Chapter 79: Provocation (1)

Hong Seong-Tae was the sole teleportation-type Awakened in South Korea, and one of only five worldwide. Fully aware of the value of his power, he had meticulously fashioned a laid-back, comfortable life for himself.

It was for this reason that he asked dumbfoundedly, "Teleportation Magic?"

"Yes, Teleportation Magic," Kim Ki-Rok confirmed.

If, by any means, Teleportation Magic were commercialized and made accessible to the public, his monopoly would be imperiled. Rather than paying a hefty sum to use his ability, many would simply use Teleportation Magic on their own.

Of course, if he had maintained a pleasant, cooperative relationship with his "customers" this might never have become an issue. But the problem was that Hong Seong-Tae was a textbook example of an arrogant tyrant. He used his power however he pleased, charged wildly fluctuating fees depending on his mood, and even harassed female Hunters who sought his services.

Nevertheless, because he had a monopoly in South Korea, people had no choice but to grit their teeth and pay. Yet if a substitute emerged...

Hong Seong-Tae froze for a moment, but tried to speak as though nothing was wrong. "W-wow, but is it really possible to commercialize it? That sounds like something that only Archwizard Kan Cho-Woo could pull off."

"It's possible. We have these things called magic circles, after all."

"I-I see," Hong Seong-Tae replied, forcing an awkward smile while Kim Ki-Rok stared at him.

Standing at a moral crossroads between Hunter and Awakened criminal, Hong Seong-Tae's nature did not vacillate between good and evil. He was simply evil. The only reasons he had not become an outright criminal were that he dreaded fighting and lacked the nerve to kill.

"H-however, if Ji-Hee isn't there to lend you her mana...?"

"Didn't I tell you? We'll use magic circles. There's no need to borrow mana," Kim Ki-Rok replied matter-of-factly.

"I see..."

"Well, we have other solutions as well, too."

Hong Seong-Tae twitched. "Other... solutions?"

"Yes. It's a well-known fact among those who know. We have someone in our guild who can create magic scrolls that emulate spells or abilities."

"A magic scroll that eliminates the hassle of needing a fixed magic circle to use Teleportation?"

At that, Jang Bo-Hyun and the leader of Hunter Team One perked up.

If using a scroll imbued with Teleportation Magic could allow one to teleport anywhere at anytime rather than from a fixed location, the strategic value would be immeasurable.

Vrrr, vrrr.

Suddenly, Hong Seong-Tae hastily pulled out his smartphone to check the notification. "Ah! I'm sorry. Someone's just requested my teleportation services..."

"Is that so? That's unfortunate. Please stop by DG Guild later when you have the time."

"Sounds good!" Hurriedly turning his body, Hong Seong-Tae activated his skill and vanished from view.

The team leader gazed apprehensively at the spot where Hong Seong-Tae had disappeared. "Guildmaster Kim Ki-Rok... Isn't it dangerous that he'd lend his powers to Awakened criminals so long as they pay up?"

Would a morally bankrupt man like Hong Seong-Tae really want his monopoly toppled?

Kim Ki-Rok smirked. "I did it on purpose."

The team leader was stunned. "What?"

𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

Kim Ki-Rok set Kim Ji-Hee down in front of the ledge and turned around with a mischievous expression. "You know, I threatened Black Money before."

"Is that s—what?"

Indeed, to recruit Lee Chil-Sung, he had issued threats against the large Awakened criminal group, Black Money.

"However, Black Money wasn't the only group that participated in the Hunter department store raid. The Old Wolves were there as well. Other Awakened criminal groups in the Black Market had bared weapons against each other before the execution of their plan in Incheon. If they find out that DG Guild was behind the failure of that raid, most of the criminal groups, aside from Black Money, will retaliate."

The team leader's mouth hung open, unable to close.

"Black Money surely realized it's a fool's errand to mess with a lunatic like me, but they won't share that insight with other criminal groups. So it's certain the others will take action."

This contradicted what Kim Ki-Rok had told the Hunters earlier, on their way from Incheon to Seoul. So, the question remained: what would happen next? The Awakened criminals would most likely plan to retaliate.

"So I deliberately provoked Mr. Hong Seong-Tae. Here, Ji-Hee, have another cookie," Kim Ki-Rok said.

Kim Ji-Hee raised both her arms high.

After a moment, the Team Leader spoke, his expression tense. "Guildmaster Kim Ki-Rok. If they're out for revenge, wouldn't the Awakened criminals strike at the Hunters during Gate expeditions, rather than attacking the DG Guild building? It's simpler and easier to catch them off guard."

"And that's precisely why I provoked him. We have our Scroll Maker Cha Min-Ji, and our Ji-Hee, who has contracts with many spirits, including Archwizard Kan Cho-Woo."

"Ah..."

One of them was a craftsman, and the other was too young to perform Gate activities other than for very special cases. To secure his monopoly on teleportation services, Hong Seong-Tae had no choice but to hire someone to assassinate Cha Min-Ji or Kim Ji-Hee. And once the Awakened criminals had resolved on revenge, they would combine forces to raid DG Guild in an attempt to kill those two.

"Sounds like it'll be a bloodbath... Before the operation starts..." someone from the Hunter team murmured in a small voice. Their leader nodded in agreement.

However, Kim Ki-Rok shook his head. "No, it won't go as far as a bloodbath."

"It won't?" asked the team leader.

"You must have forgotten. I used intel obtained in the Black Market to hunt down Ma Ak-Soo and uncover this plan."

"Wow..."

With a plan this meticulously devised, anyone would have fallen for it even if they saw it coming. If they were oblivious to it, they were as good as dead.

"Of course, I have already explained the situation to the parties involved and obtained their permission. Thorough preparations have been made," Kim Ki-Rok added.

That left no grounds for them to object.

"Mister."

Kim Ki-Rok looked down at Kim Ji-Hee. "Hmm?"

"I want to eat dumplings."

"All of a sudden?"

"I want to eat dumplings."

"Hmm..." After contemplating, he raised his head and surveyed the battlefield. The Ice Troll Lord was missing both an arm and a leg and was on its last stand. "They should be fine..."

Kim Ki-Rok set up an outdoor cooking table that was in his subspace pocket. "Ji-Hee, meat dumplings, kimchi dumplings, or shrimp dumplings?"

"Meat!"

"Okay! Meat dumplings it is!"

As soon as it was decided, Kim Ki-Rok took out various tools such as a cutting board, flour, water, bowls, and a rolling pin.

"Uh... are you making everything from scratch? The dough, too?" asked a Hunter who seemed to have some cooking experience.

Kim Ki-Rok answered as if it should've been obvious, "Of course, I have to make the dough first since Ji-Hee is going to eat it."

***

Some distance away from Seoul stood a massive mansion. Inside its living room, Hong Seong-Tae paced about, biting at his thumbnail.

"What should I do, what should I do, what should I do, what should I do..."

A scroll that lets one teleport from anywhere was about to surface, jeopardizing what was once a stable monopoly. He couldn't know exactly when it would be released, but surely not far off. It was Kim Ki-Rok, after all, who had built DG Guild into a mid-sized guild in just half a year and boosted multiple Hunters to B-Class. For all Hong Seong-Tae knew, the scrolls could already be in production.

"Should I move to another country?" It was the first thought that came to his mind. But he soon shook his head. "It's no use. It's not just my position in Korea that's being attacked."

Depending on how widespread production was, the value of every space-warping Awakened would plummet. There was no way that DG Guild would sell Teleportation Magic scrolls exclusively in Korea.

Had Hong Seong-Tae maintained a good relationship with his customers, he may have been able to survive still. Given how he had treated his customers, however, they would probably all cut ties with him.

"Th-then..."

There was only one way out of this. He had to kill either the Hunter who had contracted with the Archwizard or the one who could create such scrolls.

Hong Seong-Tae pulled up the DG Guild homepage on his smartphone and found that, just like a pro sports team, DG Guild had posted detailed profiles of each affiliated Awakened. It was all neatly organized by category, making it easy to find his target.

He stopped scrolling on a picture of a woman in her early forties and saw a girl in her late teens standing beside her. Skipping over the awkwardly smiling middle-aged woman, Hong Seong-Tae focused on the girl. She wore a bright smile and was flashing a peace sign with her index and middle fingers.

Name: Cha Min-Ji

Ability: Scroll Creation

Description: DG Guild's representative high schooler. Can produce magic scrolls imbued with spells or abilities.

What he had to do was simple. But he couldn't shake off the sinking anxiety that grew inside of him little by little. According to Kim Ki-Rok, the only reason why this operation was possible in the first place was thanks to the ability of the girl in the picture, Scroll Creation.

Still shaking his leg anxiously, Hong Seong-Tae lifted his head at last, as though he had come to a decision.

Activating his Warp skill, he closed his eyes against the burst of light. When the blinding glow subsided, he noticed that the air felt drastically different. Opening his eyes, he found himself in the Dark Market—an underground world lit by electric bulbs, never by sunlight.

"Uh, what?" Blinking in confusion at the unexpected scene, Hong Seong-Tae surveyed his surroundings.

The Black Market might have been set in a dingy place, but the atmosphere here was usually lively. People ate and drank outdoors, cursing boisterously between hearty laughs. But now, though profanities still filled the air, there was no laughter. Patrons sitting in the open-air tavern cursed and drank in a stifling gloom.

Intimidated by the gloomy atmosphere, Hong Seong-Tae made his way through the market. Once past the food stalls, he reached what had been a bustling commercial strip—but it, too, was bleak.

"Shit!"

He saw someone leaning against the building wall, wounds being dressed by a comrade.

"Just kill me! We're doomed anyway!" the criminal shouted.

It looked as though the tacit agreement to keep a low profile had fallen apart, brawls erupting everywhere. Hurrying on, Hong Seong-Tae arrived at a four-story building at the center of the Black Market.

"What the hell happened here?" he muttered to himself.

No official announcement had been made regarding the Awakened-criminal purge operation, partly because the Gate defense was still ongoing, and partly because today was December 24, Christmas Eve. The Hunters Association had scheduled its big reveal of both the Gate defense and the purge operation for December 26, the day after the holiday.

Thus, Hong Seong-Tae knew nothing of the purge. A few grumpy-faced criminals standing guard recognized him and gave perfunctory nods, allowing him inside.

A man who had been sipping coffee on a sofa in the corridor stood up, noticing Hong Seong-Tae. "Hm? It's been a while since you've been here. What brings you?"

"Ah, I... came here to meet the group leaders," Hong Seong-Tae replied.

"Tsk! They're gathered in the first-floor conference room."

"Th-thank you." Hong Seong-Tae expressed his gratitude and headed down the hall.

"Hm? You here to meet the bosses?" asked another guard in front of the conference room

"Huh? Yeah, I am."

"You can go in."

"They're not in a meeting?" Hong Seong-Tae asked.

"The meeting is over. They just haven't disbanded yet." Scratching his head, the Hunter gestured at the door.

As Hong Seong-Tae turned the knob, he heard heated voices from within.

"I fucking told you it was a bad idea!"

"If we hadn't, those Association bastards would be strutting around like they owned the place!"

"Then you should have been more careful! What the hell is this shit! All of our men are dead, and we've gained nothing!"

The leaders of various criminal groups stood there, glaring at one another and having a rather violent conversation.

Hong Seong-Tae pried the door open as gently as he could, so it made no noise on the hinges. Still, every criminal in the room, all of them A-Class and among the worst offenders, detected his mana and snapped their heads toward him.

"H-hic!" Under the collective murderous gaze of these Awakened criminals, Hong Seong-Tae involuntarily hiccupped.