Chapter 150

Chapter 28: Human Hunting (4)

The woman revealed that her name was Eisa Gonzalez. She elaborated extensively on why she had to enter the country illegally.

– I didn’t cross with any bad intentions, it’s just that I didn’t have a passport…

– But when the Plaza (a hub for manufacturing drugs, akin to a village or small city) got raided, they said the drugs had already been sent to the US, so I thought I had to stop them from releasing it…

Perhaps she was conscious of Lily’s affiliation. Fortunately or unfortunately, Lily didn’t dwell on Eisa’s illegal entry.

Instead, she probed deeper into the narcotics that had made their way to the U. S. I found her questions intriguing, having only encountered drugs through media before.

Questions such as the effects, symptoms upon addiction, the manufacturing process, price, and the size of the related cartel were systematically and thoroughly examined.

‘Curious though I was.’

I wondered why such inquiries were being made and how they planned to pursue this, considering that players were involved now.

There were many things I was curious about, but jumping in prematurely seemed risky at that moment.

This situation had been brewing between the U. S. and Mexico for a long time, after all.

In the meantime, I reflected on Eisa’s story.

– Umm, by the time I learned about the drug, it had already spread in Mexico’s underworld…

– It had a familiar smell, and when I checked the manufacturing sites, it turned out they were using monster blood to make it.

– The process is even simple. You mix it with cocaine, boil it, and once it hardens, grind it to powder, and that’s it.

– The drawback is… it becomes useless quickly. Around two weeks and it turns into worthless black powder.

– So far, I’ve confirmed seven Plazas, mostly near the border. I managed to burn one down.

A drug made with monster blood, called Cratoll.

‘A play on “crazy” and “toll”.’

The drug was rapidly spreading in Mexico. Just thinking about it made my head throb.

‘Drugs are not a problem that can be eradicated easily.’

If that were possible, the U. S., mexico, colombia, and countries in Central and South America wouldn’t have suffered from drug issues for so long.

It’s a never-ending war as long as humanity exists.

Luckily, in this particular case, it was possible to put a temporary stop to it.

If we eliminate the involved players and kill all the monsters, no further materials can be obtained.

‘We can at least put out the immediate fire.’

But conversely, it only means temporary containment with no permanent solutions. If monster blood becomes accessible, ordinary people could make Cratoll.

‘If holes appear and monsters cross over, it will undoubtedly be a problem.’

Even without that, the system will continue to increase the number of players. There’s nothing to stop newly selected players from repeating the same actions.

Eventually, this matter will require ongoing management. What if I leave that management to Eisa?

‘Though there’s Sniper, having a dedicated person for South America is also beneficial.’

Initially, I intended to consider candidates from the players in Club 249. Unexpectedly, Eisa emerged as a new candidate, and her qualifications weren’t bad.

‘She seems willing to tackle problems voluntarily, and she seems to have a strong aversion to drugs.’

Additionally, she was prepared to endure the burden of murder on her own. I objectively analyzed Eisa while tapping my forearm with my fingers.

‘To be honest, her skills aren’t satisfying.’

It was evident when she couldn’t hunt down the target before I arrived after the additional explosion; it was hard to say her skills were exceptional.

Nonetheless, after much deliberation, I concluded that I wanted to recruit her. The advantages outweighed the disadvantages significantly.

Eisa possessed a unique familiarity with drugs.

‘I can’t contact Lily Evans every time an issue arises.’

Purely focusing on her knowledge and experience with drugs outweighs her overall skills.

It’s unlikely to find another player knowledgeable about the drug trade ecosystem.

Realizing this, I didn’t see Eisa’s lack of skills as a substantial problem that could change my decision.

‘If her skills are lacking, they must be raised to match her position.’

For now, I’ll assign Sniper with a similar activity range to support her.

‘If I request Sniper to train her, she’ll at least avoid getting bullied elsewhere.’

In exchange, I offered random boxes, ensuring Sniper wouldn’t refuse. Having made a decision, I contemplated how to approach Eisa.

‘Her personality seems simple.’

This was another contributing factor to my decision to recruit her. When engaging in a prolonged, endless war, such simplicity could be beneficial.

After careful thought, the approach I decided on was straightforward.

‘If I roundabout the process, she wouldn’t notice.’

I sent a friend request the moment Eisa finished her conversation with Lily. Eisa, her eyes widening in surprise, hesitated several times but eventually accepted my request.

– Eisa: Why… me? Do you know me?

Perplexed by the abrupt question.

‘She’s simple, not very quick-witted.’

If it were me, when an unfamiliar incident occurred, I’d first check if there were changes to my usual environment.

And I’d have thought associating those changes. Despite having three unfamiliar individuals around, she failed to connect the dots between the sudden friend addition and these unfamiliar figures.

With Eisa, I needed to be clear and concise. With this type, speaking ambiguously would only complicate communication.

– K: The brown-haired white man standing at your 3 o’clock is me.

“Eek!!”

Eisa clamped her hands over her mouth as she turned to look at me.

‘What a partner indeed…’

It didn’t take long for Lily to sense something and glance between Eisa and me.

“What’s happening?”

I shrugged, feigning ignorance despite Lily’s questioning. Giving her additional information was not something I favored.

Mentioning the bounty mission was simply to secure minimum cooperation.

‘Details like how I can track exact locations, rewards for eliminating targets, or penalties for failing the mission.’

They are not something I plan to disclose unnecessarily.

Thus, I needed to rein in Eisa, who was practically broadcasting our collusion.

– K: Just pretend you don’t know anything. I don’t want Lily Evans to know of our conversations.

– Eisa: Yes!

I stated my needs clearly, without beating around the bush, specifying the course of action.

Eisa, too, chose to ignore Lily, albeit appearing stiff and somewhat suspicious rather than nonchalant. Being an open book, I settled with her reaction.

As both Eisa and I pretended nothing was amiss, Lily gritted her teeth. She might have realized a clandestine conversation was occurring beyond her view.

But knowing was one thing, acting on that knowledge was another. She had no way to access our chat, not unless she hacked the game.

Now that I think of it, the system did well to update the community feature. I generously praised the system’s decision as I continued to chat.

– K: There’s something called Hidden Missions available to a select few players instead of general missions.

– Eisa: I’ve heard of it! Some people bragged about it in the community.

The existence of Hidden Missions wasn’t a secret per se. Players who received distinct rewards naturally boasted about their luck.

Because of this, Eisa believed in the Bounty Missions quickly. Explaining the type of mission didn’t prove difficult.

– K: You might have to kill hundreds; are you still up for it?

If Eisa refused, I would end up revealing information needlessly.

So I kept the details vague, explaining only what need to be done, and then asked her to decide whether to join or not, minimizing the risk of refusal.

Despite managing the risk, I was half-confident. Eisa had voluntarily stepped into the world of drugs, willing to kill to stop it.

‘She likely has a story tied to drugs, possibly with resentment mingled in.’

– Eisa: I’ll do it.

As expected, she responded quickly, without hesitation.

– K: You’ll be in charge of Latin America. I expect you to handle drug-related affairs as quietly and smoothly as possible. The region contains many countries notorious for fueling drug cartels. Given your recruitment based on drug-related insights, you should know the situation better than I.

Convinced, I prepared to write Eisa’s code into the third recruitment mission.

– Eisa: But… what about non-players?

– Eisa: So, I’m talking about those in the drug cartels who are just civilians.

The momentary pause, however, led me back to a decision I had reached while saving Lee Junmo.

– K: Not allowed. If you try to harm civilians, I will personally intervene to stop you.

Just as I stepped in during the matter involving Yun Jihye and Lee Junmo.

– K: Let non-player matters be resolved by non-players. Just as we, players, deal with problems created by players.

Both sides must be distinguished; otherwise, players ruling over civilians becomes the norm. After firmly voicing my stance, a dejected response came back after a while.

– Eisa: Okay…

Only then did I jot down Eisa’s code into the recruitment mission.

「Bounty Hunter Recruitment Progress 0.1%」

「Bounty Hunter Recruitment Progress 0.2%」

…….

There was no reason to waste time any further now that Eisa was recruited.

“Sniper.”

“Yeah?”

“Can you handle the remaining targets in the U. S. alone?”

“Of course.”

Upon declaring I’d allocate the targets in the U. S. to him, Sniper readily accepted.

“Then I will immediately head to Mexico.”

For now, I would deal with Mexico directly and leave the U. S. targets to Sniper.

Afterward, I would assign Sniper to exclusively work with Eisa, covering the Americas together. Having laid out the next steps, I turned to Eisa.

“Ms. Eisa, you mentioned knowing about the locations of Cratoll production? Please guide us.”

“Uh, uhh…”

As Eisa reflexively started to move towards me, she hesitated upon seeing Lily’s gaze.

I looked at Lily and said, “This time, let us go peacefully. I contacted you beforehand, showing some goodwill, so I ask for your understanding.”

“… Just this once.”

Meaning if Eisa illegally crosses the border again, she wouldn’t let it go so easily. I had no intention to intervene about that.

Eventually, the U. S. would become Sniper’s domain, so Eisa wouldn’t likely cross over much. Not unless Sniper secretly crossed the border.

As I turned away from Lily, Eisa promptly followed, asking, “Are we really crossing the border like this?”

“Yes. Let’s move.”

That dawn, news reported in America claimed that a war had erupted due to a clash between drug cartels.

Back in Mexico, chaos continued with violent conflict between cartels causing immense damage.

During this, Eisa and I burned down six drug-making Plazas. All of this unfolded in just 52 hours.