Chapter 29

 

“…Who are you?”

 

Seo Woojin blinked his eyes and asked.

 

The man he met at the place where the magician took him was someone he had never seen before.

 

“Nice to meet you, Hero Seo Woojin.”

 

Honestly, being called a Hero was quite embarrassing.

 

‘I’d prefer something like a knight, or just Mr. Seo Woojin, like in the Massive Guardian. What’s with the Hero? It’s not even the South Korean military.’

 

But the people of the Empire, whether noble or commoner, all called him a Hero.

 

“My name is Uther.”

 

‘Uther? Uther?’

 

“I’m sorry for inviting you to this place this morning.”

 

Uther apologized politely.

 

“Oh, no. It’s okay.”

 

Seo Woojin, barely able to control his expression, shook his head.

 

The morning training was over anyway, and the only thing left was food.

 

‘Food here must be tastier.’

 

Before Seo Woojin, a table was set with dishes so splendid that the term “feast” would be an understatement.

 

“Would you like to discuss after the meal as you will be heading to the market?”

 

A familiar voice was heard.

 

Already quite hungry from the physical exertion, Seo Woojin didn’t hesitate and started eating.

 

“The schedule at the academy starts next week, right?”

 

The academy.

 

It referred to the massive facility established by the Empire.

 

Of course, it wasn’t for academic studies.

 

The education at the academy focused solely on combat and survival skills.

 

Gathering Heroes who had leveled up to a certain extent for a year, transforming them into combat machines through the education of instructors.

 

Naturally, the instructors were knights and magicians who were esteemed even in the Empire.

 

‘There may be other reasons as well.’

 

It was a competition.

 

It was determined that if 100 warriors were gathered in one place, they would feel competitive and work harder.

 

It wasn’t wrong.

 

In fact, there were more than one person who felt alarmed by the growth of other warriors.

 

“That’s probably right.”

 

The academy’s official training schedule would start next week.

 

Until then, the Heroes had time to familiarize themselves with each other and perform personal maintenance.

 

“The reason I invited Hero Seo Woojin like this is to make one proposal.”

 

“Proposal?”

 

They were in the midst of a delicious meal when Uther brought up an unexpected topic.

 

Currently, Seo Woojin’s position was somewhat ambiguous.

 

Although he was a hero, being a Level 10 D-class was considered too low.

 

Thanks to this, an atmosphere was created that the reason why Lee Jin-han fainted yesterday was not because Seo Woojin was great, but that he was mediocre.

 

The prejudice was too strong for the evaluation to change with just one argument.

 

Class D is trash…

 

What kind of proposal could he make to himself, who is considered as such?

 

Seo Woojin felt curious and wary at the same time.

 

There’s no such thing as a free kindness.

 

‘Looking at the atmosphere, it doesn’t seem like a bad story.’

 

For now, he decided to listen to the story.

 

“What proposal is this?”

 

Seo Woojin put down his fork and knife and asked.

 

“In our family, we plan to support Heroes. It’s separate from the Empire, you see.”

 

Uther’s proposal was simple.

 

The idea was to grow further with the support of the Count family.

 

“Some Heroes have already accepted this proposal. Among them, there are even three A-rank Heroes.”

 

It wasn’t a bad proposal.

 

If you receive support from both the Empire and the Count, the growth rate would be much faster.

 

‘But why?’

 

Why make such a proposal at this point?

 

Especially to someone like him, who is seemingly unremarkable on the surface?

 

“… I don’t have much to offer, though.”

 

Give and take is basic.

 

There must be something he wants in return for the support.

 

Uther laughed at Seo Woojin’s words.

 

“I don’t ask for anything from Hero Seo Woojin right now. Just after the Advent War ends.”

 

After finishing the meal, Uther looked at Seo Woojin with a serious expression.

 

“If you could lend a small force to our family, that would be sufficient.”

 

Seo Woojin wasn’t foolish enough not to understand the meaning of those words.

 

‘A power struggle?’

 

They were facing a huge enemy, the Demon King.

 

How many times has it been said that the world almost came to an end?

 

Even if everyone gathers their strength to resist, it would still be insufficient. Yet, to already be preparing for the power structure after that…

 

“Whether to call it impressive or foolish.”

 

Seo Woojin exclaimed.

 

Of course, it wasn’t in a positive sense.

 

“I’m only D-Class.”

 

What puzzled Seo Woojin was why he had chosen himself when there were plenty of other high-ranking Heroes.

 

“Isn’t the person more important than the rank?”

 

Uther smiled and said, but Seo Woojin didn’t take the words at face value.

 

‘Why…?’

 

He thought.

 

About his own worth after the war.

 

His level would have increased several times from now, and with a low rank, he would likely be placed in the rear, increasing his chances of survival.

 

Having survived like that, how strong would Seo Woojin be?

 

‘Even if it’s D-level, I’ll probably surpass most knights by far.’

 

Being treated as a nobody among the Heroes, it meant he was strong enough to be used for his abilities.

 

Moreover, since other nobles didn’t covet him, it seemed easy to obtain.

 

Seo Woojin let out a bitter laugh inside.

 

Whether this speculation was true or just a delusion, he couldn’t tell yet.

 

But somehow, it seemed right.

 

He didn’t like it.

 

While some had to prepare for war with their lives at stake, stories like this, obsessed only with power.

 

And Uther was thinking something big at the moment.

 

“You haven’t forgotten that we will return to our original world when the war is over, right?”

 

When the Demon King is defeated, and when the war is over, the Heroes can return to Earth.

 

Of course, some without any regrets might choose to stay here.

 

Because here, you will have strength and authority.

 

In fact, among the summoned Heroes in the past, there were a few who stayed.

 

But most would choose to go back.

 

Family and friends.

 

‘And I can’t stand without the internet.’

 

Of course Seo Woojin will also return.

 

He didn’t have anyone to call family, but still, he couldn’t just stay here, right?

 

‘And I am the fucking Demon King.’

 

Unless he wanted to conquer the world, there was no reason to stay.

 

“I remember. But we can think about that when the time comes. For now, it’s enough if you accept our favor.”

 

It didn’t feel good.

 

The appearance of Uther, which seemed polite and courteous, somehow felt elusive.

 

“I need some time to think.”

 

Seo Woojin withheld his answer.

 

Although he wanted to reject it immediately, he felt that it might lead to unnecessary trouble.

 

Already facing many who looked at him with unkind eyes, he didn’t want to add one more.

 

“Of course. We have plenty of time. Haha!”

 

Uther laughed heartily, saying he would wait as long as needed.

 

Seo Woojin smiled back and finished the remaining meal, organizing his complicated thoughts internally.

 

* * *

 

“Where did you go?”

 

Irene asked Seo Woojin, who had suddenly disappeared and reappeared in the morning.

 

“Oh, I wasted some time.”

 

Even though he had eaten delicious food, his mood wasn’t good.

 

“What happened?”

 

“Nothing special. But more importantly, where did you go?”

 

Just like Seo Woojin, Irene had also disappeared early in the morning.

 

Since arriving in the Empire, she had been constantly busy, and he didn’t know where she was wandering.

 

“I had some business…”

 

But this time, Irene avoided the question again.

 

Seeing her unhappy expression, it seemed like something was going on.

 

“Tell me next time.”

 

“Sure.”

 

Seo Woojin didn’t press her.

 

He believed that Irene would bring it up first when the time came.

 

Their relationship had reached that level.

 

“Is today’s business done then?”

 

Irene nodded in response to Seo Woojin’s question.

 

“Probably won’t have anything for a while.”

 

“That’s good. How about a spar after a long time?”

 

Seo Woojin and Irene had sparred for a while.

 

At the time, she was only a low-level knight, but she was strong enough to compete on equal footing with Seo Woojin, who was no different from a strong child.

 

No, in terms of swordsmanship, she was overwhelming.

 

As they exchanged swords every day, they became quite close, and their swordsmanship also improved a lot.

 

As Seo Woojin became more accustomed to his strength, the gap widened, and these days, there was no need for sparring. However…

 

‘Because there’s no one I can hang out with here.’

 

Now that it was like this, it wasn’t a bad idea to spar with Irene as well.

 

“Oh? Mister! Where were you? I’ve been looking for you for a while!”

 

However, an interrupter appeared.

 

From somewhere, Lee Ji-ah appeared, munching on a stick ice cream.

 

Beside her were the women he saw yesterday.

 

‘What was her name again?’

 

He remembered exchanging greetings, but her name didn’t come to mind.

 

Shortly after the introduction, a dispute arose between him and Lee Jin-ho.

 

“This is Hong Seol Unni, and this is Da Hye. You saw them yesterday, right?”

 

Fortunately, Lee Ji-ah introduced the two once again.

 

“I’m Seo Woojin. This is Irene. She’s my friend.”

 

Upon hearing this, the two hurriedly bowed their heads.

 

“Hello. I’m Yoo Hong-seol. Lee Ji-ah told me a lot about you.”

 

“I’m Kim Da-hye.”

 

“Nice to meet you. And about yesterday… I apologize.”

 

Seo Woojin apologized.

 

They had left just when the fun times were about to begin.

 

“Oh, no! We’re the ones who should apologize. We brought a strange person for no reason.”

 

“That’s right. Sorry.”

 

The two seemed genuinely apologetic.

 

Only Lee Ji-ah continued to smile, seemingly oblivious.

 

“But what are you doing here? We’re going to explore the capital now. Would you like to join us, Mister and Unni Irene? Unlike Leninist, there are plenty of sights to see here!”

 

It was true that Leninist was a kingdom larger and more advanced than Sion.

 

However, it couldn’t deny being a small country compared to the Empire.

 

Naturally, the capital of the Empire would be much more interesting than the rural kingdom.

 

But Seo Woojin wasn’t particularly curious.

 

At the moment, swinging a sword even once more would be more beneficial than sightseeing.

 

“We’re here to train. Come watch with your friends.”

 

“Huh? Training again? You did it in the morning too.”

 

“That was morning training.”

 

Lee Ji-ah looked at Seo Woojin as if she had seen a monster.

 

She couldn’t understand why he would exert himself like that when all he had to do was level up.

 

But it seemed that only Lee Ji-ah thought that way.

 

“Can we join too? In that training thing.”

 

“Me too.”

 

Yoo Hong-seol and Kim Da-hye suddenly expressed their intention to join.

 

“Hong Seol Unni! Kim Da-hye! What’s all this sudden talk? We agreed to go have fun together!”

 

Surprised, Lee Ji-ah grabbed the arms of the two, but she couldn’t change their minds.

 

Seo Woojin silently looked at the two before nodding his head.

 

He had never sparred with a Hero before.

 

Lee Jin-ho was knocked out in one hit.

 

It seemed not a bad idea to experience it for the first time in this opportunity.

 

For the future.

 

“What about the Class and Level?”