The Hunter of the Other World Who Is Being Misunderstood – Chapter 90

Ch 90: Old Friend （3）

It would be nice if you could tell me these things a little earlier.

“Here’s my number.”

A moment later.

I was sweating profusely as I entered my contact information into the other person’s phone.

Now that the business is done, all that’s left is to escape safely.

“Oh, right.”

Gu Seohyeong paused after receiving the phone, then spoke.

“Excuse me. I’m sorry, but could you please lower your head just a little towards me?”

“Yes?”

“It’s nothing special. I just suddenly became curious about what you look like.”

“……”

“Haha. When I think about it, I don’t even know what my benefactor’s features look like.”

Is the image not clear even at this distance?

Hmm.

It’s not like they’re going to touch me. If it’s just looking, then I guess it’s okay.

“Okay.”

As I accepted the offer, the other person came closer and began to shoot me an expectant look.

‘Is this enough?’

But a few seconds later.

Somehow, the smile on her face slowly faded.

“……..”

“……..”

Soon, Gu Seohyeong went silent with a pale face.

Looking at those wide eyes and trembling pupils, it’s as if she saw a ghost.

I asked out of curiosity.

“Is there a problem?”

Then the other person answered.

“Speech.”

“Speech?”

“I imagined you to be a kind person just by listening to your speech, but…….”

Oh dear.

◈◈◈

Tuesday arrived.

『Association President’s Office』

A hearty laugh leaks into the quiet hallway.

“Hahahaha!”

In this room labeled “Association President’s Office,” about three people in suits were sitting.

Among them, the middle-aged man sitting in the highest seat suddenly spoke in a loud voice.

“Wow~ Our country has finally become a nation with an enchanter. This is it!”

“Hahaha.”

“And the first in Asia!”

As the head of the Association said so, the people around him nodded in unison.

“Now, places like Japan and China will all come here to get enhancements.”

“Hahaha!”

“Anyway, those Europeans have been doing business too boldly all this time. Charging so much for a single enchantment.”

They were currently rejoicing over an unexpected blessing.

Enchanter.

This rare ability user, of whom only 10 had been found worldwide, had finally appeared in Korea.

“Oh, right, have you contacted all the S-ranks?”

“Of course.”

“Esther Hunter said she was about to fly to the Association as soon as she heard the news? Hahaha.”

Enchanters usually show their true value when assisting top-tier awakened ones.

S-rank hunters all possess good equipment that matches their level.

The enchanter’s skill, which pushes the performance of items to the extreme.

No, the enchanter’s skill, which enhances functions to the point of almost breaking the limit.

It was the final enhancement factor that would allow S-ranks, who had gathered as much good equipment as possible, to gain a level of strength above the rest.

That’s why S-ranks from various countries clung to awakened ones who were only C to D-rank.

“Hahahaha!”

In the future, they would make enormous profits just by brokering these enchantment contracts.

The Association President had a wide smile on his face and laughed heartily.

“Um, Association President-nim.”

But as with all things, where there is an uphill, there is also a downhill.

“However, yesterday, Ms. Gu Seohyeong made a request to the Association…….”

The Association President’s mood quickly sank.

It was because he had heard unwelcome news.

“What?”

According to the secretary, Gu Seohyeong had been consistently making a certain claim since the moment she awakened.

━I’m going to repay my benefactor!

She said that she had a benefactor who she needed to prioritize over any other request, and that she would not accept any external enhancement work for the time being.

“At a time like this?”

“Well, the awakened one is being very stubborn…….”

The Association President held his head.

Seriously, even at this moment, Japan is waiting with contracts worth billions of won to get enhancements.

“Why does that Gu Seohyeong or whatever want so much?”

He said in a displeased voice.

“She suddenly asked for her identity to be protected, so we couldn’t even put out a decent article, and we’ve done everything she’s asked for so far.”

“Ahahaha…….”

“But now she’s saying she’s going to pick and choose her work as she pleases? Oh my, really.”

Tsk tsk.

The Association President clicked his tongue and shook his head.

“This is why young people these days are called selfish.”

The staff around him showed a hint of trouble, but the Association President did not stop criticizing.

“They should be thinking about promoting national prestige with that precious ability. Everyone’s just getting arrogant and doing whatever they want. Huh?”

“Oh, yes, that’s right.”

How did the world become like this?

The main age group of awakened ones is in their 20s and 30s.

Older hunters were rarely seen in this industry.

After their 40s, the mana in their bodies would often act as a deadly poison.

“Tsk. In our time, at least when a national crisis came, this wouldn’t have happened. They should have some shame.”

The Association President was displeased with the current situation where those who hadn’t even dried their blood were acting all high and mighty just because they were awakened.

‘I was happy that she said she’d come under the Association instead of joining a guild, but this awakened one is a pain in the neck too. A pain in the neck.’

Moreover, recently, there were more than one or two things he didn’t like.

“Right.”

After a brief pause.

The Association President suddenly spoke, as if he had just remembered something.

“Is that… Jeong Haseong still on strike?”

The secretary nodded at his words, and the Association President irritably scratched his beard.

The sudden disappearance of the S-rank hunter who had been running as Rank 1.

What could be a bigger headache than this?

“Anyway, that guy must have picked up some strange rumors somewhere and come back…!”

As he spoke in a rough voice, the people around him remained silent and just watched him.

“No, that guy told me on the phone last time. He said he thought he was still too weak, so he needed to take care of his health and train for a while…….”

“Hahahaha.”

“But when I heard that, I got a clear picture in my head. Ah, this must be because he got into a fight with another hunter!”

Thud.

Then, a thick fist slammed down on the table.

“If he hadn’t gotten beaten up by another awakened one, what reason would Jeong Haseong have to be so discouraged? Isn’t that right?”

The Association President began to mutter with a somewhat convinced look on his face.

The secretary next to him only glanced at his watch, not paying much attention to the conversation.

“Anyway, that’s the problem with awakened ones. They’re always getting into fights…….”

“President-nim.”

“Ugh, I swear, if I could find out who instigated Jeong Haseong…….”

“P-President-nim?”

A moment later.

The secretary pointed at his watch with a troubled expression, and the Association President was startled and got up from his seat.

“Has it already gotten this late?”

It seemed like he needed to move on for his next schedule.

“Haha, then I’ll be going now, see you all later…….”

At that moment.

The Association President discovered a familiar face through the window behind him.

Messily tied brown hair.

Pale white skin with no trace of blood.

And those round eyes.

“Is that Gu Seohyeong?”

“Yes, yes. That’s the enchanter-nim.”

Gu Seohyeong outside the window was constantly talking with a bright smile on her face.

And the listener of that conversation is…….

“Who is that?”

He pointed at the man with Gu Seohyeong.

“Who is that?”

“Huh? Who?”

“That one, over there.”

“Do you mean the one with the yellow hair?”

“Why is Gu Seohyeong next to him? What if there’s a problem with her security?”

Then another employee of the Association immediately answered.

“Ah! That person is the benefactor that Ms. Seohyeong was talking about.”

But what came back was the Association President’s cold reaction.

He clicked his tongue as if he was displeased with something.

“Benefactor my a*s. He’s probably just her boyfriend.”

“Yes?”

“As expected of someone who was a celebrity, she can’t even distinguish between public and private matters……. Tsk tsk.”

What kind of trouble would occur if this got into the enchanter’s ears, how could he say such things without thinking?

Just as the secretary and the employee were awkwardly silent.

The Association President muttered as he looked at the man walking with Gu Seohyeong.

“By the way, that guy looks so mean.”

Eyes without double eyelids and dry skin.

Was it really a coincidence that his sharp gaze met mine for a moment?

◈◈◈

‘What is it? I feel a gaze from somewhere…….’

D*mn it.

I’ve been stalked so much that I’m starting to have unnecessary paranoia.

Whenever I go outside, I keep feeling like someone is watching me.

No, when I think about it, it’s not just a feeling.

Even now, Kang Changho might be checking my location from somewhere…….

“What’s wrong?”

Swish swish.

I quickly scanned my surroundings and answered.

“It’s nothing. Let’s go in.”

“Okay.”

Soon, we arrived at a multipurpose room in a nearby building.

Today was the day to “break the gourd.”

Of course, I’m not actually going to saw a gourd, it’s just a metaphor comparing the situation to Heungbu and the Swallow.

‘Hmm.’

Who would have known that a good deed done without thinking would come back as such a reward?

I had obtained the authority to enhance items as a reward for catching Gu Seohyeong when she fell.

And it was completely free.

“Did you know? Enchanters’ awakening skills are usually divided into two types.”

But since Gu Seohyeong is a beginner who has just awakened, there are clear limitations.

“One is to make the abilities of the equipment stronger. The other is to add completely new abilities.”

“And you can’t use the latter, right?”

“Yes.”

Gu Seohyeong immediately put on her new glasses and avoided my gaze.

“I can only do ‘Amplification,’ which enhances the existing abilities of the equipment…….”

Her attitude was somehow subdued.

But even after hearing her explanation, I didn’t care at all.

‘Free!’

After all, I’m 100% satisfied just by not having to pay.

I didn’t expect any quality from the beginning.

“Don’t worry about it. You’ll get better at using your skills as you use them.”

Clink.

I placed the item I had hurriedly bought for today on the table.

『Mid-Grade Ring』

『Grade: General』

『Description: A ring imbued with protective mana. Slightly reduces damage when worn.』

Gu Seohyeong looked at it and tilted her head with a puzzled expression.

“Is this it?”

She must have been prepared to repay her benefactor with a big heart, but it seems smaller than she expected?

But it can’t be helped.

Aside from this ring, I only have two other pieces of equipment at most.

The Pyromancer Necklace is for self-destruction in the first place.

The Twin Guardian Angel already has the highest level of defense, so there’s no point in enhancing it…….

“Haha, yes.”

I led the conversation while showcasing the Earth-style emotional expressions I had been practicing little by little.

“I forgot to mention it, but I’m an F-rank hunter.”

“F-rank?”

“I don’t have much equipment to begin with.”

“Ah, is that so?”

Looking at her nonchalant reaction, it seems like she still doesn’t understand the hunter rank system.

“Okay, I understand.”

Seohyeong answered like that and started to examine the ring I had put out.

“Hmm.”

But why was it?

She couldn’t seem to focus on the ring and kept glancing at me.

Then, a cautious sentence flowed from Seohyeong’s mouth.

“By the way, you said you don’t know who I am, right?”

“Yes. I only watch the news on TV, so I don’t really know celebrities…….”

Why is she suddenly asking this question?

Is she secretly upset that others don’t recognize her?

‘She was a current actress after all?’

While I was lost in various assumptions.

Gu Seohyeong tried to ask something again.

“Then, maybe…….”

But I couldn’t hear the end of that sentence.

“No, it’s nothing.”

“Yes?”

Because she vaguely mumbled her words like that.

“What is it? You’re making me curious.”

“I told you, it’s really nothing.”

“If you have something to say, just say it?”

I urged her not to hide anything and to tell me quickly.

Then Gu Seohyeong spoke with a reluctant expression.

“I, I was going to ask about your age. I was curious how old you are!”

Anyway, Earthlings really like to ask about age.

In my hometown, lifespans were so long that people often forgot their own age.

But well, if I suddenly shut my mouth here, it would look strange.

“Me? I’m 24 years old.”

I shamelessly stole Kim Giryeo’s age.

But what do you know? When I revealed my age, unexpected news came from the other side.

“Really? I’m 24 years old too.”

Gu Seohyeong said.

Since we are the same age, how about we speak casually from now on?

Of course, I readily agreed.

Personally, I hate honorifics. It reduces the economy of language.