Chapter 263

This kind of demand was a first too.

'Why Joo Seowon of all people?'

If we were talking strictly about who was more useful in a Dungeon, wouldn’t Do Yehyun, who could heal, be the better choice? And besides, this was the first time Im Haekyung had ever told me to take someone along anywhere, so his intention itself was suspicious from the start.

More than that, if it was an S-rank Dungeon, then by the time I arrived, anything involving “tracking” or gathering information would already be over anyway.

“Do I really have to?”

The moment I muttered it like a thought to myself, Im Haekyung immediately shot back with something that wasn’t quite a rebuttal.

—What do you mean, really have to? Seowon... is extremely capable, aren’t they?

What kind of obvious bullshit was that....

I knew better than anyone how useful Joo Seowon was. But that was outside of Dungeons. The bastard felt enough fear inside one that their life practically hung in the balance the moment they entered, so dragging them into an S-rank Dungeon just to make use of that usefulness was absurdly inefficient.

“I don’t think they’ll be all that capable inside an S-rank Dungeon.”

—Seowon would be hurt if they heard that.

“I’ll comfort them.”

I answered without interest and checked the schedule.

'Nothing much.'

“I’ll go. Though I think it’d be better to take Yehyun.”

—No. Go with Seowon.

“......?”

What kind of fascinating insistence was that supposed to be? I was so dumbfounded I nearly laughed.

“If there’s a need, it’d be for a healer.”

—There should already be quite a few healers on site. No need to bring Yehyun and let valuable healing personnel leak out.

“Why is the guild master worrying about that? You’re talking like they’re some public resource.”

If anything, that one was private property.

At that, Im Haekyung dropped the trace of laughter and said in a serious voice,

—I’m telling you to act efficiently. Yehyun’s reported rank isn’t all that high anyway, so transferring them is easy. Nothing about them is publicly known, they’ve never been in the media, and their abilities are in a highly useful support category, so there’s no need to take this kind of risk.

“.......”

—On the other hand... you’ve already had a lot of media exposure, Jehyun. Well, most of that is karma you brought on yourself.... The only reason it stopped at this level is because nothing’s been definitively settled yet, and because Taehan hasn’t become nationally beloved yet. If just a little more time had passed, it would’ve gotten serious, right? To the point where even I wouldn’t have been able to do anything.

I hadn’t even killed him, and they were bitching this much.

Before I could answer, Im Haekyung kept talking.

—Seowon’s similar. Nothing about them has surfaced in the media yet, but they’ve already made enemies in no less than two of the top five guilds in the country. Damyeon or Cape Prime won’t make a scene just to grab a single Hunter, but....

“.......”

—If Haeseong is behind that Hunter, it becomes a different story. Guilds are all fighting over pieces of the pie in the end. I want to play this safely, Jehyun.

“.......”

—I’d prefer it if the moment that threatens my position never comes at all. I’m saying even the tiniest little blemish would be a problem. From that angle, you’re the worst partner possible... but, well, I’ll let it slide. If you handle this well and come back.

So in other words, if I wanted Seowon and my own places in Haeseong left open, I should shut up and go help.

'Well, fair enough.'

Honestly, Joo Seowon’s place was probably more ambiguous than Do Yehyun’s. Even in the original story, Im Haekyung and Joo Seowon hadn’t really worked together.

Im Haekyung already ran Night Market, that massive Hunter market, and was an influential Hunter both inside and outside Korea. A bastard like that wouldn’t need Joo Seowon, whom I’d kept around to get small, specific bits of information. If he wanted, he was the kind of guy who could get fresh-off-the-source information anytime.

And because of that, I needed Joo Seowon. Even after going to Haeseong, I’d still need information that didn’t pass through Im Haekyung’s hands.

I hadn’t even realized all that long ago that Im Haekyung was getting excessively threatening. There was no way I could hand over Joo Seowon too.

“What about taking both?”

—Hmm, not a bad idea. But wouldn’t it be better to leave Yehyun in Korea? Not for any other reason, it’s just that sending you is ultimately domestic Hunter support too... and another Hunter from Haeseong, besides me, is also supposed to go.

“You’re saying five is too many?”

—Probably, yes? If another high-rank Dungeon opens in the meantime, that’d be a disaster. That’s why I’m going out as support with a time gap too.

Looked at one by one, everything he said was reasonable enough, which made it awkward to argue. I furrowed my brow slightly, then ended up agreeing without much fuss.

“Fine. I’ll do that.”

—Hmm....

What was that reaction supposed to mean?

“What?”

—Nothing.... I was just surprised you agreed faster than I expected. If you’d just said no, I was going to add another condition or two.

“For example?”

—Upgrade your seats?

His tone was dry, not particularly playful.

“What’s the point of an upgrade? First class?”

—There’s no first class on that plane, so just go quietly. I’ll book business.

“What about a private jet?”

—Where would I get a private jet?

You’re supposedly the guild master of the number one guild in Korea, and you don’t even have a private jet? What is this....

“Your closet was empty as hell too, so where exactly do you spend all the money you make?”

I had asked because I was genuinely curious, but I got a crooked answer back.

—Savings.

“Right.... Guess you’ll be rich.”

—Unlike you, I was born poor, so I can’t help it. I’m hanging up.

“No, well.... It’s nice seeing someone make it on their own. Kind of inspirational.”

—Should I just switch you back to economy? Suddenly business feels a little extravagant too.

This is how he reacts even when I compliment him. I answered without interest.

“Go ahead and book standing room only.”

—Haha....

The call ended with that short laugh and no response. As I stared blankly at the screen, two plane tickets came in by message.

If you cause trouble, you’ll be scolded

It didn’t seem worth replying, so instead of responding, I read it and ignored it. After that, another message came telling me to answer, so I sent one harmless-looking emoji and left it at that.

^^

***

The next day, Perth, Australia.

After spending fourteen hours on planes including the layover, my whole body felt stiff.

'Kind of tired.'

Since it hadn’t been a direct flight and I’d had to get off once and transfer, it didn’t feel like I’d slept all that well either. The clear fatigue, something I hadn’t felt in a while, put me in a pretty shitty mood. Felt like my intelligence had dropped a little too.

I looked over at Joo Seowon, who had followed along without saying much and then gone quiet again at some point.

“Sleepy?”

“No....”

Even when I told them they’d have to go into an S-rank Dungeon, Joo Seowon’s reaction hadn’t been dramatic. Their face had gone a little pale and they had sighed, but they hadn’t made a fuss like before.

'Worried?'

This wasn’t some vague mid-low-rank Dungeon. They’d been sent overseas to support an S-rank one, so it would’ve made sense for the reaction to be different. Guessing at what was going on inside Joo Seowon, I stared at their profile for a while, then turned my gaze forward.

We’d been told someone connected to the operation would be at the airport to pick us up, so I looked around for what was probably some kind of government employee.

'Hmm....'

And then, from far away, bright Korean text flashed into view.

Welcome! Hunters of the Republic of Korea

“.......”

“.......”

What the hell is that?

A man holding up a tablet with the flashing text on it waved enthusiastically at us. Joo Seowon must have spotted him too, because they rubbed their face with a hand and somehow looked even more exhausted than before.

“They translated that pretty literally.”

At my simple assessment, Joo Seowon quietly said,

“Let’s go....”

Once we handed all our luggage over to the Australian Hunter and got into the car, the guy smoothly handed each of us a translator.

“Hello, it’s an honor. My name is Colin Davison, and I’ve been assigned to escort the Korean Hunters. Please feel free to call me Colin. Or Col.”

“Hello. I’m Seo Jehyun. This is Joo Seowon.”

“Do you have English names as well?”

At the Hunter’s question, I turned toward Joo Seowon.

“No.”

“Didn’t you use something like that before? I think I heard it once.”

“I said I don’t have one now.”

I could’ve sworn they used to make those just fine when taking requests.

Meanwhile, whether the Hunter had figured out our conversation from context or whether he was wearing a translator too, he quickly jumped in.

“Ah, of course, I can call you by your Korean names too! I was only asking.”

Maybe he’d been stuck doing chauffeur duty too, because the Hunter kept driving while continuously briefing us on the situation.

“Given the situation, I’m sorry I’m the only one who could come first. We did control the airport, but we weren’t able to secure enough escort personnel. Even so, I’ll do my best to get you there safely.”

“Yes. Thank you. What does the current situation look like?”

“There will be an emergency meeting and countermeasures committee at two o’clock. For now, the Hunters will attend that meeting and discuss how to clear the Gate... and then in the afternoon, it seems you’ll go in as support. Fortunately, it was discovered at a very early stage, so the amount of Gate energy leaking outside is still small.”

As I listened to him, I looked out the window. Maybe it was because of the scenery outside, which was unfamiliar at a glance in that obvious foreign-country way, but it felt less like a business trip and more like a vacation.

'Though once we go into the Dungeon, that feeling’ll disappear too.'

Even then, Joo Seowon was still quiet. I glanced over, then took the hand resting on their thigh and gripped it tightly.

“What are you...! ...Mm.”

Joo Seowon looked at me like they were about to demand what the hell I was doing, but then, probably because they were conscious of the Hunter in front, they turned their head away and curled their hand into a fist to hide the palm.

They really were tense, I guess. Their fingertips felt oddly cold. I pushed my thumb into the hand they’d clenched and slowly stroked the palm, and dampness seeped out.

“You nervous?”

“Be quiet. ...There’s a translator.”

“I’m speaking quietly.”

“.......”

I let go of Joo Seowon’s hand soon enough, lightly tapped the side of their thigh with the back of my hand, and looked at them for a moment.

“.......”

After a quiet stretch with no real conversation passing between us, we finally arrived at the building {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} where the emergency meeting was being held.