Chapter 161
Song Gang-cheol’s hammer swung down.
It was big.
It was threatening.
And…
‘It’s fast!’
The assumption that it would be slow, being a two-handed blunt weapon, was a prejudice.
He wielded the hammer in both hands as if it were a toy.
However…
‘It’s still slow.’
No matter how fast it seemed, it was only fast for an average two-handed weapon.
Ahn Suho dodged it lightly, then raised his blood-stained club.
He swung it toward the guy’s wrist.
“Ugh!”
Song Gang-cheol let out a groan as the club struck his wrist.
He instinctively released one hand and clenched his fist.
It really hurt.
But at that moment, a look of confusion surfaced on his face.
‘How did he…?’
That was the look.
He couldn’t help it.
Song Gang-cheol was a warrior player aiming for a 2-star level.
He prided himself on his powerful damage, but he hadn’t neglected raising his health and defense either.
So he called himself a “damage tank,” yet it had been a long time since he had been hit and felt such intense pain from someone.
Ahn Suho grinned at Song Gang-cheol, whose face was twisted in pain like a child.
“Looks like it hurts a lot?”
“You little…!”
Song Gang-cheol tried to counterattack.
But Ahn Suho immediately struck his head with the blood-stained club.
Thwack!
Song Gang-cheol’s body lifted momentarily, then flew toward the wall and crashed to the floor.
“Grrr…”
Song Gang-cheol groaned, lying crumpled against the wall.
It hurt, but he couldn’t accept it.
Was he, of all people, feeling pain?
From someone who looked that weak?
However, the pain in his body was undeniable.
Grinding his teeth, Song Gang-cheol lifted his head.
When he did, he found Ahn Suho, who had already approached him, looking down at him.
“What are you doing? Aren’t you going to get up?”
Ahn Suho’s gentle whisper.
Yet Song Gang-cheol felt a shiver of fear run through his entire body.
At that moment, he realized.
This man was someone he could never defeat.
Song Gang-cheol’s survival instincts quickly went into overdrive.
The conclusion came swiftly.
After completing his calculations, Song Gang-cheol slowly stood up and raised his hands.
“Fine, I surrender.”
Masters only needed a few exchanges to sense the gap between themselves and their opponent.
Song Gang-cheol considered himself a master.
So he quickly decided to surrender and save face.
But…
“Who said you could?”
“What?”
“I don’t intend to accept your surrender.”
“W-wait, hold on!”
Ahn Suho had no intention of ending it here.
What if I hadn’t dodged that attack earlier?
Guys like this need to be beaten down when there’s an opportunity.
People who live on their own pride often don’t know the fear of the world and go around acting recklessly.
So he began beating Song Gang-cheol mercilessly with the blood-stained club.
“Ouch! Ow! I surrender! I said I surrender!”
“If you were going to surrender this quickly, maybe you shouldn’t have acted up in the first place.”
“Agh! Ah! Aaaaaah!”
Ahn Suho thoroughly struck every part of his body.
Even though Song Gang-cheol was at a 2-star level, his body was now covered with bruises and cuts that bled.
Just how long had he been beaten?
Ahn Suho let out a short breath and spoke.
“Huff, get up.”
“Ugh…”
“Not getting up?”
“You bastard…!”
“Bastard?”
“N-no!”
“No?”
“N-no, sir…!”
Look at this guy.
After all that, he still hadn’t come to his senses.
Ahn Suho frowned, watching Song Gang-cheol stand up.
Despite his reputation, Song Gang-cheol had tears streaming down his face.
It hurt that much.
Ahn Suho asked.
“How is it? Still not enough?”
“N-no! It’s enough!”
“Then go sit down.”
“Yes, yes!”
Song Gang-cheol hurried over to the sofa and sat down.
But when Ahn Suho noticed the seat he’d chosen, his brow furrowed.
Song Gang-cheol had taken the head seat.
Ahn Suho silently stared at him, and only then did Song Gang-cheol realize his mistake and shift to a different seat.
Taking the head seat, Ahn Suho spoke.
“…Anyway, it’s an honor to meet you like this, Vice President of the Raid.”
“…?”
“No response?”
“Y-yes…!”
Ahn Suho nodded at Song Gang-cheol’s answer.
Good.
Now he was finally ready to have a proper conversation.
Only then did Ahn Suho start looking around the room.
A spacious office.
Despite the earlier commotion, only a few areas showed any damage.
At that moment, Song Gang-cheol gathered the courage to speak.
“Uh… by the way.”
“Hm?”
“Um… why did the Sword God come looking for me…?”
Right.
It was time to get down to business.
Ahn Suho asked.
“You have the ‘Foolish Judge’s Hammer,’ right?”
“Pardon?”
“Are your ears blocked?”
“N-no! I have it!”
“The Sword God currently has a need for that item. During our search, we happened to learn about you, Vice President.”
“Ah…”
He finally understood the reason and opened his mouth in realization.
But only for a moment.
Quickly, Song Gang-cheol began racking his brain.
Watching him, Ahn Suho felt a mixture of amusement and exasperation.
Only someone like him would start scheming at a time like this.
However, Ahn Suho had no intention of forcefully taking it.
Unless he planned to kill Song Gang-cheol entirely, a clean deal was the best way to avoid complications.
When Song Gang-cheol continued to hesitate, Ahn Suho, who had been waiting, spoke up.
“Are you still not done calculating?”
“Huh? N-no! I’m done. No, calculating, huh. W-what calculation?”
“Let’s keep it simple and finish this quickly between pros. Sell that item to the Sword God. What’s your price?”
“Well… ahem.”
Suddenly, Song Gang-cheol cleared his throat.
Clearing his throat to sell a hammer, huh?
As Ahn Suho narrowed his eyes, Song Gang-cheol explained.
“You… you may not know, but I’m actually quite a well-known collector of hammers.”
“So?”
“Plus, this is an extremely rare, unique item that no one else in the country has… It’s not like I’m short on money, so is there any real reason for me to sell it?”
A serious expression.
Ahn Suho was stunned.
This guy still didn’t know when to give in.
Suho smirked, incredulous, and replied.
“So, you’re not selling it?”
“Well, I mean… I don’t need the money, so I don’t see a reason to sell it.”
“Then don’t sell it.”
“Instead, maybe we can… Huh?”
“I said don’t sell it.”
With that, Ahn Suho abruptly stood up.
Song Gang-cheol was startled and jumped up as well.
“W-why are you doing this?”
“All I said was not to sell it. Why are you so nervous? Don’t sell it. But remember, the choice was yours. So don’t regret it later. Watch and see what happens over a single hammer. By the way, don’t you watch the news?”
“…!”
Song Gang-cheol’s eyes widened in shock.
Only then did he realize.
Oh.
I miscalculated.
He had tried to raise the price by playing hard to get, but that was a mistake.
He was dealing with Ahn Suho’s representative.
Dealing with Suho’s representative was practically the same as dealing with Ahn Suho himself, yet he’d lost his head after getting hit a few times.
Panicking, Song Gang-cheol grabbed onto Suho’s sleeve as he was about to leave.
“W-w-w-wait!”
“Let go.”
“I-I’m sorry! No, I was wrong! I wasn’t thinking clearly!”
“That’s right. You really don’t seem to think clearly. It’s amazing to me how someone like you could become the Vice President of the second-ranking organization in the industry. So just wait, I’ll show you in real-time how Raid falls apart into dust, starting with a thorough tax investigation.”
It was a very realistic threat.
And it wasn’t impossible.
Song Gang-cheol’s eyes grew wider than ever, and he clung to Suho’s clothes, practically on his knees, begging.
“S-sir! I wasn’t thinking clearly! I’m sorry! I’m truly sorry!”
“Let go, Vice President.”
“Sir!!”
Ahn Suho purposefully dragged him all the way to the elevator doors.
Song Gang-cheol was helpless.
Even though he was bigger, Suho’s strength stat was overwhelmingly higher.
Perhaps that’s why?
When Suho stepped into the elevator, Song Gang-cheol finally burst into tears and begged fervently.
“I’m sorry!! I’m sorry!! Please spare me just this once!! I wasn’t thinking clearly!!”
As Song Gang-cheol pleaded, Suho finally pretended to reconsider and stopped.
Then, he looked down at Song Gang-cheol with narrowed eyes.
“Bring me the hammer.”
“P-please wait just a moment!!”
At Suho’s command, Song Gang-cheol frantically went to fetch the item.
Suho checked the information on the hammer Song Gang-cheol handed over.
It was genuine.
After confirming the item, Suho put the hammer in his inventory, looked down at Song Gang-cheol, who was still on his knees, and spoke.
“Tsk, if you’d done this from the start, things would’ve been so much easier.”
“I-I’m sorry…!”
“If it were up to me, I’d want to dismantle the entire Raid organization, but I’m holding back this time. As a sign of goodwill, give me your business card.”
“Business card? W-why do you need that…?”
“Ah, you’re really getting on my nerves.”
“J-just a moment!”
Song Gang-cheol quickly retrieved his business card and handed it to Suho.
After examining it, Suho asked.
“This number here, is it your direct line, Vice President?”
“Yes, that’s correct!”
“Answer when I call. And do exactly what I tell you, quickly.”
“Ah…”
“Ah?”
“N-no! Understood!”
“Get it right. Seriously.”
Suho pocketed the business card and stood up.
Then he got into the elevator and descended first.
As soon as the elevator doors closed, Song Gang-cheol, finally relaxing, slumped backward, trembling.
“Ha… Damn…”
It was the worst day ever.
***
Suho exited the Raid building, giving a nod of acknowledgment to the receptionist on his way out.
Then, looking up at the Raid building, he thought to himself.
‘I’ve gained another useful errand boy.’
Suho decided he’d make Song Gang-cheol handle tasks he couldn’t assign to Choi Yoon.
After all, Raid was a large guild that competed for the top two spots in the industry.
Suho immediately got into his car and headed home.
As soon as he arrived home, he went straight to the basement.
In the basement, the remaining items he had ordered from Choi Yoon had arrived first, and after confirming the item information, Suho began preparing for item fusion.
[You have placed the Strange Sociologist’s Bookmark into the Fusion Jar.]
[You have placed the Scolded Civil Servant’s Eraser into the Fusion Jar.]
[You have placed the Foolish Judge’s Hammer into the Fusion Jar.]
Upon activating the fusion formula, the jar materialized.
The color of the jar was a bit darker than the previous one due to the fusion formula’s upgrade from the lowest to a low grade.
‘Not that it makes much of a difference.’
The fusion grade was helpful in reducing any potential failure rate, but for someone like Suho, who knew the exact formula, it didn’t make a big difference.
Once all the materials were placed in the jar, Suho activated the Fusion Jar.
[Fusion has begun.]
[Fusing…]
[Oh? The jar’s state is…?!]
A familiar notification.
And then…
[Congratulations! A rare treasure has emerged from a low-grade fusion formula!]
[You have acquired the Talent Pendulum of Atonement (S).]
[The system grants you 10 bonus stat points for achieving a great feat.]
Finally, Suho had acquired the item for stat redistribution.