Chapter 59
Chapter 59
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 59
Chapter Title: Organization Sweep (4)
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I casually headed toward the nearest red dot on the map.
The guys seemed to fully believe I knew a safe path, following behind me without a shred of suspicion.
I let their pointless chatter and boasts about past crimes flow in one ear and out the other, never taking my eyes off the map.
"Just around this corner, and the shelves should be right there..."
"Oh..."
I deliberately rasped in a hoarse voice to egg them on as I turned the corner.
Pretending to advance slowly, I confirmed the red dot on the map had crept right up behind us.
I kept a secret watch on our rear, bracing for whatever would happen.
That was when it struck.
From the very back of our group, a waiter monster silently approached the back of the guy who'd bragged about his pistol item earlier, like a shadow.
It still wore that eerie smile as it gently but firmly gripped both his shoulders.
"Wh-what the hell!"
As the man spun around in panic, the waiter monster whispered in a kindly yet somehow twisted voice.
"Sir, the three-star pistol item you took from our store last time hasn't been paid for yet. We'd appreciate it if you could settle up right now."
At the word "payment," the guy shouted in confusion.
"Wh-what are you talking about? There's no way I have that kind of money on me right now...!"
"I see, sir."
The waiter monster replied without losing its smile.
Then it jabbed one of its slender, elongated fingers straight into the man's ear.
"Urgh... Uwaaa... Ah...?"
The man couldn't even scream properly.
Every twitch of the monster's long finger made his eyes flutter rapidly, his lips quivering.
And then, his mouth corners began to stretch upward unnaturally, like a puppet yanked by strings.
I watched clearly as his face transformed into an excessive, gruesome grin that bared red gums just like the waiter monster right in front of him.
He no longer screamed or resisted. He simply turned toward us with the exact same smile the monster that had ambushed him wore.
The other gang members froze in terror at the horrific sight, and I pretended to be shocked, stumbling back.
"...R-run!"
"Uwaaack...!"
The men bolted into the depths of the mart, screaming in abject panic.
Their terrified shrieks drew attention, and two waiter monsters gave chase in grotesque fashion.
Their staggering, wobbly gait looked comically on the verge of collapse, but their speed was overwhelming.
It wouldn't be long before they met the same fate.
The waiter monsters merely glanced at us—that is, me and the scarred man—as they rushed past.
Probably because we hadn't panicked and run, and more importantly, because we hadn't stolen any pricey three-star items.
"You bastard...!"
Just then, the scarred man beside me roughly grabbed my collar in a fury-filled voice.
"Chang-sik, you son of a bitch! Why'd you lead us to this hellhole? What's your game?!"
He glared at me like he wanted to kill me.
But I met his raging eyes head-on and slowly removed the mask I was wearing.
"...Wh-who the hell are you?"
The man's expression went blank at the unfamiliar face.
He seemed unable to accept that the person before him wasn't Chang-sik at all.
Still holding his hand that gripped my collar, I twisted it gently yet with unyielding strength.
Crack—
"Uwaaaak!"
The man screamed, clutching his wrist in agony as if it had snapped.
I warned him.
"Keep screaming, and I'll break it more."
Terrified, he clamped his mouth shut.
I stepped closer and quietly asked what I was genuinely curious about.
"Just a couple questions. First, why start something like this? For money, or some other reason? And second—this is the most important one... how were you even able to pull this off?"
I scanned the man from head to toe.
I recalled the guys who'd fled or fallen to the monster moments ago.
No matter how I thought about it, these street-thug nobodies with zero skills had discovered this special monster phenomenon, smuggled items out of it, and even impersonated Jinmyeong Group to sell them?
It was hard to believe they'd done this on their own.
"You'd better tell me who's backing you—honestly."
At my chilling warning and the excruciating pain from his wrist, the scarred man finally gave in and spilled everything.
The name from his lips was one I never saw coming.
"...Dongto! Dongto ordered it! They were the ones who first found and managed this phenomenon. They contracted with thug gangs like ours, letting us handle it in exchange for 50% of the item profits...!"
Dongto. Why was that name cropping up here again?
My eyes widened involuntarily at the unexpected answer.
Impersonating Jinmyeong Group to tarnish their reputation, circulating dangerous items to harm people—and now Dongto was behind it all once more.
Seeing my wide eyes, the man misinterpreted it.
Grinning slyly despite the pain, he said,
"Yeah, Dongto's backing us! If you know how scary they are, you'd better let go and send me on my way nice and easy!"
I stared down at him silently for a moment.
Pretending to release his wrist, I stealthily snatched a three-star bracelet item from the nearby shelf without anyone noticing.
Then I slipped it into his back pocket.
I'd already seen how "kind" this mart's waiters were to thieves.
And with that, I truly let him go.
His wrist freed, the man smirked smugly—"That's more like it!"—and quickly put distance between us.
He seemed convinced he'd bluffed his way out using Dongto's name.
"I'll pay you back for this someday!"
He shouted once we were far enough apart.
I silently watched his retreating back.
The map showed a red dot waiting just around that corner.
Sure enough, the moment he turned it, a spine-chilling scream echoed through the abandoned factory mart.
"Uwaaaaaak! I-I didn't steal anythiiing... Kraaaak!"
Moments later, a system message window popped up right before my eyes, as if waiting.
[Sub Quest Completed.]
[Affinity with Hanbit has increased.]
[Acquired Item Appraisal Lv.1.]
"...Why'd the affinity go up?"
There was an unexpected bonus reward, but Item Appraisal was one of the skills I'd wanted.
Nothing more to see here.
But as I headed for the exit, the mart interior suddenly trembled faintly, like an earthquake.
Rumble—
Shelves shifted before my eyes, walls rose up—the layout itself was changing in real time.
The exit clearly visible ahead was now blocked by a massive new wall.
Just as they'd said, the structure rearranged itself every set interval.
"This is a problem..."
The map showed it'd take a while to loop around.
I approached the new wall and tapped it.
It looked huge but felt like a thin brick wall.
"If it's this much..."
Without hesitation, I threw a punch at it.
Boom—!
With a deafening crash, the wall crumbled entirely, revealing the original exit leading out of the abandoned factory.
The noise startled nearby monsters into staring at me.
Then, the nearest waiter monster came charging at me like a bullet.
I clenched my fist, thinking we'd throw down again, but its actions were unexpected.
Still sporting that eerie smile, it asked in a tiny, almost groveling voice.
"...Sir, what is this...?"
"...The wall suddenly attacked me."
"Ah... I see..."
I brazened it out.
Apparently, there was no manual for this. The flustered waiter eyed me awkwardly.
Of course there wouldn't be customer service protocol for a shopper smashing a wall.
I stared at it a moment, then wordlessly stepped over the rubble and strolled out of the mart.
I could feel the waiter still fumbling behind me.
As the wall collapsed, a few items scattered on the floor caught my eye.
They must've fallen from the shelves due to the impact.
Come to think of it, I'd just gotten Item Appraisal.
Activating the skill on them, faint colors shimmered over the items.
Since the skill was only Lv.1, it didn't show usage or details, but usable items glowed blue, while problematic or dangerous ones showed red.
"...Sir?"
I'd frozen, staring intently at the floor, so the pursuing waiter called out curiously.
"..."
I quickly scooped up only the blue-glowing ones from the scattered items and shoved them into my inventory.
Then I bolted. Fast, toward the exit.
Tadak—!
"Sir!"
A desperate voice called from behind, but I ignored it.
Glancing back moments later, I saw the waiter—its face twisted in a pout for the first time—failing to keep up.