S Chapter 48

‘Hey. Listen carefully. You swung your fist, and I, unintentionally, got sucked into a Dungeon accident.’

Moreover, I’m a kind-hearted teenager who was playing with someone else’s younger sibling. You, monster freak, will be the bastard who blamed others after losing your sibling because you were busy smoking, and even resorted to violence…

“Aaahhh!!”

Screams could be heard from nearby. Shin Jukyeong slowly turned his head and saw a shimmering purple light. Ah, a Dungeon. Just then, a Hunter was frantically rushing towards him. He stretched out his hand towards Jukyeong.

“Grab my hand!”

It was a desperate voice, but Jukyeong would refuse.

‘Would I grab it?’

Shin Jukyeong secretly smirked. Things were going incredibly smoothly. As he was sucked into the Dungeon, he had a premonition of a brilliant future.

Ah, of course, outwardly, he exuded an aura of desperately wanting to be saved. He didn’t forget the performance of narrowly missing the hand. In the distance, he could see the startled monster freak. His face turned yellow, then blue, very busy.

‘Let’s see if you can refuse my request when I come back alive.’

That’s right. Shin Jukyeong planned to exploit the monster freak after resolving this matter. In truth, he only moved to save Yang Ji-ho, but… after some thought, he realized that if things ended well, he could extract a lot from the monster freak, which filled him with anticipation. Wouldn’t a guy filled with regret, gratitude, and guilt lend one or two search monsters?

‘With that, I can find U-dam’s biological parents.’

「You’re such a scumbag, lol.」

Eve chuckled in his mind. Scumbag? Hmm… well, I won’t deny it. But this is just how a working adult is. You can’t live at a loss.

A body rapidly descending without any safety equipment. Hunters usually maintain tension even when entering a Dungeon. However, just like any field, PvP Veterans exist, and their unique composure is impossible to hide.

Shin Jukyeong was no different. A living fossil of the Hunter world, so old it had rotted. Ammonite Shin Jukyeong! To read all his career achievements from his previous life, three days and three nights wouldn’t be enough.

Shin Jukyeong gazed at the approaching interior of the Dungeon with a relaxed expression. As expected, it was just a C-grade Dungeon, nothing special. He could probably finish it quickly, like stir-frying beans in a flash of lightning.

Just before impact, he grabbed some rough, protruding spikes, landing stably. Whoosh, a turn, and shhhhk! As natural as flowing water. Truly, this was not the first time he had done this.

“Hmm.”

He dusted himself off and looked around.

‘It’s been a while.’

The humid air and the Dungeon’s unique gloomy atmosphere were also unchanged. It was still tedious.

‘No matter when I come, it’s a tiring place.’

Clap! He clapped his hands in the silence, and the sound echoed. This meant the interior was quite deep. The path… fortunately, it was open. If it had been blocked, he would have had to start digging. He was lucky.

Before starting properly, he stretched. His stiff muscles prepared to run wild for the first time in a while. Hut-dul, hut-dul! His body quickly warmed up. Master, I’m ready. He quickly shouted “I’m ready” in his mind.

Shin Jukyeong also felt a suitable level of excitement. Though half of his thoughts were complaints, looking at his subtly anticipating face, he was undeniably a Justice Realization Addict. He repeatedly jogged in place, his eyes rolling around.

‘If I use my ability, I’ll be expelled immediately, right?’

To be precise, ‘excreted’ would be the correct term. Even Eve couldn’t step in. Repetitive labor, catching each monster with his bare hands, was expected.

‘Annoying.’

Shin Jukyeong subtly furrowed his brow. Even a Justice Realization Addict was not fond of repetitive labor. Eve, finding it amusing, chuckled and asked.

「How many minutes without Eve~?」

’20 minutes.’

「Puhaha! 20 minutes!」

It was an approximation. An approximation! His competitive spirit was stimulated. Shin Jukyeong vowed to break through in under 10 minutes.

Tsk, he clicked his tongue and grabbed a nearby, prominently standing spike. A soccer kick! It snapped with a crack.

Currently, it was indeed a regrettable situation in many ways. But hadn’t he encountered more difficult situations than this in his life as a Hunter? Compared to those, this level of penalty was nothing. Shin Jukyeong picked up the broken spike.

‘This should be enough.’

If there are no teeth, you just use your gums, what’s the problem?

However, there was something more troubling than clearing the Dungeon. It was good that he boldly entered, but he hadn’t yet decided on an excuse or what to say afterward. Uh… the Dungeon exploded on its own?

‘…Would that work?’

He had been so excited thinking about exploiting the monster freak that he forgot something important. Damn it.

“I’m getting more and more forgetful.”

He recalled having complained about this once before, but he’d say it again. God, listen carefully. Don’t just rejuvenate my body; give me a memory buff too.

It was a brazen demand that would have made God yell, ‘Look at this shameless scoundrel!’ But it was wrong to expect a conscience from a person on their second life. He had already become a cheeky body.

No. If one were to argue about right and wrong, the fault was 9 (God) to 1 (me). Why? After spoiling him by giving him every cheat imaginable, proving that diligence and honesty were useless in this world, and now God talks about humility?

Isn’t that just a psychopath playing with people? How is it any different from taking someone to a buffet and telling them to eat only one plate? If you’re going to give, be a giving tree without holding back. Memory up! Muscles up without exercise! Huh? Give me things like that!

「You’re so ugly…」

Shin Jukyeong whined for a while, then ahem, cleared his throat at Eve’s cold reaction. Anyway, that’s that… for now, let’s put out the urgent fire. Shin Jukyeong temporarily withdrew his unfair demands towards God. There was a more pressing issue to ponder.

‘Hmm… what to do. Officially, all the hostages will be non-manifested individuals. Who would claim to have cleared the Dungeon?’

He couldn’t just gloss over it. Shin Jukyeong tapped his shoulder with the heavy spike, deep in thought. There was nothing that particularly clicked.

“Sigh…”

Tsk, oh well. Shin Jukyeong had no choice but to sell himself out. That’s right. The Unregistered Hunter thing. What else could he do? That’s all the usable cards he had at the moment. As always, ‘short deliberation, quick decision.’

Even if he racked his brain further, the answer would be obvious. It would be all the same. The deed was done, and it needed to be handled. There was no time to sit around and whine. Of course, revealing his presence would only bring disadvantages… but since he was already heavily targeted by the Association, acting up one more time wouldn’t make much difference.

‘I’ll just pretend to have passed out and say that a black-clad person came and saved me.’

He was aware that it was a plan with many loopholes. But-

「What are they going to do if the victim says so? Kukukuru-pingpong.」

Right. What are they going to do?

Think about it. An ability user entering a Dungeon that expels ability users? Why would only he be an exception? It’s strange, isn’t it? Hmm. He knew. He admitted it was contradictory enough. Especially since the Association was after ‘him’ with a burning desire to catch him. It could just raise unnecessary suspicion.

‘This might backfire if I’m not careful. But on this side-‘

「No evidence. Just insist, 0.< ! 」

'Are you going to keep speaking my mind?'

「Do you want to poop?」

'That's not the "represent" I meant.'

「Represent… ative! ◎▽◎…! Representative!」

Eve gasped as if realizing something. Never mind. Let's not talk about it.

It was a bit vague, but Eve's words were correct. If he vehemently insisted, what could they do? Even if they tried to find traces, the Dungeon would have long disappeared, and the victim himself would testify to receiving help. He just needed to lie in a Hospital bed and mumble that his memories were hazy.

Even if they were suspicious, they wouldn't be able to interrogate him harshly. The outside world was already highly agitated. At this point, he knew it without even looking. How many years had he made a living as a Hunter? Reporters would probably be camping out. In other words, everyone's attention was focused.

'The Association guys must be on the verge of going crazy, right? Good thing it's not my problem.'

They would be careful with every action. Otherwise, they would have to experience the hell of a constantly burning complaint board for a whole month. For example, 'Down with violent organizations,' 'Respect civil rights,' and so on?

'I've experienced that before, and it's quite a headache. The higher-ups nag you to solve it, and the lower-downs whine for help.'

Especially for an organization that cares about its public image, the impact would be huge. The Association fears the public's reaction the most. Even thinking about it again, it's a ridiculous food chain.

However, it couldn't be helped. A world where non-manifested individuals account for 90%. No matter how much Hunters wield immense wealth, enjoy popularity comparable to celebrities, and are frequently consumed, they are ultimately considered outsiders.

The difference between Hunters and monsters is whether they protect citizens or not. The outer shell doesn't matter. They are cheered and celebrated among people because their dedication is recognized.