Chapter 276
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Current re-published chapters (270 - 305)
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The middle-aged man was an ordinary figure you might see in any neighborhood.
With a faint blue shadow of a beard stretching from his ears to his chin and a protruding belly under his practical hiking clothes, he completed his stretches with sleepy eyes in the early dawn. He then began jogging slowly along a narrow path between rice paddies, muttering rhythmically, as middle-aged men often do.
This man was the “tail” that Butler Kim had found.
“Is this the guy?” Song-yi asked skeptically, watching the video that Butler Kim had recorded with his magic from inside a nondescript van.
“He seems pretty ordinary.”
“It’d be weirder if he looked extraordinary. A Black Hunter wouldn’t look like some 9th-grade civil servant, after all.”
“Even so, this guy seems too ordinary. Do combat hunters have something like a distinct aura or something?”
“They do.”
I stared intently at the video of the middle-aged man finishing his jog and entering his house. While the video couldn’t capture the energy he exuded, no matter how good an actor one is, subtle movements often give away their true nature. And I had the eye to see through such acting.
“He’s a master-level expert…”
“Huh?”
It wasn’t just Song-yi who reacted to my muttering. Chief Choi and Butler Kim both looked at me curiously, prompting me to clarify.
“…No, he’s an A-rank hunter.”
“You said something else just now. Did you say he was a master-level expert?”
“Nope. You must have misheard.”
Sometimes, a firm denial is the best strategy. If I said I didn’t say it, what could they do? Chief Choi and Butler Kim seemed to accept my words, nodding in agreement.
“I also think he’s an A-rank hunter,” Chief Choi added.
“From my observations, he’s among the top-tier of A-rank hunters. I had to keep a distance because I suspected he might detect the surveillance magic,” Butler Kim noted.
Given that Butler Kim was a seasoned warrior who had lived through the Great Cataclysm and had observed the man directly, it made sense. But Chief Choi’s keen insight was even more impressive than I expected. It wasn’t easy for just anyone to notice such details.
But that wasn’t the most pressing issue.
“How did you find him? I heard the investigation team took all the nearby CCTV footage.”
“I simply went back for more.”
Before I could ask how, Chief Choi brought his thumb and forefinger together in a circle.
“You mentioned it yourself, Taekyung. This works wonders.”
“Ah…”
“It’s a universal truth. I’ve used this method many times before.”
He must have bribed someone on the investigation team. Considering Chief Choi’s boldness, whoever it was must have made a hefty profit.
“I thought there was outside pressure?”
“When that happens, you just need to give them enough money to withstand the pressure.”
That’s impressive.
But it seemed there were limits even to money, based on what he said next.
“It looks like some big shots are involved. Normally, they would have talked after a bit of cash, but this time they were too scared. No matter how much we paid, they wouldn’t open their mouths. CCTV was our best bet.”
“And the person caught on camera is that guy?”
“Yes. There were slight differences, probably due to an artifact with Illusion magic, but it’s definitely him.”
As I suspected, the people behind this were powerful. They could grease the wheels of a top-ranking political figure, manipulate public opinion online, and even scare off corrupt law enforcement officials to the point where they wouldn’t cooperate.
“It must be a major guild.”
Only a large guild ranked within the top 20 would be capable of such things. These guilds were practically conglomerates, and raising illegal mercenaries like Black Hunters was well within their capabilities.
“So, who is this guy?”
“A city man who fulfilled his dream of moving to the countryside.”
Butler Kim handed me a tablet with a smooth comment.
“On the surface, at least.”
The tablet contained all the information on the “tail.” He was in his mid-40s, had made a fortune in stocks about ten years ago, and decided to move to the countryside after collapsing several times due to chronic illness.
“A chronic illness?”
“There are hospital records, too.”
I flipped through the hospital records with a smirk. The idea that an A-rank hunter could have a chronic illness was laughable.
“I’ll bet my left wrist that this is all nonsense.”
Chief Choi nodded as if it was obvious.
“Then I’ll bet your right wrist.”
Is this guy crazy? Why is he betting my wrist? Ignoring my incredulous look, Chief Choi continued.
“Anyway, on the surface, he’s a perfect ordinary person. He’s sociable, and since he moved in, he’s been hosting village feasts every two weeks, so the locals no longer see him as an outsider.”
“No one’s suspicious in this remote mountain village?”
“He’s a wealthy, good-natured man, after all.”
“A perfect cover for hiding something, like training Black Hunters.”
I focused on the last image on the tablet.
It showed a picturesque two-story house with a large yard, which made the house look relatively small. Parked beside the gray stone wall were a luxury SUV and a sedan.
“How many people could be inside?”
There had been three attackers when Im Jik-jung was assaulted.
Unless they were scattered like the Dragon Balls, they were probably in that house.
Wait, hold on.
“You mentioned earlier that he hosts village feasts every two weeks.”
“Yes. Each time, he orders a large quantity of food from outside, and… Ah!”
The village feasts were likely a cover to procure supplies.
“There might be more people there than we initially thought.”
If they were training, the rest might be in the basement or somewhere in the dense forest nearby.
I hoped they were huddled together in the basement. It would make things easier.
“If we approach carelessly, we might end up getting attacked instead. So, for now, we should…”
“Yes, let’s start now.”
I pulled my hood down low and opened the car door.
“I’ll be back.”
“What?”
“The three of you can come in twenty minutes. It should be over by then.”
Their confused stares shot toward me like arrows.
Butler Kim, the most experienced, spoke first.
“Hunter Jin Taekyung, there’s nothing more dangerous than an unknown enemy.”
“Yes, I know.”
“You’re skilled, but…,” Butler Kim continued cautiously.
“There might be dozens of A-rank hunters like the one I observed waiting inside.”
“Don’t worry. Honestly, the three idiots I fought earlier seemed tougher.”
“…?”
“Don’t mind me. Just thinking of an old friend.”
Song-yi asked in disbelief, “You’re thinking of a friend at a time like this?”
“No, I’m always thinking of you.”
“Eek.”
“Quiet. Before I punish you for that confession.”
“Kyaa!”
Wow, I’m so cool. No wonder women are so exasperated with me.
Just as I was about to step out of the van, Chief Choi said something that made me pause.
“I’d like to stop you, but I know I can’t.”
He continued with a complex expression on his face.
“Every crazy thing you’ve done has always worked out.”
“You’ve got a good eye. Now, do as I said. Everything should be over in an hour.”
“Black Hunters… they’re trained to hunt humans, not monsters. Be careful.”
I couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Good. Hunting humans is my specialty.”
“What…?”
Leaving the wide-eyed Chief Choi behind, I stepped out into the night.
Beneath the rural night sky dusted with stars, I took a deep breath of the cool air and stretched out my limbs.
Walking toward the shadowy base of the Black Hunters, I was no longer Hunter Jin Taekyung—I was Murim warrior Jin Taekyung.
* * *
Growl.
In the pitch-black darkness, a pair of beastly eyes gleamed.
Behind the iron bars, two large Tosa dogs bared their teeth at me. I unleashed a burst of killing intent at them.
“If you bark, you’ll end up as stew.”
The dogs wouldn’t understand my words, but killing intent was a different story.
Honed through countless battles and brushes with death, my killing intent evoked primal fear. It was enough to make even the bravest person wet themselves, so it was no surprise that the dogs, who were more sensitive to such things, reacted strongly.
Whimper. Whimper.
The Tosa dogs, feeling the killing intent, retracted their fangs, tucked their tails between their legs, and lay flat on the ground. Their eyes trembled nervously, unable to even look in my direction.
“Good dogs.”
With a soft swipe, I cut through the iron bars and stepped into the garden. The moment I did, a loud siren blared, accompanied by the sensation of passing through a soft membrane.
Wiiing!
Ding!
– [Alarm Magic] has been triggered!
– [Sound Blocking Magic] has been triggered!
No sound will escape the mansion!
– [Sight Blocking Magic] has been triggered!
The interior of the mansion is no longer visible from the outside!
So, they’ve put up some defenses. That’s fine by me.
As soon as the magic activated, the lights in the mansion flickered on.
I could sense the hurried movements of dozens of people inside, and soon, the iron front door burst open.
Bang!
Five men appeared, with the “tail” at the center.
The once ordinary-looking middle-aged man now had the gaze of a killer.
[Lv.95 Lim Young-jun]
“You
…”
His face twisted, and his eyes shook. He definitely recognized me.
I gave him a wide grin.
“I’m from the village youth association.”
“Jin Taekyung!”
“Nope, I’m Tung.”
“How did you find this place?”
“We have a rich young master in our guild. That guy’s got quite the knack for things.”
Lim Young-jun scanned the area with sharp eyes.
“Are you alone?”
“What if I am?”
“So, you are.”
His lips curled into a sneer.
“You idiot. Even if you’re ignorant of the ways of the world, there’s a limit.”
“I should be the one saying that to you.”
“You should have picked your target more carefully.”
“Oh, that D-rank nobody who’s not even a proper hunter? We almost killed him but stopped short. You should be grateful it ended there. If you don’t want things to get worse, you should lie low.”
“I’ve already seen the worst, and lying low doesn’t suit me. I’m not grateful, so that’s why I’m here.”
Lim Young-jun chuckled.
“Kid, I get that you’re excited from all the praise, but you shouldn’t mistake us for regular hunters.”
He was right. The energy and killing intent emanating from the Black Hunters were much more intense and powerful than that of ordinary hunters.
I scanned the mansion. I could sense them. The presence of those hiding inside, waiting for orders.
“One, five, ten… Twenty-eight in total. You’ve gathered quite a crowd.”
“…How did you?”
“I’m not just a regular hunter either.”
His face hardened as I continued.
“Three. Hand over the three who were involved in the attack two days ago, including you. The rest will disarm, confess everything, and I’ll spare their lives.”
“Crazy bastard.”
“Good. I was worried you might accept.”
That was my first and last offer. There wouldn’t be another.
I opened my inventory and equipped White Flame.
As soon as the cool spear was in my hand, Lim Young-jun screamed.
“Kill him!”
That was the signal.
Dozens of Black Hunters, who had been lying in wait, broke through walls and windows, rushing toward me.
Bang! Shhhh!
Blades and arrows rained down from all sides.
My eyes, watching the onslaught, had turned icy cold.
“You messed with the wrong person.”
Fwoosh!
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