Solo Leveling : Ragnarok - Chapter 19

For a while, the internet was abuzz with activity.

– Breaking news! The hidden truth about the Hyena Guild!
– The werewolves of Gwanaksan!
– Survivors almost turned into monster food!

The survivors from the Gwanaksan field, rescued by Su-ho, revealed everything they had gone through to the media, and the public was shocked.

– Insane;;; What the hell is this;;;?
– They caught humans and fed them to monsters??
– Is this something humans would do??
– Hunters living as slaves to monsters;;
– This is betrayal of humanity, isn’t it?

Citizens reacted more strongly than ever upon learning that humans were hunting other humans and offering them as food to monsters.

Alongside this, other guilds that had even the slightest association with the Hyena Guild found themselves facing a storm of criticism.

– Wasn’t the Reaper Guild backing the Hyena Guild?
– Yeah, I heard that too. Even if they deny it now, everyone in the industry knows it.
– Where do you think the massive capital came from when the Hyena Guild was sucking the blood out of low-level Hunters with usurious loans?
– They say the Hyena Guild used to be just a bunch of local thugs.
– A big guild definitely funded them from behind.
– We should thoroughly investigate the Reaper Guild while we’re at it.

***

Bang!

“How much longer are we supposed to sit back and watch this nonsense?!”

Im Tae-gyu, the Guild Master of the Reaper Guild, slammed his fist down with a furious expression.

The force of his blow split the marble desk in half, but no one in the conference room even flinched.

“I-I’m sorry. We’re doing everything we can to respond, but as you can see, the backlash is too strong…”

“Chief Planner.”

Thud.

Im Tae-gyu’s cold voice choked the Chief Planner’s breath.

“Do you think I hired you to make excuses? To sit around in your planning department posting comments?”

“…I apologize.”

“Haaah.”

Im Tae-gyu leaned back in his chair and exhaled deeply.

“Let me ask just one thing. How did our image deteriorate to this point? Weren’t things going well for us until last year?”

“…”

The executives exchanged uncomfortable glances, unsure of how to respond to Im Tae-gyu’s question.

The truth was, until just last year, the Reaper Guild had been on a steady rise as the undisputed top guild in South Korea.

And the reason for that was the Guild Master himself, Im Tae-gyu.

Despite being middle-aged, he was one of the few S-rank Hunters in Korea.

And there was one more person.

The Reaper Guild had another S-rank Hunter besides Im Tae-gyu. At least, until last year.

“That’s because Vice Guild Master Baek Yun-ho left to go independent…”

“Shh.”

The Chief Planner urgently covered the mouth of his subordinate.

‘You fool! Do you think he doesn’t know that?’

S-rank Hunter Baek Yun-ho.

He had left the Reaper Guild last year to establish the Baekho Guild.

The moment the S-rank Hunter left, the Reaper Guild’s strength was effectively halved.

But the real problem wasn’t that.

In fact, everyone in the conference room knew the underlying reason.

They just couldn’t bring themselves to say it.

‘If I say it, my head will be on the chopping block.’

After Baek Yun-ho’s departure, Im Tae-gyu, in a fit of anger, hastily recruited an A-rank Hunter from outside and made him the new Vice Guild Master.

This person, Im Tae-gyu’s long-time acquaintance from before the Cataclysm, was essentially a parachute appointment.

Naturally, the Reaper Guild’s executives strongly opposed his decision.

An A-rank Hunter could never replace an S-rank Hunter.

Moreover, the A-rank Hunter, Lee Min-sung, had never once set foot in a proper dungeon; he was a complete novice.

But Im Tae-gyu hadn’t brought Lee Min-sung on for his combat strength.

Lee Min-sung… was just very wealthy.

Before awakening, he had already been born into wealth and had made a name for himself as a successful businessman.

He was even a former movie star, renowned across Asia in his youth.

Lee Min-sung’s life had always been one of luxury and wealth, completely unrelated to dungeons and Hunters.

Im Tae-gyu’s real goal?

It was to leverage Lee Min-sung’s wealth.

‘If our power has weakened, we can just buy more expensive weapons to compensate!’

In essence, Lee Min-sung was more of a sponsor with vast financial resources than a Vice Guild Master.

And to some extent, the plan worked.

After Lee Min-sung became the Vice Guild Master, the guild members began to receive increasingly expensive and lavish equipment.

But ironically…

‘That’s when our guild’s image started to plummet.’

The Chief Planner couldn’t help but hold back his thoughts.

At that moment, the door to the conference room opened, and the problem child, Vice Guild Master Lee Min-sung, entered.

“Hey! Sorry I’m late, the traffic was awful~”

Despite being an hour late to the meeting, Lee Min-sung waltzed in, laughing and making jokes.

As a former famous actor known for his handsome looks, his face was full of an easygoing smile.

Im Tae-gyu’s cold gaze fixed on him.

“Vice Guild Master Lee Min-sung.”

“Oh, what’s this? Did you break the table, Boss? Wow, you’re strong.”

“Vice Guild Master Lee Min-sung.”

“Hey, Secretary Kim! Get a better table in here by today, alright?”

“Hey! Lee Min-sung!”

Thud.

Finally, when Im Tae-gyu couldn’t hold back his anger and shouted, the smile vanished from Lee Min-sung’s face.

“Hey?”

Lee Min-sung’s head tilted as he turned to look at Im Tae-gyu with a cold stare.

“That’s a bit rude, don’t you think?”

Im Tae-gyu ignored the comment and glared at him.

“Vice Guild Master Lee Min-sung, why were you late to the meeting?”

“I told you, the traffic was bad.”

“It wasn’t because you were busy cleaning up the mess left by the Hyenas?”

“…”

Lee Min-sung’s brow twitched at those words.

But he quickly forced a smile back onto his face.

“What are you talking about? Hyenas? The ones you see at the zoo?”

“Don’t dodge the question, Lee Min-sung.”

Thud.

At that, the mask fell off Lee Min-sung’s face.

“You’ve got a sharp tongue.”

Even in the face of Im Tae-gyu’s fury, the S-rank Hunter, Lee Min-sung’s expression clearly displayed disdain.

“When did our little Tae-gyu grow up like this? You used to be just my chauffeur.”

“…”

Crack.

At those words, the murderous intent in Im Tae-gyu’s eyes surged.

But Lee Min-sung, unfazed, approached him instead.

He casually adjusted Im Tae-gyu’s collar and looked him up and down with a condescending gaze.

“Man, you never know with people, huh? You get lucky and awaken as an S-rank Hunter, and two years later, you’re all high and mighty? Even in front of your old boss?”

“Lee Min-sung…”

“Oh, wait. You’re not my old boss, right? Tae-gyu, don’t you still have two years left on your contract as my chauffeur?”

“Lee Min-sung… don’t test my patience.”

“What? Are you going to kill me? Ooh, scary. My little pet is trying to bite its master. I even poured money into your failing guild, and this is how you repay me?”

If looks could kill, everyone in the conference room would have been dead already.

‘Please, take this outside…’

The executives could barely breathe as the tension between the two escalated.

But fortunately, Im Tae-gyu wasn’t the type to lose his mind in a fit of rage.

“…Let’s end this here.”

“You were planning to do something, huh?”

“Vice Guild Master Lee Min-sung, I already know you’ve been involved in some shady dealings with the Hyena Guild. The Association will be investigating you soon.”

“…The Association?”

For the first time, the ever-nonchalant expression on Lee Min-sung’s face hardened.

Im Tae-gyu let out a deep sigh.

“Yes. So before it’s too late, why don’t you tell me what you’ve been up to behind the scenes? We need to know if we’re going to clean up this mess.”

“Hmm. Clean up, huh.”

Lee Min-sung stroked his chin, lost in thought.

But he had no intention of divulging any details.

‘Nor should I.’

In the end, Lee Min-sung chuckled and shrugged.

“It’s nothing much. Just a few errands and some financial games.”

“That’s really all?”

“That’s all. Even if the Association comes after me, I’ll handle it. So don’t worry about it.”

“For your sake, I hope that’s true.”

“And if it’s not, what will you do? The Hunter laws are so weak that my lawyers can get me out of anything.”

“The law, huh…”

Indeed, the Hunter laws were full of holes.

Im Tae-gyu pondered those words.

It was only natural.

It had only been two years since the Cataclysm.

Even now, the Association was working hard to pass Hunter-related legislation, but the gaps were still glaring.

That’s why scum like the Hyena Guild could still run rampant.

“Are we done here? If there’s nothing else, I’m leaving.”

Whoosh.

Without waiting for a response, Lee Min-sung turned and left the conference room.

From behind, Im Tae-gyu issued one last warning.

“Vice Guild Master Lee Min-sung, it would be wise not to be too overconfident. The laws may be weak, but the Association President is not someone to be trifled with.”

Bang.

The conference room door slammed shut.

Im Tae-gyu shook his head and sat back down.

Only then did the executives allow themselves to exhale the breaths they had been holding.

But as Lee Min-sung walked out of the room with a relaxed stride…

His expression twisted into one of fury.

‘That insolent little…!’

He hadn’t shown it, but the killing intent radiating from Im Tae-gyu had soaked his body in cold sweat.

But more than the fear, his pride was wounded.

‘I begged for the Vice Guild Master position, and now he treats me like a servant? Im Tae-gyu, you’re nothing!’

But he knew he couldn’t express his anger.

After all, Im Tae-gyu was an S-rank Hunter, and he was just an A-rank.

So this boiling rage could only be directed at the root cause of this entire situation.

The Hyena Guild?

No.

‘The bastard who wiped out the Hyena Guild!’

With a terrifying expression, Lee Min-sung dialed a number on his phone.

“Yeah, it’s me. Have you found out who he is?”

– About that, sir. We’ve contacted all the survivors, but…

A hesitant voice came from the other end of the line.

– None of the survivors could identify him.

“What? Why not? How could they not know?”

– The Hunter kept his face covered with a mask and hood the entire time. The only thing they could note was that he wielded dual swords, but even those were just weapons he picked up from the werewolves.

Crack.

“…Keep looking. I don’t care how you do it, find out who that bastard is and bring him to me.”

– Yes, sir…

Bang!

Unable to contain his anger, Lee Min-sung slammed his phone to the ground.

* * *

Meanwhile, at that very moment.

Su-ho was enjoying a peaceful time in the Shadow Dungeon.

Of course, Su-ho was the only one feeling peaceful.

For Gray, the young Fang Tribe wolf, it was a living nightmare.

“Grrr!”

[Well done. Finally, our Grumble has managed to hunt down a goblin on his own. Even if it’s just a baby goblin.]

“Grrraaaa!”

At Beru’s praise, the palm-sized wolf pup let out a pitiful, yet fierce, growl.

The sight of him standing over the baby goblin’s corpse with his paw was both pitiful and brave.

[Now, eat up! A true hunter never leaves his prey behind!]

“Grrr!”

[Open wide and chew!]

“Grrraa!”

Chomp, chomp!

Gray, despite being visibly exhausted, couldn’t disobey the harsh commands of Drill Instructor Beru.

But as he followed orders, biting and tearing at the goblin…

Ding!

[Your pet ‘Gray’ has leveled up!]

A message appeared in front of Su-ho.

“Oh, so it levels up too?”

– I told you, didn’t I? Eating, sleeping, and playing will help it grow.

“True. I thought only I could level up, but pets can too?”

But then another message popped up.

[Your pet ‘Gray’ offers 50% of its experience to its master as tribute.]

“What?”

[Kieek?]

Su-ho and Beru stared at each other in shock.

Then they both turned to look at Gray, who was lying flat on the ground.

“Whimper…”

[My lord, how could you steal from a flea?]

“I didn’t mean to…”

A wave of guilt suddenly washed over Su-ho.