Leaving and Meeting ------------------------------------------------------------------------

“You damn bastard! Stop spouting nonsense and hurry up… huh, huh?”

“This crazy son of a…!”

Thud! Crash!

A short scream echoed, followed by a dull thud. I quickly turned my head to see a rough-looking man sprawled on the ground. Standing over him, breathing heavily, was a user with a golden lion emblem on his uniform, likely a member of the Golden Lion Clan, chosen as a control instructor.

The user, not satisfied with just one punch, began kicking the man on the ground.

“Are you, daring to, defy, the Golden Lion, Clan, in Barbara?”

“Ugh, ah, ack, ugh!”

With each kick, the instructor’s voice broke, and the man cried out in pain, drawing the attention of the surrounding crowd. Though the commotion wasn’t enough to capture everyone’s attention, it was enough to unsettle the new users nearby. Fear flickered in the eyes of those witnessing the scene.

Seeing this, I couldn’t help but shake my head. While the instructor had the authority to impose discipline on those who excessively resisted and incited others, choosing to do so publicly through violence was a mistake.

These new users, who hadn’t yet experienced the harsh realities of the Hall Plain, would only see the Golden Lion Clan as brutal. It would have been better to handle it discreetly, like when Park Dong-geol was dragged to the center of the square and humiliated in front of everyone.

The Golden Lion Clan would likely regret appointing this user as a control instructor. He seemed to be a competent second or third-year member, not a seasoned veteran. A more experienced instructor would have handled the situation more tactfully or discreetly.

Watching the instructor, who seemed blinded by pride, I felt a twinge of pity. The Golden Lion Clan was no longer the prestigious group it once was. Their pride, which once covered all, was now a liability as they struggled like any other clan. With fierce competition for recruiting users, it was something to keep an eye on.

Some of the other control instructors, seemingly more thoughtful, were belatedly trying to intervene. I was about to walk away when a brilliant idea struck me. The new users, like blank canvases, were being tainted by the Golden Lion. While unfortunate for them, it presented an opportunity for me. With three months of competition with other clans ahead, building a positive image from now on seemed like a good strategy.

I slowly made my way toward the commotion. Despite being beaten, the man on the ground kept shouting about being attacked, showing a stubborn streak. The control instructor, equally stubborn, had rolled up his sleeves.

As the instructor’s fist swung down toward the man struggling to get up, I quickly stepped between them.

Bang!

The sound of the instructor’s fist meeting my palm reverberated. He had put quite a bit of force into it, and I could feel a faint magical reaction. I couldn’t help but chuckle inwardly. Even if it was justified control, this was excessive.

“What the… Who are you?”

“Huh…? Hey!”

The instructor, surprised, turned his head with a high-pitched voice. A slender hand quickly grabbed his shoulder. A fellow user, seemingly recognizing me, gasped loudly. After a second or two, she smacked the instructor on the back of the head, shouting in shock.

“Why the hell did you hit me…?”

“Shut up, you idiot. It’s the Mercenary…”

She cursed loudly enough for me to hear, then glanced at me and whispered urgently into the instructor’s ear. His face, previously angry, began to show signs of panic. Seeing his changing expression, I spoke calmly.

“I came over because of the commotion. What’s going on here?”

“Ah, it’s the Mercenary Lord. Well, this guy was causing a ruckus and refusing to comply…”

“Even so, that punch wasn’t light. It could have seriously injured a new user.”

“Uh, well… there are just so many unruly people…”

He finally seemed to regain some composure, though his face was still pale. I wasn’t here to push these two to the brink, so I decided to ease up.

“Understood. Since I’m involved, I should participate in the situation. It seems like you could use some help.”

“Thank you. Haha. We have more entrants than expected this time.”

As the instructor hesitated, the female user quickly interjected. I nodded and turned to the man sitting dazed on the ground.

“Let’s get you up. Are you alright?”

I extended my hand, and a flicker of surprise crossed his face. He hesitated but eventually took my hand. I pulled him up with a firm grip.

“Who the hell are you…?”

The man I helped up was quite large, likely over six feet tall, with a muscular build. As I easily lifted him with one hand, a murmur of surprise spread through the crowd.

After a moment of confusion, the burly man cleared his throat and spoke.

“Are you in charge here? What kind of place is this where I have to go through such hell? Huh? We survived a week in that… whatever it was, with those monstrous creatures!”

“Yeah! Where are we? Isn’t this South Korea? Japan? Are we even on Earth?”

“Please, send us home! I want to go home!”

“Where is this place… I barely survived… Mom… Dad… I miss you…”

Seeing me as someone in authority, the questions poured out, starting with the burly man’s outburst. I waited patiently for the noise to die down. When someone started crying, I took the opportunity to speak in a calm voice.

“You’ve all gone through the initiation and met the angels, so I won’t assume you’re completely in the dark. I understand your confusion.”

“Yeah! They called it an initiation!”

The man growled in response. I shot him a sharp look, and he flinched. Once I saw him back down, I continued, softening my tone.

“Let me assure you, we’re in the same situation as you. We’ve all gone through similar initiations and met the angels before entering this place called the Hall Plain. The only difference is when we arrived.”

Though I spoke quietly, I infused my words with magic, ensuring everyone heard clearly. Silence fell over the previously noisy crowd. After a moment, I sensed someone cautiously raising a hand.

“Does that mean we can’t go home? Is there more we have to do?”

The voice was young and slightly tearful. Answering this could lead to a lengthy discussion, so I decided to keep it brief. Shaking my head, I spoke with authority.

“That will be explained soon. We’ll move to a different location where we can discuss the current situation in detail. It’s hard to communicate in this chaos. Please be patient and follow the control instructors for now.”

As I finished speaking, the commotion subsided somewhat. The control instructors beside me looked embarrassed. I felt a bit guilty, having stepped in and resolved the situation after they had created an atmosphere of fear. But timing is everything in life, after all.

Once the situation seemed to have settled down, I turned to face the two instructors.

“I have a question. There weren’t many staff members in the plaza. What’s going on?”

“Ah, well, unexpectedly, a lot of new users have entered. We’ve requested additional support from the clan house, but for now, we’re managing with the staff in the plaza…”

“I see. Understood. I’ll leave the rest to you.”

“Thank you for your help.”

Both instructors bowed their heads in gratitude, their necks slightly flushed with embarrassment. I nodded and stepped aside to give them space to manage the situation. They quickly resumed their duties. Although the new users still seemed a bit uneasy, they were noticeably calmer than before.

I took a few steps back to survey the overall scene. As more support staff arrived, the chaos gradually subsided. The noise was still present, but it had improved from complete disorder to a more manageable level.

Soon, I noticed the entrance to the fifth hall opening. Over fifty people began to pour out. I worried that the influx of additional people might disrupt the fragile calm we had just achieved.

However, it seemed there were some experienced users among them, as they quickly brought the situation under control. After observing for a moment, I turned away. All five inns were now open. All that was left was to wait in the plaza.

In the central plaza of the bustling city of Barbara, about forty minutes later, the first group of new users began to arrive. I had expected it to take at least an hour, so this was a pleasant surprise. The atmosphere was markedly different from before. The anxiety that had been so palpable earlier had almost entirely dissipated.

As I pondered this change, I spotted Park Hyun-woo and Sung Yoo-bin approaching from a side path toward the central stage. They noticed me standing there and greeted me with a light nod.

“Mercenary Lord, you’re here early.”

“No, I should have arrived before the portal closed, but I was delayed.”

“It’s fine. You made it in good time.”

Park Hyun-woo shook his head with a wry smile and turned his gaze to the plaza steps. Following his line of sight, I saw the instructors organizing the new users by class and seating them accordingly.

One female user slipped out of the group and hurried over to where Park Hyun-woo and I stood. She seemed familiar, and upon closer inspection, I realized she was the one who had helped calm the agitated instructor earlier.

She looked surprised to see me next to Park Hyun-woo. I signaled that it was okay and stepped back to give them space to talk. Grateful for the gesture, she cleared her throat a couple of times before speaking in a sweet voice.

“Reporting the numbers: Hall 1 has 47, Hall 2 has 51, Hall 3 has 52, Hall 4 has 50, and Hall 5 has 52. The total is 252.”

“That’s quite a lot. It’s still less than four years ago, but compared to recent numbers, it’s almost double. Do you know how much of a difference there is?”

“Uh, well, I…”

She stammered, unsure of the answer. Just then, Sung Yoo-bin, who had been silent, spoke up.

“When I arrived, Hall 1 had 19, Hall 2 had 43, Hall 3 had 22, Hall 4 had 29, and Hall 5 had 17, totaling 130.”

Ah, he was referring to when I first came. Park Hyun-woo nodded thoughtfully before continuing.

“What about the class distribution?”

“126 in melee combat, 59 in ranged combat, 38 with magical talents, and 29 priests. We haven’t fully assessed the secret, rare, and other classes yet. Oh, and there’s one unusual detail to report.”

“Unusual detail?”

When Park Hyun-woo asked, the woman turned her head toward the steps, as if searching for someone. Her eyes darted around before she pointed at someone, her lips parting slightly.

---------------------------= Author’s Note ---------------------------=

Hello, this is Ryu Jin.

Today’s update is quite late. It’s all Ansol’s fault. So, I’m thinking of having Kim Soo-hyun just sit around while other female users have fun. (Just kidding!) I’d love to write a longer note, but I need to have dinner and start working on the midnight update. I also have a morning lecture on Monday, so I need to get to bed early. I’ll combine the replies with the next update. I appreciate your understanding.

PS. I’ve revised episode 208. I’ve added more depth to Soo-hyun’s inner thoughts and included more dialogue with Ansol. I’ve replaced parts that could be misunderstood. Thank you.