Chapter 72
Chapter 72
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 72
Chapter Title: The Price of Failure
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My foe was steadily breaking down my body with every passing second. Meanwhile, his own body was crumbling away all on its own.
In the end, our flesh probably wouldn't hold out—it'd turn into a sloppy mess of minced meat. I swung my spear, and a thick trail of Paradox Flame blazed fiercely along its arc before scattering into the air.
"You're on a blank contract too, aren't you?"
There was no reply to my words. The bastard just kept swinging that vicious club at me relentlessly.
A blank contract was still a contract. There had to be something exchanged between the parties involved. The only problem was that the trade-off was completely lopsided. You could call swapping a candy for a diamond of equal weight a contract too, right?
The deal that thing had struck with the already-dead Sohwi was probably victory in this fight against me.
Of course, contracts came with penalties for failure. Even if the other party was dead, a contract powered by mana didn't care about that.
I wondered what price awaited if it failed to claim victory over me.
The penalty for breaching a contract was usually determined by the difficulty of fulfilling it. Easier contracts carried heftier penalties for failure, while tougher ones had lighter ones.
If the terms required a guy like Valea to defeat someone like me with his power, then the penalty would be...
"A drop in rank? Or exile?"
At my words, Valea halted the club mid-swing toward me.
—What the hell are you?
"Someone who knows a thing or two. And knows how to do a thing or two."
I wasn't a mage who studied mana theory or formulas. But no one on Earth had more practical experience wielding mana than me—or handled as many mana-infused artifacts.
Even if you never studied architecture, you couldn't dismiss the knowledge and experience of someone who'd worked construction sites for twenty years. Not in every area, sure, but in some, they'd have know-how surpassing any PhD.
"Looks like we don't have much time left. About three minutes."
Now it was visibly falling apart. Not just the flesh—the mana veins coursing through its entire body were rupturing. Like pipes bursting under too much pressure.
—That's plenty.
"Talking like that without any confidence in your voice just makes people laugh at you."
A deafening roar echoed as the club swung again. Naturally, the mana output pouring from him dwarfed mine. All I could do was block, dodge, and take the beatings over and over.
But if I could hang on for three minutes, I'd win. Once that possessed flesh shattered, the thing would have to retreat. And for failing its contract with the dead Sohwi, it'd pay a massive penalty.
With a thud, it slammed another heavy blow into my body. I rocketed skyward—easily three to five kilometers up—spewing a torrent of blood from my mouth.
Oof, I'm done for.
Then I saw Valea leaping up to smash me back down, club raised high.
"Must feel like total shit, huh?"
I planted my foot on one of the lingering blue trajectories around me. It attacked my leg. With a sharp clang, the blue trail hammered the plate armor encasing my leg.
The impact flung my body sideways, and Valea's grotesque meat club whistled through empty air.
"Dumbass."
Thanks to that uppercut I'd just eaten, nearly every bone in my body was shattered. But I could still smile.
This bastard's time was up.
"You should've finished me with that last hit."
Valea and I were plummeting together now. His flesh was steadily disintegrating. Finally, the body had failed to contain that immense mana—every vein and meridian torn to shreds.
The destructive mana, with nowhere left to go, was churning the flesh into pulp.
"See ya. Until next time. Though I have no clue when that'll be... If you come back quick, you won't have this kind of power anymore."
A being with that much strength had failed its contract. If it got slapped with an exile, it'd be centuries at least. If it was a rank demotion instead, the next time it showed up in this world, it sure as hell wouldn't wield overwhelming power like this.
Aimless, I forced my wrecked body to flip off the melting Sohwi-flesh with my middle finger.
—Nothing changes. Your fates draw near. And you've already earned our wrath. You'll meet an end one step more gruesome than the worst you can imagine.
I let out a faint chuckle, closed my eyes, and muttered,
"Fuck your mom."
It wouldn't be long before my body hit the ground. But then, my descent began to slow. Something was gently pushing up against my back, easing the fall.
Han Sang-ah's mana. She'd used her ability to magnetize my body, then leveraged that force to brake my plunge.
My gradually decelerating drop came to a gentle stop atop the utterly demolished sparring platform.
"You alive?"
"Yeah."
Han Sang-ah nodded at my response.
"Your body's trashed. Focus on recovery."
She glanced at her phone and added,
"Still, the Hunter Association slapped a hefty bounty on this incident. Even after hospital bills and treatment, you'll have some cash left over."
"Not worried?"
She eyed her smartphone screen.
"If I worry, will your bones knit faster?"
"Fair point."
I'd expected too much from her. Han Sang-ah kept checking her phone as she replied.
"Sohwi's body was all twisted up like that, and the live stream stayed on for about twenty to thirty minutes. Viewers saw the whole fight between you and whatever possessed your and Sohwi's bodies."
On top of that, several quickly edited videos had already been uploaded.
"I checked with Grandpa. We can use a hospital under one of the Geumyang Group's medical centers at a steep discount. Like sixty-five percent off."
"Conditions?"
She answered,
"There used to be a subsidiary called Jeonghwa Group—media-focused. They run private broadcasts."
"They want an interview?"
She nodded.
"Jeonghwa started from Geumyang's old Jeonghwa Newspaper subsidiary. It split off, formed its own group, and grew from there."
So they still kept close ties.
"They want an exclusive interview and a few show appearances."
"Tell 'em to shove it. I'll pay full price."
Getting tangled up like that would just mess with my business. Not worth saving a few bucks if it meant getting my nose pierced.
"Already texted 'em to fuck off. And requested cooperation from a Hunter Association-affiliated hospital instead."
"What the—"
You actually sent that?! My mind was fading fast. About to pass out. Unless they shoved me straight in a coffin, I'd wake up in a hospital bed.
My vision went black. When I came to, I was lying in a hospital room. I turned my head—Jeong O-hun was peeling an apple beside me.
"Son of a bitch."
He looked over.
"First words after waking up are curses?"
"I open my eyes to some stinky old dude sitting by my bed peeling an apple. How's that supposed to feel good?"
He nodded.
"I get it. Never thought I'd be the bearded dude peeling apples in some guy's room either."
"Then why're you doing it?"
If you hate it, don't. Did someone strap a bomb collar on the bastard and force him to play nurse?
"Sang-ah stepped out, and I need money."
"Money?"
He kept peeling as he replied,
"I watched from a nearby building while you fought. Blew my mind."
Praising me instead of explaining at a time like this.
"That last part especially stuck with me."
"After getting launched sky-high by that club, looked like you were settling a score for all the beatings I gave you?"
"Felt damn refreshing."
Jeong O-hun's expression was dead serious.
"But when that club sent you flying, you were smiling."
"Good eyes."
He nodded and tapped his own eyes.
"Special trait. Can't see everything, but distant stuff? Better than most hunters."
He stared at me intently.
"Sohwi... or whatever that monster was. From the moment it launched you into the sky, you knew its body was collapsing. No other explanation for that smile."
"Who knows. Maybe I just wanted to die."
He burst out laughing, shoved a piece of apple in his mouth, chewed noisily, and eyed me.
"Anyway, I smell money on you."
"So you're sticking around?"
He patted his pocket where his wallet sat.
"Long as you keep stuffing cash in here. You said you had bigger goals than money, but cash is what gets you there."
"Fine. Your wallet won't go dry on my watch."
"Sweet," he said, offering me a slice. I just stared at it, then shot him a look.
"Don't like it? Want me to carve it into a bunny?"
"Stop peeling apples next to me and go train."
Jeong O-hun still had a ways to go before I could take him into the Grade 1 Erosion Core at Jaun Valley.
A man who had watched the fight from a nearby building until just moments ago wore a dazed expression.
"Damn, that guy won."
Kim Chae-hyun, Mugunghwa Company's 1st Team Partner Hunter, muttered as he twirled the butterfly knife in his hand. The government had contracted them and ordered them to stand by atop a tall nearby building to prevent any contingencies.
"Lucky bastard. Was it luck? Something like that?"
Yoo Chan-seok should've died down there. He couldn't move anymore anyway—he should've been finished off by whatever had possessed Sohwi's body.
But with just one strike left, Sohwi's flesh suddenly collapsed. And Yoo Chan-seok survived. The issue was, no one could tell if he'd orchestrated it or if it was sheer coincidence.
"Lee Se-eun's got her eye on him, huh."
She had good reason. Bright future ahead. The government had instructed Kim Chae-hyun to move only after Yoo Chan-seok died. Otherwise, he'd have jumped in for a pincer attack ages ago.
"Too valuable to just kill. Lucky? Nah, disappointing?"
Truth was, Mugunghwa was small compared to Zanabi or Taebaek. But it stood shoulder-to-shoulder with them solely because Kim Chae-hyun ranked 5th on Hope's List.
The top ranker was off doing who-knows-what. Ranks 2 through 4 roamed freely, basking in wealth and socialites.
"Wonder Club, was it? He'll probably get an invite soon."
A secret club formed by Hope's List ranks 2-4. They shared intel, bragged about their honors and riches, and lived it up.
Those top three lounged in their club, soaking up fawning admiration from other hunters, living the good life.
Point was, among company-affiliated hunters, Kim Chae-hyun was the strongest—and that propped up his position.
"Could've made him owe me his life."
Kim Chae-hyun lingered with a regretful look for a while before finally standing up. In the end, he hadn't needed to intervene.