Chapter 103
After just 1 hour, Kim Olim opened the door and exited.
During that time, after begging Seo Dawon and Jung Garam, I summoned Lackey, the only one I could trust, and held it in my arms.
Since I found a loophole in the contract, amicably creating agreements was the best way forward. No matter how highly a [Vengeful Ghost Contract] may be prioritized by the system, additional clauses can be added as long as it doesn’t significantly undermine the original contract.
So, I considered suggesting to Seo Dawon a few supplemental clauses…
‘But even those may have traps that I might not realize at first…’
It’s sad, but I couldn’t even trust the additional terms even if I were the one to instate them.
I greatly lacked knowledge of things like systems, scenarios or the hub. As I talked to the two original ghosts while panicking, I keenly felt that I was the biggest hole in the team; although I’d already forded halfway through the river and couldn’t turn back now…
[Clack Clack?]
So, instead of talking more about the contract, I summoned Lackey, who I haven’t called upon in a long while, and used its body as a defensive line between me and the others.
As soon as it was summoned, Lackey hovered around me like a pomeranian, intermittently growling at both Seo Dawon and Jung Garam. Usually, I would have discouraged such behavior, but today I hid behind it thinking about my future steps with this already ruined contract. That was when Kim Olim exited the bedroom.
[Clack clack clack clack clack.] Lackey was agitated by the presence of a new servant, Kim Olim; however, unlike when it confronted Jung Garam or Seo Dawon, this time it hid behind me, snapping its teeth at her in an unusually passive manner.
It was just like how I used Lackey as a shield against Seo Dawon and Jung Garam earlier. Who wouldn’t recognize it as my first servant–I almost cried when I saw how the skeleton was learning my bad habits. Haah…was it *that* scared of Kim Olim?
Of course, Kim Olim could unleash a deadly holy attack on the undead; Lackey, who had developed some talent in detecting enemies, was deservedly more vigilant than before.
Having fully left the room, Kim Olim had paused and stared at the skeleton but soon looked away. Though the image of a sentient skull may seem unpleasant, she probably had no desire to tear it limb from limb. I was a little relieved when I noticed her decision to ignore Lackey.
“What am I supposed to do from now on?” Kim Olim, turning away from me, asked Seo Dawon, who was leaning against the wall. Her words seemed to indicate her intent to join the party.
Perhaps she had relaxed while praying–Seo Dawon, reading her relaxed vibe, smiled in satisfaction; Jung Garam also relaxed completely, leaning back against the sofa.
Seo Dawon promptly replied, “We need to find the traitor and get our revenge.”
“Traitor?”
At her confused blinking, Jung Garam clarified, “Bae Jaemin betrayed us. While working together, he personally ambushed me.”
“……” Kim Olim must have been struck speechless–her mouth opened momentarily before shutting immediately afterwards. However, she couldn’t completely hide her confused expression.
“Bae Jaemin leaked our plans to outsiders. Especially the part about the monopoly-contract dungeon scenario.”
Seo Dawon did not hesitate to continue, adding more information, “Several of the grudges we’ve accumulated over the years had combined then.”
“……”
“Those guys joined hands and carefully laid a trap for us.”
“Bae Jaemin could have been another guild’s spy from the very beginning. Although, I’m not a 100% sure.” Jung Garam said as he handed the cell phone over to Kim Olim. Bae Jaemin, attending his guild’s founding party, was searched up on the screen.
Kim Olim read the article with a pale face and soon immediately began reading another. Judging from the title, [Red Lotus Catastrophe], she was looking at a coverage on what had supposedly happened at the Tower of Command.
While scrolling through the article, Kim Olim had nothing to say, but her expressionless poker-face that seemed to chill with every word was enough to guess what turmoil she felt inside. Furthermore, the atmosphere in the home turned frigid.
“I understand.” Kim Olim, who had read countless articles for 30 minutes, finally raised her head. Her face looked unexpectedly calm, but her eyes glowed as if they held fire. “I realize the significance only now, but there was something that bothered me about a month before we died.”
Kim Olim calmly recounted a story that only she knew, “My car broke down, so I stopped by a garage workshop–not my usual garage–in Block 2. Since they said repairs would take about four hours, I thought I’d just eat someplace in the area. That was when I saw a kid who, from the back, looked like Ryu Hyerin.”
Then, she mumbled, “That’s right. There’s no way I could mistake her, even from the back.”
“You saw Ryu Hyerin in Block 2?”
“That’s right. Her face was covered with a mask, but I was sure she was Ryu Hyerin. I called her…maybe she wanted to grab a bite to eat together.”
I was surprised to realize that Kim Olim and Ryu Hyerin were probably quite close before she died. After all, eating together on a whim like that were things that friends would do.
However, I couldn’t bear to ask if the two were intimate because of the context of the situation. So instead, I focused on her story.
“But Ryu Hyerin didn’t answer the phone; I simply followed her with my eyes, wondering if I had mistaken her… At the end of the block, I saw someone I recognized driving a car.”
“Who was it?”
“Geum Miyoung. She was the female accountant in charge of all the guild’s taxes and financial documents.” Kim Olim pointed out a paragraph from the last article she read.
I’ve read that article in the past. I think it was the feature story posted after the government announced that it would reopen the <Tower of Command>.
[How did the Red Lotus’s disastrous final attack on <The Officer’s Tower> happen?
Subtitle: How the survivors of disaster recover from tragedy ( Bae Jaemin’s exclusive interview.)]
And the portion of the article Kim Olim pointed out was this
[(Excerpt)]
I dug up an interview of Geum Mi-young, who at the time was in charge of the guild’s logistics and accounting, conducted by the prosecution on January 7th.
“The ledgers were kept by Seo Dawon, and the specific account for <TheTower of Command> raid was kept vague. The whole process was not transparent at all; the information gap enforced through an iron fist.”
Red Lotus was a profitable guild that formed many broadcasting content and sponsorship partnerships with world-class enterprises. However, Geum Mi-young claimed that, in reality, the guild’s financial structure was worse than many small companies.
Additionally, the guildmaster, Seo Dawon, had always said, “Don’t waste the taxpayer’s money. Do not accept commissions from the government, as much as possible.” While demanding these strict restrictions, he had been embezzling funds needed for travel expenses or marketing for personal items. Any employees who did not comply with Seo Dawon’s instructions were immediately terminated.
When I first read the article, I passively read without much further thought since the lives of those already dead had nothing to do with me, but…under these circumstances–after listening to Kim Olim–it was clear that Geum Miyoung had also betrayed the Red Lotus. She took full advantage of the fact that the dead could not speak for themselves.
“We never padded the ledgers, and we didn’t mind if Geum Miyoung’s processing fees were a bit too expensive, right? Of course, it’s not like we had any desire to renew our contract with her either.” Kim Olim said, cynically, as she looked down at the article.
“I had thought that there would be more people involved than those already revealed, but…” Seo Dawon, lost in thought, also read the article carefully.
Kim Olim shrugged, “It didn’t occur to me until you all said that Bae Jaemin may have betrayed us since long ago.”
I listened to them with mixed feelings.
However, instead of being angry, Seo Dawon raised his head with a smile and said, “Nonetheless, I’m glad you told me this. I thought it would take longer to grab Ryu Hyerin by the tail since I couldn’t find much on her, despite researching.” 1
With that said, the Mage proposed that we drag out Ryu Hyerin through Geum Miyoung.
TL: Above is a fan depiction of Ryu Hyerin that I found on a sketchy novel sharing site….I wish I knew who the original artist was so I can credit. There’s a few more of her + kim olim and her + bae jaemin I might share in future chapters.
Also so sorry for being slow to update…I’ve been swamped by real life + sickness lately T_T
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