Black Market Rampage and Warehouse Reckoning
For the sake of Left-i, who'd been cooped up in the mental realm without a body for quite some time, I handed over control of this form while inside the Black Market.
Left-i, thrilled to finally have the reins again, went a bit wild without restraint, but since he didn't stray too far from the big picture, I just watched quietly.
Along the way, he brainwashed an S-rank hunter, but unfortunately destroyed the guy's entire personality before I could extract any info...
Well, controlling the power just enough not to shatter an S-rank's ego is tricky, so there was some room for leniency.
I'd half-expected something like this when handing over control to Left-i in the first place, so no big deal.
Yeah. All within expectations.
After that, an overly excited Left-i started rampaging without question...
Not just simple chaos, but something like a zombie outbreak...
And he straight-up killed another key S-rank hunter I wanted intel from...
Yeah. Still within calculations up to that point.
A little overrun here and there? I could always jump in personally later and fix it.
Sure, it felt a tad excessive at times, but Rue had been watching with sparkling eyes the whole time, so all good.
That's right, Rue. Learn well.
You don't need to take down enemies yourself.
I wasn't sure if she'd develop skills like this later, but you don't need skills to pull it off anyway.
Watch closely for the future.
I'd hate for her pretty scales to get splattered with blood from doing it hands-on.
Unlike my initial plan of just stirring up minor confusion, by the time Left-i had turned the entire Black Market into a total mess, we spotted a woman hiding in a corner.
She'd concealed her presence pretty well, but tough luck—wrong opponent.
It wasn't quite my full detection senses, but still sharp enough to catch her easily.
Left-i zeroed in and approached her swiftly.
He'd pretended to wander off far away, then snuck right behind her—kinda nasty.
No wonder people called it a bad personality.
[Technically, Left-i is 'me' too. So the bad personality is ours.]
I quietly ignored Right-i's deadpan remark.
I hoped Rue wouldn't pick up this habit...
Left-i handled the newly discovered woman much like the others.
With an innocent grin that didn't fit the situation at all, he locked eyes with her.
Backed by her shrill scream echoing through the room, in just a moment more, her personality would shatter completely.
Then she'd wander the Black Market like the rest—zombie-like.
"H-Huh... P-Please... s-spare me... p-please..."
"Not planning to kill you or anything? Just fiddling with your head a bit. No worries!"
"Ah... A-Ahh..."
I listened to Left-i and the woman's exchange without much emotion when suddenly a voice came from the smartphone she'd dropped.
'Calling for backup?'
Depending on who was on the line, this could get annoying.
The moment that thought crossed my mind, the voice from the receiver made me snatch back control of the body in a hurry.
[Hey—? I was in the middle of having fun! What the hell, you idiot—!]
Left-i complained loudly as he was shoved back into the mental realm, but I had something to check first.
Thankfully, the woman still had her sense of self intact.
"Hm. Good thing."
"Ah—?"
Her dazed eyes and dumb mutterings suggested instability, but for someone who'd nearly had her personality obliterated, this was decent.
Her mind was a mess right now from the stirring, but with a little tweaking on my end and some time, she'd recover naturally.
"Association hunter, huh."
I glanced at the receiver calling her Yoon Ha-yang, then at the smartphone on the floor.
After a brief deliberation, I handed control back to Left-i.
"You snatch it away whenever you want! Planning to make me work again?!"
[She'll make a fine card to play. Just bring her to where she can hold a conversation.]
Left-i grumbled but, as always, carried out the task properly.
Though he always overdid it a bit.
In the end, with Left-i's adjustments, Yoon Ha-yang recovered enough for normal talk.
It was tough work, leaving him grumpy, but Rue's wide-eyed fascination made him shrug it off like it was nothing.
So predictable—in a good way.
Once conversation was possible, I grilled Yoon Ha-yang Hunter on various things.
A short Q&A revealed quite a bit.
'Looks like the Association wasn't just sitting idle.'
Yoon Ha-yang was a B-rank hunter under the Association, dispatched on orders from the Association President's secretary, Hwang Seok-ho, to monitor Japan's Black Market.
Due to circumstances, she was alone—no large-scale surveillance—but she'd been prepped to call in reinforcements if needed. Not bad.
'At least the President isn't completely rotten.'
I didn't think the Association President was purely innocent, but he was clearly better than the other Association and government scum who pretended ignorance.
'Meeting Yoon Ha-yang is a huge stroke of luck.'
Not planned, but I'd snagged a valuable long-term pawn.
No immediate plans to clash with the Association, but with direct access to the President's right-hand man via Yoon Ha-yang, her utility was endless.
She could siphon useful Association intel anytime, and if conflict arose later, she'd make a perfect dagger.
After wrapping up the talk, I gave Yoon Ha-yang a few orders.
First: falsify her report on this incident.
Essential to hide my identity.
The false report claimed this raid was retaliation by Zhang Wei's hunters, during which they'd confirmed Ichijo's betrayal.
No truth from start to finish—just a dash of Ichijo details for credibility.
I'd planned to pin everything on Zhang Wei's side anyway, so no need for extra evidence.
Of course, other survivors would expose the lie, but no worries there.
I'd never intended to leave any.
A few more orders, but nothing urgent.
Basically, resume normal life as before—report only when useful info surfaced.
With Yoon Ha-yang nodding obediently, I moved to finish up, bringing her along.
Three S-rank guards confirmed in the Black Market.
Left-i took one early; another was down.
One S-rank left, deep underground by presence.
Hiding from the chaos?
Then Toda spoke quietly.
"There's a warehouse underground. All goods traded here are stored there."
I let out a soft exclamation at Toda's explanation.
Did I bring an item bag?
Followed Toda to the underground warehouse.
The Black Market's deepest bottom level.
Passed intact hunters and customers en route, but didn't bother striking first.
Unless they escaped, I'd bury the whole building later.
"Here."
Toda spoke before a thick-looking door.
Even without his words, the presences inside gave it away.
"About nine in total."
S-rank plus eight A-ranks.
Impressive they'd held this force despite the upstairs mayhem.
Japan's hunter power was superior, population aside.
If Japan packed this punch, what about China's 1.4 billion?
Excluding SS-ranks as a different league, their total hunter force must rival the US for number one.
'No immediate clash with China, so whatever.'
Approached the door.
Made from labyrinth-mined ore—extremely tough.
No ordinary attack would dent it.
'This body's limitations compared to my true form make brute force tough.'
High-power magic inevitable to breach, but overdo mana and risk damaging goods beyond.
Needed precise control.
Fire magic best over poison or water—and Right-i handled fire.
"Hungry..."
Handed control; Right-i's usual whine made me uneasy, but no big worry.
Right-i seemed unreliable normally, but delivered when it counted.
More trustworthy than Left-i, in several ways.
[What—?! Done talking?! You saying I'm worse than that guy?! You stupid shithead...!]
Ignored Left-i's hysterical ringing in my head, as always.
Right-i, do your thing.
"Beef after."
Sell these goods inside, and could I not treat my Right-i to meat?
Eat your fill—no worries.
Right-i then showed unprecedented mana finesse, dialing power perfectly.
So masterful, even I—and Left-i—were quietly impressed.
[Th-That guy...! No way! That glutton can do that control?! Lies! Lies—!]
Left-i's denial bordered on breakdown, but matched my own surprise.
BOOM—!!!
With Right-i's precise mana, the thick door shattered cleanly.
Beyond, hunters stared blankly our way.
Stunned faces—fair enough.
We were shocked too, for different reasons.
He'd outdone himself more than against Charlotte. Felt a bit bad.
"Tch...! One enemy! Take him down!"
Their daze broke as the S-rank barked orders.
Panicked A-ranks recovered and charged seamlessly.
Long-honed teamwork—impressive flow.
I admitted admiration.
Not very threatening, though.
"Kyaa—!"
"Hashina-sen...!"
"Yoko! Focus on the fight! No time to—! Gaaak!"
"Hotaru! Nagasaki!"
"Kyaaa—!"
Eight A-ranks rushed; half down in a blink.
S-rank gaped at the instant carnage.
"This... idiot..."
S-rank charged, skill-fueled blazing katana swinging—true S-rank power.
My durability meant no need to dodge.
Clang—
Impossible sound for blade-on-skin.
Grieving A-ranks mid-charge, even the S-rank attacker—all froze staring.
Tiny scratch, some blood—not fatal.
Just a graze.
Worth all the durability grinding.
Not intentional, but still.
Thanks, Snow.
"I-Impossible..."
Snatched a mumbling A-rank's throat.
Fight ongoing—no mercy for recovery.
Locked eyes lightly; hurled the dead hunter at others.
They scrambled late, but synergy and spirit gone.
They'd seen the gap with their own eyes.
That overwhelming? They'd give up.
I understood, but no mercy.
Hated quitting without trying, winless or not.
Seemed useful; planned to brainwash with Toda.
Now... useless.
Mopping up demoralized foes was easy.
Including the defiant S-rank: done in three minutes flat.
Not even three-minute curry.
Terribly boring.