-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 3
Chapter Title: Be Cautious with Stocks, Even More with Loans (2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Natu Guild, 16th floor. Guild Master's office.
The guild master's office, known only to be vacant at present, held two women seated across from each other.
"What are you going to do now?"
Shin Seung-ah, who had just returned from a modeling shoot in France, asked anxiously.
There were fewer than forty A-Rank Hunters in Korea.
Among them, Shin Seung-ah was a magic-type hunter so exceptional that finding a suitable comparison was nearly impossible.
Because of all that, few people could afford to show her a lukewarm attitude.
In Korea, maybe four or five at most.
"Come on, give me an answer. What are you going to do? Are you just going to let the Association collapse like this?"
"Shh. I'm busy right now. Be quiet for a bit."
And the woman Shin Seung-ah was facing now was one of those few.
"Argh, seriously!! Even in a situation like this, I have to stay quiet? Then when the hell can I raise my voice?!"
Frustrated, Shin Seung-ah couldn't bring herself to snap at her counterpart and instead tore at her hair in grievance.
-Clack.
The woman, lounging in her chair, turned her Rubik's Cube as she replied.
"What can I do? Whether it's a hunter guild or the Association, they're all private enterprises. In this country, if the law says not to do something, we can't just refuse because we don't want to."
Plain truth was sometimes a cowardly excuse.
When words ran out.
Shin Seung-ah pouted sullenly.
"Even if the Guild Master steps in personally?"
"No one is above the law. I'm just a hunter myself."
The woman replied indifferently and moved her hands.
Tssst!
Chirararak.
Her hands moved, leaving a blurry afterimage.
In the blink of an eye, the cube was solved by color.
It wasn't some skill or anything.
She had simply twisted the cube to align it.
At a speed even Shin Seung-ah couldn't match.
'...Isn't she even faster than when she was active?'
-Gulp. Shin Seung-ah swallowed unconsciously.
Solving a Rubik's Cube quickly was surprisingly easy.
With the right technique, even a middle schooler could do it.
But a speed that could silence an A-Rank Hunter like Shin Seung-ah wasn't commonplace.
It suddenly brought to mind what kind of person the Chairman was.
A young genius who became an A-Rank Hunter at twenty, and before the year was out, played a key role in conquering an S-Rank Gate in Miami.
She had gone all the way to just before promotion to S-Rank, then abruptly left the guild ranked second in the US, returned to Korea, and founded her own S-Rank Guild. Korea's legend.
Hunter rankings, A-Rank number one.
Natu Guild's Guild Master, Jeong So-won.
"The gate live broadcast industry was always one that could collapse at any moment anyway."
-Click. Jeong So-won set down the cube and spoke.
She became a hunter at twenty and built an S-Rank Guild six years later.
A person who accomplished in one year what others took ten— even Shin Seung-ah found herself straightening her posture unconsciously.
"The Association chairmen have been passing the bomb around for generations, and it just happened to explode now. No one in the Association's operations strategy department could have been caught off guard."
"So they knew and kept it quiet?"
"More like they knew but couldn't stop it. Stock market crashes, real estate bubbles... History repeats itself, it seems."
Shin Seung-ah forgot her tension and scowled.
"But economic crashes like that—plenty of people predicted them before they happened, right?"
When the bubbles burst in New York stocks or Japanese real estate, those in the know pulled out early.
The ones who died were always the small fry and the common folk.
"But not this time."
Even the so-called experts who should have known failed to predict the crash.
Thanks to that, the Hunter Association in Korea, which she had stopped by before returning to the guild, was in utter chaos.
-Gyaaaah!! Fucking stock options!! Where the hell is that guild master bastard?!
-Found it!! This is Owl Blue!!
-Our guild went totally bankrupt. Any film directors need a CG effects mage? If not, I'm heading to the Han River.
The hellish scene she saw on the way there came to mind, and Shin Seung-ah tried consciously to forget it.
Pretend I didn't see it. Evade, dodge.
No need to dwell and risk a panic attack.
"The Korean Association Chairman is kinda pitiful too. Victim of the same disaster, yet taking all the flak."
Jeong So-won rattled the cube sympathetically.
But her eyes, thinly open like threads, and her ever-gentle smile made it seem like even she didn't believe her own joke.
Seeing her Guild Master's demeanor, Shin Seung-ah felt wronged.
I got called money-grubbing just for selling some cosmetics, but why does this guild master scoop up every pure, innocent image with that pretty face?
-Hunter Jeong So-won! Why not take the S-Rank exam?
-S-Rank gets tax exemptions, right?
-...Pardon? You're skipping promotion because of tax breaks?
-If I get exempt, how could I face the taxpayers footing my salary every month when I plan to start my own guild?
Bald-faced lie. She just hated getting tangled in politics or emergency call-ups!
One interview turned other S-Rank Hunters into quitters, earning her the rep of 'refusing S-Rank out of fear of failing'—that public opinion wizardry.
Eyes are windows to the soul, they say. Curtains drawn with that eye smile, fooling everyone into thinking she's kind and pure.
"What're you thinking so hard about?"
"Nothing. Just worried about the future."
Shin Seung-ah wiped her mouth clean and lied.
No, not entirely a lie.
"Isn't taking responsibility for stuff like this the Association Chairman's job?"
"Eh. Even if the Association told them to hold back, would the Guild Masters listen? With all that money on the line."
"...True, I guess."
It was beyond the Chairman's authority from the start.
The Hunter Association was a privatized corporation. The nation outsourced gate closures—too costly to handle with taxes—to private hunters.
'Different from regular privatization in many ways.'
Still, guilds and the Association that went public were proper corporations.
If the Chairman wrecked the company, shareholders would riot starting at the general meeting!
Banning gate live broadcasts only in Korea?
When other countries had their Associations promoting them aggressively?
'Like the Korea Electric Power Corp Chairman arbitrarily banning domestic companies from using electricity.'
Lucky if he doesn't get booted from his position.
This was an unstoppable tide.
"Compared to a bubble burst, this is relatively mild. It's not market value tanking—it's just political infighting over regulations."
Stopping the Gate Live Broadcast Ban Law was impossible.
But there were ways to survive.
"Those who dumped big into live broadcasts or the stations themselves are in deep shit."
That's why hunters with so much to lose were rushing meetings, screaming, and scrambling.
"But you predicted this, right, Guild Master?"
Shin Seung-ah smiled as she spoke.
It was a question, but she was certain.
The Guild Master's calm face amid the mess.
From a subordinate's view, it was reassuringly trustworthy.
Sure enough, Jeong So-won nodded.
"As you know, broadcasting isn't our main gig. You're running cosmetics too, right? It'll sting, but we won't collapse."
"Because you designed it that way?"
"Come on, sis. Just luck."
"What's with the formal talk? Bragging about being young?"
Shin Seung-ah let out a chuckle at her evasive junior superior.
It was only natural.
Natu Guild was recognized as an S-Rank Guild without a single S-Rank Hunter.
In other words, proof of flawless teamwork and meticulous management.
And having no S-Rank Hunter was no issue when the Guild Master was Jeong So-won.
"We're proceeding with the top ten gates raid as planned."
Jeong So-won finally gave Shin Seung-ah a hint.
An answer to what they'd do next.
"We'll ditch live broadcasts but keep ties in the industry. We'll continue recorded ones too."
"Why?"
"Good for image management. People love cheering for heroes."
Time to pivot, starting now.
Even Jeong So-won hadn't imagined gate live broadcasts collapsing so abruptly.
"The country's allowing recorded broadcasts?"
"Forgot? This is political warfare. If they try to choke us without a breather, the Hunter Association won't just roll over. They'll find a compromise."
"...What kind?"
"Politicians have too much to lose. No one's charging to the death."
Made sense on reflection.
"If they banned all gate filming outright, guilds and Associations worldwide would fight tooth and nail."
Even pro boxers hand over wallet and cash to a knife-wielding thug.
One wrong stab ends their career—bigger loss.
But if the thug demands their life instead?
The boxer fights back, risking it all.
Foolish or not, what choice is there?
Can't just sit and die.
'In short, politicians pushing the ban don't want all-out war with the Hunter Association.'
Shin Seung-ah sighed deeply, a mix of relief and regret.
"Hot potato... Layers of gunpowder piled since the Great Cataclysm. The whole world's gonna blow."
"Karma for strutting arrogantly after 'conquering' gates."
Jeong So-won said flatly.
Decades since gates appeared on humanity's doorstep.
It was winter in 2022.
Decades had passed since humanity overcame the calamity that threatened their survival.
"'Overcame' is a bit off. Humanity was never truly in crisis."
Gates were doors to other worlds.
Sudden disasters popping up on human turf.
Inside those space-connecting doors lay monster nests called dungeons.
No bullets or bombs worked on the coiled monsters.
Thus, in the early Great Cataclysm days, gates were pure unknown terror to humanity.
Left unchecked too long, gates even unleashed the monsters inside—attacking humans.
This bizarre phenomenon of monster nest entrances spawning everywhere.
Early on, humanity just trembled in fear.
In other words, only in the beginning.
"Monster hunting's just war by another name."
Gates brought all sorts of calamities.
Declining civilization. Trampled humanity. Death everywhere.
Post-apocalyptic misery.
But it was just a variation on human history.
Has war ever stopped in human history?
Decline is routine; humanity's filthy from the start.
The creature killing most humans? Humans themselves.
Not even gods could match humans at slaughter.
Monsters didn't know.
That the planet's dominant species were more versed in killing than talking.
But humanity realized.
That they were closer to monsters than the ones attacking them.
When true monsters saw their reflection in the mirror.
The rampaging beasts became mere rude invaders.
Click. Jeong So-won held out the solved cube.
"If it could be overcome, it wouldn't be a calamity."
Modern weapons didn't faze monsters.
Awakened powers did.
Even monsters die with vital points smashed.
Gates vanish after monster extermination.
Humanity prospered through self-slaughter.
For those wielding war as prosperity's tool, this unprecedented pandemic wasn't apocalyptic.
Thus began the history of monster-hunting pros: hunters.
"Just half a year after the Great Cataclysm."
That was how long it took humanity to subdue the gate disaster.
"Half a year to figure out gate analysis— no wonder gates stopped seeming like calamities to hunters."
Humanity conquered gates.
Before the 21st century even began.
Now they pondered efficient monster slaughter methods.
That led to it.
People forgot the ashes of gates' early days, eyeing the gruel instead.
The gate broadcast industry gruel.
"That arrogance bubbling over decades into this stock crash. Fitting end."
Shin Seung-ah clicked her tongue at the cynical take.
"You buy into that gate divine punishment crap too, Guild Master? Gates as Earth's immune response, monsters as replacement primates?"
"Gates as punishment? Joke. Hurricanes and global warming scare me more. A few dungeon monsters popping out won't end humanity."
"Stock crash victims hear that, they'll come with knives."
How does this woman pass as nice? Cohabiting with reporters would spawn scandals like bath bombs in a tub.
Reading Shin Seung-ah's face, Jeong So-won clapped and laughed heartily.
"Can't help it. If I'd invested too, I'd have lost a chunk this time."
"You? Nah, lying again."
"Not a lie. Heard we were tackling top ten gates, invested in Association stock, pulled out months later—easy gains, no risk."
Why Association stock, not Natu Guild?
Shin Seung-ah ran her own business, but couldn't grasp the prediction logic.
Jeong So-won folded and unfolded her fingers, grinning.
"If I had, I'd be storming Charlotte Guild causing chaos right now. Stock market's a demon pit. Never touching it again."
"Ah, sure. Who else reads the market like you?"
99.9% were clueless ants who got crushed.
A-Rank mutant ants like Jeong So-won building kingdoms? That'd be nuclear apocalypse, not human society.
One radioactive mutant ant was enough.
More, and they'd breed like rabbits.
Shin Seung-ah couldn't handle that post-apocalypse.
"...Yeah. Kinda is."
Unaware or not of Shin Seung-ah's thoughts,
Jeong So-won rubbed her chin and nodded.
"I like straightforward people. Too smart ones seem tiring to live with."
"...Dunno. Not sure."
Sometimes silence is golden.
She was self-possessed and wise.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
It took just two days to break a person.
"God, our industry's meta is so fucked— any chance of a rollback?"
I filled my room with religious merch and prayed nonstop for days, but my desperate pleas went unanswered.
Heaven's customer service have bad reception?
Did Peter mess up the Wi-Fi password thrice?
"Might as well eat the ants' livers, fuck..."
Life-worn, I burrowed under the covers in human Tutankhamun mode.
Loan sunk into Association stock? Didn't pull out.
Pull or not, that bastard's already toast.
Sure, I have some savings left.
I'm not insane enough to put all eggs in one basket.
'Even scraping it all, nowhere near repaying Account King Fist costs.'
Fuck this loan.
'That's why they say no futures trading.'
I knew myself well.
Jeong Do-jin, 25. Impulsive, emotional guy.
Prime age for blood boiling like magma.
Self-aware as I was, I constantly battled my inner reckless faction to keep cool reason.
'But you didn't, huh? Acted on impulse and fucked up?'
Clutching my pillow, I lamented reality.
'Fuck, even if I followed signals perfectly, with a dump truck crashing from behind like now, even Schumacher's done.'
Yeah. God or whoever flooding my life with 'unfair bullshit, die loan'—fine, bearable.
Up to here, survivable hit.
'Like lung cancer diagnosis but 100 days left!'—not instant death anyway.
But the whole industry dying? No answer.
'Even founding a guild means zilch.'
Back to cameraman? Same shit.
Like perfect self-driving cars out, but needing a license to apply as chauffeur.
Learned top-tier guild filming and ops over the shoulder— what bolt from the blue is this?
Sure, I know. Too early to despair.
Hunters aren't gone.
Hunter me can find ways to eat.
Loan? Belt-tighten ten years, payable.
'But hunter world's a brutal red ocean anyway.'
Owl Blue stock bloodbath hit by meteor and ice age. Navy admirals drop by?
'Survive this heavenly disaster, punch through insane competition to succeed?'
Me? How?
Bluntly, I lack the chops.
Confident in management, not fighting.
Awakening's shit-tier Necromancer job.
"Fuck. Necromancer's already a useless class outside filming and editing..."
-Kyuu?
My grumbling.
And the little ghosts floating around me.
Popped out uncalled. Guess I looked like a mountain of corpses.
What, fuck. Owner's under blankets like you, feelin' buddy-buddy?
Or smelling 'soon dead, hold out' vibes?
"...Heh, hehehe."
I chuckled alone, then flung off the covers like a madman.
"Life's fucked! Why me!!"
Fuck, second job switch post-quit. What'd I do wrong!
"Argh! Going insane! Insane! Insane!"
-Kyui?
"Fuck off! I ain't dead yet!"
I shoved away the blank-faced clinging ghosts.
What to do to revive my crashed stocks and hunter industry?
Necromancer me or not, no clue on resurrecting this corpse.
"Grrr... Fucking Charlotte Guild bastards... my loan... sa..."
Under ghost watch, my mental asylum show exhausted me to the floor.
And then.
Was heaven pitying me?
Or the little ghosts, seeing this wreck, spurred fearing I'd become a real Han River water ghost.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙[The Rift of Spacetime responds to your will!] [The 'Corpse Diviner' occupation is changing.]