Five minutes had passed since Jinhyuk's visit.
"I was wrong."
Crouching on her knees, Chenda bowed her head.
"P-please, spare me."
Chenda's eyes trembled violently.
She genuinely wondered.
What the hell just happened?
Just five minutes ago, they had overwhelming numerical superiority.
But when she came to her senses, every single one of her men was sprawled out.
Stuck in the hallway, the ceiling, the walls — everywhere.
'Is this a dream!?'
She tried running through some happy scenarios, but no.
The vivid pain radiating from her smashed face was proof enough.
"Come on, people might misunderstand if they heard that. I told you my purpose from the moment I arrived. I came to collect money. Not to kill anyone."
She wanted to scream — *then why did you smash my face into pulp!!* — but she didn't.
She had enough sense for that.
"Where's the safe?"
"Ah, I'll show you."
She flinched as she got up.
Her phone was in her pocket.
If she just pressed the call button, hundreds of heavily armed men would swarm in.
But she didn't press it.
Because her survival instincts told her.
The man in front of her wasn't on a level she could handle here.
*Beep beep beep beep. Ding-dong.*
After passing through two security doors, the safe revealed itself.
Jinhyuk frowned.
For a gambling site's safe, it was pathetically bare.
"This is a fake safe, right?"
"Huh? Absolutely not! This is the only safe in our branch!"
"You guys make a ton of money. This is all you've got?"
"As I just told you, we're just one branch. The headquarters takes everything before it can pile up in the safe..."
"How much is all this worth?"
Chenda pulled out her phone and calculated the total.
"All together, just over a hundred billion won."
"That's less than one-twentieth of what I'm owed!"
"Uh... isn't it one-seventh? The settlement amount was seventy billion..."
"*Sigh.*"
"I'm sorry!"
Jinhyuk cleared his throat, pretending to be calm.
Guess she didn't become branch manager for nothing.
Good memory.
"I'll take this for now. Wait outside."
"Y-yes!"
"Hands behind your back for a moment."
He tore the clothes off the sprawled-out gang members, tied them up neatly, and went inside.
Chenda watched him go and breathed a sigh of relief.
Of course, she hadn't noticed.
The real reason the Cambodia branch existed.
"Ugh... he really messed me up."
She wondered why her vision was so narrow.
Her eyelids were severely swollen.
Frustration washed over her, but this wasn't the time.
She quickly ran calculations in her head.
A loss of a hundred billion was painful, but not fatal.
She had a side business going on behind headquarters' back, so she could cover it somehow.
She looked out the window at the fluttering Cambodian flag.
Branch manager Chenda's secret side business.
She was laundering and hiding assets illegally accumulated by the Cambodian royal family.
In the safe developed by Crown Jackpot, located in this branch building on the mountain ridge.
That was also why she hadn't pressed the call button.
If a firefight broke out here and something happened to the safe, she'd make enemies of all of Cambodia.
The branch Crown Jackpot had carefully built would go up in flames as a matter of course.
Money could be earned again, but this was an irrecoverable loss.
"Haah."
She let out a deep sigh and closed her eyes.
All she could do now was pray.
That this miserable time would pass quickly.
---
Meanwhile, inside the safe.
*Thump thump thump thump thump!!*
Jinhyuk, who had been gathering money, looked down.
Momo was snorting roughly, her golden eyes sparkling.
The moment he saw that reaction, he swallowed dryly.
Great Teacher Momo's unannounced appearance.
And this intense snorting.
It could only mean one thing.
"Where is it, Teacher Momo?"
"Right here!!"
Momo pointed to the far end of the safe.
It was completely empty — nothing visible at first glance.
But there was no need to doubt.
The Dragon Emperor's accuracy rate was one hundred percent.
He approached and examined the wall.
The color was painted cleverly to blend in, but touching it made it immediately obvious.
The material was completely different from the other walls.
"Pretty solid."
Even if he wrapped himself in aura, his fist probably wouldn't survive the impact.
No choice.
He'd have to call someone tougher.
"Please take care of it, Teacher Renya."
He considered summoning Seira to cut through it, but decided against it.
It was Seira's training and meditation time.
He should respect his master's personal time.
"Step back."
Lowering his stance, Renya extended his hand.
*Swoooosh!*
Aura spread wide, forming a domain.
It was definitely broader than before.
The translucent energy had also deepened into a richer blue.
"You look cooler now!"
"Right? It matches my tattoos well."
"That's right! It's super cool!"
*Crunch crunch crunch!*
They munched on nachos from a short distance away for a moment.
*BOOM!!*
The ogre Renya's fist struck.
The impact echoed through the entire building without pause.
The material that had seemed so solid began crumpling like paper.
---
And not long after.
*CRAAAASH!!!*
The wall, unable to hold out any longer, blew open spectacularly.
Renya walked out through the dust cloud, tilting his neck.
At that magnificent sight, the Jin-Kan-Mo trio burst into thunderous applause without a moment's hesitation.
There was no other word for it — pure badassery.
"Right here!!"
He followed the Dragon Emperor, who darted out swiftly.
Passing through the dust cloud and the shattered wall, they arrived at a place.
A space incomparably larger than the safe they had first entered.
And it was piled everywhere.
"Whoever you are, you've got taste."
The treasures of a safe owner who clearly loved gold.
From a massive elephant statue to tridents and two-handed swords — every single item was made of gold.
"WOOOOOAAAAAHHH!!!"
Momo dropped to her knees, clutching her head and screaming with joy.
Even the Dragon Emperor, who had sensed this place's existence, seemed not to have expected this much gold.
"It's incredible!! The whole world is gold!"
Maybe it was because everything was so shiny.
Kancho ran around excitedly, bouncing everywhere.
"Heh."
Even Renya, known for having no reactions, let out a dry laugh.
That was how absurd this place was.
"WOOOOOAAAAHH!!"
Jinhyuk approached Momo, who was still screaming.
"Momo. Don't be greedy. Let's just take exactly what we're owed."
The great gambler said to only take half of what you win.
We're not that, so let's take what's rightfully ours.
"How much is that?!"
"Seventy... billion."
"Then how much do we need to take?!"
"All of it."
"Mm! Momo completely understands!"
Momo nodded vigorously and stood up.
Then she stepped forward into the piled-up gold.
A true giant's first step!
"Momo will handle the gold, so Master, make sure Elia can't come here!"
"Okay! Leave it to me!"
After doing a couple rounds of perimeter checks, Momo summoned the Infinite Storage.
Rolling up her sleeves, Momo's steps quickened.
"Phew."
Watching her, for some reason.
He found himself clasping his hands together without thinking.
He murmured his current feelings quietly.
"Jesus Christ."
Deathfog, the greatest obstacle in the final siege of Saintra.
Full conquest preparation complete.
---
* * *
How much time had passed since the intruder entered the safe?
*Creak.*
The closed door opened, and Jinhyuk appeared.
Branch manager Chenda nervously scanned Jinhyuk quickly.
A while ago, unbelievable vibrations and roars had shaken the entire building.
So she was worried, but thankfully, he only had a few large bundles in his hands.
Maybe he sensed Chenda's feelings.
Jinhyuk spoke in the most merciful voice imaginable.
"I only take half of what I win. I don't want any complications. I hope we never meet again."
"O-of course. I will never seek you out."
She meant it.
Even if she received an invitation, she wouldn't go.
"Good. Then take care. Make lots of money."
Waving his hand lightly, the man jumped out through the broken window.
After confirming the intruder had completely left, Chenda gritted her teeth.
"That crazy bastard really...!"
Stealing money and then telling her to make lots of money — what kind of bullshit was that?
How much did he look down on her?
"Haah. Whatever."
What could she do?
The train had already left.
Cleaning up messes was something Chenda had done countless times.
The scale was a bit bigger this time, but it wasn't impossible.
She headed to the safe to assess the situation.
Anyway, he said he only took half of what he won — so what was in the safe couldn't have been anywhere near 350 billion in the first place...?
Chenda's mouth fell open.
A large hole blasted through the wall.
A path that should never have been revealed.
"N-no way."
Even as she limped along, she ran through happy scenarios as much as possible.
What was inside was the treasure the Cambodian royal family had accumulated over decades.
No matter how massive an inventory the intruder had, it was impossible to take everything.
Especially in such a short time.
---
Please, let everything still be there, she prayed as she passed through the broken wall.
And then.
"AAAAAAHHHH!!!"
She collapsed with a scream.
She could confidently say — of everything she had seen in her life, and everything she would see going forward, this was the most horrifying sight.
At that moment, Crown Jackpot Cambodia branch manager Chenda realized.
That the worst horror of her life had just begun.
---
* * *
On a hill near the Zhuyou settlement.
Jinhyuk spread out a large mat.
His friends quickly took their spots on it.
"Chief, are you sick? You look pale."
"You look totally drained! Did you not eat, Master?"
*Thump.* He laid his head down between the two little ones.
It wasn't that he was sick.
It was just that he had been beaten so much that his whole body hurt.
Ah... was that what being sick meant?
"Master, you're pushing yourself too hard!"
"Gotta push through."
The daily curriculum started with Seira, went through Dark and Renya, and ended with Elia's alchemy class.
Maybe he should change the order a bit.
By the time he got to the last class, the physical fatigue and pain were too great.
"Anyway, the village is really quiet. Like it's completely empty."
"Probably because of me."
He sat up groggily and stared at the quiet Zhuyou settlement.
The pile of sacred power equipment he had handed over yesterday.
He heard that the workload was too heavy for Yihwa alone, so all the Zhuyou had pitched in.
"I hope they don't collapse from exhaustion."
"They'll be fine since we fed them dragon meat!"
"And the flint is really good quality, so they won't get tired!"
That was a relief, at least.
He hadn't planned it, but he had provided them with things for optimal condition in advance.
"Can we roast sweet potatoes?"
"Sure, since we have to wait anyway. Let's eat sweet potatoes and then go to the Tower of Myth."
The 18th floor of the Tower of Myth, whose entry conditions had been fulfilled with Queen Asha's death.
He'd go there while waiting for the weapon to be completed.
Just as he was about to ask Great Teacher Momo to start a fire.
"OPPAAAAAA!!!"
Yihwa's excited voice rang out.
Well, well. Looked like the sweet potatoes would have to wait.
The century's necromancer, Mortarion.
Ready to beat him to death.
----------
T/N:
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