Free Web NovelI’d already figured out how to get Joo Seowon to buy it. Whatever I said now, he had no way to confirm it, and if I actually introduced him to her later, he wouldn’t be that mad about me embellishing the truth a little.
'And if he gets mad then—so what?'
Luckily, Joo Minha was alive and well. Just... in another world.
At my words, Joo Seowon’s brow twitched. Yeah, I hadn’t expected him to believe me right away.
'But if this is an information game, I’ve got the clear advantage.'
I rifled through my memory for every detail I had about Joo Seowon and his sister, then fired them off in no particular order.
“Joo Seowon. Two years ago, you lost your little sister in a maze dungeon. You tried over and over to find her, but the dungeon closed, leaving only you behind. Right? Don’t bother denying it—it’s what Minha told me.”
“...What?”
“You’re nine years apart, raised by your grandmother, so you basically raised her yourself. She was grateful for that. Said her childhood dream was to be a pilot because she liked an anime with airplanes in it. Am I wrong? Want me ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ to describe what she looks like?”
“...You...”
“She looks a lot like you—though much prettier, obviously. And don’t get the wrong idea, I’m not saying that out of any weird interest. I’m not that kind of freak.”
Joo Seowon’s expression slowly contorted, but my ammo was running out. In the original, Minha only appeared in a single important episode. Even squeezing it dry, that was the extent of their backstory.
So I had to press while he was off balance.
“I came here to find you... Hm? How else could I have tracked you down? I don’t have any tracking skill, remember?”
'Tracked you down? Please. I just took taxis all over the city until I got lucky.'
I mentally heckled my own lie but kept smiling. By now, he should have been halfway sold.
But then his hand was on my collar again, and I was slammed back into the wall. Face tight, voice almost breaking, he snarled low.
“Then why the hell are you here without her? Why are you the only one who made it back?!”
'God, this is such a pain in the ass.'
Shit. I was already tired of this.
***
Joo Seowon nearly made me blow my top a dozen times, but I exercised saint-like patience and settled for throwing him onto the sofa. Every time he opened his mouth, he lunged at me, so in the end I just drove a fist into his gut to knock some sense into him. More humane than slapping him, anyway. A shot to the stomach wakes you up better.
I took a few hits myself in the scuffle, but without any killing intent behind them, it wasn’t enough to put me in real danger. Honestly, it was more surprising that he could take my punches without going down. Guess awakening really did toughen up the whole body.
If this were my original world, a guy his size would’ve been knocked out cold from those hits. Hunter ranks really were busted.
'Guess hand-to-hand isn’t a reliable option anymore.'
Even after taking that beating, he sat up and looked at me.
“What the hell is your skill? Some kind of subduing thing? Why are you so damn strong?”
“Just some basic self-defense training.”
“Self-defense? Defense from what? Who the hell is even attacking you? That guy’s gotta be insane.”
...Said the guy who just did exactly that. I was too dumbfounded to respond. Maybe sensing my look, he gave a couple of awkward coughs and turned away.
“You’ve hit me enough, don’t you think?”
“Are you kidding me? You hit me way more.”
“You threw the first punch, so it’s self-defense.”
What an airhead. My reasoning was airtight, and it shut him right up.
Still, this had already eaten more time than I liked. Without hesitation, I reached for his bag lying on the floor and dug inside.
“Hey! Who said you could—oh, forget it.”
I might have heard resignation in his voice, but I ignored it.
Inside his bag, I found what I was looking for: a Trust Covenant. An A-rank item—sign it, and both parties are bound to honor the agreement. Break it, and the penalty is death. freewebnoveℓ.com
Of course, for Joo Seowon, it was more for show than anything.
Because besides Tracking, he had another A-rank skill:
Blind Spot of Trust (A)
A mental-type skill that could break any contract he made. It wasn’t limited to contracts, either—he could use it for persuasion, incitement... lots of creative applications.
But its utility right now wasn’t the point. What mattered was getting him to trust me.
I placed the Trust Covenant on the table in front of his sofa.
“Let’s make a deal. I need you.”
He stared at it for a moment, then looked up. I met his eyes.
“To get to the world where Joo Minha is, a lot of conditions have to be met. That means a lot of preparation. I’ll work with you—to help you find your sister.”
“...Why would you?”
I grinned.
“Because I need you.”
“What do you want me to do? Nothing too crazy...”
What do I want? That was easy.
“Tracking.”
“Ha, that’s it?”
“...Plus surveillance, and intel gathering. For a lot of people and Gates. And you’ll come with me wherever I ask. Oh, and move. I don’t want to waste time hunting you down like this again. You’re living in a dump anyway.”
“What? Hey!”
“And no more taking other jobs. Mine only.”
“Are you out of your mind? What kind of bastard—did you live like this and finally get cursed for it?”
At first he’d looked like he could agree, but with each extra condition I added, his expression shifted to the kind of look you give a lunatic. His glare was full of hostility, but I could tell he’d sign. He was desperate enough.
After a moment, he stood to face me directly.
“You gonna set me up with a place?”
“Yeah. Not yet, but you’ll need time to move out anyway.”
“...Fine. I’ll get out soon. Give me a month.”
“Don’t make me laugh. One week.”
“What? You insane bastard!”
A month? In your dreams. I stared at him like he was talking nonsense, and he looked at me like I was the crazy one.
“You think finding a new tenant is easy? You think a place sells the moment it’s listed?”
“Want me to make it three days?”
“...One week.”
There we go. I ignored the glare he kept throwing me and started writing out the terms with the pen rolling on the desk.
This covenant is based on mutual trust; any who break that trust shall surely meet death.
I skipped over the dramatic opening and continued.
“You crazy bastard! Hell no!”
Before I could write the next line, he snatched the pen from my hand, then the covenant itself, turning his back on me like he was guarding it.
“I’ll write it. What is this, a slave contract?”
“You’re not gonna cooperate unconditionally?”
“Of course not! What if you tell me to enter an S-rank dungeon? Why the hell would I trust you? Not that you’d actually—right?”
'Sharp one.'
I wasn’t going to send him in alone, but eventually we would have to enter one. I stayed silent, and his voice wavered. freēwēbηovel.c૦m
“...Right?”
I just shrugged, and his expression turned murderous. Sensitive, for someone with a contract-breaking skill.
“Add that you have to guarantee my safety.”
“...You happen to have a skill to nullify contracts?”
Demanding a lot from an F-rank. I smirked, and he reluctantly added the line.
However, Seo Jehyun must guarantee Joo Seowon’s safety.
“And you add that you’ll cooperate in finding my sister.”
Still suspicious, he eventually wrote:
- Seo Jehyun will fully cooperate, both informationally and physically, in finding and rescuing Joo Seowon’s sister, Joo Minha, prioritizing her safety above all else.
“Pretty damn thorough.”
“You’ve never done a contract before? Who writes one like you?”
That was all we needed. He signed first and handed it over. I signed next. The covenant flared with light and sank into our bodies.
“...That’s wild.”
The absorbed covenant left an italic-like mark along the side of my index finger. Catching my look, Joo Seowon asked,
“You know what that is?”
“Trust Covenant. A-rank item. Break the terms and you die.”
“You say that like it’s nothing... What the hell are you planning? Anyway, if we both agree to dissolve it or once it’s fully fulfilled, the mark disappears.”
“Got it.”
“...So where’s my sister?”
His eyes were full of hope. I answered calmly.
“Oh, she’s not on Earth.”
“...You son of a bitch! You’re a goddamn scammer!”
God, here we go again—conversation impossible.
