Rumors of the Neck-Cutting Ghost
At the Guard Building by the main gate on the 1st floor of the Tower of Trials, a rumor had been circulating recently between the Deliverymen and the guards.
It was about whether the Neck-Cutting Ghost had truly disappeared.
A week had passed since Kim Tae-gil, the vicious murderer of the 1st floor, was killed, yet the severed heads had not vanished with his death.
“They say it appeared again, near Sinners’ Street.”
“Again? What happened this time?”
“A well-known member of the Baekho-pa. He was wandering around at night and got ambushed.”
The guards discussed the murdered criminal syndicate member among themselves.
“Maybe the guard captain was right. The black market guy and Kim Tae-gil were different people after all?”
“Probably. If anything, the black market one might be the one we really need to watch out for.”
The guards sighed heavily.
For them, who simply wanted to pass the time as quietly as possible, the existence of the Neck-Cutting Ghost was no different from shattering the peace of the 1st floor.
“Honestly, I wish that ghost would just wipe out all the scum on the 1st floor.”
“Don’t talk nonsense. No matter how skilled someone is, one person can’t take on an entire organization.”
One guard frowned at the absurd remark and replied.
It was true that criminal syndicate activity had noticeably decreased because of the recent Cleaning Week.
By the end of Cleaning Week, quite a number of syndicate members and executives had been strung up at the main gate, and several organizations had suffered devastating losses and vanished into the back alleys.
Even the larger syndicates had taken heavy damage during Cleaning Week.
As a secondary consequence, the Neck-Cutting Ghost had been killing their members and executives.
“The Deliverymen must be living the good life. A savior has appeared on the 1st floor.”
“The cleanup is still entirely our responsibility, though.”
They sighed again.
Then, looking at the group of Deliverymen outside, they spoke with envy.
It was easier to think of Apprentice Deliverymen and guards as being only one step apart.
The difference was whether one could leave the Tower or not, despite being physically and mentally sound.
The world outside the Tower was filled with all kinds of threats, so survival rates were extremely low.
In other words, the guards were people who possessed excellent skills but carried a fear of the outside.
Of course, since they had almost no real combat experience, the individual strength gap between guards and Deliverymen was significant.
Still, when it came to organization versus organization, the guards held the advantage.
After all, their numbers far exceeded those of the Deliverymen.
One person’s martial prowess could never defeat an organization.
That was the motto the guards lived by.
No matter how powerful a Deliveryman might be, if they committed a crime, the guards could mobilize in full force and suppress them.
“That kid’s here again.”
At that moment, one guard frowned and stepped forward.
Anyone approaching too closely had to be stopped, since they were in charge of guarding the main gate.
“Leave her be. Some boy will come and take her away again.”
Just as the colleague said, a boy approached the main gate, grabbed the girl by the collar, and dragged her away.
The guards watched the daily repetition with a mix of curiosity and annoyance.
“Cheong, did you come all the way here again?”
“Yeah. Want to go outside?”
The two were Yeon Cheong and Jin Hong.
Jin Hong had been continuing her concentration training even while walking, and she had approached the main gate as if drawn by some spell.
Yeon Cheong held her back with a sigh, feeling as though he were stopping someone sleepwalking.
“Let’s go back. Today’s ration day.”
“Oh, right! I should go see Uncle Ben!”
“It’s nice that we can wander around freely now that Cleaning Week is over.”
Jin Hong nodded at Yeon Cheong’s words.
She spoke to him excitedly, and Yeon Cheong accepted it all while glancing toward the Guard Building.
‘Looks like I still haven’t been found out.’
The Neck-Cutting Ghost.
Yeon Cheong had decided to use that alias for the time being.
He had occasionally observed the guards with a glance, checking whether they knew his true identity.
No matter how well he hid behind the mask, his build wasn’t exactly average, so he needed to stay cautious.
He had acted to minimize witnesses, but he still had to prepare for the unexpected.
‘Baekho-pa. Eun-gu.’
With the Black Wolf Group gone and the Red Guardians gone, these were now the most influential organizations on the 1st floor.
They even acted as the upper floors’ hands and feet.
The advantage criminal syndicates held came from their information networks and their willingness to break the law.
Since the 1st floor residents were too insignificant to warrant using the powerful force of the Janitors, the upper floors often relied on criminal syndicates to manage the 1st floor.
They used their information networks to learn every detail happening below, and when necessary, they commissioned assassinations to eliminate dissenters in advance.
It was a useful long-term tool, but in the end, a criminal syndicate was still a criminal syndicate. The upper floors were always ready to purge them when the time came.
Having been a Janitor himself, Yeon Cheong knew this all too well—he had raided such organizations more than once or twice.
It was true that one person’s strength could not defeat an organization, but if that individual’s power was overwhelmingly superior, the rule no longer applied.
That was what the Tower’s Janitors were—people so powerful that others needed to understand the difference.
‘With my current skills, how long could I last against a Janitor?’
He couldn’t predict it, but it wouldn’t be easy.
Compared to his prime, his current body was as fragile as soft tofu.
‘Still, it’s better to cut off their eyes and ears.’
Even so, Yeon Cheong continued to provoke the criminal syndicates on the 1st floor.
After all, the Janitors only moved when something major happened.
The death of a single syndicate informant wouldn’t be enough to draw them out.
In other words, while blinding the eyes of the upper floors watching the 1st floor, he was laying the groundwork to weaken their control.
A syndicate that lost its information network meant the upper floors would lose their ears on the 1st floor.
Without those ears, the upper floors would naturally lose influence over the 1st floor.
Of course, information gathered through normal channels would still reach them, but for Yeon Cheong, who had to survive in the Tower’s shadows, this was a necessary foundation.
“Cheong, what are you going to do after getting rations?”
As Yeon Cheong continued thinking with a serious expression, Jin Hong glanced at him and casually threw out the question.
Yeon Cheong quickly softened his face and replied.
“I’m not sure. I might not have time.”
Yeon Cheong roughly understood what Jin Hong wanted.
Right now, her desire to play was stronger than her desire to train.
“And if I’m around, you’ll just try to slack off again.”
“Ehh? But…”
“Stay home and do some bodyweight exercises. I’ve got things to do today.”
“What things?”
At Jin Hong’s question, Yeon Cheong answered simply.
“A meeting.”
“You’ve attended meetings before?”
“No. This is my first time.”
Jin Hong’s interest spiked at his words, but Yeon Cheong pushed her curious face away.
“It’s not a good kind of meeting. You especially shouldn’t go.”
“Why can you go but I can’t?”
“There’s a reason.”
“?”
Jin Hong tilted her head at his answer.
She knew Yeon Cheong wouldn’t do anything reckless, so she couldn’t press further, but her curiosity was stronger than expected.
“Can I at least watch?”
“No.”
Yeon Cheong’s tone was firm.
The place was far too dangerous for her to get involved.
“Then you have to tell me everything later, okay?”
“…Fine. You’re persistent.”
When Yeon Cheong chuckled, Jin Hong nodded.
Together, they slowly made their way toward the distribution center.
*
In a remote corner of the 1st floor residential zone, there was a place where sunlight barely reached even at midday.
A group sat in their usual spots, talking among themselves.
“Jun-sik hyung-nim, this is all we have.”
“…There’s barely anything. Looks like the Black Wolf Group really is finished.”
At his subordinate’s words, the boss frowned.
The subordinates could only sigh.
“Is that damn woman from the Baekho-pa still hiding?”
“Yes. She’s taken heavy losses because of that so-called Neck-Cutting Ghost that’s been appearing lately.”
“Cowardly bitch. That’s why her organization never grows. We should find her and deal with her.”
“Even so, the guards haven’t been able to catch the Neck-Cutting Ghost either…”
“Useless bastards. They can’t even catch one person, and they call themselves guards?”
It was a ridiculous situation for a criminal syndicate conversation, but Geum Jun-sik could only sigh.
Ever since his most trusted executive had been murdered in the black market, the Black Wolf Group had been walking the path of ruin.
Many capable members had died during the black market raid and Cleaning Week, leaving only about ten members.
“What about that kid?”
“Ah… he’s here.”
A familiar face appeared among them.
When his refined features passed by, everyone glanced at him once, but that was all.
This was better, really.
Being in the organization without any presence.
For Yeon Cheong, that was ideal.
“In times like this, we’re even feeding this useless mouth.”
Jun-sik frowned and scolded the member.
The member muttered and replied.
“Still, his information-gathering skills are pretty useful right now. He’s the type who wanders around a lot at night. He knows everything about us, so I was thinking of killing him, but he said he’s seen the Neck-Cutting Ghost…”
“…”
Geum Jun-sik sighed and stared straight at Yeon Cheong.
Then he asked one question.
“Is that true?”
“Of course. I’ve seen someone wearing a mask wandering around Sinners’ Street at night.”
“Do you know the exact location?”
“I’d have to check…”
At Yeon Cheong’s words, Geum Jun-sik shot to his feet.
What they were after was none other than the Neck-Cutting Ghost.
These people, who had lived comfortably on the 1st floor by weighing others’ lives, believed the ghost was the reason they were now on the path to ruin.
Geum Jun-sik gritted his teeth. He had spent Cleaning Week lying low, and now he gathered the remaining Black Wolf members to wait for the moment of counterattack.
“Today, we’re cutting that bastard’s head off.”
At Jun-sik’s words, the Black Wolf remnants rose once more.
Yeon Cheong stood up with them.
‘So his face wasn’t among the heads during Cleaning Week.’
Yeon Cheong looked at Jun-sik’s head.
During Cleaning Week, severed heads had been hung up every single day, and Yeon Cheong had checked each one without fail.
And he had realized something.
The Black Wolf boss’s head had never appeared.
When a criminal syndicate burned with revenge, they were capable of any despicable act.
That was why Yeon Cheong had decided to clean up the remnants and had briefly inserted himself among them.