24-Hour Friendly Market, Specializing in Dimensional Items - Chapter 71

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. 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 71

Episode 71. A Necessary Transaction (1)

Park Ji-woon took off his glasses and rubbed his heavy eyelids.

Unlike the sky that was gradually brightening, dark circles had settled deeply around Park Ji-woon’s eyes.

Park Ji-woon swallowed the yawn that was escaping.

He had gone on a business trip after employees dispatched to the 52nd Floor reported discovering a suspicious individual, but had returned without any results.

The owner of the mysterious 1st place contribution ranking, ‘Lee Hae’.

Just when he thought he had finally found a clue, it turned out to be a wild goose chase.

‘Will I even be able to find him?’

What kind of person could this be who had dealt such a crushing sense of defeat to South Korea’s renowned hunters?

They had created a composite sketch based on Han Ro-mi’s testimony and Seo Jae-hyuk’s skill, and had thoroughly searched through all of Babel’s hunter records, but couldn’t uncover even a trace of clue about his identity.

Even mobilizing all of Babel’s personnel, they couldn’t find a single small clue.

Could it really be this difficult to find one person in 21st century South Korea?

Perhaps his resident registration had been deleted… or maybe he was someone who had never been registered in the first place.

Park Ji-woon carefully wiped his glasses and let out a quiet sigh.

That’s when it happened.

Knock knock-

Park Ji-woon stopped his movements at the small knocking sound that didn’t disturb the dawn’s quietude.

Was it a report from the Crisis Management Department employees who were guarding the Warp Gate?

Since they hadn’t caught Lee Hae’s trail today, it would probably be some thin content that could hardly be called a report.

“Come in.”

Park Ji-woon looked up with cynical thoughts, and doubt arose in his eyes.

It wasn’t a face that usually came and went from Park Ji-woon’s office.

Park Ji-woon gathered his energy and asked dryly.

“Who are you?”

The employee, flustered by the hunter’s aura that suddenly filled the space, held his breath and rolled his eyes.

Recognizing from the awkward behavior that this wasn’t an enemy, Park Ji-woon quickly concealed his energy.

Even with the permissive attitude, the employee hesitated for a long time, and only after several seconds passed did he enter the office and bow his waist.

“Hello, Director. I’m an employee working in the mail room.”

What reason would a mail room employee have to visit the director’s office in the early dawn?

Park Ji-woon tried not to frown and tilted his head slightly.

The employee hesitantly took something out.

It was a clean letter envelope with no patterns.

“This letter suddenly appeared in the mail room. It wasn’t there when I came to work and was sorting the mail, but at some point it was on my desk…”

Someone entered the Babel Management Bureau building without permission and left a letter?

His brow furrowed automatically at something that was logically impossible.

The employee, reading the mood, carefully placed the letter on Park Ji-woon’s desk.

On the letter envelope, exactly seven characters were written without any embellishment.

[To Director Park Ji-woon]

Park Ji-woon stared at the neat handwriting for a long time.

“I thought it might be a dangerous letter, so I ran it through the detector in the mail room, but there was nothing particularly strange about it.”

The detector that had consumed an enormous amount of Babel’s budget a few years ago could detect the danger level of mail using the skills of 12 hunters.

The fact that nothing was caught by such a detector meant there was no particular malice in this letter…

“I understand.”

After the employee quickly left the office, Park Ji-woon slowly opened the envelope.

The same neat handwriting as written on the envelope appeared.

[Hello, Director Park Ji-woon.

This is the Friendly Market manager.

You visited the information desk before, didn’t you?

I’m contacting you because there’s something I’d like to discuss closely.

I would appreciate it if you could visit the information desk at your convenience between 3 PM and 7 PM today.

As before, I hope you won’t come armed.

Also, I would appreciate it if you could visit as inconspicuously and quietly as possible.

This meeting is premised on being kept secret from everyone except Director Park Ji-woon, so if you don’t agree, please treat this contact as if it never happened.]

Park Ji-woon reflexively muttered.

“Friendly Market…”

He had already met them once before.

But the atmosphere felt from this letter was quite different from what Park Ji-woon remembered.

‘That’s disappointing, Director? We’ve talked for such a long time, yet you don’t trust me at all?’

The playful tone full of mischief that seemed to be grinning under the mask.

The frivolous attitude that didn’t feel serious at all was enough to slightly annoy even Park Ji-woon, who didn’t have much emotional variation.

This was completely different in nature.

To summarize it in one word… courtesy.

It was a polite attitude that seemed to earnestly hope for a response to this proposal, without hiding anything.

‘Did something happen?’

Following the mysterious man named Lee Hae, now the Friendly Market manager too.

Wouldn’t this add another worry to a situation where there were already plenty of things to be concerned about?

His temples throbbed.

‘But there’s no reason to refuse.’

Park Ji-woon took out his phone.

Even if it meant changing the five scheduled appointments for today.

The Friendly Market manager was a person of interest worth meeting.

* * *

The 50th Floor, which had become a thoroughfare for all hunters since its opening.

Park Ji-woon gathered the mana flowing freely within his body and exited the Warp Gate.

No awakened person recognized Park Ji-woon, who had covered his face and completely suppressed his presence.

Since he wasn’t wearing glasses or gloves, Park Ji-woon moved his steps more carefully than usual.

And just as he raised his hand to knock on the empty information desk.

Creak-

As if he had been waiting, the door opened, and the large man he had seen before lightly nodded his head.

‘This person also had no data.’

Although he hadn’t revealed his name, he was someone who possessed an extraordinary aura.

This man too had been the subject of extensive inquiries to reveal his identity after the last visit, but he turned out to be someone who didn’t exist in Babel’s database.

If he were registered with a foreign Tower of Babel, it would be natural that he couldn’t be searched in Korea, but currently Babel was set up so that only awakened individuals belonging to each country could enter.

Considering that point, it was clear he was someone unregistered.

‘Is it even possible for someone unregistered with Babel to walk around so brazenly like this?’

Both that man called Lee Hae and this guy too.

Everywhere you go, it’s full of suspicious things.

That’s when it happened.

“Hello, it’s been a while since we last met.”

Park Ji-woon, who raised his head at the voice coming from inside, discovered the administrator sitting in front of a neatly arranged table.

With his back straight and upright posture, the veil gently swayed beneath the mask that covered his face.

His appearance was no different from last time.

‘No, is it different?’

A calm demeanor that contrasted with the cheerful and bright atmosphere from before.

It was as if the owner of a massive market who would never make any compromises was sitting there.

To think he could display such presence even to an S-rank like himself.

“…It’s been a while.”

Park Ji-woon answered in a low voice and sat across from the administrator.

This was clearly different from last time when he couldn’t gauge the atmosphere.

Today, at least, he must not take this person lightly.

As Park Ji-woon took his seat, the administrator’s shoulders moved slightly up and down as if catching his breath.

“I mentioned maintaining secrecy in my letter.”

“I agree. That’s why I prepared a contract.”

Park Ji-woon didn’t bother with lengthy explanations and took out a thick document envelope, placing it on the table.

He could feel the administrator’s gaze through the black mask with the veil.

“Please take a look.”

Despite saying that, the administrator took no action.

‘Ah, surely not.’

Was he telling him to open it himself since he couldn’t trust what kind of device might be in there?

This new appearance, different from before with fewer words and added caution, was refreshing yet troublesome.

‘But he’s being cautious.’

Park Ji-woon slowly raised his hand and picked up the document envelope.

Shortly after, a contract emanating a subtle white aura was placed on the table.

“It’s an S-rank contract.”

Though he brought it in analog format, this was an S-rank contract that even Babel rarely used.

It had binding power strong enough to be used only for state secret-level matters, and was a rare item with only a few existing domestically.

However, it was suitable as an option to gain the trust of the suspicious administrator.

Park Ji-woon was confident this was the best possible choice.

But the administrator only stared down at the document quietly.

“An S-rank contract.”

His tone even sounded displeased.

“Let’s use the one I prepared.”

The administrator naturally pulled something out of thin air.

Since Park Ji-woon couldn’t use his inventory at the information desk, he was briefly convinced that this too was an ability the market administrator possessed.

Park Ji-woon’s eyes widened at the new piece of paper that appeared on the table.

‘An SS-rank contract…?’

An SS-rank contract that had never been discovered and never been created by anyone.

The subtle golden aura emanating from it and its unique texture.

The dense binding power flowing from the empty signature section created an eerie atmosphere.

Considering that the only SS-rank item in the country was Seo Jae-hyuk’s weapon ‘Legato’, this contract held tremendous value.

The administrator’s casual presentation of such a contract was surprising too.

But the important thing was a different matter.

Though maintaining a calm expression, Park Ji-woon’s mind was actually spinning rapidly.

‘Today’s conversation must be really important.’

With an S-rank contract, since it was an equivalent contract, he would take a hit but there wouldn’t be major problems.

Only S-rank hunters could break S-rank contracts.

But if it’s SS-rank, that’s a different story.

This was a warning.

A warning that the conversation exchanged here today must absolutely never leak outside.

“What’s the penalty?”

“What would you prefer?”

“…Sight and hearing.”

From the slowly delivered answer, Park Ji-woon read the administrator’s mindset.

So Park Ji-woon nodded and added.

“Including mana, let’s make it three things.”

This should earn a bit more trust.

Whether Park Ji-woon’s decision was right, the administrator nodded and inscribed the penalty into the contract.

Sight, hearing, mana.

Even for an S-rank hunter with abnormally developed senses, losing two of the five senses would be nothing short of catastrophic.

And to stake mana on top of that.

Nevertheless, Park Ji-woon readily signed.

[1. The contracting parties must maintain absolute secrecy regarding all matters discussed after the conclusion of this contract.

2. All forms of information leakage are prohibited, including direct mention, hints, inference through deduction, and non-verbal expressions.

3. Contract-related memories shall be protected from all forms of mental skills including memory manipulation, mind reading, and mental detection by others.

Violators shall lose sight, hearing, and mana.

Party A :

Party B : Park Ji-woon]

Below the rather brutal clauses, seeing his own name written in Party B’s position felt awkward.

After Park Ji-woon finished signing first and offered the contract again, the administrator slowly picked up the pen.

Golden chains flowing from the contract seeped into both people’s eyes, ears, and chests.

A contract bound by Babel’s power.

“Now I can’t speak of it anywhere.”

The administrator, who had been quietly looking at the contract, nodded lightly.

“Then shall we resolve your curiosities?”

Then he began unbuttoning with calm, efficient movements.

…Wait, unbuttoning?

At this unexpected situation, Park Ji-woon hastily opened his mouth.

“W-wait.”

For reference, this was the first time Park Ji-woon had stuttered since his hunter debut.

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