Black Society
Yoo Wan-seop's eyebrow twitched slightly.
"Man, you hit the nail on the head."
Choi Min-su whistled.
"Yoo Wan-seop, it's been a while since I've seen that flustered look on your face."
It was Yang Hee-seon.
Kim Jun kept his eyes fixed on his master. After a brief moment of contemplation, Yoo Wan-seop finally spoke.
"The original test location wasn't here—it was the Raid Center. I arrived early to prepare, only to find an uninvited guest waiting. At first, I thought it might be someone from the Association or another guild, but it wasn't."
The reason for the change of venue was clear.
The Raid Center had been smashed beyond use for the test. The simulators might have been wrecked too.
Kim Jun clenched his fists without realizing it.
Regret and disappointment.
He felt both emotions at once—regret over the center's destruction, and disappointment at missing a chance to witness the former top raider Yoo Wan-seop in battle.
Ah, the Raid Center has CCTV installed.
He wanted to rush there right now and check the footage. He yearned to uncover every detail: how the fight unfolded, how strong the opponent was.
He suppressed the intense urge. He wanted to hear his master's explanation first.
"What I'm about to tell you must stay between us—no one, not even your team members, can know."
"Understood."
"Have you ever heard of the Black Society?"
"No, never."
Kim Jun shook his head.
"Raiders who frequent dungeons pick up all sorts of rumors over time, and the Black Society was just one of those baseless whispers."
Kim Jun latched onto the phrase "was just one of those."
It meant the culprit who trashed the Raid Center was tied to the Black Society—and that it was no longer just a rumor.
"You know about the black market, right?"
"Of course. The underground market. I don't know where it is, though."
"Rumor has it that the organization running the black market is the Black Society."
It was new information, sparking his curiosity, but he sensed there was more to it.
Why would an underground market operator come to the Raid Center? Plenty still didn't add up.
Yoo Wan-seop glanced at Choi Min-su.
Choi Min-su stepped in to explain.
"The reason the Black Society's name floats around isn't just the black market. It's because the group itself is a collective of fixers who'll handle anything for the right price—fixers who treat the law like it's nothing. Their most lucrative gigs? Assassinations. That blood money likely served as the seed capital to kick off the black market. Someone sore about the black market's profits might've spread the rumor, but it looks like it's true after all."
Choi Min-su shot Yoo Wan-seop a quick look.
Kim Jun turned to Choi Min-su with his question. He still had two questions left for Yoo Wan-seop.
"Is Hong Yong Planning connected to the Black Society?"
"In the fixer sense, yeah. If the Black Society sits at the pyramid's peak in that brutal underworld, Hong Yong Planning is just street-level thugs at the bottom. Finding a direct link would be tough."
Kim Jun looked to his master. The answer to his first question wasn't finished yet.
"The woman who attacked me was a Black Society member. Unfortunately, I couldn't get her name or rank."
Why not?
The answer came immediately.
She was dead.
Kim Jun's body trembled.
He steadied his breathing and posed his second question.
"Is the White Spear connected to a Black Spear?"
Yoo Wan-seop bit his lip.
Another direct hit on the core.
"Can't fool this kid with half-truths. Just spill it. The way his mind works—it's just like you back in the day. He could be a real asset, right, old timer?"
Choi Min-su again.
"I agree."
Yang Hee-seon chimed in.
Yoo Wan-seop, arms crossed, brought up the lockdown incident.
"The break-in at the Dungeon Association's Core Department, where O Jae-gyu was killed and cores swapped to animate the wax dolls—that was Maeng Gyu-pil's doing. You know who he is, right?"
"...The guy who was Yeon Un-jae's client?"
"That's the one. Right after the incident, he called Yeon Un-jae senior and confessed it was him."
"......"
Kim Jun was speechless.
"Remember the accident on the highway en route to Changwon Dungeon?"
"Yes."
"I think that was Maeng Gyu-pil too. And he sent you the White Spear. Same with this Absorption Tree business."
The master used words like "think" and "suspect," but Kim Jun realized it was as good as certainty.
His mind cleared in an instant.
He'd found consistency in Maeng Gyu-pil's actions.
Maeng Gyu-pil had been watching.
He knew not just that Kim Jun had stumbled upon the Cheonroegeom in a dungeon, but that he'd inherited Yeon Chung-jae's memories and inner power too.
The wax dolls rampaging during the awakening test? To gauge Kim Jun's strength. Or to provoke those memories in an extreme situation.
It had worked.
His Po-noe Strike had grown more refined, and he'd mastered the first form of Yeon Ga Shipil Geom, Yeon Yeop, enough for real combat.
Why send the White Spear? To hasten Kim Jun reclaiming Yeon Chung-jae's memories.
To Maeng Gyu-pil, Kim Jun was no different from a fattening piglet ready for slaughter.
Crackle, crackle.
Sparks began flying from his hands, shoulders... even his scalp.
"Whoa, whoa, calm down."
Choi Min-su.
Kim Jun slapped his own cheeks hard with both hands.
Smack.
The sparks vanished along with his raging fury.
Letting out a sigh, Kim Jun looked at Yoo Wan-seop. For his final question—not fact-checking, but his master's opinion.
"Why did Maeng Gyu-pil send the White Spear? He had to know it'd expose his intentions. Was hastening Yeon Chung-jae's memories worth the risk?"
"He's smart. As smart as me."
Kim Jun startled at that.
"If his mindset weren't twisted, he'd be making waves by now. Talent like that is rare even in Jushin. But he couldn't stomach detours when shortcuts were obvious. Started killing anyone in his way. That's why he got excommunicated."
Kim Jun imagined Yoo Wan-seop turning villain, flouting the law at will.
It was horrifying. Who in this world could stop him?
The police... even Association investigators wouldn't dare.
Then it hit him.
"It's a game."
"Probably."
Yoo Wan-seop nodded.
Kim Jun's jaw dropped.
Now it made sense. Maeng Gyu-pil wasn't just chasing Yeon Chung-jae's memories. He craved the thrill of flaunting his power and dominating his foe—like playing chess.
Kim Jun looked at Yoo Wan-seop, curious about his master's next move.
"What would you do?"
Yoo Wan-seop asked.
As facts clicked together like puzzle pieces in his mind, one idea surfaced.
"What if we use him?"
"...Use him?"
His master's eyebrow arched.
"If he sent the White Spear hoping I'd absorb the memories faster, wouldn't he do more 'favors' for me?"
"And?"
"Leak cryptic demands through the media and internet—like riddles. He'd bite. A guy that full of himself. Hiding somewhere would be hard to track, but if we predict his moves even roughly..."
"We catch him. Smart. You're no slouch."
Choi Min-su.
"Simpler and more effective than your plan, for sure. Stirring up the Black Society might draw out monsters—and innocents could get hurt."
Yang Hee-seon directed at Yoo Wan-seop.
Kim Jun realized his master's "move."
Maeng Gyu-pil's Black Society link was exposed by that intruding woman today—unintended on his part.
Unnecessary contact had revealed part of the truth.
Yoo Wan-seop planned to pressure him publicly by naming the Black Society.
"We'll discuss that later. Right now, focus on the Sokcho raid the day after tomorrow. Kim Jun, the test starts now. Simple: survive the relic for 30 minutes. Pass."
"Just survive?"
Kim Jun sensed more to it.
"We enter 5 minutes late."
"...We?"
Kim Jun, staring at his master, glanced at Choi Min-su and Yang Hee-seon now flanking him.
"Yeah, we."
Choi Min-su.
Kim Jun shook his head.
Survive 30 minutes against these three? Was that even possible? It was as good as telling him to forfeit the raid.
Two former Korea's top raiders, one still the premier tanker, and the Crazy Buffer who'd revolutionized the role—united against him...
Forget 30; 10 minutes would be impossible.
Yoo Wan-seop eyed Kim Jun.
"Too unfair otherwise. So, a handicap? If we limit inner power and mana to 30%, it's doable."
"Make it 10%."
Kim Jun demanded boldly. He wouldn't let his team's efforts go to waste.
"20%. Or forfeit."
"...Fine."
At 20% mana, it'd roughly match Expedition Captain Jeong Myeong-ho's reserves and physical output.
"Begin."
His master said.
Kim Jun walked to the simulator, strategizing in his head. His only edge: familiarity with the relic's layout from relentless training.
Relic structures randomized each time.
But he'd entered so often, he knew the patterns. With luck, he might hold out 30 minutes even against them.
"Here goes."
As Yoo Wan-seop nodded at his watch, Kim Jun hit the button and entered the virtual space.
@
Yang Hee-seon couldn't tear her eyes from the midweight sword propped in the corner.
Even with the sudden summons from the master, he'd brought that heavy lump of metal. She sensed his drive to grow stronger, squeezing every scrap of time—even the moments most ignored.
She recalled first meeting Kim Jun.
When her grandson Jang Geon-ho stole his bag and bolted, the mere carrier had chased fiercely. His agility fooled Jang Geon-ho into thinking he was her disciple.
What a difference time made.
Less than a year, by the calendar.
Yet Kim Jun had transformed—like a larva pupating into a brilliant butterfly.
"Surprised, huh?"
Choi Min-su approached, offering a paper cup of hot, sweet instant coffee.
One sip, and a pleasant warmth spread through her.
"How could I not be? Hearing his old friend's memories shifted into that kid's head."
To Choi Min-su or Yoo Wan-seop, Yeon Chung-jae was a brief senior, an arrogant raider. But Yang Hee-seon had raided actively alongside him.
Fought dungeons together, resisted the Association's unfair rulings, shared drinks.
Yeon Chung-jae was a swordsmanship genius.
And a bizarre raider obsessed with one dream...
Immortality.
He feared death. Never showed it outwardly.
Only to a trusted few did he bare his soul. Yang Hee-seon still vividly remembered him clenching his fist, vowing never to die.
Hearing he'd sealed his memories and inner power in the Cheonroegeom? Utterly Yeon Chung-jae.
In a way, he'd achieved his dream. Not as desired, perhaps.
Age brings thoughts of endings. How to close the book? As old friends depart one by one, life's meaning weighs heavy.
Doubts creep in.
Did I live right?
Will Miracle endure without me?
Will Ultimation's lineage fade?
Yang Hee-seon thought Yeon Chung-jae unlucky in life, but fortunate at its end. An exceptional successor in Kim Jun ensured his power and legacy wouldn't fade—but shine brighter.
"Time."
Yoo Wan-seop.
Yang Hee-seon nodded and headed to the simulator.