The Returnee’s Guild Must Grow Properly

In response to the Demon King’s question, I tilted my head slightly and smiled.
“Did it seem that way?”
“It seemed that way indeed.”

At those words, I shrugged and replied.
“Demon King, I’m not such a good person, you know.”
“You are a good person.”

The voice was firm, almost resolute. His declaration made me chuckle softly as I stood up from my seat.
“Alright, think whatever you want.”

Something about my response seemed to displease the Demon King, as he displayed a sullen expression. On his usually perfect face, such an expression was almost laughable. I considered pinching his cheek, but before I could act, the jingling sound of a bell interrupted us.

“Guild Master! What are you and the Demon King doing alone together?”

“Do you want to keep calling us that in broad daylight?”

“There isn’t a single ant on the streets anyway,” replied the Northern Grand Duke, stepping out of the Hero’s shop and clapping his hands lightly.
“More importantly, something big has happened!”

“―Momma!”

Following behind the Grand Duke was Rim, waddling along on short legs, echoing his words.

“Did the Dragon Slayer’s hatchling go missing or something?”

I doubted that possibility. The chain tied around my wrist led directly to the Dragon Slayer, so I would’ve known. My comment made the Grand Duke, who clearly harbored some grievance against the Dragon Slayer, grimace as he spoke.

“No, it’s not that. Guild Master, your face is on TV right now!”

“…What? My face is on TV?”

“Yes! So please, hurry and come see for yourself!”

Baffled, I quickly followed the Grand Duke back inside. In the Hero’s shop, with no customers in sight, the TV volume had been cranked up to the maximum.

―We urgently need your active attention and reports.

A familiar voice made my ears perk up.

―The person shown on screen is my younger sister, Do Haun.

Wait, what? My brother?!

*****

“Ahahaha! To think I’d see the Saintess like this,” a man with short, neatly cropped black hair said, laughing as he appeared on the TV screen showing Do Haun.

In response to his laughter, a man with ash-gray hair remarked, “This is no laughing matter. Lee Sion hasn’t returned yet.”

“The bigger problem is that our Saintess is as beautiful as ever. Naturally, such pests are bound to swarm around her, don’t you think?”

“You’re insane,” the ash-gray-haired man retorted, throwing an insult without hesitation. The black-haired man, however, continued to grin as if he enjoyed it.

“Anyway, stop laughing like an idiot and try to figure out where Lee Sion went. It’s been over a week!”

“He’ll come back on his own. It’s not like this is the first time something like this has happened.”

“But I’m worried this time!”

The ash-gray-haired man’s tone held a note of anxiety. At that, the black-haired man let out a hearty laugh. His carefree demeanor had a way of lightening the mood, but…

“Ah, you son of a—! Stop laughing, damn it! Go find Lee Sion already! It’s been over a week!”

The man’s rant was abruptly cut off when the ash-gray-haired man hurled a cushion at his face, which landed squarely.

From across the street, a man standing on the rooftop of another building watched the scene unfold.
“Hmmm, they don’t seem to get along very well,” he muttered.

Though the figures across the way appeared faint and blurry, he spoke as though he could see them clearly.

It was inevitable.

The reason was clear: his pupils glowed with the red patterns of a magic circle.

Hae Roun blinked a few times and stretched leisurely.
“Well, I guess I’d better head back to the Guild Master.”

If he pushed further here, there was a risk of being noticed by the other side. Having confirmed their location, Hae Roun turned and began walking toward the shop run by the Hero.

“Kang Hasu, you bastard!”

“….”

It seemed he had arrived at a bad time.

“Do you think I did that because I wanted to?! I had no choice if I wanted to survive!”

“So you sold out me and Mage Hae Roun?!”

Hearing his name mentioned out of nowhere, Hae Roun tilted his head in confusion. He noticed guild members idly watching the chaos, clearly entertained.

“Mage, you’re here?”

“So your name is really ‘Hae Roun’? That suits you so well.”

“Hero, that’s not a compliment, is it?”

To Hae Roun’s question, the Hero nodded seriously. Just then, the bell jingled, and a delivery person entered carrying several Styrofoam boxes.

“Boss Kang Inhan! You’ve got a delivery!”

(tl/n: There was description that the hero is a woman. So I always think it’s a woman. Now I’m in doubt because no woman named Kang Inhan and to change all the way from chapter 1 is a hassle. Let’s just assume the Hero is a woman for now)

“….”

Hearing the voice, Do Haun immediately released Kang Hasu’s collar and stepped aside. Kang Hasu coughed and wheezed, trying to recover.

The Hero, Kang Inhan, signed the delivery receipt and sent the delivery person off. As soon as they left, Hae Roun smirked.

“So your name is ‘Kang Inhan’? It suits you perfectly!”

(tl/n: Kang Inhan 강인한 literally mean tough)

“Thanks for the compliment.”

“….”

Feeling like his remark had fallen flat, Hae Roun pouted in displeasure. Yoo Daegong, who had known Kang Inhan’s name all along, couldn’t hold back his laughter.

“So?”

Leaning against the counter, Hae Roun asked, prompting Kang Inhan and Yoo Daegong to turn their attention to him. Hae Roun glanced at Do Haun, who had resumed shaking Kang Hasu by the collar, and asked again.

“What are those two fighting about?”

“Well, you see…” Yoo Daegong trailed off, offering an awkward smile.

Hae Roun frowned at the suspicious response.

“Mage, it’s been publicly announced that you kidnapped Do Haun,” said Woo Mahun, who was seated in a secluded corner of the shop.

Hae Roun’s brows furrowed deeply at that statement.

“What are you talking about, Demon King? Mage doesn’t understand a word of this.”

Woo Mahun averted his gaze from Hae Roun’s puzzled expression.

Without any explanation, Hae Roun looked utterly dumbfounded.

“Ugh, it’s easier to show you than to explain,” Yoo Daegong sighed.

“Show me what?”

“That news about you allegedly kidnapping the Guild Master,” Kang Inhan said, as Yoo Daegong handed over a video.

Confused, Hae Roun played the video.

―Office worker Hunter H declares Mage Hae Roun a major enemy of Haun and proclaims…

The voice of a benevolent employer on the video left Hae Roun with his jaw hanging open. After the video finished, Hae Roun forcibly moved his stiff jaw to speak.

“So you’re telling me this whole mess happened because of the Spirit Master?”

Yoo Daegong, Kang Inhan, and Woo Mahun all nodded in unison.

Though he hadn’t yet heard a detailed explanation from Kang Hasu, Hae Roun was quick to piece things together.

He had heard that Do Hajun and Do Hain had repeatedly approached Kang Hasu in their search for Do Haun. Clearly, something had gone wrong during that process, and the aftermath had spiraled into this absurd situation.

Having finished his thoughts, Hae Roun burst into a bright, cheerful laugh. The radiance of his expression was so overwhelming that Yoo Daegong and Kang Inhan instinctively backed away from him, looking slightly daunted.

Without hesitation, Hae Roun moved his hands.

“Ahhh!”

The Spirit Master, Kang Hasu, was suddenly flung into the air, soaring to the ceiling.

―Momma? Momma!!

Startled by Kang Hasu’s voice, the hatchling, who had been napping on a soft blanket, fluttered into the air and began circling curiously around the dangling figure.

“Haha, dear hatchling, that’s not your toy,” said Yoo Daegong, extending his arms to call the hatchling toward him.

Meanwhile, Kang Hasu, flailing helplessly midair, caught sight of Hae Roun and shouted.

“You damn mage! Put me down this instant!”

“Spirit Master, you’re the real menace here! How are you going to fix this mess?”

“Well… that’s…”

Kang Hasu faltered, unable to come up with a proper excuse. After all, no matter how he tried to justify himself, he couldn’t escape blame in this situation.

******

Seriously, Spirit Master, what the hell were you thinking to let things get this bad?!

I shot a sharp glare at Kang Hasu, then ran a hand through my hair in frustration.

If I were to summarize the current situation, it went like this:

As usual, my impossibly annoying younger siblings had barged into the Spirit Master’s office. Without preamble, they had shoved a low-resolution photo in his face. The image, taken from the CCTV footage at the filming site, showed me, the mage, and the Spirit Master together.

“Where is Haun right now?”

After noting that the three of us had disappeared together but only the Spirit Master had returned, my siblings had grilled him relentlessly.

“Vice Guild Master Do Hain accused me of being a kidnapper! I had no other choice but to say something!” Kang Hasu wailed.

“So you threw me under the bus as the kidnapper, huh?”

In an effort to escape his predicament, the Spirit Master had used Hae Roun as a convenient scapegoat.

I let out a small sigh and dragged a chair toward me, dropping into it with a heavy thud.

“This is a complete disaster.”

“Ah, you scared me!”

Startled by a voice suddenly coming from behind me, I nearly bit my tongue. I turned to see who had spoken, trying to calm my pounding heart.

“How long have you been there?”

“Guild Master, since you started fighting with the Spirit Master.”

“Done crying now?”

“….”

The Dragon Slayer scowled deeply at me, but his glare didn’t faze me in the slightest. I shrugged nonchalantly.

“Your eyes will be puffy tomorrow. Want me to heal you?”

“…Shut up.”

Despite his curt reply, he pressed his hands firmly against his reddened eyes, clearly embarrassed.

“Guild Master!!”

The loud, piercing voice made me flinch instinctively. Turning toward the source, I saw Hae Roun fuming, pointing accusingly at me and the Dragon Slayer.

“Why are you with that guy? Have you two gotten all buddy-buddy now?”

“Exactly! Weren’t you two ready to kill each other just a while ago?”

Kang Hasu, who had gently landed back on the ground, chimed in, his eyes full of suspicion. Both of them were glaring warily at the Dragon Slayer, who returned their stares with a cold, sharp gaze of his own.

Trying to lighten the mood, I raised my wrist. As I did so, the chain binding me to the Dragon Slayer caused his wrist to lift in tandem with mine.

“….”