Chapter 67
Chapter 67
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 67
Chapter Title: Special Target Zero (3)
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“Boss! Boss! Forgive me just this once! I had no idea. Who would’ve thought those bastards...”
“Shut your trap, you punk.”
A combat boot studded with steel toes slammed into the man’s face.
“Gaaak!”
Another kick drove into the tumbling man’s gut.
“You didn’t know? Bullshit. You’re the one who opened the underground sector for them, and all the payoffs you’ve been pocketing are out in the open now.”
Fierce-looking gangsters swarmed in, unleashing a brutal group beating.
They were the Palak Society, the largest faction among the non-Necro Mafia.
Two men who’d once been in their ranks were already leashed by the neck and hung from hooks like slabs of beef.
Gonghyeok lit a cigarette without so much as glancing at the savage scene.
“Hey, you there. How long you gonna make me wait?”
One of the thugs holding the leash on the third man turned his head mid-beatdown.
“Oh, the boss’ll be here any minute. Just hold on.”
A half-hearted reply, followed by more punches.
Creeeak.
While Gonghyeok waited, staring at the smoke, the steel door swung open.
Unlike the other gangsters’ attire, this man wore a crisp white suit.
“Mr. Ju, sorry to keep you waiting.”
He grinned amiably, but the scar slashing across his face twisted viciously, lending him a menacing air.
The man sat across from Gonghyeok and barked over his shoulder.
“Hey, you worthless shits! Don’t parade that mess around—take him somewhere out of sight and finish the job!”
“Yes, boss!”
At the shout from Palak Society’s second-in-command, Bai Yeon, the thugs dragged the man away.
Switching back to a smiling face, he set a black briefcase on the table.
“Mr. Ju, thanks for all your hard work today. I hear the underground sector was no joke, huh? Hahaha.”
Click.
The black attache case sprang open.
Inside were hundreds of navy coins, skill coins, and scrolls easy to cash in.
“How’d you manage all this...”
Gonghyeok smoothly stowed the case in his inventory.
Bai Yeon spotted the cigarette in Gonghyeok’s mouth and made a fuss.
“No way, a guy like you smoking that crap? Boys!”
Bai Yeon snapped his fingers, and two underlings pulled out cigarettes.
They carefully lit the one placed in his mouth.
“It’s made from processing the plant-type monsters from Sector 55, where the city settled three months ago. Limited supply, but top-shelf stuff anywhere you take it.”
“Tastes good.”
At Gonghyeok’s casual praise, Bai Yeon smiled softly and continued.
“Truth is, this barely scratches the surface. Thanks to you, Mr. Ju, business is booming these days. Those rootless Necromancer punks were crawling all over, causing headaches. But ever since you stepped in with blade in hand, we’ve been yanking them out roots and all, haven’t we?”
“Just doing the job.”
“No, no. Before you came along, those mercenary bastards set up shop as officials and slacked off on real work... Couldn’t stop them from muscling into our turf and expanding their operations.”
Like the rolling stone dislodging the embedded one, two major mafia outfits boasting power under the Company had been wiped out by the Necro Mafia, while others faced tightening nooses.
They lacked confidence in direct confrontations and competitive business edge.
What the city’s mafias turned to in their headache-inducing bind...
Was the ‘enemy of my enemy.’
“Ahem. And it’s not just for you, Mr. Ju. Gotta stay on good terms with Martunis too, right?”
“Of course. I’ll make sure to mention it to the deputy chief.”
“Boss.”
A gangster pushed open the steel door.
Dragging in the man who’d just been savagely beaten, by the collar no less.
Thud.
He plopped the swollen-faced man atop the table like rising bread dough, then asked.
“Job’s done. What now?”
Bai Yeon’s eyebrow twitched.
“Hey. You, get over here.”
“Yes.”
Bai Yeon’s finger glowed red-hot as he exhaled smoke.
He pressed it to his underling’s forehead.
“Guhhh!”
The underling groaned in agony, but Bai Yeon gripped his head with his other hand, preventing escape.
“Hey, asshole. You call this manners? Know your place and stay out of shit that ain’t yours.”
“S-sorry, boss!”
Bai Yeon kicked him aside with a grin.
“Sorry you had to see that ugly display. You should head out now. Oh, and this...”
He pulled a card etched with Eastern artwork from his pocket and introduced it.
“This card works at any shop run by the Palak Society. Gets you executive-level service at brothels or casinos alike. Swing by sometime...”
“I’ll drop in if I’m passing through and it crosses my mind.”
Free card, huh. Time to catch up on some fun.
With that thought, Gonghyeok stepped out through the steel door.
Once Gonghyeok was gone, Bai Yeon’s ever-present grin twisted into a demonic snarl.
“Pamtan, you fucking dog. I said entertain him, not pull that intimidation crap?”
The gangster with a charred hole smoking on his forehead crawled forward and rasped.
“Isn’t that standard hospitality? Making guests shit themselves when they walk in...”
“Sigh...”
Bai Yeon clutched his head.
The brutal handling of three men right in front of Gonghyeok moments ago—tossing one on the table and all—was meant to cow him.
Even battle-hardened hunters who’d seen plenty of monster guts got chills in a sealed room watching gangsters at work.
But that depended on the target.
Smack!
“Ow! You idiot! That guy makes hundreds do the long walk every day—he’s a goddamn human weapon!”
“But even so...”
“Fuck. Fine. Even guys like that have their limits.”
He relit his half-smoked cigarette and took a drag.
“Didn’t you see his eyes?”
“His eyes? Looked pretty vacant to me.”
“That’s why... Sigh, forget it. Point is, he’s someone we need to butter up.”
Sizzle!
“Ow ow ow!”
The underling yelped and jumped back from the cigarette burn via lighter flick.
‘Ju Gonghyeok, was it? The word around is he’s decent, and yeah, he’s definitely different.’
Bai Yeon’s knack for reading people was sharp enough to earn him the S-rank ‘Intuition’ perk.
Even the first time he’d summoned Gonghyeok, he’d put on the same tough-guy show.
But what he’d read in him was...
＊ ＊ ＊
Currently, in the Company-settled Sector 54 dungeon, ‘Elder Dragon Lair.’
Ju Gonghyeok’s team had pushed to the cave’s heart.
One team member, Sally, giggled as she jabbed Gonghyeok’s side.
“Team leader, why didn’t you show up yesterday?”
“Felt under the weather.”
Sally burst into laughter at his reply.
“You, sick? Someone must’ve spiked your morning Corn Frost with poison.”
“Whew.”
He let out a light sigh and flexed his wrist.
Liang Family Five Elements Extreme: Thunderclap Fist.
Krrrack!
Screee...
A man-sized Earth Lizard’s head nailed into the cave wall like a spike.
“Focus, buddy.”
“Y-yeah...”
Cowed by his display, she raised her staff.
To help teammates struggling one-on-one with Earth Lizards.
Beside them, Ha Yeonsi tapped her glass heels, triggering a notification.
[Special skill of ‘Cinderella Princess’s Glass Slippers (S-)’ activated.]
[Mana operation optimized. Skill mana efficiency increased by 35%.]
“Telekinesis.”
She murmured, and a crawling Earth Lizard floated into the air.
Screech?
“Disassemble.”
Empowered by Ha Yeonsi’s monstrous mana, telekinesis wrenched the Earth Lizard’s limbs with dozens of tons of force.
Screeeeeee—
“Kyaaak!”
The lizard’s limbs tore off like chicken legs, spraying blood.
And right below the shredded beast stood Sally.
Drenched in gore and guts, she raised her voice.
“Wait, Ha Yeonsi, you...”
“Sorry. My bad.”
Sally wanted to chew her out for dragging a distant monster right to her spot, but seeing Yeonsi’s oddly split pupils, she swallowed her words.
Remembering the chilling stares during team leader chats, she figured pushing it might get one of her own limbs ‘accidentally’ lost.
[Achievement: ‘Hunted 500 Earth Lizards’ unlocked.]
[Reward: 5 navy coins granted.]
[Hunted 2,500 lizard monsters across five attributes.]
[Title ‘Lizard Hunter’ granted.]
Cain, holding the front line for the team, gulped.
‘Fast.’
He’d been watching Gonghyeok hunt up close.
Gonghyeok’s perpetually bored expression made it look less like hunting and more like clocking in for work.
By the time others bagged one, he’d casually dropped five with effortless motions.
Watching him one-shot big ones like clicking a mouse bred admiration turning to relative deprivation.
‘Scary part is, that’s him holding back so we don’t feel useless. Every move’s got lessons if you watch close.’
A Company newbie who’d followed Gonghyeok here.
At first, getting jumped and told to come along made him think, what the hell?
Busting through security, chatting up native city reps like old pals—shocking stuff.
After opening the Platinum Gate for an S-rank greatsword, Gonghyeok handed over a Punisher Knight skill coinbook for free.
“Hey hey, first time with a greatsword?”
“The grip’s all... You grabbing your sister’s tits on the sly? Grip tight or it’ll smash your skull.”
“What’s precious to you? Think! That busty blonde little sis! Who’ll protect her if not you?”
[Perk ‘Martial Arts Beginner (D)’, ‘Wellspring Will (B+)’ generated.]
[Flaw - ‘Past Exposure (-A)’ generated.]
His various advice had unlocked Cain’s hidden perks.
Now that man sighed deeply.
“Sigh... You’ve gotten way too strong since things went smoothly.”
Asked what he meant, it was stuff like, ‘Fighting the old way’s lost its thrill.’ ‘S-rank skills and weapons everywhere kill the hand-feel.’ Self-mutterings.
Gonghyeok carved an X across the cavern, home to hundreds of Earth Lizards.
“Claimed this too.”
“Oppa, what do you mean ‘claimed’?”
Ha Yeonsi sidled up and asked.
He deployed his unofficial SSS-rank skill—‘head pat that melted angels and demons alike’—and answered.
“Secret, but I’m thinking base camp here.”
“Base?”
“Yeah. Midpoint one.”
For average hunters without him, reaching here took two days.
But a midpoint base?
With potions, healing, safe rest—survival and hunt efficiency would skyrocket.
‘Bases to build, native city alliance to form, beastkin to repel. Lots on the plate.’
Yeonsi gazed up at him stroking her hair lost in thought, recalling Layer 3 memories.
Turning Outer Ashk into meat.
‘Mister. Mind not groping my girl anymore?’
‘I love you, Yeonsi. So kill me for my sake. Live for my sake.’
‘For oppa?’
‘Yeah. For me.’
She wanted to be his.
Stronger for him.
Prettier so his eyes stayed on her.
There when he needed.
Saved by him, this life for him alone.
Her idol, her purpose.
Just a head pat, yet she beamed happily.
Catching her look, Gonghyeok pecked her cheek softly.
“You’ll be grinding hard too. Anyway... Shall we go beat up the dungeon boss?”
A tiny angel popped up by his shoulder.
- Urk, playboy. Just yesterday at the shop... Eek!
“Panty or no-panty?”
- Don’t flip me upside down!
Gonghyeok turned and headed for the boss room.
Nathaniel clung to her skirt, fuming and bickering with him as always...
But this little angel never dreamed.
That Ha Yeonsi staring at her back had pupils split eerily, just like in Layer 3.
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