Name: Park HajinGender: MaleAge: 26
Strength 16 • Agility 15 • Stamina 16 • Magic 12Stat Points: 0Coins: 1,580Occupation: None
Unique Ability:Lethal Sneak AttackSkills:Lv3 Accelerate, Lv2 Stealth, Lv2 Shallow Breath
Jin-hyuk had already checked Park Hajin's status with the Eye of Truth.
An assassination ability with a high success rate in one-on-one situations.
And the skill Shallow Breath—Very useful.
'A passive that shines in prolonged fights.'
Definitely worth taking.
He liked what he saw.
[Copy Condition: If you raise the target's affinity to the maximum, you may copy their Unique Ability.If you raise the target's hostility to the maximum, you may copy one desired Skill.]
To fulfill that requirement…
'Raising hostility won't be hard.'
Jin-hyuk smiled.
Meanwhile, Park Hajin's face twisted further.
"This bastard… you're smiling right now?"
Srrrng!
He drew his sword—
But Jin-hyuk moved half a beat faster.
He lifted the water bottle in his hand—
Chak!
—And splashed the water straight into Hajin's face.
'What…?!'
Hajin shut his eyes instinctively.
It was less than a second.But even the shortest hesitation was fatal in battle.
His sword sliced through empty air.
No blood.No scream.
No resistance.
A bad feeling crawled up his spine—
Throb.
Sharp pain exploded in his thigh.
"KUAAAK!"
He collapsed, clutching his leg.
A precise, merciless strike.Park Hajin knew instantly—He wasn't getting up anytime soon.
"W-what just happened?"
"Did… did he fall while attacking?"
"I couldn't even see it."
To the crowd, it looked like a freak accident.Pure luck.
But among the hundred people watching, only three fully grasped what had happened:
Lee Taemin. Yoo Yeon-hwa.And Kim Gitae of the Fathers of Fighting Guild.
'I knew he was better than us… but this is insane.'
Taemin swallowed.
That timing.That minimal gap he used.That angle—straight to the thigh.
It looked like coincidence, but everything had been calculated.
Yoo Yeon-hwa let out a quiet sigh.
The overwhelming aura…It overlapped with her grandfather's image.
'No… this is worse than grandfather.'
Back then, her grandfather hurt her to teach her.
This?This was someone enjoying the process.
Meanwhile—
'W…what?'
Park Hajin's mind couldn't catch up.
His opponent was supposed to be on the ground.
So why—
—was he the one feeling cold marble against his cheek?
"D-Damn it!"
He cursed. How humiliating—Especially with Kim Gitae watching.
Even if he had been careless, this was a stain he could never erase.
"You bastard! I'll—!"
As he tried to get up—
Crush.
"G—Kuak?!"
A heavy pressure slammed onto his neck.
"Your neck is fractured. Stop moving."
Jin-hyuk stared down at him.
"U-Ugh! Your foot! Don't you even wash it?!"
Hajin thrashed, trying to push the leg off him.
It didn't move even a millimeter.
"O-Oppa!"
A shrill voice pushed through the crowd—Park Hana.
She hurried forward, spotting her brother on the floor.
"What kind of bastard—!"
She froze mid-yell.
Tremble—
Her entire body shook.
"U-Uh…?"
The person standing there—
The one she least wanted to ever see again—
The devil she couldn't even look in the eye—
Was smiling at her.
"Oh my. Didn't expect to meet so soon. Intern."
Jin-hyuk's smile widened.
"W-Why are you here… s-sir?"
"Why? To take the test. But your brother here was pushing around and shouting a bit too loudly."
He pressed his foot down harder.
"K-Kuaak!"
The hall quieted.
'…But the hostility condition isn't maxed yet?'
He expected this much to fill the requirement, but apparently the condition was stricter than he thought.
'Then I'll just have to go harder.'
Just as he thought that—
"Enough."
A heavy pressure landed on his shoulder.
Kim Gitae.
['Eye of Truth' has activated.]
[Skill activation canceled. Level difference too high.]
He couldn't see the man's status.
Meaning—
'He's well above level 20.'
This was the reason everyone flocked to large guilds.
Domination of hunting zones.Early monopolies.Crazy fast growth.
Jin-hyuk glanced at the hand gripping his shoulder.
"…I didn't know."
"What didn't you know?"
"That this guy would bring a nanny."
A provocative line.Kim Gitae didn't even blink.
"He works hard. He's… useful in his own way."
"A good boy, huh?"
Jin-hyuk smiled faintly.
"Is it because you're supplying Korean Ginseng to China?"
"…What?"
For the first time, Kim Gitae's expression cracked.
His eyes trembled.Even his fingers shook.
"How do you know that?"
"That's the wrong question."
Jin-hyuk's tone cooled.
"If I know something this sensitive—then the real question is whether I can fix the side effects."
As soon as the words left his mouth—
Woong—!
[Kim Gitae activates Lv3 'Blackout Barrier']
A pitch-black curtain closed around them.
Everyone else vanished.
Only Jin-hyuk and Kim Gitae remained.
"You… who are you? How much do you know?"
His earlier curiosity turned into fear.
The man in front of him—
Knew far too much.
"I think you're asking the wrong question again."
Jin-hyuk shrugged.
"The point isn't how I know.It's whether the information can be traded."
"…A deal?"
"Yes. Since I'll be telling you exactly how to reduce the side effects."
Kim Gitae's eyes narrowed.
"You make it sound like you prepared this ahead of time."
Anyone else couldn't have set this up.Too many moving pieces.
But Jin-hyuk simply shrugged.
"Of course. I knew you'd be here."
He had predicted everything.
Park Hana's desire for fame.Park Hajin's hunger for reputation.The perfect timing for guild publicity.The presence of a high-ranking representative.
Dangun or Fathers of Fighting—One of the two would show up.
He had wagered on Fathers of Fighting.
And he was right.
"…If all that is true, show evidence. Anyone can bluff."
Evidence?
Naturally.
"If you eat the Korean Ginseng raw, you'll suffer magic poisoning. Using Purified Water from the 2nd floor reduces symptoms, but it's not a cure."
Kim Gitae's breathing hitched.
"And the real solution?"
"You need three items."
Jin-hyuk raised three fingers.
"Karasian Extract, Moonlight Stone, and the Mandragora Root.The first two are findable.But you don't know where the Mandragora grows, do you?"
Kim Gitae's eyes widened.
Their research team had the same problem.
Two ingredients.One missing.
And no clue where to find it.
'So he really knows.'
"…Fine. I'll accept that you have information. But—"
Srrrng!
His sword was drawn.
The blade flashed with terrifying speed—
Stopping right before Jin-hyuk's nose.
"If this is a trick—be prepared."
"Prepared…?"
"Right.Because this time, you won't escape."
Jin-hyuk sighed.
The misunderstanding was annoying.
He scratched his head—
And grabbed the blade with his bare hand.
"You don't need to hold my hand."
Kim Gitae smirked—
And then—
Wheik!
[Lv2 'Element of Fire' activated!][Due to level difference, 'Rift' state activated!]
The blade heated instantly.
Red-hot.Air boiling.Moisture evaporating.
"…What?!"
Kim Gitae tried to pull back—
Too late.
KRRRK—!
Jin-hyuk drew his dagger with his other hand.
A thin golden line appeared along Gitae's sword—
Then—
Tuk.
The blade split in half.
'He… cut my strengthened weapon?'
In a single strike?
'Impossible…!'
Kim Gitae stared at the broken sword, dumbfounded.
The opponent was level 1.
Yet the pressure he felt—
Was monstrous.
Instinct screamed danger.
And Jin-hyuk spoke quietly.
"Don't misunderstand."
His voice deepened.
"I proposed a deal because I don't want to waste time playing tug-of-war."
He had ruins to explore.He couldn't waste another minute.
"And remember this—"
Jin-hyuk drew a line in the air.
A cold, merciless warning.
"If you make one underhanded move…"
His eyes glowed.
"I will erase the entire Fathers of Fighting Guild."
The only warning he would give.
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