Chapter 1 — The Strongest Swordsman and the First Form
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Mark was supposed to be the strongest.
That had been the dream since childhood.
Not wealth.
Not fame.
Not power over nations.
Just strength.
The kind of strength that could split mountains and silence monsters with a single swing of a blade.
And somehow… he had actually achieved it.
By the age of twenty-four, Mark had become something the world had never seen before.
A Sword Saint.
Monsters feared him.
Hunters respected him.
Governments begged for his help.
There were stories that he once cut a dragon in half before it could even roar.
Another story said he split a hurricane with one strike.
Mark personally thought both stories were exaggerated.
The dragon roared a little.
And the hurricane took two swings.
Still, the point remained.
He was absurdly strong.
And for a while, life was simple.
Kill monsters.
Save cities.
Drink afterwards.
Repeat.
---
Then someone suggested something stupid.
"Why don't you start a guild?"
Mark still remembered the moment.
He had been sitting at a restaurant with three hunters who followed him around like loyal bodyguards.
Kai.
Leon.
Darius.
The three of them had just finished celebrating another monster raid when Leon casually suggested it.
"You're already the strongest hunter alive," Leon said. "If you start a guild, people will flock to it."
Kai nodded enthusiastically.
"You'd become the leader of the greatest guild in history!"
Darius calmly added, "Strategically speaking, it would allow us to coordinate defense across multiple regions."
Mark had stared at them for a moment.
Then shrugged.
"Sure."
That had been his first mistake.
---
Starting a guild sounded simple.
Register a name.
Fill out a form.
Sign a document.
Done.
That's what Mark thought.
That's what everyone thought.
Reality, however, was different.
Very different.
---
Mark sat in a large office overlooking the city of Seoul.
A massive desk stood in front of him.
And on that desk…
Was a stack of paper.
Not a small stack.
Not even a large stack.
A mountain.
Documents piled so high they leaned dangerously to one side.
Forms.
Contracts.
Legal registrations.
Guild charters.
Financial declarations.
Monster liability waivers.
Magical hazard acknowledgements.
Tax registrations.
Mark stared at them silently.
Then slowly looked at the woman standing across the desk.
She was smaller than him.
Black hair tied neatly.
Sharp eyes.
And a belt hanging loosely from her hand.
His older sister.
Joy.
Joy crossed her arms.
"Well?"
Mark pointed at the papers.
"…What is that?"
Joy blinked.
"Paperwork."
"I can see that."
She shrugged.
"You wanted a guild."
"I wanted a guild," Mark said slowly. "Not a government."
Joy tapped the stack.
"You need to sign them."
"How many are there?"
Joy glanced down.
"About six hundred."
Mark blinked.
"…Six hundred?"
"For now."
"For now?"
"Yes."
Mark stared at the papers again.
Then leaned back in his chair.
He had faced dragons.
He had faced ancient monsters.
He had once fought a demon that could melt steel with its breath.
But something about this stack made his soul feel very tired.
Kai leaned over his shoulder.
"Honestly it's not that bad."
Leon adjusted his glasses.
"If you sign one every thirty seconds, you'll finish in about five hours."
Darius added calmly,
"Assuming there are no additional forms."
Mark slowly picked up the pen.
Then looked at Joy.
"…You're enjoying this, aren't you?"
Joy smiled.
"Very much."
---
Mark signed the first paper.
Scratch.
Then the second.
Scratch.
Then the third.
Scratch.
Ten minutes passed.
Twenty.
Thirty.
The stack did not look any smaller.
Mark suddenly stopped.
He looked at Joy again.
"Let me ask you something."
"Yes?"
"…If I destroy the entire country…"
Joy raised the belt.
Mark immediately resumed signing.
Scratch.
Scratch.
Scratch.
Kai whispered to Leon.
"…The strongest hunter in the world."
Leon nodded.
"…Defeated by paperwork."
Darius quietly observed,
"This may take longer than expected."
---
Mark sighed.
Then signed another document.
And another.
And another.
Somewhere deep in his mind, a terrible realization began forming.
A realization so horrifying that he refused to acknowledge it.
Becoming the strongest had been easy.
But this…
This might be the hardest battle of his life.
---
And unfortunately for Mark…
This was only the beginning.