Kuyokuyo was no longer capable of doing business.
The room where Su-ho had been, along with the hallway, was filled with collapsed yakuza.
After waiting a bit longer, the Inagawa executive Su-ho had spoken to on the phone finally appeared.
He looked to be in his mid-thirties, with slicked-back hair, a suit, and the signature tinted glasses favored by gangsters.
Of course, he didn’t come alone.
He showed up with about a dozen subordinates who looked fairly capable. As expected of someone from a higher division, they clearly had better stats than the thugs Tsukuryo had brought with him.
Cigarette in mouth, the man stepped over the fallen trash and came to stand in front of Su-ho.
“You the one? The guy who called?”
“Yeah, that’s me. You the one who picked up?”
“Kuhuhu, yeah. I’m the one who picked up. So who the hell are you?”
“I’m a tourist from Korea.”
“Tourist?”
“Yeah, tourist. I’m even speaking Japanese for you, and you can’t understand what I’m saying? What’s your name?”
“I’m Koki. An executive of the great Inagawa. So how about you give your name too?”
“I’m Kim Su-ho. Alright, Koki. We both don’t have time, so let’s get this over with. Did you bring the compensation?”
“Compensation, huh...”
At the mention of compensation, Koki took a long drag from his cigarette, then snuffed it out by grinding it against the body of one of the guys lying nearby.
“Before that, let me ask you something. You said you’re a tourist from Korea, but judging by your skills, you’re no ordinary guy. You belong to a guild or something?”
“Do I need to tell you that just to collect some money?”
“It matters. Guys like us care about names and affiliations.”
“I don’t belong anywhere. I’m a freelancer hunter. If I had to say I belong to something, I guess it’s Korea, since I pay taxes there. That good enough for you?”
“I see.”
Koki nodded.
Then he gave a signal with his chin to his subordinates.
A kill signal.
Right.
He figured it was safe to take Su-ho out since he had no backing.
Good.
Su-ho had been worried they might say something annoying about compensation or try to negotiate.
Soon, Koki’s men quietly approached Su-ho.
But the result was the same.
Crack! Crunch! Thud!
Su-ho deliberately hit them hard.
They were a cut above the lower-level grunts, after all.
Even so, the outcome didn’t change.
Lower-tier, upper-tier—didn’t matter. In Su-ho’s eyes, they were all the same trash.
‘I took down Suiru and Kinya in one shot. These guys are nothing...’
Maybe that’s why.
As more and more of his men dropped like flies, Koki’s brow began to furrow.
And finally, when Su-ho knocked out the last one, he spoke.
“Why the hell can’t you people have a proper conversation? Is it that hard to compensate someone when you screw up?”
“......”
Koki, still locking eyes with Su-ho, slowly pulled a cigarette from his coat and placed it in his mouth.
And just as he reached for his lighter—
“Cut the crap.”
Su-ho, fed up with Koki’s theatrics, grabbed ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) a nearby liquor bottle and threw it.
Koki tried to catch it, but no chance.
He might have been Awakened, but Su-ho was on a completely different level.
The bottle hit him square in the forehead, and he collapsed backward.
“Let’s wrap this up.”
Su-ho couldn’t be bothered to call someone else over at this point.
He used Recovery on the unconscious Koki.
Koki groaned as he regained consciousness.
“Ugh...”
“Cut the moaning. Sit up straight.”
Smack!
A direct hit to the forehead made a loud crack and jolted him fully awake.
He tried to resist and raised his hand, but Su-ho was faster.
The moment Koki’s hand rose, Su-ho twisted it.
“Aaaargh!”
“Shh.”
Thud!
When Koki screamed, Su-ho jabbed him in the throat.
The scream stopped immediately, and Su-ho applied pressure point strikes across his body to restrain him without ropes.
Koki was soon forced to kneel, limp and powerless, staring at Su-ho with disbelief.
Su-ho snatched Koki’s tinted glasses and put them on himself.
“Why do punks like you always wear crap like this? Is this supposed to be cool?”
“......”
“I asked if it’s cool.”
“S-sorry...”
“I asked if it’s cool, so why are you apologizing? Seriously, whether it’s mobsters or yakuza, none of you ever listen when someone tries to talk nicely... Anyway, whatever. What’s your rank in Inagawa?”
“M-me?”
“Who else would I be talking to? If you keep spacing out, I’ll skin off all the ogre tattoos on your body, so take that seriously.”
“......”
Koki, realizing Su-ho was dead serious, pursed his lips.
Then, he finally answered.
“I’m ranked about 9th.”
“Ninth?”
Su-ho did a quick mental count, then furrowed his brow.
Ninth is kind of vague...
He glanced around, then called out to the manager, who had regained consciousness nearby.
“Hey.”
“Y-yes!”
“Stuttering again? Want me to smash your other thigh too?”
“N-no, sir!”
“Then get over here.”
The manager dragged his wrecked leg over and stood in front of Su-ho with great effort.
Su-ho asked,
“If you’re ranked 9th in Inagawa, do people actually recognize you in other places too?”
At that, the manager snuck a glance at Koki.
Hah. Look at this guy...
Su-ho turned to Koki.
“Hey.”
“Yes.”
“Close your eyes.”
“Yes.”
“Shut your ears too.”
“Yes.”
Then Su-ho looked back at the manager.
“Now speak.”
The manager looked at Su-ho like he was insane for a moment, but the fear kicked in, and he answered honestly.
“Yes, he is recognized.”
“You lying to me?”
“N-no, I swear! It’s true!”
“You’re just hyping him up ‘cause he’s watching you. Wake up. In this filthy world that only remembers first place, who gives a damn about ninth?”
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