Chapter 37
Chapter 37
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: Hunting the Hunters
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“Now I can finally see a way forward.”
“Good thing you found it.”
“Then I’ll act like one of the trackers from here on out. Oh, I’ll have to file a report too, playing it casual like. As for Ayoung... better keep it a secret from her, right?”
“Yeah, that’s probably best. I’ll handle explaining it to her—say I asked you to take on another mission. And take this. We need a physical record of you receiving an item from me... even if you don’t use it, just keep it on you. And obviously, if there’s any fighting or disputes between trackers, you know what to do, right?”
It was a clear message: don’t let your identity slip.
No need for more words—I just nodded, and she smiled with her eyes, nodding back.
So this is what it feels like to have a reliable ally?
Being able to handle things solo I couldn’t—it definitely felt good.
“I’ll step in with the Association and guilds to shift their suspicions away from you. So just watch your step and play the tracker role convincingly.”
“Got it.”
“But since this involves a new S-rank hunter who’s surfaced after nearly five years, they won’t shake off the doubts easily. Keep that in mind.”
“Hmm, showing up in a completely different area now and then could work. Draw all their eyes away! Then I can file a report saying I tracked ‘that guy’ there~”
“Heh, that’s not a bad idea. I’ll contact you right away if anything comes up.”
I nodded and set out to execute the plan.
But as I watched her sit back down at her desk to resume her work, a snippet from my earlier talk with Ayoung popped into my head.
“Oh, right—the meal you promised. I’ll be looking forward to it. And fair warning, I’m a cheap date, so keep expectations low. See ya!”
“...Ah, Ayoung. I told you not to say anything. That girl!”
Heh, look at her blushing and embarrassed.
This evens the score for all that Gilgamesh, holy warrior, golden Hercules stag beetle nonsense.
I’m the type who can’t stand losing.
Damn it! It’s not like I want to wear this golden armor!
‘Alright, time to get to work?’
As a tracker pursuing the mysterious S-rank awakener, the ‘Golden Knight.’
First, to spread rumors, I’d track down the ones tracking me.
They’d all already tried detection magic on me once, and some were still tailing me from a distance, so opening my status window map showed their positions clearly marked.
‘Alright, let the hunt begin.’
To clear the Golden Knight suspicions hanging over me, my first task was taking out these trackers on my tail.
They were probably ears and eyes for various guilds, so picking fights, extracting info, or making it look like I was fleeing would naturally position me as just another tracker.
‘Let’s see. Start with the sloppiest one.’
Once I had my target, it was easy.
This amateur nearby didn’t need sneaking up on from blind spots—just charge in like the wind and pounce.
The other trackers probably knew about her too.
“Aaah~ You’ve been pissing me off since noon! Gotcha, you rookie missy!”
She hit the ground before she could react or flee, her arms pinned under me.
Up close, I spotted the Earth-class uniform and Blue Dragon Guild emblem.
So, Blue Dragon Guild’s little errand girl, huh?
“H-How? You were the one I was tracking...?”
“How? I’m in the same line of work, and you were advertising it so obviously anyone would notice. Hell, pretending not to see you was the hard part! Hey, you listening? You down by the wall, and you behind the tree—other fellow workers, wait up. I’ll get to you soon!”
“W-What do you want?”
“What else? Info. You were coordinating with the others while tailing me, right? Don’t play dumb. Who do you think I am?”
“Eek! I-I don’t know anything...!”
Bam!
I’m not the talkative type, so I threw a punch right away.
It cratered the asphalt next to her head, sinking in up to my forearm.
I raised my fist again, holding it right in front of her eyes, and said curtly,
“One chance. Got info? Or not?”
“...S-Sniff!”
“Such loyalty—willing to die for your guild! Admirable. Plenty of others to ask anyway. Bye.”
“I-It’s here! H-Here, check the group chat reports on my phone!”
Violence beats persuasion every time.
And as an awakener, she was still just an Academia student—quick to fold.
Desperate not to die, she pulled her phone from her inventory and handed it over.
Let’s see what’s here.
‘More details than I expected. Jackpot anyway.’
“C-Can I go now?”
“Yeah, go. And take this!”
“Th-Thank you!”
She gave up the info without a fight, so I owed her one.
Starting with her, I turned the tables on the trackers tailing me, gathering intel one by one.
Catching them off-guard wasn’t hard, so things went smoothly.
“Th-This guy, when did he—?”
“Die or spill?”
“I-I’ll spill! Take it!”
Even scavengers or guild contractors folded easily.
Better one failure than death—they all handed over phones and notebooks without fuss.
I never even got into direct fights; I’d either overpower them first or they’d bolt.
‘A bit rough, but perfect for spreading rumors and clearing suspicions.’
Guild and scavenger espionage was routine, backstabbing for info par for the course.
After dealing with enough trackers and stockpiling data, I headed back to my lodgings. I cross-checked news reports, chat logs, conversation lists, and Association boards to gauge the current situation and guild chatter.
“Things have blown up big time.”
[Any leads on the Golden Knight?]
[Nope. Not a glimpse. Scavengers got nothing?]
[They’re in chaos too. That psycho ‘Pastor Lee’ bastard took over a city in Gaeseong and is expanding with his ‘human ranch’ crap.]
[Association’s forming a task force from the president down to recruit him into their ranks somehow?]
[Pfft, S-rank? No guild’s touching that. Lol.]
Hold up—I had no plans to join any guild or Association.
Seeing guilds and Association desperate to snag me for their side was laughable.
Their wishful thinking was on another level.
“Seeing it firsthand makes it even more disgusting. Anyway, I’ll use this to stir up fights, fan the flames, leave messages about getting hurt or chased off... make them too busy to focus on me.”
And that was just reading it in text—if I thought about them scheming in meetings, it was even worse.
Ugh, gives me chills.
Next up: lay low using this intel, get back on the level-up grind.
***
One week later, Association conference room.
The heated Golden Knight manhunt had predictably yielded zero results, just wasted time.
Guilds spying and clashing caused serious personnel and time losses.
Finally, the Association convened a major meeting: five guilds from the subjugation—Blue Dragon, Blade Excellion, Geukcheondae, Bulgeul, Patient Avenger, Baekya—plus the other top three: Blue Dragon, Seoul, and Olympus. Total eight guilds, plus the Association President.
“Everyone’s here, so let’s start. The competitive Golden Knight search after S-rank demon Jeong Min-su’s subjugation has only worsened the chaos. Especially with that lunatic Pastor Lee taking over Jeong Min-su’s old spot in Gaeseong—we need to prepare for that, yet...”
“That’s not on today’s agenda, President. Stick to it.”
Go Cheonsu openly checked the president, steering away from topic drift.
The president swallowed his frustration—the man was from a top-three guild, Blue Dragon. No choice but to comply.
For all his title, the B-rank president—barely an awakener with no track record—held little sway over guilds.
‘Damn guild bastards!’
Suppressing his anger, he took a deep breath and continued.
“Understood. To the point: this meeting ends the waste of resources across all guilds and the Association hunting the Golden Knight. For Korea’s security, justice, and balance, please engage sincerely.”
‘They fought among themselves until losses piled up, and now this~’
Shin Somi reflected on the past week.
Suspicion bred tracker clashes, even killings, all for a Golden Knight they hadn’t even glimpsed.
The infighting had dealt heavy blows to Korea’s awakener ecosystem in just seven days.
‘I wonder how they’ll play this?’
Knowing the Golden Knight’s identity, she watched the other guilds’ reactions.
A 3D hologram of the Golden Knight appeared at the room’s center.
Subjugation black boxes, drone cams, satellite feeds—combat photos and videos flickered up.
“The presumed S-rank awakener Golden Knight has sparked endless disputes and killings amid mutual suspicions and pursuits. Yet zero progress. We have black boxes and data, but much was lost in Jeong Min-su’s subjugation, and satellites focused on main force battles, not him.”
‘Data’s insufficient.’
“Third of subjugation participants dead, most bodies monster chow—impossible to verify survivors as the Golden Knight. Even pooling all black boxes and remnants can’t cover the whole battlefield.”
They suspected a Golden Knight in the subjugation team, but proof was thin. Dead could be disguised, but no confirmation.
Barring third parties, verification stalled on lack of evidence. Casualties from pursuits forced Association and top guilds to act decisively.
“Thus, the Association and Korean government will designate the Golden Knight—who illegally ‘stole’ an S-rank demon—as an S-rank demon for public announcement and manhunt. No more chaos or losses; ignoring our surrender calls justifies this.”
‘If they can’t have him, destroy him?’
“This announcement drops in one week. Advance notice gives any hiding him as an ace or ally a final chance—think it over.”
The meeting’s ultimatum: reveal any Golden Knight in your subjugation guilds or else.
Demon designation meant anyone linked couldn’t operate as a guild anymore.
Shin Somi, however, listened to the president with a perfectly calm expression, utterly unshaken.