Chapter 83

Im Changsoo’s attention had been fixed entirely on Song Song for some time.

Damn, she sure knows how to play hard to get.

He had deliberately hovered around her and tried striking up conversations in passing several times, but Song Song’s responses had been utterly flat.

“Oh, okay.”

“Thank you.”

“I understand.”

For all his effort, the results were pathetic.

What a picky bitch.

They said women cared about a man’s face when they were young, then his body and ability as they got older. Im Changsoo possessed all three, and he had never failed to pick up a woman.

There had been women who grew disgusted with his casual approach to relationships and left him first, and others he had grown tired of and dumped before they could leave.

But he had never encountered indifference like this.

She sure knows she’s hot shit.

Even when irritation began to rise, it melted away whenever he looked at Song Song’s sleek figure and dreamlike face. Her fragrant natural scent, worlds apart from the smell of other women’s cosmetics, helped too.

Don’t get impatient. She’ll fall for me eventually.

There was still plenty of time. The Minotaur’s Labyrinth was a labyrinth in the truest sense of the word. Raid times could stretch to twice as long as those of other Gates.

That was more than enough time to pick up one woman.

There was only one problem…

One guy keeps getting on my nerves.

Choi Minwoo, was it? He looked more at home in a fashion magazine than inside a Gate. His polished face, his long limbs—even his characteristically impassive expression irritated Im Changsoo.

The rest are just fucking idiots.

The old geezer who did nothing but chuckle and the bandit-like middle-aged man had been out of the running from the start.

There was one more young guy named Jang Taekyung, but he didn’t even qualify as competition.

He’s weirdly irritating, though.

A run-of-the-mill C-rank Hunter. He wasn’t even part of a major Guild, just some small-timer scraping by with high-end equipment he’d leased despite it being above his station. Yet there was something strangely confident about his attitude and the way he spoke.

Toward the end of their conversation a moment ago, Taekyung had even seemed annoyed with him.

Trying to save face, are we?

With the two irritating bastards, Jang Taekyung and Choi Minwoo, standing together, it was only natural that Im Changsoo kept his eyes and ears trained on them.

—Mooooo!

It happened as the Minotaurs began appearing one after another.

“What do you think?”

“It would probably be difficult, wouldn’t it?”

Well, look at these bastards.

Im Changsoo had just been about to call his men back, but he closed his mouth and listened instead.

“What about you, Mr. Taekyung?”

“Me?”

That alone was absurd enough, but the answer that came a moment later was even more ridiculous.

“I’m not sure.”

A C-rank Hunter facing eight Minotaurs, and what? He wasn’t sure?

The bastard would be a corpse within a minute even in a one-on-one fight. He was all mouth.

Crazy bastards. Go ahead and write a novel.

Im Changsoo let out a short laugh, then suddenly paused.

An idea had flashed through his mind. This was his chance to humiliate the two men he disliked in front of Song Song.

That was why he abruptly stepped between them.

“You were having such an interesting conversation that I couldn’t help overhearing some of it. You don’t mind, do you?”

He intended to make them apologize, laugh in their faces, and make it unmistakably clear who held the upper hand.

But then…

“Then should I call you Shit Changsoo?”

“What?”

“Im Changsoo or Shit Changsoo. I don’t care what your surname is.”

Shit Changsoo.

Im Changsoo’s brain froze at an insult unlike anything he had ever heard in his life.

Silence fell all around us.

The Sangdong Guild. The Peace Guild.

Even the Minotaurs seemed to stop mooing.

In that suffocating silence, the man’s tightly closed mouth finally opened.

“…You little shit.”

At this point, using polite speech would have been ridiculous.

I gave him an equally breezy answer.

“What, you little shit?”

“You really… Are you insane?”

“Everyone on Earth is already spinning. Haven’t you heard of geocentrism, you ignorant bastard?”

That was when Team Leader Choi cut in.

“That’s heliocentrism. Geocentrism is the cosmological view that the Earth is fixed and unmoving at the center of the universe, while the Moon, Sun, and planets orbit around it, each traveling along its own celestial sphere…”

Smack.

Im Kkeokjeong’s enormous, cauldron-lid-sized hand had approached so quietly that no one noticed it until it clamped over Team Leader Choi’s mouth.

“Mmph. What are you doing? Mmph, mmph.”

…

I wished he would just drop dead right there.

There was a limit to how oblivious one person could be. I was beginning to wonder whether the Sangdong Guild had paid him off.

“I can’t believe I’m talking to people like you.”

Im Changsoo stared at Team Leader Choi and me in baffled disbelief.

“How did airheaded bastards like you even become Hunters?”

“What, do they recruit based on school grades? Get a TOEIC¹ score of 900 and you’re B-rank, and if you can speak Chinese, you’re A-rank?”

“You’d better shut that mouth if you want to live a long time.”

“Wow, threats now? I’m so scared I won’t even be able to piss in the Sangdong Guild’s direction.”

Im Changsoo ground his teeth, sparks flying from his eyes.

“You seem to have forgotten… This is a Gate.”

“I know, asshole. I also know there are eight Minotaurs coming toward us from over there.”

Speak of the devil.

Right on cue, a bull’s bellow echoed through the cavern.

—Moooooo!

“They’re coming!”

“What do we do?”

“What do you think? Get back! Hurry!”

Boom. Boom. Boom.

The cavern floor shook with every step the Minotaur herd took.

Watching his team members come racing back at full speed, Im Changsoo spat out a wad of phlegm.

“Consider yourself lucky.”

“I tend to be pretty lucky.”

Thanks to the System, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say I was living a second life. I’d been through hardships that could have killed me, but when it came to luck, mine was incredible.

“We’ll settle this after I deal with those bastards.”

“That works, too.”

“I hope you’re prepared to take responsibility for what you said.”

“I think I can handle that.”

I looked at the Level window floating above his head.

System

Level 65 Im Changsoo

Level 65. High.

He was nearly ten Levels above the rest of his team, which meant he was probably quite capable even among B-rank Hunters.

Of course, he still wasn’t as good as me.

Well, character and ability aren’t proportional.

Hunters weren’t selected based on TOEIC¹ scores, school grades, or personality-and-aptitude tests.

I shook my head and turned away.

“How about now?”

“…?”

“The Minotaurs. Didn’t you say you were confident you could handle them alone?”

Ah. I had a rough idea of what he was getting at.

His intentions were obvious from his tone and expression, and a short laugh escaped me.

“I don’t remember saying anything like that.”

“You should take responsibility for what you said.”

“You’re too childish. I can’t indulge you. If you have a problem, settle it one-on-one after the raid.”

Butler Kim and Miss Song-i, who had been watching the situation with calm expressions, spoke up as well.

“It would be best if both of you calmed down.”

“Excuse me, but don’t you think this is a bad time?”

Boom-boom-boom.

Even now, the Minotaur herd was drawing closer by the second.

It was fortunate they were approaching cautiously. If they had wanted to, the battle could have started long ago.

“You heard them, right? Don’t put innocent people in danger. We’ll deal with this later…”

“Five bills.”

“Huh?”

Im Changsoo spread all five fingers wide.

That wasn’t five stars… it was five bills.

“Is that what I think it is?”

“The Minotaur herd over there. Take them down by yourself, and I’ll give you five big bills per head.”

“Big bills?”

“Yeah. Big bills.”

That meant fifty million won² per Minotaur, or four hundred million won³ for all eight.

Even for me, now that I was a C-rank Hunter, that was a considerable sum.

But…

I couldn’t let everyone see how weak I was to money, especially Miss Song.

This was a matter of pride!

Miss Song-i. Can you hear my heart?

I gave her a soulful look and answered.

“I refuse.”

Im Changsoo’s eyebrow twitched.

“Even if I give you all rights to the byproducts?”

“No.”

“Magic Gems might come out of them.”

“Still no.”

My answer was as firm as a juvenile court judge’s. Im Changsoo bit his lip.

“What a pointlessly proud bastard. I’m offering four billion won⁴ and all rights to the byproducts, and you’re refusing?”

“Get lost… Wait. What did you just say?”

Had I heard him wrong?

For several seconds, all kinds of thoughts raced through my mind. Only after sorting them out did I finally manage to part my lips.

“How much? Four billion won⁴?”

“Didn’t I say? Five big bills.”

“…”

“Then… five hundred million won⁵ per Minotaur?”

You should’ve said five fucking huge bills.

Four billion won⁴.

The mind-boggling sum left not only me, but Miss Song and Im Kkeokjeong gaping.

Why’s this bastard such a big spender?

He was the team leader of a mid-sized Guild and a B-rank Hunter, so he probably earned a lot.

But casually offering billions of won⁶ like this was absurd.

“You’re giving me four billion won⁴ just like that?”

“Just? That won’t do. This is a bet.”

“What kind of bet?”

“I need something to gain, too.”

The corners of Im Changsoo’s lips twisted upward.

“If you die or run away, every reward I’ve offered so far is void. On top of that…”

His head slowly turned.

His gaze stopped on one person.

“Me?”

“Yes. I’d like to invite Miss Song Song to join our Guild.”

Im Changsoo bowed politely.

The sudden change in attitude was so different from how he had acted until now that it was downright creepy.

“Ugh, that’s giving me goose bumps. Just act the way you were before. It looks much better than putting on a fake act.”

“…”

“…”

Miss Song-i certainly had an honest personality.

She shuddered as if she really had gotten goose bumps, then folded her arms.

“Shit Chang—no, Im Changsoo, right?”

“…Yes.”

“Okay. I’ll be blunt. You’re not my type.”

Her blunt declaration came in like a 160-kilometer-per-hour⁷ fastball, tight and inside. Im Changsoo’s gaze wavered.

“You’re tall and handsome, but you look exactly like the cheating type. And I hate wind, you see.⁸ I finally got my hair looking nice, and if the wind musses it up… Ah, no, that’s not what I meant, was it?”

“Y-yes? Yes?”

“Anyway, you’re not my type. I absolutely can’t stand womanizers who flaunt their money.”

I had never seen Im Changsoo look so dumbfounded.

To anyone else, I probably had the same expression right now.

“Oh, that look you just had was kind of okay. But I’ve been watching you for a while, and your personality is kind of… You can tell that yourself, can’t you?”

Im Changsoo barely managed to compose his expression before answering.

“We can work those things out one by one.”

“Do you really have to taste something to know whether it’s shit or soybean paste? You don’t seem interested in anything but bumping bellies with me. Am I right?”

“…!”

“…!”

Everyone, myself included, was left gaping.

She toyed with her hair as if bashful while delivering one line after another, each blow landing like a nuclear bomb.

“It’s not like I particularly dislike the Sangdong Guild.”

Im Changsoo, who had been taking hit after hit without a break, brightened and asked:

“Really?”

“Yes. I can always switch again anyway.”

“…”

Miss Song, are you a genius?

After delivering a massive fuck-you with an innocent expression, Miss Song continued.

“But I’d need to ask permission before switching Guilds. Right, Guild Master?”

“Ah, of course.”

Butler Kim had been watching with an interested look in his eyes. Miss Song turned toward Team Leader Choi.

“Team Leader, what do you think?”

“What do you mean? About you switching Guilds?”

“If we lose this bet, that’s what will happen, right?”

Team Leader Choi calmly nodded.

“Go ahead.”

“Isn’t that a little too easy an answer?”

“It was an easy question, so I answered easily.”

For just a moment, I thought I saw hurt in Miss Song’s eyes.

No, surely not.

The emotion had passed too quickly for me to be certain.

Returning to her frank, easygoing self, Miss Song turned to Im Changsoo.

“Then I’m in on the bet. What about you, Mr. Taekyung?”

“I…”

I thought it over for a while.

From the moment I first heard Team Leader Choi’s question, a strange certainty had already taken root deep in my heart.

The certainty that I was stronger than those bastards.

“I’ll take the bet.”

A smile spread across Team Leader Choi’s lips.

“I’ll join in, too. A bet is more fun when the stakes are high, isn’t it?”

“Wow, look at you. A real gambler. How much?”

“Four billion won.⁴ Of course, I’m betting that Jin Taekyung will take down all eight.”

“What?”

Im Changsoo stared at Team Leader Choi for a moment, then let out a short laugh.

“You’re an interesting bunch. One of you is desperate to get himself killed, and the other is dying to throw away his money.”

“So what’s your answer?”

“Obviously, yes.”

“Should we write up a contract?”

“A contract? What do you take me for? Once I give my word, I keep it. You don’t have to keep yours. I’ll make you keep it. Everyone, move back!”

At that moment, the enormous, damp cavern transformed into a Colosseum.

An arena with an absurd amount of money at stake.

And I was the gladiator who had to fight the Minotaur herd.

“Team Leader Choi. What will you do if I lose?”

“You will win.”

Where did that confidence come from?

Faith in himself? Or faith in what he’d seen of me so far?

It didn’t matter.

I would simply do my best to achieve my goal.

Boom-boom-boom-boom-boom!

—Moooooo!

Twenty meters⁹ ahead, I could see every one of them clearly.

Hot breath steaming from their nostrils. Heat. Muscles. Weapons held high.

This is my first time fighting a cow.

It should be an interesting experience.

I gripped my spear and charged at the herd like a bullfighter.