My Assigned Hunters Climb the Tower - Chapter 04

========== CHAPTER 4 ==========

-Sold at the highest price….

A dusty office, barely ten square meters in size.

Yellowed curtains hung over the windows. The film blocking the sun was a faded yellow, exuding a murky aura as if coated in layers of time. In the center, red letters were clearly stamped on it; the two characters for [Daily Interest] gave off a sinister impression, like a blood-red brand.

“System. Does it really have to be here?”

【The base must be close to the Tower, so this is the most suitable location.】

“What the hell is this ‘base’ thing anyway?”

I thought I’d finished the ‘raise funds’ mission somehow, but a new mission had already started.

The System designated the next target without hesitation.

It was the old building right in front of my eyes.

A place that seemed to defy time, standing alone amidst a forest of decent buildings.

The System ordered me to make this place my base.

Go Gyeol couldn’t understand the reason. No, I just earned hundreds of billions of won, so why do I have to set up a base in a dump like this?

As always, the System answered his question with emotionless text.

【Base: An important point that serves as a foundation for activities.】

A scoff burst from Go Gyeol’s lips. Did it think I asked because I didn’t know the dictionary definition?

“Fine. Let’s clean.”

Encouraging himself, he approached the window.

The tightly shut window opened with a creak of rusted hinges.

The sunlight that poured in illuminated the dance of dust filling the space, like stage lights.

He silently picked up a broom. He swept away the accumulated dust and wiped off the old stains embedded in the floor, walls, and ceiling with a damp rag.

If it hadn’t been a mission to ‘clean the base yourself,’ this hard labor would have been outsourced long ago.

Finally, the rag, having wiped away the last of the grime, turned into a black lump and was tossed into the trash bag.

He even peeled off the [Daily Interest] film that had been stuck hideously on the window.

Then, the sunlight filled the room without any obstruction, making the space shine as if it were brand new.

But that peace lasted only a moment; a rough shout and a loud bang shattered the silence.

“Hey, you asshole, Go Gyeol!”

Go Gyeol wasn’t startled even by the sound of the door being kicked open. He smirked and turned his head toward the noise.

“You here?”

Go Gyeol’s calm voice acted like kindling.

Lee Seong-ha approached him with eyes blazing with fury.

“You, what did you say to the Head Priest-nim!”

“The truth.”

Go Gyeol was nonchalant.

“That you were going to become a Hunter again. The Priest-nim seemed happy about it.”

Lee Seong-ha was dumbfounded by those words.

Go Gyeol looked at him as if he were pathetic.

“You didn’t cause a scene at the cathedral, did you?”

“Do you think I’m crazy enough to do that there?!”

“Then it’s fine.”

Go Gyeol shrugged his shoulders, showing he had no further interest.

“Ah… that crazy bastard.”

Lee Seong-ha tore at his own hair, which didn’t match his neat cassock.

He followed Go Gyeol, who was moving boxes in the hallway, and pleaded.

“Please. Why does it have to be me? If you need a Hunter, there are other alternatives.”

“Give me an example.”

“Yuk Jeon-il.”

In an instant, Go Gyeol’s expression froze coldly.

“You still remember that name.”

“How could I forget? He was the guy who stuck to you like a shadow.”

“I told you to shut up.”

Go Gyeol roughly tore open a box and took out some tools.

Despite his sharp reaction, Lee Seong-ha appealed, pinning his last hope on it.

“Go Gyeol. Think rationally. I’ve been away from the battlefield for a long time living as a priest, and even when I was active, I was only A-rank. Versus Yuk Jeon-il, who is a natural S-rank and currently active. Who would be more useful?”

Go Gyeol stared at Lee Seong-ha and said firmly.

“You.”

“……Ha. Lord.”

A desperate sigh escaped Lee Seong-ha’s lips. He scratched his head vigorously once more, then finally wiped his face with his hands in resignation.

“…So you’re really going to go with this ‘dragging me down to hell with you’ strategy?”

“I’m going to save Korea.”

Go Gyeol hummed as he replied. Lee Seong-ha, who had been glaring at him, just sat down on the floor.

“Hey, your cassock is getting dirty.”

“It’s a floor cleaned by a germaphobe, so what does it matter.”

As if he had never been angry, Lee Seong-ha slowly looked around the now-tidy office and said.

“To think the great Go Gyeol would do something like this.”

“What’s so great about this? But you came earlier than I thought?”

At Go Gyeol’s words, Lee Seong-ha, whose anger flared up again, gritted his teeth and retorted.

“I got fired from my priesthood thanks to a certain bastard.”

“From what I see, it looks like the Head Priest-nim thought, ‘Now’s the time!’ and readily agreed? Just how much did you torment him for that to happen?”

Lee Seong-ha snorted and ignored Go Gyeol’s words. His gaze turned out the window.

“But isn’t the office too shabby?”

“I know.”

“If you knew, why did you pick this place?”

“…It’s a mission.”

“Ah….”

The atmosphere became awkward for a moment.

Lee Seong-ha quickly changed the subject.

“Ask the System when it’s going to let me go.”

“It has absolutely no intention of doing so.”

Just as Go Gyeol was oiling the creaky door hinge and tightening the screws.

[Mission: Clean the base yourself! has been completed.]

[Reward: 2 Gold awarded]

[Current Balance: 16 Gold]

As Go Gyeol checked the now-familiar System notification, Lee Seong-ha asked.

“Why are you standing there blankly?”

It was time to check the now-familiar System notification.

The reward window disappeared, and a new mission window popped up.

[Mission 5. Decorate the base to be cozy.]

[Mission 6. Recruit a Hunter. [Confirm]]

The recruitment mission had been quiet since Lee Seong-ha.

Go Gyeol, who had wondered if he really had to conquer the Tower with only Lee Seong-ha, quickly pressed the [Confirm] button. And the next moment, a low curse burst from his lips.

“…Crazy.”

“Why?”

Lee Seong-ha, who was next to him, tilted his head. Go Gyeol gritted his teeth without realizing it.

“The recruitment mission… popped up.”

“Recruitment mission? Why are you cursing if it popped up? Who is it?”

Go Gyeol said it, one syllable at a time, as if casting a curse.

“Kang. Ji. Hyun.”

Silence flowed. Lee Seong-ha seemed to chew on the name, then immediately shouted in shock.

“Kang Ji-hyun?! That ‘Witch’ Kang Ji-hyun?!”

Go Gyeol closed his eyes.

A name that brought fatigue just by thinking of it. S-rank, and her moniker, ‘Witch’.

That nickname wasn’t given just because of her ability. The woman herself was a disaster.

“You… you’re really in big trouble.”

Unlike his sympathetic voice, the corners of Lee Seong-ha’s mouth were curled way up.

“Shut up, Lee Seong-ha.”

“What changes if I shut up? But… what are you really going to do?”

At Lee Seong-ha’s worried words, Go Gyeol urgently called the System. His voice was laced with desperation.

“System! Can the mission be changed?”

【Mission changes are not possible.】

“What about giving up?”

【Mission abandonment is not possible.】

“…Damn it.”

Go Gyeol squeezed his eyes shut. His mind went blank.

Of all people, why Kang Ji-hyun?

He couldn’t hear the System’s answer, but Lee Seong-ha, who had grasped the whole situation just from Go Gyeol’s distorted expression, gave a malicious grin.

“Do you have something going on with the Witch? Come to think of it, weren’t you two classmates?”

At that one remark, Go Gyeol’s gaze turned icy.

“Aren’t you going to the cathedral?”

“Huh? You bastard, who do you think is the reason I can’t go?!”

Treating Lee Seong-ha, who was shouting and swearing, like an invisible person, Go Gyeol silently began to pack his tools.

‘The System didn’t give a time limit, right? Then….’

Let’s think about it later.

It was better to put off problems that couldn’t be solved right away.

Go Gyeol spent a long time assembling the office furniture.

When he had a lot on his mind, keeping his hands busy was one of his habits.

His movements were fast and precise. Since he had purchased only the cheapest and simplest assembly-type furniture, it didn’t take long to finish.

One desk, one bookshelf, a steel cabinet, and a four-person sofa. The office, equipped with only the bare essentials, was still empty.

“Isn’t it a bit chilly?”

Lee Seong-ha, who had settled onto the newly assembled sofa, asked.

“I only bought the essentials for now. I’ll fill it in slowly later.”

He didn’t know the standard for ‘coziness’ that the System spoke of, but if he kept adding things like this, the mission would eventually be completed.

Go Gyeol finished assembling and sat in a chair.

“Haa.”

Once his focus ended, a sigh came out again.

“Geez, you’re going to make the ground cave in, man.”

At that moment, a sweet yet savory scent pricked his nose. When he looked up, Lee Seong-ha was holding out a ‘Seong-ha style Cafe Mocha’ made by dumping in two packets of instant coffee and cocoa powder.

“Is it because of Kang Ji-hyun?”

Lee Seong-ha’s voice held genuine concern.

“Yeah. That, and other things.”

“Other things?”

“Never mind.”

Go Gyeol pressed his temples firmly.

Actually, even if it weren’t for the System, Kang Ji-hyun was one of the Hunters he had originally intended to recruit. However, now was not the time.

Meeting her now was like walking into hellfire on his own.

“Can’t you change it to someone else? There are many promising Hunters in our country.”

“If that were possible, do you think I’d be doing this?”

Watching Go Gyeol, who looked as if the world had collapsed, Lee Seong-ha’s eyes suddenly sparkled with a thought.

“You said you were a successful Hunter Manager before the regression.”

“Yeah.”

“Who were the Hunters you managed back then? Were there any S-ranks?”

In an instant, Go Gyeol’s brow furrowed sharply.

At that one question, fragments of the sealed past flashed by like a panorama.

The faces of the Hunters who turned their backs on the destruction of their homeland to immigrate to safer countries overseas, and who had mocked him as an ‘incompetent manager’ until the very end. Their contemptuous gazes were as vivid as if it were yesterday.

“Why do you ask that?”

His voice turned icy cold.

“No, just curious. Since someone like you was managing them, I wondered how great they were.”

“No need to be curious. They were all trash.”

With those words, Go Gyeol stood up from his seat. He no longer had the luxury or the mood to chew over the past.

“But, why did you tell me to come wearing a cassock?”

As if he were finally curious about the main point, Lee Seong-ha asked.

“Because there’s work to do.”

“Work?”

“Yeah.”

Go Gyeol lightly brushed off the dust and put on the jacket he had left on his bag.

The first thing Go Gyeol had decided after the regression was to save the Hunters who had died regrettably or turned into villains.

He had to meet the person who possessed the ‘Curse’ ability, which had shown outstanding performance in the Tower, but who had become a villain due to an unfortunate life.

The person whom all the citizens had felt sorry for, saying they would have been the most popular Hunter in the Tower if only someone had reached out a hand.

Recalling the date and time from an article he had seen in the past, he gestured toward Lee Seong-ha.

“Let’s go.”

The steep alleyway was so narrow that two adult men could barely pass through.

On both sides, shacks without fences were precariously lined up.

The roofs, so low that even the 176cm-tall Go Gyeol had to bow his head, were covered not with tiles or cement, but with dark gray tarps that looked polluted by smog.

Lee Seong-ha grumbled while holding his nose. The air in the shantytown, mixed with the terrible dust, moldy smell, and gloomy energy, was suffocating.

“Shh.”

Go Gyeol stopped walking, as if he had arrived at his destination. In front of him was a shabby door covered with old, yellowed vinyl instead of glass. He knocked on the door without hesitation.

“Is anyone there?”

There was no response from inside. But Go Gyeol didn’t stop and kept knocking on the door.

“Isn’t there no one—”

It was before Lee Seong-ha could even finish his sentence. How long had he been knocking?

With an ear-piercing creak, the door opened, and the face of a very small child peeked out.

“Who… are you?”