Chapter 98
Chapter 98
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 98
Chapter Title: Simultaneous Incidents (13)
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Our group of four, having moved across the rooftop of the building, soon arrived in front of a textile factory nestled against a low hill.
"Is that where Kang Ha-neul is being held?"
Ji Ye-won asked, and I nodded silently in response. Next to the factory building, its lights extinguished, stood a single warehouse with a dreary slate roof. According to the map from the quest, Kang Ha-neul was inside there.
"Doesn't seem like anyone else around..."
"We can't be too sure. They might be hiding somewhere out of sight."
"True..."
At Ryu Tae-hyun's words, Ji Ye-won let out a low hum as she scanned the surroundings. But the area around the factory, which looked abandoned for over a decade, was shrouded in complete darkness.
"Let me check it out."
At that moment, Seol Ah-hyun stepped forward and spoke. How exactly did she plan to check? As I wondered that, I recalled what her ability was.
"You mean you'll use Future Sight to confirm?"
Ji Ye-won asked Seol Ah-hyun with a skeptical look.
"That's right. That's what it's for in the first place."
With that, Seol Ah-hyun closed her eyes and focused.
Though simply called Future Sight, the true nature of Seol Ah-hyun's superpower wasn't seeing the future itself, but rather observing one of the various 'possibilities' that could occur in the future.
For example, if she were to look into the future with an apple and a strawberry in front of her, and at that moment she wanted to eat the apple, she'd see a future where she ate the apple. But if, in the next moment, she decided she wanted the strawberry instead and looked again, she'd see a scene of eating the strawberry—one different from the previous vision.
In other words, in a situation like this, if she activated Future Sight while holding the intent to 'charge straight into the warehouse,' she could grasp what would happen on the way there or inside it. Of course, the scope was limited to just a few dozen seconds at most.
"...I see people in the center of the warehouse. Five wearing strange helmets, one tall woman. And a woman asleep in a chair...? That's probably Kang Ha-neul. She matches the photo Su-ho showed me."
Seol Ah-hyun opened her eyes after peering into the future and spoke.
"So six enemies."
"Yes, that's the number visible for now. There could be ambushes elsewhere too."
"Could you describe the inside in more detail?"
The scene inside the warehouse that Seol Ah-hyun had observed was as follows.
First, the visible enemies: six, as mentioned.
Around them were sofas and tables scattered haphazardly, as if someone had set up a temporary living space in the warehouse. No other factory equipment was in sight. There was only one entrance, right at the front, and no windows.
"Looks like we'll have to go in through the front."
"And once we're in? What's the plan then?"
"We'll try negotiating first. If that fails, we fight."
"Hyung, Ha-neul's being held hostage. Starting a fight..."
I shook my head lightly at Ryu Tae-hyun's concerned words.
"They probably won't use Kang Ha-neul to threaten us. Because..."
Kang Ha-neul was a valuable sample needed for multiple ability research. I couldn't exactly tell Ryu Tae-hyun or Seol Ah-hyun, who were clueless about the situation, the blunt truth.
"...Because kidnapping Kang Ha-neul means they have some goal in mind. They won't kill her before achieving it."
In the end, I had to vaguely gloss over the real reason behind the kidnapping. But Seol Ah-hyun and Ryu Tae-hyun seemed convinced enough by that.
At that point, Ji Ye-won asked Seol Ah-hyun,
"Can you see anything about the outcome of a fight?"
"That might be tough. The limit for pinpointing an exact time frame is about a minute..."
"Do we even need to? We're gonna win anyway."
Ryu Tae-hyun shrugged as he said it. There wasn't a trace of worry on his face.
"Everyone here is top-notch. And she's an S-rank superhuman. With this lineup, we could take down six kidnappers in seconds."
"Here's hoping."
It would be ideal if things went that smoothly. But I couldn't think so optimistically.
I knew all too well that this damn world never went the way I wanted.
Still.
"Alright, let's head in."
I could only hope that, just this once, everything would go off without a hitch.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ -Creaaaaak.
The heavy warehouse door swung open, and four people stepped inside.
True to Seol Ah-hyun's words, Kang Ha-neul and six men and women were inside. The only one without a helmet among them was the tall woman—K, Stephanie's partner in the contract killing business.
"..."
K scanned the sudden intruders from head to toe. When her gaze landed on Ahn Su-ho, her eyes widened. A deep sigh escaped her lips right after.
"No regular contact from Stephanie, so I had my suspicions..."
K ruffled her long hair in frustration as she stepped forward.
"So how'd you find this place? Stephanie's not the loose-lipped type."
"From what you're saying, you must be K, Stephanie's partner."
"Wow, this is insane. Did she really spill everything?"
No, that wasn't it. Ahn Su-ho had learned of this location purely thanks to the quest, and his info on Stephanie and K had come secondhand through Ji Ye-won from Heo Sung-chan and Yu Jin-su. But from K's perspective, unaware of the details, she could only suspect Stephanie's betrayal.
"No cops showing up means you planned to snatch this girl quietly..."
"K, let me make you an offer."
"An offer from an academy guard? Let's hear it."
Even in this sudden situation, K smirked mockingly as Ahn Su-ho spoke calmly.
"My offer is simple. Hand over Kang Ha-neul willingly. Then I won't interfere if you run or whatever."
"Oh please. You think I'd just say 'yes sir' and bolt?"
"You'd be wise to decide carefully. We've got an S-rank superhuman here."
"S-rank...?"
At those words, K's eyes swept over Ahn Su-ho's group again. They widened even more than before.
"Wait. No way... Seol Ah-hyun...?"
"Heh."
Seol Ah-hyun let out a scoffing laugh as K recognized her.
"That's right. I'm Seol Ah-hyun, guildmaster of the Black Dragon Guild."
Seol Ah-hyun took a step forward as she declared it. Her tone and demeanor naturally exuded the confidence of the strong. She kept glancing subtly toward Ahn Su-ho behind her, clearly conscious of him.
"Thanks for recognizing me. Even a slum rat without proper infrastructure knows me—guess I'm pretty famous? Well, wouldn't expect someone in the contract killing business to be ignorant of the outside world."
K bit her lip at Seol Ah-hyun's confident attitude. As she said, Seol Ah-hyun was a superhuman famous enough that everyone in the country knew her name. Her strength was equally well-known.
"...Heh. Think I'll cower just because you say that?"
It was bravado. Despite her words, K was rattled by the sudden appearance of an S-rank. Pretending to be relaxed on the surface, she discreetly pulled out a small pager with a button—given to her by the client for emergencies like this.
-Click.
Confirming the button pressed, K swallowed dryly and looked ahead. Ahn Su-ho shook his head at her.
"You're making a reckless choice."
"Reckless or not, we'll see when we clash."
True to her words, K had no intention of surrendering. That was her pride and her professional ethos as a contract killer. Ahn Su-ho clicked his tongue briefly at her attitude. Facing an S-rank and still so confident—she clearly had something to rely on.
"Haa."
Ahn Su-ho sighed deeply. This world never followed the path he'd expected.
But he wasn't concerned. He still had a few cards left to persuade the killer in front of him.
"Why not surrender? Is it the money? How much did your employer pay you?"
"What, gonna top it if I tell you?"
"If you want, I could manage it."
This part had been discussed with Min Chae-ryeong before coming. If it seemed necessary to buy off the kidnapper with money, do it. He'd cover the costs.
"Tempting offer, but..."
K pulled a cigarette from her pocket and lit it. She took a deep drag, leaning her upper body over the back of the chair where Kang Ha-neul sat, exhaling smoke. Kang Ha-neul didn't stir.
"I'll pass. No guarantee you'd actually pay. In our line of work, trust is everything—flip-flopping for cash like a bat gets you blacklisted quick."
"Trust, huh. How about this? Cooperate with us, and we'll release your partner. Fight us, and I can't guarantee her safety."
"Heh. Do what you want. Stephanie and I are just business associates."
"You just said trust matters. Isn't looking out for a colleague part of that?"
"She broke trust first. That's how you found us, right?"
Stephanie had leaked the info first, so she owed her no loyalty. Ahn Su-ho bit his lip at K's clear refusal.
The negotiations had broken down. Regrettably so.
That left only conflict.
As Ahn Su-ho thought that, Ryu Tae-hyun beside him had the same idea. He clenched his fists, assumed a stance, and said to Ahn Su-ho,
"Hyung, let's just fight. She's not listening at all."
"Unbelievable. Aren't you here to save this girl? But lately, she hasn't even been on your radar."
K shook her head in disbelief.
"You're the ones being held hostage right now. Got it?"
K grabbed the unconscious Kang Ha-neul by the hair and yanked her head up. She then drew a knife from her pocket and held it to Kang Ha-neul's throat. Ahn Su-ho glared at her murderously.
But K ignored the fierce glare and kept taunting.
"Getting the picture now? You're not in a position to talk big. Take one step, and I'll shred this girl's neck to ribbons."
"...You really think you can do that?"
"What?"
Ahn Su-ho spoke in a deeply sunken voice.
"I asked if you really can. In my opinion, your client doesn't want Kang Ha-neul harmed."
"..."
K shut her mouth at Ahn Su-ho's sharp words. She had no choice. He'd hit the nail on the head.
As Ahn Su-ho had predicted, K's client, Na Ju-yong, wanted Kang Ha-neul secured in the best possible condition. That was the top condition of this job. Thus, K injuring Kang Ha-neul to threaten the group was out of the question.
'...Damn it. If we were gonna get caught, why not just one more day.'
Even though they'd successfully kidnapped Kang Ha-neul two days ago, they were holed up in this rundown warehouse because they needed prep time to sneak her into the research lab. That prep would finish tomorrow.
If Stephanie's slip-up had been just a day later, Kang Ha-neul would've been safely inside the lab. No confrontation with Ahn Su-ho's group.
"Cut the empty bluffing and surrender already. My initial offer still stands if you hand over Kang Ha-neul and run now. I won't chase you."
"..."
K, glaring resentfully at Ahn Su-ho, finally put away the knife. But she'd only given up on the hostage bluffing.
"Hey, you mutts."
At K's call, the silent helmeted figures lifted their heads.
"I'm gonna grab this girl and run. Buy me some time so they can't follow."
The helmets, which had kept silent, finally spoke one by one.
"...Affirmative."
"...Time. Stall."
"...Intruders. ELIMINATE."
"Shit."
Ahn Su-ho grimaced as they assumed stances with their halting speech. He'd suspected from their outfits at first glance, but now their distinctive manner of speaking confirmed it.
'Ye-il Group's secretly bred hunting dogs.'
Hunting dogs. They were a combat unit born from Ye-il Group's wealth and Na Ju-yong's scientific prowess. All were superhumans, their physical abilities pushed to the limit via illegal surgeries and drugs. They were also armed with high-tech gear bought with Ye-il's funds.
Ye-il Group only fully emerged as a villain organization mid-story in the original. Naturally, the hunting dogs appearing then were accordingly powerful.
But.
"I don't know what those guys are, but you think five can handle me?"
Seol Ah-hyun said confidently. And rightly so—no matter how elite Ye-il's dogs, they couldn't even stall properly against an S-rank.
"Just five? Nope."
Only if the number stayed at five.
-Creaaaaak.
The four turned at the grating sound. New hunting dogs were just entering the warehouse, catching their eyes.
Fifteen of them.
The newcomers moved with precision, encircling Ahn Su-ho's group. In an instant, the four were surrounded by twenty hunting dogs total.
"...Trash multiplying is still just trash."
"But enough to buy time."
K sneered openly as she hoisted Kang Ha-neul over her shoulder.
At the same time.
"Hunting dogs."
A wicked smile spread across K's lips.
"Sic 'em."
The next moment, all twenty hunting dogs charged at the four.