726

 [Chapter 185]

[Academy Guest Instructor (2)]

No Eun-ha's Mana Efficiency Training Method.

That day, the lecture Eun-ha demonstrated to people left them astonished.

"Whoa, who could follow that? What if something goes wrong and the mana circuits get tangled up?"

It was truly a reckless and foolhardy method.

People didn't even dare to try it, they just clicked their tongues.

From that day on, students looked at Eun-ha with even more admiring eyes, while the guest instructors looked at her like she was a monster.

"I thought she was tough, but this is beyond tough. You're saying she's been repeating this crazy thing since she was a student? It's a wonder she's still alive."

"What kind of mindset do you need to be able to do that so casually? Her determination is no joke. And to think she does it even during battle, geez..."

That was the guest instructors' assessment.

Eun-ha's mana efficiency training method was that far beyond the ordinary realm.

It was evaluated as the domain of geniuses that the slow and average couldn't follow.

As a result, Eun-ha's training method didn't gain much popularity among people.

Tsk, without even trying it, they say it's the domain of geniuses because they can't do it. How ridiculous.

On the other hand, Eun-ha couldn't understand their reaction at all.

She was, if anything, average.

Her internal mana was only slightly above average.

The only talent she had was excellent mana control.

Because of this, Eun-ha had no choice but to learn how to make up for her lack of talent with other things.

Even if you guys whine like that, my clan members followed along just fine.

There's probably a reason I deliberately didn't share the know-how in the lecture.

Why would I share trade secrets?

The real geniuses were actually her clan members.

No Eun-ah, Jung Ha-yang, Jo A-ra, Bae Su-bin, Cha Eun-woo, Mok Min-ho, and so on.

Once she opened the floodgates, her clan members grasped it with ease.

Eun-ha even felt the gap in talent from them.

Well, I'm just glad I'm not treated as a spectacle by the kids. It's good that I can only pick out kids who really want to learn and have potential.

Anyway, after Eun-ha's first class.

Instead of seeking Eun-ha's advice, the students went to find other guest instructors.

Thanks to this, she was able to teach students relatively leisurely.

And among them, she was able to discover talented students.

"─You, what did you say your name was?"

"Yes! It's Cheon Hae-won!"

"Cheon? First time I've seen that surname. Well, you're doing well. I have high expectations." """"...!!""""

For example, a caster like Cheon Hae-won.

When Eun-ha discovered students' potential, she would bluntly say she had high expectations.

There was no way the students wouldn't understand the meaning implied in those words.

So they strived even harder to catch Eun-ha's eye.

Meanwhile, the most outstanding person among those listening to her lecture was someone else.

"My Lord, what about me? What about me?"

Iriya, who accepted whatever Eun-ha said without a shred of doubt.

She was fully demonstrating her talent, even earning admiration from other guest instructors.

"Well... you did well."

"It's all thanks to my Lord's teachings."

To the point where even Eun-ha felt uncomfortable.

Iriya instantly reproduced the eccentric behavior Eun-ha had demonstrated right in front of her.

☆

Basically, the relationship between guest instructors wasn't that bad.

It wasn't even the official recruitment period yet, and there wasn't much to gain from competing with each other.

In a way, it was also an opportunity for them to form connections and broaden their network.

"I wonder if the Pandora Clan Lord knows about that... I don't think she would..."

"Well, she might not know." "Know what?"

"Beep beep?"

Academy Cultural Center Cafeteria.

That day, after finishing her lecture, Eun-ha was having lunch with guest instructors whose schedules happened to be free.

At that moment, Dang-won, known as the Six Stars of the Silla Clan, suddenly brought up a topic.

Gong Myeong-ho, <Ye-geom > of the Five Swords belonging to the Zenith Clan, nodded in response.

Why are these people talking about things only they know about?

Eun-ha made a blank expression at the incomprehensible words.

In response, the two just laughed out loud.

"They say it's common to form attachments after being a guest instructor for a semester. Well, that's understandable. How can you not form attachments when you're rubbing shoulders with each other?" "They say one person goes in, but three come out?"

"If the Pandora Clan Lord finds someone she likes this time, she should try making a move."

"What about the clan members who came with her this time? <Seol-chang > and <Geum-ho > seem quite popular too. I bet there are quite a few guys here who have their eyes on them?"

""""...""""

At the sound of the two men chuckling.

The people at the same table burst into laughter.

Eun-ha sighed deeply at the conversation that sounded like something only old men would have.

Yet she didn't miss observing the guest instructors who flinched at what the two were saying.

I should warn Yeonhwa noona and Seona about those people.

Who do they think they're eyeing?

Eun-ha glared.

The guest instructors who met her gaze hurriedly averted their eyes.

Soon, Eun-ha raised both hands above the table.

"I don't know what misunderstanding you have, but I'm taken. And don't touch my clan members."

"Wow, how many rings..."

"Envious bastard. Some of us couldn't even get married at this age because we were just fighting, while some have three wives... Geez, this world is too dirty to live in."

"Yeah, the Pandora Clan Lord is the winner in life."

Seeing the three rings.

Dang-won and Gong Myeong-ho let out sighs.

The other guest instructors were the same.

They seemed to feel a sense of relative deprivation.

They each let out deep sighs with dejected looks on their faces.

Their left hands were empty.

Now that I look at it, it seems they were expecting something else while recruiting students.

Eun-ha clicked her tongue at them.

On the other hand, she felt secretly proud.

The food went down smoothly and deliciously.

"Ah, we should exclude the Pandora Clan Lord. I was going to try to create an opportunity for all of us to get closer while getting friendly with the Pandora Clan Lord, but I guess that won't work."

"I didn't hear anything about that... Dang-won, you can't leave me out."

"I was going to start from now. So in that sense, Eun-sil, you too..."

"I'll pass. Sorry, but I pursue self-love."

The two men who licked their lips in disappointment.

Soon, they changed their target to Go Eun-sil, <Sumunjang > of the Five Spirits of the Myeongwang Clan, who was having lunch next to Eun-ha.

Go Eun-sil immediately put up an iron wall.

"Come to think of it, the cultural festival is coming up soon. Is <Silent > giving the Twelve Seats lecture this year?"

"Yes, I heard the Clan Lord has been quite worried lately because of Sujin's lecture."

The topic quickly shifted to something else.

Go Eun-sil spoke to a guest instructor dispatched from the Tempest Clan.

The woman responded with a bitter smile.

So Yoo Sujin is giving the lecture this year.

The kids applying for the sniper division will be happy.

Eun-ha didn't participate in the conversation.

She just ate her food while listening to the conversation.

Who's coming to give lectures this year.

What the cultural festival might be like this year.

Who are the promising rookies among the students participating in the comprehensive division competition, and so on.

Eun-ha could hear good information just by quietly listening.

""""...""""

Meanwhile, the other guest instructors had to listen with their ears perked up.

This was because guest instructors from S-class clans were gathered around Eun-ha.

Even though the guest instructors got along well with each other, they were unconsciously treating each other based on the hierarchy of clans.

Naturally, the flow of information could only go from top to bottom.

Nevertheless, Eun-ha was proudly seated among the S-class clans.

No one found it strange, rather they considered it natural.

☆

<Geum-ho > Jin Seo-na.

She was currently the most highly regarded telepath in the industry.

Her telepathy was so clear that it wasn't greatly disturbed even by Ye-gyeong's jamming during the Seoul invasion.

Moreover, she had participated in several operations and performed the main telepath duty.

As a result, Jin Seo-na was known as a rising star among both Ains and humans.

[Hello everyone! I'm Jin Seo-na, a telepath from the Pandora Clan. Those who've been wanting to see me, perk up your ears and wag your tails!]

[[[[──!!]]]]

Furthermore, Jin Seo-na was the representative of Ain students when she was a student herself.

Even after graduating, she was still receiving the trust and admiration of Ains.

In this situation, when she appeared as a guest instructor after making achievements in society, the reaction of the Ains was beyond words.

[Seo-na noona! I missed you!]

[Unnie! I'm dying!!]

[Jin Seo-na's tail is the best!!]

[Seo-na unnie, take me, please!]

Academy Grand Auditorium.

The place was a crucible of frenzy.

The Ain students each excitedly sent telepathy to Jin Seo-na who had stepped onto the stage.

[It's great to see you all! There might be people here who took classes with me and those who are seeing me for the first time, but thank you for welcoming me like this. Now, stop the telepathy!]

Among the 3,000 or so students, the proportion of Ains wasn't that high.

So telepath-only classes were usually conducted by gathering all students of the same grade.

This was why Jin Seo-na was now facing hundreds of students.

[But I'm really sorry, everyone. I'd like to conduct the lecture with all of you together, but I think it would be better to divide into groups for a smooth lecture.]

[[[[Ah....]]]]

[But the other instructors will give useful teachings too. And it's not like we're only seeing each other today, right? We'll be seeing each other throughout the semester, so don't worry.]

Of course, she wasn't the only one who came as a guest instructor.

Although it was drowned out by the cheers welcoming her, other guest instructors were present too.

They smiled bitterly seeing her being welcomed.

But even among them, Jin Seo-na was gaining favor.

They judged that her skills and background would have a good long-term influence on Ains.

[Then, let's form groups of 30 based on where you're sitting. Today, I'll be with this group here.]

The skills backed up by her alias <Geum-ho >.

And the background of being a direct descendant of KK Pharmaceuticals.

The more she stood out, the more it would raise awareness about Ains and improve their quality of life.

As a result, the guest instructors were fond of her.

Meanwhile, Jin Seo-na took the lead in conducting the lecture with their permission, and quickly chose her group.

I feel bad for the senior instructors, but I asked my close juniors to gather promising rookies for me.

Jin Seo-na was still in frequent contact with her juniors.

She used these relationships to scout talents needed for the Pandora Clan in advance.

Most of the Ains in the group she chose were of this type.

[Thank you, Mary.]

[It's nothing, unnie.]

Soon, Jin Seo-na found an Ain with goat horns and fluffy gray hair in her group.

Kim Mary.

She was also a Pandora Clan recruitment candidate that Jin Seo-na had her eye on.

Jin Seo-na greeted her through telepathy.

Then she clapped her hands.

[Now, shall we play a game? We're going to do word chain starting from this seat. But we'll only share telepathy among ourselves. If telepathy leaks to other groups, the other instructors will let us know.]

There wasn't much to teach 3rd year high school Ains.

So Jin Seo-na decided to assess the students' skills under the guise of a game.

Telepathy word chain game.

Quick-wittedness, clarity of telepathy, ability to accurately designate the receiver, and so on.

Just one game could assess a telepath's abilities.

[Bean sprout]

[Heat wave]

[Committee]

[Whirlwind]

[Iridium]

[...]

[Okay! We'll start over from here. And since we're all trying to enjoy this together, please don't use words that don't connect!]

Jin Seo-na quickly rolled her eyes.

At the same time, she communicated with the guest instructors to check if telepathy was leaking from the group to other groups.

Indeed, it was a group composed of promising rookies.

The word chain continued smoothly.

She paid attention to the Ains who answered quickly with clear telepathy.

[Everyone, this time let's try to speak as quietly as possible. Got it?]

[[[[Yes~]]]]

[Then let's start an A, S, M, R word chain game with fox.]

After getting a general idea.

Jin Seo-na classified the students she had initially sorted once again in a different way.

The classification didn't end at the second round.

She measured the students' levels by classifying them into 3rd, 4th, and 5th rounds.

And by the time it reached the 5th round, there were only five selected students left including Kim Mary.

I should focus on these kids first. I'll pick one or two including Mary, and hand over the rest to the seniors.

Jin Seo-na drew a smile on her lips.

☆

While scouting for promising rookies, Eun-ha didn't forget about the people she had sent to the academy.

"─For the Pandora Clan!!"

""""For the clan!!""""

"Look at that, proposing a toast with my clan name as they please."

Late at night.

Eun-ha gathered foreigners like Dominic, Meiling, Meilin, Iriya, and others.

They enjoyed a dinner party with alcohol and meat.

Seo-na said she's hanging out with the Ains, so it can't be helped. She's probably feeling like she's still working even now, we should understand.

Jin Seo-na didn't participate in the dinner party.

She said she was having a separate gathering to bond with the Ain students.

"Here, Clan Lord. Take my glass. This is, you know, dongdongju that Oliver bastard brewed with rice, and it tastes really amazing. It's killer."

"...I never thought I'd be drinking dongdongju from you guys."

At that moment, Dominic brought out a jar of dongdongju, saying it was his secret weapon.

Eun-ha received the dongdongju with a sour face.

It had a very Korean taste.

"It's not bad. Pass it around to the other table too. Let Yeonhwa noona and the others drink it."

"Yes, understood, Clan Lord."

"That Clan Lord, Clan Lord talk. Do you want to join that badly?"

In his previous life, he was known as <Sweeper > and was the representative of the Itaewon forces, succeeding <Mercenary King> Douglas Kim.

Eun-ha found it really strange that he was being so polite and wanting to join the Pandora Clan.

 "Are you dissatisfied with me? I may not be as good as Senior Parang or Senior Changjin, but I'm a skilled hunter too. My academy grades weren't bad either. I'm the best at shooting guns. Bang~!"

"Don't imitate shooting guns. One of my wives is enough for that. And what's with the 'senior' talk? You're older than me but calling them seniors?"

"They joined the clan before me, so I should call them seniors. I'm a Korean who knows well about the country of etiquette in the East. But what do you mean by first wife? Is your first wife good at shooting too?"

"...Well, something like that."

"Anyway, I can do well."

"It's not that I'm dissatisfied with your skills..."

Dominic tries to appeal to himself.

Eun-ha didn't entirely dislike Dominic trying to make a good impression on him.

However, he was reluctant to let him join the Pandora Clan.

He's someone who could potentially command the foreigners in Itaewon. It's a waste to just keep him as a regular clan member.

And if I let Dominic in, other foreigners will pester me to join the clan too...

I do plan to accept foreigners, but if I'm not careful, the clan composition might become too skewed.

There wasn't much benefit in letting Dominic join the clan.

Though unlikely, there was a possibility of the Pandora Clan being taken over by foreigners, or at least losing its identity.

So Eun-ha organized his thoughts and opened his mouth.

"─If you want to follow me, I'd prefer if you didn't join the clan."

"...Why is that?"

"Because you're too valuable a talent to just bring into the clan."

"..."

Eun-ha spoke bluntly.

Dominic swallowed his breath.

Eun-ha continued speaking.

"I think the foreigners in Itaewon need to have legitimate power to integrate into the local community and this society in the long run."

"...Legitimate power, you say?"

"Yes, a clan composed of players. We may be entrusting you with Yongsan-gu's security now out of necessity, but we can't keep entrusting it to you in the future. You're an unauthorized armed group after all."

"..."

"So I want you to create a clan. With Yongsan-gu as your base, I hope you can operate legally in Yongsan-gu. I think that could be the first step for you guys to gain recognition from people."

Continuing to embrace the Itaewon forces could become a blind spot for Eun-ha.

At least on the surface, it needed to appear problem-free.

And Eun-ha thought of creating a clan as an alternative.

Above all, if Dominic creates a separate clan─

"─Become a satellite clan like that. I'd like you to be Pandora's sword in the realm where law applies."

"Pandora's sword..."

A satellite clan of Pandora.

Even now, there were clans performing similar functions in Yongsan-gu and Jung-gu.

But in the long term, they were potential enemies.

Though he held their reins now, it was uncertain how they might change once they recovered from the damage suffered during the Seoul invasion.

So I need absolutely loyal allies.

And the Itaewon forces can never betray me.

That's why Eun-ha had a satellite clan that Dominic would establish in mind.

The foreigners in Itaewon are living under the protection of the Pandora Clan.

They can never escape from the protection of the Pandora Clan.

If they do, all that awaits them is the same discrimination as before.

So he proposed to Dominic to create a satellite clan.

Moreover─

─Satellite clans have many uses. They can act as a rubber stamp in regional assemblies too.

There were many advantages to having satellite clans.

The Pandora Clan would be able to manage Yongsan-gu and Jung-gu more tightly and systematically.

Furthermore, it would allow him to completely grasp the two districts under his control.

"So create a satellite clan and become Pandora Clan's sword. And I'd like you to select people you trust, and persuade them to create satellite clans in the future too."

"─Yes, I'll definitely do that, Clan Lord."

Perhaps someday he might be called that.

The lord of Yongsan-gu and Jung-gu.

...I'm not sure.

I just need to achieve my goal.

Eun-ha finished drinking his alcohol.

☆

At that time.

Those gathered around Ryu Yeon-hwa were busy chatting among themselves.

"─Let the men have their boring conversations among themselves, and let's have fun on our own, unnie."

"Yes, that's right, unnie."

Meiling, Meilin.

The twin sisters, whose older and younger status was unclear, poured dongdongju.

Ryu Yeon-hwa just gulped down the alcohol they gave her.

Then she heard such words.

"─Unnie, you like the Clan Lord, don't you?"

"It's no use hiding it. It's clearly written all over your face, how could we not know?"

"..."

With a thud.

Ryu Yeon-hwa put her glass down on the floor.

Then she hung her head low.

When she didn't answer,

The twin sisters became even more persistent.

"You like him, right? Just say you do."

"If you like him, what's there to be so shy about?"

The twins chattered away.

As if they had found a toy.

They pressed Ryu Yeon-hwa.

"...Yes."

Finally, Ryu Yeon-hwa had no choice but to answer the twins' interrogation.

Her face turned bright red.

The dongdongju jar froze.

"Then hurry up and go confess to the Clan Lord. Just go for it, unnie."

"That's right, why are you just watching?"

"...It's useless."

Soon, Ryu Yeon-hwa smiled bitterly.

It was a feeling that ended before she could even confess.

No Eun-ha was already someone else's man.

The twin sisters saw right through her feelings.

They made a 'hmph' sound.

"What does that matter?" 

"That's right."

"What?"

Ryu Yeon-hwa tilted her head, and

The sisters nodded in agreement with each other.

Then they said─

"─He took in a second and third, so why can't he take in a fourth?"

"Unnie is right. It's really strange to be agonizing now just because he's someone else's man."

"..."

"Just go for it."

"Just go eat him up."

"...!"

"Ooh, little sis. That's going too far."

"Then just strip him."

"And then knock him down."

"Ooh, big sis. You're no joke either."

"You think you're the only one?"

As if drunk.

The twin sisters drank soju straight and pressured Ryu Yeon-hwa.

Ryu Yeon-hwa couldn't answer to such aggressive words.

She only responded passively.

"Still..."

"What do you mean still? Whether it becomes three to four, or five, it's already beyond common sense."

"That's right. Is a harem so bad in this world? I think it would be nice to all sleep together. Oh my, what am I saying."

"Right, is human love bad? That's what leads to peace! Oh my, what am I saying too."

"..."

The two kept chattering away.

By this point, even Ryu Yeon-hwa was starting to feel very confused.

But the twin sisters even dragged in Iriya, who had been quietly sipping her drink.

"Saint unnie, you say something too."

"That's right, Elf unnie."

"Huh? What is it?"

"Is it a sin for the Clan Lord to have a harem?"

"..."

While Ryu Yeon-hwa was in a daze,

Iriya, who was asked the question, smiled gently.

"─How could receiving the Lord's love be a sin? I just don't want to package the Lord's holy love with a mere word like harem."

"As expected of Saint unnie. So naughty."

"As expected of Elf unnie. So bold."

"..."

The three agree.

By this point, Ryu Yeon-hwa wondered if she had been thinking wrong all along.