Chapter 28 - Ironclad
“What’s with that face?”
I said to Ironclad, who was looking at me as if I were some kind of monster.
Without answering my words, he glanced around.
The men who had rushed at him with menacing looks were now lying on the floor, looking like they would need to be hospitalized for a while.
The number was so great that it looked as if the floor was carpeted.
“…You. What are you, really?”
“I told you, just an ordinary Climber.”
“Right. If you just gather a few of those Climbers, there’s probably nothing you can’t do.”
Ironclad, who said that, stared intently at my neck and then shook his head.
“…That thing you’re wearing around your neck, it’s an incredible item. It wouldn’t be strange for a nation to cherish it. How on earth can an individual possess something like that?”
“Oh, you can tell just by looking at it?”
“That it’s incomplete, roughly.”
That’s great.
In fact, I needed this person’s help to complete Gnosis’s Heart.
And seeing that he knew just by a glance, it seemed coming to save this person was the right answer.
As I thought that and moved my body, a disbelieving voice came from behind me.
“Wait a minute. Are you planning to go upstairs just like this?”
As I was about to walk upstairs, thinking that, a dumbfounded voice came from behind.
No, then if everything’s taken care of, I should go up. What are you talking about.
“Is there a reason I shouldn’t?”
“Upstairs will be filled with guards far more powerful than the ones lying here. I know you’re skilled, but going up without any preparation is…”
Ironclad had no choice but to shut his mouth in the middle.
It was because I had just shrugged while listening and went up the stairs.
“…That crazy bastard.”
That’s a bit harsh.
Well, it was certainly a bit overwhelming for me to fight a large number of Climbers at once in my current state.
But I had to see the face of the person I came to ‘pick up’.
A rather noble person.
“…”
And seeing the dwarf who followed me up also become speechless right away, I felt like that fact had just been proven.
The building’s corridor was littered with countless human bodies.
They were the ‘guards’ Ironclad had mentioned earlier.
It was a similar feeling to what I had done downstairs, but these guys were all licensed pro Climbers, which put them on a different level.
And a woman, who had undoubtedly created such a scene, stood nonchalantly, leaning against a wall.
White hair. Uniform. Red eyes.
Seo Hye-in.
The pickup driver I had called for this time.
“Ah, you’re here?”
As I said that and raised my hand, the other person nodded her head.
“…You’re one minute late, Mr. Kim Gyu-sik.”
“Hey, give me a break.”
As I said that with a bright smile, the other person nodded seriously.
“Understood. I have many things to be grateful to Mr. Kim Gyu-sik for. It doesn’t matter if you are a little more rude to me.”
“…”
No.
Looking at her speaking politely while meeting my eyes straight on, I was rather at a loss for words.
I already knew she had a personality that often went off on a tangent.
Please take jokes as jokes. Ms. Seo Hye-in.
‘Well…’
It was understandable why this person was suddenly saying such things.
As she herself said, she was in a position to be ‘grateful’ to me for many things.
“The ‘handover targets’ I mentioned are all downstairs. Please confirm and collect them.”
“Are you really sure? Exposing a demi-human slave trade is a very difficult achievement even for a guild like the Hunting Alliance to take on. If it’s said that Mr. Kim Gyu-sik did this alone, your public reputation would rise significantly…”
Seo Hye-in said with a reluctant voice.
Indeed.
The problem related to demi-human slaves received a particularly high reward when reported to the Climber Association.
It was an item that was difficult to crack down on because the methods were becoming more organized and elaborate.
If Seo Hye-in took this case and reported it to the Association, that alone would be a pretty big achievement right away.
But, honestly, there’s no need to feel sorry.
“I’m not confident I can handle the aftermath.”
“Pardon?”
“The Hunting Alliance can take responsibility for all those demi-humans.”
I said with a grin.
It was simple logic.
Renegade didn't have the ability to handle this many demi-human slaves ‘humanely’. Mainly in terms of funds.
The Hunting Alliance had that ability.
“…Ah.”
Seo Hye-in let out a shallow gasp.
It was a tone tinged with the emotion of realization, that that was the reason she had called her.
“Mr. Kim Gyu-sik is… a thoughtful person.”
“Don’t mention it.”
I said with a cool smile.
But inside, a calculative cheer, devoid of the altruism in my words, was erupting.
‘The only thing I was sincere about was that the aftermath would be hard to handle…’
It was one of the random encounters that happened in the game.
If you commit an illegal act like liberating demi-human slaves, there was a high probability that a kill mark from some ‘criminal organization’ would follow.
If the player interfered with the business of that criminal organization multiple times in the game, the number of those kill marks would gradually increase, and they would become hostile to that organization.
Those guys.
They were a little… interesting.
From the perspective of a veteran like me, I could only put it that way.
They were certainly interesting guys in many ways.
One thing was for sure.
‘At least, they’re definitely not guys I want to meet as an enemy right now.’
So for now, it was enough to just achieve the initial goal of rescuing Ironclad and gain Seo Hye-in’s reputation.
Let Seo Hye-in take all the recognition and achievements.
“Mr. Kim Gyu-sik, as a fellow human, I am truly impressed. It was a good decision to keep an eye on you.”
Seo Hye-in said with a gentle smile, and then turned her body and headed for the basement.
[‘Seo Hye-in’s’ trust has slightly increased.]
[A special enhancement for the unique skill ‘Netherworld's Grasp’ is now possible.]
Oh.
And an unexpected additional reward.
If it was a special enhancement, I remembered it as being able to add various effects to the skill.
If an additional buff came to a cheat skill like Netherworld’s Grasp, it would be more than I could ask for.
“…What’s that again?”
Ironclad said with a disbelieving voice.
“Are you on friendly terms with a monster like that too?”
“…You’re not as surprised as I thought? Seeing your reaction to me, I thought you would faint.”
“Because I’ve already seen worse.”
“Are you talking about me? That one over there clearly looks much stronger than me.”
I said, looking around at the fallen people.
Well. If I were to face this many Climbers alone, it would be impossible for me now, no matter what means I used.
For now.
“For now, that may be true.”
The dwarf answered with a snort.
It was exactly what I had been thinking.
“I’ve seen countless guys who live by the sword while standing in front of a furnace. And I’ve realized one thing.”
He said, looking at the rampaging Seo Hye-in with calm eyes.
“Everyone has their own complete form that they reach by honing themselves. That woman, in that respect, is already a finished product. She’s extremely powerful, but she won’t go beyond that.”
Then he sighed and turned his gaze to me.
“You… in that respect, are a little different from other guys. You’re heterogeneous. The form of the ‘complete version’ that everyone reaches is uncertain.”
“Are you complimenting me as a promising prospect?”
“No. I’m saying I can’t see the ceiling. I can’t even guess how far you’ll go up.”
“Hey, you’re making a fuss.”
“Don’t look down on a craftsman’s senses.”
No, far from looking down, I was still surprised.
Because he had seen through most of my potential just by a glance.
Not only was he good at seeing things, but his insight into people was also quite good.
My favorability was already rising.
“Well then, you’ve regained your freedom.”
I turned my body with a smirk.
“Shall we go and talk about work.”
***
Surprisingly, our guild building had a facility called a workshop.
It was in a state of getting old, covered in a lot of dust.
The dwarf had mentioned that he could live with just a ceiling and a roof, but it didn't feel right to have him sleep here, so cleaning was in progress.
And Yoo Ho-jun, who was scrubbing the old bellows and various blacksmith equipment, including the mana furnace, let out a voice of disbelief.
“No, why the hell is this kind of thing in our guild?”
“If it’s here, it’s here. Why are you so full of complaints.”
“If we sold all this, how much would that be!”
“…”
Yes.
I heard your materialistic words well.
But, it was also true that these tools were not cheap, enough for this guy to make such a regretful remark.
Standard firearms had almost no effect against Demonic Beasts, so weapons for Climbers had to go through a special casting process.
And the items needed for that process were naturally expensive.
“Well, so honestly, I’m not really expecting much.”
Yoo Ho-jun continued with a smirk.
“No matter how good a mana furnace in our guild is-”
“These are usable items.”
As that sentence cut in, Yoo Ho-jun promptly shut his mouth.
It was a remark made by Ironclad, who was observing the facilities we were diligently dusting and wiping from behind.
“On the outside, most of them are old, but they are items that have been in the hands of other craftsmen for a long time.”
“That’s a relief.”
As I answered, Ironclad turned a disbelieving gaze towards me.
“Didn’t you say this was a small group? It’s rare for a place where metal pounders gather to be equipped with this much.”
Well, that’s true.
But the ‘real’ guild leader here had a habit of stashing things away in unseen places.
In the future, there would be countless things that seemed insignificant at first but turned out to be surprisingly great.
“So, this is where you’ll be staying for a while.”
I said, facing the dwarf.
“Stay here until you find your family. You have to make my stuff anyway.”
“…Hmph.”
Ironclad snorted.
“A contract condition that provides food, clothing, and shelter. You must be planning to rip off something very expensive.”
“Ah, that’s right.”
I responded with a smirk.
“I’m planning to demand this first.”
“First? Weren’t we supposed to make only one thing?”
“Why are you being so inflexible.”
I said, taking out the ‘blueprint’ I had brought in advance.
And, Ironclad, who saw it.
“…You.”
He sighed and left a short comment.
“Are you planning to go to war by yourself?”
No.
But, it was certain that I would have a use for it very soon.
I snorted and ran a simulation in my head once.
Around this time.
It was about time for a ‘fight’ to be picked.
***
A separate building of the Hunting Alliance.
In a dark meeting room that seemed to be for an ‘unofficial meeting’ at a glance, a voice filled with righteous indignation fell.
“That’s why we have to show them what’s what! Seo Hye-in, that damn woman with nothing to her name, has been walking around with her head held high lately…!”
“Calm down and sit.”
As the person sitting at the head of the table said that, the man who was in the middle of spewing words in anger quickly shut his mouth.
No, rather, he even began to watch his surroundings.
Everyone gathered in this place was skilled enough to be treated well wherever they went, but even if you combined them all, there was an incomparable gap with that man.
“…I’m sorry. I got too excited.”
“No matter how good their recent growth is, our position within the guild is still more solid. Even if one idiot caused an accident recently.”
The sound of someone swallowing dryly echoed.
It was about Im Jae-hwan, who had been officially ‘arrested’ by the Association a little while ago.
Everyone here knew how that fool had ended up.
“But, Director. I think we should still be a little careful.”
Someone sitting in the meeting room opened their mouth and brought up a hologram.
In an article about a Climber from the Hunting Alliance succeeding in cracking down on illegal demi-human slave trade, Seo Hye-in’s photo was plastered on a massive scale.
For the people gathered here, it was an article that couldn’t help but make their stomachs churn.
For one thing, the one who had made the achievement was that annoying Seo Hye-in, and for another, there were quite a few people here who ‘frequently used’ that slave market.
“Even in the Tower, only the person she put in came out unscathed, and as soon as we were in a slump, she raised her performance as if she had been waiting… it’s too perfect to be a coincidence. It’s as if it were planned.”
“So? Are you saying we should give them something back?”
The man who heard that immediately pressed a button and replaced the hologram’s image with someone’s photo.
“He’s a guy named Kim Gyu-sik.”
“That’s a very rustic name for a bastard.”
As someone let that slip, smirks erupted from all over.
Even the man who was giving the presentation chuckled for a long time before he could proceed.
“On the outside, he looks like nothing special, but he seems to have something. Seo Hye-in has been drooling over him and approaching him recently.”
“What’s your point?”
“It’s a simple story.”
The man who had brought it up first nodded and continued.
His voice was tinged with coolness.
“We can at least show them a ‘lesson’ on what happens if you get friendly with them, can’t we.”
And, that guy named Kim Gyu-sik’s rank was only F-grade.
It meant there would be no repercussions for touching him.
‘I’ll make him regret ever getting involved with us.’
The man thought, smiling sinisterly.