Chapter 28
"First time dealing with people, huh? 'You bastard...! You're a martial arts user!'"
Up until now, Kim Min had been poking around the underworld to expose the Association's corruption, all while keeping his identity airtight. He hadn't used any martial arts, relying solely on the power Hayunha had left him to masquerade as a flame-caster awakener. And it had paid off. The Association's hitman had pegged him as a firepower-focused fire caster and got blindsided. Kim Min's palm strike landed true, churning the guy's internals into mush.
Penetrating Strike. The subtle shockwave tore through from the inside, and the hitman spat blood, screaming like it was his last breath. "Fuck...! You're not what the report said!"
Confusion flickered in the hitman's eyes. He'd finally realized this was a trap. Kim Min had stirred up trouble everywhere but come up empty on solid intel, so he'd waited for the Association to make a move. Rattle their tail a bit, and the beast would come charging out of its territory. Prey doesn't sit still when invaded. He'd figured the target would come to him—and sure enough, it had.
The hitman, suspecting bad intel or a mole, glared. Kim Min just smirked coldly. "Flames, huh? You mean this?"
Flames flickered up, illuminating the gate's interior, wrecked from the fight. The hitman stared, lips trembling in disbelief. "Dual skills...?"
Awakener got one skill, period. Even S-ranks didn't awaken new powers; their existing ones just evolved. So dual skills? Impossible. Sure, high skill mastery could mimic something new—like advanced martial arts pulling off vacuum palms or three-fold flames. But what Kim Min had shown was on another level. Completely different.
Flame control and this level of close-quarters prowess? It didn't add up. There was that saying about all paths leading to the same peak, but everyone had a preferred style, habits. Even peak S-rank hunters could handle both close and ranged to a degree, but...
"What the hell are you? What are you?!"
Hunters and gates defied common sense—that was the norm. But Kim Min was off the charts. And he knew it.
Up to now, Gluttony had let him devour monsters and even awakeners, but he'd never inherited their skills. Except with Hayunha. Was it because she'd willingly passed it on, not forced? Whatever the reason, it wasn't just a spec boost—her flames had transferred too.
No need to explain it nicely. Kim Min pressed the attack wordlessly.
"W-wait! I don't know what grudge you have against the Association, but someone with your skills should join us—"
"I don't make a hobby of wallowing in the sewer. Unlike you gutter rats."
Cornered, the hitman tried recruitment, but Kim Min brushed it off. He severed the guy's limbs to finish him—but not the throat. Still had questions.
"You think I'll talk?"
The hitman sneered, reading Kim Min's intent. He knew death was coming anyway, so he'd spite him with silence.
Kim Min summoned flames around him. Torture? Not quite that simple.
"Resist. If you can."
"Gaaah?!"
Blue flames burned not just flesh, but the will to resist. He'd trained against torture, but flames devouring the mind itself? Useless. Even the crazies in Zero Squad weren't immune. His defiance burned away, torture's agony searing deep into his brain. The tough hitman broke in seconds.
"Drug cartel... Association brass backs the drug ops! They use plant-type gates for factories, turning monster fluids and fruits into hallucinogens..."
Useful info poured out. Most cases couldn't dent the corrupt Hunter Association fortress. But this? A battering ram to smash the gates and win the siege.
And more. Once the truth hit, insiders would revolt. Not everyone at the top's rot infected the bottom. Plenty thought self-cleansing was overdue, that things couldn't go on. Duty-bound holdouts kept it afloat. This would pull the trigger on reform.
Pay debts—favors or grudges—in full. Kim Min hit the drug labs bankrolling the brass without hesitation. Torched the sites, grabbed proof. Then anonymously leaked it to media outlets and a well-regarded Association figure.
He'd picked his executioner. And to ensure no hesitation, he flooded the press too—forcing the blade.
His choice: Association exec Lee Yuri. Principled, skilled, but stalled in the rot. Kim Min's aid let her finally swing the reform blade.
"What do you want?"
Lee Yuri eyed the man who'd armed her. Why her, out of others?
Reason? Plenty.
"One thing. Never stop. Go all the way."
Others might quit at a good spot. Not her—she'd fight to the death. Kim Min knew because she'd helped Hayunha investigate Steel Guild back then. Blocked their hit on the pesky investigator, warned her off. That chat stuck with him. Enough to pick her as his blade.
"No stopping till the end? Right up my alley."
Her eyes gleamed. Naturally, they'd sent a hitman her way—but Kim Min's shadows snuffed it. With his covert help, she began the surgery. Limbs severed, Zero Squad crippled, cash dried up. Brass too busy saving their skins to chase Kim Min. Allies arrested daily, paranoia rampant. No focus left for him.
This arc had drawn tons of hate from other factors, but hindsight proved it right.
'Lebalheonda is gospel, the author is god!'
Cha Yaeun smiled faintly at the proof before her eyes.
She'd spotted the criminal nest in the gate and scouted first. Better intel meant better arrests—and more points.
'Heard villains exploit gates for crime, but...'
First eyewitness, massive impact. She scanned the organized chaos: mana core fencing baseline, monster byproducts into illegal drugs.
Monsters vanished on death, leaving mana cores. Sometimes parts dropped—drop items. Like fluids. Most useless, but some? Potion ingredients.
This gate's monsters fit. Not plant-types like the novel, but similar essence. Their blood made stamina potions with strong tonic effects. Problem: overdose killed normals. Strictly regulated. Tough awakeners could handle it; civilians? Poison.
This was an illicit stamina drug factory.
"Where the hell do they sell all that...?"
Cha Yaeun muttered, baffled. Regulated but available officially. Why black market? Who bought?
"Students and parents, duh. Peddle it as 'study drugs.' Cram sessions on that stuff. Normals can't buy from Association; hunters proxying is a heavy crime."
"Unlike us, one pill keeps normals awake and focused three days straight. Some drop dead, but that's on the buyer. We just sell."
Cha Yaeun's face twisted in disbelief at parents doping kids. She gripped her waist-holstered weapon.
"Used to be just study aids, but now dudes use it as Viagra sub. New market! Demand booming... but crackdowns hurt. Rats like you sniffing around? Supply issues headache."
Cha Yaeun deployed her custom collapsible halberd in a flash, facing the villain, stance set.
Stealthy as she tried, no talent—or enemy den—got her spotted.
No choice now.
'Reported already.'
Planned to handoff to Association agents outside with intel. No choice.
'Won't let 'em escape. I'll nab 'em all.'
Can't let hard-won prey slip. Battle lust ignited.
First real human fight, but doable. Like Kim Min in Lebalheonda—treat 'em like sly monsters.
Shaking off nerves, she aimed without hesitation.
The villain clicked his tongue. "Shoulda ambushed."
Scouting screamed noob. Green as grass, no people-fighting experience. Misjudged. He swept back his bangs.
"Whatever. Quick cleanup and bail."
Cha Yaeun's first human battle curtain rose.