NOVEL NEXT Chapter 58
Chapter 58
“….”
Lee Si-hyun could only remain silent.
The backer?
What on earth was that supposed to mean? Surely they had already done a thorough background check to eliminate him. He couldn’t understand what they meant by such words.
Were they trying to stall for time until his companion arrived?
However, judging by Rebecca’s expression, that didn’t seem to be the case. She genuinely appeared curious about something.
“Is someone hard to answer involved, I suppose?”
Rebecca interpreted Si-hyun’s silence to her liking.
“Ha….”
Si-hyun was bewildered. For reasons unclear, she was misunderstanding the situation, drawing her own conclusions.
“I’m the one who wants to ask: whose request did you receive?”
This time, Si-hyun asked. He had a strong suspicion it was Jang Hak-ki, but he wanted a definite answer.
“The Black Cross’s Talon only executes murders, not knowing about the clients.”
Whether that was true or not, her expression seemed surprisingly honest.
“The Talon of the Black Cross?”
“Exactly! You know about the Black Cross, don’t you? Damn it, who are you? Aren’t you going to answer?”
It was just something he said casually, but her demeanor showed she was taken aback.
Hmm…
It genuinely felt like he had become someone significant with a powerful backer.
“But why did you think I have a backer? I want to know that.”
Si-hyun frankly asked the question that intrigued him.
“Do you take me for a fool?”
Rebecca frowned and pointed at the Acureruts that Si-hyun was holding.
“Isn’t it the end of the conversation if you have a Legendary weapon?”
Rebecca was completely convinced that Si-hyun’s sword was indeed Legendary.
The exquisite, sharp-white blade, gleaming with beauty. Even the blood on the blade failed to tarnish its elegance. And on it, an array of indecipherable characters was subtly engraved.
Normally, magical engravings on swords tend to damage their appearance. The task of inscribing magic in a confined space was complicated.
Cheap magic swords, like those inscribed with sharpness, often had poor workmanship with haphazardly scratched incantations.
Yet, the sword he held was inscribed with magic in a fine, elegant script. It felt like a skilled artisan had taken great care in the engraving.
There was no way such a sword could be anything other than Legendary.
‘Is that it?’
Si-hyun finally understood why she thought that way. Here he was, an E-rank Hunter, wielding an item that appeared Legendary, so it would naturally raise suspicion.
But that didn’t seem to be the only reason.
“Moreover, the poison had no effect on you. Whatever trick you employed, you pretended to be captured when you weren’t even paralyzed in the first place. Did I get that wrong?”
Rebecca said with a confident look on her face. Si-hyun had no retort, as indeed, hearing her words highlighted several suspicious points. It wouldn’t be strange to be misunderstood under these circumstances.
“Where are you from? The Association? You seem to have disguised yourself as an E-rank Hunter naturally. Or….”
Si-hyun raised his hand, interrupting Rebecca’s words.
“Um. I don’t think this is the right time for such leisurely discussions, don’t you agree?”
In a situation where there were still two enemies left, it was not the time to engage in casual chatter.
Si-hyun stepped closer, and Rebecca took a step back.
“….”
Rebecca frowned and pulled out a new dagger from her pocket.
However, she showed no intention of actively fighting here. Although she was labeled as E-rank, her opponent was not. Furthermore, the poison didn’t work on him, and the weapon gap was enormous. She felt that there was no chance of winning in a one-on-one battle in this situation.
First, she had to go up. She planned to team up with Han Kyung-jin once she reached the upper floor.
If that was the case, now was the perfect time. While their distances were still apart. Deciding firmly, Rebecca lifted a nearby metal chair and hurled it with all her might. Then she turned and bolted toward the stairs.
Bang!
As Si-hyun dodged, the chair crashed into the concrete wall and fell.
However, in the meantime, the distance between them and Rebecca had significantly widened.
“Hmm, so you’re going that route?”
Si-hyun narrowed his eyes and murmured. She was positioned by the door, while he was on the inside, making it an unfavorable situation in terms of distance. In such a scenario, if someone decided to escape rather than fight, capturing them would be difficult. Plus, judging by her escaping movements, she looked as agile as a cat.
Si-hyun quickly gave up on pursuing her and reached for the Giant Monkey’s leather armor. Until now, the urgent situation had left him no time to equip his armor, but now there was no reason not to.
After fully putting on the armor, just before heading towards the stairs, Si-hyun suddenly had a thought and opened the status window. He recalled how strangely light his body had felt since earlier.
<Status> Strength 313(+50) (C) Agility 316(+50) (C) Wisdom 270 (D) Stamina 317(+50) (C) Mental Strength 430 (C) Magic Power 101 (D)
‘Just as I thought….’
His strength, agility, and stamina had all increased by 50. Thanks to that, all his ranks had become C.
Seeing the +50 indicated that it was a temporary buff. Confirming that the Tear of the World Tree granted not just detoxification but also buff effects.
“Oh no, I can’t afford to lose this.”
Si-hyun quickened his pace toward the stairs.
◈ ◈ ◈
“Han Kyung-jin!”
As soon as he reached the first floor, Rebecca urgently called out Kyung-jin’s name.
However, there was no sign of him on the first floor.
“Damn it, damn it. Where did he go?”
While looking around, Rebecca pulled out her phone. She then stepped outside the door.
◈ ◈ ◈
Meanwhile, Kyung-jin was sitting in the villa’s garden. It was a well-decorated, spacious garden that didn’t feel like the hidden hideout of an assassination organization.
He sipped on canned coffee taken from the villa’s refrigerator while gazing at the night sky. It felt liberating. He wouldn’t have experienced this sensation if he had been in the underground torture chamber.
It was incomprehensible. How could anyone enjoy torture?
Was it because he was an Awakened One of the Black Cross, or were only those with such a cruel nature chosen as Awakened Ones by Black Cross?
But if it were the former, then what was he? It felt ridiculous for someone who had already spilled blood to say this, but Kyung-jin considered himself quite an ordinary human.
Ordinary in every way. If he hadn’t become an Awakened One of the Black Cross, he would have lived a perfectly normal life. Yet, as soon as he became a shocking assassin Awakened One, he received a contact from the Black Cross. And the damned shackle that the members of the Black Cross couldn’t refuse the organization’s orders.
Because of that shackle, he had no choice but to work as an assassin. The moment he entertained even the slightest thought of refusing, an excruciating headache, unbearable for any human, overwhelmed him. It felt as if all the cortices composing his brain were twisting and tearing apart. He thought that if he continued to harbor such thoughts, his head might actually explode and kill him.
Ironically, others he knew from the organization seemed to enjoy the situation. He even considered that perhaps only insane psychopaths were chosen as Awakened Ones by Black Cross.
Who knows? Perhaps he also had some form of those heinous traits hidden somewhere within him.
Yet, at least until now, he only felt he was incredibly unlucky. That didn’t mean he had the temperament to dramatically sacrifice himself, declaring he could never kill another person. It was true he felt sorry for them, but ultimately, the most important thing was his own life.
“…Han Kyung-jin!”
At that moment, he heard a voice calling him from afar.
It was Rebecca’s voice.
Why was the woman from the torture chamber out here looking for him?
It was a nuisance, but he decided to get up anyway.
Creak.
At that moment, his phone buzzed too. He checked to see who it was, and it was Rebecca.
What’s going on?
Only then did Kyung-jin start to suspect that something was off and immediately answered the call.
“What’s going on?”
“Where are you?”
“I’m sitting on a chair on the left side of the garden.”
“I’m coming right now.”
Not long after, he saw Rebecca rushing towards him, her brown hair flying wildly.
“What the hell is going on?”
“Damn it, Hee-seung is dead.”
“What?”
Hee-seung is dead?
The words didn’t register immediately. Despite having carried out numerous missions so far, it was the first time a colleague had died. Moreover, this target was far from someone that posed a fatal threat.
An E-rank Hunter afflicted with Paralysis Poison. He was prey as weak as a dragonfly caught in a spider’s web. The result of Hee-seung’s death in such circumstances was unfathomable for Kyung-jin.
Yet, it wasn’t a lie; Rebecca’s expression was more frantic than ever.
“Is it true? How did he die?”
He couldn’t help but ask.
“It’s true. It’s true! He died at the hands of that guy. Lee Si-hyun.”
“Lee Si-hyun? Does that even make sense? What happened?”
“There’s no time to explain in detail right now. That guy will be coming up soon.”
Rebecca said, pounding her chest in frustration. Seeing her in such a state, Kyung-jin pushed his curiosity aside for now.
“What are we going to do?”
“We both have to end this.”
In response to Kyung-jin’s question, Rebecca answered. For an assassin, the foremost priority was fulfilling the mission. If they determined that completing the mission was impossible, they could opt to escape, but that would be a last resort.
In particular, Black Cross assassins were notorious for diving headfirst into assassination tasks without regard for danger, as long as they believed there was even a slight chance of success. While it may be unreasonable to claim that such behavior in another world carried over here, it was nonetheless true that they didn’t easily give up. Moreover, Rebecca still believed that accomplishing their mission was more than feasible.
While Si-hyun’s movements definitely weren’t those of an E-rank, they seemed to show levels around C-rank. She felt they could eliminate him if she and Kyung-jin teamed up.
Tap.
At that moment, footsteps could be heard from a distance. Kyung-jin, with his sharpened senses, picked up on the sound.
“Damn it, we’re late.”
Rebecca said in a low voice with a look of regret. If they had turned off the garden lights, they could have perfectly seized the advantage in the dark.
But now there was no time for that. He would soon catch wind of their presence and approach them.
Fortunately, the expansive garden offered plenty of places to conceal themselves.
“Let’s ambush him.”
She said quietly, beginning to move toward a spot where they could lie in wait. Kyung-jin nodded and followed suit.
◈ ◈ ◈
As Si-hyun stepped out of the villa, he sensed their presence. It might have been impossible under normal circumstances, but whether due to the increased abilities from the Tear of the World Tree, he could feel it.
However, their presence soon disappeared.
Stealth.
Si-hyun recalled the technique that was in their skills. They must have been hiding, waiting to ambush him.
Yet, there was something they didn’t know. He possessed the insight of a seasoned guard. Notorious figures could be detected within the range of his insight, so any stealthy approach would be caught.
Si-hyun proceeded calmly, taking his time to walk to where he had sensed them earlier. It was a garden well adorned with flowers, trees, and stones. They were likely hiding behind the trees or under the rocks, preparing for an ambush.
Gripping the Acureruts firmly, Si-hyun walked forward, trusting in his insight. He didn’t glance around; there was no need to. It was when he reached the area where the enormous, unnamed trees were planted that he received a notification.
[Warning: A figure of considerable notoriety has been detected nearby.]
To his left, 7 o’clock.
[Warning: Another figure of considerable notoriety has been detected nearby.]
To his right, 2 o’clock.
Although he received the warnings, Si-hyun’s expression didn’t change at all. His body was equally still. He couldn’t show even the slightest sign of it.
This was no crisis. It was an opportunity.
If he struck first!