Chapter 45
The Exilis Guild was bustling with people even late into the evening. Half were people influenced by the nocturnal tendencies of the guild master. The other half had been nocturnal from the start and had deliberately joined Exilis for that reason. And so the towering building had never once gone dark through the night.
Today was no different.
“Haa… Can’t I go home now?”
Geum Myeonggyeol said in a voice that sounded half-dead. His large frame was crumpled halfway into the sofa, and the shadows under his eyes were pitch-black.
It was the result of being kidnapped by his secretary the moment he returned to the country, dragged to the guild, and forced to deal with all the work that had piled up over the past few days.
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
The secretary snorted and set a freshly delivered stack of documents down in front of him. It was so heavy that the desk thudded and shook.
Geum Myeonggyeol stared at it with a sickened expression.
“I’m seriously going to die at this rate.”
“Stop lying. It’s not like I’ve only been by your side for a day or two, Master. Your complexion is as glossy as a newborn baby’s right now.”
“I look that good? That’s not okay.”
Geum Myeonggyeol quickly checked his face in a mirror.
“You’re right. The Tree’s effect must’ve been too good. Tsk. Hwajin. Want to hit me once right here?”
“If you’ll process it as a workplace injury and give me three months of paid vacation, I’ll consider it.”
“I’m the one getting hit, so why are you the one going on vacation?”
“I’d be punching an S-rank with my bare fist. Shouldn’t I get at least that much for it to be worth the trouble?”
“Forget it, forget it!”
Geum Myeonggyeol threw the mirror aside and shouted. The secretary snorted and placed another document in front of him.
“Stop trying anything funny and work diligently. Who said you had to stay here for the rest of your life? I’m telling you to do what you want after you finish the work that’s piled up.”
“I said I got it.”
Silence settled for a while. Only the rustling of documents and the sound of a fountain pen brushing over paper filled the office.
But soon, someone appeared to break the stillness. Naturally, it was Geum Myeonggyeol, who could no longer hold back.
“Can’t I just go see his face and come back?”
The secretary glared at him with fierce eyes.
While Geum Myeonggyeol had been staying in England, three gates had erupted. Seven newly discovered uncleared dungeons had also been found. The guilds, already thirsty for new sources of items, had swarmed in like a pack of dogs, and Exilis, whose guild master had been absent, was naturally pushed to the back.
They were even being shoved aside by The One, which was barely clinging to the top ten!
Bang! The secretary struck the desk with the corner of the tablet he was holding. Crumble. Bits of debris fell to the floor.
“Do you want to die before you get the earring?”
“……”
Geum Myeonggyeol quietly averted his gaze. The secretary sighed and crossed his arms. That damned Han Chasu, seriously.
He understood his desire to get his hands on the earring as soon as possible, but there were priorities when it came to work. Priorities.
“It’s not as if Han Chasu was kidnapped somewhere suspicious. He’s at the Awakened Management Bureau. What exactly are you so worried about?”
Geum Myeonggyeol was tapping the armrest of his chair with a displeased look. The secretary frowned and called to him again.
“Master.”
“I have a bad feeling.”
It was something that, depending on how one looked at it, could sound pathetic. But the secretary’s reaction was different. With a serious expression, he asked,
“In what way, exactly?”
“Those guys who attacked Baekdam. You said you still haven’t identified who was behind them, right?”
Though puzzled by the sudden change in topic, the secretary nodded.
News that an S-rank healer had been attacked had already spread throughout the hunter world. Everyone knew the scale of the incident, as well as the story that the Cheollyeong Guild had stepped in to save him.
They also knew that the perpetrators caught at the scene had suddenly lost their reason at some point.
But everyone had a rough idea of who the culprit was. Japan or Russia. One of the two countries had probably made a move behind the scenes.
But why would that have anything to do with Han Chasu… Good lord. The secretary’s eyes widened as he looked at Geum Myeonggyeol.
“Are you saying their target wasn’t Baekdam, but Han Chasu?”
“It might be possible.”
At the calm answer, the secretary let out a low groan. If the perpetrators’ target had not been Baekdam but Han Chasu, then what they had wanted to get their hands on was obvious.
It was the earring Han Chasu possessed.
“But there was no report that the appraiser in charge of the appraisal had died. Besides, we’ve kept watching the people who would likely take an interest in the earring, but none of them showed any particularly suspicious behavior.”
While Geum Myeonggyeol had been out of Korea, the secretary had been keeping a close eye on the Hanahyeop and on Awakened of the curse and faith types. It was to prevent any unforeseen situation.
“If someone other than the appraiser leaked the information, then no harm would come to the appraiser.”
Geum Myeonggyeol recalled the contract Han Chasu had signed. The penalty for revealing information was written to apply only when the appraiser in charge of the appraisal leaked that information.
In other words, it did not apply if someone who was not the appraiser stole the information.
“That… will need to be investigated separately.”
The Korea Item Exchange Association was a place Exilis used frequently as well. If there was an internal spy, it was something they had to confirm.
With a composed face, the secretary brushed the dust off the tablet. Then, as if something had suddenly occurred to him, his eyes shifted.
“If you have something to say, say it. Don’t pretend you’re watching my mood for no reason.”
“Then I’ll ask without holding back.”
Sitting crookedly, Geum Myeonggyeol beckoned with his fingers. The secretary cleared his throat and sat closer, then whispered.
“When you said you had to see Han Chasu first as soon as you returned, it was because you wanted to make the first move before someone else snatched it away, wasn’t it?”
From what he had heard, Han Chasu’s breathing had even stopped for a moment. In other words, he was in a state where he could suddenly die at any time.
If Geum Myeonggyeol thought someone was targeting Han Chasu, he might have tried to go to the Bureau in order to take the earring the moment Han Chasu died.
No, the secretary was almost certain of it. His guild master was that much of a heartless son of a bitch.
And there was no way Geum Myeonggyeol didn’t sense that.
“…
You really see me as the world’s worst son of a bitch, don’t you.”
“Oh, come on. You know I’m good at keeping secrets.”
As if telling him to confide only in him, the secretary’s eyes sparkled and he smiled brightly. Geum Myeonggyeol smiled back and snatched the tablet from his hand.
Then he brought it down on the secretary’s forehead.
“Agh!”
“Stop talking nonsense and go get ready to bring Nam Se-u.”
“Are you deliberately changing the subject right now? Why Nam Se-u all of a sudden… Huh, I see. To think I failed to recognize Master’s profound insight. Are you planning to torment him in his dreams and make it look like he committed suicide?”
“I’m not going to kill him, and I’m not going to let him die either, you lunatic!”
Geum Myeonggyeol shouted with an expression that said he was about to go insane.
“Why would I kill him in the first place?”
“Then why did you smash up the car while he was driving?”
“…
Hwajin, I’m actually rather fond of Han Chasu.”
Geum Myeonggyeol wiped a hand down his face and spoke in a voice mixed with a sigh.
He genuinely thought well of Han Chasu.
The spirit that didn’t give in even when his life was in danger, the audacity to dare feed him a paralytic drug. On top of that, the brains to know his place and not cross the line.
Wasn’t he the kind of opponent who was quite difficult to capture, but once succeeded, would yield a painfully sweet taste?
‘Besides, he has that uselessly upright personality, so even if an attack skill is shared with him, he won’t sell the secret off, and since his body is weak, he won’t even be able to use the skill.’
If it was a couple item he had to share with someone anyway, Han Chasu was the perfect partner. So there was no reason for him to kill him now and seize the earring.
But the secretary clearly seemed to think there was some other reason.
“Ah, come to think of it, the Cheollyeong Guild Master is behind Han Chasu. Well, that man is frightening, after all. I understand, Master.”
“That mouth of yours is seriously going to be your ruin.”
Grumbling, Geum Myeonggyeol sprang up from his seat.
“Where are you going? Are you going to torment Han Chasu?”
“I’m going to wash up!”
Since returning to the country, he hadn’t even been able to wash, let alone change his clothes. Geum Myeonggyeol shouted and grabbed the door, pulling it open.
“Huh? Huh?”
The secretary suddenly let out a shrill sound. He’s up to some strange trick again. Geum Myeonggyeol shook his head and started to walk away.
“M-Master!”
“I can’t hear you.”
“No, it’s not something weird…! Hurry and come back in, quickly!”
“Do you find even the time I spend washing that wasteful?”
“Just come here for now!”
“Agh!”
The secretary came rushing over in a fluster and smacked Geum Myeonggyeol on the back. Then he urgently looked around and pushed him back into the office.
“Why are you locking the door? Planning to commit a locked-room murder?”
“It is on my wish list, but not right this moment. Look at this first, quickly.”
“Ah, why….”
Geum Myeonggyeol grew as irritated as he could at the tablet shoved before his eyes. He was sick to death of proposals sent by companies, invitations, and all the rest.
But the words emblazoned clearly on the screen were different from what he had expected. No, they far surpassed his expectations and struck him across the back of the head.
[ To Hunter Geum Myeonggyeol, Guild Master of Exilis.
We wish to deliver Hunter Han Chasu’s item (accessory)
to you, so the Exilis Guild Master is requested to visit the Awakened Management Bureau tomorrow morning.
— Medical Center, First Headquarters, Awakened Management Bureau ]
“……”
“……”
A silence that could not be expressed in words descended between the two men. His golden eyes filled with confusion, and after barely tearing his gaze away from the screen, Geum Myeonggyeol asked,
“What is this? Is Han Chasu dead?”
“I-It appears so.”
“…
Seriously?”
The transfer of ownership for a bound item was only possible when the owner had died.
“This is insane.”
Therefore, this message was no different from an official declaration of death.
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(45)
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