Chapter 359

I wonder what I had been thinking about before I fell asleep last night.

Unfortunately, I couldn't remember. What I did know was that roughly 240 minutes had passed since I was last awake.

Tskkk, tskkk, tskkk.

After spending two straight months absorbed in research, I had been trying to restore my ruined daily routine.

Today was Wednesday morning.

I woke to the alarm I had set beforehand, and for some reason, merely knowing that the day's name contained the character for “water” put me in an unusually good mood.

[National Tax Service]

Contrary to expectations, a message was waiting on the phone I had just turned on.

The National Tax Service? Out of nowhere?

[Inquiry phone number: 1588-*, *-]

‘Could this be a scam? Hunters already have their income tax withheld in advance whenever we work...’

This was a world where so-called spam messages were commonplace.

Normally, I paid little attention whenever something arrived from an unknown sender. But this time, for some reason, an inexplicable sense of unease crept over me.

Just in case, I decided to call the number listed in the message.

It wasn't long after dialing the so-called inquiry number that a familiar recorded message reached my ears.

All of our operators are someone's family or friend. Continued use of abusive language may result in termination of the call.

When the announcement ended, a male operator answered.

But to my surprise, as soon as the identity verification process was completed using my resident registration number and a few other details, the operator spoke in an exceptionally courteous voice.

“Ah—you’re calling about your overseas income declaration. Strictly speaking, you can't make the payment yet, but for hunters facing particularly large tax bills, we've been issuing advance notices as a precaution.”

“Yes?”

“Kim Giryeo-ssi, it has been confirmed that beginning in February of next year, you will be liable for 40,035,248,900 won in taxes.”

“Yes?”

“Installment payments are available, of course.”

This operator...

What in the world had he been talking about this entire time?

‘There were taxes I still had to pay separately?’

But no matter how many times I checked, I hadn't misheard him.

Attached to the three-character name Kim Giryeo was an additional tax liability.

.......

Forty billion.

.......

I was so stunned that a single phrase kept circling through my head.

“That much?”

Anyway...

What kind of bolt-from-the-blue disaster was this supposed to be?

***

[Text Message]

[Sender: Hunter Kim Giryeo]

[Subject: Please Save Me]

A few hours later.

Seoul.

The Hunter Association branch south of the Han River.

“Hello. First of all, did you get a chance to read the message I sent?”

“Yes?”

“I came because, as I wrote there, I need your help.”

Let me make one thing clear.

There were only so many people an outsider could rely on.

The moment a certain alien realized he was facing a crisis, he came straight here.

Fortunately, despite it being a weekday, the other person readily made time for him. And so, just as they had done many times before, the two were able to speak during her lunch break.

“Hunter Kim Giryeo, just so we're clear, I'm not a National Tax Service employee.”

“I know.”

“You came to me despite knowing this isn't my area of expertise?”

“You're a friend I made precisely so I could make use of you in situations like this. If not now, when?”

“Sir, I'm sorry to say this, but I think you've learned the meaning of the word ‘friend’ a little strangely.”

Government official Seonwoo Yeon stood before the alien with an indescribable expression.

“Is that so? Well, we can correct my vocabulary later. Right now, this is urgent—”

But before she could properly express her feelings, the other party spoke again.

“Seonwoo Yeon-ssi, do you happen to know how to issue a joint certificate?”

“Yes.”

“Then could you issue one in my name? I need to check something, and apparently it's required.”

The man standing before her was clearly young enough to dye his hair for fashion.

And yet, for some inexplicable reason, Seonwoo Yeon suddenly found herself thinking of her late grandfather.

There was no time to dwell on it.

“Alright. Please wait a moment. I'll go get my laptop.”

Even though his face doesn't show anything, I can practically feel him pacing back and forth.

It must really be urgent.

Association employee Seonwoo Yeon soon returned with her personal computer.

“Hunter, just so you know, you'll need to change the password later to something only you know. This certificate is extremely important, so you must never let anyone else get access to it.”

“Yes.”

“By the way, which bank do you use for your main account?”

“Sunhwan Bank.”

At this point, the kindhearted Earth official still hadn't grasped the gravity of the situation.

“Alright. The certificate has been issued. And you can check the national tax information you're curious about on the website by clicking here, then here...”

As they continued through the process, that familiar number gradually appeared on the screen.

“Huh? There's a transaction showing 100 billion won in income from a company called Imabari. Is this the payment from the Kagoshima Gate operation?”

“Probably.”

A sum of money beyond anything even a B-rank hunter could imagine.

The long-haired woman glanced at the screen once more before continuing calmly.

“Well, anyway, taxes on income from overseas hunts do tend to show up at rather unexpected times.”

“...”

“There isn't any particularly complicated reason for it. In the past, one country caused a major problem while settling payment with overseas hunters...”

“...”

“So now the procedure has to pass through the international association, which makes things a little more complicated. But as far as I know, if you apply for a deferment, you can pay in May just like an ordinary sole proprietor.”

But that wasn't the real issue.

“So what exactly was the problem that made you come all the way here in such a hurry?”

“The tax... I think the number is wrong. The amount seems strange...”

Seonwoo Yeon blinked her clear eyes and began checking the situation.

“You mean the amount Imabari actually paid you is different from what's written here?”

“No.”

“Then what's strange about it?”

“The part where they take forty percent of the money I earned as tax...”

She had never imagined that this was what had brought him here.

“Hunter, it's because you earn a lot of money. That's how taxes work for high earners.”

“That's how it works?!”

Click, click.

The Alphasri raised his voice.

Meanwhile, the good-natured local continued working the laptop, sincerely trying to help him.

“Anyway, if the amount shown here is the amount you actually received, then this tax rate is correct.”

“It is? Really...?”

“When the National Tax Service sends you the official notice next year, take it to a professional tax accountant. I can recommend a few places I know.”

Come to think of it, Seonwoo Yeon knew that S-rank hunters normally paid substantial taxes anyway.

After all, enormous fees were involved every time they handled high-value loot from dungeons.

So why was this alien only making such a fuss now?

“Hmm?”

Seonwoo Yeon's family had been involved in the automobile business, so she knew a little about taxation.

As various thoughts passed through her mind, a sudden doubt arose.

Then, when she looked over again, she saw the expressionless man standing rigidly in place, almost as though he had forgotten to breathe.

Could it be...?

Seonwoo Yeon cautiously asked,

“By the way... you do have the money to pay next year's taxes, right?”

No answer came.

“You do... right?”

It was difficult to imagine a more terrifying possibility.

Standing beside the low fence outside the Hunter Association, both of them suddenly shuddered.

The black-haired woman spoke again, her voice trembling like a goat's.

“You earned 100 billion won this year, so why wouldn't you have enough money left to pay the tax? A-and... exactly how much are you short?”

“Based on the balance in my bank account, I'm currently short by roughly 30 billion won.”

Oh my God.

Seeing Seonwoo Yeon's utterly stunned expression, the alien nervously confessed the truth.

“Almost all of the 100 billion I received from Imabari was spent at once making these gloves.”

Now that she looked, his hands were indeed covered in black leather gloves.

The weather had been cold lately, and judging from the thick, glossy leather wrapped around his hands, they certainly looked like something made from expensive material.

But that wasn't what mattered right now.

“Th-then what about selling those, at least, and turning them back into cash? No matter how much of an S-rank hunter you are, earning that much money again all at once would be... Well, something about this doesn't seem right...”

“Would it be difficult?”

“The number of high-difficulty gates is steadily increasing, yes, but that doesn't mean the danger level of the monsters is directly proportional to how valuable their drops are...”

This was serious.

Seonwoo Yeon suggested the simple solution of selling the [Midnight Gloves], but that was one option the alien could never accept.

“We can't sell these on Earth.”

The [Midnight ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) Gloves] were, in essence, equivalent to a semi-automatic handgun.

Handing technology like this directly to primitive humans who had only just learned to build campfires would be recklessly dangerous.

“If some clever mammal got their hands on them and started researching them, everything would be over.”

Cold sweat ran down Kim Giryeo's gaunt face.

“Besides, selling the house I just bought would be difficult too. The purchase price includes acquisition tax and the fees I paid to hire a notary, so I'd take a huge loss.”

How in the world had the day come to this?

“This is the government's fault! They should have warned me in advance that I'd have to pay such an enormous amount!”

“Calm down.”

“How was an alien supposed to know about this?”

He lowered his voice.

Kim Giryeo leaned closer and whispered urgently to Seonwoo Yeon.

The Earthling showed a momentary hint of discomfort when he abruptly closed the distance, but it quickly disappeared.

“Huh? Wait a second. Hunter Kim Giryeo, I checked because something seemed strange.”

“What?”

“The National Tax Service already sent you a related notice several months ago. There's a record of it right here.”

Tak.

Seonwoo Yeon pointed at one part of the screen with the cursor.

“...More precisely, it was sent to the mailbox of the one-room apartment that collapsed in that accident some time ago...”

A brief chill settled between them.

“Hunter Kim Giryeo.”

“Yes.”

“Since your home collapsed back then, you've moved recently, haven't you?”

“Yes.”

“I'm sorry to be asking this only now, but... do you happen to know what a change-of-address notification is?”

“I don't know.”