The Hunter of the Other World Who Is Being Misunderstood – Chapter 12

Ch 12: S-Rank Hunter （3）

My trapezius muscles ache. I rubbed my stiff neck with my hands, a lingering effect from the car accident.

‘Ugh, seriously. How bad of a driver do you have to be to crash on such a deserted road?’

But whether he knew of my pain or not.

Kang Changho was shamelessly asking for my phone number.

“Th, that’s Hunter Kang Changho. Kang Changho……”

Is that how a normal person acts when they see an S-rank?

It seems that the weak rulers of Earth feel an instinctive threat when they see the new human race who have opened their eyes to mana. I guess it must feel like a huge beast is standing right in front of them.

“B, but still, if you caused an accident. The, the repair costs…….”

“Of course, I have to pay. Come here.”

But even if that is the analogy, an S-rank hunter is still a sentient human being.

Kang Changho smoothly finished the compensation.

Because when he took out a few white and thin pieces of paper from his wallet and handed them over, the taxi driver quieted down.

‘What is that that made him shut up? Is it better than money?’

Now, the only victim left is me.

Kang Changho turned his gaze to me.

“Anyway, what about your contact information?”

“Excuse me?”

“I just used up all my cash. It seems like I’ll have to settle your medical expenses later.”

I don’t really understand what he’s saying, but…….

Is this how things are usually handled when a car accident happens?

‘It’s just a phone number, whatever.’

I don’t want to be caught on some pointless technicality. I just did what the Earthling wanted.

However, during the exchange of contact information, the conversation Kang Changho brought up was rather strange.

“Hunter Kim Giryeo, were you on your way to babysit that newbie again today?”

He stopped inputting the number and lowered his gaze.

“It’s a bit of a waste that someone like you is a porter.”

“I wonder.”

“I know a job that pays much better than that, do you want to hear about it?”

A job that pays well?

“It’s not hard to listen.”

The proposal that followed was very unconventional.

“Kim Giryeo, quit being An Yunseung’s porter and come under me.”

“…!”

“Of course, I’ll give you 80% of the items and profits you get from the gate.”

Is this a scout offer with such an absurd condition?

Indeed, this S-rank hunter must have recognized the potential contained in Kim Giryeo’s corpse.

‘It’s difficult to gauge one’s mana level before using magic, but this sensitive human is giving me a good clue.’

Let’s see. Then.

Since the condition I set when I reincarnated was to reincarnate into the corpse with the highest mana on this planet…….

Could it be that Kim Giryeo’s mana, in other words, what they call awakening power here, is equal to or higher than an S-rank hunter?

‘Then, once I can use magic, this puny planet will be in the palm of my hand!’

Haha!

I felt a rare sense of smugness.

So, I tried to hide my smile and said nonchalantly.

“Well, it’s difficult for me to enter an S-rank gate right now. I’m not sure if it’s okay for me to work with you.”

But as soon as I heard the next words Kang Changho said, my smile and everything else vanished, and a chill ran down my spine.

“…S-rank?”

“Yes?”

“Even so, there’s no way I would push a hunter of your level into such a high-rank gate.”

My voice reflexively came out.

“Weren’t you approaching me because you knew my awakening power?”

But Kang Changho continued as if he was giving an obvious explanation.

“Your awakening power? It’s high for an F-rank, but there’s nothing particularly outstanding about it.”

Kang Changho takes off his sunglasses.

And with his reptile-like eyes, he scanned me intensely and then affirmed.

“Look, my offer was simply to raise you myself.”

“…!”

“Protecting you from dying inside the gate, teaching you the know-how, and giving you material help.”

In short, he’s saying he’ll be a sponsor…….

Kang Changho stared at me without any change in his expression. He’s probably wondering what kind of guts I have to talk nonsense about entering an S-rank gate.

‘Putting aside the fact that Kim Giryeo’s awakening power is at the F-rank level.’

Anyway, right now…….

I misunderstood his offer and got ahead of myself.

‘Ugh, how embarrassing.’

My face is burning up. I awkwardly tried to smooth things over as if making an excuse.

“Ah, I see. I was confused for a moment and said something strange. Please forget about it.”

Kang Changho rolled his eyes at those words.

“Hunter Kim Giryeo, can I take it that you’ve accepted my offer?”

The sentence came out so naturally that I almost nodded, but I came to my senses belatedly.

What were we talking about? Right. This was about sponsorship.

And why was Kang Changho trying to help me?

“Wait a minute.”

He’s an S-rank hunter.

From the perspective of a top-tier hunter, of which there are only three in Korea, an F-rank awakened one is just a bug under his feet.

“Anyway, you’re saying you didn’t approach me because of my awakening power.”

But Kang Changho is trying to take me with him, even though he only made eye contact with me once yesterday?

“Then, what on earth did you see in me to make this offer?”

The fundamental question comes next.

I became curious about the real reason he approached me. However.

Kang Changho only smiled quietly, raising the corners of his mouth, and didn’t answer at all.

D*mn it. Yunseung-a, where are you?

I suddenly want to see you right now.

“Well, I appreciate the offer, but I’ll decline.”

“Is that so?”

“As Kang Changho-ssi said, I’m a hunter with nothing special, so I should just be a porter.”

This Earthling’s suspicious behavior is giving me a sense of fear. I decided to quickly flee the scene.

“If you go with me, your skills will improve much faster. I’ll also get you items that increase your mana.”

No matter how much you try to coax me with sweet words, do you think I’ll fall for it?

“I’m sorry, but I’m busy right now. I have a lunch appointment.”

“You sure have a lot of appointments?”

Just in time, a taxi with the red “Vacant” sign lit up was approaching from afar.

“Taxi!”

I almost jumped in front of the car to grab the taxi, and I ran away, leaving Kang Changho on the road.

“Hmm, Hunter Kim Giryeo.”

I could see his figure getting farther away in the side mirror, but my heart was still beating fast.

◈◈◈

For the record, the words about having an appointment weren’t a bluff.

“You’re saying that the reason you were late today was because you got into a car accident with Kang Changho?”

“Now that I think about it, that bastard probably caused the accident on purpose…….”

In front of a restaurant with a savory black bean sauce smell.

I finished my meal in anxiety and came out of the building.

An Yunseung looked shocked after hearing my explanation so far.

“Wow, so it’s true that you picked a fight with a strong hunter!”

“Oh my.”

“If it were anyone else, even I, an A-rank, might have become a target…….”

“Is that so?”

“Thanks to Giryeo-hyung, I avoided trouble. Well, with a hunter like hyung right here, no other awakened one would stand out.”

What should I do? Should I call the police?

But what would I say? That an S-rank hunter offered to protect me so I can hunt safely and give me items? Yeah, right, they’d definitely take me seriously.

“If Kang Changho is like that, then hyung must be much more…….”

My head was so complicated that I couldn’t even hear what An Yunseung was saying.

“Ahem, we shouldn’t talk about this kind of topic outside, right? Uh, um. Then what should we talk about?”

The confusion was only temporary though.

“Ah, right. Giryeo-hyung, did you watch TV this morning? They were saying that Korea ranked second in gate management excellence last year.”

Soon, he started to change the mood.

“The anomaly shifts are still serious, but it’s a relief that civilian casualties have decreased a lot.”

“That’s right.”

“The news is even saying that humanity will soon conquer the disaster called gates….”

Also, An Yunseung’s choice of topic was excellent.

Gates.

That unknown concept was always an interesting topic for me.

‘At first, I thought it was a madohak-based transportation route created by Earthlings, but…….’

The mysterious phenomenon that appeared simultaneously all over the world one day, seven years ago.

Gates. And monsters.

They said that awakened ones were also born with the shock incident at that time.

I was lost in thought for a moment.

Now I know why the Earthlings were late in awakening magic. Because when I searched it up.

Usually, planetary mana is generated from the core, so…….

In places with a thick rock layer like Earth, it’s difficult for the core’s mana to break through and rise, so the atmospheric mana concentration increases very slowly.

In order for a living being to perceive magic, it must first absorb enough mana, but due to the structure of Earth, that first step takes several times longer than on Alpha Uri.

‘The conditions are very different from my home planet.’

But even with this much technology, humans are just looking up at the sky, talking about space travel and stuff?

So they haven’t noticed the mana hidden beneath their feet.

‘The gate phenomenon that appeared seven years ago……. acted as a kind of well.’

In the end, humanity was exposed to mana by accident.

They awakened, evolved, and learned primitive magic. They got skills in their hands.

I can roughly guess the flow. But…….

“Hmm.”

I still didn’t know what the true identity of the gate was.

It wasn’t something the Earthlings installed to draw mana, and scary creatures are swarming out from inside.

And those creatures are unconditionally hostile to humanity.

‘I don’t understand it.’

The gates are not Alpha Uri technology.

Nor are they Earthling technology.

Then what are they?

“Hyung-nim?”

I was deeply lost in thought, and I was startled when I heard someone calling me, and I looked up.

“Ah, sorry. I was just thinking for a moment.”

“What were you thinking about?”

“Just, you know…….”

Where were Yunseung and I talking up to just now?

Ah, he said that the gate accident mortality rate in Korea has decreased a lot.

“I was imagining what it would be like if I were the one who created the gates?”

I spoke the sentence that came to my mind without much thought. What followed was some pointless small talk.

“Then I don’t think I’d be happy with this situation.”

“Why?”

“No matter what the intention is, the monsters in the gates are trying to kill us. The items found inside are just cheese on a trap.”

“…!”

“But if the rats start to figure out the trap and only eat the cheese.”

Of course, they would think like this.

“Wouldn’t they be a little angry?”

It was a leisurely afternoon.

We were chatting on the street while taking a walk after our meal, and cicadas were chirping on the side of the road.

It was definitely such a time.

“Huh?”

While talking, I felt a strange sensation.

I felt an energy like lava boiling deep within the asphalt-paved ground.

It was mana.

A sharp and fierce mana that made my hair stand on end was gushing up from the ground. And it was right under An Yunseung’s feet!

“An Yunseung!”

There was no time to think. I pushed An Yunseung, who was standing next to me, with all my strength.

Then, starting from where An Yunseung was, a bright curtain of light that divided this area in two appeared.

“What is this……!”

I couldn’t withstand the pouring light and squeezed my eyes shut.

But when I opened my eyes again a moment later, what I saw was…….

“…Huh.”

A mysterious space wrapped in a soft white light, like the light of a halo flowing on a distant horizon.

Looking around, I could feel a mana structure similar to the gates I had entered before.

In other words, I am now inside an unknown gate.

“S*it, I should have pulled him!”

Someone save me!