The Reincarnated Hunter Sweeps Up All Fortunes - Chapter 12

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 12
12
Im Gang heard the woman’s words and found himself gripping his head without thinking.
‘These wretched Sa-pa bastards.’
The arsonist’s identity was a Sa-pa martial artist.
What’s more, some of those Yeom-wang-chae thugs he’d thought had all been captured.
It wasn’t for nothing that Im Gang despised Yeom-wang-chae.
When cornered, there was no telling what these vermin would do.
They hadn’t targeted him specifically.
They’d ransacked and burned through the Beggar’s Quarter where nang-in gathered indiscriminately.
And Im Gang was unlucky enough to live there.
“Thank you… thank you… so much.”
“Unfortunately, apprehending them is impossible.”
It would be.
The fire had spread to civilian homes, and they’d already been captured by the authorities and executed—what could be done about it?
Im Gang exhaled a long, heavy sigh.
If he went to the magistrate demanding compensation, he’d only get beaten for his trouble and thrown out with orders to keep his mouth shut.
“Dae-hyeop.”
“…….”
“Dae-hyeop Gi Jeol-myo-bi.”
“……Yes?”
The woman fell silent for a moment.
Im Gang’s face bore the expression of a loyal minister who’d lost his nation.
All over a burned house—what was this look?
Of course, she didn’t know that the house contained martial secrets including the Dae-ryuk-pae-gong, and so she couldn’t have understood.
Had she known, would things have been different……?
“Shall we consider the commission concluded here? Or is there another matter you need?”
“Let’s end it here, I suppose…….”
“……Ah.”
The woman couldn’t suppress a sigh.
The item in question was the Heuk-ha-jeo.
From Ha-o-mun’s perspective, recovering the Heuk-ha-jeo for information this trivial was a good outcome.
On the other hand, it diminished the item’s value.
To put it bluntly, it possessed worth equivalent to hundreds of gold certificates.
But to settle it for a handful of coins……
Who would believe that Ha-o-mun’s Heuk-ha-jeo was worth that much?
Because they were the most despised, they couldn’t afford to act despicably.
“I’ll consider this commission the beginning of a bond with the dae-hyeop. Next time, I ask that you use the Heuk-ha-jeo more carefully, reserving it for commissions truly worthy of its value.”
“……?”
* * *
After Im Gang departed.
“Ha.”
The woman laughed hollowly as she removed her mask.
There were rare occasions when Ha-o-mun accepted commissions for free.
Truly rare.
She simply hadn’t expected it to happen through her own hands.
“……Chief Jang, please investigate Gi Jeol-myo-bi. And look into the whereabouts of Nang-gaek as well. Should he notice and ask the reason, explain what happened today. It shouldn’t cause any problems.”
“Understood.”
Moments later, the old man with age spots—Jak Noya—appeared.
Seeing the woman’s displeased expression, he asked if something had happened.
Hearing her explanation, Jak Noya let out a quiet chuckle.
“You handled it admirably.”
“I’m glad to hear it. Honestly, I wanted to complain several times over—whether the Heuk-ha-jeo looked like discarded silver to him.”
“Most would feel that way.”
“I’m not strange, am I? Surely not?”
Jak Noya smiled at the woman complaining in a way befitting her age.
“Gi Jeol-myo-bi is worth investing in.”
“Is that so?”
“Though it’s understandable that you wouldn’t know, given how much Division Leader keeps herself occupied.”
Jak Noya paused, choosing his words carefully.
“Among Nang-gaek’s disciples, he possesses the most outstanding talent.”
“That’s all?”
The Woman’s expression shifted to surprise.
“Whether he received the Jin-sin-mu-gong directly from Nang-gaek or obtained Ki-yeon through fortune, the fact remains he’s achieved the Hwa-hou in just a few months. If he leaves a favorable impression on Ha-o-mun, it will only benefit our sect in the future — there’s absolutely no loss in this arrangement.”
“If Jak Noya says so, then it must be true.”
The Woman’s faith in Jak Noya was unshakeable.
Among Ha-o-mun’s establishments, only those with underground passages are subject to extraordinarily stringent requirements.
Even among those who’ve built trust over many years, only a select few qualify.
Through the underground passages, infiltration into Ha-o-mun’s branch offices becomes possible.
In times of danger, they serve as escape routes.
“…So he’s currently working at Wol Hyang-ru, you say?”
“Yes.”
“Then we’ll keep watch over him while we investigate.”
“Understood.”
The Woman tapped her knuckles against the back of her hand as Jak Noya withdrew.
If what he said was true.
‘Then he’s no ordinary person.’
Nang-gaek’s disciple now faced a choice between two paths.
Im Gang’s decision intrigued her.
* * *
The moment he left Jang-mul-jeom, the tension drained from his body.
His clothes had been soaked through with cold sweat long ago.
Yet even so, a thought emerged that shouldn’t have — Ha-o-mun is actually a pushover?!
‘Wait, they’re doing this for free?’
Though he’d used it recklessly, the Heuk-ha-jeo apparently held far greater value than expected.
Or perhaps it was Ha-o-mun’s method of forging ties with martial artists.
Or else his master turned out to be someone far more formidable than he seemed.
Honestly, he couldn’t be sure about the rest, but the last option felt…
‘The hidden powerhouse wanderer revealed’ — that’s ancient fiction.
In this era, concealing one’s identity means either criminal or Mu-rim-gong-jeok.
It’s truly a terrifying world to live in!
In any case, the poor wanderer with nowhere to go rented a room at the Gaek-jan.
By the next morning, he returned to work. Sure enough, his senior Wi Sa vanished after an hour or so, claiming he needed to use the privy.
After several days of this, Baek Cheon could no longer contain his anger.
“I intend to lodge a formal complaint.”
“Pfft. Who’s going to pay any attention to a wanderer’s grievance?”
“…What did you just say?”
“Go ahead and complain if you want. Who knows? There might be folks around who fancy the look of a pretty courtesan’s brother.”
At the mocking laughter laced with ridicule from his senior Wi Sa,
Baek Cheon’s long eyelashes trembled, and he fixed Im Gang with an imploring look — a plea for help.
Im Gang sighed inwardly. Not that Wi Sa had handled it well, but he couldn’t deny the truth: nothing ever changed here.
Unlike us, that bastard’s got a permanent position.
The gap between heaven and earth — between full-time and temporary — is just as vast here.
No matter how much the earth trembles, it will never reach heaven.
Even when that fellow tried to stand in heaven, he was ultimately defeated and sealed away — much the same principle.
“I apologize on behalf of my colleague. Going forward, I will ensure such incidents do not recur.”
“…!”
“Unlike some, you at least understand your place. Keep managing things that way.”
“I will bear it in mind.”
Senior Wi Sa gave a scoff and patted Im Gang’s cheek twice.
The moment he left, Baek Cheon began to tremble with rage —
“Tsk, so we were close friends all along.”
“Huh?”
— and stopped.
“I never knew we were friends.”
“…Oh.”
So it wasn’t Wi Sa that was the real problem.
Well, of course.
Nobody feels good when some stranger who isn’t even your friend keeps bandying about words like ‘close friend’ and all that nonsense.
‘Still, our Baek Cheon isn’t completely without tact.’
I’d grown close to Wi Sa through our work together, and I would’ve been hurt if he’d gotten mad over this.
“Look, I was just making excuses to dodge the situation. Let’s move past it.”
“……What?”
“I’m not saying anything out loud, but privately I’m just as bothered as you are.”
Im Gang glanced away, looking ahead.
Baek Cheon’s eyes had gone cold enough to skewer a man where he stood.
Whatever was eating at him, Im Gang found himself worried for his senior’s life.
That worry proved prophetic.
When Wi Sa didn’t return by the end of his shift, Im Gang reported it.
They found him in a corner of the rear courtyard wall—a corpse.
Strangely, no commotion broke out.
Given that Wol Hyang-ru was in Hangju, it was hardly surprising.
More than that, any fuss would hurt business.
“Did you happen to do it, Im Gang?” Baek Cheon asked quietly as they clocked out.
He’d pressed so close, whispering right against Im Gang’s ear, that goosebumps crawled up his skin.
‘I—I like women, damn it!’
Im Gang scrambled away from Baek Cheon.
“Hey, speak from a distance. There’s no one to overhear. ……Besides, we were stuck together the whole time. When would I have had the chance to deal with him?”
“……? But you already moved away from me, didn’t you? Hmm. Anyway, you went to the privy and ate separately, so we weren’t together the whole time. I’ll keep it secret from the others, so you can be honest with me.”
“What? I thought you were the one who did it.”
“What reason would I have to harm him?”
Im Gang snorted. There was no motive to kill Wi Sa.
A Nang-in being treated like a Nang-in was all that happened—and if you killed over that, Hangju would already be hell itself.
But Baek Cheon had motive. To put it plainly, he’d been openly humiliated in a sexual way. Getting worked up enough to stab someone seemed perfectly natural.
Yet what?
Daring to suspect me?
By the sharp deductive reasoning of Im Gang, Mu-rim Detective, the culprit could only be Baek Cheon!
“Ha ha…… I’m sorry, but I’m used to that kind of insult. It doesn’t faze me anymore.”
“Isn’t that even stranger?” Im Gang found himself at a loss—until he looked at Baek Cheon’s face and couldn’t help but accept it.
The man was so handsome he probably attracted women just standing still.
“So where are you headed?”
“An inn.”
“An inn? You’re going to stay at one?”
“My house burned down yesterday. It’s gone.”
If only the house had burned. Im Gang could’ve lived with that.
The problem was that everything had burned except a few silver coins and some copper change.
“Oh no……”
Stop…… stop……!
Don’t look at me like that……!
Im Gang felt tears beginning to prick his eyes.
* * *
He showed up on time the next day, and a few hours in, something felt off.
Was Wi Sa’s death two days ago what seemed strange?
Hardly.
It was odd that Wol Hyang-ru had handled it so quietly, but Wi Sa’s death was just one more death among the many that happened routinely in Hangju.
What struck Im Gang as strange was something else entirely.
“……Im Gang, something seems to be happening at Wol Hyang-ru.”
“I’ve been thinking the same thing……”
The new senior Wi Sa.
The Mark II version—he’d stepped away like his predecessor and now he was dead.
Could this be a serial murder……? No, it didn’t seem like it.
Why.
Both men shared one thing in common.
‘They both had spirit medicine.’
Im Gang had been using his skills repeatedly to gain Proficiency.
[Proficiency has increased for some skills.]
……
[Proficiency has increased for some skills.]

After this commission was done, I’d planned to sweep through Hangju hunting down Ki-yeon opportunities.
For instance, when the Map Skill’s level increased, the display range and accuracy would improve.
When Proficiency rose, the duration and cooldown would shrink.
Each skill had different level options and Proficiency options.
But the Map Skill, Treasure Detection Skill, and Nae-gong-sim-beop were the best for raising Proficiency through constant use.
For that reason.
‘So what those bastards had were Chwi-gu-hwan.’
I realized that the spiritual medicine the senior disciples Wi Sa carried was Chwi-gu-hwan.
Whether by coincidence or not, I couldn’t say.
They were subdivided Chwi-gu-hwan that I’d picked up at the Jang-mul-jeom.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————