Chapter 192. Collapse (3)
So, I left the police station with the researcher and headed to a nearby Vietnamese restaurant.
“Now that we’re outside, can I ask you one thing?”
“Yes?”
“I have a skill that can prove your innocence, but unfortunately, using awakening abilities on a person is a one-way ticket to handcuffs here.”
“Oh, I see.”
“But the legal code states that you shouldn’t apply abilities without consent. If the victim makes a declaration first, isn’t that okay?”
“Yes?”
“So, can I get your consent now?”
Beep.
After that, I turned on the recording function on my mobile phone.
Not long after, the agreement of the earthling and the execution of magic followed.
However, I unexpectedly got a verdict during this process.
“What the…”
The researcher was actually speaking only the truth.
Alright, now things start getting complicated.
If it wasn’t just a simple slander from a psycho anti-fan, then who really instigated this and what was their intention?
The first face that comes to mind is the foreign S-Class hunter, Brooklyn Morgan.
She was the one who raised her magic out of nowhere, claiming I seemed like a fake S-Class, even though I wasn’t her enemy. It was plausible that she might incite such an incident just to test my abilities.
Indeed, it was said that the requester in the chat room used English.
But if Brooklyn is the mastermind…
Then the researcher in front of me got tangled up in this incident inexplicably.
‘Hmm.’
It seemed that the mysterious requester must have known a lot about the researcher’s identity alone, given that it would be too simple to disguise just that.
“Excuse me. I have a question.”
“Yes.”
“Did I ever inform someone else that I rejected the security request that day?”
To this question, the researcher replied.
Everyone in the team of the project he belonged to knew it. Well, that makes sense; they had to ensure that they hadn’t successfully employed Kim Gi-ryeo before proceeding.
“Um?”
At that moment, a thought suddenly crossed my mind.
‘Come to think of it, this guy…’
– Kim Gi-ryeo Hunter… and I heard his real personality is quite nice too…
I recalled the past words of some researcher.
‘Thinking back, the reason he came to see me was because he received a “recommendation” from someone, right?’
Not from the first place or second place, but…
The one who chose the ninth place, someone with an ugly face, to be their protector.
It was fortunate that the courier Alai had an ability that I could handle by chance. The upcoming aquarium attack could have led to severe consequences.
So if something raises my suspicion, it’s best not to ignore it and prove it instead.
“Doctor.”
I uttered the word indicating the earthling in front of me and then said the next line.
I guess I need to meet your father.
*
I wonder how that courier living abroad is doing by now?
‘Since I specified the duration in the contract, he must have started working by now, whether forced or not.’
In a tranquil room.
A robust elderly man, characteristic of someone who has been taking good nutrients steadily, was resting on the couch.
He was Go Byeong-do, the president of the Hunter Association.
“Hmm.”
What’s the point of hiding now?
In fact, the mastermind behind everything was this Go Byeong-do. He initially assumed that Alai would fail.
If he successfully harmed Kim Gi-ryeo according to the contract, that would be beneficial in its own right.
However, his true plan began when the foreigners got caught by the police.
‘It’s frustrating not being able to know the results right away.’
Alai, researcher Kim, and Kim Beom-shik, the researcher’s father.
If you detach the parties involved in the incident one by one, they might seem unconnected, but in reality, there was a hidden truth that “Go Byeong-do and Kim Beom-shik are relatives.”
——————=
1. Kim Gi-ryeo will not intentionally harm Go Byeong-do and his family going forward.
——————=
This was an indirect assassination attempt aiming to break the pact.
Originally, contracts carry such risks inherently.
Family.
To an alien, that word might refer only to parents and children, but in countries like Korea, where the concept of community is stronger, it often includes close relatives.
In short, close relatives, such as a parent’s siblings or their children, are often considered family.
So that’s why Go Byeong-do utilized the researcher.
“Hmm.”
He spread the false rumor to Kim Beom-shik that Kim Gi-ryeo would be suitable for the escort job.
He hid Kim Gi-ryeo’s contact information, leading the researcher to eventually make direct contact with the target.
If you consider it, every incident started from him.
The association president made sure not to reveal his identity while hiring foreign labor for this task at all costs.
It meant having an innocent victim masquerading as the requester.
And if Kim Gi-ryeo mistakenly identifies the researcher as the culprit and acts out in his anger, he could potentially inflict harm on a family member he didn’t even know.
‘This is a dead end.’
Kim Gi-ryeo could unintentionally touch the family of someone he didn’t even know and die instantly.
‘Even if he has a brash personality, he must have received some sort of basic education, so he wouldn’t resort to violence that easily…’
Of course, he didn’t think that everything would go smoothly just because of this one pretense.
He’d likely have to repeat this kind of incident several times until Kim Gi-ryeo harbored resentment towards a certain doctor, aka his family – even though he sometimes got confused with naming.
‘That damn bastard.’
Grinding teeth.
The president of the Hunter Association ground his teeth again, reminded of someone’s face.
‘That guy has such an ugly face from the start! I knew it would get to this point.’
That scoundrel took his blood-soaked 3 billion.
At this point, it’s more than just money. His pride’s at stake, and he’ll need to ensure that at least one loosely related relative pays the price.
First impression, appearance, tone of voice, and the audacity to intimidate the head of an organization—the hunter Kim Gi-ryeo was utterly unlikable.
Such lingering aversion quickly turned into a sense of certainty for the association president.
If that sort of sleazy guy exists, he could surely pull off a scam and deceive them about their level, and Go Byeong-do became firmly convinced of this.
Moreover, considering the situation, the association president’s judgment was accurate.
“Oh dear, is it already 5 o’clock? I should wrap up early today. I have plans for dinner.”
He checked the clock on the wall and got up from his seat.
Then, to leave work, he led his bodyguards down to the association’s parking lot.
No, to be exact, he tried to go down.
“Hmm?”
But at that moment.
Someone walked in from the opposite side of the corridor.
Step, step, step.
The young man who came into view had a face that any Korean would recognize.
The solemn gait and neat attire made him stand out, a modern-looking hunter.
“Oh? Kim Gi-ryeo Hunter?”
The secretary from the agency recognized the other and greeted him first.
In response, the blond man nodded slightly and stopped before them.
“Hello, President Go Byeong-do.”
Afterward, Kim Gi-ryeo offered a calm greeting.
“Ah, yes. It’s been a while, Gi-ryeo.”
“Indeed.”
“By the way, what brings you here? Were you here for something at the association today?”
Click.
He was alive and well, with perfectly functioning limbs.
Upon seeing the healthy opponent, Go Byeong-do sighed in disappointment.
Still, he was not overly agitated, but he immediately turned his gaze back at Kim Gi-ryeo as he continued speaking.
“Rather than for something… is there something you want to say to me?”
“Excuse me?”
“Just to let you know in advance, I just came from meeting Mr. Kim Beom-shik. I already know he’s your relative.”
The whites of Go Byeong-do’s eyes filled with surprise.
When Kim Gi-ryeo met his cold glare, he spoke firmly.
“Hmm? My relative? And?”
The ordinary sentence quickly received a sharp retort.
“What do you mean and? You damn bastard! He just said that, and you’re going to ignore it until the end?!”
The opponent began to rage suddenly.
How could he raise his voice at someone two times older than him!
Yet, if you analyze the situation closely, there was a reason Gi-ryeo reacted like that.
As mentioned earlier, did this elder not cross the line more than he should have to receive such courtesy?
“As a president, you’re going to do such a thing just to break a pact?!”
As understood from this remark, a certain great mage had already perceived the true nature of the incident perfectly.
Using inductive reasoning or whatever, it wasn’t difficult for a soul who was originally a scholar to deduce the hidden answer.
“Wait a minute, Kim Gi-ryeo Hunter. What are you talking about right now?”
Moreover, the great mage possessed a powerful weapon to prove his innocence.
“Coming out of nowhere and saying something like you don’t know. It sounds like you’re talking nonsense, honestly.”
“What?”
“While it’s true that Kim Beom-shik is my relative, so what? What does that matter? Why are you so angry after coming here?”
With a calm voice, Go Byeong-do explained himself.
However, the S-Class hunter only felt his blood pressure rising the more the other person remained so calm.
‘I knew it all along! This earthling is genuinely trying to use his relative to kill me…!’
Indeed, he had taken Blueshell before entering the building!
Using the effects of the artificial enhancer, he mimicked the abilities of a magic tool like [Justitia].
He employed magic that distinguishes truth from lies.
Through this technique, he interrogated the parties involved in the incident one by one and even extracted confessions that were close to lies from Go Byeong-do before him.
‘Not even a change of expression while playing dumb…!’
Yet the president of the Hunter Association evaded the truth like a sly serpent.
When the topic of relatives or Alai came up, he replied as if he knew nothing.
“I could tell you knew everything I was aware of, and yet you act this way?”
The old earthling responded leisurely to the question.
“Goodness. Where did you hear something like that that had you treating me so poorly?”
Indeed, the president no longer feared the S-Class hunter before him.
“Anyway, I don’t know anything. Moreover, even if the thoughts in your head are correct, what changes?”
“What?”
“Even if Kim Beom-shik’s daughter isn’t present, I’m standing before you, and I’m ultimately in the same position.”
“…”
“Our Kim Gi-ryeo Hunter can’t take a stand.”
“…”
“No matter how enraged you might be, or how unjustly you’ve been treated.”
That’s right.
Rationally speaking, the [Knight’s Pact] is a promise that no one can break.
Yet this blond man had promised not to harm himself, even under that contract. So even if he was furious, what could he possibly do?
Looking back now, one might think he wrote the contract without thinking owing to greed.
3 billion.
That man was placed in an unilaterally unfavorable position over that paltry sum.
‘Though asking someone like Kang Chang-ho for help is a viable option.’
At that time, the S-Class could spill all the secrets.
‘Let’s see if you can keep up the charade of being a scammer while the others know.’
But just as the smirk remained on Go Byeong-do’s lips, the blond young man spoke.
“…President Go Byeong-do, what’s with the sudden attitude towards me?”
First, they had figured out that the president was the culprit, but they were still in the dark as to why he was behaving this way.
But Go Byeong-do’s reply was:
“Well, why don’t you use that smart head of yours to figure it out?”
“…”
“Even if a Dungeon Break happens, guys like us don’t want to take orders!”
The president left behind only ridicule and abandoned Gi-ryeo to walk away.
Based on his actions, Kim Gi-ryeo was likely at a probability close to an A-Class Awakened, near the S-Class, but with the Knight’s Pact in place, he thought it was alright to treat the other disrespectfully.
However, the problem was.
‘Hmm.’
This alien had not only pulled one scam on the president.
‘Should I kill that mammal instead…’
[Knight’s Pact].
That was an item that had no effect on certain great mages.
However, one couldn’t just publicly attack the party they had a contract with.
The title of the president of the Hunter Association was indeed a position that commanded prestige.
Among his bodyguards were two A-Class fighters, plus an escape magic tool in constant possession.
What was he supposed to do now?
Should the underclass Awakened just allow themselves to be more or less powerless against the ruffian who tried to use their relatives to kill them?
‘What caused that earthling’s attitude to suddenly shift aggressively?’
As evident from the visited Nachalsawon incident, Giyero was a character somewhat remote from the concept of tolerance.
Moreover, if one anticipated that leaving him alive would likely lead to ongoing losses, it was essential to eliminate him swiftly.
“Ha.”
The young man left standing alone in the corridor pondered for a while, rolling his eyes before finally taking out his mobile phone.
‘…Alright. It’s not like someone was bullied in childhood for being a tattletale.’
He hadn’t intended to use this forbidden means after all.
Then came the dialing tone. And soon after, a melodic voice could be heard from someone.
