The Great Decapitation (1)

The settlement was over in an instant.

The amount of money Lee Ye-rin could manage was much larger than Kang-hoo had anticipated.

Thus, it took less than five minutes to settle the request fee and the sale price of the items.

Balance: 4.9 billion won.

At first glance, it might seem like a vast sum, but the reality was quite different.

Grade 4 items would deplete the funds if you purchased four, and Grade 3 items were out of reach.

It wasn’t for no reason that the hunter’s world was known as ‘their world.’

As one ascended from the middle to the upper to the top tier, the economic concept defining it shifted dramatically.

Top-tier hunters like Jang Si-hwan didn’t even bother with items below Grade 4 that they obtained from dungeons.

They referred to them as ‘junk items.’ They considered them worthless.

“Ha, this is really…”

Lee Ye-rin had marveled several times before, but it still astonished her that she possessed Gong Tae-su’s left arm.

She was capable of fighting Gong Tae-su on equal terms, yet she couldn’t have maimed him like this unilaterally.

It wasn’t a prediction; it was the reality. That was because dealing with a hunter ranked in the 200s was no trivial matter.

Lee Ye-rin, who had assessed Kang-hoo’s level when they first met, believed this.

Therefore, even if Kang-hoo’s level was high, she suspected it wouldn’t surpass 70.

Could a level 70 hunter inflict an injury on one more than three times their level?

That was impossible.

Of course, what Kang-hoo had accomplished so far had been a series of feats deemed impossible.

‘I feel like the texture of the original work is changing little by little.’

Meanwhile, Kang-hoo was contemplating while observing Lee Ye-rin, who was looking at him with sparkling eyes.

In the original work, the relationship between Lee Ye-rin and Shin Kang-hoo wasn’t as close or intimate.

Indeed, she was destined to become a formidable adversary to The Thirteen Stars later on.

But she didn’t have much interaction with Shin Kang-hoo. They just recognized each other’s existence and supported each other invisibly.

But now, she is showing enough interest to actively make a recruitment offer.

‘The main storyline of the original is about Jang Si-hwan. It shouldn’t be a problem to touch the side stories lightly.’

Kang-hoo thought so.

The original, written strictly around the protagonist Jang Si-hwan, composed the stories of the surrounding characters plainly.

The story related to Gong Tae-su was also briefly mentioned in the original as passing news.

That’s the content.

This time, Jang Si-hwan would have heard about the series of events in Ulsan through the news.

But he would probably be talking about slightly different content.

He didn’t seem to have much interest in it.

‘Just be careful not to touch the mainstream. It’s better to get the attention of the Jeonghwa Guild later.’

That’s what he thought when.

Lee Ye-rin presented a new request proposal.

The gold edging on the border made it feel like the level of the request had changed.

She started the conversation.

“You like to get straight to the point, right?”

“Of course.”

“It’s an assassination request. The target’s name is Jo Gu-bin. He’s a murderer. A child kidnapper and murderer.”

“…”

Kang-hoo didn’t have a grand belief in justice.

But at least he had thoughts about lines that shouldn’t be crossed as a human. The minimum duty.

But kidnapping children and then murdering them. The combination of words felt horribly dreadful, and his expression turned into a frown.

“The one who requested this is the victim’s father. What he wants is revenge for his daughter and himself. The death of Jo Gu-bin.”

“Have you located him?”

“The last confirmed location was Ground Zero. There have been no records since then.”

“Cowardly bastard.”

Kang-hoo wore a bitter expression.

In reality, many criminals lived in Ground Zero.

It was such a dangerous place that even the Hunter Public Safety Bureau hesitated to search there. There were too many variables.

“The success fee is 1 billion won. If you can recover the daughter’s belongings or even her body, there will be additional negotiated compensation.”

“How much?”

“At least over 1 billion won. Plus, the father’s desperate desire will be added to it.”

“Any additional details?”

“There’s a condition that must be met before the reward is paid. The client wants to see Jo Gu-bin dying.”

“Like a video call?”

“Exactly. Not a recorded video, but a live stream.”

“I can picture the father gritting his teeth, enduring each day for his daughter’s revenge.”

“How can we even measure that pain? It just hurts the heart.”

Lee Ye-rin’s eyes reddened.

Kang-hoo also became deep in thought.

It felt like not merely punishing a villain, but a righteous journey to slay a demon.

‘Chasing Jo Gu-bin, it seems likely that I’ll naturally come across the Mad Solarkium.’

He needed the Mad Solarkium anyway.

Since he had planned to visit Ground Zero at least once, it seemed like a good time to take care of everything there.

Besides, he had a rough idea of where Jo Gu-bin might be hiding.

After all, he, the original author, had designed the space of Ground Zero. Backtracking wouldn’t be difficult.

Meanwhile.

“What a disturbing dream.”

Jang Si-hwan, who had woken up from a nightmare, gulped down red wine poured into a large cup.

The roughly gulped wine spilled over his lips like blood, but he didn’t seem to care.

Lately, Jang Si-hwan had been having frequent nightmares.

Someone kept coming to him in his dreams, attacking him without warning.

What was scary was that the man was so elusive, making his movements completely unpredictable.

If you thought he was in front, he would be behind; if he seemed below, he would be above. Dealing with him was like dealing with a ghost.

He turned on the TV.

Deleting all general channels and keeping only those related to hunters was Jang Si-hwan’s longstanding habit.

Today, as always, he skimmed through domestic and international hunter news. Keeping updated was essential.

Then, a piece of domestic news caught his attention.

It was about a recent clash in Ulsan targeting the leader of the Red Blood organization, Gong Tae-su.

“I knew there would be a hunt for me someday. Did Gong Tae-su really plan it?”

Everything was unfolding as expected.

The report detailed mercenaries entangled in a large scheme by Gong Tae-su, resulting in either their annihilation or capture.

But what was noteworthy was,

“Gong Tae-su lost his left arm?”

The news announced that Gong Tae-su, the mastermind behind the scheme, had suffered significant injuries.

For a mage, having both arms, capable of precise control, is vital.

But Gong Tae-su had lost his frequently used left arm—an enormous setback.

Moreover, the identity of the hunter who had severed Gong Tae-su’s left arm was completely unexpected.

They had only caught a glimpse of his back, and that too from an old, low-frame CCTV footage.

Without a clear view of his face, identification was impossible.

“There’s always someone above those who run and those who fly; someone who watches over everything.”

Jang Si-hwan chuckled.

He didn’t know who it was, but someone had achieved something remarkable.

Who could this hunter be who, in just two seconds, severed Gong Tae-su’s left arm and nonchalantly took it as a trophy?

In a world brimming with issues, ordinary news is quickly forgotten.

But this news, he wanted to follow up on carefully. It hinted at someone extraordinary.

Jang Si-hwan immediately made a phone call.

To the Jeonghwa Guild’s intelligence strategy team.

A team with exceptional gathering skills utilized the internal database of the Hunter Public Safety Bureau.

They would meticulously search for even the smallest piece of gossip and report it.

“Yes, go ahead.”

“The Gong Tae-su incident in Ulsan. Gather all information about the hunter who severed his left arm and report it to me.”

“Understood.”

The order was given promptly.

Documents related to this hunter would now pile up on Jang Si-hwan’s desk until his identity was revealed.

Before searching for Jo Gu-bin, Kang-hoo stopped at Suwon Station.

This was because the dungeon that taught the Great Decapitation skill was owned by the Onnuri Guild.

The guild’s base was right at Suwon Station. Therefore, after meeting Lee Ye-rin at Pyeongtaek Station and traveling north, he made a stop at Suwon Station.

‘The atmosphere is different.’

Although not quite like Seoul, the area around Suwon Station was quite stable in terms of public safety.

There was even a festival-like event in front of the station, where hunters from the Onnuri Guild were conducting a campaign.

The Suwon - Clean Hunter Campaign.

The name was somewhat grandiose, but its meaning was straightforward: hunters wouldn’t commit crimes at Suwon Station.

Thanks to the Onnuri Guild’s tight control over the area around Suwon Station, the station’s atmosphere was indeed pleasant.

Furthermore, numerous small and medium-sized guilds were openly recruiting members, a spectacle in its own right.

In other regions, conflicts would have erupted long ago. Peaceful competition was not typically tolerated.

Kang-hoo immediately searched for the Onnuri Guild’s dedicated building.

The 15-story Onnuri Building stood prominently in front of the station.

Upon entering the building,

“I’d like to speak with the person in charge of renting out a dungeon license.”

He located the responsible party in the lobby.

He elaborated a bit more during the conversation.

“I have this much money, so there’s no need for any sizing up.”

To prevent a wasteful conversation, he made sure to verify the money he had.

Kang-hoo arrived, thinking he could easily spend about 1 billion won if necessary.

Considering the privilege of learning the Great Decapitation without any penalty…

It was definitely not a waste of money.

Penalty-free Great Decapitation is a perfect ‘one-hit’ skill.

It meant it could be used as a sort of ultimate move.

“I’ll guide you. Please come this way.”

A female guide began to lead Kang-hoo politely. There were probably instructions from the person in charge.

‘As expected.’

Thanks to verifying his money first, there were no remarks like ‘who are you to rent it.’

That’s the power of money.

It can prevent someone from being judged based on their appearance or encountering embarrassing refusals at the door.

Upon reaching the 13th floor in the elevator, two floors below the top floor, he met the person in charge.

The person in charge, with his strikingly dyed sports hair, greeted Kang-hoo in a very casual manner, shoving his left hand in his trouser pocket.

“I’m Han Seung-hyeok, head of the Onnuri Guild’s Dungeon Management Team.”

As soon as Han Seung-hyeok offered a formal greeting,

“I want to rent a single raid license for the Baltman Dungeon owned by the Onnuri Guild. My offer is 1 billion. I won’t negotiate twice.”

Kang-hoo immediately presented the conditions he had in mind. It was a unilateral offer that eliminated any room for negotiation.