The Operation Name Is Trojan Horse
7:45 AM. Oryukdo Magic Stone Trading Street.
Like the exchange booths at an airport, the lines of trading stalls lit up all at once.
CLOSED
Opening time was 8 AM. The night hunt teams who had finished their raids were already gathering here.
They had come to liquidate the magic stones they had obtained on today’s hunt.
Their conversations flowed down the line.
“Hey, what was your harvest like today?”
“Uh, James Park. Just like always, we were the Skaldrad raid party and scored a few magic stones. Still, it’s been a while since our party mage leveled up. Nice to meet you. This is Oryukdo James Park. You’ll want to remember him, he’s a tank.
“Ah, nice to meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you.
“Nice to meet you too. Congrats on the level-up, and my real name is Park Jae-rim. Everyone just calls me James Park. As you can see, I’m a tank.
......
Wherever gates were, they became places for forming connections. The phrase ‘this underworld is narrow’ was heard constantly in the industry, so hunter networks were extremely important. I crouched there, ears still alert, and waited in line a little farther ahead than most.
Then a conversation that stuck in my ears came through.
“Did you hear about the Hyung’s story?”
“That guy went to Changwon gate, right? It was because of Bae Hyeongshin. So, was it really Bae Hyeongshin?”
“There’s no way. Still a murder case. I heard he was a B-class who went on a rampage after popping pills and wiped out an entire D-class party.
“It’s not just blind PK. There are all kinds of crazy people out here. So, Hyung is safe, right?
“He should be. That guy isn’t the kind to get taken down easily.
“But what the hell was that pill? There was a similar incident before.
Teshyung, the Oryukdo Gate manager, was the kind of person everyone in the area knew. I stared at my quiet smartphone and felt a bitter smile. I had contacted him, but in the end...
Was I just one of the many people he knew?
Sigh.
Bitter, but that was the truth.
If I lined up all the hunters, I would be at the very end—an E-class hunter. Teshyung was one of the few A-class hunters. Satisfying myself with the fact that I had somehow formed a connection with someone at the extreme opposite end should have been enough.
Intellectually I understood that, but my heart was still sour.
Didn’t we even have real communication? Was it really just my illusion?
Should I call him?
No, I was being too clingy.
He might not even consider me anything.
8 AM. The sign on the magic stone trading street where I was lined up lit up.
OPEN
Today’s Magic Stone Prices
Lower Grade: 993,820 won
Middle Grade: 11,291,083 won
Upper Grade: 383,293,993 won
Highest Grade: 2,981,992,837 won
“Five lower-grade, one middle-grade. Total 16,260,183 won.
“Please deposit to the Huntred account. Username: Ghost Blade.
“Ghost Blade-nim, deposit complete.
“Thank you for your hard work.
......
The line moved quickly, and it was finally my turn.
I emptied the bag of magic stones.
Thirty lower-grade and nineteen middle-grade.
“Thirty lower-grade, nineteen middle-grade. Total 244,345,177 won.
“Please deposit to the Huntred account—Skeleton Ping.
“Yes, Skeleton Ping-nim, deposit complete.
“Thank you.
It was too easy.
I logged into Huntred on my smartphone.
(Corp) Eter Industry has deposited 244,345,177 won.
“Wow.
Fast.
Looking at the hefty balance in my Huntred account, I felt full even without breakfast.
It was a huge amount of money, but it wasn’t all pocket money.
Seeing that amount made my heart race.
I sat on the bench and entered the Trade Exchange of the Huntred platform as planned.
Cart. Click.
Luckily or as expected, my two items were still for sale.
Legend Bundle of Tigrial 270,000,000 won.
“Sigh, exactly as planned... Damn, three million short.
Should I deposit the three million from my bank account....
I hesitated. Then I pressed the Inquire with Seller button with the thought that I might as well lose.
And I wrote the message.
Hello. I only have 24 million won right now, but I really want to buy this item. Could you do a cool negotiation? Please, I’m begging you.... TT TT
***
Hanyang County, Gyeongsangnam-do, Hansin Valley Gate
ROOOOOOOOM—
A gate classified as A-rank began to lose its light amid a massive magic power wave.
At the same time, a thunderous sound like lightning struck, shaking the entire Hanyang County up to the sky.
The gate has been cleared.
Calculating contributions.
1. Mystic Warrior Choi Kang (23.3%)
2. Venom Maestro Kim Ji-yeon (14.2%)
3. Holy Starlight Lee Ha-eun (9.4%)
4. Multi-Shooter Park Ha-jun (3.9%)
5. Flame Buster Maria (1.6%)
From the cleared gate, 18 hunters emerged.
Their top-tier gear shone brilliantly in the morning sunlight.
When discussing the strongest guild in Korea, Mir Guild’s main assault members were always among the top three.
“Whoa, I thought I was going to be first this time.
“You have no idea, unnie. Your performance was amazing, but we need our leader to be strong.
“I know, why doesn’t the leader get a rank adjustment? This level is already S-rank territory.
“Right. If the leader is S-class, there’s also a promotion effect, right?
Between two chatting beauties, a tall man stood.
His broad build stood out even from afar.
His thick beard and facial scars added to the wildness of his short hair.
“Haham. Annoying. What’s the big deal about rank? Ha-jun-ah, how much did you sell the loot for?
“Brother, after subtracting the car and the pot, only about 10.4 billion from magic stones. Three legend items and twelve unique ones. We need to put them on the auction house. But what about the myth items?
“Was it the flying Valok staff?
“Yes. It’s a use item and fire-attribute, so I think Aria should wear it. She got 5th place in contributions with her A-rank debut. Still, our party’s drop rate seems higher than others’. This time too, it was amazing.
Choi Kang answered.
“Hm... It’s just my mood. With these options, putting it on the auction house would probably exceed 200 billion.... Aria.
“H-huh? Guild Master....
Even though she looked like a 140 cm girl, Aria had already pulled her shoulders in a little. But she quickly backed away nervously. On the surface she looked like a middle-schooler, but she was an adult. Minors entering gates violated the Awakener Management Act in the first place.
“It’s a gift. You’ll be in the top three next time, right?
Guild Master Choi Kang handed the myth item to Aria without a care.
Aria just stood there hesitating, glancing between the two unnies on either side.
“Ah, that, the unnies are too strong....
“Pahahaha. She’s adorable. Don’t tease the leader, Aria, just give it to her. Did you not see the monster when she was grabbing? Her eyes were spinning, it was chaos.
“I got chills too. If you get tricked by appearances, you really get screwed.
“You should be on high alert. You might get pushed out of the top rankings soon.
“T-there’s no way.... I-I’m just....
“Okay, okay, why are you crying? Leader, don’t tease her, just give it to her already. That thing.
“When did I tease you? You guys teased me first. Here, take it, Aria. You don’t even have to get into the top three. Just don’t quit the guild, okay?
Already teary-eyed, Maria pouted and nodded her head.
Thus, the mythical item—[Myth] Burning Valok’s Staff—was placed in the hands of the tiny girl, no, woman... who looked smaller than the item itself.
“No joke, this is impressive.
“Congrats on your first myth-tier acquisition.
“Thank you. Thank you. Hiiing....
In the end she burst into tears, and the assault members all patted her on the back.
“She’s just a baby.
Guild Master Choi Kang slipped away from the group and, as always, opened his smartphone to log into Huntred.
One notification flashed. A message.
Choi Kang tilted his head.
If it was a message, it was probably the same old complaint about his ‘items not to buy’ list he had tipped to a few years ago—‘It dropped because of you.’
“Tsk, I shouldn’t have posted it.
He clicked his tongue and checked the message.
But the message was from an unexpected source.
[Legend] Bundle of Tigrial for sale — Inquiry message arrived.
“Oh, so that was the case....
It was an item he had listed three years ago.
Legend-tier, but sold ridiculously cheap at 27 million.
Space inventory? Whatever. The reflection option he could forgive, but the [Shadow Veil] option—attack power -100%—was too much.
Who would want that?
He checked the mocking message.
Skeleton Ping: Hello. I only have 24 million won right now, but I really want to buy this item. Could you do a cool negotiation? Please, I’m begging you.... TT TT
It was surprising.
She really wanted it. And a three-million-won discount?
Three million won was nothing to him.
But the corner of Choi Kang’s mouth lifted meaningfully.
“Found it. The will to endure.
Accepted.
Skeleton Ping: Thank you! Thank you! I won’t forget this kindness!
“Skeleton Ping....
***
Transaction completed.
Please select a delivery method.
Normal Delivery / Direct Pickup / Emergency Quick Delivery
“Oh! Amazing.
Everything is going smoothly.
“Riverchoi... nice person.
I decided to remember the username.
A three-million-won discount. In theory, I made money.
First, choose delivery method.
“A bit urgent. Where would direct pickup be? Huntred Fulfillment Service Okcheon Hub? Hmm....
Three hours by car, round trip seven hours.
My only option was emergency quick delivery.
Even though it was the best,
Delivery fee 3,300,000 won
“Why is it so expensive? Babylon is just scooping up all the money.
Why it was expensive was explained: awakened persons delivered it directly, and Corp Babylon compensated for damage or loss. Remaining balance on Huntred was 4,345,177 won. After the fee, 1 million left.
“Fine. Theory says I earned three million, and this is acceptable. I’ll make more later.
I selected emergency quick delivery and set the destination as Oryukdo Gate.
Please wait a moment. Matching delivery agents.
Matching complete. Estimated time about 2 hours 45 minutes.
“Oh... faster than a car.
It was now 8 AM.
Even two hours and forty-five minutes later, it was still morning.
Then from today, I would put a straw in Kalid’s honey pot.
“Ehehe....
A smile escaped my lips.
But for a moment.
“If it’s Riverchoi....
***
Exactly two hours and forty-five minutes later, delivery was complete.
The delivery agent entered Oryukdo Gate without removing his helmet and handed over the goods hand-to-hand. A shabby box that didn’t seem to hold 24 million won. When opened, it contained a pile of crimson leather scraps. Still thick enough, with (-_-) emoji-like folds, but it was only natural to think ‘Was I scammed?’
But the Corp Babylon Huntred Trade Exchange quality guarantee certificate had been attached, so trust skyrocketed.
“Thank you for your hard work.
The delivery agent lightly bowed with two fingers and left the gate.
The one daily entry limit seemed useless to him.
“I wonder if our Skeleton soldiers could do that too.
The possibility of skeleton soldiers was truly endless.
I would think about it later. First, unboxing.
[Appraisal]
—————————————
Legend Bundle of Tigrial
(Equip Slot: Weapon)
Tigrial, a back-alley contractor, accumulated wealth through illegal trades and conspiracies. All that money goes into this bag....
▶ Luck Bag Luck +25%
▶ Plunder All items looted by subordinates are automatically stacked in the bag
▶ Reflection HP -70%, no HP recovery
▶ Shadow Veil Cannot equip weapons, attack power -100%
Equip when used.
—————————————
Exactly the options I saw. No changes.
So I had just paid the price of a supercar.
Swallowing hard, I held the bag.
[Do you want to equip it? It will be bound when equipped.]
“Of course.
Instant dizziness,
HP -70%
No HP recovery
Attack Power -100%
Since HP was still above 10%, the Fortitude effect didn’t trigger.
“It’s serious, but everything is going according to plan....
I switched my view to Oculus’s eyeball.
The view showed three Perilok serpents slithering.
Oculus’s eyeballs moved them forward.
From the mouths of the three Perilok serpents peeked a few skeleton soldiers.
Skeleton soldiers.
Operation Name: Trojan Horse. Start.
Operation start signal.
I maneuvered Oculus’s eyes to spin in a chaotic 8-shape while lying down.
The three Perilok serpents, having received the signal, slithered off somewhere.
Current time: 11:30 AM.
Soon it would be Kalid’s feeding time.
---