Chapter 50: Black Market (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 50: Black Market (3)
A crowd of hulking brutes with muscles inflated like balloons showed up.
"Hey, yellow monkey. Say that again. Are you saying our casino is doing something illegal?"
David glared, his eyes bulging.
He was already in a foul mood, and his expression said he had found the perfect outlet for his anger.
Talk about the guilty party throwing a tantrum.
At this rate, being thick-skinned seemed to be a universal human trait.
Of course, he could laugh off the hypocrisy.
But there was one thing he couldn't let slide: that filthy mouth.
"Yellow... monkey?"
"Yeah. You Asians all have that skin color, don't you? Besides, what's up with a guy's face looking like that? Pretty as a girl."
That settled it.
"First, you're getting beaten until your face actually turns yellow."
"We'll talk after that."
"He's completely lost his mind. Take him inside so he doesn't disturb the guests."
David waved his hand dismissively.
At that, the bodyguards cracked their knuckles and approached Jinhyuk.
"Yes, sir."
"Man, his bones look like they'll snap if we just squeeze him a little."
"I don't know where he gets the balls to act so cocky."
"I can't wait to see him crying like a baby in a minute."
They possessed the overwhelming physical builds of Westerners.
And the bodyguards here were the cream of the crop among them.
But the moment a massive hand touched Jinhyuk's shoulder—
Crack!
A sickening sound of shattering bone echoed.
"Aaaargh! My arm! My arm!"
The scream erupted barely a second later.
His right arm was twisted nearly 180 degrees.
The muscular man screamed at the top of his lungs.
"W-what?"
Everyone's faces contorted in shock. However, they had no time to process the situation, let alone react.
Because Jinhyuk, having dealt with one, was already moving to take down his next prey.
Crash!
"Urgh!"
Crunch!
"Aaargh!"
His movements were light and effortless.
But the results were anything but light.
"Ugh..."
"P-please spare me. Please..."
Broken arms and legs.
With their ligaments completely torn, they wouldn't even be able to lift a fork with their own hands for the rest of their lives.
Those who only injured their arms were the lucky ones. A few looked like they would be confined to wheelchairs.
It was a ruthless display of violence, devoid of even a shred of mercy.
"Does that even make sense? How many guys did he just beat down by himself?"
"H-he's a Player! That guy is a combat-class Player!"
"Well, there's no other way to explain it."
The onlookers gasped at his brutal yet dazzling display of skill.
Only one remained.
"Raaaargh!"
The largest white man swung his fist.
He seemed to have some training, as his strike was aimed precisely at Jinhyuk's temple.
Of course, Jinhyuk avoided the fist with a slight tilt of his head.
At the same time, his right hand shot out like lightning.
"Gah?"
In an instant, the man's breath was cut off.
Naturally, since a hand as solid as steel was crushing his throat.
But the truly shocking part was just beginning.
Creak!
An Asian man standing just under 180 centimeters tall,
weighing a mere 70 kilograms,
was lifting a giant over two meters tall and easily weighing over 100 kilograms by the throat.
And with only one hand.
At that grotesque sight, David was finally forced to admit it.
"This is insane..."
That his judgment had been completely, utterly wrong.
"No. Ack!Gah! Noooo!"
As Jinhyuk squeezed tighter, the man thrashed his entire body wildly.
Because he, more than anyone, knew exactly what would happen if this continued.
"Too bad."
Crack!
His collarbone shattered,
and the last remaining bodyguard joined his comrades in a miserable end.
That was the end of them.
Now that the nuisances were cleared out, it was time to deal with the guy who had a trash can for a mouth.
"Looks like you guys are the ones who'll be crying like babies."
Jinhyuk shrugged.
"Y-you'll regret this. Our casino has a contract with the Scavenger Guild."
"Scavenger?"
"Yeah. It's not too late, so you'd better run. No matter how strong of an awakened Player you are, you're nothing against a guild."
Scavenger. The Scavenger Guild, huh?
He felt like he'd heard that name somewhere before...
"Isn't that the place with that guy named Milo or whatever?"
"H-how do you know that?"
How?
Because he had run into them back when he played the [Tower of Trials].
He remembered them being absolute trash who went around slaughtering newbies in the starting zones despite having mediocre skills themselves.
He also remembered them picking a fight with him when he happened to have business there, and how he had utterly destroyed them.
I once buried them alive in the mudflats with only their heads sticking out and used the tides to conduct an earth science experiment. I also beat them to death using only a spoon.
Thinking back, he supposed he had been pretty immature too.
Anyway, after he stalked and killed them about thirty times, they never showed their faces again.
Their pride must have been completely crushed.
And yet, those were the guys David was relying on?
"Nothing special."
Jinhyuk chuckled.
* * *
Where does he get that confidence?
David tilted his head at Jinhyuk's relaxed attitude.
Even an awakened Player was nothing more than a single individual in front of a guild.
No matter how much they ran wild on their own, there was a limit.
Especially against an A-rank guild like Scavenger—the normal reaction upon hearing their name was to tuck one's tail and run.
It was then.
Bzzt!
Static crackled in the earpiece David was wearing.
It was a call from the security room.
"M-Manager! I found what you asked for earlier!"
"What I asked for... Ah! Right, the profile. What is it?"
"W-well, the thing is..."
"Damn it! Stop hesitating and spit it out!"
"His name is Kang Jinhyuk. He's an S-rank ranker who just got evaluated in Korea yesterday. We checked a video of him at a ball, and he's an absolute monster. You must not, under any circumstances, fight him."
"S-S-rank? He's an S-rank?!"
David was so shocked he almost bit his tongue.
He stumbled.
His knees buckled beneath him.
He trembled.
His heart began to beat erratically.
I-I had no idea his rank was that high.
Even in the United States, there were fewer than twenty S-ranks.
And that was despite the government pouring all its resources into supporting them.
And he had just provoked one of them.
For a mid-sized guild like Scavenger, even if the entire guild banded together, they wouldn't stand a chance.
I've kicked a hornet's nest.
No matter how ignorant David was about the Tower, he knew.
He knew the kind of influence high-ranking rankers wielded in this era.
And if his opponent decided to go all out...
Gulp.
Cold sweat poured down his face.
To hell with the casino's reputation.
His mind was filled with a single, desperate thought: survival.
So, he blurted out.
"I-I am terribly sorry. I failed to recognize you and committed a grave discourtesy."
In the most sincere and desperate voice he could muster.
However...
"Why the sudden apology?"
Jinhyuk's face contorted even further.
As if he had heard something he shouldn't have.
"Pardon? Well... I just heard about you from the security room, Player Kang Jinhyuk."
So that was why his attitude had done a complete 180.
"So once you heard my rank, you realized you messed with the wrong guy? Is that why you're apologizing?"
If he had been an F-rank or just an ordinary person, David would have kept looking down on him, wouldn't he?
"T-that's not what I meant..."
David tried to make an excuse in a panic, but it was too late.
Thud!
"Argh!"
A fist buried deep into his abdomen, sending a wave of agonizing pain through him.
"You can't just do whatever you want and think an apology fixes everything. If you're going to be sorry, you shouldn't have started it in the first place."
Can you just kill someone and say, "I'm sorry," and call it a day?
Does shedding a few tears of regret after the fact make everything okay?
"Y-you're right. I won't make the same mistake again. Never again..."
"Whether you do it again or not is none of my business. Just take your beating for what you've already done."
He had made a promise.
That he would beat him until his face turned yellow.
And Jinhyuk fully intended to keep that promise.
"Wa—Aaaargh!"
Bam!
Crash!
Jinhyuk's fists rained down on David's face.
Blow after blow.
He put his full weight into each strike, as if venting all the stress he had accumulated since arriving here.
After about thirty hits, David began to wail like he was dying.
"Spare... spare me. I'll do anything. So please, stop..."
His face was covered in bruises, and his nose was completely broken.
Jinhyuk stopped his ground-and-pound.
"Anything?"
"Yes! Yes! Any-anything!"
"Then go over to that hand mirror and play rock-paper-scissors against yourself until you win. Keep in mind, if you stop halfway, you're getting beaten again."
"Pardon? R-rock-paper-scissors?"
"If you don't get it, forget it. Let's just keep going with the beating. I think I'd prefer that anyway."
"N-no! I'll do my best! Just leave it to me!"
David stumbled to his feet and headed toward the hand mirror.
And he began to play rock-paper-scissors with all his might, as if fighting the final battle of his life.
Jinhyuk sat back down at the table.
The dealer stood before him, wearing a completely dumbfounded expression.
"Now then. Shall we continue?"
"Pardon? Continue... What do you mean by that?"
"The game we were playing. It wasn't decided yet, so let's keep going."
"A-are you serious?"
"I know you were cheating. But I don't mind."
Jinhyuk flashed a meaningful smile.
Cheating?
Skills?
Go ahead and try.
If you can, that is.
[If I use a skill again, I'll end up just like the Manager. No way. I have no reason to be loyal enough to risk my life for this place.]
Through 'Gluttony's Eye', the dealer's inner thoughts drifted into Jinhyuk's mind.
"From now on, I'm going all-in on every hand. I trust you understand... what that means."
Jinhyuk pushed all his piled-up chips forward.
The game resumed.
* * *
About five minutes later.
The Scavenger Guild arrived at the casino.
"Manager David?"
John Smith, an A-rank Player of the Scavenger Guild, had absolutely no idea how to process the scene before him.
On the floor, bodyguards were groaning with broken limbs.
And David, the very man who had summoned them, was frantically playing rock-paper-scissors without sparing the guild members so much as a glance.
"Manager! Pull yourself together!"
Only after Smith shouted once more did David finally tear his eyes away from the mirror.
"Ah...!"
"What on earth happened here? Who did this to you and the guards?"
"N-no, nothing. Nothing... nothing happened."
How could nothing have happened?
Who would believe that after seeing this absolute mess?
Right then, Smith's gaze drifted toward the table.
Specifically, toward Jinhyuk, who was sitting next to an absurdly massive pile of chips.
"It was that guy, wasn't it?"
No explanation was needed.
Since there was only one person leisurely enjoying a game in the middle of this chaos.
But then...
"Wait. Damn it, wait! Don't touch him! Do not touch that man under any circumstances! We're fine, so please just leave. Please."
David begged, his face pale as a sheet.
"Man...ager?"
While Smith wore a look of utter bewilderment,
"Oh my, look at the time. I'm a busy man, how long is it going to take to exchange all of this?"
Jinhyuk stretched and stood up from his seat.
As he did, he firmly pressed a single ten-dollar chip into David's hand.
"Ah, Manager. I had a great time today. Since you must be feeling cold in both body and soul after losing all that money, use this to get yourself a nice, hot bowl of gukbap on your way out."
After all, nothing beats a hot bowl of gukbap when you're feeling empty inside.