Chapter 33: Black Crow Guild (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 33: Black Crow Guild (2)
The penthouse on the top floor of the building.
Inside his private office, Shin Geon-su's lips grew bone-dry as the reports kept flooding in.
"B-Boss! The security team has been wiped out."
"We can't even contact the outside... It's completely down. It looks like they've jammed the signal."
"All elevators have been shut down. He's coming up the stairs. He's fast! He's already passed the 20th floor!"
There wasn't a single shred of good news.
Every single report was an infuriating update of defeat, heralding the absolute worst.
Crash!
Shin Geon-su slammed his desk.
"Damn it! What kind of bullshit is this?!"
An intruder out of nowhere.
Given the nature of their guild, they had plenty of enemies, but this was the first time someone had charged in so recklessly without looking back.
And all by himself, at that...
"He's definitely no ordinary mercenary."
At first, he thought it was just some lunatic with a death wish.
But watching their security systems crumble one after another, Shin Geon-su had no choice but to admit it.
A single enemy could be far more terrifying than hundreds of them.
Right then.
"Ack!"
"Arghhh!"
Screams echoed from outside the door.
Clang! Clang!
The sound of clashing blades followed, but only for a brief moment.
Soon, there was nothing but dead silence.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Shin Geon-su's heart hammered against his ribs.
Amidst a mixture of dread and curiosity, finally...
Creak...
The door swung open.
"Are you the guild master here?"
The man who stepped inside was wearing a bizarre mask.
* * *
[Barrier Duration: 0h : 15m : 33s]
He had about fifteen minutes left to keep their communications cut off from the outside world.
That was more than enough time.
More than enough to pluck the feathers off one fearless crow.
Jinhyuk took a step forward.
"Stop right there. Take another step and I'll cut you down!"
Shring!
Shin Geon-su drew his sword.
Perhaps because it was a weapon imbued with multiple spells, colorful sparks crackled along the blade.
It was a sword that looked incredibly expensive at a glance.
Well, I guess a guild master is still a guild master, after all.
But why?
Even in the face of such a fierce warning, Jinhyuk couldn't help but chuckle.
He's so sloppy...
Perhaps because he had fought Cheon Yu-seong not too long ago, his senses were still dialed to their absolute peak.
Because of that, he could easily predict someone of Shin Geon-su's caliber just by watching the slight movements of his hands and feet.
How he would attack.
Where he would aim.
All of it.
As Jinhyuk continued to close the distance, Shin Geon-su finally lost his patience and roared.
"Didn't you hear me tell you to stop?!"
[Shin Geon-su activates Lv3 'Swift Sword'!]
Shin Geon-su's sword vanished.
Whoosh!
Leaving afterimages in its wake, the tip of the blade lunged toward Jinhyuk like a bullet.
Don't tell me... he thinks he's throwing a feint?
If so, this is almost painful to watch.
Jinhyuk's hand moved in perfect sync with the trajectory of the sword.
At this speed, there was no need to even dodge.
Grab.
The dancing blade came to a dead halt.
"Wh-What?!"
A breathless gasp escaped Shin Geon-su's lips.
Catching a blade accelerated by a skill with bare hands... of course he would react this way.
A chilling sensation.
Goosebumps erupted all down his spine.
From his past as a gangster to reaching his current position, countless experiences told him one thing.
...I can't beat him, not in a million years.
It didn't take long for him to realize there was absolutely no hope.
"Wh-who are you? Who hired you to come here?"
Shin Geon-su stumbled backward.
But no matter how much he retreated, he was still trapped inside a room of barely fifty pyeong.
Thud.
His back hit the glass window.
His entire body trembled violently.
He was terrified. His reliable subordinates could no longer serve as his shields.
"Take a guess."
"What?"
"Guess who I am and why I'm here."
Who knows? Maybe I'll let you live if you get it right.
Thud!
Jinhyuk slammed a dagger right into the center of the desk.
Then, sinking into the plush chair, he began his own personal game of Golden Bell.
"Did... did the Dangun Guild or the Balhae Guild send you? To keep our growth in check?"
"Wrong."
Incorrect.
Normally, one would smile and tell him to try again.
But the rules of the Golden Bell hosted by Jinhyuk were slightly different.
If you got it wrong, there had to be a penalty, of course.
Oh, there's something perfect right here.
Jinhyuk picked up a Go stone from the side of the desk.
These are nice and solid.
As expected of a wealthy bastard, he had bought a high-quality set.
"W-why the Go stone...?"
Shin Geon-su muttered anxiously.
Why else?
Thwack!
"Arghhhhh! My... my forehead! My forehead!"
For this, of course.
Shin Geon-su rolled on the floor, clutching his face with both hands.
A lump swelled on his forehead like a goblin's horn.
Since a Go stone infused with mana had just cracked against his skull, it had to be incredibly painful.
"Guess again. Think carefully this time."
Jinhyuk toyed with a second Go stone.
"Ugh... the Black Market! Yes, that's it! Weren't you commissioned by them with a massive bounty to take us out?"
"Wrong."
Wrong again.
"Wait, wait! Hold on! No matter who sent you, I'll pay you double what they offered! Huh? What do you want? Just say the word! I can give you whatever you want!"
Terrified of getting hit by another Go stone, Shin Geon-su's face turned stark white.
He desperately offered a new deal.
"Hey."
"...?"
"I told you to guess who I am. Did I ask you for money?"
Did this guy learn Korean abroad or something?
Why is he so bad at understanding simple instructions?
I don't know where he went to elementary school, but his comprehension skills were bad enough to make Sejong the Great rise from his grave and curse him out in Japanese.
Thwack!
Once again, a Go stone cracked against his forehead.
Since Jinhyuk had infused even more mana this time, Shin Geon-su writhed in agony.
"Aaaargh! My forehead... my forehead!"
"Last chance. If you get it wrong this time, you're swallowing every single Go stone in this room."
Pant. Pant. Pant...
Shin Geon-su gasped for breath.
Then, as if something had clicked, he stared intently at Jinhyuk's mask.
"Kang... Jinhyuk."
A single name, three syllables.
"Finally, the correct answer. That's right. I'm the one you sent Park Ha-jin to kill."
Jinhyuk took off his mask, fully revealing his face.
"Damn it. So you came all this way just for revenge? You turned this entire building upside down just for that?"
"Just? Did you say 'just'?"
Jinhyuk's brow furrowed.
"Yeah. Didn't you kill Park Ha-jin and the rest of our guys too? Then we're even. There was no need to go this far..."
"Ah, so you're saying I should have drawn the line and stopped?"
"Don't be so narrow-minded and look at this rationally. They might not be here right now because they're raiding the Tower, but our guild has over fifty rankers."
"And?"
"Even if you kill me, there will be endless people coming after you. The cycle of revenge will never end."
Blood begets blood, and revenge begets revenge.
Unless one side forgives, the slaughter will continue forever.
Hmm...
He actually has a point.
Blood, revenge... those are keywords that disrupt a good night's sleep.
Jinhyuk smiled brightly, as if he had made up his mind.
"Okay. Let's just kill you and end it there. Clean and simple."
"What?"
"I'll take the final revenge, so your side can do the forgiving."
"What kind of ridiculous sophistry is th—ack!"
Jinhyuk grabbed a handful of Go stones and shoved them into Shin Geon-su's mouth.
"Gag! Cough!"
Shin Geon-su coughed violently at the foreign objects filling his mouth.
Bloody foam spilled out, but Jinhyuk only tightened his grip.
Making sure he couldn't spit out a single one.
"You break it. That cycle of revenge or whatever. There's no law saying I have to be the one to break it, right?"
What? Revenge begets revenge?
Why did a guy who worries about that send assassins in the first place?
"I'm done listening to your bullshit."
If the remaining trash of the Black Crow Guild came after him later, he would just wipe them all out too.
He wasn't afraid of a bunch of third-rate extras, even if they came by the truckload.
"Now, piss off."
Jinhyuk offered his final farewell.
And swung his fist with all his might.
Boom!
"Gurgle!"
His fist buried itself deep into Shin Geon-su's face.
A sickening crunch of teeth and Go stones shattering echoed through the room.
* * *
Instant death.
Jinhyuk looked down at the collapsed Shin Geon-su.
His face was completely caved in, so there was no need to even check his pulse.
Now, next...
"Hey, you over there pretending to be dead. Get up."
"..."
"I'll count to three. One."
"Yes! I'm awake!"
A man among the black-suited guards collapsed in the hallway quickly answered.
He was a young man who looked to be in his mid-twenties.
Judging by the lack of mana, he didn't seem to be a Player.
Maybe Shin Geon-su's secretary?
"Introduce yourself. Prove that you're useful, and I'll let you live."
"My name is Kim Hee-woong, age twenty-six! I manage the overall operations of the Black Crow Guild! I speak five languages and majored in Computer Science and Accounting at Stanford! Please, just give me any task, I'll do anything!"
"Oh, nice, nice. Very sharp."
Jinhyuk nodded in satisfaction.
Age, experience, credentials.
This was more than enough to put to good use.
"As you can see, the situation here isn't looking too good. The guild master is dead, and there are injured people everywhere."
"Y-Yes... that's true."
"So, I'm planning to put you in charge of this guild."
"Y-Yes... of course... wait, whaaat?"
Kim Hee-woong's pupils dilated as if they were about to burst.
"Don't overthink it. Honestly, it'd be a waste to completely dismantle a mid-sized guild. I just want to keep it running as a front."
This was a plan he had kept in mind ever since he decided to come here.
Set up a puppet boss and suck the guild dry from behind the scenes.
And Kim Hee-woong would be able to play that role perfectly.
Since he was a secretary, he would know the ins and outs of the guild's internal affairs.
"B-but even if I become the guild master, no one will follow me."
Of course.
If a non-combatant, and a secretary at that, suddenly sat at the very top, there was bound to be backlash.
"You don't have to worry about anyone who objects."
"Ah! Are you saying you'll handle them yourself?"
Kim Hee-woong's face brightened slightly.
Considering the martial prowess Jinhyuk had just displayed, it was entirely possible.
If he could overpower Shin Geon-su so easily, the outcome wouldn't change even if the guild's rankers swarmed him.
But Jinhyuk shook his head.
"No."
Why would he take on such a tedious chore?
When he had a reliable helper right next to him to do it instead?
"You heard all that, right?"
Jinhyuk glanced down at the ring on his finger.
Then...
[Are you speaking to me, by any chance?]
Alice, who had been quiet, finally spoke up.
"Is there anyone else here besides you?"
[You expect me, the former head of the Ataraxia Family with the noblest blood flowing through my veins, to play babysitter to these insignificant humans?]
Sigh...
There she goes again with that overly solemn and serious tone.
"You still haven't learned your lesson, have you? Want me to spin you like a windmill again? Huh? Why are you trying to act all high and mighty when it doesn't suit you?"
[Don't! I said don't! That makes me dizzy! You sea anemone of a human!]
Startled by the mention of the windmill spin, Alice raised her voice.
A sea anemone...
What a cheap insult.
"Is that the best insult you've got?"
[What? Is... isn't this a severe insult?]
Severe insult, my foot.
Even babies in a nursery could swear more colorfully than that.
At least...
“You lowly, human. How dare you trap my noble self in a ring and spin me around like a squirrel wheel. If you do that again, I will you, then you, and then you with ! I'll hang you from a and make you my * for thirty thousand years!”
[H-how could you say such horrible things...]
Alice stammered heavily, clearly traumatized.
It must have been too much of a shock for a noble lady. Then again, she had probably only heard sweet, coddling words her entire life, so experiencing the unfiltered vocabulary of a modern Korean was bound to shatter her mental state.
At any rate, she was finally behaving.
"Work with this guy, and if anyone doesn't listen, get rid of them."
[Fine. But what are you going to do?]
"I have other things to do."
Now that he had finished raiding the ruins, there was no longer any need to remain bound to Level 1.
The corners of Jinhyuk's mouth slowly curled upward.
It was finally time to start growing in earnest.