The Hunter of the Other World Who Is Being Misunderstood – Chapter 94

Ch 94: Tch, a barrier, is it? （1）

It has already been two days since the anomaly shift incident occurred.

“Hehe.”

In the meantime, I safely sold the crimson magic stone, and the Neo Sisters even sent a separate, small reward.

So, if I combine everything, including the reward from the previous 『Dimensional Treasure Vault』, my total balance is…

【Checking Account: ₩318,230,054】

I proudly stared at the number on my bank account.

A whopping ₩310 million!

Considering the days when I was trembling over a single bowl of gukbap, isn’t this a huge improvement?

‘It’s already ₩300 million, and winter hasn’t even come yet.’

Of course, I still have a long way to go.

I have a grand goal of buying a dragon’s lung, and until I achieve that, I have to save money somehow.

“Hmm…”

It seems like I’ll be staying in this old one-room for quite a while.

Still, this place is good enough to live in.

There’s no boss rushing me to work overtime, and I can eat meals on time.

Plus, there are so many interesting things on Earth.

‘Now that I think about it, should I watch some Y-Tube?’

I turned on my phone and launched the familiar app.

This video streaming platform had a wide variety of content, but I only ever used it for news.

‘It’s hard for an alien like me to distinguish between true and false information…’

News is a good culture.

It’s relatively reliable, and the video format is fun to watch.

‘Which channel should I watch today?’

I swiped through my phone screen, looking for something to watch.

‘Huh?’

But something feels off.

Usually, the video content varies by broadcasting station, but today, no matter what I click, I only see the same screen…

『『●LIVE』 8 PM News ━ Hanshin Guild Incident Worsens, What’s the Situation on the Ground?』

『”It felt like a nightmare”… Interview with Victims』

『A shopping mall turned into a ‘pandemonium.’ What is the extent of the damage?』

I turned on a video marked as live and focused on the news being reported.

『We have a reporter at the scene right now. Reporter Kim ○○?』

『Yes. This is a street in Seogyo-dong where the ‘Hanshin Incident’ occurred. As you can see, civilian access is currently restricted…』

By the way, even though it’s being broadcast so widely, the scene is cleaner than I expected.

What’s immediately visible on the screen are neatly laid-out paving stones.

Gray buildings huddled together.

And squeezing in between them… a huge barrier?

‘Hmm?’

I squinted and examined the screen closely, but the result didn’t change no matter how many times I looked.

What filled the street was nothing less than a vast barrier.

『What you see in the distance is the boss monster that is the cause of this incident. It’s the ‘Flower Baron.’』

The reporter then explained in a clear voice.

The ‘Flower Baron’ was originally an entity living in a private gate owned by a certain guild, but one day, this guild committed a serious management failure.

『Meanwhile, there is a strong wave of criticism against the Hanshin Guild, which triggered this incident.』

The boss escaped due to the mistake of the winning bidder.

This was a rare man-made disaster.

‘What a variety of accidents…’

I thought briefly and got up from my seat. It was to get some water from the refrigerator.

‘Huh?’

But right after that.

I froze in place, about to open the refrigerator.

『△△Meat Restaurant』

That red sign that just appeared on the news screen.

Didn’t I clearly remember seeing it somewhere?

‘The restaurant in front of the ATM where I withdraw cash every day!’

In other words, the scene of the incident being reported on the news was a place quite close to here.

How could I have not realized this obvious thing until now…

I was looking at the neighborhood on the broadcast with a sense of wonder, when the screen switched to the next scene.

━Thud thud thud thud…

That scene was a view of the street from a helicopter.

『What’s the situation now?』

『Hunters who were urgently summoned are struggling to hunt the ‘Flower Baron,’ but there hasn’t been any significant progress yet.』

The Flower Baron was a pretty annoying monster at first glance.

It was hiding inside a solid barrier, constantly harassing the hunters outside remotely.

The Flower Baron’s weapon was a mental attack.

In other words, if someone got close to the barrier, it would use brainwashing magic to make allies fight each other.

And unfortunately, the range and power of that brainwashing were considerable…

『Mental attacks usually don’t have much effect on awakened ones, do they? Why is there so much confusion this time?』

『According to the Hunter Association officials, the ‘Flower Baron’ was a magical beast that gradually grew stronger in proportion to the time it had appeared.』

『The monster is growing?』

『Yes. So, the monster’s brainwashing has unusually affected even mid-rank awakened ones, and the strength of the barrier seems to have increased as well.』

In the end, even the range of hunters that could be mobilized was narrowed down.

“Hmm.”

But even after seeing the announcer’s serious face, I could only shrug my shoulders.

Why? Because I don’t feel any sense of crisis.

‘Even if the scene is close, it’s not like it’s happening in my house right now…’

Thud.

I took a sip of water from the refrigerator and thought.

‘It’ll be resolved eventually, so whatever.’

The announcer is making a fuss about the brainwashing being too strong, but in the end, some hunters are still dealing with the Baron’s barrier, aren’t they?

Whether they’re wearing brainwashing resistance items or calling in an A-rank, there are many options for the awakened ones here.

“It’ll be fine.”

So, I thought the Earthlings would take care of it themselves and started preparing lunch.

Heating up the retort curry, heating up the rice…

“It’ll be fine, right?”

But even after finishing my meal, the news was still noisy.

“…Is this really okay?”

And about three hours later, the fire was already on my feet.

『（Breaking News） The ‘Flower Baron’s’ range of influence is expanding, residents in the affected area are advised to evacuate』

D*mn it!

Could the Earthlings really be this incompetent!

‘They haven’t been able to break through that barrier yet?’

I got up abruptly, abandoning the broadcast.

While the hunters were struggling with the barrier, the Flower Baron had expanded its sphere of influence.

‘No way!’

At this rate, even Kim Giryeo’s house will get caught up in the accident.

Therefore, I made a decision.

I was going to go to the scene of the incident and give the hunters a hint on how to deal with the barrier.

“Ugh, those primitive beings!”

Even if it’s annoying, what can I do?

『●LIVE News: Real-Time Chat』

『What are those hunter bastards doing?』

『Shouldn’t we just launch a missile??』

『Anyway, those who haven’t done anything dangerous are just sitting at home doing nothing… tsk tsk. If you’re so frustrated, why don’t you go and solve it yourself? Don’t blame the hunters for no reason.』

Like they’re saying here, if you’re so frustrated, you should go yourself.

◈◈◈

The scene I arrived at.

It wasn’t as difficult to get in as I thought.

In this world, the position of an appraiser has a considerable influence.

‘Just one phone call to the Association, and I got entry permission so easily…’

I crossed the police line and looked around.

Then, I saw a familiar face.

“Seon Uyeon-ssi!”

“Huh?”

The B-rank hunter was reorganizing the control line, and she looked up in surprise as soon as she heard my voice.

“Hunter Kim Giryeo?”

Her expression clearly said, ‘Why are you here?’

“I came out because I was frustrated. Frustrated.”

“Yes?”

“No, how long are you going to keep bickering with just one barrier?”

I approached Seon Uyeon and explained the situation.

I said that I came as an appraiser to help analyze the barrier.

“I see!”

Seon Uyeon’s face lit up when she heard that.

How could she not be happy that a high-ranking appraiser, who was too expensive to call out easily, came to volunteer?

“I’ll guide you to the barrier.”

Seon Uyeon readily took the lead and briefly described the current situation.

“So, you’re saying the barrier’s strength is such that even an A-rank can’t break it?”

“Yes. I don’t know where all that mana is coming from.”

“Hmm.”

“Besides, the number of hunters gathered is also a bit… We urgently gathered people with the authority of the Association, but…”

“Are there really only two A-ranks?”

“We can’t just abuse our summoning rights. The request for additional personnel is currently blocked by the higher-ups.”

I stopped listening to the story and asked a question.

“Then, what about the Magic Tower Guild Master?”

Even if Jeong Haseong or Kang Changho are excluded for some reason. Shouldn’t they be able to call that person on their own?

But Seon Uyeon’s expression hardened.

“Esther Hunter? Unfortunately, she’s currently inside a gate.”

“Oh dear.”

“According to the Magic Tower people, it will probably take another half a day to clear it.”

It seems there are several sad stories behind why they haven’t caught the Flower Baron.

‘Ugh.’

If that’s the case, then I have no choice but to go the long way around, even if it’s annoying.

I have to figure out the structure of the barrier and find its weakness.

“Okay, this is the outermost edge of the barrier.”

The scene that finally arrived was different from the TV screen in its vividness.

Inside the translucent spherical barrier.

A landscape where white, blue, and light-colored flowers were growing so densely that there was no room to step.

‘T, the real thing is bigger than I expected…?’

But in the center of this flower garden, there was a creature standing tall that was quite different from beauty.

Because its appearance was somehow clumsy, like a Silla earthenware doll.

‘Is it even a living thing?’

The Flower Baron revealed its form.

Its smooth, white body, like glazed pottery, made the monster look even more alien.

‘Hmm.’

Okay, let’s stop admiring the boss for now.

‘It’s scary, so I should stop looking at it.’

I turned my gaze to the Baron’s barrier.

The bluish light created by the gathering mana particles.

Looking at this alone, it’s no different from other barriers…

“Hmm?”

Thud!

At that moment. Suddenly, an unidentified noise echoed from somewhere.

“What was that just now?”

“Ah, I’m sorry. Come to think of it, I should have informed you that an appraiser had come to that side as well.”

But thankfully, it wasn’t a noise with a bad meaning.

It was the sound of the summoned hunters hitting the barrier.

“Hunters! Please pay attention!”

Seon Uyeon ran towards the direction of the sound and quickly delivered the news.

“Everyone, please stop attacking the barrier!”

“Yes? Why?”

“A high-ranking appraiser has come here. So, please wait until the analysis is complete.”

“Ah~”

The hunters all turned their heads at Seon Uyeon’s words.

Fire attribute, attack power enhancement, lightning attribute.

Even though the skills they use are different, they are all B-rank or higher powerhouses, so I feel a bit pressured.

“I’ll take a look quickly.”

I started working as quickly as possible so as not to cause trouble for that elite group.

‘Heh, if the Great Magician gets a hold of this barrier…!’

But it turned out that this damn creature’s barrier had a structure I had never seen before.

‘Huh?’

A complex structure that showed a clear difference from the Magic Tower’s barriers.

I swallowed hard for a moment.

I had boasted that it would be over quickly, but if an F-rank like me wasted time here for no reason…

“Wow, an appraiser is actually coming to a place like this.”

“I know, right.”

“They must be high-ranking. They’re also resisting brainwashing well.”

“Don’t even mention it. Our guild doesn’t have any appraisers, so this is the first time I’m seeing one in person.”

I hurriedly moved my hands at the sound of the high-rank awakened ones’ chatter.

I was trying to reduce the analysis time by directly touching the barrier for even a second.

But what do you know.

Right after that, an unimaginable situation occurred.

Swoosh━.

I passed through the barrier without any resistance, with my hand outstretched.

“Huh?”

“Huh?”

“Hmm?”

As soon as they saw that scene, the people around me made dumbfounded noises.

But I was just as dumbfounded.

No, why is a barrier that made even A-ranks stomp their feet so easy to pass through…?!

‘Ah!’

In that moment, the basic principle of barriers came to mind.

Barriers.

That magic excludes anything that could be harmful to the caster.

But even if something is harmful to the body, would a barrier really filter out every single speck of dust flying in the air?

The more ‘dense’ a barrier is, the more ridiculously expensive it is to maintain.

Therefore, usually, they deliberately design the magic to be loose for efficiency.

‘They don’t bother filtering out small bugs or dust that don’t have mana.’

So, in a nutshell, this situation is like this.

‘This barrier doesn’t recognize F-ranks as enemies.’

The Flower Baron must have judged me as nothing more than dust!

“……”

Wait, what kind of treatment did I just receive?