I’ll Retire After Saving the World - Chapter 29

[ Chapter 29: End Point (1) ]

An old, worn-out sign with the middle letter’s light extinguished.

A door that made an unpleasant creaking sound every time it opened. Pop songs that were popular a long time ago. Even flies occasionally flying through the air.

In the small, old pub, there was only one table with customers.

A group consisting of two men and one woman.

“Here is the chicken you ordered.”

Ignoring the somewhat gloomy atmosphere at the table, the owner, wearing an apron stained with grease, placed the plate of chicken down. Though he glanced at a few photos scattered on the table, the dim lighting of the pub made it difficult to see their contents.

The owner, after briefly looking at the three people with curiosity, shook his head and returned to the kitchen. The beer they had ordered a while ago remained untouched. It seemed like something serious was going on, but to run a business in the neighborhood for a long time, one had to mind their own business.

After confirming the owner had gone back to the kitchen, Hong Seok-young urged in a flat voice.

“Well? Got nothing to say?”

The young man sitting across from him picked up the photo again. Watching him even examine the blank backside, Hong Seok-young clicked his tongue.

“I helped you in every possible way. And in return, what? You don’t know? There should be a limit to ingratitude.”

“……”

“Oh, right. How about I ask a more fundamental question?”

Hong Seok-young yelled at the young man, Woo Hee-jae.

“Who are you?”

“……”

Woo Hee-jae sighed. He roughly tossed the photo onto the table.

“Hey, let’s stop this.”

“Stop what? I’m just getting started.”

“I mean….”

Woo Hee-jae sighed again.

“That person is a woman. Let’s not mess with people over someone we don’t even know.”

Hong Seok-young smirked.

—

I’ve said it several times, but I was a cunning child.

Do you know what a cunning child becomes when they grow up?

They become a cunning adult.

Did you really think that once I decided to borrow the identity of a man I didn’t know, I would just sit back and do nothing?

Did you think I would leave my conversation with Mr. Kim to chance and luck, and wing it?

I am not that stupid.

If I truly had nothing, I might have just left it up to fate. There wouldn’t have been a way to get information, no matter what I tried.

But I have the magic clock. A device that holds the entire seventeen-year history of the Ability Management Bureau.

Even in 2021, the department dedicated to Awakened individuals exists, albeit in a small and cute form. The Awakened Crime Investigation Office is also part of that department.

The bureau still had records from that time. There were some gaps, but at least the lists of missing and deceased individuals were complete.

Why? Because sometimes there are those who fake their deaths in dungeons to escape overseas.

If I have the lists of missing and deceased individuals, the next step is to sacrifice my time and effort.

First, I search for those with the surname Kim who died or went missing around 2021. This part is easy.

Among them, I picked those who might be related to Hong Seok-young. This part was a bit difficult. Still, I managed to find three leads. However, one was abroad, and another died while preventing a dungeon break in Gyeongsang Province in early 2021.

The remaining one was a woman named Kim Yoo-hwa.

Before awakening, she was a police officer, and after awakening, she worked in the Awakened Crime Investigation Office. The only records left of her are her name on the missing persons list and her service records at the Awakened Crime Investigation Office. There are records of her investigating several cases with the old man. Other than that, there’s nothing.

It’s too obvious. An unlucky hunter who dreamed of justice but disappeared during an undercover investigation.

The old man was from such an old generation that he called even his female juniors “Mr.” They used to say it was used regardless of gender back then… That’s just proof he’s from an older generation.

“So, who is this man? You didn’t kill someone just to test me, did you?”

Look at that smirking face.

If he weren’t Korea’s top hunter, I would have punched him….

The magic creeping up my ankle instantly vanished. It was proof that I had answered correctly. If I had said something wrong, my ankle would have been cut off in a flash. It was the ankle without the magic controller, of course.

“No way. I found him in the Songpa District Dungeon.”

“A corpse?”

“Yes.”

Hong Seok-young pulled out a few more photos from his pocket.

See? He deliberately hid them to test me.

Yoo Ji-eun used to say I grew up without any charm, but it’s all because of that old man. With such an adult to look up to, I think I grew up quite decently.

“How long has he been dead?”

“Three to four days. When Dasun’s hunters entered the dungeon four days ago, he wasn’t there. We don’t know if he was killed there or brought in from outside.”

“Didn’t Dasun guard the dungeon entrance?”

“Of course they did. 24-hour tight security. We have no idea how he got in, and Hunter Lee Mi-sun is extremely furious right now.”

I nodded, saying, “Ah.”

“Worried about a traitor in the guild?”

“I wouldn’t call it a traitor in such grand terms… but something like that.”

“Hmm…. Hunter Lee Mi-sun will handle that. Is this a rune?”

I pointed to one of the new photos Hong Seok-young had pulled out. It was a photo of the inside of the clothes the corpse was wearing.

Complex symbols were intertwined. Unless a psychopathic killer spent a lot of time scribbling meaningless symbols after killing someone, it was a rune.

“Yeah, I was going to ask about this.”

Hong Seok-young confirmed.

“Uh….”

“There is a rune, but I don’t know what effect it has. Given that it was drawn this way, it must mean something. Do you know what rune it is?”

“Well….”

“Were you testing me with this while asking if this was Mr. Kim?”

“People need to be thrifty.”

“Is this what you call thrifty?”

“Hey!!!”

Kim Chae-min wasn’t usually this loud, but it was the first time since he saw the concealment rune that he raised his voice like this.

Hong Seok-young and I, who had been discussing the runes drawn on the corpse, widened our eyes and looked at Kim Chae-min.

“I can’t follow any of this conversation!”

Kim Chae-min yelled loudly.

“Who is this Kim guy, and why does his gender even matter?!”

Only then did Hong Seok-young smile awkwardly.

The poor Grand Mage, having been suppressed by Hong Seok-young’s momentum since earlier, shouted with an aggrieved expression.

I didn’t know how much Hong Seok-young had told Kim Chae-min about me. But seeing this, it seemed he hadn’t been as detailed as I had thought.

Taking him to the training center, and knowing that Kim Chae-min was aware of Bangju’s existence were facts. I still didn’t know how Kim Chae-min got involved with Bangju….

Considering that Hong Seok-young brought him here, it probably didn’t matter.

“Mr. Kim. You know I’m from Bangju, right?”

“Yes! You never told me, but if I couldn’t figure that out from our conversation at the training center, I’d be an idiot!”

…Had he really not explained a single thing to him?

I glanced at Hong Seok-young and began to speak. Cleaning up after things was always my job. It was nothing new.

“When I was trying to leave there, there was someone named Kim who helped me. It was like undercover work.”

Hong Seok-young did not stop me. Instead, he rested his chin on his hand and watched Kim Chae-min and me, as if urging me to continue.

Kim Chae-min was smart. Even with just that, he seemed to get the gist of the situation and his mouth hung open.

“During that time, I lost contact with that person…. The same goes for Mr. Hong Seok-young.”

“Oh dear. Calling him Mr. Hong Seok-young is so impersonal. Is he upset?”

“Mr. Hong Seok-young had very little information about me, so he was extremely suspicious of whether I was the insider Kim was talking about.”

“He’s upset.”

“Ah, I see.”

“Yes. That’s how it is.”

Kim Chae-min began to gulp down his beer. He emptied a 500cc glass in one go, then slammed it down with a thud and wiped his mouth.

…Was he really that stressed?

“So, has all suspicion toward Mr. Woo been resolved? Seems like this was a sting operation.”

“Uh…. I wouldn’t know. That would depend on Mr. Hong Seok-young’s feelings, wouldn’t it?”

Kim Chae-min glared at Hong Seok-young.

“Mr. Hong Seok-young.”

“Mm?”

“Is everything settled now?”

Kim Chae-min frowned. Staring intently at Hong Seok-young, he bluntly said,

“Then apologize.”

Hong Seok-young scratched his head. Despite being much older, Hong Seok-young bowed his head slightly and apologized without saying much.

“Sorry.”

“Not to me.”

“Mm. Sorry.”

Hong Seok-young bowed his head to me as well.

“Well, as a small token of my apology….”

He fumbled inside his pocket again. Did he have a subspace attached to the inner pocket of that coat? Why did he keep pulling things out?

This time, Hong Seok-young pulled out a crumpled envelope.

“What is this?”

“It’s yours.”

I received the envelope with a dubious expression. There wasn’t much inside compared to the size of the envelope, which is why it was crumpled. What was inside….

Thud.

I blinked.

What fell onto my palm was a card. Specifically, a card-sized… Resident Registration Number card.

Woo Hee-jae.

920930-1xxxxxx.

“I based the other personal details on what you told me while you were in the investigation room. If those were lies, there’s nothing I can do about it. You’ll have to live with it as it is because it can’t be changed. And….”

Hong Seok-young waved his hand. There was still something left inside the envelope.

Following the Resident Registration Number card, a Hunter License fell out.

“This too, I received temporarily.”

Woo Hee-jae, Rank D.

“Make sure to renew it later.”

But there was still something left inside the envelope. When shaking it didn’t work, I reached in and pulled it out.

Thud.

…It was a bankbook.

“It just so happened that payday passed. I also got a check card issued together.”

Between the pages of the bankbook, there was a card tucked in. My name was on it too.

“Now you have an identity, so you are a citizen of the Republic of Korea, right? You know you have to pay taxes? So, taxes were deducted….”

For some reason, my hands were trembling. Maybe it was because I could sense what was coming next.

“I’m not a terrible employer, so I also enrolled you in the four major insurances. Even if you work somewhere else later, make sure to go to a place that enrolls you in insurance. If they don’t, it’s suspicious, so quit.”

Why would a Hunter need to be enrolled in the four major insurances…!

“Originally, I should have deducted the miscellaneous expenses from your stay for the month….”

“Oh, come on, Principal, that’s too much.”

“Oh, now I’m the Principal?”

“You apologized, didn’t you?”

“Well, if you want to keep calling me Teacher, you have to live a good life.”

Hong Seok-young chuckled as he spoke.

“As Mr. Kim said, I thought that was too much, so I decided to cover it. How’s that? Isn’t that fair? It’s the rightful reward for your hard work.”

“…….”

“Yes, I understand. I understand. We’ll talk about the serious stuff later, but for now, let’s celebrate. Boss! Please bring us more beer!”

“…….”

Fair reward? A fair reward, you say?

I clutched the bankbook, my hands shaking.

My salary was cut by a quarter, and now, what?