Hoarding In Hell [EN]: Chapter 152

152. Red Pulp (1)

A chilly breeze swept past.

Hyeon-woo looked at Seo Ji-hoo with a smile.

“I assume you know what this means?”

“Yes.”

It wasn’t a conversation for the bright light of day.

It was the kind of talk you’d have in the middle of the night, halfway up a mountain on private property where no one goes.

Before anyone noticed, Hyeon-woo was holding a black dagger in his hand. The black blade swallowed even the moonlight.

It hadn’t been long since Hyeon-woo had suggested that Seo Ji-hoo become his subordinate.

Hyeon-woo had proposed it almost as a grumble, as Seo Ji-hoo’s growth rate was so slow.

Seo Ji-hoo had been intrigued by the idea of leveling up quickly and easily, but he had reserved his answer upon hearing that he had to die once.

Naturally, no one would take such a prerequisite seriously.

But Seo Ji-hoo had come to him today.

“Are you sure you’re okay with this? Becoming my subordinate isn’t just about dying once.”

“Didn’t you say I’d come back to life anyway? Like Mr. Park Hwi-so.”

Seo Ji-hoo had been handling Hyeon-woo’s minor tasks and already knew about Park Hwi-so.

It was no exaggeration to say that Hyeon-woo was already half-prepared to take Seo Ji-hoo as a subordinate.

But he doubted whether Seo Ji-hoo really knew what it meant.

“That’s just the joining process. You’re entrusting me with your life, your beliefs, and even your free will. Basically, you can do as you please, but if I need you, I’ll make you use everything from the bottom of your heart to the top of your head for me. Forever.”

“So, lifetime employment is guaranteed. No take-backs.”

Hyeon-woo laughed, as if he was dumbfounded.

“If you complain to me even once, I’ll raise your salary to shut you up.”

“Thank you.”

Since he was willing to die voluntarily, Hyeon-woo had no reason to stop him.

Hyeon-woo slowly raised the tip of the dagger.

Seo Ji-hoo stared at the dagger with a nervous expression. Would he stab him? Or cut him?

It was his first time dying, so he didn’t know what it would feel like. He remembered the knowledge that people show unsightly 모습 [mosup – appearances] when they die. He was glad he had emptied his stomach before coming.

Hyeon-woo’s mouth opened slightly.

When he opened his eyes next, Seo Ji-hoo realized he was lying down.

It was still night.

The moon hadn’t moved much, so it seemed like almost no time had passed.

Hyeon-woo was squatting down, looking down at him.

“Seo Ji-hoo.”

“Uh… is it over?”

“Yes.”

“It’s a bit anticlimactic, though. I wasn’t expecting them to sprinkle chicken blood, or dip my head in a bathtub full of blood, or burn sacrifices to the moon while dancing, but…”

“Really? I hate trivial things, but they say a proper ceremony gives you a greater sense of belonging. Then come up with something.”

Seo Ji-hoo got up.

He hadn’t expected anything fancy, but he never imagined it would end in five minutes, covered in 낙엽 [nakyeop – fallen leaves] in the mountains. But at the same time, he felt a chill.

He hadn’t felt Hyeon-woo doing anything. But in that short time, his life had been cut short.

Even though he was a 능력자 [neungnyeokja – ability user] with a low level, if this was the case for him, what about ordinary people?

“How is it? Do you feel anything different?”

At Hyeon-woo’s words, Seo Ji-hoo checked his condition. He did feel something had changed. His body felt much lighter, and he was full of energy.

“You have a low level, so the increase will be quite significant.”

Seo Ji-hoo checked his level.

Level 24. Considering he had gained 2 levels in the Taebaek Dungeon, it was an increase of 17 levels.

It was an absurd increase. Hyeon-woo confirmed it as well.

‘As expected, the increase is higher if the opponent calls out their name.’

Simply making ordinary mosquitoes or goblins subordinates doesn’t significantly raise their level.

But Park Hwi-so, Kirson, and Seo Ji-hoo were different. They seemed to fall into the category of so-called ‘named’ individuals.

Those who are bound to him and receive more power.

Moreover, his subordinates’ levels also rise as his level increases, which is quite unfair.

“Now that your level has increased, you can move more actively instead of just hiding. Your skill power will also be stronger.”

“More diverse strategies will be possible. Hmm, I’ll have to check with Robespierre when I get home.”

“What’s that now…”

“It’s the name of the hamster I’m raising.”

I wish you wouldn’t give a hamster such a name.

Or perhaps he has a perverted taste for depriving 자유주의자 [jayujuuija – liberalists] of their free will and gaining pleasure from doing various things?

Hyeon-woo grabbed Seo Ji-hoo’s left hand and lifted it.

A pattern similar to the one on his left hand, but shorter, was engraved on his palm.

Hyeon-woo placed a book on top of his palm.

“What is this?”

“Ah, this is a magic book.”

Seo Ji-hoo looked suspicious at Hyeon-woo’s tone, but he opened the book anyway. His eyes went blurry for a moment, but soon his focus returned, and he began to read.

It was the magic book he had taken from Kazat.

Hyeon-woo had also acquired Magic Comprehension and could read it, but there wasn’t much useful in Difficulty: Hell.

But it was different in Difficulty: Easy.

Just as Kazat had shown overwhelming power in the 4-star dungeon, Hyeon-woo thought that if Seo Ji-hoo could use this properly, he could show the value of three or four teams.

“Read it, and master it completely by the next time we meet.”

Only when Hyeon-woo opened his mouth did Seo Ji-hoo barely tear his eyes away from the magic book.

“…It looks quite valuable. Could this be related to my skills?”

Seo Ji-hoo also knew that he had the ‘Magic Comprehension (General)’ skill.

But the concept of magic was not yet known, so no one paid attention to it, but Hyeon-woo suddenly brought him a magic book.

He didn’t know its power, but the fact that his skills would become more diverse made it an invaluable item.

“Your life is now mortgaged to me, so I’m giving it to you as a gift. Use it to serve me day and night.”

“Heh… I have a feeling I’m going to become a 철밥통 [cheolbapttong – tenured] elite under Branch Manager Kang Hyeon-woo, receiving a high salary for life.”

“…I suddenly feel like I’ve lost out.”

Hyeon-woo turned his back and gestured to Seo Ji-hoo.

“Anyway, good job. I was about to do the first quarter 결산 [gyeolssan – performance review] soon. Park Hwi-so is here, so I’ll call the others too. Come up and have a cup of coffee.”

***

Tick, tock.

Yoann lifted his watch to check the time. Only 3 minutes had passed.

He couldn’t believe this strange flow of time. It felt like 3 hours had passed.

In the 3 minutes since Kang Hyeon-woo had left to get drinks, the people surrounding this table hadn’t said a word.

Yoann turned his gaze to glance at Seo Ji-hoo, who was sitting on his left.

Seo Ji-hoo wasn’t usually talkative. He liked to hit you with reports or data if he had something to say.

Even if that was the case for him, the old gentleman wearing a 중절모 [jungjeolmo – fedora] on his right was like a human lock.

The old gentleman, who was wearing gloves, a coat, and a hat pulled down low even indoors, had only revealed himself as ‘Park Hwi-so’ and hadn’t said a word.

But the most suffocating things were elsewhere.

They were sitting in the dark, away from the central table.

A black goblin and a silver-haired boy.

At first, he was surprised that there were monsters. But seeing them stay still and obediently follow Park Hwi-so’s instructions, he thought it might be something similar to the ‘Taming’ skill. Even so, he couldn’t figure out the boy’s identity.

‘Maybe it’s better to be quiet.’

He wasn’t a sociable person either. Even if he tried to start a conversation in this situation, he didn’t know what would come out.

Thanks to that, a gloomy silence continued. Then he saw Park Hwi-so and Seo Ji-hoo checking the time. Yoann also lifted his watch to check the time.

Only 4 minutes had passed.

Click. Just then, the door opened, and Hyeon-woo entered.

“Okay, 홍차 [hongcha – black tea] for the old man, cold water for Ji-hoo, and wine for the priest.”

Hyeon-woo placed the glasses and drinks in front of them in order. Seo Ji-hoo looked at Hyeon-woo with a disgruntled expression.

“I’ll eat whatever you give me, but I don’t think any of us specifically ordered anything?”

“It’s the result of my prejudice, so just eat it. To fit the image.”

Park Hwi-so didn’t seem to like the 홍차 [hongcha – black tea] at all, as he only smelled it and put it down.

But Hyeon-woo didn’t care at all and sat down on the table. Yoann didn’t even touch the wine.

“Why aren’t you drinking the wine, priest?”

“I’m abstaining.”

“Why… oh.”

Yoann had said that he had decided to cut off everything addictive now that his addiction was completely gone.

Because if he drank alcohol, he might naturally think about drugs again. In the end, Seo Ji-hoo was the only one who even touched what Hyeon-woo had brought.

“Well, it doesn’t matter. The important thing is the 결산 [gyeolssan – review] meeting.”

Hyeon-woo looked around the table.

“Okay, so it seems like the outline of the team has been roughly 잡힌 [japhin – established] with this.”

As questioning glances passed by, Hyeon-woo looked at Park Hwi-so and began to speak.

“Old man, please continue to dominate the underground as you have been. But more aggressively. Expand not only in Seoul but also to the provinces, and if possible, establish a presence in Japan and China. The national power and hunters will be moving north soon, so there will be opportunities.”

“The manpower consumption will be high.”

“I’ll support you with as many goblins or 랫맨 [raetmaen – ratmen] as you need. That’ll be better than most hunters. Teach Yerddan this and that and use him. There will be almost no obstacles with that.”

Hyeon-woo instructed without hesitation, as if he had already thought it through carefully.

“And Seo Ji-hoo, were you successful in attracting former Commander Oh Dae-seong? Good. Have him focus on taking over the 전능련 [Jeonneungnyeon – All-Ability Association] and fostering new talent in my place. What’s more important than anything is to induce hunters who have joined other clans to join the 전능련 [Jeonneungnyeon – All-Ability Association]. I’m going to make the 전능련 [Jeonneungnyeon – All-Ability Association] a national organization, not just a single clan. Oh Dae-seong is a good person to use as a figurehead. Make it so that almost all hunters use the umbrella of the 전능련 [Jeonneungnyeon – All-Ability Association].”

“Will there be a budget to handle that many hunters?”

“We can’t do it with our money. But there’s blind national money, isn’t there?”

Hyeon-woo laughed heartily. He pulled Park Hwi-so’s 홍차 [hongcha – black tea] glass and Seo Ji-hoo’s water glass to the center of the table. Then he pushed them all to one side and said.

“When the Pyongyang recovery plan begins, Taesung will pour money into it, right? But Taesung won’t be able to go up alone. The military will also go up. But there must be 대 몬스터 [dae monseuteo – anti-monster] experts to lead that military, right? We’ll take that role.”

Then he poured 홍차 [hongcha – black tea] into Seo Ji-hoo’s water glass. The water glass soon turned cloudy with the color of 홍차 [hongcha – black tea].

“People will think that Taesung and the state are pushing up together, but in reality, Taesung and the 전능련 [Jeonneungnyeon – All-Ability Association] are going up. We will act on behalf of state power, and soon we will become the state itself. It won’t be easy, but it won’t be difficult either.”

Even Seo Ji-hoo had a slightly dumbfounded expression at Hyeon-woo’s nonchalant attitude. Only Yoann was bewildered because Hyeon-woo spoke in Korean.

Hyeon-woo smiled and said to Yoann as well.

“And Yoann Priest.”

“Yes?”

“Yoann Priest is… um, well… just stay as you are.”

“…Yes.”

“I’m kidding. Priest has military experience and is good at support, so I’d like you to train soldiers and occasionally carry out operations. A 대 능력자 [dae neungnyeokja – anti-ability user] strike team that has received military training. Awesome.”

Yoann tilted his head but nodded, not taking it seriously. Because no matter how he looked at it, it didn’t seem like Hyeon-woo was serious.

But Yoann had no idea what he had agreed to.

The soldiers Yoann would raise in the future were kill teams to deal with 능력자 [neungnyeokja – ability users].

Hyeon-woo’s 칼끝 [kalkkeut – blade] was not only aimed at monsters and the state.

It was also aimed at the same 능력자 [neungnyeokja – ability users].

To be exact, those who could become enemies like allies.

“What are you planning to do, Branch Manager?”

Seo Ji-hoo asked playfully. Hyeon-woo smiled and replied.

“Self-development and physical training.”

***

【Difficulty: Hell

Entering the Star of the End.】

“Great one. Have you arrived?”

As soon as he entered the shelter, Kazat was waiting in front. Hyeon-woo, who was about to accept it without much thought and pass by, felt that Kazat’s demeanor was slightly different from usual.

It was a demeanor mixed with anger and fear. Hyeon-woo frowned.

“What is it? What’s wrong?”

“That is…”

Then suddenly, something stuck to Hyeon-woo’s head.

It was Renian.

Renian whispered as if singing.

“Treason.”