Chapter 46: I Want Your Blood

Awakened Association – Chairman’s Office

"I swear to God... I stepped out of that damn portal just half an hour ago, and it felt like every reporter in the world swarmed me. Everyone shouting something, asking something... I was about to suffocate. I was lucky this so-called Mr Chairman dragged me out of there."

It had been about thirty minutes since he cleared the dungeon. When he stepped out, a flood of reporters had surrounded him, bombarding him with questions. It was a terrible experience.

"Now that we finally have a bit of peace... tell me. How did you manage to clear that dungeon?" August, arms crossed, stared at Daniel with a piercing look.

"Same way everyone else clears them, I guess? Went in and killed the boss." Daniel gave a half-smile and shrugged.

"That kid—your teammate—said you died to save them. Saw it with his own eyes." August frowned.

"he probably saw wrong." Daniel shrugged again.

August’s expression shifted strangely. A mix of doubt, curiosity, and maybe even a bit of admiration. But he didn’t say anything. He just asked a few more detailed questions about the dungeon clear, as if trying to find a hole in Daniel’s story.

Unfortunately, it was useless. Daniel had already come up with all the excuses he’d need before exiting the portal.

"One more thing. Aren’t you a priest? How’d you manage to solo-clear a whole dungeon?"

Daniel sighed. In his mind, he quickly scrolled through the list of ready-made excuses. Time to pull one out.

"Yeah, my class is a priest... but my innate talent has nothing to do with healing or supporting."

"What do you mean?" August raised an eyebrow.

"My innate talent’s closer to a magical warrior’s skill set." Daniel gave a faint smile.

"What’s your innate talent called?" August, still had his brows furrowed.

"I’d rather not say." Daniel narrowed his eyes slightly and replied coolly.

His talent was called God’s Blood, but just the name alone could cause a lot of misunderstandings—and that was the last thing he needed.

"Legally, I can’t force you. Innate talents are usually the most private part of an awakened’s power. I’ll drop it for now." August stared at him for a moment, then let out a sigh and spoke a little more casually.

"Anyway, now that we’re on the topic—what about my rewards? I should be getting at least 5 million Zen for clearing that dungeon, right?" Daniel smiled, clearly trying to change the subject.

"Your cash reward and monthly salary will be in your account by tomorrow. As for the training room, I’ve ordered the logistics department to prep the best equipment for you. A private room, just for yourself." August gave a crooked smile.

Normally, the 5 million would’ve been split among the whole team. But since Daniel cleared the dungeon solo—and there had been casualties—the Association’s insurance would handle the compensations.

"What about solo dungeon clear permissions? Still want it?" Daniel nodded in satisfaction. But August had one more question up his sleeve.

"No?. Honestly, unless I’m forced to, I don’t want to waste time on dungeons. They don’t give EXP, the Mother System doesn’t reward anything special, and the only profit is loot... which isn’t always worth it." Daniel paused for a moment. His eyes dropped slightly, as if thinking about something that no longer held any appeal.

Unlike the floors of the Tower, where killing corrupted beasts grants EXP and clearing floors brings various rewards, dungeons weren’t like that.

He had seen people in the online community trash-talking dungeons all the time—now he finally understood why. They were just a waste of time.

"Looks like you’ve finally realized why most awakened dosen’t like dungeons."

"You going to visit your friend?" August asked. Daniel smiled and nodded. The conversation was wrapping up.

Before coming here, Linor had asked Daniel to visit her if he could. He nodded in response.

"Uncle? Before that, can I talk to him for a sec?" But before he could move, Naya’s voice cut through the room.

August paused, nodded in agreement, and walked out. Once he closed the door, the room suddenly felt lighter—as if the commander’s shadow had left the space with him.

"Honestly, I didn’t expect you to clear that dungeon solo." Naya stood in front of Daniel. Her eyes were serious, but the familiar smile still lingered at the corner of her lips.

"It wasn’t that hard."

"A lot of top prodigies in the country failed at clearing it. You know if you’d said the same thing in front of reporters, half of those geniuses would’ve turned into your enemies." Naya chuckled and lightly slapped his shoulder.

She wasn’t wrong. She had asked her sister about the dungeon and she had described it as terrifying. But this guy? He just says "wasn’t that hard" like it’s no big deal?

Daniel smiled and said nothing.

"By the way... I’ll be heading back to the capital soon. Have you thought about my offer?" The laughter faded. Naya paused for a second, like she was unsure if she should say something.

"My answer’s still the same. I don’t plan to join any guild right now." Daniel locked eyes with her.

"Alright... fine. Just... there’s something I should’ve told you from the start." Naya took a deep breath. She interlocked her fingers and looked down.

"That day... when we met... it wasn’t exactly planned. But once I saw you, I decided to catch your attention. That’s why I pretended to be a girl in distress." She paused. A shadow of embarrassment crossed her face.

"Why?" Daniel raised an eyebrow.

"I’m a spirit summoner. I’ve got contracts with various spirits. But to truly advance and reach the level I want... I need to form a contract with a spirit queen."

"The problem is, spirit queens don’t just make contracts that easily... it’s basically impossible." Naya blushed slightly but pushed on.

"But that day... when I saw you, one of the spirit queens I’ve been trying to convince for ages suddenly contacted me. She said... if you bring me that boy’s blood, I’ll form a contract with you."

"So you’ve been after my blood this whole time, huh?" For a few seconds, silence hung between them. Then Daniel let out a loud laugh.

He had already guessed that Naya might be a summoner. Classes were organized into major categories:

Healers, including saints and priests...

Warriors, covering all offensive types like archers, swordsmen, berserkers, and so on...

Necromancers, summoners, beast tamers, and mages—all fell under another branch.

Summoners were among the rarest and most powerful classes.

Daniel was a little curious why this girl’s identity was hidden from the world. Unlike her sister, she wasn’t well-known—despite her talent.

"So, want my blood right now?" Daniel asked, though he had no intention of giving it to her just yet.

What if giving his blood made her notice something? Even if she didn’t, someone from her family or guild might. He wasn’t willing to take that risk.

His fear was that the god of the apocalypse—the one he served as a priest—might be recognized by the top powers. He didn’t want to become a target.

"No, not yet. I need to reach rank B first. Until then, I can’t even form a contract with a queen." Naya replied quickly.

"Alright. I’ll probably visit the capital in the future, we can talk again then." Daniel nodded.

"Really? Thank you! Thank you so much!" Naya’s eyes lit up.

"See you around." Daniel turned to leave.

"I’ll be waiting for you in the capital." Naya said softly before he reached the door.

Daniel paused. He gave a crooked smile and, without turning back, raised his hand in a wave.