Chapter 23

 

Even when he was at the level of a Sword God in the past, Suho thought he had seen the best places, but Kaiser Cheongdam was even better than he had imagined.

“I’ve given you the passcode, so make yourself at home. Oh, and the community facilities include emergency healers if you need them. And, of course, your privacy is protected.”

“Expensive places are indeed different. But I can handle the healing myself. Didn’t you see?”

“Oh… you’re seriously a healer?”

At Jo Jin-hwi’s question, Suho demonstrated Healing Light, causing Jo Jin-hwi to chuckle.

“I knew it from the reports, but I didn’t really believe it.”

“Why not?”

“Which country’s healer clears the Tower of Trials alone? Healers typically join guilds and steadily level up. Anyway, if you use the community app on this tablet, you can handle meals and shopping from home. I need to go to the office since it’s still working hours.”

Suho responded with a smile, and after Jo Jin-hwi left, he was finally alone.

‘Nice place.’

The view of the Han River was clear, and the interior looked like a suite in a luxury hotel.

The house had numerous rooms… truly worthy of Kaiser Cheongdam.

Suho used his senses to check for hidden surveillance cameras.

‘I used to be an expert at finding hidden cameras, after all.’

But he didn’t find any.

Of course, as the youngest son of a chaebol family, there was no reason for hidden cameras in the house.

Still, it’s better to be cautious.

After completing his search, Suho took off his clothes and showered.

Then he dressed in a shirt and pants from the guest closet, marveling at how the house had clothes in various sizes, including new underwear.

‘Is it a professional habit?’

Since Jo Jin-hwi often goes on assignments, perhaps he stocked up for colleagues too.

Thanks to that, Suho was able to change comfortably and soon sat on the sofa.

There were no wounds.

He had used Healing Light to heal most of his injuries on the way there.

Suho then opened his status window.

 

 

A level 40 status window.

But the stats listed below were far beyond those of a typical level 40.

Suho laughed at this.

‘This is like an elite… no, almost a successor-level course.’

There are many ways to increase stats in the world.

But it’s similar to saying there are many ways to make money, which is vague and not something just anyone can do.

Nevertheless, there were people who managed to increase their stats, typically those with good luck or those receiving specialized care backed by significant capital, often successors of large corporations aiming to become hunters.

That’s why he called it a successor-level course.

Suho invested most of his 16 bonus stats into Stamina, raising it to the Red rank.

 

 

He then invested one more point to match the other Red stats at 2 and put the remaining bonus stats into Perception.

 

 

After closing the status window, Suho found his phone, which he had charged before showering.

He had seen it from inside the safe line, but his phone was filled with messages from guild contacts and journalists who had somehow found his number.

Suho skimmed through the messages and found a few interesting ones.

The first set of messages was from Nexus Academy’s director, Kim Soo-ae, and top competitors Prime and Hexagon.

Of course, there were other guilds as well.

Suho skimmed through the long-winded messages they had sent, each trying to make a strong impression, and then ignored them.

He already had plans for his next steps.

The second set of messages, surprisingly, was from his former classmates and seniors from the physical education department he had dropped out of.

– Hey, is that Ahn Suho on the news really you?

– Saw you on YouTube, looks like you!

– Why didn’t you tell us? LOL!

– Suho-ya, it’s Kim Chun-ho. I’m sorry for hitting you last time…

It was only natural.

When someone you know becomes a big star overnight, it’s hard not to reach out.

So, Suho ignored these messages as well.

The third set was missed calls from Jeong Cheol-min.

Judging by the timing, it was while Suho was clearing the tower.

‘Must’ve made him really anxious.’

That’s probably why he brought along his subordinates.

Though the main reason was likely pressure from higher-ups.

‘Just wait a bit, Cheol-min hyung. Once I join the Korean Hunter Association, you won’t have to deal with that anymore.’

After checking his messages, Suho turned off his phone.

He wanted to leave it on, but the constant messages from his exposed number were draining the battery quickly.

‘I guess I need to get a new number soon.’

Might as well get another phone too.

Changing the number was an option, but not the best one.

Even if he changed it, people would still find a way to contact him. It was better to keep the already exposed number and divert attention that way.

Deciding to act, Suho used the resident services Jo Jin-hwi had mentioned to request a new phone and number, and within an hour, he received them at home.

‘This should be enough preparation.’

There was still time before the level 5 public recruitment opened.

But that didn’t mean he could relax.

Suho had already planned everything out.

‘Time to meet those guys.’

Suho prepared to set out.

 

***

 

“Let’s begin.”

“Okay.”

Late at night, in Naegok-dong, Seocho-gu.

Several people began moving quietly in front of a building.

There were four in total.

They were all dressed in tight, black clothing, including masks that covered their heads and faces.

One of them approached a window and used a skill, making the window disappear and creating an entrance large enough for a person.

“It’s ready. Let’s go.”

The path opened, they infiltrated the building.

They didn’t worry about surveillance cameras.

They had already neutralized them.

No one would accidentally come by either.

Their preparations were meticulous, and they had chosen a day when no one would be around.

Once inside, they began pulling something out of their inventories.

Bombs.

Just as they started placing the bombs around the building,

“Hey, you know you can’t go planting bombs in a building.”

A stranger’s voice echoed from the darkness.

The four froze, as if they had seen a ghost.

They had been certain no one would come today, yet someone had appeared the moment they started their operation.

Moreover, they hadn’t sensed any presence until just now.

But suddenly, he was there.

“Hiya.”

A mysterious figure emerged from the darkness. It was Suho.

At Suho’s appearance, one of the intruders shouted,

“Run!”

With that shout, one of them activated a skill, creating a portal that emitted a bright light.

Seeing this, Suho pulled a spear from the shadows and threw it.

Thunk!

“Aaahh!!”

A sharp piercing sound followed by a scream.

The person groaning in pain was the only woman among the four.

He didn’t hit the woman—he hit her shadow.

The scream startled the remaining three, who shouted in panic.

“What the hell! What’s going on?”

“Grab her! We need to take her with us!”

“I’ll carry her!”

Despite their panic, the three moved with trained precision.

However, when the man who was supposed to carry the woman tried to lift her, his eyes widened in shock.

Even though he was the strongest among them, the woman didn’t budge.

It was only natural.

The moment the portal was created, their shadows pointed toward Suho, and he deliberately stabbed the Returning Shadow Spear into her shadow.

 

 

The Returning Shadow Spear had pierced her shadow, activating the Shadow Bind skill, which immobilizes the target by biting their shadow. Escaping this skill was nearly impossible unless one was extraordinarily powerful.

Meanwhile, the two preparing to escape through the portal shouted,

“What are you doing? Bring her over here!”

“Just a moment!”

“What’s going on?”

“Aaahhh!!”

The man holding the woman was strong enough to uproot trees.

But no matter how hard he tried, the woman didn’t move.

Moreover,

“Aaaahhh!!”

The woman groaned louder as he applied more force.

This was due to both his strength and the Shadow Bleed effect.

Realizing he couldn’t lift her, the man drew his weapon.

“Everyone, draw your weapons! I don’t know what he did, but we need to fight back!”

“What?!”

“Damn it!”

It was the worst-case scenario.

Confronting an enemy was the worst part of their contingency plans.

Then, something unexpected happened.

“Are you guys Banshees? Let’s talk for a moment.”

At the mention of “Banshees”, the four intruders widened their eyes.

The name “Banshee” was known only to them.

However, Suho knew them well.

Banshees were a notorious secret terror group in Korea, known for their numerous bombings and the havoc they caused.

‘Well, they were eventually caught.’

In fact, it was Suho who had captured them.

Raising his hands to show they were empty, Suho said,

“Why are you so surprised? Let’s just talk. I’m alone.”

It was true.

Suho hadn’t joined the Korean Hunter Association yet and didn’t have colleagues he could rely on.

Even after joining though, he planned to handle important matters alone whenever possible.

The Banshees exchanged glances, clearly unsettled.

Ultimately, Suho didn’t get what he wanted.

“Kill him!”

The three charged at him simultaneously.

It wasn’t a rash decision.

It was the Banshees’ last-resort plan for emergencies.

Seeing them charge, Suho thought,

‘As expected.’

He wasn’t actually thinking that they’d cooperate.

Given the situation, he had anticipated they would either flee or attack.

That’s why he had taken one of them hostage just in case.

As the Banshees charged, Suho activated his skill.