I Just Subscribed and It’s the Best Hunter of All Time - Chapter 54
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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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#Episode 54.
Countless people streamed through the streets.
Neon signs blazed brilliantly overhead when one looked up, yet the faces of those passing through bore deep shadows.
As if the brighter the light shone, the darker the shadows it cast.
Jung Han-sung walked through these streets with his head slightly bowed, murmuring softly.
“Onyx.”
―Why do you call me, Master?
“Have you ever seen streets like these?”
―No. But I have heard tales of them.
“You’ve heard of them?”
―Yes.
Onyx answered as if it were obvious.
―The Tower has devoured countless worlds and is connected to even more beyond that.
I already knew well that The Tower connected to other worlds.
I had actually met someone from one of those worlds before—and one of them was even an elf.
―This place must be one of those countless worlds. Among the various worlds, there was said to be one with particularly ornate streets and foul air. This looks exactly like that place.
Indeed, the streets were as dazzling as described, and the air was equally unpleasant. It wasn’t so much a revolting stench as the sensation of inhaling smoke billowing from factory chimneys.
“I see… multiple worlds, then.”
Specific information about other worlds was restricted by a gag order.
So I had only recently come to properly understand their existence, and I hadn’t given it much thought yet.
‘True. There’s no reason other worlds should all look the same.’
I had only heard fragmentary stories about Elion’s and Hank’s worlds, but the difference from Earth was unmistakably palpable.
So there was nothing strange about a world like this existing.
Then Onyx spoke again.
―Usually, a mission’s difficulty correlates with which floor it’s on. The fact that a place like this hasn’t appeared before likely means it has higher difficulty than the locations we’ve visited while climbing The Tower. Master.
“That’s a reasonable way to think about it.”
I nodded in agreement.
It was a fairly compelling argument.
A mission’s difficulty was deeply connected to its location after all.
‘That’s why lower floors had such simple locations.’
Just moderately spacious areas with some monsters standing around, or perhaps a cave with some basic traps.
Conversely, the higher I climbed, the more complex and dangerous the locations became.
In that sense, this place didn’t appear to be an easy stage either.
‘It’s like they’ve transplanted an entire section of a city here.’
This time, my objective was to find and eliminate an entity called Psycho Jack.
If it were a moderately-sized cave, finding him wouldn’t be particularly difficult.
But in a sprawling city like this, the search itself would be extraordinarily challenging.
That’s probably why I was given a generous time limit.
―In a massive city like this, finding someone wouldn’t be easy. Master.
I nodded at Onyx’s words. Certainly, normally that would be the case.
I had no idea where to start.
“So I need to use my ability.”
But Jung Han-sung was far from ordinary.
I opened the subscription window, scrolled through my registered channels, and immediately selected the one I needed.
Now the process took mere seconds.
[You have subscribed to Cassandra’s Vague Intuition channel using a Bronze Ticket]
[This subscription is valid for 4 hours]
The moment I subscribed, a familiar sensation flooded through my body.
I paused in place, eyes closed as I adjusted to the feeling, then opened them again.
Soon, I turned my body according to my intuition and began walking.
‘The duration has increased.’
Cassandra’s Vague Intuition was a channel I’d been using for quite some time.
I’d found it useful in many ways—finding paths, bypassing traps, searching for spoils.
I’d secretly hoped it would become a skill of its own, but unfortunately, no separate skill had been created.
Instead, the validity period was increasing with each subscription.
I vaguely theorized that the system extended the duration as I grew more familiar with the ability.
―There’s a dangerous atmosphere hanging over these streets.
Onyx’s words pulled me from my thoughts, and I looked ahead.
Following my intuition, I’d unknowingly wandered into a street with a distinctly different atmosphere.
“It’s dark.”
Neon signs still adorned buildings here and there, but most were in poor condition.
Some flickered as if broken, others were dim, and still others were completely dark.
As a result, the streets below were darker than elsewhere.
And with each step I took, I felt eyes following me.
From an elderly man in tattered clothes sprawled on the ground. From a man lurking furtively in an alley.
And their gazes carried malicious intent.
‘This is refreshing in its own way.’
Usually, those I encounter while climbing The Tower are enemies.
The gazes they send are mostly uniform—sticky and burning with murderous intent.
These gazes, by contrast, carried less killing intent.
Not none, but rather greed, curiosity, and base desire felt stronger.
Like the gaze of a predator sizing up prey.
Can I swallow this? Can’t I? That kind of measuring gaze.
It was a decent atmosphere for maintaining appropriate tension. My mind, which had been growing slightly lax, tightened again.
―So where are we going now, Master?
“Who knows.”
I answered in a calm tone.
To those watching me, it would look like I was muttering to myself while staring into empty space, but I didn’t particularly mind.
When I passed through earlier, I’d seen more than a few people talking to themselves.
Though most of them had their eyes half-glazed over.
“It seems to be around here somewhere.”
I continued forward, my eyes sweeping across the surroundings.
The channel I had subscribed to wasn’t a clear intuition or a sharp one—it was ‘vague’ intuition.
I could sense a general direction, but not the precise distance or specifics.
So I had no choice but to keep following that feeling.
After walking for quite some time.
“Ah.”
My footsteps came to a halt at one spot. It was a small building with a sign reading “Oasis Bar.”
Seeing it, I couldn’t help but let out a quiet chuckle.
‘A bar. So it’s a tavern, then.’
Now that I thought about it, whenever I watched works set in cyberpunk worlds, there was always a scene where the protagonist visits a place like this. To gather information.
Without hesitation, I walked toward the bar before me, grasped the door handle, and pushed.
Creak—
The door swung open, and the interior came into view at once.
Despite its name, the Oasis Bar reeked of stale alcohol the moment I stepped inside.
I grimaced at the smell and entered, and with each step, a sticky squelching sound echoed beneath my feet.
‘Did they spray adhesive on the floor or something?’
It felt like the floor hadn’t been cleaned in years.
But I quickly composed myself and surveyed the interior.
People were scattered sparsely throughout, yet the atmosphere itself was surprisingly calm. And their appearances were quite peculiar.
Most had weapons hanging from their waists, or parts of their bodies were metallic.
Moreover, quite a few of them were drinking with guns laid out on their tables.
I wondered if this was simply how this world was, but the people on the streets when I first opened my eyes didn’t have this kind of feel at all.
These people were probably the unusual ones.
In any case, with those thoughts in mind, I walked toward the bar counter, where a woman with an expression of utter indifference asked me a question.
“What’ll you have?”
“Here. Do you deal in information as well?”
At my question, the woman looked at me with an annoyed expression.
“What are you going to drink?”
“I don’t have any money.”
“Then why did you waltz in here?”
Her tone grew sharper.
But I paid it no mind and spoke again.
“Don’t you accept goods in trade?”
Then I reached into my pocket and pulled out my hand, which now held a piece of gold.
It was natural enough—The Tower frequently rewarded precious metals as loot.
The woman’s eyes lit up. The moment I placed the gold piece on the bar, she immediately covered it with a cloth in her hand, then smiled and spoke.
“Ask me anything you’d like. Ah, your throat must be parched—shall I pour you a beer?”
Her tone had instantly become friendly.
I let out a quiet laugh and replied.
“Good.”
“Wait a moment.”
The woman immediately walked to the refrigerator, retrieved a beer bottle, and set it down before speaking.
“So what information are you looking for?”
“Psycho Jack. Do you know that name?”
The woman’s eyes, which had been gleaming with amusement, hardened slightly at the mention of Psycho Jack.
She then looked me over carefully before opening her mouth.
“A Hunter?”
Hunter. I wasn’t entirely sure what that meant precisely, but the word alone gave me a rough understanding of its meaning.
So I simply nodded lightly.
The woman let out a small sigh before speaking again.
“So, what exactly do you need to know?”
“Everything you know.”
“Everything.”
The woman frowned slightly before speaking.
“Psycho Jack. A lunatic doing all sorts of crazy things around here in Brickline recently.”
“What kind of things specifically?”
“I was about to tell you anyway. Well, he tears out organs and decorates them on walls. He cuts off heads and displays them. That sort of thing?”
A true psychotic killer.
A name that suits him perfectly, I’d say.
“How is no one catching him if he’s doing such things?”
“They’re not catching him because there’s no money in it.”
“Money?”
“Yeah. He carefully targets only those who won’t cause problems—the homeless. Who’s going to care if a few vagrants disappear?”
Well, on Earth they certainly would. But it seems things are different here.
“In any case, that’s why the bounty is barely pocket change.”
“So there is a bounty then.”
“Yeah. The lowlifes pooled their money together and put a price on his head. Whether there’s honor among the downtrodden, or whether they’re just afraid of becoming targets themselves.”
From her tone, the woman clearly believed the latter.
I gathered various other pieces of information after that. Once I’d heard enough of the story.
As I began to rise from my seat, the woman asked a question.
“What’s your name? I have a feeling we’ll be seeing each other often. By the way, my name is Caliya.”
I hesitated for a moment before answering the woman who had introduced herself as Caliya.
“Han. Just call me that.”
“Alright. Han. I’ll remember that.”
Caliya said so with a slight smirk.
I nodded and then left the Oasis Bar.
―So now we’re going to find that client or whatever?
The moment I stepped outside, Onyx asked again.
Caliya had recommended that I meet with the client to gather more detailed information. She said they likely had more clues.
That’s probably one of the orthodox routes.
Meet the client, gather information from them, then explore based on that intel.
Eventually, I’d reach Psycho Jack, the serial killer.
But Han-sung shook his head.
“No.”
I already had enough clues.
The moment Caliya mentioned the locations where Psycho Jack frequently committed his crimes and the witness testimonies, a sharp tingle shot through my mind.
Its meaning was simple.
My intuition had recognized a new target.
Standing in the Streets for a moment, Han-sung’s eyes gleamed as he surveyed his surroundings.
“It’s that way.”
Cassandra’s intuition guided him—toward the darker Streets.
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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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