32

Yoo Ee-Na’s jaw dropped open so wide that Hwan thought flies could have gone in and out without her noticing. However, if he was being honest, it was just a natural reaction.

He thought he was moving twice as fast as usual, but in reality, he moved much faster than that, way beyond what they had thought. Usually, Hunters had strict limits on their physical abilities, but Hwan did not have any.

It was hard to find accurate adjectives to describe it, but everyone could agree that it was scary. They stared at him in shock and could not even begin to imagine his strength.

Even his jokes were frightening.

What if his jokes had a reason behind them? Were those his attempts to hide his true nature? With this, Lee Hwan approached her.

“What were you thinking?”

“Oh… Um… Hi?”

“What do you mean ‘hi?’ Anyway, don’t forget what I said, you are not suitable for close combat. I can teach you some more moves to practice what I told you.”

Without hesitation, Yoo Ee-Na nodded. He then turned toward the girl, and their eyes met. Hwan had a suggestion for her.

“Would you like to be part of our team?”

“…Huh?”

“I like the look in your eyes, and your ability is interesting.”

He meant what he said; he always did. He did like the girl’s spirit, and her eyes were strangely nostalgic for him.

“You’ll receive a salary of two thousand dollars, and after a year, you can transfer to Cheon-Myeong. Do you know Lee Ho? I’ll put in a good word for you. The benefits are…”

I skimmed her body. She looked thinner and weaker than all the other candidates. “I noticed that you are not able to eat well. I hope I’m wrong, but it seems like you are being mistreated by someone else. If you want, I can stop that. Also…”

“Also, what?”

“I can get rid of them for you.”

***

It was not just an impulsive decision. As soon as I saw her eyes, I felt nostalgic.

I had met a child from Valhalla that had eyes that were similar to hers. That girl in Valhalla was not Yeo-Hwa. In fact, I didn’t even know that kid’s name.

“What’s your name?”

“Kim So-Eun… That’s my name.”

“Is that so? I think I’ve heard it before… Are you some kind of celebrity?”

At this, she smiled a little.

“I’m the supervisor of ROKHA…” I paused and looked back. The exam officer, and everyone else, were still staring at me.

If you managed to kill an S-rated monster, you would become an S-rated Hunter. To become an SS-rated Hunter, you must clear an SS-rated dungeon and be able to kill an S-rated monster within fifteen seconds.

I had killed the S-rated monster in just a second. That alone was already a huge shock.

“S-rated Hunter Lee Hwan. So, do we have a deal?”

“…Um, Can I decide on this by myself?”

“Oh, right, you’re just a teenager.”

I had forgotten about that. The world has changed a lot, so I hardly noticed stuff like that. She was not even an adult, so she had to wait for another year to decide.

I turned to look at Yoo Ee-Na. She had shown her intelligence a few times already, so I expected her to know how to deal with this situation. Luckily, she did.

“According to Hunter law, even if a person is younger than nineteen, if he or she is an awakener, then he or she can be considered as an adult. But the issue here is…”

“What?”

“She didn’t manage to kill an F-rated monster.”

“That is indeed a problem.”

“That’s why we can make a pre-contract. We make a deal with her first, then make sure she can register her name as a Hunter. Then she can successfully sign a contract with us. But, to achieve that, she should be able to kill an F-rated monster by this Thursday.”

That would be an easy task. I could train her.

“There’s nothing to worry about. Well, what do you think?”

So-Eun hesitated for a bit, but eventually nodded. “…I’ll do it.”

With a faint smile, I stretched out my hand to her.

“Let me introduce myself properly. I’m Lee Hwan, the supervisor of ROKHA.”

“I’m Kim So-Eun, a senior from Han-Seong High School.”

She shook my hand. With that, we had just recruited another unique skill holder to ROKHA.

Every unique skill holder, including my brother Ho, Park Jeong-Nam, and Yoo Ee-Na, had a skill that was much stronger than others. This applied to So-Eun as well.

I observed her ability and noticed that apart from just curing herself, she was also able to do some sort of regeneration, which was superior to just healing. So-Eun was a ‘Regenerator.’ I wondered if she could regenerate others as well, but whether or not she could, it surely was a great ability either way.

“Let’s head to dinner, shall we?”

I was expecting an answer from the two ladies I was with, but a response came from the other people in the registration center.

“Stop your rudeness.”

The people from the other guilds, who were crowding around to scout her, approached us to complain.

* * *

When the date of Hunter registration came, older Hunters from different guilds got themselves busy by scouting. Their goal was to scout for new Hunters to make their guilds more powerful.

That was why the guilds would send Hunters that were good at evaluating others. Today, at least forty guilds have sent their scouts to recruit new Hunters. These people have seen each other several times already. They were competitors but also allies who fight at the front lines together.

“I heard that that is Manifester Lee Ho’s brother?”

“Is that true?”

“I’m sure it’s true. Ask that reporter.”

“Oh… He is a reporter from that news channel.”

“Other reporters are here for him as well. I know that there was a news ban about that.”

Such were their first opinions on Hwan.

Seon Myeong-Joo from the Ko-gu-Rea guild craned his neck. There, in front of him, was Lee Hwan. He was very interested in the man. Everyone knows his brother Lee Ho and admired his accomplishments, but no one was really sure who Lee Hwan was. He hadn’t yet shown his presence enough.

That was why today’s news was rather surprising.

Lee Hwan’s performance was incredible, and a new unique skill holder had just appeared.

It was important to form good bonds with strong Hunters; that’s why they were all over each other just to talk to that unique skill holder and Lee Hwan.

However, look what ROKHA was doing.

B-ranked Hunter Yoo Ee-Na hogged the attention of the new unique skill holder the entire time, and Lee Hwan had scouted her directly. They had been waiting a long time to talk to her, and ROKHA was breaking the rules.

As they mentioned, that was rude of ROKHA. They were waiting for their turns to talk to the girl, but he had just gone in straight away.

The other Hunter scouts stood beside Seon Myeong-Joo in agreement.

Lee Hwan looked at him. “Rudeness?”

“Yes. I know your offer is great, but ROKHA is a public department. They don’t technically fight against the gates. And the salary you mentioned will be coming from our tax payments, you know. The procedure is not that simple.”

Hwan smiled and turned to Yoo Ee-Na.

“I bet he knows more than us.”

“…He should. He was once a leader of one of ROKHA’s teams.”

Yoo Ee-Na was right. Myeong-Joo had served as a leader of one of ROKHA’s teams. That was why he was aware of the rules and regulations. Lee Joo-Heon, who had been killed by Hwan in a random bathroom, was his successor.

“It’s not usual for a supervisor to interfere with the duties of the scouting team. More importantly, the salary you suggested is total nonsense. A newcomer’s maximum wage is one thousand dollars, but you are doubling that? Don’t tell me that you were planning to add your private money to her salary. That’s illegal.”

Lee Hwan was still smiling, making the other Hunters frustrated.

“Why don’t you say something?”

“I will. Let me ask you this.”

Everyone was paying close attention to his words.

“Dealing with the finances will be our problem, but let me get this straight. You guys are here since you all want to scout a unique skill holder. Isn’t that right? I’m assuming that’s why you’re here.”

Lee Hwan bent to his knee and faced Kim So-Eun so they were eye-level. He looked directly at her eyes and asked.

“Ms. Kim.”

“…Yes?”

“Have you seen any guilds here that attract you?”

He smiled and added, “They mentioned that I was rude; I suppose that’s correct. You’ve only heard our proposal. You should listen to the others as well.”

So-Eun looked at the strange man in front of her. He was odd, but he was strangely comfortable to be with.

Suddenly, she gave a little flinch. Without him physically speaking, Lee Hwan’s voice had suddenly boomed in her mind.

– Their proposals might seem sweet. –

His mouth was shut. How could this be possible?

– They’ll tell you that they’ll do anything you want. But trust me, we are the best option for you. –

A lot of proposals were being handed to her, showing amounts of money that she could not even imagine. Some of them even proposed a salary that was much higher than Lee Hwan’s proposal.

However, Hwan’s voice continued to resonate inside her head.

– If you want to be stronger and become a better person, join me. Got anything you want to eat? I’m quite a good chef. I hope you like kimchi stew. –

It was mysterious, but charming as well. She wanted to follow the feeling she was having right now.

She politely shook her head at the scouters from the other guilds.

“I appreciate your offers, but I would like to join ROKHA.”

The scouters were speechless. They had offered tempting proposals, but she had denied them all. Technically, it was now So-Eun’s decision. Lee Hwan had managed to persuade her, and that was it.

“Well then, it’s settled. I’ll be taking So-Eun. Have a nice day.”

Lee Hwan, after saying his farewell, left the registration center. The other Hunters were not able to say anything or stop him from going. They had just lost the unique skill holder.

Oh, their guild masters would be mad at this news. They all heaved a collective sigh.

Reporters started writing on their notebooks immediately. The breaking news about Lee Hwan was also a scoop, but there was a much bigger issue to report on.

Two unique skill holders were now in Korea.

That news shocked the entire nation.