Chapter 314, Evening (3)
A foreigner tilting his head and grumbling in an incomprehensible language—to anyone watching, it was clearly not a good sign. Sensing the shift, the intended trading partner spoke up again. For the record, English wasn't their primary language either, which is why they had been using a PinyCorp translator from the start.
"Sir, may I ask—do you have no intention of resolving this situation through conversation with ?"
"That's right."
"Please calm down. I'd appreciate it if you could refrain from that line of thinking. While I may have inconvenienced you unintentionally, the truth is—here and now, I'd actually like to offer you a paynt several tis greater than what I originally proposed."
"Really?"
"I promise. Just..."
This is a kind of new request.
"There's just one minor condition. All you need to do is agree to participate in a few simple conversations going forward, Sir."
Now, with the trader's betrayal, the two of them were trapped inside the dungeon. So no matter how much extra money was offered, the imdiate question was: how could they trust soone who'd already stabbed them in the back? Both of the other seed to have anticipated even that outco. The foreigner, man wrapped in traditional Indian attire, promptly added an explanation.
"Ah, and..."
He said he had personally heard that Kang Changho had obtained the "Scales of Truth." So he urged him to use it right now. That way, he'd easily be able to see that everything he was saying was the truth.
However, the mont Kang Changho heard that item ntioned from the other's mouth, he furrowed his brow. It was a slight expression showing his discomfort.
"The Scales of Truth?"
However, after hearing what followed, it beca clear that this wasn't a matter that could be brushed off so simply.
"What are you talking about? I don't have that anymore. I already sold it off."
"Yes?"
The Epic-grade item Justitia—it is both the reason the authority of the British courts has grown even stronger, and the very artifact that allows the word faith to still be spoken aloud in this modern age.
And on top of that, even after mobilizing all available intelligence networks, it's confird that only two of those ultra-rare artifacts have ever appeared worldwide—and yet the Korean hunter already went and sold his off?
The man in traditional attire couldn't hide his montary bewildernt. However, Kang Changho paid no mind to the reaction and continued the conversation in silence.
"I an, honestly, I've got to make a living too."
"What did you say?"
"So what, did you think the fuel for the private jet I used to get here just sprang up from the ground? I've got compensation to pay and a whole lot of things to deal with. And since I barely run dungeons these days, opportunities to stack up... clean assets like this don't co around often."
"Huh."
"Wait a second, should I correct myself? Co to think of it, I sold sothing I basically picked up for free in a dungeon. So saying the jet fuel ca out of the ground isn't entirely wrong, I guess."
Grrrrrrr...
For reference, the place they were currently located wasn't so shallow point—it was the depths of the dungeon. From what seed to be the upper floors, a constant growling sound echoed down toward them.
"Anyway, that Scales of Truth wasn't sothing I particularly needed. It's already crossed the border, having found its rightful owner."
"Oh my God. How can soone not need [Justitia]?"
"Well, that's because I usually don't care much about other people..."
Of course, the hunter with the bluish-purple hair didn't pay much attention to the beastly cries coming from upstairs.
"Lately, there were rare occasions when I actually had to use it. But even then, I'm so skeptical that I couldn't bring myself to trust the artifact's results—so in the end, it beca aningless."
"..."
"No matter how much the mystical scale claims otherwise, if the other doesn't have faith in it—well, as you can see."
Kang Changho shrugged his shoulders and glanced around.
"I still have a few copies of the Knight's Oath lying around in a box sowhere, but it'd be a waste to use one here—so how about I just assu your offer is real and let it slide for now?"
It seed there were several other hunters in the dungeon besides the spatial manipulator—the one who'd broken off the deal at the last mont and trapped him. Kang Changho scanned the presence of another Awakened caught by the Dragon's Eye, then straightened his posture again. If this was truly the work of a daring criminal organization bold enough to imprison an S-rank Hunter in another realm, then surely, they'd hidden all sorts of traps beyond just disposable manpower like that.
"So basically, what you're saying is—if I turn a blind eye to what happened in so small country, you'll reward for it."
"...Well."
"You trap soone in a dungeon and suddenly start rambling about nonsense—what else could that possibly an?"
Kang Changho spoke. He said he'd go ahead and believe the offer just this once. That he'd take the other man at his word—that if he simply passed the ti down here in this deep, dark cave, an enormous reward would follow. A very generous assumption indeed.
But at the end of all this consideration, there was ultimately one person's refusal.
"Alright then, now that we've cleared everything up, let's not waste ti—just give your answer. I'm not interested in the money anymore."
"Is that so?"
"I have absolutely no desire to do that. I just want to get out of this cave right now and check on what happened at my legal residence."
The mysterious foreigner who locked up the owner of the dragon's eyes soon felt regretful.
"So I'd prefer if you just stepped aside at this point. But unfortunately, it doesn't look like there's much of a chance of you suddenly changing your attitude."
Of course, the kidnapped victim standing on the opposite side felt much the sa.
"... I want to live a decent life, but if you think about it, the world kind of keeps shoving the other way."
What followed was a grumble more fitting for ex-convicts than soone like him.
Sssk, ssk.
The S-rank hunter with wild, sticking-up hair suddenly swapped a few accessories on his hand with different ones from his item box.
Changing equipnt right in front of soone who might beco an enemy? Wouldn't those performances clearly be more helpful in combat? The conversation partner in traditional attire, having made all their judgnts, then closed their eyes.
"Then go ahead. I had a feeling things would turn out like this anyway."
This side had anticipated that Kang Changho would reject the offer. With a sigh, he threw the monster lure incense from his coat to the ground. This act soon triggered a wave of movent—monsters from the upper level and the hidden awakened ones all sward together. And just as Kang Changho's eyes followed the unfolding motion—
"Ah, wait a mont. I know I said just now that I wasn't particularly interested in people, but sorry for taking that back."
The Korean suddenly continued speaking.
"But suddenly, I got curious. If you've gone to the trouble of setting up sothing this elaborate, there's gotta be soone pulling the strings behind it all. So—who the hell sent you?"
The foreign kidnapper—whose na and affiliation remained unknown—fell into silence.
"You seem pretty interested in gate technology, Germany, maybe? Or Russia?"
"If that's wrong too, then maybe... Ploy, perhaps?"
However, this Korean never got a proper answer.
Excuse . Awakener Changho."
The mysterious superpowered individual standing across the cave decided to cut off the pointless small talk here, seeing no reason to pander any further to the other's whims.
"Since things have turned out this way, I'll just go ahead and ask what I'm curious about. Honestly, it's not just —everyone here doesn't understand what's going on."
"What?"
"Why are you so obsessed with your holand, anyway? I've heard that you're a Hunter who hardly ever leaves Seoul. Let alone crosses national borders—unless soone offers you an astronomical amount of money..."
This foreigner had been fully prepared to offer a reward on par with an entire national budget—just so long as Kang Changho would turn a blind eye to the safety of his holand.
He had even gone as far as ensuring the money was thoroughly laundered and free of any traceable issues.
Even if it was an order from soone "higher up," openly antagonizing an S-class Hunter was never a desirable move. That's why he genuinely wanted to resolve the situation peacefully and send the man back unhard. Yet, despite all of that, Kang Changho chose to bear the loss and return ho. That decision, made so calmly and unwaveringly, sparked a flare of frustration in him.
"You're filthy rich, and it's not like you can't speak English—so why would you do this?"
In the distant past, to travel between regions, one had to walk until their straw shoes wore out. However, tis have changed. Thus, the figure in traditional attire finally brought up a long-held question. Kang Changho, putting aside the fact that soone knew his range of movent, focused his thoughts on the common question he had heard once before.
Why is it that you never seem to leave that tiny peninsula of a country?
"That woman nad Brooklyn, and you people as well."
The third S-rank Hunter of a certain country had actually been rather indifferent throughout the conversation, aside from a few brief monts.
"Ah... seriously."
But around this ti, Kang Changho began to smile, the corners of his lips curling upward. It was a clear sign that he had fully decided how he would act from this point forward.
"Seriously, why do people take such an interest in the affairs of an outsider like ?"
Despite having finally decided to listen, the next comnt that ca out was so absurd that even the professionals hired to stall for ti were left speechless.
"You think it's strange that I rarely leave Korea? Do you seriously not understand such a simple reason?"
"Yes."
"I'll tell you. That country happens to have a whole lot of real estate under my na—including so inheritance I ended up with by chance."
"Hmn?"
What did you just say? By the ti the foreign Awakened was so shocked by those words that he even stamred as he asked again.
"What? Real estate? Don't tell ... you really avoided leaving the country all this ti because of sothing like that?"
The mixed-race man at the end of the corridor kept his calm expression as he replied to the other person. For reference, that was the last smile he ever saw from Kang Changho.
"Haha. No. Of course it's all a lie."
It happened right after. From within the cave ca a harsh crackling sound—like bones being broken.
***
Ttut—ttut—ttut.
At the sa ti. The scene shifts back to the problematic Asian country. This is the front of a certain abnormal gate incident in South Korea.
"As expected, he's not answering."
Kim Giryeo tried calling Kang Changho a few more tis. Soon after, he gave up cleanly.
"I'm not sure, but maybe sothing related to that Beast group has done sothing to Kang Changho."
It's clear that sothing unusual has happened to that hunter abroad, but right now, he has more than enough trouble on his hands here.
"My fate."
The blond man lifted his head to face the situation unfolding before him. And once again, his view was filled with the familiar sight of wavy purple hair. Esther and Kim Giryeo were currently standing at the site of the incident, simply waiting for the rest of the personnel to arrive.
"Hunter Esther."
And in that brief mont of silence, Kim Giryeo suddenly brought up a topic.
"Yes, Giryeo-ssi!"
"Sorry for bringing this up so late. But now that I think about it, I might be able to call in additional reinforcents. Could we possibly delay the entry just a little longer?"
Even after reviewing the reinforcent list—which included as many as eighteen people—Kim Giryeo still believed it was too risky to confront the beast hordes as things stood. So, he made an additional suggestion to Esther.
"The S-ranks from Japan. Their nas... the one I can recall right now is Montake, I think? Anyway, the four from the I mabari guild—I have a deal with them, so if I call, they'll co."
Since calling Kang Changho seed out of the question, he was trying to increase their forces by leveraging the interests ford during the Black Dragon raid.
"Wasn't that only supposed to be in the case of an S-class dungeon appearing?"
Kim Giryeo answered in a firm tone.
"The official announcent says that, but... this is a secret—actually, that guy Montake kind of owes a favor."
"Oh my, Goodness."
"When I went to Tokyo last ti and observed the situation, it seed like they would be flexible, if only because of that debt."
After all, whether it's an S-rank dungeon or a horde of beasts, both are equally strong and dangerous, aren't they? With that judgnt, Kim Giryeo asked Esther if it would be alright to call in the Japanese hunters. The woman hesitated for a mont, and then...
"But that, Um, I'm a bit against."
Esther shook her head.
"Against?"
"Of course, soone like Giryeo-ssi has probably already thought of this—but the beasts' nationality hasn't been clearly identified yet."
Of course, the alien hadn't even considered what she ntioned, but he didn't show it.
"There's no proof anywhere that the beasts have no connection to Japan."
Since this is an urgent situation where every mont counts, there's no need to disrupt the flow of conversation unnecessarily.
"Moreover, on one hand, this is a serious mistake made by our own association. Exposing that embarrassnt so openly to another country... well, that's a bit..."
"Is that so?"
"If an S-rank hunter from abroad cos to the site, it would be hard not to properly share the situation, right?"
"That's true."
"When I was young, I used to think of the country and the individual as completely separate. But in tis like these, when disasters are common, if a nation's credibility is low, it can't get extra support for its citizens when needed. Now, you really can't ignore the social aspect at all..."
Esther, wearing a serious expression, went on at length explaining sothing, then finally lightened the mood again.
"Well, anyway, for those reasons I'm against it. But hearing your proposal Giryeo-ssi, I do feel sowhat reassured."
"Why?"
But contrary to her intention, the alien's expression only grew more tense.
"Bringing in four rankers from a neighboring country ans you have at least so confidence that you can diate, even if an outsider betrays you—"
"..."
"Haha, well, you wouldn't make such a proposal without that kind of guts. Yeah, I get it all too."
"..."
"Anyway, I'm glad I asked a reliable hunter like you for help. Since you've encountered all the beasts inside the dungeon, that single phone call really confird you're not the criminal, and honestly, that made happy too!"
Seeking help from Imabari seed like an expression of confidence.
"Hmm."
Kim Giryeo briefly avoided the shining gaze of the curse sorcerer and thought to himself. As he had already been inford by phone, thanks to the efforts of that second S-rank hunter, the area in front of this gate would soon be bustling with top-tier experts.
At this point, the archmage suddenly recalled a particular question.
"Why on earth haven't they sealed the entrance?"
On Earth, using a red orb-shaped obstacle destruction item could temporarily remove the blue magical pathway, effectively creating a so-called "closed dungeon." If a high-risk individual like Yehwa, who knows certain sensitive information, had explored the dungeon, they wouldn't have needed to go through troubleso steps like bribing guild managers—instead, they would have simply sealed the entrance and kept the dungeon's existence hidden from the start.
But the beasts didn't do that. Those creatures who seized a rare gate acted as if they were unaware of the extra capabilities of the destructive artifacts that had spread during the ban on sales.
"Well, since dungeons where you can acquire [Collapse Particles] have been discontinued for quite so ti, it's possible those imposters simply never got their hands on that."
Several scenarios flashed through his mind. Which path was the correct one? The blond hunter rolled his dark sambae eyes toward the empty air and fell deep into thought once again.
Wooooooooooo...
The gate before him continued to emit ominous sounds, like the gaping maw of a beast.
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