Chapter 174: Calling (3)
Isabella entered the room.
“It’s been a while, Mr. Oh-Jin.”
She gracefully sat beside Kwon Oh-Jin with a sweet smile as if it were the most natural thing.
He had thought Jegal So-Young’s smile was charming, but seeing Isabella’s was so dazzling that he couldn't even remember what Jegal So-Young looked like for a moment.
“I’ve missed you,” Isabella said.
“How did you end up joining the Guardian Stars?” Kwon Oh-Jin asked.
“I heard that you were here, so I contacted Mr. Cheon Sang-Gil directly!”
He stared at Isabella with a baffled expression.
Wait, what? She joined because of me?
Clearly not knowing how Kwon Oh-Jin felt, Isabella looked at him with bright eyes like a puppy waiting to be praised. She gently tilted her head toward him.
Does she want me to pet her?
Feeling pressured by the unspoken request, he found himself placing his hand on her beautiful platinum hair. Her silky hair flowed between his fingers like fine wool.
Isabella softly moaned, closing her eyes as if savoring Kwon Oh-Jin’s touch and scent.
“Haaa.”
“I was surprised when I first received Miss Isabella’s request. I never imagined you would have connections with the Saintess of Rome,” Cheon Sang-Gil remarked.
“Well... it just kind of happened.”
Just as Kwon Oh-Jin tried to brush off explaining their relationship, Isabella interrupted.
“Mr. Oh-Jin is my lifesaver.”
“Lifesaver?” Cheon Sang-Gil asked.
Isabella nodded with a radiant smile. “Yes. When I was being targeted by the Black Star Society’s assassins, Mr. Oh-Jin was the one who saved me.”
“Ah ha, I see.” Cheon Sang-Gil’s eyes gleamed with intrigue as he glanced between Kwon Oh-Jin and Isabella. “Looks like there’s no need to worry about teamwork.”
Satisfied, he nodded approvingly.
“I’d love to hold a welcoming ceremony so everyone could get acquainted, but now’s not the time. Let’s get straight to talking about the mission.”
Cheon Sang-Gil pulled out a map from his pocket and spread it on the table. It showed a detailed map of Yonghyeon-dong, which had now turned into a ghost town.
“What I need from you all is to track and eliminate the demonic beast that has been appearing in the Yonghyeon-dong area.”
“All we need to do is take care of the demonic beast?” Kwon Oh-Jin asked.
“For now, yes. If possible, I’d also like you to investigate if there are connections between the beast and the Bufo faction.”
A link between the Bufo faction and the demonic beast, huh?
“I understand.”
Kwon Oh-Jin nodded as he examined the areas on the map where the demonic beast had been spotted. The area was too big for just the six of them to search.
“It would be better to split into pairs and search in teams of two,” Kwon Oh-Jin suggested.
“Pfft. Is that really necessary? Why not just spread out individually? If we find them, we can just kill them right away,” Choi Yoo-Mi scoffed. “Or, don’t tell me you’re scared to walk around alone?”
She smirked at him. It was such a childish provocation.
Kwon Oh-Jin chuckled and replied, “It’s more about group balance. We’ve got Jegal So-Young, who specializes in long-range attacks with her Stigma of Sagittarius. We also have members with the Stigma of Aquarius and Aries, who are more supporters than fighters, yet you want us to split up?”
“That’s...” Choi Yoo-Mi hesitated with an embarrassed expression and trailed off.
She had overlooked the basic group composition because she was too focused on provoking Kwon Oh-Jin.
“If you’re going to pick a fight, at least think it through first.”
“W-What did you just say?”
Choi Yoo-Mi gritted her teeth. She slammed the table and reached for her sword at her waist.
Bang!
“You bastard, I’ve had enough!”
She was about to unsheathe her sword.
Clang!
“Eek!”
Perhaps startled by Choi Yoo-Mi’s sudden outburst, Isabella had been sipping tea and accidentally dropped her teacup. The hot green tea splashed onto Choi Yoo-Mi.
Choi Yoo-Mi frowned as she glanced down at her soaked socks. “Ah, damn it.”
Isabella’s accidental distraction had interrupted her attempt to unsheathe her sword. Annoyed, she sharply glared at Isabella.
Isabella hurried toward Choi Yoo-Mi, bowing her head repeatedly with a panicked expression. “I-I’m so sorry! Are you hurt?”
Isabella trembled like a frightened lamb.
Choi Yoo-Mi recalled how Isabella had been clinging to Kwon Oh-Jin just moments ago and derisively snorted.
Tsk, what a bunch of losers.
She was about to unleash a barrage of curses at Isabella right in front of Kwon Oh-Jin.
Isabella, who had been bowing in fear, leaned in close to Choi Yoo-Mi’s ear and whispered softly for only Choi Yoo-Mi to hear.
“Stop bothering Mr. Oh-Jin and stay the fuck out of the way, you bitch.”
Choi Yoo-Mi’s eyes widened in shock.
“Huh?”
What did I just hear?
The sudden and crude words made her mind freeze. She couldn’t believe they had come from Isabella, who looked so innocent and sweet.
“W-What... ‘Bitch?’”
The shock didn’t last long. As the initial surprise wore off, an erupting volcano of rage replaced it.
Choi Yoo-Mi’s face twisted into a snarl as she glared at Isabella. Then, a suffocating sensation gripped her like she had turned into a frog meeting the gaze of a snake. She couldn’t move.
Her heart pounded violently.
Thump, thump.
Her breathing grew heavy, and her reason crumbled away. Her instincts screamed. It howled and begged her to run. She needed to run away right now.
“Haa, haa, haa!”
Choi Yoo-Mi clutched her chest to calm her heart, which felt like it would burst. She trembled uncontrollably as cold sweat dripped down her back.
What... is this?
Had she ever felt such overwhelming fear before? She had fought countless monsters, faced life-and-death battles against numerous Awakeners, but she had never experienced terror like this.
Isabella approached with a concerned expression. “A-Are you okay, Miss Yoo-Mi?”
Choi Yoo-Mi instinctively flinched and took a few steps back. For some reason, a sickening scent of blood emanated from Isabella. The thick, nauseating stench stung her nostrils and made her stomach turn.
Choi Yoo-Mi bent over and started gagging.
“Huuk, ugh!”
She barely managed to cover her mouth and suppressed the urge to vomit, but she couldn’t stop the slight wetness spreading between her legs.
“H-Hic!” Choi Yoo-Mi hiccupped in panic as her face contorted in terror.
No matter how fierce her personality was, she was still a woman. She couldn’t maintain her composure after peeing in front of everyone.
“Yoo-Mi? Are you alright?” Cheon Sang-Gil asked.
“Miss Yoo-Mi?”
The only silver lining was that her accident wasn’t obvious to others.
“I-I need to go to the bathroom!”
Choi Yoo-Mi bolted out of the room, nearly breaking the sliding door.
Isabella blinked, looking genuinely confused as she watched Choi Yoo-Mi leave. “I wonder what’s gotten into her?”
She shuffled her feet anxiously.
“D-Did I... do something wrong?”
Cheon Sang-Gil shook his head calmly. “I’m sure that’s not it. Yoo-Mi is a high-ranking Awakener of Phoenix. A little spilled tea wouldn’t hurt her.”
“Then why...?”
“I don’t know either.”
Choi Yoo-Mi’s behavior defied logic.
“Hmm. I might need to take back what I said about good teamwork.” Cheon Sang-Gil sighed deeply as he scanned the chaotic room. “This is all because I rushed to bring you all together. Yoo-Mi is probably just feeling a little overwhelmed. Please try to understand.”
“I don’t care as long as she doesn’t interfere with the mission,” Kwon Oh-Jin replied indifferently while subtly glancing at Isabella.
What the hell did you do?
He had noticed her whispering something in Choi Yoo-Mi’s ear earlier, but it had been so quick that he didn’t catch a single word.
Isabella sat beside him again, gently placing her hand on top of his.
“I’m sorry for causing such a scene, Mr. Oh-Jin.”
She had clearly done something to Choi Yoo-Mi. He couldn’t help but gulp as she wore the same innocent, naive smile as before.
Fuck.
Even if Choi Yoo-Mi wasn’t a part of the twelve Zodiacs, she was still a high-ranking nine-star Awakener. Isabella had just made someone like that pee herself.
He couldn’t gauge Isabella’s true power at all.
If even Cheon Sang-Gil didn’t notice anything, that means she’s likely stronger than him too.
In the worst-case scenario, everyone in this room would die before they could even react if Isabella suddenly decided to flip the table.
He felt like he was sitting next to a nuclear bomb. One wrong move and the Guardian Stars here would literally become stars in the night sky.
Don’t let her realize that I’ve noticed.
Kwon Oh-Jin shook his head and softly said, “It’s not your fault, Isabella. Don’t worry. Maybe she just wasn’t feeling well, seeing how she provoked me earlier.”
“Do you think so?”
Of course, of course, my queen... I-I mean, Isabella, you didn’t do anything wrong. It’s all that bitch Choi Yoo-Mi’s fault. That’s it. I just need to get through it seamlessly like this.
Kwon Oh-Jin clenched his fist tightly.
Isabella’s obsession with him was borderline insane. As long as he played along, she wouldn’t explode.
“Shall we form the groups now?” Kwon Oh-Jin cheerfully asked, trying to shift the mood.
“Yes, let’s do that,” Lee Woo-Hyuk said.
Cheon Sang-Gil nodded in agreement. “I agree. Splitting into groups for the search seems wise.”
Good.
The majority agreed with him.
“I think it’s best to balance the teams by having one supporter and one attacker in each group.”
Kwon Oh-Jin explained his reasoning, which was practically impossible to refute.
“Since Isabella and I know each other well, we’ll be in the same—”
“Hmm. I’m not so sure about that.”
Jegal So-Young raised her hand with a calm expression. With a seductive smile, she slid into the seat next to Kwon Oh-Jin.
Now, he was caught between Isabella and Jegal So-Young.
Jegal So-Young glanced at Isabella and gently wrapped her arms around Kwon Oh-Jin’s. A rich scent of rose perfume tickled his nose.
“I want to be on the same team as Mr. Oh-Jin,” Jegal So-Young said.
In that moment, a chilling look flashed in Isabella’s eyes.
He screamed internally.
Fucking hell! Get lost! Please, for the love of God, get the fuck away!
The red light on the nuclear bomb he had barely managed to switch off was flickering again.