The Wise Cleaning Life Of A Returning Genius Hunter [EN]: Chapter 49

048

Tap, tap.

I dusted off my hands and surveyed the surroundings.

Monsters and humans alike were all out of commission.

It seemed like things had been roughly wrapped up.

“So… shall we settle the remaining accounts now?”

“Ah, is there still something left…?”

Han Yu-bin asked, shielding his eyes with his hand.

His voice was almost on the verge of tears.

Instead of answering, I approached Chloe, the head of the support team. Then, I stood before her and held out my hand.

“Hand it over.”

“……Pardon?”

“The Time Stone, I mean. Don’t think about secretly taking it again and just give it to me.”

“H-How… No, more than that, again?”

“……Ah.”

Damn it, this mouth of mine.

“Ahem. Anyway, if you just hand over the Time Stone, I’ll pretend nothing happened here. Well, it’s not good for either of us, right? Let’s just divide it properly and quietly go our separate ways.”

I turned my head towards Jason.

“Of course, I’ll take responsibility for disposing of that file or whatever it is.”

“……Ugh.”

“You really can’t trust people… I’m not lying.”

He was already half out of his mind, but he could somehow understand what I was saying.

“So, what are you going to do, Team Leader Jason?”

When I asked again, Jason’s gaze turned to Chloe.

“Ugh…!”

“Y-Yes? But… are you really okay with this?”

“Ugh, ugh!”

His head moved vigorously.

I could roughly guess what he meant without having to interpret it.

In the end, Chloe took out the Time Stone from her pocket.

A fist-sized stone emitting a faint yellow light.

She handed over the Time Stone with a reluctant expression.

“Then… nothing ever happened here.”

Leaving those words behind, she immediately turned her back.

Moon So-yeon, Han Sang-hyuk, and Han Yu-bin followed silently.

Immediately after exiting the dungeon, I let out a sigh I had been holding in.

Fighting definitely doesn’t suit me.

I don’t mind monsters, but fighting with other people doesn’t leave a good taste in my mouth.

“So… what exactly is that file? What’s in it that makes you escalate things this far?”

I snapped at Han Yu-bin, who had been looking like he was about to die since earlier.

Han Yu-bin glanced at me and opened his mouth.

“Something happened when I was in the American branch.”

“Ah, the one where your friend had an accident…?”

He nodded slightly.

“It’s a file containing evidence that there were sufficient conditions to send support troops in that operation.”

“…….”

This is a much more serious story than I expected.

So, I’ve promised to dispose of evidence for a friend’s revenge?

‘……This is too trashy, isn’t it?’

As I was wondering what to do, Han Yu-bin chuckled instead.

Then, he took off the pendant hanging around his neck and opened it. Inside was a photo of a woman in her twenties and a micro SD chip.

Han Yu-bin handed me the microchip.

“Are you okay with this?”

When I asked, Han Yu-bin shook his head.

“It’s useless anyway.”

“Pardon?”

“Why else would I have kept it until now? It’s not like I can boil it to make soup. As soon as I came to Korea, I contacted the press and asked the reporters… but it didn’t work out.”

I think I know what he’s talking about.

It’s a file containing the corruption of the American branch of the International Association.

To put it bluntly, it’s like the Korean media exposing the corruption of the White House, but who would take on such a ridiculous task?

“There’s also a rumor that you can die without anyone knowing if you mess with the International Association, right? I understand.”

“There was such a rumor.”

“It’s a pretty famous urban legend among the International Association branches. There’s a team that adjusts the balance of hunters and eliminates those who threaten the International Association in advance—something like that.”

Urban legends exist everywhere.

The International Association branch has so many rumors because of its size and the amount of work it does.

Well, 90% of them were unconfirmed stories.

“Anyway… Jason was stupid. It was a useless file even if he didn’t bother to come looking for it.”

Then he chuckled as if to shake it off.

“Then, I’ll take care of this.”

“Yes, do as you please, Team Leader. I don’t need it anymore.”

To be honest, I don’t really care what’s in this file or how important it is.

Whether it’s the corruption of the American branch or whatever, it’s none of my business.

My only interest is… that this is something that can screw over the American branch.

I picked up my phone.

“Hyung [older brother/male friend]?! Wow, it’s been a long time! How have you been!”

Still a boisterous voice.

It was none other than Gu Sang-chan, a reporter from the Social Affairs Department of the Central Daily News.

“Just the same old. How have you been?”

“Me too. I’m starving to death because there’s no news. Well, nothing really happens. Haha!”

“You won’t starve. I found something interesting.”

“……Pardon?”

“But you can get a big stomachache if you eat it wrong. What do you say, do you want to try it?”

A thud was heard.

“Shibal [Korean swear word]! Of course!! Should we meet now?! Where are you now, Hyung!”

……Crazy bastard.

Does he even think before he answers?

After roughly setting a meeting place and time, I hung up the phone.

“T-Team Leader…? Why…….”

“I got hit hard in the back of the head by the American branch a long time ago, and my head still feels numb whenever it rains.”

I stuffed the chip into my pocket.

“You have to pay back what you’ve been given.”

It’s revenge from my past life.

I smirked and glanced at Han Yu-bin.

A complicated expression.

A face that I couldn’t tell whether it was sad or happy.

I let out a faint sigh.

“About your friend.”

“…Yes?”

“Go visit him. I’ll talk to Section Chief Park. I heard you couldn’t even attend the funeral.”

“…….”

Anyway, I’ve done all I can.

The rest is up to the parties involved to take care of themselves.

***

The repercussions that started from one file spread like wildfire.

The operation that Han Yu-bin was in charge of was re-examined, and a new investigation began.

As a result, Team Leader Jason was kicked out of the branch for corruption in the operation and embezzlement of dungeon profits, and at the same time, he was sentenced to prison for internal strife during the operation.

The 19 members of the dispatched team were also suspended from their hunter qualifications on the same charges.

In addition, the governments of each country felt the seriousness of the incident and announced that they would conduct a parliamentary inspection of their national hunter associations.

All of this happened before the International Association could even express its position.

Reporter Gu Sang-chan played a big role in the process.

I heard that the company told him not to do it, and no other media outlets would accept it.

In the end, he wrote articles on his personal account, uploaded them to his personal video channel, and ran around trying to find a place to report it… Well, he succeeded in making it public almost single-handedly.

-Again??

-Another cleaning team???

-The Korean cleaning team exposed the corruption of the American branch?? What does this even mean?

-ㅅㅂ [Korean slang for ‘fuck’] What the hell is the job of this crazy team?

-This is the K-cleaning team.

-These days, I live for the fun of seeing what kind of crazy things the cleaning team is doing.

-LOL, I can’t wait.

-But isn’t the American branch the International Association? How are they going to handle the aftermath?

-If I were the American branch, I would never mess with those crazy bastards LOL

Thanks to this, the internet has been talking about the cleaning team for days.

Not just the internet.

[Domestic branches are all trying to raise cleaning teams.]

[A promising job with an average annual salary of 60 million won, dungeon cleaner!]

[Job preference for people in their 20s and 30s. 1st place is civil servant, 2nd place is dungeon cleaner?]

[Dungeon cleaner, which used to be one of the most representative 3D jobs, why has it become a promising job?]

The country was becoming strange.

But this time, I was purely happy about the change.

[Unlock condition achieved]

[Average annual salary of dungeon cleaners exceeds 60 million won]

[Acquired skill: Extreme Beginner – Sword Arts]

[Dungeon cleaning team entry competition exceeds 10:1]

[Acquired skill: Otherworld Summoning]

[Dungeon cleaner, ranked 5th in job preference for people in their 20s]

[Acquired skill: Manifestation – Uriel]

[Reached the Swordsman class]

[Reached the Summoner class]

[Reached the Priest class]

The corners of my mouth went up without me realizing it.

Just for a moment, I closed the system window and stood in front of the door.

Knock, knock.

Ability Dimension Management Association, Seoul Headquarters.

Hunter Support Team, Severe Injury Management Ward 302.

“You’re here?”

Kim Min-joo greeted me as I entered the hospital room.

The sight of the operation team leader being hospitalized made me sigh.

“How’s your body?”

I put the set of drinks I bought from the convenience store on the first floor next to the bed.

“I’m much better. The surgery went well too.”

“Seriously, why did you overdo it? It’s not like you’re the only one doing the subjugation.”

“I can’t keep relying on you, Teacher.”

She smiled.

No, it’s more annoying to get hurt like this.

“So… how did the hearing go?”

Kim Min-joo asked as soon as I sat down.

I don’t know why she’s so worried when she should be taking care of her own body.

“It looks like it’ll be handled well. It was recognized that I attacked in self-defense. He’s an instigator of internal strife. Depending on the situation, he could have been killed, so this is nothing…….”

“That’s a relief.”

Kim Min-joo stroked her chest.

Well… there was some talk that breaking his leg after he had already been subdued was an overreaction, but for some reason, it quietly passed over as a result.

It seems like the higher-ups intervened, but judging from the fact that they handled it without even telling me, it was definitely Lee Ah-young’s line.

“Anyway, this time even the International Association can’t deny it. They held a press conference this morning and officially apologized to the Seoul headquarters.”

They also mentioned compensation for the cleaning team.

They promised to support the budget for one year and dispatch manpower whenever needed, and each person received a considerable amount of compensation.

Internally, all members of Cleaning Team 3 were given vacation. So all subjugation schedules are stopped for the time being.

This was the result of Team Leader Pyeon and Section Chief Park’s collaboration.

In this way, even those who did not participate in the operation were all helping with the aftermath.

“Well, I appreciate the thought, but the damage has already been done… we’re the only ones who are screwed.”

“I know. I tried to make sure there were no problems as much as possible, but it ended up like this.”

“Tsk, it can’t be helped. It’s not like we could have predicted it.”

I said that, but I was also a little uneasy.

The important thing was what would happen next.

This was the first operation I was in charge of, so other operation team leaders would try to tear me apart at this opportunity.

Well… I might have to pack my bags in advance.

“By the way, how’s Yu-bin?”

Kim Min-joo asked slyly.

“You know, why are you asking? He went on vacation.”

“I know that. I was just wondering if he said anything in particular.”
Hmm.

“He’s grateful.”

I answered, recalling the words I heard in front of the dungeon.

“The competition has increased.”

“……?”

What is she talking about again?

“Still, it’s a bit surprising that they gave him a vacation. To be honest, I thought they would put him to work right away.”

“We have to save him. He’s a capable guy. Who else is going to do the work if he’s not there?”

“……Yes. That’s right.”

She has a subtle expression for some reason.

Did I say something wrong?

“Anyway.”

Returning to the main point, I took out a document envelope from my pocket. And I put it on Kim Min-joo’s lap.

“…W-What is this?”

“You’re not thinking of working in that condition, are you?”

Kim Min-joo stared at the document and her eyes widened.

“W-Wait a minute, Teacher…! T-This level of injury is nothing! It doesn’t interfere with my work…….”

“What are you talking about? Be quiet and check the documents.”

Kim Min-joo still opened the document envelope with an uneasy expression.

……But this scene is familiar for some reason.

“T-This…?”

“It’s an industrial accident receipt. It’ll be deposited into your salary account soon, so check the amount.”

“…….”

“And… I’ve put you on sick leave for the operation team, so don’t try to work and take care of your body. Apply for a rank review when you have time.”

She just nodded without saying anything.

“And come back as soon as you get better. Who else is going to do the work if the team leader isn’t there?”

“……I will.”

It’s awkward after I say it.

Why did my memories from before the regression have to come to mind for no reason…….

It’s like I’m doing this because of guilt.

In the awkward atmosphere, my phone rang.

It was a call from Lee Ah-young.

“Yes.”

“No, I’m at the hospital now.”

“…Yes?”

“……I understand. I’ll be right there.”

I clicked my tongue and hung up the phone.

At the same time, I let out a deep sigh, and Kim Min-joo asked worriedly.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing… Director Lee Doo-shik wants to see me.”

I scratched my head in annoyance.

I guess what was coming has come.