Chapter 79 - Someone wishes to see you.
The defining characteristic of the slums was that they were teeming with crimes that lay bare the true nature of humanity.
And among them was mob lynching.
A mob lynching!
Or, in crude terms, a gang-up beating.
It was often condemned as cowardly since it involved multiple people assaulting a smaller group or a single individual.
However, in truth, this method of fighting reflected human nature perfectly.
Why did the Neanderthals, who possessed superior physical strength compared to modern humans, go extinct?
Because of their underdeveloped group culture.
No matter how strong one's body was, there were always limits to what one could do alone.
Unlike the Neanderthals, who relied on their physical prowess and perished because they failed to adapt to sudden environmental changes, modern humans—who were relatively inferior hunters—overcame their disadvantageous physical conditions through cooperation.
In other words, ganging up was the most primitive form of collective culture that modern humans had developed.
And in the Lost City, no one embodied this practice better than the thugs of District 40.
Thus, at this very moment—
"...Hold on."
Jin pulled his terminal away from his ear, his gaze growing cold.
Strangers had surrounded him.
Having lived in Downtown and experienced nearly every form of violence a person could be subjected to, Jin could easily predict what was about to happen.
If someone walked up and asked, "Do you remember me?"—it was an act of revenge.
If they attacked without a word—it was a random assault.
If they started with, "Listen here..."—it was a robbery.
Frankly, Jin didn't care.
Just as he never turned away those who approached him amicably,
he never avoided a fight when it came to him.
If they attacked, he would simply beat them down.
That was how things worked in Downtown.
So, as Natasha's voice continued to spill from the terminal, Jin shoved it deep into his pocket and looked straight ahead.
"What is it?"
The response to his defiant question was—
Crackle.
A flash of lightning burst forth from the darkness.
"Huh?"
A dumbfounded sound escaped Jin's lips.
His clenched fist instinctively loosened.
It couldn't be helped.
The flickering light at the edge of his vision was unmistakable—it was Polar Radiance.
"...Zahad?"
The name slipped out before he could stop himself, and his opponent, who had been silently staring at him, finally spoke.
"Come with us. Someone wishes to see you."
What the hell?
Jin pondered as he walked.
Why was Zahad looking for him?
And why did they come in a group like this?
Did he do something wrong?
If guilt could grow like fur, he'd have enough to survive the winter.
Something wrong?
He had impersonated them countless times.
Just a few days ago, he had even convinced a thousand-year-old vampire that he was Zahad's successor, spouting the most outrageous lies.
But Jin had his own defense.
Not once, in all the times he had claimed to be Zahad, had his bluff ever worked.
Killgit was a monster who would burn down entire bloodlines in pursuit of the perfect flame.
Taha was simply insane.
The Face Collector was a lunatic who had flayed the skin off Thea Florence, the greatest Esquire.
And the vampire had harbored a deep hatred for Zahad's family for over a thousand years.
An absolutely dreadful lineup.
Each of them either held Jahad's name in reverence but refused to yield, was too far gone for conversation, or had been enemies from the start.
In short, Jin felt no obligation toward Jahad.
He had never thought of them as his benefactors in the first place.
Perhaps because of that—
Jin walked beside the strangers, his face carrying an unshaken confidence like a suit of armor.
An attitude that said he had nothing to be ashamed of.
The only thing on his mind was curiosity—who exactly was looking for him?
Of course, that question would be answered soon enough.
Amidst the suffocating silence (which, in truth, Jin wasn't really bothered by), they walked for quite some time.
Then, at some point, the people leading the way came to a halt, prompting Jin to naturally slow his pace.
He tilted his head slightly to the side.
And what he saw was a massive AV.
A sleek, futuristic body reminiscent of a limousine—the kind of high-end model that one wouldn't even get to see unless they had an overflowing bank account.
Jin let out a small sound of admiration.
"Get in. They're waiting for you inside."
One of the men at the front gestured toward the AV.
Jin took large strides toward it.
And as he approached, the door lifted open effortlessly.
"Excuse me."
Jin spoke as he stepped inside—and his eyes widened.
The interior was lavishly decorated with only the highest-grade materials, filling his entire field of vision with sheer luxury.
"Oh."
For a brief moment, he was speechless.
He had never seen anything like this, not even in Downtown or back in his hometown.
At the far end of a long table, a man reclining against a sleek, modern sofa smirked.
"Are you going to stand there forever?"
At the sound of the voice, Jin snapped out of his daze.
He strode across the interior toward the man, surprised that he could move freely without needing to hunch over.
So this was one of those private aircrafts he had only ever heard about?
His first time inside one, Jin couldn't help but look around in awe as he plopped onto a long, vertical sofa.
Then, turning his head, he finally took a good look at the man before him.
There it was—the textbook image of a second-generation conglomerate heir straight out of a drama.
If the people from his hometown were here, they'd probably think the same thing.
A sharply defined handsome man, clad in a perfectly tailored suit, seated in the most prestigious spot of an expensive car—it was a scene that fit the stereotype to perfection.
However, his tie was tossed into a corner, and three buttons of his dress shirt were undone, revealing the contours of his pectoral muscles.
It was an image that suited a villain far more than a hero.
That was Jin's first impression of the man.
As he stared at him, the man returned his gaze and finally spoke.
"I am Kendrick Zahard."
Jin nodded.
So he was a direct descendant, after all?
Well, it made sense.
He did have an entourage with him.
Just as that thought crossed his mind, Kendrick continued speaking.
"They call me the Young Thunder King."
Hold on a second.
Any normal person would have reacted to a statement like that by exclaiming—
"The Young Thunder King!"
"The grandson of Ten Thousand Thunders!"
Kendrick Zahard.
The grandson of the legendary Gabelus Zahard, known as Ten Thousand Thunders, and the rightful heir to the title of Thunder King.
A man whose very epithet proved his royal bloodline—a true noble among nobles, a direct heir among direct heirs.
A future giant who would lead the next generation.
Yet, Jin could only look at Kendrick with a strangely pitying expression.
The Young Thunder King.
Doesn't that just sound... dumb?
Of course, Jin understood.
It was supposed to mean Young^Thunder King, not Young Thunder^King.
Still, he couldn't ignore how ridiculous it sounded.
He barely managed to suppress the twitch in his nostrils.
Then Kendrick spoke again.
"You seem quite shocked."
"Ah, well, a little…"
Jin pursed his lips inward, nodding as he forced his expression into something neutral.
"Jin Evernight."
As if waiting for that introduction, Kendrick responded immediately.
"I know. They call you the Ender of War."
"…? Oh, really?"
Jin tilted his head, having no idea that was what people called him.
They'd barely exchanged a few words, yet it already felt like their conversation was bound to run in parallel lines.
"So, what's the reason you're here?"
Jin asked, reaching out to grab a handful of neatly packaged snacks from the table.
Peeling off the golden wrapper, he popped a piece of chocolate into his mouth.
It was sinfully delicious.
As Jin slowly savored the sweetness melting on his tongue, Kendrick watched him silently.
"…Straight to the point, I see."
Then, in a firm voice, he spoke his next words.
"I'll be blunt. Swear here and now that you will reject the House's invitation to join."
"…Huh? Reject what?"
Jin mumbled through a mouthful of chocolate.
Kendrick, looking dead serious, answered.
"I am telling you to refuse to join House Zahad."
"Why?"
Jin had no intention of joining anyway, but his curiosity was piqued.
Was he that averse to the idea of sharing a family name with him?
Was he worried about a younger half-brother calling him Big Brother?
Or was it because of his origins in the streets?
But why should that matter?
It wasn't like side branches were ever granted the family name anyway.
…Or wait, that wasn't entirely true.
Thea Florence was an Esquire, yet she was given the surname…
As his thoughts meandered, Jin suddenly squinted playfully.
"Could it be… that you're afraid of my talent?"
The air crackled.
"You're too full of yourself."
A sharp surge of electricity burst forth from Kendrick, as if trying to seize control of the space.
Jin, unfazed, released his own in return.
─────CRACKLE!
The two colliding energies clashed midair, producing an ear-splitting screech.
To the untrained eye, it might have seemed like just a flashy light show.
But to those at the second tier or higher, each lightning bolt was a beast, gnashing its fangs in a violent struggle for dominance.
As he rolled the chocolate around in his mouth, Jin suddenly sensed it.
The moment when one more step would mean staking their very lives.
The invisible line neither of them could cross lightly.
And just like that, the lightning from both of them ceased.
Oh?
The air settled so abruptly that it felt almost surreal.
Jin raised an eyebrow.
He had pulled back because antagonizing the House wouldn't do him any favors.
But for Kendrick to withdraw at the same time…
He has his own boundaries too, huh?
Reaching that conclusion, Jin casually unwrapped another piece of chocolate.
"Man, can't even joke around with you. So, you're not gonna tell me the reason?"
"I don't want the House to be in turmoil right before the Succession Rotation."
"Hmmm."
Jin narrowed his eyes.
The Succession Rotation or whatever…
Wasn't that the cyberpunk version of the Dragon-Tiger Gathering or something?
So Kendrick was participating in that too.
And now, for some reason, Jin's existence was becoming a problem.
Jin's mental radar whirled as he analyzed the situation, then eventually shrugged.
"Alright, fine. I won't join."
"…?"
That must have been the last answer Kendrick was expecting.
His eyes blinked slowly as he hesitated before speaking.
"You won't join House Zahad?"
"Yeah. Hey, by the way, got any more chocolate? This stuff is seriously good."
"…I'll have some sent to you lat— No, wait. Are you serious?"
"Uh-huh."
"Really?"
Kendrick asked again, and Jin's brow twitched.
Is this guy really the Young^Thunder King?
How many times was he going to ask the same question?
But well, whatever.
It was an incomprehensible situation for Kendrick.
It had been twenty years since his uncle, once a strong candidate for the head of the family, abandoned the Zahad name and disappeared.
Perhaps it was because his uncle's talent was too exceptional to be forgotten.
Instead of selecting a successor from among his remaining children, the family head stubbornly waited for the return of the prodigal son who had abandoned his home—
The wait had stretched on for so long that he had personally set out to search for his son, and more than ten years had already passed.
But regardless of that—
The previous generation, having failed in their efforts to transition power, desperately poured immense resources into raising the next generation, hoping their children would wear the crown they themselves could not.
And among them, the one who stood out the most was Kendrick.
Not only did he awaken at the age of seven, but he also reached the second tier in the year he came of age—a genius among geniuses.
And now, six years later—
Everyone called him the Young Thunder King.
It was as if the position of family head was already his for the taking.
Kendrick had thought so too—
Until the family head regained his smile.
Ever since his uncle's disappearance, his grandfather had always worn a grim expression.
So when he returned to the family with a satisfied look on his face—
The entire household erupted in an uproar, wondering if he had found Lokan.
Even Kendrick had been shocked by the change in his grandfather, who, even when Kendrick reached the second tier, had only patted his shoulder a couple of times in acknowledgment.
Carefully investigating his grandfather's recent activities, Kendrick discovered something unexpected—
The old man had visited Downtown and met some mercenary riffraff.
The problem was that the mercenary was a branch family member who had awakened.
Surely not—
Even if awakenings among branch families had become rare, his grandfather wouldn't be so easily swayed by something so trivial.
He must have just stumbled upon the mercenary while tracking his uncle's whereabouts.
That had to be it.
But it wasn't.
As the mercenary's reputation grew by the day, so did the depth of the family head's smile.
If that connection wasn't just a coincidence, then could those mysterious lightning bolts that occasionally struck from the heavens really be a sign of his joy...?
Kendrick grew increasingly anxious.
Especially with only two months left until the Tournament.
That was why he had come here himself.
To minimize any variables—even if it meant blocking the mercenary's formal adoption into the family.
And if he refused, Kendrick was prepared to settle things right here and now.
But then—
"You're not going to do it?"
The response was so absurd that Kendrick completely forgot his next words and stood there, dumbfounded.
Jin spoke up.
"Hey. You don't have anything else to say, right? Then pack me some chocolates and snacks. I'm having a gathering with my friends tomorrow. You wasted my time, so at least do that much for me, yeah?"
And so, as Jin walked out of the AV, both his hands were filled with boxes of snacks that couldn't even be bought with money in Downtown.
"Thanks for the food, Young Thunder King!"
After finishing his farewell, he even nodded at the line of attendants.
His departing steps were light.
Because there was no hesitation in his decision.
The reason he had rejected Kendrick's offer was simple—
Jin had no desire to be bound by the Zahad name.
Besides, he already possessed various other forms of power outside of the Polar Radiance.
With so many unknowns ahead of him, tying himself down to one place felt like a needless complication.
However, his thoughts had shifted slightly.
While he had initially held no interest in the Tournament, he now felt a small spark of curiosity.
Part of it stemmed from the fighting spirit ignited by Kendrick's unexpected skill—
And part of it was the theory that he might find clues about the moment when the seven patriarchs had once gathered with the guy enveloped in shadow.
They had said that any purist could participate, after all.
He didn't have to enter as a member of the family.
Until then, he might as well take care of some minor tasks.
He had been working himself too hard lately.
Humming a tune, Jin disappeared into the darkness—
Unaware that if Kendrick had known his true thoughts, he would have immediately rewritten the conditions and come running at full speed.