Chapter 22
Jun and the others had looted six items—two swords, one spear, a belt with five throwing knives attached, a shield, and a pauldron. They were all from wood cubes, and Seong-Hwi planned to give them all to Shin Jun and his team, except Carlos’s Old Iron Sword.
After all, his main weapon was his D Weapon, and his mobility would be reduced if he carried items he did not need. However, he changed his mind when Jun opened an F-rank item cube to pay the three hundred Karma debt he owed Seong-Hwi.
[Shaco Knife (Item)
Rank: F(0)
Description: A knife created using the tusk of a Shaco, a boar that eats brass.]
“I got this,” Jun said awkwardly, handing Seong-Hwi the Shaco Knife as he tilted his head.
“Hah!” Seong-Hwi exclaimed.
It was a brass-colored seax knife, which looked even more theatrical than the Bowie knife Seong-Hwi had been using this entire time. The seax, commonly used by the Saxons, was specialized for slicing and stabbing. A boar was faintly incised on the back of the knife.
Seong-Hwi took the Shaco Knife and handed Jun the Old Iron Sword, saying, “You can have this. No, you can have the rest of the items.”
“Pardon me?” Jun stared at Seong-Hwi in surprise.
The dark blue longsword looked far better than the yellowish short knife to Jun, but Seong-Hwi thought differently.
He has incredible luck.
The potential of all the items, including the Old Iron Sword, was F-rank, exactly what one would expect from wood cube items. However, the potential of the Shaco Knife was E-rank. In other words, it was a stone cube item.
The chance of pulling an item a rank higher from an item cube is 0.1 percent.
Jun had beaten the one-in-a-thousand odds. Since an E-rank item cube cost three thousand Karma, it was more expensive than the six F-rank items combined.
“I will gladly accept your offer,” Jun answered quickly in case Seong-Hwi changed his mind, and called his teammates over.
They, who had been eyeing the items, gathered as their expressions lit up.
***
Seong-Hwi smiled in satisfaction as he examined the Shaco Knife’s weight balance and sharpness, and stuffed it inside his hoodie. He opened his canteen bottle.
“Why did he collect that?”
“He’s not going to drink it, is he?”
“No way. It’s not like he’s a vampire.”
Jun’s teammates whispered to one another. Seong-Hwi had collected Carlos’s blood as he was torturing him as part of his plan B.
The Symbolic Tarot Deck appeared in midair with a golden glimmer, and a card was pulled out. It showed a man wearing a green bycocket with a black feather attached to it, drawing a bow made of black water buffalo horns. A snare trap was installed in front of him, which an innocent deer was sniffing.
[Activating Unique Skill: Symbol Embodiment.]
[Hunting Feather, one of the symbols of No.3 The Hunter]
No.3 The Hunter, one of the Major Cards, symbolized tracking, ambition, waiting, and an unexpected trap. The Hunting Feather, which Seong-Hwi embodied, symbolized connection tracking.
The black feather on the hunter’s bycocket came out of the card, and Seong-Hwi dipped its end into the canteen bottle filled with Carlos’s blood. The black feather vibrated and spun rapidly in the air. Moments later, the feather pointed in one direction like a compass, which meant there was something in that direction connected to Carlos.
The downside is that it only points in a straight line from it to the target, so there’s no way to know the distance and the terrain in between. I could have been carried without trouble to their base, but I suppose this is also my destiny since I saw a new possibility. The problem is how I’ll convince them.
Just then, Jun approached Seong-Hwi after the team finished dividing the items. He had the Old Iron Sword sheathed on his belt.
Seong-Hwi praised, “Good choice. That sword is the best item from that pile.”
“Oh, I see. The team decided that I should also have a way to attack.”
“The fact that they didn’t fight among each other for the items proves they are good teammates.”
Seong-Hwi had seen murders, clan battles, and even wars against other races, just because of items. An item as great as his Silver Bracelets of Queen Consort Muryeong could cause battles between clans.
“That aside, what is it? Didn’t you come here to tell me something?” Seong-Hwi asked.
Jun hesitated momentarily and replied, “Would you like to join us?”
“Hm?”
“Join us. If we work together, we can easily obtain eleven Teleport Rocks.”
Seong-Hwi laughed internally at Jun’s sincere proposal.
Looks like I’m lucky too.
Seong-Hwi had been considering raising Jun after seeing a possibility in him. It was partly a contingency, or perhaps he was investing in an undervalued blue chip. Seong-Hwi wondered how to bring up the idea because their impression of him was likely terrible, but Jun had given him the offer first.
On top of that, completing the Pursuer of Chaos III quest will become far easier if I’m with them.
The Radanmo, the Chaos that inhabited the third zone, traveled underground and appeared only where there were many people. Because of that, Seong-Hwi might not have met even one from here to the fourth zone because he was alone. However, he was in the middle of a trait quest—he would have no chance of killing a hundred Radanmos if he traveled alone. He needed bait to entice the Radanmos, and ten people as bait were more than enough.
And I’ll reward them handsomely for being my bait.
Seong-Hwi asked Jun, “Join you? Are you sure you want to be around me? What makes you think I won’t kill you all in your sleep?”
“I know you aren’t evil,” Jun replied, pulling out a temple of Min-Su’s broken glasses. “Destiny Weapons disappear when their user dies, but Kim Min-Su’s glasses, which he claimed were his Destiny Weapon, didn’t. It’s proof that he lied.”
“You’ve had that with you this whole time?”
“You also knew the safe zone would get smaller by ten meters every twenty-four hours. Black Dogs might have killed some people in their sleep if you hadn’t drawn that line.”
Jun had a perfect understanding of the reasons for Seong-Hwi’s actions.
Seong-Hwi remarked, “I believe everyone should at least be given one chance, just as I have been.”
The Destiny Stone, the Race Stone of humans, had allowed him to return to the past. He even considered it a kind of divine revelation. Hence, he decided to provide people with at least one chance.
To be frank, the first thing Seong-Hwi thought of when he resolved to get stronger wasn’t collecting artifacts or the trait quests.
How strong could I get if I killed the other 999 people during the mandatory quest?
He would have been just one kill away from the Thousand-Man Killer trait, and received at least almost a hundred thousand Karma, considering each person was worth a hundred Karma. No one could know what happened in the Dark Forest, and he wouldn’t have to take responsibility for his actions—a perfect crime. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and all Seong-Hwi needed to do was ignore his humanity just this once. However, he scrapped the plan as soon as he thought of it.
Seong-Hwi did not necessarily disagree with sacrificing a few for the benefit of the many. But in this case, he would be taking away the opportunities of 999 people for himself, just like how Dragon King Regnator had destroyed the destiny of humanity with his immense power.
Seong-Hwi did not want to do the same thing as Regnator. Hence, he came up with the plan to earn Karma through hunting and had tacitly given up on obtaining the Hundred-Man Killer trait during the mandatory quest.
Jun said, “Then please give us a chance too. If you join our team, we’ll have much to learn from you. In exchange, we will give you first pick on all items we pull from item boxes.”
Jun was desperate to hold on to Seong-Hwi because his presence would significantly affect the team’s survival.
“Do your teammates feel the same way?” Seong-Hwi asked as he stared at the nine teammates behind Jun.
Some were wary, some were distrustful, and some were excited.
“Yes. I can’t say that our opinions match a hundred percent, but we all agreed on your necessity to the team. Although it’s only if you need us, too.”
“I do.”
Jun’s eyes brightened. “In that case—”
“But let’s meet again in a few days. I have something to do,” Seong-Hwi interjected, shaking his canteen bottle filled with blood.
Jun’s gaze shifted to the bloodstained black feather floating in the air. “Are you going to kill them? Let us join you.”
“Jun hyung is right. We will help, so please let us come with you,” Seung-Jun agreed, his eyes filled with greed.
Seong-Hwi smirked and said, “No.”
“Pardon? Why not?! If that man Carlos was telling the truth, there are around a hundred of them. Not even you can handle those numbers!” Seung-Jun shouted.
“Have you ever heard about a hunter being hunted by a rabbit? I haven’t.”
“Y-you—”
“Seung-Jun!” Jun shouted as a vein bulged from Seong-Jun’s forehead, and he shook his head.
Seung-Jun gritted his teeth, thinking, He’s planning on taking all the Karma himself! A hundred people’s worth, no less!
Seong-Hwi would earn at least ten thousand Karma by killing a hundred people. It was a thousand Karma per person if they divided it among ten people. They would become several times stronger with that amount of Karma.
“Kurgh!” Seung-Jun grunted.
Seong-Hwi smiled as if he knew exactly what Seung-Jun was thinking from his face.
He advised, “Don’t get hooked on junk food already, or all your teeth will fall out later like a heroin addict.”
Jun said, “Understood. We won’t follow you. We’re not stupid enough to think we can take on a hundred people without your help. But how will you find us after you’re done?”
Seong-Hwi pointed at the Hunting Feather in the air and replied, “With this.”
“You’re not asking for that much blood from us, are you?”
Jun and his teammates turned pale as if their blood had already been extracted. They all glanced at one another. They had witnessed how that man had extracted Carlos’s blood.
Hwa-Yeon said, “You do it, Na Seong-Tae. You’re the biggest one here, so you have just as much blood, right?”
“What? Are you joking? Don’t you know people with tattoos can’t donate blood? You do it, Namgung Min-Jae. You’re healthy since you’re an athlete, right?”
“Ahem, I’m a smoker, so I don’t think I’m the right fit.”
“You damn pansies! Forget it. I’ll do it. Here, take as much as you like!” Ho-Geun stepped forward as he rolled up his sleeve, shutting his eyes tightly.
Seong-Hwi remarked dumbfoundedly, “Hah, who said I wanted your blood? Blood is fine, but all I need is something connected to you.”
The team stared at one another, ashamed, and burst into laughter.
“Keke, what was that? People with tattoos can’t donate blood?”
“W-what?! Min-Jae refused because he’s a smoker!”
“You were the most comical, man. Is a guy like you the size of a bear scared of a tiny needle?”
“How is that a tiny needle? Huh?! He was making sashimi like a Japanese chef but out of a human!”
Seong-Hwi stared at Jun’s quarreling teammates fascinatingly and thought, You don’t see relationships like this often in the Mirror World.
People who cleared the mandatory quest as a team often stuck together even in the Mirror World, likely because they saw all sides of one another, good and bad. Whatever the case, it was nice to see.
“Fine, I’ll give him something!” Seong-Tae, sick of his teammates’ verbal attacks, pulled out a watch from his pocket and handed it to Seong-Hwi.
It was a blue-dial Rolex Submariner watch.
“Oh, a premium item,” Seong-Hwi remarked.
“Fucking hell, I’d rather have a hundred Karma. If you help us, you can take as many of those watches as you want.”
“Well, I’ll gladly take it.” Seong-Hwi took the watch and put it in his pocket. “Alright, be on your way. And watch the ground.”
“The ground?”
“I’ll see you later,” Seong-Hwi said as he passed Jun. Just then, a small silhouette blocked his path. “Hm?”
It was the twelve-year-old Nam Do-Hyun. The tears filling his bloodshot eyes reflected the moonlight even in the darkness.
“Please kill them all! Those bastards need to die! Don’t leave even a single one alive!” the boy shouted, blinded by rage.
Seong-Hwi smiled nastily and replied, “I do whatever I want, crybaby brat. Don’t push things you can’t do onto others.”
“Ngh!” Do-Hyun gritted his teeth, ashamed that he couldn’t punish his mortal enemies with his own hands.
Seong-Hwi walked past Do-Hyun, who lowered his head.
He apathetically muttered, “If you’re frustrated, become strong enough to grasp your destiny. Destiny is weak to the brave and strong to the cowardly. Since you were brave enough to throw that rock, there’s hope for you yet.”