chapter 25

If I was going to get hit anyway, it was better to strike first.

‘What’s up with this guy?’

He seemed a bit different from the Kim Hyunsung I knew.

In the first place, Kim Hyunsung didn’t express his emotions very well.

The only time his emotions had been on display was when he had first discovered Jung Hayan, and even that was fleeting.

‘What is it?’

I began to wonder if, by any chance, he had gotten wind of what we had done to Park Hyaeyoung, but the person Kim Hyunsung was watching was neither myself nor Jung Hayan.

He was definitely staring at Jung Jinho.

It was my first time seeing him like this.

He wasn’t gathering mana, but his eyes were clearly showing hostility.

His expression was one of vigilance.

His hands and legs seemed to be trembling slightly, and, above all, his facial expression seemed to be greatly restrained.

‘You know this guy.’

Kim Hyunsung definitely knew Jung Jinho.

Of course, as to how he knew him, there was no way I would know.

The simplest possibility I could think of was that in the future I didn’t know, the odds were high that the two of them were tangled up together in some ill-fated relationship.

Kim Hyunsung didn’t have any kind of ability that would let him see that guy’s status window.

Unlike me, he wasn’t wary of Jung Jinho because of his disposition, Calculating Killer.

He was showing hostility and that he felt discomfort towards Jung Jinho himself, as a person.

Kim Hyunsung’s careful examination of Jung Jinho took some time.

Although he had been maintaining the awkward posture of reaching out to shake hands with Kim Hyunsung the whole time, Jung Jinho continued to smile while looking at Kim Hyunsung.

If you were unaware of Jung Jinho’s disposition and only saw his face, you might think that he was just a good-natured fellow.

Seeing Kim Hyunsung’s slightly dazed appearance, I patted his arm and spoke.

“Hyunsung-ssi.”

“Ah… I’m sorry. My name is Kim Hyunsung.”

The scene of Jung Jinho and Kim Hyunsung shaking hands slightly came into view.

For some reason, that clenched fist kept catching my eyes.

‘Killer… He’s a killer….’

Jung Jinho’s disposition, Calculating Killer.

The delicate confrontation that had taken place before Kim Hyunsung arrived.

Kim Hyunsung’s reaction to Jung Jinho.

I could make several guesses.

They were inferences that could be formed based on the presumption that Jung Jinho was a psychotic killer.

The first possibility was that Jung Jinho killed Kim Hyunsung or those close to Kim Hyunsung.

The second possibility was that he had never directly encountered Jung Jinho, but he had heard rumours or stories about him.

The probability of the first idea having happened was relatively low. If Kim Hyunsung could show such self-control in the face of someone who killed him or his friends, I wouldn’t call him a pushover, I’d call him a saint.

By my standards, even now, he was close to a saint, but that wasn’t relevant to the current situation.

Perhaps he was conscious of the eyes of myself, Park Deokgu, Jung Hayan, and the others inside.

If he was indeed conscious of us onlookers, then he might have already torn Jung Jinho into shreds dozens of times in his mind.

That’s what I would have done in his shoes.

“Let me introduce myself once more. I’m Jung Jinho. I’ve heard a lot about you from Seokwoo-ssi. You’re the one in charge of the shelter….”

“We just happened to come across survivors, that’s all.”

“I heard you’re working hard on continuing rescue efforts.”

“Ah. Yes….”

“You really are incredible. Seokwoo-ssi has been telling us over and over again that you’re a powerful man, but… Really… It seems that you’re stronger than I thought. By any chance, may I ask what your stats are?”

Yoo Seokwoo, that worthless punk, there wasn’t a single thing he left unsaid.

“It’s difficult to say.”

“Ah! Of course, you don’t have to tell me if it’s inconvenient. We’re a little further off from the starting point. We couldn’t find any survivors, so we’ve been wandering around, and stumbled upon Seokwoo-ssi.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. Speaking of which, I mentioned it to Kiyoung-ssi not long ago, but I never imagined that there would be so many people alive here.”

Kim Hyunsung’s expression remained unruffled.

There was no vigilance or animosity. It was his normal expression.

It might have been because he had already experienced this shit once so he was used to hiding his own feelings, but Kim Hyunsung was calmer than I had expected.

I really wasn’t sure why he was taking care of people around him like a pushover, but perhaps some unknown past was weighing him down by the ankles.

I needed to reconsider the idea that the first possibility was relatively less likely.

Kim Hyunsung was more used to controlling his emotions than I had thought. Nevertheless, I personally wanted to rate the possibility of the second inference higher.

‘Rumours or stories about Jung Jinho.’

Jung Jinho’s potential was capable of going through the roof.

To use a gaming analogy, it was as though the foundation for a ranker had already been laid down.

My Mind’s Eye also believed that this guy had a high chance for growth.

Considering this fellow’s disposition, there was a high chance of him becoming a famous murderer or criminal in the future.

He would have stirred up quite the storm.

The second reason was that Kim Hyunsung, who would also play a large role in the future, had, to some extent, heard about or seen Jung Jinho, who would become a famous criminal in the future.

Of course, there was a possibility that those roles were actually flipped, but given their dispositions, I thought the probability of that was weak.

It was hard to picture Kim Hyunsung’s face enjoying murder.

“If it’s alright with you, would you mind if we stayed here as well?”

“…….”

“We have some food supplies. If we shared with everyone, it might last for a few days. Of course, if Hyunsung-ssi doesn’t like it….”

There was a moment of deliberation.

However, Kim Hyunsung soon nodded.

“No. Survivors are always welcome. I’ll help guide you separately.”

“Ah. Thank you.”

I thought it was an unexpected decision.

“Deokgu-yah, you and Jihye-ssi will guide these people….”

“Hyung-nim. Is that okay? We just….”

“It doesn’t matter, Deokgu-yah. Call me right away if anything happens.”

“Um. If Hyung-nim says so…. Follow me. It’s not the most comfortable place, but it’s better than roaming around out there.”

Kim Hyunsung’s decision was both unexpected but reasonable.

Kim Hyunsung also knew that it was best to keep your enemies close.

I also wanted to give him a welcome in part.

If he were simply a lunatic psycho, it would be better to not let him in, but considering the way he had tucked his tail between his legs after seeing Kim Hyunsung, Jung Jinho was also the type of guy who knew how to pick his battles.

Instead, he was a bit crafty.

The ominous or vaguely unsettling atmosphere I had felt around this bastard earlier had already vanished.

He had judged that there was no chance of winning with Kim Hyunsung present, and took a step back. Perhaps he didn’t have any intention of attacking Park Deokgu and I at first, but the anxiety I felt before Kim Hyunsung came was real.

‘Thanks,’

Nevertheless, I was very grateful towards him.

The corners of my mouth lifted automatically and formed a faint smile.

If this fucker was calculating, then somehow or another, I could use him.

‘It’s advantageous. This situation can definitely be exploited.’

It was a little out of the blue, but it wasn’t a bad thing. Rather, the luckiest person on Earth might’ve been me.

All thoughts of killing him had already vanished from my head.

‘Thanks, Jung Jinho, you motherfucker.’

In a way, that guy showing up here was a huge stroke of luck for me.

When I turned my head slightly, Kim Hyunsung came into view.

This guy’s expression looked a bit dazed.

“Let’s go in together, Hyunsung-ssi.”

“I might be outside for a while longer. You can head in first.”

He seemed to be preoccupied with his thoughts.

The same was true for me.

However, right now, I needed to keep my conversation with this guy going.

That would be more effective.

“Did you know that person?”

“Ah.”

“I’m just asking because for some reason or other, the look on your face makes it seem like you do.”

His expression was a bit concerned but he soon nodded and continued to speak.

“A little… You’re correct to think that I know him. I’d bet that he probably doesn’t know me. I only had a brief brush with him once, a very long time ago.”

“Ah, you have that kind of relationship.”

“It has nothing to do with fate. That one encounter was literally all I’ve seen of him. To Jung Jinho-ssi….”[1]

“Yeah, I won’t mention it.”[2]

The most important thing when counselling was to keep things confidential.

I spoke again with an indifferent expression on my face.

It had seemed in the beginning to also be in formal speech.

At my words, perhaps that guy realised I had also been impolite[3], so I hurried to continue speaking. My mind that had run away from me returned as I came back to my senses.

“I had thought you would be fine, but you really came back. It really is incredible.” [4]

“No. I was lucky. It was a bit tough but… I was able to come back because I detoured as much as possible. Come to think of it, it’s a relief that Kiyoung-ssi was also fortunate. Did you have any trouble returning here?”

“Actually, there’s something I would like to talk about with you.”

“Yes?”

“Hyaeyoung-ssi is dead.”

If I was going to get hit anyway, it was better to strike first.

Rather, in the present situation, it was most reasonable to bring up the problem of Jung Jinho that had forced my brain to work in overdrive.

His face looked a bit shocked, but this fucker was used to people dying, so he nodded slowly.

Fortunately, he didn’t show any signs that he was suspicious of me.

Kim Hyunsung hadn’t checked Park Hyaeyoung’s body, so he couldn’t have known if there were any issues before.

“I see. How….”

“It was magic.”

“Sorry?”

“It was an unknown magic.”

“It was magic?”

“Yes.”

I then said, “It’s likely the case. My level is still low, so I can’t judge precisely what it was, but it was definitely magic. I don’t know whether there was any residual mana left but….”

“Ah….”

“While Deokgu and I were hurrying back, I noticed that Hayan-ssi and Hyeayoung-ssi had been separated from us. In that situation, I was concentrating on casting a spell, so I wasn’t able to keep track of what was going on around me. At the time, maintaining the spell I had cast was my limit….”

“I see.”

“I arrived too late, and found Hyaeyoung-ssi dying with her limbs cut off. It felt as though there was something magical in the area and… I was somehow able to find Hayanie nearby… She didn’t seem to know the details.”

“You’re saying her limbs were cut off?”

“Yes. She had been dismembered. I’m thinking it was a dungeon trap that did it, it’s just….”

There hadn;t been anything like a trap.

The guy who was well-aware of that mused over my words once again.

“A trap….”

“Yes. Honestly speaking, I wanted to bring Hyaeyoung-ssi’s body with us, but we didn’t even have time to think. Rather than letting her be eaten by monsters, I thought it was better to burn it. So….”

He should understand what I was talking about.

I had burned Park Hyaeyoung’s body.

“Ah. I see. It must have been difficult.”

It was best to speak as sincerely as possible.

Things had changed from the day before.

Rather than our gentle, well-behaved, and meek Jung Hayan, a better suspect had appeared.

I murmured once again in my mind.

‘Thanks, Battlemage Jung Jinho.’

The criminal had been decided.

Psychotic killer Jung Jinho, this bastard would be the culprit.

1 For this exchange to make sense, you need to know that the Korean language uses several different ways of speaking, which vary in levels of politeness and formality. The first sentence Kim Hyunsung uses here is in very formal and polite speech, used between people you’re not familiar with such as colleagues, and is the normal way he speaks with Lee Kiyoung. However, the second sentence uses polite but less formal speech.

Using that form is not in itself a disrespectful thing – Park Deokgu, Lee Jihye and Jung Hayan use this form (Haeyoche) when speaking with Lee Kiyoung and it’s completely normal. Haeyoche is also a common way of speaking between strangers. However, Kim Hyunsung and Lee Kiyoung aren’t that close and . they’ve been using the more formal level all this time so a sudden change is a bit disrespectful.

If you want to know more about Korean forms of speech, here’s a handy link. [return to text]

2 Lee Kiyoung matches Kim Hyunsung’s speech and slips into informal language. [return to text]

3 Again, Lee Kiyoung refers to the change in speech. [return to text]

4 Lee Kiyoung basically does the opposite of what Kim Hyunsung did earlier, using polite+informal speech in the first sentence, then polite+formal in the second. Both of them use this speech level for the rest of their conversation. [return to text]