Chapter 126
“Well, it’s a thing of the past now, and there’s not much information left from that time, since the government kept it quiet. But it was something that people who heard about the situation couldn’t easily forget.”
“Wow. I really didn’t know. Did they always fight so poorly?”
“…That’s because Hye-rim is special.”
Yu-hyun saw Kang Hye-rim as a person who had a talent for fighting to the bone.
It didn’t matter whether it was because of her power or her original personality that brought out that power.
Kang Hye-rim was a born collector.
She could swing her sword at the phantoms without hesitation from the first time she fought.
“Ordinary people would look for Jesus or Buddha if they stepped on a Lego.”
“Pfft. Hehe. Lego? What kind of expression is that?”
“It’s true.”
The problem was that underage collectors forgot their situation and were full of unfounded confidence that they could do anything.
Their sacrifice resulted in the establishment of the academy, and from Yu-hyun’s point of view, it was unclear whether this was a good or a bad thing.
“But now that the academy has been established, the death accidents of minors have almost disappeared. And since they don’t try to clear the world of thoughts, the risk of being a collector itself has also decreased significantly.”
Of course, it only decreased significantly, but the death rate of collectors was still very high.
There were cases where they died or went missing in the world of thoughts due to unintended accidents.
And the enemy of collectors was not just phantoms.
Terrorists, religious organizations, scavengers, etc. There were threats everywhere.
“Wow. That’s how it was.”
“But Korea is really in a good situation. Other countries still don’t have proper measures for underage collectors. Maybe only the European Union or the United States. That’s why the Korean collector academy attracts a lot of attention from all over the world. There are also many foreign students.”
In fact, Korea was the first country to establish a collector academy.
Before the change came, the education fever for minors was the highest in the world, and this came back around.
The European Union built one in Switzerland and the United States built one in New York later, but they were not enough to catch up with the status of the Korean academy.
“A lot of rich kids flocked here. Especially Western students. They all came to Korea Academy because they were from prestigious families, noble bloodlines, and so on.”
“You seem to know a lot of details, Yu-hyun?”
“I was interested.”
Yu-hyun smiled bitterly.
The reason he knew so much about this information was because he also had a dream of entering such an academy when he was young and passionate.
Before the end came, Yu-hyun was still a minor.
He wanted to be a collector then.
Of course, if he awakened, he would go to the academy, and Yu-hyun simulated what if he became a collector and searched for detailed information about the academy.
‘It was all useless.’
But considering that he could use this information to inform Kang Hye-rim, it wasn’t such a bad thing to know this information.
‘But the academy…’
As his thoughts reached an element that he hadn’t paid attention to until now, Yu-hyun unconsciously stroked his chin with his finger.
‘Thinking about it, finding talent in the academy is also possible.’
The academy takes in awakened children and teaches them thoroughly.
Naturally, those who graduated from the academy, so-called graduates, had a much higher level than ordinary collectors.
‘And most of them with talent would have gone there.’
In fact, there were many people who reached high-rank collectors in no time among the academy graduates.
Among the collectors who made their names in Europe, more than 30% were from Korea’s collector academy.
There was no need to look for people who finished training at training centers until then.
But.
‘No. Still no.’
Yu-hyun shook his head.
The academy was definitely a very attractive place for Yu-hyun.
He couldn’t imagine how many stones there would be inside.
But, the problem was that they were academy students.
‘Academy students graduate when they become adults. Until then, they have to belong to the academy and go through all kinds of hassle to enter the world of thoughts.’
Adult collectors are free to enter the world of thoughts.
They had to report to the association or give them some money, but that was just ‘it would be nice’ level, not something they had to do.
Minors were different.
They were strictly protected by law, so they needed approval from the academy, association, government agency to enter the world of thoughts.
Even if they got approval, they couldn’t act alone.
They needed at least four companions and one of them had to be verified by the state.
‘The disadvantage is too big. Even if I find a good kid among the academy students, I don’t have enough time to wait until he graduates.’
It was also difficult to find a student who graduated from the academy.
The academy graduation ceremony was only once a year, unlike the training center graduation ceremony.
The season now was passing early summer and heading towards summer.
The academy graduation was already over in early spring, and the next graduation ceremony would be next March.
He was too busy to hold on for more than half a year to find the third one.
‘But it wouldn’t hurt to keep the academy students in mind. It’s on hold for now, but who knows? Maybe there’s another talent that will make my eyes flip.’
Of course, Yu-hyun didn’t really believe in such optimistic speculation.
Most of the important things were already in his head.
The element of ‘unexpected’ was enough with Kwon Jia.
Was it because Yu-hyun’s gaze stayed on the students for too long?
“Hmm. Yu-hyun, you have that taste.”
Kang Hye-rim’s eyes toward Yu-hyun became very sour, unlike before.
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Yu-hyun realized too late that he was staring at them too hard.
“Huh? No, no. No. I think you misunderstood, it’s not that at all.”
“Yeah, yeah. I’m sorry. I’m too old to meet your standards.”
“No, that’s not what I meant!”
Yu-hyun had to sweat for a while to calm down Kang Hye-rim’s mood.
***
Yu-hyun thought to himself, ‘I’ve taken a day off, so I guess I can work now.’
But the Yu-hyun Rest Project, which was carried out by White Flower Management itself, was not over yet.
“Mr. Yu-hyun. Come out with me today.”
Baek Seryeon suddenly approached him and said that, and Yu-hyun was puzzled.
“What, is there something wrong?”
“No, it’s just that today is my turn.”
“Your turn?”
Yu-hyun looked around the office with a puzzled expression.
As Yu-hyun’s gaze met Kwon Jia and Kang Hye-rim, they both acted as if they didn’t know anything and busied themselves with their own weapons.
Hmm. Yu-hyun doubted inwardly, but he kept his mouth shut because he had no clear evidence.
“So, are you going?”
“No? I’m going to rest here.”
He didn’t want to be dragged along like this, no matter what.
Yu-hyun conveyed that meaning to Baek Seryeon. But Baek Seryeon smiled and immediately poked at Yu-hyun’s weak spot.
“Actually, you see. I found a new supplier for the by-products, but the president there kept avoiding meeting me. I thought it would be hard to do it alone, so I needed your help.”
“Me?”
“Yes. I need your help on a business level.”
Business level.
That word echoed in Yu-hyun’s head.
If it was a casual invitation to hang out, Yu-hyun would have refused flatly, but if it involved ‘work’, the story changed completely.
“Ahem. If it’s for work, then I guess I can’t help it. Let’s go together. Where is it?”
Yu-hyun quickly changed his attitude and got up from his seat.
“What? You just said you were resting.”
“Oh. The representative of the management is having a hard time, how can I just rest? Of course I have to help.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“No. It’s okay. Who else will do it if not me?”
“Come to think of it, I think I can do it by myself.”
“It will be faster if we do it together than if you do it alone.”
“Hmm. What do you think?”
As he saw Baek Seryeon hesitating, Yu-hyun felt his mouth dry up.
He wondered if he had made a mistake by refusing at first, and worried that it might not work out.
Baek Seryeon nodded her head.
“Well, I guess there’s no choice.”
“Haha. That’s right, Seryeon. That’s a bold choice worthy of a representative. Come on, let’s go.”
“Okay.”
Yu-hyun acted like a subordinate for the first time towards Baek Seryeon.
He immediately grabbed her coat and escorted her out of the office.
The two collectors who glanced at them from the corner of their eyes sighed and shook their heads.
“He’s usually perfect, but who would have thought he’d be so sloppy when it comes to work-related matters.”
“He’s really a severe workaholic.”𝖓𝑜ν𝙚𝘭𝘣Ꭵ𝒏.𝒏𝙚𝒕
The two muttered and soon met each other’s eyes, and nodded slightly at the same time.
It was the first time that their hearts were in sync.
***
“Let’s go.”
“Are we walking? I guess the supplier is nearby?”
“No. Rather than the supplier, I think we need a car anyway. We’re going to stop by the store first.”
“Oh. Are you finally getting a car?”
Sure enough, White Flower Management didn’t have a vehicle yet.
Considering that Yu-hyun usually used public transportation to go to the world of thoughts, he definitely needed a car.
“But now?”
“Mr. Yu-hyun. It has to be now. We have money now. Look at the other collectors. They all have personal managers who drive them around everywhere, but our management collectors can’t do that. You don’t know how uncomfortable I was watching them all this time.”
“What about the driver?”
“It’s okay if I do it.”
“What about your work?”
“I’ve been doing a lot lately, so I’ve had some free time recently. And besides, I have a license too, but if I don’t drive, my skills will rust, so I need to oil them up sometimes.”
It was quite a lavish idea to buy a new car for that oiling up, but Yu-hyun also recognized the need for a vehicle and nodded his head without saying anything.
It wasn’t just a personal desire, but something that was needed at the company level.
There was no reason to hesitate about investing.
They headed to a nearby car dealership.
“What kind of car are you going to choose?”
“Hmm. I think a small SUV would be good, considering that we’ll have to carry more people.”
“That wouldn’t be bad either.”
They decided to look for a new car, thinking that a used car might have some defects, even though it was cheaper.
They didn’t have to worry about money.
They had 5.5 billion won in cash.
And considering the settlement money that would come in soon, they would have enough money left even if they bought a new sports car, not a regular car.
“I’ll take this one.”
That’s how Baek Seryeon finished the purchase process of a red SUV.
She also chose the options and finished the insurance, and the delivery process went smoothly.
“Shall we go then?”
Baek Seryeon took the car key and shook it with a smile.
Seeing her smile so confidently, she looked like a professional, despite her small stature.
Yu-hyun, who got in the passenger seat of the newly delivered car, was surprised by Baek Seryeon’s smooth driving skills.
“You drive well?”
“I have a heavy equipment license too, so compared to that, a car is nothing. I couldn’t buy a car because I didn’t have money, not because I didn’t have skills.”
They soon arrived at the world of thoughts by-product purchase center.
This place, which operated with a large outlet, was one of the largest by-product purchase centers in the country.
Not only did it handle the by-products of the world of thoughts, but it also had various items that ordinary people could come and buy, so even though it was a weekday afternoon, the inside was crowded with people.
“So, are we going straight to the supplier?”
“Ah. That thing…”
Yu-hyun felt uneasy at Baek Seryeon’s sudden hesitation.
“Actually, I already finished it.”
“…What do you mean you needed my help?”
“That was a white lie to lure you out.”
“…”
“Hehe.”
“…”
Thwack.
Yu-hyun hit Baek Seryeon’s forehead with his fist.
“Ow!”
Baek Seryeon clutched her head.
