Chapter 36 – Tracking

Min Do-jun returned home after achieving his goal.

He politely declined the Wanted Guild, saying he would think about it more.

‘Now that I’ve made the ghost wolf remember Kang Cheol-gyu’s scent, all that’s left is to track him.’

However, he couldn’t get information from the ghost wolf.

[The target is too far away.]

[Tracking impossible.]

Only notifications saying tracking was impossible popped up.

‘He’s probably in a dungeon.’

It’s natural that tracking wouldn’t work from Earth if he’s in the two-dimensional world of a dungeon.

‘I’ll have to wait for now.’

Min Do-jun quietly waited for Kang Cheol-gyu to come out of the dungeon.

About 2 hours passed.

[Found a target with matching scent.]

[Distance to target: 102.57 km]

The signal was caught, likely just as he exited the dungeon.

‘He was hunting quite far away.’

Though he didn’t know where, it seemed quite far from Min Do-jun’s house.

‘Time to get ready to go out.’

Min Do-jun pulled his hat down low and headed outside.

* * *

Kang Cheol-gyu is a promising talent in the Wanted Guild.

Though he’s only a C-rank hunter at level 550.

“Haaah!”

There was a reason he was called promising.

Slash!

Screech!

Kang Cheol-gyu’s sword tore through the wing of a red-beaked archaeopteryx.

“Now!”

The guild members instantly surrounded the archaeopteryx.

Stab!

Crack!

Thud!

While they ganged up on it, Kang Cheol-gyu was already rushing towards another archaeopteryx.

‘Sword Flash!’

A flash of light from his weapon blinded the archaeopteryx’s eyes.

Simultaneously, his flying sword sliced through its wing.

Screech!

Kang Cheol-gyu raised the hammer in his other hand over his head, aiming at the fallen archaeopteryx.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The archaeopteryx’s head was instantly pulverized.

“Phew. Did we get them all?”

The reason Kang Cheol-gyu was chosen as a promising talent in the Wanted Guild:

It was his innate combat sense.

Without anyone teaching him, he brilliantly caught on to monsters’ weaknesses and combat methods, taking them down quickly and efficiently.

Because of this, he achieved the feat of reaching level 500 in just one year, which usually takes two years.

“Brothers, let’s head out now.”

That’s why, although he was C-rank, he was the youngest at 22 years old.

“Hunting is easy with Cheol-gyu, right?”

“Hehe, that’s right. Our levels are similar, but when you see him hunt monsters, it’s amazingly fast.”

“That’s why he’s promising. What else would make him promising?”

“Why are you guys suddenly like this? Did you eat something wrong? Why are you praising me so much?”

“Let’s stop hunting now…”

“Yeah, let’s call it a day…”

Kang Cheol-gyu was also quite greedy when it came to hunting.

Because of this, he often hunted late into the night, and guild members had no choice but to follow the schedule of their promising talent.

“I was going to stop anyway since I’m meeting a friend for dinner.”

“Really?”

“Yes!”

The guild members were delighted at Kang Cheol-gyu’s words for once.

It was that rare for hunts with Kang Cheol-gyu to end early.

“Then I’ll see you tomorrow, brothers!”

“Alright!”

Vroom-

Kang Cheol-gyu, who came in his own expensive sports car, headed to the meeting place.

* * *

Late in the evening as darkness fell.

Min Do-jun, who had leisurely finished his meal at a soup restaurant, looked at the notification he had open.

[Distance to target: 24.78 km]

‘He’s finally stopped moving.’

Min Do-jun hadn’t wasted his energy chasing Kang Cheol-gyu from early on.

He simply waited for the distance number to stop changing.

‘Until just now the numbers kept changing, but now there’s no change.’

That meant Kang Cheol-gyu had stopped somewhere.

‘Should I wait a bit longer? He might be waiting for a signal.’

After waiting 10 more minutes with no change in the numbers, Min Do-jun got up.

‘Now I can track him.’

With the target settled in one place, it was Min Do-jun’s turn to move.

After paying, he came outside and hailed a taxi in the direction the ghost wolf indicated.

“To Bupyeong Station, please.”

Min Do-jun’s plan was simple.

To tail Kang Cheol-gyu and assassinate him at an opportune moment.

Unlike when he killed Shim Jin-seop and Jeong Tae-sik earlier, the reason for killing him outside was simple.

‘There’s a limit to killing in dungeons.’

It’s not just once or twice, but every time you form a party, the same party member dies?

No matter how much there’s no evidence and you claim the boss killed them, you’re bound to be suspected.

‘So I need to stop killing in dungeons and kill in a different pattern.’

That’s why he thought of ambushing in a back alley.

Though the aftermath wouldn’t be clean, it’s not a bad method if the goal is just killing.

‘I’ll have to take some risks, but I won’t get caught.’

He had a plan for post-processing as well.

“We’ve arrived, sir.”

Min Do-jun paid and got off at his destination, checking the distance.

[Distance to target: 1.61 km]

‘Not far now.’

He pulled his hat down low and walked, choosing only alleys with few people.

This was to avoid any possible CCTV.

[Distance to target: 824m]

…

[Distance to target: 443m]

…

[Distance to target: 126m]

…

[Distance to target: 36m]

Stopping at just over 30 meters away, Min Do-jun could tell where Kang Cheol-gyu was.

It was a meat restaurant.

* * *

“To Kang Cheol-gyu!”

Kang Cheol-gyu clinked soju glasses and downed it in one gulp.

“Ahh, good!”

Kang Cheol-gyu was catching up with his high school classmates after a long time.

They were all ordinary people.

“Cheol-gyu, how’s life as a hunter?”

“Don’t even ask. I’m dying trying to please those higher-ups.”

Unlike his polite demeanor at the guild, Kang Cheol-gyu badmouthed with a red face.

“The senior b*st*rds act like their level is a rank and throw a fit if you don’t greet them, and guys at the same level as me have no skills but just try to leech off me. The guild is a total mess, a mess.”

“Really? I didn’t know there was a senior-junior concept in the hunter industry too.”

“There usually isn’t, but our guild has it! It’s so f***ing annoying! Hey, pour me some more.”

His friends chuckled and filled his glass as instructed.

“Cheol-gyu. But your guild is well-known, right? Bear with it for the money.”

“That’s why I’m holding back my temper and staying quiet. Sucking up to those useless guys, f***!”

Bang-!

When he punched the table, the dishes briefly flew into the air.

“Hey hey, it’ll break. Hit it gently.”

“Am I short on money? If it breaks, I’ll pay for it.”

“Looks like our Cheol-gyu has a lot built up?”

“Hehehe, you might end up on the news at this rate.”

“Wanted Guild’s promising talent kills guild member in fit of rage! Dun dun dun.”

“Control your temper, man. This guy shows his true colors when he drinks.”

But Kang Cheol-gyu just kept drinking with a scowl.

It was a complete 180 from how he acted at the guild.

“Ah, f***!”

“Hey, where are you going?”

“To take a leak!”

Kang Cheol-gyu got up irritably and went outside the restaurant.

The bathroom was outside.

As he came out after relieving himself, he bumped shoulders with a man at the entrance.

“Ah s***, watch where you’re going!”

Kang Cheol-gyu lashed out, and the man made a bewildered expression.

“What? You’re the one who bumped into me.”

“You little s***, if you bump into someone you should apologize first, you wanna die?”

“What? Little s***? Sigh…”

As the man made an exasperated expression, Kang Cheol-gyu exploded.

Bang-!

Crumble-

The bathroom’s outer wall caved in from Kang Cheol-gyu’s punch.

“…”

The man froze at the sight.

But Kang Cheol-gyu’s anger wasn’t quelled.

“F***, even a bug like you looks down on me? Ah f***, I’m so pissed. Follow me, you little s***.”

“I’m, I’m sorry! I didn’t know you were a hunter…”

“Shut up and follow me.”

As Kang Cheol-gyu grabbed the man’s nape to drag him away, a woman coming out of the women’s restroom was startled and ran over.

“Wh-who are you? Why are you doing this to my brother!”

“What’s this? Your girlfriend?”

Kang Cheol-gyu briefly looked the woman up and down, then ignored her and dragged the man away.

“Le-let go! Let my brother go!”

The man and woman tried to resist together, but they were no match for Kang Cheol-gyu’s grip.

A hunter’s strength is on a different level from ordinary people.

Especially Kang Cheol-gyu, whose strength stat alone exceeded 300.

“What’s that?”

“What’s going on?”

Some people murmured, but no one tried to stop him.

Kang Cheol-gyu dragged the man to a deserted alley and shoved him against the wall.

“Ugh!”

Then he immediately started choking him with one hand.

“Urk!”

“Let my brother go, you crazy b*st*rd!”

The woman beside them pushed and hit, trying everything, but Kang Cheol-gyu didn’t budge an inch.

“Hah, you’ve been annoying me since earlier.”

Kang Cheol-gyu slapped the woman’s cheek.

Smack-

The woman fell helplessly and seemed to have fainted, unable to get up.

“Hye, Hyeon-ah! Urk!”

Kang Cheol-gyu, who was choking the man, giggled as he watched him suffer.

“That’s what you get, f***. Why’d you pick a fight with me, huh?”

“Urk, wh-what fight…”

“You picked a fight. Are you going to keep pretending you don’t know?”

“Urk!”

Kang Cheol-gyu seemed to be enjoying the situation, repeatedly tightening and loosening his grip on the man’s neck.

“Huff, huff…”

“You get it now? If I squeeze just a little harder, a b*st*rd like you will snap your neck and die. Got it?”

“I, I’m sorry.”

“That’s right, why’d you do something wrong? Making me angry, huh?”

“I’m sorry…”

The man thought he had to apologize no matter what.

Otherwise, he felt he would die right here.

“You’re sorry, right?”

“Yes…! Yes!”

“Then I’ll take your girlfriend.”

“What…?”

The man couldn’t understand what that meant.

“What do you mean take her…”

“I’m saying I’ll eat your girlfriend, you b*st*rd.”

“…”

“You said you’re sorry, right? If you’re sorry, there should be consequences. Don’t you think?”

“…”

When the man said nothing, Kang Cheol-gyu’s expression twisted again.

“Answer me.”

“…”

Kang Cheol-gyu tightened his grip.

“Urk!”

“Do you want to die? Do I look easy to you?”

“Urk…”

“I’m asking to borrow your girlfriend in exchange for sparing your life, and you don’t like that?”

“Urk urk…”

“Or do you just want to die? That’s fine too. I won’t be punished at all for killing ordinary people like you. Want to know why?”

“Urk urk urk…”

“Because I’m a hunter. A hero who hunts monsters. If a hunter rots in jail, that’s a loss in itself. Hehe.”

“Even bullshit has its limits.”

“…!”

Kang Cheol-gyu loosened his grip.

Thud-

It was because of the voice he heard.

“Cough, cough…”

The man coughed and caught his breath, but Kang Cheol-gyu’s gaze was elsewhere.

“Who are you?”

“Me?”

Where the voice came from, a man wearing a hat and mask was looking at Kang Cheol-gyu, fully armed.

“The Grim Reaper.”

It was none other than Min Do-jun.