Chapter 7
Heart sank! Everyone thought the elixir slumbering in the beehive was the opportunity, the Hidden Piece. Steel Guild did too, along with the porters they were sacrificing. But the truth was far different. The real Hidden Piece wasn't some elixir like that.
The guardian protecting the elixir. The obstacle blocking the path to the Hidden Piece. That wooden puppet, dismissed as nothing more, was the true Hidden Piece—the real opportunity. By battling it, one would obtain the arranged 'martial art', carry on the legacy of the one who left all this behind, and become the true 'successor'. That was the genuine fortune.
The elixir everyone pegged as the Hidden Piece? Just a bonus. A secondary supplement prepared only if the successor's inner power fell short after gaining the martial art. But Steel Guild got so fixated on that 'bonus' they handed the real deal straight to Kim Min.
Of course, there's that saying about a pearl necklace on a pig's neck. The puppet guardian—no, the martial arts master—meant nothing if you couldn't grasp and claim the martial art in that life-or-death struggle. Fail at that? No fate, no talent—just die.
So in this modern world, the elixir being the Hidden Piece kinda made sense—
"Spiraling thrust...!"
Fortunately, Kim Min had what it took not to fumble the luck that rolled his way. Talent? Irrelevant. He gritted his teeth, endured, and absorbed the puppet martial arts master's teachings.
"An incredible supreme technique...!"
Kim Min was floored as the martial art seeped into him amid the brutal fight. Its depth was beyond anything he could fathom right now. Still, his past efforts hadn't been wasted. He dodged the puppet's strike by a hair's breadth—a mere half-step—and unleashed a piercing counter.
A clean hit. Applying the martial art's opening form he'd clawed from the deathmatch, the puppet fulfilled its role and froze.
Kim Min pulled off the impossible, clawing back from death's doorstep—what everyone deemed undoable.
But no relief of survival awaited him, no joyous cheers.
"Gahk...!"
"Run! Steel Guild's silencing us with murder—!"
"Hiiik! I swear I won't say a word about today, please...!"
"You fucking bastards! Have you no humanity?!"
Steel Guild's blades, aimed at killing the bait porters to seal their lips—not even fazed by the association's investigation. Kim Min ground his teeth, piecing it together from the screams of those who'd fled while he held the line.
Beasts in human skin—no, worse than beasts. He couldn't hide his shock at their savagery.
Killing to silence isn't as simple as it sounds. 'Dead men tell no tales' is an old adage, sure. But bereaved families demanding truth? In a world of gates and superhuman hunters reshaping order, burying lives is no small feat. Even if they pulled it off, mass non-combatant deaths just screamed Steel's incompetence. Their rep would tank hard.
Yet they risked it all. That meant they were dead serious.
Then—
"To survive, I fight."
Treat Steel Guild not as humans, but monsters—and hunt them. Kim Min became the ultimate hunter, methodically taking down his Steel targets.
He waged guerrilla war deep in the red gate, chipping away at their numbers. Leveraging the gate's terrain, his veteran porter savvy, hunter instincts honed in near-death, and fresh growth—he soloed their core forces.
And with every subjugation, his 'Gluttony' skill fueled explosive growth.
Building on that, Kim Min hatched a plan: Pit the gate-sustaining boss against the guild. Enemy of my enemy.
The shortcut to breaking free.
"Boss?! Why the hell is the boss here...?!"
"Shit!"
Kim Min succeeded in luring them into clash. He reaped the fisherman's profit: Snagged the elixir they'd kill for—their supposed Hidden Piece—plus the boss kill with the final blow.
"You... you bastard... The guild master won't... let this slide..."
Half his body blasted away by the boss, the operation's head cursed Kim Min in his death throes. Guild finds out? You're dead meat. You, your family—none survive.
Kim Min's eyes gleamed cold.
"Perfect. I wasn't planning to let Steel Guild slide either."
Full payback. That was Kim Min's hard-won life lesson.
Steel committed atrocities; he got tangled in it. Pretend it never happened? No telling when they'd uncover the truth and strike.
So during this grace period, build power—and shatter 'Steel'.
"You started this."
But I'll finish it. With those words, Kim Min ended the dying high-ranker. He'd croak anyway. Mercy from pain, sure—but mostly to claim his power via Gluttony.
At war with Steel Guild, he needed to grow fiercer.
Boss core gone, the red gate closed, dumping them back to reality. Kim Min slipped through the chaos, his fighting spirit ablaze.
This arc blew up with readers. Giant guild tyranny. Hell, even outside hunters, that powerless rage against group bullying—anyone's tasted it somewhere in society.
Like we'd all soul-swapped into the protagonist, we trashed Steel Guild while cheering the lone MC dismantling a behemoth. Pure, electric catharsis.
Still, novels should stay novels. Hoped no such bloodbath hit reality.
Cha Yaeun, having lived it once, felt that doubly hard.
But—
"Hey, everyone! Sorry to interrupt your meal, but listen up a sec! Got an issue at the site right now—need some extra hands..."
Hearing that, Cha Yaeun felt the sky crumble.
No way... Just a coincidence, right? Yeah, has to be. It has to be!
Logically, coincidence. But now, of all times?
God, author, whoever's up there—this ain't right!
Not again? She couldn't shake the dread.
Desperate eyes darting, she gauged the room's vibe. What to do?
Then, "I'll go."
Huh?
Unexpected sight: Another female porter rose amid the crew, volunteering for the site.
Different zone? Never saw her on the job...
Odd. Cha Yaeun zeroed in.
But... feels familiar?
The more she stared, the stronger the deja vu. Masked and hatted, no positive ID—but like they'd crossed paths recently.
But priorities: Another 'The Hunter Who Leveled Up Well' scenario unfolding.
This game's brutal; novel stuff? Totally plausible IRL.
Cha Yaeun stewed over her move.
"Uh... Gonna need serious muscle. You sure?"
Meantime, the Crimson Guild guy looked pained at the volunteer woman. Quick to step up was great, but the 'work' favored burly guys.
"Strength enhancement skills—no issue."
She replied coolly.
"Got skills, huh."
That changed things; he nodded. Plenty of F-rank skill-users stuck to porter gigs for various reasons. Cha Yaeun included.
No red flags, so he accepted—and called for more. One wasn't enough.
Cha Yaeun agonized on. Finally—
"M-Me too!"
She shot her hand up amid the hesitant crowd.
Masked woman, now another girl. Guild guy double-checked, pained: "Work's brutal. Really okay?"
"Yeah, I can handle heavy lifting. Need the cash..."
"...Got it."
Grabbed three more, reinforcements done.
Cha Yaeun second-guessed, but hey—sometimes, as the sage said, seek death to live, chase life and die. If novel hell broke loose, tagging along beat staying; better odds.
Mining team in the story stayed clueless—couldn't dodge the slaughter.
To react fast amid chaos, she had to walk into the tiger's den herself.
Praying for safety, calming her pounding heart—
"You..."
The masked, hatted girl spoke up.
"Yes?"
Cha Yaeun tilted her head at the uneasy tone.
No more chat.
"Alright, let's move!"
Do or die—time to enter the den.
Tense arrival at site. What waited—
"Yo! Got the extras—let's clear this shit fast!"
"Huh? Just five? And two chicks?"
"Aw, you torturer prick! This your reinforcement?"
"Ugh, when we gonna shift all this debris and rock."
Brutal grunt work, just as warned. Every bit as grueling.