Chapter 84
Chapter 84
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Jeju Island
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After spending some good healing time with Kim Kyung-sook, I returned home to find Jae-eun already back.
The unexpected part was that Kim Jin-ah was with her.
"The playboy uncle is back?"
Jae-eun seemed to have figured out that I'd met up with a woman.
Most of my outings were for that reason, so it would have been weirder if she hadn't noticed.
Of course, she had no idea the woman I was seeing was Yu-na's mother.
"You've arrived."
Kim Jin-ah, dressed in her usual crisp suit and seated on the sofa, stood up politely and bowed her head to me.
The fact that she, who clocked out like clockwork when there was no work, had stuck around until I got back meant she had business with me.
"Something to say?"
"Yes."
"What is it?"
"I have a good opportunity waiting. One with excellent terms."
"Excellent terms?"
"Yes. It's regarding the Jeju Island raid."
"Jeju Island?"
It came out of nowhere.
Jeju Island was a dimensional rift zone the government had abandoned.
When the rifts and gates first erupted, they could barely handle the mainland, let alone worry about an island across the sea.
And so, Jeju became monster territory.
Even now, there was no advantage to reclaiming it.
And without awakeners willing to support a reclamation effort, it remained neglected.
"Flame Lord Gwak Sang-hyeon has declared a Jeju Island raid. He's recruiting awakeners and supporter mercenaries on a massive scale. Our company received a cooperation request as well."
Flame Lord Gwak Sang-hyeon was the master of Flame Guild and one of only four A-rank awakeners in the country.
A named hero.
At A-rank, they had massive public recognition.
That's why, even if they didn't do hero work, they were called heroes rather than hunters.
Flame Guild was one of the top guilds in the country, but even they couldn't clear Jeju Island alone.
So recruiting mercenaries was a natural step.
"Oh? The government must be thrilled. Are those the excellent terms?"
The government might not gain much substance from it, but they'd get public support.
"Yes. The terms are exceptionally good."
"How good?"
"Base pay and allowances at three times the industry average, plus tax exemptions on all income from this raid."
"Tax exemptions too... They're dead serious."
In other words, it was that good because it had to be to lure awakeners.
"The hunter industry is in an uproar over it."
The tax exemptions were probably negotiated with the government, but hiring mercenaries was all on the guild.
The operational costs wouldn't be a joke.
"Won't this bankrupt Flame Guild?"
"That's what they're going for, it seems."
"Do they really need to go that far? What's in it for them?"
Why wouldn't the government want to raid Jeju Island?
Leaving a dimensional rift zone untouched for too long caused unknown spatial distortions.
In short, you couldn't peek inside from the outside until you actually went in.
Jeju Island, packed full of unresolved dimensional rifts—who knew what state it was in?
Compared to that, the easily accessible and vast Incheon Songdo Gate.
Obviously, it was more profitable to pour resources into setting up another camp inside a gate with good conditions and plenty of land rather than risk the dangerous rift zone across the sea.
"I don't know the inside story, but publicly, it's because Jeju is Flame Lord's hometown. And there's talk that the government will recognize substantial ownership rights. But until Flame Lord speaks up himself, it's just rumors."
Still, it didn't make complete sense.
Was he homesick or something?
Whatever. It wasn't my business.
"Hmm..."
The terms were good, but it didn't appeal to me.
"Since the terms are so good, I figured I'd at least mention it."
"Pass for me."
"Understood."
"Uncle, you're not going? I'm going..."
Jae-eun said something I never expected.
"You're going?"
"Yeah."
To my question, Jae-eun answered lightly, like she was off on a picnic.
Lately, she'd been diving in and out of gates a lot with Jin-ah.
'Does she need money for something?'
If it was about money, I could help, but it wasn't my place to bring it up first.
If it was urgent, she'd tell me herself.
Thinking about it again, it might lack merit for me in my position, but for a hunter, it was a solid chance to make a killing.
"I'll be going too."
Kim Jin-ah and Jae-eun surprisingly got along well.
"It'll be dangerous though..."
But you could make bank, though it wasn't a joke—it was genuinely dangerous.
An isolated island across the sea.
A rift zone matured for nearly 15 years.
No telling how many monsters those dimensional rifts had spat out inside.
Communications wouldn't work well once you were in.
No one knew what was there.
In the worst case, a B-rank dimensional rift might have spawned.
Even with Flame Lord, it might be too much.
"Uncle, are you worried about me?"
"Well... yeah..."
Of course I was worried.
After all the close calls we'd shared, it was only natural.
Jae-eun, pleased that I was worried about her, climbed onto my lap and kissed my cheek.
She didn't care that Jin-ah was watching.
Unconsciously, out of habit, my hand went to Jae-eun's butt.
Then I realized Jin-ah was there and caught myself.
Jin-ah kept a straight face, but it had to be awkward for her watching us like this.
"...You gonna stop me?"
It was Jae-eun's choice. Should I try to dissuade her?
I was worried.
For a moment, I even considered going with her.
But I wasn't her dad, and I couldn't tag along every time I got worried.
By that logic, I'd have to stop her current hunter activities too.
"Hmm... If you want to go, go."
"You're okay with it?"
"Not like I can permit or forbid it, but..."
"But?"
"Go as late as possible, right at the end."
"The end?"
"Yeah. Watch how it progresses first. No one knows what's inside."
Even if we didn't know, a major guild throwing everything at it meant massive manpower would be deployed.
"I was thinking the same."
Good thing Jin-ah had planned the same, even without me saying it.
With her there, Jae-eun wouldn't push too hard.
Better to earn a bit less and stay safe.
After some moderate healing time in the original world, I re-entered the zombie world.
I'd already set up a save point near Cheongju, so no reason to enter via the tiring route.
The surroundings were pitch dark.
In front of me stood a beauty in hanbok with her hair in twin buns.
It was Baek Seol-hwa.
She stared at me with wide eyes in surprise.
'This is a first.'
Because I'd spent time in Cheongju and returned?
I hadn't banned rooftop access, and I'd half-expected something like this might happen someday.
"M-My lord!?"
Seol-hwa cried out in shock, as if she'd seen something she shouldn't have.
It was understandable—she'd be startled by me suddenly appearing before her.
The beads of sweat on her smooth forehead and the sword in her hand.
Seol-hwa had been practicing swordsmanship on the rooftop.
"Th-This is... the Shrink Space Technique! As expected of my lord...!"
From what she said, it felt like I'd appeared out of thin air?
Strictly speaking, it wasn't teleportation.
Or maybe it was.
It felt like teleportation but not quite.
I got that it was an amazing sight, but...
Seol-hwa was staring at me with sparkling eyes that were almost overwhelming.
"O-Oppa!!"
"Un-ho oppa!"
As I entered the break room, Ji-ah hugged me fiercely.
Han Su-jin looked just as thrilled.
In local time, it hadn't been that long since I'd left for Cheongju.
Yet the kids' reactions were dramatically over-the-top.
Chae-won and the little ones were nowhere to be seen.
"Where are the kids? Already asleep?"
It wasn't that late in the evening.
"W-Well..."
They made awkward faces at my question.
"Chae-won and the children are at Cheonbu Gate."
"Why there?"
Seol-hwa's following explanation left me dumbfounded.
It had only been about a day in local time.
'I step away for a bit, and Corrupted Beings show up right then?'
This area was one I'd cleared perfectly—a near-ideal clean zone.
The odds of Corrupted Beings reaching here were minuscule.
The outskirts, maybe, but the heart of the clean zone?
And a mid-grade one that hadn't been spotted despite searches?
'Unbelievable.'
Having Chae-won and the kids stay at Cheonbu Gate seemed like a precaution in case the escaped mid-grade returned.
"Were you waiting for me?"
"Yes, my lord."
I couldn't figure it out at all.
What was it? Had they moved nearby in the meantime?
Or come hunting for food all the way here?
I mulled it over, but no answers came.
'Whatever... Actually, isn't this better? Works out great. Better puppies than those giant spider freaks.'
Once word spread that I was back, Chae-won and the kids returned to base.
With me here, it was safer than Cheonbu Gate.
The little ones clung to me, but I was in such good condition that even that didn't bother me.
This feeling would probably fade in a day, but...