The Hunter of the Other World Who Is Being Misunderstood – Chapter 34

Ch 34: Terrorism （1）

‘Who on earth gave such a gruesome magic such a name?’

I finished my short escape from reality.

Now, I had to accept the truth.

That being noticed by that S-rank hunter was by no means a good thing.

‘D*mn it.’

If so, there’s only one option left.

‘This won’t do!’

I need to get rid of this trash F-rank body as soon as possible.

Whether it’s transferring my soul to another corpse or fixing my lungs!

The thought entered my mind, and I couldn’t lie still any longer. I immediately took action.

‘I have to regain my strength, even if I have to stay up all night researching!’

It seemed that enjoying a peaceful life would be a distant future event.

◈◈◈

But well….

Actually, that’s how research is.

You don’t get the desired result in one experiment. It’s ultimately a product of labor.

“Hoo-ooh.”

So, it’s perhaps the way of the universe that there have been no results these past few days.

I was tired of the repeated spell formula verification and collapsed on the spot.

D*mn it, if my lungs are in this state, there’s no solution even with the help of a magic circle.

“Somehow, it feels like all this is meaningless. I reincarnated to take a break from work, but why am I still working after reincarnating? Why?”

I’m so tired of the continuous failures that I’m even feeling a sense of futility.

━Woo-oo-oong.

“Hmm?”

But then, at that moment.

My cell phone, which was set to vibrate, started ringing.

Let’s see, I’ve blocked all the numbers of most guilds, so there shouldn’t be any place else that would call.

“What is it?”

When I checked the screen, an unfamiliar number starting with 010 appeared.

I answered the call without much thought. Then, the voice coming from the receiver was…

◈◈◈

One hour later.

A park near Kim Giryeo’s house.

I sit on a bench and look around.

Then, before long, a familiar figure came into view.

“Seon Uyeon-ssi.”

“Hello, Kim Giryeo Hunter.”

We immediately exchanged greetings.

That’s right. The person who called me was Seon Uyeon.

“I’m sorry for the sudden call. But I thought it would be better to talk about this face-to-face.”

“No. There’s no need to be sorry…”

Nine times out of ten, contact from the Association is a hassle.

I wanted to ignore it, but I eventually responded to Seon Uyeon’s call.

Because I owe this B-rank a bit. I should at least listen to what she has to say out of courtesy.

“Anyway, what’s the matter?”

I looked up at Seon Uyeon, who was standing, and asked briefly.

Then, the other party got to the point.

“It’s not that, but we need Kim Giryeo Hunter’s analysis skill.”

She said this and awkwardly sat down on the remaining space on the bench. It seemed she was bothered by me keeping my head up.

“Could you possibly help me with my work? For about two weeks.”

“Are you going to have me appraise items or something?”

“No.”

“Huh?”

“Actually, there’s a case I’m working on in collaboration with the police…”

I thought it would be item classification work since they said they needed an analysis-type magician at first.

The explained request was different from what I expected.

“The investigation has hit a wall recently.”

“Why?”

“The criminals left traces in a certain gate, but it’s not being interpreted.”

A shadow falls over Seon Uyeon’s pale face. She sighed as if she had some great concern.

“We’ve already called in a national appraiser to investigate, but there were no results.”

“….”

“Since the really profitable requests are all taken by overseas companies or large guilds, the appraisers left in the field are all about the same skill level…”

If I carelessly agree with her here, I might reveal that I’m not an Earthling.

I listen to the other party’s words as much as possible.

“That’s why I contacted Giryeo-ssi.”

“So, you’re asking me to investigate the gate, right?”

“We were hoping the results might be different. You did pass through the Magic Tower Maze, Hunter-nim. And…”

Seon Uyeon rolled her eyes in the air for a moment, then opened her mouth with difficulty.

“Among the appraisers I know, you’re the only one who isn’t affiliated with any organization.”

“I see.”

Well, it would be difficult to take an appraiser away from a private company.

Now, I roughly understood the reason why she came to me.

I organized the request in my head once again.

But at that moment, a small voice echoed from beside me.

“Um, but I’m really sorry to say this… but the compensation probably won’t be much…”

A trembling filled with anxiety.

I stared at Seon Uyeon’s dark face. The other person couldn’t even make eye contact and was just looking at the ground.

“Due to budget issues, the allowance support is set low. To be honest, from an appraiser’s point of view, it’s almost like free volunteer work…”

How little is the compensation that she’s like this?

If she’s saying it’s free volunteer work, does that mean the daily pay isn’t even enough for food?

“I know it’s an absurd request. But could you possibly help me?”

“Hmm.”

“I did help you once before… so.”

That much is true.

I received help from this employee’s tracking magic during the last kidnapping incident.

No, actually, it was Kang Changho who took down the kidnappers, so it’s a bit of a stretch to say I was helped.

Anyway, she did come at such a late hour.

“That’s right. I was grateful back then.”

I readily admitted that I was in debt.

But for some reason, Seon Uyeon frowned as if she had something to hide.

“No, no. Just forget what I said just now, Kim Giryeo Hunter.”

“Yes?”

“Saving the kidnapped person was something I should have done anyway, so I don’t think it’s right to bring it up and force you.”

She could be a little shameless at times like this.

Is Seon Uyeon a very conscientious person?……

“If the allowance is insufficient, I will pay for it out of my own pocket. Please cooperate with the investigation.”

Come to think of it, I’ve been curious about it since before.

Seon Uyeon seemed to be cooperating with the police from time to time because of her tracking skill called Searcher, but even so, isn’t her main job an employee of the Association after all?

I couldn’t understand why Seon Uyeon was so passionate about the investigation.

So, with the feeling of exploring an alien creature, I asked casually.

“Do you get an incentive if you catch the criminal?”

“No. There’s nothing I particularly gain from solving the case…”

Seon Uyeon answered.

“But shouldn’t we do our best? In the end, every case is linked to someone’s life.”

“……..”

To be honest, this answer made me feel a little favorable towards her.

Is it because I was tormented by the morally and responsibly rotten people from my hometown（especially my superiors）?

When I see such a pure and kind creature, I even feel grateful now.

‘You’re quite a good alien.’

But that’s that.

“Seon Uyeon Hunter, you said earlier that you wanted to request me even if you had to pay out of your own pocket.”

“Ah, yes.”

“Okay. I’ll accept the job for now.”

The laws of the universe are cold.

Regardless of the fact that I liked Seon Uyeon as an individual, I decided to receive reasonable compensation.

No matter what, I didn’t feel like providing labor while starving.

‘I don’t know how little the allowance the government gives is.’

I can just extort the minimum from Seon Uyeon. Good. Let’s get some insurance.

“Instead, use that private money right now.”

“Oh, how much…?”

Gulp.

Someone swallows dryly. I coldly stated my demands while clearly watching that.

“Well, it depends on the menu.”

“Yes?”

“Do you know any good restaurants?”

I revealed my true intentions without hesitation.

“Seon Uyeon-ssi has to buy me food.”

“Food?”

“Not just today, but one meal every lunchtime for the two weeks I’m working.”

When I slightly raised my index finger to indicate one meal, Seon Uyeon opened her mouth and froze.

“If that’s the condition, I’ll participate in the gate investigation.”

Poor Earthling.

But I don’t want to work without at least this much of a safety net.

“Oh, and I want to eat noodles today.”

When I said this, Seon Uyeon nodded with a pale face.

A dramatic deal was concluded.

◈◈◈

━Slurp! Slurp.

What kind of… guy is he?

From the moment she arrived at the restaurant, this sentence wouldn’t leave Seon Uyeon’s head.

With the appraisal ability he has, he wouldn’t be treated poorly anywhere.

The value of a high-level appraiser’s one hour is something a regular office worker can’t afford.

So, she had visited prepared to be rejected, of course.

━Slurp!

Kim Giryeo Hunter accepted the offer.

He was even willing to give his time for a bowl of kalguksu right now.

Does this make sense?

‘Why, why did I have to suggest coming to this kind of place?’

Seon Uyeon was sweating profusely.

‘I was so flustered when he suddenly urged me to get food, that I ended up coming to my usual favorite restaurant!’

But unlike her, who was flustered, Kim Giryeo’s attitude was calm.

The F-rank hunter silently focused on his meal, and only after a long time passed, did he say this.

“Hmm, this place is not bad.”

This shabby place?

Giryeo nodded and continued his meal. It was an unexpected reaction.

‘He was really okay with just kalguksu.’

Awakened Ones.

What kind of people are they?

As a reaction to gaining great power overnight, many of them were so-called ‘nouveau riche.’

Those who lived in such vulgar luxury and vanity.

So, Seon Uyeon couldn’t help but be surprised every time Kim Giryeo showed a frugal side.

‘He even lives in such a small one-room apartment…’

But if this feeling led to favor, that’s not the case.

It’s funny since she was the one who contacted him, but in fact, Seon Uyeon didn’t trust him much.

‘Maybe he’s pretending to have small expenses on purpose to appear like an F-rank hunter.’

During the kidnapping incident. Why didn’t he run outside and instead stayed in the room where the head of the human trafficking ring was?……

And why was he secretly entering high-rank gates all this time?

In fact, there are still mountains of suspicions about Kim Giryeo Hunter.

“……..”

Seon Uyeon glanced at the other side of the table with wary eyes.

‘Why did things go so smoothly?’

It was strange.

After it was revealed that he possessed appraisal skills.

Kim Giryeo was said to have received a flood of scout offers.

But why would that ruthless hunter, who ignored all the love calls that poured in from all kinds of guilds, accept her request?

Simply as a reward for the kidnapping incident?

‘That can’t be. No matter how I look at it, he was the one who set the stage back then. I was used to arrest the criminals. There’s no way he’d be genuinely grateful for that.’

I’m borrowing his hand since it’s an urgent situation for now, but…….

I still can’t trust someone who illegally goes in and out of gates.

Seon Uyeon vowed once again that she would not let her guard down against that hunter.

It was at that moment.

“…!”

It seemed he had already finished his meal.

From some point on, Kim Giryeo had been silently watching her, and when Seon Uyeon saw this, she held her breath for a moment.

Because when she met those sharp sanpaku eyes, she felt a strange sense of being pressed down.

“Seon Uyeon-ssi, then it’s time to talk about work.”

The man started speaking.

“What kind of gate do we have to investigate from now on?”

He had a dry voice unique to a voice damaged by smoking.