The Broker's Bloody Routine
The early morning sun began to peek over the horizon.
The howls that had echoed through the area all night had finally quieted down.
Na Yeon-seong, who had been guarding the factory entrance, cautiously shifted his position.
Na Yeon-seong opened the thick iron door of the factory. And at the same moment, he wrinkled his nose in disgust.
His subordinates, who had followed him in to clean up, hurriedly covered their mouths.
A few latecomers were already dry-heaving with "Urk!"
"...This is... impressive."
All that was visible was blood, blood, and more blood.
The inside of the abandoned factory was drenched in crimson from floor to ceiling.
In the midst of it all sat chunks of mangled meat, thoroughly pulverized. And in front of them, a man sat quietly.
Na Yeon-seong carefully schooled his expression.
He slowly approached the man.
Na Yeon-seong's subordinates hurriedly moved to start the cleanup.
The man, who had been indifferently watching the subordinates begin their work, glanced back at Na Yeon-seong as he drew near.
Na Yeon-seong bowed his head politely.
"Got a smoke?"
"...No. I'm a non-smoker... Shall I go fetch some if you'd like?"
The man shook his head at Na Yeon-seong's question.
"Nah, I'm a non-smoker too."
"...Then why?"
"There's this guy who always says he has a smoke at the end after jobs like this."
Na Yeon-seong tilted his head at the man's calm remark.
The man waved his hand lightly at Na Yeon-seong.
"It's nothing. Anyway, no need to bother getting any."
With that, the man stood up.
"What I asked for?"
"It's prepared."
Na Yeon-seong quickly pulled something from his pocket.
It was a small card—what was commonly known as a hunter license.
"Name as you specified: Yu Jun-young. Rank: C. Affiliated guild is a ghost guild with just a name registered. This will get you into the labyrinth without any issues."
"I see..."
The man nodded slowly at Na Yeon-seong's explanation, staring blankly at the hunter license in his hand.
Na Yeon-seong hurriedly added at the sight.
"If the rank doesn't please you, there's nothing to be done. From B-rank onward, the Association manages them pretty strictly. For anything higher, you'd have to visit them yourself or reveal your identity..."
"No, it's not that... The rank actually suits me fine."
"...Then?"
"Just... hits different..."
The man murmured quietly and slipped the card into his pocket.
"So, what about the one I told you to look into?"
"He rarely enters the labyrinth normally. Only goes in for jobs, and the next one's in three days."
The man nodded indifferently. Then he immediately started moving.
Na Yeon-seong hurriedly followed behind the man as he left the factory.
"I'll contact you again in three days."
"Understood... And some of the equipment you entrusted has sold."
"Quick work."
"High-grade gear is always in demand... We'll deduct what you already took and deposit the rest to the card you received."
"How much?"
"Just shy of 10 billion. Minus info fees for this job and such, about 8.6 billion."
The man walking paused briefly at Na Yeon-seong's explanation.
He resumed walking right away, but Na Yeon-seong clearly heard it.
The man's muttered "...That's a lot."
"Anything else to pass on?"
"Yes... The official business is done, but..."
"...You have more to say?"
Na Yeon-seong scratched his head under the man's glancing gaze.
"A message from the boss."
"...Lisa's?"
"Yes. She insisted you hear it."
"...Tell her no."
"...If you refuse, she said to give you her home address... And if that's no good, she's booked a nice hotel room..."
Na Yeon-seong averted his eyes from the man's renewed gaze.
He clearly didn't want to relay this either.
"...Three days. After the second job's done, I'll drop by. Tell her that."
"Yes. She'll be thrilled."
"......"
The man said no more and kept walking.
Na Yeon-seong didn't try to stop him further.
* * *
Shin Jae-jun was a professional awakening broker.
Naturally, it was illegal—something that would earn severe punishment if caught by the government or Association.
But as with the world, committing crimes doesn't always mean getting punished.
A bit of lobbying and connections could dodge it easily.
Shin Jae-jun had made a name for himself in the underworld as a criminal hunter over three years.
He mainly worked as an awakening broker, but for the right price, he'd touch any hunter crime: contract kills, kidnappings, illegal monster trafficking—you name it.
Among them, his nastiest trick was luring clueless civilians into the labyrinth with promises of awakening them.
If they made it out alive, fine—but Shin Jae-jun never planned that.
Deaths in the labyrinth didn't make big news.
Even a habitual offender like Shin Jae-jun had to enter the labyrinth often, being a hunter.
But unlike regular hunters, his reasons were quite different.
Seoul Great Labyrinth, Forest Zone, 15th floor.
Six men and women gathered in a forest clearing.
A normal raid team might be checking gear or resting, but this was Shin Jae-jun's crew.
No gear checks or breaks here.
"Sob... Hic...!"
"P-please, spare me. I beg you."
"I-I'll give you any money! Please, just let me live!"
"I have kids waiting at home! Please!"
Four civilians knelt on the ground, pleading desperately.
A hunter squatting in front of them chuckled.
"Come on, who doesn't have kids outside? I've got three myself."
"P-please, spare me! My wife's sick, the kids can't manage without me."
"Aww, such a pitiful sob story. Love it."
The chuckling hunter looked as sleazy as he sounded.
He glanced back at his boss standing behind him.
Of course, that was Shin Jae-jun.
"Boss, what about this one? Seems he's got a real desperate situation."
"Hmm."
Shin Jae-jun's gaze turned to the man with kids.
"How many kids?"
"Th-three. Three!"
"Ages?"
"One ten-year-old and six-year-old twins! My wife's sick, they won't even eat properly without me...!"
"Whew~ This guy's got a full load, boss. Wife must be a real beauty..."
Shin Jae-jun smirked at his subordinate's fussing.
"Three kids, sick wife... Gotta cost a fortune, right?"
"Y-yes! Exactly! That's why I needed money so bad, that's why I came to an awakening broker today..."
The man clamped his mouth shut mid-sentence.
He'd realized the awakening broker he'd trusted was these very men before him.
'No problem if you don't have cash now... Pay back after awakening...!'
It was all just pretty bait.
Far from guaranteed safety, they were toying with their lives right now.
"Hmm... You'll need a ton of money, then."
"Y-yes... So please... spare me."
"We haven't said we're killing you yet, have we? Right, kid?"
"Yes, boss! As if we'd carelessly harm our valued customers' lives?!"
The subordinate's booming voice echoed through the forest.
As if in response, a distant wolf howled "Awoooo!"
The three other civilians, including the man, shuddered violently.
"Don't worry, folks. I'm a B-rank hunter. Upper floors like this are nothing."
Shin Jae-jun spoke gently, as if reassuring them.
But the four civilians' faces didn't improve—they'd all seen his attitude moments ago.
His subordinate scowled at their reactions.
"Hey, you punks! Boss is talking to you! Answer him!"
"Y-yes! We b-believe you! We do!"
Even as they shouted hurriedly, the subordinate's scowl remained.
They trembled more, but Shin Jae-jun spoke up at the perfect moment.
"Hey, kid. Ease up. These are our precious customers."
"Ah, sorry, boss!"
"Apologize to the customers, not me."
"Yes sir! Sorry, customers!"
The kid bowed with a sleazy grin.
It was an apology, but felt like none at all.
"Now, back to business?"
Shin Jae-jun cut in abruptly, picking up where he'd left off.
"You all have your reasons, but one thing's the same: you're all short on cash, right?"
"......"
"Answer!"
"Y-yes sir!"
The civilians answered hastily at the subordinate's bark.
Shin Jae-jun nodded in satisfaction and continued.
"That's why we've got a great product for you. Loans starting at 100 million won... Interest? We'll make it nice and easy."
Shin Jae-jun pulled four sheets of paper from his item bag.
He handed them to his subordinate, who shoved them at the civilians.
"Check the terms and key points. No 'I didn't know' later."
"...Wait, this interest rate..."
"Hmm?"
The woman about to speak shut her mouth under Shin Jae-jun's gaze.
He smirked faintly and spoke.
"As you know, we treasure our customers. Trust us, and you'll exit safe. But... as our clients, you need paperwork to prove it."
"W-we signed when we entered!"
"Sadly, lost during the exploration. Kid here failed to manage them."
The subordinate bowed at the glance thrown his way.
"Sorry!"
Again, not a real apology.
"So, sign these—no exceptions. Oh, and we don't guarantee safety for non-clients?"
Shin Jae-jun's sly smile was pure devilish.
In the end, the four civilians signed through tears and gritted teeth.
Shin Jae-jun took the papers with a pleased grin.
"There, you each borrowed 2 billion from me. Got it?"
"T-two... 2 billion?! You said minimum 100 million!"
"I said starting at 100 million, not that the loan was 100 million."
The man finally snapped at Shin Jae-jun's innocent head-tilt.
"You... you frauds...!"
Thwack!
Even as he yelled, the subordinate punched him hard.
The hunter's strike sent the civilian tumbling far away—vastly different physiques.
The man's body convulsed on the dirt.
Screams erupted from the watchers.
"Oops... Kid, you went too hard."
"Ah, sorry, boss! He was so cocky, I slipped!"
"Eh, whatever. Got the papers."
Shin Jae-jun stowed them in his item bag and spoke lightly.
"Now kill 'em all."
"Yes, boss."
The two exchanged words casually, like routine. The three remaining civilians froze, minus the flung man.
Then, one man yelled as understanding hit.
"W-wait! K-kill?! You guaranteed customer safety!"
"Hmm?"
Shin Jae-jun glanced at him.
The very man with three kids and sick wife.
"Didn't you hear what he said?"
"Pardon...?"
Shin Jae-jun pointed at the convulsing man.
"He called me a fraud."
"...Yes?"
Shin Jae-jun chuckled at the man's blank stare.
"Still don't get it, huh, idiot? You got played."
"You... youuu...!"
The furious man charged; Shin Jae-jun shoved him lightly aside.
He rolled limply.
"Your families will cover the debt. Principal and interest, don't worry. Oh, it'll be billed as money you received."
With that, Shin Jae-jun turned away. Curses and sobs exploded from the civilians.
He ignored them, turning his back coldly.
Just like that day three years ago.
And...
-Shaaaa───!!!