The Sword Saint Clan is a damn dog of a family.
The father is so indifferent to his children that he doesn't care whether they kill or save each other.
If one dies, he'll just say it was survival of the fittest, that the weak died and the strong survived.
–Kyaaaagh!
Back when I was trying this game, I sometimes wondered if it'd be better to just leave this family.
But the benefits of staying are just too enticing.
Those benefits?
'Overwhelming power.'
Yoo Baekjun walked down the hallway of the building.
Blood was splattered everywhere, and the corpses of dead mages lay scattered. It was the work of the Sword Saint Clan's swordsmen who escorted him.
'Swordsmen wielding immense power serve the Sword Saint Clan, and even politicians and business elites tread carefully around them.'
Whether you take control of the Sword Saint Clan or not drastically changes the game's difficulty.
For the main events that lie ahead—
Especially to prepare for the upcoming "major event"—it's absolutely necessary to take over the Sword Saint Clan.
"Young master, we've secured the first basement floor. It seems there are three floors in total. The mages of Straggler are holding formation on the second floor."
"You're not saying you can't break through, are you?"
"Of course not."
Lee Junwoo, the swordsman who approached, grinned.
The Sword Saint Clan solves everything with a sword. Because of that, the Heaven-Surging Sword Technique includes various forms for different situations.
There are even forms designed to counter magic.
"Take care of them."
"Yes, sir."
Lee Junwoo vanished.
Yoo Baekjun slowly made his way to the second basement floor.
The closer he got, the louder the screams and explosions of magic became.
"Th-those crazy bastards!"
"Why the hell are they here?!"
The second basement floor had a wide corridor.
At the end of the corridor, the mages had formed a line and were firing magic indiscriminately.
Opposite them stood the swordsmen.
Crackle!
Magic approached.
Watching it unfold, Lee Junwoo shouted loudly.
"Deploy sword shields!"
The swordsmen all raised the flat of their blades.
The mana flowing from them infused into their swords, which began to shine blue.
And moments later—
Wuuuuuung!
"What the hell...!"
A blue sword shield unfolded in midair.
The incoming magic exploded on contact, but the shield didn't budge. It was like a solid wall.
"Charge forward with the shield!"
Lee Junwoo and the swordsmen began charging forward with the shield still deployed.
The mages, in a last-ditch effort, hurled magic like mad—
But it was useless.
Slash!
"Aaaargh!"
The swordsmen quickly closed the distance, canceled their shields, and plunged into the mages' ranks.
What happened next needs no description.
Mages at close range had no chance of defending against swordsmen.
"Search the second floor! Keep alive the one who matches the description we were given earlier. It's the young master's order—do not fail!"
The swordsmen scattered in all directions.
'Ah, the taste of power.'
If I had tried to take this hideout alone, it would've been a huge pain.
But with the power of authority, things become this easy.
'I really do need to take the Sword Saint Clan for myself.'
Even if it means taking out my dear siblings. No exceptions.
Yoo Baekjun renewed his resolve.
"Young master, we've finished searching the second basement floor. There's one person detected on the third floor."
"Must be Jayven. Capture him."
"We'll make sure to capture him alive."
Lee Junwoo and the swordsmen headed down.
By the time Yoo Baekjun arrived at the third basement floor, taking in the surroundings, the situation was already over.
"Ugh, uuurrgh…!"
Jayven was kneeling.
He seemed to have resisted desperately—signs of magic covered the area, and both his arms were completely broken.
"Kyaaaaagh! Wh-what the hell is this...!"
Jayven writhed in pain. Yoo Baekjun calmly walked up to him.
Jayven looked up at him.
"Wh-who are you…? Who the hell are you to command the Sword Saint Clan like they're your dogs…?!"
"The successor of the Sword Saint Clan."
At those cold words, Jayven's eyes widened.
He had suspected it, but hearing it confirmed still shocked him.
"You bastards should be rotting away in Seorak Mountain! What the hell are you doing out here?!"
"Such a filthy mouth."
Lee Junwoo stepped in and stomped on one of Jayven's feet.
Crunch! The sound of bones shattering followed.
"Kyaaaaah!"
"Choose your words more carefully when speaking to the young master. You never know what'll break next."
"H-huff… haa…"
Yoo Baekjun held up a hand to stop Lee Junwoo.
"This guy's the last one, right?"
"Yes, no other survivors."
"Good. Now, what should we do with him? Just kill him? Or…"
"P-please, just spare my life! I won't do it again! I'll live righteously from now on!"
Jayven trembled all over.
Truthfully, Yoo Baekjun hadn't intended to kill him from the start.
This guy could still be useful.
"Come here."
"Y-yes?"
"I said get over here, you bastard."
Yoo Baekjun grabbed Jayven by the head and dragged him inside.
"Kyaaah! My—my head! It's going to split open…!"
Jayven had a buzz cut.
Naturally, there was no hair to grab, so Yoo Baekjun had him in an iron claw grip, dragging him by the skull.
Of course it hurt—he was being crushed.
"A little pain's fine for you. You bastard, if you couldn't win the bid, you should've just left. Trying to ambush someone returning with the goods?"
"I-I'm sorry! I'm sor—aaagh!"
"Think of my hand as Ginkgo, and you're Wukong. No golden crown, but a bald head."
"Kyaaaagh!"
Yoo Baekjun dragged Jayven deep into the third basement floor.
'Damn it, damn it! If I can just survive… If I can just protect what's here, I'll get stronger and get that bastard back!'
Jayven swore vengeance internally.
Yoo Baekjun stopped in front of a study packed with bookshelves.
Jayven visibly panicked.
"Wh-why here?"
"Hmm. Should be around here somewhere."
Yoo Baekjun casually tossed books off one shelf.
One of them hit Jayven, who screamed in pain.
"Found it."
Behind the books, there was a button-like object on the shelf.
When he pressed it, a loud rumble followed, and the bookshelf opened.
A hidden door was revealed.
"Get up."
"Urgh…"
Yoo Baekjun shoved Jayven's face toward a small device next to the door.
Then forced his eye open.
'N-no way! Does he know about this place?!'
Beep! The device scanned Jayven's eye, and the door opened moments later.
Yoo Baekjun entered as if he knew the place well.
'H-how does he know?!'
Jayven was appalled.
This was Straggler's hideout. It stored goods they obtained from operations before transferring them to headquarters.
'No! The treasures are here!'
If he lost those, there would be no future for him. He had to protect them no matter what.
But—
"Stay still, you bastard."
"Urgh!"
There was nothing he could do.
The pain stopped him from summoning mana, and with both arms broken, he couldn't resist.
Instead, he thought.
'How does this bastard know about this place?'
Even among Straggler's members, only a very select few knew about it.
'Is there a mole?'
It was only natural his thoughts turned in that direction.
Maybe someone had betrayed them, and told him.
"......"
The more he thought, the more confused he became.
Meanwhile, Yoo Baekjun reached the end of the passage and found the storeroom he was searching for.
"Wow."
A storeroom filled with all kinds of items.
Materials helpful for mana training, and all sorts of magic items.
'These magic nerds really went all out.'
They had collected just about every type of magic item imaginable.
He glanced around—unfortunately, there weren't any A-rank items.
A shame, but not the goal this time.
He went deeper into the storeroom.
"Should be around here somewhere…"
Sure enough, he found it.
A scroll covered in an incredibly complex magic circle.
Yoo Baekjun opened the worn paper.
[Training Magic Circle (A)]
A magic circle used by magic families of another world for mana training. It's complex and worn.
–Options: Mana Training, Concentration Enhancement
*Mana Training: Allows faster mana accumulation when standing on the magic circle.
Concentration Enhancement: Makes it easier to focus when standing on the magic circle.
Yoo Baekjun nodded in satisfaction.
An A-rank magic circle. The effects were on the weaker side for its rank, but it still held value.
Just the fact that it helps accumulate hard-to-gather mana is enough to justify its rank.
"N-no! Not that! Give it back!"
"Give it back, my ass. Want to die?"
Yoo Baekjun kicked Jayven away and called for his men.
"Yes, young master."
"Gather everything and send it to my mansion."
"Understood."
The swordsmen began collecting the items in the storeroom and carried them out.
Watching them, Jayven screamed.
"Aaaaaargh! No! I said noooo!"
It was a desperate scream—but no one listened.
Lee Junwoo approached Yoo Baekjun.
"Young master, what should we do with this guy?"
Srrk! He drew his sword as he spoke, like he'd kill him any second.
Jayven, mid-scream, shut his mouth.
"Take him to the clan."
"Sorry? To the clan…?"
"Yes. I heard people from the Magic Tower are going to be paying a visit soon. He'll make a fine gift."
"I see."
Lee Junwoo smiled in understanding.
Straggler was a rogue organization that broke away from the Magic Tower.
They were extreme, and the Tower was eager to wipe them out.
'He might not have much intel, but handing him over would still please them.'
A great opportunity to build trust.
Even Lee Junwoo silently admired it.
'To even consider relationships with the Magic Tower… He's wiser than the rumors say.'
Word had already reached the Sword Saint Clan's Seoul branch that Yoo Baekjun had changed recently.
When he said he was coming to Seoul, they felt it firsthand—the clan had told them to provide him with every convenience.
'If this were the young master from before, the clan wouldn't have cared at all.'
That alone was proof they now saw Yoo Baekjun as the true successor.
Lee Junwoo let out a long breath.
'And to know the location of a hidden storeroom like this… Could he have planted a spy inside Straggler? Unbelievable.'
Maybe that's why he declined their vehicle support and attended the auction personally.
Perhaps it had all been calculated.
'Phew… Who knows how the succession battle will end…'
For someone in Lee Junwoo's position, it was better for the successor conflict to end quickly.
He sighed and carried the goods.
"Well then…"
Yoo Baekjun hummed a tune.
He had gathered everything he could here.
–You have completed the quest! You've received 200P as a reward.
And even cleared a quest.
He now had 400 points.
What Trait should he learn with it?
'Should I learn something immediately useful, or something that'll trigger an event?'
Yoo Baekjun left the storeroom, humming cheerfully.
It was time to return to the clan.