Ju-Won could sell the artifact, but it wouldn't last. Maybe a few months, maybe a year if he was careful. But his sister's condition wasn't something that could be solved with one lump sum of cash. It was an endless pit of medical expenses, and no amount of small-time thieving would fix that.
And if this job really paid as much as the stranger promised…
He exhaled slowly. "…What's in it for you?"
The man's grin widened. "Now that's the right question." He crossed his arms, leaning slightly against the wall. "I need something inside that vault. A single object. You can have everything else. The money, the artifacts, whatever you want. I just need one thing."
Ju-Won didn't like this. Not one bit.
"What is it?" he asked.
The stranger's smile didn't fade, but there was something unreadable in his gaze. "A crown."
Ju-Won blinked. "A what?"
"A crown," the man repeated. "An old one. Made of obsidian, with strange markings carved into it. It's useless to you, but to me… it's worth more than you could ever imagine."
Ju-Won stared at him, trying to gauge if he was lying. A crown? That was what he wanted?
"What does it do?"
The man's smile thinned. "That's not important to you."
Ju-Won's instincts screamed at him. This is bad. This is really fucking bad.
But at the same time…
If he said no, what then?
His sister would keep suffering. The bills would keep coming. The world wouldn't change just because he refused to take a risk.
Ju-Won had spent years avoiding the hunter world, avoiding the insanity that came with it. But deep down, he had always known—sooner or later, he'd have to stop running.
Maybe this was it.
Maybe this was the moment.
He exhaled through his nose, then finally said, "Fine."
The stranger's eyes gleamed. "Good choice."
Ju-Won wasn't sure if it was.
But he was about to find out.
The night air was crisp, carrying the faint scent of rain on the wind. Seoul's streets were quieter now, the late hours thinning out the crowds. Neon lights flickered against the wet pavement, painting distorted reflections of the city's glow.
Ju-Won stood at the edge of an alleyway, staring at the skyline in silence. His mind felt heavy, thoughts pressing in from every direction.
What the hell am I doing?
He had agreed. The words had left his mouth before he could fully process them, and now there was no turning back. The stranger—who still hadn't given his name—had vanished into the night after securing Ju-Won's cooperation. Said he'd be in touch soon with the details.
And now, Ju-Won was left standing here, questioning everything.
His whole life, he had avoided this kind of thing. Kept his head low, stayed in the shadows, stole only what he needed to survive. He had never gone after anything remotely big, never risked more than he could afford to lose.
But now?
He was about to rob the Global Hunters Corporation.
Ju-Won scoffed to himself, shaking his head.
This is fucking insane.
And yet…
His hand unconsciously brushed against his pocket, feeling the weight of the artifact he had collected earlier that night. It was still warm, pulsing faintly against his skin. A reminder of how close he had come to getting caught.
A reminder that, even if he played it safe, life would never let him win.
His sister needed more than what he could scrape together. He needed more than what this pathetic existence was offering him.
This was a risk. A huge one.
But maybe, just maybe… it was the only way forward.
Ju-Won sighed, pulling out his phone and glancing at the time. 3:14 AM. He had to get home.
Tonight was over. But soon, everything was going to change.
Three Days Later
Ju-Won stood in the shadows of an abandoned building, his arms crossed as he listened to the stranger lay out the plan.
They weren't alone this time.
Three others stood beside the man—two men and one woman, each of them exuding a dangerous air. Hunters, without a doubt. Not the flashy, armor-clad types he had seen before, but the real kind. The ones who worked in the dark, did the jobs no one else wanted to do.
Mercenaries.
Ju-Won wasn't stupid. He knew exactly what kind of people he had gotten himself involved with.
But at this point, he didn't care.
The stranger, who finally introduced himself as Elias, had brought them together for one reason: to break into the GHC's secure vault and walk out with more money and power than any of them could imagine.
Ju-Won kept his expression unreadable, but his mind was racing as he observed the others.
The first was a man in his mid-thirties, broad-shouldered and built like a damn tank. His arms were covered in scars, and a massive sword rested against his back. Elias introduced him as Tae-Jun.
The second was a younger man, probably in his early twenties, with wild eyes and a nervous energy that made Ju-Won uneasy. He had twin daggers strapped to his waist and a cocky smirk that screamed reckless. His name was Min-Soo.
And then there was the woman.
She was tall, lean, and moved like a shadow. There was something unsettlingly graceful about her presence, like she was always one step ahead of everyone else in the room. Her name was Seo-Rin.
Ju-Won didn't trust any of them.
But trust wasn't necessary. Only the job mattered.
Elias clapped his hands together. "Alright. Now that we're all here, let's get down to business."
He pulled out a small device from his pocket, pressing a button to project a holographic blueprint of the building they were targeting.
Ju-Won's eyes narrowed.
The Global Hunters Corporation's main vault was located underground, beneath their central headquarters in Seoul. It was protected by state-of-the-art security, biometric scanners, and a shit-ton of armed guards.
This wasn't a simple break-in.
It was a suicide mission.
Elias smirked, as if reading Ju-Won's thoughts. "Relax. We have a way in."
Ju-Won stayed silent, waiting.
Elias pointed to a maintenance tunnel running beneath the building. "This is our entry point. It's old, mostly forgotten, but still connected to the lower levels. We get in through here, bypass the external security, and make our way to the vault."
Tae-Jun folded his arms. "And the guards?"
Elias shrugged. "Taken care of. We have someone on the inside who will create a temporary distraction. It won't last long, but it'll give us enough time to move."
Ju-Won exhaled quietly, already running calculations in his head. This plan was insane.
And yet…
If it worked, it could change everything.
Seo-Rin spoke for the first time, her voice smooth and calculated. "And the vault itself? What are we dealing with?"
Elias's smirk widened. "Ah, that's where things get interesting."
He tapped the hologram, zooming in on the inner chamber.
"The vault isn't just locked. It's protected by a unique energy field—something we've never seen before. Standard hacking tools won't work, and brute force is useless."
Ju-Won frowned. "Then how the hell are we supposed to open it?"
Elias turned to him, his gaze sharp. "That's where you come in."
Ju-Won stiffened.
"The artifact with you," Elias continued. "It reacts to certain energy frequencies. The same kind of energy that's protecting that vault. It's not just some relic—it's a key."
Ju-Won's grip tightened around his arms.
Of course.
Nothing was ever simple.
Elias chuckled. "You see now why I needed you?"
Ju-Won said nothing.
But inside, something cold was settling in his chest.
This wasn't just a job.
This was something much bigger.
And whether he liked it or not—he was right in the middle of it.
Elias grinned. "Let's go steal a crown."