Ch. 42 - Chapter 42

[Hunter Chun Haesun personally called me… Did something happen?]

"I'm afraid I won't be able to keep my promise if things continue like this."

[What exactly….. do you mean?]

"I'm currently working with the Cleanup Clan."

[!!]

I had no intention of dragging out this conversation.

Aside from the black market people, he was one of the only two people who knew that I was clearing Poison Dungeons.

Yuk Cheolwan, and Pyo Hyukgyu.

That's why I mentioned the ‘Cleanup Clan’ directly.

The Cleanup Clan was by no means a famous group, but given the recent handling of the Poison Dungeons, it was bound to have caught Pyo Hyukgyu’s attention.

[As expected...… I thought so. Recently, there's been a clan that's been clearing Poison Dungeons left and right. I had suspected that you'd be involved one way or another…..]

"It shouldn't be a problem even if I'm active in a clan, right?”

[Of course not. The Association's only goal is the closure of the Poison Dungeons, we don't concern ourselves with who clears it.]

Yeah.

I figured as much.

Yuk Cheolwan was staring at me wide-eyed, but I ignored his gaze and continued the conversation.

“All the recent applications submitted by the Cleanup Clan have been rejected. It seems the Glory Guild is interfering.”

[The Glory Guild? That seems like…]

I couldn't help but chuckle at Pyo Hyukgyu’s reaction.

He, too, was subtly revealing that the Glory Guild had no relation with ‘justice’.

[I’ll look into the situation. Once a recommendation comes from the Association, even the Glory Guild won’t be able to do anything.]

“That's a relief. Then I’ll wait.”

As I hung up the phone, Yuk Cheolwan hurried over to me and asked.

“Hunter Chun Haesun, who were you just talking to?”

“I was talking to someone from the Association. I asked them to get rid of the troublemakers.”

“I-Is that even possible? The dungeon’s under restrictions set by the Glory Guild.”

“They’ll probably comply. I doubt they’d want to make an enemy of the Association over something as trivial as the Poison Dungeon.”

Yuk Cheolwan's expression became uncertain.

He was someone who trusted me more than anyone else, but given who we were up against, he thought this time would be difficult.

However.

“Ah?!”

It didn’t take long for his trust in me to grow even stronger.

Yuk Cheolwan rubbed his eyes for a moment, seemingly in disbelief, then looked over at me and raised both hands.

"It's done! Hunter Chun Haesun! All the previously rejected permits have been approved! How could this happen...!!"

“I told you it would work.”

I gave a satisfied smile toward the overjoyed Yuk Cheolwan.

* * *

“What? Where did you say?”

Gu Gyeon frowned and asked the chief secretary.

“They said Cleanup Clan have their permits.”

"This is outrageous... Our Glory Guild is being pushed aside by some back waters Clan?"

“The Association issued a recommendation order, so we had no choice. We decided there was no need to risk a conflict over the Poison Dungeons.”

The authorization to clear a dungeon within a jurisdiction is a sensitive matter.

Most approvals are granted under the authority of Chairman Gu Gyeon, but for dungeons rated three stars (★★★) or below, or for Poison Dungeons, the responsible staff member makes the decision directly.

It was a directive personally issued by none other than Gu Gyeon himself with ‘Don’t report every little approval that doesn’t make money’.

‘Damn it. If I had known this would happen, I would have told them to report everything.’

Gu Gyeon belatedly regretted it, but there was no point in crying over spilled milk.

The three newly emerged Poison Dungeons would now be managed by a nameless organization called Cleanup or something.

Since they had neglected the Poison Dungeons in their jurisdiction until now, it would be embarrassing to try claiming rights over them at this point.

"How is that half-assed bastard doing?"

"There's no particular change."

Gu Gyeon clicked his tongue and spat out his words.

"Tsk tsk... So hoping for a genius to emerge from the gutter is just a waste of time.”

The person Gu Gyeon referred to as the ‘half-assed bastard’ was Yoo Jiwon.

He was the son of the Vice President of the Hunter Association, Yoo Inwon.

Yoo Jiwon, whose inferiority complex had exploded while taking the exam with Chun Haesun, suffered serious internal injuries after overexerting his abilities during the Qualification Test.

Based on his potential, he could have become a B-rank or higher healer, but the rank he ultimately received was an ‘E’.

Considering he was the son of the Association’s Vice President and had been in the spotlight, what he showed for it was utterly pitiful.

What was even more serious was that Yoo Jiwon’s healing ability was declining day by day.

‘Could it be a side effect of the excessive Aether infusion before the test……’

Gu Gyeon had taken Yoo Jiwon to the Glory Guild’s research lab and injected him with Aether, evading legal scrutiny.

It was a top-secret matter that he hadn’t even told his closest aide, Maria.

Maria, who already tore herself apart with guilt after every battle, had no idea.

He couldn’t tell her that he had committed an illegal act against someone so unnecessarily virtuous.

'I've taken him in for now… but he’s going to be a real handful to manage.’

Although he had been rated an ‘E’ rank, the Glory Guild still recruited Yoo Jiwon.

Considering their usual recruitment strategy, it was quite an unusual move.

However, by ‘allowing’ Yoo Jiwon to be recruited, Gu Gyeon could strengthen his relationship with the Vice President even further.

He was recruiting someone who was practically half-disabled as a hunter, and now he was even planning to ‘recover’ him, just like this.

‘Who would have thought poison flakes could help a healer with internal injuries…’

According to a recent report from the Glory Guild Research Institute, studies have shown that refining the dungeon drug known as ‘poison flakes’ can restore healing abilities.

Officially, it was illegal for guild members to collect ‘poison flakes’, but, as always, Gu Gyeon was the type of person who believed he could evade the law whenever he wanted.

Not only did they rescue an E-rank trash, but they were even planning to enhance his healing ability?

If that were to happen, the Glory Guild might end up controlling all of Gyeonggi Province during next year's jurisdictional selection process.

“Trying to clear a Poison Dungeon which isn’t even in our fate is going to complicate things. Make a list of all the Poison Dungeon locations nationwide and bring it to me.”

"Yes."

To think he had to give up the home turf right in front of him and go conquer dungeons in other areas.

Gu Gyeon felt as if a thousand fires were raging inside him, but there was nothing else he could do.

No matter that it was the nation’s top military organization, the Association had the ‘state’ and the ‘people’ backing it, after all.

'As for the Cleanup Clan. I'll make sure you pay dearly for getting in my way.'

Gu Gyeon was thus directing his arrow of rage in the wrong direction.

* * *

The dazzling golden orb I had received from Pyo Hyukgyu.

No, perhaps previously dazzling orb should be a more fitting description now. It was now stained by dark dots all around, blooming like flower petals.

As usual, I was injecting Black Aether into the Golden Core.

[Golden Core: A Mythic-grade core obtained by defeating an 8-star (★★★★★★★★) monster, Sneaky Griffin. When utilized as a weapon, it grants the Critical Strike attribute. When infused with Aether by the user, it significantly enhances physical attack. 

Warning: Status Anomaly - The core's composition is currently damaged. Only extremely limited types are compatible with this core's energy.]

[Current Black Core Conversion Rate: 58.2%] 

I could tell even without the information displayed by V1.

Now, the core’s color was dominated more by black than golden.

Once it reached a perfect Black Core state, I would be able to absorb it.

Just imagining the kind of growth that awaited made my heart race.

In particular, absorbing the Golden Core before me was said to greatly increase my physical attack power.

Although my Knight rank was still at a ‘D’-rank, combining the Phantom Strike I learned on the black market with the Golden Core’s power should make me capable of taking on most Knights.

“But this… is pretty useless.”

[When used as a weapon, it grants the Critical Hit attribute.]

Critical Hit attribute.

Even without using it as a weapon, absorbing this thing would transfer its attribute to me.

The problem was that this attribute was completely useless to me.

I already possessed the most ‘lethal’ weapon in the world.

Black Aether.

This substance, the source of my power, was extremely toxic to all living things. Kiril said that Black Aether is the king among poisons. She claimed that neither in the human world nor among monsters is there any substance that can surpass Black Aether.

For someone like me, the ‘Critical Hit Attribute’ provided by the Golden Core was essentially negligible.

No matter how exceptional the Critical Hit attribute may be, it could never be more threatening than Black Aether.

‘I wonder how they're doing.’

Kiril and Dr. Jin. It was a brief encounter, but one filled with unforgettable moments.

Kiril still seemed to be in hiding, and Dr. Jin said he’d contact me once he moved and settled somewhere, but there had been no word from him since then.

I would like to show them that I’ve grown a little stronger.

But right now, I couldn't reveal my true nature.

Ah.

There was one person.

Someone I could show my growth to, day by day.

At first, I got beaten up like a dog and looked a complete mess, but the more time I spent on training, the cleaner my face became.

‘Phantom Strike’ Master Oh Jiho.

During the gap when the Cleanup Clan didn’t have approval, I often visited the black market.

In the past, I would just get beaten up one-sidedly, but now I could gradually read Teacher Oh Jiho’s movements.

Not the superficial illusion outside, but the ‘true form’ hidden within.

'Left... That it!!'

I thrusted my chest forward from Oh Jiho's left hand, which was flying at me like a blade.

With a normal attack, it would be insane to throw yourself into the hit zone, but now I understand.

In ‘Phantom Strike’, there’s no safer place than the path of an incoming attack.

Whoosh.

The hand blade that came flying as if to kill me vanished as if it had never been there.

I spun my body and raised my right hand.

Swoosh!

Bingo.

Teacher Oh Jiho’s fist flew into my right hand, where there was nothing.

‘Just like this….’

The core point of Phantom Strike is two.

First, use psychokinesis to create illusions in the area where you are standing.

And the second is to develop a movement that reflects the opponent’s attack back at them.

Whoosh.

I deflected Teacher Oh Jiho’s ‘real attack’ and sent the hand blade flying back.

Clang, a dull, solid sound resonated.

I widened my eyes, thinking I had succeeded, but unfortunately, the hand on the opposite side was blocking my attack.

“Ah, damn.”

How is it that I couldn't land even a single attack?

So far, there have been over a hundred exchanges, yet I haven't managed to land a single solid hit on Teacher Oh Jiho.

What's the point of training with Teacher Oh Jiho every day?

I'm so pathetic...

"Excellent."

Excellent, my foot.

...Huh?

“I think I must have heard you wrong.”

“Excellent. There’s nothing more I can teach you.”

There is no way.

I’ve been visiting Oh Jiho quite often lately.

But still, this was too much.

Was he really trying to kick me out so blatantly?

“Honestly, you’re annoyed lately, aren’t you?”

“Not at all.”

"But you're telling a student who hasn't even landed a single blow to get off the nest?"

“It’s too dangerous to continue.”

“Good grief. You’re attacking like you want to kill me, of course it’s dangerous. And now you say…..”

“Not you. I am the one in danger.”

"Huh?"

His sharp, rugged face reminded me of a war veteran from years past.

His eyes, already deep-set, now seemed even more sunken.

"While Phantom Strike (환격) has 'strike' (格) in its name, it's actually a technique closer to deception. The longer the engagement, the more the opponent becomes aware and gets closer to the essence.”

"Hmm."

That certainly made sense.

During my time traveling through the black market, I've had numerous clashes.

Most were just petty thugs who didn't require Oh Jiho to step in, but among them were also top-tier knights like Kim Gwantae.

And Oh Jiho took down most of them within three exchanges.

I thought it was just to handle things quickly and efficiently, but it turns out there was such a drawback hidden just beneath the surface.

"If we're dealing with knights above a certain level, there's a chance they'll catch on during our exchanges. And if we end up in a back-and-forth battle of similar offense and defense, my win rate would drop sharply.”

There was no need to ask why that was the case.

If a street thug and a boxing champion were to fight, naturally the boxing champion would win.

Within that context, ‘weight classes’ held no meaning.

But what happens when boxing champions of similar skill levels fight each other?

From that point on, ‘weight classes’ become an insurmountable four-dimensional wall.

It doesn't take much, just about 5kg of weight difference can create a significant gap.

Among hunters, ‘weight classes’ are synonymous with ‘rank’.

Against those who don't know the true nature of ‘Phantom Strike’, you can expect results that surpass ‘rank’, but if the opponent can also wield ‘Phantom Strike’, then Teacher Oh Jiho, an E-rank knight, would be at an absolute disadvantage.

Even someone like me, who was only at a ‘D’-rank level, would end up unable to defeat him.

"Throughout the 108 exchanges we've had so far, neither you nor I have landed a single effective hit. And it'll likely stay that way from now on.”

"......" 

"In that case, the amount of remaining Aether and physical strength will determine the outcome. Right now, it might seem even, but in the future, it's clear who will win.”

I would be the one to win.

Teacher Oh Jiho had engaged in that long exchange to explain the reason to me.

"So, there's nothing more for me to teach you. Now, all that remains is for you to apply 'Phantom Strikes' in actual combat."

While teaching, Teacher Oh Jiho never once referred to me as his ‘disciple’.

Not only that, he rarely even called me by my proper name, let alone ‘disciple’, and it could be counted on one hand.

But now, his face held the expression of a master watching his disciple descend the mountain.

It was a genuinely human face, one I had never seen since coming to the black market.

"...Thank you for everything during this time, Teacher."

"Don't mention it."

As if to render the time spent teaching meaningless, Teacher Oh Jiho quickly disappeared from his spot.

Seriously.

Now that the matter was settled, I guess there was no reason to see each other anymore.

I might have to take back what I said about him having a human side.

'But still…’

Every single wound.

Every single bruise.

Though they have healed, the ‘Phantom Strike’ he taught me was deeply engraved in my body.

These instinctive movements would ultimately save my body in moments of life and death.

"Live long, Teacher Oh Jiho."

I quietly bowed my head toward the spot where he had been standing.

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