Chapter 24
Chapter 24
Translation: godtl
"Please, have some."
"Thank you."
A rich yet bright aroma.
Just the scent alone marked it as high-quality coffee. Si-mun took a sip.
"So, you came to see me about a request?"
"That's correct."
Nodding toward Park Jin-uk—a burly man who seemed utterly mismatched with this refined coffee, more suited to tequila instead.
"I'm looking for someone."
"Someone... You've come to the right place. That's precisely our specialty."
Park Jin-uk curled one corner of his mouth into a smirk.
To anyone, he looked like a gangster prowling the underworld.
Yet Si-mun simply nodded at his words.
'Finding one person shouldn't be a problem for the Night Hunter.'
The Night Hunter, Park Jin-uk.
Despite his rough, gangster-like appearance, he was a formidable figure in the assassin class.
His SS-rank trait, Blessing of the Night, was optimized for assassination.
And like most assassins, it wasn't just useful for killing—it excelled in espionage and intelligence gathering too.
That's why Si-mun had sought him out, but...
'Why the hell is he here?'
Si-mun glanced at the young man across from him, who sat with his head bowed like a guilty child, fidgeting with his hands.
Had he sensed the gaze?
Kim Si-hyeok's head sank even lower.
Si-mun exhaled softly and spoke.
"Hey. What are you doing?"
"Huh?"
"I said, what are you doing? Anyone would think I'm about to eat you alive. Lift your head."
And for good reason.
"R-really? Is that okay?"
This damn younger brother of his looked like a criminal awaiting sentencing.
The current public image of Kim Si-hyeok.
It clashed completely with the bright, refreshing image Si-mun knew.
Truthfully.
"Kid, why the hell wouldn't it be okay?"
Si-mun had a guess as to why his brother was acting like this.
'Probably because of that incident ten years ago.'
Just like Yu-jeong, whom he'd met at the Galaxy Agora.
He must be weighed down by guilt over the incident that had cursed Si-mun with Mana Disability.
The irony was.
Even when Si-mun had reunited with him after Korea's destruction in his past life.
The kid had looked exactly like this back then too.
That's why.
"People will misunderstand. Lift your head already."
Si-mun didn't want to see his brother like this, so utterly deflated.
"Yu-jeong's reaction is more than enough."
He'd said the same thing when he met Lee Yu-jeong at the Agora.
Even if he went back, he'd make the same choice again.
Maybe the words had an effect.
"Yu-jeong?"
For the first time, the dullness in Si-hyeok's eyes flickered.
"Yeah. I ran into her at the Agora recently. Didn't she tell you?"
"No. I hadn't heard anything... Wait. Why were you at the Agora?"
"Why else? To sell some gear, obviously. Why the interrogation?"
"N-no, that's not... But why did you meet Yu-jeong? Weren't you two out of touch?"
"I stopped by the Seongsam Shop and ran into her by chance."
"Seongsam?!"
Beyond just sparkling—his eyes practically gleamed.
His voice had risen a pitch, his gaze sharpening as he pressed,
"Hyung! Are you okay? Did anything happen?"
"Why the sudden urgency? You're scaring me."
"S-sorry."
"Don't be. And nothing really happened, except..."
Ah. Well, there was one thing.
He'd nearly been accused of fraud while trying to sell the Hobgoblin's Battle Axe.
At the Seongsam Shop, no less.
But it wasn't anything major.
Above all, he couldn't say, "Eleven years from now, this item will be so common that I acted rashly because of my regression."
"Nothing happened."
Si-mun merely shrugged lightly.
"I see. Got it."
Kim Si-hyeok rested his chin on his hand for a moment before nodding.
Somehow, it felt oddly like being interrogated, but—
"Speaking of which, Si-hyeok."
Instead of pressing further, Si-mun chose a different question.
"Are you acquainted with Mr. Park Jin-uk here?"
The reason was simple.
'In my past life, the Night Hunter Park Jin-uk only became Si-hyeok's ally after Korea fell.'
According to his memories from his previous life, Kim Si-hyeok and Park Jin-uk weren't close at this point in time.
"Huh? Ah! Well... um..."
A refreshing smile hung naturally on his face, but above it, his clear eyes darted about busily.
Even a sidelong glance would make him look suspicious, but—
"Haha! Si-hyeok and I are academy seniors and juniors, but he's also one of my top clients."
At the deep voice that came from beside them, Si-mun let go of his suspicion.
"A client?"
"Yes. Since Si-hyeok is a Ranker, he tends to run into all sorts of inconveniences, you see."
"Ah!"
Si-mun nodded at Park Jin-uk's words.
A Ranker.
A dream position coveted by every Player, yet—
It was also a position where one stood to lose just as much.
'Practically no different from a celebrity.'
Because of that, even if they didn't stream personally, their personal information was constantly exposed by other Players.
Especially Rankers who weren't under the protection of a major faction—their private lives were fraught with inconveniences.
'Si-hyeok didn't have a guild at this time, either.'
For that punk Si-hyeok, who would later establish his own guild, this must have been an especially troublesome period.
Si-mun gave a light nod.
"I understand. By the way, I didn't know the two of you were academy seniors and juniors. Are you close?"
"No. We're mortal enemies."
"Huh?"
"It's just that, thanks to his position as a Ranker, I'm forced to attend to his needs. Like a slave."
Grin.
Park Jin-uk stretched his rugged face into a wide smile.
"Sigh... Senior."
And the sight of Kim Si-hyeok rubbing his forehead suggested there was some history there, but—
Smirk.
"That sounds tough."
Instead of defending his younger brother, Si-mun chose to mirror Park Jin-uk's smile.
"Now that we're on the topic, this kid has a habit of being a nuisance to people."
"B-Brother?!"
"As expected of someone who's an older brother—you know him well."
"Don't mention it. Still, he's not entirely hopeless. Please go easy on him."
"Bwahahaha! It's rare to meet a client who clicks with me like this!"
For some reason, Park Jin-uk burst into hearty laughter and extended a firm hand.
When Si-mun shook it, Park Jin-uk savored the look of utter devastation on Kim Si-hyeok's face before speaking.
"So, you said you're looking for someone? Is it someone overseas?"
"No. They're in the country."
"That's a relief. Domestic cases have a much higher success rate."
Park Jin-uk retrieved a tablet from his desk, picked up a pen, and asked,
"Do you have any details or descriptions of the person you're looking for? The more specific, the better."
"Her name is Go Mal-suk, she lives in Busan, and she's 24."
"Same age as our damn junior here. Judging by the name, she's a woman... Are you acquainted?"
"Ye—No, not particularly."
Without realizing it, Si-mun had almost answered "Yes" but quickly corrected himself as naturally as possible.
'I knew her before the regression, but not now.'
Fortunately, it must have sounded natural because—
"If you're not acquainted, then just the address should suffice."
Park Jin-uk continued without pressing further.
"Yes. Do you think you can find her?"
"Haha! If I can't find someone with this much info, I should quit this line of work."
"Oh? Then Senior, shouldn't you retire immediately?"
Kim Si-hyeok fluttered the documents handed to him before Si-mun arrived.
Above his refreshing smile, his eyes sparkled with the clear intent to exact revenge for earlier.
"It'll take a few days, but it won't be too long."
Park Jin-uk neatly brushed off the damn junior's remark for once.
Normally, such disrespect would have led to the junior raising his fist against his sky-high senior—an outright act of insubordination.
Crunch.
Was it because his older brother was present?
Watching Kim Si-hyeok grit his teeth like this was immensely satisfying.
"That's a relief. I heard you only accept cash—how much will the commission cost?"
"Given how much information you've already provided, Mr. Si-mun, and since it's not a particularly difficult request..."
Park Jin-uk tapped his iPad cheerfully, then glanced at Kim Si-hyeok, who was visibly fuming behind his brother, and added,
"Since it's your first request and I personally like you, I'll handle this one for free."
"I appreciate the offer, but 'free' is out of the question. That can't happen."
Si-mun shook his head firmly.
"You're a Diamond-rank, aren't you? I can't possibly use such high-tier talent for free."
"Kehah! Well, well! The more I see, the more you're the polar opposite of your brother. That just makes me want to do it for free even more."
Park Jin-uk chuckled lightly and looked toward Kim Si-hyeok.
"If it really bothers you, I'll just take it out on this damn junior. How about that?"
"...As much as you want."
I knew it.
Park Jin-uk smirked with a told-you-so glint in his eyes.
But would Si-mun, his older brother, let that slide?
"No. This is my request—I can't have my younger brother pay for it."
"Hyung, it's fine. I have the money—"
"It's not fine, you punk. And this isn't about money."
Si-mun lightly brushed off Kim Si-hyeok's protests and continued,
"It's about relationships."
"Oh-ho? So you're not just a one-time client, then?"
"Correct. I want to maintain a long-term relationship with the Night Hunter."
"So you refuse a free request... Honestly, it's hard to believe you two share the same blood."
At those words, both Si-mun and Kim Si-hyeok flinched—just slightly.
But it was so minute that even Park Jin-uk, the Night Hunter himself, failed to notice.
Si-mun smiled naturally and said,
"How about we settle the commission fee with another condition instead?"
"Another condition?"
Park Jin-uk tilted his head in confusion.
Si-mun smiled—a smile eerily similar to Kim Si-hyeok's—and replied,
"I heard you've been purchasing quite a few high-grade materials lately..."
Park Jin-uk's face stiffened instantly.
Just as I thought.
Si-mun was certain now—his past-life memories were correct.
"Don't misunderstand—I didn't bring it up with bad intentions. I just think I might be able to help you."
"Help me?"
"Yes."
Si-mun nodded confidently, causing one of Park Jin-uk's eyebrows to shoot up.
Combined with his rough appearance, it made him look downright threatening.
But Si-mun simply kept smiling.
The Night Hunter, Park Jin-uk. Despite being a Diamond-tier powerhouse, he suddenly retired from the Arena and now runs a cash-only business.
A sort of private investigation service, so to speak.
Why would someone of his caliber be doing this kind of work?
The reason was simple.
It was Mana Sclerosis, wasn't it?
After Korea's downfall, when Park Jin-uk joined Kim Si-hyeok's guild, they learned the truth.
Back then, the reason Park Jin-uk abruptly retired from the Arena was none other than Mana Sclerosis.
A type of Arena Disease where mana gradually hardens—solidifying inside the body.
"The recipe for the Mana Sclerosis Cure won't appear for another five years."
The ingredients were surprisingly mundane.
And of course, that recipe was already etched clearly in his mind.
Before obtaining the Emerald Tablet,
he had scoured every possible treatment method to cure Mana Disability.
Moreover—
'If Park Jin-uk joins sooner, it won't be bad for Si-hyeok either.'
It was Park Jin-uk who had stayed by Si-hyeok's side until the day he died at Jong-ri Chu's hands.
In the future, he would become one of the core members and key allies of his younger brother's guild.
So if Park Jin-uk aligned himself with Si-hyeok earlier—
It would help suppress not only Korea's internal issues, including the Association, but also the Continent Guild to some extent.
Having sorted his thoughts, Si-mun casually steered the conversation.
"Judging by the ingredient list, it looks like Mana Sclerosis... Am I right?"
"W-what?! Hyung, you've contracted an Arena Disease?"
Kim Si-hyeok, who had been blinking dumbly beside them, shot up from his seat.
But Park Jin-uk, resting his chin on his hand, merely glared at Si-mun with a piercing gaze.
"You even know the ingredient list? Hah! The Black Market really is something. To think they'd leak someone else's transaction records."
"That's just how the Black Market is. Isn't it a place where nothing matters except money?"
Si-mun lightly shifted the blame onto the Black Market.
It was common knowledge that the Night Hunter, Park Jin-uk, was a regular there.
And truthfully, transactions in the Black Market—unlike in Agora—were built on nothing but money.
"...Hah, I suppose you're right."
Park Jin-uk sighed and roughly ran a hand through his hair.
How Si-mun had obtained this information wasn't important.
In fact, it was more accurate to say he couldn't question Si-mun about it.
After all, he was partly at fault for using the Black Market in the first place.
'And I can't exactly mess with Si-hyeok's older brother.'
In that case—
'Might as well take what I can get.'
Suppressing his emotions, Park Jin-uk asked,
"So, what kind of help can you offer regarding my Mana Sclerosis?"
"Simple. Give me those ingredients, and I'll make the cure for you."
"...Excuse me?"
Not only Park Jin-uk but even—
"H-hyung? What are you talking about? A cure?"
—Kim Si-hyeok, who had been quietly listening, was stunned.
"Forgive me, but... I find everything you're saying hard to believe. Even Diamond-ranked alchemists haven't been able to create a cure for Arena Diseases. How could you—"
"I don't have a reason to explain that far. What's certain is—"
Si-mun took a sip of his now-cold coffee.
Setting the cup down leisurely, he continued,
"—that I can make the Mana Sclerosis Cure. If you're not inclined to believe me, you're free to decline the offer."
"......"
Park Jin-uk's mouth clamped shut.
It was only natural.
'Who in their right mind would refuse after hearing this?!'
Arena Diseases were officially incurable.
He had assumed there was no treatment—yet here was someone claiming otherwise?
'Even if it's a lie, I have no choice but to believe it.'
Not that the older brother of Kim Si-hyeok would lie about something like this, but—
He was already in a situation where Mana Sclerosis had forced him into temporary retirement from the Arena.
For Park Jin-uk, this wasn't an offer he could afford to refuse.
"Mr. Si-mun. I have just one question."
"Go ahead."
"Why make this offer at all? If it's a request, you could've done it for free."
At Park Jin-uk's question, Si-mun smiled softly and replied,
"Well..."
It was—
"Maybe I just like how straightforward you are?"
A smile as inscrutable as that damn junior of his.
"What do you say?"
"...Hah. As if I have any other choice."
Blood will tell, huh?
With that thought, Park Jin-uk wiped his face dry and extended his hand.
"Please, I entrust the cure to you. As you said earlier, I'll hand over all the ingredients I've procured."
"A wise decision. Ah, don't worry."
Grasping that hand, Si-mun winked.
"I probably won't run off with your ingredients."