The Wise Cleaning Life Of A Returning Genius Hunter [EN]: Chapter 63

062

Late at night.

I left the headquarters and headed to the Ares Guild office.

With all the guilds in Seoul moving, there was no way the top guild wouldn’t know the inside story.

But that judgment was way off.

“You really didn’t know anything?”

“It’s embarrassing, but yes, that’s the case.”

Unlike when I visited in the afternoon, Cha Seok-hyun had a very serious expression.

He didn’t seem to be lying, but it was still hard to believe.

“No, as the top guild, the center of the guild network, you didn’t even notice a hint?”

“Yoo Ji-woo, the representative of the Aphrodite Guild, said that the guilds had been acting strangely for the past few days. However, I never imagined they would carry out an intercept collectively. No matter how bad their feelings are towards the Association, I didn’t think they would go this far…”

“So, the Aphrodite Guild didn’t know about this either?”

“That’s right. It seems that only we and the Aphrodite Guild in Seoul didn’t hear the news in advance.”

“But that’s strange. If guilds were going to carry out an intercept, the 1st and 5th ranked guilds would have been a great help in terms of power, so why didn’t they keep them on the same side? Was there something that would make other guilds turn against them?”

“Not at all. It might sound a bit much to say this, but we pride ourselves on being friendly with all the guilds. More than anything, if this was planned among the guilds, there’s no way we wouldn’t know.”

“Then it’s even stranger…”

Hmm, I let out a soft breath.

If they’re just intercepting to protest the Association, there’s no reason not to recruit the 1st and 5th ranked guilds. No, even if they didn’t recruit them, they should have at least given them a heads-up.

But the fact that they didn’t notice anything at all doesn’t make sense no matter how I think about it.

“There are more than 20 guilds in Seoul alone. If you add up the personnel, it’s easily over 1,000 people. To have this many people unite and carry out simultaneous intercepts, you absolutely need a leader. A skilled leader who is knowledgeable in subjugation and can influence the entire guild.”

Cha Seok-hyun’s brow furrowed deeply. It was a clear expression of displeasure.

“Are you suspecting me right now?”

“It’s the opposite. I’m saying this because I trust Cha Seok-hyun completely.”

I said it firmly, but Cha Seok-hyun still looked uneasy.

“Then who are you saying is the leader?”

“If it was someone from inside the guild, there’s no way Cha Seok-hyun wouldn’t know. So, it’s highly likely to be someone from outside the guild.”

“…A freelance Hunter?”

“Yes. Among freelance Hunters, there aren’t many who can command an intercept of this scale. Well, if I had to think of someone right now…”

I tapped my forehead and opened my mouth.

“It would be Hunter Yang Min-ho.”

Cha Seok-hyun reacted strongly.

His eyes widened and he raised his voice.

“Wait a minute. That person is the number one Hunter in the country! What’s he lacking that he would do something like this?”

“I’m just naming one of the people who could possibly do something like this. There’s no proof that he’s the one who did it.”

I said it was a guess, but in reality, I was already convinced.

Because I remembered something from before my regression.

Yang Min-ho.

In my past life, he was the second-ranked Hunter in the country, following after me.

Of course, it would be more accurate to call him a fixer than a Hunter.

That bastard, known as the ‘Cleaner’ in this industry, was a scoundrel who wouldn’t refuse any dirty requests as long as he was paid.

The problem was that even though he stirred things up and caused trouble everywhere, all sorts of high-ranking people, from high-ranking police officials to politicians, were backing him, so no one could easily touch him.

‘I really don’t want to get involved with that bastard…’

Even I was sick of him.

I knew I wouldn’t be in good shape if I messed with him.

Anyway, if someone commissioned him and incited the guilds to start the intercept, then this whole situation can be roughly explained.

“Just in case, do you have any personal connection with Hunter Yang Min-ho?”

“I know him, but… he’s not the kind of person we get along with, so we had a falling out a long time ago.”

“What about Guild Leader Yoo Ji-woo?”

“Same here.”

“Then it roughly adds up.”

“So, you’re saying that he deliberately kept it from us so that we wouldn’t interfere if Ji-woo and I found out?”

“There’s no other explanation.”

Cha Seok-hyun couldn’t easily refute my words.

He also knew vaguely what kind of person Yang Min-ho was.

Silence fell in the office for a moment.

He also seemed to have a lot on his mind.

Soon, he broke the silence and suddenly lowered his head.

“…I’m sorry. Even if I don’t have a good relationship with the Association, I didn’t want to confront them like this.”

“It’s not your fault, Cha Seok-hyun.”

He’s unnecessarily stubborn.

“So, what are you planning to do now? Are you still going to pursue legal responsibility…?”

“That’s what they want inside the Association.”

“That’s not what the Director thinks, is it?”

“Well…”

I couldn’t bring myself to say it.

How could I say that I wouldn’t be able to resign if a legal battle broke out, so I wanted to resolve it on my own?

“Putting aside the financial aspect, it’s still a dungeon that someone has to subjugate, so what’s the big deal if a few other guys did it?”

“…”

Cha Seok-hyun had a very surprised expression.

I continued to speak nonchalantly.

“Well, we also have to pay our employees’ salaries, so we can’t ignore the damages… but that’s something we can somehow resolve.”

Of course, the director who will be appointed after me will have to resolve it.

“Anyway, you don’t want to make a big deal out of it.”

“I see…”

“Yes?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

A smile appeared on Cha Seok-hyun’s face.

But that was only for a moment, as he continued to speak.

“But that doesn’t mean we can just leave it like this, does it?”

“Well, that’s true.”

I crossed my arms and took a moment to organize my thoughts.

After racking my brain, I opened my mouth.

“Well, if Hunter Yang Min-ho is really behind it, then there’s no need to stop the guilds, is there?”

“But there’s no proof that he’s the one who did it.”

“We’ll find out if we go look for him ourselves.”

“Whatever it is, you need to move quickly. Once a conflict starts, it will be unstoppable.”

I nodded.

Right. First, I need to go find Yang Min-ho and either threaten him or negotiate with him.

It won’t be easy to find him since he doesn’t show his face often…

‘I think there was a bar in Itaewon that that bastard frequented.’

As I was organizing my thoughts and about to get up, Heo Jin-ah from the accounting department burst into the office.

“Director, Director! The Chilseong Guild and Team 1 encountered each other while intercepting near Sillim-dong!”

Shit…

“It seems we’re too late.”

Cha Seok-hyun’s expression darkened.

Mine was the same.

***

Near Sillim-dong, in front of a dungeon that had been subjugated.

Two factions were facing off in a tense atmosphere.

After a moment of silence, Guild Leader Son Jong-hyun spoke first.

“Before you use force? Is the operations team going to use force against a civilian guild?”

“We wouldn’t rule it out if necessary.”

Kim Min-joo also didn’t back down.

Of course, she wasn’t planning on fighting right away.

More than anything, she hadn’t received any instructions from Kim Joon-woo. That meant that Kim Joon-woo was also still watching the situation.

She couldn’t act on her own in that situation.

‘But I can’t just let them go like this…’

She opened her mouth with the intention of at least trying to threaten them.

“Can you handle the damages?”

“We have no intention of handling them.”

“You’re even more shameless than I thought.”

“Is the Association in a position to say that? Don’t you remember what you’ve done to us? How dare you talk about shame?”

Kim Min-joo didn’t answer.

Of course, Kim Min-joo had no memory of doing anything to the guild.

Even if she did, it would have been Lee Soo-yong.

Son Jong-hyun’s words couldn’t help but feel distant.

“Even so, why are you doing this? If you have a problem, you can send an official letter.”

“Do you think we haven’t tried that? You didn’t react to a few pieces of paper, but as soon as we intercepted a few times, you came running. We should have done this sooner.”

They were even less reasonable than I thought.

Kim Min-joo sighed deeply and shook her head.

“I understand. But you’ll have to come with us for now.”

“We refuse.”

“Haa…”

It seemed impossible to resolve the situation through dialogue.

“Then I have no choice.”

“[Acquired Skill: Vajra] [Vajra is a mythical weapon of great power in Hinduism and Buddhism.]”

“[The caster’s strength stat is greatly increased.]”

Soon, Kim Min-joo’s entire body began to heat up and steam rose from her.

“This is your last warning. Come with us when we’re asking nicely.”

As soon as she finished speaking, the Hunters of Team 1 took up combat stances.

Of course, the Chilseong Guild didn’t just stand still.

“I told you we refuse.”

“[Unique Skill: Beast – White Tiger]”

Guild Leader Son Jong-hyun.

A Beast-class Hunter and ranked 22nd in the country.

His appearance instantly transformed into a half-human, half-beast.

At the same time, the Hunters of the Chilseong Guild raised their respective weapons.

It was a sign that they were willing to engage in a physical confrontation.

Tension flowed between the two factions.

Everyone in that place could sense it.

The moment someone took even one step, a war would break out.

“Team 1, everyone…”

Just as Kim Min-joo opened her mouth.

“Ugh, damn it! It’s so hard to get a taxi!”

A welcome voice was heard in the distance.

Kim Min-joo hurriedly turned her head, and Kim Joon-woo was running from afar.

“Huff, huff…”

Kim Joon-woo stopped between the two factions and took a deep breath.

After a moment, he straightened his back and opened his mouth in a soft voice.

“Oh my, what are you all fighting about? You’re all grown adults.”

The eyes of the entire Chilseong Guild turned to him.

“Are you… perhaps Director Kim Joon-woo?”

“Yes. I’m the person in charge, so please speak to me from now on.”

Hollow laughter erupted from here and there.

“Wow, the director himself has come?”

“What, are you going to arrest us or something?”

“Try it! We won’t stand still anymore!”

“Okay, okay, don’t get so excited…”

Kim Joon-woo tried to calm them down by showing his palms. But the more he did, the more heated the situation became.

Shouts and jeers continued to fly.

It was impossible to continue the conversation.

“You guys are really annoying, really.”

“[Acquired Skill: Destroyer]”

Bang—!!!

A powerful explosion occurred in the air.

It was a truly tremendous power.

The aftermath caused everyone in the vicinity to lose their balance and fall.

“Please be quiet. I have something to say.”

Kim Joon-woo said with a stiff face.

“Yo, you…!”

“You’re finally showing your true colors!”

“Are you just going to kill us all? Yeah, go ahead and kill us!”

But the situation didn’t improve at all.

Some of them even lay down on the floor after falling.

‘I’m going crazy.’

Kim Joon-woo shook his head.

It was at that moment.

“[Accident occurred near Jamsil! Accident occurred!]”

Kim Min-joo’s radio rang, breaking the commotion.

“An accident occurred?”

“[It seems that a problem occurred while a guild was intercepting an Orange-grade dungeon!]”

Damn it. They finally caused an accident.

I swept my hair back.

The problem was that the radio message was also transmitted to the Chilseong Guild.

“A, an accident…?”

“If it’s near Jamsil, it’s the Earl Grey Guild…”

“Guild Leader Son Jong-hyun’s wife is in the Earl Grey Guild…”

I hurriedly snatched Kim Min-joo’s radio and said.

“This is Operations Director Kim Joon-woo. All operations teams are to immediately dispatch to the Orange-grade dungeon near Jamsil.”

“[A, all operations teams?]”

“Yes. All operations teams. All operations teams within the Association are to immediately deploy for a rescue operation.”

I cut off the radio and immediately moved my body as well.

Shit, why did you have to do something unnecessary?