The Hunter of the Other World Who Is Being Misunderstood – Chapter 65

Ch 65: Hadong （1）

“Hmm…….”

I paused for a moment, choosing my words.

Of course, Kang Changho, like the impatient Korean he was, didn’t wait for me.

“Well, it’s not like your real rank matters that much anyway.”

Wait, what?

“The conditions for Enhancement can easily be temporarily boosted with gate equipment.”

“Oh, so.”

“That means even an F-rank can be made eligible.”

It’s because the standard is lower than I thought.

Kang Changho muttered that while crossing his arms. Once again, my hands became damp with sweat.

Conditions can be met anytime.

“Then why haven’t you done it until now?”

At that moment, a brief question arose.

With an S-rank’s power, it would have been easy to force the equipment or kill another Awakened One.

Why has this guy kept me alive until now?

“Well, that’s because…….”

Upon hearing my question, Kang Changho raised his eyebrows as if asking why I was asking something so obvious.

“Ethical issues?”

What’s this now?

“You guys always treat people like they’re some kind of bad guy, but I also have a sense of morality.”

“….”

“How can I recklessly kill a hunter who hasn’t done anything wrong?”

“Is that so?”

“When using Enhancement, I plan to come to an agreement with the person as much as possible.”

Out of all the things he’s said today, that’s the most sensible thing, at least.

“What if you try to reach an agreement, but the other person refuses to the end?”

I brought up the possibility of failed negotiations, and as expected, the true nature of the S-rank hunter was revealed.

“That’s something I’ll have to think about.”

Kang Changho didn’t say he would give up under any circumstances.

“This is a first for me too. Hmm, I’ve never coveted someone else’s skill before.”

“Even with Enhancement?”

“Actually, there’s a pretty strict limit on how many times I can use it. I have to be careful when using it, so most skills aren’t good enough for me…….”

What kind of Awakened One does this guy think I am?

But whatever it is, it’s no use denying it now. He wouldn’t believe me anyway. Kang Changho already seems to be convinced of something.

Then there’s no point in talking any further.

I let out a deep sigh and stood up.

“Are you leaving like this? So, what’s your answer to my proposal?”

Amidst all of this, his relaxed tone pierced my ears, but I ignored him and turned around, leaving the cafe.

Let him get angry if he wants to.

After all, I’m facing death, so I have nothing to fear.

‘I wonder how long Kang Changho’s self-righteous ethics will last.’

I left the unpleasant coffee shop behind and started looking up columbarium reservations on my phone.

I’ll reserve a spot in advance since I’ll probably die soon.

◈◈◈

After Kim Giryeo left.

Kang Changho, who had also left the cafe, stretched lightly.

It’s been a while since I’ve had brand-name coffee like this.

‘It’s been quite a while since I’ve been to a place like this.’

It’s true that I envy F-ranks at times like this.

The clerk doesn’t tremble and drop the change, and the people around me don’t faint just because I let my guard down for a moment.

Is that why that hunter goes around lowering his Awakening Power?

“Ha.”

Kang Changho chuckled and replayed the conversation from earlier.

It was truly a ridiculous situation.

To calmly endure the pressure of an S-rank while stubbornly talking about being a low-rank Awakened One.

‘Moreover, the lowest of the low, an F-rank.’

A real F-rank would have at least pretended to consider the proposal. They wouldn’t have dared to speak so carelessly, even if they were scared of an S-rank.

But Kim Giryeo?

He refused with a glare, didn’t he?

‘He’s too fearless.’

Kang Changho pondered as he walked.

First of all, it’s certain that Kim Giryeo meets the conditions to be a strong Enhancer.

The problem is…….

What if he exceeds these conditions too much?

‘He killed Greed, so he must be at least an A-rank. But is that really all?’

Kang Changho quietly recalled the other’s last action.

━Huu.

━Are you leaving like this?

That hunter, with his sharp eyes like a dry birch tree, had answered his question like this.

━…….

As if it wasn’t worth answering, he just glanced at him with a dry gaze.

Because of that gaze, Kang Changho was able to realize one thing.

That guy, in his mind, thinks he can handle an S-rank just fine.

Otherwise, there’s no way he would have shown such an arrogant attitude. Right. It would be a big problem if someone with Enhancement came after him.

“Hmm.”

The more he speculated, the more ambiguous the truth became.

What is Kim Giryeo’s real rank?

‘He defeated Greed and at the same time, he was kidnapped by some nobody.’

Above the Enhancement standard?

Below?

Maybe even at the S-rank level.

‘Though there’s no way that’s possible.’

Kang Changho decided to keep in mind the possibility that he might be stronger than him.

◈◈◈

How many days had passed since then?

“The repairs are already done?”

Inside the temporary shelter tent.

I, who was eating a boiled egg for a meal, received some good news for the first time in a while.

The renovations to my one-room were finally finished.

It didn’t even take a month to repair a building that was half destroyed. The magicians of Earth are quite capable.

“Then I’ll move back in tomorrow. Yes! Go in. Landlord-nim.”

After finishing the call.

As I was quietly packing my things, I suddenly had a thought.

‘In the end, nothing happened.’

It’s already been a week since I rejected that S-rank’s proposal.

Contrary to my expectation that he would attack soon, this week has been nothing but peaceful.

But I couldn’t be happy about this quietness.

Even at this moment, Kang Changho must be continuing his surveillance.

‘It’s the calm before the storm.’

What’s even more frightening is that I haven’t figured out his surveillance method!

First of all, it’s unlikely to be a Searcher skill like Seon Uyeon’s. That can’t determine the target’s condition.

But if that’s the case, it’s strange.

Even if I’ve become a has-been, there’s no way I wouldn’t be able to notice a primitive sorcerer’s tail.

‘I can’t sense Kang Changho’s mana in this area. Not just now, but it’s always been like that.’

If he didn’t approach himself, did he use a tool?

Bugging devices, trackers, surveillance cameras.

Kim Giryeo’s brain came up with a few possibilities, but I shook my head.

“If those were attached, I would have found them even faster.”

Then there are two possibilities left.

First, he’s monitoring me with technology from Earth that I don’t know about.

Second, the ‘Dragon’s Eye’ is the problem.

“Hmm.”

Personally, I’m leaning towards the latter.

Looking back at my first meeting with Kang Changho, I can roughly guess what’s going on.

‘He’s “seeing” something from Kim Giryeo’s corpse. That’s how he’s pinpointing my location.’

If this hypothesis is true, then there might not be as much privacy invasion as I thought.

If he can only know my location by seeing it with his own eyes, then he must be on top of some tall building right now.

“Dragon’s Eye, huh.”

Tap, tap, tap.

I folded my spare clothes and fell into deep thought.

“If I can just deceive that…….”

For some reason, Kang Changho is hesitating to activate Enhancement.

And I know a few good spells to use when escaping pursuit.

Isn’t this a perfect situation?

‘I should run away!’

I clenched my fist and came to a conclusion.

I’ll run far away while that Enhancer is off guard.

But there was a major problem with this plan.

“Ah.”

D*mn it. Come to think of it, I don’t have any mana amplification agent left!

“Suddenly, I’m getting a headache again.”

Well, I’ve been drinking it every day, so it was bound to run out soon.

‘I have no choice.’

Still, there’s nothing to worry about too much.

I have a surplus of most of the ingredients. The only things I need to gather are just one or two.

But oh my god. Of all things, one of them is extinct.

“What did you say?”

I suddenly raised my voice.

Because when I searched for information on the Hunter Association app, I got a shocking result.

The gate that was most crucial for potion making has been completely raided and disappeared!

‘No! If I don’t have the 『Killer Bee Nest』, I can’t complete the potion…….’

My heart sank for a moment.

But when I changed the region setting to “all” and searched again, the information I wanted soon appeared.

Whew.

‘What, I was worried for nothing.’

It seems that the Killer Bee Nest has disappeared only in Seoul, and there are still Killer Bee Nests left in other areas.

Let’s see. Then the detailed locations are.

‘Gyeongsangnam-do Hadong County and Gyeongsangbuk-do Gumi City. One each?’

Both are unfamiliar. Well, I guess anywhere on Earth would feel like that to an alien.

“Hadong, Hadong, huh.”

At this moment, for some reason, the word Hadong County bothered me.

‘I’ve definitely seen the word Hadong somewhere, while searching for something…….’

But even after thinking about it for a long time, I couldn’t figure out the exact reason.

So, I just ignored this sense of déjà vu and picked up my luggage bag.

If I can’t remember it well, it must have been some useless web surfing anyway.

◈◈◈

On the way back to Kim Giryeo’s one-room.

Blink, blink.

The traffic light is flashing yellow.

‘Let’s go on the next signal.’

I stopped calmly.

Because F-ranks are so weak that they could die with a single touch, being careful of cars is a basic necessity.

“…….”

And at this moment.

A familiar face came into view while I was waiting for the signal.

“Hmm?”

Long, straight black hair that reached her waist. And that unique, neat attire. I can’t not recognize her now.

‘Seon Uyeon.’

An Association employee.

I unintentionally followed the Earthling I had discovered with my eyes.

Then, I observed a slightly unusual action.

That Earthling across the intersection was carrying bundles in both hands.

‘Ah.’

Seon Uyeon said something to an elderly woman standing next to her.

Then the old woman nodded.

Seon Uyeon then bent her knees and carried the other on her back.

After that, well, as expected.

“I’m sorry. We should have fixed this sooner, but the road is all dug up, so it must have been inconvenient for you?”

“Oh, no, it’s okay. Thank you for helping, young student.”

“Should I put your luggage here?”

With Seon Uyeon’s help, the old woman safely crossed the crosswalk. That was all.

Even so, I couldn’t take my eyes off them.

‘Earthlings still have a conscience left.’

My home planet, Alpha Uri.

The citizens of that planet had their sense of ethics shattered in various ways.

It was hard to find so-called “kind” people there.

There are various social analyses for this, but in any case, the high growth of magic didn’t bring only good effects.

‘Our planet’s altruistic genes have been dead for a long time.’

Thanks to that, I felt new emotions whenever I saw scenes like this.

‘She’s nice.’

I felt a small sense of favor towards Seon Uyeon’s actions.

And at this moment, the traffic light turned green.

After crossing the road, I ended up running into Seon Uyeon.

It was because she had been stopped here the whole time while seeing off the old woman.

“Seon Uyeon-ssi, hello.”

“Oh.”

“It’s been a while. Where were you going?”

I offered a natural greeting. Even I think I’m doing a great job.

Wow, who would suspect that I’m an alien after seeing this?

“I just came out to get some food. It’s lunchtime at the Association right now.”

“Ah, I see.”

“Today, all my team members are out on field work, so I was thinking of having a quick meal by myself.”

As expected, Seon Uyeon accepted my greeting without any problems. Although her expression was a bit stiff.

“What brings Kim Giryeo Hunter-nim here?”

“I’m on my way home.”

“Then we’re going in the same direction. I was thinking of going to that snack bar over there.”

After a brief conversation.

We ended up walking together for a while since we were going in the same direction.

But we didn’t exchange any small talk. It’s not like we see each other often.

‘The conversation ended sooner than I thought.’

I observed the sidewalk for no reason to forget the awkward silence.

It was at that moment.

“Um, Giryeo-ssi.”

Seon Uyeon, who had been quiet until now, suddenly spoke for the first time.

I turned my head at her voice.

What I saw was Seon Uyeon, who seemed somewhat tense.

“Umm, this is sudden, but actually, there’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you.”

“Yes?”

“If you haven’t had your meal yet…….”

The hunter hesitated for a long time before finally getting the words out.

“Could you spare some time?”