Chapter 9
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: Home and Vigilante Member (1)
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"What is this...? No, I..."
"You don't need to explain yourself to me. Here."
Even with her white gloves on, she seemed reluctant to touch it. She pinched the edge of my pants precariously between her thumb and forefinger before tossing them over.
Without so much as glancing my way, she knelt down on one knee with a calm expression. Channeling her mana, she began examining the traces left behind.
A murmur of voices drifted up from the stairs. It sounded like the Vigilante Corps members who'd stepped out briefly to guide someone were returning.
"Ah, ah!"
I scrambled to fish my underwear out from the pants on the floor. I thrust my legs through the holes. The sound of the automatic door sliding open made my movements even more frantic.
Tick. The taut rubber bands on either side caught my limp member. The milky fluid beaded at the tip shot forward with force.
And of all places, its trajectory led straight to the Vigilante Corps member impassively scanning the floor.
I froze midway through pulling up my underwear and grabbing my pants. Against the backdrop of the other members entering through the door, her face seemed to harden into something terrifying, magnified in my mind.
She slowly raised her gloved hand. With her index finger, she wiped away the sticky droplets that had splattered onto her face. Her gaze shifted from left to right, as if tracing its path.
Suddenly. In a voice so small no one else could hear, she muttered.
"Seeding...?"
Korea's laws were applied quite leniently to hunters. Unless it was a major crime, cases rarely went all the way to punishment.
They received special treatment even without stepping foot in a courtroom. No one stopped them from boarding the subway with a sword. A harsh word was the most they'd get for outrageous behavior. This was the dark side hidden behind the phrase "hunter powerhouse."
What kept Korea from devolving into complete lawlessness was largely thanks to certain clans. They didn't openly collaborate with the state, but with tacit approval, they imposed private sanctions on hunters who committed major crimes. These clans had become indispensable necessary evils in society.
The Vigilante Corps was the capital region's necessary evil—and the clan with the highest reputation around.
Park Jungwoo was currently seated in the reception room of the Vigilante Corps' Gangdong branch.
This was only the second time in his life he'd entered such a room, and it was as comfortable as ever. The furniture was far superior to the Hunter Management Bureau's, and they'd even served tea with apologies for making him wait.
He was being treated with unexpected politeness. It was because witness statements confirmed he'd thrown himself into the fray to buy time for the Vigilante Corps to arrive.
But that didn't mean he could puff out his chest and act all high and mighty. His money had been stolen clean, and the culprit had vanished like smoke.
In the midst of it all, Park Jungwoo's nerves were fixed on the woman sitting across the table from him.
"So. Based on our investigation, the on-site testimony, and CCTV footage, the culprit is most likely this person."
A gloved hand placed a single sheet of paper on the desk.
Red Vigilante Corps uniform, long jet-black hair tied down on both sides, deep pink irises. Beneath her short black skirt, white stockings in the hue of riding breeches were securely fastened with a garter belt.
Even from across the low desk, her plump thighs asserted their presence. Park Jungwoo struggled not to let his gaze drop, lost in stray thoughts, and ended up letting most of her explanation go in one ear and out the other.
The woman before him, Chae Seoah, was quite famous.
The unique ability "Declaration of Intent"—loudly voicing one's strongest thought at the moment for an overall stat boost.
She possessed a power useful for gate raids and combat, yet chose to join the Vigilante Corps and rise to an executive position—a somewhat unusual path. And her weapon was a rapier, rare in Korea.
There had been a few rumors calling her a hypocrite due to her characteristically upright nature, but she was one of the hunters Park Jungwoo admired: those who built fame through good deeds.
"Mr. Park Jungwoo?"
"Yes. Yes? Oh, yes!"
He fumbled his response and hurriedly snatched up the document on the desk. It didn't sink in easily, so he traced the lines with his fingertip, rereading sections multiple times.
"Her name's Oroji...?"
"Funny name, right? Still, she's dangerous—does anything for profit: theft, handling stolen goods, illegal transport, you name it."
The document, styled like something out of a movie, listed Oroji's photo, basic profile, and a laundry list of crimes.
It was the exact woman he'd encountered at the bank two hours ago.
"We thought she'd slipped away for good with how crafty she is... but thanks to you, Mr. Park, we have an opportunity."
Chae Seoah raised her hand and pointed straight with her index finger. Park Jungwoo ducked his head. The sudden jab was aimed at his lower abdomen.
"Do you know what that tattoo sticker is?"
Park Jungwoo numbly shook his head. A complex heart pattern slightly above the pubic bone. On his lower belly. He gingerly touched the spot over his clothes, where it still stung, and waited tensely for her next words.
"It's not that rare... but I've never seen it used on a man before. Took us a bit to identify it."
With a blank expression and polite tone, Chae Seoah spoke. Park Jungwoo's face twisted oddly. Not often used on men. He already had a hunch what it was.
"Wealthy hunters use it for play, or for shadier purposes..."
Chae Seoah cleared her throat awkwardly, as if it pained her to say it, and steadied her voice a couple times.
"It usually fades after about a month."
"So, what happens during that month?"
"Well..."
Chae Seoah was famous for her straightforward, honest personality.
If even she was hesitating like this, his guess was probably spot on. In a state of resignation, Park Jungwoo hung his head and awaited her answer.
"...It has location tracking and intermittent aphrodisiac effects, from what I know."
Fuuu...
A long sigh escaped Park Jungwoo's lips. Aphrodisiac. The word spun in his mind.
He'd thought baring himself in front of all those people was the worst of it. But for something this humiliating to pop up just hours later was beyond exasperating.
Looking at him pitifully, Chae Seoah pulled her chair closer to the desk. Leaning forward slightly, she spoke in a low voice.
"Oroji will definitely try to kidnap you within the week, Mr. Park. I'm sure you can guess why."
Her deep pink eyes flicked toward the corner of the room. She was glancing at the CCTV camera.
The gesture—and her deliberate avoidance of mentioning Seeding—indirectly conveyed that she hadn't reported the skill.
Park Jungwoo wasn't sharp enough to catch every nuance of her actions, but he wasn't completely dull or stupid either.
He got swept up too easily in excitement and thrill. But without that, he was at least a person with the Intelligence D plainly marked on his stats.
Having caught on to what the week meant, he asked quietly.
"Before the skill effect wears off... she'll come after me?"
"Exactly. But... this is also a big opportunity for the Vigilante Corps."
Park Jungwoo peered again at the document detailing Oroji and the incident.
Busan, Daejeon, Gwangju, Daegu, Sejong...
"It'll help us pull ahead of similar clans in other regions?"
"...Yes. Exactly."
Chae Seoah looked at Park Jungwoo. She couldn't hide her surprise; her slightly widened eyes trembled faintly.
From the testimony and CCTV alone, she'd pegged him as a reckless fool. She was startled he'd connected those dots so quickly.
Of course, the insight he'd just shown wasn't anything exceptional. It only seemed inflated because her expectations of him had been rock bottom.
"How can I help?"
Park Jungwoo quickly reconciled with the situation. An chance to aid the Vigilante Corps? He couldn't pass it up.
...Of course, personal revenge against Oroji and greed for monetary compensation played a small part too.
Chae Seoah's face showed brief relief. Soon reverting to her expressionless state, she spoke.
"The plan is this."
Park Jungwoo's home was more like temporary lodging. With just a single wardrobe for furniture—no desk, no bed—the semi-basement room felt utterly desolate.
He must have cleaned obsessively, as the floor gleamed. But the stench that had seeped in over three days of lying around lingered despite constant airing.
Back home, Park Jungwoo let out a deep sigh from the entryway. He stood there blankly, reluctant to step into the cold, empty studio, dawdling as he removed his shoes.
It felt like he'd been gone not a day, but several. The accumulated fatigue from all the ordeals hit him at once.
But the real reason for his sudden sigh was something else.
Creak, creak, creak...
Wheels caught on the stairs, producing a rhythmic noise. Rumble. A suitcase rolled. The steady clack-clack of footsteps halted behind Park Jungwoo.
"Here it is."
A calm voice rang out. Still in her uniform, now with a long rapier at her side, Chae Seoah rested her hand on the suitcase handle. She stared at Park Jungwoo as if asking why he wasn't going in already.
Park Jungwoo trudged inside with listless steps. Chae Seoah followed, pausing at the entryway.
Suddenly bowing deeply at the waist, she said.
"Please take care of me for the next week."
Chae Seoah's proposed method to catch Oroji: for one week, she and Park Jungwoo would stick together without a moment's separation—tight protection detail.