Ch. 16 - Chapter 16

"You told me you were learning how to become a hunter, but it turns out you were training to date a hunter……."

"Ah, haven't I said it's not like that?"

I was innocent.

Although if I were my sister, I'd be dumbfounded too.

Her sickly younger brother barely recovered from his illness and started running around every day saying he was taking hunter lessons, and now he suddenly brought home a girl.

And she was not just here for a visit.

This pickpocket was going to be staying at our house until I took the Hunter Qualification Test.

And that period was a full two months.

It had been a long time since I've seen my sister this flustered.

But this kind-hearted sister of mine was trying so hard to understand me.

"Right… There is no need to be ashamed. You're at that age, full of energy. And since you've just gotten healthy again, all that energy must be….."

"That energy didn’t go that way, so you can rest assured.”

"Don't tell me that you have to take responsibility for something....."

"I said no!"

I shuddered and shook my head furiously, while that wicked rascal, Bisu, just covered her mouth and stifled a laugh.

Of course, there was a valid reason.

Money was part of it, but more importantly, Bisu was going to be a huge help to me for a while.

And in return, I had something to offer her as well.

Yaksha's proposal was, as Bisu said, sharp as a 'knife'.

The more I thought about it, the more reasonable the deal seemed.

The problem was that I couldn't share any of it with my sister.

"I never thought our considerate Haesun would do this behind my back. So you're saying that just having Miss Bisu stay here counts as training?"

"Uh, huh? Yeah, that's right! As you know, I had a lot of negative energy inside me. According to the Hunter who saved me, we need to stay together for a while."

"That person sounds quite rude. They must at least know you have a family."

Two faint lines formed between my sister’s brows.

If someone who’s never spoken a harsh word reacts like that, you know they’re really angry.

At this point, there was only one option left.

And that is ‘Financial Temptation.'

I was a bit worried since my sister isn’t the materialistic type…..

“Ah, of course, she paid me. She even generously provided room and food services."

"You think money solves everything? You can’t buy someone’s heart with money…"

Just as I thought.

But since I already brought it up, I decided to finish the final blow.

"Ten million won."

"She sounds like a wonderful person. Is it alright if I don’t thank her? I’ll take full responsibility and look after her."

"Sister..…"

I guess I really didn’t know my sister as well as I thought.

Of course, it was an amount too large to refuse.

Ten million won for two months of stay.

Before I knew it, my sister’s eyes had returned to their old expression.

A gentle, kind gaze full of warmth.

But somehow, it felt a little different from before (……).

"Oh my! This is so delicious."

"If I had known a guest was coming, I would’ve brought some meat. Eat a lot, Miss Bisu..…"

"'Miss'? Just call me Bisu, no need to be formal, Sis."

“Hehe. Is that okay?”

She was calling my sister so naturally.

Bisu literally cleaned off the table of foods my sister prepared.

Compared to other households, it was a modest spread, but she didn’t look like she was forcing herself to eat.

Compared to what she usually eats, it seemed like a sumptuous feast, or something like that.

Since a big sum of money came in, the side dishes should be a bit more plentiful starting tomorrow.

Maybe I could even make some myself….

What kind of bullshit is that? Why would I?

While doing the dishes, I had to shake my head hard again.

"Sis, should I give you a shoulder massage? I'm really good at loosening up tight muscles."

"Uh… really? Then, could I ask you to do it?"

When on guard, she was so fierce, but when friendly, she was surprisingly sociable.

Maybe it was because of that personality that she was able to curry favor with Yaksha in the black market.

“Oh my... This feels so relaxing. You could be a masseuse.”

“Hehe. I wanted my father to like me, so I learned it bit by bit.”

Somehow, the way she spoke about him, it felt like this ‘Father’ wasn't that ‘Father'.

...But I guess it didn't matter.

Unaware about anything, my sister simply closed her eyes and entrusted her body to Bisu's touch.

“Wow… How are your curves this good, Sis? Your proportions are honestly a work of art,” Bisu gushed.

“Hey now don’t be saying such things to me.”

My sister covered her mouth and laughed softly, hoho.

Despite her words, she didn’t seem to dislike the compliment.

After finishing the dishes, I called out to Bisu.

"Come to my room when you're done with the massage."

"You're getting one too?"

"Are you crazy!"

Seriously, that shamelessness was something I’d love to learn.

Leaving the two giggling behind, I went into my room and turned on the computer.

“Let’s see…”

There were two reasons I brought Bisu along.

The first was ‘transportation’.

I couldn't keep relying on terminal buses and public transportation to get to and from dungeons.

As a minor, if I traveled using the car Bisu brought, I wouldn't have the constraints of time and space.

Bisu was the same age as me, but she had a car and a driver's license.

The car was given to her by Yaksha, and the license was fake.

At one point, I subconsciously asked Yaksha, “Isn’t a fake license illegal?”, and in return, I had to endure a look of utter contempt.

Bringing up legality to the godfather of the black market.

If there had been a hole, I would’ve gladly crawled into it.

In any case, contrary to my concerns, Bisu’s driving skills were actually quite impressive.

Except for her penchant for speeding.

Taking into account the time the bus took, we made it home from Daejun in exactly half the time.

The second was ‘information’.

If what Yaksha said was true, most of the Poison Dungeons located in Seoul and Daejun have already been cleared.

To begin with, there weren’t that many Poison Dungeons out there.

Yaksha said he would tell me, through Bisu, the spots where rare herbs might still be found.

Since it would reduce the opportunity cost of searching for rare herbs, there was no reason to refuse.

I headed to the area Bisu told me about, riding in her car.

Yaksha’s offer was too tempting for me to refuse.

However, just like Yaksha, I needed to verify everything by myself.

Contrary to my worries, my sister and Bisu grew close in a short time, but if there was anything wrong with what Yaksha said, I would send Bisu back without hesitation.

I was even letting her use my bed…!

Rustle.

Sleeping on the sofa without any cushioning was making me feel a cramp coming on.

But there was no other option.

In this cramped house, someone had to sleep outside.

But there was no way I could share the same bed with either my sister or Bisu.

“I want to sleep more…”

Waking up in the early morning, I rubbed my eyes and turned over again.

Just as I was about to fall asleep again, I sensed someone approaching me.

Maybe they came out to get some water.

But that ‘someone’ climbed up onto the narrow sofa.

Red hair shining in the early light of dawn.

Bisu and I ended up pressed completely close together.

“Are you crazy?”

With my sister already misunderstanding the situation, where do you think this climbing up (?) would lead to.

But even though I growled softly, Bisu didn’t move away.

No, rather, she wrapped her arms around my neck.

Oh my goodness.

Her elbow rested just above my stomach.

“Please. I had a bad dream… Just give me a moment...”

"......?"

The emotion in her voice was so heavy that I stopped myself from moving.

I felt a faint tremor from behind.

Was she trembling?

Or was she crying?

After a while, the trembling stopped.

Her breathing grew calm.

Just as I thought she had fallen completely asleep, I heard her mumbling in her sleep.

“Dad..…”

“……?”

Dad?

At first, I thought she was talking about Yaksha.

But the word that came out of her mouth wasn’t ‘Father’ but ‘Dad’.

Moreover, the tone contained in that title was fundamentally different from ‘Father’.

A voice filled with heartbreaking longing and sorrow.

Overwhelmed by that feeling, I lost the words I was about to say.

"Why did you do that... I would’ve made a lot more… than what you sold me for."

“…….”

The story was too heavy to just be sleep talking.

I lay still and tried to recall Bisu's expression from earlier today.

She was a bold person, not shy around strangers.

Especially when the three of us were eating together, she truly looked happy.

But when she was caught by Brie, her expression was nothing short of vicious.

Which one was her true face?

If I turned my head then and looked at Bisu’s face, that might be her true self.

“I’m scared… I want to… run away…”

Moisture slowly seeped into her voice.

Time passed again, and Bisu fell into a deep sleep.

Instead of shaking her awake, I gently picked her up and carried her to my room.

‘That’s not nothing.’

If we were comparing hardships from childhood… well I’d rather not speak about mine.

But it seemed Bisu has also been through storms that didn’t match her slender frame.

The horrific scar running from her lips to her cheek was clearly torn on purpose by someone.

And that someone was probably the work of Yaksha.

When she said no one gets away unharmed after lying to Yaksha, she had unconsciously touched her cheek.

Rustle.

I laid Bisu down properly and pulled the blanket over her.

It was the first time someone else has used my bed and my blanket.

Her eyes were still filled with tears, as if she was still looking at her dad.

Sad eyes and a chilling scar that looked like a grotesque smile.

I looked at her face before quietly leaving the room.

* * *

“There are some people who have to taste something to tell if it’s shit or soyabean paste or if they’re lucky it might just be chocolate, you know? Hahaha.”

“Shut up.”

Vroooom.

Bisu stomped on the accelerator, her nose lifted high in the air.

The old sedan from BNW raced down the highway like a bullet.

I thought Bisu drove a worn-out clunker when she offered me a ride, but the car’s condition was surprisingly excellent.

“Didn’t know you're this kind to lend me a car like this.”

“This? It’s the oldest one Father owns. He doesn't even accept anything other than expensive cars as collateral.”

“Collateral? Didn’t know he ran a pawnshop as a side hustle.”

“All kinds of people come to the black market. Some recklessly try to scam Father like a fool and end up losing a limb or two or just their cars. Others get addicted to poison flakes and give up their liver, gallbladder, and everything else.”

“Poison flakes? What’s that?”

“It’s a hybrid plant that only grows in dungeons. If you process it in some way and get it into your system, it induces hallucinations.”

“…So it’s a drug.”

"Exactly. It's a kind of drug. Once someone gets hooked on the poison flakes, they often can't even recognize their own parents. Do you know what the biggest problem with this substance is?"

"What is it?"

“It’s harmless to the human body. Except for the addictive nature.”

“Being harmless to the body is a drawback? Isn’t that more like an advantage?”

“No. It’s a drawback. A cursed drawback.”

Bisu’s gaze was fixed ahead, but her eyes were filled with a sharp, deadly poison.

“The end of drugs is always destruction. But fortunately, that end is always certain. The more you use, the more your body deteriorates, so eventually, there will always be an ending. Of course, it’s always a sad ending.”

Death or becoming a broken shell.

The only question is when, but as Bisu said, the end is always certain.

“But these poison flakes aren’t like that. No matter how much you take, it doesn't cause any harm to your body. People who get addicted remain physically fine, but they stay obsessed with the pills forever.”

"…Yeah, I can see why you'd call that a cursed drawback."

"Exactly. To put it bluntly, if the user just dies, at least the people around them get some peace. But poison flakes don’t even give you that."

A hell with no end in sight.

The aftereffects of the poison flakes seemed far more vicious than I had imagined.

"Ah, there it is."

The first dungeon I would face with Bisu began to come into view beyond the window.

No.

To be precise, it was the fourth dungeon.

I had to verify for myself whether what Yaksha said was true, so I tried three Poison Dungeons located in Seoul and Gyeonggi.

And I came to a realization.

That there wasn’t a single lie in Yaksha’s words.

Out of the three places, no rare herbs were found in two, and the remaining one was so heavily guarded that I couldn’t even get in.

Now that things had come to this, I realized just how essential Bisu was for me.

She acted as both my legs and my eyes.

If only she’d stop saying crap like ‘whether it’s poop or soybean paste’.

She’d be perfect.

“Oh yeah! I can see the guards too! Want me to show you some of my skills!?”

“…Did you come here to have fun?”

“Compared to the black market, this place is basically a playground.”

With a cheerful grin, Bisu began packing white powder into paper wraps inside the car.

We could subdue the guards by force, but if our identities were exposed, we’d lose the chance to take the Hunter Qualification Test.

But if it was the pickpocket sitting right here, that would be a different story.

Now, even with the guards around, I could enter the dungeon without raising suspicion.

“I’ll be back.”

With that parting phrase, Bisu vanished from sight.

And just a few minutes later, the low-ranking Hunters who’d been standing guard fell like a tree after it was cut down and began snoring.

‘Too damn easy.’

Watching her take down two guards out so effortlessly, I felt a surge of desire to learn Stealth skills.

But for now, the priority was getting inside that dungeon.

Wave, wave.

Standing at the dungeon entrance, Bisu waved her hand at me.

I got out of the car, walked closer, and focused all my energy on activating the Black Aether gathered near my feet.

Whoosh!

Unless they intentionally slow down the CCTV footage, they wouldn't even realize we passed through.

“Pphew… so you can teleport?”

Bisu whistled as she saw me suddenly appear right in front of her.

Ignoring her words, I checked the supplies.

“Antidote. Got it all, right?”

“Ignoring people isn’t so nice but yes.”

“Good. Let’s go in.”

This chapter is broken. Please report this on discord.

Notes

Hey guys, starting from this week we will have a constant schedule release days. Drum roll please... Monday Wednesday and Saturday.

Enjoy.

Ch. 16 - Chapter 16

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