Chapter 72
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Translator: MJK
Chapter: 72
Chapter Title: A Slightly Brave Afternoon
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These days, every day felt like a dream for Kim Se-jin.
Not only had the black market hyenas stopped messing with him, making his operations smoother than ever, but the money Kang-hyun had given him was completely transforming his life.
"I'll take this one!"
Kim Se-jin had an uncanny eye for spotting treasures, so growing his funds was a piece of cake.
He'd snatch up worn-out artifacts that other merchants undervalued and resold them for several times the profit after seeing their true worth.
That instinct and guts were the innate talents of someone who'd survived this cutthroat black market.
It was all possible because he'd met Kang-hyun.
'I need to repay him somehow.'
Kim Se-jin fell deep into thought.
Kang-hyun didn't seem short on cash, nor did he look weak.
Expensive weapons or armor would mean nothing to him.
When the man himself seemed stronger than any weapon... what could he possibly give?
Right then.
"What're you doing here?"
"B-Bro! You're here!"
It was Kang-hyun.
Ever since his last visit, Kim Se-jin had been counting the days for his return.
"Doing alright?"
"Yes! Thanks to you, my little bro's doing a lot better! Thank you so much!"
He bent at a perfect ninety degrees, like a folding phone, pouring out his genuine gratitude.
Kang-hyun chuckled at the sight and patted his shoulder.
"Know any special shops around here selling unique stuff?"
One name immediately flashed in Kim Se-jin's mind.
"Of course I do!"
Naturally, Kim Se-jin—who'd been born and raised in the black market—knew every merchant and the quality of their goods inside out.
His info network was better than most brokers'.
"Most folks don't know about him, but deep in the market, there's this guy they call the Beast."
"The Beast?"
"Yeah, he's so terrifying, no one dares say his name lightly around here. Sure, his shop looks rundown on the outside, so you might not believe he has good stuff...!"
"Why not? Of course I'd trust it."
"Huh?"
"No way a place you recommend would be anything less."
Kim Se-jin's face lit up at Kang-hyun's trusting words.
"Here."
Kang-hyun handed over a small bag of cherry tomatoes.
"These are a bit different from last time. Your bro will love 'em."
"B-Bro...!"
The cherry tomatoes from before had been way too precious.
He'd split them in half to make them last longer for his brother.
And now this!
Tatata!
After guiding Kang-hyun to the Beast's shop, Kim Se-jin clutched the bag to his chest and raced home to his brother.
"Yu-na!"
Opening the shack door revealed his sister, her complexion far healthier than before, absorbed in a book.
"Oppa, you're back?"
No more agonizing coughs at night.
Not fully cured yet, but improving noticeably day by day.
Kim Se-jin beamed and held out the cherry tomatoes.
"Look, that bro sent more!"
"Really?"
Kim Yu-na's face lit up like she'd won the world.
"Like the ones from last time?"
They eased her body, sure, but more than that...
'They're soooo delicious!'
It had hurt every time he'd stopped her from wanting more.
Seeing her happy face now soothed his heart.
'I really want to do right by him.'
This was Kim Se-jin's true feeling.
He wanted to share every bit of info he had, fetch anything Kang-hyun desired.
That loyalty was growing stronger by the day.
Kim Se-jin opened his inventory.
Balance: 87,244,120 won
He'd boldly invested Kang-hyun's money in prime goods.
Spotting potential in rare materials others overlooked, he'd flipped them for premium prices over and over.
That ruthless trading had ballooned his funds in just a few weeks.
'A bit more, and I can take Yu-na to a proper hospital.'
"So good!"
He stroked the head of Kim Yu-na, happily munching away.
It was more than enough hope for dreaming of a bright future.
Busan Haeundae, Joint Korea-US-Japan Rift Response Training Command HQ.
Tension hung thick over the waters off Haeundae.
"Everything ready?"
The Management Bureau had staked its fate on this exercise.
They needed to restore their fallen reputation and regain the president's trust.
"Yes, sir! All set!"
Dozens of warships and elite hunters lined up across the sea.
But the Bureau's real focus wasn't the training.
"Deputy Secretary Johnson! Everything to your liking? This is the finest champagne we airlifted in special."
The Bureau chief hovered around the U.S. VIPs, kissing up relentlessly.
Unlike Japan, which had warmed to Korea after the Gorani-man fiasco, the U.S. still held all the cards.
Right then.
Woooong—
With 80% of Korea's hunter forces concentrated in Busan, the capital region's mana field was destabilizing rapidly.
Beep— Beep— Beep!
Dozens of red warning lights blinked on the screens at the Management Bureau's central control center over Gyeonggi Province.
Mana Backflow Detected. B-Grade or Higher Rift
92% Chance Within 30 Minutes.
Only a lone junior staffer on emergency duty remained there.
"W-What? A B-grade rift in 30 minutes?!"
Even mustering every last emergency hunter wouldn't be enough.
Too late to do anything now.
30 minutes later, skies over the U.S. base in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province.
Kwarrr rumble!
The sky tore open as a rift spawned.
Dozens of B-grade gargoyles poured out, screeching toward the base.
"Kieeeek!"
The gargoyles dove with piercing shrieks.
That was when—
Weeeeng— Boom!
Dozens of magic nets materialized in midair, snaring the flock.
Valhalla's latest artifact: [Asgard's Binding].
"Kiek?!"
The trapped gargoyles thrashed.
Bang! Boom!
The nets exploded, reducing them to ash in an instant.
"...Situation cleared in 22 minutes. Clean work."
Yu Seo-jin smiled in satisfaction.
Old Man No had tipped them off on high-risk coordinates, so she'd prepositioned guild elites everywhere.
"Make the cleanup pretty, got it?"
One issue, though.
"Team leader!"
"Hm?"
"This guy's pretty shaken up."
A Valhalla member supported a trembling man in U.S. army fatigues, half out of his mind.
"No way..."
Yu Seo-jin eyed the rank insignia on his shoulder: two solid diamonds on silver—U.S. Army Captain.
"Th-Thank you so much! If you hadn't... this place..."
Covered in dust, the captain collapsed, voice quaking.
The rift had opened right above his patrol route.
A few seconds later, and he'd be gone without a trace.
B-grade ambushes overwhelmed even armed soldiers.
"You alright, Captain?"
"Y-Yeah... thanks to you. That was way too close."
He clutched his chest, watching comrades rush out, dizzy with relief.
"Not just me—the whole base. Horrifying to imagine."
Yu Seo-jin bowed politely to the captain and ordered her aide.
"Give him an A-grade stabilizer potion and escort him safely to our med tent."
"Yes, ma'am."
If anything happened to that captain?
It would've escalated beyond accident into a diplomatic disaster shaking the Korea-U.S. alliance.
'In other words, no better justification than this.'
Yu Seo-jin murmured low to her aide.
"Report this to U.S. Forces Korea command and the White House at highest priority. Now."
"How should we frame it?"
"As the near-massacre of hundreds of U.S. troops due to the Hunter Management Bureau's gross negligence."
"Understood!"
Yu Seo-jin smiled contentedly, toying with the mole under her lip with slender fingers.
Heaven itself was aiding Valhalla.
That same time, White House Situation Room.
"Fucking...!!!"
The president's roar froze the entire room.
"What the hell was the Korean government doing at that hour?!"
His rage was justified.
Under the mutual defense treaty, Korea was obligated to prioritize U.S. troop safety on its soil.
Yet a soldier from an ally nearly died in a security-critical base due to negligence.
A blatant treaty violation, diplomatically unforgivable.
"Sir, per the report, the Korean Hunter Management Bureau was conducting a Korea-U.S.-Japan joint rift drill at Haeundae, Busan."
"What? They prioritized that circus and threw our soldiers to the wolves? This is a clear breach of trust!"
America was livid.
And that fury would head straight for Korea's Blue House.
Back mountain clearing behind the countryside house.
Thud! Slash!
The chicken relentlessly kicked a thick tree trunk.
From afar, behind bushes, an old badger watched.
No longer did it see the chicken as weak prey.
Lately, warm sweet potatoes from that house had started melting the badger's frozen heart.
Positive thoughts bloomed, along with hope: Maybe I can start over too.
But surrendering that last shred of pride wasn't the crops' doing.
It was the old badger's own resolve.
Swish swish...
The badger cautiously approached the chicken's training spot.
And clumsily mimicked its moves.
Crack!
It slashed a rotten stump nearby with its front claws.
Even aged, those claws stayed razor-sharp.
"Cluck?"
The chicken paused warily at the presence, then recognized it.
The old badger.
A hidden powerhouse of these mountains.
Weakened by age, sure, but its cunning and experience couldn't be dismissed.
And now, it was copying her.
"..."
But the chicken didn't mock or gloat.
It sensed the earnest desire in those movements.
The old badger respected her.
Step, step.
Instead of shooing it, the chicken drew closer.
And slowly, precisely, demonstrated its daily routine.
"Hng...!"
The badger caught the kindness, eyes welling with emotion.
Splatter! Crunch!
New courage surging, it launched at the stump again.
Faster, fiercer than before.
The rotten wood shattered into splinters.
-Hmu?
Behind them, atop a big rock, two lounged idly, watching the training.
Muryong and Hasuo, brought by the chicken.
Tap!
Muryong spotted a crawling ladybug and poked it curiously with a paw.
It played dead, flipping over—Muryong burst into giggles.
"Pwaeng...?"
Hasuo watched the chicken and badger in wonder, eyes sparkling.
Then, as if to say I can do that, it tore a nearby leaf with a root tendril.
Rip—
"Pwaeng!"
Hasuo proudly showed the shreds to Muryong like a trophy.
Muryong took one, huffed on it.
Poof!
The leaf vanished without a trace.
"Pwaaeng?!"
Hasuo's eyes bulged; it leaped in shock.
Muryong giggled again.
A peaceful afternoon in the mountains.