Chapter 13: 13

Six Years Later

“He lives in a nice place. What a jerk.”

Now there was a place that served as a landmark in the city of El Plades.

The streets were lined with resorts, casinos, and hotels. Even comparing land prices, there was a house best described as a great mansion in the most expensive place in El Plades. Regardless of the disharmony created by placing a mansion in the street covered in neon signs, the residents of El Plades couldn’t know what kind of place it was. All they knew was that this was where the God of Wealth lived.

Tap-

A man walked inside.

“Huh? He didn’t even lock the door?”

Interestingly, there wasn’t a single lock on the mansion because no resident of El Plades wanted to visit this mansion recklessly. The God of Wealth’s fame alone was one thing, but there was a rumor that those who visited his home with impure intentions were never seen again.

“Tsk.”

The man clicked his tongue and looked around.

It was dark. The streets outside were a neon glow, but this house seemed cut off from the rest of the world. If he wanted to, he could look around through his mana. However, entering someone else’s territory and unleashing your mana was a declaration of war.

And this man, Hwang Dongpal, was well aware of that. Besides, even if he didn’t bother, the house’s owner would appear on his own. After all, he could feel unpleasant mana around him right now.

“Huh. What the…?”

A hoarse voice that sounded like it hadn’t spoken for a long time called out. Hwang Dongpal turned to find the owner of this voice. The unpleasant mana grew, throwing him off-guard. Despite all his training in recent years, he knew he was no match for this.

Hwang Dongpal was well aware of what Kim Bongpal had been doing in the past few years, making him feel even worse.

Still, it was such a terrifyingly stable flow of mana. Before he knew it, Hwang Dongpal was wearing a fishy smile.

“It’s been a while, huh? Oh…has it been three years?

Hearing that, Hwang Dongpal smiled once more.

“Six years.”

“What?”

“It’s been six years.”

“Fuck? It’s been that long already? Whoa, time flies.”

Kim Bongpal answered, frowning. He had grown so detached from the world around him.

“I don’t know how much time passes because those stupid casinos don’t have clocks.”

In fact, the past six years brought some changes to Kim Bongpal. After returning to El Plades, he withered in pleasure for a while with an account balance far beyond what he once owned. He’d grown a little more eccentric from experience.

Kim Bongpal, never known for his good temper, had become a more demanding person somehow. It arose from his dissatisfaction with what El Plades could offer.

“Well, why are you here? You didn’t come because you missed me.”

Having said that, Kim Bongpal chuckled to himself.

“…”

Looking at Kim Bongpal like that, Hwang Dongpal paused to think for a while. He also realized this madman was even crazier than before.

“Well.”

The news Hwang Dongpal carried today might provoke him. Of course, it wasn’t his fault, but this was Kim Bongpal. He would vent his anger because he was annoyed and for no other reason.

But Hwang Dongpal could do nothing but tell him. This was news he’d discover one day, and if he knew Hwang Dongpal didn’t tell him sooner, he’d likely be angrier. After all, as the old saying goes, it was better to get hit first.

“Hayeon disappeared.”

Hwang Dongpal decided it would be better to start from the beginning.

 

*

 

At first, Seo Hayeon was affiliated with the Aegis Corporation. She chose them because entering through the Gate wasn’t something you could do without resources, and Aegis was the best in Korea.

Over her years working for them, she made quite the name for herself. Even though years had passed since his sacrifice, the S-Class Hunter Seo Kang Jun remained in the people’s memories, and Seo Hayeon was his daughter. The story of a father-daughter who continued to be a hunter was a story that many people could stand behind. Plus, she was a match for any A-Class hunter in her early twenties.

Aegis began actively promoting Seo Hayeon to the public from the moment the Gate’s existence became known to the world. She became a celebrity as a result, though she never sought fame.

That was roughly three years since Kim Bongpal left. Meanwhile, Seo Hayeon became one of Korea’s leading Hunters. And at that point, she left Aegis.

Why? There was only one reason. She resembled her father in many aspects, but one of their strongest ties was that she always followed her ideals. Her ideal was to be like Kim Bongpal, the best hunter she knew. That’s why Seo Hayeon wanted to be the best.

Actually, she would have stopped thinking about becoming a hunter in the first place if she hadn’t intended to do so. Anyway, fortunately for her, she had the gift to follow that dream through. However, Aegis Corporation didn’t have the quality to be the best supporter for Seo Hayeon.

Aegis was one of the best in Korea, but not the best. There were times when they clung to that title, but it never lasted, and it was inevitable.

As Hwang Dongpal said, even among the first-generation Awakeners, only a few were treated as special. One was Kim Bongpal, and the other was wide-known as the strongest S-Class hunter, Lee Kang-chul. In other words, where Seo Hayeon headed was the best in the Korean hunter industry, Lee Kang-chul’s Iron company.

Sweesh-

Kim Bongpal lit a cigarette and took a puff.

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Lee Kang-chul. It’d been a while since Kim Bongpal heard his name. He was also an Awakener from their generation, and, of course, they had met several times. Although describing their encounters as meetings were a bit…

“That kid went under that bastard, huh…?”

Kim Bongpal gritted his teeth. Kim Bongpal failed to beat Lee Kang-chul. Lee Kang-chul considered the best Korean Hunter, also failed to defeat Kim Bongpal. It was a story of a time that only a few people remembered.

“Then what do you mean she disappeared?”

The answer to Kim Bongpal’s question lingered on Hwang Dongpal’s tongue and disappeared.

“About that….”

Why did Seo Hayeon disappear, where did she go, and where was she now?

“…I don’t know.”

Even Hwang Dongpal hadn’t a clue.

“…”

“No! Wait, wait!”

Hwang Dongpal shouted at Kim Bongpal, who was frowning. This was why he didn’t want to come. She disappeared, but he didn’t know the details. Even he thought it sounded ridiculous.

“But it’s true. Those bastards from Iron aren’t giving out any information about Hayeon.”

“Then, how do you know she disappeared?”

“It’s been three months. I haven’t seen Hayeon in the Frontier for three months, and there is no record of her requesting Gate access.”

Hwang Dongpal quickly continued to explain. It wasn’t just Seo Hayeon either, but also some of the other hunters belonging to Iron were starting to disappear. Besides, the atmosphere in Iron was unusual. They blocked contact with other hunters who belonged to the same hunting team as Seo Hayeon.

And when those hunters returned to the Frontier, there were signs of a fierce battle left on their bodies. These were enough reasons to raise a reasonable doubt about Seo Hayeon’s disappearance.

“But she must not be dead. If she was, there’s no reason to hide it from us.”

Kim Bongpal stared down Hwang Dongpal as he thought. Although he still called Seo Hayeon a kid, she was a proper hunter. Since she was a Hunter, she must take care of herself. Otherwise, she’d no longer be a hunter but only an idiot. And Kim Bongpal never raised Seo Hayeon to be an idiot.

“Right. I see.”

“…What?”

“I get it. That’s all you have to say?”

Hwang Dongpal’s jaw fell.

“Hey, hey, you! It’s Hayeon…Hayeon is missing! Don’t you understand what I’m saying?”

“I understand. That kid, no, I mean Hayeon, has disappeared. It’s simple.”

As for Hwang Dongpal, he only came to visit El Plades after much consideration. Even though he was the CEO of Aegis Corporation, Korea was Lee Kang-chul’s domain. Their difference, which wasn’t so prominent in the past, had widened since the Gate emerged. Therefore, it was difficult for him to tell an outsider any Iron-related news.

However, the reason Hwang Dongpal visited El Plades wasn’t only because he worried about how Kim Bongpal would react when he heard the news later but also because of his own affection for Seo Hayeon. So what was this reaction?

“Son of a bitch.”

“…What?”

“No. You’re even worse, you fucking bastard.”

Hwang Dongpal swore until his face turned red.

“I’m a fool to think I needed to come here and tell a bastard like you.”

Hwang Dongpal turned around and stormed out.

“…Are you leaving?”

“Shut up!”

He left the house without looking back. Kim Bongpal, watching him leave with a stiff expression, laid back down.

“Fuck. Is it because that bastard is getting old, too? He’s not supposed to be like that.”

If it had been in the past, Hwang Dongpal wouldn’t have looked for the missing Seo Hayeon. It was a hunter’s responsibility to die if they tried to face something they couldn’t handle. It was a hunter’s responsibility not to let other hunters intervene in the aftermath. That was the rule of the old days.

It was decades ago, and the current Hwang Dongpal was clearly not the same. Kim Bongpal thought that everyone else in the world changed so easily.

It was then.

Tap-

Kim Bongpal stood from his seat and headed elsewhere in the house. He arrived in front of a closet and, opening it, took out the cheap sword he used to wield.

“Fuck. Come to think about it…”

Kim Bongpal strapped it to his waist.

He was Kim Bongpal. He was once more focused on making money than anyone else for the goal of playing and eating for several hundred years. That was why he never let go of anyone who didn’t repay what they borrowed from him.

That was it. That was why. At least, Kim Bongpal thought so.

“There’s 20 billion left. That kid will pay me back her father’s debts.”

Kim Bongpal always thought of himself as an honest person. But the truth was that Kim Bongpal couldn’t be very honest.

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