I Inherited the Basement of the Tower - Chapter 48

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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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Inherited the Basement 1 of the Tower – Episode 48

The auction concluded, and people gradually left their seats.
The once-packed grand hall slowly revealed empty spaces.

“Hunter Kang Ha-jin. Would you care to join us for a meal?”

The Association President suggested dinner, but I couldn’t accept right now.
I had come to the auction partly to verify the composition of the raid party members.
But there was another reason as well.

‘Gaebang.’

Fortunately, their distinctive martial arts film-like attire made them stand out even from a distance.
Among the crowd heading outside, only two people wore such outfits straight out of a wuxia movie.
Choi Yeon-su, the guild master of Gaebang, and guild member Park Eun-ji.

“Boss?”

Jeong Min-hee grabbed my arm.
She seemed worried about my distracted state.
But.

“My apologies. Please head back first. I have someone to meet. Association President, I’ll be taking my leave.”

I didn’t wait for a response and bolted.
The two were already heading out the door.

* * *

It took a while to push through the crowd before I finally made it outside.
I could see them in the distance.

Thud!

I stomped the ground as if charging into a dungeon.
But they were already boarding a vehicle.

Vroom—!

“Damn it.”

The car slid out of the auction house.
I watched the receding vehicle like a dog chasing a fleeing chicken.
But it wasn’t entirely without gain.

Whoosh—.

【You have acquired 1 Darkness Stat.】
-Current count: 43.

I had extracted darkness from Choi Yeon-su’s body.
I moved a small amount of darkness back and forth in my hand.

“So, what now?”

This confirmed it.
There was definitely something going on.
Under normal circumstances, darkness wouldn’t be expelled like this.
When I had relieved the fatigue of the previous Archive Team Leader, I hadn’t acquired any darkness.
That was the norm.

‘Unless, like the Association President, she obtained a curse as a backlash from using her abilities.’

The power of Nix’s offspring, obtained from a special dungeon floor.
Could that be what caused the problem?
For now, I could only speculate.

‘I should arrange to meet her again later.’

The bestial voice I’d heard over the phone before, Choi Hyeon-min’s testimony about his sister going mad, and most crucially, the Darkness Stat itself.
Even if it wasn’t related to Nix, there might be something I could help with, just like with the Association President.

‘Of course, it wouldn’t be free.’

Though pushed back by Taesan, the Open Guild is still one of South Korea’s five major guilds.
Just searching their warehouse would yield plenty.
Then, I sensed a presence nearby.
It could happen in an open public space, but whoever it was, they were approaching me.

“…Over there.”

I turned around, wondering if it was a reporter.
The face was familiar yet utterly unexpected.

“Huh?”
“Hello, I’m Lee Jung-hun, the one running the Yeomyeong Guild.”

He was probably in his late thirties, but his gaunt appearance made him look like a man in his fifties.

‘I was planning to investigate anyway.’

Not that I’m complaining—a pheasant replaced by a chicken, so to speak.
I’d missed Choi Yeon-su, but the Yeomyeong Guild Master Lee Jung-hun had approached me first.

“Ah, I don’t have a business card on me. It’s nice to meet you. I’m Kang Ha-jin.”
“I know. Just having you speak with me like this is an honor.”

Exhaustion and a deflated voice.
It was probably related to the three guild members who had gone missing.

“Is something the matter?”

I asked, pretending not to know.
At that, Lee Jung-hun flinched in surprise, his lips twisting in anguish.

“…I, I’m not sure. Why I even stopped you, Hunter Kang Ha-jin. *Ugh*. I’m sorry. You must be busy.”

He was suffering.
There was something he wanted to say, but he couldn’t seem to say it.
Why?

‘…Could it be.’

I expanded my sensory perception to detect everything around me.
I had never attempted this before.
However, I recalled the hint I had obtained during the third task to activate Nix’s power.

‘The time of day isn’t night, but.’

Even with only 5% of my power unlocked, I had been filled with a sense of omnipotence that I could do anything.
One of those possibilities was this.

‘Shadows exist even in daylight.’

I could fill what was lacking by releasing darkness.

Whoosh.

I spread darkness so faintly it was invisible to the eye, dispersing it as widely as possible.
It would become my eyes and ears.

‘Find those who carry killing intent.’

【The Black Dragon’s Consciousness resonates with your intention.】
【Detection commencing.】

Whoosh—!

“Ugh—.”

In an instant, Lee Jung-hun’s cry faded into the distance.
His face vanished from my field of vision.
My five senses broke free from the body’s constraints and expanded endlessly.
After the Black Dragon’s Consciousness responded, I no longer needed to manipulate the darkness individually.
Just as Black Armor formed clothing that reflected my intentions.
The Black Dragon moved like another brain stationed outside my body.
Not quite to the level of the magic Elder Barkalor wielded, nor the sensory perception Yahwi displayed.
Yet considerable information flowed into me.
My proficiency was still lacking—I couldn’t hear clear voices or form distinct images.
But I could sense vague presences.

‘Irritation and rage, loneliness, despair, fear….’

Since the nature of the power was darkness, I detected primarily dark emotions.

【The Black Dragon completes its role and withdraws.】

And finally, I found it.

‘Two powerful killing intents directed at this place.’

Though the distance was too great to hear their voices.
They were clearly emanating killing intent toward Lee Jung-hun and me.

‘So Yahwi and Barkalor can activate this constantly.’

It was certainly convenient.
It could prevent most surprise attacks.
Then, the Black Dragon responded to my thoughts.

Ding!
【The Black Dragon says it will remember the detection process from just now.】
【It strongly insists that since it will also die if you die, you must not fall victim to surprise attacks.】
【The Black Dragon will respond whenever you desire from now on.】

‘Interesting.’

It remembers the process I just performed and will do it automatically.
Isn’t this essentially another brain?

【The Black Dragon says the activation command for this technique is ‘Near Ink, Self Black’.】

Perhaps it chose that name because dark emotions were detected within the darkness.

‘…That naming sense is really something.’

Very much like the ‘Black Dragon’.
At least it didn’t include ‘Black Flame’ in the middle, so that’s something.
In any case, I could guess the identities of the two beings emanating killing intent toward this place.

Whoosh.

After my restored vision and hearing had time to adjust slightly.
I extended my business card toward Lee Jung-hun.

“Let’s pretend you never received this.”
“Y-yes…?”
“They’re watching. They’re probably wary of whether the situation will be reported.”
“…!”

Lee Jung-hun’s eyes widened.
As if asking how I could possibly know that.
But soon he nodded, his gaze becoming clearer.
I had accumulated considerable Achievements thus far.
My name now carried that much persuasive power.

“I’ve memorized the number. I’ll contact you right away. Should any dangerous situation arise, contact the police and the Association first, and then reach out to me. If there’s anything I can help with, I will.”
“Thank you… thank you so much. *sob*”

Lee Jung-hun bowed his head, tears streaming down his face.
I wondered how this scene would appear to the two observers watching.
They wouldn’t be able to hear the conversation’s contents.
I hoped it looked like a cold-blooded person rejecting help from a small-scale guild.
Well, there’s nothing more I can do right now anyway.
I’ll wrap things up here for today.

“Then, please be careful going in. Don’t greet anyone. It might raise suspicion.”

I immediately turned and left my seat.
I didn’t forget to send a text message to Lee Jung-hun’s memorized number, revealing my contact information.
I also reached out to Hyeon-jun.

-Hyeon-jun. There are two people surveilling Yeomyeong Guild Master Lee Jung-hun. They’re probably the same ones from earlier. I don’t have confirmation, so have the Association investigate.

[Sender: Hyeon-jun]
-Yeah, don’t worry.
-The Association President was serious for the first time in a while, so the whole Association is on high alert.
-They’re handing it over to the Awakened Crime Investigation Division and conducting joint operations, so results should come quickly.
-Who could they be, anyway?

I’m uncertain about it.
I don’t have the authority to investigate.
This is the time to leave it to the experts.

‘Let me go home.’

* * *

“The boss and I are dating.”

In the Underground Temple.
Jeong Min-hee dropped a bombshell.

“What! What are you saying, Miss Jeong!”

Yahwi came rushing over with a shriek.
Eltos also glanced at me shyly.

“Customer, shall I make couple items as a memento?”

And I myself had no idea what she was talking about.

“What are you saying, Min-hee?”
“Look at this. Our dating rumor just broke.”
“But we’re not celebrities, so what dating rumor?”
“Hunters are celebrities these days, aren’t they?”

She was right.
The Hunter Network was in an uproar over today’s auction news.
From the list of special dungeon layer conquest team members, to videos remixing Park Jin-woo’s sobs into songs, to fashion galleries asking about my outfit and analysis posts on holy power items.

‘The outfit is Black Armor’s pick. I don’t even know.’

I had simply remembered a pretty outfit I saw in passing and pulled it out, so I had no knowledge of it either.
The Park Jin-woo sob remix was hilarious.
And among them, the most popular post was undoubtedly the two-shot of me and Jeong Min-hee.

“Whoever they are, they certainly took a striking photograph.”
“It’s a reporter named Mose-min, sir.”
“Who?”
“A reporter for Hunter Daily. He’s posted ten articles about you alone, not counting this one. And he’s not even a machine.”

Curious, I clicked through and found nothing but headlines that read like community posts praising me.

[Selling for 200 Billion vs. Providing for Free. Who is the ‘Sage’?]
[Park Jin-woo Falls on His Behind, Slightly Damages the Podium. Sage Faces Damages Lawsuit….]
[The Burning Friendship Leading Korea….]

Among them were articles written about my relationship with Hyeon-jun.

“Hehehehe.”

Hyeon-jun’s dumbfounded expression was a sight to behold.
I immediately captured the article and sent it to him.

[From: Hyeon-jun.]
-Do you have that reporter’s phone number?
-Looking at how he only writes articles about you, I’m sure you must have his contact info.
-Tell me quickly.

Hyeon-jun’s angry response amplified my satisfaction.

“Anyway, deny the dating rumors. It’s not real, and it’s unfair if articles keep coming out.”
“Then why not make it real?”
“…I told you to go straight home today, so why did you come to the Temple? Go home.”
“Come on, we have to celebrate! We hit the jackpot thanks to my holy power item! You’re treating us, right, boss?”

Min-hee spoke with innocent cheerfulness.
I laughed along with her.
Well, today’s success was largely thanks to Min-hee.
Even without the holy power item, I would have still become a candidate for the designation right, but nothing would have changed.
Because she completed the item with perfect timing before the auction, I was able to gain public support—the justification the Association President mentioned.

“Master! Shall we have chicken again today?”
“What? Did some ghost who died without ever eating chicken possess everyone? Consecutive chicken is too heavy!”
“Now, now, Miss Jeong! Chicken is delicious whenever you eat it! How could you refuse chicken? And… I did die without eating it.”
“What? What do you mean by that?”

I watched as Yahwi and Jeong Min-hee bickered back and forth.

Zing—
Zing—

My phone suddenly rang.
Wondering if it was Hyeon-jun upset about the article, I checked the screen—

“…Sorry, but let’s eat another time.”
“What? I already ordered.”
“Something urgent came up, so I’ll grab something outside. Please eat without me. I apologize.”

After reading the message, I rose with a hardened expression.
Black Armor responded to my intent.

Ding!
【Black Armor forms a black suit.】

“Elder.”

Whoosh—

I stepped through the open portal.
On my phone screen was a message from Hyeon-jun.

-Found the missing person from yesterday.
-I’m at the funeral home right now.

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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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