Chapter 131

Chapter 131

Last night, Yeongjin was questioned by the police due to the sudden appearance of an ogre.

Since the ogre appeared in the room he was staying in, the investigation was unavoidable.

The investigation, which began at night, finally ended by morning. Afterward, he tried to contact Dojae but couldn’t reach him, which worried him.

But Dojae wasn’t just anyone—he was an S-class Hunter. Was there really any need to worry for long?

After making a few calls and getting no answer, Yeong-jin relaxed and wandered around the city sightseeing.

Pure liberation!

“Hehehe. What should I do first? Maybe start with shopping?”

Young-jin enjoyed a leisurely trip, roaming the heart of Las Vegas.

What particularly caught Young-jin’s eye were the various medicines.

Health supplements and mana-boosting potions strongly drew him in.

Having endured the Busan campaign, Youngjin himself wanted to grow stronger, and he also yearned for the new skills Dojae had mentioned.

Venturing deeper into the alleys, he could even glimpse illegal drugs and weapons, and before he knew it, he had drifted into the slums.

“Body modification…? Organ transplants…?”

Advertisements promoting all kinds of illegal procedures were everywhere, and the looks in the eyes of the people wandering around were anything but ordinary.

Shadows lurking behind the dazzling neon lights, perhaps.

Despite it being daytime, the atmosphere in the slums was dark and bleak.

“Heh heh… If I get something like body modification, my boss will notice right away. Any decent drugs around?”

Youngjin wandered between buildings, scouting out shops that looked promising.

Possessing potions, weapons, or other loot could cause problems when leaving the country.

But didn’t Dojae have that universal inventory?

If he hid it well in his bag and handed it over, they’d store it without suspicion, and he’d have no trouble returning.

He was searching for a trustworthy shop like that.

“Hm?”

Youngjin suddenly turns around.

He scans his surroundings, feeling as if someone is watching him, but nothing seems particularly off.

No, actually, everyone here seems strange, so everyone looks suspicious.

“Was it just my imagination?”

Just as Young-jin, finding nothing unusual, looks back ahead.

“Ugh!”

A black glove clamped over Young-jin’s mouth.

Then, a sharp sting as a needle pierced Young-jin’s carotid artery.

“Mmmph!”

Young-jin struggled desperately to break free, but the grip on his arm was too strong.

Oxygen grew scarce, and whatever had been injected left his body drained of strength.

Finally, Yeongjin lost consciousness and collapsed.

***

“Kyaaaah!”

Squeak-!

Thud-.

An unpleasant scream and the sound of a blade tearing through flesh echoed.

Young-jin slowly regained his senses.

‘Where am I?’

Young-jin opened his eyes.

No buildings were visible anywhere; only sparse, twisted, withered trees could be seen.

And the first thing he felt was that he was bound.

‘My hands and feet are bound, and my mouth is gagged…’

Young-jin strained his arms and legs, trying to break free from the bonds.

But they weren’t ordinary chains; they didn’t budge an inch.

“You awake?”

Someone approached.

He lifted Young-jin to his feet and leaned him against a rock.

“Oh dear, this must be our young master’s first time experiencing such a thing. Right?”

A masked man with slanted eyes and a cruel expression stood there.

Judging by his Korean, he was undoubtedly Korean.

“Woke up earlier than expected? Was the intel wrong, or did those bastards botch the job?”

The man circled around Young-jin, glaring at him.

Then he crouched down, pulled out a small dagger, and pressed it against Young-jin’s face.

“Hey, old man, even if you don’t know how the world works, wandering around places like this alone is asking for trouble. This isn’t Korea. It’s a place where no one bats an eye if someone gets taken.”

Swish-.

Splash.

The man’s dagger grazed Yeong-jin’s cheek, drawing blood.

Then the blade’s tip cuts through the tape tightly wrapped around his cheek.

Thud.

“Who are you guys….”

Young-jin murmured quietly.

Not only the man standing before him, but two others were there too, hunting the harpies that flew toward them.

“Oh, young master. Why ask such a tacky question? We’re just self-employed folks working hard to make a living.”

“So you want money? How much? 100 million? 200 million?”

“Huh? Do you think your worth is only that much, young master? That’s too modest for what you possess, don’t you think?”

The man spread his arms wide toward Young-jin.

“Ten billion? Where would I get that kind of money?”

“What are you talking about? This isn’t 1 billion won, it’s 10 billion won!”

Young-jin’s mouth fell open.

10 billion? This wasn’t some game money. Why on earth would such a sum be hanging over his head?

Seeing Young-jin’s expression, the man chuckled and said.

“We’re not some neighborhood thugs. Coming all this way for 10 billion won just doesn’t make financial sense.”

“Who… Who ordered my death? Could it be…?”

“Shh! Revealing who the client is goes against our philosophy.”

The man’s dagger touched the tip of Young-jin’s throat.

He looks ready to kill at any moment, but he keeps threatening without actually doing it.

‘If he intended to kill me, he could have done it the moment he injected the drug. The fact he dragged me here suggests he has other plans.’

Young-jin calmed his mind and stared intently at the man.

If he had no immediate intention to kill, he needed time to figure out how to escape.

“Oh? Your eyes changed? Guess you changed your mind? Then let me guess. Our young master thinks I won’t kill him. And he’ll try to talk his way out while thinking of an escape plan. Right?”

“……”

“Why the silent treatment? Feeling slighted? Did you think we were that careless? Don’t worry. I’ll send you off cleanly soon enough.”

Young-jin gritted his teeth.

The man clearly had no intention of sparing him.

He didn’t know what he was waiting for, but once it was over, he would kill him immediately.

Young-jin tried to at least attempt some negotiation before that.

“If it’s about money, I’ll give you more.”

“But you said you didn’t have any just now?”

“No. You know who I am, don’t you? If you just give me a little time, I can get it somehow.”

“How much?”

The man reacted.

That meant money was clearly one of his objectives.

Young-jin thought about the maximum amount he could come up with immediately.

“12 billion. I can get it within a month.”

“12 billion?”

But the man’s expression didn’t change.

Even though he was offering 2 billion more.

“15 billion… I’ll find a way to make it happen within a month.”

The man still showed no expression.

Instead, he raised his hand again.

This time, too, it’s five fingers spread wide open.

“Ten times. Prepare 100 billion. The timeframe is too long. I’ll give you exactly one week.”

Young-jin shook his head at the man’s words.

The amount was utterly absurd.

Even if he sold all his stocks and real estate immediately, raising 100 billion won would be difficult.

And that was within a week.

“This is nonsense… Suddenly ten times…?”

“Young master, think about it. If you die, we and the client can just keep our mouths shut and live happily ever after. But if we save you, what happens to our relationship with the client? How awkward would it be to face each other? 100 billion won is already a bargain because of your face, young master.”

“Guh…”

The man placed his hand on Young-jin’s shoulder and applied pressure.

His collarbone crushed, intense pain surged through him.

“What should we do? Should we just let you die in the dungeon like other hunters, so we can’t even recover your body? That’d be a shame, but we’d settle for 10 billion. Or, you could come up with 100 billion within a week. Huh? A mere 100 billion? Our young master could manage that, couldn’t he?”

Yeongjin nodded his head while writhing in agony.

Is money that important?

Staying alive comes first.

Of course, these guys wouldn’t just leave him alone, but he’d bought himself a week.

That was enough.

‘My brother will come rescue me soon… No, I can’t keep relying on him forever. I have to solve this myself.’

***

About six hours have passed.

Young-jin was still waiting, bound and gagged.

After observing the situation, he realized the guy who had spoken to him was…

“I’ll be back soon.”

“Bring back something to eat when you come back.”

“Yes, sir.”

Then the man with long hair among the remaining two kept heading somewhere.

He kept doing something out of sight, regularly going in and out of the dungeon, then returning with his bag loaded full of something, receiving the boss’s approval.

“Kiiiiit!”

Swoosh-.

Squeak-!

And the man with the sporty haircut.

He hunted the harpies attacking him as he roamed the area.

He killed every harpy with a single strike, no other movements involved.

His swordsmanship and physical prowess were both superior to Young-jin’s.

“Hmph.”

Finally, the boss.

He sat on the rock Youngjin was leaning against, quietly passing the time.

After their initial conversation, he hadn’t spoken to Youngjin, nor did he exchange words with his subordinates beyond what was strictly necessary.

‘Without conversation, it’s impossible to gauge the atmosphere… Still, I’ll at least try.’

Young-jin waited for the man with long hair to come.

His usual time coming and going was between five and ten minutes.

But this time, it took a little longer.

“Stop that and come eat! Give me a break.”

“Yes.”

The man with long hair switched roles with the man with the sporty haircut.

They began eating the food they’d bought in bulk.

‘Damn. He won’t show his face.’

He kept staring, wondering if taking off the mask while eating would reveal their faces, but they were facing away from Young-jin, so he couldn’t tell at all.

Here begins Young-jin’s first attempt.

“I need to get paid for my life anyway, so give me some food too.”

First, he asked for food to build rapport with them.

Once the mood lightens, he’ll ask them to untie the chains binding him.

After all, if he stays tied up like this, he won’t get a billion won, let alone a thousand won.

“Hot dogs, sandwiches, ice cream, hamburgers… What else do you want to eat after all that? I won’t let you starve to death, so stop thinking nonsense and just stay put.”

Failure.

Looks like he’s been following Young-jin since morning and knows everything, even what he ate.

Then I’ll just ask him directly to unlock the chains.

“Then please untie this. I need to pee, and anyway, I have to go around to get money, right?”

“Oh, come on. Either hold it or pee in your pants. I’ll untie the chains when you get the money. Why does our young master even need to move around? He can use an agent, make a phone call. Right?”

He’s right.

He was someone who should have been killed anyway.

Whether Young-jin pees himself or shits himself wouldn’t matter a bit.

“Then how about this? When I return to Korea…”

“Haa… Before I sew that mouth shut, you’d better be quiet, right? One more word and I’ll cut your Adam’s apple first.”

Young-jin’s mouth shut tight at the boss’s words, spoken through a glare.

He felt like if he provoked him any further, his throat would really be slit.

Woong-.

Then, a small vibration echoed from Young-jin’s chest.

The magic stone he’d tucked deep inside his inner pocket.

He could feel it vibrating violently.

Clank.

And the iron chain that had bound Young-jin tightly began to slip off on its own.

Even though it wasn’t an ordinary iron chain, but one specially treated.

“What the hell?”

The boss, who had been eating, turned his head toward Young-jin at the strange sound.

He jumps up and approaches Young-jin.

“How did you do that?”

At that moment, the iron chain flew out on its own and struck the boss squarely in the solar plexus.

“Gah!”

No, it wasn’t by itself.

Young-jin’s will was behind the chain’s movement.

Now free, Young-jin didn’t hesitate. He sprang to his feet and began running.

“Bring him back!”