Huh? Me? (1)

To sum up, goryuwon succeeded in surviving.

With problem-solving skills that could only be described as miraculous, he solved the first five questions of the "Introduction to the Possessed Entity" test with less than eight minutes left and managed to finish with about fifteen seconds remaining.

"Amazing."

Kim Dojun clapped his hands as he watched Geum Taeyang, who was crying as if he really was about to die.

"Next time, let's go with a real bomb collar instead. It seems like the efficiency would at least double."

"You crazy bastard!!!"

"Crazy bastard?"

"... I said you're the crazy bastard."

When Goryuwon had the bomb collar on, Kim Dojun let the insults slide, but without it, he'd immediately reach for the stick. So, goryuwon quickly shrank back.

Looking at him, Kim Dojun spoke.

"If you hate the bomb collar that much... well, I guess there's no helping it."

"?"

"I'll bring an even better study method for the next lesson."

"...."

With those words, Kim Dojun left Goryuwon's house.

Sitting alone, goryuwon thought,

'This is... a good thing, right?'

Certainly, he was relieved when Kim Dojun promised to remove the bomb collar.

'... But why don't I feel that happy?'

Recalling Kim Dojun's words about a "better study method,"

Goryuwon involuntarily shuddered.

####

The day after Goryuwon trembled with worry about what might happen to him in the future.

Kim Dojun received a call from the Steel God on his way to meet Dan for previously requested information, and was told that Choi Yuron, the One Hundred-Faced God, wanted to make contact.

'Finally got a bite, huh.'

After receiving Choi Yuron's contact information from the Steel God, he went to meet Dan as usual.

"Been a while."[Hello, master!]

He nodded once at Dan and Tam, who greeted him as before. Then soon after, he received the information he'd previously asked Dan to look into.

"Just as you said last time, here's info on the new organizations formed after Twisted Evil's collapse, as well as info on the Twisted Evil organization in the middle zone."

"Oh."

Kim Dojun nodded, checking the information map he had asked for.

Dan continued.

"I also looked into Mongsang's Lervie."

Listening again to what Dan said,

Before long,

"... So, in conclusion, except for a major incident a while back, there's nothing particularly unusual?"

"That's right."

"Not a single thing?"

"According to info I bought from an info agency, there was a big spiritual power event recently in the zone where Mongsang's Lervie had been sleeping, but other than that, apparently nothing stands out."

"... So that's all?"

"Yeah."

Kim Dojun nodded and resumed.

"Oh, and there's one more thing I want you to look into."

"What is it this time?"

"The Prophet. Look into them."

"... The Prophet?"

"Yeah, just in case—do you know anything?"

Dan thought it over briefly, then shook his head.

"I know all the famous names from the back alleys, but I've never heard of that one. Is it a small group?"

"I have no idea, so please check it out."

"Got it."

Dan nodded, then asked,

"So, will you be going today?"

"Of course. I plan to start the next phase soon."

"Plan?"

"I have one."

"...."

Dan looked puzzled at Kim Dojun's words, but as ever, Kim Dojun never shared his plans anyway. And if he asked, he might get hit, so Dan just let his curiosity go.

"What's the situation inside the Grand Hall of Gods?"

To this, Dan replied,

"Just as you expected, most of the Twisted Evil gangs inside the Grand Hall of Gods seem to have collapsed. New organizations have popped up amid the chaos, but..."

"But?"

"As you said, there's no sign of any group trying to move under Twisted Evil's control."

"That's good. Anything else?"

Pausing to think, Dan continued as if something came to mind.

"Come to think of it, there's a group called 'Twisted Evil Killers' rampaging in the outer zone, hunting down Twisted Evil's gang members—it's causing a stir."

"The Twisted Evil Killers? Wasn't it just one person?"

"You seem to know something—did you hear it somewhere?"

"I picked up on it touring the Inhuman Arena."

At this, Dan shook his head and continued,

"From what I've gleaned, the Twisted Evil Killers aren't just one person but a group. Given the info I found, they're most likely those folks from the Arena."

"... The Arena? The one in the Grand Hall of Gods?"

"Yeah, remember when you wrecked the Arena, one of Twisted Evil's main facilities? At that time, the control sorcery formations on the fighters inside were all destroyed, and those who escaped are now the Twisted Evil Killers."

Because those fighters were enslaved by Twisted Evil, Dan added, and Kim Dojun replied,

"... So, this whole situation is because of what I did?"

"That's right."

'I didn't intend that.'

Kim Dojun thought as much at Dan's reply, but only shrugged.

'It's all good—actually, this situation is a big win for me.'

The birth of Twisted Evil Killers wasn't something he had planned, but it wasn't detrimental to him—rather, it was a very favorable development. Kim Dojun nodded.

"So, in that case, I bet Twisted Evil's members are running around trying to catch those guys, right?"

"No."

Dan shook his head.

"Really? Wouldn't they normally go all out for revenge?"

"Maybe before, but things are a bit different now, aren't they?"

"That's true."

"Right now, Twisted Evil has lost a lot of members since we swept out all their people from the outer zone. Of course, their main force is still in the middle zone, though."

After a pause, Dan continued,

"I hear even the squads from the middle and inner zones are getting annihilated by the Twisted Evil Killers."

"They must be pretty strong, huh?"

"I don't know the details, but anyway, because of the situation, there are virtually no Twisted Evil members left in the outer zone now."

"For real?"

"The info says so."

"Wow, if that's true, things are looking way up for me."

Kim Dojun grinned with glee.

Dan tilted his head in slight puzzlement, but—

"Then I don't need to do what I originally planned; I can go straight to recruiting."

"Recruiting...?"

Dan didn't understand Kim Dojun's cryptic words, but Kim Dojun immediately headed to the Grand Hall of Gods with Dan.

####

The place Kim Dojun headed to in the Grand Hall of Gods was the site of the old black market run by Twisted Evil.

The abandoned building, apparently left unrepaired, was still completely shattered. Kim Dojun approached.

Following behind, Dan once again looked at him as if he couldn't fathom what was going through his mind.

Kim Dojun, ignoring whether Dan thought anything of him through his mask, pulled out some talismans he had gotten last time at the black market.

'Amplification talismans.'

Just like their name suggested, the moment you stick them on, your voice booms out like a loudspeaker.

Kim Dojun picked up five of those and stuck them around his neck.

[Ah—Ahh.]

He spoke, seemingly satisfied as his voice rang out loud and clear throughout the outer zone of the Grand Hall of Gods.

He quickly turned and looked at Dan.

"?"

Dan tilted his head.

"Fox mask, huh...."

Muttering softly so the talismans wouldn't pick it up, Kim Dojun began,

[I am the Scorpion Strange Sage.]

He began his announcement.

[In 30 minutes, there will be a meeting at the destroyed black market to form our new group, 'Yoho (妖狐)'. Anyone interested should gather—this includes all organizations; attendance is mandatory.]

His transformed voice thundered throughout the Grand Hall of Gods.

[Of course, even though it's mandatory, if you really don't want to come, that's fine. Refusing will simply be seen as you wanting to become an enemy of our new group, 'Yoho'.]

"...."

[You really don't have to come. Really. I do have the locations of those listening at the info agencies right now, but don't worry about that.]

"...."

[Really.]

Watching Kim Dojun effectively threaten that not showing up meant you'd die—

'This isn't an announcement of good news; it's the kind of news you die after hearing...'

Dan kept his silence.

[Alright, I'll give you 30 minutes. Those who want to jump in, do so—or if you want to die, just stay right where you are.]

"...."

[Ah, my mistake. If you want to be our enemy, just stay put.]

'Is that... what he calls good news?'

Dan wondered, and thirty minutes later—

'... They really showed up in droves.'

Seeing the black market packed with people, Dan laughed helplessly.

Of course, few looked particularly happy, but the fact remained—they had all shown up.

As Dan silently watched, Kim Dojun peeled off three of the five amplification talismans from his neck.

[Ah, ah—]

He tested his now quieter voice, then said,

[Welcome, everyone. As you know, I am the Scorpion Strange Sage.]

"...."

The crowd fell silent at his words.

But Kim Dojun continued,

[I gathered you here today to present you with a good offer. Can you guess what it is?]

"...."

Still, the crowd remained quiet.

After scanning the audience, Kim Dojun stomped on the ground.

KUGUGUGUK-!

The black market's remains exploded into shards, flying outward.

[Answer.]

At Kim Dojun's curt word, the people gathered in the market swallowed nervously, then finally began responding.

"W-what?"

"What is it?"

"What do you want...?"

As people started answering variously,

Kim Dojun nodded, seemingly satisfied, and continued.

[We're forming a group called Yoho. And I'd like all of you gathered here to join Yoho.]

"...."

[Of course, I know people would push back if they thought there was no benefit. So, I'm about to make you an offer you'll like.]

"...?"

[First, the moment you join Yoho, you'll immediately come under our protection. Meaning, you won't have to worry about getting randomly stabbed in the outer zones.]

"-Oh."

[Second, since the outer zones have gone to hell and it's a tough place to live, instead of collecting money from you, we're actually going to pay you until things stabilize again.]

"Oh-!"

The assembled people started murmuring with excitement.

But Dan, hearing this, stared at Kim Dojun in confusion.

'... Is that even possible?'

Logically, splitting up money among all these people was nearly impossible.

Where would he even get that much money?

That's not all. Protecting these people from Twisted Evil would be impossible for Kim Dojun alone.

'... Or is it?'

On second thought, maybe it's possible—but then Kim Dojun would end up tied down here, which isn't really an option. So in the end, Dan was left just wondering what kind of plan Kim Dojun had.

Watching the crowd's mood rising from Kim Dojun's big promises,

"Now, to celebrate the founding of the Yoho group, our Yoho boss—the King of Yoho...no, the 'Yo King (擾王)'—will now share what his plans are going forward, so please quiet down."

Noticing suddenly that Kim Dojun was looking at him, Dan wore a bewildered expression.

"?"

Soon—

"Go ahead, boss—please tell us your plan."

"Wha...?"

At Kim Dojun's words, Dan could only imagine a bundle of hooks dangling over his head.

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