Chapter 64

Translated by: ShawnSuh

Edited by: SootyOwl

“What did you just say?! You trusted me?” Ho Sung asked.

At which point, Min Sung downed the liquid in his shot glass, put the glass down audibly, and replied, “I thought you had what it took.”

“…”

Ho Sung stared at Min Sung, both flabbergasted and moved to his core by the champion’s unexpected reply.

“T-thank you, sir.”

“Shall we?” Min Sung said as he rose from his chair. Walking up to the counter, the champion took his debit card out in order to pay. At that moment, Ho Sung beat him to it and said, “Sir, allow me. It’s been a while since we’ve eaten together.”

Then, the owner of the restaurant told them with a friendly smile, “Actually, it’s on the house. You are the hero who protected our city. It’s the least I can do to repay you. Did you all enjoy your meal?”

“So… uh… about that. It wasn’t me who did all the work…” Ho Sung replied, breaking out into cold sweats while looking at the champion anxiously. Paying no attention to it, Min Sung walked out the door and said, “Let’s go.”

After looking in Min Sung’s direction briefly, Ho Sung gave the owner a quick nod and said, “Thank you. It was incredible. My boss seemed satisfied too.”

“I heard in the news that you were the head of a clan. Isn’t that right? But if that man is your boss, he must be up there! Who is he?” the owner asked.

‘How do I explain this?’ Ho Sung thought, deep in thought. Then, he nodded and said with a smile, “The future of humanity.”

“… I’m sorry?” the owner asked, confused. To which, Ho Sung replied, still smiling, “Have a nice day,” and left the restaurant. After he left, the owner tilted their head, still clueless about Ho Sung’s answer.

—

On the car ride to Min Sung’s house, Ho Sung looked at the champion through the reflection of the rear-view mirror.

“Sir?”

“What?” Min Sung replied while staring out the window.

“So, I was looking at my phone while I was in the restroom, and apparently, the most popular search on the internet is ‘Warp Gate,’” Ho Sung said.

“Warp Gate?”

“Yes, sir. It’s essentially a machine that allows you to teleport to a destination of your choosing. For example, if we were to have traveled to Germany through the Korean Warp Gate, our trip would have taken less than a minute.”

“When is this going to be available for commercial use?”

“There hasn’t been any official announcement, but from what’s going around to the public, it won’t be much longer.”

“Seems like eating out won’t be much of a hassle.”

“That’s right. It won’t be long until we can travel to other countries for food. The only thing is that the fee will be exorbitant,” Ho Sung said.

“How much?”

“It’ll be eighty thousand US dollars per trip, which makes it about eighty-seven million won. But that’s overseas. When the system becomes available in Korea, I’m sure the fee will shoot up to one hundred million won plus tax, easy. ”

“You can always make more money,” Min Sung said, unsurprised by the extravagant amount.

‘That’s two hundred million won for a roundtrip ticket! This isn’t some train trip we’re talking about! Man, this guy is really something else…’ Ho Sung thought. Then, yet another thought occurred to him at that moment, ‘Wait a minute! The only way for Min Sung to make money is by raiding a dungeon, which means I might be able to tag along and leech some experience points off of him! Besides, my level’s over 300 now, so I might be able to get into the labyrinth, which means even more experience points! My level will be through the roof by the time we’re out of the dungeon!’ Ho Sung was grinning. As long as he could tag alongside the champion, the reward would surely be unimaginable. However…

“Ho Sung Lee.”

“Sir?”

“You’re thinking about mooching off of me in the dungeon, aren’t you?” Min Sung asked in a low voice, his eyes still fixed on the view outside the window. Feeling as though a spear had pierced through his heart, Ho Sung felt the back of his neck soaked with sweat.

“S-sir? How could I dare!? I could fill the sky and the oceans with all the favors I’ve received from you…”

“You make it really obvious.”

Hearing that, Ho Sung rubbed his sweaty face quietly.

“Standby,” the champion said, a code word between him that implied Ho Sung had to be on call for twenty-four hours. With a forced smile on his face, Ho Sung replied, “With pleasure, sir.”

‘Damn it! I gotta level up, run a clan and get myself a new weapon…’

“The human desire knows no boundary, don’t you think? Once our body becomes comfortable, then we want peace in our hearts. Once there’s peace in our hearts, then we want to live in a better environment. And once we’re in a better environment, then… That’s when we want to get rid of the things that hamper our lives,” the champion said.

Meanwhile, Ho Sung’s heart was throbbing as if he were wearing an enchanted stone bomb around his neck.

“S-s-sir! You-you’ve got it all wrong! H-how could I dare take advantage of you!? Besides, I’m a changed man now! I’m serious! I think of you as my lord, and it hurts me to hear you question my loyalt…” Ho Sung said, hesitating at the sight of Min Sung smiling like a devil through the reflection of the mirror.

‘They say that one should never let success get to their head… I’d forgotten what kind of person I’m serving,’ Ho Sung thought, a chill running down his spine

“F-forgive me, sir. I’ve forgotten my place,” he said. Then, as the car stopped in front of Min Sung’s house with a loud screech, Min Sung said, “Don’t even think about sleeping in the car. Unless you wanna get blown up with it,” and got out. At that point, Ho Sung, who was pale and was staring into the air blankly, got out of the car and bowed to the champion at a ninety-degree angle, saying, “Enjoy your rest, sir!”

Paying no attention to Ho Sung, Min Sung walked into his house. It wasn’t until Ho Sung heard the door close that he looked up. Looking toward the house wearily, he thought, ‘All right. The man’s got a point. Maybe I’ve gotten a little too confident, but would I dare to turn against him and pull the rug from under his feet? Even if I were at level 2000, that’d just be suicide,’ shaking his head. ‘That ruthless devil. I better keep my mouth shut from now on. Damn it, Ho Sung! You just had to let your mouth run. I can’t even rest in my own damn car!’ he thought, slapping himself on the neck when he heard a mosquito flying about.

“Why, you little!”

Then, his phone started to go off. When he checked the caller ID, the screen showed a number that started with 040, which was the area code used exclusively by the Central Institute.

‘The Institute?’ Ho Sung thought, his eyes widened. Puzzled, he answered the phone, “Hello?”

“Yes, hello. I’m calling on behalf of the Human Resources Department of the Central Institute.”

Hearing that, Ho Sung stooped forward nervously and replied, “Oh! Uh… What can I do for ya?”

“There’s an important matter we wanted to discuss with you. Will you be available sometime tomorrow, Mr. Lee?”

Glancing at the champion’s mansion, Ho Sung replied, “Tomorrow is not the best day for me, unfortunately…”

“Is there an issue? If so, we’ll be glad to aid you in any way possible.”

Hearing that, Ho Sung moved the phone away from his ear and looked down at it with narrowed eyes. As omnipotent as the Institute was, there was one thing that they couldn’t do, and that was to excuse Ho Sung from the champion’s order to be on standby for twenty-four hours.

“Well, it’s not that there’s an issue or anything,” Ho Sung said. There was no way that he was going to tell the Institute about him having to be on standby for twenty-four hours because of Min Sung’s order to do so.

“There’s gonna be… uh… a bit of a schedule conflict. I’m sorry, but would you mind telling me what this is about over the phone?”

“Hm, I’m sorry to hear that, Mr. Lee. Then, allow me to cut to the chase. I’m calling you because the Central Institute would like to have you as part of our team.”

“Me?! The Institute?” Ho Sung asked, staring into the air in a daze and blinking awkwardly.

“That’s right.”

The Central Institute was even more powerful than the Blue House. Needless to say, wearing a badge that indicated one’s affiliation with the Institute meant moving up the social ladder. However…

(TL’s Note: The Blue House is the Korean equivalent of the White House in the US.)

“I’m sorry, but I’m gonna have to turn that offer down.”

“… Sir?” the voice on the other end of the line let out as if moaning, caught off guard by Ho Sung’s answer. A mere level-300 hunter turning down an offer made by the Head of the Institute’s Human Resources Department was unheard of.

“May I ask why, Mr. Lee?”

“It’s just… uh… I don’t know if it’ll make any sense to you if I were to tell you that I already have a master… I’m sure the Great Lord will know what I’m talking about,” Ho Sung said, smiling bitterly. “So, if she asks, you know what to tell her.”

“Understood.”

With that, the call ended, and Ho Sung, crossing his arms, stared intently at the Min Sung’s mansion, feeling newfound respect for the champion: the only man capable of standing above what is inarguably the most powerful organization in the country. That was the kind of man Ho Sung was serving as his master, and for most people, it would be an honor to be able to serve under such a powerful man. Yet…

‘Snap!’

… Looking down at the speck of blood on his hand, Ho Sung let out a deep sigh.

“Why am I so confused? Why am I not happier?”

With a sad look on his face, Ho Sung let out yet another sigh and scratched his body, “Ugh! Itchy!”

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