Chapter 15
"Boss, are you crazy? Why are you making enemies like this! The Black Tiger Raid Team has over 30 members! If we run into them in the dungeon, they'll kill us!"
Big Bo threw a tantrum the moment he returned home.
"Shut it, pig brat. Scream one more time and I'll rip out your tongue. Ah, perfect. Beer's the only cure for thirst."
Ja-geon dropped onto the couch as he spoke. He popped open a canned beer and guzzled it down.
Their living space was no longer a single-room unit - it had become a fully furnished apartment. Though the monthly rent was 1 million won, this wasn't a significant sum for active raiders.
"We're doomed! Doomed! Getting marked by the Black Tiger Raid Team... We're dead men! I should write my will... At least gather my remaining savings for my parents..."
Big Bo wailed while pounding the floor.
Clang!
Ja-geon hurled an empty can at Big Bo's head.
"Didn't I tell you to shut up?"
"You hitting me again? Why not just kill me? We'll die by those Black Tiger bastards either way! What's the difference between dying by your hand now or theirs later!"
Ja-geon silently walked into the bathroom.
Screeeech!
The sound of tearing concrete echoed as Ja-geon ripped out the entire drainage pipe and dragged it across the floor.
"Fine. Let's see you die here today."
Only the fierce gleam in Ja-geon's shadowed eyes remained visible as he swung the metal pipe downward.
Thwack!
He'd grown so accustomed to hitting Big Bo that he'd even developed proper form.
"Ugh... hurts..."
Big Bo rolled across the bloody floor. Despite his gruesome injuries, the scene resembled dark slapstick comedy.
"Haa... haa..."
Ja-geon panted while tossing the pipe into a corner. Now even I'm getting exhausted from beating him.
Both Ja-geon and Big Bo were level 38. The widening gap between warrior and mage classes showed clearly - Big Bo's physical stats, particularly vitality, had skyrocketed, while Ja-geon faced the inherent limitations of being a mage.
What kind of Isaac of Chaos is this? Just some psychotic alien.
Ja-geon wasn't foolish enough to intentionally antagonize the Black Tiger team. His words to Kim Chun-sik hadn't been deliberate.
My head suddenly pulsed with pain. Strange afterimages flashed before my eyes. The words spilled out against my will. Damn it all.
Ja-geon grimaced. External interference.
『Amusing, isn't this? My devout one.』
Isaac's voice resonated solely in Ja-geon's mind as he remained seated on the couch:
"What did you do to me, Isaac?"
『I merely vocalized your true thoughts. Lies are sinful, hoho.』
During the confrontation with Kim Chun-sik, Ja-geon's unfiltered inner monologue had poured out directly - all Isaac's manipulation.
"So this is the chaos you adore? Just cheap theatrics."
Ja-geon mocked as Isaac chuckled repeatedly at his irritation.
『Remember this, vessel. I am your master. Your flesh and soul are mine.』
Isaac's layered voice reverberated. Ja-geon's bloodshot eyes burned crimson, nails digging into his clenched palms.
God? A god? Since when do you get to lord over me?
All humans existed under divine dominion - an inescapable yoke. Gods were absolute. No struggle could break their chains. This truth drove Ja-geon to the brink of madness. Where gods existed, human freedom died. Himself included.
"Boss, stop muttering like a lunatic! This is serious! Those Black Tiger bastards are terrifying!"
Big Bo sniffled, having regained his senses.
"Who frightens you more? Me or that Chun-sik worm?"
Ja-geon hefted the discarded pipe.
"You, obviously!"
Big Bo answered hastily before another beating could land.
"Then trust me. While this is unexpected trouble, it's manageable. Those pyramid-scheme clowns..."
Ja-geon cracked another beer on the couch as cigarette smoke thickened the air. The exhaust fan whirred overhead.
Big Bo swallowed his "But how?!" protest, opting instead to gulp his beer - which tasted oddly satisfying, perhaps due to blood loss.
"Boss, let's order chicken! Beer needs fried chicken!"
Big Bo suggested before his blood had dried.
Ja-geon sighed and nodded.
They ate chicken, drank beer, and watched dated movies and raunchy comedies before collapsing haphazardly across the living room floor.
Anyone else I'd doubt... But it's the Boss. He'll manage.
Big Bo resolved to trust Ja-geon before drifting off. Following the Boss' lead had never failed them - even when death loomed.
●
The Black Tiger Raid Team numbered around thirty members.
About ten members each were assigned to the first team, second team, and reserve forces.
For a raid party rather than a guild, they were remarkably well-organized.
Anyone could tell this was a raid party targeting guilds.
That's why their quality was unmatched by other raid parties.
"They're treating us like dirt. Show them what we're made of."
Kim Chunsik was absolutely furious.
He was the leader of the Black Tiger raid party—someone who'd never been disrespected anywhere.
'To suffer such humiliation in front of everyone...'
Kim Chunsik had approached Shin Jagun with good intentions, only to be met with insults.
By nature, Kim Chunsik was a proud man.
"We've deployed our men to monitor dungeons they might visit."
"Capture them alive if possible, but kill them if necessary."
Kim Chunsik wasn't someone to be trifled with—the man who built the Black Tiger raid party in Baekje City.
More than one raider had died in dungeons after speaking carelessly to him.
"Understood, boss."
The vice-captain bowed his head and left the office.
Click
Alone now, Kim Chunsik lit a Cuban cigar.
Thick smoke rose to the ceiling.
"That damn brat."
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became—humiliated by some kid barely in his early twenties.
'There was another arrogant punk like that about a year ago. Already dead now.'
A year prior, he'd gone to scout a promising talent only to be insulted.
The "promising talent" who'd disrespected Kim Chunsik died days later in the raid party's retaliation.
Crunch
Kim Chunsik intended to teach them a proper lesson this time too.
He’d show all of Baekje City what happened to those who crossed the Black Tiger raid party.
'In the raider world, being underestimated means death. The Black Tigers must remain objects of fear.'
Kim Chunsik glanced at a magazine in the corner of his desk:
"Raid Today"
An irregularly published magazine that appeared lighthearted but contained surprisingly substantive content.
'Shin Jagun? I’ve definitely heard that name somewhere.'
Kim Chunsik turned on his computer and searched for Shin Jagun.
Countless people shared the name, but then he found an old article:
"Dragon of Destruction... Shin Jagun."
The name slipped slowly from Kim Chunsik’s lips.
Even now, he remained one of the most legendary raiders—founder of the Ragnaf Guild who led supposedly impossible raids to victory.
While all Eight Dragons of Ragnaf were renowned, the Dragon of Destruction stood as their leader and strongest member.
'Already dead.'
The Dragon of Destruction had died two years prior—a prime example that even the greatest raiders could fall to complacency.
The Seven Dragons had testified about Shin Jagun’s final moments.
Though extensively reevaluated posthumously, opinions on him remained polarized: a temperamental fraud inflated by hype, or a peerless talent whose skill matched his reputation...
"Just a namesake."
Kim Chunsik leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling.
He closed his eyes, then opened them—his anger gone, replaced by a hunter’s cold gaze.
He too was among the elite raiders.
"You’ll pay dearly for insulting me, brat."
Big Bo stopped by Magic Street on Shin Jagun’s errand—an avenue of enchanted shops nestled away from Troll Market.
He stared at the note in his hand.
'The boss believes in me.'
Big Bo clenched his fist.
Before leaving, Shin Jagun had warned him:
"I need your help taking down those Black Tiger bastards. I’m a mage class—vulnerable in solo combat. You’ll have to hold the line as long as possible. I know it’s tough with your current skills, which is why we need support magic."
Shin Jagun had stressed Big Bo’s pivotal role—their odds improved the longer he endured.
'I’m terrified, but I can’t bail when the boss is counting on me.'
Steeling himself, Big Bo walked between storefronts.
They’d pooled their remaining funds for buff-type spells.
Ding
Big Bo entered a shop specializing in enhancement magic.
Spellbooks here came from dungeons or priests of Magia, God of Magic—many clergy chose bookcraft over raiding.
"Welcome."
The shopkeeper paused her nail polish application and straightened up.
She sized him up.
'Easy mark.'
Years of haggling had sharpened her instincts—Big Bo’s nervous fidgeting and wide eyes screamed "first-timer."
"Could I get the spells listed here?"
Big Bo timidly handed over the note.
The shopkeeper scanned it slowly before fetching the books one by one.
