The Hunter of the Other World Who Is Being Misunderstood Chapter 360. No Way (2)

Before getting into the main story, let explain. Kim Giryeo was soone who had regained his strength. That ant he was strong enough to make the decision to ruthlessly exploit the connections he had built up.

So he took out his phone and, without hesitation, first contacted a foreigner nad Andy Oliver.

Between Andy Oliver and him, there was still the condition from the [Knight's Oath], half-recycled from the [Fairy's Promise], which required Andy to imdiately respond whenever he recognized a question.

But he never imagined that this kind of reply would co back.

'W, what?'

A few minutes later, Kim Giryeo read the returned text ssage with a look of surprise.

'Andy: To put it briefly, as luck would have it, I currently don't have a single penny in cash.

First reason: A large portion of my wealth was spent constructing the bunker.

Second reason: Although my technical partnership with PIXY remains, I forfeited part of my profit share at the point of my identity reset.

Third reason: The only foundation that had allowed to maintain so financial power was selling the various personal data I had collected. However, all illegal activities have recently been forbidden under my contract with you.

Furthermore, I could add a few more explanations to the current situation. This sentence was translated using an automatic translator.'

Andy Oliver saying he has no money—how could that even make sense?

[: What kind of nonsense is this, you criminal bastard. Do you really expect to believe that the son of PIXY's founder has no money?]

Gryeo frantically tapped at the keyboard. However, since it was a cursed item, the rules didn't change just because the thod of communication had switched to typing on a keyboard...

[Andy: For your reference, Gi Ryeo.

I have been endorsed by the contract with you.

Therefore, under the terms of the covenant, I must, from now on, recruit workers in a very legitimate way.

Of course, like any other large corporation, I will have to guarantee them affordable health insurance.

(This is to fundantally prevent terrorism from those who have gained access to scrolls such as 333 or Spectrum. However, since Spectrum will, with high probability, serve a life sentence in the U.S., after the trial the number of targets I must restrict will likely be limited.)

This undertaking naturally requires a great deal of funding.

And in this age of advanced technology, war is no longer rely a clash between people.

War is a struggle of money and power.

However, in order to fulfill this mission, I must give it my all. (If I fail to uphold the oath, I will die.)

As a result, I poured in my entire fortune.

Preparations have already been underway since two months ago.

On my end, the funds have been spent solely and purely to obey your command.]

Andy Oliver leaves this declaration at the end of his lengthy text ssage.

[Andy: For the record, if you say you'll take money away from soone cornered like this, I'll simply choose death instead.]

It was an earnest explanation that if his funds were seized, carrying out the command would inevitably beco impossible.

'Damn it.'

Thus, Kim Giryeo ca to sowhat understand Andy Oliver's circumstances.

'That useless, damn bastard. Seriously, I'll deal with you again once the scroll item's effect wears off.'

So he asked whether Andy Oliver might know anything about tax evasion. Since Andy had once been a big player in the underworld, it seed only natural that he would have such information.

But the reply he received was harsher than the winter cold. That foreigner began to lant instead, asking if he had any idea just how strict his own country was when it ca to taxes.

[Andy: To be honest, there have been more than a few tis when I wanted to relocate the headquarters because of that.]

He then revealed a shocking truth. On Earth, there truly existed countries where failing to pay taxes could get you shot. Especially in this modern age, where superhumans had begun to appear, people even joked that committing tax evasion might bring tanks rolling to your doorstep. No matter how powerful PIXY Corporation's executives were, they simply could not afford to ignore the tax authorities.

[Andy: By the way, I'm asking this purely out of curiosity, but is the atmosphere of the tax authorities in Korea different from that of our country? Is that why you're asking about tax evasion thods?]

I don't know. The alien had not yet experienced the power of the Korean National Tax Service, but he felt a creeping fear that he might soon find out.

'Damn it.'

Therefore, Kim Giryeo quickly swiped across the phone screen with his finger. If he were to break down the automated hunting system that relied on Andy Oliver as a proxy, in the end, the one who would be inconvenienced was himself. That part was certainly true. So from this point on, he had no choice but to cling to the last remaining lifeline.

[Contact]

[Iori Japan]

A text ssage was soon sent to a contact he hadn't used in a while.

'Hunters from the neighboring country! Co to think of it, half of this is your fault too. Y-you guys should've had the sense to take care of the taxes as well.'

For now, this was the only place he could think of to rely on, and that made him nervous.

'Forget the promise about dispatching manpower or whatever—just please, send money...!'

But strangely, the phone remained silent. Japan wasn't supposed to have a big ti difference from here, so why wasn't there any reply? Could it be that Hunter Iori was busy eating lunch? Or maybe he had stepped into a dungeon for a while?

'Hunter-nim. By the way, where have you been trying to reach all this ti?'

'A Japanese person nad Iori.'

Kim Giryeo displayed a mask of expressionless dread. But just then, Seonwoo Yeon, who had been quietly observing the situation, seed to recall sothing. At last, she delivered information that only added fuel to the fire.

'Huh? Didn't you see that news?'

For reference, Kim Giryeo had spent the past one to two weeks searching for furniture. After all, his move was just around the corner. While a particular report was circulating heavily through the algorithm, he had, unfortunately, been unable to gather any information.

'What news are you talking about?'

'Japan is in chaos right now. Especially that S-rank hunter nad Iori, who happens to have the sa attribute as —it's only natural that he can't be reached.'

'What do you an?'

Then, behind the man with golden hair, the fleeting image of a tentacle monster wrapping around his head flashed by.

'Japan has had an unusually strong aversion to Awakened people from the beginning, you know.'

The image that ca to mind wasn't the only one. Indeed, Kim Giryeo had often seen news reports of that country's discriminatory protests in the past.

'But recently, sothing happened that could serve as the trigger. To be precise, a college student awakened and, over a small conflict, ended up harming his friend... and his friend's family.'

'Hmm.'

'This is putting it as mildly as possible. In reality, the case was so severe that even veteran investigators were shaken by it.'

'Using magic for sothing like that...'

'That's why Japan is in chaos right now.'

'Has the contempt toward ability users exploded all of a sudden?'

'Exactly that. The legal world is in total outrage, even pushing for bills to restrict awakened ones in their everyday lives...'

He had felt uneasy about it for a while. And now, their neighboring country was in the midst of a full-blown incident.

'But from the perspective of ordinary Awakened, this is sothing they can't help but feel is deeply unfair.'

'Right.'

'So, as a representative figure of Hunters, this person nad Iori was engaged in social activities... but recently, they were attacked by an extremist anti-Awakened group.'

'What?'

'It's not said to be life-threatening, but since there haven't been any follow-up reports, the reason they can't be reached right now is probably...'

After hearing everything, Kim Giryeo thought to himself. Perhaps the real rulers of Earth were dogs. That was the only conclusion that made sense, considering how often things turned into utter chaos. His worries only deepened.

'Hmm.'

Even setting aside the fact that Iori couldn't be reached, Kim Giryeo searched for news online. The additional results revealed that Montake Ito, a fire-wielding mage, was also currently quite busy.

'So, because of conflicts with non-Awakened, the whole country is in chaos. And in such a situation, you can't afford any setbacks, so they're focusing entirely on dungeon runs like a full-ti campaign?'

Is he crazy for the country...?

But anyway, if he demanded 40 billion won from them out of the blue at a ti like this, the consequences were obvious. The main issue was reputation. A high-ranking Awakened in Korea suddenly threatening foreign figures to extort money—honestly, that's exactly the kind of thing that would make headlines.

'If it gets caught by journalists with a strong sense of professionalism, the atmosphere could get pretty awkward.'

For reference, the alien using the Kim Giryeo lacked a bit of common sense. That doesn't an he was completely oblivious, though.

'The very reason I could boldly demand money in the first place was because of the attempted superpower murder in the Kagoshima Gate...'

Therefore, he could foresee the consequences that would follow if he chose to act.

'If my connection with the Japanese hunters were revealed, the already poor image of awakened individuals would be completely ruined.'

It's awkward. Tentacles aren't exactly organs that curl inward, but still, when it cos to a fellow mage, it's true that a certain instinctive fondness arises.

'Hmm.'

After much deliberation, Kim Giryeo temporarily gave up on seizing yen through Iori. That left him with very few options for his remaining plans.

'For now, tutoring with Esther cos to mind. At 3 billion won per month, this will take months of work anyway.'

Besides, suddenly demanding a higher fee from Esther than the 3 billion won he received from Jung Haseong would be asking for a curse, so that sche is out of the question.

'Ugh.'

'Why, are you acting like that all of a sudden, Hunter Kim Giryeo?'

'I just rembered—there's an additional debt of 70 million won here. I signed a contract to install a swimming pool at the new house, but the paynt hasn't gone out yet.'

'Cancel the construction imdiately!'

'No. I've already paid a large deposit.'

'Gasp!'

'And honestly, I've always wanted an Earth-style swimming pool. Honestly, even if it's temporarily slackened, it doesn't an much...'

What on earth should he do? In that case, does he really have no choice but to handle it himself?

Kim Giryeo clutched his head in agony as if he had fallen under the spell of a siren. Yet even as he writhed, the terrifying February approached relentlessly, mont by mont.

'Hunter Kim Giryeo, just so you know, our country has a set deadline for paying taxes in installnts.'

'...'

'To be honest, I haven't dealt with a case this large before... but anyway, usually once the legally defined grace period ends, additional penalties are applied.'

'What exactly are these additional penalties?'

'Simply put, you have to pay interest for the amount you're late in paying.'

'Mammals are really bad...'

On top of that, forgetting to register his change of address left him with barely any ti remaining.

Retirent canceled. Additionally, several months of guaranteed work ahead. It was the completion of a sentence he hadn't even wanted to imagine. The Alphau was so shocked that he couldn't utter a word for a while.

So, to delay even a single second of returning to a labor life that didn't suit him, he inevitably had to struggle as follows.

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With Seonwoo Yeon's help, he began selling off his household belongings.

***

Dishwasher. Styler. And a robot vacuum.

'I honestly feel like selling off even every single pair of pants.'

It was a Tuesday when items that weren't strictly necessary for a grand sorcerer—but had been bought to look like a local of the planet (or just out of curiosity)—were put up on the trading market.

Kim Giryeo swallowed back tears as he watched his now-empty ho.

Whether to work or not. In truth, there was already a way to escape this painful dilemma in an instant, but...

'...'

Swish.

On the surface, it looked fairly ordinary, but the sword imdiately caught the eye with its distinctive green glow when drawn.

[Hydra]

It was an epic-grade artifact with truly offensive capabilities. If sold, it would fetch an enormous sum. Moreover, for the Alphau who had regained his strength, the sword—which had been a stack item—was now almost unnecessary. Lately, the number of tis it had been drawn had drastically decreased, even falling behind the usage count of the [Screaming Stake].

However, even knowing all of this, Kim Giryeo couldn't bring himself to make a decision.

[Hydra]

When he mustered the courage to take it out of the item box, the blade sohow felt poignantly close to him. Moreover, as he simply stared at it, faint whispers seed to drift through the air.

[Hydra]