Ranker Who Shatters Myths - Chapter 158
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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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The Broken Ranker
Devours Myths
Chapter 158
Guam (3)
A few hours ago.
When the server ‘Roque Guerrero’ was first captured by Lee Hyeon, he had only one thought.
‘So, somehow I just need to es, escape this crisis. Then… the familia, no, Boss will surely save me somehow.’
The loyalty of City Cartel members was quite strong.
An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, blood for blood.
Just like the cartel’s motto that Boss always kept on his lips, the cartel always rolled up their sleeves for anything involving family.
From the moment Lee Hyeon destroyed the casino, war with the City Cartel was inevitable.
But…
“This place is called Tumon Strip? Where that Tumon Beach used to be?”
“Yes. Th, that’s right. A lot of things have been built, but there are still ma, many tourists.”
Why did his heart sink every time Lee Hyeon said something?
Roque kept looking at the ground while walking, afraid he might meet the golden eyes behind the mask.
After blowing up the casino, Lee Hyeon was walking the streets using Roque as a guide.
「It’s incredibly flashy, isn’t it? It’s no different from a complete den of evil. What’s this smell?」
Son Wukong looked around with a disapproving expression.
As if the casino filled with explosions and screams just moments ago had been a lie,
this place was overflowing with all kinds of dazzling neon signs and golden billboards layered upon each other from the streets up.
The building exteriors soaked in red lighting looked like city walls stained with blood, and the advertisements flashing on the billboards blinked like prayers worshipping ‘pleasure’ as a god.
Laughter and music overflowed in the streets. The distinctive ‘stale smell’ from burning marijuana was also abundant.
Half-drunk tourists and shadows of local gangs mingled here and there,
and when black limousines glided by, fights would break out in the side alleys.
But no one was surprised. As if it was completely natural.
No, rather they were clapping and laughing gleefully.
A scene from another world where the boundary between paradise and hell was too blurred.
For Son Wukong, who had grown accustomed to peaceful Seoul, this place was too unfamiliar a world.
‘This is my first time here too… but it’s much more chaotic than I thought.’
「The minds are all messed up too. Why did second brother come to a place like this? He was someone who liked to have fun, but… there’s nothing here, right?」
While Son Wukong muttered incomprehensible words to himself, Lee Hyeon asked to get a bit more information.
“Very flashy indeed. Last time I came, there were consecutive Dungeon Breaks and it was nothing short of hell.”
“Th, that’s all from over 10 years ago.”
“Are you saying it’s different now?”
Lee Hyeon didn’t miss the slight change in Roque’s eyes.
‘This should be enough to cause information confusion when I tell the cartel about my identity later.’
Lee Hyeon had already somewhat decided on the persona to assign to ‘Gwiroae’.
A veteran freelancer with a 10-year gap.
An arrogant and oppressive personality resembling his predecessor Zeus.
A genius spellcaster with skills in lightning techniques that no one could match.
This should definitely create distance from ‘Jet’.
So immersion in the persona was very important.
“The, the ecosystem has changed but tourist spots are, tourist spots… Rather, there are ma, many tourists who come to enjoy exotic tourism because of this.”
“Keep talking.”
“As, as you can see, this place has not only big ca, casinos, but also hotels, nightclubs, resorts, and pleasure districts like brothels.”
Lee Hyeon nodded.
Indeed, this street was full of all kinds of flashy big buildings.
“Because of that, it’s also a base for money laundering between criminal organizations, and it also becomes a major point connected with international drug networks.”
“Like your cartel?”
Roque nodded while trembling and forcing a smile.
An effort to somehow win Lee Hyeon’s favor by showing interest in Guam.
“Yes. Th, that’s right. Besides that… there are underground fighting arenas where bets are placed, and there are also markets for hu, human trafficking.”
“Interesting. Tell me more. About the structure of other areas in Guam.”
According to Roque’s explanation, current Guam could be largely classified into five districts.
The first was Tumon Strip where they were now.
A street of pleasure and luxury with Tumon Beach as the backdrop.
“Se, second is the ‘Dededo Slums’ next to this. It’s called a breeding ground for cri, criminals and ma, Mains.”
Dededo was originally a city with more population than the capital Hagåtña.
But now it consisted of old apartments, burned vehicles, and narrow alleys tangled with wires where disorder and violence were daily life.
“The most petty criminals and illegal immigrants who gathered to avoid police are there. There are also many aspiring members who want to join cartels like the Axis of Evil, and many organizations visit for the same purpose.”
New criminal organizations often grew independently and went outside.
That’s why the nickname was ‘breeding ground’.
It was easy to select talent.
“Third is… the ‘Apra Harbor District’ located in the northern region of Guam. There are many rusty containers and cranes, and quite a few pirate ships.”
“There must be many shadow branches of military companies?”
Suddenly, Lee Hyeon’s eyes lit up.
It was his main specialty.
“Ri, right. Pirate crews and PMCs (mercenary companies) are gathered there, so many companies often hire expensive mercenaries there or give bribes to pirate crews to ca, carry out jobs.”
“There must be a lot of weapons trading and maritime smuggling too?”
“Do, do you need any particular items…?”
“Is there perhaps a Black Market? Where I can get magic stones.”
“Yes! Th, there is. Since they also dismantle or trade corpses of mobs caught from the deep sea…”
“Good.”
Lee Hyeon firmly memorized the Apra Harbor District in his mind.
It would probably be the place he’d visit most often for various reasons.
“Fourth is… ‘Hagåtña Black Zone’.”
“It was originally the administrative capital, right?”
“Yes, yes! Bu, but the surface where government offices used to be is mostly ruins now, so it’s been converted into some gang’s base, and most people live underground in tunnels.”
Lee Hyeon knew somewhat about Hagåtña too.
Most of the images that come to mind when thinking of current ‘Guam’ originated from Hagåtña Black Zone.
Starting with all kinds of criminal organizations including the Axis of Evil, triads, yakuza, and mafia coexist, and even various intelligence agencies like the US CIA, Chinese MSS, and Russian SVR operate in the shadows.
“I, information trading and awakened trafficking also take place there, but… I don’t know the details well either. So, someone like me, a ‘scum’, isn’t even given the chance to approach…”
Lee Hyeon nodded.
Guam was a lawless city but also a thoroughly class-based city.
Low-class sudras could never enter high-class areas like Hagåtña. When attempted, it meant immediate execution.
“Moreover, the ‘mine’ connects from here, so information is barely exposed to the outside.”
Mine.
Slang for the coastal area where seawater pouring from deep-sea Gates first touches land.
Since they could catch sea beasts and receive unlimited supply of high-quality magic stones, many upper forces colluded to never open Hagåtña to outsiders.
That way they could monopolize magic stones among themselves.
‘They call those Sea Beast Stones separately, right? They’re said to be high quality among magic stone types. Particularly excellent ones are auctioned at very high prices.’
Lee Hyeon had to go to this mine.
Right there,
“That mine leads directly to the fifth zone, the ‘Challenger Abyssal Gate’, doesn’t it?”
“Y-yes, that’s correct.”
Challenger Abyssal Gate.
A place also known as the Deep Sea Dungeon.
It was a sealed area where the Demon King of Cunning was presumed to be located.
And,
‘The Somersault Cloud is also near there.’
[Through the ‘Sacred Relic: Golden Eyes of Truth’, you obtain a hint about the dungeon gate connected to the golden key.]
[Move to the Challenger Waters.]
‘To get to the Challenger Waters, I need to enter Hagåtña… and to get to Hagåtña, I’ll ultimately need to raise my reputation that much, right?’
This was the reason Lee Hyeon was thoroughly targeting only City Cartel establishments.
‘That way I’ll be able to sell Gwiroae at a high price in the harbor district later.’
Although various criminal organizations were colluding to establish control over Guam,
ultimately they were in a relationship where they bared their fangs at each other.
Naturally, if only the City Cartel suffered damage, the other organizations would have no choice but to rejoice.
They would probably grow more eager to hire Gwiroae at expensive prices.
‘Good. Then should I focus more on building notoriety here?’
As soon as Lee Hyeon’s plan was decided, he began flying around.
And……
Rumble!!
A hotel building that until just a few hours ago boasted one of the three tallest heights in Guam had collapsed.
“This is a nightmare. This has to be a nightmare…!!”
The last remaining City Cartel establishment on Tumon Strip.
Of course, there were still many small-scale establishments under the cartel’s control or connected to them, but all the major ones had been blown up.
Naturally, there were also many corpses scattered around the area.
The soot and smell of gunpowder left everywhere told of the fierce battles that had taken place.
“……What am I really going to do?”
Roque sat down in defeat, his pants soaked wet.
He had volunteered to be Lee Hyeon’s guide because he believed the experts at other establishments would take care of Lee Hyeon.
But this way, he had actually led them to their deaths.
Without realizing it, he had become a traitor who delivered his familia to the enemy.
On the other hand,
“……Damn it. I came here to rest and what the hell is this mess.”
“Wasn’t this resort run by the Drug King’s organization!? I thought it would be far from anything like war, but it’s turned out like this…!”
“The Drug King’s reputation has also plummeted to rock bottom. Damn it. I couldn’t even pack my clothes properly, so how am I going to handle tomorrow’s business meeting?”
Unlike Roque, the guests who had fled from the resort hotel were grinding their teeth in frustration.
Naturally, most of them were upper-class individuals that someone like Roque wouldn’t dare look in the face.
They were greatly disappointed in Nayeli and had decided to exclude the cartel from future dealings.
“Hahahaha! Even the resort got completely destroyed!”
“Those cartel bastards, I knew they’d end up like this from the moment they pushed us all out and built their buildings!”
“This is so satisfying, really!!”
There were also many onlookers besides them.
Members of organizations that usually didn’t get along with the City Cartel,
or those who hated the Drug King’s oppressive rule but lacked the power to show it.
They were all enjoying this situation like a festival, each holding a beer in one hand and marijuana in their mouths.
Though contrasting, Tumon Strip was heating up with the atmosphere of a major war for the first time in a long while.
At that moment,
“You damn bastard!!”
The resort manager, Anaconda Romero, burst with rage as he grabbed a Gatling-style machine gun he had dragged up from the underground storage.
He too was one of the closest candidates to the Drug King’s fingers. He was the manager of the Guam branch, and his inherited legacy was Gualichu, a demon from the South American region.
An entity said to govern curses and evil, disasters and fortune.
But today, those curses and disasters seemed to have fallen on him instead of Gwiroae.
His burning gaze was firmly fixed on Lee Hyeon, who was wrapped in a cloud of dust.
Lee Hyeon showed his skill in blowing up buildings yet didn’t show even a hint of disturbance in his complexion.
This fanned Anaconda’s anger even more.
He was going to die by the boss’s hand anyway.
Then at least that bastard’s neck…!
“Die!!!”
Brrrrrrap!!
Six barrels rotated as hundreds and thousands of shell casings were ejected in an instant.
These were magic bullets loaded with curses and disasters as he squeezed his mana circuits to their limit.
The gangsters hiding in the collapsed debris were the same.
They poured their mana into their guns and fired wildly. Some even pulled out bazookas and fired them.
A tremendous network of fire that was like a real battlefield.
[The legacy ‘Evil Spirit That Brings Curses and Disasters’ dominates the battlefield with its malevolent energy!]
The dust cloud was torn apart like rags, and just as Lee Hyeon seemed about to be swept away,
Tap!
He lightly struck the rune staff on the ground, and white current spread out in concentric circles along the surface.
ᛇ.
Simultaneously, a hemispherical barrier expanded to envelop Lee Hyeon.
Bzzzzing!!
[The ‘Thunder Whale’ coils around to protect you!]
The barrage of thousands of bullets came to a precarious stop right in front of Lee Hyeon.
Crack! Crackle!
Electric current sparked between the bullets.
“……F-fuck.”
Seeing this, Anaconda turned pale and spat out curses,
[The ‘Thunder Whale’ violently swings its tail!]
[A White Tsunami occurs!]
And those became his last words.
The barrage returned along the exact trajectory it had come from. Loaded with even more powerful electric current.
Kaboom kaboom kaboom!!
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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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