Chapter 7: News

“Good work, everyone.”

“You’ve all done great!”

As is often the case, finishing a task quickly brings a sense of joy.

Especially on a day when a gate is cleared, allowing immediate departure after wrap-up procedures, the faces of Phantom’s Team 2 couldn’t help but be bright.

Yes, it was a clean exit from work.

Moreover, knowing Yusoha’s personality, none of them viewed her through the prejudiced lens that others often did.

To them, having a competent team leader was something to be grateful for.

“Great job, Team Leader.”

“Well done.”

“Oh, come on, what did we even do? It was all you, Team Leader.”

Cha Hyunsung, a frontline member of Team 2, cheerfully praised her efforts, and others nodded in agreement.

“Alright, let’s collect the Knowledge Fragments first.”

Knowledge Fragments were unique to Shadow Gates, unlike regular gates. They contained information from other worlds.

Though they offered no tangible rewards, the “knowledge of other worlds” made Shadow Gates highly sought after by various guilds.

This knowledge often included insights into mana usage or previously unknown magical beasts, sparking fierce competition among guilds over Shadow Gates. Yusoha smiled faintly.

‘These achievements will prove I’m a rightful A-rank Awakener. Nice. I’ve been pretty lucky lately.’

When Yusoha first became an A-rank Awakener, many claimed she only achieved it due to Phantom’s backing. Even now, such opinions lingered.

Admittedly, her abilities were somewhat lacking compared to other A-rank Awakeners.

She was individually exceptional, but the absence of a Guardian Spirit had always held her back.

Some mocked her as a “half-baked A-rank without a Guardian Spirit,” while others argued it was impressive she reached A-rank without one.

Yusoha hated the controversy itself, making today’s success particularly noteworthy.

A Shadow Gate appearing in Phantom’s territory—and one with relatively low difficulty.

Well, to be precise, it wasn’t exactly low difficulty. It was just that Yusoha and the gate were an exceptionally good match.

All they had to do was fend off waves of magical beasts, with the fortress wall already in place, and no powerful singular entity broke through Team 2’s defenses.

In other words, it was merely a horde of beasts without a leader, allowing Yusoha’s magic to operate at maximum efficiency.

Nodding, Yusoha smiled warmly at her team’s praise.

Being recognized for her contributions always brought her happiness.

Watching her smug expression, Eclipse simply smiled.

Even Yusoha, with her stubborn belief in her own righteousness, seemed almost like a gentle puppy in moments when her achievements were acknowledged.

In Eclipse’s view, compared to the personalities he’d encountered, Yusoha was very much like a princess.

A bit headstrong, believing herself always right, but fiercely protective of those she chose—a spirited, tomboyish princess.

While collecting the Knowledge Fragments, Yusoha kept a smile on her face. She handed the team the corporate card for the day’s efforts and left for home.

Of course, she personally submitted the Knowledge Fragments to Phantom’s research team on her way out.

* * *

News spread quickly.

Even though Team 2 had cleared the gate just yesterday,

[Phantom Team 2 Leader Yusoha Clears B-Rank Shadow Gate]

[Not a Single Injury Among Participants in B-Rank Gate… Despite Controversies, a Reliable Phantom Team Leader]

Articles praising Yusoha’s flawless gate-clearing dominated major portal sites.

As expected, the comment sections were a chaotic mess.

– Look at Soha’s luck, a gate popping up right in her backyard??

– Why Yusoha? Why Yusoha? Why Yusoha??? Where’s our Danha???? Our pretty, smart, kind Danha—where is she, and why is this b*tch getting the credit??

– Danha’s already popular enough~ Phantom’s giving some love to Soha, who gets flak even when she does well. Why do you care? If you’re so jealous, go be Phantom’s daughter yourself.

– Clearing a gate without a single injury, and the comments are this hostile? PDF saved.

– PDF my ass. You think Phantom has time to sue over stuff like this? If they did, all the haters badmouthing Yusoha would’ve been sued and fined by now lol.

– ???

– Why does it smell like Red Dogs here? You think a gate’s gonna pop up in your territory just because you yap?

– The only Red Dog is your mom lol.

– Red Dogs whining because no gate appeared in their yard, so they resort to personal attacks? Just like their master, rotten to the core.

– Still better than Soha, who unfairly fires people.

– Unfairly? What’s unfair about it? You gonna keep a useless worker who can’t do their job? Name one company that does that. You either demote or fire them.

“What the…”

While browsing on the smartphone he’d been trained to use, Eclipse, looking up information about his summoner, felt dizzy.

Comments supporting Yusoha mixed with those bashing her by comparing her to Yudanha.

Half of them were spouting nonsense he couldn’t even comprehend.

“Soha.”

“Hm? What’s up?”

Having cleared the gate, Yusoha was lounging on her mansion’s sofa, enjoying a day of rest.

“What are Red Dogs?”

“Red Dogs? Oh, those are the toxic fans of Red Moon.”

“Red Moon?”

“Oh, I didn’t tell you about them.”

“Explain, please.”

“Just another guild. We don’t get along with them.”

“I see.”

“But why are you asking about that?”

Curious, Yusoha reached for Eclipse’s smartphone.

Startled, he hid it from her grasp.

Of course, with his face concealed by his worn iron helmet, his expression wasn’t visible.

But his reaction only fueled her suspicion.

“Hand it over.”

“No.”

“I said give it.”

“Not happening.”

“Give it to me now, or…”

The problem was, Yusoha had no real grounds to take the phone.

She couldn’t impose restrictions, and she was the one who’d be in trouble without him.

Speechless, she sighed.

“Fine. I’m not going to fight my Guardian Spirit over something like this.”

“Good choice.”

Just as Eclipse began to relax, Yusoha dropped a bombshell.

“Then I’ll just look it up myself.”

“What?”

“You were looking at articles, right? Se-yeon probably told you not to mess around in the news section during your smartphone training.”

She was spot-on. Se-yeon was the tutor assigned to Eclipse’s training.

Quickly grabbing her own phone, Yusoha easily found the article he’d been reading.

With hints like “Red Dogs” and “Red Moon,” it wasn’t hard to track down.

“Found it. This is it, right?”

The article Eclipse had been reading was now displayed right in front of him.

Below it were raw, incomprehensible, but clearly negative comments.

Yet Yusoha looked at them nonchalantly and laughed.

“Why are you laughing?”

“What, it’s not funny? My great Guardian Spirit is worried about me.”

“There are a lot of comments insulting you, aren’t there?”

“I’ve been insulted so much that this doesn’t even faze me anymore. Honestly, these comments are pretty tame.”

“These are tame?”

“Yeah. These are actually quite friendly. See the ones about unfair dismissal?”

“Yeah.”

“There was this woman who was terrible at her job and nearly put the team in danger because of her ego. No skills, just attitude.”

“And?”

“What do you mean, ‘and’? I fired her, obviously. If she’d had any talent, I might’ve hesitated, but she had nothing. Why keep her? Cut her loose.”

“How did people find out about it?”

“She went public, claiming it was unfair. But then my team backed me up, and we slapped her with a lawsuit. Public opinion turned fast. Some still use it to bash me, though.”

“I see…”

“No need to worry about this stuff. Oh, but you should know that Red Moon is hostile to us.”

“Got it.”

“Yeah. They might pick a fight for no reason. You especially need to be aware.”

“Why me?”

“You can’t just go killing Red Moon people in a fit of anger. One serious punch from you, and their skulls would shatter.”

“I don’t just throw my strength around recklessly…”

“I know. But if they provoke you, stay calm. I’ll handle it.”

“Alright. Oh, by the way… when’s the Phantom Tournament?”

“Not long now. I hope nothing happens in the meantime.”

“Excited?”

“Of course. I can’t wait to see the faces of those who’ve been looking down on me twist.”

Yusoha flashed a wicked grin. To her, seeing those who mocked her grimace in front of Eclipse was as good as done.