novelraw Chapter 107 : Chapter 107
Chapter 107 : Chapter 107
Chapter 107 Complete Recruitment
In the situation where Riman was right in front of his nose.
The secretary realized a new fact about his own body.
That even trembling disappears when fear reaches its peak.
A feeling like being thrust bare-bodied into a pile of dry ice.
Only the drops of sweat running down his spine were making him aware that he was alive.
Looking at such a secretary, Riman said.
“...Still, you didn’t raise your gun until the end.”
The secretary's muzzle had been pointing toward the ground since a while ago.
And it was the same even now.
Riman said.
“That’s why you live.”
For a moment, the secretary almost said, thank you.
However, fear was gripping his neck so tightly that even such lip service didn't come out.
Riman said.
“Go.”
“...?”
“I said go.”
“...Really?”
“Do you desperately want to die? Speak if you want.”
“N-No...!”
TAP!
The secretary ran down the mountainside in a hurry.
Riman just watched that back quietly.
Letting go of an enemy he practically had in his hands.
This was neither an act of mercy nor an expression of compassion.
This was all intentional.
‘That secretary bastard will report everything he saw in detail as soon as he returns. Then Mayor Cha Hak-jun will also come to know what kind of person I am.’
With this, Cha Hak-jun will definitely become tense.
And he will judge that it is impossible to attack me with ordinary methods.
Then there are only two measures the guy can take.
Either give up.
Or reinforce his power.
‘But that guy Cha Hak-jun is absolutely not the type of human to give up.’
Then, there is only one option the guy can take: reinforcement.
There was a high probability he would gather all the people of the shadows he wouldn't have mobilized usually.
And to Cha Hak-jun, people of the shadows mean...
‘...The escapees of Mugan.’
Cha Hak-jun had connections with escapees in Korea.
That was why he could sponsor Francis Appel and hire Jensen Morrow.
Furthermore, these two weren't the end.
Currently, there are a total of four escapees surviving in Korea.
And...
‘Cha Hak-jun still maintains contact networks with those guys too.’
If Cha Hak-jun considers Riman a sufficient threat, there was a high possibility he would summon all four of them.
The possibility arises that the guys scattered here and there in Korea would gather in one place and surface.
That means—
‘I can round up those escapee bastards in one fell swoop.’
It meant he could sweep them all at once without having to search for and kill them one by one.
‘Getting rid of Cha Hak-jun is a given, and I’ll sweep away those four guys together at this opportunity.’
It was the completion of truly the optimal human hunting composition.
Of course, the remaining four escapees were by no means easy opponents.
But Riman wasn't facing them alone either.
First, a spy named Joseph Han was planted on Cha Hak-jun's side, and he planned to make the big shot Pyo Seok-jung his backer too.
By treating his wife using these magic stones obtained today.
‘But first, before that...’
SHIMMER...-
Riman deactivated the Extreme Eye he was maintaining in both eyes.
The vision that had been bleached black and white returned to its original primary colors.
His eyes also returned to their original color.
At the same time, deep stiffness and stinging dug into his two eyes.
Riman sat leaning against a nearby tree with his eyes tightly closed.
‘Urgh...’
Considerable fatigue was applied to the entire optic nerve instantly.
It was the recoil of using the Extreme Eye twice.
‘They said just using a demonic eye overloads the eyes... I guess this much recoil can't be helped.’
While activated, it was a quite powerful demonic eye that drastically boosted the power of overall magic, but the recoil was also subtly powerful to match.
No, perhaps it was a price befitting the performance.
‘It’s unreasonable to use it constantly, but as a wildcard to seize the tide at a decisive moment during battle, it has top-tier performance.’
After briefly organizing the performance and usage of the newly acquired technique in his head like that.
Riman raised his body again.
‘Anyway, Jensen is dealt with.’
Then now it’s time to move to the next step.
“Let’s go, Saya.”
Now it was time to completely draw Pyo Seok-jung to this side.
* * *
Pyo Seok-jung's mansion.
A car arrived and stopped in front of the main gate.
As soon as the car stopped, the chauffeur jumped out and opened the rear door.
And supported a man out from the back seat.
The man barely getting out of the car leaning on the chauffeur's shoulder.
It was Riman.
“Oh my...”
Pyo Seok-jung was momentarily speechless upon seeing Riman, who had become a wreck.
What especially caught his eye was the large wound on his side.
Pyo Seok-jung couldn't help but be surprised at the terrible wound that looked as if the skin had melted down, not a cut or abrasion.
“First, bring him inside quickly. Treatment comes first...”
“No, sir. Please take this first.”
Riman untied the bag he was carrying on his shoulder and held it out to Pyo Seok-jung.
Pyo Seok-jung opened the bag and checked the contents.
What was fully packed inside the bag was a pile of magic stones.
Pyo Seok-jung asked.
“This is...?”
“These are the magic stones you requested. Go quickly and make... the antidote for your wife... manufacture...”
Riman quietly lost consciousness.
Pyo Seok-jung instructed his secretary to call a doctor, and Ji Byeong-seo rushed over for first aid.
Like that, Riman was moved to an empty bedroom.
After finishing simple first aid, Ji Byeong-seo said to Pyo Seok-jung.
“Since I'm not a doctor, I've only done treatments possible with drugs for now. And since he seems to need rest, I think it would be better to leave the room for a moment.”
At those words, everyone except Ji Byeong-seo left Riman's room.
Like that, when only Riman and Ji Byeong-seo remained, Ji Byeong-seo opened his mouth.
“Stop acting.”
“...Is it that obvious?”
“No, I recognized it because I'm at this level. What on earth are you thinking?”
Riman slowly sat up from the bed and said.
“First off, it is true that this fight was dangerous. And it is true that I fought risking my life.
Compared to that, I got hurt less though.”
“So what’s the reason for pretending to be this sick?”
“It’s a performance. Because there are quite a lot of people in the world who don't properly understand the contribution unless you show it exaggeratedly.”
“Hmm.”
It was cunning, but not such a wrong way of conduct either.
So Ji Byeong-seo didn't ask further about Riman's acting.
“By the way, Mr. Riman, it seems fatigue has accumulated quite a bit around your eyes. And your right arm too. Are you okay?”
“...I’ll recover if I rest. Probably.”
After briefly sharing stories about what happened inside the demonic beast's den.
Ji Byeong-seo got up from his seat and went outside.
Because he had to make the antidote for Pyo Seok-jung's wife's Cocnum addiction using the magic stones Riman brought.
After Ji Byeong-seo left like that.
Riman took off his top.
And checked the wound on his side once again.
‘Certainly, outwardly it looks quite like a serious injury.’
But the more he looked, there was a fascinating part.
Because of the tattoo.
Currently, Riman's body was covered in tattoos except for his head, hands, and feet.
Naturally, the side was no exception.
And in this fight, one side of Riman was gouged quite deeply.
At this level, normally the tattoo should have been torn off along with the skin.
But there was no problem with the tattoo on his side.
It was still clearly revealed on the body surface.
‘...As expected, it wasn’t a tattoo engraved in a general way.’
He knew it was a tattoo related to magic, but he didn't know the tattoo itself had undergone such magical processing.
After checking his side like that.
Riman put on his top again and thought.
‘Pyo Seok-jung is a man clear about favors and grudges.’
Simply put, he is the type of person who pays back both grace and enmity clearly, several times over.
That was the driving force that made Pyo Seok-jung a big shot in the political world.
‘And I risked my life to bring magic stones for his wife. At least I performed to make it look that way in his eyes.’
In other words, it meant he succeeded in indebting Pyo Seok-jung's heart.
‘So probably, once the wife’s matter is settled, he will come looking for me again. Because he would want to reward me.’
And that time is exactly...
‘The opportunity to definitely draw Pyo Seok-jung to my side.’
* * *
Meanwhile, Pyo Seok-jung was looking down at his wife in the sickbed with a worried expression.
At that time, Ji Byeong-seo brought the medicine to give to her.
Currently, she was suffering from a double illness.
An incurable disease called ‘Poison Spasm.’
And Cocnum addiction secretly administered by a doctor under Cha Hak-jun's orders.
The medicine Ji Byeong-seo brought was the antidote for Cocnum addiction among these.
The very antidote made with the magic stones Riman brought.
Soon, the medicine was injected into her vein through an IV.
A while later, her irregular breathing became much more peaceful.
Her stiffened expression also relaxed.
Even a layman could tell that her condition had visibly improved.
“Honey...!”
Saying so, Pyo Seok-jung held his wife's hand tightly.
* * *
“...So, my wife's physical condition has definitely improved. Leman, it’s thanks to you.”
Riman's sickroom.
After confirming that his wife's condition had improved, he came straight to where Riman was.
“...That’s a relief.”
“That’s not the only relief. I put double the amount I promised into your bank account.”
“...!”
Indeed.
An amount far exceeding expectations had come into Riman's bank account.
“Now then, let me ask just one thing. What on earth happened inside the demonic beast's den?”
“Pardon?”
“You were confident when you left. You probably didn't expect to sustain this level of serious injury. But seeing you return in this state... I think you must have encountered something unexpected inside.”
“......”
“Of course, if it’s a topic difficult to talk about, you don’t have to say it. However...”
“There was a killer who followed me into the demonic beast's den. I ended up like this fighting him.”
“...What? Why on earth...?”
“I didn't know the reason at first either. But when I caught and interrogated him, he confessed the mastermind.”
Saying up to here, Riman rested for a beat.
Intentional breathing placement to emphasize the next word he would bring up.
Riman opened his mouth again.
“...Cha Hak-jun.”
“What?!”
“Mayor Cha Hak-jun had ordered my murder.”
The name Pyo Seok-jung currently hates the most, Cha Hak-jun.
Since it popped out of an unexpected person's mouth, Pyo Seok-jung couldn't help but be surprised.
“Cha Hak-jun, that bas... no, why would that guy target you...?”
“You probably know my job is a Headhunter. So a while ago, I hunted Francis Appel and took the bounty.”
“Francis Appel... Right, I heard rumors that he returned to the art world after escaping prison. But what relation is there between Francis and Cha Hak-jun?”
“It turned out Cha Hak-jun was Francis's biggest sponsor. But I killed Francis.”
“...!”
“From Cha Hak-jun's perspective, he had no choice but to be angry.”
“Sending a killer for just such a reason... no, if it’s Cha Hak-jun, he is definitely capable of doing that and more.”
Pyo Seok-jung nodded as if accepting it.
“Then, what do you intend to do now?”
“...Until now, I have never let anyone who tried to kill me live.”
“It will be difficult.”
“I have to try.”
Pyo Seok-jung gazed at Riman intently.
From Pyo Seok-jung's perspective, it was truly a coincidental matter.
Because the opponent he hated and the opponent Riman wanted to kill coincided unexpectedly.
Of course, he did not know.
That this situation itself was what Riman had induced.
Still, anyway, it was a fact that a definite ally was lying in front of Pyo Seok-jung.
A perfect ally equipped with martial power enough to clear a demonic beast's den alone, plus murderous intent toward Cha Hak-jun.
‘I must bring him in.’
Leman White.
To deal with Cha Hak-jun, I must recruit this person to my side without fail.
As his thoughts reached this point, Pyo Seok-jung spoke.
“...Leman.”
“Yes.”
“It seems your target and mine overlap.”
“Yes?”
“Would you listen to my proposal first?”
The moment he heard those words, Riman smiled a smile of satisfaction inwardly.
Because it was the moment Pyo Seok-jung was recruited to his side.