SSS-Class Sui**de Hunter - Chapter 34

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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 34. My Death (1)
1
Yes. I’ve come back again.
Now I can say that I have truly “returned” to this place.
[Randomly copying the skills of the Monster Autumn Rain Demon King.]
The pit where consciousness falls away. The Underworld.
My hell.
People called me a loser. I was a loser. And it was this place that gave me a chance. When I burned to death, engulfed in flames named Yeom Je, I did not let slip the final opportunity the tower had given me.
Why?
[Forming a Skill Card.]
Why had the tower given me such an opportunity in the first place?
It was the same question as “why did the tower grant such power to a psychopath like Yu Suha?” Why gift such a chance to someone like me—a nobody who only lurked in communities and burned with jealousy?
—I’ve seen all the skills you have.
Bae Huryeong spoke.
—Shall I read them to you now?
‘Yes, please.’
—Okay!
Perhaps the tower had regrets.
As I listened to the skills Bae Huryeong recited, I thought to myself.
Perhaps the tower had grown disappointed in the attitudes displayed by the hunters.
+
[Resentment Flows Like Rain]
Rank: S-
Effect: They do not see. They cannot perceive. People believe that what they cannot see before their eyes does not exist. “They are those whose eyes have been blinded.” That is correct. “Ignorant creatures.”
Then show them.
Show them clearly how many lives have perished in their ignorance. For every drop of blood innocent spilled in this world, the heavens will gladly rain crimson upon them.
※However, only the blood you have directly witnessed will fall as rain.
+
Yeom Je Yu Suha had without doubt shattered the tenth floor Stage.
Not shattered in the sense of cleared it. He had shattered it, ignoring entirely the resentments, grievances, and grudges the dolls possessed—shattering it in the most literal sense.
Had the tower found that regrettable?
Had it been disappointed?
‘What’s the next skill?’ I asked.
—This one.
Bae Huryeong replied.
+
[The Heart Echoes and Howls]
Rank: A+
Effect: Using your emotions as fuel, you strengthen your aura. The stronger the emotion, the more your aura responds. Vengeance, hatred, sorrow, joy and anger—any emotion will do. Fire consumes all wood without discrimination.
※However, you will grow increasingly addicted to that emotion.
+
‘…….’
I took time to consider.
Yes. The tower must surely have been disappointed.
‘There is a Hidden Quest on every floor.’
Just as there had been a quest to console the dolls in the Fiery Hell Mansion.
Perhaps… there was a Hidden Quest hidden somewhere on the twelfth floor as well.
Precisely because I wanted to uncover it, I listened intently to everything Bae Huryeong said.
+
[Hundred Ghosts Summoning]
Rank: SS
Effect: You summon those you have directly killed as monsters. The dead do not inherit their former abilities. They do not inherit their memories either. They are merely summoned as monsters—goblins, orcs, zombies, skeletons, and the like.
※However, you may only summon once per week.
+
Besides these, there were many minor skills as well.
But the three skills that stayed with me were these.
‘…Good.’
I nodded.
‘I’ve decided.’
Which skill I would choose.
How to clear the Stages from Floor 12, no—
all the way to Floor 20.
‘I’ll go with this.’
—Huh?
My choice seemed to catch him off guard.
Bae Huryeong tilted his head.
—That one? Hmm? I’m not so sure about that.
‘No, but it’ll be the best option for clearing at least to Floor 20.’
—Well, I don’t know… but fine. Go ahead and do what you want. I can’t say I understand your thinking, but you’ll probably pull some scheme out anyway.
‘Please watch.’
I reached toward the card and paused. ‘Say, sir. You’re quite familiar with the Sword Saint’s daily schedule, aren’t you?’
—Huh? Well, I do know it. Old Marcus has his schedule set tight as a drum from dawn to dusk. Complete codger, he is.
‘Tell me about his evening routine. I have a use for it.’
—Sure, why not.
I grasped the card.
A voice echoed through the darkness.
[Selection complete. Skill copied.]
[Regressing 24 hours.]
And so I returned to one day before.
[Your current Hunter Rank is D-class.]
[Penalty incurred from skill use.]
[Recreating trauma from the enemy who killed you.]
Of course there was a penalty.
I experienced the trauma of the so-called Autumn Rain Demon King himself—but.
For now, I had to solve the problem of Floor 12 first.
[Penalty severity: moderate.]
[Hungry Ghost Realm.]
Us.
Let’s talk about that nightmare a little later.
2
Bae Huryeong had taught me how to live one second at a time.
That humans can scarcely manage to truly live even a single second.
This time, I felt it acutely and without question.
“…You’re leaving already?”
The Cafe.
The Witch sat in her chair, looking up at me.
Not only the Witch. The heads of the Major Guilds all fixed their eyes on me, each wearing a different expression. Among them was the Count, who had died from the Demon King’s blow on Floor 12, now offering a subtle smile as he fanned himself with a silk fan.
The Cafe in the Floor 1 City.
The place where I had forged my pact with the guild masters.
That was where I had returned.
‘One day.’
Anew, I grasped just how vast twenty-four hours truly was.
It was dizzying.
In a single day, we had opened a new era, cleared Floor 11, and faced the Demon King in combat on Floor 12. And yet—good heavens—all of it had unfolded in less than a day.
“…Yes. Floor 11 will open in a bit, won’t it?”
My throat tightened slightly.
I cleared the tightness with a cough and spoke.
“If we’re not to fall behind, we need to prepare starting now.”
“How do you prepare when we don’t even know what Floor 11 will be like?”
“……”
Floor 11 presents no real difficulty.
The problem begins on Floor 12, where the Demon King intervenes.
There, you all fracture.
Someone betrays, and from that betrayal, you shatter.
People even die.
“…Kim Gongja?”
The Witch’s brows narrowed.
“Are you alright? Your expression just went strange. Does something hurt?”
“No. I’m fine. It’s just… you’re all leading such impressive Guilds, and here I am at this table. It just got to me a little. I suppose I’m feeling the weight of the moment.”

I continued speaking in an even tone.
Bae Huryeong watched me in silence the entire time.
“Regardless, yes. That’s right. Everyone, I know what Floor 11 is like. More than that—I know the quest contents of Floor 11 as well.”
“…!”
The guild masters’ eyes sharpened.
Information was as vital as life itself. I had essentially told them that I knew hints to the problem upon which their very survival depended. Their complexions changing was only natural.
“When I cleared Floor 10, I received information as a reward.”
“…and the reason you’re revealing this here and now is.”
The Witch opened her lips.
“You’re willing to share that information with us—is that how we should interpret it?”
“Of course.”
I raised a finger.
“However, there is a condition.”
“Tell us. I will listen gladly.”
“If I ask you for a favor someday, I ask that you grant it just once.”
I looked at each of the hunters seated around the table. Upon hearing my words, they fell into contemplative silence. A favor. The word was light yet heavy all at once.
“What sort of favor?”
“I cannot tell you now.”
“…….”
“But I can swear this here and now: it will not be a favor that threatens your lives. It will not be a request for money. I will not ask you to take another person’s life. If it seems to you that the favor is impossible, you may simply refuse it when the time comes.”
“Hmm.”
The Inquisitor stroked his chin.
His right hand.
The very hand that had been severed by the Sword Saint’s blade in the previous cycle.
“It sounds most reasonable to my ears. To be frank, the terms are extraordinarily favorable! Ha. If we have information, we can prepare in advance, and if we can prepare in advance, there are very few problems we cannot solve. I am in favor of this!”
“Hmm. If we retain the right to refuse… I too am in favor.”
The Inquisitor agreed, and the Count concurred.
The remaining hunters each finished their deliberation in turn, and promised to accept my condition.
‘Okay.’
Phase one complete.
“Then I shall tell you. Floors 11 through 20 take place in an otherworld called the Aikeim Empire. That place is under invasion from the Demon King, and Floor 11 is a battlefield where they battle over supply routes…….”
My voice flowed softly through the Cafe.
Once they had heard all the information about Floor 11, the guild masters murmured among themselves.
“…Indeed. Floors up to 10 are the Tutorial. From Floor 11 onward, they say we’ll even become entangled in large-scale warfare.”
“Information worth its weight in gold.”
“Yes! The nature of combat will change entirely!”
“I should leak some of this information to my guild members. Sigh. But our younger folk have no talent for combat whatsoever…….”
The hunters engaged in spirited discussion.
I nodded.
‘With this, we can clear Floor 11 far more smoothly.’
Things were already shifting.
Unlike the previous cycle, much has already changed with this alone.
Yet it still was not enough.
“Then I’ll take my leave now…. Ah, Paladin.”
“Hmm?”
The Paladin turned her head. She was sipping her third Americano through a straw.
“What is it?”
“You’re the vice-captain of the Self-Guard Guild, yes? Would you like to take a walk outside with me? There’s something I’d like to discuss with you during a brief stroll.”
“Hmm.”
The Paladin glanced around and shrugged.
“Well, I was thinking of getting up soon anyway. As long as the walk doesn’t take too long…….”
“It won’t take long. About thirty minutes should suffice.”
“Then I’m fine with it.”
The Paladin set down her coffee cup.
“I shall graciously accept your date invitation.”
3
A city teeming with people.
In the Plaza, on benches beside fountains, in Outdoor Restaurants—hunters everywhere were chattering about Floor 10.
“The fact that there’s been no official announcement means it must have been cleared by an unknown newcomer!”
“How could that be? They’re probably just coordinating something among the Major Guilds.”
“I wonder who actually cleared it…….”
“I want to clear a Stage too.”
Murmur, murmur.
For those whose tomorrows had been deleted, clearing Floor 10 was an event that had unfolded mere moments ago.
There’s something strange about walking through time alone, untouched by deletion.
-Hey, zombie.
Well, not quite alone, to be precise.
-Keep following. Stay close.
Bae Huryeong is attached to me.
‘Are you sure about this?’
-Sure. Don’t look back, though.
There are two conditions necessary to clear Floor 12 safely.
One is that the leaders of the Major Guilds will cooperate with me.
The other is… that the Sword Saint doesn’t turn hostile toward me.
‘If I go to Floor 12 and try to clear up the Sword Saint’s misunderstanding, it’ll already be too late.’
I felt it keenly in the last cycle.
‘I need to clear up the misunderstanding before climbing the Tower.’
The Sword Saint’s relationship with the Guild leaders is extremely poor.
If he draws his blade on me, he automatically becomes an enemy to the Guild leaders as well. They’re already at each other’s throats, and now a traitor bomb lands on top of that?
That’s the shortest path to ruin.
-Wow, flawless work. You should see the tailing technique. Zombie, even if you turned around, you probably wouldn’t notice. Old Man Marcus has Stealth Skills too.
‘I understand, so just keep checking if you’re following properly.’
So I was currently [fishing] for the Sword Saint.
I’d learned his daily schedule from Bae Huryeong, timed my movements to match it, and deliberately put myself in his line of sight. The Sword Saint was eating dinner at his usual Outdoor Restaurant when he spotted me. He stopped his meal and immediately began tailing me.
Of course.
“Kim Gongja, where exactly are we heading?”
The Paladin walking beside me doesn’t know any of this.
“This alley will just lead us to a dark, dreary neighborhood…….”
“There’s a shop I’d like to introduce you to.”
“A shop?”
“Yes. It’s run by a Pharmacist with no name to speak of, and her skills are genuinely excellent. If word got out about her, she’d be wildly successful, but since it hasn’t, business has been sluggish. If you’d take a look and think she’s worthwhile, let’s help boost her business a bit.”
“Hmm…….”
The Paladin walked beside me, studying my expression.
I knew what she was doing.
‘She’s activated her Lie Detection.’
The Paladin spoke.
“Is what you just said truly accurate?”
“Yes, of course. Why would I lie to you?”
I really am going to introduce the Pharmacist’s shop, so it isn’t a lie.
“I’m asking out of an abundance of caution, but you’re not plotting something suspicious, are you?”
“I’m seeking your help. Even if danger arises, my life is at risk, not yours. Please, trust me.”
“Hmm.”
The Paladin nodded slowly.
It would have all registered as truth.
“I’m sorry.”
The Paladin smiled.
“People always tell me I’m overly suspicious. Let’s go on.”
Okay. We’re through.
We passed through the alley and arrived safely at the Pharmacist’s shop. As it happened, she was moving heavy cargo—perhaps she’d just acquired new equipment. When she saw the two of us approaching, she tilted her head at first, but the moment she recognized my face, she broke into a bright smile.
“Ah! A customer!”
“Are you still open, boss?”
“Aha ha. Business hours are over, but I must always open my shop for my customers! You were my very first regular, after all. Let’s get to it!”
The Pharmacist set down her cargo.
Just days ago, her hair and clothes had been disheveled, but now she was completely transformed. She’d been to a salon and bought new clothes—she now genuinely exuded the air of a respectable shop owner.
“Phew. Oh, my apologies. Customer. And who is this person……?”
“This is a hunter serving as deputy guild leader at the Self-Guard Guild. You’ve heard of her, I’m sure? Her alias is the Paladin.”
“…What?”
The Pharmacist’s eyes wavered behind her glasses.
“D-Deputy guild leader of the Self-Guard Guild?”
“Yep.”
“You’re someone impossibly far above us!”
Still, this reaction was normal enough for a common Hunter.
“I—I mean, Deputy Commander of the Self-Guard Guild, what brings you to our humble shop? Hick! Drugs? Is this a drug raid? I—I never manufactured drugs! Sure, I’m running a business in an alley like this, but drugs especially, no, not just drugs but any harmful medication—I’ve absolutely never produced even a single gram!”
“…….”
“I’ve lived with a clear conscience! I’ll keep living that way! So please, just overlook this inspection!”
The Pharmacist had thrown herself flat on the ground.
It was not a normal reaction.
“Hmm…….”
The Paladin wore a perplexed expression. According to her Lie Detection skill, all of those words were true. She seemed torn between regarding the Pharmacist before her as some eccentric madwoman or as a scrupulous businesswoman.
“Now, now. Proprietor. Don’t you worry.”
Pat-pat.
I gave the Pharmacist’s shoulder a few reassuring taps.
“I came here not to turn you in to the Self-Guard Guild. You’re so skilled, your heart is so pure.”
“You… you mean……?”
“For someone with your talent, your shop’s business is far too slow. I felt terrible about it, so I came to introduce you to the Deputy Commander here.”
The Pharmacist lifted her head, her mouth falling open.
“An introduction, you say……?”
“Exactly that. Let the Deputy Commander sample different types of potions from you. Who knows? If she finds the medicine’s effects acceptable, she might offer you an exclusive contract.”
“…….”
“Once you start supplying potions to the Self-Guard Guild, won’t your life become much easier?”
The Pharmacist blinked.
It seemed to take her a moment to grasp what I was saying.
A moment later, she seized my hand.
“You’re… you’re an angel……!”
An angel—no, Gongja.
“You saved my shop from being sold, you placed a huge order, and now… now you’re even opening a sales channel for me…. Are you truly an angel…. How could I ever repay such kindness……?”
In that moment, the shopkeeper who would one day be known as the Philosopher’s Stone Pharmacist’s eyes gleamed with hope.
Thud.
Footsteps echoed down the quiet alley. The sound was unusually heavy, so the Paladin, the Pharmacist, and I all turned to look.
“…You there.”
The owner of those footsteps wore a black suit.
“Everyone but that man—step aside.”
And he fixed me with a cold stare.
The Sword Saint.
The old man of this loop who still didn’t trust me.
The aged swordmaster’s voice rang softly through the alley.
“This old man wishes to have a quiet word with that person alone.”
Good.
It was time to clear Stage 2 conditions.
SSS-Rank Hunter: Must Die to Live (Ongoing Serial)
Author | Shin Noa
Publisher | Kim Ju-hyung
Published by | J Plus Media Co., Ltd.
Marketing | Han Jae-hyuk
Address | 204, 288 Digital-ro, Guro-gu, Seoul (Guro-dong, Daelung Post Tower 1st)
Email | [email protected]
Website | www.jayplemedia.com
© Shin Noa 2019
※This work has been published by J Plus Media Co., Ltd. in accordance with a contract with the copyright holder, and its contents may not be used in any form or by any means without permission from the company and author.
Violation of this may result in criminal and civil legal liability.

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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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