"Uncomfortable."
Beom glanced over and shifted Jioh up on one arm.
From a "hauling a pile of luggage" carry to a Hollywood "dad with a kid" carry.
Neither the one holding nor the one being held felt the slightest mismatch.
"I gave you a card key. Why make a scene downstairs?"
"Lost it."
"Give me your phone."
He took the phone from Jioh's hand and unlocked it deftly.
An extremely Gyeon-Jioh password—hadn't even been changed.
As the elevator rose, Beom, who was installing the residents-only app, tossed out a remark.
"Haven't seen those clothes before."
"...They're old ones, okay? Acting like you know everything just because it's been a while."
Like a schoolkid busted by Mom for ordering clothes off an online shop, Gyeon Jioh bristled.
The hand setting Jioh down on the sofa paused at that.
Beom leaned, propping his chin on the armrest beside him.
"Right. Hard man to get a glimpse of, Miss Gyeon Jioh. After nearly three months, you show up insisting those totally ill-fitting men's clothes are yours…"
"A-hem. T-they're Gyeon Riok's."
"I know Bambi's scent very well. Spare me."
Beom flicked a finger to tap her nose and straightened. Watching his back recede, Jioh grumbled.
"Ajusshi, I came here for a reason—where are you going?"
"It's eleven. Time to get ready. As for our 'Jio's' business, well."
Beom peeled off his T-shirt without care, bronze hair falling loose.
Sharp shoulder scars, and across that broad, springy back, a riot of mana tattoos.
All of them linked to interdiction formulas.
Seemed there were a few more than the last time Jioh had seen him.
On his way to the bathroom, as if remembering something, he picked up the phone.
A brief break in the conversation. He finished the short call and looked back.
"You're here for 'give me back my #1,' I assume. Right? Wash up; we'll head to the Tower together. Take it easy."
"..."
"And eat something. You've dropped weight."
Thwak. The inner door closed.
So that's what that was—room service ordered.
Jioh hugged a cushion and flopped onto her back. And sighed inwardly.
'...Still so ridiculously handsome.'
[Your Constellation, 'Reader of Fate,' snipes that the obnoxious brat is laying it on way too thick.]
[Why is he stripping in front of the kid, what is this chaos, isn't this against the viewing age rating—your Constellation raises an ethics complaint on behalf of the viewers.]
'Motion to dismiss by your Gyeon Jioh. Grounds: my eyes enjoy what they see.'
Leaving the huffing, puffing Constellation behind, a few minutes later room service came in.
Fitting for a place where the most formidable people in the country lived, the dishes had been rushed straight from a nearby starred hotel restaurant.
A hoodie-clad girl lounging alone in a penthouse ought to have been flustered, but the seasoned professionals couldn't care less.
They did their job like pros and exited swiftly.
'...D-delectable (美味)!'
One bite in, moved like a culinary-battle anime hero, Jioh collapsed forward with a flop.
Honestly, every time she experienced things like this, it made her tear up at the waste.
"If only I were exactly ten years older..."
Then I wouldn't have been dumped.
Tch.
On that fresh high-school graduation day—
Having confessed to that infuriatingly perfect man and been gloriously rejected, Gyeon Jioh clicked her tongue with baseless confidence.
To this day, Jioh still thought Beom's reason for refusing was just the age gap.
Anyone who knew the jaw-dropping lines from that day would have their chin trembling at the shamelessness.
[Your Constellation, 'Reader of Fate,' is speechless at what soulless, capitalism-blinded maniac would accept such a confession.]
[Even if the guy's insufferable, at least his conscience and common sense are screwed in properly—your 'Reader of Fate' gives one big nod.]
Guild
Largest scale, strongest force, and the longest history.
As one of Korea's Big Five guilds and among the world's Big Eight, was the unanimously acknowledged #1 domestic guild.
It was a global mercenary-type mega-corporation with high trust across many fields, and the biggest reason for that was—
Guildmaster "Lion," Eun Seok-won.
As a representative of the first generation of awakeners.
An epic figure who had never lost the domestic #1 spot until Jio's debut was still active on the front lines.
He was a hunter who had always fought disasters at the very front, at the very tip of the spear.
A battle-hardened veteran whom Korea boasted of and the world respected.
His character was so admirable that people gathered under him of their own accord, and his popularity spanned all ages, men and women alike.
And "Beom" was the right hand Eun Seok-won had raised like his own son.
He was the next leader who would inherit everything of .
"How old is Gramps, and he's out here snatching a poor three-time exam-taker's snot-nosed #1? Where's the conscience?"
"He's still spry. Your laziness doesn't factor, I see."
Beom answered while flipping through a file.
For the famed car collector, Rolls-Royce had custom-made and gifted a vehicle; the ride quality was to die for.
But Jioh, with no interest and none to spare, was just unimpressed.
"Hope you strain your back."
"Gyeon Jioh."
What? So what? said her face, but she turned her head without another word. Even brats listen to their nanny.
Name unknown. Age unknown.
And… skills unknown.
Beom, who was said to have wandered the streets as a child before being taken in by Eun Seok-won, didn't have much public information.
People simply guessed, from his looks, that he must be somewhere in his thirties.
His current rank was also 7th, but in the sky-tier it was common knowledge that he was a powerhouse with several moves still up his sleeve.
If you're accompanied by a high-grade Constellation, it isn't impossible to hide yourself from Babel's eye to some extent.
Those enormous sealing formulae etched across his back, which he personally had the "Great Witch of the Polar" inscribe, too.
Going by that alone, he was suspicious enough to make you think, "Huh? Is this bastard the mastermind?"
However, he was 's son, and its right hand.
What he had quietly shown over the long years was enough to garner fame and recognition from the public.
The Center, trusting him as well, designated Beom ten years ago as the guardian for the first S-rank awakener "Jio."
He was one of the very few who knew just how absurd a monster Gyeon Jioh was.
"It'll be temporary."
"...?"
"We'll hear the details in person. But… at dawn today, after breaking out past closing, he said, 'There are no walls left to climb.' I agree. It's the last roar of a lion at twilight. Show respect."
"..."
"Everyone knows whose seat 'the summit' is anyway."
Jioh, who'd been staring out the window, looked back.
Beom, who had been turning pages, also raised his eyes. He moved his lips without a sound: "Pe-, ha-."
"…Don't comfort me. You're obnoxious."
"Funny how you kind of like it. Odd taste."
"Who, me?"
"Yeah. You."
"When Gramps retires and the head changes, I'm going to smash the Silver Lion building first."
"That's honestly a little scary."
"I'll spread gossip rags and photos saying that while the bastard Beom puts on killer swagger outside, at home he doesn't even shave and just walks around scratching his belly."
"That's honestly kind of cute."
The car rolled to a stop.
Destination: a colossal shadow reaching beyond the sky. The Babel Tower.
The door opened.
Jioh tugged the hood down to his nose and set foot out. Tossing a few curses for good measure, teasing to the end.
Beom, holding the door, laughed.
He covered the top of Jioh's pulled-low hood with a big hand, leaned in slightly, and whispered.
"Too far. That last one was sincere."
How could he lie about finding it cute?
Anyway, still a kid.
[Verifying entry eligibility. Loading...]
[Approval complete — Awakener (S)]
[Ranker confirmation — 2nd place, 'Magician King Jio']
"This is your first visit."
"Welcome to the Babel Tower, Gyeon Jioh!"
"Due to the Tutorial in progress, access to all floors except the ground floor is temporarily restricted."
"During the Tutorial period, 2nd-rank Ranker Gyeon Jioh, as part of Babel's leading group, you are permitted to enter the Monitor Room. Would you like to enter?"
/Upon entering the Monitor Room, your rank and nickname will be disclosed. Do you consent?/
/Consent not given. You will be displayed anonymously, Gyeon Jioh./
[Monitor Room | Anonymous has entered]
[You have entered the Tower of the Myriad Scales. Star-ground (星地) Babel.]
"A portion of the Authority of Constellation — 'Reader of Fate' is unsealed!"
"Applied to the direct avatar per the Constellation-realm Covenant."
"Unique True Incarnation — Gyeon Jioh: variance values adjusted."
[Incarnation True Name. 'Librarian of Omniscience' resonates with the Babel Tower!]
[First Title, 'Magician King,' resonates with the Babel Tower!]
[Librarian of Omniscience (Unique) — While residing in the Sanctuary, gain a 0.005 percent-per-hour increase to Constellation-unique skill proficiency.]
[Magician King (Mythic) — While in the Tower, the growth limiter on mana-related stats is temporarily lifted. Mana recovery rate is doubled. You take no magical damage.]
00:00:04:31 Growth Buff *(on)/off
[Constellation-unique skill, growth buff 'Library-ization' proficiency: 17.025%]
[Title trait, 'Heart of the Yongma' (Legendary), and 'Mana Delay' (Rare) enter Growth Stage 2.]
'...Huh?'
...
J-jackpot...