Business Trip

"It failed?"

"There was an unforeseen variable."

At the Intelligence Team Leader's unexpected report, the president of Daehan Pharmaceutical's face twisted into a scowl.

"You know that's the phrase I hate most, right? I pay your salary so you can eliminate those variables."

"My apologies. Based on the information we extracted before silencing the Mercenary Leader, he is absolutely not a D-Rank Awakened. The leader himself was C-Rank — there was no reason for the operation to fail."

"Hah... You know the Chairman returns in a month, don't you? This needs to be resolved by then. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠The last guy we ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠sent was low C-Rank, so should we assume this one is high C-Rank?"

"Even a high C-Rank couldn't wipe out that many C-Ranks and D-Ranks so quickly. We have to assume he's B-Rank. The footage is blurry, but contrary to his registered information, this Awakened also possesses abilities specialized for dealing with multiple opponents."

They'd thought there was nothing around. But there was one type of camera that Karen — who'd spent twenty years of Earth time in another world — had failed to account for.

The dashcam. Nearly every vehicle in Korea had one. The surrounding buildings had all been destroyed, but a handful of abandoned cars had, by sheer chance, captured the massacre.

"Then he's a rank our company can't handle. To deal with a B-Rank safely, we'd need an A-Rank, and we can't even mobilize a mercenary of that caliber on short notice."

"That's correct."

Because they operated under a pharmaceutical company's name, Alliance law formally prohibited them from hiring anyone C-Rank or above.

To make matters worse, B-Rank and higher mercenaries couldn't be used as disposable pawns, and finding one who would keep a secret on such short notice was nearly impossible.

The president tapped his fingers against the desk, lost in thought.

The Chairman will be back soon, and the family meeting will be held...

A family meeting. Warm, affectionate words — but the reality was the opposite. A single-round match in which one judge, the Chairman, would decide the still-unclaimed position of heir. Countless calculations raced through the president's mind, and at last he spoke.

"Call the Daehan Guild."

"But..."

"I know. We'll have to split it with my older brother. But even splitting it is better than this. They're a combat organization, and this is a potion-related matter, so we're the ones in charge."

"Understood. I'll coordinate with them."

Though the brothers and sisters snarled at each other over the succession, there was a family precept that kept even the fiercest infighting among the Daehan family from crossing a certain line. After the secretary left, the president muttered under his breath.

"I won't have to worry about money for a while."

I smiled, looking at the two hundred million sitting pretty in my virtual account.

Two hundred million won... Compared to the fortune I used to have, it wasn't even an ant's toenail. But so what? I wasn't planning to live large like I used to.

"I'll stash these for now."

Just in case, I brewed some healing potions and tossed them into my Soul Subspace. I couldn't go around using Elixir — a single bottle of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠which could buy a ducal title — every time I got a scratch. These were for emergencies.

"Samsaek, want to go for a walk?"

"Kku-ing. I'm not going if we're taking that noisy thing."

The "noisy thing" Samsaek was referring to was the car I'd bought not long ago. Originally, the money we'd earned from selling a thousand F-Rank mana potions at five hundred thousand won apiece had come to five hundred million.

But after happening to see a commercial, I hadn't hesitated for a second before dropping three hundred million on it.

A deep, booming voice accompanied the footage as the Mana Humvee appeared, showing off its distinctive, macho, angular design. The camera panned a full three hundred and sixty degrees around the vehicle, then cut immediately to the next scene.

The Humvee surged through unpaved roads and a valley packed with jagged rocks, its massive wheels devouring the terrain with elastic ease.

The Humvee, fitted with a roaring mana-stone engine, rammed a monster sitting in the middle of the road — and the creature went flying into the distance like a kite with its string cut.

True to the commercial, the Humvee's front end was a little dented, but there was no significant damage.

"I'm buying that."

Something inside me stirred. One of the things that had irritated me most in the other world was riding horses and carriages. No matter how used to it I got, they were slow and uncomfortable compared even to a compact car on Earth.

And teleportation magic circles were often inconvenient, or simply didn't exist at all — so cars had been one of my dreams even while I was still in the other world.

But Samsaek, with his sensitive hearing, didn't much like riding in noisy cars. Probably the same reason cats hate vacuum cleaners.

"Then let's just walk around the neighborhood today."

After running into those robbers(?) of unknown origin two weeks ago, I'd gotten my license and put in enough driving practice that I could handle the car smoothly now. But I'd been driving it every single day, so giving it a rest for one day seemed fair.

"Ready to go, kku-ing."

Samsaek put on his own leash, then used telekinesis to place the handle in my hand. He even opened the door, then sat neatly at the entrance with his front paws together, waiting for me.

"...Now that I think about it, do we even need to go together? You could go out on your own."

Watching Samsaek do everything himself, the thought suddenly occurred to me. Hell, sometimes he seemed smarter than I was.

"I learned from videos that unless you're a wild animal, walks are something you do together."

"Is that so? But you don't need the leash. There's nobody around here anyway."

"Kku-ing! Not wearing a leash is bad manners! They even put muzzles on vicious dogs, Master."

...Isn't it dogs that wear leashes? Isn't this guy a Spiritual Beast? And he looks like a regular cat no matter how you slice it.

"Ah, whatever. Fine. If that's what you want, we'll do it that way."

We opened the front door and started walking around the neighborhood. The ruins, unchanged since we'd first arrived, were reminiscent of a dystopia — but we strolled along humming, as if we couldn't even see them.

Vroooom.

"New neighbors?"

The sound of several vehicles approaching from a distance made my ears — and Samsaek's — perk up. In a place where cars almost never came except for deliveries, the rumble of multiple engines was a first.

Soon, heavily tinted cars pulled up in front of us, followed by two minibuses.

"Yaaawn. Doesn't look like the friendly-neighbor type."

Anticipating what was about to happen, I couldn't help but yawn. Movies and dramas were full of neighborhood romances, but looking at the vicious faces pouring out of the vehicles with ominous weapons in hand — romance? This was an R-rated noir. No one under nineteen admitted.

"Good day. Would you happen to be Mr. Jeong-il?"

The people who'd piled out of the cars formed a circle around me. As an oppressive atmosphere settled in, a man in glasses and a neat suit approached, bowing his head in greeting.

He had an intellectual look that didn't match the bloodthirsty mood at all.

"Call me Karen. That other name feels awkward as hell."

A vein twitched on the man's forehead at the sudden informal speech, but he didn't let it show and quickly continued.

"I see. Mr. Karen, I am the Sales Team Leader in charge of recruitment at Daehan Pharmaceutical. You are the developer of the F-Rank 50% potion listed at the auction, correct?"

Oho, Daehan Pharmaceutical? That's a big one.

I let out a whistle at the thought that I'd hooked a bigger fish than expected. Even I, who barely ever went outside, had heard of this mega-corporation.

As if to prove their ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠affiliation, unlike the previous mercenaries, the ones I could sense around me ranged from A-Rank at the highest to C-Rank at the lowest. And the fact that they'd stated their affiliation meant they were that confident — that they intended to finish this here.

"That's me."

"Come to Daehan. We hold your abilities and techniques in the highest regard. We promise you treatment the likes of which you've never seen."

"Ohh... that's tempting."

"You won't be disappointed."

The Sales Team Leader smiled and held out a contract filled with terms. Inwardly, he was certain the other party couldn't possibly ignore this offer.

There's no way he'd refuse a proposal this sweet. We're Daehan, no matter what anyone says. Where else would he get an offer like this?

And even if he refused, it didn't matter. If he chose the hard path over the easy one, they'd brought along some very kind people to walk it with him.

"You're going this far for me?"

After skimming the contract, I put on a look of genuine surprise. Well, the terms were tempting enough. There were so many benefits listed it could make anyone's eyes go wide.

"I'm glad it meets your approval. And also..."

"There's just one thing that bothers me."

I pointed to a spot on the contract, and the Sales Team Leader's face twitched slightly.

"Naturally, we'll provide a substantial bonus every time you develop a new product, Mr. Karen. And with all the Gates these days, how dangerous is it out there? As a precious talent of our company, of course Daehan should protect you."

He made it sound pretty, but depending on interpretation, the contract could be exploited in any number of ways.

The bonus amount wasn't even specified, and whatever it was, it wouldn't be a ten-thousandth of the actual value. Whether "protection" meant security or imprisonment was anyone's guess.

"Bastards like you never change, no matter where you go."

My irritation at this cheap theater and these worse-than-third-rate actors finally exploded.

"Pardon?"

"You're nothing more than a cog in the machine — except you're not even that. You're really nothing at all. And that smile. Truly pathetic. It'd backfire on most people. If you're going to put on an act, at least do it properly."

At my sudden verbal assault, the Sales Team Leader's composure finally cracked.

"...You'll regret this."

At last revealing his true colors, the Sales Team Leader spoke coldly.

"That's it! Even that line is the same. I'm sick of this too. I've seen it way too many times."

I looked up at the sky and let out a long sigh. If it were someone actually competent instead of this amateur, at least fighting them would be entertaining.

I almost missed those guys from the old Imperial Secret Intelligence Bureau. They were genuinely creative, vicious bastards.

"Take him."

The Sales Team Leader stepped back and gave the signal, and everyone drew their weapons and charged at me.

At least they'd learned something — they came at me from all directions, intending to subdue me in one go before I could use my abilities.

"I haven't fought a B-Rank yet, so I'll test things out a bit. First, clear out everyone C-Rank and below."

I created dozens of translucent barriers and sharpened their leading edges into blades.

Then I sent them all flying at the ones who'd gotten almost right up in my face.

"GRAAAAH!"

"Fuck, my arm! My arm!"

Screams of pain and loss rang out from every direction. Some unlucky ones had their necks or torsos sliced clean through, while the C-Ranks and below who still had their lives clutched at their severed arms and legs, howling.

"As expected, the B-Ranks and A-Ranks held out."

They'd been knocked back blocking the attack, but there were no casualties among the B-Rank and above Awakened. The B-Ranks and higher had been clustered separately from the start, wearing matching uniforms with Daehan's dragon emblem on the shoulder.

So they were just throwing them at me.

The C-Ranks and below had been brought along to gauge my full strength and wear me down. But I'd cleaned them up so fast that the remaining ones were clearly rattled.

"...This doesn't match the intel. Don't let your guard down. Tanks, front."

Men carrying shields as large as their own bodies formed a formation, raising a wall in front. Behind them, those capable of ranged attacks took position.

"Advance."

Under A-Rank command, the wall slowly approached.

"Volley."

At the leader's single word, elemental attacks of every kind, arrows, crossbow bolts, even mana-charged stones came flying at a single human in an instant.

A thunderous series of explosions erupted, and clouds of dirt and dust swallowed everyone's vision. Every Awakened stared at one spot with expectant eyes.

"Did we get him?"

"That should've killed him, right?"

"He's dead. Even an A-Rank monster would be gone after that."

But contrary to the Awakeneds' hopes, unfortunately, their target was not an A-Rank monster. He wasn't even an S-Rank.

When the dust settled, everyone fell into despair. Their opponent hadn't taken a single step from where he stood, as if the attack hadn't even been worth dodging.

Right in front of him, a translucent barrier floated serenely, without so much as a hairline crack from blocking the assault.

"Definitely better than amateur magic. Is it because they only specialize in one thing?"

They lacked versatility, but because they only had a single technique, their power in that field was solid relative to their mana capacity. Those guys holding shields like turtles were at least good at one thing: tanking.

"Alright. I've got the measure of them. Experiment's over."

Of course, being good at it wasn't the same as being strong enough to get out of this situation. I honed the same translucent barriers into sharp blades and aimed them at the Awakened — but this time, not dozens. Hundreds of blades. And these ones were packed with my mana.

"...Fuck. Which dumbass said he was B-Rank? This is why people who don't work the field..."

Those were someone's last words. Then every body was disassembled in its own unique fashion, and the situation was resolved.

The A-Rank? He at least lived up to his rank a little — he managed to knock aside or dodge a few of the blades coming at him, but then the hundreds of remaining blades that had finished with the others ground him down until he died a miserable death, reduced to cubes of various sizes.

"M-monster!"

The Sales Team Leader, the sole survivor — an Unawakened with no combat ability who'd stayed in the back — collapsed on the spot, his legs giving out, trembling violently.

"Didn't you hear what I said? I told you to pass it along to the last guy who came here."

Of course, they'd heard it during the interrogation before killing the Mercenary Leader. But who would care about something like that? They were Daehan.

"Please spare me. I'll never come back."

"I'll let it slide. Just this once. If you come again, it'll be a pain in the ass killing all of you, so don't come."

"Thank you. Thank you."

The Sales Team Leader slammed his head into the ground, pouring out thanks — but at the words that followed, he froze in that prostrate position.

"That was what I said last time."

"Y-yes?"