Chapter 67: I’m Enough on My Own
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 67: I’m Enough on My Own
Kang Tae-min had been bombarded with countless criticisms for failing to open the Don Quixote Gate on time.
An ordinary person would have suffered a mental breakdown and become a total wreck, but he was different.
"Go ahead, keep talking. I’ll just keep lowering my rates."
The other Openers had collaborated to set a price floor, a line they wouldn't cross. Kang Tae-min was shattering that line, driving the price of opening a Gate lower and lower.
At this rate, in a few years, a pack of soft tofu from the local mart would be more expensive!
Kang Tae-min had no regrets. All he needed was to get his foot in the door just once. He just needed one opportunity to prove that his 'Open' skill was as sharp as ever.
I can just make up some excuse about special circumstances back then.
If he could just get a chance to open a Gate again, he could reclaim his old reputation in no time.
However, that one chance wasn't coming. Although not much time had passed since the Don Quixote Gate was cleared, the total lack of offers was outside his calculations.
Normally, everyone should be itching to utilize a broken, cheat-like skill like 'Open.' But as if paying for his past karma, not a single person from his circle contacted him.
He still had his wealth; it was just the work that had dried up. He had been effectively ostracized from high society.
The reason wasn't hard to guess.
It’s because of Cheon Hae-il and Melanie.
No matter how successful Kang Tae-min was, he was just an individual. Cheon Hae-il and Melanie, however, were figures at the head of massive organizations. Even if those two hadn't said a word about him, his image was already tarnished. High society, naturally sensitive to the whims of those two, had taken it upon themselves to exile him.
Kang Tae-min didn't resent them, as he would have done the same in their position. He was simply anxious because his severed connections meant there was no one to bring him work.
"Isn't anyone coming with money..."
An Opener who couldn't open a Gate in an emergency, when every second counted, was useless. It was the inevitable fate of an Opener, but this was too harsh.
Reporters swarmed him the moment he stepped outside, and staying cooped up at home was draining the life out of him. His emergency food supplies were almost gone, so he had to head out soon.
What if I develop social anxiety at this rate?
He hadn't become a complete wreck yet, but depression was slowly eating away at him. Just as the darkness of his house, shielded by blackout curtains, felt most oppressive—
Vrrr, vrrr, vrrr.
His phone began to vibrate, emitting a bright light.
"It’s a job!"
His publicly known phone number was a fake; he had a separate number for business. He was always prepared to take a call and deploy immediately.
"Hell—"
"Hello, this is Kang Tae-min. I’ve had a bit of a slump recently due to some unfortunate events, but my abilities are fully restored. I am Kang. Tae. Min, the Opener who is ready to soar again at a moment's notice. My rates are currently at an all-time low, so please feel free to utilize my services. How can I help you?"
His delivery was faster and more precise than a veteran call center agent! Kang Tae-min could not afford to let go of this lifeline.
—I’ll send the address to your phone. Come right now.
Click.
"Yes!"
He didn't care about the tone of the call. What mattered was the request address and the client's name displayed on his phone.
'Baek Tae-yang.'
You were the one who brought me down, yet here you are to save me again.
Kang Tae-min felt a warmth in his heart as he threw open the window. It was time to soar once more.
++++++++++++++++++
"What did he say?"
"Sounded like he’ll be here in a heartbeat. He was talking really fast."
"Don't worry about the reporters following him; we'll handle that on our end."
"I’m not worried about that. Just make sure you grant the favor I ask for later."
"No... nothing indecent."
"I know."
By the time they arrived at the scene, Melanie was already controlling the perimeter. She had secured a wide area to ensure no civilians would get caught up in it. It was truly a mystery how she had discovered a Gate hidden so deep in the mountains. Unless someone had told her...
What if someone did?
There was no way Chubby Ahn didn't know that the relationship between Yu-min and Kim Min-su was completely over. In fact, he probably knew better than anyone. Since I had snatched away all the power-ups Chubby Ahn had originally planned for Kim Min-su, he would need a replacement.
He might have planned to strengthen the protagonist through this S-Class Gate. The fact that it was an S-Class but a concept-type, and that it was difficult to find, supported this theory.
The biggest question, then, was why he had told Melanie about this.
Isn't this usually the kind of thing you do for 'closed-door training'?
You gain a powerful reward, keep it hidden, and then reveal it at a decisive moment. That decisive moment would likely be the fight against me. The scenario should have been him winning easily and 'teaching me a lesson.'
So why make it public like this? Was there a trap I didn't know about? If he had been playing dumb all this time just for this moment...
"Do you think a stupid person can suddenly become smart? Like, if they were hiding their true self?"
"If it's Kim Min-su, that's impossible."
"Right?"
"Yes. I’d rather talk about something more constructive than that."
"Like what?"
"Like your responsibility, Baek Tae-yang, for recommending Kim Min-su as a model."
Melanie was staring at me with a look of pure fury. Her usually coiled drill hair looked like the snakes of Medusa. Her sapphire-like eyes sparkled as they demanded an answer. She stood with her arms crossed in a huff, which seemed to serve as a shelf for her bust.
"You were the one who pushed for it so aggressively."
"You probably made it happen that way. Don't think you can keep being vague. Do I look like Kim Min-su to you?"
"That’s why I agreed to participate in the weapon test. And aren't you the one asking for help with this Gate incident?"
"You can't calculate it like that. Shouldn't you link 'Min-su's Scream' to his change in behavior afterward?"
A fierce battle of words ensued, with neither side backing down. Since all possible measures had been taken before Kang Tae-min's arrival, conversation was all they had left. But Melanie seemed to see this as an opportunity for an additional deal, lunging at the chance with fire in her eyes.
Normally, blonde hair shouldn't shine when shaded by trees, but her brilliant hair was radiating a soft golden glow, asserting her righteousness. It was true that I had received a lot of help from Melanie, but it would be troublesome if the initiative shifted here. To make Kim Min-su easier to control in the future, I needed to keep Melanie on a leash.
"Hunter Baek Tae-yang!!!"
Just as I was debating how to respond, I heard Kang Tae-min's voice from afar. Despite the difficult mountain terrain, he was charging forward recklessly. He had arrived less than five minutes after the call.
People really do change their attitude when they're out of work and desperate.
"Tch... let's finish this conversation properly later. I have no intention of letting this slide."
"I get it, I get it. Who said I was? I’m not that irresponsible."
I waved at Kang Tae-min with a natural smile. Melanie also showed her social grace by waving, though a look of dissatisfaction still lingered on her face.
"I truly wanted to see you! This gallant figure and posture! And the brilliant sense to not let go of a connection once it's made! I, Kang Tae-min, have truly turned over a new leaf through this opportunity and..."
"Hello, Opener Kang Tae-min. I didn't expect to see you again so soon. The situation is urgent, so let's skip the small talk and open the Gate."
"Yes, yes, of course! Haha. The media says my skills have rusted or that I can't use them, but that's all slander and lies. I will prove it right now."
Kang Tae-min seemed like a completely different person in that short span of time.
No, maybe this is his true self.
Kang Tae-min, whose life of vanity and luxury had plummeted into the abyss in an instant. This was undoubtedly the personality he had before his skill awakened. The desperate version of him that would do anything to earn a single penny was being manifested through his survival instinct.
In fact, the invoice he used to carry around was nowhere to be seen. Even if someone wears luxury brands, they look different depending on their attitude. Watching him open the Gate with such a desperate face, he really did seem like a different person.
"Guaaaaaah!"
Kang Tae-min suddenly began to scream while opening the Gate. He was acting as if he were jamming his hands into a closing door to force it open.
"The Gate is... really tight—!"
He didn't need to finish the sentence for me to understand.
Well, it was designed by Chubby Ahn, so it wouldn't open easily.
The Don Quixote Gate hadn't opened at all. So, I was grateful enough that there was now a gap just large enough for one person to pass through.
Melanie looked flustered, and Kang Tae-min was screaming in pain. Melanie looked back and forth between me and the Gate, seemingly intending to go in with me.
"I'm enough on my own."
"What...?"
I didn't hesitate for long. If the gap was only big enough for one person, it had to be me.
"Dress up and wait for me."
Because I’m going to bring Kim Min-su back.
I threw myself into the Gate, which was radiating a torrent of light.