RE: Player again

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[Chapter 105] [Catch Your Player (7)]

CYP Dealer Division Mission.

Filming started later than scheduled. This was because Kwak Woohyuk suddenly collapsed and filming was delayed.

Since this also happened just before filming the supporter division, the staff complained to each other about him.

Meanwhile, Kwak Woohyuk who barely regained consciousness was memorizing the script handed over by staff in the waiting room.

"To think the format changed at the last minute. Won't this get criticized on the broadcast?"

He who lay facing the ceiling clicked his tongue and examined the suddenly modified parts.

There weren't many changes.

The original format was a mission to verify the skills of rookie players aiming to be dealers.

The changed part was that an academy student would demonstrate to cheer on their seniors before the verification process.

Changing a perfectly fine script suddenly?

Did someone exert pressure?

Kwak Woohyuk was puzzled to confirm that the student coming out to demonstrate was a middle school academy student.

Catch Your Player was a broadcast introducing students entering society next year to citizens.

Yet they would invite a middle school academy student who still had a long way to go before graduating as a guest.

He wondered if external pressure came in.

Because most students attending middle school academy were from so-called 'well-off' families.

Do I need to make a good impression?

Kwak Woohyuk fell into contemplation.

If the other party was someone wielding such powerful authority to intervene in the middle of filming, it wouldn't hurt to make a good impression.

He was familiar with entertainment golf.

Wasn't it something he did like eating meals when he was in Changhae Clan?

If he made a good impression, it might become an opportunity for another S-grade clan to recruit him instead of Dangun Clan.

Okay, I'll grovel thoroughly.

To the extent of licking their shoes...

Kwak Woohyuk resolved like that.

But when he actually went to the filming site, the person who participated as a guest was someone he knew.

"...Is it really okay for me to appear?"

"They say it's just appearing for a moment, so... Anyway, I'll just be a foil erased by noona's performance..."

The boy standing next to Ryu Yeonhwa, known as former Twelve Seats Nam Gungseongwoon's disciple.

There was no way he could forget.

The crazy guy who sang weird songs while finding and killing the snakes he summoned.

Why is that bastard appearing here?

Kwak Woohyuk was confused.

He had resolved to not let the boy off as soon as he found him.

But now he thought the boy might be in a position he couldn't touch.

Along with the thought that he might need to make a good impression.

"Hey, you there. Who is that person?"

"...Huh? That person?"

In his bewilderment, Kwak Woohyuk grabbed a passing staff member and asked while pointing at the boy.

The staff carrying luggage on his shoulder frowned for a moment, but soon checked the boy's face and chattered happily.

The staff who said he was a fan of Attendance King Noh Euna informed him that the boy was Noh Eunha, Noh Euna's brother.

The reason he came out for filming this time was because the main writer suggested it after seeing Euna chatting happily with Eunha.

In other words, there was no external pressure.

"...I see. Is that so?"

Kwak Woohyuk no longer listened to the staff's rambling words.

In the end, he didn't even hear that the Noh family held important positions in Sirius.

If he had heard, he would have forgotten old matters and rolled around at Eunha's feet.

But because he didn't know that, Kwak Woohyuk shrugged his shoulders with snake-like slit eyes.

Yeah, let's see how well you demonstrate.

Don't get bitten by a snake.

Kwak Woohyuk glared at Eunha conversing with Ryu Yeonhwa while grumbling.

Right at that moment─

"─...Cough...!"

Did he notice the gaze?

He who was conversing with Ryu Yeonhwa turned his head towards Kwak Woohyuk.

And Kwak Woohyuk who met his eyes forgot to even breathe for a while, staring at the boy's eyes.

It was just for a very brief moment.

However, the physically short time strangely felt terrifyingly long to Kwak Woohyuk.

W-what did I just see?

What would have happened if he hadn't reflexively resisted mana?

He didn't know.

Kwak Woohyuk just shook his head hard while recalling the eerie energy gathered in the boy's eyes for a moment.

The illusion already disappeared from memory.

But the eerie sensation the illusion momentarily gave still seemed to remain in his body.

☆

The Catch Your Player supporter division mission was to infiltrate a burning set, rescue a doll trapped on the top floor, and safely escape.

It wasn't a simple rescue operation because trap magic was installed throughout the 3-story set.

As a result, most students failed unable to break through traps even before reaching the top floor.

But not Noh Euna.

Jelly Cube

Magic flying through the flames.

Euna who hadn't deactivated her detection net even while disarming traps earlier almost reflexively constructed protective magic.

A jelly-like cube wobbled and enveloped her, absorbing the impact rushing from the front.

It was thanks to her habit of deploying detection nets from becoming Shin Seoyoung's disciple in the past.

Moreover, Shin Seoyoung taught her harshly too.

She was able to develop the ability to reflexively respond without panicking even to magic rushing in targeting blind spots.

Oh... In this case...

However, the traps didn't stop.

Euna wondered if this mission was really made to be solved.

Because sharply honed mana rushed in from all directions.

The Jelly Cube accepted the attacks but was about to disappear as bubbles exceeding the allowable amount the magic could withstand.

Her bewilderment was brief.

She who confirmed the traps couldn't break the cube calmly constructed magic formulas inside the cube.

Soon she who finished double casting tapped the floor with the stone tablet in her hand simultaneously as the Jelly Cube shattered.

Bubbly Sponge

Lake Fairy

The first magic was magic that destabilized the traps' magic formulas using the Jelly Cube that turned into bubbles as a medium.

Masses of bubbles with physical resistance that couldn't be implemented in ordinary people's imagination burst out due to the flying magic.

The bubbles that burst after being hit gradually eased the momentum of the rushing magic, and the bubbles spreading and bursting widely disrupted the composition of the magic formulas.

Meanwhile, the burst bubbles also concealed her traces.

She who escaped from being the traps' target soon revealed herself in a position far from where she disappeared.

When the traps found her existence, she had already constructed magic formulas to counter the traps.

"Want to taste some water balloons?"

Euna smiling brightly.

Huge water balloons were floating around her.

Crazy Pop

When she pointed her stone tablet towards the core of the traps, water balloons swollen like they would burst flew at rapid speed.

The water balloons made popping sounds and neutralized the traps' magic.

Crazy Pop wasn't magic boasting particularly powerful firepower, but it could collapse them in one hit because she weakened the traps' magic formulas with Bubbly Sponge in advance.

This isn't the time.

I need to find the doll quickly...

The doll is right on the floor above.

She who checked that no more traps were activating quickly went up to the last floor as not much time remained.

A doll trapped in iron bars.

Traps guarding around the doll.

Jelly Cube

Bubbly Sponge

However, Euna didn't lose her composure until the end as she was taught by Park Hyerim.

Thus she who rescued the doll made a V sign towards the camera and showed a triumphant appearance.

Now all that remained was escaping.

As not much time limit remained, she put the doll on her back and was about to jump out of the building.

─Huh?

There was clearly nothing there.

She who was about to jump out stepping on the windowsill blinked her eyes at the sensation of something grabbing her ankle for a moment.

While falling looking at the sky.

What happened?

Euna couldn't understand what happened.

She directed her gaze to her ankle but nothing was caught on her ankle.

Was it just my imagination?

The sensation was too unsettling to dismiss as imagination.

At that moment, she heard screaming from below and immediately came to her senses.

She had to survive first.

Jelly Cube

The magic she made almost for the first time.

She chanted the most familiar magic in a crisis situation.

The magic enveloping her inflated its body to become a huge jelly and accepted all impacts.

She who fell to the ground like that briefly enjoyed the comfort unique to Jelly Cube.

"...Phew... I survived."

When she closed and opened her eyes, cameras were filming her lying on the grass.

"Student Noh Euna!? Are you okay?"

"Euna! Are you alright!?"

Staff hurriedly ran over.

They seemed surprised by the suddenly occurring situation too.

Euna tried to reassure them saying she was fine.

Meanwhile, Shin Seoyoung who witnessed the entire series of events was twitching her fingers with arms crossed.

She who took her gaze off Euna immediately traced the flow of mana remaining in the collapsing set.

That bastard Kwak Woohyuk...

This was definitely on purpose, right?

Euna could have been hurt.

Shin Seoyoung didn't miss the magic that suddenly snatched Euna's ankle.

A trap that didn't exist in the script.

If she hadn't laid wind nearby in preparation for any accidents that might occur, even she wouldn't have noticed the secretly deployed magic.

If that happened, she wouldn't have been able to immediately undo it when the trap activated.

"Don't tell me he took out his anger on her because Euna was my disciple? That petty Kwak Woohyuk is capable of anything."

Shin Seoyoung snorted.

The world may evaluate Kwak Woohyuk as an excellent caster, but she who knew him could proudly say not at all.

As expected of someone who handles snakes, Kwak Woohyuk harbored snake-like jealousy towards those better than him.

Surely he must have harmed Euna because of his quarrel with her earlier.

I can't do anything about this...

She wanted to kick Kwak Woohyuk's butt.

She wanted to tear his clothes to shreds with wind and give him humiliation.

But Shin Seoyoung was no longer one of the Twelve Seats but an academy instructor.

She no longer had strong influential power remaining.

Even if connections still remained, the clan he joined happened to be Dangun Clan.

Dangun Clan Lord Jang Bongjeon.

It was an awkward position for her whose relationship with Jang Bongjeon completely soured after the Uijeongbu Recapture War to suddenly ask for Kwak Woohyuk's disposal.

Unless she lowered her head and asked, but Shin Seoyoung who didn't like Jang Bongjeon even before the Uijeongbu Recapture War didn't want to lower her head to him.

Then how do I punish that bastard?

Shin Seoyoung contemplating while waving back to Euna waving at her.

Her contemplation didn't last long.

Come to think of it, there was no need to contemplate.

[Hello? Unni?]

"Hi, Hyerim."

Instead of taking action herself, she would entrust it to Twelve Seats Park Hyerim.

Come to think of it, Kwak Woohyuk picked a fight with her, but as a result almost hurt Noh Euna who was Park Hyerim's disciple and joining Regulus Clan next year.

There was sufficient justification.

Although it would end as circumstantial evidence, that's why even if she couldn't use it, Regulus Clan would prepare ways to use it moderately.

She who had no power could only spread rumors in the industry, but Regulus Clan could negotiate with Dangun Clan Lord Jang Bongjeon while spreading rumors.

This is why clans are important.

But that kid Eunha is thinking of just making a party because administration is bothersome...

She suddenly thought of Eunha.

The boy who said he would make a party for himself after graduating from the academy.

However, parties didn't have much influence in the industry compared to clans.

There are limits with parties.

No matter what Eunha was thinking, she felt that clans were more suitable than parties for carrying out what he had in mind.

Eunha would probably refuse saying it's bothersome.

But can he really say it's bothersome? There are many kids gathered around him, so it's not like he doesn't have enough people to form a party...

Basically, parties were usually composed of up to 10 people at most.

But there were almost 10 people around Eunha, and moreover, even more students would be gathered around him when graduating high school academy.

Nevertheless, could he say the nonsense of making a party?

It's not like some large-scale party...

It would be better to establish a clan at that point.

She smiled and told Park Hyerim about what happened to Euna.

As expected.

[...I'll definitely tell the clan lord. The clan lord probably won't let this incident slide either. Thank you, unni.]

Park Hyerim's dissatisfaction was heard through the smartphone.

She seemed upset as expected.

Who would calmly accept their disciple almost getting hurt?

You're dead now.

As planned.

Shin Seoyoung raised the corners of her mouth.

The Sword Saint that people in the world admired was in fact no different from any person who could cry, laugh, and get angry.