Chapter 140

Chapter 140
## Chapter 140: Diverging Paths and Shadowy Deals

Sa Seung-hee popped a small piece of dried persimmon into her mouth and continued.

“Hunter Lee Se-eun and Hunter Yoo Chan-seok have fundamentally different objectives.”

While they could maintain a partnership for the time being, Sa Seung-hee believed that a complete merger would inevitably lead to conflict.

“Even if your targets were identical, your characters are worlds apart. Coexisting within a single organization would generate friction, likely cutting the group’s lifespan short. Furthermore…”

Sa Seung-hee sliced a piece of apple and passed it to Lee Se-eun as she spoke.

“Your greatest strength is your public image, Hunter Lee Se-eun. Severing ties with Zanabi would mean abandoning that reputation.”

She managed one of the few genuinely respected philanthropic organizations, remaining untouched by scandal. The majority of hunters held her in high esteem and rarely declined her requests, regardless of the circumstances.

Additionally, she functioned as the primary partner hunter for Zanabi.

“Exiting Zanabi would strip away a significant portion of your influence. It would be akin to severing the specialized support a headhunter typically relies on.”

Sa Seung-hee had no intention of being a passive observer. She was already assisting the headhunter through various channels and intended to ramp up her backing significantly in the near future.

“I understand.”

As Lee Se-eun weighed these words, Sa Seung-hee offered a small smile.

“Of course, this is just the perspective of a teahouse owner. You don’t have to take it as gospel.”

Despite the disclaimer, Lee Se-eun felt Sa Seung-hee’s assessment was accurate. Even during their shared operations in Siberia, Yoo Chan-seok had made tactical decisions she would have never considered.

They had navigated those moments without major fallout only because the gravity of the situation forced their cooperation, but a permanent union—rather than a temporary alliance—would undoubtedly lead to the clashes Sa Seung-hee predicted.

“There is no point in forcing someone to eat mint chocolate if they despise it, right?”

“The situation is a bit more nuanced than that, owner of Oduak.”

Sa Seung-hee nodded at Lee Se-eun’s brief pushback.

“Do you see? You are already clashing with Hunter Yoo Chan-seok on that very philosophy.”

Yoo Chan-seok viewed minor collateral damage as a necessary trade-off for his goals. To his mind, such sacrifices were as inconsequential as a preference for a specific flavor of chocolate.

The other members of the headhunter crew, Han Sang-ah and Jeong Oh-hoon, shared that cold pragmatism.

But Lee Se-eun operated on a different moral compass. She wasn’t interested in making a moral judgment on which path was superior, but the difference in their nature was an objective reality.

“If you fully integrated with the headhunter, these minor disagreements would pile up until they caused a fracture. Therefore…”

“I should remain in the role of a benefactor?”

“Exactly, much like myself. Although, you are in a position to offer far more substantial assistance than I ever could.”

Lee Se-eun gave a slight nod of acknowledgment.

“That is a valid perspective. I will give it serious thought.”

“I appreciate that. Now… regarding the illegal trafficking of hunter equipment you brought up earlier.”

Sa Seung-hee clapped her hands together once, her gaze sharpening as she focused on Lee Se-eun.

“The Blue Wrench organization is involved.”

“Blue Wrench… the industrial salvagers?”

They were the undisputed leaders of the scrap and salvage market. Sa Seung-hee confirmed with a nod.

“Recently, Daebak Scrap Dealers have been closing the gap. It seems the pressure was getting to them. And that is largely due to Hunter Yoo Chan-seok.”

Once the news broke that Yoo Chan-seok had signed an exclusive deal with Daebak Scrap Dealers, the entire hunter community shifted their focus there. Choi Seung-gi, the proprietor of Daebak, was far too shrewd to let that momentum go to waste.

To counter the aggressive growth of Daebak, Blue Wrench had spiraled further into the black market to stay afloat.

“Gathering this sort of intelligence isn’t particularly difficult.”

Oduak was a popular hub for hunters. They gathered there to eat, relax, and trade rumors with their peers.

Furthermore, smugglers were incapable of operating without the cooperation of hunters. It required active hunters to procure the restricted materials in the first place for any illicit trade to occur.

“But surely they wouldn’t speak openly about such crimes?”

“It starts with a suspicion. We monitor the weekly expenditures of every hunter who walks through the doors of Oduak.”

By identifying those whose spending habits suddenly skyrocketed, they could narrow their focus. Eventually, the truth would slip out in hushed conversations.

“So, it’s Blue Wrench.”

Lee Se-eun’s expression darkened. That was the very salvage company she had a contract with. She had never suspected they would engage in such criminal activity.

“Are you certain of this?”

“If gossip isn’t enough for you, you should go and witness it for yourself.”

If she harbored doubts, personal verification was the only solution. Following Sa Seung-hee’s suggestion, Lee Se-eun stood up from her seat.

“You’re right, that’s the most definitive way. Thank you for the information.”

With those final words, the discussion between Sa Seung-hee and Lee Se-eun concluded.

While they were conversing, Yoo Chan-seok—the man who had initiated the meeting—was decompressing in his private quarters.

Han Sang-ah had completed her intricate Marble Run set and was lost in thought, watching the marbles navigate the paths for hours on end.

As for Jeong Oh-hoon? He was busy reconnecting with a contact from his past.

The meeting took place at a dilapidated shop. A corroded metal sign dangled from the crumbling exterior, the peeling letters identifying it as “Wara Hardware.”

A middle-aged man perched on a small plastic stool stared at Jeong Oh-hoon, repeatedly toggling a hand grinder.

The high-pitched whine of the motor filled the air with every flick of the switch.

“Enough of that. You’re killing my eardrums.”

Jeong Oh-hoon winced, pressing a hand to his ear.

“I’ve been hearing you’ve made quite a name for yourself lately. Noon-hoon.”

“I’ve told you before, I was always meant for the big leagues.”

Jeong Oh-hoon brushed off the comment and reached into a sack in the corner. It was filled with peanuts that smelled as though they had long since expired. He dug his hand deep into the bag and pulled something out.

“Business looks like it’s thriving.”

Jeong Oh-hoon held up a small blade he’d retrieved from among the peanuts. It was a concealable knife that emitted a faint trace of mana.

“Hey, put that back where you found it.”

“Seriously, I don’t know how you keep this place running with how paranoid you are. Fine, have it your way.”

Jeong Oh-hoon dropped the blade back into the sack and took a seat across from the man, holding a palmful of the foul-smelling nuts.

“So, why did you want to see me?”

“Are you looking for some unofficial work?”

Jeong Oh-hoon cracked a shell and popped a nut into his mouth, a smirk playing on his lips.

“I never turn down a side hustle. Since it’s coming from you, I can guess the nature of it. Smuggling?”

“A shipment destined for China.”

Jeong Oh-hoon’s face soured.

“I thought you only dealt with domestic routes. Moving gear to China is usually a waste of time and money.”

The equipment was typically subpar, and China lacked the wealthy elite necessary to sustain a high-end market.

The man nodded, acknowledging the point.

“The profit is in the sheer scale of the order.”

“Moving from artisan work to bulk shipping? That’s a joke.”

Jeong Oh-hoon consumed another peanut.

“It’s more like we are aiming for both ends of the market.”

Jeong Oh-hoon leaned his weight against a stack of rusted metal plates.

“You know my rule. I don’t sign on until I’ve inspected the merchandise.”

The man gave a nod and presented an object for inspection.

“We have a batch of 150 of these moving to China.”

Jeong Oh-hoon examined the item and fell into a sudden silence. It was a fragment of a dull, black stone that possessed a strange, oily luster.

“Good grief, where did you manage to source something like this?”

He held it up to the light, his curiosity genuine.

“Noon-hoon always looks at the goods but never asks about the source. Have you changed your ways?”

“If you don’t want to tell me, don’t. No need to be a prick about it.”

Jeong Oh-hoon tossed the stone back to the man.

“What a strange coincidence… I was actually planning on taking a trip to China after a short break anyway.”

The man looked surprised. “Is that so?”

“I was originally just going to ask you to handle the local transport.”

Jeong Oh-hoon smiled, his hand trailing over the rusted metal plates.

“A hunter who has neutralized two rank-1 erosion cores under the headhunter banner? A man like that could walk this right into China without anyone daring to search his bags.”

He tapped the metal plate with his knuckles—clack, clack.

“What’s the offer?”

“3 billion.”

Jeong Oh-hoon nodded in agreement, then struck the plate with his palm, creating a loud reverberation.

“Done. We’ll settle the specifics later. You still have my number?”

“Yeah, I’ll be in touch. Partner.”

With a sharp whistle, Jeong Oh-hoon turned and exited the hardware store.

As soon as he returned to the association’s residential quarters, he placed a call.

“Chan-seok. Get over to my room. Something’s come up and it’s urgent. Move it.”

—

I made my way to Jeong Oh-hoon’s quarters, confused by the urgency of his request.

The moment I stepped in, I felt it—a faint but incredibly corrupt mana radiating from him. What was going on?

My expression went cold as I looked at him.

“Talk to me.”

Before I could say anything else, he held out his palm. It contained a fine black powder.

“…Where did you get this?”

The substance was definitely infused with mana.

“You mentioned you had a task for me out of the blue, so I reached out to an old connection. The guy is a specialist in moving illegal hunter gear.”

What he had brought back wasn’t the actual product—it was a small sample he’d scraped off and pulverized.

I stared at the dark dust for a few seconds before shifting my gaze to Jeong Oh-hoon.

“What is it?”

“You could have stayed quiet and made an easy fortune on this.”

He shook his head violently at my suggestion.

“I trust my gut. I knew I might be able to hide this from others, but I’d never get it past you.”

He wasn’t wrong. I had detected the energy before he even spoke. His survival instincts had served him well.

“You just saved yourself a trip to the morgue. Smart move.”

“The morgue? Why are you being so dramatic?”

He barked back at me.

“I was seconds away from snapping your bones.”

If he hadn’t been upfront, or if he had hesitated while I interrogated him, he would currently be in a hospital bed.

“Man, life really is just a series of split-second decisions, isn’t it?”

He poured the black powder into a small container.

“But is there actually money in selling this stuff?”

“Is that a serious question?”

If a normal person ingests that, they gain hunter-level mana instantly. Of course, the trade-off is that they are essentially signing their own death warrant—it turns them into a ticking time bomb with no hope of survival.

China didn’t have its own natural hunters. From their government’s perspective, manufacturing artificial hunters from the general population was a perfectly logical, if brutal, strategy.

“We need to follow this trail.”

It would be one thing if it were headed elsewhere, but the fact that it was China-bound made my skin crawl.

Managing the Gonzalo Rock situation was already a massive burden. The idea of these users being able to transform into monsters at any moment was a massive complication I didn’t need.

“There is a silver lining. I played my part well enough that they’ve entrusted me with a large portion of the shipment meant for China.”

At the very least, we had successfully intercepted a significant amount of the contraband. But it was only a portion.

He smirked, rubbing his fingers together in the universal gesture for money.

“And I’m still going to make sure I get paid for the delivery.”

“Are you sure you want to play that game? You cross the wrong people, and they’ll send some very dangerous individuals after you.”

Jeong Oh-hoon patted the firearm holstered at his hip.

“If you’re the one coming for me, maybe I’d worry. Anyone else? I’ll put a hole in their head before they can blink.”

That was a fair assessment. Most hunters would be in for a rude awakening if they tried to take him on now.

To get to the bottom of this… I rubbed my temple. I hadn’t expected to have to reach back out to Sa Seung-hee this quickly.