Jo Seong-cheol was a freelance illegal Hunter.
As the name suggests, they were people who lived in the shadows, acting illegally without reporting their awakening.
“Missions? Why would I do those? I could die.”
The Hunter Association treated awakened Hunters like semi-celebrities and pushed them to perform regular missions.
This was the only way they could purchase items from the Score Shop, and it allowed for the emergence of Rankers among the grown Hunters to defend the country.
Naturally, from the Hunters’ perspective, it was dangerous.
The probability of dying during a mission was incredibly high.
If one awakened a decent skill, there were plenty of ways to make money illegally in modern society.
One such way was acting as an unregistered awakened person to handle the dirty work of corporations or guilds.
That was Jo Seong-cheol’s job.
“I heard the guards here just open the way when the sirens wail. Move.”
Jo Seong-cheol flicked the dagger in his hand while looking at the man near the Alchemical Furnace.
He had confirmed it multiple times with the guild that gave him the request.
Apparently, the Taesung Guild didn’t care much for security, perhaps because they hadn’t established their defenses yet.
However, for some reason, they couldn’t take the Alchemical Furnace, which was why Jo Seong-cheol was brought in.
His skill was ‘Theft.’
With this skill, he could likely take the Alchemical Furnace, which seemed to be protected by a skill!
“Hmm…”
Watching Jo Seong-cheol, Lee Tae-sung made a troubled expression.
He had told his employees to just step aside and prioritize their safety if they encountered an intruder, but that didn’t apply to himself.
An intruder appearing right before his eyes?
“Is that guy an idiot?”
Abeson, floating in a state visible only to Lee Tae-sung, muttered in disbelief.
From his perspective, the man was literally sticking his head into a tiger’s mouth.
“If you won’t move, I have no choice. I won’t kill you, though.”
Jo Seong-cheol began to move.
No matter how easy this place was, he couldn’t stay long as a thief.
*Thud!*
Jo Seong-cheol kicked off the ground and lunged forward.
Lee Tae-sung drew his sword in response.
*Whoosh!*
The moment the sword left its scabbard, sizzling flames poured out.
Flame Tide Wave Sword.
The essence of this sword technique created by the Flame Emperor was simple.
It was to overwhelm the opponent by driving an endless wave of flames!
From the moment Lee Tae-sung placed his hand on the hilt, flames spread around him.
As the sword was drawn, the flames rose and covered the surroundings like a tidal wave.
Jo Seong-cheol’s heart grew heavy.
Just looking at that sword, he felt an immense pressure.
At that moment, Lee Tae-sung’s sword wasn’t even halfway out.
‘I, I have to dodge.’
He tried to twist his legs with all his might to escape, but it was already too late.
Lee Tae-sung, who had deployed his Bihwapok, was already smoothly positioned in front of Jo Seong-cheol.
The sword was fully drawn now.
The flames wrapping around the blade stretched out in all directions, encroaching on the entire area.
Heavenly Fire Holy Law Art, Flying Flower Explosive Shadow, and the Flame Tide Wave Sword.
The harmony of the mental law, footwork, and sword technique derived from the Flame Emperor connected smoothly.
Amidst the suffocating heat, Lee Tae-sung’s sword flew forward.
Jo Seong-cheol grit his teeth and thrust his dagger in return.
It was too late to run, so he intended to face it and create an opening somehow.
*Roar!*
However, before even touching Lee Tae-sung’s sword, the flickering waves of fire swallowed him whole.
“Aaaaaagh!”
Jo Seong-cheol, who couldn’t even manage a single exchange before losing his dagger, wailed within the flames.
***
“Guild Leader! I heard you caught an intruder!!”
The door slammed open, and Kang Woo-joo rushed in urgently.
“Is the Alchemical Furnace okay?”
Though he hadn’t been with the guild long, Kang Woo-joo was a responsible person.
Since the Alchemical Furnace was the most important thing in the guild right now, he checked the assets first as the Vice Guild Leader.
However, hearing that, Lee Tae-sung asked in disbelief, “Aren’t you going to worry about me?”
“Oh, come on. Would you really get hurt, Guild Leader?”
Kang Woo-joo shrugged.
As last year’s top rookie, he had joined this guild solely based on Lee Tae-sung’s talent.
For such a person to get hurt while catching a petty thief?
That was an unfunny joke.
“I suppose that’s true.”
Lee Tae-sung nodded as if in agreement.
“I’ve captured him alive for now.”
“Where?”
“He’s right here.”
“…That guy is still alive, right?”
Lee Tae-sung gestured with his chin toward Jo Seong-cheol, who was collapsed beside him.
Kang Woo-joo flinched.
If it weren’t for the faint rising and falling of the chest, he would have mistaken the man for a charred corpse.
“He’s definitely alive. I controlled my strength.”
The Flame Tide Wave Sword, which he had used for the first time in actual combat, possessed shocking power.
Currently, Lee Tae-sung was at the First-class level as a warrior, but he had displayed enough skill to reach the Peak Realm.
Waves of fire surged, and even Lee Tae-sung, who unleashed them, was impressed.
Moreover, the mana consumption was lower than expected!
Naturally, it was hard to compare to the Red Cloud Seven Forms he used before, but he felt it was more than viable.
As a result, he had suppressed the intruder without even disturbing his breath.
‘Of course, this isn’t enough, and I need to use it more…!’
The enemy’s skill was too lacking to truly feel the true power of the Flame Tide Wave Sword.
If anything, it only left him thirsting for more.
Lee Tae-sung nudged the fallen Jo Seong-cheol and said, “Could you hand this guy over to Section Chief Song Sang-yeop?”
“Why?”
“We need to interrogate him. I plan to find out where he came from and lodge a protest, whether it’s a guild or a corporation.”
Of course, there wouldn’t be any overt evidence.
Even if they identified the ones who instigated him, they would likely deny everything.
But it didn’t matter.
If it were a guild, they could permanently ban them from purchasing Elixirs.
If it were a corporation, they could simply cut off all dealings.
“Is there a need to hand him over? Can’t we interrogate him ourselves?”
“Can you do it, Woo-joo? I don’t particularly have a talent for that.”
None of the skills Lee Tae-sung possessed were suitable for interrogation.
Torture and interrogation were tasks for experts.
If done wrong, the target might die without giving up any information.
“Hehe. Who do you think I am? Please leave it to me. I’ll do it perfectly.”
Kang Woo-joo gave a grim smile.
He had been under a lot of stress lately.
Repeated, repetitive packaging work, followed by life-or-death missions…
While it wasn’t physically burdensome, the mental stress had piled up.
He had wondered how to relieve it, and he couldn’t believe such an opportunity had arrived!
“Hmm… You mustn’t kill him.”
“Oh, you worry too much. I’m the top interrogation technician from the Hunter Association, a master of torture that even illegal awakened ones want to learn from! I’m the man nicknamed the Honorary Black Agent because everyone who passes through me opens their mouth!”
“Who came up with that name?”
“I did.”
“……”
“Please trust me! In the first place, I don’t need to physically wound them like an amateur. I have the ‘Phantom Pain Infliction’ skill.”
Phantom Pain Infliction was one of the skills possessed by Kang Woo-joo, who belonged to the Assassin class.
It was a skill that made the target feel realistic pain.
Originally, it was used to cause confusion or create openings in an enemy, but it was also perfect for interrogation.
“If that’s the case… I’ll trust you.”
“Fufu. Trust me and get some rest, Guild Leader.”
“Rest? I’ve rested plenty, so I should work now.”
“What work?”
“I’m going on a mission.”
While Kang Woo-joo and the new guild members were freed from packaging duties to perform missions, the Scores they gathered were far lacking compared to Lee Tae-sung.
Since orders were still pouring in, Lee Tae-sung had to earn Scores as well.
Of course, his real goal was to use the Flame Tide Wave Sword to his heart’s content during a mission.
“Ah, Guild Leader. Have you considered doing a Party Mission?”
“Why is that?”
Party Missions were less efficient than Solo Missions.
Unless he needed the help of guild members due to a lack of skill—which was definitely not the case—Lee Tae-sung didn’t particularly want to do Party Missions.
“We have our guild members, don’t we? They joined based on your reputation, but I feel they’re being neglected. I thought it might be good to go on a mission with them, give them some tips, and watch how they perform.”
“Ah.”
Growing the new guild members and making them feel a sense of belonging.
To achieve that, veterans usually accompanied guild members on missions to help them grow.
Naturally, it was a task Lee Tae-sung, as the Guild Leader, should perform.
‘It’s embarrassing.’
Even though he was running the guild, he hadn’t thought of that part.
Lee Tae-sung nodded.
“That’s good advice. I should do that.”
“I’ll relay the news. They’ll be incredibly happy.”
Grinning broadly, Kang Woo-joo slung Jo Seong-cheol over his shoulder like a sack of luggage and ran outside.
***
‘A Party Mission with the Guild Leader… Yes. This is what I wanted.’
Ko Hyeon-seok was a new Hunter who had joined the Taesung Guild.
He clenched his fist at the opportunity that had come his way.
This year’s top rookie.
An incredible genius who became a Ranker in the shortest time after awakening.
That was Lee Tae-sung.
The reason he hadn’t repeatedly applied to large guilds and instead chose a small place like the Taesung Guild was that he wanted to see Lee Tae-sung up close and learn something.
He had boldly given up his dream of going to a large guild, and finally, his effort saw the light.
A Party Mission with the Guild Leader himself!
If he had entered a large guild normally, he might have been assigned a reasonably skilled mentor, but a Ranker and Guild Leader wouldn’t have personally looked after him.
Of course, until recently, he had been assigned packaging work all day and had seriously considered resigning…
But in the end, it worked out well.
“Are you ready?”
“Yes! I can leave anytime!”
At Lee Tae-sung’s question, Ko Hyeon-seok shouted energetically.
‘Gi-tae, that guy. If it weren’t for the injury he got in a mission, he’d be coming too. He must be so disappointed.’
Jeong Gi-tae was a colleague who joined the Taesung Guild at the same time.
He had completed a mission just a few hours ago but sustained an injury.
Because of that, he couldn’t join the mission with Lee Tae-sung.
“Enter Party Mission.”
*Ding!*
**[You have joined a Party Mission.]**
Lee Tae-sung muttered, and the vision of the two men flipped.
***
*Ding!*
**[This is a Party Mission. The difficulty will be adjusted by averaging the current status of the party members.]**
The location of the Party Mission they arrived at was indoors.
It was a fairly wide stone chamber, completely enclosed on all sides.
**[Mission: Defeat enemies in the stone chamber.]**
**[In this stone chamber, you and enemies targeting you are hidden. Successfully defeat all enemies.]**
**[TIP: The hidden enemies are perfectly concealing themselves with a special secret art. Therefore, they cannot move for the next 5 minutes.]**
**[Mission Reward: 7,500 SC.]**
“There are enemies here?”
Ko Hyeon-seok looked around curiously.
No matter how much he looked, there was nothing to see and no presence to be felt.
But mission notifications were absolute.
Ko Hyeon-seok immediately reread the mission and began to think of a strategy.
Though his skills were lacking, he was someone who studied missions whenever he had time.
He was confident in figuring out how to tackle them.
“Guild Leader. Since the stone chamber isn’t that large, I think it would be best if we each took a section and tried swinging our blades through all the spaces. Even if they’re hidden, it’s just that they’re invisible.”
If they couldn’t move for 5 minutes, they might be able to defeat all the enemies without getting hurt if they hurried as much as possible.
However, Lee Tae-sung shook his head.
“No. There’s a better way than that.”
“What is it? Oh, are you planning to use a search skill?”
If he had a search skill, they could clear the mission much more efficiently.
However, Lee Tae-sung didn’t answer Ko Hyeon-seok’s question and instead gave a faint smile as he placed his hand on the hilt of his sword.
*Whoosh!*
Immediately, flames spread around him.
The flames turned into waves and shot toward the walls in all directions.
Dozens of waves exploded as if crashing onto a sandy beach.
*Roar!*
*Boom!*
The waves of fire covered the entire stone chamber in the blink of an eye.
“Aaaaaaaagh!!”
“Gaaaagh!”
No matter where they were hidden, they couldn’t remain unscathed when the entire space was burning.
Shimmering hazes appeared as the stealth wore off, and the enemies screamed before collapsing.
*Ding!*
**[You have defeated a Shadow Elf.]**
**[You have earned 1,500 SC.]**
**[You have defeated a Shadow Elf.]**
**[You have earned 1,500 SC.]**
Notifications appeared in succession.
*Ding!*
**[You have defeated all enemies.]**
**[Mission Success!]**
**[As this is a Party Mission, the success reward will be divided.]**
**[You have earned 3,750 SC.]**
Lee Tae-sung smiled with satisfaction at the mission success notification.
Since it was a Party Mission, the reward was a bit lacking, but it wasn’t bad since it ended easily.
He suddenly remembered Ko Hyeon-seok and looked at him.
“Oh, right. How was it? Was there anything you learned from watching?”
“……?”
Ko Hyeon-seok looked at him as if he were looking at a madman.
What was he supposed to learn from this…?