“You’ll first head to the Free City of Lindel and after spending time at our guild, we’ll send you back to your homes,” I told the elves.

“R-Really? Then…”

“You don’t have to worry. If I wanted to harm you or defile you in the first place, I wouldn’t have resorted to such a complicated method,” I said.

“Oh…”

“And I wouldn’t have saved you from the monster knowing that it would be a big loss for me. You’ll immediately get a new identification card when you arrive and act as the Blue Guild’s guests. You’re free to roam as long as you don’t wander outside the city and no humans will cause you trouble, but if you’re too scared to go outside, you’re free to spend time inside the guild,” I explained.

“Thank you...”

“You should thank Miss Jo Hye-Jin here instead of me because she’s the one that wanted to save you all,” I told them.

“Oh! Thank you very much. I know our meeting was short, but thank you very much for taking care of us,” an elf said.

“I promise you’ll be able to return to your homes,” she said, reassuring them.

“Heuuuuk…”

Seeing Jo Hye-Jin comforting the crying elves was a beautiful sight. It broke my heart knowing that I had to let go of the elves worth 120,000 gold, but this was the right thing to do because they were of no use. Their stats weren’t bad, but they were no different from villagers since their potential was weak. They were just unlucky because the hunters had captured them while they were living their normal lives.

I had to send the elves back as soon as possible because Kasugano Yuno discovered that I obtained five elven slaves. As someone who called me master, this was a massive problem for her that she sent a letter saying she was going to head to Castle Rock.

The elves were still worried that I was going to sell them off somewhere so they quietly stared at me, but I was sure they would understand once we arrived at our destination.

“By the way, it’s probably best if you stay inside the carriage until we reach our destination. Staying inside a carriage that has the guild’s badge is safe, but that’s not the case when you step out,” I warned them.

“We understand, benefactor,” an elf said.

“I only did what was right, but I do feel bad for not saving the others. I apologize on behalf of all human beings,” I said.

“I-If…”

“If I see other elves, I’ll do my best to help them,” I told them.

“Thank you...”

“You should get going,” I suggested.

When the elves in the carriage thanked us once again, Jo Hye-Jin looked a bit relieved as she said goodbye.

“Are you relieved?” I asked.

“Not really,” she answered.

“Have you grown fond of them?”

“I have a little bit… even though it had been a short time,” she answered.

“You did everything you could as a human being. Not only did you save them, but you hid them in a high-class inn and the Blue Guild will protect them as well, so I think you did a lot for them,” I explained.

“I appreciate the favor, sub guild master,” she said.

“I didn’t do it for them and to be exact, you’re the one who helped them, Miss Hye-Jin. You might get rewarded later for saving the elves,” I said, correcting her.

“...”

Jo Hye-Jin looked kind of fed up.

Even though it wasn’t intentional, making the elves indebted to us wasn’t bad because they would eventually pay us back for our good deeds.

“Let’s go eat,” I suggested.

“Okay, sub guild master,” she replied.

As we exchanged several conversations, Jo Hye-Jin and I became close and even though she didn’t change dramatically like Sun Hee-Young or Jung Ha-Yan, we were starting to understand each other. I thought about what it would be like if I got closer to her, but since she wasn’t the dangerous or crazy woman the system had mentioned, it was going to be difficult to be liked by her or even more. Still, getting closer to her was the most important task and even though I still had a long way to go, the fact that she didn’t feel uncomfortable around me anymore was proof that we got closer.

‘Being friends is more than enough.’

Having a woman like Jo Hye-Jin as a friend was good enough.

‘She is kind of inflexible.’

Her personality was far from my ideal type.

“So… have you thought about it?” I asked her.

“About…”

“I’m sure you know what I’m talking about. We need to take care of it quickly before there are more victims,” I told her.

“I don’t understand…”

“Pardon?”

“Well, I believe they should be dealt with according to the law, but…”

“You don’t know if things will work out, right?” I asked, finishing her sentence.

“It’s embarrassing, but that’s right. There’s no guarantee that I won’t experience the same situation as before even after telling everyone,” she explained.

“You’re probably right, Miss Hye-Jin. Making a move without proper evidence will put you in the same situation as before,” I said in agreement.

Even while walking, Jo Hye-Jin spoke like a young woman wandering in search of herself, which meant we were close enough to ask about each other’s concerns. This was good for me because I could show her that there were different ways to live life.

“Do you no longer sympathize with the comrades you were in the tutorial dungeon with?” I asked.

“Right now, I don’t want to forgive them,” she replied.

It was natural for her to react that way since it had only been a few days since she witnessed that scene in the auction house.

“I never imagined they would do something like that, but… they were different from what I imagined so I'm a bit confused. Actually, I’m starting to doubt whether the people I knew were actually involved in all of that,” she explained.

“The environment usually changes people. I’m certain my relatives and your relatives on Earth won’t think we committed murder. It’s more like self-defense for them, but it’s true that we got our hands dirty. They disposed of one thing to get to a higher place and even if they don’t know how the elves or the monsters they captured are being used, it doesn’t erase their crimes,” I told her.

“You’re right and they should be punished. I’m telling you about how they should be punished, but I’m sure you want to handle it yourself…”

“Yes, because I take matters into my own hands,” I said.

“I did think about the same thing, but I wondered whether it was okay for a person to punish another person, and should I really be the one to punish them? Do I deserve to do that?” Jo Hye-Jin asked.

“Why do you think you don’t deserve to do it? The Small Stone Guild and the others have abused their powers and got the result they wanted. An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth is still my favorite proverb because you should be punished for your sins. It’s fine to think a lot about it, but don’t focus too much on it. Place your hand on your chest and tell me what you want to do, Miss Hye-Jin,” I told her.

Jo Hye-Jin looked at me quietly, but I knew what she was going to say.

‘Yeah… it’s natural for you to think that way, too.’

I was sure she wanted to kill everyone in that disgusting place through this conversation. As we continued exchanging values and ideas, not only was she unknowingly acknowledging my principle that you could resolve the majority of problems with money, she was getting influenced by it little by little.

The relationship I had with Jo Hye-Jin was different from Lee Ji-Hye’s. The system called the Black Swan Guild’s Lee Ji-Hye and me, a match made in heaven because our actions and values were similar and thanks to that, we had synergy and were twice as efficient when together. Meanwhile, Jo Hye-Jin may not be as efficient, but we could have synergy through our different opinions and values.

‘That’s what you call being harmonious.’

Naturally, I had the advantage because she was someone I could control. If I were to compare her to a car, she was the brakes and the dash cam. She was someone who could prevent accidents in advance, but she was also someone who could take care of an accident. Even after Kim Hyun-Sung’s kingdom expanded, Jo Hye-Jin would stand on the opposite side of me as my friend and would become the brakes that would activate whenever I wanted her to do so. If I wanted to have full control, I had to choose who should stand on the opposite side of me.

‘I look forward to working with you, Hye-Jin.’

We would be working together for a long time.

“I… I feel the same way, sub guild master,” she replied.

“Since society won’t handle it, we have to take matters into our own hands and that’s the first step in a revolution,” I explained.

“I don’t understand what you’re saying,” she mumbled.

“Simply driving them out won’t put an end to it because crime doesn’t just go away,” I told her.

“What…”

“Even though I haven’t lived long, I believe that creating a perfect society is impossible. There will always be crime wherever humans live and even if the Small Stone Guild disappears, there will be a second Small Stone Guild and a second amphitheater. And once they’re gone there will be another one to replace them because whenever there’s demand, there will be supply,” I explained.

“What do you…”

“I’m going to control the social issues,” I said.

“That’s a dangerous thought…” she commented.

“It’s better than standing by and doing nothing. After destroying the old, I’m going to build another tower on top of it. This goes for both Lindel and Castle Rock,” I added.

“How…”

“How is the question,” I said, smiling.

“Are you planning on purchasing the entire place?” she asked.

I couldn’t help but smirk because I never imagined that she would say that.

“No, I’m going to mow down everything so that not even a single weed exists,” I answered.

Of course, it was for my own benefit.

Jo Hye-Jin’s troubled face was telling me that she was thinking about how to accept my words and actions. She probably wasn’t going to stop me because what she witnessed was simply too shocking for her to stop me with just her love for mankind. She may be expecting me to make a move, but the problem was I didn’t have any power to mow them down. Still, if the situation was right, it could be possible.

‘A monster wave is going to happen soon, too…’

Coincidentally, the person who had been tracking me from the beginning till the end knew exactly where I had been even though Jo Hye-Jin and I didn’t know where the auction house was located…

‘Ha-Yan, you’re checking in, right?’

Being stalked by an archmage was more helpful than I thought.