The Calculating Killer (2)

“How many of them went out?”

“Seven, sir.”

The one walking toward us at the front was unmistakably Yoo Seokwoo.

He was still too far away for me to make out the details, but the three people trailing behind him were clearly strangers to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠me. Of the seven who had gone out with Yoo Seokwoo, six hadn’t come back, and now three unfamiliar figures were heading toward the Shelter.

It was safe to assume something had happened to Yoo Seokwoo’s hunting party, and that the people now approaching had helped them somehow. In the process…

So the others all got killed, except Yoo Seokwoo.

The odds were high. One look at the gear those people were wearing made it obvious they weren’t nobodies. One carried a small shield and a sword, another held a spear, and the last had a bow. From the aura they gave off and the bandages wrapped around their wounds, it was clear they’d already been through more than a few fights.

Mind’s Eye.

Magic Swordsman?

Just by glancing over his stats, I could tell. Perfectly balanced, and the most noticeable thing was, of course, the presence of mana and his class.

Mana?

It was the second time I’d seen someone who possessed mana without being a mage, after Kim Hyunsung.

The fact that he was a Rare-grade Magic Swordsman kept nagging at me. His mana was 8, which was actually higher than mine. Simply having mana gave him plenty of room to become a powerhouse.

But more striking than any of that was his disposition.

Calculating Killer.

I’d seen a lot of dispositions up to now, but this was the first time I’d ever seen one like that.

The other two beside him weren’t much different. Their stats were better than mine or just a little below Park Deokgu’s, but overall they weren’t bad. Their dispositions didn’t strike me as benevolent either—nothing like a “good-faith mediator” or a “pure supporter.”

“Looks like we’ll have to get ready to welcome more guests. Just from a glance, they look like people who can fight… I don’t know if that’s a good thing or not.”

“Go inside and bring Park Deokgu and Jung Hayan.”

“Pardon?”

“Hurry.”

Without answering her question, I immediately frowned and began reciting my spell.

As if she’d sensed something was about to happen, Lee Jihye also stiffened and headed deeper into the Shelter.

I, too, slowly started backing away.

“Lord, I beseech You, answer my voice, grant me the strength to burn my enemies.”

They didn’t seem to be openly hostile yet. They’d been walking here at an easy pace from the start.

Like Jung Hayan, whose disposition was pure supporter but whose actual behavior was anything but, there was always the possibility that these people’s outward nature and true actions didn’t match. Still, I figured I needed to be ready.

Damn it.

I’d already built the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠mana tower and finished the incantation. All I had to do was put the period at the end, but I forced the spell back down my throat.

“Nice to meet you. My name is Jung Jinho.”

He was the first to greet us. I saw him take a single step toward us, so I immediately backed up two.

Range.

I already knew how fast someone with an agility score in the twenties could move. Frankly, this distance was dangerous enough as it was.

The two men beside Jung Jinho probably hadn’t noticed the mana I was suppressing as much as possible, but Jinho, who could use mana himself, would know that I had been holding a spell back.

Keeping my distance, I answered his greeting.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Lee Kiyoung.”

“Ah! I’ve heard a lot about you from Seokwoo.”

“Pardon?”

“I heard you recently changed jobs to a mage. They say you can make flames burst from your hands… I’d very much like to see that for myself someday.”

That useless Yoo Seokwoo. Useless piece of trash.

“I see.”

“It really was fascinating. I already knew this place was granting us new power, but a mage was still a first for me… Ah! Please don’t be so wary.”

It was a situation where one wrong move could get me killed. Being wary was the only sensible response.

The sword, spear, and bow they carried were all irritating me.

When I stole a sidelong glance at Yoo Seokwoo, I could see a slightly tense expression on his face.

I didn’t know exactly what he was tense about, but I was sure it wasn’t a good sign.

“This is really an amazing place. We heard there were a lot of survivors left, but I honestly didn’t expect this much. In a place like this, I can understand how more than thirty people could survive together.”

“I was startled when I first saw this place, too. It’s all thanks to Hyunsung. More importantly, how did you end up…?”

“Ah. Actually, while we were nearby with Seokwoo, we found a group of people surrounded by monsters from this area. Unfortunately, we were too late to save the others… but we were able to rescue Seokwoo somehow. Lucky, really.”

When I looked at Yoo Seokwoo again, I saw him nodding along.

Seriously…

I was almost stunned that he’d brought back people like this. Of all the people in the world, why had he brought back these bastards?

There was something ominous about them. Not just a vague sense of unease, but something you could feel in the person themselves.

Maybe it was the effect of his luck stat. Some instinct in my body was practically screaming at me to stay away from him.

“That’s a relief. I was getting a little worried when I heard Seokwoo had gone out hunting. As for the rest… well, there was nothing we could do….”

“If we’d found them just a little sooner, we might have been able to save everyone… It’s truly a shame.”

While I was nervously shifting my gaze around, I felt Jung Hayan and Park Deokgu coming outside.

“What’s going on, Hyung?”

“These are our new guests.”

Only then did I feel the tension loosen a little. The sight of Park Deokgu stepping out with that heavy shield in his hands was threatening enough even at a glance.

Of course, there was no need to mention his stats. With endurance and stamina like that, I doubted even Jung Jinho could break through him.

Having been tipped off by Lee Jihye, he came out in his shabby leather armor and openly showed hostility toward the three in front of him, which was rather reassuring.

Jung Hayan, meanwhile, had her head bowed as she muttered something under her breath.

I still couldn’t feel any large surge of mana from her, but she was undoubtedly preparing for the worst.

“I thought we’d be welcomed… this is a little unexpected.”

It was at that moment I realized just how obvious our suspicion must have been.

“I’m sorry. The situation’s just… what it is. I can’t help being on guard when I meet strangers. If that was rude….”

“Not at all, Kiyoung. We understand perfectly. We’ve been attacked before by people after our food supplies.”

“Ah.”

“It seems there are groups of lowlifes roaming around this area. We barely managed to escape, but I don’t think we were the only victims. Even on the way here, we saw a lot of people who’d been murdered.”

I wanted to ask if they themselves hadn’t been the ones responsible for that.

My trait didn’t lie.

I didn’t know whether Jung Jinho had really gone around killing people or not, but there was no doubt he had the potential to stir up trouble in one way or another. Calling someone like that a “normal” person with a disposition like calculating killer was, frankly, a hard thing to wrap your head around.

“It looked absolutely horrific. Monsters had already torn into the bodies so badly that we couldn’t examine them properly, but there were traces all over the corpses that could only have been made by humans, not monsters. They were definitely knife wounds.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. There were also signs that some of them had arrows stuck in their backs, as if they’d tried to run. There were traces of resistance, too… Probably one of those lowlifes was an archer. There were slash wounds from a sword as well, so I think it’s safe to assume they were sword-wielding bastards. Have you seen them before?”

“No.”

The one standing quietly beside him with a bow naturally came into view.

I couldn’t figure out what he was trying to imply by bringing that up. What I could tell for certain was that a strange tension was building.

Is he trying to start something?

I found myself wondering if he really wanted to test us.

Perhaps he’d seen my expression, because Park Deokgu also quietly hefted his shield and stepped forward.

He moved to cover Jung Hayan and me.

For a second, I almost wondered if he couldn’t even see Park Deokgu standing there.

Maybe the guy…

Is confident?

That was likely.

It was all just my own imagination at this point, but he definitely looked like he was targeting us.

What kept bothering me was the way Jung Jinho’s hand kept drifting toward his waist. Park Deokgu was probably watching that hand, too.

“Maybe they’re people operating in areas you haven’t been to, Kiyoung.”

“Maybe. I’ve never heard of or seen people like that.”

The instant the hand that had been resting at his ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠waist began to move toward the sword hilt, I started to chant.

No—more accurately, I almost did.

If I hadn’t heard Kim Hyunsung’s voice, I would have definitely summoned a fireball.

“What is going on?”

The hand that had been headed for the sword hilt slipped toward his trousers instead.

After rubbing his hand on his pants a few times, he held it out for a handshake, which was frankly absurd.

I didn’t know whether he’d planned it from the beginning, but Kim Hyunsung’s appearance had definitely changed the atmosphere around him.

I canceled the spell I’d been holding and took his hand.

“In any case, it’s good to meet you, Kiyoung.”

“The pleasure is mine, Jinho.”

I turned slightly and looked at Kim Hyunsung as he approached.

He must have gone through a lot over the past few days, but there wasn’t much trace of fatigue on his face. With a calm expression, he looked over the people Yoo Seokwoo had brought with him.

“You’re safe. It’ll take a bit to explain. These are the people Seokwoo brought….”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Jung Jinho.”

It was right then that I thought his expression looked strange.

Kim Hyunsung, staring at Jung Jinho, had gone a little rigid. It was like he was seeing some kind of déjà vu. His face was different, but the resemblance was eerily similar to the way he’d looked when he first met Jung Hayan.

Does he know him?

Kim Hyunsung might know Jung Jinho from the future.

Of course, nothing was certain yet, but beyond that stiff expression, I could feel a look that seemed almost like anger. It was enough to make my own body tremble.

Kim Hyunsung… what’s wrong with you?

He looked a little different from the Kim ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Hyunsung I knew.