Chapter 8

The two women got out near Nara Shim’s house. Since she had money, they needed to find a place for Cho-i to live.

“I know a real estate agency, let’s go there.”

“Can’t I just live with you?”

Nara Shim shrieked, a shiver running down her spine.

“No!”

“Why? That’s too much.”

Nara wanted to say, ‘You’re the one who’s too much,’ but she kept her mouth shut. It’s foolish to argue with a crazy person using logic.

“I’ll pay rent.”

“No.”

“Or, let’s combine our money and get a bigger place.”

“…Huh?”

That was an intriguing offer. Then, as if to snap out of it, Nara Shim shook her head.

“No!”

“Whyyyy.”

“It’s tempting! But no!”

“Then just die.”

“Why are you going there!?”

“Want to go to a dungeon with me?”

“Are you kidding me?!”

Nara Shim barely managed to calm her headache and started to think. If she started living with that one, there would be endless headaches. She would end up doing all the clean-up.

“Then just wait a little until I save more money. I’m living at Hyeonchan An’s house, so I can’t live in a small place.”

“Their house is indeed big…”

“So if we combine our money…”

“Rejected!”

“Hmph.”

“More importantly, how are you going to save money? You’ve already left the guild!”

“There’s a way.”

“What way?”

“Lower-rank dungeons.”

“Yeah, right, with that.”

“And illegal dogfighting.”

“Hey… you’re not seriously…”

“I’ll even let you earn money. Just bet on me.”

Cho-i Hyeon smiled slyly at Nara Shim, whose pupils trembled as if an earthquake had struck. Illegal dogfighting. What is this ‘Entity’? It’s exactly what it sounds like: dogfighting. But it’s not literally fighting with real dogs; here, ‘dogs’ refer to lower-ranked awakened individuals. The rule is to put them in a ring to fight, and those who bet on the winner take the money. It’s just like illegal gambling.

“You’re going there?”

“Yeah.”

“Hey, don’t you know only C-Ranks can enter…? Wait a minute.”

Cho-i grinned and pointed to herself.

“I’m a C-Rank, right?”

“Oh, no, that’s true, but. It’s definitely written that way on your hunter license, but you’re not anymore.”

“What does it matter?”

“Huh?”

“I’m not going to apply for a correction.”

“Why, why?”

“It’s annoying.”

“Hey, but if you do that, your treatment will improve!”

Cho-i said indifferently.

“I will do it. But not right now, a little later.”

“More importantly, how much has your rank gone up? Are you about B-rank+?”

“Something like that.”

“Hey, at that level, a lot of places would want you, wouldn’t they?”

“Well, the number of tanks isn’t that small, so maybe not that many. And I don’t want to join a guild for a while. When a hunter like me, whose rank suddenly goes up, appears, it always makes newspaper headlines and becomes annoying.”

“That’s true.”

“For now, let’s wait a bit. And I want to go. Illegal dogfighting.”

“Why, for heaven’s sake?”

“Oh, in the novel I read…”

“Quiet! Alright! I won’t ask!”

Cho-i made a glum face at Nara Shim’s quick cut-off, but Nara Shim had no intention of listening to her novel ramblings anymore. In truth, Cho-i only wanted to find out more through the only illegal dogfighting route she knew, but Nara Shim was not the type to want to hear deeply about troublesome matters. So, this much would be fine.

“For now, yes. Let’s stay at my place and save more money. And that illegal dogfighting… from there.” Nara Shim’s eyes sparkled strangely. See, even now, she’s not asking any more questions, only her eyes are gleaming at the profit she can gain.

“I’ll have some fun too.”

“I knew we’d see eye to eye.”

“But isn’t it fraud if you hide your rank and go?”

“What does it matter? My hunter registration card clearly states C-rank.”

She tilted her head and asked again.

“It’s illegal anyway, so is there a law that says it’s worse to scam people out of more money?”

“No, but…”

Right, there isn’t. There’s no such law. But that means trying to openly rip them off makes you an even worse person, doesn’t it? I wonder if you know that, Choi Hyeon. But Nara Shim wasn’t someone who lived so faithfully to morals either.

“If I raise the dividend, it’ll definitely come back, right?”

“Of course.”

Choi smiled with an ulterior motive.

* * *

[♥♂Adult Shop♀♥]

Nara Shim stared up at the sign with a blank expression. After saying that, Choi Hyeon immediately took a taxi to a remote neighborhood. Just outside of Seoul, in the outskirts of Gyeonggi-do, there were many undeveloped rice paddies and fields.

“Why did we come here?”

“Haven’t you ever thought it was strange coming and going from places like this?”

“No, what’s stranger is where we’re standing right now.”

“Sometimes you see an adult shop unexpectedly standing in an area with only rice paddies and fields, right?”

“Oh, uh, yeah, that’s right. But aren’t they just online businesses?”

“Of course, there are places that do online business. But some of them are illegal gambling dens.”

“What? Really?”

“They disguise themselves as adult shops and do illegal gambling inside. Because if they have a business license, the police can’t just barge in.”

“Where did you hear that?”

“My estranged sibling.”

“What does your sibling do?”

“Something similar.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“That’s why we’re here.”

Nara Shim stared at the shabby adult shop in front of her with hollow eyes. Was this really where they held illegal dogfighting?

“But how do you know this is the place?”

“I don’t know. I just guessed.”

“What?!”

“Just come inside.”

“Hey, hey!”

Choi opened the door of the adult shop and went inside. Unidentifiable feet, strung together, hung from the door, and the interior was filled with things that made it hard to tell if it was an adult shop or an occult shop. It was hard to describe, but it was so full of suggestive things that she couldn’t find the words to explain it. Nara Shim and Choi Hyeon left the embarrassing items behind and approached the person sitting at the counter, knitting. The woman, who looked to be in her fifties, was watching TV and knitting indifferently, even though customers had arrived.

“Ma’am.”

Even though a customer called her, the woman only gave a fleeting glance. Nara Shim looked around with an expression that said, ‘Is this the right place?’, while Choi grinned and leaned against the counter.

“I’m looking for something. Do you happen to know where it is?”

“What are you looking for?”

Choi took out her wallet and showed her hunter registration card. The letters ‘C-Rank’ were clearly visible. The woman in her 50s snorted and continued knitting, saying,

“There were many like you. Don’t get in over your head, just join a guild.”

“That’s why I’m asking, because I can’t.”

“You’re a C-rank, not a D, E, or F, and you’re saying there’s no guild for you?”

“I have a small problem with my background.”

As Choi continued to speak with a smiling face, leaning against the counter, the woman briefly looked into Choi’s eyes. Her unfocused black eyes were curved like crescent moons. The woman clicked her tongue.

“You’re crazy, completely crazy. You killed someone, didn’t you?”

Choi didn’t panic and played it off.

“Oh, ma’am. You’re saying such scary things. I’m not that bad of a person.”

“You’ve come to the wrong address. It’s not here.”

“But you know where it is, right?”

Choi tilted her head.

“How much do I need to pay you to introduce me?”

The woman raised one eyebrow. Then she held up one finger, followed by two more.

“Oh, that’s not too difficult for an introduction fee. Thank you, unnie. But can I pay by card?”

“Ugh, tsk tsk.”

The woman brought an old card reader and said,

“If it’s cash, it’s one point three million won. If it’s card, it’s one point three million won.”

“Yes, of course, of course.”

With that, Cho-i Hyeon received a small address along with a receipt for 1.3 million won spent at an adult shop. It was an adult shop not far from here. Cho-i looked at Nara Shim with a look that said, ‘See, it worked out, didn’t it?’ and Nara Shim looked back at her with a look that said, ‘This actually worked.’

“I didn’t expect card payment to be an option…”

“The world is changing. Come on, let’s go!”

Thinking she had taken too many taxis, Cho-i began walking with Nara Shim to the nearby adult shop. Nara Shim sighed and followed behind her. She wondered if it was okay to just keep following her like this. That thought crossed her mind. When they arrived at the adult shop, seeing Cho-i’s card payment receipt and note, they opened what appeared to be a warehouse door. Surprisingly, when they opened the door that looked like a warehouse, it wasn’t a warehouse, but a door leading downstairs.

“Come on, let’s go in.”

Cho-i, who had already shown her hunter license once, urged Nara Shim and pushed her forward.

“Hey, why am I going in first!”

Nara Shim was pushed by her hand and went down into the basement, and soon her jaw dropped at the sight that appeared after descending the basement stairs. In the basement, there was a crude ring surrounded by barbed wire and filled with misshapen chairs. Some chairs had broken legs, as if someone had thrown them around.

“Today, we haven’t started business yet.”

The owner of this shop was very tall, easily over 190cm. He stood with his arms crossed at the bottom of the stairs, watching the two women.

“Are both of you C-Rank?”

“That’s right.”

“How did you end up here?”

“Isn’t it similar to everyone else’s circumstances? Do you usually ask about that here?”

“No, not really. Are you participating today?”

“Just watching today. But I’ll participate from tomorrow. I’ll just see how things work.”

“The champion will come out last.”

At that, Cho-i burst out laughing.

“There’s a champion even in a place like this? I thought it was just a dogfight.”

At her words, the Tall Man frowned, looking displeased. Cho-i put her hands behind her back and chuckled, circling around him.

“Don’t take it personally. I’m going to be the same kind of dog anyway, just take it as a self-deprecating joke.”

“Are you really C-Rank?”

“Then if I’m not C-Rank, am I S-Rank? Have you ever seen an S-Rank rolling around in a place like this?”

“If not, then it’s fine.”

Cho-i laughed loudly and slapped the tall man’s shoulder. He endured it patiently, but then subtly pulled away, apparently in pain.

“You’re funny, mister.”

“I’m twenty-nine this year.”

“Oh dear.”

You’re getting old.

“How regrettable.”

At Nara Shim’s single word, his eyebrows twitched again.