“Heh…”
“Is this for real? Did Dad draw this as a joke or something?”
“What… what is this…?”
“Wait, isn’t this the Hansung logo?! Why is this here?”
It was late at night.
The soft, fluffy bed prepared for the end of the day beckoned, as those ready to embrace the next day lazily made their way to their rooms.
Yet, they were suddenly summoned by Freya.
Gathered together in confusion, they stared at one another, mouths agape, baffled by what they saw.
The name of the new merchant guild they encountered today blatantly bore the logo and name of Hansung Corporation, a major South Korean conglomerate.
The shock was akin to an American suddenly encountering the XTube logo in another world.
Those present, too stunned to even speak, blinked and scrambled to make sense of the chaos in their minds.
It was then—
“…Could Hansung have grown so powerful by importing technology or magic from another world?!”
Felix, startled as if he’d uncovered the secret of the century, muttered confidently while nodding to himself.
“That makes sense!”
“Wait, are you serious?!”
“Wow… I knew it. Their technological prowess couldn’t be explained by anything other than magic.”
Everyone except Freya nodded repeatedly at Felix’s comment, fully convinced.
Dariann, on the other hand, looked at her with an overwhelming sense of betrayal, as though he’d been stabbed in the back.
“That’s impossible! If that were true, I, as an executive, wouldn’t have been unaware of it!”
“Ah… that’s true.”
“…Excuse me? Um, what should I call you—uncle? Aunt? Madam? Whatever! You were an executive at Hansung?!”
“Oh, you didn’t know? My dad was Hansung’s successor. He left the company, though.”
“What?!”
The others were left in even greater shock as Freya, flustered, responded to Dariann’s earnest gaze.
“Anyway, I have no idea why this logo is here in this world.”
“Hmm… but didn’t Dad leave Hansung more than 25 years ago? Maybe this technology was developed after he left?”
“Even though he left Hansung, he maintained contact with Grandfather, the former chairman. I occasionally helped him too. Grandfather retired two years before we crossed over into this world, and even until then, I never heard of such a thing.”
Freya’s rebuttal to Felix’s new theory forced him into deep thought once more.
Her grandfather, the former chairman, was the only member of the Hansung family that Freya—who loathed most of her bloodline—respected and stayed in touch with.
Considering her frequent discussions with her grandfather about Hansung’s large-scale projects, Felix’s theory was ruled out.
“Then what is the meaning of this logo?”
“That’s exactly what we can’t figure out…”
With that theory eliminated, the mystery only deepened.
Who were the ones using this logo?
“Could it be that someone like us, another person who transmigrated, used this logo? After all, for Koreans, Hansung is the first thing that comes to mind when you think of a major corporation. If it were someone from another country, they’d have drawn something like the Xogle, MicroXoft, or Xple logos.”
“I was shocked at first too, but I arrived at a similar conclusion.”
As Tene, who had been stunned into silence by the series of shocks, rejoined the conversation, Freya lightly nodded in agreement.
There were already five confirmed transmigrators in this world, including herself.
It wasn’t far-fetched to think there could be others scattered across this world, and if one of them was Korean, it would be natural for them to use a logo like this.
“Or… what if it’s a way to gather people like us? To the locals of this world, this might just look like the emblem of a new guild, but to modern people, it’s a recognizable logo.”
“So you’re saying there’s a group trying to gather transmigrators?”
Another possibility emerged from Felix’s mouth.
It could have been a coincidence, but seeing this logo seemed to not only inform other transmigrators that they weren’t alone but also reveal that the guild’s leader was one of them.
“Now that you mention it… it does feel intentional.”
“But why? What’s the purpose of drawing attention so blatantly?”
“What are the conditions for ending up in this novel, anyway?”
“It seems like they’re selecting from people who’ve read the story.”
As everyone began sharing their thoughts, the discussion stretched on.
“Ugh…! Argh!!! My head hurts!!!”
Eventually, Dariann, overwhelmed by the flood of information, jumped up from his seat, clutching his steaming head, and shouted.
“Let’s keep it simple for now! So, what’s the plan?”
“For now, I’ve arranged to meet with the guild that sent these documents. Setting up a guild in this territory requires a lot of paperwork, but I’ve told them we need to meet in person to discuss it.”
“Perfect! When they show up, we’ll interrogate them and get some useful information!”
“It’s not that simple… but it’s true that we can’t do much else right now. Since it’s a new guild, even Penril’s intelligence network has scant information. Meeting them directly seems to be our best option.”
“Alright, let’s do that then! This discussion is over. My brain’s about to explode from all this sudden information.”
“Sounds good. You’ve all worked hard today. Let’s get some sleep and think it over tomorrow.”
With Dariann taking the lead to wrap up the increasingly convoluted discussion, everyone began leaving the room one by one, until only Freya remained, leaning back in her chair, lost in thought.
“…Something about this feels off. Is it instinct? A gut feeling? Something keeps bothering me.”
Was this done carelessly, or was it truly an attempt to gather transmigrators?
As these various speculations swirled in her mind, Freya felt an unexplainable unease in her chest.
“…For now, there’s nothing I can do.”
Unable to resolve the vague discomfort clouding her mind, Freya furrowed her brows before eventually following Dariann’s advice and leaving the office to return to her room.
A few days later.
“Is this really the right course of action?”
“Why are you acting like this?”
In the reception room of the Evergarden estate, two individuals sat on a sofa, exchanging glances as they began a conversation.
The pair, a young-looking man and woman, appeared to have entirely human features, ordinary by all accounts.
However…
“I don’t feel comfortable breaking the rules of the Great Forest to maintain active exchanges with humans.”
“There you go again. You’ve been complaining about this all the way here, and now you’re still at it?”
“But joining hands with humans… it just doesn’t sit right with me…”
“I don’t mind it. The various items humans create are fascinating, aren’t they? I actually quite like them.”
“Haah… I just don’t get it. Why would the elders make such a sudden decision…?”
“Well, it seems the ‘princess’ must really be something. How else could she persuade those old men?”
Their conversation was peculiar, with certain oddities that would leave any outsider scratching their head in confusion.
“Rio, I understand you’re not happy about it, but we’re here in a subordinate position. You know we can’t afford to mess this up, right?”
“I don’t like bowing down to those humans, but… this is a mission. Don’t worry, I understand, Shalle.”
“Good. It’s about time. They’re on their way now.”
At that moment, the two stopped talking and remained silent for a while.
Knock, knock.
“Excuse me. I’ve come to escort you for your meeting with the lord.”
“Ah, understood. Let’s go.”
“Yes.”
Gordon knocked on the door and stepped in to escort the two to Dariann and Freya’s office.
They promptly stood and followed him.
The three walked silently through the corridor, their footsteps echoing.
Just as they were about to reach the office, they turned a corner.
That’s when it happened.
“Oh? Steward Gordon? Hello.”
“Ah, Miss Tene. Good evening. What brings you here?”
Tene suddenly appeared from around the corner, bowing politely as she greeted Gordon.
“Well… Felix has been, um, looking for me… Hehe…”
“…Oh dear. With such important guests here today, I hope no commotion arises.”
Having been chased by Felix under the pretense of punishing a “traitor,” Tene had been wandering around the estate, hiding wherever she could.
“Important guests… Ah, you mean them? Hello.”
Noticing the two individuals following behind Gordon, Tene greeted them with a polite bow.
But then—
“Ugh…! Hrk…?! Ugh…”
“Kaah…! Urgh…! Grrr…”
Thud!
“…Huh?”
The moment the two saw Tene, they froze in shock, their eyes widening.
Moments later, their eyes rolled back, and they collapsed to the floor, frothing at the mouth.
“Uh, wh-what’s happening to them?!”
“I-I have no idea…!”
Panicking at the sudden collapse of the two strangers, Tene and Gordon exchanged worried glances before rushing over to the fallen pair.
“Excuse me! Are you okay? Hey—huh?”
As Tene gently shook the unconscious man to check his condition, she got a good look at his face and gasped in surprise.
“…An elf?”
Although the man had appeared human at first, with short ears like any ordinary person, his ears were now long and pointed, just like an elf from a fantasy game or movie.
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