At that, Gu Shinhoo ducked his head and snickered.
“Stop playing lapdog. Don’t cry when you get tossed aside.”
Then he continued coldly.
“Isn’t Jurim real good at tossing people? That’s how he got out of the Tower, after all.”
While everyone from Hyeonak was left speechless from the sudden surge of fury, a sharp voice cut through the silence from somewhere.
“Mister Number Four, don’t say bad stuff about Guildmastuh.”
At Guru’s threat, Gu Shinhoo’s jaw tensed, and Hwiyeon’s mouth dropped open. Someone couldn’t hold back a laugh.
Jongwon jabbed his teammate Son Jaeha in the ribs as he snorted.
Gu Shinhoo turned his hardened face toward the source of the sound.
A child, so perfectly pretty she looked sculpted, was glaring at him with an angry face. The way her big eyes shot him a look wasn’t scary or offensive—it was just cute.
“So you’re Guru? The kid Jurim brought?”
In an instant, Hyeonak’s team members surrounded Guru protectively.
“Hey! You hafta call my daddy Guildmastuh!”
“What is this vibe? Anyone’d think I was bullying a kid or something.”
Hwiyeon snapped, and Gu Shinhoo gave a scoffing laugh.
“And bad stuff? Uncle’s only saying facts. Maybe you just don’t know them?”
“Gwuwoo knows evwything.”
“Oh yeah? Then you know Jurim left his brother behind in the Tower and came down alone? You do know that, right? That’s the kinda thing people call bad. Uncle didn’t say anything bad, he just told the truth.”
“Oh, you’ve crossed the line.”
“What the hell are you saying to a kid, Guildmaster Gu.”
Gidan and Son Jaeha stepped in.
“What, did I say something wrong? Does Hyeonak not have any hierarchy? You’ve been all up in my face since earlier. If we’re in the same industry, the least you could do is show some respect. Acting like this just smears Hyeonak’s name. Know your place.”
Jongwon signaled the others to stop and spoke calmly.
“That’s enough. Guildmaster Gu.”
“What’s enough? Talking about Jurim?”
Guru, flushed with anger, took a deep breath. Her face burned hot, turning bright red.
Guildmastuh was a hero.
He hadn’t just lost his family—he was living with mana leakage in his left hand while containing a terrifying force beyond what anyone should have to bear.
You couldn’t cut down his achievements just because he survived. That wasn’t right.
Guildmastuh risked his life to protect the world.
A world even for people like them to live in!
It was at that moment—
“You mention my son in every other sentence. It’s unspeakably unpleasant.”
A voice as cold as frost fell from behind them.
It was Suhyeong.
Suhyeong took Guru from Gidan’s arms and gently lifted her.
Seeing him, Gu Shinhoo flinched and quickly bowed.
“A-ah, good evening, Chairman On Suhyeong. I’m Gu Shinhoo of NAG.”
“I’ve heard plenty about you from CEO Kim.”
At the mention of his father-in-law, Gu Shinhoo shut his mouth like a clam.
He knew exactly how hard his in-laws were trying to secure investment from the Doan Group.
“And to think the son-in-law they brag so much about would turn out to be a thug dragging someone else’s son into this.”
“No, no. That’s not it. It’s a misunderstanding. I meant it in a good way—”
“A good way?”
A sharp blue fury lit Suhyeong’s eyes.
“If there’s anything good, it’s my son risking his life to climb the Tower and protect your family. Not your slick, conniving tongue insulting my son in front of my granddaughter!”
At the scathing rebuke, Gu Shinhoo shut his eyes tight.
How the hell did it end up like this?
Suhyeong had never come out to defend Jurim like this before.
Jurim had always brushed off public gossip, and Suhyeong was the type to keep quiet, so nothing ever really escalated around Jurim.
There were even rumors floating around that Suhyeong and Jurim had severed ties.
So why now?
Granddaughter? Is it because of that brat?
So he couldn’t stand hearing his son insulted in front of that kid? Even though there was no blood relation between them?
Not just Gu Shinhoo, but even Hyeonak’s raid team wore stunned expressions.
It made sense—there wasn’t a single person here who didn’t know the rift between Suhyeong and Jurim.
Suhyeong glanced briefly at the now-cowering Hwiyeon, then spoke quietly.
“Your father-in-law’s probably waiting. Why don’t you go now?”
He was saying he didn’t want to shame him further in front of the child.
“I’ll be taking my leave, then. I’ll be sure to greet you properly next time and explain today in detail.”
“No need. Just go. And don’t even think about showing your face in front of my granddaughter again.”
“I truly apologize for today, Chairman. I was terribly disrespectful to your granddaughter as well.”
Gu Shinhoo bowed repeatedly, tail between his legs.
But Suhyeong, /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ cold-faced, only turned his attention to comforting Guru.
“Guru, don’t mind the words of that mudskipper. He’s the kind that’s so full of envy he can’t help but stir the waters.”
“Bad fishy.”
“Yes, a very bad fishy.”
At the bantering between grandfather and granddaughter, Gu Shinhoo clenched his jaw. After all that groveling, he finally turned to leave, shooting a glare at Gidan and the rest of Hyeonak.
“Dani, let’s finish that conversation another time.”
“Me?”
“Me? What for?” Gidan let out a laugh, as if to say just that, but as Gu Shinhoo passed by him, he muttered in a low voice.
“Oh, right. While Hyeonak’s still dragging their feet, we’ll be taking Fake Saw with us.”
Cough! At the unexpected drop of that name, Gidan coughed into his hand.
Of course Gidan was well aware of the rumors about the new rising star in the Crafting Class world.
The quality wasn’t just good—it was so exceptional they’d coined a new in-between grade: “Excellent.”
Ever since the days of operating on Onion Market, their level had skyrocketed, and these days, it wasn’t uncommon to hear gossip in every guild speculating about who Fake Saw really was.
There were even theories that Fake Saw was a smurf account of a top-tier crafter. The problem was, no one had been able to figure out their identity.
Just when they were about to settle on the theory that it must be some “reclusive eccentric,” guilds had started actively hunting for Fake Saw.
And Gidan knew. That adorable bear-shaped syrup bottle potion—that was Guru’s signature.
“Hm, sounds like Guildmaster-nim has a hunch where Fake Saw might be hiding?”
“No comment. Just... don’t be too surprised.”
So he doesn’t know it’s Guru. Maybe they found someone who just seems similar?
Gidan let out a subtle sigh of relief and muttered under his breath.
“Ah... I don’t think I can promise that.”
He glanced at Guru and fought hard to keep a straight face.
“Well, anyway—best of luck.”
“You’re a cocky little bastard.”
“Aw, such high praise again...”
Gidan grinned playfully.
Meanwhile, at that very moment—
Naohyeong, who’d been shaking his leg, glanced toward the back.
“Another ruckus.”
The auction needed to resume already.
It hadn’t even been that long since he’d knocked down those morons who tried to cancel the auction, and now there was another disturbance putting him on edge.
Good thing Serhi had planted a mannequin back there. If not, they’d have been stuck helplessly watching the auction get canceled again.
“Go check it out, will you? Huh?”
Naohyeong jerked his thumb toward the back.
But the guy who’d set up the mannequin didn’t even lift his gaze from his phone and replied flatly.
“Not gonna get canceled. Just a shouting match.”
“Shit. Can’t they just sit down and wait for the damn auction? Why stir shit like this?”
The people clustered back there were clearly Hunters—top-tier ones at that.
Way more dangerous than the morons from before.
Most Awakened types were aggressive by nature. Even the ones who weren’t got that way because of their strength.
He trembled his leg anxiously, worried it might escalate into something serious.
Unlike the visibly nervous Naohyeong, Serhi, who was casually gaming on his phone, replied nonchalantly.
“Place is crawling with trash, that’s why. There’s a Korean proverb, right? ‘When five humans gather, one’s guaranteed to be garbage.’”
“What the hell kinda Korean proverb is that? I’ve never heard that in my life. Would you quit playing that damn game already? You only pick up weird shit from it, huh?”
["Next up—trash."]
Serhi blew a bubble with his gum and continued his game.
It wasn’t the usual one full of grotesque monsters—it was a Korean word game this time.

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