Chapter 896

EP.896 [Light Novel Side Story] Chronicles of Deathdinas Volume 2 Chapter 013

While the college students descended to New Seoul, the special ability users in Seoul immediately packed their bags to head back up to Seoul.

– There might still be monsters lurking underground in Seoul.

Considering that the temporary hero team organized by Princess Snowhwa Seok Harang had captured no less than 500 villains, it was undeniably an incredibly efficient “business.”

Villains were worth 100 million won per capture. Monsters fetched a cool 1 billion won each.

The international peace organization ‘Round Table’ established massive bounties using funds gathered from cores, forcing villains and monsters to retreat into hiding with price tags on their heads.

Some criticized that the Round Table was finally trying to buy out ability users with money, but Sir Gawein declared boldly,

– If we can purchase peace with money, I’ll gladly offer billions!

The higher the rank of the villain or monster, the greater the bounty. The Round Table heroes filled their bounty vaults endlessly with cores collected during dungeon runs.

On the surface, Princess Snowhwa Seok Harang’s cleanup operation seemed admirable, but it also drew criticism for being wasteful.

– You’re supposed to sell captured monsters to the Round Table, not just arrest them!

– 200 monsters! Wow! 200 billion gone down the drain!

– That’s why…heroes are such fools…

Seok Harang and the heroes handed over the criminals of Seoul not to the Round Table but to the government.

Core-transformed monsters would be held under strict guard in detention centers in Daejeon, while regular villains would serve their sentences in jails.

Watching from afar in New Seoul, the ability users of Hunter Guilds salivated at the sight of villains willingly entering jails – or rather, the bounties they represented.

– Aren’t there way more than 500 villains hiding in Seoul?

– Sending all the students down must’ve been about hogging Seoul’s villains for themselves, right?

– Whoever gets there first to catch villains wins big! It’s like free money! Hahahaha!

Under the pretense of assisting in Seoul’s restoration operation, guilds rushed toward Seoul en masse.

Thus began the “Mole Catching” operation.

* * *

“Hmmph, nope.”

“Aaaahhh whyyyyyy!!”

Nuri screamed again. Her flailing on the couch nearly caused Ha Yujun to spill his coffee, making him frown deeply.

“Would you please stay still?”

“Bro! That old man is spouting nonsense again!”

Nuri huffed and pointed at Sian, who uncharacteristically revealed her irritation by tapping the map.

“It’s too late now. It’s already two in the afternoon. The hunter guilds all went up this morning.”

“Just catch one! We know how to get in! That’s 100 million won per capture!”

“…I’d prefer not to go to Seoul.”

Quiet until now, Raon spoke up, causing Nuri to sit up straight, suppressing her frustration. Though he remained calm, it hadn’t even been a full day since Raon’s abduction.

“Sorry. I got carried away.”

“I understand. Capturing just five villains would net us at least 500 million won, so the bounty system could certainly provide sufficient profit.”

But stirring a hornet’s nest would surely bring out the hornets, and hunters would trap these villainous bees like beekeepers. Among them would be giant hornets known as monsters, worth significant sums when caught.

“Still…”

Raon hesitated, glancing at Sian. His private thoughts clearly conflicted with Sian’s dislike of monsters.

But he didn’t back down. Raon firmly stated his resolve.

“Since both villains and monsters lived on this land, I believe they should at least be punished according to our country’s laws.”

“Selling them to the Round Table for bounty results in imprisonment in international facilities.”

Sian briefly explained the fate of villains and monsters sold to the Round Table.

“They become eternal batteries, forced to continuously produce magic power based on Round Table standards. Their cores are used as energy resources or research materials by various countries. Human rights groups constantly protest, claiming human rights abuses.”

“But aren’t they criminals? Especially those core-breaking monsters.”

Nuri shrugged, but Yuna shook her head firmly.

“The research on whether core-transformed monsters are alive or dead is still insufficient. Immediately breaking cores is essentially capital punishment… Maybe they die as humans the moment they transform into cores.”

“Nee, Yuna. Even so, isn’t it normal for monsters to kill people regularly? What do you think, bro?”

With the spotlight suddenly on him, Ha Yujun cleared his throat nervously.

“Hem. I agree with capturing them, though killing is questionable. Reporting crimes and imprisoning criminals is only natural. Of course, if we’re going to put them in jail, getting paid would be nice too.”

“So it’s 2:2 now?”

“What’s this 2:2? We’re not voting here.”

Sian sighed as she folded Nuri’s V-sign fingers.

“Anyway, the immediate issue is whether we participate in this ‘Mole Catching’ thing. Roughly speaking, Yuna and Raon are against it, while Nuri and Brother Yujun are for it, right?”

“Alright, thanks Uncle!”

Nuri flicked her finger and winked. Sian made a face like she’d seen something disgusting and crossed her arms.

“Admittedly, catching villains in Seoul would count as achievements…”

“That’s right, right? So let’s go to Seoul!”

“But selling villains to the Round Table feels a bit off.”

“Even you think so, Sian?”

“Of course we need to lock up trash like monsters.”

“Exactly.”

“But even if villains and monsters aren’t human, turning them into milk cows squeezed for magic power seems wrong.”

“The human rights groups aren’t crying wolf for nothing. The Round Table’s treatment of monsters does have some inhumane aspects.”

“Ugh…”

Sian maintained an ambiguous attitude, wavering back and forth. While listening to everyone’s opinions and occasionally asking questions, the meeting gradually turned into a debate, with arguments between team members dragging on.

“…Master. What exactly are you talking about?”

“Eek!”

Sian jumped at the whisper near her ear. There stood Kim Gaon, wearing the same face as Nuri but dressed in café part-time worker attire.

“Huh? What’s with you today, sis?”

“The hero gig wasn’t paying enough, so the boss hired me as a regular employee. I’m here for delivery now.”

Gaon showed the coffee box and placed it on the table. As the team picked up their ordered drinks, Nuri, who had already eaten one parfait and ordered another, asked curiously.

“Hey sis, why is uncle called Master?”

“…It’s because I always remind you not to make mistakes by calling him Master after promising to buy you drinks, remember?”

“……But I haven’t gotten anything decent from him yet?!”

As the Gaon-Nuri sisters bickered, Sian looked at Gaon with an odd expression then clicked her tongue and turned away.

“…”

Yuna stared silently at Sian with a straw in her mouth. Realizing this, Sian hastily swallowed some ice from her iced Americano, her face heating up.

“Since you’re here, may I ask you a question?”

After taking a sip of green tea latte, Raon asked Gaon, who nodded readily.

“Where do you stand in this situation, Miss Gaon?”

Raon briefly summarized the recent debate, and after some thought, Gaon responded clearly.

“Isn’t it obvious that criminals should be arrested?”

“Ah…”

Ha Yujun sighed, recalling the background of Gaon and Nuri. Given their circumstances, it was natural for them to view monsters negatively. Sensing Ha Yujun’s misunderstanding, Gaon quickly added,

“Not just because of our parents, but I think this mole catching operation itself isn’t problematic. Since we’ve stirred up the bug nest, it feels better to catch all the bugs before they escape to other houses.”

“This heat, merciless bug treatment. Truly a worthy comment from Kim Gaon!”

“Kim Nuri, do you want trouble? Hemhem. If escaped villains from Seoul cause chaos in Gyeonggi or Gangwon provinces, the problem would escalate. Therefore, I consider handing over captured villains to the nation versus the Round Table a secondary issue.”

Having expressed her opinion, Gaon bowed respectfully and headed downstairs to the café. Though she only nominally belonged to the guild, as a member, her opinion couldn’t be ignored.

Slap! Sian slapped her cheek to regain focus. At the sound, not four but five sets of eyes turned to her – including the cat lying on the table.

“That’s right. Instead of overthinking, we should keep it simple.”

With determined confidence, Sian stood up.

“Let’s go catch some criminals. Heading back to Seoul will be tiring, but we’ll manage, right?”

“Our powers can refresh us, but aren’t you the weakest physically?”

Nuri’s point was valid; the four ability users could burn magic power to restore vitality, but Sian, lacking any special abilities, accumulated fatigue from traveling to Seoul.

“Me? I’m fine. Don’t underestimate me – I’m tough!”

Sian raised her arm and flexed her muscles dramatically. The classic gesture left her teammates speechlessly impressed as they stood up.

“Since it’s been chaotic, luckily no one seems to be watching us, so let’s head straight to Seoul. I’ve finished maintenance and am ready to go-”

“Sian, didn’t your car rental end?”

“Oh.”

Sian turned pale and looked at Ha Yujun, who awkwardly rubbed his eyes then broke into his brightest smile yet, spreading his arms wide.

“Manager Sian, shall we rent a car from Yu-Sung Motors?”

Ha Yujun moved with lightning speed.

Before Sian could respond to his relentless persistence, Ha Yujun had already made a call somewhere and somehow procured a large truck bigger than any high-speed bus.

“Mr. Ha Yujun, are you maybe a manager at Yu-Sung Motors?”

“Pfft, don’t be ridiculous. Hehehe.”

So intimidating were Ha Yujun’s actions that Sian unconsciously addressed him formally.

“Customers, listen up. This is the ambitious new Guild Truck ‘Altair 2026’ from Yu-Sung Motors…”

Details about its 18-meter length, V8 core-powered engine, and specifications carefully adjusted to avoid traffic restrictions in the Great Monster Era went completely unheard.

“Miss Sian, try sitting here. Much more comfortable than your previous rental, right?”

Without hesitation, Sian handed over her card to Ha Yujun upon seeing Yuna patting the seat next to her in the driver’s seat.

“Let’s buy it.”

Unbeknownst to Sian, who’d secretly set the truck to full options, Ha Yujun processed the payment without her noticing and directed the other members except Yuna to board the trailer behind the truck.

Sian slipped on the sunglasses conveniently placed on the rearview mirror and turned to Yuna in the passenger seat.

“Yuna, since we bought a new car, how about a drive to Seoul?”

“…….”

Sitting in the passenger seat, Yuna patted the seat and reached for Sian. With her seatbelt fastened, Yuna barely touched the end of Sian’s thigh, leading to a disappointed expression.

“The previous car had the driver and passenger seats closer. This one feels much farther apart once you sit in it…”

“…….”

After reorganizing in New Seoul, Team Sian joined the countless trucks heading to Seoul unnoticed by anyone.

* * *

Meowww~

The cat lounging on the office desk stretched and stood up.

Meow?

After a long nap, the blonde humans and others had left the office, leaving only the cat behind. Green eyes blinking for a moment, the cat swiftly leapt to the window.

“…Damn it.”

In the empty office, a girl’s voice echoed unexpectedly. The source was undoubtedly the cat’s mouth.

“Got full and dozed off for a bit, and they’ve already left.”

The (?)-cat skillfully spoke human language while inserting claws into the glass crack.

Creeeak~

The door opened slightly, and it enjoyed the refreshing breeze, sniffing delicately. Detecting a familiar scent far away, it bared teeth and pushed its head through the narrow opening.

“Meww, grrr. Grrrr.”

Making mewing sounds, it squeezed through the gap and extended front paws outside to close the window.

Standing on three legs in mid-air.

Pfft!

Kicking off into the air, it leaped high above the office roof onto the railing of a seventh-floor building. Its body began twitching.

Whooshhhh—

Green wind enveloped the cat. In the blink of an eye, it transformed into a green-haired maiden about Nuri’s height, looking down at Sian’s departing truck from the railing.

“They say there are many monsters in Seoul, huh.”

The girl licked her lips and rubbed her hands.

“Well then, since I’ve come this far, I should use them as my servants!”

With a playful grin, she entrusted her body to the wind.

Soon, the girl disappeared from the railing.