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"It's the first time seeing each other since the cooperative hunt, right? I survived that encounter, thanks to you. From the Buff-Palrogs, and the Bul-Raid, too. I was planning to visit you in the hospital soon, but I didn't expect you to be discharged this early. My bad, my bad."

Kim Soh-Yun spoke in a not-very-apologetic tone of voice.

"Not at all. It's fine."

On the other hand, Choi Kahng-Sik was feeling a wee bit apologetic.

'She survived?'

It seemed that he had thoughtlessly treated a very-much-alive person as a corpse until now. Actually, he didn't have much mental leeway to worry about, nor have any interest, in her survival.

The top Monster Streamer in Korea, Kim Soh-Yun.

She was an MS often called a goddess by males, mostly due to her killer figure that could never be hidden beneath the thick longcoat and the military uniform. Oh, and her skills, too.

….That was what the public called her, in any case.

All Choi Kahng-Sik could feel now when looking at her was that to him, she was nothing more than a stepping stone, a matchmaker even, that allowed him to encounter his sworn enemy, the Bul-Raid.

That was all, really.

Besides, their relationship wasn't like that begin with.

'From the very beginning, this broadcast is rated G for family-friendly, you know?'

[A certain god is very unhappy.]

[A certain impatient god is discarding popcorn in frustration.]

[Another god is rueing the missed chances.]

"In any case, good to see you. I'm sure you, Mister Choi Kahng-Sik, have a good reason to 'hide' down in this place, right? Oh, my! I wasn't planning to get in your way anyway, so no need to be that watchful, you know?"

Kim Soh-Yun replied in a natural and charming manner.

However, Choi Kahng-Sik simply couldn't laugh and accept her words at face value.

"What do you mean, get in my way? That's not true at all. I only came down here to investigate the claims that there are monsters residing under the Monster Association building, that's all. If a beauty accompanies me in this search, I can only be eternally grateful."

He immediately corrected her.

Although his lips said 'eternally grateful', his coldly gleaming eyes were warning her not to get in the way of his 'true purpose'.

All the while, he also managed to land a blow.

He was asking her, 'will you move around together with me?'

┖ Our MS is going on a date with the goddess? ㄷㄷ

┖ You went down there to catch a monster, yet, what the heck...

┖ Absolutely no to romance! (>0<)/

┖ What was that? What? I still can't see. ㅠ

The viewers were feeling rather left out due to the poor light and visibility causing a near-black screen on their ends, but now they came back alive in the blink of an eye.

Choi Kahng-Sik remained vigilant while his thoughts raced in his head.

'This woman's the threat? No, something's not right....'

The baby Oh-Racle's left head issued that cry.

That signified an ill fortune.

MS Kim Soh-Yun appeared immediately after that, but no matter how hard he thought about this, she simply didn't look like she'd pose any threat at this moment.

Could he be biased somewhat, since she was a one-in-million beauty?

He took a glance at the Oh-Racle, searching for some confirmation.

"Caw?"

Its expression seemed to ask him, 'whatcha want now?'

'….I'm the idiot for expecting an answer from a dang crow...'

"Accompanying you for a while is a bit...."

A troubled expression formed on Kim Soh-Yun's face.

She too had a clear purpose for coming down here, so the suggestion of accompanying the MS Choi Kahng-Sik was out of the question.

Having been punched by the counterattack, the beautiful woman had no choice but to hurriedly come up with an excuse.

"Since you've revealed your reasons for coming down here, I guess I don't have a choice but to reveal mine as well. Hello everyone, this is the MS Kim Soh-Yun speaking. I came here after hearing about a rumour that there's a treasure hidden somewhere in this place. The birthday of my 'dongsaeng' is only a few days away, you see." (TL: "Dongsaeng" is a gender-neutral term for a younger sibling. You use gender-specific modifiers to specify whether it's a younger brother or a sister.)

A hidden treasure? The birthday of her younger sibling?

Choi Kahng-Sik could easily tell that she wasn't telling the truth as well.

No, her excuse was so sloppy, it instead raised...

┖ A freaking big news! The goddess has a dongsaeng?!

┖ Is it a dude? Or a girl? How old? +.+

┖ I hope it's a girl like her.

The mood of the viewers instantly drifted towards believing her claims, all due to the possibility of her younger 'sister' being a beauty as well. Their interests were pouring towards the identity of the younger sibling, rather than the veracity of the actual hidden treasure existing here or not.

Choi Kahng-Sik was dumbfounded by this turn of events, but at least, he was sure of one thing now.

'She doesn't have any hostile intention against me.'

Even if she did, she wouldn't be able to attack him now, though.

She had been fully 'exposed' by his camera already. If she tried to attack him now, then the whole thing would be broadcast to the rest of the world.

'Then, she'd become the new MS Yu Il-Ahm in a jiffy.'

Why would a top star in the industry enjoying all sorts of prestige and fame do something so reckless?

"Miss Kim Soh-Yun, I wish you the best of luck in finding that treasure."

"Ohoho! I also wish you the best in finding those monsters."

Since they both had their own reasons for being down here and not much time to carry them out, their parting words were short.

If it weren't for the live feed, it probably would've been even shorter, though.

Choi Kahng-Sik determined that they were parting ways under more amicable circumstances, so he quickly added one more thing.

"I apologise for attacking you like that."

Well, his hard-earned reputation was too precious, after all.

Meanwhile, his hands never let go of his shovel once.

There were times when even the most logical person would act on emotions. Which meant that he couldn't take it easy, especially so when he had the precedence of a certain smiling human trash who sneak attacked him not too long ago.

Choi Kahng-Sik recalled the personal information on the MS Kim Soh-Yun.

Both her age and her experiences weren't important, so he skipped those and...

'Psychokinesis.'

The superpower that allowed her to move an object with nothing but a thought.

The burden of contending with an unseen power was rather immense for Choi Kahng-Sik. He wasn't some kind of martial art expert who could fight while keeping his eyes closed, after all.

Kim Soh-Yun simply waved her hand.

"No, it's cool. You made me laugh during one of your broadcasts, so we'll call it even now."

A puzzled expression formed on Choi Kahng-Sik's face as he continued on with the conversation.

"Do you watch my broadcasts often?"

"Nope. Never."

"N-never?!"

"I don't, but my dongsaeng does."

"..."

The MS Cameraman became speechless.

'….You made me laugh, but my dongsaeng saw your broadcast?'

What could she even mean by that?!

MS Kim Soh-Yun turned around after leaving behind those puzzling words and disappeared from the sight like a fading ghostly apparition. She melded into the darkness without making a sound.

Choi Kahng-Sik didn't try to stop her.

[A certain god is very disappointed.]

[Another god is asking you if you're a eunuch.]

'I told you, I ain't gonna do that.'

Choi Kahng-Sik returned the reports to the file drawer and tidied everything up. It wasn't simply because he had finished memorising everything he wanted to know, however.

Grip.

Not once did he relax his grip on the shovel during all this time.

When he was done, he spoke up with a low but threatening voice.

"Stop hiding and come out. Now."

No one replied to him, and there was no reaction. It was as if he was talking to empty air.

However, Choi Kahng-Sik's expression remained grave.

'This baby Oh-Racle would not caw because it got bored.'

Although the time they had been together was short, every time its left head cawed, something bad always occurred.

So, he was certain of 'something' hiding in this seemingly empty space. Definitely so!

"Caw?"

"I wasn't talking to you!"

Choi Kahng-Sik snapped at the tilting right head of the baby Oh-Racle and hurriedly left the archives. He was well aware of the fact that darkness was not man's best friend.

Eventually, he located the switch for the light.

Click.

Realising that things would remain dangerous if he stayed in the dark, he quickly flipped the switch to turn the light on. But...

One second, two, then three went by...

"....What the hell...."

Nothing happened. The underground corridor remained dark.

'There's a blackout down here?'

But, that made no sense. The main building of the Monster Association's Korean branch was no ordinary structure.

It was the command centre. It was the brain of the Association itself.

The sturdy construction was a given; it also had numerous generators and battery packs in case of an emergency to supply electricity.

Most importantly, the flock of Pig-Jons didn't intrude into the lower floors, so there was no way that any of the machines or systems down here would be damaged.

So, the reasons for this blackout could be... none.

"In that case, what is the meaning of this blackout, then....?"

It wasn't only the MS muttering to himself who realised the oddness of this situation.

┖ Ya know, something feels spooky here. @[email protected]

┖ Uhm, hey Mister MS? Weren't you looking for that monster city? ;;

┖ What? Kim Soh-Yun as the monster? Well, she's way too pretty for a human, that's for sure.

┖ How dare you blaspheme the beauty of our goddess! ㅂㄷㅂㄷ

Meanwhile, viewers began having a heated discussion among themselves - whether that rumour was true or not...

Was it because Choi Kahng-Sik deliberately shifted the direction of where the camera lens was pointing at? It seemed that none of the viewers figured out the true reason why he went down to the third basement floor of the Association's building.

In any case, he found what he came for.

Not only that, but he also scored an unexpected souvenir, too.

Which left him with the sole task of returning to the surface as soon as possible.

'In the end, what was that down there?'

After safely arriving back on the first-floor lobby, Choi Kahng-Sik began frowning as he thought back to what just happened.

Could the baby Oh-Racle have made a mistake?

It sure left a bit of a sour taste in his mouth.

[A certain god is demanding answers.]

[A certain impatient god is suggesting that you go on an adventure now.]

[Another god is getting frustrated.]

"....Dear viewers? I need to apologise. Looks like we'll have to postpone unveiling the truth of the rumour. I've got too many injuries and I definitely need to get myself checked out first, you see. Thumbelinnim? You should be able to receive your prize later tomorrow."

He wasn't exaggerating things, of course.

If he was a normal person, he'd be laid out in a hospital by now, utterly unable to move a muscle. It was a miracle that he was able to endure until now.

Indeed, it was a miracle.

Without gods looking after him, none of this would've been possible.

'I guess I'll have to think about raising the divine audience numbers as well, no?'

The methods to that were quite simple, actually.

He should immediately embark on a heart-pounding adventure! Out into the vast unexplored wilderness where monsters would greet him with their wide open maws at every turn!

Indeed, off to a journey where he'd probably end up as a corpse real fast!

[A certain impatient god is cheering you on.]

[A certain god is jumping up and down in excitement.]

[Number of viewers: 13]

….And the reaction was very positive, too!

"Hey, you! The one with the camera!"

"....Who?"

"You the Cameraman busy showing off while walking around with a cheat spear? I've got a business with that spear. Hand it over."

"It's not a spear, but a shovel."

"Whatever! So, how much is it? I won't short change you. For real."

Suddenly, a guy came out of nowhere to block his path while running his mouth non-stop.

Compared to those wannabes wasting their time in the Association building, this guy's outfit and his physical frame were on a different scale altogether.

A set of actual, useful battle gear! All his rippling muscles!

On that weather-beaten, sun-baked face, and in his feral eyes, one could sense the aura of a veteran who had experienced all sorts of hardship over the years.

In other words, this guy was a real Hunter.

However, none of this was important to Choi Kahng-Sik.

'Well, he's blocking our adventure, so what should we do now, dear gods?'

[Another god can't stop bemoaning about this rude interruption.]

[You just received a donation.]

Yup, this was a good start to the proceedings.

< Chapter 23: The Air Raid/Sneak Attack (5) > Fin.

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