24-Hour Friendly Market, Specializing in Dimensional Items - Chapter 236

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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24-Hour Friendly Market Specializing in Dimensional Items Episode 236

Episode 236. Records of Ruin (1)

I blinked my eyes repeatedly, unable to believe what I was seeing.
“No way, you didn’t…”
Seo Jae-hyuk had now become someone who couldn’t set foot in South Korean society even with a public apology to the nation.
He had cleanly bisected the very building that symbolized the Management Bureau, the organization tasked with protecting the country.
As I stood there gaping like an idiot, Kang Yeon-hee tapped my elbow.
“Unnie, let’s go quickly.”
“Go in there?”
I reflexively came to a halt.
The building was barely standing without collapsing—that alone seemed to be fulfilling its purpose.
I knew all too well that my life wasn’t worth risking by walking in there on my own two feet.
‘Surely operations aren’t actually running properly in this state?’
Park Ji-woon, who was always so meticulous, couldn’t possibly be inside that wreckage right now.
Of course, I did need to meet Park Ji-woon, but…
“It looks like it could collapse any second.”
Even if a dimension is falling apart, you should still value human lives, shouldn’t you, Kang Yeon-hee?
As I looked at her with those thoughts filling my gaze, Kang Yeon-hee rolled her eyes as if I were pathetic.
“It won’t collapse. Baekdan set up a barrier with mana. The building absolutely won’t collapse outside the barrier.”
“Who sets up a barrier that looks like this?”
It looked like the two halves were barely held together with rope.
“The building damage remains as is. Apparently, it’s also meant to look visually dangerous. To keep people away.”
They’re leaving it like that to look scary?
Or is it evidence that they’re too overwhelmed to even attempt repairs right now?
Kang Yeon-hee didn’t explain further and began walking toward the building.
I followed her, half convinced and half unconvinced.
But instead of entering the building, Kang Yeon-hee circled around toward the back.
I carefully placed my feet, swallowing hard as I watched the terrifying debris that looked ready to pour down on me at any moment.
The ruins of the building and the quiet surroundings kept nagging at my attention.
Could a place where people were always coming and going and Hunters were bustling about really become this desolate?
‘This looks like the perfect setup for an incident.’
The moment I turned into an alley, muttering to avoid thinking about the atmosphere.
“Here it is.”
The place where Kang Yeon-hee stopped was an outdoor parking lot behind the building.
“…What? The parking lot is just being used normally?”
Contrary to the appearance of the building from the front, the parking lot was clean with the debris neatly cleared away, which was almost absurd.
There were quite a few cars parked here as well.
While I stood dazed in the parking lot, taking in this unexpected destination, Kang Yeon-hee naturally headed toward a car parked in the corner.
An old vehicle came into view—one that had been parked with such deliberate care to avoid drawing attention that it was painfully obvious.
“Get in.”
“…You bought a car?”
“Well, I needed one anyway.”
Since when did someone living inside Ba-man-jang buy a car?
Moreover, her driving posture seemed quite natural—she’d clearly been behind the wheel quite a bit.
Unable to hide my suspicion, I opened the car door with deliberate slowness.
“Unnie, hurry up and get in. We’re in a rush, so why do you keep dawdling?”
“When did you get your license?”
“Three months ago.”
“….”
Please don’t let me die in the middle of a road of all places.
“Just get in already.”
When had Kang Yeon-hee learned to look at me with such a terrifying expression?
It was as if that fierce determination she’d shown during the truck protest in front of this building had been resurrected….
I suppressed my anxiety and climbed into the passenger seat.
Kang Yeon-hee’s grip on the steering wheel looked quite practiced.
So I said nothing.

* * *

Fortunately, truly fortunately.
Kang Yeon-hee actually drove quite competently.
The only problem was the slight nausea from the way she kept jerking the steering wheel side to side.
The car came to a stop much closer than I’d expected.
“An Officetel Building?”
On the surface, it was just an ordinary officetel building.
A bland structure with nothing eye-catching about it—the kind that didn’t evoke the impression of a major corporation’s headquarters.
A small, unremarkable building that people would pass by without a second glance.
The sort of place that seemed like it would be packed with nothing but tiny one-room studios.
Through the glass doors where the lobby was clearly visible, I could see the logos of a convenience store and a study café, and inside the small management office window sat a single employee with a leisurely expression.
‘A study café?’
I double-checked the signage.
There was no way Kang Yeon-hee would bring me to a study café with that solemn expression on her face.
“Where is this place?”
I asked naturally, following behind Kang Yeon-hee as she led the way forward.
“Karma.”
“…Karma? The Karma Guild?”
I was startled and asked urgently.
This place?
This ordinary building with a study café?
‘No matter how I look at it, it doesn’t feel like that at all.’
Now that I thought about it, there was no publicly known information about what the Karma Guild building looked like.
Besides, it did seem strange for Karma to openly promote their guild building.
I couldn’t even picture a nationwide underworld information guild operating with a sign hanging out front, and Nam Pu-reum would naturally oppose such a thing.
An officetel with a study café… and a convenience store on top of that.
‘It’s certainly the perfect setup for hiding one’s identity.’
I marveled as if I’d discovered something magnificent, then quickly scurried after Kang Yeon-hee, intimidated by her stern gaze.
Kang Yeon-hee entered the lobby first.
The management office employee saw Kang Yeon-hee and gave a light nod.
Kang Yeon-hee greeted her with just a glance, without saying a word, and headed straight inside without hesitation.
I thought she was about to take the elevator, but instead Kang Yeon-hee headed toward the stairwell in the corner.
Then she pressed a specific point on the wall next to the stairs several times in sequence.
“…Insane, a secret passage.”
Without a sound, part of the wall slid inward, and a massive elevator appeared inside.
I failed to maintain my composure.
Honestly, how could I not be surprised?
This was something I’d dreamed about since childhood.
Opening a secret passage and entering the headquarters of a secret organization.
Getting excited in a situation like this showed a lack of situational awareness, but given the circumstances, I couldn’t help it.
Kang Yeon-hee showed no interest in my loud reaction and entered the elevator first.
The elevator doors opened after descending to depths I couldn’t fathom, and I reflexively gasped in awe.
“Wow.”
Unlike the modest atmosphere of the lobby, the office space opened up like a vast hall.
Cold blue-tinted white lighting illuminated the low ceiling.
Beneath it, desks stretched out in two neat rows, each one topped with two or three monitors.
The screens displayed maps, satellite imagery, and real-time updating text data.
The massive front screen showed Seoul divided into districts, sprawling across its expanse.
‘Karma, this is insane.’
I knew they were a major player in the underworld, but this wasn’t just some information guild.
I’d believe it if someone told me this was the National Intelligence Service.
The people filling that space paid no attention to Kang Yeon-hee and me as we entered, each focused intently on their own work.
Whether it was because they were swamped or because the situation was urgent.
Either way, overwhelmed as I was by the atmosphere, I had no reason to be further on edge.
And the four faces seated around that massive central table were familiar.
First, the head of Karma: Nam Pu-reum.
The Hunter Management Office Director of the Babel Management Bureau: Park Ji-woon.
The sole voice of reason in Aegis: Ahn Yeon-seo.
…And then there was just Han Ro-mi.
‘Is Han Ro-mi sleeping right now?’
With eyes closed and mouth slightly agape, Han Ro-mi reclined comfortably in the chair without the slightest movement.
Right, that person had always been incomprehensible anyway, so I’d let it slide.
Despite being in an open space, the atmosphere around that table felt extraordinarily heavy and oppressive.
As Kang Yeon-hee and I headed toward them, Park Ji-woon, spotting me, slowly rose to his feet.
His expression was grave.
Of course, even with such a serious face, I found myself admiring the composure with which he spoke.
“I’ve been waiting after hearing the details from Kang Yeon-hee.”
The situation assessment unfolded faster than I’d expected.
I’d already heard the rough outline from Kang Yeon-hee, and the specific details that could be filled in here followed in sequence.
The first thing confirmed was the personnel currently inside the Tower.
Lee Hwa-yeon and Jeong Min-gu, Chae Geun-dam—the forces capable of restraining Seo Jae-hyuk should he go berserk at any moment.
Plus three A-rank Hunters, for a total of six people.
If the chaos outside hadn’t erupted, I might have been reassured by the mere presence of Lee Hwa-yeon and Chae Geun-dam.
‘Jeong Min-gu is… just Jeong Min-gu.’
In any case, six was quite a lot, and the fact that none had emerged yet meant they were alive.
Of course, since I didn’t know what situation they were facing, I couldn’t simply be at ease.
“Communications don’t work inside the Tower, right?”
“You already know that communications don’t work unless it’s Lee Hae-won. But given that Lee Hae-won hasn’t been able to receive contact until now… there seems to be a problem. Though we can’t determine what the situation is.”
The phrase “can’t determine” sat uncomfortably with me.
I paused to gather my thoughts before speaking.
“I know I need to go in myself.”
Nam Pu-reum, Park Ji-woon, and Ahn Yeon-seo’s serious gazes converged upon me simultaneously.
“But right now, we can’t just leave Seo Jae-hyuk alone.”
The table fell silent.
Everyone was thinking the same thing, naturally.
I’d spoken convincingly, but they already knew what I was saying.
“The problem is that we currently lack the military strength to stop Seo Jae-hyuk.”
Ahn Yeon-seo adjusted her glasses and murmured.
“Because of that issue, hunters from other countries are currently at Baekdan. Some came to directly observe the Guild Master’s movements, and we’ve received contact from those willing to cooperate.”
“Can cooperation even stop him?”
I wasn’t particularly reassured by the situation.
Ahn Yeon-seo turned her tablet PC toward me and added her thoughts.
I was momentarily startled by the bizarre design of the Crony that Ahn Yeon-seo used as her dedicated weapon, but I found myself frowning at the screen filled with incomprehensible numbers.
“I can’t be certain, but we’ve found the best possible combination given the current circumstances.”
There was nothing I could understand, but the number written at the very end was visible.
Success probability: 9 percent.
Low was an understatement—it was nowhere near high, and my spirits plummeted.
That was the moment.

Wee-woo, wee-woo—

A blaring alarm filled the space with red warning lights.
At the same time, everyone scrambled to their feet and began moving urgently.
‘What is this?’
Without a word being spoken, unease seeped deep into my skin.
Ahn Yeon-seo’s expression hardened gravely as she hastily pulled the Crony toward herself.
“The Guild Master has begun moving.”
“…Where to?”
Han Ro-mi, who had just awakened, asked in a sluggish tone.
Ahn Yeon-seo, who had been staring at Han Ro-mi, spoke quietly.
“Toward Baekdan.”
Earth’s greatest villain had begun his move.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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