* * *
As the guild members murmured among themselves, the voice on the screen continued.
“We’ll use two water manipulators and a gravity hunter to release only a portion of the water. It shouldn’t significantly affect the building.”
While he spoke, Doyoung reviewed the list of hunters GA had provided before the meeting.
They were all A-rank and well-suited for the mission.
“Gravity and water, huh. Not a bad plan.”
The biggest challenge of this mission was the uncertainty surrounding the monster’s exact form.
The real issue was that no one could predict how Charybdis would react to such a strategy.
“What’s the plan if Charybdis attempts to escape the tank?”
As Doyoung was mulling over this, Beom Sinje posed the question to the Vice Guild Master.
But before the man could respond, Beom Sinje glanced over at Doyoung, as if to say, “Weren’t you wondering the same thing?”
‘It’s like he can read my mind.’
Otherwise, the timing wouldn’t be this uncanny.
In truth, it was because Beom Sinje thought about Doyoung so often that their thought processes had started to align.
Neither of them realized this.
“We’ll have to deal with it quickly before that happens.”
It was an obvious answer, but it left room for various complications—none of which the GA Vice Guild Master seemed to have considered.
Even as he said it, he scrunched his nose and shrugged.
“From what I’ve heard, Guild Master Beom possesses incredible power and speed. With those abilities, I figured he could handle Charybdis the moment we expose it.”
Well, if Beom Sinje gets involved, that much is certain.
‘Not to mention, I’ll reinforce him.’
Even as Doyoung nodded along with the Vice Guild Master’s Beom-centric thinking, he couldn’t help but eye the man warily for speaking so recklessly.
“Of course, we can’t rely solely on the Chunho Guild Master. That’s why, when Charybdis appears, two electric-type hunters will preemptively attack to weaken it.”
The plan to drain the water, control the pressure, and limit the monster’s movement with water and electricity seemed like a solid preemptive strike.
On the other hand, Chunho’s hunters, mainly focused on taming animals and summoning teammates, lacked direct combat prowess.
But that wasn’t the fundamental issue here.
“Thank you for the explanation, but there are a few things I find concerning.”
At Doyoung’s words, the Vice Guild Master nodded, inviting him to elaborate.
“You mentioned reviewing the data earlier. Did you happen to check the thickness of the tank? From what I saw, it’s at least 60 cm thick. Can you really cut through that as easily as you think?”
“I can handle it.”
Beom Sinje replied before the Vice Guild Master could, his calm, confident demeanor strangely reassuring.
His voice carried clearly through the video call.
“Exactly! With the power of that sword you carry, it should be no problem.”
The Vice Guild Master jumped on the opportunity.
“That’s reckless. How exactly are you planning to cut it? If anything goes wrong, you’ll just provoke the boss monster.”
“It’s possible.”
Doyoung frowned at Beom Sinje’s unwavering confidence.
He scanned the room.
Everyone seemed far too certain of success, with no regard for potential failure.
‘Why is everyone so blindly trusting?’
Then again, it was Beom Sinje.
If anything went wrong, Doyoung would just reinforce him.
“Let’s say you manage to destroy part of the tank. What next? As you saw earlier, even getting close won’t be easy.”
“I plan to create an impact by jumping down.”
“You’re joking, right? Are you seriously saying you’ll dive into the water where Charybdis is?”
“No, I’ll find a landing point.”
That wasn’t exactly reassuring.
Yet, Beom Sinje spoke so matter-of-factly.
Doyoung and Beom Sinje ended up locked in a heated debate over the issue, their voices rising as guild members watched awkwardly, unwilling to intervene.
Chunho’s members occasionally glanced at the GA side, but the GA hunters just looked entertained by the unfolding scene.
Eventually, they settled the matter—Doyoung would assist with telekinesis if needed.
Beom Sinje looked slightly dissatisfied, but Doyoung, having secured a role in the plan, seemed more at ease.
“Good. Let’s finalize the rest based on the situation on-site.”
With that, the video call ended, and as a heated meeting about a mission in Africa wrapped up, a strange post appeared on a popular domestic forum…
The post began with the title:
[I am the villain of Antithesis.]
The post, which began with that title, detailed how the author ended up there, what activities they were involved in, the situation during the coup, and what they are currently doing.
At the same time, the author drew a clear line, stating that the events currently unfolding domestically have nothing to do with the place they were previously affiliated with.
[That’s 100% a lie lol. You’re telling me Antithesis fought for hunters’ rights? lmaooo Who’s gonna believe that?
└ Have you been living abroad or something? Haha, you’re the only one who doesn’t know… hahaha
└ Wow, it’s kinda sad that you’re the only one clueless about something every Korean citizen knows lol
└ Sure, Antithesis did some villainous stuff, but honestly, private guilds only exist now because of them.
└ The villain stuff was aimed at the government anyway. And if you actually look at what they did, they solved dungeons and weird exploration issues the government couldn’t handle.
└ You seriously believe that? lol Aren’t you guys too naive? haha
└ What are you, part of some government agency or something? lol
└ It’s weird to blindly trust something that hasn’t even been verified yet lmao. You guys are too gullible.]
The controversial post spread like wildfire across multiple communities, sparking heated debates about whether it was true or not.
Then, an anonymous hunter who claimed to have been part of a former government agency posted in agreement with the original author’s account, further igniting the internet.
[The truth always comes outㅠㅠㅠ Remember when the former guild leader said he’d clear up the misunderstandings about Antithesis… This must be it! ಥ_ಥ ]
└ I believed it tooㅠㅠ There’s no way that handsome Zero would do something like that.
└ d=??? Are you insane? lmaoo Is being good-looking a pass for everything? hahahahaha]
◇◆◇◆◇
Late at night. In a dimly lit living room, illuminated by a single standing lamp, the quiet ring of a smartphone echoed.
Shortly after the sound stopped, a closed door opened, and a woman stepped out.
Pressing a towel against her wet hair, she noticed the glowing phone screen on the table and strode over to check it.
“Guild leader Beom Sinje… What’s with all these calls?”
Her voice carried a tone of disbelief as she scrolled through the list of missed calls.
She had only been in the bathroom for thirty minutes.
Yet, in that short time, there were five missed calls.
As she was mulling over it, the phone rang again.
“Hm…”
Beom Sinje doesn’t know about her connection to Doyoung.
Which means… it must be related to ATE Pharmaceuticals.
“Yes, I’m answering now.”
She didn’t bother switching to English.
There was no need.
Beom Sinje knew she could communicate in Korean just fine.
- I finally got a hold of you.
* * *
