「The World Billionaire List in 2000

Totals as of December 1999 ($)

1. John Doe

168.3 billion        Jonathan Investment Finance        USA

2. Jonathan Hunter

161.7 billion         Jonathan Investment Finance        USA

3. Richard Gates

90 billion        Nano Soft        USA

4. Flint Buffet

31.5 billion         Yorkshire Hathaway            USA

5. Mill Allen

30 billion         Nano Soft        USA

…

216. Jeong Ju-Hyung

1.8 billion        Daehyun Group         South Korea」

I was listed anonymously on the list with my nationality marked as American. The U.S. Secretary of the Treasury had kept his word, so I could board the night plane to New York quietly. I would’ve been heading toward Tokyo if he had decided to continue down his previous crazy thinking of revealing my identity. Woo Yeon-Hee looked happy with her first flight experience in first class but she soon fell asleep.

I completed the quest my father gave me as soon as I arrived in New York. I stopped by his friend’s office and heard his words of blessings before joining my agents. I had explained everything to Woo Yeon-Hee already, but she seemed surprised at the atmosphere in the van filled with bulky men. 

“I’ve told you already,” I said.

“Yes, but…”

She looked around and leaned toward me while looking at agents sitting silently with their rifles. Then, she whispered very quietly in my ear, “We should keep this a secret. Can you trust these people?”

She was surprised because of this.

“Did something happen to these guys?”

These were the same members who covered my first solo dungeon run after I reached E-class. John must have scolded them regarding their lack of awareness of the situation after I told him I was disappointed about that. He had probably led them on marches with fifty pounds of rocks in their packs. Woo Yeon-Hee showed a particular interest in Mick, who was in the passenger seat, and her eyes flickered towards him.

“Who is he?” she asked.

“Why?” I questioned back.

She explained, “I can tell that he’s feeling complicated emotions. Everyone else is afraid of you, but he is…scared, but also…yes. There’s a certain amount of awe mixed with fear.” 

I looked at her. “I have worked with them in the past. You seemed to be at the top of your game as you’re sensing more today.” 

“Yeah, I guess. Anyway, you took them to only the dungeon entrance, right?” she asked.

“Of course.”

“I think having our identities revealed is more terrifying than fighting against monsters. We are freaks to the world until ‘that day’ comes. We’re like mutants to them,” she said.

“You’ve grown up so much. I didn’t expect you would say such a thing like that. Don’t worry, it won’t happen. I’m not making money for nothing, and I should be the one concerned about this, not you. You…” 

“I’ll follow your orders without complaint,” she replied.

“Yes.” 

BTA motorcycle gangs raised their steering wheels and raced through the roads loudly. The roads were wide, and we were in an area rural enough to drive without caring too much about the lanes. Some of them seemed young, and they raised their middle fingers toward our car’s driver. The driver slowed down to avoid having a quarrel with them as we were on a secret mission. 

We passed by a few villages without proper roads and arrived at the destination after twelve hours of driving. I thought using a helicopter would be much better next time despite the legal complications. I packed two walkie-talkies and gave one to Woo Yeon-Hee before heading to the mountains with her. 

***

<Seon-Hu: I found it. Let’s meet at the entrance.>

The agents were ready, and we headed to the dungeon entrance when Woo Yeon-Hee came over. Although they had witnessed a dungeon before, they were fascinated by the blue light buried in snow. Woo Yeon-Hee looked at them with an understanding expression and watched to make sure no one entered the dungeon. When I checked the backpack, Mick approached me.

“These are what you asked for,” he said. 

He had brought a smaller bag with tactical bows, a quiver, and daggers.

“Take it.”

I threw a dagger to Woo Yeon-Hee, and she immediately unsheathed it, testing it in the open. She stabbed, swung, and fiddled it with both hands. It must have seemed like a flashy trick to civilians, but the agents recognized the fluid movements. It was a dance designed to kill with a knife, a skill with only a lethal purpose. 

They looked at her with amazement and noticed that she wasn’t just a cute Asian girl. I bet none of them could survive when fighting with her even if she didn’t use her mental skills as her Sense was now upgraded to E-class. Furthermore, her Agility class was quite high. Then, she spoke in a disappointed tone, “The Dagger of Erosion is much better than this. It’s worse than the regular ones I bought in Namdaemun.”

This had proved that her stats had been upgraded.

“But, it’s usable. How many are there?” she asked.

I threw the entire backpack over, and she looked satisfied with the contents. We were now ready to enter the dungeon. Woo Yeon-Hee was carrying a bag as big as her with her bow and bag of daggers at her side. Meanwhile, the agents seemed to care about her more than me. I said to Mick, “Take care of things up here.”

***

I received the quests, which consisted of a hunting, combat, and boss fight quest. It was a cave-shaped dungeon, and the monsters were four-legged beasts called ‘Kciphos.’ They were weaker than Declans, but they were formidable as a group.

Woo Yeon-Hee was waiting for me to explain, and she was probably hoping that it wouldn’t be insects again.

“No, it’s not,” I said.

“Huh?” she asked.

“No bugs here,” I replied.

She widened her eyes as if she was surprised.

“No,” I said.

“What?” 

“I can’t read your mind. Anyway, our goal is to conquer this dungeon in five days without me needing to activate the Man Who Overcomes Adversity,” I explained.

The severe wounds that were required to activate that trait would hinder me from knocking out the next dungeons as quickly as possible. Since I succeeded in conquering the previous one solo by using the Man Who Overcomes Adversity, I expected to do better with Woo Yeon-Hee’s assistance. I would upgrade my stats while shortening the period to complete the quest. 

“In five days with the Man Who Overcomes Adversity?” Woo Yeon-Hee asked.

“Yes, I have you with me now,” I answered.

She smiled sheepishly. 

“Shouldn’t we open a box now? I have lots of points,” she questioned.

“Let’s do it after you get used to your upgraded Sense level. Don’t be too confident. Your Sense needs to get honed during battle,” I replied.

I wrapped up my briefing and started walking. Then, eight Kciphos appeared. They had large horns like goats and were covered in fur. They looked cute enough that someone would want to touch them at first glance, but I could only recall their hideous faces and terrifying carnivorous appetites from my past life experience. They ghastly chewed up hunters on the Day of Advent. 

When I was turning around to see Woo Yeon-Hee’s reaction, she shot an arrow.

[You have been distributed 0.5 points.]

[Kciphos Extermination: Killing Kciphos soldier 1/120]

Her aim was accurate as the arrow squarely hit the monster’s third eye, which was only slightly revealed every time when fur blew up. The third eye was their entire life as it was the most vulnerable point and directly connected to their mana stone. 

When a black aura stretched out from Woo Yeon-Hee, one of the Kciphos suddenly began biting the neck of another before it crammed its body at it. It had sharp legs hidden in its fur. She had used Isis’s Gaze and followed up by throwing a dagger through the air.

[You have been distributed 0.5 points.]

[Kciphos Extermination: Killing Kciphos soldier 1/120]

“I’ll test it now.”

Woo Yeon-Hee looked coldly at the monsters, and I nodded. I had stepped back from the beginning to check her condition. The black aura once again spread out from her, and another Kciphos became possessed by her. They started fighting against each other, and the two controlled by her were more aggressive and dug out the third eye of another one. 

[You have been distributed 0.5 points.]

Woo Yeon-Hee had used the skill in a defenseless state, and her eyes turned black. 

[You have been distributed 0.5 points.]

[You have been distributed 0.5 points.]

Three monsters were left, and Woo Yeon-Hee was still using her skill. The Kciphos were fighting one against two, with one of them being the monster under her control. I was curious about what would happen after the possessed monster died. Finally, the possessed one killed another one and the last free one killed Woo Yeon-Hee’s monster.

[You have been distributed 0.5 points.]

[You have been distributed 0.5 points.]

The last survivor rushed towards Woo Yeon-Hee when the notification messages popped up. Her eyes turned back to normal, but they held a murderous intent as she pulled out the second dagger from its holster while glaring at the monster. She had become a completely different person as if she had become possessed by a demon. As soon as she unwrapped her backpack, she sprinted toward the monster and thrust the dagger in its third eye.

[You have been distributed 0.5 points.]

[Kciphos Extermination: Killing Kciphos soldier 8/120]

I blew the message away. Woo Yeon-Hee didn’t feel like her usual self, so I didn’t approach her. Since no monster ran away, there was enough time to check her.

“Huff…Huff…”

I could tell that she was breathing hard because her killing intent had reached its peak. In fact, she had been so focused that she forgot to move. She turned her head toward me with a dark and murderous gaze. When she settled down, she rose as if nothing had happened and smiled.

“Clear.”