Solo Leveling : Ragnarok - Chapter 28

“Wait a moment.”

Su-ho suddenly felt a sense of déjà vu.

When he thought about it, all the recent events were connected.

Gwanaksan Field.

The Hyena Guild.

Seoul Station Field.

And there was one common denominator.

“…All of them emerged a year ago.”

[Kehek? Now that you mention it! It seems the Outer Gods have been hiding on Earth for the past year!]

“A year ago…”

Su-ho decided to start from there.

“Then how about we search in reverse? If we investigate dungeons, fields, and guilds that appeared a year ago, we might find something.”

If they found more demons, he could further strengthen Volkan’s Horn, and if they discovered more traces of the Outer Gods, that would be beneficial in its own right.

[Oh! As expected, our young master is very clever! Kehk. It feels like just yesterday I was teaching you addition and subtraction…]

Su-ho decided to ignore Beru’s exaggerations for the moment.

A thought crossed his mind.

“Yes, there’s that place.”

The most infamous location in South Korea a year ago.

The scene of that horrific disaster.

“Magok.”

Su-ho’s eyes glinted sharply.

* * *

Hunter Association Surveillance Division.

“…No matter how much we dig, there’s always more.”

Team Leader Han Jae-hyuk found himself increasingly baffled as he continued to investigate the now-defunct Hyena Guild’s base.

Listing all the crimes the Hyena Guild had committed would require more than a hundred pages of reports.

The criminal activities had been handed over to the police hunters.

The Association was focusing on matters outside the legal framework.

Specifically, things like “Star Dust.”

…Strictly speaking, Star Dust wasn’t classified as a drug.

So, using it wasn’t technically illegal.

But that didn’t mean they could allow such an unidentified substance to continue circulating unchecked.

The Hunter Association had been investigating how Star Dust was made and who was responsible, and now they had finally gotten a lead at the Hyena Guild’s base.

A ledger.

It detailed when the Hyena Guild bought Star Dust and how much, and to whom they sold it.

This confirmed that the Hyena Guild was one of the distributors of Star Dust.

By following this trail, they might find out who was producing the Star Dust.

“But to think that some people were buying Star Dust even with borrowed money…”

“I guess it’s a type of investment. If they used Star Dust to clear high-level dungeons, they could easily pay off that kind of debt.”

“And then they’d come back to the Hyena Guild to buy more Star Dust with the money they made?”

“In the end, only the Hyena Guild kept raking in the cash. It’s like they were running their own economy.”

The real issue was that most of the hunters listed in the ledger were among the “missing persons” over the past year.

Most of them were likely prey for the boss monster that had been manipulating the Hyena Guild from behind.

However, as they continued examining the ledger, they found something strange.

Some of the missing persons were marked with a red line.

Among them were quite a few non-awakened debtors.

“Who are these people? Are they different somehow?”

“Team Leader! Take a look at this!”

A subordinate showed Han Jae-hyuk some documents.

“If you look here, the dates when the Hyena Guild received large shipments of Star Dust and the dates when these marked missing persons disappeared are exactly the same. Without exception.”

“…Really.”

“Could they be related?”

“Hmm.”

One thing immediately came to mind.

“…Did they trade them for Star Dust?”

“Trade people for Star Dust?”

Team Leader Han Jae-hyuk combed through the ledgers again from the beginning.

Eventually, he discovered something and his eyes narrowed.

“It’s certain. The ledger records how much Star Dust the Hyena Guild acquired, but it doesn’t mention how much money they paid. It means they didn’t pay any money.”

“So, did they pay for the Star Dust with people instead of money? But why?”

“We need to find that out. If the Hyena Guild didn’t make the Star Dust themselves, the people who did…”

At that moment.

An urgent call came into the surveillance division.

“Team Leader! We have a report!”

“What report? I’m busy…”

“Someone has found a Star Dust factory…”

“Put them through immediately!”

* * *

By the time Team Leader Han Jae-hyuk arrived at Seoul Station Field after receiving the report, everything was already over.

“What the hell happened here?”

There, the survivors who had been held captive in the factory and the hunters who had rescued them were sitting down, exhausted.

“It’s a long story…”

The raid leader began to explain everything that had happened to Team Leader Han Jae-hyuk.

“A factory? They were making Star Dust in there? Who? Demons?”

The more he listened, the more the pieces of the puzzle he had been investigating recently began to fit together in his mind.

But now was not the time to sit and think things over calmly.

“What? Are you sure? You’re saying someone stayed down there to fight the demons alone?”

“Yes. He said he’d buy us time to escape… told us to go first… Please, go down there and save him!”

Instructor Im had been nervously pacing for some time, worried about Su-ho’s safety.

At least to his eyes, it seemed like Su-ho had barely managed to take down a single demon when they first encountered them.

And there were no fewer than ten such demons in the factory.

‘Su-ho said not to worry and that he would get out on his own, but that was probably just to reassure us. That guy…! Like during the Korean University Dungeon, he’s trying to sacrifice himself for us again!’

After hearing the entire explanation, Team Leader Han Jae-hyuk grabbed the weapon he had brought with him with a grim expression.

“Understood. We’ll go in right away.”

*Boom!*

Team Leader Han Jae-hyuk’s weapons were two giant steel shields large enough to cover half his body.

The moment he picked up the shields, a transparent aura enveloped his entire body.

‘Iron Wall Aura?!’

Seeing this, Instructor Im finally recognized who Team Leader Han Jae-hyuk was.

He was a C-rank tank who had once been acknowledged for his skills, receiving offers from various renowned guilds.

And the hunters lined up behind him looked equally formidable.

‘Now we’re set! Su-ho is safe!’

Leading the Association hunters, Team Leader Han Jae-hyuk boldly entered Seoul Station.

He paused at the entrance and turned back for one last question.

“Oh, by the way, what rank is the hunter who stayed behind?”

“Ahem. Well…”

The raid leader hesitated with an awkward expression.

“He’s an E-rank Scavenger.”

“…What?”

“…”

The raid leader felt wronged.

Suddenly, the Association hunters were looking at him like he was some kind of scoundrel.

He genuinely felt wronged.

* * *

“I need to look into Magok when I get back.”

Su-ho finished all his business and exited the factory.

However, as he was about to head back to the surface, he felt something was missing.

It was because of Broki.

“I’ve extracted such a strong creature as a shadow soldier; it feels like a waste to just let it go.”

An extracted shadow soldier lasts for about a day.

After that time, it would automatically dissipate and return to nothingness.

He didn’t know when he would come across such a powerful beast again, so he wanted to use it as effectively as possible.

[Then how about taking a lap around? There are still many lizards left nearby.]

“That sounds good.”

He decided to take the opportunity to clean up the field thoroughly.

“Broki.”

[Growl!]

Broki, now a shadow soldier, had lost his ability to speak.

However, his intelligence remained intact, so there was no need for lengthy explanations.

“Round them all up.”

[Kyaoo!]

Broki, like a beast, had an excellent sense of smell.

Upon receiving Su-ho’s command, Broki sniffed out all the lizards hiding throughout the field and killed them.

He then brought their corpses and neatly laid them in front of Su-ho.

Although the lizards now gave less experience since Su-ho’s level had increased significantly, every little bit helped.

“And they’re all worth money, too.”

[Chomp. My Liege, with all due respect, since there are so many, may I have a bite as well…]

“A ‘one-bite’ guy…”

[I am indeed a bug.]

Beru tilted his head at Su-ho’s joke.

As Su-ho led Broki in hunting the lizards, he wore the crow mask again.

He had worn it earlier to pretend to be the youngest demon in front of the other demons, but this time it was for a completely different reason.

In fact, this item had a small feature.

[Item: Crow Mask]

Acquisition Difficulty: E

Type: Junk

A suspicious mask used by demons.

When worn in the dark, it brightens the wearer’s field of vision.

Can be stored in the inventory or sold at the shop.

‘It’s better than night vision goggles.’

Thanks to his increased sensory stats, he could discern objects even in the dark, but the crow mask made it even easier to see without any discomfort.

Since each demon in the factory had one of these handy items, Su-ho had collected all their masks.

But that’s where the problem began.

“A demon!”

“Huh?”

[Kiek?]

Just then, Association hunters entering the field came face to face with Su-ho wearing the crow mask.

They had already been informed by the hunters on the surface that demons wore crow masks.

And next to Su-ho stood the massive hyena, Broki, looking more menacing than ever.

“Attack!”

“No, wait…”

Before Su-ho could say anything, the hunters’ attacks were already directed at him.

*Ding!*

[Emergency Quest has arrived.]

*Ding!*

[Emergency Quest: Eliminate the Enemies!]

Those who harbor killing intent towards the ‘Player’ are nearby…

“Oh no, not this. Decline, decline.”

Due to their hostile intent, even an emergency quest had popped up.

Just as Su-ho hastily declined the quest and tried to reveal his identity by taking off his mask—

*Whoosh!*

“I’ll handle this one!”

Team Leader Han Jae-hyuk, who had quickly closed the distance, swung his shield at Su-ho.

At that moment, the other hunters simultaneously charged at Broki.

“Wait, listen to me—”

“Iron Wall Aura!”

*Flash!*

A transparent shield aura, like a giant barrier, surged toward Su-ho.

[My Liege!]

Beru’s urgent cry.

Su-ho clenched the hand that was about to remove his mask.

‘I need to subdue him first.’

*Whoosh!*

In an instant, a dark aura enveloped his fist.

And with one powerful punch, he aimed directly at the transparent shield pressing down on him.

With a single punch.

[Strength: 45]

*Smash!*

“Huh?”

Team Leader Han Jae-hyuk, who had been charging at Su-ho, bent at a right angle and flew backward with his shield, bouncing off like a straight line.

And then—

*Crash!*

He slammed into the distant wall.

“…Huh?”

Su-ho, who had thrown the punch, froze in place, dumbfounded.

The Association hunters, who witnessed this, widened their eyes in shock.

“Team Leader…?”

“What the hell…?”

*Rumble.*

The wall where Team Leader Han Jae-hyuk had slammed in began to crumble, revealing his upturned face.

He had fainted on the spot.

[Hmm. So, this is about the level of humans. Well, you did invest all your stats into strength after all.]

Beru nodded, finding the result unsurprising.

Su-ho awkwardly removed the crow mask.

“Shall we settle this with a conversation?”

“…”

The hunters quickly nodded, not needing to be told twice.