Chapter 66

Episode 66. How could you take what belongs to us? (2)

"The original owner of this dungeon?"

The man looked suspicious when he heard me.

"If you're lying, I think you'd better stop now."

He had looked confused but now seemed certain that I was lying.

So that's your response, huh?

Sorry, but I have a cheat code I can use in these situations.

"Hyun-woo."

"Okay."

I tapped Sung Hyun-woo, who was standing next to me, on the shoulder. He had a lot of experience with situations like these, so he quickly took the hint and grabbed my hand.

[Other memories are about to intrude on you.]

[Do you accept?]

'Yeah.'

The Akashic Records resisted the memories that Sung Hyun-woo sent me but disabled the defense wall when I nodded. At the same time, the memories of the man standing in front of me poured in bit by bit.

I frowned slightly. Well, this guy isn't that clean, either.

Then I smiled faintly. His type was easier to manipulate.

"Why do you think I'm lying?"

"Well...."

"Is it because your team leader said this was an undisclosed dungeon and that the information he purchased was legit?"

"......!"

"I can tell just by the look on your face. You were nervous at first because you thought we were the same as you. Then you laughed because I claimed to be the original owner. But you know what? It's true."

The man who seemed sure I was lying now looked flustered.

"What did your team leader say? That he got his information from the black market through a reliable source? That no one would know and that it's a sweet dungeon full of treasures? Is that what he said?"

"That's...."

"Did the guy who sold you the information have proof that he was the dungeon owner? Why the hell did you trust the Black Market? Don't you know that those jerks sell registered dungeons as undisclosed ones?"

I glared at him sharply. His hands shook as he saw how confident I was.

"You don't know who I am, do you?"

"How, how can I......."

"I'm somewhat of a celebrity. I thought you'd recognize me when you saw me."

Thump, thump.

I walked towards him. Bewildered, he took a short sword from his belt and held it up to me. His poor posture and shabby weapon weren't the least threatening.

"Stop right there!"

"Don't be scared, and take a close look. You really don't know who I am?"

The man's eyes shook violently. He stared at me for a while and then turned pale. He also glanced behind me.

"Jeong Si-woo, Han Yeon-soo... Zhang Wei."

It looked like he finally came to his senses.

"Did you realize now?"

"Oh...."

"What are you doing? Drop your weapon and get on your knees right now. Unless you want to be dealt with on the spot."

The man hesitated for a bit, but as soon as it looked like Han Yeon-soo was going to step forward, he dropped to his knees.

"Oh, please don't kill me. Don't kill me. I'm sorry!"

My lie worked like a charm.

* * *

Based on Sung Hyun-woo's memory, the man was a villain. He wasn't part of a large villain group but wasn't part of a very small group either.

The situation was like this.

A group of minor thugs. They paid a lot of money to buy information about this dungeon and rushed over here full of high hopes.

But this wasn't a dungeon that minor villains could clear, and they managed to escape only after about ten of them died.

-Still, we earned some good stuff! Hahaha!

They didn't bother to hunt the monsters and left after gathering the scattered treasures. They had already fulfilled the condition of two deaths with their ten dead teammates.

The second raid was no different. Unsurprisingly, some of them died, and they escaped with treasures once again.

Until then, they didn't know anything.

Since they always had more than two victims, they had no idea that they couldn't leave without at least two deaths.

"We don't have a guild yet, so we didn't leave our mark. We left it like this because we were going to come back with an attack team, but you guys cut in, huh?"

"How could we know we shouldn't raid this dungeon when you didn't leave a mark?"

"I registered this dungeon with the Association! It officially belongs to us. We even paid for ownership!"

The man closed his eyes tightly as I shouted. I was lying, of course.

"W-we didn't know because we're not registered with the association. And we have no information on you. I'm telling you, we didn't mean to..."

"Han Yeon-soo."

"Yes, shall I kill him?"

"Ahhh! No! No!"

As Han Yeon-soo started to approach him, he trembled violently. To villains, 1st generation hunters like Han Yeon-soo were living nightmares.

Well, even if she weren't a 1st generation hunter, Han Yeon-soo would still be terrifying to anyone.

"Hey."

"Yes, yes, yes, yes!"

I approached the trembling man and slapped him on the cheek. His face was pale, and he was unaware of the pain as he rubbed his hands together apologetically.

"How much of the treasure did you take?"

"Well, that's...."

I slapped his face again—this time, stronger than before.

"Ugh...."

"I asked how much did you take? And what treasures did you take?"

His lips started to bleed, and bits of broken teeth fell out. His face stiffened. It looked like he finally realized he could die from getting slapped.

I raised my hand, and he started to spill everything. I could have had his memory read, but it was better to have him confess the information.

After all, I wasn't just going to use him once, and it wasn't hard to get information from disloyal villains.

"That is, we took a bottle of Dragon's Blood......."

They looted a lot, taking quite a bit of valuable stuff. But it looked like they couldn't even reach the real treasures hidden in the depths.

"And a very strange book... Our attack team leader took it."

"Where are the treasures now?"

"We sold most of the liquid stuff, and we put the things we could store in a warehouse. Oh, oh, don't raise your hand!"

I glared at him. And at the same time, I touched Sung Hyun-woo's hand. Sung Hyun-woo quickly extracted the villain's memory. It was always important to double-check.

* * *

-Wow, this is enough to make a living!

-We'll be done with doing this crap any minute. Hahahahaha!

Many men, who were tattooed all over as if they were advertising they were villains, were talking loudly as they clinked their soju glasses.

They bragged about the treasures they stole, estimated their prices, and laughed as they talked about how much better their lives would become.

-But what's that book? Why did you keep it there instead of leaving it in the warehouse?

Meanwhile, someone pointed to the book on the table.

-Is it a pot stand or something?

Said another guy, as he came in with a pot and tried to put it on the book. But then.

-Hey, you son-of-a-b****-!

Thwaack!

A man jumped to his feet and kicked the guy carrying the pot. The ramen soup splattered all over him as he fell to the ground and rolled backward.

-That's the most expensive treasure we brought! A very important person contacted me to get this after a long time, and you almost ruined everything!

-Ugh. Oh, I'm so... sorry, boss.

-Ha, I'm tired of working with these stupid bastards!

* * *

I wonder what that book is. I stared intently at the letters written on the book. The visual was a bit grainy, but I could analyze them from the shapes.

Slip.

Sung Hyun-woo let go of my hand. It looked like he thought he was done showing useful memories. I kept focusing on the book I just saw and opened my mouth to speak.

"Hey, where's the book your team leader took with him?"

"Eh? The boss probably still has it."

"Where is he?"

"He'll be in our hideout."

Hmm. I nodded as I glanced at the villain. He wasn't that vile. He never committed murder, any violent crimes, or arson. He had become a villain because he stole and fled from Awakeners and dungeons. He didn't deserve to be killed.

"Do you know the title of the book?"

"Oh, I don't know about ancient languages, but I heard the captain say it."

He answered right away. And without a moment of hesitation, he continued.

"Dragon's Word. I'm sure that's what he said."

"......!"

I couldn't help but respond to his reply.

"Dragon's Word?"

It was something that I was supposed to learn about a lot later in the future.

"You're sure about that?"

"I never lie!"

It looked like there was another great treasure other than Heavenly Eyes hidden in this treasure dungeon.

I grabbed the back of his head and dragged him along as I spoke.

"I'm going to clear this dungeon first and then visit your hideout. Don't even think of trying anything foolish, and come along quietly."

"Ahhhh! Okay, okay! I'll come along, just let go of this, please! Ouch!"

My other teammates followed me, and I couldn't hide my smile.

After all, I knew better than anyone else how Dragon's Word would be regarded in the future.

'If Dragon's Word had been discovered at least five years earlier, the world's magical spectrum would have changed entirely.'

The language containing the essence of the most powerful creatures-dragons.

The book was not something to be used by petty villains.

* * *

"Did Kyung-soo say he's raiding the treasure dungeon?"

"Yes, he's a hell of a thief, you know. I heard he left with five guys to meet their daily quota."

"Yeah. When he comes back, pay him and send him off. And if you get another book like this, call me."

"Yes, boss."

The nasty-looking man laughed unpleasantly.

He was Choi Byung-chul, the leader of the villain group 'The Thieves of the Night'.

Although no one recognized his name, he was proud that he was the head of a group, and he was under the illusion that he was a hotshot villain.

-What about the stuff?

-Hey, wait a little longer. There's a lot of people who want this.

So, Choi Byung-chul was not afraid even after he received a text from a high-profile individual. He kept stalling to raise the price.

'So what if he was a famous and powerful person? Was he going to come and get it himself? Well, the story would be different if it were anywhere else, but nothing can touch me in this hideout!' That's what Choi Byung-chul thought.

"Boss, aren't you going too far? You know who he is."

"You idiot, you don't know anything. Kids like these, they've never experienced anything like this before. He's probably on the ropes right now. And once he raises the price, I can just sell it off like that! Hahahaha."

Choi Byung-chul's henchman seemed uneasy. The important guy who said he would pay a huge sum for that book and Choi Byung-chul refusing it, all made him nervous.

He had no idea how his boss dared to wrangle with a single book. If the important guy got mad, he could wipe out this entire hideout easily.

-I won't repeat myself three times. I've said it twice so far, and you just turned it down again. Do you want me to say it one last time?

"He's angry, he's angry! Hahahaha!

Choi Byung-chul laughed. He was showing anger during the negotiation, which meant Choi Byung-chul had won. He wondered how he should rip him off as he texted back.

-So you don't need this book anymore?

'I'm the one with the upper hand.' Choi Byung-chul thought so until the point where he could see his reply had been read as soon as he sent it.

"Boss! Boss, look outside!"

"What, can't you see I'm working? Get lost!"

"No, it's not......!"

Craaack!

Before the henchman could finish his sentence, the hideout's wall was smashed to pieces. And a flash of light shone poured in from outside.

"Ahhhhhh!"

The men guarding the door rolled into the hideout, screaming with their bodies burned black. They struggled for a while before they groaned and collapsed.

Boom-boom!

The flashes of light burned all the bewildered villains. It was as if God was punishing evil. Without knowing what happened, most of them died before they could even make a sound.

"Wh... what the......."

Choi Byung-chul murmured confusedly, his cell phone in his hand. And then, as if he had noticed something, he quickly reached towards the Dragon's Word book he had left on the table.

But his hand was burned white by a flash of light before it reached the book. There was no blood or screams. Along with the smell of cooked meat, the villain group Thieves of the Night was wiped out. It was a miserable end that no one would remember.

-I said I wouldn't repeat myself three times.

Said the text message that arrived at the cell phone on the floor.

-I'll be taking Dragon's Word with me. I won't pay the money I was supposed to, since you wasted my valuable time.

And with that, the book floated into the air and flew out through the broken wall of the hideout. As if it was drawn to something, Dragon's Word left the hideout and flew away.