Chapter 11: The Request

Chapter 11: The Request

This was the first reason why this request was inevitably doomed to fail. While Helistic outwardly posed itself as a legitimate corporation, it was one of the malevolent entities steeped in the Cthulhu mythoss madness.

Becoming entangled with these people wouldnt pose an immediate problem, but depending on the route, I might end up fighting Helistic until the games conclusion.

If this is a request from a company, it wont just be one or two guys chasing after him, right? When was the bounty issued?

This was the second reason why Lee Chang-hyuk was a dud.

The real serious issue was that finding Lee Chang-hyuk was simply a nuisance.

If luck was not on my side, I could waste days in vain.

Moreover, this quest had a time limit.

If about 15 days had already passed since a bounty was put on his head, he would successfully smuggle himself out on a ship from Incheon.

No, but usually the time limit starts after you receive the request, right? What kind of quest has a timer running before you even accept it? No wonder they call it a failed game.

Therefore, depending on how many days have already passed, there might be no way to resolve this task.

Hes been quite successful at evading capture so far. Today marks exactly two weeks since he fled.

Holy shit.

Exactly 14 days? Or is it about that long?

When I leaned in to ask again, Tudor gave me a puzzled look. This was only natural since she wouldnt have considered the existence of a time limit.

Tudor paused for a moment, then rifled through the documents.

Um yes, today is exactly the 14th day since then. Midnight tonight will mark the 15th day.

What now?

At this point, requesting something else would cause Tudor to lose interest in me.

While it wouldnt mean I would get no work at all, I would likely only receive the leftovers, the scraps of jobs others had passed on.

So, to establish a stable connection with Tudor, it was better to proceed as planned.

What about the reward?

In truth, there wasnt much more I was curious about. The reward would probably be the same as mentioned in the game.

However, I couldnt just not ask about it.

If a new fixer who just signed a contract appeared to know everything about a request from the start, it could arouse unnecessary suspicion.

Tudor looked at my mask for a moment and then continued.

Five million for Lee Chang-hyuks head. And twenty-five million for retrieving the artifact he has.

Its a subtly low price.

And the balance of the amounts was almost laughable.

They dont want to spend too much on such a small fry. Thats why he hasnt been caught yet. If they raised the bounty by just two million more, skilled guys would swoop in and snatch him up, right?

This was exactly like the dialogue in the game. In the game, it was just text without voice acting, but hearing it in Tudors languid voice gave it a new feel. His high charisma really did make a difference.

Alright. Ill take it on.

[Youve accepted the quest!

<Bounty Quest: Hunting Lee Chang-hyuk>

Capture Lee Chang-hyuk who stole a sample destined for a Helistic subsidiarys laboratory, and retrieve the Artifact: Security Bag Containing the Test Subject he took.

! Time Limit: Lee Chang-hyuk will escape Korea via Incheon in (1) day !

Reward: 50,000XP (+ the monetary reward promised by the broker is separate.) Failure: Tudor will be disappointed.]

The quest window appears even when for bounty requests.

I remember when I hovered the mouse cursor over the reward section back in the game, a message popped up saying, Gaining the brokers favor can lead to more rewards.

By any chance, Tudor, can you see this?

I asked Tudor if she could see the message window just in case.

Do you have any other symptoms apart from that?

No, thats not what I meant

Despite my attempts to clear up Tudors misunderstanding with several explanations, none of them worked out.

Eventually, I gave up on trying to correct Tudors misunderstanding and left her office.

However, I couldnt depart right away.

There were things I needed to prepare.

I borrowed a pair of scissors from Orb and settled at a secluded table in the caf.

Tudor was sitting right opposite me at the table as she watched my actions. She leaned her chin on her hands clasped together, completely relaxed Is she finding this amusing?

What if a seizure suddenly starts? That would be serious, wouldnt it?

Tudor wore a warm expression as if she understood everything about me. What does she understand? Shes a witch.

Thanks to Tudor, the gazes of other fixers hanging around in the caf were also drawn to me.

Ignore them, just ignore them. I pulled out the straitjacket I was wearing previously from my backpack.

Enjoy your meal.

What did he order? It seems like a soup dish. Im hungry already; maybe Ill eat it after dealing with him?

The deliveryman left the food and went on his way, but the door remained closed for a long time. He was likely being cautious.

With [Magical Power Detection] still active, I could clearly see what he was up to.

He was pressed up against the door, probably listening for sounds from outside.

Fine, Ill stay quiet. Come on out.

Click.

The sound of the lock opening. This is it. I prepared my spell, timing it with the sound.

Creak

Good. Now!

[Magic Bullet]

I hurled a bullet of magical energy through the slightly ajar door.

Crash!

Aargh!

The door that was hit was completely shattered, and the impact sent Lee Chang-hyuk tumbling backward.

Crash!

He rolled over and scrambled into the room. Ah, trying to grab his bag, I see?

Hey there~, Lee Chang-hyuk~!

I deliberately moved slowly as I entered his room.

Sure, leaping in might look impressive, but with this body, any hasty movement would just make me seem retarded.

Instead, it is better to create a sense of fear leisurely.

As expected, Lee Chang-hyuk was holding a large bag in one hand. It was a large silver bag reinforced with metal.

That must be the security bag containing the test subject. In the game, it was just a quest item, so I couldnt check its contents.

And his other hand was hidden inside his clothing. Hes concealing a handgun.

What, what are you!

What do you think? Isnt it obvious? Just hand over that bag, and I wont hurt you.

Eh hufffffff

He suddenly stopped talking and took a sharp breath.

His upper body swelled up to at least twice the size of an average persons.

He might seem bizarre, but this was actually Lee Chang-hyuks attack stance.

Predicting his next move was simple. Now, to time it right!

One, two

His mouth opened. Right now is the moment. Three!

Kwaah!

An unbelievably loud sound erupted from his mouth, something no human should be able to produce.

But I too had completed my spell just as his mouth opened.

Whooosh!

A magic circle of light appeared right in front of me.

It distorted and twisted the sound waves coming from his mouth.

This was my own modified version of the zero-order spell, Transmission.

Should I name it something like [Sound Wave Distortion]?

It defied physical laws, twisting the direction of the sound.

Therefore, even though Lee Chang-hyuk, who had the condition of magical power hypertrophy, attacked me with his magical power through sound, no damage was inflicted on me!

Crash!

Instead, the walls on the left, right and bottom of the motel were shattered and scattered around.

Shit! What is that! What did you just do?!

Seeing his attack fail, he grimaced and let out a shout of frustration.

Still, he moved his hand quickly and took something out of his clothes.

Click.

It was a gun.

Die!

Lee Chang-hyuks gun spat fire without hesitation.

Wow, that was quick! But then, this is how one survives in this world, isnt it?