The Eclipsed Order

Chapter 150: Chapter 150: The Guardian Guild’s Expedition

The following morning, Ares and Ji Won left the apartment together and headed toward the C-Rank Gate where they were supposed to meet the party.

Unlike their usual dungeon trips, neither of them was carrying much combat equipment.

Ji Won still had his dagger secured at his waist and a small backpack over his shoulders, but Ares had decided to go without any weapon or protective gear at all. He was dressed much more casually, wearing a clean white T-shirt underneath a lightweight black jacket, paired with dark straight-cut trousers and a simple pair of white sneakers. The outfit was fashionable without looking excessive, the kind of style that was common among young people in Seoul, and despite being completely ordinary clothing, it suited Ares almost unnaturally well.

His dark and silver white hair was neatly arranged without appearing as though he had spent much time styling it, and his pale, smooth skin made the contrast between his black jacket and white shirt even more noticeable. There was nothing particularly flashy about his appearance, but his facial features were so naturally refined that he stood out whenever someone looked at him for more than a moment.

Ji Won had already noticed this several times.

He glanced at Ares again as they walked along the crowded street.

"Tae-ho, are you really planning to go inside a C-Rank Gate dressed like that?"

Ares looked at him.

"Like what?"

Ji Won gestured toward him from head to toe.

"Like you’re going out for coffee instead of entering a dungeon. You don’t have armor, you don’t have a proper weapon, and you’re not even carrying any equipment."

Ares looked down at himself before casually adjusting the sleeve of his jacket.

"I’m comfortable like this."

"I know you said that before, but this isn’t a D-Rank Gate anymore."

Ji Won shook his head with a small laugh.

"I still can’t understand how you can be so relaxed about it. Most people wouldn’t even think about entering a C-Rank Gate without proper equipment."

"Most people aren’t me."

Ji Won stared at him for a second before laughing.

"That’s probably the most accurate answer you could have given."

They continued walking, and after a moment Ji Won looked at Ares again, this time with a faintly amused expression.

"Although, seriously, are you sure you’re not a model?"

Ares sighed.

"You’ve asked me that before."

"And I’m asking again."

"Because you look like one."

Ares glanced sideways at him.

"Is that so?"

Ji Won looked genuinely confused that Ares even needed to ask.

"Your skin is incredibly clear, your face is well proportioned, and you don’t even have the kind of rough appearance you’d expect from someone who spends time fighting monsters. Even your hair looks like it was styled professionally, although I doubt you actually spend much time on it."

Ares smiled faintly.

"You’re paying a little too much attention to my appearance."

"I’m just saying what I see."

Ji Won shrugged.

"If I didn’t know you were an Awakener, I’d probably assume you were some university student who happened to be heading to a photo shoot."

Ares laughed quietly.

"Thanks for the compliment, but I don’t belong to the modeling industry."

"Still, if you ever change your mind, you could probably make quite a bit of money from it."

"I think I’ll stick with hunting."

Ji Won nodded.

"Fair enough. Considering how strong you are, hunting might actually be more profitable anyway."

Ares glanced at him.

"How much could someone make from a C-Rank Gate?"

"It depends on the dungeon and what you manage to bring out, but if you’re strong enough to handle the monsters efficiently, you can earn several million won from a successful operation."

Ji Won paused.

"Of course, that’s assuming you aren’t injured and you actually get a decent share of the monster materials. C-Rank dungeons aren’t something ordinary Awakeners can casually enter."

Ares nodded.

"I see."

They walked another few steps before Ji Won suddenly remembered something.

"Actually, we’re not going to be hunting today."

Ares looked at him.

"Remember the message I showed you yesterday? The party only needs us as porters."

"Oh."

Ares looked down at his clothes again.

"That’s fine by me."

Ji Won smiled.

"As long as they pay us, right?"

"Yes."

Ares’s expression brightened slightly.

"And after we’re paid, I can buy some more clothes."

Ji Won stared at him.

"You really like shopping."

"I’ve only bought a few things."

"You bought several outfits yesterday."

"They were necessary."

"Necessary?"

Ares nodded seriously.

"I can’t keep wearing the same clothes everywhere."

Ji Won laughed.

"You’re definitely strange."

After a moment, however, his expression softened.

"But honestly, I’m glad I met you."

Ares glanced at him.

Ji Won continued speaking while keeping his eyes on the road.

"Before you showed up, I was constantly worrying about rent, debts, and my father’s hospital expenses. I could barely keep up with everything, and every time I thought I was finally getting somewhere, another bill would appear."

He gave a small laugh.

"Now things are still difficult, but at least I’m finally able to make progress instead of just trying to survive from one month to the next."

"Then that’s good."

Ares nodded.

"I’m glad I could help."

Ji Won looked at him with a grateful smile.

"It’s because of you, Tae-ho. I honestly don’t know how I would have managed otherwise."

He hesitated before adding,

"Sometimes I even wonder if you were sent by heaven."

Ares almost laughed.

"Heaven?"

"Yes."

Ji Won looked completely serious.

"Think about it. You appeared at exactly the time when I was having the most trouble, you’re strangely powerful despite having almost no proper equipment, and somehow you’ve helped me earn enough money to start dealing with problems that I’ve been carrying for years."

He shook his head.

"That’s not something that happens every day."

Ares looked at him for a moment.

"You’re making this sound like the plot of a drama."

"Maybe it is."

Ji Won laughed.

"But seriously, I think I was just lucky."

Ares turned his gaze toward the road.

He’s like Rhal.

The thought came naturally.

Though there are some differences.

Rhal is more like... a woman in her forties who somehow knows everyone’s business and has absolutely no ability to keep it to himself.

The kind of person who could hear one rumor in the morning and somehow know the entire story by lunch.

Ares almost smiled.

Ji Won really was surprisingly similar.

Eventually, the surrounding streets became much busier.

Groups of Awakeners were moving in the same direction, many of them wearing guild uniforms or carrying weapons and equipment. Several government vehicles had also been stationed around the area, while temporary barriers had been erected to keep ordinary civilians away from the Gate.

Then Ares finally saw it.

The C-Rank Gate.

It was considerably larger than the D-Rank Gate they had entered previously.

The enormous spatial distortion towered over the surrounding area, its surface swirling with a deep blue energy that occasionally shifted toward a darker shade whenever the mana inside fluctuated. Unlike the relatively calm appearance of a D-Rank Gate, the C-Rank Gate gave off a noticeable pressure even from several dozen meters away.

Ares could feel the difference immediately.

The density of mana was much higher.

More importantly, the energy inside the Gate felt considerably more violent.

Ji Won pointed toward a group of people gathered near the entrance.

"That’s the party."

There were roughly ten Awakeners standing together, checking their equipment and speaking among themselves.

One of them noticed Ji Won.

The man immediately recognized him and walked over.

He appeared to be in his early thirties, with short black hair, a sturdy build, and the kind of practical appearance common among experienced Awakeners. His equipment was considerably better maintained than Ji Won’s, and a guild emblem was clearly displayed on his jacket.

"Ji Won."

Ji Won smiled and approached him.

"Mr. Choi."

The man nodded before looking at Ares.

His eyes moved over Ares’s casual clothes, then briefly toward his empty hands.

He raised an eyebrow.

"So this is the person you told me about?"

"Yes."

Ji Won gestured toward Ares.

"This is Tae-ho."

Mr. Choi looked at Ares for another moment.

"He looks like a rich kid."

There was no hostility in his voice, but the skepticism was obvious.

"Are you sure he’ll be able to handle the work inside?"

Ji Won nodded without hesitation.

"Don’t worry. He’s reliable, and he can carry more than he looks like he can."

Mr. Choi looked at Ares once more before giving a small shrug.

"Alright. If you trust him, that’s good enough for me."

He turned toward the rest of the group.

"Come over. I’ll introduce you."

Ji Won and Ares followed him.

Mr. Choi gestured toward the waiting Awakeners.

"Everyone, this is Ji Won’s acquaintance, Tae-ho. He’ll be working as one of our porters today."

Ares gave them a polite nod.

"Nice to meet you."

Several members of the party returned the greeting, although a few continued glancing at Ares with mild curiosity.

Mr. Choi then introduced the party.

"We’re all members of the Guardian Guild."

Ares looked toward the guild emblem on their equipment.

Ji Won leaned slightly toward him and quietly explained,

"Guardian is one of the six major guilds in Korea. They’re particularly well known for their organized dungeon operations and defensive teams."

Ares listened.

Ji Won continued.

"The six major guilds handle a large portion of the country’s high-level Gates. Each one is led by an S-Rank Awakener, so their influence is pretty significant."

"Who are the other five?"

"There’s Vanguard, Titan, Black Out, Apex, and Horizon Guild."

Ji Won lowered his voice slightly.

"Each guild has its own specialty, but they’re all major organizations because their guild masters are S-Rank Awakeners. In Korea, there aren’t many people at that level, so the six guilds naturally have a lot of influence over the Awakener industry."

Ares nodded.

"I see."

Mr. Choi finished checking the condition of his party’s equipment before turning toward the two porters.

"Alright, we’ll be entering shortly."

He pointed toward several large packs and reinforced cases stacked nearby.

"Those are yours."

Ji Won walked over.

"What are we carrying?"

"Water, food, recovery potions, spare equipment, communication devices, and storage containers for monster materials."

Mr. Choi paused before adding,

"Once we’re inside, you’ll also be responsible for carrying anything the team collects. Monster cores, materials, and anything else we decide to bring back."

Ji Won nodded.

"Understood."

Ares picked up one of the larger packs.

The weight barely registered in his hands.

Ji Won lifted another and adjusted the straps across his shoulders.

Around them, the party members began making their final preparations. Weapons were checked, protective equipment was secured, and the atmosphere gradually became more serious as the time for entry approached.

Ares looked once more toward the C-Rank Gate.

The swirling blue-black surface continued to pulse quietly.

Compared with the D-Rank Gate they had entered before, this one was clearly on another level.

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