In his customary ironed suit, Aiden stepped out onto the landing, leaned against the railing, took a cigarette out of the packet with one wave of his hand, and flicked it on his lip, where it, ignited itself. Self-igniting cigarettes were an innovation of the magical society, though magic had touched and changed all areas of human endeavor.

Blowing smoke into the still morning air, he pulled out his phone and flipped through the morning news bulletin of Korea.

"In France, with the help of a spatial energy wizard, a new space shuttle capable of going beyond the solar system was able to be built, also..."

Aiden scrolled down.

"The 26th Magic Battle Tournament is coming up, get your tickets early, May 14, China, Chongqing, rumor has it that this year's participants will be Blue Bull from Germany, Hammer of Ice from Denmark, Pearl Knight of Korea, Rushing ....."

Scrolled down again.

" A grand occasion in the History of Korea! Last night, at approximately 8:43 PM, the team of Korea's top 1 Hunter, Lim Ho, called "Heart of Peace Pulsation," was able to sweep an A++ class dungeon! Thus, they became the sixth in human history to make this achievement a reality. Rumor has it that the Stone Spear Shaman of the squad was seriously injured during the battle with the dungeon boss and is now in critical condition, this information is now confirmed..."

Aiden took his eyes off the screen, blew smoke into the air again in a perfectly circular ring, tucked his phone into his pocket, and walked down the street. As he stepped out onto the spacious asphalt road, his eye was immediately caught by two pieces of cardboard lying in the middle of the road, swaying miserably in the wind.

Odd, usually they do not part with them... - he thought.

Making a small note in the back of his mind, he turned around and walked alone towards the Seoul subway.

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- How is she!? Is she okay!?!? - In a worried voice, Hyun Yu shouted at the doctor who had just approached.

- Yes... Her life is not in danger. You can rest easy Mrs." - The doctor gently replied. "However, because of the severe shock, she fell into a coma for an unknown period of time, so the physical injuries are not the worst thing in her case. I think that when she wakes up, there is a possibility of her having a serious mental disorder, for which she will probably be suspended from Hunter status indefinitely."

Hyun Yu started crying. Lim Ho soothingly took her by the shoulders, but said nothing. Behind them, the twins Hwang Jeong and Hwang Young, drooped their heads, unable to look up, not surprisingly, they had only themselves to blame for what had happened, they were responsible for the safety of the team, but had failed in the only task they had set out to do. After leaving the dungeon they both didn't say a word, walking sullenly around like zombies, exchanging glances between them that only twins who had lived together all their lives could understand.

In the corridor behind Lim Ho, a bald, muscular man in a black suit came up beside him and stared at him meaningfully, constantly saying something into a microwire.

- Excuse me a moment." - Lim Ho said, letting go of Hyun Yu, who was silent and thinking about something.

Lim Ho approached the man and asked haughtily: "Did you find out anything about what I asked you?"

The man looked Lim Ho straight in the eye and confidently replied, "Sorry Master, no one with such abilities and level of strength is registered in Korea nor in the World Hunter Database. Either that person is hiding their abilities, or is not registered with the system at all."

- Then check all people with mirror abilities or similar abilities who are currently in Korea." - Roughly ordered Lim Ho.

- Yes master." - The bald man quickly turned on his heel and staggered further down the corridor, where he soon disappeared around a corner.

Lim Ho watched him go. Suddenly, his cheek flared up in a sharp pain, and he touched his fingers to the bandage on the wound left by the sharp rock. His eyebrows slowly crept down, turning his face into a grimace of disgust and anger. He tore the bandage off violently and threw it against the wall, then staggered out of the hospital, walking in a sweeping stride toward the exit, the only sight his crew could see was his pale cloak, his white hair, and his visibly hunched back.

- Is he gonna be all right? - Looking after him, Hwang Young asked, speaking up for the first time since leaving the dungeon.

- It's Lim Ho, not many people can trip him up." - Hyeon Yu said confidently. - You boys go ahead, I'll sit here and keep an eye on So Yun."

- But..." - Hwang Jeong attempted.

- No buts, go." - She turned to the twins and stared at them with a hint of menace.

They were unwilling to argue with her in that state, so they left without saying anything back.

Hyun Yu was now alone in the hallway, she leaned her forehead against the cold wall and whispered to herself, "How could this happen?" The answer was the silent emptiness of the corridor and the distant ringing of the phone coming from the registration desk.

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Aiden stood on the street, in his usual uncomfortable suit, in the midst of the people scurrying by, looking up at the giant glass colossus called the skyscraper. Somewhere up there, on the 38th floor, was his office. He raised his hand to his chest level, and then snapped his fingers softly. At that moment the whole multi-ton building trembled as if it suffered a small earthquake, people around Aiden looked up and stared at the building in mild fright, but since there was no second tremor, they went back to their business. Aiden liked to do this, it was a kind of ritual that soothed his ego and mental state, this way, he reminded himself that he could destroy the skyscraper at any time he wished, just to get rid of the damn job and responsibilities.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

Fixing his tie, he stepped inside, greeted the guards, stepped into the crowded elevator, and went up to the right floor. When the doors opened, the first thing that greeted him was a pungent, stuffy smell and the loud clacking of computer keys from all directions. Aiden quickly bypassed those talking on the phone dummies and made his way to his cubicle, pressed his finger on the computer's power button, and leaned back in his chair.

- Hey! Aidy! Hi there! You're kind of late today. More insomnia? I told ya to stop snorting those energy drinks of yours and watching soap operas at night, the lack of good sleep can be detrimental to your health!"

From behind a nearby cubicle, on a bright yellow chair, rolled out a young curly-haired guy in his twenties, wearing huge round glasses and freckles on his face, which is not typical of Koreans and Aiden wondered if he glued them on himself every day. This guy was Aiden's only friend, Hyun-Bin, an ordinary simple-minded kid, unassuming in appearance and drooling in character, but quite intelligent for his age.

- No, I slept like a dead man. And anyway, since when are you interested in my health, Binny?" - said Aiden, not turning to face his companion; instead, he was reading new e-mails on the computer.

- Ever since I took over as your trainer! Look how squishy you are, you can't pick up girls with that kind of muscle." - Hyun Bin pushed off the floor with his foot, traveled a couple of meters to touch Aiden's muscles meaningfully. To his surprise, Aiden's thin hand was as hard as twisted bars.

- First of all, you're not much of a trainer, and second of all, I don't really care about the attention of the opposite sex. - Aiden took a piece of paper and scribbled something on it on the monitor screen.

Hyun Bin's eyes slid over the piece of paper, and he clicked his tongue and grumpily muttered: "All work again, do you ever have any fun, huh? Aidy?"

- I have my own ways of having fun and I do it on strictly separate time from work."

- Pfft. You're such a douche. What was I talking about? Oh, yeah! I'm setting up a double date with two lovely ladies and I need one responsible, handsome, nice friend to..."

- I got it, I got it. Just text me where to go." - Aiden replied, packing up his things and heading for the exit of the office.

- Thanks, bro!" - shouted Hyun Bin after him, receiving angry looks from his colleagues all around him.

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The huge slums consisting of numerous apartment buildings stretched for kilometers, near one of these houses stood a young man in a suit, he took out a sheet of paper from his inside pocket and looked at the written address " 73-4, Wolgog 1(il)-dong, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul", having checked the house number, he went up to the second floor of the musty house and knocked on the right door. There was no answer, but Aiden could clearly hear the sounds of presence coming from inside the apartment. He knocked a second time, more insistently. There was incoherent cursing and swearing from behind the door, the lock clicked twice, when a man appeared in the open door. A man with a huge bald head, a fat, meaty, red nose, puffy lips, and cloudy eyes, wearing a white T-shirt with a huge yellow, oily spot on his belly.

- What do you want?" - shouted the fat man at Aiden, spitting spit on Aiden's suit.

- Hello Mr. Min Jun, my name is Aiden Seo and I am from the Emerald Dragon Guild, 6 months ago you took out a loan from us for 3,000,000 Won, the deadline for paying this loan expired yesterday, so I hereby declare that if you do not pay it within 7 days, we will have to take your house and everything of value as collateral. The deadline for repayment begins when the customer is notified by the officer responsible for enforcing loan repayment, that is me." - With a complete poker face, Aiden said the phrase he'd learned, then looked at his wristwatch and added: "The countdown is on."

The man named Min Jun turned visibly pale and frowned, now looking more like an over-ripe tomato. With a wry smile, he took a swipe of his saliva and spat right on the boots of the nonchalantly standing Aiden.

- Get the fuck out of here! I owe you a fuckin' nothing!" - shouted Min jun, grabbing the doorknob in his hand and closing the door behind him with a forceful, visibly palpable slam.

However, Min Jun failed to close it as the door slammed into Aiden's outstretched hand in the doorway.

- Hey bitch, you wanna fight?" - Min Jun became angry, now clearly radiating aggression. His hands suddenly began to become covered in huge brown-colored excrescences, remotely resembling mud, making something like huge unsightly gauntlets.

- Mr. Min Jun, it is a criminal offense to illegally use superpowers in order to endanger a person's life. Please don't force me to retaliate and let's settle this peacefully." - Aiden went on just as nonchalantly, not removing his hand from the doorway.

The response was a sharp swing of a huge, hundred-pound fist, heavy enough to kill a man of uncommon ability. Without blinking, Aiden swung his head slightly sideways and the fist passed a few centimeters from his face. Faint irritation flashed in his eyes.

- Why does it always have to be like this? Can't someone just pay the debt and avoid the bloodshed, each time it's the same thing..." - asked Aiden more of himself than Min Jun.

The latter, however, ignoring the nonsense the young man was uttering in front of him, along with a furious, low growl, swung a second fist aimed at the torso of the grimly black-suited opponent standing before him. A few centimeters from Aiden's torso, the fist stopped, as if stopped by invisible forces. The improvised gauntlet of unidentified material collapsed into many pieces, crashing to the concrete floor with a clatter.

- WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" - audible throughout the nearby streets, a guttural scream full of pain and anguish erupted. Min Jun fell to his knees, holding his healthy hand to his other, bloody hand. The entire injured arm was covered with hundreds of pinky-length cuts. From each cut, with a tugging, agonizing coldness, beautiful clear shards of glass were coming out. They emerged slowly from the flesh, causing such excruciating pain to Min Jun that he could not stop squealing like a pig in a slaughterhouse.

Aiden calmly stepped over Min Jun's fetal-looking body and entered his apartment, surveying its surroundings. A mountain of unwashed dishes, hundreds of paid delivery receipts lay on the floor, and a string of dirty, unwashed clothes hung across the room. There was a TV set against a bare wall, and an unsightly-looking bed with dozens of beer cans and used tissues lying around it.

Aiden sighed again. There was nothing to take. He turned to Min Jun, who was still beating in agony, swiped a finger in the air, and the shards whistled out into the sky and dissolved in a vague flicker. From nearby windows and doors, onlookers gawked at the scene, some even calling the police.

Aiden walked over to the client lying on the floor and leaned over him. A piece of paper appeared out of nowhere in his hands, he scribbled something on it and stuffed it in Min-Jun's pocket. Then, he stood up, put his hands in his own pockets, and looked down at Min Jun, who was looking back at him with eyes full of horror.

- Due to the unforeseen circumstances that led to the physical injury of the client, our Emerald Dragon Guild, will take care of all medical expenses, and also, we will not be making any claims to the magical authorities for assaulting an official with unauthorized use of superpowers. So further on the point, your debt, Mr. Min Jun, is now 2,000,000 Won. You have 30 working days to pay your debt, and if you don't pay it in the time allotted, I will pay you another visit. Sincerely, your responsible magical loan repayment agent, Aiden Seo."

After hearing what was said, Min Jun, with his eyes swollen with tears, passed out. Somewhere in the distance, the siren of a rushing ambulance could already be heard. Aiden lit a cigarette and, exhaling the smoke, strolled through the doctors running in their gowns to the subway entrance, back to the office.