.
At least Sunghyun-hyung is with us, so we won’t lose.
Crunching down on the lollipop with a sigh, I leaned back.
Time flew, and the day of the match finally arrived.
To prepare for the 8 p.m. start, Circle’s guild members arrived at the stadium around 5 p.m. As they were heading to the waiting room, they ran into Ronik’s guild members.
“Well, well. Deputy Guildmaster of Circle.”
Park Heeseok was walking down the corridor ahead of his group when he spotted them. Flashing a smug grin, he called out,
“Just arrived, I take it?”
“Yes.”
Ryu Sunghyun, hiding his discomfort as best he could, shook the hand Heeseok extended to him. The two stood in the middle of the hallway, their participants waiting behind them, and exchanged a formal handshake.
“We’re counting on a good match today.”
“Yes, we look forward to it as well.”
“Let’s hope things wrap up without any... unfortunate incidents.”
The boilerplate politeness in Heeseok’s voice was heavy with implication. Then he looked over Ryu’s shoulder and scanned the faces of Circle’s team members one by one with a cutting gaze, still smiling.
“The mercenary participant hasn’t arrived yet?”
There was too much mockery in that question to ignore. Ryu blinked once, then replied calmly,
“No. But I’m sure he’ll be here soon.”
“Hmm, I see.”
Heeseok finished the handshake and turned away with deliberate flair.
“Well then, we’ll be off. Lots to prepare. See you on the field.”
The Ronik members followed after him, some shooting open sneers at the Circle team as they walked past.
Ryu knew exactly who they were. Three A-rank Hunters—the same ones who assaulted Kim Suho near Ssangmun Station.
“Um, Deputy Guildmaster...”
A Circle guild member, waiting for Ronik to be out of earshot, spoke up hesitantly.
“Are we really okay? I mean... with Cover.”
“...”
“He hasn’t contacted us since he showed up at the guild. He hasn’t come to a single practice either. What if he just... doesn’t show?”
“I mean, he didn’t seem like that kind of person, but...”
Another Circle member tried to be reassuring, but the uncertainty in their voice was obvious.
“He’ll come. We still have time before the match. Let’s not worry and head in.”
Ryu smiled faintly and moved forward.
Of course he was worried. Less than three hours remained until the match. If Cover didn’t show, the match wouldn’t be «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» postponed. And Circle would be the ones to suffer.
If this were someone reliable, someone he’d known and trusted, the lack of contact and practice might be excusable. But Ryu and Cover had no prior relationship—there was no trust between them.
When they arrived at the waiting room—positioned on the opposite side of the stadium from Ronik—Ryu opened the door to find someone already inside, who immediately sprang up from the couch.
“Hello!”
Seeing the cheerful greeting, Ryu broke into a welcoming smile.
“You’re here already, Hunter Han Goeun.”
A tall woman with a confident, clean-cut impression, Han Goeun had tied her hair up in a high ponytail. She scratched her cheek awkwardly.
“I’ve never been here before, so I left early just in case. Ended up arriving ahead of schedule, so I’ve just been hanging out here.”
Han Goeun was an A-rank Supporter from Yesung Guild. She was the mercenary Supporter Kwon Taehyuk had sent, and she had quickly bonded with Circle over the past week of joint training.
Greeting the Circle members warmly as they entered the room, she turned to Ryu Sunghyun and said,
“Oh, by the way, the Guildmaster said he’s coming to watch.”
Kwon Taehyuk? It made sense—he had sent a valuable A-rank Supporter, after all. Still, it was surprising. He didn’t seem like the kind of person to micromanage.
As Han Goeun busied herself with equipment prep, one of the Circle guild members sighed.
“All we need now is for Cover to show up...”
“What? He still hasn’t contacted you?”
When Ryu gave a sheepish nod, she made a slight grimace and tried to offer some comfort.
“Hmm, I’m sure something just came up. You’ll probably hear from him soon.”
“I hope so too.”
Offering a reply he didn’t mean, Ryu turned to glance out the window on one side of the waiting room.
The sky outside was dyed red with the light of the setting sun.

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