Apex Guild.
Those guys I thought I might need to keep an eye on when the opportunity arose.
‘They’ve been pretty quiet lately?’
“They’re involved in various things in the underground world, and with our Evolved Creature business expanding, they’ve probably been hit pretty hard.”
‘So they deal with Evolved Creatures too?’
“Not exactly, but even slight changes to the components of Evolved Creatures can turn them into stimulants or aphrodisiacs. They’ve likely lost their piece of the pie in the underworld. They’ve had a few run-ins with my crew, too.”
‘Ah-ha—so it’s all about connections, huh?’
“In this narrow Korean landscape, it’s a zero-sum game. I’ve heard they used to distribute drugs called ‘Crack,’ but now they’re likely facing severe financial trouble due to ‘Inbam’ distributed by the Blue-eyed Organization.”
‘I see. A cornered rat is the most daring, after all.’
“If you’re worried, I can look into it once this job is done.”
‘Sure? They might do something weird like that idiot from the Guardian Guild. Go ahead and check it out.’
“Yes, Master.”
As we headed towards Baegun Mountain, we chatted about various topics, and surprisingly, my conversation with Jung Tae-hyung turned out to be quite enjoyable.
It was my first time having a proper conversation like this.
Before long, we arrived at Baegun Mountain.
It used to be a well-known tourist spot before the First Wave hit.
Now, only remnants of the past remained, a place where I found myself reminiscing about my glory days.
‘Not sure why, but the air feels great here.’
“It certainly does.”
At this point, it had become a dead zone where even a single ant was hard to spot.
This isn’t just a figurative expression; it’s literally a place where even ants can’t survive.
Of course, while the number of dead zones has decreased over time, this mountain, now occupied by that creature, still felt strong effects from its influence.
“The concentration of evil energy is surprisingly low for a place where a Great Beast sleeps.”
“True. Anyway, let’s wait here since people are coming to this area. It shouldn’t be hard for them to find us with no one around.”
Ten years ago, the Great Beast ‘Necrosquall’ plunged China into chaos.
Top-tier Hunters, including the Transcendents of China, united to try and drive it out, but ultimately, it ended up here.
The path it took, from central China all the way to the south, remains barren, with not a single blade of grass growing, showing just how powerful that beast was.
But memories of such chaos inevitably fade over time.
Ten years have passed.
Now, there are even discussions about waking and defeating Necrosquall, showing how closer humanity’s memory can come to negligence when faced with disasters.
“It’s funny that even monsters can’t stay near Necrosquall because they fear it, making this place seem like a livable city.”
“Right? Everything has two sides.”
There were many dungeons in this area.
Yet, after dungeon breaks caused monsters to lose their senses and jump into rivers or oceans to commit suicide, the place has turned into a peaceful one.
People who were wary began trickling back into Guangzhou, where things are now gradually being restored.
While I was chatting with Jung Tae-hyung, I sensed a presence quietly approaching, tunneling underground.
‘It looks a lot like a worm… Did it intentionally change its body like that?’
Occasionally, some Awakened Ones are sincere about developing their abilities, even if it grotesquely alters their appearances—true madness.
When the mysterious ‘Worm’ man got within 500 meters, Jung Tae-hyung reacted.
“Hmm… Should I deal with it?”
“Sure. It seems like it wants to greet us.”
The truth is, I couldn’t handle it yet. My bones still wouldn’t obey.
“Huh—”
Jung Tae-hyung stood up and smoothed out his pants.
‘Jung Tae-hyung… He took all three of my artifacts. My soul body is entirely freed and can’t be used…’
The Beast Master ‘Mrs. Kim’ merged my artifact ‘Beast’s Heart Stone’ with a core, boosting the Demon Servant’s combat strength by 10%, but it’s a fact that my combat prowess has significantly weakened from when I fought.
Can he truly win against ‘Worm’?
“I’ll be back.”
He casually nodded and then flew into the sky, pushing off from the ground before swinging a massive scythe down towards the ground.
KABOOM—!!
The ground exploded, looking like it was struck by a massive hammer.
If he’s going to use it like that, wouldn’t it be better to just use a hammer instead of a scythe?
Swoosh—
Amazingly, the ‘Worm’ Hunter dodged Jung Tae-hyung’s attack as if he was swimming through the ground, and in the blink of an eye, he appeared where Jung Tae-hyung had just stepped and shot up from the ground.
“Krahhh!!”
The naked man with dark brown skin was grotesque enough that I wished never to see it again, and from the third mouth on top of his triangular head, an even darker brown lump was spat out one after the other.
Ptooey—! Ptooey ptuh!
‘Even as a monster, that’s quite the visual and attack style.’
“Hmph!”
Jung Tae-hyung’s initial attack went awry, and he was immediately countered.
But he didn’t panic at all; he easily defended against the brown lump by swinging his scythe and attempted to counterattack.
“HA HA HA HA!! You can’t possibly defeat me with that much!!”
With a surge of light madness, the ‘Worm’ Hunter already disappeared back into the earth.
‘Incredible speed, huh? So he must have some kind of sphere that anchors him underground, allowing him to move faster.’
It’s like stretching a rubber band and letting it snap back to its original position quickly.
‘All things considered, his overall stats are at a similar level to Jung Tae-hyung, but… his physical balance is extremely deformed. If Jung Tae-hyung loses to that thing, I might actually get angry.’
Jung Tae-hyung, who met my gaze, nodded and gestured that he would handle it.
‘Well, I guess he can’t be oblivious.’
Swoosh—
“Ugh…”
Jung Tae-hyung frowned as he watched his scythe begin to rapidly decay from the previous attack he defended against.
He stored the damaged scythe away in space and pulled out the bone scythe I had given him before we set off.
Click—
I caught a glimpse of a smirk at the corners of Jung Tae-hyung’s mouth.
He must’ve liked the grip.
After that, Jung Tae-hyung relentlessly pursued the ‘Worm’ that had burrowed into the ground.
Even though ‘Worm’ was faster, there were times Jung Tae-hyung caught up, but that was it.
‘The ‘Worm’ isn’t being aggressive. It seems it has no intent to survive.’
They sometimes engaged in close combat, but with all-around stats near a pentagon, Jung Tae-hyung, who was serious about digging, stood no chance against the man dubbed ‘Grim Reaper.’
The ground was almost entirely lifted in a near-obsessive pursuit, and ultimately.
“Ha, I surrender! I was going to give up earlier, but you didn’t give me a chance!”
“….. Huh— Just die already.”
As Jung Tae-hyung was about to finish things, I rushed in to stop him.
“Whoa there—calm down.”
“I’m sorry. But the scythe you gave me craves blood.”
“… I never infused any consciousness like that into my weapons. Put it away.”
“… Yes.”
Jung Tae-hyung, mouth watering at the thought, released his combat stance and lightly kicked the ‘Worm.’
“Phew—this is one fierce introduction. Don’t get touchy now. I surrendered.”
“… Is this a surrender?”
The ‘Worm’ Hunter slumped down and wiped his face with one hand.
“Should I say nice to meet you? I’ve heard so much about the lovely Inessa. Well, I guess I don’t need to explain who I am?”
“… Who are you? Some naked worm?”
“Wha—what?! You don’t know who I am?! Even if you’re a country bumpkin from Korea, I’m someone whose name echoes Throughout North America—”
CRACK!
“Ouch! Why did you hit me?!”
“You call my Master a bumpkin? Do you want to die?”
“Master? Wait, then who’s the ‘Invisible One’?”
“It’s me, the so-called bumpkin.”
“Huh? So the one wielding a scythe is your subordinate?”
“What if it is?”
“Strange. The scythe-wielding one seems stronger than you—”
‘Well, I’m hiding my true strength, so that makes sense.’
If someone were to gauge my combat power, they would only estimate it to be around C or B rank at best.
CRACK!
“Ah! Don’t hit my head!”
“Master. I’ll deal with this one. How dare he evaluate you?”
“Sigh… Let it go. We don’t have time to waste like this. Do you know where we are?”
No matter how quiet you might have been for ten years, a legendary Great Beast like ‘Necrosquall’ has just awoken, and this is quite the flashy introduction.
It’s best to leave quickly to prepare for any possible variables.
“Let’s move first. Hey, Worm. Lead the way.”
“Worm? Heehee, do I really look like a worm?”
“Anyone can tell you’re a worm.”
“HA HA HA! You’re right! Come on, follow me.”
He seemed pleased at being called a worm.
I thought I’d never see such a weirdo in my life.
I shrugged, and Jung Tae-hyung followed after me.
That ‘Worm’ guy dug deep into the ground and moved much faster than before.
If it had been another Hunter, they would have likely struggled to keep up.
Was Inessa teasing me to test my abilities? Should I pretend to find it moderately difficult? I briefly pondered, but we soon reached our destination.
‘…. A dumpling shop?’
The ‘Worm’ walked straight into a back alley of the dumpling shop in its naked state.
Then, he beckoned us in through the back door.
We had to open several doors once we entered the shop.
Each time, there was a guard at the door, and we had to utter passwords like ‘soft tongue of a cat’ or ‘the heel of a 25-year-old man.’
‘Let’s just get to the point. It’s not like we’re meeting someone special.’
Of course, I didn’t really think like that.
The world’s best fortune teller.
There’s no way someone of that status would need excessive protection.
Creeeak—
Only after finally swinging open a massive iron door did we step into the middle of a large garden.
‘This is the same garden I saw from that paper airplane before.’
[Disguise]
“Welcome. I’m sorry for having you bring along a filthy tail, Inessa’s follower.”
A small and cute girl sat awkwardly on the table, her legs crossed in a way that seemed forced.
‘Did she change her shell? She seems to have gotten smaller.’
Her adult-like demeanor was somewhat natural, but I couldn’t shake the feeling it was all staged.
‘Is she roleplaying by herself? She’s definitely an odd one.’
Even when we communicated, her character seemed to change each time. It shows how mentally unstable she likely is, but knowing what twisted turmoil lies behind that woman’s psyche, I could only feel it was bizarre.
“It’s been a while, Inessa. The tail I’ve brought is named Jung Tae-hyung. He’s known as the ‘Grim Reaper’ in Korea. Think of him as my secretary.”
“Grim Reaper or not, you should have come here alone. Given what I need to ask you, your presence is irrelevant—”
I interrupted her before she could finish; I already guessed her demands.
“If your request must be done alone, I’m willing to accommodate that. However, I’d appreciate it if you could spare my secretary here… at least as a form of insurance for me.”
“Hmm… fine. If you can’t do what I want, it wouldn’t matter whether you had a secretary or not.”
“Then we’ll take the Grim Reaper along. After all, if you find it meaningless, why not?”
“Hmph! I don’t care; do as you like! You’re still as arrogant as ever!”
I sat opposite Inessa and instructed Jung Tae-hyung to keep a distance before asking her.
“Let’s get straight to the point. What is it you want to request of me?”
As Inessa handed me tea, her lips pouted as she muttered some words under her breath.
‘What’s she unhappy about this time? You’d think I’d get some praise for coming over to start working right away.’
She glared at me momentarily before finally speaking.
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