Chapter 48: Yoo Han-beom meets Lee Hyun-yeon

-Kwaang!

A man steps out of a luxurious limousine, holding a cane that clearly looks expensive at a glance.

“Hmm…”

The man walks steadily into the Broad Academy without any special actions or even an assistant accompanying him.

However, everyone around him began whispering as they watched.

“Isn’t that… the Artemis Guild Master?”

“Ah, what nonsense! Why would he come here on an ordinary day like this?”

“I’m telling you! Look at the magic staff he’s holding, and his appearance — it’s exactly like the one from the news!”

A student opens their phone and compares the photo of the Artemis Guild Master from a news article, and only then

do people begin to crowd around, creating a commotion.

“Wow… I’ve never seen him in person before…”

“I… I hope he leaves soon… I’m scared…”

Some people looked at Yoo Han-beom with admiration, while others were fearful. A unique-class mage, Yoo Han-

beom, known as the most powerful man in the country, with legendary status almost within reach. Wherever he

walked, it felt as though a vortex of mana swirled around him.

The students couldn’t help but wonder one thing.

Why?

This was the question they had: Why did Yoo Han-beom visit Broad Academy in person?

Yoo Han-beom, the Artemis Guild Master, had rarely visited the academy, so this seemed like a big matter.

Naturally, people were curious about why the largest guild master in the country was personally involved in this.

–Ssssk

Yoo Han-beom silently observes the students whispering around him, thinking to himself.

‘Pathetic fools.’

In reality, mages can enhance their hearing with magic and listen to sounds from a distance. Yet, most of the

students around him, thinking he wouldn’t hear them, continued to whisper amongst themselves, gossiping quietly.

This showed a complete lack of understanding about mages. Had they known he could hear them, they wouldn’t have

dared to utter even their names.

‘Do they really think I can’t hear? No, they must know. If they thought I couldn’t hear, they wouldn’t be speaking like this.’

–Step

–Step

–Step

Yoo Han-beom quietly enters the academy. At that moment, Academy President Choi Isul swiftly heads to the

entrance to greet the Artemis Guild Master, Yoo Han-beom.

“Guild Master Yoo Han-beom, it’s a pleasure to see you again. Is there something specific you’ve come for today? If

you need anything, I’ll make sure to arrange it immediately.”

“I don’t need anything. I’m not here today in the capacity of a guild master.”

Choi Isul raises an eyebrow, confused.

“Then, may I ask what brings you here?”

“I came because I’m curious about a student. I’d like to see him. May I enter?”

Choi Isul, the Academy President, was a strong woman who was so powerful that ordinary people couldn’t even look

up to her. Despite her youth in her 20s and her beauty, she was admired by many, but to Yoo Han-beom, she was

just another person.

“Normally, an external person would have to go through complex procedures to meet a student… However, since

your identity is well-known and confirmed, I’ll bypass those procedures. We have a meeting room available. If you’ll

wait there, I’ll send the student to you.”

The meeting room was a place used when an external scout or similar individual wanted to meet a student. Since

scouts often dealt with sensitive topics like salaries and contracts, they preferred rooms with soundproofing magic.

Choi Isul, noticing this, quickly offered to open the room without being asked.

Yoo Han-beom nodded, satisfied, before Choi Isul asked:

“Which student should I bring? Is it more than one?”

“No, just one. I’d like to see Lee Hyun-seung.”

Yoo Han-beom shakes his head, then adds:

“No need for him to come alone. I’m curious about how he behaves within Class F. I’ll observe from a distance.”

Within Class F at Broad Academy, Ryu Nam-gi expresses his gratitude to Lee Hyun-seung.

“Hyun-seung… I don’t think I properly thanked you yesterday. I really appreciate what you did… If you hadn’t

stopped them, I might have been seriously injured.”

Ryu Nam-gi, the man who was with Han Seong-gil and tried to hide Lee Hyun-seung from the brutal attacks of Im

Tak-joo, had originally wanted to repay Lee Hyun-seung for the good weapon, but when he was suddenly attacked,

he regretted his decision to intervene.

‘Why… why did I even bother…’

Seeing his fellow classmates from Class B stand by without helping while he was beaten made the pain worse than

the physical blows.

Even while being subjected to a one-sided beating, he kept looking at the chairs where the other students from the

same class were sitting. Anyone, anyone at all, he wished would come to help.

Expecting an F-class student to stand up to a B-class student was foolish. But that foolishness actually happened at that time.

• “Stop it.”
• “Stop it? Are you out of your mind? Do you want to get beaten like this bastard?”
• “I’m Lee Hyun-seung. Talk to me. And stop now. Get your foot off him before I kill you.”

In truth, Ryu Nam-gi had no particular connection to Lee Hyun-seung. He had simply received the weapon because

it was offered to him, and he was just trying to fulfill the bare minimum of his duty when he was assaulted. So, there

was no reason for Lee Hyun-seung to step in and help. The opponent was a B-class student, after all.

But Lee Hyun-seung stepped in without hesitation. To save the beaten Ryu Nam-gi, he spoke strongly and protested

to the opponent, and actually used force to retaliate.

Thump
Thump

Ryu Nam-gi’s heart started to race. It wasn’t the kind of excitement one feels from love. Ryu Nam-gi had been in love

with his childhood friend for 10 years—he was just an ordinary man. But the reason his heart raced was because of

anticipation.

It was the way Lee Hyun-seung had raised his gun without hesitation to protect his ally. It was the true leader’s

posture, something he had only ever seen in movies and dramas. He never imagined he would witness it in person.

And that’s why his heart pounded with excitement.

‘Maybe… our F-class can change.’

The F-class, which had been ignored by others and regarded as inferior. But now, Lee Hyun-seung had become the

representative of this F-class. He believed that this change would bring about a storm.

‘It can change. Even my miserable life…’

The man, who had been scorned for being in F-class, the unawakened one who had been ridiculed by others for being

useless, looked at Lee Hyun-seung and thought, “What if I could become like him?”

That admiration became his driving force. Since Lee Hyun-seung had been an unawakened one not long ago, he

believed he could become like him too. No, he became hopeful that he would.

However, Lee Hyun-seung reacted as though it meant nothing to him.

“Don’t worry about it. I told you clearly when I gave out the weapons, right? Anyone who receives one becomes my

ally. I take care of the ones who are on my side.”

Lee Hyun-seung knew how to handle people. While Yoo Hee-yeon tried to control people with large amounts of

money, Lee Hyun-seung aimed to offer reasonable rewards alongside trust.

Because he knew he couldn’t compete with Yoo Hee-yeon’s wealth alone.

While Tak Woo-hyun’s handcrafted weapons were expensive and rare, Yoo Hee-yeon could provide even more

expensive ones. So, Lee Hyun-seung needed to add something special to make sure others didn’t fall for Yoo Hee-

yeon’s whispers and instead publicly chose his side.

He knew this was an opportunity, so he spoke loudly enough for others to hear.

“It’s not just you. Anyone who I gave weapons to—if trouble comes their way, I’ll make sure to take care of them.”

Although he didn’t say it explicitly, he was warning not to fall for Yoo Hee-yeon’s temptations.

There were about 40 people to whom Lee Hyun-seung had given weapons. They all had great potential and would

eventually possess great power. So, this level of investment was only natural.

To an outsider, it might have seemed insane that Lee Hyun-seung gave Tak Woo-hyun’s weapons to F-class students,

but knowing how much these people would grow, Lee Hyun-seung thought this was a profitable deal.

“But what I want is trust. That’s all. Don’t betray me. If you do, I’ll take responsibility as a leader.”

With those words, all eyes turned toward him. From a distance, another man, Yoo Han-beom, watched and listened

to the scene, turning his head in admiration.

“I thought you were just a pup, but you’re a tiger cub…” he muttered.

Then, he thought to himself,

‘But that guy… he was a stalker…?’

And his suspicions about Yoo Hee-yeon grew.