The Hunter of the Other World Who Is Being Misunderstood – Chapter 15

Ch 15: White Maze （3）

“What, what is going on……”

My body freezes at the unexpected situation.

However, Kang Changho, with an unconcerned face, slung the collapsed Jeong Haseong over his shoulder and said.

“Have you heard of the gate called Iron Maiden that appeared in Northern Europe?”

“Yes?”

“It’s a format similar to this dungeon. You can only escape by offering one of the matched hunters as a sacrifice.”

He smiled quietly, and a dimple appeared on one side of his cheek.

“Besides, looking at the recent EX-rank dungeon trend statistics, the survival rate is only 60% regardless of the hunter’s rank.”

That means…….

“60%……. It’s quite unsettling to risk your life. So, let’s go for something certain.”

Is he planning to use that S-rank hunter as a living sacrifice!

It wasn’t difficult to grasp his intentions.

Kang Changho predicted that this dungeon would eventually require a human life and prepared a scapegoat in advance.

“Now that there’s no one pointlessly barking, it’s comfortable.”

It seems that personal feelings are mixed in the selection of the scapegoat, but…….

I affirmed this situation with silence.

Anyway, isn’t it right to obediently follow the words of an S-rank with a body that can’t use magic?

If the gate really requires a living sacrifice, I certainly don’t want to die.

I would prefer Kang Changho or Jeong Haseong to die, but I don’t have the power to choose a sacrifice.

“Hmm.”

So, it’s advantageous to just follow along now.

Such calculations were made in my head. They were made, but…….

Immediately after, the moment I saw Kang Changho inserting the arm of the unconscious Jeong Haseong into the lion statue, another sound came out without me realizing it.

“Just a moment.”

Even though I was finally out of the danger of being a living sacrifice.

‘This isn’t right.’

The Rank 1 hunter wasn’t a bad Earthling, to the point that he would protect me, whom he met for the first time, inside the gate.

But, to knock out and kill such a person with a surprise attack?

“I’ll open the next room. So, put Jeong Haseong down.”

I ended up deciding to open the door in the latter part, even though I knew this was a nasty game of stealing sand.

“Why? Do you suddenly feel a pang of conscience?”

“…!”

“Just stay still when someone else is taking the lead. Don’t worry. I’ll let you live.”

D*mn it. But this hunter doesn’t seem to be in the mood to negotiate at all.

How can I save the unconscious Jeong Haseong? How on earth can I?

“Considering the blood-sucking intensity of the lion statue, this ordeal should be ending soon……”

It was the moment I started to rack my brain.

Unexpectedly, the key to solving this situation was given as simply as it could be.

“Huh?”

Because the next room was……. the exit.

“Whoa!”

At the end of the path that was all white, a gate mixed with blue was humming and open.

Moreover, in the center of the room, there was a fountain with a smiling woman sculpted on it.

Looking closely inside, a golden bracelet was lying there.

I picked up the bracelet submerged in the clear water and checked it.

This is a magical tool. That means…….

‘A passage leading outside and a gate clear reward!’

Finally, the damned white prison is over!

I was so surprised to suddenly encounter the exit while being so tense.

“It’s over here? This easily?”

Kang Changho’s expression also changed when he saw the exit.

“No, but the most recent EX-rank Iron Maiden……. the dungeon statistics……”

He dropped Jeong Haseong to the floor with a thud and put his hand on his forehead.

“Damn, I was sure that a living sacrifice would be needed, so I hit Jeong Haseong.”

I thought, well, everyone survived, so isn’t that what matters?

However, after hearing his next words, it seems that the situation isn’t that simple.

“It’s going to be a real problem if Jeong Haseong wakes up and protests.”

“There’s a dungeon reward here. Why don’t you try apologizing while giving this?”

“Kim Giryeo Hunter, I’m sorry, but messing with Rank 1 is not something that can be easily overlooked. The Association won’t stay still.”

What, are you going back to prison or something?

When I stared blankly at him, Kang Changho sighed.

“If this guy had finished his role, and you, who survived because of his sacrifice, kept the secret, things would have been clean.”

He roughly scratches his long hair that looks like a lion’s mane.

Until now, his gestures and tone were light and playful, so I didn’t feel the seriousness, but a few seconds later.

“Well, since we’re inside the gate, should I just kill Jeong Haseong?”

Kang Changho completely changed his expression and began to look down at the unconscious hunter.

“Huh?”

“Anyway, the corpse will disappear with the gate close.”

Soon, the man with the dragon’s eyes snapped his neck.

“But the problem is…….”

He captured Kim Giryeo’s image in his blue vision.

“There’s a witness.”

Someone save me.

I couldn’t even make a peep and just stood there.

“After all, there’s a different weight to witnessing a murder from the perspective of a third party who is not involved, compared to condoning a sacrifice to save oneself.”

Kang Changho scanned me up and down once, then said this.

“From your perspective, there’s no reason for you to keep quiet about me killing Jeong Haseong.”

“So, are you going to kill both of us…?”

In my hometown, it was commonplace to kill those involved to prevent information from leaking.

So, I thought I was going to be killed by Kang Changho without a chance to resist…….

“Huh. Why would I kill Kim Giryeo Hunter, what kind of upsetting thing are you saying.”

Huh?

“It’s troublesome, but I have to give up on Jeong Haseong. That’s the path with the least damage.”

Hearing this, a sliver of hope bloomed in my heart.

“But, I have one favor to ask.”

But sadly, Kang Changho had no intention of just letting the unlucky witness go.

“Hey. Kim Giryeo, could you perhaps…… testify that you were the one who knocked out Jeong Haseong?”

Kang Changho took his hands out of his pockets and lightly began to loosen his wrists.

“If you don’t like that, die here.”

That fierce gaze was still directed at me.

◈◈◈

Kang Changho has good eyes.

Because he obtained a rare item called Dragon’s Eye from the A-rank monster, Green Dragon.

His vision, like that of a Mongolian, allowed him to identify objects in the distance.

There had never been a time when he had to squint to see something closely.

‘Did I just see something wrong?’

But one day.

Kang Changho doubted his own eyes for the first time.

The Dragon’s Eye not only enhances the wearer’s mana but also has the ability to gauge the awakening power of others with the naked eye.

So, whether he liked it or not, Kang Changho had seen the mana of countless hunters.

‘It wasn’t a mistake.’

The hunter I just made eye contact with was showing a bizarre form of mana that I had never seen before.

The total amount of power was really nothing compared to his own S-rank level.

Even so, Kang Changho couldn’t take his eyes off that person.

I’ve seen hundreds, thousands of awakened people so far, but this is the first time this has happened.

“What’s your name?”

“It’s Kim Giryeo.”

Maybe this man has ‘that skill’ that hunters all over the world yearn for.

It’s a probability too good to ignore, so let’s try to make a connection first.

That’s how I originally started talking to him with such a light heart.

But.

“What’s your rank?”

“F-rank.”

As time passed, Kang Changho became more and more intrigued.

The hunter who introduced himself as Kim Giryeo was shamelessly lying in front of me.

‘How long has it been since I’ve been treated like this…….’

Ordinary people, or so-called low-rank awakened ones between F and D-rank.

Because they perceive the difference in mana with an S-rank hunter as a kind of size difference, they would often tremble as if they had encountered a huge beast when they saw him.

It had been a long time since even buying a single item at a convenience store became difficult.

But, to meet a low-rank hunter who makes eye contact and talks like this.

‘What kind of guy is he?’

It’s fascinating.

What is he hiding?

Why isn’t he afraid of an S-rank?

“Kim Giryeo Hunter.”

Kang Changho used this small interest as fuel and tried to poke at Kim Giryeo a little.

But the result was a sight to behold.

“Huh.”

Whether he experienced a sudden traffic accident, or received a luxurious offer worth hundreds of millions.

Kim Giryeo was expressionless in everything. He really didn’t show any reaction at all.

At this point, it even felt like he was ignoring me, an S-rank hunter, like I was a bug.

‘He’s dry.’

But Kang Changho didn’t care.

No, rather, he liked his indifference as much as he had been suffering from various gazes.

So, it’s not because he’s bothered by Kim Giryeo’s attitude that he’s doing this.

“Hey. Kim Giryeo, could you perhaps…… testify that you were the one who knocked out Jeong Haseong?”

Back to the situation in the 『unidentified gate』.

Kang Changho asked the F-rank hunter he met in the gate for a deal.

“Even if Jeong Haseong remembers the situation, there’s no evidence of what happened inside the gate. In the end, the testimony of the raiders takes precedence in the trial.”

“You want me to lie……”

“Just say one thing. ‘There was a conflict during the raid, so I calmed Jeong Haseong down.'”

This was called a deal, but it was actually a one-sided threat.

“Of course, if you refuse the offer, or plan to change your words later.”

Kang Changho lowered his eyes and looked at the hunter in front of him.

“I can’t fail alone. If I get caught by the Association, my life in Korea is over, so I’ll kill only you no matter what.”

He threatened.

But unlike his serious appearance, he actually didn’t care what choice the other person made.

Because this is just a kind of verification.

‘Anyway, I can solve the Jeong Haseong issue myself, but this is a good opportunity.’

Kang Changho was secretly curious about what abilities this awakened one, who was so calm even in front of an S-rank, was hiding.

So, he tested the other person with such an absurd proposal.

If that person was hiding some extraordinary power or a backer…….

When an unjust threat is made against him. He would show a reaction of wriggling in protest.

‘Let’s see how he reacts.’

However, the answer that came back was enough to disappoint him.

“Okay. You want me to say that I was the one who put Jeong Haseong to sleep, right?”

Kim Giryeo, he backed down.

No matter how fearless he was, was he just a low-rank hunter at his core after all?

‘Something’s off.’

No. Kang Changho looked at the man in front of him again in detail.

Kim Giryeo was pretending to be troubled and bowing his head, but the expression that was slightly visible didn’t contain even a bit of fear.

‘Hmm?’

Looking at that, it’s not that he accepted the false testimony because he was afraid of the threat. Then?

‘…Is he trying to avoid the conflict itself?’

Kang Changho’s guess was surprisingly close to the truth, but he took a grand detour at the most important part.

‘Could the reason why his mana seems unstable be…….’

He turned the Dragon’s Eye and looked at Kim Giryeo.

Even at this moment, there was mana flickering precariously like a candle inside Kim Giryeo’s body.

‘What if that’s being suppressed by a status ailment skill?’

A skill that seals the awakening abilities of others.

Those who have it applied to them often have their mana appear to tremble slightly. Just not shaking that violently.

But Kang Changho had ruled out the possibility of a status ailment from the start.

Well, status ailments that affect awakening power are unstable enough to be released with low-grade potions…….

‘He said with his own mouth that he ‘can’t’ enter an S-rank gate ‘now.’ That means he was able to before.’

Judging from his attitude so far, it was highly likely that Kim Giryeo was a high-rank awakened one.

But if he lowered his mana level to that of a bug, the stuffiness he would feel would be like being gagged and wearing a straitjacket.

“……..”

A suspicious hunter who made eye contact with an S-rank and said that he ‘can’t’ enter an S-rank gate ‘now’.

Such a person is trying to avoid a fight at this moment.

While immediately accepting such an unreasonable request.

‘As if he can’t reveal his skills.’

Besides, what would you use an F-rank awakening power for?

Thinking rationally, there was no reason for an ordinary hunter to do that.

“……..”

But then again… isn’t there no such thing as absolute in this world?