Chapter 88
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 88
Chapter Title: Silan (2)
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“Guh...!”
“Talk. Where’s Ju Seung-hwan?”
“H-hand... let go of my hand...!”
Seo Yu-ju loosened her grip, and the man sucked in a desperate breath before opening his mouth.
“Wh-what the hell are you doing to me?!”
“... Ju Seung-hwan. He’s definitely in this city. I’ve checked everywhere. If you’re lying...”
The man freaked out at the sight of Seo Yu-ju grabbing the spear strapped to her back and spat out his answer.
“W-wait, calm down! I’m not lying! I don’t have every person in this city memorized...!”
“.....”
Relieved that she didn’t swing the spear right away, the man spoke up again.
“You’ve gotta describe his features or looks, right? Not just the name... Tell me anything else you know...!”
‘Damn, damn!’
The man cursed inwardly, damning his rotten luck today.
He’d already lost big at the gambling den and wasn’t in the best mood, but now some monstrous woman had tracked him down and was threatening his life. There was no way he couldn’t curse.
At first, he’d wondered if she was from a rival outfit, but Silan had been under strict monopoly control for quite a while now.
The ousted competition had no real reason to strike back, and from her words, he was certain.
This woman had nothing to do with organizational turf wars.
Who could’ve guessed that beautiful face hid such a brutal personality and violent streak?
‘Fuck... I’m the moron who thought a smoking hot girl was coming on to me at first!’
“... He used to be an executive in the Incarnation Clan. Tall guy who got booted after his mana circuit shattered. I’ve told you what I know, so spill whatever you’ve got.”
“... An Incarnation Clan executive? Uh...”
The man pictured a regular at the gambling den. The guy who always limped around, loudly boasting that he’d once been a big-shot exec in a major clan.
‘That asshole... wasn’t he just full of shit? It’s real?’
“Looks like you know him. Talk.”
“Th-that...”
He hesitated for a split second, and she jammed the spear against his throat.
“Aaaah...! I know, I know! He’s... probably at the gambling den! The cripple who limps in like a total burnout every day! Haha...! Yeah, got it! S-so, the spear...!”
“I’ll pull the spear back once you’ve answered everything. Gambling den? Which one?”
“There’s... only one in Silan. The real action’s underground, but... hold on, just in case—you’re not planning to kick up a fuss there, are you?”
A normal person wouldn’t, but those eyes gave no guarantees.
‘Fuck, fuck...! If you start shit there, even splitting info will screw me over!’
The man wasn’t worried about the den itself. The problem was if she caused a scene and got nabbed.
“No plans for that. What time does that bastard crawl out of the gambling den?”
“Ar-around 10 to 11 PM. Crazy... please, for the love of god, don’t blow this up... It’s not just you getting fucked—I will too...!”
“No plans. Oh, wait—one more thing. You know Ho Jang-yoon?”
“Wh-what...? How the hell do you know that name?”
The man panicked hard. Outsiders weren’t supposed to know that name.
Hell, most folks in Silan didn’t.
“Doesn’t matter how. Where’s Ho Jang-yoon? Unless you wanna die run through right here.”
“C-crazy bitch!”
He’d thought it was bluff at first, but her eyes told him it wasn’t.
“No clue how you know it, but... you can’t meet him anymore.”
“What’s that supposed to mean? Won’t talk even with your life on the line?”
“F-fuck, it ain’t that...! Ho Jang-yoon kicked the bucket a while back!”
“.... What?”
Seo Yu-ju couldn’t process it. Ho Jang-yoon was a name that absolutely shouldn’t be dead right now.
“You lying? If you’re trying to bullshit me...”
“Real talk, I swear! You might not know, but Silan’s got a black market. Some slave bitch escaped not long ago—killed off the black market crew, including your Ho Jang-yoon, and bolted!”
“... A slave?”
As a regressor, Seo Yu-ju naturally knew about the black market and the slave trade.
She’d just never bothered with underworld dealings, so the details escaped her.
“Y-yeah.”
“.... You expect me to buy that? One lone slave wipes out the entire black market crew and escapes?”
“F-fuck, verify it yourself then! Point is, he owned the black market, but ownership flipped, and they purged everyone...!”
‘.... If this guy’s telling the truth... the future’s changed.’
Seo Yu-ju was thrown by how the current situation diverged from her first timeline. Ho Jang-yoon was supposed to be the kingpin behind this drug ring.
“... So who’s running drug distribution now?”
“Dr-drugs...? W-wait... you from the palace or something?”
His face went sheet-white at her probing the drug trade, assuming she was official.
“Don’t need to know. Just answer.”
“I-I swear I’m clean! Quit that shit ages ago!”
“Didn’t ask that. Answer the damn question.”
“Ah, uh... I don’t know the current boss! Honest!”
“......”
As Seo Yu-ju twitched the spear again, he desperately blurted it out.
“It’s true! No clue! I know drugs are flowing, but zilch on who’s behind it now!”
“Then where’s the black market entrance? You’d know that much.”
“Th-that I don’t either. Obviously, after that mess, they shut the old one down...”
“Haa....”
At her sigh, the man glanced nervously and piped up.
“Uh... this spear...”
“... Open your mouth.”
“... Huh?”
He froze for a second. He’d asked her to remove the spear, not open wide? What if she shoved it down his throat?
Reading his hesitation, Seo Yu-ju pulled something out and explained.
“.... Gotta shut your mouth tight. It’s poison. Open up.”
“P-poison?”
He had zero interest in chowing down. Especially not that ominous black pill.
“Don’t wanna swallow? Or die?”
He yanked his mouth open in a panic.
‘Fuck, fuck...! Why me with this crap...!’
Seo Yu-ju shoved the pill in quick, and he clamped his jaws shut.
“Sw-allowed it...”
“......”
“Wh-what? Your face...”
“Liar.”
“Huh? What do you...”
“Didn’t swallow.”
“N-no, I did! Really!”
“Haa... That stuff reacts right away. So why no reaction?”
‘Shit...!’
The man swallowed the pill he’d been holding under his tongue.
“Guh...!”
Stomach pain hit instantly, followed by the urge to hurl.
“Urk...!”
Seo Yu-ju watched him dry-heave and spoke up.
“Without the antidote in time, you’ll die in screaming agony a month from now.”
“F-fuck... urk...”
“So what I’m saying is… keep your mouth shut. Unless you want to experience the pain of your entire body melting.”
The man trembled violently and asked.
“H-how… do I get the antidote…”
“Keep going to the gambling hall like usual. I’ll come find you before a month passes. Of course, if you talk carelessly, there will be no antidote.”
He nodded frantically, shaking.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Joo Seung-hwan cursed inwardly while looking at his cards.
Because his hand was terrible.
‘Damn it… not even a single pair!’
With his mana circuit destroyed, there was nothing he could do.
Fortunately he had some savings, so he stayed in an inn and spent his days gambling.
While silently cursing at his cards, another player spoke.
“What about you? Folding?”
“…Fuck, I fold.”
With a hand like this, and limited funds today, there was nothing he could do.
‘Damn it… my money’s running out… what the hell am I supposed to do?’
His anger surged again.
Everything about his life was miserable.
He still couldn’t believe that his life ended up like this just because he messed with one trainee at the Training Facility.
Thinking about it made his fists clench automatically.
Until recently he had been cursing the Incarnation Clan for abandoning him.
Then he heard the news that the Incarnation Clan had actually fallen, which shocked him.
‘That bastard Kang Sung-jun… I was loyal to him, you bastard…!’
He never imagined they would throw him away like trash just because he touched one trainee.
‘Why is the game going so badly? Damn it… am I cursed today?’
Normally he would at least win a little, but today nothing was working.
Eventually he lost the money he bet, and the man across from him swept it up.
“Heh heh… I’ll gladly take this.”
Seeing the man licking his lips while collecting the money made Joo Seung-hwan unable to contain his anger.
Bang!
“Fuck…! This makes no sense!”
“What do you mean it makes no sense? Did you think you’d only win?”
“You bastard… don’t mock me!”
“Ha… what a temper.”
“People who couldn’t even look me in the eye before are mocking me now?!”
“There he goes again. Why cause trouble? Just play normally.”
Everyone else reacted the same way.
Their expressions said, Here we go again.
“Fuck, fuck! I used to be—!”
“What, are you going to say the Incarnation Clan thing again? Yeah yeah, we get it. You were amazing.”
“You bastard…!”
Seeing the man clearly not believing him made Joo Seung-hwan furious.
He might have grabbed the man’s collar if he hadn’t felt a hand on his shoulder.
“Hey. Just play quietly. How many times do we have to let this slide? That’s enough for today.”
“Damn it…!”
The man holding his shoulder was big and clearly strong.
Joo Seung-hwan knew it too and stayed quiet.
‘Fuck… if my mana circuit were fine, trash like you…!’
“That’s enough today. I’ll return a little of your money. Come back tomorrow. We’re letting it slide because you’re a regular.”
“Damn…”
Joo Seung-hwan didn’t want to accept the returned money out of pride.
But since his finances weren’t good, he swallowed his pride and took it before leaving the gambling hall.
“Haah…”
Breathing the cold night air calmed him slightly.
At least he hadn’t lost too much money.
Just as he entered an alley on the way back to his inn—
A sudden impact struck the back of his neck.
Joo Seung-hwan immediately lost consciousness.