Chapter 27: A Night Without the Guilty (4) |
A cool mint-scented liquid slid down Kwon Oh-Jin’s throat and spread throughout his entire body. As if he had just brushed his teeth, a refreshing feeling then lingered in his mouth. Shortly after, the intense pain that had been tearing through him rapidly subsided.
“Ugh...”
“Oh-Jin! Are you okay?!”
As he opened his eyes, what appeared before him was...
... A gorilla?
No, it was Han Jun-Man.
“Jun-Man...?”
“Phew. I’m glad you’re awake.”
“Where are we?”
“No.”
“Pardon?”
“I’m fine.”
Kwon Oh-Jin staggered to his feet. Though the potion still hadn’t fully healed his painful wounds, he couldn’t afford to lie down and rest.
I still have something very important left to do.
“P-Please rest a bit longer!”
“I’m really okay.”
“But...” Han Jun-Man trailed off with a troubled expression.
Kwon Oh-Jin went past Han Jun-Man and walked to Yoo-Jin’s body, where he found Lee Woo-Hyuk looking down at Yoo-Jin with a cold, stiff expression.
As Kwon Oh-Jin approached, Lee Woo-Hyuk turned his gaze toward him. “Oh-Jin, right?”
“Yes.”
“Did this man say anything before he died?”
Lee Woo-Hyuk looked tense; he was biting his lip anxiously, and his clenched fists trembled.
Considering that no matter how much they searched around the observatory, they wouldn’t have found Lee Shin-Hyuk, it made sense for him to react this way. His last hope was whatever Kwon Oh-Jin could have heard before Yoo-Jin took his final breath.
“He didn’t.”
“... Oh.”
Lee Woo-Hyuk’s face was painted with despair. With this, all possible ways to find Lee Shin-Hyuk had vanished.
“But,” Kwon Oh-Jin said as he walked a few steps away from where the fight had taken place. He then stopped where he had prepared the final plot twist before his fight with Yoo-Jin. This would be the climax of this drama, a turn that would resolve all the mysteries and connect hidden clues in one fell swoop.
“The culprit was fleeing in that direction.”
Kwon Oh-Jin pointed to a small cave hidden within the thick brushes.
“T-Thank you!”
A thread of hope was handed to Lee Woo-Hyuk. He turned and rushed into the cave.
“Ah...”
A corpse, so mangled that it was unrecognizable, greeted him. The stench of decay stung his nostrils.
“N-No.”
Lee Woo-Hyuk fell to his knees and held onto the corpse. “Nooo! Shin-Hyuk!”
Lee Shin-Hyuk had never been kidnapped. Rather, those bastards killed him and used him as nothing more than a lure to draw Lee Woo-Hyuk into their trap. He had since been brutally and pitifully left to rot in this cave.
“N-No. Aaaaah!”
The black lion’s roar echoed within the small cave.
Damn.
Kwon Oh-Jin frowned as he watched Lee Woo-Hyuk break down.
I expected, orchestrated, and intended this, so why does this feel so unsettling?
Kwon Oh-Jin felt gut-wrenchingly guilty. Seeing Lee Woo-Hyuk cry out in despair, he felt as though a knife was twisting inside his chest.
Logically speaking, I’m the victim here.
He technically had nothing to do with Lee Shin-Hyuk’s death; the man died all on his own after trying to regress. In fact, before regressing, he had tried to shove Kwon Oh-Jin into the horde of Anthorns so he could escape.
I don’t intend to make pathetic excuses about this, though.
Even though Kwon Oh-Jin wasn’t directly involved in Lee Shin-Hyuk’s death, he had undoubtedly used it to his advantage. From an ethical standpoint, it was no doubt a condemnable act.
But so what? It’s laughable for a scammer like me to be worried about morals.
If necessary, he would exploit anything or anyone, even a powerful Celestial of the North Star or a grieving brother. As long as it helped him achieve his goal, he would wring them dry and use them to his benefit. That was how he had always lived and how he had survived.
“Oh-Jin,” Team Leader Han Jun-Man called, placing his hand on Kwon Oh-Jin’s shoulder. Shaking his head, he softly said, “Let’s go.”
“Alright.”
There was no point in staying any longer. There was nothing more he could do here.
“The emergency team will be here soon.”
Kwon Oh-Jin shook his head. “It’s okay, I’ll walk down on my own.”
He began walking away. Though his injuries hadn’t completely healed and still throbbed with pain, he felt like going for a short stroll.
“But—”
“Haha. It’s really alright.”
Leaving Han Jun-Man behind, he made his way down the mountain. As he walked, he looked up at the sky.
“Haaa.”
The night without the guilty was slowly coming to an end.
*
A week later, Kwon Oh-Jin answered a call from Han Jun-Man late in the morning.
“The Valhalla Guild called for me?”
—Yes, that’s right.
Kwon Oh-Jin brushed back his sweaty hair.
Is this about the compensation that they’re supposed to give me?
But if that were the case, why they would need him to come to the guild in person? Cocking his head, he pondered for a moment.
“Alright, I’ll come by.”
—I’ll send the address of the Valhalla Guild through KakaoTalk.
“Got it.”
Shortly after, he received a message with the location.
Guess I should shower first.
He had been training nonstop since dawn, so he was completely drenched in sweat.
Click.
After heading down from the rooftop, he opened the front door.
“Hmmm?”
With her earbuds in, Song Ha-Eun was listening to something with an unusually serious expression. Her phone screen was turned off, so he couldn’t see what it was.
“What are you listening to?” Kwon Oh-Jin asked.
“Aaah! Fuck!”
What? Why is she so surprised?
“Y-You scared the shit out of me, you jerk!”
“What are you listening to so intently?”
“Oh, uh, t-that’s... uh...”
Flustered, Song Ha-Eun stumbled over her words.
“J-Just a song. I was listening to a song.”
“A song?”
Who listens to a song with that kind of expression?
“Don’t worry about it, you idiot!”
“Okay... If you say so.”
It was obvious she was lying, but he didn’t bother to press her about it.
She’s still at that age after all. Just because she can’t see doesn’t mean her desires have disappeared. I’ve heard there are a lot of people who enjoy themselves just by listening nowadays.
“You’re thinking something really gross, aren’t you?”
“Nope.”
“Anyway, you’re done training already? You've been spending all your evenings locked up on the rooftop lately.”
“Something came up, so I need to head out.”
“To where?”
“The Valhalla Guild.”
Her jaw dropped open.
“Huh? Isn’t that the super famous guild everyone’s been talking about lately?”
“You know about them?”
“I keep up with the news too, you know,” Song Ha-Eun said as she waved her phone in the air.
“Yeah, and I’m sure you listen to other stuff too.”
“I’m going to kill you.”
“Pffft! My bad. I need to get ready now.”
Kwon Oh-Jin headed to the bathroom.
Click.
With him gone, silence settled over the room. In Song Ha-Eun’s faded eyes, a hint of loneliness flickered.
With the press of a button, the screen of her phone lit up.
[Astral Relic known as Demonic Dragon Eye to be auctioned at Yongsan in December.]
She closed the videos that she had searched up through her awkward typing. She then pulled her knees up to her chest and buried her head in them.
“... Haa.”
Her deep sigh echoed across the room.
*
After showering, Kwon Oh-Jin made his way to the Valhalla Guild, which was near Seoul Station.
“You’re Mr. Kwon Oh-Jin, right?”
A woman with glasses and a neat, professional appearance stood in front of the building. Her crisp black suit and matching shoes looked good on her.
Her name’s Kim Seon-Young, if I remember correctly.
Though he couldn’t pinpoint when exactly, he knew that Lee Woo-Hyuk would fall for her eventually.
“Yes.”
“Please follow me.”
Kwon Oh-Jin entered the Valhalla Guild’s building through Kim Seon-Young. The place wasn’t big, which was expected since they were made up of few but elite members. Nevertheless, right from the entrance, a sense of luxury swept over him.
Tok, tok.
“Come in,” someone coldly instructed from behind the door.
Creak.
The room was filled with papers and plain furniture, the complete opposite of what one might expect from the master of a rising guild.
“Nice to meet you, Mr. Oh-Jin.”
“Nice to meet you too.”
“I apologize for not giving you a proper greeting last time.”
“Well... it wasn’t exactly the best time for greetings.”
Lee Woo-Hyuk clenched his fists tightly, causing the room to become thick with suffocating, murderous energy.
“Guild Master...” Kim Seon-Young quickly called.
Lee Woo-Hyuk jerked back to reality. “I apologize.”
“It’s alright, I understand.”
It’s only been a week. That’s not enough time for him to sort out his emotions.
Lee Woo-Hyuk took a deep breath and lowered his head.
“The reason we called you, Mr. Oh-Jin, was to first express our gratitude.”
“Sorry?”
“If it weren't for you, we might have lost the chance to catch the one who killed my brother.”
So that’s what this is about. I expected as much.
“I heard you were injured during the incident. Are you alright now?”
“Yes, I’m fine.”
Kwon Oh-Jin had hurt himself so he could act like he had gone through a lot of trouble. However, he made sure he wouldn’t have any injuries that would leave a lasting effect.
“That’s a relief.”
Lee Woo-Hyuk glanced over at Kim Seon-Young. She then wheeled in a large trunk.
“What’s this?”
“This is the three billion won that the kidnappers had demanded.”
Kwon Oh-Jin’s eyes widened in disbelief.
No way. No fucking way!
“We’re giving this to you as a reward for capturing Yoo-Jin.”
He could barely stop himself from shaking as though he was about to have a seizure.
This is fucking insane.
A thrilling chill ran down his spine.
But this doesn’t make sense.
Even though he had helped capture a fleeing kidnapper, did it really justify a reward of three billion won?
Kwon Oh-Jin squinted.
“This seems a bit excessive as compensation.”
“I won’t deny that.”
“There’s another reason, isn’t there?”
Lee Woo-Gyuk’s cold gaze sharpened as he nodded. “I heard you’re an apostle of the North Star. Is that true?”
Team Leader Han Jun-Man must’ve told him.
It was plausible, considering the guild’s close ties with the association.
“That’s right.”
“I also heard you were attacked by the Black Star Society recently.”
“Ah.”
Now it all makes sense. I was wondering why they’d give me three billion won out of nowhere.
Kwon Oh-Jin’s lips curved into a smile.
“You want information regarding the Black Star Society, don’t you?”
It seemed that the hungry hunting dog wasn’t satisfied with Yoo-Jin’s death.
“Information alone wouldn't justify all this, would it?” Lee Woo-Hyuk countered.
“Then?”
“The Valhalla Guild plans to find and root out the Black Star Society, and we would like you, as the apostle of the North Star, to help us.”
Kwon Oh-Jin nodded without hesitation. “Sounds good to me.”
This is turning out to be better than I expected.
He had already been planning to deal with the Black Star Society at some point anyway. If he could get someone as reliable as Lee Woo-Hyuk to help, there was no reason for him to refuse.
On top of that, I’ll get three billion won.
No matter how much he thought about it, this was awesome.
“So, do you know anything about the Black Star Society?” Lee Woo-Hyuk asked.
“Of course.” Kwon Oh-Jin grinned as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper.
I never thought I’d use this so soon, but since he asked, there’s no point in holding back.
“I was researching on my own when I found this, but...” He handed over the piece of paper to Lee Woo-Hyuk, who then released a deadly cold aura. “This is the contact information for one of the Black Star Society’s high-ranking members.”
Go ahead, Lee Woo-Hyuk.
“His name is...”
Tear them apart. Rip them to shreds.
“Ashad Khan.”
My loyal hunting dog.
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