Jongno 1-ga (ga means ‘street’), a skyscraper dedicated to the Red Lion team.
The residence floor beyond the portal and barrier designed jointly by Blue Dragon, the Dragon clan’s head, and a shaman who serves the Dragon King(A.K.A. the god of the sea).
After dinner, Jun-yeoul Yeom immediately went to Je-gun Yong’s room.
“Come in.”
Je-gun, who had sensed Jun-yeoul’s footsteps, immediately gave permission to enter.
When the automatic door opened, Jun-yeoul saw Je-gun with three chessboards out.
‘He’s reviewing the matches.’
There were two semi-finals and one final played today.
The chess pieces recreated the three matches.
‘That’s my match with Seung-hyun at the semi-finals. It looks like a fierce battle even now. I would’ve lost if I let my guard down even a little bit. That board must be Kyung-gu’s and Ui-shin’s. And the one in the middle is the final…….’The memories of defeat came to mind again, but thanks to his family’s comfort, he felt fine.
“You’re not here to play chess. What happened?”
Jun-yeoul answered calmly, admiring the sharp sixth-sense of Je-gun Yong.
“Je-gun hyung, I met an Original clan at the dinner feast.”
Yeon Joon-yeol briefly told what happened at dinner.
The Air Hotel owned by TC Group, Snow and Air’s hotel lounge.
An Original clan woman in a red dress that appeared suddenly.
Words she left behind, and the item card.
The unidentified perfume she sprayed in the end.
The Dragon clans who couldn’t sense her trace.
When Jun-yeoul finished speaking, Je-gun asked something.
“I see…… Wait, she was wearing a red dress?”
“Yes. It was red.”
Je-gun Yong made that ecstatic face once again.
Smiling gently, he looked at the item card the Original clan lady had given.
‘What strange points he notices.’
Of course, it wasn’t just a day or two that Je-gun Yong became ecstatic and interested in something for unknown reasons.
Jun-yeoul first decided to ask what he was most curious about.
“Who is that Original clan?”
“Someone I made a deal with long ago. Instead of doing her son a favor, I asked her to let me know if there was anything interesting.”
Her son?
So the troublemaker was a son.
Jun-yeoul was curious, but since it had something to do with their family, he decided to stop prying.
“I thought she’d forgotten it over the years, but I think she’s finally going to pay for it.”
Je-gun said, realizing the item card.
An envelope was attached next to the realized item.
The only person that could include other materials in the card besides items is the creator.
That’s probably a message from the item maker.
Je-gun read all the contents of the envelope, but he didn’t seem to want to tell Jun-yeoul what it was.
Jun-yeoul was curious about the contents of the envelope, but he stopped himself from asking.
“Thank you, Jun-yeoul.”
“No problem. I just delivered the item card.”
“Haha, nah. She’s an Original that’s hard to meet. You did a really big job.”
Jun-yeoul didn’t know the details, but he was glad that Je-gun was pleased, just as the lady had said.
Thinking that, Jun-yeoul left the room.
* * *
“Cute!”
“Wow, can we put it in our room?”
“I’m gonna take pictures!”
The three siblings of Silver Tiger’s descendants were delighted when they saw the gifts I brought.
I brought dog houses today.
For Olmu, who didn’t have anywhere to hide except under the mat.
The designs I bought were solid wood windowed houses, cubes, Indian tents, fruit shapes, and so on.
Just like Jiho Hwang had said, my intelligence must’ve been slipping. I couldn’t guess what Olmu would like, so I had to buy all of them.
Bark bark!
As I finished them one by one using the DIY kit, Olmu stood by me, twinkling her eyes.
Smart Olmu must know that these are all her houses.
“Olmu, where do you want to stay?”
I said, pointing to the houses that were built faster than I thought, thanks to Ho-gun Baek.
My hand was finally empty so I patted Olmu, but Olmu didn’t move.
“Go to your favorite place.”
But Olmu still did not move.
I saw the twinkle in her eyes when she looked at a few houses, so she must like some of them.
If she didn’t like any of them, oh well.
I’ll buy more.
I recalled the websites of at least 10 dog house companies.
Whimper…….
Just then, Olmu jumped up and down, asking me to hold her.
I used my entire brain to decipher what she meant.
‘Wait, does she like my lap the best?’
Concluding, I picked up Olmu.
“I see, Olmu! I’m sorry I didn’t find out quickly!”
Bark bark!
As if this was the correct answer, Olmu barked cheerily.
Furthermore, as if she knew I won the tournament, she acted cute in ways she hasn’t before.
It must be the ‘victory cuteness’ that Yi-ho Eun told me about.
Olmu gave me meaning to my victory.
“Ui-shin Cho, your decline in intelligence is getting more severe.”
I don’t know what Jiho Hwang is talking about.
I figured out what Olmu wanted, so my intelligence was fine.
Because of the lack of time, I couldn’t play chess with Olmu, so I left the children’s chess set in her cabinet and went to the parlor.
I, Olmu, Jiho Hwang, and Ho-gun Baek were in the parlor.
As the automatic maid put down tea and refreshments and disappeared outside the parlor door, Jiho opened his mouth immediately.
“Last night, Red Tiger woke up.”
“Is Red Tiger okay?”
“Yeah. He fell asleep again because his recovery is not over yet.”
Still, I was glad he was recovering safely.
Although it would be difficult to bring Red Tiger into the party on board.
“I was handed a hologram chip from Red Tiger that had the investigated information organized. It had recordings, even of the moment he was hit.”
Said Jiho, and gulped down the black bean licorice tea in a red Jinsha porcelain cup.
Black Bean licorice tea boiled black beans and licorice together.
I’ve heard that it’s a traditional tea that has the effect of soothing anger, now I see he made this tea because of Red Tiger.
“Kang-ryup Jeo was being ordered to crash the party on board by ‘the one.’ Red Tiger was hiding with the skill ‘Red Smoke,’ that had been enhanced with the items I blessed.”
Jiho played the holographic footage.
In the video, a man who hid his body in a robe and a big man were visible.
‘That must be Kang-ryup Jeo.’
The Original who appeared to be Kang-ryup Jeo had a pitchfork-shaped weapon, Sangboshimgeumpa.
Unlike the ‘Yeouibong(weapon of Sun Wukong, the monkey king)’ of Jecheon-daeseong, which was created to measure the depth of the sea, the Sangboshimgeumpa was made as a weapon from the beginning.
In some cases, it was a treasure that was considered to be ranked higher than Yeouibong.
“The one appeared to see straight through…… Red Tiger’s Red smoke.”
In the video, a voice that seemed like it was changed by a voice modulator was heard.
[Kang-ryup Jeo, use Sangboshimgeumpa’s “Prongs”, now.]
[What? But Sangboshimgeumpa’s Prongs can only be used nine…… no, eight times a day! I can’t use it for nothing!]
[Hurry! It’s behind you.]
Now, the one who shot this video, Red Tiger, was standing behind Kang-ryup Jeo.
Red Tiger, feeling that things were turning strange, tried to avoid it, but before that, a pitchfork flew towards the screen.
The screen shook and then blacked out.
“Red Tiger was pierced by the prongs of Sangboshimgeumpa. But he got away without deactivating Red smoke. They’ll know that someone had broken in, but they won’t know that it’s Red Tiger.”
So ‘The one’ could somewhat see through the Red smoke.
The Red smoke that Jiho Hwang enhanced.
Jiho kept talking.
Jiho waved his hand and the screen changed into Kang-ryup Jeo’s picture and profile.
“It seems like Kang-ryup Jeo was fired from being the messenger after the Other-world attack. They say it’s because he became corrupted, but the details haven’t been confirmed. Anyway, there’s a lot of Superior beings who are outraged by the corruption of Kang-ryup Jeo.”
Jiho put down his Jinsa mug and lit his eyes up.
“Because of that, Kang-ryup Jeo is currently significantly reduced in ability. Although he should still be stronger than the moon rabbits, if you think about his power during his Chunbongwonsu years.”
“Jiho Hwang, what about comparing him to your full state?”
“The Sangboshimgeumpa will be annoying, but I can handle him.”
Jiho said confidently.
He said it with such confidence that it was hard to doubt him.
“One of the three deities, Doduk-chunjon Taesang-Nogoon was so angry at the pig that he tried to take away the Sangboshimgeumpa. The Sangboshimgeumpa also responded positively to that.”
The Sangboshimgeumpa responded to Taesang-Nogoon’s call?
I guess weapons that the three deities made in the Bagua cauldron get their own wills or something.
“But Taesang-Nogoon is a superior being, so there are limits to interfering in this world. He has to do it through an Original or a human…… But there is no one that meets his standards yet, so he’s delaying it.”
Jiho’s words ended, so I began to organize my thoughts.
An event similar to the on-board party in the game.
The planned assassination of Juo and TC group’s heirs.
A long tail that has not yet been identified.
Sangboshimgeumpa and Kang-ryup Jeo.
Red Tiger.
“I have something to suggest.”
“You’re smiling suspiciously again. Tell me.”
Suspicious again?
I tried to pull a poker face and explained my plan.
Jiho nodded at the beginning of my explanation, but his expression got darker and darker as I got to the end.
“I’m against it.”
“Why.”
“I don’t like it.”
In addition to Jiho Hwang, Ho-gun Baek, who sat opposite of me, had a cold expression.
I don’t think he liked my proposal.
I added an explanation.
“They don’t know that the Tiger clan knows the Pig clan’s betrayal. You can’t step up now.”
“I still don’t like it.”
“You think Red Tiger endured getting slashed into 9 pieces for nothing?”
Jiho closed his mouth at these words.
He was still dissatisfied, but he was convinced.
“You still have very few clues about the long tail. If you step up, that tail will hide itself deeper.”
“You’re right but……”
Jiho poured the tea, which was still steaming hot, and gulped it down.
After drinking all the tea, Jiho opened his mouth.
“But ‘very few’? Ui-shin Cho, have you noticed something?”
Notice or not notice, in the game, there was an Original clan that has done actions which were impossible to do if they were on the antagonist’s side.
I wanted to tell the Tiger clan if I had the chance, and this was the chance.
“I know an Original clan that will never be a traitor. The Dragon clan is not the traitor.”
In the game, Je-gun Yong died protecting the students.
Also after the death of Jun-yeoul Yeom, the Dragons revolted with the head, Blue Dragon, in the center.
“The evidence?”
“I don’t have it now, but they aren’t anyways.”
“……Okay.”
Jiho, staring at me, suddenly twinkled his eyes a little.
“I didn’t mean to hide it, but the Tiger clan knows someone who isn’t a traitor but has a long tail. We even have evidence.”
What, they did?
“I thought you’d notice it sooner, but really, have your intelligence gone down? You encountered that ‘evidence’ every time you came here.”
I did?
One by one, I recalled what happened when I visited the mansion.
‘What is associated with a long tail…….’
Olmu suddenly wriggled in my arms.
That’s when I realized.
“The Dog clan.”
“Hahaha! Now you realize!”
Whimper…….
Our smart Olmu looked up with an anxious face as if she knew the topic of the conversation.
“The Dog and Tiger clan secretly formed an ally. They are closer to us than the moon rabbits, who made a friendship vow with us. To hide the identity of our sacred animals(shinsu), we shared each animal’s sacred powers.”
Was that the reason why the Pig clan couldn’t kill Olmu with their boar?
In the game, this cute ball of fluff was killed by an admissions officer, not by the Pig clan.
“The shinsu’s true appearance is closer to a tiger. She lost the sacred power of the sacred area of the Tiger clan. She had to borrow power from the Dog clan to survive, that’s why she looks like this.”
Our cute cotton ball Olmu whined and acted cute.
She seemed very concerned of this conversation.
It doesn’t matter what the real appearance of Olmu is.
“It’s all right, Olmu. Even if you’re a tiger, you’ll be cool, smart, and cute.”
Arf arf……!
Our smart Olmu, who understood my words, became happy again.
She cuddled against me with all her might, so I hugged her with all my might, too.
Meanwhile, Jiho looked at this side with an uninterested face.
That’s why you’re not close with our Olmu, you jerk.
“Then I’ll see you later.”
I finished talking to Jiho and left the mansion.
Just as I was about to do so, the three siblings came running to me.
“Huh? You weren’t going to sleep over?”
“But I bought a new VR game and gear to play with Ui-shin oppa!”
“And I was going to take lots of pictures and show it to you……”
Too bad, but it was impossible for me to sleep over.
“I’m sorry, I’ll be here next time. Instead, play with Olmu.”
“Okay……”
My heart ached.It was sad to leave the three siblings and sad to not be able to enjoy a walk back to the dorm with Olmu.
I left the siblings and Olmu on the front porch and was about to ride the air shuttle for crossing the labyrinth garden.
“If I think you’re going to fail, I’ll intervene immediately.”
Jiho said bluntly.
He had made jokes about Olmu and such, so I thought he didn’t worry about me.“Be careful, Ui-shin Cho.”
White Tiger, who was silent for the whole meeting, said a word as well.
I nodded to the two Tiger clans and boarded the shuttle.
‘It’s half a gamble, but if I succeed, it cuts half of the power of the villains.’
With firm determination, I reaffirmed the plan in my head and prepared for departure
