Chapter 313: Again, Japan (1)

Chapter 313: Again, Japan (1)

When Kang-hoo, who had fallen into a deep sleep without even realizing when, finally opened his eyes, he was startled to see a person instead of the familiar white ceiling of his room.

Cheon-sal No-su, who had been sitting on the chair beside the bed, stood up and came over as soon as he saw Kang-hoo awake.

“Master, have you been here the whole time until I woke up?”

“I just got here, you brat. Don’t go setting up a scene to make me look touching—it’s been less than a minute.”

“Ah, that’s a relief.”

Kang-hoo let out a soft laugh.

In that moment, he realized this laughter was pure. It was the joy of hearing his master’s obvious lie.

He was glad because he felt how deeply and tenderly his master cared for him.

Yes, he was truly happy.

Cheon-sal No-su was the master who allowed him to experience the full range of emotion.

He felt every one of the four joys—except sorrow (哀), which he preferred never to know.

After a long while of gazing at Kang-hoo with a tender expression, Cheon-sal No-su gently asked, “Kang-hoo.”

“Yes?”

“What is the one thing you want more than anything?”

“To survive until the end.”

Kang-hoo answered without a moment’s hesitation.

That thought hadn’t changed since long ago. As long as he lived, there would be a next step.

To take down Jang Si-hwan and stop the Demon King ending, the prerequisite had to be his own survival.

“But right now, you seem to have a clear enemy in mind?”

The “someone” Cheon-sal No-su meant was undoubtedly Eclipse. And he wasn’t wrong.

“That’s right.”

“But that would shorten your path. If survival is your goal, is that the right method?”

“You need a clear enemy to fight with your life on the line, to stay motivated, don’t you think?”

“Huh…”

“I believe that only when you feel the fear of death can you truly appreciate the value of life. I must have an enemy.”

“Damn… you sound crazy spouting nonsense so seriously, but somehow you’re convincing.”

“Even if I sound insane, I mean it.”

Kang-hoo smiled.

Since he and Eclipse had been fated enemies from the start, coexistence was impossible.

And he never intended to compromise with an organization like Eclipse.

If he couldn’t even handle a mere domestic crime syndicate and had to coexist antagonistically with them—

Plotting the Thirteen Stars would be impossible.

They were dozens, no hundreds, of times more threatening than Eclipse.

Fighting cockroaches is not the same as fighting an adult elephant—that’s the difference.

“Kang-hoo.”

“Yes, Master.”

“I’ll be away on personal business for a few days. I’ll tell you what it is later.”

“Yes, understood.”

That worked out perfectly.

Kang-hoo was planning to leave soon as well.

It was time to go to Japan and meet Takashi. He’d also soon see Yu Cheong-hwa and Emilia.

“If you’re up, let’s eat together. After breakfast, Haemi and I will depart first.”

“Master, have a safe trip.”

“Of course I will. Don’t worry, and take care of your own matters. I’ll contact you when I return.”

“Understood.”

And so Kang-hoo and Cheon-sal No-su shared the meal Ju Haemi had carefully prepared since early morning.

Before, he’d never known what “home-cooked” meant or felt like.

But eating Haemi’s cooking, he realized that food made with love tastes distinctly different.

Of course, the love in this meal was directed toward her father, Cheon-sal No-su; Kang-hoo was strictly a third party.

Still, being able to feel the heart behind the meal made it truly delicious.

Home-cooked by Ju Haemi was the best.

On the plane departing Incheon Airport for Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, Kang-hoo reviewed his schedule in Japan.

“I’ll clear the dungeon with Takashi first, then secure the third bonus related to the Angel of the Battlefield.”

The third bonus was a conditional reward he’d learned about while examining her perks after contracting with the Angel of the Battlefield.

【Third Bonus: If you defeat the Dark-Era monster designated by the Hall of Radiance, you may choose one of the following three rewards:

• Increase in holy power.

• Entrust a skill to the Hall of Radiance and borrow a holy skill.

• Obtain Absolute Radiance.】

Each option was advantageous. Though difficult, the expected payoff upon success was high.

【Once you defeat the designated Dark-Era monster, a new Dark-Era monster will be designated.

Current information on the monster designated by the Hall of Radiance is as follows.】

It was a structure of ongoing challenges rather than a one-time trial.

So by steadily completing them, he was confident it would greatly aid his growth.

The current designated monster was level 575 and located in a dungeon in southern Osaka.

From preliminary research, he was lucky: the dungeon was owned by Takashi.

Specifically, it belonged to “Takashi Corporation,” the company Takashi founded to own and manage the dungeon.

He had already asked Takashi if he could challenge the dungeon and received confirmation.

In conclusion, it was possible.

However, there was one condition:

First, the four of them had to successfully clear a dungeon together!

‘I’ve already reached out to Ayane… and it should be fine to meet An Yeong-ho too.’

By now, he had built up a decent network in Japan, so he could arrange plenty of connections wherever he went.

It was one of Kang-hoo’s long-term goals: no matter the country, always have someone to meet or somewhere to go.

Jang Si-hwan fit that description perfectly.

In every nation, he kept close ties with hunters of significant influence and skill.

As a result, wherever he went he was welcomed—free to tackle dungeons or undertake other activities as he pleased.

In particular, the United States, where his relationship with Casey Rex was exceptionally strong, had become a second home ground.

In terms of the sheer number of dungeons he could clear, the U.S. actually outnumbered his home country.

That was the level of influence Casey Rex wielded—and Casey’s trusted leader was Jang Si-hwan.

‘I’ve made it clear I can fight Yuji and Vincent at any time. I’ve been holding off for a while.’

Kang-hoo grimaced at the thought of the two hunters whose clash was imminent.

They were also direct assassination targets designated by the Hall of Radiance.

Killing them would unlock the Angel of the Battlefield’s fourth and fifth bonuses for Kang-hoo.

Even aside from personal grudges, they were opponents he’d have to eliminate if he wanted to grow stronger.

He hoped he’d never have to—but if he found himself outmatched, he could use teleportation as a “safety net.”

Knowing he had a guaranteed escape option would let him fight more comfortably.

Psychological insurance—or the lack of it—affects far more in battle than one might expect.

Of course, the thought of running away could foster weakness, but for Kang-hoo it had the opposite effect.

Being sure he could withdraw at any moment made him even more aggressive in combat.

‘I should get the Claws of Hatred reforged again. They’ve dulled considerably.’

The distinct sheen the daggers once had when he forged the Claws of Hatred had faded noticeably.

Since he still had seven Claws of Hatred left, Kim Shin-ryeong would reforge them quickly when he visited her.

It had been some time since their last meeting, so it seemed worthwhile to drop by.

She might have upgraded weapons of her own or other useful items by now.

“Whew.”

He sighed as he ran through his upcoming tasks—it looked busier than he’d thought.

Still, having work was better than having none; a hunter with nothing to do was a useless hunter.

Opening his smartphone, Kang-hoo checked his Huntergram secure DMs.

In airplane mode, he couldn’t see real-time updates, but he could read messages offline.

Just before takeoff, he’d received a message from Lee Hyun-seok—and now he was about to read it.

【Hello. This is Lee Hyun-seok. First, congratulations on your heroic feat.】

The message began by praising Kang-hoo’s infiltration of Cheongmyeong Detention Center and the assassination of Director Jo Hwan-seong.

Everyone seemed impressed that Kang-hoo had successfully broken into the facility alone.

What had been relatively easy for him was extraordinary to others.

【I also hope you stay well. Since I owe you for Su-hyun’s sake, I’m always ready to repay the favor.】

‘Just as I expected.’

True to Kang-hoo’s first impressions, Lee Hyun-seok hadn’t forgotten the debt he owed.

He remained the kind of person who, whenever he owed someone, would go to any length to repay it.

【However, I know you’re careful about openly associating with certain powers. So I’d like to introduce you to someone you can use discreetly.】

【This person is someone I cherish and trust implicitly. You can rely on them as much as you do me.】

【Through them, you can receive clandestine support and coordination. Complete secrecy guaranteed.】

Below the message was the name, photo, and contact number of the person Lee Hyun-seok had mentioned.

Kang-hoo’s curiosity spiked—if this person was truly Lee Hyun-seok’s confidant, the list of candidates was huge.

“…?”

He was stunned when he recognized the familiar face in the photo.

It was Park Sang-oh.

He’d first seen that name after betting on the main ‘Death Match’ event when he returned to the liberation area in Hongcheon after meeting Emilia.

Recalling his memories from the original timeline, he’d bet heavily on the name-brand hunter—and had helped turn 6 billion won into 36 billion won.

There was no way he wouldn’t remember the face.

‘But in the original story, Park Sang-oh would have refused Jeonghwa Guild’s offer and gone to Japan…’

As a name-brand hunter based in Japan, that was how he was set up in the original.

So Kang-hoo’s memory was accurate.

Yet now his path had diverged completely from the original.

And in fact, the reason was simple.