Declaration Of Extra Strike

 

“How cute.”

 

Seong San-ha muttered to himself, looking down at the phone that had just been disconnected. His face was full of amusement. In contrast, Lee Cho, who had been waiting anxiously behind him, approached with a more worried expression.

 

“Aren’t you supposed to go see Kang Eui-jin? He’s already arrived.”

 

“Why the rush? Didn’t you tell him that

the

leader of Cheon Rang Guild wants to see him?”

 

“But it’s Kang Eui-jin. It’s your first meeting, and…”

 

At the lightly teasing remark that barely masked a subtle rebuke, Lee Cho awkwardly stepped back, hesitating before speaking.

 

“He’s been waiting for a long time.”

 

“Yeah. He’s been waiting for an unbearably long time.”

 

“Then why are you hesitating?”

 

At Lee Cho’s question, Seong San-ha lowered his head slightly, then turned his gaze to the window. He tapped the window frame lightly, lost in thought for a moment, before smiling faintly and changing the subject.

 

“It’s just… I’m excited.”

 

“Sorry?”

 

“Shall we go? Some people make a fuss when I’m late, but I wonder how it’ll be on this side.”

 

His expression was more ominous than excited. Lee Cho, puzzled, watched him for a moment before hurriedly following his boss, who had already started walking ahead.

 

In a specially prepared VIP room, Kang Eui-jin, who had just barely escaped the crowd of reporters, was waiting. The moment Seong San-ha entered the room, Kang Eui-jin’s face lit up, and he jumped up to greet him.

 

“San-ha hyung!”

 

Seong San-ha stopped in his tracks. Lee Cho, who had been following him in, looked at him curiously, but Kang Eui-jin just smiled brightly and extended his hand.

 

“It’s been a while. I didn’t expect to meet you here, especially on a day like today.”

 

“…You remember? I thought you might’ve forgotten.”

 

“Of course. How could I forget? We were the closest at the orphanage, after all.”

 

At Kang Eui-jin’s confident words, Seong San-ha’s mouth slightly opened. But soon, as if nothing had happened, a perfectly painted smile appeared on Seong San-ha’s face.

 

“Yeah. We were the closest. More than anyone else.”

 

***

 News Headlines: 「 A Surprise Guest at the World Atelier Expo! Kang Eui-jin’s Spectacular Return Shakes Up the Expo 」 「 A Deep Dive into Novarion, the Company That Acquired the World’s Only ‘Potion Master’ Kang Eui-jin 」 「 Mysteries Surrounding Death: Kang Eui-jin vs. Nox? Nox Remains Silent as Its Leader Disappeared Amid Allegations 」 「 Potion Master Kang Eui-jin’s Official Press Conference Date Unconfirmed 」 

***

 

A week had passed, and the entire world was still buzzing with talk about the fake Kang Eui-jin. No matter which channel I turned to, his face was there, staring back at me. The sight of the imposter brazenly parading around as if he were the real deal was infuriating. It was so frustrating and humiliating that it made me want to jump out of bed in the middle of the night.

 「”For now, I’m not taking any requests. But don’t worry. I’m here now.」 

“Damn it, what a load of crap…”

 

It was puzzling why Tae Jae-heon, who had supposedly returned, was so quiet. Real or fake, Tae Jae-heon wasn’t the kind of person to sit back and watch Kang Eui-jin make a fool of himself. It made sense that other people and Seong San-ha might be fooled, but the thought that even Tae Jae-heon might have been deceived stirred up some complicated feelings. It didn’t seem likely that he’d be tricked. But given how quiet he was, I couldn’t help but wonder.

 

“At least he’s not out looking for me, so that’s something, I guess. Still, this whole thing sucks….”

 

I scratched my head, turned off the TV, and left the room. Downstairs, Yeon Seung-yeon was busy preparing to go out. As I leaned crookedly against the railing, Yeon Seung-yeon must have sensed my gaze because he looked up, his expression brightening as he bowed in greeting.

 

“Ho-hyun nim, you’re awake?”

 

“I’ve been up for a while. You’re all ready already?”

 

“Yes… I heard if we’re late, only the front seats will be left…”

 

Yeon Seung-yeon was headed to Wolgye Naru’s promotional event today. The ateliers that didn’t have booths at the Expo were required to send a representative to today’s promotional event, as per the official notice. Of course, everyone knew that the promotional event was just a pretext; they were really being called to set the stage for Kang Eui-jin’s official return press conference.

 

I frowned slightly as I watched Yeon Seung-yeon, dressed unusually in formal attire, and made my way down the stairs.

 

“Why are you dressed up like that? You could’ve just worn slippers.”

 

“But it’s the first time I’ll be seeing Kang Eui-jin nim in person…”

 

Over the past few days, Yeon Seung-yeon had picked up on my reaction and knew that I didn’t like ‘Kang Eui-jin,’ so he tried not to show his excitement. But the anticipation and excitement were still evident on his face.

 

‘

Kang Eui-jin, my foot. More like Fake Eui-jin.’

 

I scoffed insdie, but then Yeon Seung-yeon approached with his bag and spoke.

 

“Ho-hyun nim, I’ve already briefed the person in charge of the Guiding Potion test today. The Espers will be…”

 

“Yeah, yeah. Don’t worry about it, I’ll handle everything.”

 

“Alright… Just focus on the test! Just the test…”

 

After Yeon Seung-yeon left for the promotional event, I finished up my preparations and headed up to the booth on the second floor. I was there to oversee the Guiding Potion test. Normally, this was something Yeon Seung-yeon handled, but today I had to step in and conduct the test myself.

 

[“Good afternoon. I’m Hwang Seok-min, here to conduct the sixth test.”]

 

“Huh…?”

 

I reached out for the microphone to respond, but the place where the mic was supposed to be was empty. It seemed like the overly cautious Yeon Seung-yeon had hidden it somewhere else. With no other choice, I placed my hands on the keyboard.

 「Anonymous: Good afternoon.」 

The text I typed automatically transformed into the more formal greeting that Yeon Seung-yeon had pre-programmed. “Hi” became “Good afternoon,” “yeah” became “Yes”…

 

Curious to see how far the adjustments went, I cheekily typed in a curse word, only to see it change to “Haha.” It wasn’t just that—all curse words were replaced with “Haha.”

 

“Gotta hand it to him for being thorough…”

 

While I was messing around the keyboards, the test proceeded smoothly, with ten Espers receiving the potion. The lights on the screens turned green, indicating the level of effectiveness. There were no red lights, which would have indicated side effects, and only a few yellow lights appeared, signifying ambiguous results for Espers below C-rank.

 

[“As you advised earlier, we diluted the Guiding Potion and made versions for different ranks. The results are promising. However, no matter what we do, we can’t get it below 1000 rp. If you could assist us, we’d greatly appreciate it. We have ample funding, so please don’t worry about that.”]

 「Anonymous: I’ll try to adjust it further.」 

[“Thank you! And we have one more request from our research team. Would it be alright if we experimented with the potion to develop new recipes?”]

 「Anonymous: I sold you the recipe, so do as you like.」 

[“If we can complete the potion for all ranks, it will be highly useful in the field. We’re always grateful for your help. And also…”]

 

The doctor trailed off, causing me to look at the screen curiously. He smiled and subtly hinted at something.

 

[“You’re ‘that person’, aren’t you?”]

 

“What do you mean by ‘that person’… Oh, for fuck’s sake.”

 

I finally realized he was talking about Kang Eui-jin and let out a bitter laugh with a sour expression. Everyone and their dog seemed to be going on about Kang Eui-jin, Kang Eui-jin, Kang Eui-jin! 

 

Normally, that would have made me feel good, but now it was just infuriating. Sure, I’m the real Kang Eui-jin, but this guy is talking about the fake one. I felt like something important and precious had been stolen from me, and in frustration, I pounded on the keyboard.

 

[“As soon as I heard the news of your return, I knew it had to be you, Master. Who else could create something like this?”]

 「Anonymous: Fuck no, I’m not Kang Ijin.」 

I had trusted Yeon Seung-yeon’s text replacement system, but in my rush to type, I must have made a typo because the curse word was sent out loud and clear. Since the damage was done, I kept going, listening to the flustered tone of the doctor on the other end.

 「Anonymous: Stop talking nonsense. I’m not Kang Eui-jin. If you keep spouting bullshit like this, haha, I’ll get upset.」 

[“Ah, ah. Yes. I apologize.”]

 

After the test ended, the doctor hurriedly left, followed by the other Espers who had participated in the research, their screens going dark one by one. I was momentarily lost in thought, considering the recipe, and was about to disconnect when I noticed one screen still active. 

 

The user was anonymous, and with everyone else gone, I couldn’t even tell what rank of Esper they were. I didn’t think much of it and was about to hit the end call button when a mechanical voice came through.

 

[“Hello.”]

 

‘What do you mean, hello? I can’t even say hello.’

 

[“Whose guiding did you steal?”]

 

“What the hell? What is this crazy person talking about now? Pissing me off… must be another one of those Center bastards.”

 

I had completely forgotten Yeon Seung-yeon’s warning to disconnect immediately after the test. Instead, I put my hands back on the keyboard.

 「Anonymous: What the haha are you talking about? I didn’t steal anything, haha.」 

[“I saw the recipe. You need a Guide to make a Guiding Potion, right? That means you used someone’s guiding too, didn’t you?”]

 「Anonymous: That’s none of your business. Mind your own haha business.」 

[“I need to know. It’s an important issue.”]

 「Anonymous: What if I don’t want to tell you? What are you going to do, come and find me? Don’t piss me off.」 

[“Your tone is really fucking annoying.”]

 「Anonymous: Thanks. You too. Your tone is also fucking annoying.」 

There was silence from the other side for a moment. Thinking the person might have bailed, I tapped the speaker lightly, only to jump at the sudden voice that broke the silence.

 

[“Doesn’t matter. I’ve almost found you.”]

 

“…What?”

 

[“I don’t know what you did, but if you’re messing with that person, I won’t let it slide. Just wait.”]

 

A strange sense of déjà vu washed over me, freezing me in place as I tried to recall where I’d felt this before. Before I could piece it together, the call abruptly ended on its own.

You guys are thinking what I am thinking, right...?