World of Vampire Detective [8]

In the midst of my immersion in the 'Vampire Detective' game, I sat at my computer and turned on the messenger.

Genius hacker Kang Eugene handled his clients through a secure, custom messenger to avoid hacking risks.

"Kang Eugene has always been passive. He never initiated contact with clients unless he was seeking new ones. He only responded when clients reached out first."

Eugene was cautious. He mainly sold information but avoided making dangerous requests. Even when selling information, he priced it relatively low, fearing that a high price might provoke resentment.

The client who gave Kang Eugene the most trouble was Moon Ji-hyuk. Chat logs showed that while he was curt with other clients, he was polite and respectful with Ji-hyuk.

"Well, he is a detective. He must be scared."

He even sold information worth over a million won for just 300,000 won.

I clicked my tongue in disapproval.

"What a coward! What's the point of being a genius hacker if you're a chicken?"

I messaged one of his clients, Han Sung-woon, a journalist.

Taker: I have some good information for you. Interested?

Five minutes later, Han Sung-woon replied. Incidentally, 'T Messenger' developed by Eugene, was also available as an app.

Han Sung-woon was the son of the chairman of the renowned newspaper, Hankook Ilbo. Currently, he is building his track record as an editor to inherit the chairman's position.

Han Sung-woon: This is the first time you're contacting me first.

Taker: Are you buying or not?

Han Sung-woon: Your tone seems different. Is this someone else?

Taker: I need money urgently. Are you buying or not?

There was no immediate reply. He must have been taken aback by Taker's change in demeanor. I waited patiently.

"He's a paying client, so a few minutes won't hurt."

Han Sung-woon: Your information has always been reliable.

Han Sung-woon: Let's hear it. What do you have?

Han Sung-woon: But it better be good.

Taker: A secret meeting between a member of the National Assembly and a Japanese senator. How about that?

Han Sung-woon: ...That's huge. But it's not enough on its own. What were they discussing?

Taker: Economy. The National Assembly member took a bribe.

I responded succinctly.

Currently, the economic relationship between South Korea and Japan is at its worst. There's a nationwide boycott of Japanese goods in South Korea, and Japan is taking a hard stance in response.

This information is extremely valuable under these circumstances.

Han Sung-woon was well aware of this. Hankook Ilbo was also large enough to handle it.

Han Sung-woon: Alright. How much?

Taker: 200 million won.

Han Sung-woon: ...That's too expensive. It's valuable, but not that much.

Taker: I have solid evidence. Hankook Ilbo can leverage this to gain more than double. This is about a National Assembly member betraying the country. The damage to him and his party will be enormous. 200 million is a steal.

Taker: And three Korean companies are involved too.

Taker: I need money urgently, so I'm giving it cheap.

200 million was indeed cheap.

Once this information goes public, it will cause an uproar in South Korea. Using this information to blackmail the Assembly member or companies is also an option.

"I don't need to resort to such methods to make money, so I'm selling it cheap."

That would take at least a week, possibly months.

I couldn't afford it at that time. Moon Ji-hyuk must have already become a vampire. I had no time to waste.

Han Sung-woon: ...Alright. Should I transfer the money to the same account as before?

Taker: No. I'll give you a different account. Transfer 100 million won as a down payment first.

After a while, Han Sung-woon replied.

Han Sung-woon: I've transferred the money.

Taker: I'll send the documents via email. There are some photos too, so it's solid. Confirm and then complete the payment, okay?

Ten minutes later, I got a reply.

Han Sung-woon: I've transferred the remaining amount. How do you get this kind of information?

Taker: It's a secret. Take care.

How does a hacker get information? Of course, by hacking. For the record, this information came from the National Intelligence Service.

"Well, Eugene is actually really skilled. He even hacks into American corporations. He's just too scared to mess with the US government."

Eugene hacked the NIS simply because he underestimated them. He was confident he wouldn't get caught.

I contacted other clients as well.

I didn't demand exorbitant amounts like with Han Sung-woon. He was a special case as the heir to Hankook Ilbo. For other clients, I asked for a minimum of 3 million won, sometimes tens of millions.

I didn't just deal with clients here. The information I had could be used in other ways.

I opened the computer drawer. There were more than ten burner phones.

I picked one and sent a message to someone.

Taker: Yo! Pro baseball star Kim Choo-young!

Taker: I'm Johnson.

Taker: Don't ignore this if you want to stay alive.

I sent him some photos I had scraped from the dark web. They were gruesome enough to make anyone nauseous.

A minute later, he replied.

Kim Choo-young: I don't know who you are, but this is too much. I'll report you to the police.

Taker: Report? Are you kidding?

Taker: How about counter-suing, you drug addict?

There was no reply. Kim Choo-young must have been shocked. One of the top pro baseball players in Korea was actually maintaining his performance through drugs.

I continued sending photos. They were from Nate, a white English teacher in the US. Kim Choo-young bought drugs from him.

Taker: And you committed adultery? With your teammate's wife? Isn't that too much?

Taker: Your wife's number starts with 9598, right?

Kim Choo-young: ...What do you want?

Taker: Money. Transfer 30 million to this account, and nothing will happen.

Kim Choo-young: How can I trust you?

Taker: Don't trust me. But you're making a lot of money. Do you want to risk it over 30 million?

Taker: You seem hesitant. Let me help you decide.

Taker: I'm texting your wife.

I really sent a text. It said, "Aren't you managing your husband properly, you bitch?" I swear, I sent it without much thought.

Kim Choo-young: Please don't involve my wife.

Kim Choo-young: I'll transfer the money.

Kim Choo-young: Please don't contact me again.

Taker: Okay, take care.

In five hours, I made a total of 300 million won. It took Kang Eugene years of careful work to earn that much, and I made it in just five hours.

"To be honest, I was careful too."

Eugene's computer had an enormous amount of incriminating information. I carefully selected and used only the ones that wouldn't backfire.

"Still, 300 million isn't enough. I need at least a billion."

After some thought, I put my hands on the keyboard again. The next person was a dangerous character from the original story.

Taker: Hey! Hey!

Taker: I know it's late, but answer me.

Taker: It's urgent.

Taker: I'm in a hurry.

Taker: Urgent.

Taker: Really urgent.

Taker: Urgent.

Taker: Come on.

Taker: Come on.

Taker: Come on.

Kang Wook-sung: Who are you?

Finally, a reply.

Kang Wook-sung was a broker who specialized in money laundering.

I knew his secret. Kang Wook-sung was a fake identity. He was an expatriate Korean from the UK and a vampire.

His real affiliation was with 'Cantra' a secret vampire organization in Europe.

Taker: It's me.

Kang Wook-sung: Taker doesn't talk like this. Did you kill him?

Taker: Kill him? I am Taker.

Taker: This is my real personality.

Taker: I've been acting coy because I didn't know you well.

Kang Wook-sung: So, you think you know me now?

Taker: Vampire, UK. Cantra. Or do you prefer being called Jay? Or Jaden?

Jay was a nickname, and Jaden was his real name.

Kang Wook-sung: How did you know?

Kang Wook-sung remained calm. His attitude showed his experience. I smiled. A calm opponent was preferable. I was going to propose a deal.

Taker: You haven't forgotten my nickname, right?

Taker: Let's get to the point.

Taker: I need 300 million laundered.

Kang Wook-sung: 300 million? That's too much. Discussing this over chat is risky.

Kang Wook-sung: To launder it the way we've been doing it, it would take three weeks.

If Kang Eugene were here, he would have agreed immediately for safety. But not me.

Taker: I'll come to see you tomorrow evening. Isn't your pawnshop in Yuksong-dong?

Kang Wook-sung: You're coming in person? Knowing I'm a vampire?

Taker: I'm not coming to fight.

Taker: I need the money urgently. And I have information worth 700 million. Interested? Cash only.

Kang Wook-sung: This conversation is too fast. I can't follow.

Taker: It's simple. We make a deal.

Taker: The list of vampire hunters from the Korean Black Cross.

Taker: This should be worth 700 million, right?

The Black Cross is an organization of vampire hunters, the biggest threat to vampires. Kang Wook-sung was acting as a broker in Korea to monitor and gather information on Korean vampire hunters.

Kang Wook-seong: Are you talking about the entire country, not just Seoul?

Taker: Yeah.

Kang Wook-seong: If your information is real, I'd be willing to pay even 1 billion won for it.

Taker: It's real. You can verify it tomorrow. Oh, and make sure the 1 billion is in cash. Also, money laundering fees are excluded. Can you handle that?

Kang Wook-seong: It's difficult to prepare 1 billion immediately.

Taker: How much do you have?

Kang Wook-seong: 400 million. I'll need about three days to get the remaining 600 million.

Taker: Fine, give me the 400 million first.

Kang Wook-seong: Understood. But remember, if the information isn't accurate, you're dead.

Taker: It's accurate, so I'll be fine.

I turned off the messenger.

In truth, Kang Eugene's computer didn't have the list of vampire hunters from the Korean Black Cross. I had to go get it tomorrow.

I closed my eyes and reviewed the plan.

Well, there wasn't much of a plan. It wouldn't take more than five minutes if things went my way.

'…Should I call for a call, girl?'

I seriously considered it but then held back.

***

The next day.

I headed to Apgujeong. This was where the Korean Black Cross headquarters were located.

'Found it.'

It wasn't hard to find. I knew the location and appearance of the building from watching dramas.

It was a building with over ten floors. There were security guards near the entrance, and you needed a key card to get inside. It looked like a secure company from the outside.

A large bus was parked opposite the building, probably for commuting.

I stood in front of the main gate, blatantly looking up at the building, and pulled out my burner phone. I could feel the security guard eyeing me.

'The building height doesn't exceed 30 meters. Well, it wouldn't matter if it did.'

[Hacking successful]

[You can hack Kim Seo-jin's computer for 3 minutes]

I hacked into a random computer inside the building and infiltrated the Black Cross's network.

'Found it. The Korean Black Cross personnel list.'

A total of 913 members. Among them, 174 were combatants who fought vampires with their lives on the line—vampire hunters.

'Too easy.'

While looking at my smartphone, I headed towards a nearby burger joint.

Thud!

As I walked, I bumped shoulders with someone. I looked up from my phone to see a scowling man and another who seemed to be his companion.

I recognized them immediately.

They were vampire hunters, Park Ki-joo and Jo Joo-hyun.

"Hey, it's rude to look at your phone while walking. Be careful, okay?" Park Ki-joo said it obnoxiously.

I sneered at them.

"You should be careful too."

"What?"

Ignoring them, I walked towards the burger joint.

"Ki-joo, stop. You know we're in a hurry."

"I've got time to teach this punk some manners."

"No, you don't. Do you want to write another report? The headquarters is already tense because of those damn mosquitoes. Do you want to add to the trouble?"

"Fine. I get it."

Just as I was about to open the door to the burger joint,.

[Hacking successful]

[You can hack the large bus for 15 seconds]

Vroom! Crash!

Suddenly, the large bus parked opposite the building accelerated and smashed through the glass doors at the entrance.

I glanced at the building.

Park Ki-joo got hit head-on. I couldn't see his body, but blood was pooling on the ground.

Jo Joo-hyun was hit as well, but not as severely. Even with immediate medical attention, he'd be left with life-changing injuries.

'Should've been careful.'

Just taking out the persistent Park Ki-joo was a big win. He was one of the vampire hunters who constantly tormented Moon Ji-hyuk and was highly likely to be a future obstacle for me.

One of the biggest threats is now gone.

This brought me one step closer to my true objective—the Life Orb.