Chapter 176
Chapter 176
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 176
Chapter Title: Future Riders Capture Operation
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Chapter 176
"It won't be just a bother for Hunter Han Jeong-hyeon. It's about entering a level 6 gate. You're not going there to hunt, of course."
If she hadn't said that, he wouldn't have accepted such a sudden request for help.
Well, it was true that he planned to enter a level 6 gate soon anyway, and Ye-rin had been one of the connections he had in mind for it.
She was just third on his list, after Jeongjin Guild and Sea Guild.
He had wondered if it was about time, but it still felt a bit iffy.
Jeong-hyeon had wanted to put off hunting with Ye-rin until he could be absolutely sure of his superiority over her.
But this was the first time she had asked so politely, so it tugged at his heart to just turn her down.
"Um, what's going on?"
At that moment, Ji-hee, who had been suddenly left out of the conversation, asked Ye-rin.
The two had some acquaintance due to the conspiracy involving the old Daedbok Guild.
Ye-rin glanced at Ji-hee, seeming to ponder something for a moment, then asked cautiously.
"By any chance, are you planning to enter a level 6 gate too, Hunter Choi Ji-hee?"
"Yes?"
Ji-hee looked back and forth between Ye-rin and Jeong-hyeon with a bewildered expression.
It must have felt coincidental that both of them had asked her the same question, even if their intentions were completely different.
'Well, S-Rank at level 5 should be plenty for level 6.'
Ye-rin was probably basing it on standard specs, but Jeong-hyeon already knew the answer.
"No, Ji-hee said level 6 still feels a bit daunting for her."
"I see."
When Jeong-hyeon answered for her, Ye-rin nodded as if she understood.
She even seemed a little relieved, perhaps.
"Then, I'll borrow Hunter Han Jeong-hyeon for a bit. It's a really urgent situation."
"?"
"Wait? Ah, but—!"
Ji-hee tried to say something at Ye-rin's sudden declaration—or rather, announcement—but she wasn't given the chance.
'What the hell, she's like a bullet train!'
In the next moment, Jeong-hyeon was already being dragged out of the training room by Ye-rin gripping his wrist.
He shouted back at Ji-hee, who was following them out.
"Sorry! I'll learn more magic next time! You go ahead!"
"I'm sorry too. I'll properly apologize later."
Ye-rin apologized as well, seeming genuinely pressed for time as she dragged Jeong-hyeon along.
Just like that, the training room at the association fell silent, leaving Ji-hee alone.
She stood there with a dazed expression, staring down the hallway where the two had disappeared.
***
The place Ye-rin dragged Jeong-hyeon to was, naturally, Investigation Division 3.
Shouts echoed everywhere at a glance, and people were rushing about—it was clearly no ordinary matter.
"Things sure are hectic."
"It's an emergency."
"So, mind telling me now what this big rush is about?"
What else could Ye-rin's reason for asking for help be?
She was the chief of Investigation Division 3, which handled hunter crimes.
Naturally, it had to be about catching villains.
Ye-rin pushed him into a room attached to an office he had visited a few times before.
The lights were off inside, and a large screen displayed the final slide of what looked like a just-finished presentation.
"First off, as an officially registered S-Rank hunter with the association, Hunter Han Jeong-hyeon will participate in the villain capture operation at the association's request for cooperation. Since it's urgent, we'll discuss compensation later."
"Uh...."
It was a far more formal tone than before.
The two in masks were a chance encounter, so aside from them, when they caught Kwak Chae-jun, it had just been a casual request.
Did things change once you hit S-Rank?
She had spoken so quickly that he hadn't caught every word, but he got the gist: the association was in a huge rush and needed his help as an S-Rank.
When Jeong-hyeon nodded roughly, Ye-rin hurriedly fiddled with her laptop.
"I'll explain quickly, so listen up."
The project file flipped back to the first page.
Unfamiliar words loomed large in the title for Jeong-hyeon.
- Future Riders, 'Kim Du-yeol Trio' Capture Operation
'Future Riders?'
He got the gist of the meaning, but it was vague what it signified.
The "Riders" part suggested some kind of group.
Ye-rin launched right into the explanation.
"Future Riders was originally a global criminal organization targeting civilians, operating even before the Great Cataclysm. Kim Du-yeol was their action captain."
"Ah, so then—"
They sounded like scum, but if it was a civilian crime group, it wasn't the association's jurisdiction.
As Jeong-hyeon started to ask about that, Ye-rin continued without letting him finish.
The screen now showed three photos instead of the title.
They looked cleaner-cut than expected for a crime syndicate.
"It was originally police jurisdiction. But recently, after years on the run abroad, Kim Du-yeol and these two sneaked into the country and committed crimes."
Sure enough, only under Kim Du-yeol's photo did it say "Future Riders Executive," while the other two just had ages and names.
"The problem is they awakened as hunters while abroad and came in like that."
"Ah."
Now he understood the situation.
They had committed crimes as civilians, fled abroad, awakened as hunters, and come back?
"The crime happened in Busan. Since it targeted hunters, it got assigned to Division 3."
"Already?"
How were these scumbags always so quick on the draw?
Estimated entry was three weeks ago, and they'd already committed a crime.
Ye-rin's explanation continued.
First, the other two besides Kim Du-yeol weren't criminals.
They were presumed to be overseas Korean hunters he'd befriended abroad, properly registered with foreign associations and using those identities to form a party.
Kim Du-yeol stayed out of sight until hunting day, then showed up at the last minute with a forged hunter ID, posing as a sudden replacement to fill the party.
It was a bit suspicious, but with the reservation already made, the two men and two women victims entered the gate without much suspicion.
Inside, he killed the two men outright, raped the women, and fled the gate.
"Those fucking bastards."
"It's even worse than that."
For once, Jeong-hyeon and Ye-rin were in perfect agreement.
Even with Korea's low villain crime rate, all sorts of bizarre incidents happened.
It stemmed from hunter psychology: low levels preyed on naive victims lured by good terms, while high levels exploited the "no way at this level" blind spot.
The Kim Du-yeol trio was a textbook high-level case.
"And they deliberately recruited two female support hunters. They figured the men would be ambushed anyway."
"Then why let the victims live? From their perspective, killing them would be cleaner."
"They didn't let them live."
"Then?"
"They restrained the victims and left them inside the gate."
Jeong-hyeon swallowed a curse after glancing at Ye-rin's face.
They were irredeemable trash.
Among the villains he'd caught so far, none had been harmless, but this made him especially nauseous.
"What are their traits and levels?"
"From victim testimonies, all are presumed B-Rank level 5 or higher. Kim Du-yeol and Choi Seok-jun are melee fighters, Kim Jong-han is magic-based. Especially Kim Du-yeol, estimated A-Rank level 6."
The scum had leveled up nicely.
Traits weren't meant for that.
"And today, a post went up on Hunter Net under Choi Seok-jun's name recruiting a same-day party. The association has already secured the spot."
The gate on the project screen was near the association in Seoul.
Boldly, right in the city with residential areas nearby.
First crime in Busan, and they'd slipped the net to come to Seoul.
At that rank, crossing uninhabited danger zones would be easy.
But one question remained.
"Isn't this too sloppy? Could it be a trap from the organization...?"
"No trap. We have solid leads on their backers, but they seem to be treating them as disposable. They got caught easily because they've been abroad so long—they don't know how villain investigations work in Korea."
No need to hesitate then.
Jeong-hyeon shot to his feet.
"Let's go right now."
"I planned to anyway, but do you have all your gear?"
"Ah."
He'd forgotten.
He wore the Cursed Armor for safety, but no weapon.
Then a thought struck him.
"I left a mace at the association."
The mace he'd entrusted to Doil at Supreme Forge.
He'd wondered why it was taking so long, but he'd been using the pickaxe usefully in the meantime and forgotten.
For now, that would do.
"Perfect. We have spare daggers here too. Now, the most important part: the operation briefing..."
Ye-rin frowned, clearly unhappy, and trailed off.
"Why?"
"It's absolutely not my idea—the planning department came up with it on their own, so don't blame me."
'What the hell is it?'
Jeong-hyeon thought Ye-rin was overreacting unusually.
She never held back when catching criminals.
Villain captures basically mixed situational acting and trap investigations anyway.
"This op already has emergency arrest approval from the National Assembly, so we just push them into the gate to prevent escape. Inside, we can strike first, no problem."
Not like her to lay that much groundwork.
"Just tell me already."
"Fine—"
Urged by Jeong-hyeon, Ye-rin reluctantly began the explanation.
After hearing it all...
"......"
Even Jeong-hyeon was speechless.
'They really want me to do that?'
He stared at Ye-rin full of doubt, but nothing changed.
"Then depart 10 minutes after me."
Ye-rin fled the office as if she couldn't face him anymore.
"Ah."
Before leaving, she paused, looked back, and tossed out an enigmatic line.
"There's one more reason we absolutely have to catch them this time. I'll tell you after."
"A reason we must catch them?"
No answer came.
The reason didn't matter anyway.
If only the shocking operation story he'd just heard was a lie.
Then one of Ye-rin's subordinates approached Jeong-hyeon.
"Hunter Han Jeong-hyeon? I'll help you prep."
"Yeah...... gotta prep."
His head said he had to do it to catch villains, but his heart wasn't in it.
"Oh, the chief said to pass this on."
"?"
Jeong-hyeon turned, wondering what now.
He really didn't want to hear about more complications.
"The budget allocated for Hunter Han Jeong-hyeon this time is..."
"......For real?"
Jeong-hyeon asked in disbelief, but the staffer just nodded innocently.
"I'll head to the workshop first."
Leaving word he'd be right back, Jeong-hyeon dashed to the workshop behind the main building.
Yeah, for that amount, he could grit his teeth and push through the unease.
He had to think that way to endure.
"Is the mace done?"
"Huh? We just finished and were about to call you—how did you—"
"It's urgent. Can you keep it brief?"
"Uh? Oh, sure!"
The forge was guarded by Yujeong, as always.
Nice to see her after so long, but no time for catch-up.
At Jeong-hyeon's request, Yujeong fetched the mace and a small part from inside.
A tiny Harad component for neutral magic enhancement was embedded in the handle.
"We weren't sure of its attribute, so it took time. Just hold it to the handle to equip on artifacts."
"And the mace?"
"There's a bolt-and-nut slot at the end—just screw it in—"
"Thanks! I'll pay later!"
Leaving only a whoosh of wind, Jeong-hyeon bolted from Supreme Forge.
Yujeong tilted her head at his unfamiliar grim expression, staring blankly at where he'd vanished.
'But why did he look so dead inside?'
He seemed incredibly rushed, but also like he was being dragged to his doom.