Chapter 35. Neighborhood Bully Duo.

Jihyuk finished his early morning meal and left the inn building. He mingled with the bustling crowd and walked straight along the main street. Jageurak jageurak, the sensation of dirt and sand crunching under his feet traveled up his soles.

He took out a small piece of paper from his pocket. It was what Godfather Basil had sent him through someone before. It contained information about Palahinyo’s intelligence network.

– Farnese General Store

The Hero followed the name and address, walking for a long time to find the location. The general store was located in a deep alley in the southwest downtown area. It was secluded.

The wooden sign, creaking in the wind, had faded patterns, barely visible, as if the general store had been operating for a long time. Jihyuk stared at it for a moment before opening the old wooden door and entering the general store.

A musty, stale smell hit him. The general store was empty of customers, with only flies buzzing around. On the counter, a duster and a worn-out book were placed prominently. And behind it, the old general store owner raised his head to greet the customer.

“Welcome.”

Jihyuk glanced over the items on display and headed to the counter. The old man, seeing him empty-handed, asked what he was looking for.

He first took out an item from his pocket and placed it on the counter with a thud. It was the Godfather’s mark.

“The Godfather sent me.”

However, the old man didn’t flinch, maintaining a calm expression. He was indeed experienced.

“This old man doesn’t quite understand what you mean…”

“I am Hero Kang Jihyuk.”

He took out his Hero’s badge from his pocket and shoved it right in front of the old man’s nose.

Only then did the other party’s expression completely change, and he lowered his head.

“What brings you all the way here, -gakka?”

“The Godfather ordered you to actively cooperate with me. …I’d like to know some of the information you’ve gathered so far.”

“What kind of information are you referring to?”

“About the internal situation. Insiders, the neighborhood bully’s routine, anything like that.”

“Then, would you mind waiting a moment? I will organize everything right away and give it to you.”

“Alright. I’ll wait here.”

The old man first went to the entrance and locked the door. It would be annoying if any unnecessary troublemakers came.

Jihyuk wandered around the store again, looking at the items on display one by one. He even picked up and examined some of the items. Then the old man came out from the back again.

“You are welcome to take anything you need.”

“No, I was just looking around. …Is that all of it?”

“Yes, this is all of it.”

Jihyuk went back to the counter and roughly scanned the bundle of papers the old man had brought.

“Is there anything about other Heroes?”

The old man’s eyes changed subtly.

“Are you referring to those who have gone missing?”

“Yes.”

“We were barely able to find out anything about that. The information was so secretly handled on their end.”

“…A-Rank Hero, Nabur?”

“We have no information about him either.”

“Am I the first Hero to contact you?”

“Yes. I am a secret informant known only to the former master.”

“I see.”

Just as Jihyuk was about to turn around, the old man called him back.

“Ah, -gakha. There is one piece of information about Hero Nabur that just came in.”

“What is it?”

“One of his team members has not left yet and remains.”

“Give me that information too.”

The old man went inside and soon came out again. Jihyuk took the paper he handed over and examined the contents.

The remaining team member was someone he knew well. It was that fairy healer from back then…!

The reason she remained was to find the missing Nabur. She was cooperating with another informant, it said…

It was unexpected. She, who seemed like she would resent Nabur the most, was the last one left, searching for her leader. …There seemed to be a story between them that he didn’t know.

“Thank you. Keep up the good work.”

“Yes, -gakha.”

“And, never reveal my identity to anyone.”

“Of course not. Don’t worry.”

The old man quickly ran back to the entrance and unlocked the latch again. Jihyuk went outside through the door he opened. The musty air became refreshing again.

He returned to the lodging building as he was. When he entered his room, Gunda was there, shirtless and doing physical training.

“You’re back.”

“Get dressed and come to the next room. We need to do it together.”

“Yes.”

Jihyuk said that and went over to the room where the two women were. They got up as if they had been waiting and cleared the table. Soon, Gunda also joined, and the four Heroes sat around the round table.

And Jihyuk slammed the bundle of papers onto the table.

“I got this. Now, let’s distribute it appropriately and examine it.”

The Heroes each took their fair share and began to carefully examine the contents. The Princess pulled her chair to the side, put her legs up on the bed, and examined the contents written on the paper one by one.

“This is fucking bullshit.”

That was roughly the Princess’s first impression. Well, after all, the dick collector wasn’t an ordinary neighborhood bully.

Elizabeth, who was examining the insiders, set aside those who were noteworthy. And she shyly handed it to Jihyuk, requesting a review.

Gunda and Ganesha were also curious about the contents, so they stuck close to Jihyuk and looked at the paper together.

Elizabeth pointed out one of them and suggested using him. He was a 43-year-old middle-aged man named Korman, one of Bydiel’s close aides.

He had too many corruptions. He even secretly pocketed the bribes meant for Bydiel. He also started a business without the knowledge of the Dark Elf, and he was taking all the profits for himself. There were also many other minor things. …If Bydiel were to find out about this, he could really lose his head.

The informant seemed to have put in years of effort to investigate this guy’s shady dealings. And recently, he seemed to have made contact. The results were positive.

“This bastard seems alright?”

The Princess also seemed to think this guy was perfect. Gunda didn’t seem to think differently either.

…Seriously, that Bydiel is one hell of a bitch.

However, Jihyuk, who already had experience rolling around in the mud with the dick collector, didn’t fall for this seemingly perfect bait. If he didn’t know, he would have been caught without a doubt. He already had a record of that too.

This guy named Korman was a double agent that Bydiel had put a lot of effort into creating. Jihyuk, who was in a power struggle with her, had also been deceived by this and had been hit hard.

“This guy is fake.”

“…Fake?”

“They make bait that looks good like this to get you to bite. There will be those among the Heroes who have fallen for this.”

Gunda checked from the first investigation to the last and realized that it had taken a whopping five years. …And this was intentional?

“…You mean the investigation took five years?”

“They are cunning. I can’t guarantee it wouldn’t be 10 years instead of 5.”

“Heo.”

Even when looking at it as bait, it was doubtful whether it was really true. Even the Princess asked if you might be mistaken.

“No, I’m sure. The Dark Elf is definitely not an easy person. Four Heroes have already been caught. We have to be suspicious of everything.”

Since Jihyuk strongly insisted, the other three had no choice but to accept his opinion. He had never said anything nonsense so far.

“Then what do we do? It’s going to be ambiguous whether the rest are real or not…”

Princess Elizabeth asked what to do then. Jihyuk stared intently at the paper and was lost in thought. A long silence passed.

Soon, Jihyuk opened his mouth.

“Let’s use the double agent in reverse.”

“…In reverse?”

The Princess asked back. The Empress gestured with her chin as if to say, “Keep talking.”

Jihyuk found the paper about the internal situation and showed it to the three of them.

“There are too many enemies in the underground right now. Moreover, the terrain itself is not familiar at all. We are at a disadvantage in terms of numbers and terrain.”

“So?”

“But if the number of enemies here is reduced by half…, it will be worth a try.”

“How are you going to reduce it by half?”

“That’s why we need to use this.”

Jihyuk tapped the paper with the contents of this insider named Korman with his finger.

“We pretend to be deceived. We act as if we are gathering the Hero’s and informant’s armed groups to strike.”

The Princess’s brow furrowed. She swirled her finger as if hypnotizing.

“…So, we deliberately fall into a trap?”

“Yes. We draw the enemies out from the underground.”

Gunda said “Aha,” and slapped her palm with her fist.

“You mean we’re going to do a house raid!”

“Yes, similar.”

The reason he said similar was because it wasn’t completely empty.

“…No, wait a minute. Then what about falling into the trap? Are you deceiving that too?”

Jihyuk shook his head at the Princess’s question. The three’s eyes changed questioningly.

“No. We have to fall into the trap for the enemies not to be suspicious.”

“Isn’t that a bit dangerous?”

“…Well, it’s not a safe method. But I think this is the fastest and most certain. Of course, even if the number of enemies has decreased, there will still be a considerable number in the underground. The level of danger is similar whether we go above or below.”

“Heo, ssiibal…”

“So let’s decide here. If this is too difficult, we’ll go with another method, and if it seems doable, we’ll push forward with this. What do you all think?”

The Princess smiled crookedly.

“…Ssiibal, okay, this is going to be fun. I’m in favor. What about you guys?”

Ganesha glanced over the remaining two. Gunda and Elizabeth carefully pondered.

Gunda looked at Jihyuk with serious eyes.

“I will follow your choice.”

“Then it’s decided?”

The Princess clapped her hands as if it was over, but Jihyuk stopped her in the middle.

“No, it’s better to find another method if even one person is against it. Elizabeth, what do you think? …Don’t be afraid to speak your mind.”

The three looked at the Princess. Elizabeth bit her lip tightly and stared straight at Jihyuk.

“Exactly how dangerous is it?”

“It will be easier than catching the Demon King, at least.”

Gunda and Ganesha, who had participated in the subjugation war, chuckled. Elizabeth somehow felt a bit left out. She was the only one here who hadn’t participated in the subjugation war.

Jihyuk said again.

“Is there anything a Hero can guarantee their life in? No. So I can’t exactly guarantee how much it is either.”

That’s where the Princess’s mind was made up.

“…Alright, fine, I’ll do it.”

“Yeah, ssiibal, we have to go all out.”

The Princess slammed the table with her fist as if she had been waiting.

“Ssiiiibal, anyone who gets in our way, we’ll just kill them all!!”