Become Overpowered CEO of Hero Clan

Become Overpowered CEO of Hero Clan – 048

Response.

The secluded primitive jungle gate where Wendia resides was located in Chungcheong Province, a 2-and-a-half-hour drive away. Following the winding S-shaped road, after a while, a structure resembling an observatory appeared on a rocky cliff hundreds of meters away.

“I’ll escort you this way.”

Promptly disembarking, as soon as we entered the building, a staff member warmly welcomed us.

Having notified in advance about using the gate, we could directly enter the underground passage of the building.

Passing through a dark, cave-like entrance, as we descended for a while, the space revealed itself, resembling a secret base with state-of-the-art equipment.

The sound of underground water flowing from somewhere echoed in the ears, and the air, humid and nauseating, stimulated the nose. A sense of reluctance gradually arose in that oppressive feeling.

‘It’ll be fine. We’ve prepared thoroughly.’

After inwardly reaffirming the safety of today’s exploration into the Other World, following the guidance of the employee, we passed through the base and, once again, after a while, finally came to see the ‘gate’ leading to the Other World.

The gate was a round metal door with a diameter of about 3m. The circular door was embedded in the cave wall, lush with rocks and moss, and at the center of the door, there was a symbol of a beast that could be seen in ancient murals.

Behind the reinforced glass overlooking the gate was a waiting room where final preparations for battle, such as potion doping and weapon maintenance before entering the Other World, were made. Surprisingly, there was a group ahead of us, already preparing weapons.

‘Hero?’

I heard that this gate is not popular. There was not a single ‘Moonlight Deer Antler’ for sale in famous apothecaries or auction houses.

But what’s this? Were those people not releasing their goods? If that’s the case, it’s quite suspicious.

“Oh, oh! Isn’t it Sir Isaac!”

At that moment, a middle-aged man with a thick beard, who seemed to be the leader of the group, tried to greet us with a bright smile as soon as he saw us. It was the first time a friendly conversation had unfolded with an external hero who had a low reputation.

‘It would be awkward to use honorifics.’

Keeping in mind the hierarchical relationship determined by reputation in the hero industry, I spoke bluntly.

“Yeah. Which clan are you from?”

“Haha, you might not know even if I tell you. We’re the Phoenix Clan, a place that’s too busy to even fill its stomach. Although I’m lacking, I am the leader of that place, hero Whale Beard. It is an honor to meet you!”

“How long have you been active with the Phoenix Clan?”

“Uh, six months!”

“I’ve been here for four months!”

Short period of activity. They seem to be heroes, but…

‘Can this really happen?’

The team consisted of a 5-member squad: 4 novice heroes and 1 villain.

It wasn’t a mistake. The hero who identified himself as Whale Beard was, in fact, the villain. The villain name displayed in the information window was ‘Beard Whale’, and he was at level 45 with two mutations.

‘It’s quite irritating.’

Using a hero name with only the order reversed was also strange. Either he was fearless about revealing his true identity, or he simply didn’t care.

I immediately instructed the support team to investigate the Phoenix Clan. Specifically, I asked them to gather detailed information about the activities and personal details of the clan leader, whale Beard.

‘A change of heart? Or did he manipulate his identity?’

There’s no reason for affiliated heroes to lie. They’ve been active for at least six months normally, so how is this possible? Villains are inherently a people committing villainous acts, so disguising themselves as heroes for monster hunting or missions seems almost impossible. It’s a case I haven’t seen even in Clan of Heroes.

“Sir, our meeting here must be fate. I’m well-acquainted with the terrain of the jungle, and how about traveling together for a short while? I can also share good hunting spots. What do you think?”

“No, let’s go our separate ways.”

“Ah… Yes. You must have had specific plans.”

“More importantly, how can someone like you be a hero?”

“What? What do you mean?”

“You should know that better than anyone. Don’t let me see you again. Got it? Now, get lost.”

“Ugh! I, I apologize. Excuse me, everyone, let’s go!”

The Phoenix Clan descended the stairs and disappeared into the gate beyond the reinforced glass. Even though the gate was open for a very short time, the internal energy overflowed, staining the surroundings of the entrance a dark red.

Soon, the communication from the support team leader came.

[Sir, I’ll brief you. The Phoenix Clan was registered three years ago as a small business with fewer than five employees. There is almost no record of mission activities, and most of the revenue comes from monster hunting in the Other World. Safety management has been lacking, resulting in regular casualties and frequent changes in affiliated heroes. And Clan Leader Whale Beard…]

Strangely, the Phoenix Clan was an ordinary small clan with no particular peculiarities. Whale Beard, a 10-year veteran hero, had been diligently carrying out hero activities for the past three years since founding the Phoenix Clan.

‘Where’s the villainous act in this?’

The system couldn’t be wrong, and there seemed to be some complicated circumstances, but it didn’t seem to be an area where I should intervene. If he has lived without any problems as a hero for ten years, he will likely continue to do so in the future.

‘As long as there’s no threat.’

Whale Beard was convinced that I was an S-class hero. Having subtly threatened him, he probably wouldn’t dare to cause trouble within the gate.

‘It’s delayed because of this nonsense.’

Every second is precious. We were about to enter the gate… but the faces of my team members were in disarray.

‘This is really unfair.’

I must have looked like a strict senior.

Don’t make a face like ‘Where did your dirty temper go?’

We can’t warmly welcome a villain who approaches us in a hero’s disguise. We need to keep him in check so he won’t play tricks on us.

“Leader, you looked just like a detective a moment ago! Charisma, awesome.”

Gil-seong, who awkwardly brightened her eyes, triggered a subtle reaction as if she were praising and teasing at the same time.

I don’t know how to react every time she comes out like this. If I start accepting it once, she might cross the line frequently, but rejecting her outright would make me uncomfortable.

Thanks to Gil-seong, we avoided crises whenever the atmosphere almost turned unpleasant.

‘Do something about this.’

With the intention of alerting him, I gave a sidelong glance to Hwang Man-deuk. He’s a friend good at handling situations, he should understand well on his own.

“Uh… Those friends do have some bad habits. Haha. To dare to suggest accompanying the leader!”

I didn’t expect empathy, just stop talking.

I urged my steps, standing in front of the gate. Soon, the door opened, revealing a mysterious passage with a blue light.

Among us, only Hwang Man-deuk had experience diving into another world. Therefore, the rest of the members, especially Yeo Jin-soo, couldn’t hide their tension, swallowing hard. And me too.

‘Calm. Stay calm. We’ve prepared for this.’

Sympathizing deeply with Yeo Jin-soo’s fear, I regained my composure through a short meditation. Then, closing my eyes tightly, I stepped forward.

– Saaa…! –

After walking a few steps, when I opened my eyes slightly, all around was a pitch-black space, and the wall seemed to refract inward. Walking a few more steps in that state, the passage displayed a faint blue color, giving a sensation of the space gradually tilting.

Below my feet, various colored gaseous substances appeared, resembling the shapes of a blue land, sky, and flames. They flowed like water, dispersing and forming a stable shape repeatedly.

‘Uh, uh!’

Then, for a moment, the phenomenon of the sky overturning occurred. At the same time, there was a sensation of twisting downward, but strangely, my feet remained stuck to the ground.

Instead, due to the aftermath, an uncomfortable dizziness suddenly attacked, tormenting my head.

‘Whoa.’

When the dizziness disappeared and I opened my eyes again.

[‘Entering the Secluded Primitive Jungle.’]

We had unconsciously left the gate and could now confront the new world spread out before us.

An overwhelming and vast landscape, lush and broad, unlike anything I had ever seen since birth, dominated me.

Numerous mountain peaks soared across the entire jungle, and dense trees stretched endlessly, some appearing to be larger than hundreds of meters. A tree in the far distance was so gigantic that it was impossible to estimate its size, as if it surpassed the horizon.

‘What kind of world tree is this?’

Light seeped through the thickets, and various flowers and plants blossomed here and there where the eyes could reach. It made me wonder if this was truly the land of monsters or an undiscovered tropical forest in Africa.

‘This place is relatively elevated.’

The spot we landed was a slightly raised hill, allowing us to see the vast landscape of the jungle for dozens of kilometers.

“Whoaaaaah! Unni, amazing!”

“I-Is this really another world?”

Gil-seong screamed, then hugged Eun-ha. I was surprised too, but these kids… are they used to this? Eun-ha also seemed genuinely surprised, with her mouth wide open as she looked around.

‘They move fast.’

Yeo Jin-soo, without us noticing, was already on Man-deuk’s neck, capturing the endless jungle in his eyes.

The skin felt slightly prickly, and it was undoubtedly another world, but it was also a primeval jungle teeming with all kinds of life, with lush greenery.

Wendia, among them, was the dominant species at the top of the food chain in this primitive jungle.

However, this place was near the gate, and the main habitat of the monsters, avoiding the heroes entering to hunt them, was hundreds of kilometers away.

‘Approximately 80 times, right?’

The other world was so vast that its end couldn’t be fathomed. There was an incident where a class A hero from the United States entered through the Virginia gate, got lost in another world for several years, and miraculously escaped through the Texas gate.

However, after analyzing videos recorded in the Akashic Records for several years, it was found that the hero moved almost in a straight line, covering a distance of up to 200 km per day.

Although the distance between Virginia and Texas was 3,000 km, the total distance he traveled exceeded 240,000 km. As a result, the size of another world was widely accepted as roughly 80 times that of Earth.

Therefore, it became a saying in another world exploration that a lever was essential. You can’t walk to distant farming spots every time. Who knows what kind of unexpected trouble you might run into on the way.

‘I finally get to ride this.’

I manipulated the ring on my right ring finger to open a magical space. As I did, a transparent barrier-like structure opened in the air, and a jet the size of a small house materialized.

– Swoosh—Kwoong. –

Nexus Jet was a jet that the clan almost emptied their liquid assets to purchase. The purchase price was 9.8 billion won, and if it wasn’t for the 30% discount from the generous jet company ‘Ionic Jetworks’, we couldn’t have bought this model.

– Zzing—Clunk.

–

As the lower part of the Nexus Jet opened, a boarding passage was created in an instant. Members exclaimed with ‘Wow!’ or ‘Amazing!’ while making a fuss. So, this is why adults brag about their homes and cars. Honestly, it’s heartwarming.

‘This is the taste of money.’

– Zzing.

–

As I boarded the lever, the lower part closed automatically.

‘Look at this good-looking thing.’

In the central area, holographic images displaying the gas state and surrounding environment were available, and there were a total of 10 seats, including two pilot seats. On the front panel of the pilot seat were brightly colored buttons that looked like touching them carelessly might cause trouble.

The seats, designed in a futuristic manner, curved gracefully, appearing comfortable for prolonged sitting.

– Swoosh, thud.

–

Sitting in the pilot seat, I touched the ring to the lever, activating the AI embedded in it. The members, who were lively exploring the surroundings like excited kids in a playground, took their seats and fastened their seatbelts. I input the destination to the AI, and then pressed the flight button.

– Ding.

–

[Commencing flight.]