Chapter 54: Terrible lone.liness and regret

Yoo Han-beom’s office.

He stood rather than sitting, organizing his thoughts.

Lee Hyun-seung…

He already knew that Lee Hyun-seung was highly skilled, which is why he went to meet him. However, upon actually

meeting him, he realized that what he had perceived was only a small part of the picture.

• What I want is to confirm why I was expelled from the academy. President Choi I-seul would never act unilaterally and punish someone without clear evidence. Please check if there was any external pressure. Use your authority to confirm it directly with your eyes.

What Lee Hyun-seung requested in return for passing Yoo Han-beom’s test was quite simple. He just asked to

confirm whether there was any external pressure. He didn’t even ask for any punishment after the confirmation.

Lee Hyun-seung simply asked for the external pressure to be [confirmed].

He didn’t add anything like suspecting that the pressure might have come from Kim Hee-ra or Yoo Hee-yeon. Nor

did he mention what should be done after confirming it. But without saying it, his intent was clear.

The test.

In fact, it seemed that Lee Hyun-seung was testing Yoo Han-beom in reverse.

[How will you act? I’ll be watching.]

It was almost as if he was saying that.

Lee Hyun-seung reached out to Yoo Han-beom and said:

[Depending on your actions, my future steps will change.]

He refused opportunities for billions of won and the chance to join the Artemis Guild. In other words, Lee Hyun-

seung made it clear without complicating matters that he was not someone who could be moved by money or power.

The way to move him was not through money or power, but through something else. Yoo Han-beom realized this

instinctively.

It was truly remarkable. How could he not feel uncomfortable after being rejected so bluntly? Instead, he was simply

impressed by Lee Hyun-seung’s composure.

The more he knew, the more Lee Hyun-seung intrigued him. Initially, it was his abilities that caught his interest, but

now it was his manner of dealing with people. A man who handled people in an entirely different way than Yoo Han-

beom, who used power and authority to dominate. He was curious just how far this man could rise.

• Swish.

As he recalled Lee Hyun-seung, he also thought about the scene earlier, where Yoo Hee-yeon had shouted at him.

• “What do you want me to do… I just wanted to be acknowledged by my father…”

For the first time, Yoo Han-beom witnessed his daughter shedding tears.

The guilt that arose from the thought that perhaps it was his own shortcomings that led her astray, or perhaps the

sense of responsibility that came with familial love, left Yoo Han-beom feeling conflicted. But soon, he quickly

cleared his mind. The moment he allowed these emotions to sway him, he risked losing his focus and making

mistakes in the tasks he had to handle.

• Thud.

He pressed his throbbing head firmly and collected his emotions.

While I’m here, the Artemis Guild must maintain its position publicly. Personal emotions are a luxury.

The reason he founded the Artemis Guild was not for anything trivial. He wanted to rise above. The faceless man

who had beaten him senseless for stealing a loaf of bread, the thugs who forced him to beg on the street and took the

money, and the grueling, thankless work he did when he was young. He had been forced to work in the mines with

no pay, simply because he was too young, enduring pain, ridicule, and the complete lack of any reward.

The oppression he suffered because he lacked power, the scorn and mockery he faced from society, the poverty that

tortured him, and the miserable life he led—no matter how much he worked, he couldn’t earn money. For him, the

law was just an empty barrier, and he had hated the world.

• So hungry… so hungry… please… please just help me a little…
• What the hell, you beggar! Get lost, you filthy piece of trash!
• I’m… I’m sorry… I’m sorry… I’m sorry…

The life he once lived—on his knees, begging in front of a man he had never met, desperate for enough money to buy

a loaf of bread—was pathetic. No matter how hard he worked, he never received his fair share. To escape the shackles

of this unjust life, he founded his own guild. The only way to protect himself was through his own power, not the law,

not adults—just his strength.

He built a sandcastle that no one could touch. No longer would he allow anyone to hurt him. In this place, no one

would be able to look down on him.

The pitiful sandcastle called Artemis had now grown into a towering building. The guild, founded with all his painful

childhood and youth poured into it, could no longer be ignored by anyone. But at the same time, it began to swallow

him whole.

“One day… the Artemis Guild will collapse.”

He was anxious. He feared the day his life’s work—the Artemis Guild, which had protected him—would disappear.

He knew well that nothing lasts forever. If one day he were to step down, the guild, which had been sustained by his

own power, might fall apart. And if that happened, not only would he lose his protection, but those he cared for

would be left vulnerable.

He knew better than anyone that his rise to power, built on crushing others with force, would ultimately end in

tragedy. For now, he had people covering before him due to his overwhelming strength and power, but once he

weakened, many would seek to take his life.

That was why Yoo Han-beom wanted to make Yoo Hee-yeon the head of the Artemis Guild. The guildmaster held

absolute power. Even if he were to fall, he wanted the Artemis Guild to become a shield for his daughter.

But at the same time, the head of Artemis had to prove their ability every moment. If one had the capability to be the

guildmaster, they wouldn’t have to worry about anything like an uprising.

“Hee-yeon, you still don’t understand my intentions…”

Objectively, Yoo Hee-yeon was considered a prodigy. But from the perspective of the Artemis guildmaster, she was

far from being sufficient. If someone like her were to take the position of guildmaster, power-hungry hyenas would

try to devour her whole. One of the problems he faced was that he had recruited talent solely based on ability.

If her lack of ability were to be exposed, it wouldn’t be long before she was kicked out of the guildmaster’s position. If

that happened, and if Yoo Han-beom was no longer able to protect her, Yoo Hee-yeon could easily get caught up in

an uprising and die. That’s why Yoo Han-beom couldn’t afford to be lenient with her.

• “You can’t be anything less than the best. As the daughter of the Artemis Guildmaster, that’s the position you hold. You have to become someone no one can challenge.”

There were words left unsaid.

“Only then… will you survive.”

She had to be overwhelming. She needed to be strong enough that no one could even think about climbing above her,

and she had to appear flawless—just like he had. The weight of the crown called Artemis was too heavy for an

unprepared person to bear. It could crush the one wearing it. Yoo Han-beom knew this all too well. The Artemis

Guild was the largest and most powerful guild in the country, with the most wealth. There were countless people who

would risk their lives to seize it, because it was a group he had built.

That was why Yoo Han-beom did everything he could. Even though he couldn’t spare time for Yoo Hee-yeon, he

provided her with countless tutors, as well as an absurd amount of money and artifacts on a regular basis.

Yoo Han-beom solidified his position within the Artemis Guild and expanded his influence with reckless speed. His

power would eventually be passed on to his daughter, Yoo Hee-yeon. The more terrifying Yoo Han-beom became,

and the stronger his authority grew, the more naturally Yoo Hee-yeon’s own power and influence would strengthen.

However, it pained him to realize that this very method was slowly destroying his daughter.

‘If only…

If he had established the Artemis Guild in a different way, like Lee Hyun-seung, who built his trust-based team,

perhaps his daughter wouldn’t have to suffer now. A guild founded on trust would make it so that even if the leader

weakened, those below him would try to protect him rather than betray him. They would want to repay the kindness

they received.

For a moment, Yoo Han-beom chuckled bitterly and shook his head.

‘I must be getting old. To be regretting things now.’

Regret was something Yoo Han-beom found utterly pathetic. After all, regretting something changed nothing, and

only wasted unnecessary emotions. Yet today, regret weighed heavily on him.

He stared at a few rare photos from his childhood with Yoo Hee-yeon and muttered softly, “I wanted the best for you,

but it only seems to be pushing you away.”

In moments like this, he didn’t know what to do. He had never received love or comfort from anyone. He had never

wished for someone to understand his feelings. He didn’t know how to fix a situation like this. Until now, he had

solved everything with sheer power.

‘Ugh, I’ve wasted too much time without realizing it. I have so much to do; I shouldn’t be…‘

He made his way toward his desk in the office with an indifferent expression. The cold room, empty except for

thousands of documents, greeted him.

Among the papers, there was a document requesting official approval for the Artemis Guild’s use of the national

mana database. Though he pretended not to care, Yoo Han-beom had secretly become anxious, suspecting that a

mysterious group might be stalking Yoo Hee-yeon. He wanted to identify the culprits as soon as possible.

Oddly, pushing his worries aside, Yoo Han-beom turned his focus back to the pile of documents regarding his work.

There were many matters to resolve, including approvals that needed to be finalized by today and disputes that had

to be mediated. He also had to manage the Black Forest Expedition and coordinate with the Blacksmith Association

on weapon prices and quality. He was too busy to focus solely on one issue.

His life was always like this. He wanted to care for Yoo Hee-yeon, but he couldn’t afford to be consumed by it.

The sound of flipping papers echoed in the silent room. It was a sound he knew well, a reminder of the solitude he

always experienced. This long solitude was the driving force behind Artemis Guild’s overwhelming dominance.

Time passed, and it became the eve of the Class Annihilation War.

Already, countless influential people were focusing their attention on the Broad Academy, and large crowds of

journalists began to gather.