The 7th-Run Regressor Collects Calamities - Chapter 19

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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 19. Guild Office (3)
As the party emerged from the Dungeon and stepped beyond the Gate, the fading afternoon sun greeted them.
“Wow… it feels like barely an hour has passed.”
“Right? I thought it would take at least an hour, but still.”
Clear time: thirty-two minutes. A record-breaking achievement, yet the crowd’s focus wasn’t on speed—it was elsewhere entirely.
“No anomalies reported. Those two fighters were absolutely outstanding, and here’s the body camera footage.”
“Thank you.”
Under normal circumstances, the debrief would have dragged on. Today was different.
‘If I calibrate the intensity depending on the situation… the Mental Connection skill could prove useful even in long-term Dungeons.’
While Song Ji-hu weighed the utility of his Mental Connection ability, the other Hunters gathered before the supervisor with nervous anticipation.
“You did excellent work! We’ll proceed with the Mental Contamination Level measurement now!”
The supervisor approached with trembling hands, holding the Contamination Measuring Device. Three Hunters from the party swallowed hard and lined up.
Was what they’d read on community forums actually true? Could Mental Contamination Level really decrease?
All three were fighting to stay composed, but their shaking fingertips betrayed them.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
The device sounded three times, and the supervisor’s expression shifted subtly.
He checked the tablet readings twice, then three times, before looking up.
“All three of you… your contamination levels have decreased.”
After a moment of stunned silence, exclamations erupted among the Hunters.
“By how much?! How much did it drop?!”
“By one point. This Hunter here dropped by two.”
The first to react was the female Hunter who’d approached Song Ji-hu earlier to greet him. Tears welled in her eyes.
“Two points…? It really dropped by two?”
Two might seem negligible, but to Hunters it amounted to a tangible extension of their lifespan.
“Thank you… truly, thank you so much.”
The Hunters bowed repeatedly toward Song Ji-hu.
“You’re our savior.”
“This feels like a dream. Contamination actually decreasing.”
Song Ji-hu accepted their gratitude with a composed nod.
“Think nothing of it. If the opportunity arises again, I hope we can work together.”
The fact that Mental Contamination Level decreased simply by exploring a Dungeon with Song Ji-hu would now become established truth.
‘Is it the Mental Barrier’s effect? That was the only skill I used in this Dungeon…’
The moment Song Ji-hu settled into the car, his phone rang. It was Yoon Young-soo.
— Guild Master.
Through the receiver, Yoon Young-soo’s voice was lower and stiffer than usual.
— We have an urgent situation.
“Go ahead.”
— The USAA Guild Master is coming to Korea. He’s requested a private meeting with you.
USAA. United States Apex Agents.
An elite special guild under the American Hunter Union—ranked first among all Guilds worldwide.
“When?”
— Probably about ten hours from now. What would you like to do?
“That’s sooner than expected.”
The corners of Song Ji-hu’s mouth lifted. Contrary to his words, he would’ve been disappointed if it were any later.
Eun Seo-jin’s eyes sharpened from the driver’s seat—the instinctive wariness of an S-rank Hunter.
“We should meet. They’ve come a long way.”
Whether USAA, other Guilds, or the government itself—their reasons for seeking him out were obvious.
They were coming regardless. The only variable was who came first and when.
***
The next morning, early dawn.
At six in the morning, before sunlight even touched the Apartment, Yoon Young-soo arrived at Song Ji-hu’s place.
His shirt collar was pressed with typical precision, his shoes gleaming without a speck of dust.
In one hand, he carried the dossier on Rick Wesley, the USAA Guild Master they’d be meeting today.
Ding-dong.
Before the door opened, Yoon Young-soo reviewed the documents once more.
Today’s sole priority was clear: the meeting with Rick Wesley, USAA Guild Master.
Protocol routes, anticipated questions, Association guidelines, interpretation—everything was meticulous. At least within the bounds of administrative procedure as he understood it.
Click.
The door opened, and Song Ji-hu appeared.
“Good morning, Guild Master.”
“Yes, good morning.”
And right then, the door across the way opened and Eun Seo-jin stepped out as well.
“About today’s USAA meeting—the time and schedule….”
It was an organization that held more than half of the United States’ S-rank Hunters under its wing, effectively serving as the military apparatus of the American government itself.
Just as Yoon Young-soo was about to hand over the meeting documents, Song Ji-hu spoke first.
“Before that… has the land acquisition gone through?”
“…I’m sorry?”
Yoon Young-soo’s finger, poised above the papers, went still.
“The guild property purchase we discussed the day before yesterday. How is that progressing?”
Yoon Young-soo, tablet in hand, stared blankly into Song Ji-hu’s ashen eyes.
Here was this man, hours away from a meeting with the world’s number-one guild master—eyes of the entire globe upon them—asking about real estate in the Slum District.
“But… USAA, sir? Isn’t that the urgent matter right now… your priority?”
Unable to hide his bewilderment, Yoon Young-soo’s voice trembled slightly, but Song Ji-hu merely shrugged and settled back into the sofa.
“It’s urgent, yes. But it’s urgent for them, not for us.”
“The other party is the world’s number-one guild master. He even flew in on his own private jet….”
“He gave notice only yesterday, suddenly saying he’d come. We have no obligation to cancel all our schedules and go out to greet him. That’s not courtesy—that’s disrespect.”
Song Ji-hu skimmed through the materials Yoon Young-soo offered and added more.
“In any case, someone of USAA’s stature means the Association President will be the one greeting him.”
It was a point well taken. The arrival of the leader of the world’s strongest guild was no longer a mere visit—it was a diplomatic matter.
Association President Park Jung-ho would already be waiting at the Airport VIP Terminal since dawn.
In other words, whether Yoon Young-soo prepared the protocol or not made no difference. The Association would handle it.
Yoon Young-soo nodded, but a nagging discomfort lingered in a corner of his heart.
How could someone be so composed about the world’s number-one guild, even so?
“…Understood. Then let me report on the land acquisition first.”
Yoon Young-soo turned the tablet screen toward Song Ji-hu.
“We’ve completed the acquisition of all the properties you mentioned. Every available plot within a 500-meter radius of the central area.”
A map appeared on the screen, marked with red lines—the Slum District area Song Ji-hu had pinpointed yesterday.
“Currently about eighty percent of the acquisitions are in progress, and the remaining twenty percent is proceeding as well.”
“…You’ve acquired an area this large? The budget stretched that far?”
Song Ji-hu leaned closer to the screen, eyebrows lifting slightly.
He’d known Yoon Young-soo was capable, but the scope was considerably larger than he’d anticipated.
Yoon Young-soo cleared his throat.
“As you instructed, we’ve utilized several additional funding sources.”
Yoon Young-soo adjusted his glasses and moved to the next page. The funding breakdown was laid out by category.
“As per your instructions, we withdrew the Association’s maximum guild establishment support fund. And when I reported this to the Association President, he expressed his gratitude for establishing a guild office in the Slum District and transferred a portion of Association-owned property to us.”
Song Ji-hu was bypassing the prime Gangnam real estate to venture into the Slum District—it stung his pride, yet he couldn’t help but be grateful.
Moreover, with an S-rank Hunter moving into the area, the security problems in that district would resolve themselves, making it politically and administratively sound with no losses.
If anything, he could use that as leverage to voice bigger demands down the road.
“On top of that, we’ve fully utilized the borrowing capacity available under the guild’s name, Eun Seo-jin’s name, and Song Ji-hu’s name.”
Yoon Young-soo’s explanation seemed to end there, but his gaze dipped briefly downward. He added quietly:
“And… I’ve also invested part of my personal emergency fund and borrowed funds.”
Song Ji-hu’s gaze fixed on Yoon Young-soo. Yoon Young-soo adjusted his glasses and held the stare without flinching.
Yoon Young-soo had run through hundreds of simulations at his computer all night long. The conclusion was simple.
The probability that Song Ji-hu’s judgment was correct overwhelmingly outweighed the probability that it was wrong.
The moment Song Ji-hu pointed at that specific location on the map and said “here,” he had already determined there was something there.
And even if it failed, as long as he stayed tethered to Zero Point, he’d be fine. It was a calculated bet that hedged both investment and insurance.
“You won’t regret it.”
Song Ji-hu chuckled softly.
A brief phrase, yet it sent a wave of relief through Yoon Young-soo’s chest.
“Thank you.”
Yoon Young-soo bowed deeply.
He was no longer the Association President’s secretary—he was now a member of Zero Point, a guild born from the Association’s ranks.
“And… what about the office building?”
He moved immediately to the next agenda item.
“Of the properties we acquired, the five-story commercial building is the most structurally sound, but a complete renovation would take considerable time. Building from scratch would require additional loans.”
Song Ji-hu shrugged.
“For now, let’s just use the building as it is. We just need to replace the windows, don’t we?”
“…But sir, this is the building of Zero Point, with you as guild master. Won’t it look too shabby?”
Discomfort tinged Yoon Young-soo’s voice.
No matter how remote the Slum District location, if the guild’s face—its headquarters—looked like an abandoned building, it would be utterly shameful.
“It’s fine. It’s not like we’ll keep using it, and I’m confident the money for a new building will come in within a month.”
The two men who heard Song Ji-hu’s words interpreted them in entirely different ways.
Eun Seo-jin recalled a conversation from a few days prior about his housing situation. And just as Song Ji-hu had said, the problem had resolved itself.
“It’s a problem that’ll sort itself out automatically. Today, in fact.”
And this time, he was saying the money would appear on its own.
‘How far ahead does this man see?’
Somehow, Eun Seo-jin sensed it would happen exactly as he’d said. He nodded quietly and asked nothing more.
Meanwhile, an entirely different calculation was running through Yoon Young-soo’s mind.
He was thinking he could treat Mental Contamination the way he’d healed Eun Seo-jin, and charge for the treatment.
‘With that many cases piling up… I’d earn enough to build a new building and have plenty left over. How much should I charge per session? A hundred billion? A trillion?’
It was the only treatment in the world—even if he named a price in the trillions, people would still line up.
‘If USAA reasons the same way… I’d get at least hundreds of billions.’
It was a rational calculation.
Of course, what Song Ji-hu was actually thinking was neither of those things, but neither of them needed to know that.
“For now, I’ll arrange for contractors to replace the windows and handle basic repairs.”
“Please do.”
Song Ji-hu stood and checked his watch.
“Schedule the USAA matter for this afternoon. Location is the Association Headquarters Conference Room.”
“This afternoon… what time?”
“Three o’clock.”
“Understood. I’ll contact the Association right away.”
While Yoon Young-soo pulled out his phone to call the Association, Song Ji-hu gazed out the window and murmured quietly.
“I wonder if Ollie Barclay came along.”
His voice was so faint that neither Eun Seo-jin nor Yoon Young-soo heard it.
The corner of Song Ji-hu’s mouth lifted slightly, then fell away.
The Seventh Return’s Collector of Calamities
Author
: Song Tan
Production Date
: July 13, 2026
Publisher
: Acesmedia Co., Ltd.
Editor-in-Chief
: Acesmedia Editorial Team
Address
: 10F, Urban Bench Building, 325 Teheran-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
Email
: [email protected]
※ This work is published by Acesmedia Co., Ltd. under contract with the copyright holder.
The content may not be used in any form or by any means without the permission of the company and author.
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UCI
: G720:N+A129-20260709064

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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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