Baekmuk continued with a faint smile.
“I’m the kind of person who believes that if I owe someone a favor, I repay it no matter what. I hate being in debt.”
It sounded like something a good-natured person would say, but this was not Baekmuk’s true nature.
I knew what lay beyond that smile. In my memories, his eyes had been infinitely subdued and cold.
— I’m on humanity’s side. But I can’t help everyone. I’m not running a charity. If you want to survive, bring me information or abilities that can be useful.
That side of him was far removed from the typical hero. Baekmuk was someone who acted according to strict calculation.
He had probably been the one to call me first because he believed it would benefit him as well.
There was no need to make this complicated.
We only had to exchange what each of us needed.
“I don’t mean to brag, but I have a very wide network. If it has anything to do with hunters, I’ll help you with whatever you need.”
There was no reason to refuse Baekmuk’s offer.
Thump.
I lifted the bag I had set down beside me and placed it on the table.
“What’s this?”
“These are magic stones I obtained after clearing the D-rank dungeon Yoon Jeongsu secretly owned. I’d like to sell them through you, Baekmuk. And not just this once. I want to continue doing so from now on.”
At my words, Baekmuk’s pupils widened slightly. After a brief silence, he spoke.
“Ha ha, I’m a little surprised. Not everything I do is public knowledge. Did you investigate me?”
A faint smile appeared on his lips.
“Very well. A man can’t go back on his own word. I did say I’d help you with anything.”
A large quantity of magic stones from an unknown source. Something like this was difficult to trade unless the transaction was backed by guild-level trust.
But when money was involved, Baekmuk did not care even if an item’s origin was unclear.
“I’ll send you the money as soon as the value has been assessed. In a way that won’t cause any problems. Ah, there’ll be a bit of a commission fee. That’s fine, right?”
“I know.”
“Then there shouldn’t be a problem. Is that all you need?”
“There’s one more thing.”
I took out a neatly folded sheet of paper from inside my clothes and handed it to him.
Baekmuk unfolded it and tilted his head.
“……Names of people? There are places too. And some of these look like item names.”
Written there was a list of fragmented knowledge I possessed from the past.
Things I knew in broad strokes but not in detail.
'Someone as capable as Baekmuk should be able to find them.'
They were things that would require an enormous amount of information for me to investigate or locate on my own.
Places where sources of demonic energy existed, places rumored to contain items I had only heard about, or indispensable people whose names were all I knew.
I should be able to find them through Baekmuk.
I had narrowed the list down to things that would be difficult to profit from without the future information I possessed. Even if Baekmuk managed to investigate them independently, it would be difficult for him to figure out why they mattered.
“I’d like you to find them.”
Baekmuk nodded as he read what was written on the paper. This time, he did not look surprised. Instead, he spoke as though he had been waiting for this.
“Hmm. I’d like to find all of these for you exactly as requested if possible, but it looks like this is going to become a bigger job than I expected. So, Lee Jihan, could you help me a little as well?”
I had known this was coming.
“You still don’t belong to a guild, correct?”
“Yes.”
“And you’re not planning on joining one?”
“Not for now.”
Baekmuk clapped his hands as though that worked out perfectly.
“That’s actually better. Depending on how you use it, that kind of status can be an advantage. As long as you have the ability, like you do. You’ve heard of mercenary hunters, right?”
Mercenary hunters.
Hunters who worked freelance without belonging to a guild. Their advantage was the freedom to operate without being bound by any particular affiliation.
There had even been a hunter who became famous as an SSS-rank mercenary.
“You’re still D-rank, correct?”
“That’s right.”
“Good. It’s impressive, really.”
I had never told him. But since I had been F-rank when I was at the agency, D-rank was the natural conclusion no matter how quickly I had grown.
And it was true.
'Though if you go by Level, I’m practically C-rank.'
Baekmuk tapped on a tablet he had taken out beside him, then held the screen toward me.
Information about a certain dungeon was displayed on it.
『 D-rank Special Dungeon 』
“What’s this?”
“It’s a special dungeon we’re currently preparing to clear, but it has an entry restriction. We’re in a situation where we need someone as capable as you.”
He pointed to one corner of the tablet screen.
“You see it, right? According to our investigation, the reward here is ‘Aldria’s Jewel.’ All you have to do is bring it back. I absolutely need it.”
There it was.
This was Baekmuk’s true reason for calling me.
Though it was founded on his favorable assessment of me.
“Of course, I’ll pay you as well. What do you think?”
I did not answer immediately.
The information about the special dungeon was far from ordinary. My eyes gradually narrowed as I read it.
“Am I entering this alone?”
“No, not at all. There are a few hunters with exceptional talent even among D-ranks. You’ll clear it as a party with them.”
I knew the dungeon Baekmuk was proposing.
'Can this really happen?'
It was this exact dungeon.
The place where a source of demonic energy was hidden.
Whether it was coincidence or not, Baekmuk was asking me to clear this very place.
A source of demonic energy was something I needed in order to thwart the demons’ ambitions. I also had to find it if I wanted to advance my hunter Rank.
After marveling at the situation, I gave a bitter smile inwardly.
'There’s no way this is a coincidence. This isn’t coincidence.'
The Potion of Wealth Acquisition had definitely pointed toward Baekmuk’s business card.
This, too, was part of the Potion of Wealth Acquisition’s effect.
Incredible.
A slight chill ran down my spine.
I rubbed my arms, then raised my head slightly and looked at Baekmuk.
'A party made up of D-rank hunters.'
His expression was filled with confidence.
He must have put together a party of hunters skilled enough that there was no need to worry.
'Hmm. What should I do?'
I did not know how Baekmuk had come to possess that dungeon, but originally, it should have belonged to a villain organization.
For a moment, I recalled what Kim Sangwook, who had once betrayed humanity, had said.
— One of the sources of demonic energy was hidden inside a dungeon I managed. The demonic energy released by the source gives the dungeon special properties, and strangely enough, that prevents dungeon breaks.
— In other words, the monsters inside never come outside. That meant we could safely store the source of demonic energy there for a long time until Project: Demonic Energy began.
— How do I know? I was the boss of that villain organization. Ah, sorry, I said I’m sorry. Agh! Come on, even so, rocks are……
That was as far as the memory went, because the enraged people listening to Kim Sangwook had started throwing rocks at him.
Baekmuk probably did not know it, but once the party tried to clear the dungeon, Kim Sangwook’s lackeys would naturally come to stop them.
'But let’s just do it.'
There was simply too much for me to gain by clearing this place.
And if I wanted to continue doing business with Baekmuk, this job was necessary anyway.
'Baekmuk’s objective is Aldria’s Jewel, the dungeon-clear reward. My objective is the source of demonic energy.'
It was a win-win raid.
Of course, Baekmuk had no way of knowing that.
'Besides, I’ve already thought of an easy way to deal with Kim Sangwook’s men.'
A source of demonic energy.
Points.
Money.
The offer was far too sweet to refuse.
“Will you do it?”
“Good. I’m in.”
I took Baekmuk’s extended hand.
***
The next day.
Halfway up a mountain on the outskirts of Gyeonggi Province.
Hunters considered promising prospects even among D-ranks had gathered.
Four hunters carefully selected by Baekmuk.
Normally, five D-rank hunters were required to clear a D-rank dungeon.
They were one short, but Baekmuk dealt with that by adding one more person on paper.
The four hunters looked awkwardly at one another.
Including me, there were three men and one woman.
“Good to meet you!”
“Yes……”
“Hello.”
I simply dipped my head in greeting. Standing there, I examined their faces.
Surprisingly, I knew all three of them.
'As expected of Baekmuk. He has an incredible eye for people. He really gathered nothing but people who’ll become famous in the future.'
Every one of them would eventually make a name for themselves.
The large man stepped forward first. He had a close-cropped haircut and carried an enormous shield on his back.
“Let’s briefly introduce ourselves before we head in. I’m Park Inseong. I’m twenty-seven this year, and I mainly serve as a tank using a shield. Those of you dealing damage can trust me and focus on attacking.”
The man introduced himself in a voice brimming with confidence.
Park Inseong, the Iron Wall.
He was famous for having a personality completely at odds with his name.
The ultimate tyrant of the hunter world, human garbage from hell, junior killer……
He had plenty of nicknames.
Controversies over his abuse of power never stopped. He founded a guild and raised it all the way to A-rank, but continuously harassed the junior guild members beneath him.
In the end, he beat one of his own juniors to death inside a gate.
'I remember he went to prison, but I don’t know what happened after that. Did he die when the demons invaded?'
Probably.
Next, a haggard-looking man introduced himself.
“Um…… I’m Lee Yejun.”
“What weapon do you use?”
“Ah, I use lightning magic……”
His voice lacked confidence, and his shoulders drooped.
He did not look very capable.
But that was not the case.
'Lee Yejun, the Electric Psychopath.'
This guy would later become a villain and kill a great many people.
A villain referred to a hunter who committed crimes, distinguished from ordinary criminals by the organized or specialized nature of their crimes.
Lee Yejun would eventually rise all the way to an executive position in Phantom Spirit, the largest villain organization in the country.
A genuine lunatic.
Baekmuk had really gathered nothing but famous people.
I applauded inwardly.
Unbelievable.
'Wow, Baekmuk, you crazy bastard…… You really picked them based on ability alone. Shouldn’t you at least perform some kind of basic personality screening?'
Then again, Baekmuk was not psychic. There was no way he could know each individual’s personality or what they would do in the future.
The last person was a high-school student.
She must have come straight after school, because she was still wearing her school uniform.
She was the only woman on the team.
“I’m Jin Sea. My main weapon is a dagger. I look forward to working with you.”
Jin Sea’s eyes held a faint wariness.
'Understandable.'
Right.
Anyone surrounded by lunatics like these would naturally be wary.
Then she looked at me, and that wariness deepened.
Come on.
I’m the most normal person here.
What kind of terrible judge of character is she?
'But……'
I returned her stare.
'You’re not normal either……'
Jin Sea was one of the Last Eleven.
She possessed tremendous talent and would eventually reach SSS-rank.
But her nickname was the Thief of the Phantom World.
Everyone living in the ruined world carried some kind of grief or pain.
A lost family.
A promise they had failed to keep.
A horrific trauma.
People inevitably went insane under things like that.
But among them were people who were exceptionally insane.
We called them eccentrics.
'Jin Sea was one of those eccentrics.'
She lived her entire life through theft alone.
She did not work.
She did not trade.
She did not negotiate.
She was a lunatic who survived purely by stealing.
Demons, monsters, humans—it made no difference who the target was.
Naturally, even miserable refugees were no exception.
'And I was one of her victims.'
I still remembered it vividly.
One day, while I was living as a refugee with Younghoon, who was like a son to me.
It was Younghoon’s birthday.
— Younghoon, happy birthday. I’ve got something to show you.
— What is it this time, old man?
— Just follow me quietly. Don’t let anyone else know.
I took Younghoon to a secluded spot near the forest.
After checking to make sure no one was nearby, I carefully dug into the ground.
When Younghoon saw what had been buried there, his face gradually lit up.
— Th-This is all food! Snacks and drinks? Where in the world did you get all this?
— Here and there, secretly. I worked damn hard to save it up. It’s for you.
— Bro…… I love you.
— Hey, gross. Guys don’t say they love each other.
Seeing him happy made me happy too.
And then, just as we were taking out the snacks and drinks I had buried underground—
Wham!
— Y-Younghoon?
A shadow appeared from nowhere and struck Younghoon in the head.
With a thud, Younghoon collapsed.
— Y-You……!
Before I could even finish speaking, stars suddenly burst across my vision, and I lost consciousness.
A little while later.
— Ugh……
— Ow…… You okay, old man? What the hell was that?
We barely managed to regain consciousness.
Fortunately, both of us were fine.
There was just one thing that was not.
— ……They’re gone.
— What? What is?
— The snacks…… The snacks are gone. Son of a bitch!
I still could not forget the face I had seen as it struck me in the head, those cold eyes staring back at me.
The snacks I had worked so hard to gather so I could celebrate with Younghoon……
Things that were practically worth their weight in gold in the ruined world……
Jin Sea, that little bastard, had simply stolen them.