The Strongest Guild Kidnapped Me

After returning home, I watched Levinas’s reactions for a while.

I felt uneasy because of the terrible experience I had caused her.

‘…I boasted that I would help in danger.’

But instead of helping, I only showed how I was victimized.

It was a situation that could disappoint anyone.

Embarrassed, I observed Levinas from a distance.

If I had been stronger, today’s events might not have occurred.

As I was about to look down, shoulders drooping, Levinas, who had been standing blankly beside the campfire, suddenly started jumping around.

“Amazing! The king is truly amazing!”

“Uh, yeah…?”

“Levinas fought an adult for the first time in her life! Being with the king gave me so much confidence!”

Levinas boasted, swinging her fist in the air.

Though her fist swung cutely, her confidence was larger than anyone else’s.

“Did you fight with an adult in the dungeon?”

“Yes! But the king went easy on him!”

“She went easy on him?”

Sophia and I expressed our doubts simultaneously.

After all, I was just helplessly victimized.

“Yes! The king didn’t use any weapons! She tried to solve it with words, not violence!”

“…I see.”

Sophia smiled at me.

Her proud gaze was unmistakable.

I did it just because I didn’t like fighting with people.

Feeling like a pretender, my face flushed.

“Gyeoul Cheer up, you won the fight.”

“Me, I did?”

“Yes! Levinas also thinks the king won! You didn’t kill, you spared! A truly merciful king!”

Wondering what Levinas thought of me, I was nonetheless happy they felt that way.

I laughed awkwardly and scratched my cheek.

My tail waved in the air, mirroring my mood.

<+>

In the Daybreak Guild’s meeting room.

Master Kang Jinho, Yeoreum, Jung Yu-na, and Choi Jinhyuk were seated.

“So, Han Seok-jun from the Legion Guild gave you the video?”

“Yes…”

“Hmm…”

Kang Jinho pondered, chin in hand, looking at the camera.

After allowing Kang Jinho time to think, Yeoreum spoke cautiously.

“The younger sibling of a Legion Guild executive was right there, but he handed over the camera without any concern.”

“Anyway, it would have been revealed soon. He probably thought it better to be known as backed by Daybreak Guild.”

“…Is he trying to overthrow the guild?”

“If he wants to regain the past glory.”

Everyone in the meeting room nodded at Kang Jinho’s observation.

The Legion Guild was once as prominent as the Daybreak Guild, especially under the former Legion Guild leader.

‘The day the Legion Guild leader died of old age, a strange individual became the leader.’

Disregarding performance and skills, he filled the executive roles with his own allies.

Consequently, the Legion Guild’s reputation plummeted, leaving long-time members disillusioned.

“What would they have done if I hadn’t accepted the deal?”

“They yearn for past glory. They must have been desperate.”

“Ah…”

Was it a gamble that seemed promising?

For Yeoreum, who had once tried feeding Gyeoul the blessing of the Beast God, the gamble was relatable.

In dire situations, relying on probability is natural.

“Let’s set the Legion Guild issue aside for now, and watch the video.”

“Ah, yes.”

Yeoreum nodded, and Jung Yu-na clicked the mouse.

Videos neatly arranged appeared on the wall through the projector.

“There’s a lot.”

“Not all are Gyeoul’s videos. There’s a separate folder for her…”

Gyeoul.

Jung Yu-na opened the folder labeled ‘Gyeoul.’

Inside, dozens of videos were organized.

She hadn’t watched them yet, but she sorted them out where Gyeoul appeared in the intro.

“…Why are there so many.”

“……”

Jung Yu-na remained silent at Kang Jinho’s remark.

The sheer number of videos, even just Gyeoul’s, was overwhelming.

“Before we start, let’s be clear.”

“About what?”

“We’re not watching these to feel guilty.”

“Yes…”

She felt as if he read her mind.

Yeoreum lowered her head, playing with her fingers.

Perhaps she had planned to watch them only to wallow in guilt.

“We can comfort and reflect on the child without the videos.”

“…Yes. You’re right.”

“So, why the insistence on watching?”

Was he asking for a specific reason?

She could have fabricated an excuse, but Yeoreum chose to share her true feelings.

“I want to understand Gyeoul better.”

“Understand.”

“Yes. I’m Gyeoul’s family.”

She had committed to this the day she named Gyeoul.

To treat her like family.

What began as guilt had evolved into genuine familial love.

“Quite sentimental…”

Kang Jinho shrugged and signaled Jung Yu-na.

His gesture indicated permission to play the video.

“…I’ll start it.”

Click-

With a soft click, a video filled the large screen.

It showed Gyeoul before her transformation, around 160 centimeters tall.

A height typical for an average woman.

Her face was obscured by a robe, but Yeoreum knew.

She understood that even Gyeoul’s original appearance, concealed beneath the robe, was angelically beautiful.

“Please rewind it…”

In the video, Gyeoul reached towards the sky.

Her voice had an androgynous, boyish quality.

Was Gyeoul intentionally dressing as a man?

This thought crossed Yeoreum’s mind as a familiar man in the video brandished a water bottle.

“If you promise not to return to the hunting grounds, I’ll give this back, okay?”

“I can’t promise that…”

“Ah, this damn kid, so stubborn.”

Thud-

Park Min-kyu pushed Gyeoul’s forehead with the bottom of the bottle.

Even though it was a light push, Gyeoul staggered back five steps and fell onto her buttocks.

“Ugh, ugh…”

“Why is this kid so dramatic?”

Park Min-kyu looked down at Gyeoul disdainfully.

The moving camera captured every detail.

“Hey, leave in five seconds, or you’re dead.”

“The water bottle…”

Gyeoul in the video fixated hopelessly on the water bottle.

To those watching, it was clear that the yellow corn water in the bottle was Gyeoul’s sole sustenance.

Without it, Gyeoul would face starvation.

For the struggling child, the water bottle was more than a lifeline.

Yet Park Min-kyu, oblivious and uncaring, merely sneered.

“Five.”

“I have nowhere else to go…”

“Four.”

“I can’t survive without this place…”

Despite Gyeoul’s pleas, Park Min-kyu continued the countdown.

Like a person intent on doing harm.

“Three.”

Halfway through the count, Gyeoul realized Park Min-kyu wouldn’t let her go and paused.

But only for a moment.

Gyeoul then began crawling backward from a seated position, quickly standing up and running away.

“Two.”

Park Min-kyu continued counting as Gyeoul fled.

And as he reached the final number.

Thump-!

He hurled the water bottle at the back of Gyeoul’s head with such force that the material shattered.

Fragments of the bottle and yellow liquid scattered in the air like a burst water balloon.

Gyeoul collapsed face-first to the ground, not even able to scream.

“The kid pretending to faint again. Such an act.”

The first video concluded with Park Min-kyu’s mocking laughter.

About fifty more videos remained.

Yeoreum clenched her fist on the table, haunted by the echo of Park Min-kyu’s laughter.

She clenched so tightly that the large office table trembled.

‘She wasn’t pretending to faint; she truly fainted.’

How much suffering and pain had the child born without mana endured?

Yeoreum placed her hand over her heart, which was pounding more intensely than in any battle.

“I’m sorry. I can’t watch this.”

Jung Yu-na, looking down at the floor, appeared pale.

Despite usually seeming unfazed by cruelty, Jung Yu-na always showed vulnerability when it concerned Gyeoul.

Receiving the laptop from Jung Yu-na, Yeoreum pondered.

The remaining fifty videos likely represented just a fraction of Gyeoul’s experiences with bullying.

It wasn’t only Park Min-kyu who had tormented Gyeoul.

Was this truly what a child, hardly born into the world, had to go through?

A suffering so intense that even adults might consider giving up their lives.

Even Kang Jinho, accustomed to various humiliations, crossed his arms and closed his eyes tightly.

“…It’s the first day. Let’s just stop here for now.”

“Yes, everyone seems quite affected.”

They couldn’t bear to meet Gyeoul’s eyes, knowing the pain they had caused.

They refused to make excuses.

It was their fault.

Thud-

Yeoreum closed the laptop, but no one left the conference room.

The harrowing truth revealed in the videos was too shocking to process immediately.