Chapter 7
Chapter 7
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 7
Chapter Title: A Fork is Stronger than a Gun
-----------------------------------------------------------------
I drank the tomato soup served as an appetizer.
“Phew…”
Delicious.
It felt like a few freshly harvested tomatoes were rolling around, dancing and bursting in my mouth.
“Are you okay?”
“Yes?”
“Your eyes look all glazed over. Does it not suit your taste by any chance?”
“No. It’s perfectly edible.”
It wasn’t just edible.
Is this what the rich have been eating all this time?
Fine dining. What they call gourmet cuisine.
I’d always thought that stuff was the height of inefficiency.
But now…
Scrape scrape!
Whoops, already scraped the bowl clean.
I hadn’t even memorized the taste yet.
“Hehe. Glad you seem to like it.”
I liked it.
I’d welcome a meal like this anytime.
It could even come with free delivery.
No, please invite me.
“Knight. How’s life at the Association? No inconveniences?”
“It’s great. They pay me just for breathing.”
“Hehe.”
Han Yoo-jung propped her chin on her hand and gazed at me seductively.
“Will you take my delivery requests like this from time to time going forward? It’s not hard, right? Just deliver one letter and have a meal.”
She leaned forward over the table.
A subtle fragrance washed over me.
“I’ll pay generously, no skimping. How about it? Exclusive contract with me… any thoughts?”
Han Yoo-jung. A scary woman.
She was negotiating while holding money, beauty, and humanity’s primal desire for food hostage.
Was there a man who could resist this?
Most would cave completely.
But I, an EX-Rank Awakener, tapped the calculator coldly.
‘No need to sign in a daze right now. Being tied down could mean missing other sweet deals.’
“Exclusive’s a bit much. Let’s do it per job. Freelancer’s more efficient for me.”
At my ironclad response, Han Yoo-jung pouted her lips.
“So harsh. Even after I go this far…”
“Instead, I’ll give regulars priority. Like top queue for assignments.”
“Hmm. Regular perks, huh.”
Han Yoo-jung gave a sly smile as she lifted her wine glass.
“Then today, as regular service, drink with me late into the night.”
I hesitated for a moment, and she puffed out her cheeks.
“No?”
“But you have to confirm receipt after we finish this?”
“Yes!”
Clink!
After that, we alternated between expensive wine and food.
Honestly, getting buzzed wasn’t an issue.
At EX-Rank Awakener level, this much alcohol decomposes in seconds.
‘Drinking pricey booze but not getting drunk—what lousy value.’
More than that, the private room’s vibe and the feast of fine food had me at a loss.
How many hours had we been eating now?
Do rich people meals usually drag on this long?
The toasts kept coming.
One glass, two glasses, one bottle, two bottles.
Until Han Yoo-jung’s face gradually flushed red and her eyes glazed over, I stayed completely sober.
Sober enough to feel embarrassed.
“Umm… Knight… why aren’t you gettin’ drunk…?”
Han Yoo-jung slumped over the table, mumbling.
“My body decomposes alcohol pretty efficiently.”
“Tch… no fun… Wanted to see drunk Knight…”
She staggered to her feet. Then plopped down in the seat next to me and leaned her head on my shoulder.
The Saintess’s body scent mixed with alcohol, making things awkwardly embarrassing.
“Y’know… I was really scared yesterday…”
“Ah. Because of those villains?”
“Mm… First time since becomin’ a hunter… felt like I might actually die…”
Her voice trembled. It felt genuine, no pretense.
“But then Knight showed up—bam! When you took out all the bad guys… my heart went thud!”
Han Yoo-jung poked my chest with her index finger.
“So whaddya say… go to my place for round two tonight…?”
Green light?
No. More like she’d cleared the road and was beckoning me over.
‘Keep me around as arm candy, toss when bored?’
Hmm…
I had no intention of suspecting an innocent person just because of one comment from Yoo Na-yeon, but…
Pushing things further with a drunk person didn’t seem right.
We barely knew each other anyway.
Absolutely not because I was some virgin coward.
‘Yeah. Tomorrow I’ve got shopping with the welfare card. Better head out now.’
“I appreciate the thought, but I’ve got plans tomorrow.”
“Hiiing… really too harsh…”
Fortunately.
Seemed like she’d just tossed it out there; she didn’t look too hurt.
“Then just one more here before you go…”
Just as the Saintess grabbed my clothes and started clinging,
BAM!
The VIP room door flew open violently, and a burly man stormed in.
“Saintess! Danger!”
Seemed like one of her guards.
“Intel says villains are lying in ambush nearby. Both of you, evacuate now!”
I thought it was perfect timing for the awkward spot and stood up quickly.
“Then I’ll leave the Saintess to you. I’m heading out.”
“Mr. Sang-hyuk should be careful too. I’ve heard all about your skills, but… guhk!”
It happened suddenly.
The sound of shattering glass rang out, and the guard collapsed.
What? Sniper?
“Urgh…!”
Good thing it hit his shoulder; he wouldn’t die.
Damn.
Only then did I grasp the severity and activated Swiftness.
Whoosh.
The world slowed down.
Han Yoo-jung’s drunken wobble and the guard’s pained expression froze stiff.
I slowly turned my head toward the window, and already the next bullet was crawling through the air at a snail’s pace.
‘Saintess life is brutal for real. Who the hell did she piss off?’
The bullet was aimed right at Han Yoo-jung.
Doubtful an S-Rank Hunter like the Saintess would fall to a third-rate sniper who couldn’t even finish the guard, but she was my client for now.
Couldn’t let her die before she even hit the completion button.
‘Interrupting a meal is seriously crossing the line. What, did Han Yoo-jung kill someone or something?’
A surge of irritation boiled up.
I hurled the dessert fork in my hand with force.
Swoosh—
The fork left my hand faster than the bullet.
Fast enough to move alone in this halted world.
Clang!
The fork collided with the bullet mid-air.
My fork deflected it without shaking a bit and flew straight toward the rooftop of the opposite building across the way.
Time started flowing again.
“Aaaaagh!”
A burly man’s scream echoed from afar.
“Urgh… Saintess, evacuate quick… Huh?”
The Saintess’s guard stared at me and tilted his head.
More precisely, at the sniper I held by the collar, out cold in my hand.
A fork was embedded in his shoulder.
“Mr. Sang-hyuk…? No way?”
“You got shouldered, so I took petty revenge in the same spot.”
I said it casually as I tossed the sniper roughly to the floor.
Soon the other guards rushed in, checked the scene, and cuffed the terrorist’s wrists.
By then a good while had passed, but the guard captain still blankly alternated between the sniper and me with a dumb look.
“This… a dream?”
Understandable thought. We were on the 15th floor.
The sniper’s rooftop across was over 200 meters in straight-line distance.
Yet I’d intercepted the bullet with a fork and delivered the sniper in the blink of an eye?
Even I thought I was out of spec.
“Then think of it as a dream. I’m not big on fame yet.”
Keep my catching the sniper a secret.
While that convo went down, Han Yoo-jung lifted her head with sleepy eyes.
“Uuun… Knight… hurry and go… villains showed up here…”
That one’s already caught.
Zero grasp of the situation—she staggered over to me.
“Hurry and gooo… I’ll drink a bit more…”
“Saintess! Are you okay?!”
The guards tried to rush over, but Han Yoo-jung waved them off wildly.
And then collapsed into my arms like a puddle.
“Caught you… hehe.”
A soft sensation pressed against my chest.
Even amid that, my head was still full of plebeian thoughts.
‘But when’s she gonna confirm receipt.’
I naturally picked up Han Yoo-jung’s smartphone from the table and handed it to her.
“Han Yoo-jung. Drink later—confirm the request first, yeah?”
“Mm… okay, I’ll stamp it…”
Stamp what.
Korean delivery doesn’t use stamps anymore.
“No stamp… how ‘bout a lip stamp instead…?”
Han Yoo-jung went up on tiptoes and puckered her lips.
The guards’ jaws practically hit the floor.
What great reactions.
Of course. Korea’s famous Saintess, drunk-flirting and trying to kiss a guy.
From bystanders’ view, they’d wanna stop it.
“I’m off. See you next time, Yoo-jung.”
“Tch. Really stone-cold.”
Han Yoo-jung sat back down slowly, like she wasn’t even drunk, and tapped completion on her smartphone.
“There. Don’t remember me as a total pain, okay?”
Ding!
The smartphone notification popped up, and I smiled.
After the Association fee, a whopping 9 million won was mine.
Pain what.
VVIP customer level for one delivery.
“Please use us again.”
“Oh my. Knight said it himself? No takebacks!!”
I slipped out, leaving the thrilled Han Yoo-jung behind.
No one trailed my exit with their eyes.