Betting (2)

Kang-hoo immediately opened the conversation with Takashi, who had come out after finishing his shower.

“Takashi.”

“Huh?”

“Do you perhaps want to go to a dungeon with just the two of us? There’s one place to go in Japan.”

“There’s a dungeon you need to go to in Japan…… The fact that you, a Korean, have a dungeon to go to gives it a somewhat secretive feeling.”

“It’s true that it doesn’t belong to anyone.”

“Kang-hoo.”

“Yeah.”

“Don’t tell me you even have some foresight ability that lets you discover hidden dungeons?”

Kang-hoo smiled instead of answering. At that point, it was a signal that could be taken as silent affirmation.

“Yeah. Since it’s you, I can accept it. What would the process or reason matter? If we can go, then we go. That’s all.”

“Then let’s go together.”

“Good. Before that, let’s just finish the settlement and go. I think it’ll be around 300 billion won per person.”

“I don’t mind if you give it to me in yen.”

“I’m already transferring it through the Bank of Korea, you punk.”

The settlement was completed in an instant.

With that, his balance shot back up to 835 billion won.

In many ways, raiding the underground labyrinth had been highly profitable. He had plundered skills to his heart’s content on each floor as well.

“Mm.”

Kang-hoo briefly stared at the Guardian of Balance anklet, which continued to flash in his status window, then looked away.

The anklet continued to reveal its presence.

But Kang-hoo still had no desire to make an oath.

Since only one main constellation slot remained, he had to be careful about adding a new constellation.

Of course, he was not disparaging the meaning held by the Guardian of Balance anklet. He simply wanted to think about it a little more.

That time should not stretch on forever, but he had absolutely no intention of deciding as if he were being pushed from behind.

After that.

Lemon and Mokomichi parted with a promise of next time. Both of them were reluctant to leave, but because of that, it became an even more exciting farewell.

Because they had already confirmed the next meeting in advance. Apparently, when Kang-hoo came, the two of them planned to come out ahead of each other.

Kang-hoo had also grown fairly attached to the two of them.

Since he had not seen all of Lemon and Mokomichi’s abilities during this labyrinth raid, he looked forward to next time even more.

In any case, the journey changed into a follow-up schedule for only Kang-hoo and Takashi.

To move to the underground dungeon in Japan discovered through Underground Adventurer, they had to travel by car from here.

But an unexpected event occurred. It happened while they were traveling in Takashi’s car.

The driver was not the butler who had escorted Kang-hoo at the airport before, but Takashi himself.

Of course, because he had come out wrapped tightly in sunglasses, a hat, a mask, and thick clothes, there were almost no parts of his appearance Kang-hoo could see properly.

But at least his voice was real, without a voice changer.

His low, subdued baritone voice was the complete opposite of the high-toned voice Kang-hoo had heard through the voice changer.

Takashi’s true self, seen for the first time.

Even in the original story, Takashi had never shown his true appearance even to his comrades in The Thirteen Stars.

So the mere fact that they were together like this at such a close distance, in the driver’s seat and passenger seat, was moving.

Because revealing the self he had kept tightly hidden behind a veil required that much courage.

So Kang-hoo, worried that Takashi might be uncomfortable for another reason, asked carefully.

“Is this okay?”

“I came out because it’s okay. Do I seem like I’m making too much of a fuss?”

“No. I’m actually grateful. If you didn’t trust me, you wouldn’t have come out in person like this.”

“I just wanted to see you up close. Seeing someone through video and seeing them in person are truly different, aren’t they?”

“No need to even say it.”

Perhaps because of his low voice, Kang-hoo felt more seriousness and weight from Takashi than the lightness he had felt before.

If Takashi’s clone always made many small movements and looked somewhat excited, giving off a lively impression.

Takashi’s “main body” felt calmly restrained. Yes, it was similar to Kang-hoo’s own feeling.

Of course, that did not mean he thought the appearance Takashi had shown through his clone until now had been fake.

He simply could clearly feel that Takashi was not merely a light person, and that he was not someone who was swayed thoughtlessly.

Since the main body was personally driving, Takashi’s clone was sitting demurely in the back seat.

The dedicated pad Takashi used was also neatly placed beside it.

A silence brought by awkwardness.

Perhaps wanting to change the atmosphere inside the car, which was quickly cooling, Takashi cleared his throat forcefully and continued speaking.

“It was frustrating! I wanted to see my friend’s face with my own two eyes. I really wanted to see you.”

“Have you perhaps seen me directly before? When we first met or when I went to the mansion?”

“Was it that obvious?”

“No, I just felt like there was someone I saw without even having time to meet eyes with. I wondered if that was you.”

“That’s right. Originally, I’m a little timid in that area. Someone’s gaze…… feels very burdensome.”

“If you still came out like this despite that, then instead of thanking you, I feel like I should send you back.”

“I came out because my desire to see my friend was greater than the burden of being watched. No need for long words. Just stay still.”

“Anyway…… thank you.”

Takashi was always sincere.

At times like this, Kang-hoo sometimes felt a bit of guilt in one corner of his heart.

It was not that Kang-hoo had no sincerity in his feelings toward Takashi either. He was indeed a good friend.

But if someone asked whether he truly wanted to become friends in the purest sense?

He could not answer with 100% certainty. Though he could say it was 90% sincerity and 10% strategic purpose.

“I’ve set the navigation properly to the destination, so there’s nothing to worry about. Now, shall we talk about something else?”

Takashi’s voice as he tried to change the topic trembled slightly.

It seemed that apart from wanting to see Kang-hoo in person, he had one more important matter.

There was something Kang-hoo could vaguely guess.

He thought it was probably that matter, and just as Kang-hoo expected, Takashi continued speaking.

“I got a call from Yu Cheonghwa.”

“Is it okay for me to hear?”

“Of course it’s okay. The topic is you. To start with the conclusion, Cheonghwa knows that you’re with me right now.”

“Well, there’s no reason to hide it.”

“You know that Shinto Guild has turned into a mess because of the succession war, right?”

“Of course.”

Kang-hoo nodded.

The succession war would ultimately end only when all the participants except one had died. There was no such thing as a moderate compromise.

In other words, if one did not want to die, one should not have participated in the succession war in the first place. It was a perfect death match.

“Sim Jun-gyeong died before. Now only Cheonghwa and Chu Ye-seong remain. Since it’s a situation where it ends if just one of them dies, paradoxically, it’s a stalemate.”

“She can’t openly walk around outside asking to be assassinated. But even that must have a limit, right?”

“Right. Even if she tries not to come out forever, she can’t abandon the field, so in the end, she has to come out.”

“Somehow, I get the feeling…… Ms. Yu Cheonghwa is trying to use herself as bait to change the situation.”

“Oh! That’s right! How did you know?”

“You’re joking, right?”

Kang-hoo smiled and asked back.

It was a familiar strategy.

Was it not the tactic Lee Ye-rin had used in the all-out war against Heuksaja?

At a glance, it seemed like an easy strategy, but it was not. This strategy absolutely required one premise.

The person who would become the core of the lure had to truly be prepared to die.

A picture where anyone could see the target would obviously survive would instead become worse than not attempting a lure strategy at all.

In reality, during Heuksaja’s pursuit of Lee Ye-rin, Lee Ye-rin had been in a desperate crisis until Kang-hoo appeared.

If Kang-hoo had appeared too quickly or appeared even a little late, it probably would have failed.

Lee Ye-rin would have died.

Or Heuksaja, having seen through the lure strategy, would have changed the direction of their attack and destroyed the foundation of the Cheong-an Mercenary Corps.

“Yeah, that’s right. This recent incident in Daejeon, where you became a star overnight! It seems Cheonghwa got inspiration from that.”

“She’ll use her own life as bait to lure Chu Ye-seong? It won’t be as easy as it sounds.”

“There is one reason why this has no choice but to work. As I just said, she can’t abandon the field, can she?”

“It seems Ms. Yu Cheonghwa is showing movements to take control of the field. To intentionally break the stalemate.”

“That’s right! That’s it. She’s provoking the quick-tempered Chu Ye-seong. If Cheonghwa practically takes control of the dungeons and core guild facilities, then surviving the succession war will no longer be the issue.”

“That sounds plausible. But I think there’s a reason you’re telling me this. Say the main point.”

What mattered was the main point.

He could guess, but he wanted to hear Takashi mention it directly. Because his organized thoughts would be added.

“As you know, in a succession war of a major guild like this, it’s difficult for hunters belonging to other guilds to carelessly intervene.”

“She’s looking for a mercenary.”

“Right. Cheonghwa rates the assassination ability you possess very highly. It isn’t just simple curiosity.”

“She needs my blade to kill Chu Ye-seong. That’s what this is about. To point out only the core in simple terms.”

“Yeah. That’s right. If you’re okay with it, I’d like to connect you to our team voice. What do you think? I’ll leave the decision to you. Yu Cheonghwa and Emilia also said your thoughts are the most important.”

“Takashi, so you took the role of the middle bridge. You stepped forward because you thought it was something worth conveying to me.”

“……That’s right. Sorry.”

“No, there’s no need to apologize. You probably said you’d tell me because you judged that it was something worth bringing up to me from the middle. I trust your judgment.”

Kang-hoo gave strength to Takashi. And from Kang-hoo’s perspective, it was not an unpleasant proposal.

Rather, it felt strange, as if he had received recognition from Takashi, Yu Cheonghwa, and Emilia through Takashi’s mouth.

Because thinking of him as someone absolutely needed to kill someone was itself recognition of his ability.

Moreover, Takashi, Yu Cheonghwa, and Emilia had all given the choice to him.

It was a proposal they could never have brought up unless they valued him that highly.

Kang-hoo continued.

“Connect me.”

Takashi, Yu Cheonghwa, and Emilia.

The relationship among the three was extremely close and deeply bonded. It would not be wrong to see them as virtually one body.

After a few simple operations, the team voice connected immediately.

Since Takashi had many online conversations, he always made connection links with his comrades like this.

Perhaps because of that, even though the other two must have been in different places and situations, he connected to them right away.

Takashi opened his mouth first.

“Cheonghwa. Emilia. Right now, I’m with Kang-hoo. I already told him everything from before, so you only need to say the main point.”

I’ll just listen.

Emilia sensibly stepped back from the conversation line. Since the core of the conversation was Yu Cheonghwa, it was a wise choice.

Was it because Takashi had said earlier that she only needed to state the main point?

Yu Cheonghwa, who confirmed that the team voice had connected, brought up the matter that would become the main point faster than a greeting.

-I want to use Mr. Shin Kang-hoo as a joker. Because the only puzzle piece I haven’t been able to fill in the current plan is an assassin.

It was a request with a clear justification.