Chapter 445: Lustful Search (8)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 445: Lustful Search (8)
Justification.
It is one of the most crucial elements in making your case to another person.
The same holds true for negotiations.
It becomes even more necessary when you've made an offer the other party finds incomprehensible, just like now.
“You must be puzzled. What I’ve just said must sound like the group has decided to cast out Hunter Kim Tae-yang.”
“…Is that not the case?”
Kim Do-jin asked back, his expression full of disbelief.
Im So-young’s trait was truly extraordinary.
Her value would skyrocket, especially when pulling some kind of scheme at the corporate level.
Losing such a talent would be a tremendous loss.
But what if they had to cast out an S-rank Hunter to keep her?
‘Of course, protecting the S-rank is the right move.’
Where there’s a will, there’s a way.
Looking at the bottom line, a rare trait and an S-rank Hunter are no different.
If you wanted to, if you put in the effort, you could find a resource to replace either one.
Especially for a place with deep pockets like the Sejin Group.
The only difference was the difficulty of the process.
Finding a new talent with a transformation-related trait was several times easier than finding a replacement for an S-rank Hunter.
This was precisely why Kim Do-jin was suspicious of Park Se-jun’s intentions.
Noticing this, he continued.
“Even for an S-rank who has committed murder, the decision to cast them out is not an easy one. It was the same for us. If necessary, we were prepared to mobilize all our connections in the legal world to lighten his sentence and somehow keep him with us.”
“But it seems you’ve had a change of heart?”
At Kim Do-jin’s question, Park Se-jun nodded with a heavy expression.
“Yes, that’s right. Because we learned that the murder Hunter Kim Tae-yang committed… was no ordinary murder.”
“……”
“Hunter Kim Do-jin, you must have seen it as well. The woman’s corpse, completely shriveled up.”
Since they had attempted to cover up the incident, they too must have seen Jo Yeon-hee’s desiccated corpse.
This in itself suggested a certain possibility.
The possibility that this wasn't an accidental killing, but a premeditated murder with some other hidden purpose.
Park Se-jun continued.
“I believe Hunter Kim Tae-yang committed this murder for a specific purpose. That is why we intend to cut ties with him.”
“…I see.”
His story was plausible enough.
If it was a premeditated murder and not an accidental slip-up, then even the reputation of an S-rank becomes useless.
Because an Awakened Being who systematically kills people is, from that point on, called a Villain.
Therefore, the Sejin Group’s decision was perfectly rational.
And their attitude of using this situation to gain even a small extra benefit was admirable.
Furthermore, if they helped capture Kim Tae-yang, they could use it as a shield if the Sejin Group’s name ever came up in the news, claiming, ‘We actually helped them.’
‘This is a textbook example of cutting someone loose.’
It was clear the offer would be beneficial to me.
After all, if an S-rank Hunter protected by a major corporation decided to hide, it would take a long time to find him.
‘Considering the worst-case scenario, it’s best not to drag this out.’
Jo Yeon-hee’s shriveled corpse kept bothering me.
‘He might be up to something truly monstrous.’
Back in the chaotic early days, all sorts of Villains ran rampant.
Among them was a serial killer who had murdered over 300 people.
His Villain name was ‘Vampire.’
It was said that every one of his victims’ bodies was shriveled up like a mummy.
The reason was his trait.
‘Blood Absorption, was it?’
I heard it was a trait that made him stronger the more blood he absorbed.
And that human blood was the most efficient, which is why he resorted to murder.
He is still alive.
Though he’s been serving a 25-year sentence in the world’s worst prison, a place reserved for only the most heinous Villains.
In any case, Kim Do-jin was also considering the possibility of a similar crime.
Therefore, the sooner he was captured, the better.
‘I shouldn’t overthink this.’
I pushed aside the complex thoughts and focused on one thing.
Capturing Kim Tae-yang.
“I accept your offer. On one condition: you’ll only release her when you’ve provided me with sufficient help.”
I couldn’t just let a dangerous woman go free after receiving some half-assed assistance.
Park Se-jun readily nodded in agreement.
“Of course.”
The two then discussed the finer details.
One of which was that Park Se-jun would act as a witness to prove that Kim Tae-yang had killed Jo Yeon-hee.
They would coordinate their stories to say that he had been asked to help cover up the crime but had quickly backed out.
Of course, even that would cause the Sejin Group’s image to hit rock bottom for a while, but it couldn’t be helped.
Kim Tae-yang had caused a major incident, and it was largely their fault for failing to contain it early on.
After they finished their discussion, where both sides gave what they had to give and took what they could get.
“Then, as soon as we pinpoint Hunter Kim Tae-yang’s location, I will contact you immediately.”
“Time is of the essence. Please be as quick as possible.”
“I will.”
After their talk, Park Se-jun left the Association building, got into his waiting car, and let out a deep breath as he roughly loosened the tie constricting his neck.
“Hoo…”
As expected, Kim Do-jin was not an easy opponent.
No, he was sharper and more tenacious than I’d anticipated.
But each time, I managed to parry his points and successfully closed the deal.
Now, only one thing remained.
He immediately called one of his subordinates.
“The sacrifices, how many are left?”
-There are six left.
“Six… That’s much faster than I thought.”
-It seems the S-rank Hunter is absorbing more energy than we anticipated.
“Is that so? Well, that’s good. Call Kim Do-jin when there are about two left. Make sure he gets a good view of the scene.”
-Yes, understood.
After ending the call, he thought to himself.
‘…Still, I need to fill the empty spot. Who should I get?’
One person came to mind.
Kim Do-jin, the man who had just given him such a hard time.
He would be more than enough to fill Kim Tae-yang’s vacant position.
Of course, recruiting him wouldn’t be easy… but I don’t think I’ll fail.
Because no red-blooded man could possibly refuse the things I have to offer.
“I’ll have to arrange a meeting soon.”
His nimble tongue darted out wickedly before sliding back into his mouth.
* * *
Contrary to my expectation that it would take a few days, the call from the Sejin Group came sooner than I thought.
They gave me a location in Gapyeong, Gyeonggi Province.
Apparently, there was a villa there that the Sejin Group had built for Kim Tae-yang.
A secret villa, one that was normally concealed by magic so it wouldn’t be noticed by others.
When I asked why on earth they would build such a villa, they just mumbled and evaded the question.
“It’s obvious they built it to get up to all sorts of depraved shit.”
Park Se-jun and Kim Tae-yang.
Both were notorious womanizers, second to none.
They probably invited all kinds of women there and threw orgies.
After receiving the exact address, I immediately coordinated with the Association and headed for Gapyeong.
When I arrived at the address, all I found was a barren clearing carved out of the side of a mountain.
But I could see it.
The luxurious mansion and its entrance, hidden behind a massive amount of mana.
To reveal it to everyone, I immediately gathered my mana and cast a spell.
「Dispel.」
I precisely reversed the flow of the surrounding mana, completely shattering the spell’s effect.
An astonishingly large mansion then appeared in the barren clearing.
I quickly snapped the astonished Association staff back to their senses and gave my orders.
“First, surround the mansion. Mages, check for any hidden passages. The rest of you, follow me inside to begin the search.”
The melee-type Hunters moved quickly to surround the large residence, while the mages took turns using detection magic to check for hidden passages.
I took a small team and headed straight for the mansion’s front door.
“It’s locked. Should we break it down?”
“No, wait a moment.”
The lock on the door was an electronic keypad, a type that wasn’t commonly used anymore.
Of course, it wasn’t an ordinary keypad lock.
It was a nasty piece of work that would unleash a built-in attack spell if you entered the wrong password too many times.
I entered the password I’d received along with the address.
Beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep!
[Authentication complete.]
The door opened with a stiff, mechanical sound.
As I carefully turned the handle and stepped inside, a strange smell tickled my nose.
Sniff, sniff.
What is this smell?
It was sweet overall, with a sharp, sour tang at the end.
It felt familiar, like I’d smelled it somewhere before, yet it was also foreign.
I followed the source of the smell with the Association staff.
One step, then another.
“Ugh… what is that smell?”
The smell grew stronger the deeper we went inside.
At the end of a long hallway.
A faint light was leaking from under a set of double doors.
Sharpening my senses, I could hear faint noises coming from the room.
“Heh… heheh…”
A man’s laughter.
“Aargh…!”
And a woman’s pained moan.
“……”
I stopped walking cautiously and closed the distance in a burst of speed, then violently threw the doors open.
CRASH!
A horrific scene unfolded before me.
Under the faint red light.
On a wide bed, Kim Tae-yang was shuddering as if he had just reached his climax.
At that moment, the woman beneath him, who had been letting out pained moans, choked.
“Gack… Kahak…!”
Crackle!
Bright red mana began to pour out of the woman’s body.
Simultaneously, her body rapidly shriveled.
Kim Tae-yang laughed, perched atop the woman who had died without even letting out a final scream.
“Heh, heheh… Yes, this is it…!”
Red mana swirled violently around the body of the man laughing like a lunatic.
The same color as the mana that had just drained from the woman’s body.
My fears had become reality.
Kim Tae-yang was gaining power by killing women through some unknown method.
And he was doing it through sexual murder—the worst method imaginable.
After absorbing all the red mana that had just been released, the bastard shrugged and muttered something.
“It’s fine… Heheh, I just have to save people, right? I’ll just save a hundred times—no, a thousand times more people than I’ve killed…!”
Khuhuhuhu!
“…You crazy bastard.”
Rage boiled inside me at the sight of him rationalizing his sins in such a preposterous way.
And that rage made the surrounding mana boil.
[Domain of the Ruler has been activated.]
A world of my own, clearly defined.
It was dyed red, covered in my fury.
FWOOSH!
The surging inferno born from it engulfed Kim Tae-yang without warning.
KWAAANG!