Poison (2)
Poison (2)
Kieeeek──!!
A shadow darting along the wall sprang out, instantly flaring into the shape of a giant mantis.
"Whoa there."
The middle-aged man dodged the razor-edged sickles aimed at his neck and head by a hair's breadth.
Kihiiii─ik!!
"Now where are you off to in such a hurry?"
Its attack having failed, the Shadow Mantis tried to slip back into the wall, but two silver arrows drove themselves into the only ring connecting its torso and head.
The arrows severed the link instantly, and the Shadow Mantis's head struck the ground with a loud crash.
"That makes ten of the bastards."
The man who had narrowly evaded the mantis's slicing kick nudged the fallen head playfully with his foot.
"Yes. That one makes exactly ten. Let's finish dismantling it quickly and go grab a cold beer, shall we?"
"Yeah, then hurry up and dismantle it."
"You heard him! Get stripping!!"
The man with the quiver strapped at his waist shouted, and the crew waiting behind him rushed over to where the mantis's head had dropped.
"Hey, careful pulling those out!!"
"No mana stone found in the head."
"We'll remove the forelegs first."
They carefully separated the mantis's upper body, which had been sagging as if stuck to the wall, then cut out and extracted the necessary parts with professional speed, packing them neatly into pre-sorted boxes.
"Dismantling done. Unfortunately, no mana stone was found."
"Tch—thought I might snag a bonus."
"You think mana stones drop that easily?"
When the middle-aged man voiced his regret, the other man clicked his tongue and turned away.
"Alright everyone, let's get off work!!"
"Ohh!!"
The men, having slung their bags loaded with Shadow Mantis by-products, fell into orderly ranks without a word, and the middle-aged man and the other man joined the file at the front and the rear.
"We don't want any more fights, so keep your lanterns at full brightness."
The Shadow Mantis, though shadow in its true form, could only move along walls.
By shining bright light all around and preventing shadows from forming on the walls, they could block the mantis's approach.
"Let's see... this way."
Since this was a 7th-stage rift themed as a labyrinth, the man slowly guided his party using the markers he had left along the way.
By the time they approached the exit, which was also the entrance—
"Oh, hello there?"
The man waved cheerfully at a group checking their gear in front of the blue portal.
"Ah! O-oh, hello!!"
A young man in thick plate armor bowed his head toward him, his face full of surprise.
"Whoa, why so formal when we've never met? You're making me uncomfortable."
"U-uh, aren't you Fantasia's 'Silver Archer'?"
"Ahem!! Silver Archer, my ass... I'm Kim Deok-un of Fantasia."
Though his words came out gruff, the corners of the man's—Kim Deok-un's—mouth kept twitching, desperate to curl upward.
"Hey!! Quit yapping and get a move on!!"
"Ah, damn... I'm coming!! Just wait a second."
As if he'd never been angry, Kim Deok-un put on an affable smile, went to the rear, and pulled out a heap of spare lanterns and low-grade potions from the dismantling team's supplies, then returned.
"We won't be back here, so use 'em freely."
"No, that's..."
"Hey, hey!! Just tuck 'em away, tuck 'em away!! And don't get too greedy, okay?"
"O-okay..."
"Heh-heh, youth and ability—both good. Anyway, happy hunting."
Kim Deok-un gave the young man a hearty pat-pat! on the shoulder, then threw himself into the portal.
**
[ Fantasia Guild ]
"Urrrghh...!!"
The moment Kim Deok-un shoved through the revolving door into the building, he wrapped his arms around himself and shuddered violently.
"Wha-what the hell? Did they blast the AC like crazy?"
"Why do I suddenly have chills...?"
"Right? It's not just me, is it? The second I stepped in, I got goosebumps all over."
"But everyone else looks fine, so maybe it's just us who're weird...?"
At the middle-aged man's puzzlement, Kim Deok-un tilted his head as if to say, 'You think so?'
"Miss Hye-min!!"
"Huh? You're back?"
He dashed over to a woman in a suit who was walking with a tablet hugged to her chest.
"The moment I came in here, I got a sudden chill—didn't you feel anything weird?"
"Ahh, that? Actually, people have been saying they felt a chill on and off since this morning. But it passed, so we let it go."
"......If everyone felt it, shouldn't we normally investigate?"
"We did call in specialists earlier to check whether someone placed a curse, but they said nothing was wrong."
"Which ones?"
"We spent a bit of money and hired the very best."
"Amusement?"
At Kim Deok-un's question, Park Hye-min nodded.
"Hmm, well, the priests from that temple are certainly trustworthy."
"Anyway, it's nothing, so hurry upstairs. Mr. Jeong-min is waiting."
Park Hye-min jutted her chin towards the elevator, and Kim Deok-un spotted the middle-aged man, Lee Jeong-min, whose brow was deeply furrowed—then kicked up an exaggerated fuss.
"Whoa, the old man's angry again. After the report, we're off duty anyway. Want to grab a drink later?"
"Well, if you're buying?"
"Okay~"
Grinning slyly, Kim Deok-un bolted toward the wide-open elevator.
"Haha, I was worried you'd go up alone."
"If you knew that, you should've moved faster."
"You've gotta cut a cute junior some slack for his love life!"
"Shouldn't sending your sky-high senior to get hitched come first?"
"Oh, that's a bit..."
Kim Deok-un, who'd been chuckling, abruptly straightened his face.
"I mean, have you seen your face, bro? It's got a right fearsome look..."
"What did you say, you brat?!"
"Agh!! No violence!!"
Ding─!!
The elevator doors opened at the top floor, and Kim Deok-un darted out as if he'd been waiting. He flung open the tightly shut wooden door and hollered.
"Guild Master!! The team leader's resorting to in-house violence again!!"
"Deokbae, you probably did something to deserve it again."
"Really, not this time. Trust me!!"
"Hohoho."
Park Seong-tae, the master of the Fantasia Guild, let out a familiar laugh as Kim Deok-un pounded bang-bang! on his desk and kicked up a fuss.
Smack─!!
"Agh!!"
"Have you lost your mind, slamming the Guild Master's desk?"
"Hohoho, if you two are going to fight, take it to the basement."
Lee Jeong-min, who had been about to plant another fist on top of Kim Deok-un's head, lowered his raised hand at the sight of the Guild Master's serenely amused expression.
Kim Deok-un, a tear welling in his eye, rubbed the lump forming on his crown and slowly straightened up.
"Hohoho, by the looks of it no one seems injured, so that does ease my mind a bit."
"You think we'd make that kind of mistake just collecting Shadow Mantises?"
"No mistakes were made, but this cheeky brat went and handed out the leftover supplies to some rookies on his own, incurring unnecessary expenses."
At Lee Jeong-min's report, Kim Deok-un poked his side and muttered, "Ah, crap... you really gonna snitch like that?", while Park Seong-tae, who'd been sitting there like a blind man with his eyes open, simply laughed once more as if he had already transcended worldly concerns.
"Any mana stones?"
"We picked out the juiciest ones we could, but not a single one came out."
"Hmm, that's a shame."
"Still, the wing scales, fluid, and sickle quality are all top-notch."
"Good work."
Park Seong-tae pulled two documents out of his drawer and handed one to Kim Deok-un and the other to Lee Jeong-min.
『 Start Date: Saturday, August 13. 13:15.
Assigned Area: Gangseo.
Primary Targets: Each temple and five key guild buildings (B&A, Gold Cross, Steel Falcon, White Rose, Small Mouth).
Present five types of despair. 』
Kim Deok-un slowly read the handwritten document and asked.
"Isn't the budget a little too tight?"
"Hohoho, what can I do? There's nothing more to give even if I want to."
Park Seong-tae replied.
"It's all because of you and all those blokes who love handing out freebies!!"
"Agh!!"
And Lee Jeong-min once again planted a knuckle sandwich on the crown of Kim Deok-un's head.
"Ah, damn. I should just write my vacation plan."
"For the record, on August 13th we're going to Jeju Island for a team-building trip."
"Ehh... what era do you think this is, team-building?! We don't even get any new recruits."
"If you hate it, you can come into work alone and put in the hours."
"Team-building, you say? Then it's got to be me, right? I'll make the atmosphere absolutely smashing."
At Kim Deok-un's instant about-face, the two could only snort with amusement.
"Anyway, I hear something happened with Miss Min-jeong?"
"Something? It was just the kids squabbling and causing a bit of trouble."
"If anything comes up, let me know."
"Why, are you planning to go over and give them a piece of your mind?"
"Give a piece of my mind? No, I'd show up with an armload of gifts to apologize."
"You opportunistic little..."
Under Lee Jeong-min's verbal jabs, Kim Deok-un gave a mischievous laugh and neatly folded the document he'd been holding.
Then he popped it into his mouth and chewed it like gum as he continued.
"Anything to pass on to the other teams?"
"I've already passed everything along, so you can clock out."
"On the dot!!"
The moment the Guild Master gave his permission, Kim Deok-un cheered and bolted out of the room.
Lee Jeong-min clicked his tongue.
"Here's the itemized statement for the Shadow Mantis by-products."
"You've done well. You may go now."
"Then, I'll see you tomorrow."
Unlike Kim Deok-un, Lee Jeong-min gave a polite bow before leaving the Guild Master's office, and Park Seong-tae, now alone, unfolded the statement in his hand.
『 To develop a new drug to replace Phantom Dream Herb, we require the inner core and body fluid of a Glacier Scorpion. We've obtained intel that one was sighted in an 11th-stage rift that appeared in Paju, Gangwon Province. Please verify or acquire it by next month. 』
**
【...That is what it says.】
Biche, by her master's command, had reported everything she saw and heard here without omitting a single detail.
—Good work.
【Ah... It is nothing. My merciful master.】
Though she was nothing more than a spirit body without physical form, the praise of her exalted master filled her—a soul bereft of flesh—with an ecstasy she had never known even in life.
—Return.
【...I shall obey my merciful master's command.】
When the flame-speech with her master ceased, Biche looked down at Park Seong-tae, who was still chewing the paper she had just read.
The ringleader of the vermin who dared to harm her beloved young miss.
She longed to tear out his heart at once and paint this room red, but her exalted master's command was absolute.
【Let us go back, then.】
The moment her words fell, hazy spirit forms emerged from all around and seeped into Biche's body.
"Ughk...!!"
Park Seong-tae, who had been writing, suddenly turned pale, clutched his left chest, and hurriedly left the room.
【I do hope we meet again someday.】
Even after Biche departed, for a long while no one—Park Seong-tae included—set foot in the office.