Chapter 28: If I Call You Nuna (3)

People I met at the market are divided into two types.

Arrogant bastards and people with gloomy expressions.

So, this place is different from what I heard.

“I worked all morning and this is all you give me…”

“Isn’t it because that’s all you could do, missy?”

“I can’t even get one meal with this. Please, just give me a little more.”

“Ah, really annoying.”

I stopped for a moment at the dispute between a woman and a man.

The woman looked disheveled, as if she hadn’t washed for a long time.

“So stop wasting your energy here and go over there.”

“Over there is…”

“All you have to do is spread your legs, I don’t get why you’re messing around here. The doctor even takes care of your health management…”

The place the armed man pointed to was the building I was heading towards.

The woman begs again, saying she can’t.

“Ah, really! Let go! Then go out and catch monsters or something!”

The woman falls helplessly when the man pushes her.

“Hyungnim.”

“Yeah, let’s go.”

As I was staring at their dispute, the armed men started watching us.

At Jang Hoseop’s call, I look away and start walking again.

“It’s as expected.”

It’s different from what we heard, but we also anticipated this kind of picture.

The market is not a place where everyone embraces hope for tomorrow together.

“Two people?”

“Yes.”

We arrived in front of the building with the red sign.

The man guarding the entrance asks.

“Man, woman?”

“Huh?”

“Are you looking for a man or a woman.”

“Ah… a woman.”

Jang Hoseop barely manages to answer.

“How old?”

“Twenty-five… But why is that? She’s an adult, though.”

The man laughs as if it’s absurd.

“No, tell me the woman’s age. You must have a desired age range.”

“Ah, yes. 30s.”

“Older women are good. Go to the 3rd floor.”

Jang Hoseop feigns cluelessness.

“Um… It’s my first time, so can I ask you something?”

Then he takes out the local currency and slips it into the man’s hand.

“Ah, what’s this. You shouldn’t do this.”

“It’s a token of my sincerity. Hehe.”

The man who received the bribe grins broadly.

“Well, well. Okay, just for a moment. Ask gently.”

“Huh? Ah, yes. Hahaha.”

Jang Hoseop asked if he knew about the hairstylist, pretending she was an acquaintance of his.

“There’s no one like that here, though? Well, if she lied about her name, there’s no way to know.”

“I see. If I find a woman I like, can I leave with her?”

“Ah~ Everyone wonders about that. Of course not. She’s a total cash cow, would the Chairman let her go?”

He says that no matter how much money is spent, people themselves are never traded.

“That makes sense. If I join the Revival Association… Ah, right. I…”

Jang Hoseop mentions being scouted at the entrance.

He gathers information as if it’s natural to be curious about this place.

After a few more questions like that.

“Hey. Do you know how many btches are doing manual labor over there?”

“How would I know?”

“A fck ton. You know why? Because young b*tches have nothing else to do.”

Most women are limited in the work they can do.

It was intentionally made that way.

By making them do hard labor and paying them little, they induce women to sell their bodies.

“Our representative is a truly fair person. His standards are clear. The men working with them do several times more work, so they can’t even complain.”

“Is there that much of a difference?”

“Of course. Even if they’re low-level, they’ve Awakened a Fundamental Skill. There’s already a difference, but…”

The man spoke freely.

Was he bored guarding this place?

“And I have one more favor to ask…”

“What is it? If it’s something reasonable.”

“Can I see the faces of the people working here? I’m a bit of a cautious person.”

“Ah, you little sh*t. Anyway, it’s dark when you do it, so you can’t see well.”

This time, Jang Hoseop takes out cigarettes from his backpack.

A whole carton.

“Ahem. Follow me.”

I wondered if it could really be this easy.

---

I checked the faces of all the women in the building.

The man guarding the door seemed to have quite a bit of authority, as he even showed me the women who were with customers.

“Ah… she’s not here.”

“Why? Are you looking for a girl you have a crush on or something?”

“Something like that.”

The people staying in this building were all in good condition.

They were well-fed, well-washed, and even wearing makeup.

“These girls get room and board here too. If she’s not here, she’s not here.”

In the end, I couldn’t find the hairstylist.

Jang Hoseop says he’ll come next time.

“This bstard is a fcking romantic. Just pick anyone. They’re all pretty much the same when you f*ck them.”

“Hehe. No, sir. I’ll come next time. And this.”

“Huh? What are you giving me again?”

We were just leaving the building after finishing up like that.

“Is this ajumma crazy? Bring money, money!”

Another dispute broke out.

Right at the entrance of the building next door.

“Ah, really, just one more time. Just once. Huh? This time, really…”

“Ajumma. Do you know how much you’ve borrowed so far?”

It was a woman who looked to be in her 50s and a man armed with a weapon.

“Kyah, that ajumma. At it again.”

The man who guided us exclaims in admiration.

I sent a sign to Jang Hoseop.

“What’s with that ajumma?”

“Aah, that place over there is a gambling den.”

“Gambling?”

“Yeah. But that ajumma is a f*cking train wreck. She’s completely crazy about gambling…”

That ajumma who is crazy about gambling.

It’s a face I know.

“She came here with her daughter, you know? Keukkeuk. But when the daughter works herself to death, that ajumma just takes it all and uses it.”

“Huh? No… Her daughter’s earnings?”

“Yeah. That daughter is a f*cking tough one. She’s been enduring for days doing transport work, but it’ll be soon, I guess. Even men work for a day and collapse.”

It’s the hairstylist’s mother.

‘A leopard can’t change its spots, they say.’

I finally found her.

The hairstylist is here.

---

I almost caused a scene in the middle of the market.

Jang Hoseop sensed my agitation and quickly pulled me away.

“Hyungnim. Are you sure about that ajumma?”

The hairstylist had been working since high school.

Diligently, from when I was in middle school until I became an adult.

Yet, she lived in a tiny room attached to the hair salon.

If the ajumma who was the real owner of the hair salon hadn’t been a good person.

The hairstylist’s life might have truly fallen into ruin.

“Yeah, I’m sure.”

The hairstylist’s mother had asked me to lend her money before.

So I’m not mistaken.

I couldn’t speak freely about personal matters, so I just nodded.

“Then it’s certain that she’s in the market.”

Despite that, Jang Hoseop didn’t ask further, as if he had noticed something.

“Yeah. I’ll go alone. Stay here.”

We returned to the building where the other group members were waiting.

I plan to leave Jang Hoseop here too and return to the market alone.

“Hyungnim. Please listen to me just once.”

Jang Hoseop stops me like that.

He continues speaking hurriedly, as if he knows I’m in a rush.

“Even if we find her and bring her back, there’s a problem.”

“What problem?”

“Fundamental Skills. We don’t know what kind of skills they have over there.”

He says that since the market side has many Fundamental Skill Awakeners, there’s a concern of being tracked even if we safely extract the hairstylist.

By the power of skills we don’t know.

“I’m not saying I don’t trust Hyungnim, I’m just saying this because I don’t like feeling anxious.”

“Then?”

“We shouldn’t just bring her back…”

What Jang Hoseop means is that we should take this opportunity to completely destroy the market.

“How?”

“The Revival Association is continuously expanding its territory, right?”

“Yeah.”

“The real skilled ones are constantly fighting monsters.”

Jang Hoseop says the elite members of the Revival Association went out to expand their territory again today.

He suggests ambushing them on their way back.

“There’s a high probability that Chairman Park went with them too.”

Saying we might be able to take care of Chairman Park in one go if things go well.

“How do we know where those people went and where they’ll return from.”

“The market entrances are here and here. These two places. If you look at the map, the cleared areas are…”

Jang Hoseop unfolds a map and continues his explanation.

The Revival Association’s territory expansion has a direction.

“If we deduce it like this, we only need to guard these three routes. And there are five of us.”

“It’s dangerous.”

“When was it ever not dangerous?”

It means the group members are in danger, not me.

Because we have to split up.

“I’ll take one route by myself.”

I looked at the other group members.

Lee Yuna nods.

“Hyungnim, you said it yourself. To survive, you have to take risks.”

“I did. But…”

“You’re not planning on giving up on her, are you? Then this is no longer just Hyungnim’s business.”

Jang Hoseop meets my eyes and nods.

Aunt Sujeong too.

“In my opinion, no one can match Hyungnim’s level. They don’t know anything. So this is a fight we can win.”

“Alright. Instead, I’ll fight alone. No matter how many opponents.”

I made a quick decision.

It’s time to move.

---

We moved busily.

We moved to the expected routes Jang Hoseop pointed out and familiarized ourselves with the surrounding geography and features.

We numbered the three routes.

Jang Hoseop takes route 1, I take route 2, and the rest of the group takes route 3.

“Hoo… Hoo….”

My breath is ragged from running at full speed.

I climb onto the rooftop of a building on route 2 and catch my breath.

Peolleok

Then I waved the flag.

When passing the Han River railroad bridge, I saw Prosecutor Kang Hyesun’s faction signaling each other with flags.

I was imitating that.

‘No problem.’

Flags also rose from the rooftops of buildings on routes 1 and 3.

It means everything is fine.

If it gets dark, we’ll signal each other with lanterns.

Though I don’t think the Revival Association will return that late.

Our estimated return time for them is late afternoon to early evening.

Since this route is not very far from the market, I think they will pass through here around sunset.

So, from now on, it’s a time of waiting.

‘Come quickly. Preferably towards my side.’

Actually, nighttime is better for a surprise attack, but I hope the Revival Association bastards show up soon.

It’s because I’m impatient.

Because even at this moment, the hairstylist must be suffering.

‘What if….’

If the Revival Association moves differently from our expectations.

This time of waiting might just be a waste of time.

‘No. I shouldn’t think of it as a waste of time.’

I try hard to reign in my negative thoughts.

Even at this moment, Mr. Lee Jangsu is making traps with nails.

We are preparing.

‘The Revival Association’s initial members were 8. I don’t know their skills exactly.’

So I also did what I could.

‘Even if their numbers increased, they move in shifts… Jang Hoseop estimated the elite members to be at most 20.’

I create an imaginary world in my head.

I make the attack skill Awakeners I’ve seen so far appear.

I draw a picture of myself jumping among them and rampaging.

‘I can jump up that wall, so…’

And so, time passed.

Before I knew it, it was evening.

The clear sky was painted with the sunset.

---

At dusk.

Normally, it would be around the time when streetlights turn on one by one, and objects are distinguished by dark silhouettes.

‘Did I miss them?’

My patience was almost at its limit.

I looked down from the rooftop railing, then raised my head.

‘I should just rescue the hairstylist first…’

I need to signal the group and go to the market.

I bend down to grab the lantern to send a signal.

And the moment I stood up again.

Blink

A light flickered.

‘Number 1.’

A small light blinks repeatedly.

Jang Hoseop is repeatedly covering and uncovering his lantern with his hand.

It’s a signal that the Revival Association has appeared.

I immediately relayed the signal to route 3 and jumped off the rooftop.

Tuk

I stepped on a protruding ledge midway and landed on the ground.

Jang Hoseop’s prediction was correct.

I run down the path that will allow us to get behind them.

Soon, a group moving carelessly came into my sight.

Perhaps because it’s an area they’ve already cleared, they are talking loudly.

“Ah, I thought we’d break through to Gongdeok today.”

“Should we bring some kids tomorrow? It’s too much of a detour…”

There are 12 men.

Everyone has something covering their faces.

“It’ll take ages to break through there. The first phase of the barrier construction needs to be finished…”

Men with sturdy builds.

Among them, there is one particularly fat middle-aged man.

He’s wearing a black mask, and his hair is streaked with gray.

He wears a gold ring on his finger and a gold necklace around his neck.

He also has a gold bracelet on his barely visible wrist.

‘Chairman Park.’

I had a hunch that this fat man was Chairman Park.

Tadadak

I put strength into my legs.

I increase my speed and charge straight at him.

“How many people do we need to pull… Hyungnim!!!”

The men noticed my surprise attack.

But it was too late.

I had already swung my axe.

The axe blade reaches Chairman Park’s neck.

Kkang

‘Kkang?’

But a sound different from what I expected is heard.

Sparks fly from Chairman Park’s neck.

Kung

Chairman Park was thrown back by the force of my axe swing.

He crashes into a wall and collapses.

“Kkeueueuk.”

He lets out a groan.

He’s perfectly alive.

“What the f*ck is this!”

I couldn’t cut Chairman Park’s neck.

For the first time, my attack was blocked.