Chapter 22: Release the Hunting Dog (3)

What kind of a crazy situation is this? They want me to find Lee Shin-Hyuk? How am I supposed to find someone who’s already dead?

“Oh-Jin?” Han Jun-Man cocked his head. “Is something wrong?”

Kwon Oh-Jin forced an awkward smile and shook his head.

“No, it’s nothing.

Haha.

”

Damn it.

He felt as if he had just been hit in the back of the head with a hammer.

Lee Woo-Hyuk is the guild master of Valhalla, then.

Lee Shin-Hyuk’s younger brother was the only person Lee Shin-Hyuk felt a deep sense of inferiority toward.

So that’s what happened.

In the world before Lee Shin-Hyuk had regressed, it had been around this time when he opened his eyes in a hospital room, coming up with pathetic excuses like a kid who failed to run a simple errand.

However, now that Lee Shin-Hyuk was dead, the future had changed to one where Lee Woo-Hyuk put up a massive reward to find his missing older brother.

“What will you do? Should we tell them that you’ve accepted the request?”

“Give me a minute.”

Kwon Oh-Jin leaned back against the couch and organized his thoughts.

Lee Shin-Hyuk and Lee Woo-Hyuk.

The pitiful, useless older brother and the brilliant younger brother who was considered a candidate for the Seven Stars.

A twisted fate and future.

And the Black Star Society.

Wait...

A short laugh escaped his lips.

As if a bolt of lightning had struck him, he felt a thrilling sensation shoot down his spine.

That’s it. I can just do that.

Kwon Oh-Jin smiled brightly.

I can use this situation to my advantage.

He was confident he could shape this slowly changing future to his own liking.

“No.” Kwon Oh-Jin shook his head firmly as he pushed the documents back toward Han Jun-Man. “I won’t be taking this request.”

Han Jun-Man’s eyes widened in surprise. “You won’t?”

His reaction made sense. It was a simple job to find a missing person in exchange for 2 billion won. No one would expect someone to turn down such a golden opportunity.

“I’m not very skilled at finding people.”

“I see.”

“Is there a problem?”

“No, not exactly...” Han Jun-Man scratched the back of his head awkwardly. “To be honest, the Valhalla Guild has quite a close relationship with the association. I thought this could be a good chance for you to also build a relationship with them.”

Did the association want to show off that they had an apostle of the North Star to their allied guilds? Considering the association's declining reputation, it would be a perfectly understandable move.

“

Haha

, I’m sure there will be another opportunity.”

That’s right. There’s going to be another chance to build connections with the Valhalla Guild, and it’ll come very soon.

“Then I’ll mark this request declined.”

Kwon Oh-Jin nodded and stood up. “Thank you. Well then, I’ll be taking my leave.”

“Alright. We’ll look into the Black Star Society on our side.”

“I’d appreciate that.”

Kwon Oh-Jin didn’t have any big expectations, though. After all, he was planning to act before the association did.

“By the way,” Kwon Oh-Jin began as he turned back to Han Jun-Man, “would it be possible to get the contact information of the Valhalla Guild?”

“Their contact info?”

“Yes. Since you say they have a good relationship with the association, I’m interested in them too. Even though I don’t do much, I’m still a part of the association, aren’t I? It’s only right to maintain a good relationship with an allied guild,” Kwon Oh-Jin reasoned with a smile.

“

Hahaha!

Of course.”

Kwon Oh-Jin saying he was a part of the association filled Han Jun-Man’s expression with pride. He quickly wrote down the Valhalla Guild’s contact information on a piece of paper.

“Here. Just so you know, Valhalla typically doesn’t disclose their info, so please don’t share this with anyone else.”

“I understand.”

Kwon Oh-Jin slipped the paper into his pocket. He hummed as he left the office with light footsteps.

“Well then, shall I start fishing?”

Kwon Oh-Jin himself would serve as the bait.

***

Awakeners gathered in front of the newly formed gate in Mokdong, looking to form parties to tackle it.

“Damn. Look at all these people.”

Kwon Oh-Jin casually strolled around the gate, weaving through the crowd of Awakeners. For two hours, he circled the area, purposely showing off his face. He’d even let out a long yawn as he lazily lingered near the gate. Eventually, the sun began to slowly set behind the mountains, casting a red glow across the sky.

Kwon Oh-Jin frowned. “Why the hell aren’t these guys showing up?”

Do I have to come back tomorrow?

He had expected at least one of them to take the bait by now, but contrary to his expectations, he couldn’t even find any signs of them.

I’d prefer to wrap this up before Vega wakes up.

He sighed and strolled through the now-darkening streets. Just as he was about to give up and head home, a sharp, chilling sensation ran down his spine.

Thanks to the mark of Canes Venatici, his heightened senses immediately picked up where the murderous aura was coming from.

Finally!

He smirked as he subtly turned his head toward its source, finding a middle-aged man in an inconspicuous coat and a black cap pulled low, a stark difference from their previous eye-catching black robes.

The bastard looks like he’s been running around for a week.

His sunken cheeks and the dark circles under his eyes suggested that he had gone through a lot of trouble trying to find Kwon Oh-Jin.

“You made me wait so fucking long, you bastard.”

After giggling, Kwon Oh-Jin suddenly sprinted away at full speed.

Tap tap tap tap tap!

“H-Huh!”

The man, who had been on the phone, quickly chased after him.

“S-Stop!” he angrily shouted.

Kwon Oh-Jin extended his hand backward, waving his middle finger at him.

“Old man! Why are you so slow? Is it because you’re balding?”

“Ugh!”

The man’s face twisted in rage.

Although his hair wasn't visible under the cap, it seemed Kwon Oh-Jin had hit a sore point.

“You bastard!”

A few black feathers flew toward Kwon Oh-Jin together with the man’s harsh curse.

𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

Whoosh!

Is that the power of the Stigma of Owl Nebula?

Last time, Kwon Oh-Jin had killed his opponent before he could witness the Stigma’s power. Hence, this was his first time actually seeing it in action.

Now that I’ve got a sense of how strong it is, it’s time to stop provoking him.

Arriving at an empty open area, he quickly stopped in his tracks.

He then spun around and thrust his spear forward.

“Hup!”

Clang!

The man chasing after him crossed his arms in front of him to block the attack. Black feathers sprouted from his forearms, deflecting Kwon Oh-Jin’s spear.

“Those feathers are harder than I thought.”

He was genuinely impressed.

“You bastard...!”

“

Pffft

! We’ve just met, so why are you looking at me with such a heated gaze? You’re making me blush.”

“Your arrogance ends here!”

“Is that so?”

Kwon Oh-Jin shrugged and adjusted his grip on the spear.

He activated the Stigma of Canes Venatici and glanced around. He didn’t sense any other Black Star Society members nearby.

“Are you sure you can handle me alone?”

The man took a proper stance as he scoffed. “

Hmph!

You’re alone too!”

“No, I’m not.”

“What?”

“Now! Attack!” Kwon Oh-Jin shouted.

With a look of panic, the man turned around. Behind him was...

“Huh?”

Nothing but the empty space.

“What?”

“Sike. I lied.”

Azure Lightning.

Crackle!

Blue lightning surged and gathered at the tip of the spear. It then fanned out in all directions, sweeping through everything in its way.

Not even the black feathers covering the man’s arms could stop the lightning.

“Aaaaargh!”

The man stumbled backward.

“Take this!”

Kwon Oh-Jin thrust his spear through the opening in the man’s defenses.

“Argh!”

Refusing to go down easily, the man quickly reassumed his stance and grabbed the spear with feather-covered hands.

“How dare you use such a cheap trick on me!”

Even though blue lightning still crackled at the tip of the spear, the man held on and pulled the spear without hesitation. Kwon Oh-Jin twisted it to pull it free, but the man’s grip proved too firm to break.

Is he stronger than me?

It didn’t matter, though. Strength alone could not guarantee the man’s victory.

“For a trick so cheap, you sure fell for it.”

He chuckled as he let go of the spear.

“Huh?”

Caught off guard, the man fell backward. Kwon Oh-Jin then jumped and slammed his fist down on the man’s head as if striking with a hammer.

Thump!

Lightning Strike.

Crackle!

“Kugh!”

The man toppled backward, writhing in pain.

Kwon Oh-Jin quickly grabbed his spear from the ground and pointed it at the man’s throat.

“

Ugh!

”

The man bit his lips in frustration.

“Don’t think you’ve won.”

“But I have.”

Despite the man’s rather strong resistance, Kwon Oh-Jin was the clear winner.

“

Ha!

Do you think you can escape from the Black Star Society just by killing me?” the man snorted. “If you think you can still be safe after messing with Mr. Yoo-Jin, you are greatly mistaken!

Hahaha!

”

After his burst of laughter, he added, “There’s no way you can defeat him.”

“Yeah, I know.”

Kwon Oh-Jin didn’t know exactly how strong of an Awakener Yoo-Jin was, but he knew that he couldn’t beat him—at least not right now.

“It doesn't matter, though. You’re all going to die soon.”

The man stared at him in confusion. “What makes you so sure of that?"

Kwon Oh-Jin shrugged and grinned. “The fact that I’m going to unleash a hunting dog.”

“A hunting dog?”

“Yeah, something like that.”

There was no point in dragging out this conversation; it was time to wrap things up.

Kwon Oh-Jin drove his spear deep into the man’s throat, causing blood to spray out like a fountain.

“K-Kugh!”

“Alright then.”

He rummaged through the man’s pockets and pulled out a phone. It had an iris scan as its password, so he pried the man's eyes open and unlocked it.

I’d like to absorb his Stigma too, but...

The commotion could attract unwanted attention, so he decided to clean up the scene first.

Carrying the body on his shoulder, Kwon Oh-Jin left the open area. Using the Black Curtain, he completely hid his presence and headed toward a nearby mountain. He then waited until there were no traces of anyone around.

“This should do.”

He propped the bloodstained spear against a tree and snapped a picture.

Click

.

“This is the last time I’ll be using this spear.”

He had already planned on replacing it soon anyway, so it wouldn’t be such a waste.

Lifting his chin slightly, he adjusted his voice.

“Ahem! Ah, ah.”

He had done this multiple times already, so it didn’t take him long to switch it up. Afterward, he dialed the number he had gotten from Han Jun-Man.

Ring, ring.

—Valhalla Guild, Kim Sun-Young speaking.

The feminine voice carried a hint of exhaustion. Still, she sounded familiar. Kwon Oh-Jin searched through Lee Shin-Hyuk’s memories.

Is it that woman with the glasses?

“Could I speak with the guild master?”

—The guild master is currently unavailable to take calls...

“I’ve found Lee Shin-Hyuk.”

—What?

A brief moment of silence followed.

—W-Wait a moment!

A clattering noise echoed from the other side of the line. Soon after, a cold, steady voice spoke into the phone.

—Did you just say you found my brother?

This was his first time hearing Lee Woo-Hyuk’s voice outside Lee Shin-Hyuk’s memories.

Time to release the hunting dog—a ferocious, untamed hunting dog that will bite my enemy’s neck for me.

“To be exact, we have him with us.”

—What?

“

Hahaha

. Do you not get it? Lee Shin-Hyuk is in our custody.”

—What nonsense are you talking about?

“Nonsense?

Hmm

, then maybe I should send you proof.”

Kwon Oh-Jin sent the photo that he had just taken.

—That spear...

“You recognize it, don’t you?”

—Who are you?

“

Hahaha

! Looks like you finally believe me!”

—Who the hell are you, you bastard?!

As for the name of the hunting dog... Ah, I’ll keep it simple.

“My name is Yoo-Jin.”

Let’s call him Lee Woo-Hyuk.