Baek Seonghyeon's Resolve
A café near the workshop.
“Isn’t that the Guui-dong Necromancer?”
“Whoa. Looks like he really does live in our neighborhood.”
“He’s even better-looking in person.”
Thanks to the Heavenly Martial Body, my senses had grown razor-sharp. Every sidelong glance from the other customers registered clearly.
“I’m sorry. I should have arranged a quieter place to meet.”
Director Baek Seonghyeon bowed his head deeply. Why did this man fold himself at a perfect right angle the moment he saw someone?
“It’s fine.”
Renting out an entire café just to talk once was the strange part.
Cubics – Built-in Skill: Silence Barrier
Mana leaked from the fist-sized cubic item. A wave of power roughly three meters across locked the flow of air in place.
“No one else will be able to overhear us.”
【What a crude method. Even with my current abilities, I could pierce it in five seconds.】
Shh. Don’t say that out loud.
“About what you said on the phone earlier…”
“As of yesterday, I have submitted my resignation to the Chilseong Guild.”
Sir. You’re moving way too fast.
Director Baek Seonghyeon recounted what had happened at yesterday’s Chilseong board meeting. The matter of Jung Shinho’s transfer. How the guild had marked him as the scapegoat.
Isra seethed.
【Their ways are those of pure merchants!】
Yeah. Merchants is right. If you’re the chairman of the country’s largest conglomerate, you’re in the business of selling things, aren’t you? You’re not the president or a member of the National Assembly.
Still… discarding the hunting dog once the rabbits are caught.
“Wow. Chilseong really is awful.”
“Hunter. Judging after hearing only my side of the story is not a good habit.”
Grrr. I’m taking your side here, sir. Don’t make it difficult.
“The official announcement will come out tomorrow.”
“Are you all right, Director?”
“They may pin the responsibility on me, but Chilseong will not mention me too deeply.”
If they highlighted Director Baek’s responsibility too much, it would ultimately be like spitting in the face of the Chilseong Guild itself. So they would only brush over it lightly for the sake of appearances.
“No. I meant, are you all right in your heart?”
“Pardon?”
“You know. The company you poured your entire youth into cast you aside.”
Director Baek opened his mouth with an “Ah—” and chewed on his words several times.
“Well now. You’re right. Yes. I am not all right.”
It was like tossing a stone into still water. The face of a man who rarely showed strong emotion twisted.
“I received a sum of money ordinary people could never touch in a lifetime. And yet I dislike it.”
Take 5 billion won and retire versus keep going to work. The kind of debate that would rage across the internet. A former high-ranking figure from Chilseong would choose the latter if he could.
“So that’s why you want to work with me?”
“I did say I would contact you again if I ever lost my job.”
That was a joke, though.
Sssk—
The contract was pushed toward me once more. I calmly read through the contents.
“Party A and Party B have switched places?”
“If we approach this as an agency, Hunter Park is Party A.”
Nice. This was the first time my name had sat in the Party A position on a contract.
Setting aside the finer details and picking out only the major points:
—Contract fee: 5,000,000,000
—Agency fee: 11,750 per hour / to be readjusted annually based on performance
—Contract period: 5 years
That was roughly it.
There was one odd part, though.
“Isn’t that the minimum wage for the fee?”
“For the first year, yes.”
The performance-based readjustment section was buried under a mountain of complicated language. Preferred gate contracts, settlement timing after gate clearances, and so on. Even with the incentives factored in, it would only come out a little higher than an ordinary office worker’s salary. That was the problem. Was it really all right to hire someone for this kind of money?
“This is to show you my resolve.”
“Five billion is the money you received as severance, isn’t it?”
“Yes.”
“If you give me all of that, how will you fund the agency?”
“You need not worry. I have managed to set aside a fair amount on my own.”
No. That’s not the point. You’re saying you’ll scrape together every last bit of capital to support me, right? How am I supposed to not worry!
“You need not stamp the seal right away. Consider the first month a free trial. I will work without pay.”
Hold on. This man’s eyes had gone wild.
Strange. Lately everyone I met seemed to have their eyes flipped inside out, and I couldn’t figure out why.
【You have captured my heart, I, Isra’s, so you are indeed a man of demonic charm.】
【Hoho. This maiden too feels she might fall for Master.】
You two were caught against your will, crying the whole way.
“But with your career, Director, couldn’t you transfer somewhere else right away?”
“Yes. Among the domestic top five I would be guaranteed a department-head level post, and below that the same director position.”
If he turned his gaze overseas, even better conditions would be plentiful. Abroad he would be free of the responsibility narrative and could demand better terms—that was Director Baek’s explanation.
“There must be plenty of better offers. I’m curious why you want to work with me.”
I wasn’t trying to drive down his price or negotiate. I was genuinely curious. Even after a major fall, this was a man with the strength to stand back up. He didn’t even need to work. With 5 billion he could buy a building, collect rent, and live out the rest of his days in leisure. So why was he trying to work with me with those flipped eyes?
Until this question was resolved, I would have to think carefully about working with a former high-ranking figure from Chilseong.
“Now that I am unemployed, I want to care for Korea’s greatest hunter with my own hands.”
In other words… you’re certain I will become Korea’s greatest hunter?
“Yes. When Hunter Park becomes the best, it will also prove that Chilseong was wrong.”
“Is this about revenge?”
“It is the place where I poured my youth. I have no desire to see it ruined.”
He was betting everything he held in his hands, yet claimed it was not revenge. Director Baek’s feelings did not quite land for me.
【He seeks to prove that he himself was not wrong.】
Prove? What?
【That he was not wrong. Through his actions.】
Hmm. I half understood and half didn’t. My head grasped a little of what she meant, but it did not quite reach my heart.
“May I think it over a bit?”
“Of course. You should hear what the other guilds have to say as well before deciding.”
Whew. Knowing I did not have to decide on the spot eased my mind.
“Even so, I will handle agency work for you as a free trial.”
“All right.”
Fine, fine. If he was going to clean up after me, I would accept it with good grace.
“May I make one request?”
“If it’s something I can do.”
“The hunters who accompanied you in the Challenging Realm.”
“Ah. They’re not exactly acquaintances.”
“That is fine. I intend to invite them to take charge of dedicated support.”
“Support for me, you mean?”
“Yes.”
Leaving Chilseong had rendered most of his existing network useless. He wanted to raise the hunters who had ridden along in the Challenging Realm into dedicated support staff.
Hmm. Well, we hadn’t signed a formal contract yet, so I would let him do as he pleased.
“Here they are.”
“Thank you. I will do my utmost to win Hunter Park’s complete satisfaction.”
The posture carried genuine sincerity. At the same time, I could feel his confidence that after a month of management I would definitely choose him.
The next day.
As soon as morning arrived, articles representing the Chilseong Guild’s position poured out.
“Tch.”
For some reason my mouth tasted bitter. The silver lining was that the comments did not heap heavy abuse on a certain executive B (Baek Seonghyeon).
【Fortunate, that.】
“That lunatic made such a huge mess.”
He had taken money and transferred to China, then dumped blame and abuse on the Rift Authority. Arguing over Director Baek’s rights and wrongs had lost most of its meaning. More precisely, people simply weren’t interested.
【Then there is no reason to dismiss him, is there?】
“It means they refuse to leave even the slightest room for responsibility.”
Corporate tail-cutting was famous, after all.
Bzzzt— bzzzt—
Making phone calls first thing in the morning must be his job.
“I’ve got the call.”
—Good morning, Hunter Park.
“Are you all right?”
—Ah. I’m fine. People aren’t particularly interested in my story anyway, are they?
Even after hearing the news of his own dismissal, his voice carried not the slightest hint of displeasure. That surprised me.
—You plan to clear a gate today, correct?
“That was the idea, but…”
—I contacted the Rift Authority and secured clearance rights for one C-rank and one D-rank.
What? Already?
“But why a C-rank…?”
—You defeated a ghoul during the break, did you not?
“I did.”
—With Hunter Park’s abilities, clearing a C-rank should pose no problem.
“I might decide not to go, you know.”
—You intend to check the performance of your enhanced undead, do you not?
Wait. How did he know that?
I had already been thinking of aiming for higher-rank gates. Director Baek pinpointed my psychology so accurately it almost felt like he had mind-reading powers.
“How did you know my ability is on the undead-enhancement side?”
—You visited Blacksmith Street several times. You even set up a workshop. Combine the data and the answer comes quickly.
Wow. He had analyzed my movements and inferred that far. The former high-ranking figure from Chilseong was more skilled than I had expected.
—I will send the C-rank gate address by text.
“Ah. Yes.”
I felt as if a ghost had possessed me. What was this? Everything was prepared without me even saying a word.
The gate Director Baek had secured was about thirty minutes from my studio apartment.
“You’ve arrived.”
“Yes. Lucky that you grabbed one close to my place.”
“Luck has nothing to do with it. It is skill.”
“……”
This was also a setup for my sake? His consideration and work ethic were starting to give me chills.
A gate that even D-ranks could enter. Even so, people normally stuck to their own rank rather than challenging a higher one.
I was fine.
【Master is no ordinary hunter, after all.】
【I, Isra, shall slaughter every last enemy.】
When it came to gate clearing, I had the most reliable subordinates imaginable.
“These friends will be accompanying us as well.”
Four hunters approached with awkward expressions. The ones I had spent several days with in the Challenging Realm—or rather, the ones I had bused through it.
“Huh?”
What are you all doing here?
“Director Baek made us an offer.”
“He asked if we could help as hyung’s support.”
“Y-you’re the Guui-dong Necromancer, right?!”
Yes. That’s me.
“You contacted them right away?”
“Yes. Fortunately our intentions aligned, so they have agreed to support Hunter Park for the time being.”
From bus passengers to support staff. Not bad. They weren’t professional support hunters, but being familiar faces put me at ease.
“Then I’ll be off.”
“I wish you success.”
Crossing the blue rift, I found a corridor-type layout similar to the Living Armor one.
[Magic Soldier A]
A humanoid puppet soldier of roughly human size charged. True to a C-rank monster, it was quite fast.
“Magic soldiers are agile and strong. If you don’t destroy the core they keep moving, so it’s dangero—”
Death Space
4/10 → 3/10
【Mere dolls dare not cast killing intent upon my lord!】
Seogeogeok—
Thud.
“Looks like there’s no need to be careful after all.”
The leader-type close-range dealer spoke in a slightly awkward tone.
Yeah. A C-rank gate. No need to worry.