Black Badger

The salon was filled with people who resembled peacocks.

Regardless of gender, they were dressed to the nines. They brimmed with strong egos. But even among those bold individuals, that man and woman stood out.

I inhaled the suffocating air that enveloped them and exhaled.

"Do we really have to greet them?"

"Honestly, I initially planned to keep you hidden too."

Ye-hyeon brought up something unexpected.

I blinked and turned my gaze to the men standing beside me. They hadn't relaxed their tension since leaving home. Even my mentor had his nerves on edge, which confirmed that this was a gathering of undeniable heavyweights.

Though I still couldn't pinpoint exactly who these heavyweights were.

A dazzling crystal chandelier sparkled overhead.

Ye-hyeon scrutinized my face.

"Anyway, you can't hide forever. Better to charge straight ahead than to act ambiguously."

"I still don't understand why they're so interested in me... But I'll follow your decision."

"Hilde."

Ye-hyeon called my name in an unusual tone.

I silently met my superior's large eyes. Yoon had his hands stuffed in his pockets and quietly listened to our conversation.

To me, awaiting a reply, Ye-hyeon said,

"If you safely get through introducing yourself to the elders today, I'll tell you as much as you want to know from what I know."

"Pardon?"

"I don't know everything myself. But once the introduction is done safely, there's no reason to hide anything from you."

Ye-hyeon wore an elegant smile on his lips.

I knew that smile. I'd seen it just once, in the Supreme Commander's office. It was the smile he gave me when he left the room on the day I first heard Jae-yeon's name.

A proud smile mixed with admiration for a subordinate who fulfilled his expectations.

"Thanks for enduring without showing your frustration all this time."

I was momentarily speechless.

Then I barely managed a nod. I still didn't know what to say.

My creaky reaction must have been funny, as Yoon chuckled at me.

The man, who rarely wore black yet suited it so well, turned his body and said,

"I'll stay out of it. Nothing good comes from getting close to them."

"Yeah. Keep your distance as much as possible."

Ye-hyeon agreed readily and turned his gaze to the pair of man and woman.

"They're the type you don't want to get involved with."

With that, he walked toward those very people he said to avoid.

He approached the woman with her silver-gray hair tied back in a single ponytail first. That was the correct order, he said. Ye-hyeon explained that she was 'higher' than the platinum blond man. Strictly observing this hierarchy was very important. He advised never to get the order wrong, no matter what.

The second in the power ranking among the elders.

Codename Guardian.

I stopped nearby and saw her standing gracefully alone amid the people surrounding her.

The silver accessories on her black dress, dark as if it devoured light, let out a clear chime.

She had a stern impression. Her silver hair was elegantly tied up, and her features were sharply defined. She possessed green eyes far brighter than Ricardo's. The gaze that shot from those pale green eyes made it feel like the back of my head was being pierced.

There was no sign of a smile on the woman's face.

"Yekaterina."

Ye-hyeon called her name quietly.

"I'd like to introduce my subordinate."

Gazes flew in like arrows.

The eyes of those surrounding Yekaterina turned to me. People of all sorts narrowed their eyes and scrutinized me. I withstood their stares while quietly observing the surroundings.

There were wary gazes and envious ones, but they were a tiny minority.

The majority looked at me with the same emotion.

Contempt.

Or disdain. Sneers questioning who this stranger was. In this place, fame equaled power. I couldn't recognize everyone around Yekaterina, but they were undoubtedly all famous in various fields.

I recognized several immediately. If I knew them, they had to be hugely famous. Famous movie actors. Party leaders. News anchors from major broadcasters. Prominent influencers.

People with legions of fans.

How laughable a newbie Badger, who'd only appeared in the news once, must have looked among them.

It was to be expected, being invited to a place where I didn't belong. But I paid no mind to the overt scans and judgmental stares, the clearly audible snickers of mockery, the questions of who I was, and the jeering responses calling me a rookie Badger.

To be precise, I couldn't afford to pay mind. I couldn't evade Yekaterina's gaze. Standing before her and meeting it, her presence weighed down on me even more than from a distance.

And what was this? Sharp gazes stabbing into my nape?

They must have had bodyguards hidden all around.

"Finally, I see you."

Yekaterina approached with a weighty greeting.

"His special guest. You've had it rough."

The greeting felt a bit odd?

I couldn't question it, so I just offered a ceremonial smile and returned the greeting with "Nice to meet you."

Yekaterina's hand was firm.

As we shook hands, the surrounding noise quieted slightly. The stares from the crowd burned hot.

They were staring so intently at someone else's greeting.

The woman pierced me with her bright eyes and greeted me once more.

"I believe you'll continue to make the right choices, just as before."

"Thank you. I'll keep working hard."

A strong intuition told me that "that time" wasn't when I rescued Poden, but I smiled and brushed it off.

"So that when you look back, you won't regret your choices."

A flicker of light appeared in Yekaterina's eyes at my response.

It vanished in an instant; probably only I witnessed it. I didn't bother seeking the cause of that brief flash. After releasing our handshake, I kept my smile and subtly stepped back.

Even among those who naturally wielded fame, this woman exuded an overwhelming presence.

I didn't want to converse at length with someone who embodied power itself. My nape still stung from those sharp gazes. And these weren't the frivolous stares from celebrities—they were warnings filled with killing intent from ruthless individuals.

Send me home!

Ye-hyeon gave Yekaterina a rigidly businesslike smile.

"Please take good care of our newbie."

"I should be the one asking that."

Yekaterina replied indifferently and turned away.

Then, as she returned to those surrounding her, she added casually,

"It's been a long time since I've been pleased by a meeting. I'll watch with interest from now on."

Me?

Why me? I wanted to retort, but I held back.

If I got through this salon safely, Ye-hyeon said he'd tell me everything he knew. A few more hours of endurance, and a lot might start making sense.

So instead of blinking in bewilderment, I smiled gently.

Ye-hyeon turned.

He whispered that we should go. I nodded and followed behind him. Perhaps due to Yekaterina's final words, several people approached with curiosity-filled eyes, but as I trailed my superior, I had no choice but to pretend not to notice them.

The various interests—curiosity, contempt, sneers, wariness, hostility—fell away.

I'd escaped Yekaterina's territory.

Sensing the fact through the cool relief at my nape, I crossed the spacious salon hall.

*

The second elder was the platinum blond man.

He pulled off a pristine white three-piece suit impeccably. Even with the passage of time etched on his face, he was more handsome than most young men. His hair was smoothly slicked back, his features refined. A leisurely smile hung on his lips.

He too was surrounded by people.

But the vibe was different from those around Yekaterina. As we closed in, the man turned gracefully.

Ugh. The stinging gazes at my nape started pouring in again.

Different from Yekaterina's bodyguards.

They carried killing intent, but strangely mixed with a sense of thrill?

What kind of thugs had he hired as guards.

The man, holding a champagne flute beautifully between his fingers, looked at us as we stopped and raised his glass.

Seeing Ye-hyeon, he smiled broadly.

"Supreme Commander!"

What? Why was he so happy to see Ye-hyeon.

"Long time no see. I've been waiting for you. You seem even more appealing lately. Shall we have tea after this?"

Ye-hyeon let out a sigh without hiding it.

I blinked, unable to grasp the situation.

Why was this man, known as third in rank among the elders, grinning at Ye-hyeon and making advances? Why was my superior sighing as if accustomed to it, not even trying to hide his darkening expression? 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

The Supreme Commander even replied in a dour tone,

"I thought I'd improved these past few days. Enough not to attract your attention."

"Haha. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem so."

The platinum blond middle-aged man laughed brightly at Ye-hyeon's words.

The people here also eyed us with curiosity. But they didn't seem as interested in us as those by Yekaterina. The gazes aimed at me weren't as overt as before. The new face was intriguing, but fundamentally, they were most concerned with their own matters.

As I blinked, appreciating the clear difference, Ye-hyeon's mutter reached my ears.

"You still love the look of someone who seems sick."

"Those are the ones who shine brighter than anyone once refined."

The man smiled at Ye-hyeon, his gaze fixed on him.

He seemed like someone born with nobility.

"You too. Ye-hyeon. I promise no talk of complicated things. Really, tea after?"

"I'm here to introduce my subordinate."

Ye-hyeon coldly cut off the invitation.

He shifted his body slightly to clear a path for me. With an awkward expression, I passed him and approached the man. He didn't seem pleased that his conversation with Ye-hyeon had been interrupted.

But what power did I have.

I bowed my head and greeted first.

"My subordinate Hildebert Talev."

"Ah~..."

The man drew out the sound as if something had come to mind, observing me.

I met the elder's bright gray eyes and awaited his response.

"The one from the rumors."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Hildebert Talev."

"Prometheus."

What?

"You're today's special guest, right? As expected, not really someone who catches my interest."

"I'm sorry. As you can see, I'm just an ordinary newbie with nothing special."

"It's not that I'm personally intrigued, but given the circumstances, I have no choice but to take note."

Like Yekaterina, the man said something incomprehensible.

He smirked at my blinking eyes. The tilted smile felt sly and brimming with confidence, different from Ricardo's or Yoon's—radiating the elegance and self-assurance of someone exceptional from birth.

He extended his hand to me.

"Eric Airheart. Let's get along well."

Codename Spitfire.

I shook it silently. After the formal greetings, Ye-hyeon quickly left the spot. Leaving behind Airheart, who urged him to seriously consider the tea proposal.

As I followed Ye-hyeon, who turned sharply and crossed the salon hall, the gazes clinging to my nape finally disappeared.

Look at that refreshing coolness.

Just from those greetings, I was this drained. Now I understood why Yoon wanted to avoid getting involved with them.

I shuddered once, then returned with Ye-hyeon to where my mentor was.

*

The salon started to stir about thirty minutes after the seniors began filling their plates.

It was while I was eating green grapes, between Ye-hyeon, who was in a good mood because Eric hadn't shown interest in me, and my mentor, who watched with amusement as I awkwardly exchanged names with the elders.

I was in the middle of being stunned by the explanation that Eric was a pervert who loved pitiful souls and derived pleasure from saving them. Not being on his radar was one proof that I was living life right.

What a proper lunatic.

I was thinking that when the salon froze.

It literally iced over. Sudden silence descended on the noisy space. A chilling stillness laced with taut tension.

Feeling the abrupt change in the air, I raised my head.

Everyone was looking at the same place.

Yoon and Ye-hyeon were no exceptions. The men, who had seemed in the best moods since our arrival, set down their utensils on the table and silently stared in one direction. Every gaze in the salon flew and fixed there.

The entrance to the annex. A door beautifully adorned with a golden frame.

That door, which had been closed until now, opened, and someone entered.

"Falcon has arrived."

Someone at the next table whispered breathlessly.

"The rumor was true."

Codename Falcon.

The top-ranked elder. The number one in power ranking. And the one who had never once stepped down from that throne.

I watched the man slowly walking into the frozen crowd.

Dressed neatly in a dark suit, he entered the salon accompanied by one tall, upright man.

An elderly gentleman with graying hair neatly combed back. There wasn't a single flaw. He exuded an aura as if blue blood would flow even if someone stabbed him with a knife, and he wore smooth leather gloves on his hands. The chain of his pocket watch reflected the chandelier's light.

His features were neat. He was between middle age and old age, but it was clear time hadn't been harsh to him. The traces of years around his eyes and mouth added a sense of gravitas and calm elegance.

He must have been an undeniably handsome man in his youth.

Possessing clear blue eyes and smooth blond hair.

His cold demeanor kept people from approaching easily, but his unique charisma and keen intellect drew followers.

Ruthless, yet skilled at cleverly concealing his nature.

Ah.

"Colton."

At my whisper, Ye-hyeon and Yoon whipped their heads around.

But I had no mental capacity to respond to the seniors' reactions. I was half in a daze.

Overwhelmed by the flooding memories, shocked that for the first time in this world, I had encountered someone I 'knew.'

The past came into sharp focus.

Dizzying memories surged in.

"Colton Wiseman."

So you were an elder.