Seoul - Random Park
It had been a weird past 24 hours for Ahn since it came to light that he was a potential, if not confirmed S rank hunter. The world, or at least Korea, had gone crazy with the fact that they now possessed another S ranker. Right after his initial test his guild had to deal with that minor problem of the dungeon break. Luckily for them it was only a B rank dungeon so the top echelon didn't have to flex their muscles.
Right now it was an awkward atmosphere inside Baek's potential old office. Sitting facing each other was Baek and Go Gunhee, in the middle was Ahn. It couldn't have been more awkward as both Baek and Gunhee wanted to gain favor with Ahn, both seeking to keep him or add him to their roster.
"Ahem.. are you guys going to talk or are we going to keep sitting here in silence"
Ahn couldn't take the stand off anymore. Since Gunhee came into the office and they had greeted each other, a small power struggle had taken place after they sat down.
"Mr. Ahn Sangmin, although I haven't met you that often, I have heard of your prowess as a head hunter. I know that Baek and the WTG can offer you much, you can even start your own guild that can offer you a lot as well, but I would like it if you could consider joining the HA."
Gunhee definitely doesn't mince words. I would imagine controlling a whole countries hunter population would have to take some balls of steel.. and this man just tried to steal me from Baek right in his face.
"You're being too nice to me Chairman Gunhee. It's not something that others can't also do, it just happens that I got lucky a couple times with my head hunting"
"Hahaha, he's also humble.."
"Chairman! With all due respect, I don't value the fact you're trying to take my employee away from me"
Gunhee stopped his laugh and looked towards Baek with a serious look on his face that Baek returned. Gone was the light atmosphere that Ahn was trying to create and the awkward mood settled back in like it never left.
"Seriously guys, I'm not even sure what I want out of being a hunter yet, so lets just take a step back, we're all on the same side here.."
Gunhee stopped his death stare off that he had going with Baek and looked over at Ahn with a curious look, it wasn't everyday that a hunter didn't just think about profits but the fact that their primary job was to protect the citizens from the dungeons that kept popping up.
This Ahn might be someone to back come high hell or water
"Mr. Ahn, what could I offer you to join my HA. I know that compensation isn't that high, but we can always give you other incentives that you might not have if you joined a guild. Like tax breaks, free lodging/meals/travel, and you can even be the face of the HA. What do you say?"
I say bull.. I need XP to get stronger. If I'm already an S rank at this level - what will happen when I get to level 100 or even beyond that. Thinking about that - should I keep the system, having an understanding of my skillset would be nice
[Host, this System suggests that keeping it would be beneficial]
Of course you'd say that..
Both Gunhee and Baek were looking at Ahn as he contemplated. For Baek this was an opportunity to stand toe to toe with the HG(Hunters Guild). But for Gunhee this was monumental as he knew that holding onto as many S ranks would be monumental for not just the dungeons, but potential wars that would/could happen if the dungeons stopped being a threat. Each S rank was a nuke that was ready to be deployed in both defensive and offensive action. The loss of Hwang Dongsoo hit the hardest, but he wasn't necessarily the first one to be taken by another country, but Gunhee promised himself that he would be the last.
"Chairman Gunhee, would it be possible to be an honorary member of you HA while also being involved in a guild?"
I'm gonna have to gamble on the fact that I know Gunhee doesn't want to lose more S ranks
Gunhee was taken back for a moment. He hadn't really thought of allowing his hunters to be able to stand one foot in and one foot out, but thinking about it, maybe he can take this opportunity to get to know Ahn better so that he can try to mold him towards taking over his position once he's taken his retirement.
"That will be a difficult thing to do, but I can get the board members to allow it. Though I am curious, why the interest in being a part of my HA but not committing to it fully?"
"Well that is simple to answer Chairman. See the thing is, I don't want to be tied up in the bureaucracies of what I can and cannot do in terms of hunting inside of gates. I would rather not wait until a gate is almost on the verge of a break before I'm allowed inside of it, for me keeping this world safe is very important. At the same time, I realize the need for oversight in terms of guilds and other hunters. Having people in power that can control and guide our hunter community towards the right causes and being a pillar to rally behind is important. I know that our Chairman is our cornerstone right now, but you are close to retirement, so I would like to be the one that others rally behind for the coming generation."
Go Gunhee was taken by surprise. He had expected many reasons, most of them selfish or self-motivated, but what came out was his reason for taking on this role. He strived to put the needs of the millions above his wants and desires. Hearing a young blood saying those words made his heart pump like never before, he could see the conviction that Ahn had for what he just said. Gunhee could imagine it now, seeing the other hunters and guilds rallying behind this man, he could even imagine himself doing that... in fact he wanted to.
Oh, if only I was 10.. no even 5 years younger. What I wouldn't give to fight by your side Mr. Ahn..
Ahn could tell that he had Gunhee hook line and sinker. While he did believe in those things, he just wanted the benefits of being in the HA while still hunting and leveling as he pleased. Once he got powerful enough, he would change how others viewed peak level hunters, or at the very least how they viewed him.
Baek on the other hand was sitting there like a child sitting in on a meeting between his teacher and his parent. But he didn't interrupt as he could see that this was a pivotal moment not only for his guild but maybe even Korea.
"Baek, feel lucky that you were able to grow alongside Mr. Ahn, I can tell that he views your guild like a family. To be young again.... full of dreams and aspirations.. Mr. Ahn I formally extend the invitation to join my HA as an honorary member and I will make sure that you get the full employee package, not just scraps or left overs. I'm glad to have met you today, I will see you tomorrow for the "real" assessment."
And with that Go Gunhee made his exit.
"Ahn, are you sure about that? I wouldn't want you to feel indebted to me or something, I would rather not hold you back from what you want to do.."
Although Baek would have loved it for Ahn to stay in his guild, considering his long term friendship with him, he wouldn't want to stand in his way. Seeing his friend succeed and keeping each other on good terms was a lot better than holding his friend back and festering bad blood as well.
"No, that was exactly what I was aiming for. Now that I am your Guild Master, I think you should be more respectful when you address me..."
Baek froze where he was, then slowly turned to look at his friend.
I was just feeling bad and you're going to throw that in my face.....
When he looked at Ahn smiling at him mischievously, he knew that he had just been had.
"Oh, you're so going to milk that huh?"
"You betcha, I even had cameras installed just for that moment. You should see the look on your face"
Ahn was now full on laughing at Baek who was pouting. It wasn't everyday that someone could prank him that good, but to also capture it to show other was a hit to his ego.
"Speaking of which, what happened to that guy that you brought in?"
"Oh Jin-Woo... well he should be in a C-rank dungeon right about now.... Ohhhh I totally forgot about that..."