“Who do we have here? I see all the celebrities here? Isn’t that the Hwarang Guild Master and Hunter Chae Dong Hwa.”

Suddenly, a mocking voice was heard from behind. Cheongwoon, standing across the river, spoke from the opposite side.

More precisely, it was Cheongwoon’s Vice Guild Master, Hunter Ju Cheong Han.

Hunter Ju Cheong Han had his hair slicked back without a single strand out of place, and despite being in a dungeon, he was wearing a three-piece suit.

‘What an odd person. Didn’t they say they came on an expedition?’

No matter how you looked at it, he didn’t seem like someone participating in combat.

His aquamarine suit was crisp without a single wrinkle. Somehow, not even a speck of dirt was on it.

“Since when were you two so close? Let me join in. It’s quite hurtful for the young ones to exclude their elders.”

“Mister, don’t talk to us. Since when were we close enough for you to act familiar?”

Mo Gyeon replied curtly, muttering harsh words. Hunter Chae Dong Hwa didn’t even look in that direction and asked if my backpack wasn’t heavy, saying I should give it to him.

“W-wait a moment, Hunter Chae Dong Hwa. It’s fine. We’re almost at the campsite anyway…”

“Since we’re almost there, please give it to me. The backpack is bigger than Bom’s body.”

“It’s really okay…”

The Cheongwoon people were just watching us argue. Their gazes were particularly focused on me.

Receiving the gaze of so many people at once was too burdensome. As I was trying to figure out what to do, my eyes met directly with Hunter Ju Cheong Han’s.

“Are you the famous campsite owner? Yu Bom, right?”

What? He knows my name?

“I’m Ju Cheong Han, Cheongwoon’s Vice Guild Master.”

“Yes… Hello.”

I greeted him, pretending to know him for now. As I responded reluctantly, I saw a familiar short-haired woman among the people.

‘Hunter Kang Han Na…?’

There was the HR team manager who had come to the campsite before and made me a recruitment offer. Next to her was also Reporter Jo Sung Hyun.

“I have quite a grudge against Yu Bom. I sent someone before, but you sent them back.”

“Yes…”

“Our guild members also went as guests, but they said the hospitality was lacking?”

“Ah, I see…”

I have more of a grudge, though. I guess they didn’t mention why I treated them that way?

I considered bringing up the incident publicly for a moment. They were the ones who acted rudely first, and I hadn’t done anything wrong, so I didn’t want to be unnecessarily cautious.

However, it didn’t seem like the kind of thing to discuss on the street, so I was hesitating when:

“I don’t know what you’re trying to say. Mister, did you come to take sides because your kids came back crying? Do you know how they behaved when they came?”

Mo Gyeon spoke in a harsh tone, emitting a hostile atmosphere. Hunter Chae Dong Hwa glared at them with an even more hostile expression.

“I agree. I’ve heard that the mindset that the customer is king should be held by those running a business, not by the customers. It was a sufficiently unreasonable situation, and it seems to have been handled quietly enough, so it’s troublesome to speak like this.”

The two had a completely different atmosphere than when they were arguing. It felt as cold as a sharpened blade.

‘So this is how Mo Gyeon and Hunter Chae Dong Hwa look when they’re angry…’

Seeing those expressions, I realized just how gentle they had been with me all this time.

They seemed angrier than I thought, as their violent S-class mana leaked out, making my body tremble even though I was standing next to them.

“Why is everyone so sensitive? I was just mentioning a minor incident that happened with the owner. You understand, don’t you, ma’am? I’m not here to hold a grudge over past events?”

As the atmosphere suddenly turned hostile, Vice Guild Master Ju Cheong Han started talking more. He seemed to be sending an SOS to me as he was overwhelmed by their pressure, but I didn’t want to accept it.

“Then you shouldn’t have brought it up to me, Hunter. I almost misunderstood too.”

“Oh no, that’s not it. If you have any grievances, let’s resolve them. Let’s go to the campsite and talk.”

“No.”

Hunter Ju Cheong Han spoke gently, trying to act familiar. But when I cut him off sharply, his smoothly curved lips stiffened slightly.

“Our campsite is currently at full capacity, so we won’t be able to accommodate Cheongwoon guild members.”

“I heard Hwarang came on an expedition before and stopped by, but Cheongwoon can’t?”

“Hwarang had far fewer people than this, and there were no other guests at the campsite then. I’m sorry, Hunter. Please use our services next time.”

Inside, I wanted to tell them to stop being clingy and get lost immediately, but I spoke with as much customer service spirit as I could muster. Hunter Ju Cheong Han’s expression visibly hardened.

Then he turned around and entered into some kind of meeting with his people. Their whispering seemed to indicate a serious exchange of opinions.

“Hah, let’s just go. Looking at them is giving me high blood pressure I didn’t even have before.”

“Yes. Let’s go back to the campsite. I’m hungry.”

Mo Gyeon and Hunter Chae Dong Hwa urged me to return.

“What if they ignore us and try to force their way into the campsite?”

“We’ll stop them. What’s there to be afraid of with two S-class hunters? Oh, and Ju Cheong Yeon is at the campsite too.”

“Still, I don’t think we should handle it that way… After all, our campsite guests are hunters.”

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that Cheongwoon was a guild that 30% of our country’s high-ranking hunters belonged to.

If we sent them away without any justification, it would affect the campsite in some way.

“Alright. Then if some current campsite guests leave, there will be space for us to enter, right?”

Eventually, Vice Guild Master Ju Cheong Han spoke to me again as if their meeting had ended.

“Even if everyone leaves, we can’t accommodate more than 50 people.”

“Only a few of us will enter. As it happens, there’s a hunter we know there who said it’s time for them to leave. They’re probably staying despite not being able to do a long-term stay due to the expedition period.”

‘How did they know about the long-term stay restriction?’

Rumors spread fast, as always. I had originally set a rule that stays longer than a week weren’t allowed, but I had decided to make exceptions for guests’ convenience considering the expedition period just recently.

If they put it this way, there was no way out.

“A few of you can come in…”

“By any chance, owner, do you dislike us staying?”

“…”

I kept silent for a moment. It wasn’t on purpose.

As I wasn’t completely accustomed to the service industry yet, I hadn’t reached the level where lies could flow out immediately.

“Not at all. If you want to come, you should. There are a few rules when you enter the campsite, please make sure to follow them. If you cause any incidents or accidents, you’ll be immediately expelled. I hope you’ll enjoy yourselves quietly.”

It was a prickly statement that anyone could hear. A kind of warning, you could say.

It seemed that Vice Guild Master Ju Cheong Han, Hunter Kang Han Na, and Reporter Jo Sung Hyun were intent on entering.

‘Why are they trying to crawl back in after what happened…’

My head was already throbbing.

“Of course. Don’t worry, ma’am. We’ve been looking forward to just today.”

Vice Guild Master Ju Cheong Han smiled contentedly. That smile was so slimy it made me feel sick.

“You’ll regret it.”

Mo Gyeon kept saying he had tried to stop them, looking at Vice Guild Master Ju Cheong Han with contempt all the way back to the campsite.

“Y-you, why are you here…!”

As we entered the campsite, Vice Guild Master Ju Cheong Han was startled to see Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon.

“You’ve arrived, elder brother.”

In contrast, Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon responded leisurely as if he had been waiting, looking up from the book he was reading.

“Why are you here!”

“Am I not allowed to go anywhere on my own feet?”

“That’s not what I mean! Why are you in a campsite inside a dungeon!”

“You’re here too, aren’t you, elder brother?”

“I have my reasons…!”

I thought there might be some connection between Cheong Yeon and Cheong Han, and indeed, they were family. It seems Vice Guild Master Ju Cheong Han is Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon’s older brother.

“I have my reasons too. Stop making a fuss and let’s talk for a moment.”

“What do I have to talk about with you!”

“I heard something from the owner earlier, and I have a few things to say to Cheongwoon Guild.”

“…”

He put his book down on the table with a thud and stood up. Then he naturally guided Vice Guild Master Ju Cheong Han to the outdoor book cafe, saying there was a new cafe with a nice view.

Vice Guild Master Ju Cheong Han, following with a lost expression, looked like he was being led to a slaughterhouse.

‘He really can’t resist…’

Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon must still be his younger brother. Why would he be so intimidated?

A bit puzzled, I asked Mo Gyeon about it later, and he readily explained the reason.

“Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon? Most hunters are scared of him. He’s the Dungeon Management Director with actual authority over expedition rights distribution. For a guild, expeditions are like a year’s harvest, and there are several guilds that have fallen into ruin after losing expedition rights for getting on Ju Cheong Yeon’s bad side.”

Cheongwoon already has a record of permanently losing expedition rights for other dungeons.

Since there are many dungeons, it wouldn’t matter if they failed to secure rights for one, but if they keep losing them like that, it would be a significant loss from the guild’s perspective.

“Why didn’t you tell me this fact earlier?”

“Since that’s his usual job, he tends to keep it quiet from hunters he’s meeting for the first time. That way he can have honest conversations without them being cautious.”

I suppose if I had thought that a guild’s expedition rights depended on my words, I would have considered the weight of my words more carefully. I might have been afraid of being sued for saying something unnecessary.

Hiding it might make it easier to lead conversations comfortably.

So was his habit of observing everything normally a kind of occupational disease?

Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon, the more I learned about him, the scarier he seemed…

But if Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon was on my side, I couldn’t feel more reassured. That must be why Dad sent him here.

If he could punish his own family’s guild so mercilessly, he seemed like someone trustworthy enough.

‘But it’s a bit strange. Why does Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon work for the Association instead of Cheongwoon?’

Usually, hunters prefer to join guilds rather than the Association. Naturally, because guilds pay much better.

The Association was what hunters of ambiguous ranks chose when they wanted stable work.

Reconnaissance Team 7 was a bit unusual, but that was the general perception people had.