Chapter 422: A Difference in Class (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 422: A Difference in Class (4)
The door blocked the only passage to the upper level of the Black Market.
It was the final legacy of a world-renowned inventor who had passed away ten years ago.
Its name was ‘Aden’s Legacy’.
Named to honor the great inventor, Aden, or so I’d heard.
For the record, it wasn't an officially announced invention.
His family, who had gone to his lab to sort through his belongings after his death, were the ones who discovered the completed door.
It stood as an obstacle, blocking their way into the lab.
There are a lot of complicated stories that followed, but they aren't important right now, so I'll skip them.
When it comes to being difficult, this door is more finicky than the matriarch of a clan’s head family.
Its security was practically impenetrable, with a near-infinite number of mana patterns.
It possessed an extreme durability that couldn't be scratched by any tool.
Those two features alone made it incredibly difficult to deal with, but on top of that, it had a ‘reflection’ function that returned any attack directed at it in full. This addition made it a being that surpassed even the most demanding matriarch.
For reference, as long as the door had enough mana charged, it could even reflect an attack from an S-rank Hunter.
This door was one of the reasons they had planned to slowly wear down the Hexagram members isolated on the upper level.
Since those bastards had decided to hole themselves up, they would have surely stocked up on mana stones. It was considered impossible to break through that door in a short period.
“You can… open that door?”
Han Ju-hee asked, her expression full of disbelief, as if it were impossible. I answered her.
“Yes, I can.”
A door that difficult was, in fact, no obstacle to me at all.
Hadn't I already stolen the mana pattern of Korea's Black Market upper level and broken through?
The reason I had quietly gone along with their plan was that I didn't want to reveal that fact.
Aden's Legacy wasn't just installed in the Black Market; it was in the homes of most wealthy individuals.
With so much to own and so much to hide, they needed their doors to be sturdy.
In other words, for those who cared about security, that door was practically a necessity.
Now, imagine if I suddenly declared, ‘That door is just a lump of scrap metal in front of me.’
Things I can't even begin to imagine would start happening all over the place.
“…How can you open it?”
Her next question followed.
A very good question.
I knew you, or someone, would ask that, so I’d already cooked up a suitable excuse.
I took a card out of my pocket, showed it to them, and answered.
“This is a card I obtained this morning while cleaning up the remaining forces.”
“Is that… don’t tell me?”
Han Ju-hee looked up at me with wide eyes.
“Yes, that’s right. It’s a card with the mana pattern for the upper level embedded in it.”
At that, she shouted, her face pale.
“…The mana pattern was changed after we attacked the Black Market. There’s a high chance that card is useless now.”
“No, that’s not the case.”
“What did you say…?”
When I shook my head and refuted her, Han Ju-hee’s expression hardened.
Those bastards had been meticulous.
The moment we attacked the Black Market, they changed the mana pattern of the door to the upper level.
Thanks to that, all the cards carried by the members we mopped up became useless.
The card I picked up was no exception.
Just as she said, this card was useless.
But… I just had to make it useful, didn't I?
“Actually, I asked the Saintess for a favor and tried using this card before the meeting started.”
After a brief pause, the Minister of National Defense looked up at me, his eyes filled with hope, and asked.
“Did it open?”
“Yes, it did.”
“Oh… my goodness!”
Of course, that was a lie.
I hadn't even been near the entrance to the upper level, let alone used the card.
Han Ju-hee, her face ashen at the appearance of a usable card, asked desperately.
“How is that possible? All the other cards became useless, so how could that one….”
I had anticipated this question as well.
To be honest, I was in a bit of a tight spot for an answer here.
So I decided to be a little shameless.
“…How would I know?”
Frankly, it would be weirder if I knew that much.
I just picked it up off the ground and checked if it worked. If I knew any more than that, I’d be a spy.
To defend myself from increasingly pointed questions, I changed the subject.
“The important thing is that we have obtained a card that opens the door to the upper level, and with it, a surprise attack is now possible.”
I waved the glossy black card for all to see and added my final words.
“In this situation, what will you all do?”
Now, choose.
Will you keep sitting around here until you get blindsided and crushed?
Or will you launch a swift surprise attack, clean things up, and go home to kick back and relax?
Which choice was more popular… was so obvious I didn't even need to count.
* * *
The upper level of the Black Market.
Those who had isolated themselves there were living quite comfortably.
The area had been built to target the upper-class clientele who frequented the Black Market in the first place.
It went without saying that the environment was pleasant, and thanks to the supplies they had stockpiled, they never had to worry about going hungry.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
CRASH!
“Ah, those bastards are at it again.”
“They can hit it all day long, see if it breaks.”
“Idiots.”
Even when they heard the sounds of attack from outside, they didn't feel particularly afraid.
They knew very well how sturdy the walls and the barrier surrounding the upper level were.
The barrier, in particular, was not from the Black Market, but was Hexagram's technology.
Knowing the brilliant credentials of the researchers belonging to the organization, the sounds of attack from outside just seemed like a futile effort, which they found amusing.
Though they lacked for nothing, such is human nature.
When it’s not that you won’t leave, but that you can’t, even the best environment starts to feel suffocating.
“When are they supposed to get here?”
“I don’t know. Last I heard, it would take about a fortnight.”
“Sigh… still a long way to go.”
They had chosen to isolate themselves because they had an ace up their sleeve.
Reinforcements from their organization, coming across the sea from China.
The plan was that as soon as they arrived, the forces here would also push out, turn the tables on the surrounding enemies, and annihilate them. After that, they would resume the stalled occupation of China.
They were just waiting for that day to come, enduring a slightly boring life on the upper level.
Beep-beep-beep!
Clunk!
Ruuuumble…!
Suddenly, didn't the door that blocked the only passage to the outside begin to open?
A member who saw it shouted in a flustered voice.
“Uh, uhhh… why is it suddenly opening?”
“What the— no one said anything about anyone coming in.”
“We-we have to tell everyone…!”
Just as those who sensed something was amiss were about to turn back.
Crackle!
Two streaks of light shot out from the gap of the not-yet-fully-opened door and struck them squarely in the forehead.
“Guuaaah…!”
“Grrrrrrrk…!?”
Lightning Bolt.
The elementary magic, imbued with the power of an intermediate-level spell, neutralized them in an instant.
The person who stepped through the now-open door was Kim Do-jin.
Of course, he wasn't alone.
“We push in fast!”
“Let’s go!”
The Hunters who followed behind him scattered at high speed.
By now, the leadership would have learned that the upper-level door had been opened and that the enemy had invaded.
Their goal was to subdue as many as possible before they could sound the alarm.
“Wh-what the hell are these guys!”
“How did you get in… Keuk!”
“Fuck!”
The once-peaceful upper level of the Black Market instantly turned into a scene of chaos.
Those who had been flustered by the sudden appearance of the Hunters slowly regained their senses and began to fight back.
And just like that, the tide of battle, which had been in their favor, quickly became an even match.
“…They’re definitely not just a bunch of nobodies.”
I had expected it, but those isolated on the upper level were all what you would call elites.
You could tell just by how quickly they collected themselves and launched sharp counterattacks.
Among them, there were some whose movements were even sharper.
“It’s obviously them.”
The members of Hexagram.
They were the enemies Kim Do-jin would have to face himself.
He blocked the path of two members who were pushing back the surrounding Hunters.
The moment one of them met Kim Do-jin’s eyes, his face contorted.
“Kim Do-jin…!”
“Oh, you know me?”
Ignoring Kim Do-jin’s curious question, the man spoke to the member beside him.
“…Contact Lord Agwi. Tell him Kim Do-jin is here.”
“Agwi…?”
What’s this?
Sounds like a name that would be very good at seeing through tricks.
One of them slipped away to make contact, while the other stood in Kim Do-jin’s way.
It seemed his plan was to buy time until this Agwi person arrived.
A commendable effort, but it wasn't very impressive.
“It’ll be tough for you alone.”
“You’re getting arrogant just because you’re a kid who’s doing well.”
The man, who had daggers strapped to his thighs, drew them with both hands and charged with a vicious smile.
“Our organization is overflowing with fighters of your caliber…!”
CRACK!
“Kahaak…!?”
As the man charged forward with great momentum, I slammed my hand into the back of his neck, felling him, and then muttered.
“If your organization was overflowing with fighters of my caliber, you would have conquered the universe by now, not just the world.”
What kind of nonsense was he spouting?
Just as I was about to turn my gaze outward to find my next opponent.
“Found you…!”
Some guy came flying over the rooftops and landed in front of him.
A bone-thin man wearing a black beanie.
He was so gaunt his cheekbones jutted out, making him look pitiful just to look at.
But his aura was incredible.
It would be an insult to compare him to the member I had just faced.
‘He seems kind of familiar…?’
Feeling a sense of déjà vu from the unfamiliar enemy, he asked.
“Are you Agwi?”
To which the opponent replied.
“Hiccup!?”
“……”
It was an extraordinary reaction.