Chapter 10
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 010
Chapter Title: Hunters
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After sending a reply that seemed fine for a weekday evening or even a Sunday, I stood up from my seat.
The living room felt a bit empty since I hadn't brought in any other furniture yet, so I passed through it and headed for the balcony.
The fresh morning sunlight felt like it was clearing my still-groggy mind.
"If only I had a cup of freshly brewed coffee here, it'd be perfect."
If I really had that, I could've posted something online like "Successful hanbung morning coffee flex." I'd probably rack up around a hundred likes, and about the same number of dislikes—but those don't count.
Envy for the life of successful people is just human nature.
In this harsh world, let's at least show a little mercy in cyberspace.
Unfortunately, I didn't even have a frying pan to make breakfast, let alone a coffee machine.
The Pollution Investigation Bureau bastards had smashed every last appliance they'd been using, leaving nothing behind.
In the end, after moping around on the balcony for a bit, I headed out of the apartment.
Regardless of anything else, I needed to stock up on water and food at least.
It was something I should've done yesterday, but I'd put it off because of the trash cleanup.
I bought groceries and the bare minimum cooking utensils at the nearby mart.
"Whoa, shit. I was in more danger than I thought."
Seeing my remaining balance after checkout brought that realization crashing down.
I had money coming in, but I hadn't received it yet. Without Ro Boss's help, I'd really have been scraping by on instant ramen at a PC bang.
"Should I hit up the Hunters crew for a few million advance?"
Things were that dire.
Honestly, it felt a little pathetic coming from someone who'd cleared a 200-million-won job, but if I said I needed cash urgently, they'd probably toss me a few hundred grand no questions asked.
If not, I'd have to ask the bosses for an advance on my salary—but this seemed like the better option.
I was in the middle of prepping breakfast with thoughts like that swirling around.
"Meow."
"What, you hungry too?"
"Meow."
"Hold on. I was getting your share ready anyway."
"Grahhh!"
"Wha? Hey! Hey!"
Meow suddenly shoved its face right in, and started retching like mad.
I panicked watching it.
"Sip! No manners at the table! Hey! I'm making actual human food for you instead of cat chow—don't you get that?"
Honestly, cat food might've been better, but you can't just feed a Constellation kibble.
"What if the grub I serve sucks and I end up on the menu?"
I'd built up some goodwill so far, but relationships could sour in a heartbeat.
Especially with someone who didn't communicate well.
Of course, no way was I letting it hack up hairballs onto my meal.
"If you're gonna puke, aim over there!"
I twisted its head the other way, and soon something black dropped from Meow's mouth.
Plop.
Roll roll.
But it wasn't the soggy, damp hairball I'd imagined.
"Meow."
"What the hell is this?"
What had come out of Meow's mouth was some kind of bead.
It looked like a black pearl at a glance, but since this thing was a Constellation, it was way darker.
Practically Vantablack.
Not sure if the analogy fit, but it gave off the vibe of staring at a black hole photo.
"Meow!"
"...You want me to take it?"
"Nya."
I picked up the bead, feeling a mix of absurdity and resignation as it nodded.
I didn't know what it was, but it looked decent enough.
Sniffed it—no weird smell. Keeping it couldn't hurt.
Of course.
"This doesn't make up for me getting hauled off by the Bureau."
"...Huh?"
"Do you have any idea the damages I took because of you? Handing over something I can't even sell is pointless."
"Meow!"
"Yeah, not forgiving you. No way."
"Deshaak!"
Still, I could toss on an extra piece of meat.
Figuring Meow had some kinda mysterious trick up its sleeve, I finished prepping breakfast.
Then I portioned some out and headed next door.
Ding dong.
Creak.
Ro Boss appeared with her usual pretty face.
I immediately bowed toward her.
"Good morning, Boss."
Ah, morning for me, night for her.
The thought crossed my mind for a second, but Ro Boss didn't call me out on it.
"Han-sik? What's up?"
"Nothing much. Just wondered if you'd eaten."
"Huh? Oh, not yet."
"Then here."
I offered her the breakfast I'd just made.
"Freshly cooked—thought you might wanna try some. Seemed like you always just order out."
"...Ah."
"If it's too much, think of it as a moving-in gift or whatever."
"No, no! Of course not. I'll eat well."
And she didn't turn down my gesture.
Phew.
Good thing.
I'd been worried she'd refuse.
Back in the day, sharing food when moving in was standard, but these days, plenty of people hate it.
Heard some even spike the food—those Bureau-level scumbags should all rot in prison. That's my hot take.
Of course, mine was just plain pork stir-fry, so no issues.
"I'll bring some by now and then. You hooked me up with the job and the place—least I can do."
"Ah, yeah."
"Catch you later. Sleep well. Oh, and leave any trash by the door—I'll handle it."
That was the end of it as I turned to head back to 403.
Squeeze.
Ro Boss suddenly grabbed my collar.
"...Boss?"
"Ah, that is."
I tilted my head, and she spoke up in a fluster.
"Um, Han-sik? Anything bothering you? Come to think of it, next door was totally empty. Need a fridge or TV or anything?"
Ah.
Landlord instincts kicking in.
But I shook my head.
"I'm good. I'll use the borrowed blanket a few more days and return it."
This wasn't some rundown one-room—appliances were on me.
I'd already ordered the urgent stuff, actually.
Not much: a mattress to sleep on and a couple small fridges.
For some reason, putting in Happiness Apartment as the address made it bitch about needing a precise one, so I'd used the convenience store up front.
"Should be fine."
Once Hunters paid up, I'd scout a new place anyway. Two, three weeks tops.
No need for me or her to stress it.
My only real worry was her place getting trashed like yesterday after I left.
"I'll swing by sometimes."
Keep dropping in till I quit security.
A bit of a hassle, but it kept one person safe.
"Hmm."
Lost in those thoughts, Ro Boss let go of my collar with a cute little noise.
"Got it then."
With morning greetings done and breakfast finished, I headed to the security booth.
"A two-minute walk to work."
Honey pot didn't even begin to cover it.
Even after clocking in, not much to do.
Since spotting that weird black car last time, no one's shown up around.
The one time something worth talking about happened was that evening.
After finishing deliveries for Sauce Ne.
"...?"
I blinked at Ro Boss standing outside my door.
She always stayed inside—first time seeing her out here.
As I wondered about it, she waved first.
"You're back?"
"Yeah. What's the occasion?"
"Kinda hard to explain. Wanna see?"
See what.
I followed her gesture and turned toward 403.
Door already open. Master key for landlords?
With that vague thought, I checked inside.
"Fwaaaaaah!"
I screamed on the spot.
"Hehe."
Ro Boss laughed watching me, but this wasn't funny.
"What! What the hell is all this!"
My empty room was now crammed full of furniture and appliances.
Exactly like her place after cleaning!
The room had been straight-up duplicated!
No way this apartment had a cloning function.
"Didn't know what you'd need, so I filled it with the basics."
Only after hearing that did I piece it together.
While I was chilling at the security booth or cursing out ant heads at Sauce Ne, she'd decked out the place solo.
Realizing that nearly made me pass out.
The favor was way too much.
If favor was a tangible thing, I'd already be in the ER for overdose.
"Did I overstep?"
But Ro Boss just tossed my own words from morning right back at me.
"Fuck."
You good bros, crazy rice bastards.
Daring to mess with a kids' fairy tale classic over rice bundles?
What do you call giving breakfast and getting a house plus appliances back?
This needed to be the Ro Boss Genesis Epic or something.
"Welte Zuroi channel!"
I shouted it in my head and immediately prostrated before her.
"I'll serve you for life!"
"Hehe... Glad you like it."
She placed a hand on my head as she said it.
Felt kinda like yesterday when she'd fiddled with my hand, but I didn't pull away.
"Who in the world gets mad at their own right hand patting their head?"
Heck, Ro Boss and I were basically one now!
"But still."
How the hell did one woman pull this off?
I'd watched CCTV all day at security—no AC installers or anything.
The question popped up, but only for a moment.
Whatever, she managed somehow.
With Constellations around these days, nothing was impossible with a little help.
With that in mind, I stepped into my newly decked-out home.
A strangely sweet scent tickled my nose.
Pollution Investigation Bureau.
A day at the Bureau—nicknamed that—is insanely busy.
Obviously.
Ever since Constellations appeared, the Pollution that came with them was a disaster humanity couldn't handle alone.
Regular manpower meant nothing against it.
To suppress and purify Pollution, you needed other Constellations or people versed in mythical, magical knowledge.
That kind of power was rare as hell.
Especially in advanced nations that had forgotten magic and myth—and South Korea was one of them.
Was that why?
Rustle.
Bureau Chief Park In-ho.
He'd just wrapped up a nearly two-month field survey yesterday, but set down the report folder he'd been reading.
"...I've reviewed the report."
No time to rest, even after endless fieldwork.
The file detailed a brand-new Pollution.
None other than one near Happiness Apartment.
But Park In-ho stared at it like he couldn't believe his eyes, turning to the agent who'd come to report.
"This real? It was a normal alley just the other day—now fully Otherworldized?"
"Yes, Chief."
"Possible at that speed? The tower over the mall took half a month to form."
He grilled the agent.
The agent was a veteran from the Bureau's early days, but even they couldn't give a firm answer to the chief.
"...Looks like it was influenced by the surroundings."
"Otherworldization accelerated because of the apartment?"
"That's the working theory. The interior resembles the apartment space. Different location, but reports say the visible stars and atmospheric composition match."
All they had were guesses.
This Pollution was that intense and sudden.
"Nearby CCTV footage? Caught someone right before it turned—ID'd who did this?"
"At first, the face was clear."
"And?"
"...Now all footage is corrupted. CCTV records, photos from reports—even agents who saw the original CCTV can't describe the person's face anymore."
Not even simple spatial Pollution.
It jumped timelines and interfered with personal memories.
Pollution straight out of a ghost story.
Ha.
A dry laugh escaped Park In-ho's lips.
Absurd.
Utterly ridiculous.
Made no sense.
Photos, videos, memories polluted before Otherworldization completed?
If other Bureau folks heard, they'd scoff.
Pollution was bizarre, but not ghost stories.
No matter how horrific, it was a real phenomenon with rules and laws—controllable via something called magic.
So the agent's words were near-joke territory, yet Park In-ho couldn't laugh.
He'd experienced something similar recently.
At Happiness Apartment, no less.
There, despite wearing a suit blessed by government-contracted Constellations, he'd wandered the endless stairs for two months.
Never reached the second floor.
The stairs wouldn't allow it.
And once outside?
As if the time inside meant nothing, barely a week had passed out here.
Even the memories in his head kept fading.
Without regular doses of memory preservative, he'd have forgotten entering the place entirely.
"How do we handle it?"
"Handle? Haha, we could try?"
"..."
His sharp reply to the agent wasn't just his personality.
Park In-ho leaned back in his chair, keeping the agent standing.
Happiness Apartment.
A horrific Pollution zone, sure—but relatively quiet till now.
Compared to the "Architect" popping towers or the "Factory Manager" multiplying plants one by one, it was almost harmless.
"Of course, it earned its rep purely on Pollution intensity."
Why would a quiet Constellation suddenly ramp up Pollution?
After some deliberation, a thought hit Park In-ho.
"...No way."
A warning.
Coincidentally, the Bureau had started dispatching agents to Happiness Apartment recently.
Park In-ho included, they patrolled, recorded entrants and changes constantly.
Decision born of not ignoring that level of Pollution—but now, a mistake.
If anything changed first, it was them, not the apartment.
Park In-ho sighed and made the call.
"Whew, no choice."
"...Pardon?"
"Pull back all personnel near the apartment."
"You're serious?"
"Dead serious. We've got bigger fish— no need to poke the hornet's nest."
Of course.
Park In-ho had no intention of abandoning the apartment entirely.
To him, the world was a crumbling domino chain.
Even small Pollutions, left alone, would topple everything eventually.
Modern humanity living atop those dominos? Not a pretty end.
"So."
Happiness Apartment needed purging someday—but not now.
If it was one domino in the sequence, the world was packed with lunatics itching to knock them over themselves.
"Push the priority back a bit."
Sorting his thoughts, Park In-ho shoved the report in a drawer.
His eyes landed on the [Sauce Ne] business card next to it, and he irritably spoke up.
"Any word on the bastards?"
"Yes, intel on the Prophet and Poison King. Starting with the Prophet: confirmed his return recently. Independent clan Hunters are securing his... "
The Bureau's endless night deepened.
Unbeknownst to any, the cause of that grave Pollution had been dragged into the underground interrogation room just days ago.
It had been four days since I started living under the same roof as Ro Boss.
Nothing major happened in that time.
I made her daily life a bit richer, and she kept surprising me with gifts.
Days of steadily building mutual favor, you could say.
"Two words: Daily life!"
But today was different.
It was the day I'd set a meetup with Hunters.
You know, from that call a while back asking to meet face-to-face.
After finishing work, I arrived at the pre-informed spot, where a ridiculously flashy building awaited—something I'd never cross paths with in my life.
None other than a hotel.
Not some budget business hotel, but a top-tier one smack in central Seoul.
Apparently, Hunters were throwing a party to celebrate reclaiming their sacred relic...
"No clue."
They'd explained over the phone, but I still didn't quite get it.
I mean, come on.
"Throwing a party over finding one lost item?"
Crazy?
If I lost my most precious possession—my phone—and found it, I wouldn't even spring for chicken.
A bash like this had to cost billions at least.
Hell, they were already paying me 200 million—where'd all this cash come from?
How loaded were they?
"Ahem, it's not like that."
Lost in thoughts while eyeing the dazzling lights, someone spoke up from behind.
Turned out to be a familiar tank-top build.
"Hello, hyungnim."
"Oh, Ho-cheol?"
I acknowledged Park Ho-cheol.
Not like we were tight, but after glancing at the slick suits nearby, the brute's bulk felt welcoming.
I gave his back a few pats, and he picked up where he'd left off.
"It's not that we're loaded— we picked this place on purpose even though money's tight."
"What're you on about?"
"You know what happened to our clan recently. Gotta flaunt we're still kicking somehow."
My eyes went wide at that.
For real.
Burning billions just to say "We're not dead yet."
Unreal.
This was novel-level stuff at best.
"Fuck, my flex is nursing a convenience store coffee in the morning."
Here they flexed by torching billions per meal.
Totally different world.
Lately, disaster alerts kept yapping about otherworld borders— that was nothing!
"To a guy skimping on Cantata for Levy, this is the real isekai!"
Clutching my head in those thoughts, Park Ho-cheol guided me inside.
"Anyway, let's head in. Noona's waiting."
Tugged along, we reached a private room near the hall, where a familiar face awaited.
"...Hi."
Han So-yeon.
She wore a party dress instead of her usual leather gear, and the instant I saw her, one thought hit.
"She's looking rough."
No no no.
Not in a weird way!
Her face was seriously worn out!
Haggard as hell!