The Wise Cleaning Life Of A Returning Genius Hunter [EN]: Chapter 133

132

[Unique Skill: Thousand-Armed Avalokiteśvara – Awakening]

[Fourth of the Six Avalokiteśvaras]

A red aura began to flow along Kim Min-ju’s entire body.

[4th Form – Eleven-Faced Avalokiteśvara]

Swish, swish, swish—!

Continuous attacks at incredible speed, too fast to follow with the eye, tore into the formation.

“Ugh!!”

“Kuh-ugh!”

Screams erupted from everywhere.

Most of the team had already been helplessly defeated.

Only about three or four remained.

Kim Min-ju pressed on relentlessly.

[First of the Six Avalokiteśvaras]

The aura flowing through her body changed to a blue light.

[1st Form – Holy Avalokiteśvara]

Swoosh—.

A smooth and clean strike aimed precisely at the neck of Team Leader Kane.

“Tch…!”

[Unique Skill: King Arthur]

Clang—!!

The sound of swords clashing echoed with the force to rupture eardrums.

Creeeak—!

Team Leader Kane’s greatsword and Kim Min-ju’s sword grated against each other as they entered a power struggle.

[Unique Skill: King Arthur – Round Table]

[Fourth Knight: Percival]

Swish, swish, swish—

“……!”

It was Team Leader Kane who broke the deadlock.

A chilling aura flowed from his sword, beginning to envelop Kim Min-ju’s sword.

Sensing the ominous energy, Kim Min-ju immediately created distance.

She recomposed herself and prepared to attack again.

[Unique Skill: Thousand-Armed Avalokiteśvara]

[Unavailable]

“W-What?!”

Only then did she realize that something was wrong with her sword.

[Skills cannot be used with a weapon tainted by Percival.]

Black Wolf Guidance, Kim Min-ju’s trusty companion and a memento from her hunter father.

It had lost its original radiant glow.

“Looks like the swordswoman can’t use her sword anymore.”

“……”

Team Leader Kane raised his greatsword high with a relaxed smile.

[Unique Skill: King Arthur – Round Table]

[Third Knight: Lancelot]

The sword glowed for a moment, and he immediately charged at Kim Min-ju.

A swordswoman who can’t use skills is worse than a novice hunter.

Clang—!

“……!”

But the attack was blocked.

Team Leader Kane’s eyes widened.

She had blocked his attack with a sword that was no better than a skill-blocked toy.

“……Impossible.”

“What’s impossible?”

Kim Min-ju retorted with a relaxed smile.

“A swordswoman just needs a sword. Who needs skills?”

“You…!”

Team Leader Kane gritted his teeth at the absurd provocation.

[Unique Skill: King Arthur – Round Table]

[First Knight: Arthur]

Clang, clang, clang—!

Clang! Clang, clang—!

A barrage of sword strikes with tremendous power, fueled by rage, began to pour down.

But for some reason, none of them reached Kim Min-ju.

“Damn it! What the hell is going on…!”

The attacks grew increasingly wild due to the inexplicable phenomenon.

The swordplay faltered as he lost his composure.

Swoosh, swoosh—.

Meanwhile, in contrast, Kim Min-ju moved more fluidly and wielded her sword.

Even without any skills, the sword moved dynamically and precisely, deflecting and parrying attacks like water.

-Fundamentals are important.

The words Kim Jun-woo always emphasized echoed from deep within her mind.

She had trained tirelessly every day according to his teachings.

She trained to use the sword without skills and sometimes used it in subjugations to gain practical experience.

The efforts of the past few months blossomed into an untouchable flower.

Slash—!

“Kuaaaaagh!!”

It was the moment a monster was born, overwhelming skills with pure martial prowess.

“N-No way! H-How can you not use skills and…!”

“Anything is possible with effort.”

Kim Min-ju shook the blood off her sword.

Of course, it was never possible with effort alone.

But Kim Min-ju herself didn’t know.

This was a miracle possible only because Kim Min-ju possessed a talent for swordsmanship.

Kim Jun-woo, who recognized that, had ordered it, but of course, he didn’t explain it to her at all.

‘It’s a shame. To think such talent was wasted in the Korean Association…….’

It was the moment Team Leader Kane shook his head in regret.

[Acquired Skill: Invisible Dandelion]

Thud—!

“……Cough!”

Suddenly, transparent swords flew from behind and pierced Kim Min-ju’s body.

Her legs gave way, and she collapsed to the ground.

“It’s hard to dodge something invisible without skills, after all.”

Team Leader Kane, who had stood up as if nothing had happened, looked down at Kim Min-ju.

Kim Min-ju couldn’t respond because blood was constantly pouring from her mouth.

He was hiding his skills……!

“You’re a talent I hate to kill… but it can’t be helped.”

Team Leader Kane raised his sword high.

That’s how the final blow was supposed to fall on Kim Min-ju’s neck.

Thud—.

Suddenly, Team Leader Kane collapsed to the floor.

“……Cough! Cough!”

“Cough… Kuagh…….”

Not only him, but the remaining enemies also grabbed their necks and began to roll on the floor.

“W-What’s happening…….”

Kim Min-ju lost consciousness, not knowing what was happening in her blurring vision.

***

「Breaking news.」

A breaking news story was playing on a large electronic display in the middle of Seoul.

Team Leader Ha Seong-il stopped in his tracks and watched the news with a rather complicated expression.

「Following the autopsy and additional investigation into the death of Ha Dong-bae, president of Hanbyul Corporation, who died last week, police have stated that his death is highly likely to be a homicide.」

「Furthermore, they have named Ha Dong-bae’s eldest son, Ha Seong-tae, the former head of sales, as a strong suspect.」

「He has been confirmed to be on a business trip to Zambia, and a forced entry order has been issued through the local embassy.」

Ha Seong-tae’s photo appeared on the screen.

‘That bastard…….’

It was Ha Seong-il himself who requested the investigation into his father’s death.

He couldn’t help but suspect, both in terms of timing and circumstances.

Of course, even as the investigation progressed, he hoped that his brother wasn’t the culprit.

Even if they weren’t on good terms, he at least wanted them to remain family.

But that faint hope was shattered.

His grandfather, Chairman Ha Deok-soo, seemed to have been greatly shocked and couldn’t be reached…… and, more than anything, contact with the Congo side had been cut off for several days.

‘I hope the CEO is safe.’

He trusted him, but Team Leader Ha Seong-il was genuinely worried.

Even the anxiety he didn’t usually have was creeping up due to the lack of contact.

He clicked his tongue and was about to move on when—

「Additional news.」

The news anchor’s tone changed.

「Evidence has emerged from the representative of a support company that the International Hunter Association incited the Zambian Provisional Association to attack their branch.」

“……?”

Team Leader Ha Seong-il unknowingly stopped and looked up again.

「The representative claims that the association orchestrated this to unify the African continent and has submitted additional evidence and related parties that they directly secured.」

「The International Hunter Association is immediately and strongly denying all allegations, but due to the high credibility of the reported evidence and circumstances, Interpol is expected to launch a major investigation.」

Continental unification?

A self-made play by the International Association?

Revealed by a company representative?

‘W-What happened…?’

Even he, who knew the general story, couldn’t understand what was going on.

But even more shocking news was yet to come.

「Meanwhile, it has been revealed that the Central African Integrated Branch and the Zambian Provisional Association, which suffered significant damage from this incident, have all been acquired by the Korean Ability Dimension Management Association.」

“Huh…?”

It was the news of the Korean Association’s acquisition of the African branch.

Just as he was scratching his head, wondering if this was a bolt from the blue, his phone rang.

He checked the number and immediately pressed the call button.

“C-CEO! What the heck happened?!”

「Well… a lot of things happened.」

“I mean, what happened!”

「I’ll tell you the details later… First of all, about the Fractal exclusive contract that Team Leader Ha was working on.」

As if it wasn’t that important, CEO Kim Jun-woo immediately got to the point.

「You don’t need to come to Congo. You can proceed with the contract at the Seoul headquarters.」

“……”

His eyebrows twitched.

So the acquisition was real?

How could they acquire a branch of the International Association overnight…….

Before Ha Seong-il’s comprehension could catch up, the story continued.

「Well, I’ve already spoken to the Association President, so you’ll probably be able to get a good deal.」

“……T-Thank you.”

「There’s no need to thank me. We’re not doing this for free.」

“Yes…?”

「Well, let’s talk about that later.」

Kim Jun-woo continued cautiously.

「Could I… ask you for a personal favor?」

“Yes, yes. Go ahead.”

「……Could you lend me some money?」

“……?”

Team Leader Ha Seong-il momentarily wondered if he had misheard.

“M-Money?”

「Yes.」

“Why suddenly…?”

「The hospital bills here are quite expensive.」

What the heck is he talking about?

***

Hospital affiliated with the Congo Integrated Branch.

In front of the door to the hospital room where Kim Min-ju was hospitalized.

“……Seriously, it costs so much money for nothing.”

As soon as he hung up with Team Leader Ha, a complaint naturally popped out.

Director Lee Ah-young, who was listening next to him, looked at him as if asking what he meant.

“She’s our company’s ace. We have to do this much for her.”

“That ace can’t even take care of herself. Whose loss is it when she gets hurt? And whose money is it? Besides, why are the hospital bills here so expensive?”

“Putting aside the cost, it was really dangerous this time. When she wakes up later, don’t scold her and treat her well.”

Director Lee Ah-young said in a rather serious voice.

Well… it seems like it was dangerous.

According to Director Lee Ah-young, who was watching the situation, her skills were sealed in the middle, and she fought with her bare body…….

‘No, if it’s her bare body, she could have just fought moderately and retreated. Why did she rush at a team leader…….’

It’s amazing that she even won.

Is she crazy?

No, isn’t it more amazing that she didn’t die at that point?

‘She really has zero flexibility.’

I shook my head, feeling exasperated.

“So…….”

Director Lee Ah-young looked around and cautiously opened her mouth.

“The opponents… were the recovery team, right?”

“That’s what I heard.”

“Unfortunately, there are no survivors. Looking at the bodies, it seems like they had something implanted in their bodies. They probably dealt with them all at once remotely.”

“That’s probably it.”

I nodded.

“One member of the balance team survived, right? The person you handed over to Interpol.”

“No.”

“……Yes?”

A surprised reaction came back, as if she hadn’t expected that answer.

“Two people survived.”

“…T-Two people? Who are they?!”

“Team Leader Marc.”

“……!”

Director Lee Ah-young covered her mouth with a surprised look.

“Depending on how they come out, we have a wider range of options.”

“……That’s a good thing, right?”

“Of course. More than anything, the International Association won’t be able to move as boldly as it does now.”

Even if the opponent throws away a card, holding onto it will make the opponent flinch.

That’s why we worked so hard to save them and smuggle them out.

“That means it’s our turn to strike.”