The Wise Cleaning Life Of A Returning Genius Hunter [EN]: Chapter 13

012

Less than ten minutes after arriving at work.

Before work had even started, the entire team was in a state of mourning.

Everyone tried to act like they were okay, but it only made the atmosphere more pathetic.

Of course, that didn’t mean we could change the decision that had already been made by headquarters.

‘Tsk, I wish I could argue for at least a budget increase, but….’

Unfortunately, with my current position, there’s no point in messing with Seo Min-cheol’s line.

My relationship with the head of the main office is key to future unsealings, and it would only hurt me to make him an enemy. Since an example has been made so openly, renegotiating is impossible.

Right. Thinking about the future, it’s better not to get involved than to get tangled up in something bad.

Of course, that doesn’t mean I’m giving up on unsealing altogether.

Even if the budget negotiation fell through, well… I could always put in some private funding. The association does include external funding in the budget.

The problem is that payday is still a long way off.

My current balance is barely enough for living expenses, and doing a side job might get my tail caught again like last time.

If there’s a way to make money without getting caught….

‘That’s the only option.’

Once that thought crossed my mind, I immediately raised my hand.

“Team Leader.”

“Oh, what is it?”

“I’m taking a day off today.”

“Huh? Suddenly?”

“What, what are you going to do? You’re not going to go looking for them again, are you?”

Kim Min-joo blocked me, looking flustered by what she was expecting.

It was too much of a hassle to explain everything, and I didn’t have a good excuse.

“……”

“……Mr. Han? Mr. Han!!”

So, I lightly ignored her and walked away without saying a word.

***

Near Samsung Station in Seocho-gu.

The area, crowded with company buildings, was bustling with people taking their lunch break.

Unaware of what was about to happen there.

‘It should be around this time….’

I checked my watch again.

The hands pointed to 1:22:57 PM.

At the same time, I felt my heart rate quicken slightly.

Finally, the second hand moved three more spaces.

Zzzzzz―

With the sound of dimensions distorting, a dungeon appeared.

“Wh, what is that!”

“It’s, it’s a dungeon!”

“Report it to the association quickly!”

The street instantly turned into chaos.

People scattered in panic, all moving away from the dungeon.

Meanwhile, I went against the flow.

Intercept.

The act of secretly raiding a dungeon by a third party without obtaining permission before a hunter who received the report is dispatched.

Usually, it’s an unmannerly raid attempted by freelance hunters who are stuck in one place.

In principle, all hunters must obtain permission from the association to raid a dungeon, but sometimes those who are only after money attempt an intercept.

Well, since they have to raid in a hurry without proper information, quite a few of them lose their lives….

That’s not the case for me.

‘It’s been a while since I’ve done a raid.’

Even though I’ve raided over a thousand dungeons, I still get nervous.

The time left until the task force arrives is about 15 minutes. I have to complete the raid within that time.

Before entering the dungeon, I recalled the information once again.

This is a purple-grade cave dungeon, and a dungeon I used to plan operations for. The boss is ‘Gigantic Golem.’

It would take E-class hunters about an hour to clear.

So, roughly….

‘Should I try to finish it in 10 minutes?’

I set a timer and took a deep breath.

Even if it’s a purple-grade dungeon, without any low-level defense skills, I’ll be done for if I get hit by a monster just once….

Fortunately, I already know the dungeon route, the monster’s attack patterns, and its weaknesses inside and out.

Focus on avoiding attacks as much as possible with the Hyper Boost that activates during combat, and the moment I see an opening.

[Acquired Skill: One Counter]

[Damage increased by 3,000% when attacking weakness]

If I aim for a single blow with the recently unsealed ‘One Counter’ skill, it won’t be too difficult.

With that image in my head, I grabbed the pickaxe and shovel I had just bought from the mart and stepped into the dungeon.

Thus began a rapid raid that lasted about ten minutes.

“Wow, this is tougher than I thought.”

I wiped the sweat from my forehead.

Solo raiding was much harder than I expected.

Having no skills definitely made a big difference.

If I had a unique skill… no, even just one main skill, I could clear it in seconds.

‘……Oh dear, they’re already here.’

Soon, the sound of sirens began to be heard in the distance.

At the same time, I quickly left the scene.

After that, I had to move without a break.

The dungeons I intercepted while moving busily all day were….

A purple-grade ‘Metallic Boar’ dungeon.

A navy-grade ‘Junior Succubus’ dungeon.

A navy-grade ‘Haunted Spirit’ dungeon.

And a green-grade ‘Dimensional Ant’ dungeon, for a total of 4 dungeons.

Considering that a hunter belonging to the task force raids an average of 3-4 dungeons a week… it’s truly an incredible number of interceptions.

Well, they’re all low-level dungeons, so the profits won’t be much.

By the time the sun set, the association’s vehicles were all over the nearby area. It seemed like headquarters was on emergency alert.

Well, if someone stole 4 dungeons from you, I’d be furious too.

More than anything, if you get caught, it’s not just a salary cut. At the very least, you’ll be fired. If you’re unlucky, you might have to pay damages.

They probably can’t imagine that the person who intercepted them is actually a cleaner….

‘Should I stop here for today?’

Looking at the situation, it was too dangerous to move any further.

If I continue tomorrow, I’ll be able to earn some money, so there’s no need to push myself.

‘Let’s see, what dungeons will appear tomorrow….’

I walked home, racking my brain.

***

Today, after two days of leave, I returned to the cleaning team.

As usual, everyone except me was already gathered at the workplace.

‘Wh, what?’

I encountered an unexpected guest there.

“Ahem.”

A man cleared his throat as soon as he saw me.

It was none other than Lee Soo-yong, the team leader of Task Force 1.

The task force leader had come to the cleaning team in person.

‘Why is that guy here….’

Damn it, did they figure it out?

I quickly glanced around.

Park Team Leader seemed to be thinking the same thing.

“Oh, what brings you here?”

“A tour,”

Lee Soo-yong replied in a polite tone.

It was disgustingly hypocritical.

“A tour…?”

“Sometimes, there needs to be interaction with other teams like this. That’s how we understand each other better and strengthen camaraderie.”

“Ah, yes….”

Bullshit.

The mouths of the three people besides Park Team Leader moved simultaneously.

Fortunately, Lee Soo-yong didn’t seem to notice.

“Well, just pretend I’m not here and do what you normally do. I won’t bother you.”

Tsk, this is annoying….

The fact that the task force leader came in person at this timing made his intentions too obvious.

The intercept that happened over the past two days.

He suspects me of being the culprit.

As if to prove it, Team Leader Lee Soo-yong’s gaze was fixed on me.

‘There shouldn’t be anything that could catch my tail… is he just probing based on the circumstances?’

Since the intercept happened as soon as an example was made….

Thanks to that, my head became complicated.

Of course, I couldn’t show it. It would only strengthen his suspicion.

“Okay, okay… shall we all start working then?”

At Park Team Leader’s direction, everyone entered the dungeon.

Thanks to the uncomfortable guest, an awkward atmosphere flowed through the dungeon more than ever.

The only good thing was that Team Leader Lee Soo-yong really didn’t do anything.

He just quietly followed behind us, as if he was there and not there.

Thanks to that, we were able to fully concentrate on our work as usual before long.

“Oh no… there are too many regular monsters. It’s going to take a while to dismantle all of these. Sang-hyuk, how much time do we have left?”

“One hour. We’ll have plenty of time if we hurry.”

“Kim Min-joo. Do you have any medicine left? I’m all out.”

“Yes. I have some left. What concentration should I set it to?”

“Set it to 60%. The flesh is completely hardened, so I think we need to go a little strong. Oh, and bring me a new rag too.”

“So-yeon, what’s the gas level?”

“150 micrograms per square meter. The decay is quite fast.”

“Let’s change our gas masks and purification canisters. And… someone change Team Leader Lee’s too.”

“Han Sang-hyuk. If you’re done with your work there, go help So-yeon dismantle.”

“Not now. Too much blood splattered on the passage, so I have to wipe it one more time.”

“I’ll help So-yeon. Mr. Han, please finish up with Sang-hyuk.”

Only organized conversations went back and forth inside the dungeon.

Even in the midst of that, Team Leader Lee Soo-yong was just watching with his arms crossed.

Still fixing his gaze on me.

“Ah, Min-joo.”

Then, Team Leader Lee Soo-yong opened his mouth as if he couldn’t stand it any longer.

“……Yes.”

“Do you know about the intercept that happened over the past two days?”

At the same time, my shoulders twitched.

Even if no one else does, Kim Min-joo misunderstands me as a hunter right now. But if I suddenly say that an intercept happened during the period I took off….

No, it’s clear that not only Kim Min-joo but all the team members will notice.

‘Damn it… is he openly trying to probe me?’

This is bad….

“Is that so? The hunters must be strongly protesting.”

But unexpectedly, Kim Min-joo’s voice was indifferent, as if she didn’t care.

“Well, yeah. The head of the main office is quite angry too. He’s looking for them with his eyes wide open… but it’s not easy.”

“Yes.”

“So, the head of the main office is giving a big reward to whoever catches the intercept this time. He’s really generous.”

“……A reward?”

“Yeah. If a hunter catches them, they’ll get extra points in the rank examination. And if another team catches them, they’ll get a personnel transfer. So, for example… if someone from the cleaning team catches the guy who intercepted, they can move to another team.”

Instantly, everyone’s movements stopped.

“Well, if anyone besides Min-joo is interested, please let me know. For example, if there’s someone around you who suddenly took two days off… or something like that.”

“…….”

This is the end.

To use the team members by offering a personnel transfer here. If he goes that far, it’s a first-come, first-served fight.

The one who stabs first wins.

Tsk, even though he’s a parachute [someone who got the job through connections], he’s got a good head….

“Oh, right! Jun-woo, is the place you hurt yesterday okay?”

“……?”

It was that moment.

Suddenly, Park Team Leader blurted out something out of the blue.

“I told you to be careful when dismantling monsters, you idiot. You’ve been getting praised lately, so you’re getting careless!”

“……That’s right, you jerk. I knew it when you started singing while dismantling!”

“Th, that’s right, Jun-woo. Still, it’s a good thing you got hurt yesterday. Imagine if you got hurt today when a high-ranking person is here. It would be a disgrace to the cleaning team!”

……?

What.

Are they all out of their minds?

“By the way, Team Leader Lee made a really good suggestion… it’s just a shame that there’s no one suspicious around me. Wow, that’s too bad. If it was someone on our team, I would have snitched right away and gone to another team. Hahaha!”

“Th, that’s what I’m saying.”

“If there’s anyone suspicious around me, I’ll turn them in right away! I, Han Sang-hyuk, have no loyalty whatsoever!”

I rolled my eyes, trying to understand their actions.

It was a very confusing situation.

In the midst of all that, Kim Min-joo lowered her head and smiled faintly.