TOP 71

Chapter 71

The Taste of Power

“This introduction is a bit late. I’m Geum Yoo-gang!”

A middle-aged man who introduced himself as Geum Yoo-gang extended his hand toward me.

【What the heck! Just giving your name—what am I supposed to do with that?】

Prill muttered, clearly annoyed.

Still, I simply shook his hand.

“I’m Kim Yoo-jin.”

Geum Yoo-gang—he wasn’t someone I didn’t know.

No, rather…

‘In Korea, if you don’t know him, people might suspect you of being a spy.’

【…Really?】

He was a legendary figure, a company chairman who had risen to the rank of 7-star Hunter.

At first, I wondered what he even did, but after learning who he was, the situation became clear.

“Sorry for dropping by so suddenly, but I couldn’t wait!”

“Understandable.”

“Straight to the point—do you really have that item?”

For reference, Geum Yoo-gang was the CEO of the Geumwa Group.

And Geumwa Group was the place I had intended to sell Mannyeon Seori (Eternal Frost).

Originally, I had planned to contact them first, but urgent matters delayed me.

‘I’d forgotten.’

I had to obtain Bingsung, regain Prill’s strength, and go through the rank assessment.

The latter wasn’t urgent… but…

‘Thanks to this, they’re the ones getting impatient. Maybe it works to my advantage.’

There was no harm in that.

I smiled and nodded.

“Yes. I have it.”

“Oh! If you don’t mind, could I… see it in person?”

No problem.

I took Mannyeon Seori out from my subspace and showed it to him.

《Mannyeon Seori – Material, Unique》

• A core imbued with the power of frost.

• Used as a key component for creating ice-element items.

“Th-this…!”

“Yes. It’s a core material for ice-element items.”

With Mannyeon Seori, one could make items imbued with ice.

And with that…

‘It could cure the incurable illness of this man’s only daughter.’

Geum Yoo-gang’s daughter, Geum Hwa-young, could be healed.

He wasn’t clinging to me for no reason.

“I was planning to visit soon anyway, but you came first.”

“I simply couldn’t wait! Perhaps you’ve heard… you might sell that item to me?”

Geum Yoo-gang asked cautiously.

Usually, people with power opt for force, but he didn’t.

A small detail, but it earned my respect.

“Of course.”

However, that aside…

“How much were you thinking?”

Negotiating for my advantage was a different matter.

【Yoo-jin, you’re selfish!】

‘Yes. Of course.’

【You also need to know how to give!】

‘Sure. That’s for later.’

I ignored Prill’s teasing and focused on Geum Yoo-gang.

“I’ll gladly sell it if you—”

But—

“W-wait a moment!”

A government official, who hadn’t picked up on the flow, interjected.

He was just doing his duty.

“I… I need to process some related work first. Have you two completed your dungeon exploration?”

But the timing was poor.

“Ah, we’ll continue our discussion later.”

“…Understood.”

A pity.

If the flow hadn’t been interrupted, a very favorable condition might have come up.

‘Anyway, we hold the upper hand.’

As long as I held the initiative, it wasn’t a major problem.

“Hunter Kim Yoo-jin, Hunter Yoo Seol-ah. I’ll ask again. Is the dungeon exploration concluded?”

The official asked us once more to confirm the facts.

“Yes.”

“Then why are there only two of you…?”

“They’re all dead.”

“What!?”

What could we do? It was the truth.

Han Jun-pyeong had been killed by Red Hunter Choi Hyuk-soo, and Choi Hyuk-soo was dead by my hand.

For the evaluators, we found traces of death.

We saw signs of them being hit by the hellfire jaws’ evil bullets as we exited the dungeon.

“…Impossible. This party should have been overpowered enough.”

The official’s question made sense.

Including the evaluators, the party had two 6-star Hunters and a magician.

For the damage suffered in just a 5-star dungeon, the losses were enormous.

But I had prepared solid evidence for this situation.

“Seol-ah.”

“Yes!”

I took out the evidence stored in Yoo Seol-ah’s subspace.

“Th-this…?”

“It’s a magic core from a 7-star monster.”

It was the magic core obtained from defeating Hellfire Jaws.

“…What!?”

The official was shocked by my explanation.

Geum Yoo-gang was equally stunned.

“7-star!? This is supposed to be a 5-star dungeon!”

“Yes.”

“Then why—”

“Probably an error in the Bureau’s ranking system.”

I said this while looking at the official, implying it wasn’t my fault.

Accidents happen in dungeons, and hunters dying isn’t uncommon.

Of course, those incidents aren’t a major problem.

However…

‘That’s only when dying to monsters.’

If hunters die due to internal conflict, it’s a serious crime.

And here, more than half of the hunters died in a dungeon rated below their power level… and only two survived, including me?

‘Perfect for being blamed.’

If we couldn’t explain properly, the situation could spiral out of control.

So I decided to skip mentioning Red Hunter entirely.

Fortunately, I had enough of an excuse.

“A 7-star monster appeared, and it was even an ethereal type. Others died at its hands.”

“With this size… yes, a 7-star magic core makes sense…”

The official didn’t doubt me much.

This was enough to prove the appearance of a 7-star monster.

‘Without the magic core, this would’ve been a huge problem.’

One flaw of One Punch: looting is mostly impossible.

It destroys the target along with all items or magic cores.

This time, we were lucky.

One Punch destroyed the monster but left the core intact.

This also proved the 7-star monster’s defense was extraordinary.

“Ah, in any case, I’ll report it!”

“Do so.”

“Oh! By the way…”

“Yes?”

“If a 7-star monster really appeared, how on earth did you defeat it…?”

I had been wondering why this question hadn’t come up.

Objectively, our team wasn’t capable of handling a 7-star monster.

Even if I had some hidden trump card, it still didn’t make sense.

A 5-star Hunter defeating a 7-star monster was absurd.

But…

“Take a look at this.”

“Oh, an Aura Blade!? Could it be that you’ve become a 6-star?”

“Yes.”

“C-congratulations, Hunter!”

“Thank you.”

If I was a 6-star Hunter, it all made sense.

A one-rank difference could allow us to overcome situations if other conditions aligned.

I spoke with a slightly regretful expression.

“Thanks to the sacrifices of the others and breaking the 6-star barrier at the final moment, we were able to defeat it.”

“Seems like there’s a lot to report.”

“Yes, I look forward to your cooperation.”

How this gets reported will determine whether I have more or less trouble.

‘I’ll probably be bothered anyway.’

A 7-star monster appeared in a 5-star dungeon.

Two high-ranking 6-star Hunters died.

And I emerged, having drawn the Aura Blade on my first rank assessment.

This rank assessment was certainly unusual.

There would likely be an investigation by the Bureau.

The official cautiously asked.

“Hunters, we’ll need you to come with us to the Bureau. Is that okay?”

It sounded like a request, but it wasn’t.

It was almost a command.

‘Annoying.’

We had alibis and evidence, but nothing fully exonerated us.

So it seemed they wanted to secure Yoo Seol-ah and me until the investigation concluded.

‘I want to refuse… but…’

There was no justification.

I didn’t want to be falsely accused by declining.

Then, at that moment…

“That won’t do.”

“Sir!”

“I have urgent business with this friend.”

Geum Yoo-gang intervened.

‘…This works?’

Unlike me, without an official Hunter license, Geum Yoo-gang was a 7-star Hunter and a conglomerate CEO.

He had influence over the Bureau.

“Phew… sir!”

“I’m not that old yet. Just a manner of expression.”

“…Hunter Geum Yoo-gang, this is the Bureau’s business.”

The official spoke firmly, though he wasn’t an Awakened.

But…

“Haha. Which department are you from?”

“Gate Management Department.”

“I know the head of that department.”

“…Yes?”

“We even had a meal together recently.”

“…But—”

“I’ll take him.”

“…”

In the face of power, resistance sank.

‘Not bad.’

The taste of power was sweet.

And…

“Hehe. Yoo-jin? Shall we move somewhere more private to talk?”

Geum Yoo-gang needed to show goodwill to purchase Mannyeon Seori.

“Sure.”

Right now, I held the top position in power.

“About thirty minutes. Rest comfortably until then.”

Inside a luxurious limousine, Geum Yoo-gang smiled while sitting on what looked like extremely expensive seats.

We were heading to the Geumwa Group.

Clearly, a private space was needed for discussion.

“Understood. The ride is smooth, too.”

The limousine’s ride was incredible.

Maybe due to the driver’s skill, or perhaps that’s just how limousines are.

‘You won’t know until you ride it.’

I was awkward, being in the limousine for the first time, but the other two seemed used to it.

“So, President Yoo Seong is your father?”

“Yes. Chairman Yoo Seong-ho is my father.”

“I didn’t know such a wonderful daughter belonged to him.”

“…It hasn’t been officially recognized yet.”

“Ah! I see.”

Geum Yoo-gang nodded toward Yoo Seol-ah, as if he roughly understood the situation.

I quietly observed their conversation.

‘Yoo Seol-ah is from the Yoo family?’

I thought she was just a wealthy magician, but she was from a conglomerate family.

Though not fully recognized yet…

‘Time will fix that.’

Her strategic value combined with a conglomerate’s power would be an asset to me.

Yoo Seol-ah was my guardian.

‘Good.’

I watched the scenery outside as we drove.

The car had entered a sparsely populated road.

‘…Sparse road?’

“CEO Geum Yoo-gang.”

“Hm? Speak.”

“Where did you say Geumwa Group is located?”

“Yongsan.”

Yongsan—one of the areas that maintained its prosperity even after the Cataclysm.

In other words, a bustling area.

‘Was there such a place near Yongsan?’

Collapsed buildings left unrepaired, abandoned construction sites.

Most importantly…

‘No people?’

A place where there would be no witnesses, no matter what happened.

I asked Geum Yoo-gang again, with some suspicion.

“…Are we really heading to Yongsan?”

He glanced out the window.

“Hm? Strange. Driver Kim! Did we take the wrong road?”

“Sorry, there’s construction, so we’re taking a detour…”

The driver answered casually.

“I see.”

Geum Yoo-gang nodded, apparently without suspicion.

But…

【Yoo-jin. That’s a lie.】

‘What?’

【There’s no construction. And that guy is clearly trying to deceive us!】

After receiving extra information from Prill, I knew better.

I quietly asked Geum Yoo-gang.

“CEO, can we trust this man?”

“Hm? Of course. Driver Kim has been my loyal retainer for 20 years.”

Hm.

I scrutinized the driver.

Did he sense my suspicion? His body language subtly showed tension.

‘This is odd.’

Even with the hierarchy difference, twenty years together shouldn’t result in such tension.

Unless he was hiding something.

If so…

“Please excuse me for a moment.”

“Hm? What are you—”

Shrrrk-

“Stop the car immediately.”

Without hesitation, I drew the Mannyeon Seori sword and aimed it at the driver’s throat.

“Yoo-jin? R-right now…!”

Geum Yoo-gang was shocked, but I had no intention of stopping.

A loyal retainer of twenty years suddenly trying to deceive?

There was only one explanation.

Even if I had to apologize later, even if it put me at a disadvantage in negotiations…

I had to check this.

“Gaia, you bastard. Do it.”

“What are you doing—!”

“Excuse me.”

I ignored Geum Yoo-gang’s angry shout.

Thanks to Mannyeon Seori, he didn’t try to actively stop me.

I repeated my command to the driver.

“Do it. Gaia, you bastard.”

Even with a sword at his throat, he didn’t obey.

Instead…

“H-how dare you! Call him that!”

He protested only against my words.

“…Damn.”

My suspicion was correct.

Yes.

He couldn’t hide his true nature.

Shing-gak-

I immediately severed the driver’s limbs.

“AAAAAH!”

The limousine was filled with screams.

“Yoo-jin!”

Geum Yoo-gang shouted again.

【Yoo-jin! It’s an ambush, evade!】

Prill warned me of an attack.

Damn.

“There’s no time to explain! Get out immediately!”

I shouted, smashing the vehicle door and leaping out.

“Get out first, CEO Geum!”

Yoo Seol-ah followed without hesitation.

“No, wait for an explanation—”

Geum Yoo-gang still hadn’t fully grasped the situation.

But soon, he realized.

A hammer of light flew from somewhere and smashed the limousine.

Kuuwaaaahhh!