The Regressed SSS-Rank Supporter Who Turned Dark - Chapter 61
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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 61
– What are you talking about? How did you know that?
“Let’s meet and talk.”
– That’s not possible right now. I’m out somewhere at the moment.
“Bucheon, by any chance?”
– ….
Choi Yu-ra fell silent.
“I’m in Bucheon too. Just come to Sosa Station. We’ll talk when you get here.”
– Why are you in Bucheon?
“Come and we’ll talk.”
– I’m heading over right now.
“Don’t make a scene when you arrive.”
– What do you mean by that?
“You already stand out enough as it is. If you show up in a Lamborghini, you might as well be broadcasting that I’m Choi Yu-ra.”
– Sorry, but I came by taxi.
“Huh?”
Even someone as impulsive as Choi Yu-ra seemed to have at least a modicum of common sense.
– You should’ve called me earlier. Catching a taxi in a neighborhood like this is a hassle.
“…?”
– Wait. It’ll take about fifteen minutes.
“Call me when you arrive.”
While waiting for Choi Yu-ra, I leaned against a utility pole and surveyed the surroundings.
Stagger, stumble….
People passed by, whether drunk on alcohol or intoxicated by something else, I couldn’t tell.
Broken streetlights and faded signs of adult entertainment establishments lined the street in an atmosphere of pure desolation.
‘This place is no different from a garbage dump.’
Screech—the taxi came to a halt.
“Hold on.”
Crack!
Shatter!
The moment Choi Yu-ra stepped out of the taxi, she stormed toward the driver’s side, smashed the window with her fist, grabbed the taxi driver by the collar, and hurled him out of the vehicle.
Thud!
The middle-aged taxi driver crashed hard onto the asphalt.
“What are you doing?”
My brow furrowed involuntarily.
No matter how lawless the times had become, it couldn’t look good for a Hunter to beat up a civilian in broad daylight.
“This.”
Choi Yu-ra brandished a beverage can and stomped her heel down on the taxi driver’s shin.
Crack!
The taxi driver’s leg bent at a grotesque angle.
“Aaaaaaaaaahhhhh―!!!”
A scream tore from the Taxi Driver’s mouth.
“Drugs?”
“Correct.”
Choi Yu-ra’s smile turned glacial.
“I-I was just following orders….”
The Taxi Driver trembled like an aspen leaf.
“Anyway.”
I could piece together what was happening, and my tongue clicked involuntarily.
No doubt this scum drugged young female passengers, did unspeakable things to them, then sold them off to human trafficking rings or Recka gangs.
It was even possible he moonlighted as a Recka member—a taxi driver by day, a thug by night.
The air freshener clipped to the vent on the driver’s side bore the Nine-Tail Crew logo and office phone number, so Choi Yu-ra hadn’t missed the mark.
“I’m going to make sure you never do that again.”
Crack!
Choi Yu-ra’s foot came down hard on the Taxi Driver’s groin.
“Kraaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhh―!!!”
The Taxi Driver’s lower half flushed crimson.
“Ugh! Ugghhh! Ugghhhhhhhhhhh!”
Serves him right.
Far from pitying him, I found it satisfying.
I considered stomping him myself, but decided against it—didn’t want to dirty my shoes.
“Anything else?”
“This should do. Hehehehe.”
Choi Yu-ra flashed a smile brimming with lethal intent.
“Let’s go.”
“Yeah.”
We turned and walked away from the Taxi Driver.
What was absurd was that despite all this commotion, no one paid any attention.
Seeing people glance over and then simply continue on their way made me acutely aware of how thoroughly Bucheon’s public safety had collapsed.
This must happen so often that people have stopped caring.
“Let’s talk somewhere quiet.”
“Yeah, good idea.”
Since this was sensitive information, we decided to find the most secluded, least populated spot possible.
* * *
A dark alley.
Homeless People who looked ravaged by drugs stared at us with vacant eyes.
Screeeech, crack!
Choi Yu-ra slammed her spirit blade into the ground as a warning.
“Get lost. Unless you want to die.”
“H-Hiii!”
The Homeless People scattered in all directions like startled cockroaches.
“Ugh.”
The acrid stench that assaulted my nostrils and the reek of rotting food made me instinctively grimace, but since there was nowhere particularly suitable for a quiet conversation, I decided to bear with it.
There wasn’t even a decent café nearby where we could talk.
“So how did you find out?”
“I can’t tell you those details.”
Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t reveal them.
“All I can tell you is the real culprit’s name.”
“Who is it?”
“Jung Mu-jin.”
“…What?”
Choi Yu-ra’s expression made it clear she couldn’t comprehend this at all.
“Isn’t Gu Tae-il the one Jung Mu-jin pointed out as the culprit?”
Gu Tae-il.
A five-star Hunter and the leader of the Nine-Tail Crew, a subordinate organization of the Incheon Alliance.
And the Nine-Tail Crew, backed by the Incheon Alliance, had completely dominated the Bucheon area.
“H-how did you know that?”
Of course.
My expectations never miss the mark.
“The real leader of the Nine-Tail Crew is Jung Mu-jin.”
“…!”
Choi Yu-ra trembled as if struck by a hammer blow to the head.
“No, don’t lie. How could Jung Mu-jin possibly be the leader of the Nine-Tail Crew?”
“Then how did your dead boyfriend end up playing the role of Recka?”
“That’s…”
“Why did you maintain such a passive stance, neither helping nor refusing, until now when you finally revealed the real culprit?”
“…”
“It’s hard to believe, I understand. Jung Mu-jin was your dead boyfriend’s best friend, after all.”
I didn’t expect Choi Yu-ra to believe my words.
People only believe what they can see with their own eyes, after all.
“How could you expect me to believe that…”
“What if I show you?”
“Show me…?”
“As I systematically dismantle the Nine-Tail Crew, Jung Mu-jin will appear on his own and reveal his true colors. He’ll have to protect his own interests, after all.”
“You’re out of your mind.”
It was a natural reaction.
What kind of nonsense was it for a greenhorn to face the Nine-Tail Crew alone and destroy them?
“You’re going to honor your promise to me by facing the Nine-Tail Crew alone?”
“Don’t misunderstand.”
“…?”
“Destroying the Nine-Tail Crew isn’t just because of a promise I made to you. I have business at the Bucheon Station Gate.”
Bucheon Station, once the vital subway hub of Bucheon, had become a hunting ground for Hunters’ growth—a fixed Gate much like the Sindorim Technomart.
The problem was that the Nine-Tail Crew had monopolized the Bucheon Station Gate.
The monsters appearing at the Bucheon Station Gate dropped an unusually high amount of Etherium, allowing them to rake in enormous profits.
Of course, my true objective wasn’t Etherium, but a specific monster.
“You’re willing to throw your life away just for some Etherium? And spouting nonsense that Jung Mu-jin is the real leader of the Nine-Tail Crew?”
“We’ll see if it’s nonsense or not soon enough.”
“You’re insane… truly, completely insane…”
Choi Yu-ra spoke as if exhausted.
“Make a decision.”
“About what.”
“Whether you’re coming with me or not.”
“If you’re planning to use me…”
Choi Yu-ra trailed off mid-sentence.
“Like you said, we’ll find out soon enough whether you’re using me or telling the truth.”
Choi Yu-ra’s eyes gleamed with killing intent as she made her resolve.
* * *
The Transition, Gate creation, and monsters.
This series of threats had not brought only harm to humanity.
Gates and monsters were calamities, but simultaneously, they were new opportunities.
After the Transition, Hunters—superhumans—emerged, and a new resource called Etherium was discovered.
Monster corpses and various items created entirely new value through their mysterious properties, value that had never existed before.
Naturally, monster hunting by Hunters became a new industry, and fixed Gates with permanent locations were treated like mines for resource extraction.
The Bucheon Station Gate was the prime example.
Compared to other fixed Gates, it could yield two to three times more Etherium.
The Nine-Tail Crew, backed by the Incheon Alliance, controlled the Bucheon Station area and monopolized the Gate, generating massive income.
Though a substantial portion of the profits was paid as tribute to the parent organization, the Incheon Alliance, it was more than enough for the Hunters in the Nine-Tail Crew to indulge in luxury and pleasure without restraint.
In an office near the Bucheon Station Gate.
Hunters belonging to the Nine-Tail Crew had gathered in the office since early evening, gambling among themselves.
They all wore luxury brands like Thom Browne and Louis Vuitton, and luxury watches like Rolex and Audemars Piguet adorned their wrists.
They were drinking expensive champagne—Armand de Brignac—as if it were water.
“Hey, hey, take it easy. At this rate, you’ll be broke, hyung.”
“Come on. How could that happen?”
“Isn’t that guy a card sharp?”
Just as the Hunters of the Nine-Tail Crew were absorbed in gambling, cigarettes dangling from their lips.
Click!
The lights went out as if there’d been a blackout.
“What the—”
“Damn it.”
Irritated voices erupted from all directions as someone kicked the door open and burst into the office.
Crack, crunch!
Screeeeeech!
“Ahhh!”
“Aaaaaaahhhhh!”
Chilling sounds mingled with agonized screams that pierced the darkness.
“What, what is this!”
“Damn it! Who the hell is this bastard!”
Curses erupted from every corner of the room.
Crunch, crunch!
Splatter!
Screeeeeech!
“Aaaaaaahhhhh!”
“Ahhh!”
Crash!
Clang!
Inside the dimly lit Nine-Tail Crew Office.
Black silhouettes tangled and writhed together in utter chaos.
But it was only brief.
The time it took for silence to settle over the office was less than thirty seconds.
The office fell silent.
Not a single groan could be heard.
Only occasional sounds from outside drifted in….
Click—a brilliant white light illuminated the office interior.
It was the lantern Choi Yu-ra had switched on.
Shudder!
Choi Yu-ra trembled involuntarily at the sight before her eyes.
The office was… nothing short of a hellscape.
Severed limbs and heads lay scattered everywhere.
The floor was slick with pooled blood, while the walls and ceiling were painted crimson with splattered gore.
And at the center of it all stood a beast—no, a demon beast—drenched entirely in blood.
Whoosh.
The demon beast—Eun-sung—turned to face Choi Yu-ra with an expressionless gaze.
Drip….
Blood trickled down from his hair along his sharp, pale nose and down his neck.
Shiver!
Choi Yu-ra found herself overwhelmed by the sight of Eun-sung.
Slaughter?
Choi Yu-ra herself was second to none in her capacity for killing intent.
She had torn apart enemies—human or monster alike—more times than she could count.
But Eun-sung was something else entirely.
He showed no hesitation whatsoever in taking a life.
That indifferent, almost apathetic expression proved it.
With a subtle motion, Eun-sung’s hand moved toward his waist.
Choi Yu-ra found herself holding her breath without realizing it.
“Yes, Mom.”
A soft voice flowed from Eun-sung’s lips as he held the phone.
“I just came out to meet a friend for a bit. I’m fine, don’t worry. Yes, yes. Of course I had lunch. Did you eat, Mom? How are the kids? Ah. Oh right, I think I might be running a little late….”
“….”
Choi Yu-ra found herself at a loss for words.
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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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