“Hmph, heh heh hmm.”

Recently, Kang Hyeonseong had been riding high. The Ninth Battalion was flooded with good news nonstop.

The Ninth Battalion had always been treated like yesterday’s leftovers in the organization. Sure, they had the fancy title of “special battalion,” but they were constantly ridiculed.

Then, out of nowhere, the Ninth Battalion staged a dramatic turnaround. A true reverse sweep. They shot up with insane momentum, and before long, their performance graph was piercing the heavens.

All thanks to Taebaek.

Naturally, perceptions of the Ninth Battalion had flipped.

“…Ugh, that smug grin on his face is seriously pissing me off.”

Tang Jihye, the Third Battalion Commander he ran into in the hallway, narrowed her eyes. Kang Hyeonseong played it cool. Leaders of popular battalions were used to this.

“The Third Battalion’s pretty popular too, ‘not that far behind’ us. No need to feel so inferior.”

“Fuck. I just had some malatang, and now my stomach’s churning. Mr. Popular Battalion Commander, let’s not see your face for a year, okay? Pretty please?”

“We’ve got a meeting later?”

“I’ll tell the Battalion Commander you’re skipping out because of me. Everyone’ll buy it.”

“Didn’t you see the notice? Skipping today’s meeting means missing out big time.”

“Urk, damn it…!”

Tang Jihye slunk away in defeat. Kang Hyeonseong’s smile stayed firmly in place.

He walked further down the hall and bumped into a squad member at the corner. Someone he’d seen around once or twice.

“Something you need?”

“Um…”

The squad member hemmed and hawed before finally speaking up.

“C-Commander Kang Hyeonseong… Any chance I could transfer in…?”

“You’re under Sugar Water, right? What brought this on all of a sudden?”

“…Well…”

It was the same old story.

All the Battalion Commanders openly compared their own squads to Lee Taebaek.

Especially Doctor Pepper, who was in fierce rivalry with Kang Hyeonseong. The Eighth Battalion members were the biggest victims.

Sugar Water’s got such a narrow mind. No charisma, but decent skills—that’s why his squad sticks around. How hard must he be riding them…

Kang Hyeonseong’s expression soured at the thought.

Separate from pitying the Eighth Battalion guy, imagining Pepper twisting in jealousy made him grin involuntarily.

“Thing is, friend, we’ve got way too many transfer requests for the Ninth right now.”

“Gasp!”

“Interviews are the day after tomorrow. Swing by the Ninth Battalion office then. I’ll factor in that you came in person.”

“Y-Yes, sir!”

The squad member bobbed his head like a glitchy hologram and bolted.

“You gonna actually count that?”

Yu Dahui approached, lollipop in mouth.

“As if. Just said it to mess with him.”

“Torturing them with hope. Look at you, full-fledged popular Battalion Commander. Next you’ll be doing interviews.”

“Right?”

“Ugh. So obnoxious.”

Yu Dahui crunched her candy viciously.

“Hahaha! Time to settle scores for all the shit we took.”

“Having a slimy bastard like you as commander… Commander, I wanna transfer out too. Please take my opinion into account.”

“No way. Without Deputy Commander Yu Dahui, the Ninth Battalion folds.”

“…Sigh.”

Kang Hyeonseong let out a hearty laugh.

“Anyway, what’s your take, Deputy Commander Yu Dahui? Expand the ranks here? Or stick to the elite few? I’m tired of dodging the issue.”

“…I’d rather keep it small and elite.”

Yu Dahui was a Resistance celebrity. A beauty, no less.

Squad members lined up to grovel at her feet(?).

The entire Ninth knew it, which made reinforcements awkward.

“Dahui, what would you do?”

“But agonizing over it ourselves doesn’t really matter.”

“True.”

“We need ‘his’ opinion…”

‘He’ had been absent from the organization for quite a while now.

It’s been half a year since he got pulled for external ops.

Kang Hyeonseong flashed a faint smile and crossed the hall with Yu Dahui.

“Commander Kang Hyeonseong…!”

“Number. Trouble.”

“Pardon?”

“…Madman.”

Kang Hyeonseong ignored the stares and reflected on recent events.

It’s been a year since I first met Lee Taebaek.

A clichéd phrase for a span that felt both short and long. A full year—365 days—in Lake City, symbol of progress, was no small feat. This city sat at the cutting edge of a rapidly changing era.

Even that’s glacial compared to Lee Taebaek’s growth rate. Terrifying.

The weather had turned sharply cold lately.

Lee Taebaek urban legends spread like wildfire across the city on frosty breaths.

Gas mask-clad, umbrella even on dry days. A mysterious young man wielding restoration Ice Magic from the Magic Tower in combat. All the urban legend essentials. And then some.

“A figure straight out of legend suddenly ascending to Ten Wings. No wonder folks already on edge are spinning wild tales.”

“He even has a fan club now.”

“Already?”

“That girl glued to Taebaek’s side does occasional streams. He pops up subtly, and women lose their minds.”

“Mask off, and it’d be chaos.”

“…Yeah.”

Yu Dahui’s gaze was complicated. Kang Hyeonseong wasn’t blind like ‘some folks.’ He had a vague idea of her feelings.

Best keep quiet.

He covered his mouth with a fist and cleared his throat. Yu Dahui shook her head abruptly.

“Deputy, just say the word. I can push for external ops for you at the meeting.”

“Nah. We can’t have two external agents from the Ninth.”

“Expansion seems easy enough.”

“Resistance overflowing with doctors or what?”

“Ah… Right.”

Kang Hyeonseong scratched his head sheepishly. Yu Dahui halted abruptly as they walked.

“Commander. Meeting room. Get in.”

“Walking me here? I’m touched.”

“Shove your touch up your ass. Go sell the Ninth’s ‘real’ commander vibe. Brag about our records all you want.”

“Hahaha! Got it!”

Kang Hyeonseong entered the meeting room, unable to resist her spirited send-off.

…Creeeak.

Through the door crack, he glimpsed the other commanders already there. All wearing deeply displeased expressions.

But none spoke up. The power dynamics between battalions had flipped completely. In the Resistance, performance was everything, and the Ninth held undisputed first place lately.

Thud.

The door shut. Yu Dahui turned and continued on her way, steps inexplicably light.

Same time, Eunko Bar.

“Hello, brothers and sisters! Your Jasbi’s back!”

One entire lobby wall was plastered with monitors. Jasbi’s broadcast studio.

“…”

Goeun propped her chin, puffing idly on her long pipe.

“…Whose place is this again…?”

“Heard something from the back?! Nah, couldn’t be!”

Well then. Jasbi ignored Goeun’s protesting glare and kept streaming.

Goeun barely resisted the urge to smack that snow-white head. Tracing the “忍” character in her mind…

“Anyway! Before I spill the full tea today—”

“…”

“—let’s confirm how much my bijous love me!”

Bijou was “bi” from Jasbi and “ju” from investor. Same pronunciation as the French for jewel, she’d said.

“My jewels! Show me the love!”

“…That thing’s more mercenary than me, the actual merchant.”

Jasbi treated sponsors like literal jewels. A jewel vending machine.

True to form, her call unleashed a torrent of donation alerts over her voice.

What the hell are they even watching?

Jasbi had worn a Rabbit Mask in her early streams.

Too risky for exposing identity and location.

So she’d splurged on a virtual hood recently. Some V-whatever. Utterly alien to Goeun’s Murim sensibilities.

‘Jijas’ donated 200,000 Won.

Jasbi’s lips curled slyly. Evil as hell.

But her on-screen avatar smiled brightly, petals scattering in effects.

“Hmm. Wish I could tell you, but…”

“Heehee! As expected of my stream’s No. 2 sponsor, Kamicho!”

Bullshit. Kamicho was No. 1.

Jasbi deliberately never published the rankings.

“Oi oi, I’m counting on you, Kamicho!”

Exactly the point. Goeun, watching, shuddered.

No wonder Lee Taebaek called her a moneybug.

Jasbi was a cash machine. An AI obsessed with money.

“But! On the new Seven Masters! Imugi’s whereabouts… even I, Jasbi, have no clue…”

Lie, of course.

Lee Taebaek was snoring away soundly. Right above her head. She deceived viewers as easily as breathing.

Is this why the Demonic Cult rebranded to Magic Tower?

Goeun stayed silent since it ultimately benefited Lee Taebaek and the Eunko Bar.

“Now now! Don’t be mad. I’ve got even bigger news instead!”

Jasbi rubbed her hands like a fly gearing up to collect.

“You all know the Ten Wings conference was announced via media recently, right? But they skipped one detail. They said only Seven Masters would attend. But get this—from a tip I got myself…”

The tipster? Predictably, Lee Taebaek.

“…Two of the Three Calamities showed up too!”

The chat exploded in shock.

The Magic Tower Master and Holy Flame Divine Nun saga was legendary city-wide.

“Exactly! My bijous! Nailing the point!”

Jasbi snapped her fingers in approval.

“But you’d have noticed. If those two Three Calamities met, we wouldn’t be laughing ha ha ho ho, right?”

“So, which Three Calamities attended? Up to your imaginations!”

“Eek!”

Jasbi squealed in delight. Ninety percent would soon vanish into Lee Taebaek’s pocket, but…

This is life!

As Jasbi savored the moment—

A beat later, Jasbi answered.

“Supreme.”

Supreme (至尊). Meaning supremely noble.