CH 20

“Very good, very good.”

Two-Bomber Lee Chun-guk, a villain with enhanced physical strength, smiled with satisfaction as he surveyed his black market purchases.

He made bombs as a hobby and testing the destructive power of his homemade bombs was the joy of his life.

His many bombings, both in cities and in Hunters’ hunting grounds, have claimed over 1000 lives. Bounties have been placed on his head by government organizations and large guilds alike.

Lee Chun-guk noticed the increasingly persistent pursuit and hid for over six months. When the surveillance became lax, he was able to acquire the materials necessary to make bombs from the black market.

The disguise was perfect, and the materials were purchased in several installments, so no one would ever know it was him.

“This time, I will cause a huge disaster. They’ll regret trying to catch me.”

Lee Chun-guk laughed, looking forward to the day the name ‘Two-Bomber’ would be heard everywhere.

Until he heard a voice behind him.

“Two-Bomber? Worth five hundred million.”

Thud!

“Ah!”

Lee Chun-guk’s arm twisted in a strange direction, and he fell to the ground with both legs broken. Despite the high bounty on his head, his close combat skills were not very high, as he relied on long-range bombing.

“500 million bounty. That’s a lot of money.”

“Wh-who are you?”

In excruciating pain, Lee Chun-guk desperately rolled his eyes. He realized that his opponent must be a formidable villain.

“A government hunter.”

Thwack!

Lee Chun-guk couldn’t even plead for mercy before his head was smashed, and he died.

After handling the Two-Bomber quickly, Choi Jun-ho kicked the item the other bought from the black market with his foot, shattering it to pieces using landmine.

“That’s number five,” he said, checking the time and seeing that it was 4 AM.

He had time to catch one more villain.

***

The criteria for selecting a prey after deciding to catch a villain were simple.

First of all, if there were a lot of them, I’d move on. I wanted to make sure they were quick to kill and easy to clean up after. In addition, I also didn’t want them to be part of a corporation or guild.

So, the remaining ones were villains who were alone.

It wasn’t difficult to tell who the villains were. I waited in a place away from the black market and hunted down the villain who moved alone.

As I picked my final target, I smiled at the sight of a skinny, plain-looking man in his 40s.

This was the big one.

I hid and waited for him to pass, planning to take him out by surprise once he exposed his back.

Just as I was about to reach out and grab him by the throat, his body dispersed in a flash of light and he reappeared 10 meters away. I had missed him.

“I’ve seen a few ambushes in the black market, but this one almost killed me.”

“Blink Na Kyung-wook.”

A Level 6 villain with a low risk, who had a unique record of not causing any harm to ordinary citizens.

“Do you know me? Can you just let me go? I don’t want to fight.”

“Leave your head.”

“You’re a man of few words.”

Although his risk was low, it was said that Blink was difficult to catch because he could control space with his Gift, and even escape.

I want it.

Meanwhile, Na Kyung-wook, who had crossed the space, swung his dagger.

Kwaduk!

He swung the two daggers and threw them without delay once he had gotten some distance. The lack of spatial constraints made it tricky.

But the Force of my landmine was too much for him, and the Force in his daggers shattered.

Na Kyung-wook, who had been knocked back in the aftermath, used Blink. Seizing the moment, I took out the bullets I had picked up earlier and threw them in the direction he had moved.

“Click!”

The biggest disadvantage of spatial shifter users was that they were defenseless for a short time after using it. Na Kyung-wook’s body shook as the bullet I threw pierced his arm and side.

In a fleeting moment, I tried to grab his head by slicing through space, but he used Blink once again.

It was the last move of a villain.

“Stop! Surrender!”

“No need.”

It didn’t matter that he showed no intention of resisting. I would kill him here and take Blink.

“Why are you like this? Damn it! Did you use something like lightning in your hand? Are you the Head Breaker?!”

“Head Breaker?”

I didn’t think it’s me. What kind of nickname was that?

“A government hunter with a more brutal hand than a villain! That’s you, isn’t it?”

“Hear my answer in the afterlife.”

He used Blink again, but I quickly caught up. Dodging a hand headed for his head, he gave up his shoulder and sank down, his whole body twisting as he cried out.

“That’s enough! Stop! I’m a government hunter too!”

“What nonsense.”

“I’m from the Foreign Cooperation Agency! Argh, check my chest pocket. There’s an ID!”

The villain was a government hunter? I never expected that. I unbuttoned his coat and found his ID: Han Sang-min.

“If you’re lying, you won’t die a pretty death. I’ll crush every bone in your body.”

Na Kyung-wook trembled at my threat. I found the ID and looked at it closely.

...I couldn’t tell if it was real or fake. But my gut feeling told me that what the guy said was probably true.

I took out my smartphone from my pocket and contacted Jung Ju-ho.

“Sorry for calling you early in the morning, Director.”

--I don’t know when 3:30 in the morning became morning, but tell me what happened.

He even assumed that I had an accident. Oh, this was indeed an unexpected accident.

“Do you know if there’s a person named Han Sang-min in the Foreign Cooperation Agency?”

--Wait.

Afterward, I heard Jung Ju-ho making a call on another phone, and later, after exchanging pleasantries, he told me that he was talking to the director of the Foreign Cooperation Agency.

--He’s a black agent from the Foreign Cooperation Agency. How the hell do you know that name?

“He’s in my custody now.”

--What?

“I’m sorry, but can you confirm if Han Sang-min was disguised as a villain named Blink, Na Kyung-wook?”

......

Jung Joo-ho talked to the Director of the Department the Foreign Cooperation Agency again, and the final answer came.

--Yes.

“Understood.”

--Surely, you didn’t kill him, did you?

“No, I didn’t.”

--Did you make him useless?

I stared at Na Kyung-wook for a moment. His complexion was white from the amount of blood he’d lost from the holes in his arm and side, and his shoulder was smashed.

“Not a completely, but almost.”

--That’s only according to your judgement.

“I’ll do my best to restore him as much as possible.”

--Please, I’m begging you, do so.

“Yes.”

After the call ended, I applied the Sacred Guild’s Premium Recovery Potion, which I had kept for emergencies, to Han Sang-min’s shoulders. His collapsed shoulder bones gradually changed back into their original form.

“Urghhhh!”

“Stay still. Unless you want to live as a useless person for the rest of your life.”

I sprayed it on his ribs and arms as well, and after feeding him, the bloodstains disappeared, and he was restored convincingly.

Blink’s Gift was tempting, but there was nothing I could do.

Sacred Guild’s premium potion was highly recommended, by the way.

***

South Korea initially succeeded in balancing the strong regulation of large guilds with support for government-employed hunters.

In recent years, the balance has shifted to the larger guilds, but the three largest pillars of the government - National Security Agency, Foreign Cooperation Agency, and Demon Defense Frontline Agency - had more power and authority than even the largest guilds.

These three agencies worked together and also played the role of checking each other when one tried to take control. As a result, the directors of each agency treated each other as collaborators and competitors.

The Director of the Foreign Cooperation Agency, Yeom Ki-chul, was a colleague of Jung Ju-ho.

“Director Yeom, it’s a simple mistake. People can make mistakes and even break the shoulders of others when they run into a villain.”

“Oh my, is that mistake something that could cause someone more than six months to recover from? If the victim’s situation was a bit worse, will he just end up breathing from a machine for the rest of his life?”

“Well, it can happen when people argue with each other. It’s not like someone was killed. Besides, his bones were well mended, weren’t they?”

“You expect me to thank you for that? Messing up all his bones and then putting it all back together.”

“I’m just saying let’s play nice. Hey, look at me. My hair is getting thin these days because of that guy.”

When hair thickness was mentioned, Director Yeom Ki-chul, who empathized with his colleague, could no longer blame him.

“What happened to Head Breaker?”

“He’s a disaster. A big disaster.”

“I only heard rumors about him before, but I saw him this time and he was amazing. He’s a crazy dog.”

Jung Ju-ho couldn’t help but smile. Did he call Choi Jun-ho a crazy dog? That was an insult to a crazy dog.

He wanted to let Yeom Ki-chul experience that taste, but he couldn’t give away the treasure.

He decided to think of it as the fate of the one who had the treasure.

Sure enough, Yeom Ki-chul began to guide the conversation in that direction.

“That knife, it seems like it might cut the wrong way. How about we share it?”

“I’m not interested in your knife taste.”

“You’re such a greedy bastard. You called me in the middle of the night and you’re not even sorry? Do you know how much nagging I had to listen to from your sister-in-law?”

“I had to listen to nagging too. Who told you to get married?”

“You son of a bitch! You’re the one who introduced her to me!”

“I didn’t really expect you two to get married. She’s a good person.”

“Well, that’s true.”

Realizing that he would be in trouble if he said more, Yeom Ki-chul held his tongue. The other was a friend, but he was also a nemesis, and he would tell his wife what he had said.

“Anyway, Sang-min is having trouble moving, so the mission we were going to do has failed. Hand over the Head Breaker.”

“What’s the emergency?”

“Large amounts of drugs are being smuggled into the country from overseas. This is related to the Puppeteer, but I think it’s also connected to the League.”

“...!”

“I was going to handle it alone, but I think I need your help.”

“Fifty-fifty.”

“Hey, I set up the table over here. Are you kidding me?”

Jung Ju-ho laughed unpleasantly and scratched his ear.

“If you don’t have the strength to take care of yourself, you should at least be grateful for what you’re given.”

“You’re the one who cut my arm off!”

“So you’re saying you don’t want it?”

“Geez! I’m supposed to be the one leading this charge. ...Fine!”

Jung Ju-ho laughed heartily and sat down next to Yeom Ki-chul, patting him on the shoulder.

“As expected, our Miss Je-seo has chosen a real man!”

“It’s a pity she fell for your trick of being happy in marriage.”

“But it still makes you happy, doesn’t it?”

“I’m really happy thanks to you, you son of a bitch.”

Yeom Ki-chul clenched his teeth.

***

“Hey, you son of a bitch, you should suffer a bit.”

Yeom Ki-chul laughed out loud until Jung Ju-ho left.

He’d handed the case over to Jung Ju-ho as a gesture of goodwill, but this was no easy task. The value of the drugs in circulation was as great as the number of villains in the League.

It would take a considerable amount of power to take them down, and by passing it off to the National Security Agency, he would still be able to take half the credit.

“Never underestimate the world, my friend.”

It’s not like he’s giving him a hellish marriage.

Three days later.

The subordinate came into the Director’s office, lost in thought.

“Director! The operation, the operation!”

“Why? Did the National Security Agency ask for our help?”

“No! Head Breaker went in alone and seized all the drugs!”

Yeom Ki-cheol was surprised by the unexpected news and stood up from his seat.

“What about the guards there?”

“Even though they rebelled, they were all taken care of.”

“What about the damage? Is Head Breaker that bastard crippled or retired because of his injuries?”

“He’s... fine.”

Yom Ki-cheol sat down with a disappointed expression on his face, unable to imagine the extraordinary achievement.

“...Crazy bastard.”

***

Berserker, Lee Kwang-jin, sat in a rundown factory in Ansan. His expression was mild and didn’t look like the notorious Berserker, as if he was a meditating monk.

He closed his eyes and spoke to an empty space.

“If you’re here, state your business. Puppeteer.”

A black-robed spectre appeared in front of Berserker.

“I didn’t mean to disturb your meditation.”

“You smell like a corpse and still talking nonsense.”

“It’s just a few coats of specialty chemicals, not a stench. It’s fragrant, isn’t it? Don’t twist the truth, my friend. Aren’t you getting tired of this factory, by the way?”

“This is the only place where traces of the Eraser remain. Can’t you see it, the carnage that has entered the realm of beauty and fantasy?”

This was the place where Big Ten was massacred not long ago. Berserker looked around the factory and visualized the scene of the massacre that took place that day in his head.

“So, what brings you here?”

“I heard that you couldn’t find the Eraser.”

“Are you here to pick a fight?”

“Hey, we’re both hopeful members of the same ‘League’.”

“I’ve never thought of you as my colleague.”

“You’re still putting on airs. Anyway, instead of tracking down the Eraser without any results, how about we do something that’s win-win for you and me?”

“...”

To the silent Berserker, the Puppeteer said.

“After all, you and I both hoped to join the League, and we both have different purposes, and there’s an interesting one among the Hunters who attacked the League this time. He’s not as good as the Eraser, but he’ll provide some entertainment.”

“Who is it?”

“Head Breaker. If the opponent is a villain, he starts by breaking their head. He’s still in his 20s, but they say he’s at Level 7.”

“20s. Head Breaker.”

Berserker’s eyes lit up. The Puppeteer, who succeeded in arousing his interest, laughed.

“I want to join the League and get as many talented puppets as possible before leaving this country. Once word gets out that you and I have teamed up, they will come flocking, and it’ll be a nice warm-up for your search for the Eraser. Will you do it?”

“......”

“If you help me, I’ll help you find the Eraser.”

“Give me information on Head Breaker first.”