A Psychotic Friend and a Ten-Million-Won Commission
Shortly after sending Gwang-ui the message, Kang Hyuk slipped out of the PC bang. Since he had provided the exact coordinates of the corpses, he expected the three bodies to vanish in less than a day.
Still, just to be safe, I should go check on them tomorrow night. Who knows? I might run into the Witch of Seduction again. Organizing his thoughts, Kang Hyuk hailed a taxi. He planned to find a spacious, secluded empty lot today to practice with his newly acquired skills.
The following evening.
Kang Hyuk wrapped up his target practice in the empty lot and holstered his weapon. He had a task to attend to tonight: verifying whether Gwang-ui, the B-class villain, had properly disposed of the three corpses.
If Gwang-ui hadn't taken care of them, Kang Hyuk would have to do it himself. That was why his backpack currently contained sharp blades for dismembering corpses and heavy-duty plastic bags to pack them in.
"That'll be 22,300 won, sir."
"...Here."
A short while later, Kang Hyuk arrived at his destination and headed straight for the alley where he had hidden the bodies. Even though two days had passed since he left them there, there was no smell of decay. That was only natural, considering he had frozen them solid with his frost bullets.
"...Oh."
After walking down the alleyway for about ten minutes, Kang Hyuk finally reached the spot where he had dumped the bodies. A faint smile played on his lips. He scanned the area, and sure enough, the corpses had vanished without a trace.
Gwang-ui really is the real deal. Only then did Kang Hyuk let out a sigh of relief. With G-Force Man's body gone without a trace, the authorities wouldn't suspect he had been murdered for a very long time. The perfect crime was finally complete.
"...Excuse me."
Right at that moment, a voice suddenly echoed from behind him. Startled, Kang Hyuk whipped out his revolver in a flash. The owner of the voice was an elderly man wearing oversized glasses and a pristine white doctor's gown.
"Who are you?"
"I should be asking you that. Are you the one who sent the message?"
The old man strode toward him. Kang Hyuk raised his gun, aiming it directly between the man's eyes.
"Stop right there. Don't take another step."
"Why? Are you going to shoot me?"
"Do I look like I'm joking?"
Click!
Kang Hyuk rested his finger on the revolver's trigger. The old man stared at him quietly before stopping in his tracks, realizing he had no choice.
"Very well. Let us talk from here, then."
"What is your identity?"
"You've already guessed it, haven't you? I am Gwang-ui."
As the old man introduced himself as Gwang-ui, Kang Hyuk's brow furrowed. His suspicion had been spot on. It seemed Gwang-ui had been waiting nearby for Kang Hyuk to return to the scene.
"Why were you waiting for me? Do you have business with me?"
"Indeed, I do. I have business with you."
"What kind of business? Are you planning to harvest my corpse next?"
Kang Hyuk's tension spiked. The B-class villain Gwang-ui was known to have relatively low combat power. But that was only when compared to other B-class villains! If a fight broke out here, Kang Hyuk's chances of survival were slim. After all, he was only Level 4.
I've only killed five people so far...! At a measly Level 4, there's no way I can defeat a B-class villain. Of course, that doesn't mean I'll go down without a fight. Kang Hyuk looked ready to fire at any second. Fortunately, his revolver was already fully loaded with frost bullets. If he aimed for Gwang-ui's legs, he could instantly freeze him in place and neutralize his movements.
"...As I thought, you are indeed the one who sent the message. Listen, I didn't come here to fight you. On the contrary, I came because I want to be friends."
When Gwang-ui suddenly raised both hands in surrender and spoke, Kang Hyuk's brow furrowed deeper. Friends? What on earth did that mean?
"What do you mean by that?"
"Exactly what I said. I don't know who you really are, but my intuition tells me you will continue to kill heroes in the future. Whether you do it intentionally or by accident, every time you kill a hero, you will desperately need a friend to clean up the mess for you. Am I wrong?"
"..."
As Gwang-ui pressed him, Kang Hyuk found himself nodding slightly without realizing it. Killing G-Force Man had been an accident. But living in this world, such accidents were bound to happen again once or twice. And every time they did, he would desperately need someone to dispose of the bodies.
"...Do we have to be friends? Can't we just keep communicating through Black Dot Com?"
"Black Dot Com's security isn't as foolproof as you might think. If we're planning to do business long-term, it's much better to establish a closer relationship from the start."
"Hmm..."
"What do you say? Will you be my friend? Whenever you end up with a hero's corpse, all you have to do is contact me, your friend. I will handle the retrieval myself. Cleanly and quietly."
Kang Hyuk weighed his options. His hesitation didn't last long. Looking at the bigger picture, forming a close alliance with Gwang-ui was undeniably beneficial.
Besides, I know Gwang-ui inside out from the game. He has zero interest in anything other than using corpses to create chimeras. Since I'm his supplier, he has no reason to put me in danger. Having cleared his doubts, Kang Hyuk holstered his revolver and extended his hand toward Gwang-ui.
"I look forward to working with you."
"Haha, the pleasure is all mine. I don't know why, but I have a feeling you're going to become a big shot in the future."
Gwang-ui grinned as he shook Kang Hyuk's hand. Up close, Gwang-ui looked like nothing more than an ordinary doctor or researcher. But his true identity was a psychotic scientist who engineered chimeras...!
Kang Hyuk let out a bitter laugh and shook his head. To think his very first friend in this world was a psychotic B-class villain... For some reason, he had a feeling his future wouldn't be smooth sailing.
"...Ah, by the way. Do you happen to take commissions?"
After they exchanged contact information, Gwang-ui suddenly popped the question. Kang Hyuk tilted his head in curiosity. "What kind of commission?"
"To be honest, there's a certain corpse I've had my eye on recently. But I've been so busy lately that I can't make the trip out there myself."
"...Don't tell me you want me to transport a corpse for you?"
Kang Hyuk frowned at Gwang-ui's words. Transporting a corpse? He was a bounty hunter, not a body courier.
"...I will pay you ten million won."
But just as Kang Hyuk was about to reject the offer, Gwang-ui pulled a thick stack of cash from his coat. Before he even realized what he was doing, Kang Hyuk's hand reached out and snatched the money. He was still desperately strapped for cash, after all.
"*Ahem.* Is it a difficult task?"
"With your skills, it shouldn't be too hard."
"How do you know anything about my skills?"
"I examined the corpses you provided quite thoroughly. Your marksmanship is superb."
"Hmm." Kang Hyuk shrugged. It made sense. If Gwang-ui had examined the bodies, he would have easily figured out how they were killed.
"At any rate, with your capabilities, you won't find this commission too burdensome. I can guarantee that much."
"Well... let's hear it first."
Upon receiving Kang Hyuk's tentative agreement, Gwang-ui began to explain the details of the commission. As he listened, Kang Hyuk's expression grew increasingly complex.
Two hours later.
Returning to his studio apartment, Kang Hyuk immediately threw himself onto the bed. Gwang-ui's commission was to safely transport the corpse of a D-class hero to Seoul. The location of the body was a cemetery in Seo-gu, Busan!
Honestly, the transport itself didn't seem too difficult. Using the high-tech duffel bag Gwang-ui had provided, no one would ever suspect he was carrying a corpse.
Yet, a lingering sense of unease tugged at the back of his mind. He couldn't put his finger on why, but he had a gut feeling that some kind of accident would occur during this mission.
"Should I back out now? But..."
Kang Hyuk stared at the stack of cash. Gwang-ui had been generous enough to pay the entire commission fee upfront as an advance. A whopping ten million won...!
Kang Hyuk was currently broke. He had spent every last penny securing a new identity after escaping the Black Dragon Society. Of course, he had earned 1.8 million won from executing Kim Juhwan, but considering the cost of living, that money wouldn't even last him two months.
"Sigh... I guess I have no choice but to take this job."
Kang Hyuk let out a long sigh. Truthfully, there was one more reason to go through with this commission: his relationship with Gwang-ui. If completing this task could bring him closer to the Mad Doctor, it would benefit him in more ways than one.
"...Ah, screw it. It's not like I'm going to die."
Having finally made up his mind to accept the commission, Kang Hyuk closed his eyes and tried to sleep. He planned to head to Busan first thing tomorrow morning.