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A few days ago, at the Hwangmyeong Mansion.
I fell into deep thought during our operations meeting.
‘The Bear Clan will definitely be there on Christmas. Their target is Kim Shinrok. I need to prepare something so that no one gets hurt.”
There were three people — Baekho-gun, Yong Jegun, and Jeokho — so I wasn’t worried about how many bears would come.
But two things kept coming to my mind.
First is a safe move that will safely overcome the attacks of the bears.
Second is a dangerous move where someone will get hurt.
‘It doesn’t matter if I’m the one who will get hurt, but it’s difficult for me to be there. Still…’
I would’ve chosen a safe move without hesitation if the Black Screen’s plan ended with the First Christmas scenario.
However, this Christmas isn’t the last match against them, so I wanted to put things into perspective.
To do so, I wanted to be able to quickly obtain some important information that I didn’t know.
That information was whether Unsa was alive or not.
‘Jeokho sensed Pungbaek and Usa’s energy from the snow during the replay. So what happened to Unsa?’
Jeokho said this about Unsa after the replay;
— But when I felt it on my skin, I couldn’t sense Unsa’s energy. More importantly…
— …The sky was pure white.
— Unsa’s specialty is summoning dark clouds. But the sky was covered with white clouds. It didn’t match the snow at all.
In other words, no dark clouds were present and Unsa’s energy wasn’t felt.
As Hwang Jiho said, Unsa may have been killed in action in the distant past and therefore had nothing to do with the snow.
But I thought differently.
‘Hwang Jiho thought Pungbaek and Usa were killed too, but their energies were felt in the snow. If so, maybe Usa is alive somewhere but the Tiger Clan doesn’t know.’
According to the tigers, Pungbaek, Usa, and Unsa have to gather to spray snow.
On Christmas, the shamans take over Unsa’s role, but it was clear that there needed to be three entities to exert such a great power.
If I were the Black Screen, I would’ve fought to get my hands on the three.
After all, the Black Screen succeeded in getting Pungbaek and Usa.
‘But the fact that Unsa’s power wasn’t felt means that he didn’t cooperate in this matter.’
Judging from the fact, there are two main possibilities that can be considered on the premise that Unsa is alive.
First, Unsa is being urged by the Black Screen to cooperate but refuses to do so.
Second, Unsa isn’t participating in the First Christmas incident but is still connected to the Black Screen.
I can’t determine yet which of the two is correct based on the information that I have.
I thought the Bear Clan would have a clue to the answer.
‘They would want to capture Kim Shinrok, so I’m sure the Eight Real Bears will appear just like during the youth retreat. A bear at that level would know where Unsa is. We have to get a hold of him and torture him. But we can’t be late.’
Kim Shinrok’s torture skills have improved, but it will still take time.
A member of the Eight Real Bears isn’t likely to speak easily once tortured, or perhaps he’d give false information.
If so, the information had to be obtained by means other than torture.
‘Bears’ mouths become infinitely lighter in front of their prey…’
It’s very possible that the bear would speak if he sees his food right in front of him.
I came up with that dangerous move.
Then, I saw Jeokho pushing a piece of dried persimmon pancake toward Kim Shinrok.
Jeokho was watching the shy Kim Shinrok eat the pancake well.
Yong Jegun was watching the scene with ecstasy.
Seeing that, I couldn’t bear to say what I thought.
‘The Eight Real Bears has seen Jeokho hide his appearance around Kim Shinrok. They’ll set up a trap. Then Jeokho will be hurt, and there’s a possibility that Yong Jegun will encounter an enemy when he’s at his most vulnerable. He’ll get hurt, and then maybe Kim Shinrok will…’
The thought that they might get hurt deepened.
But other than my plan, I couldn’t think of an accurate and quick way to find out Unsa’s whereabouts.
While I was trying to come up with another measure, Eunho talked to me.
— I think Euishin hyung came up with a plan, but it’s difficult for him to say. Is there a chance that someone will get hurt?
— Jo Euishin doesn’t allow others’ lives to be in danger except for his own. He can even sacrifice his limbs.
Hwang Jiho added a word.
That’s true, but I don’t know why those two tigers talk as if they’ve seen through my head.
— Let’s hear it first. If I think it’s really dangerous, we’ll stop you.
Would Eunho, who’s great at bold moves, really do that…?
I doubted it, but it was true that Eunho cared about the tigers.
In the end, I told them my plan.
Kim Shinrok will be with Yong Jegun when he makes a miracle.
Yong Jegun will be exhausted, which will lure the bears to attack Kim Shinrok.
Jekoho will reveal himself from the smoke and let the enemy think that he’s trapped.
Then, Jeokho will ask about Unsa.
— Lastly, after digging up information on Unsa, Baekho and Yoo Sanghee will put an end to the situation.
Hwang Jiho was lost in thought as he tried to weigh my proposal.
Jeokho was the first to agree.
— I will do it. I’ve been treated by student Yoo Sanghee before. Her light skill healed the injuries I sustained from Jogangryeob. I’ll protect my son until I know where Unsa is, so don’t worry.
Following Jeokho was Yong Jegun, whose expression was more ecstatic than ever.
— I’ll do it too.
Yong Jegun looked like he came up with something.
Maybe he’s going to do something behind Tigers’ and my back.
Kim Shinrok seemed to be agonizing over the fact that those two might get hurt, but Jeokho said he would be fine, and Yong Jegun only teased him for being worried.
In the end, Kim Shinrok agreed.
Hwang Jiho smiled bitterly at the conversation between the three.
— I can’t help it if those three say it’s okay. Don’t you think so, Baekho? Well, you’ll be there so there won’t be a problem.
— …
When Baekho-gun caught a glimpse of Hwang Jiho, who said something natural, he pushed the bowl of dried persimmon pancakes toward Kim Shinrok.
Kim Shinrok picked up a pancake and ate it before Jeokho returned the plate to Baekho-gun.
I felt sorry again at the peaceful sight.
I wish I could’ve thought of a safer move.
— Let’s talk about the next measure, Euishin hyung. After digging up information on Unsa-nim, we have to subdue those useless bears.
Eunho talked to me as if to interrupt my thoughts abruptly.
He asked while reading the data that I distributed in advance.
— Euishin hyung said he needs eyes to look at the whole school. You said there was a royal lineage that you encountered in the game with a low probability of using an umbrella, right?
—…Yeah, I went around to check the whole map, and I met a royal lineage with a low probability of using an umbrella.
By mobilizing all available playable characters, I can check Eungwang High at various times and places.
But if they run into people of royal lineage, those with umbrellas, they could get killed.
I thought it was an instant death event in the game, so I thought I should be careful when investigating areas where there are a few people.
‘It became a reality, though I changed my mind.’
I knew that there would be people of royal lineage in Eungwang High, so I have to find them and take care of them.
— Other than the bears, there will be people of royal lineage all over the school. I marked the time and place as I remember, but I may have missed some.
Moving while it snowed made my playable characters’ strength and energy run out quickly, so there were places where I couldn’t check.
I couldn’t rule out the possibility that I missed some spots.
So I needed an eye to watch over the entire school.
— Dongha hyung’s light skill Eye Embracing Heaven and Earth is the right choice. Euishin hyung can use this skill, but you said you wanted to leave it to Dongha hyung to save energy waves.
— Yeah, so I want to make sure that Cheon Dongha will stay in Eungwang High.
— But Dongha hyung is involved in a lot of trouble. He could ignore it and go to Eungwang High, but it’ll be a bit of a problem if he refuses.
Cheon Dongha is scheduled to go to the countryside.
It’s difficult to neglect because it involves confirming the bloodline of the Cheon Family’s illegitimate child.
Before I came up with another idea, Eunho spoke first.
— It’ll be hard to move forward if Dongha hyung’s position is shaken. I’ll step up here.
***
Outside school, at Jeju Island.
The TC Group’s Snow and Air Hotel, top floor.
It doesn’t snow much in Jeju, but on the top floor of Snow & Air was artificial snow spraying every winter season.
Therefore, it costs more to stay on the higher floors of the hotel.
However, today on Christmas Eve, the entire top floor was rented by the Cheon Family.
They needed a stage where the opponent cannot run away in this critical juncture.
‘This should do.’
One of the Snow & Air’s board members repeatedly looked out the snowy window.
He’s been instructed by his superiors to keep Cheon Dongha on Jeju Island on Christmas Eve.
His superiors also provided an excuse to hold him.
It was none other than the middle school student sitting next to him.
The student was looking around with an uneasy face, and there was a part of him that resembled Cheon Dongha.
‘Where did this kid come from?’
He doesn’t feel energy waves from the kid, so it couldn’t be a skill.
Maybe he found an excellent plastic surgeon.
The board member thought that his face was well-made.
He insisted that this child was a hidden illegitimate child.
This child and Cheon Dongha were tested several times, but they had to hold another one here.
His coercion worked very well because there was a similar case — Cheon Eunha.
“The young master is here.”
The current time was about 20 minutes after Eungwang High’s Christmas charity event began.
The time was adjusted to take into consideration Cheon Dongha boarding a plane bound for Jeju Island, but it seemed to fit well as he planned.
Soon, the door of the central hall opened, and the one he’s been waiting for arrived.
Willing…
The automatic door opened wide to the side, and a neatly-dressed student came inside.
The moment he saw the student’s face, the board member was shocked.
“They asked for the late president Cheon’s biological son to come in person.”
The president’s biological son.
But it wasn’t Cheon Dongha.
“That’s why I came. I am Dongha hyung’s dongsaeng, Cheon Eunha.”
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