Former Ranker's Newbie Life-Chapter 48

In a city where outsiders constantly came and went, tracking down a single person was no easy task. If this had been his past life, Do-Jin could have relied on the Adventurers’ Guild for assistance. If that wasn’t an option, he could have gone straight to the lord and requested a deployment of soldiers. His reputation, built through countless monster hunts and quests, along with his status as a Rank 1 adventurer, would have ensured that his words carried weight.

But right now, he was nothing more than a Rank 10 adventurer. The guild wouldn’t take him seriously, and the lord’s guards would likely dismiss him outright. Running around yelling that a priest from the Cult of Ruin was lurking in the city wouldn’t accomplish anything. At best, he’d be ignored. At worst, he’d be accused of spreading baseless rumors and thrown into a cell beneath the lord’s manor.

If asking nicely wasn’t an option, then the solution was simple. He just had to find people who didn’t need explanations, people who would move if given the right incentive. Experience told him that certain kinds of individuals were much better at locating someone than any official channel.

With that in mind, Do-Jin made his way to the darkest corners of the slums, where the lowest of the low gathered. It was a place no one wanted to acknowledge, filled with criminals, beggars, and those who had fallen through the cracks.

Despite the morning light outside, the alleys here were dim, as if permanent twilight had settled over them. Scattered throughout the filth, figures slumped against walls and hunched in corners. Their dull and lifeless eyes flicked toward him the moment he stepped in. They didn’t speak, but he felt their stares, evaluating and waiting. They were watching for weakness.

Do-Jin ignored them and kept walking as his gaze swept the surroundings. Every city had its own rules for dealing with outsiders who wandered into places like this. Here, the right approach would determine whether he got the information he needed or ended up robbed and bleeding out in a gutter. He needed to make an impression fast.

Like clockwork, someone stepped forward. “Well, well, you don’t really fit in here, do you? This part of town isn’t safe. Got business, or are you just lost? If you’re looking for a woman, I know a few places that’d suit your tastes.”

She had the sultry, teasing tone of someone who made a living off seduction, but Do-Jin wasn’t buying it. Beneath the revealing clothing, he caught the subtle outline of concealed weapons. Her movements were too controlled for an ordinary street worker. The hardened calluses on her hands made it even clearer that this wasn’t just some woman selling company for the night. She was a knife fighter.

She watched him closely, no doubt trying to gauge whether he was worth scamming, stabbing, or both.

Although Do-Jin gave no reaction, he took a step back and played along. “Off-the-market goods, huh?”

He had a good idea of what she meant, but keeping her talking was the best way to get information. If there was one thing he’d picked up over the years, it was that letting the other person guide the conversation always made them more comfortable.

“Off-the-market goods are exactly that. It’s the stuff you can’t buy no matter how much gold you throw around in the nice part of town. Could be someone real young. Could be the kind of girl who doesn’t mind a little roughhousing, as long as you pay extra. Or maybe you prefer the ones that don’t fight back at all?”

She leaned in, her voice a sultry whisper. “Tell me what you want. I can set you up with something... disposable. No strings attached, no questions asked. Hell, you can even break ’em if that’s your thing. We’ll clean up the mess for a price.”

Do-Jin let her filth spill out without interrupting, filtering out every sickening word. On the surface, he kept up the act, just enough interest to keep her talking.

When she least expected it, he cut her off. “Tempting as that all sounds, I’ve got more pressing business. I’m looking for someone.”

Her entire demeanor shifted. The playful smirk tightened into something colder and sharper. She thought he was here to hunt someone down, maybe some bastard who owed the wrong people money or had a bounty on his head.

Do-Jin caught the subtle movement before she even finished processing her suspicion. One of her hands drifted lower, slipping past the flimsy scrap of fabric covering her chest, reaching for whatever blade she had tucked away. No way was he letting her pull steel on him.

He quickly said in a low voice, “Relax. I’m not here for trouble. I’m not after anyone from your little operation. I need to find an outsider and I figured someone in your line of work would know exactly how to track people down. Of course, I’m willing to pay for the service.”

That made her hesitate. Her fingers stayed near her hidden weapon, but the tension in her shoulders eased just a little.

“Hmm, that’s an interesting request,” she said, tilting her head. “Problem is, I don’t run that kind of business. Here at my place, we sell fantasies, sweetheart. One-night romance for lonely men. Not missing persons.”

Do-Jin laughed under his breath. And the stray dogs in the alley held book clubs.

“Sure. You’re just running a simple, honest business. So when you talk about ‘off-the-market goods’ and ‘clean-up services,’ that’s got nothing to do with human trafficking or corpse disposal, huh?”

She clicked her tongue in irritation. Gone was her fake sweetness. Now, she was sizing him up properly.

“I was hoping you’d get scared and run off on your own. Guess I shouldn’t have had that extra drink last night and let my mouth run too much.” Then, her eyes sharpened. “So, you’re really just here for an outsider? Got no interest in this little corner of the world?”

He shook his head.

“If you’re lying, I promise you, you won’t like what happens next,” she murmured. Her gaze flicked down to his wrist, catching sight of the faint rune-like markings peeking from beneath his sleeve. “You’re a mage, aren’t you? Listen, I don’t give a fuck how good you think your magic is. If you walk around this place thinking you’re untouchable, you’ll end up with a few extra holes in you before the night’s over.”

The moment she finished speaking, a blade appeared in her hand. It was thin, sharp, and quick as a viper. He hadn’t even seen her draw it. It was certainly impressive. Most small-time thugs had shitty posture and clunky movements, but she was quick and efficient, with no wasted motion. In this part of town, she was probably a big deal.

Do-Jin nudged the blade away from his stomach, making it clear he wasn’t looking for a fight. “You don’t have to warn me. I know exactly how dangerous a knife in close quarters can be. And I’m not stupid enough to start shit in a place where I’m outnumbered.”

“Haha. Just setting foot here was a dumb move.”

Her blade vanished just as quickly as it had appeared. Then, with a sharp turn, she gestured for him to follow. As they moved deeper into the alleyways, Do-Jin could feel the weight of a hundred unseen eyes pressing down on him.

They weren’t just watching. They were measuring him, waiting for the smallest excuse to put a blade in him. These weren’t the desperate eyes of common thieves looking for an easy mark. The hostility was different, sharp and barely contained. It silently screamed, Step out of line and you won’t be leaving in one piece.

After weaving through the filth-ridden maze of the slums, the woman finally stopped in front of a decrepit building. The smell of damp rot clung to the air and the stairs leading down looked like they’d seen one too many bodies dragged through them. Without a word, she descended into the darkness.

“I’m back,” she said at the door, knocking twice on the black-painted wood.

The door cracked open just enough to reveal a man’s shadowed face.

“Who’s the guy?” he asked, nodding toward Do-Jin.

“A client.”

The doorman didn’t look convinced. His jaw worked as he rubbed his chin, exchanging a few silent glances with the woman before finally stepping aside. Inside was a pitch-black hallway. As they walked, a muffled sound echoed from somewhere nearby. The long, drawn-out moan made Do-Jin stop in his tracks.

The woman turned, smirking. “What’s wrong? Is that sound getting to you?” She chuckled, eyes glinting with amusement.

“What is it?”

“What do you think? Just the merchandise. Didn’t seem like you were completely disinterested earlier. Wanna take a look after you’re done with your business? Price is high, but you won’t find better. No strings attached, no consequences.”

Do-Jin glanced toward the direction of the sound, weighing his options. Then, he let out a short laugh and nodded. “Maybe I’ll check it out after I put in my request.”

“I knew it. Men with eyes like yours always like it rough.”

“Is that so? I always thought I had a pretty soft-looking face.”

“You’re joking, right?”

Do-Jin shrugged, masking his real thoughts behind a casual smirk.

Doesn’t matter if these bastards are wiped out when shit goes down, but if I can stop the Cult of Ruin, I might as well get the ones trapped here out first.

Even if there wasn’t a reward attached to it, even if it wasn’t a quest flagged by the system, leaving something like this alone was a fast track to regret. He knew that ignoring it now would only let it fester and come back to bite him later.

Soloing this job is already risky, but breaking people out is a whole different level of insanity. Gonna need to figure that part out later...

Whatever method he used, he needed a map of this place first. The layout, the exits, where they kept their “merchandise,” and every other detail mattered. Using Night Vision, he memorized all the twists and turns.

As he was mapping out the hall in his mind, the woman stopped. “Here we are.”

She pressed a hand against what looked like a regular stone wall, pushing it open to reveal something completely out of place.

The underground bar was sleek and polished, almost unsettlingly pristine compared to the surrounding filth. It looked less like a place that belonged in this slum and more like a high-end lounge that had somehow ended up here by accident. The place was packed with men who gave off the distinct vibe of belonging on wanted posters.

Do-Jin had barely taken it all in when one of them finally spoke.

“Move, Vickie. The fuck is this?” A bartender, built like a damn brick wall, eyed Do-Jin up and down before snorting. “You didn’t drag this pretty boy down here just to play with him, did you?”

Vickie, the woman, gave him an amused smile. “Relax. He’s a client. He wants us to find someone.”

The bartender let out a short laugh, but there was no humor in it. “You’re joking, right? You actually dragged him all the way down here for that?”

Vickie gestured toward Do-Jin. “Let’s hear it, whatever scheme he’s running, whoever’s backing him, or if he’s just some dumbass actually looking for someone... No need to worry about screams leaking out from this place.”

She dropped into a chair and left her once-concealed dagger on the table. The other men in the room followed suit, steel flashing as they drew their weapons, their movements slow and deliberate. As the tension in the air thickened, the bartender, clearly the one in charge, simply leaned against the counter and gave Do-Jin a lazy nod.

“I’m looking for someone who arrived in this city about a week, maybe ten days ago. He was wearing white robes, black mistflower embroidery.”

The bartender let out a dry chuckle, still wiping a glass as if this conversation barely interested him.

“Appreciate the faith in us, kid, but we ain’t miracle workers. You think we can track someone down in this shithole of a city with just that? If the bastard changed clothes, he’s as good as a ghost.”

“Faith? Not even close. I just know how you guys operate. You keep tabs on anyone who stands out. Whether they’re too dangerous, too easy to rob, or carrying a fat purse, it all goes on the list. A priest on pilgrimage would definitely have caught your attention. They always travel with a nice little stash for the road, after all.”

The bartender paused, turning the glass in his hand thoughtfully. “You got a point. Any priest passing through tends to catch the eyes of the local pickpockets. If one of ‘em was watching, we might be able to track him down. But—”

Before he could finish, Do-Jin reached into his robes and tossed a heavy pouch onto the table.

“One thousand gold. Down payment. You get me a name and a location, and you’ll get another thousand.”

Vickie whistled, spinning her dagger between her fingers. The bartender raised an eyebrow. Naturally, they were all surprised. Throwing down that much money just to find someone wasn’t normal.

“You sure you wanna be flashing this much cash in a place like this?” The bartender’s voice was mild, but his eyes sharpened. “What if we decide it’s easier to just gut you and take it instead?”

And here it was, the real test. If he looked even slightly weak, they’d rip him apart for everything he had. Bluffing was the only option. Do-Jin smirked with confidence, neither fear nor hesitation on his face. He seemed like a guy who knew exactly what he was doing.

“Don’t bother. You got it right. I’m just an errand boy... but let’s be real. If I’d thrown down chump change, you would’ve just slit my throat and laughed about it later. You’d really think some clueless mage wandered into the wrong part of town?”

The bartender chuckled, setting down his glass. “Interesting. I always figured mages spent too much time buried in books to understand how the real world works.”

He picked up the gold pouch, weighing it in his palm before tossing it backward. A woman materialized from the shadows, catching it effortlessly before disappearing through a hidden door that Do-Jin only just now noticed.

“We do keep an eye on people coming and going,” the bartender admitted, “but it’s a messy system. Information trickles in from all over, from pickpockets, fruit vendors, barmaids, even the city gate guards. Everyone feeds into the network, but sorting through that pile of shit to find one specific bastard will take time.”

“About how long?”

“Hmm. Give it an hour or two just to sift through what we already got. Another hour or two to spread the word to our sources. Then, a few more hours for someone to come back with something solid, assuming your priest is still in the city.”

“Faster is better. Cut that time down by two hours, and I’ll throw in an extra five hundred gold.”

“Sounds like your boss has deep pockets.”

Do-Jin shrugged. “Something like that.”

“Alright then. Where do we send the info when we get it?”

Before Do-Jin could answer, Vickie cut in. “No need to worry. He’ll be right here.”

The bartender shot her a questioning look. “What do you mean by that?”

“He wants to take a look at the merchandise while he waits.”

That got the bartender’s attention. He gave Do-Jin a long, appraising look. “Didn’t peg you for a man of fine tastes. Or is it your master who likes the expensive stuff? Either way, hope you find something you like.”

With a final nod, he signaled to Vickie before disappearing through the back door.

“Follow me,” Vickie said, leading the way.

Do-Jin trailed after her as they retraced their steps through the darkened hallways, turning down a side passage. With every step, the muffled sounds of quiet sobbing grew louder.