๐๐ก๐๐ฉ๐ญ๐๐ซ ๐๐: ๐๐๐ฅ๐ฅ
The covetous gaze of McJester, hidden beneath his mask, was fixed upon the enormous quantity of Awakener drugs before him.
Though he had paid a heavy price for them, the sheer volume of drugs he had acquired in a single transaction filled him with a sense of exhilaration.
“The goods have been received. This should certainly alleviate any supply issues for the time being.”
“I’m pleased with the transaction as well.”
“When would be a suitable time for our next exchange?”
Jiang Chen paused for a moment in response to McJester’s inquiry.
Such matters could only be considered once the Ghost Corps had been fully established and the situation in South Korea had stabilized.
However, he could not simply tell his business partner that “there was no definite timeline.”
After all, drug dealers who failed to provide a steady supply of their product tended to be quickly forgotten in this line of work.
“Well. . . I anticipate being rather busy in China for the foreseeable future. Is there any chance you might be traveling to China yourself?”
McJester tilted his head at Jiang Chen’s words and chuckled.
“An amusing proposition. However, the very essence of our trade lies in ‘delivery.’ If I were to travel to China to collect the goods, I would be forced to offer a price approximately 20% lower than the current rate.”
His reasoning was sound.
In the shadowy world of illicit transactions, the act of transporting goods to the buyer was often far more perilous than acquiring the goods themselves.
That was precisely why people were willing to pay such exorbitant prices for these substances.
Especially in these times, when the presence of Hunters had increased significantly at customs and border crossings, transporting goods into one’s own country was a highly risky endeavor.
Jiang Chen himself had incurred substantial expenses simply to transport the drugs to <Narak>, utilizing two Cheong-doboks that he had borrowed from Dae-sung.
Despite all these challenges and expenses, the potential profits were so substantial that he had undertaken the arduous journey to a foreign land.
“Indeed, that is true. Once I have concluded my business in China. . .”
“Let us arrange a transaction for the same quantity as this one next month.”
An unexpected proposal came from McJester’s lips.
“I will offer you 1.5 times the current price. What do you think?”
“Next month, you say?”
“Yes. As the foremost drug dealer in Hong Kong, you must have the necessary inventory. The only issue is the price.”
Jiang Chen placed his fingers on his chin, deep in thought.
If he could successfully resolve the issue with <Red Fox> this time. . . perhaps it was feasible.
“Furthermore, this is strictly between the two of us.”
McJester spoke in hushed tones, as if sharing a secret.
“You could conduct this transaction ‘privately,’ without informing Dae-sung.”
“. . . . . .!”
Jiang Chen swallowed hard.
Every transaction he made was reported to his investor, Dae-sung, who would then claim a certain percentage of the profits.
However, if his counterpart were to keep the matter confidential and ensure the success of the transaction, Jiang Chen stood to gain an enormous sum of money.
‘๐๐๐ฉ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฉ ๐๐ข๐ค๐ช๐ฃ๐ฉ, ๐ ๐๐ค๐ช๐ก๐ ๐ง๐๐๐ช๐๐ก๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐๐ค๐จ๐ฉ ๐พ๐ค๐ง๐ฅ๐จ.’
Jiang Chen hesitated for a moment before curving one side of his lips into a smile.
After all, a true businessman never passed up an opportunity to make money.
“If there is someone who recognizes the true value of these goods, then I am willing to travel anywhere to sell them. I will bring the goods with me next month.”
“Hahaha. It is always a pleasure doing business with you, Sir Jiang Chen.”
“Very well. I shall take my leave now. The atmosphere in <Narak> doesn’t suit me.”
Jiang Chen rose from the table, preparing to depart.
In truth, his hasty exit was motivated by a lingering uncertainty about whether the <Red Fox> had caught the attention of the Korean HSIU.
‘๐๐ ๐๐ค๐ช๐ง๐จ๐, ๐ฃ๐ค ๐๐ค๐ซ๐๐ง๐ฃ๐ข๐๐ฃ๐ฉ ๐๐ช๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ง๐๐ฉ๐ฎ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ก๐๐จ ๐๐ฃ๐ฎ ๐ฅ๐ค๐ฌ๐๐ง ๐ฌ๐๐ฉ๐๐๐ฃ <๐๐๐ง๐๐ > ๐๐ฉ๐จ๐๐ก๐, ๐๐ช๐ฉ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ง๐๐๐ก ๐๐๐๐ก๐ก๐๐ฃ๐๐ ๐ก๐๐๐จ ๐๐ฃ ๐๐ญ๐๐ฉ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐จ๐ฉ๐๐๐ก๐๐จ๐๐ข๐๐ฃ๐ฉ.’
He needed to reach the ship where his men were waiting as quickly as possible.
At that moment, McJester’s languid voice reached his ears once more.
“Why not stay a while longer? Perhaps we could share a meal.”
Jiang Chen looked at him with a hint of surprise.
McJester had never once suggested doing anything social with him before.
Not even a cup of coffee, given that he never removed his mask. And now, out of the blue, he was inviting him to dinner.
Unable to fathom McJester’s true intentions, Jiang Chen shook his head.
“I apologize, but I have pressing matters to attend to. . .”
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!
At that instant, an enormous and inexplicable shockwave rocked the entirety of <Narak>.
๐ท๐ท๐ท๐ท๐ท๐ท
๐๐ฐแด๐๐ฌ๐ฅ๐คส๐แด๐จ.๐๐ฐ๐
Moments earlier, on the outskirts of <Narak>,
a large group of Hunters stood in formation, their gear meticulously checked and ready.
They were armed more heavily than usual, their gazes fixed upon a single location.
“Is everyone prepared?”
The vice president of the Korea Hunter Association, S-Rank Hunter Kim Eun-ju, asked in a curt voice as she surveyed the assembled group.
Her words drew sharp looks from the Hunters present.
12 Hunters from the Seoul branch of the HSIU.
26 Hunters from the Gyeonggi branch of the HSIU.
31 Hunters from the Korea Hunter Association.
20 Hunters from the Heptagram reinforcement unit.
A total of 89 personnel.
Overall commander: Edward C. Blackwood, HSIU International Headquarters.
Chief tactical commander: Baek Geon-ho, HSIU South Korea branch.
Deputy tactical commander: Kim Eun-ju, Korea Hunter Association.
External surveillance team leader: White Lion Guild Chu Ha-min.
Intelligence gathering team leader: Gong Gil, HSIU Gangnam branch.
Internal assault team leader: Hwang Jeong-gu, HSIU Gangbuk branch.
And. . .
Assault team leader: Min Siwoo, HSIU Gangbuk branch.
Operation codename: Doberman.
Baek Geon-ho, clad in a black uniform, narrowed his sharp eyes.
Gone was his usual gentle and amiable expression, replaced by the countenance of a tactical commander. He cast his gaze upon the location of Narak.
“By this hour, the slums of Incheon will have vanished without a trace.”
The operation, meticulously planned and led by Siwoo after his encounter with the Ghost Corps, had gained significant momentum thanks to the cooperation of Ah-sul, Baek Geon-ho, and Edward. The unexpected involvement of the <Red Fox> had only served to accelerate the process.
On the day when Kiryu had been waiting for Hayakawa Hikari at the hotel, his presence had already been detected by Siwoo’s magical perception.
The unique and refined magical energy emitted by an assassin, the faint murderous intent, and even the names Seigen and Hikari, which had been uttered in Japanese.
From that moment on, Siwoo had instructed Red Ear to keep an eye on Kiryu, and it was during this surveillance that Red Ear had stumbled upon his contact with Jiang Chen.
Currently, Kang Yeo-hwa, Min Si-joon, and Red Ear were tasked with tracking down Jiang Chen’s ‘Jiang Chen’s Killer Squad,’ which was targeting Hikari.
Siwoo’s team, tasked with neutralizing the <Red Fox>, had been met by Seigen, Kumo, and Volk.
Meanwhile, a separate HSIU team had been dispatched to apprehend the corrupt government officials who had been receiving bribes from <Narak>.
‘๐๐ฉ’๐จ ๐๐๐๐ฃ ๐ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ก๐ ๐จ๐๐ฃ๐๐ ๐’๐ซ๐ ๐๐๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ฃ๐๐ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐๐ก๐ค๐ฌ ๐ค๐๐ ๐จ๐ค๐ข๐ ๐จ๐ฉ๐๐๐ข.’
Everything was proceeding according to Siwoo’s plan.
Normally, he would not have bothered to engage with such low-level criminals. However, there was one reason why he was going to such lengths:
‘๐๐๐๐จ ๐๐จ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ฅ๐ง๐๐๐ ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฎ ๐ฅ๐๐ฎ ๐๐ค๐ง ๐ข๐๐จ๐จ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฌ๐๐ฉ๐ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ฉ’๐จ ๐ข๐๐ฃ๐.’
Siwoo had not forgotten how the <Ghost Corps> had targeted Kang Yeo-hwa.
“Assault team leader. Permission to engage has been granted by Director Edward. Requesting orders to initiate.”
Baek Geon-ho nodded towards Siwoo.
Donning a gas mask, Siwoo positioned himself at a vantage point overlooking <Narak>.
His gaze, reminiscent of a predator eyeing its prey, sent shivers down the spines of Hwang Jeong-gu and Chu Ha-min, who stood nearby.
Siwoo unleashed his magical energy, releasing it from his dantian.
Like a sports car revving its engine, his magical energy surged forth relentlessly, spreading to every nook and cranny.
“Let’s use some force.”
Unfurling his left and right hands, he concentrated his magical energy, summoning a power that he had never before attempted since returning to Earth.
Hundreds, thousands of characters and geometric shapes danced and shimmered in the air, illuminating the darkness and inscribing intricate magical formulas.
Rumble. . . crackle. . . rumble. . .
A thunderous roar descended from the heavens like a torrential downpour of dark clouds.
[Meteor Shower].
A celestial storm of magic and spells tore through the darkness, crashing down upon the earth below.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!
Like the Biblical destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, the meteors that struck the ground incinerated entire buildings, reducing the slums to a scorched wasteland.
Stunned into silence by the sheer magnitude of the force that had illuminated the darkness, the Hunters turned their gazes towards Siwoo.
Those who had dared to grumble about a mere Hunter being appointed as assault team leader now dared not even meet his eyes, swallowing their words with trepidation.
At that moment,
“Assault team.”
Siwoo’s voice, cold and deadly, echoed through the air.
“Exterminate them all.”
His body shot towards <Narak>.
๐ท๐ท๐ท๐ท๐ท๐ท
แดแบฬแดสs๐ฑ๐ฐส๐ช๐ฆ๐.๐คแดแน
The steel-framed buildings had collapsed, and the streets were littered with debris.
The criminals who had controlled the slums lay dead or wounded, their expressions a mixture of confusion and terror.
Siwoo stepped over the lifeless bodies of vagrants strewn across the entrance and made his way into the interior of <Narak>.
Due to the deafening explosion and the crumbling ground, those inside were desperately trying to escape.
He drew his short sword and struck down each of them as they attempted to flee.
There were no ‘civilians’ here.
Only criminals and those who had aided and abetted them.
Thus, the primary directive of Operation Doberman was to kill them all.
The only exceptions were the core members of <Narak>, ‘Jiang Chen,’ and ‘McJester,’ the domestic distributor of Awakener drugs.
The assault team that had followed Siwoo entered the building behind him and made their way towards a large open space.
The central courtyard, where the collapsed ground had killed dozens of people, was a scene of chaos, with screams and music intermingling in a cacophony of pandemonium.
“Jeong-gu. Silence the music.”
“Yes, senior.”
Hwang Jeong-gu hurled a steel ball, shattering the speakers and sound equipment.
“The assault team will enter and clear the area. The rest of you, handle the rest.”
Siwoo turned his head and unleashed his magical energy in all directions.
He then set about locating the criminals with the strongest auras and slitting their throats.
“Hunter Hwang, who the hell is that guy?”
A Hunter from the Gyeonggi branch asked, his voice tinged with awe.
Even the HSIU Hunters they had encountered in the past possessed nowhere near this level of power.
Anyone who had witnessed the magic he had unleashed upon the city earlier would have realized that only a handful of S-Rank Hunters in South Korea could wield such power.
“Well. . .”
Hwang Jeong-gu replied, scratching his cheek.
“He’s probably just a really strong rookie?”
๐ท๐ท๐ท๐ท๐ท๐ท
ฬศงฬแดกแดแธฬ๐ค๐ญ๐จ๐ง๐ขฤฬs.๐๐ฐ๐ช
“Ugh! What the hell is going on!?”
<Narak> had never been invaded before.
Common sense dictated that no one would attack a place that the government had overlooked with any purpose.
Even a misplaced sense of justice would ultimately lead to the attackers becoming prey for the criminals.
Furthermore, <Narak> was owned by ‘that person,’ a top-ranked Hunter in South Korea.
There was no way the government would dare to do something like this unless they had lost their minds.
“Chiu! Liu! Check the situation outside!”
At Jiang Chen’s command, the two men hesitated for a moment before shrugging and heading towards the door.
Seconds later, Chiu cautiously poked his head back into the room and exclaimed:
“I don’t know who they are, but we’re under attack. It looks like the South Korean government. Stay inside.”
“Oh, dear. I don’t know who they are, but it seems like the plan was devised by someone with a sharp mind.”
McJester shook his head.
“Do you. . . know something?”
“No, not at all. If it’s something that I haven’t heard about. . . hmm. . . interesting.”
McJester fell into deep thought in response to Jiang Chen’s question.
“Damn it! I had a bad feeling about this from the very beginning! If we get caught here, everything will be. . .!”
“Calm yourself, my friend. I will protect you until the end.”
McJester smiled wryly at his companion’s distress.
“Well then, shall we make our escape from here?”
“Chiu just told me to wait inside. . .”
“There’s no need to leave through that door.”
McJester scanned the far corner of the room.
He breathed a small amount of magical energy into a protruding stone, and the previously smooth wallpaper slowly distorted, revealing a stone staircase.
“Hahaha. The contract room has a secret escape route. Let’s go.”
Accompanied by McJester’s sinister laughter, they began to ascend the stairs.