Chapter 1689 – 1689. Hunter Vs Vampire
Three weeks had passed since I joined the company.
During that time, I rarely did any office work except when writing reports. The rest of the time, I either rested or played games in the office.
It might seem like a scene that office workers would envy, but in reality, they don’t envy it at all. They safely tap away at keyboards in the office, while field workers like me have to risk our lives fighting vampires every time there’s a job.
If we make even a small mistake in battle, we get taken down by a vampire.
That’s why field workers actually envy office workers more. Of course, field workers get paid more.
‘It’s been three weeks since I joined. In those three weeks, four field workers have died.’
The deceased were all members of the combat unit. They were moving in teams of four when they were attacked by vampires in broad daylight and died.
‘It’s only natural that vampires would retaliate against the company. They have brains and feelings too.’
The company has existed for about 70 years. That means the history of blood they’ve built with vampires is long. It was only natural that vampires would hate the company.
‘It’s strange that they’re just taking it. Basically, vampires are higher on the food chain than humans.’
It’s just that humans are overwhelming them with civilization and numbers right now. If the number of vampires was more than half the number of humans, the dominant species in the world wouldn’t be humans, but vampires.
I headed to the cafe on the first floor of the company. My colleagues, Choi Sangwoo and Ji Hyunseong, had already taken a seat.
“Sung Yoojin! Over here!”
Ji Hyunseong waved at me. I walked over to their table, pulled out a chair, and sat down. The kiwi juice I had ordered beforehand was already on the table. As soon as I sat down, I slurped the kiwi juice and said,
“It’s good. They must use good kiwis here.”
“Why are you drinking juice before even saying hello?”
Ji Hyunseong chided me. They had coffee in front of them. I didn’t like coffee. Coffee made by a mediocre barista wasn’t worth drinking.
“How have you been?”
There were two reasons why I met them. One was because I had nothing to do. The other was to get information.
The original story doesn’t mention specific times or dates. So, I have to keep an eye on the actions of the main and supporting characters to guess the events of the original story.
“I’ve been fine. Surprisingly, Deputy Manager Noh has been very nice to me. Well, Sangwoo got a suspension for causing trouble, though.”
“……”
Choi Sangwoo frowned. He was clearly in a bad mood.
Choi Sangwoo had gone berserk after discovering traces of a vampire lord during work. He had ignored the orders of his senior, Deputy Manager Choi Sunyoung, and almost died. He would have died if it hadn’t been for Choi Sunyoung. Choi Sunyoung reported the incident to the head of the special unit, and Choi Sangwoo was suspended.
“Yoojin, how is it under Deputy Manager Joo Suhyeon? Is it warm?”
“I don’t know if it’s warm, but the work itself is easy. I’ve been on about 15 missions, but Deputy Manager Joo Suhyeon handled most of them.”
Before I could do anything, Joo Suhyeon would rush at the vampire first. Using her instantaneous acceleration, even the black vampires couldn’t stop Joo Suhyeon. With a quick swipe, the vampire would be dead.
“Wow. So you’ve been having it easy. But 15 times? In the last three weeks? We haven’t even been out 10 times?”
“Don’t you have to rest compulsorily the day after a mission?”
Ji Hyunseong looked disgusted, and Choi Sangwoo asked with sparkling eyes.
“Well, I didn’t feel the need to rest because I wasn’t that tired. Deputy Manager Joo Suhyeon is the same.”
“I’m jealous. I wish I could get that much work…”
“Well, it feels like the company is giving Joo Suhyeon a lot of work because she’s a Jaeger.”
There was a reason why Joo Suhyeon received so much support from the company. She was handling an absurd amount of work compared to other employees without complaint. Of course, she was compensated for her performance. I was just tagging along with Joo Suhyeon, but the performance bonus in my bank account was already over a hundred million won.
“Can’t you change partners?”
Choi Sangwoo asked. Ji Hyunseong and I looked at him with surprise.
“Do you dislike Deputy Manager Choi Sunyoung? Aren’t you two the same wolf-human hybrid?”
“It’s not that I dislike her, but rather that we don’t match. I like her fighting style. She attacks without mercy when fighting vampires. But…”
Choi Sangwoo trailed off. He seemed to be thinking about something. Ji Hyunseong tilted his head, not understanding Choi Sangwoo. I knew from the original story that Choi Sunyoung was wary of Choi Sangwoo.
‘Choi Sunyoung has been burned by another wolf-human before. So, she didn’t like Choi Sangwoo much at first either.’
That attitude must be frustrating for Choi Sangwoo. It must feel like she doesn’t trust him as a colleague.
‘It’s a problem that will be solved over time.’
We continued the conversation. They mostly talked about their experiences during work. Ji Hyunseong, in particular, was making a fuss, saying he had been in several near-death situations. When the conversation had matured to some extent, I casually asked Choi Sangwoo.
“What’s this about discovering traces of a vampire lord? Was it a smell? Or did they appear directly?”
“It was a smell. The smell of that bastard who killed my family.”
“Tell me more about that bastard.”
Choi Sangwoo frowned.
“…You seem to be very curious.”
“Don’t get the wrong idea. I’m not interested in your personal affairs. You’re not the only one who wants to kill a vampire lord. Just like you’re looking for the enemy who killed your family, I’m looking for the enemy who killed my family.”
“…The one who killed your family was a vampire lord?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t see it directly. The police wouldn’t tell me either.”
“Did you ask the intelligence department? If it’s a vampire case, it’s more reliable to ask the intelligence department than the police.”
Choi Sangwoo was serious. It seemed like he felt a sense of kinship because his family had been killed by vampires. Of course, I didn’t have any desire for revenge for my family. The family I didn’t even know was killed before I came to this world. They were no different from strangers to me.
“Of course, I asked the intelligence department too. But they didn’t know much. I don’t know if they really don’t know, or if they don’t even want to find out. I’m not on good terms with the intelligence department.”
The fact that I had cursed Kwak Soohyuk at the restaurant last time had become me cursing the entire intelligence department. My reputation had hit rock bottom. Thanks to Joo Suhyeon, no one openly said anything to me, but they would glare at me as I passed by.
“Ah, that rumor. I heard about it too. You did it to Kwak Soohyuk, the big shot in the intelligence department? You seemed normal when you were in training… Now I see you’re even more of a nutcase than Choi Sangwoo.”
Ji Hyunseong shook his head. Choi Sangwoo, who had been quiet, frowned as if dissatisfied, glared at Ji Hyunseong for a moment, sighed, and then asked me.
“It’s a bit of a strange question, but… What was the state of your parents’ bodies?”
“…According to the police, their abdomens were torn open. Their intestines were scattered.”
“It’s not a vampire lord. That bastard doesn’t kill humans like that. When he plays with humans, he cuts off their limbs and watches them until they die, and when he sucks blood, he only drinks half and throws away the rest of the body.”
“…Really?”
“Where did your parents get attacked? Was it at home?”
“It was at home. A vampire broke in and tore open my parents’ abdomens. There were no signs of bloodsucking.”
“What were your parents’ occupations?”
“Does their occupation matter?”
“It matters. Vampires usually attack people walking on the street. It’s rare for them to break into a house.”
“My father was a department head at a large company, and my mother was a homemaker.”
“…A department head at a large company. You could say he had a social status. In this case, it’s closer to planned murder.”
“I’ve heard that there have been many cases recently of high-ranking officials making deals with vampires. Is it because of that?”
“Maybe. Your parents might have refused a vampire’s offer. If so, it wouldn’t have been easy to refuse in that situation. They must have been great people.”
“……”
“Sung Yoojin. It’s not the work of a vampire lord. And there’s no reason for a common-level vampire to attack the house of a department head at a large company. It’s not enough to make a deal either. I think it’s probably a noble-level. There are less than 30 noble-level vampires in Seoul, so if you investigate them one by one, you might be able to find the culprit. Especially if you focus on the ones who like to tear things open…”
“Thank you. I’ll look into it.”
I was a bit taken aback by how seriously he was talking.
‘If he’s going to be this serious, I can’t just not investigate at all.’
To maintain a good relationship with Choi Sangwoo, I have to pretend to be burning with revenge.
‘If he wasn’t the protagonist, I would have ignored him.’
The original story revolves around the protagonist. To not fall behind the flow, it’s better to maintain a good relationship with Choi Sangwoo.
• • •
Bang! Bang bang bang!
Joo Suhyeon turned her gaze to the sound of gunshots. Sung Yoojin had stuck himself to the ceiling of the second floor and was shooting silver bullets into the head of a vampire hiding there.
The vampire fell to the floor without even screaming. Sung Yoojin’s shooting skills were always impressive.
‘Contrary to his evaluation that he is good at and prefers swords in the training center, he doesn’t use swords well.’
It had been almost a month since she started working with Sung Yoojin. But so far, Sung Yoojin had never held a sword or knife. He used firearms for both long-range and close-range combat.
“Deputy Manager Joo Suhyeon! I’ve taken care of it! Haha. It was easy today too. Let’s grab some late-night snacks on the way back.”
Just as Joo Suhyeon was about to say something, she felt a subtle tremor in the floor. Joo Suhyeon knew this feeling from several experiences.
‘They’re not targeting me.’
Joo Suhyeon immediately shouted at Sung Yoojin.
“Dodge!!”
“Huh?”
It was the moment Sung Yoojin asked with a dumbfounded expression. A vampire sprang up from under his feet. Sung Yoojin showed an incredible reaction speed. He instantly aimed his gun downwards and pulled the trigger. But there wasn’t just one vampire. A vampire that appeared a beat later grabbed Sung Yoojin’s body and dashed out the window.
“Sung Yoojin!!”
Just as Joo Suhyeon was about to rush after Sung Yoojin, four vampires appeared and blocked her path.
