Rampage: Kim Yeo-ul (2)

The Yacha was half-buried in the cliff face. There was no sign of him breaking free, yet I didn’t dare loosen my guard. Until it was truly over, nothing was over.

Unexpectedly, the Seizure skill proved useful right then.

The name that had turned red when he transformed into the Yacha had returned to its original black. His Grace Points had also skyrocketed, but I had no time to feel happy about it.

Crack. Crunch.

The body embedded in the cliff began to pull itself free. If I had the strength, I would have waited below to catch him, but my stamina was completely drained.

“If it won’t happen naturally, I’ll make it happen.”

I pulled three magic stones from my inventory and tossed them into my mouth like candy. Crunch!

Anyone watching me chew on unrefined pure mana crystals would think I was trying to kill myself. In reality, most people who tried this died from acute mana poisoning. But I was fine. More precisely, I knew exactly how to make myself fine.

“Ugh, tastes like shit.”

The mana that started in my mouth spread throughout my body. I gathered the toxic parts with my saliva and spat them out. It might look easy, but sensing and guiding mana like this required considerable skill.

Ptoo!

I had lost three million won, but I instantly recovered one point of mana. I cast a physical defense buff on Kim Yeo-ul as he fell from the cliff.

Thud!

When I reached the landing spot, I was glad I’d used the buff. Sharp rock fragments littered the ground; without protection, he would have turned into a human pincushion.

I checked his nose. He was still breathing.

“To think he’d come out this clean after all that.”

He was covered in scrapes and bleeding, but nothing appeared broken. The Yacha must still be low-level for him to even faint. If his level had been even a little higher…

He probably wouldn’t have passed out even if I slammed him into the cliff.

The S-rank traits and skills he possessed grew stronger with every battle. The title of “the strongest villain in history” wasn’t given lightly. His S-rank skills were downright broken.

That was exactly why the corner of my mouth curled up. Once I accumulated enough Grace Points, those broken traits and skills would become mine.

Seizing an S-rank costs a million points each. So taking both would require two million points.

The silver lining was that Kim Yeo-ul and the Yacha shared the same Grace Point pool. I wouldn’t need to farm them separately. That was an enormous relief.

To stop the great catastrophe, one life won’t be enough. The Yacha’s revival effect will be solid insurance.

But when would I gather a million points? There was no ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠need to rush. After all, they say the beginning is half the battle.

“When it comes to persistence, Chae Mu-jin is second to none.”

I welcomed any hardship worth challenging.

I carried the unconscious Kim Yeo-ul and laid him down beside Kim Ji-woo. While moving him, another person caught my eye.

“This guy’s luck is ridiculous. If I hadn’t been here, his head would’ve exploded.”

I laid the attacker party’s healer down beside them as well, then naturally rifled through his pockets.

“Oh, so you were the token carrier?”

A thick bundle of passing tokens. Counting them gave me twenty-seven. Adding our twenty-one made forty-eight total—eighteen above the thirty-token goal.

But the farming wasn’t over yet.

Thanks to saving the healer Do Bok-cheol’s life, his Grace Points had piled up impressively.

So saving someone’s life gives about ten thousand Grace Points?

There was no reason to ignore such a hefty stack. He had come to rob our passing tokens and I had personally saved his life. From his perspective it was karmic retribution; from mine, fair compensation.

After cleanly stripping him of even the items, the attacker almost looked like a sponsor.

Perfectly ordinary healer trait and skill. But the fact that I, a supporter, now possessed them carried enormous meaning.

“Now I can deal damage and self-heal at the same time.”

Solo play that would have been unthinkable in my previous life was now possible.

Calm down. Even so, all the traits and skills I learn by leveling up are still supporter-type.

In half a day I had broken past the limits of the supporter role, but that only made such phenomena possible. It didn’t mean I had become a true powerhouse.

I need to level up more and seize more traits and skills.

The heavy fatigue in my body felt momentarily light. A smile rose unbidden from the deep satisfaction.

That was that. First, we needed to leave the dungeon.

Slap! Slap!

I couldn’t carry three unconscious people, so I mercilessly smacked all three across the cheeks.

“Ugh?!”

“Huk!”

Kim Ji-woo and Do Bok-cheol jolted awake in shock, while Kim Yeo-ul rose with bleary eyes as if he had enjoyed a sweet nap.

“You, sir, can go your own way now.”

I had already finished my business with Do Bok-cheol, so I abandoned him. He couldn’t grasp the situation but at least understood he had been ditched by his party.

“Fuck!”

Still unaware that his trait and skill had vanished, he hurriedly ran off to find his group.

“H-Hyung-nim. Where did those bastards, those sons of bitches go?”

Kim Ji-woo, now conscious, asked, but I only gave him a lukewarm expression. It was the same look one gave to gum that had lost its flavor.

“They all ran away. Don’t worry. We kept our tokens and they left theirs behind too. Forty-eight in total. All we have to do is get out now.”

Kim Yeo-ul flinched at the word “tokens” before opening his parched mouth.

“Did… nothing happen?”

From that reaction, I could tell Kim Yeo-ul was aware of his dual personality—the Yacha.

“A whole fucking lot happened. But let’s talk about that after we get out of here.”

“My glasses…”

“I picked them up just in case, but they’re broken.”

“…I’ll just go without them.”

“Even if it’s hard to stand, get up. Don’t forget we’re still inside a dungeon.”

Goblins were one thing, but other parties might come hunting for tokens.

“Ah shit, what is this? I feel weird. Why does it feel like something’s missing?”

Kim Ji-woo hadn’t checked his status window yet, but he seemed to sense the emptiness where his trait and skill used to be.

“You’re still not fully awake. I’ll take the lead, so just follow closely.”

Both of them were still mentally scattered, but survival instinct made them trail after me like ducklings.

Dungeon entrances were either fixed or random. Fortunately, this goblin dungeon had a fixed exit. Still, finding its exact location required exploration. Yet I headed straight for the exit and found it immediately.

Under normal circumstances the two would have marveled at how I located the exit so quickly, but they weren’t in any state to care.

“W-What the fuck! My ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠trait, my skill! No, they’re gone? Why is my entire inventory empty?!”

After escaping the dungeon, Kim Ji-woo finally checked his status window and realized even his trait, skill, and items had all disappeared.

“Hey, what’s wrong with this guy?”

“Acute mana poisoning? Restrain him!”

The staff waiting outside hurriedly subdued Kim Ji-woo.

“Let go, you crazy bastards! I’m not crazy! Hyung-nim! Please say something, Hyung-nim!”

Kim Ji-woo cried out desperately for me. But I had already moved to a secluded corner with Kim Yeo-ul.

Kim Yeo-ul didn’t even notice Kim Ji-woo being dragged away. Even if he had, he couldn’t have helped. He was in crisis himself right now.

His complexion darkened rapidly as he looked at me. I wore an expression that said I knew everything.

It’s over.

Kim Yeo-ul knew that whenever he lost consciousness, the area around him always turned into a sea of blood. It was vague, but it wasn’t hard to realize he was the one responsible. His fists had been drenched in blood, after all.

Because there had been no witnesses until now, he had never been reported. But today a witness had appeared.

He’ll definitely report me. As a villain.

Those who used their awakening abilities to commit crimes—villains. The state never forgave villains.

Even though his identity had been exposed, Kim Yeo-ul didn’t try to run. He thought it was for the best. The guilt of having killed his own father and countless others. The helplessness of being unable to control his other personality. Every day had been hell.

But the moment one person came to mind, his resolve changed.

My little sister.

If he was taken away, who would look after her? The image of his sister waiting endlessly for him flickered before his eyes.

Even if I become a villain, as long as I can save my sister…

Just as a pitch-black will began to rise in his heart—

“Yeo-ul, what are you thinking about?”

Chae Mu-jin, who had briefly disappeared from sight, had returned before he knew it.

“Manager-nim… You saw it, didn’t you? The other… me.”

He spoke as carefully as possible in case others might overhear, but I answered as if it were no big deal.

“First, let’s go eat. There’s a 24-hour barbecue place nearby.”

“…Pardon?”

“Don’t worry about money. I sold the extra passing tokens. It’s on me.”

“I don’t really have an appetite…”

“We’re eating Korean beef, not imported. You really won’t have any?”

“Korean beef…”

Gurgle.

Despite his heavy emotions, his body was honest. It screamed that it was hungry. That it wanted to eat beef.

The pitch-black will rising in his chest cooled rapidly, replaced by a bright red emotion.

“…I’ll eat.”

And so Kim Yeo-ul followed me to eat meat, his ears burning red.

A man’s ID photo—eyes that looked annoyed, mouth forced into a smile.

“Heh heh, I thought it might be someone I knew since he rejected Hwa-ya’s offer, but it’s not.”

The white-haired elder gazed intently at the man in the photograph.

“Association President. We have also brought his personal information.”

“No need. Don’t spoil the fun of finding out for myself.”

“I will dispose of it immediately.”

The man who appeared to be the secretary quickly removed the documents and presented another set.

“These are the final score sheets after the second test.”

“Where did I put my glasses… Ah, how bothersome. Just tell me yourself. How many people got perfect scores?”

“Only one.”

“It must be our Hwa-ya, of course?”

“Miss I-hwa placed second with 19 points.”

“Our I-hwa got second place? I promised her a kiss if she didn’t get first. What a shame, heh heh!”

“I am truly sorry.”

“What do you have to be sorry for? I’m actually pleased. It means I have a chance to receive another kiss after twenty years, and I’ve grown curious about the person who took first place ahead of our Hwa-ya.”

The Association President who rose from his ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠chair was extremely short. It wasn’t purely because of his height, but because of his severely hunched back. Leaning on his cane, walking was difficult for him. He stood by the window and gazed at ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the night view of the city.

“Did you find out who that supporter was—the one who got a perfect score on the first test?”

“Yes. Applicant number 77, Chae Mu-jin.”

“Don’t tell me he also got ten points on the second test?”

“He did.”

“It can’t be that the one who rejected our Hwa-ya’s offer is also named Chae Mu-jin, right?”

“…It is Chae Mu-jin.”

“Heh, heh heh heh!”

It was a gentle, hearty laugh, but the secretary felt his breath catch in his throat.

It has been over a month since he became an A-rank hunter, yet the Association President still feels like the sky itself.

His legs trembled violently. He tried to endure, but the limit came quickly.

Thud!

His legs finally gave out. The secretary dropped to his knees and slammed his forehead against the floor.

“I’m sorry, Association President!”

He had done nothing wrong, yet the apology came out automatically.

No answer came. Still, the secretary kept his head down for a long time. Only after ten minutes did he cautiously raise it.

“…Association President?”

The man who had clearly been standing by the window was nowhere to be seen. The secretary broke out in goosebumps. Feeling something in his pocket, he pulled out a note. It was written in the President’s handwriting.

He had been standing in front of the room’s only door. Yet he hadn’t noticed the President passing by or slipping the note into his pocket.

“Ha, haha.”

The world called anyone over level 300 a superhuman and revered them, but the secretary could not dare call himself one. They were both A-rank, yet the difference between the President and himself was as vast as that between a paramecium and a human.

The secretary barely suppressed his despondency and read the note the President had left behind.

—I’m going to meet this Chae Mu-jin fellow for a moment.