Red Stone
The next morning, in my room at the boarding house. I woke at the first hint of dawn, but I stayed lying down for a long while, turning the same thoughts over and over in my head. Major Aoki… and Director Kimitsu. By sheer coincidence yesterday, I had realized those two bastards were the ones behind the disappearances of Korean hunters. Unfortunately, I hadn’t been able to do anything about it at the time.
I considered charging in with my face hidden behind a washbasin, but… No, that was never going to work. Even if the shower tent itself was empty, any fight would make noise, and outside the canvas walls were packed with Oriental Development Company staff and other hunters. So in the end I had no choice but to return to the boarding house.
Still, those two had to be eliminated somehow. I would be entering gates regularly from now on; if someone like Major Aoki ambushed me from behind, it would be catastrophic. And when I considered the other Korean hunters who might become victims, I couldn’t simply let it go—not morally, and not practically. The same went for Director Kimitsu. From what I’d overheard in the shower, he was the middle-aged man who had ordered Aoki to kill the Korean hunters. I recalled his title: Head of the Gate Development Department at the Oriental Development Company.
Come to think of it, that company itself is suspicious as hell. It made sense that the head of their Gate Development Department would collude with Aoki to prioritize Japanese hunters and reduce the number of Koreans. But there were other odd details. No matter how much authority the company held over gates appearing in Korea, the speed with which they had seized control of the new gate near Dongsomun and built proper facilities inside and outside it within a day or two was unnatural.
It hadn’t been like that on the first day I awakened. Back then, the private hunter guild Shimazu-gumi had arrived first, slain the magic beasts that emerged, and claimed the gate. This time was different. It was almost as if they had known in advance that a gate would open near Dongsomun. The timing was suspicious too. Only a week had passed since the first gate opened on the day I awakened, and now another had appeared not far away. Such frequent gate activity in close proximity was rare in nature.
Could it be an artificial gate? Had someone manufactured it on purpose? Using redstone…? Redstone was an otherworldly mineral discovered shortly after the first gates appeared in 2019. At first it had been considered nothing more than a rare ore with no particular use, but once it was revealed that the mineral could open and close gates, several guilds and corporations began mass-producing artificial gates to profit from them.
So is the Oriental Development Company doing the same thing? I shook the thought from my head and rose from the bed. Redstone might be capable of opening gates, but the process required highly sophisticated magic-engineering formulas. The current level of magic engineering—where the best we could do was crudely infuse iron stakes with power to create simple barriers—made it impossible. Besides, while consecutive gates opening nearby within days was uncommon, it wasn’t unheard of.
Artificial or not, that isn’t what matters right now. Either way, those two have to die. But I couldn’t simply murder Major Aoki and Director Kimitsu. The consequences afterward would be the real problem. Killing the fiancé of a prestigious family’s daughter, a Japanese Army officer, and an executive at a national policy company established by the Empire? That was on an entirely different level from when I had killed the fake Professor Saigane—Choi Seonggil in disguise. Back then Professor Kurobe had cleaned up the aftermath and provided cover. This time I had no one to do that for me.
How can I make it look like an accident…? I pondered this while buttoning my school uniform. Just as I was about to leave the room, noise erupted from the neighboring one.
“She can’t even go to school anyway… Just sell the damn thing or rip it to shreds!”
“Father!”
I opened my door and looked out. Ham Won-sam was storming out through the main gate while a girl’s school uniform lay scattered across the yard. Whose uniform is that?
“Ah, sir… what should we do about this!”
Ham Seoju, who had stepped into the yard, met my eyes as I was putting on my shoes. I walked out, helped her pick up the scattered uniform, and spoke to her as she clutched it to her chest.
“I’m off to school.”
“H-have a good day…!”
Leaving the visibly flustered Ham Seoju behind, I stepped straight out the gate. Ham Won-sam hadn’t gone far; I could still see him up ahead. I hurried to catch up.
“What’s going on?”
“None of your business, student!”
Ham Won-sam grumbled, but the situation was obvious at a glance. Money problems at home, no doubt.
“If you ever need help, just say the word.”
It had been Renka and her subordinate’s fault, but Ham Won-sam had still been beaten because of his connection to me. I felt a twinge of guilt and responsibility toward him. Helping him a little would ease my own mind. After all, the money came from my parents’ traitorous fortune; using some of it to aid less fortunate compatriots didn’t seem like a bad idea.
But when Ham Won-sam heard me, he snapped back, “What? Me, take help from a student? You think I’m going to live off your charity for the rest of my life…!”
I ignored his outburst, pulled a ten-won bill from my wallet, and forced it into his hand.
“Stop talking nonsense and take this at least. Buy Seoju something good to eat. If you don’t, I’ll just throw the money away.”
Ham Won-sam grumbled, “Tsk… As if I’m some beggar who needs a few measly coins…” but he still slipped the bill into his pocket.
After arriving at school, finishing morning assembly, and stepping into the hallway, a voice called out to me.
“Hey. Shirabayashi.”
It was Murasaki. He approached with his usual gang in tow, lowered his voice, and said, “Someone saw you and that girl walking together near the Dongsomun gate yesterday.”
“That girl?”
“Yeah. I don’t know what a Joseon noble and a peerage girl are doing together, but you’d better watch yourself.”
Damn. So someone saw me and Renka entering the gate.
He continued, “If you’re doing anything illegal, I’ll report it to my father immediately. You know my father is the chief of the Jongno Police Station, right? I don’t care about that arrogant peerage girl, but a Joseon noble nobody like you—I can crush you whenever I—”
“Is that ‘arrogant peerage girl’ referring to me?”
“Huh…?”
Renka had appeared beside us at some point. She stepped right up to Murasaki and raised her hand without another word. But—
Smack!
“…Miss Shirabayashi?”
I had caught her wrist. Looking up at me, she asked, “Didn’t you say violence is wrong?”
I turned to Murasaki, who was still stunned by Renka’s sudden appearance. This guy’s father is the police chief. He might actually be useful.
I had to enter the gate again today, but this time I was going in to kill Major Aoki. I couldn’t bring Renka with me. He’s her fiancé, after all. She didn’t seem to know about Aoki’s crimes, but even if she learned the truth, there was a chance she would still side with him. Their relationship might be bad, but they were still engaged. Takahiro, one of her subordinates, couldn’t be used as an entry ticket either.
That left Murasaki. He can probably get into the gate using his father’s influence. I kept holding Renka’s wrist while I considered him.
Murasaki, sensing my gaze, snarled, “D-damn it! I won’t forget this humiliation! Just you wait, Shirabayashi!” Then he fled down the hallway with his gang.
Wait, I just saved you from getting slapped and you’re mad at me?
“…Mr. Shirabayashi?”
“Ah, yeah.”
I finally released Renka’s wrist. She rubbed it gently and asked, “Are you entering a gate again today?”
“Mm… No.”
“But—”
“I’m not going in today. There seems to be a truly dangerous beast inside. You should stay home and rest too.”
Renka hesitated for a moment, then said, “I see. Oh, here is the payment for the magic stone from yesterday.” She took an envelope from her pocket and handed it to me.
After I accepted the money, she turned away. “Then I’ll be going.”
She looked somehow disappointed. Had she enjoyed watching me hunt beasts yesterday? But this time it was impossible. I’m sorry, Renka. Today I planned to kill her fiancé. Taking her into the gate with me was out of the question.
Once she left, I immediately went after Murasaki. Following the direction he had gone, I found him behind the main building, smoking with his gang. The very picture of a delinquent.
I walked up and called out, “Hey! Murasaki!”
“What do you want?”
“I want to talk. Just the two of us.”
“What? …Hey, all of you, go over there!”
Though clearly puzzled, he sent his followers away. The moment they were gone, I said bluntly, “Let’s settle this once and for all.”
“What? …Right now? Anytime! Let’s finish it!”
Murasaki looked startled for a second, then reached for his sword. I stopped him.
“Not here. You heard about the gate that opened at Dongsomun, right?”
The sudden question made him shout angrily, “Of course I did! Don’t take me for a fool!”
“We settle it inside there. Last time I went easy on you so you wouldn’t get hurt, but inside a gate we can fight properly.”
I provoked him deliberately. “No matter how much we call it practice, there are limits at school. But inside a gate we can fight with our lives on the line… You know how it is. Anything can happen inside a gate.”
“You arrogant Joseon bastard…!”
“So? Are you in or out? If you’re not scared, meet me at the Dongsomun gate at five o’clock this afternoon.”
My taunt worked perfectly. Red-faced and breathing hard, he snapped, “Fine! I accept your challenge! Five o’clock this afternoon! And don’t you dare complain when you die! Boys, let’s go!”
He stormed off with his gang. As expected. He was easy to read. Entry ticket secured.
I would enter the gate with him, knock him out once we were inside, then deal with Major Aoki and Director Kimitsu. The only thing left is figuring out how to make their deaths look like accidents…
“Tsk… As if I’m some beggar who needs a few measly coins…”
Ham Won-sam’s mood remained foul all morning after scolding his daughter. He blamed himself for the fact that she couldn’t attend school and that they lived in such poverty. Things had improved slightly since the student boarder moved in and contributed what little he could, but Ham Won-sam still had to pull a rickshaw for a living.
At least today’s earnings aren’t bad…
Ever since the gate appeared near Dongsomun the day before yesterday, the number of hunters hiring rickshaws had increased. After ferrying several passengers in the morning, Ham Won-sam pulled his rickshaw toward Gyeongseong Station.
“Oi! You there! Rickshaw man!”
As he neared the station, a Japanese man in a suit who had just exited called out to him. Ham Won-sam turned quickly, bowed, and answered, “Yes, yes, coming right up!” He pulled the rickshaw over.
“How much to Dongsomun?”
The man wanted to go to Dongsomun. He didn’t look like a hunter, but another customer heading the same way. Ham Won-sam replied, “To Dongsomun… that’ll be twenty sen.”
“What? Twenty sen? Too expensive. Ten sen.”
The Japanese man haggled him down. Ham Won-sam cursed inwardly but decided ten sen was still acceptable. He took the passenger to the ominous gate floating above the fields near Dongsomun. The Japanese hunter got off, shouldered his bag, and asked curtly, “You do porter work?”
“Yes, yes! I do porter work. Porter, porter.”
Ham Won-sam thumped his chest. This was why he had accepted the lower fare. Even if he earned less for the ride itself, carrying luggage inside the gate for a hunter more than made up for it. If the hunter had a good haul and was in a generous mood, five or even ten won could fall into his hands. Many rickshaw pullers doubled as porters like this. It was dangerous, of course, but the rewards were sweet. Ham Won-sam was confident in his legs; if things got too dangerous, he could always turn and run.
He shouldered the heavy bag and followed the Japanese man into the gate. But instead of heading to the hunting grounds, the man walked toward a large tent in the center.
The Japanese man shouted something in his own language. A middle-aged man wearing glasses soon emerged and began conversing with him. Difficult Japanese Ham Won-sam couldn’t understand flew back and forth. Before long the suited man gestured at him and said, “You. Follow.”
Ham Won-sam understood and answered, “Yes, yes,” then followed the man deeper into the tent with the heavy bag. Inside stood a sturdy iron safe. The Japanese man skillfully turned the combination dial. Watching from behind, Ham Won-sam’s eyes widened. What is that?
Inside the safe lay a single bright red stone. It resembled a common magic stone but glowed ruby-red. Even an uneducated man like Ham Won-sam could tell it was no ordinary item. He had seen plenty of regular magic stones while working as a porter, but never anything like this.
The man seemed to be some kind of technician. He took various tools from the bag Ham Won-sam had carried and examined the red stone carefully. “Good! No problem!” he declared, locked the safe again, told Ham Won-sam to wait, and left the room.
Ham Won-sam stared at the locked safe. Whatever it was, it looked extremely valuable. Something kept so carefully guarded had to be worth a fortune. Ten won? A hundred? Maybe even several hundred. With that kind of money…
Suddenly he thought of his daughter, Ham Seoju. That sum would let him send her back to higher girls’ school. He could buy her new clothes, feed her white rice and meat dishes until her stomach was full. Ham Won-sam swallowed hard. The sound seemed so loud he flinched and looked behind him, but the technician was still outside talking animatedly with someone.
He approached the safe. He had watched the man turn the dial and remembered the combination clearly. Click, click. His heart pounded as his hands moved quickly. In the end, he took the red stone, slipped it into his meager subspace pocket, and hurriedly locked the safe again.
The technician soon returned, confirmed the safe was properly locked, and led Ham Won-sam out of the gate. After taking the man back to Gyeongseong Station and pulling his now-empty rickshaw, Ham Won-sam’s arms and legs wouldn’t stop shaking. How was he supposed to sell this? What if he got caught? It looked like some kind of magic stone, so he could only sell it to a hunter—or someone like a hunter—who had plenty of money. Among the people Ham Won-sam knew, there was only one who fit that description: the student hunter currently boarding at his house.