Chapter 85

When Taehyeok Sa saw Myeongok Shin off and returned, Cho-i Hyeon, who had been lying on the sofa, had fallen asleep. He sighed, wrapped Cho-i Hyeon in a blanket, and picked her up. He often wondered what he should do about her carelessness. Instead of his own bedroom, where the sheets and blankets were in tatters, he took her to a spare guest room and laid her on the bed. After covering her with a blanket himself, he left the room and picked up his smartphone. Ring- click.

-Yes, Guild Master.

The person who answered the phone was Yeonhan Kim, who had volunteered to check the situation in China. Taehyeok Sa asked her,

“So, have you noticed any significant movements?” -“Not yet, I think. Honestly, it’s a bit too early for it to be known.”

“What about us erasing traces before that?” -“If we linger around that dungeon trying to erase traces, it’s perfect for arousing suspicion.”

“First, check if anything about Cho-i Hyeon’s movements has been posted on the internet or S-gradeSNS-grade.” -“Understood.”

Click- The call ended, and Taehyeok Sa sat on the living room sofa, holding his throbbing head for a moment. There were guilds in China as well. The problem was that about half of them were somewhat involved with the Black Society. The entire Black Society had become one giant guild. Taehyeok Sa clicked his tongue as if annoyed and picked up his smartphone. For now, changing his ruined bed was more important to him.

* * *

Inside the dark office, men in black suits were gathered. The only light illuminating the office was the neon sign from outside the window. While everyone else stood, only one man sat at the office desk.

“So, you lost contact with Zhu Rui?”

“Yes, after he reported completing the dungeon raid.”

“Did he run away?”

“Given Zhu Rui’s personality, that’s unlikely.”

“People, you know, aren’t that trustworthy.”

The man sitting at the desk let out a short laugh. At his laugh, everyone gathered here felt a surge of tension.

“Still, just in case, we should investigate. So, who was the hunter who went on the raid with Zhu Rui?”

“Nothing is known.”

“Nothing is known?”

The man’s eyes narrowed. The man who answered his chilling face swallowed dryly and replied with a cracking voice.

“We received word that his identity was unknown until the time of the raid.”

“I see. Find out.”

“Understood.”

“And the arms smuggler you arranged back then. What about him?”

“Contact has been lost with him as well.”

“Look into that too.”

“Understood.”

The man above all guilds in China, Zhixuan, also known as Jaheon, who stands as the number one guild in China. The guild’s name being the same as its Guild Master’s showed how much affection he had for this guild.

“What on earth could have happened to an S-Rank hunter…?”

He smiled, grinding his teeth. Everyone stiffened their backs at the sound of his grinding teeth. At that very moment, Cho-i Hyeon, the cause of all this, was merely snoring away in Taehyeok Sa’s guest room. A few days later. Zhixuan received a piece of information from his subordinates. There was no hunter who had entered Korea from overseas when that suddenly upgraded dungeon was raided.

“So it’s a Korean hunter…”

“There are quite a few hunters in Korea who could kill Zhu Rui.”

“That’s right, that’s right. You wouldn’t believe how many S-Ranks are concentrated in that small country. It’s truly tempting.”

“Still, it’s unlikely that figures as important as Guild Masters would participate in an illegal dungeon raid.”

Zhixuan nodded. Being a Guild Master is a position with more work and challenges than one might think. Therefore, it would be unreasonable for them to suddenly go on an unplanned dungeon raid alone. This naturally put the remaining S-Ranks on the list, excluding Taehyeok Sa of Paehyeok, Gihyeon Park of Hwayeon, and Jihan Kim of Geumsin.

“Are there any notable hunters?”

“Yes, Paehyeok’s S-Rank hunter, Cho-i Hyeon.”

The Men in Black Suits placed a paper with Cho-i Hyeon’s personal details on the table. Zhixuan flipped through the paper, smiling.

“He was originally a C-Rank but Paehyeok raised him to S-Rank?”

“Yes, and he was the only one who had no activity during that period.”

“No activity means?”

“He was on vacation, they said.”

“If a hunter Paehyeok cherished so much dies, they’ll be quite upset too.”

Zhixuan placed the paper on the table and smiled. His smile was filled with anticipation.

“Haha, it’s going to be a bit of a headache too.”

His fangs glinted sharply in his mouth. The Men in Black Suits felt goosebumps all over their bodies as they saw his fangs. Zhixuan, the Guild Master of the Jaheon Guild and a man ‘known’ to be S-Rank. No one could see into his true intentions.

“Then, for now.”

Zhixuan said.

“Shall we go to Korea?”

“It’s dangerous.”

At that, Zhixuan burst into laughter once more.

“Who, me?”

He cackled, repeatedly slapping the chair he was sitting on. It was like the behavior of someone who had heard a truly hilarious story. Haah, after he finished laughing, he exhaled and spoke to the Men in Black Suits.

“Your sense of humor has improved quite a bit.”

“…It was a slip of the tongue.”

“No, no. It’s alright to worry. I’ll take it as a sign of your loyalty to me. I’m well aware that I’ve accumulated a lot of grudges here and there.”

Zhixuan, aside from being the guild master of China’s largest guild, was one of the people deeply involved in the Black Society. He didn’t shy away from illegal activities and would do anything to solidify his position, no matter what it took. Others called him the Devil. Zhixuan chuckled and stood up from his seat.

“Since there will be many stalkers following me to Korea, it will be annoying, but let’s bear with it. Being popular is tiring, after all.”

“We will prepare thoroughly.”

“Just enough, just enough. Oh, and what about that?”

Zhixuan ran his tongue over his fangs. The Men in Black Suits slowly nodded and then cautiously said,

“We’ve put it in Warehouse 14.”

“Really? The source?”

“It’s a hunter who was caught trying to leave the Black Society and naturalize in another country this time.”

At that, Zhixuan grumbled.

“Those guys always leave the cleanup to me. Well, for me… it’s even better if the prey is a hunter.”

In the darkness, his eyes gleamed yellow. Like a beast in the dead of night. Zhixuan headed to Warehouse 14, a little distance from the guild building, with his subordinate. An A-Rank hunter was held captive there. With his arm and leg tendons severed and his eyes gouged out, the hunter seemed unable to function as a hunter anymore. Zhixuan licked his lips and approached the man. Thump- thump- At the sound of his footsteps, the nameless A-Rank hunter, who was tied up, began to struggle. It was obvious what happened to those who tried to escape after being involved with the Black Society. He trembled all over and began to beg.

“P-please save me. Save…”

“Shhh.”

Zhixuan quietly whispered into his ear.

“Isn’t it already too late for those words? You know that well.”

“P-please, I’ll do anything…”

“Well, if I call an S-Rank healer to reattach your severed arm and leg tendons and regenerate your gouged-out eyes, you might be useful somewhere.”

“If you do that, I will definitely repay your kindness…!”

At the nameless A-Rank hunter’s plea, Zhixuan grinned and gently patted his shoulder. It was an act of utmost tenderness. But for the A-Rank hunter, who had been beaten all over, it was just a painful act.

“That’s good too, but…”

He whispered lowly.

“My meal is more important to me.”

With those words, Zhixuan grabbed his neck and instantly bit into his nape. A gasping sound began to be heard. And through it, sucking sounds—slurp, slurp, slurp, slurp—were audible. Zhixuan pulled his body closer to him, his mouth full of blood. How long had it been since he had proper blood? Zhixuan clutched his body tightly with sharp claws, as if tearing at him. Slurp, slurp. Blood overflowed from the forcibly bitten skin, and Zhixuan eagerly licked, sucked, and drank all of it without leaving a drop.

“Ugh, gasp.”

The A-Rank hunter’s body began to tremble. His skin grew paler and paler, and at the same time, Zhixuan’s teeth became crimson. About ten minutes passed. With a thud, the bound A-Rank hunter’s body fell onto the chair. Zhixuan rubbed the corner of his mouth and smiled contentedly. The gaps between his bared teeth were stained crimson with blood, creating a grotesque atmosphere.

“Clean it up.”

“Understood.”

Zhixuan left the warehouse with his mouth still wet with blood and met the outside air. He looked at the desolate field outside the warehouse with his sparkling black eyes and smiled.

“Will the blood of an S-Rank taste different?”

No matter how reckless Zhixuan was, he had never sucked the blood of an S-Rank hunter. Their resistance was strong, and each S-Rank was a valuable asset to their guild, so accidentally touching one could lead to a battle between guilds. The Black Society also valued S-Ranks. That’s why they received the best treatment and were affiliated with the Black Society. But there was no way Zhu Rui would suddenly run away.

“He must have been attacked by someone. He’s not someone who would be easily defeated.”

Someone stronger than Zhu Rui. He was curious to see how much stronger that S-Rank hunter, Cho-i Hyeon, would be than Zhu Rui. Zhixuan, who had actually fought Zhu Rui before, tidied his long, disheveled hair in the wind.

“Zhu Rui was quite cute too.”

But Zhu Rui was no match for Zhixuan.

“If he can defeat Zhu Rui, he must be an even better opponent.”

He grinned. His mouth was still very red. As if something had been painted on his lips.