F-Class Destiny Hunter

Chapter 99

Seo Gangrim hadn't planned on discussing the future with anyone else, but he had to tell Kang Dohyeon. He needed to convince him, since there would be a need for his cooperation in the future. As Kang Dohyeon looked at him with a puzzled expression, Seo Gangrim continued speaking.

"I saw the future through the Fate Guide. You and I will be murdered in a few years."

Although he needed to persuade Kang Dohyeon, he couldn't reveal the fact that he was a regressionist yet.

Kang Dohyeon's gaze sharpened slightly at the mention of seeing the future. As an agent of the Bureau, he also had some knowledge of precognitive items.

"Do you mean you and I will be killed? How did that happen?"

"It was an ambush, and I don't know the reason. I only know the name and face of the murderer. The name was Baek Young, a God-class person."

"..."

"So you're saying you can't quit being a Hunter? You have to become stronger to stop that woman."

Kang Dohyeon's expression became somewhat complicated. Instead of explaining further, Seo Gangrim glanced towards the entrance.

"We should probably continue this conversation outside."

Several pairs of footsteps could be heard coming from the entrance. After a moment, Annaby and the Tous appeared.

"We've managed to rescue all the survivors for now."

"Oh!"

The Tous were lifting people and carrying them. They had rescued well over twenty people. Some were still unconscious, and others were muttering words of gratitude.

"Thank you, thank you...!"

"We thought it was over for us. No one came to help us for months..."

Seo Gangrim and Kang Dohyeon didn't seem pleased despite the expressions of gratitude. Annaby took in the atmosphere and said, "We should leave for now. We need to transport them quickly."

"Yes, let's do that."

As Seo Gangrim opened the door of the hall, the scene of the abandoned factory appeared beyond it. At the same time, a notification window appeared in front of Seo Gangrim.

[Successfully conquered the Human First-class Demon Realm!]

[Conquest rewards have arrived!]

[Thanks to the efforts of "Annaby," her patron deity "Tailed Guardian" has gained widespread recognition. Your reputation has increased!]

[Thanks to the efforts of "Kang Dohyeon," his patron deity "Son of Ghost and Human" has gained widespread recognition. Your reputation has increased!]

[Hunter "Seo Gangrim's" name is gaining recognition! The gods are beginning to pay attention to you.]

Once you conquered a Demon Realm, the record would immediately be uploaded to the community, so people and even gods would become aware of the situation.

Meanwhile, Annaby and Kang Dohyeon were busy tending to the survivors without having a chance to enjoy the joy of conquering the Demon realm.

"Well, there are no one with severe injuries. However, there are many survivors who need healing. I'm calling for more personnel with recovery abilities from the Bureau."

Annaby was making a call to the Bureau for additional personnel. Seo Gangrim glanced at her and then moved his foot.

"It seems difficult to have a conversation with Kang Dohyeon right now. He must know that he's going to die, so he'll come soon."

It seemed that Kang Dohyeon's feelings toward Seo Gangrim were more akin to resentment than goodwill. Nevertheless, since his own life was at stake, he would eventually cooperate.

As Seo Gangrim was about to leave, Kang Dohyeon grabbed him by the shoulder.

"Hey."

Kang Dohyeon looked at Seo Gangrim as if he could pierce through him and sighed deeply.

"Where are you going alone? You said you wanted to talk about it in detail, wait until I'm done."

Although his voice was rough, it wasn't entirely displeasing. Kang Dohyeon released Seo Gangrim and said, "Let's go to my place and talk."

***

Seo Hwakyung's house, which he visited after a long time, was much quieter and more solemn than he remembered. The flagpole he had seen when he first came here was still there, but he couldn't tell if the flag had been removed or had fallen off.

"Come this way."

Kang Dohyeon led him into the shrine. The shrine had been cleaned thoroughly, but it still had a somewhat eerie atmosphere due to the lack of offerings. In the center of the shrine, an urn was placed.

"Do you know how my mother passed away? Did the pathfinder tell you that too?"

"She died in a fire."

Seo Hwakyung died in the annex behind the house. Kang Dohyeon, who was sleeping, heard a sudden cracking sound and rushed to the annex. He found Seo Hwakyung amidst the burning building. The fire only subsided after the annex was completely consumed. Seo Hwakyung's body was in such a badly damaged state that it was difficult to recognize.

"Do you happen to know why your mother made that choice?" Seo Gangrim asked.

To that question, Kang Dohyeon shook his head. Seo Hwakyung left a will, but it didn't provide him with any answers. The will was written in such a vague and cryptic manner.

[I choose the best path among the fates available to me.]

Seo Hwakyung had glimpsed her own future and had chosen the best path among them. Kang Dohyeon and Seo Gangrim couldn't comprehend that her chosen path was suicide. They wanted to summon even the soul of Seo Hwakyung and ask, but she did not respond to their call

"I thought you said it was a good item, but even the Fate Guide isn't much."

Kang Dohyeon muttered something like that and began attaching talismans throughout the shrine. These talismans blocked spiritual access. After Kang Dohyeon had attached talismans all over the shrine, he sat down heavily on the floor.

"The other gods won't hear us. I also asked my patron deity to close his ears and eyes temporarily."

Seo Gangrim didn't want to share information about the future with the gods if he could help it, especially since he didn't know who among them might be his enemy.

Kang Dohyeon spoke in the silence, "So, this woman named Baek Young is coming to kill us, right?"

"Yes. That's why I need your help."

"My help?"

He raised an eyebrow, looking somewhat puzzled and self-deprecating.

"Wouldn't it be better to ask for help from your god instead of me? You're strong enough."

"I haven't received divine possession."

At Seo Gangrim's words, Kang Dohyeon looked up. He seemed perplexed.

"You still haven't received divine possession? Why?"

"Because one of those gods killed my parents."

How could Seo Gangrim accept the divine possession of someone who had killed his parents and sent his life into hell?

Kang Dohyeon hesitated and then said, "Couldn't you have accepted another god's divine possession back then, instead of the god who wanted to possess you as a child?"

"I don't know who that god is. Even if that god approached me pretending to be another, I wouldn't be able to tell."

While it might be foolish not to accept divine possession for that reason alone, Seo Gangrim still couldn't bring himself to accept any god. He also couldn't trust other gods all that much.

"I can't stop Baek Young on my own. That's why I need your help."

"...How can I help?"

Seo Gangrim recounted the events of his past, editing them appropriately. From his childhood to the moment when the Flying Tiger Sect was destroyed and other crucial events. After all the explanations were finished, Kang Dohyeon's expression became more serious.

"So, in the end, we need to find this woman named Baek Young. You only know her name and face?"

"Yes."

"Why did she kill the Flying Tiger Sect? You don't know that either?"

Seo Gangrim nodded. He had vague speculations, but he wasn't certain.

"When you were young, you said you had seen Baek Young at the scene of the crime, and you were paying the price for refusing divine possession..."

Kang Dohyeon pondered for a moment before speaking, "Baek Young was the god who wanted to possess you when you were young, wasn't she? That's why she wanted to kill the Flying Tiger Sect."

Seo Gangrim had considered that possibility. Baek Young had been a presence whenever misfortune befell him. She had caused harm around Seo Gangrim, and while it might not have been her doing, he couldn't rule out the possibility that she hadn't been responsible for the deaths. However, there was something that bothered him.

"When I was young, all sorts of misfortunes came around me, but Baek Young never tried to kill me."

After all, what god wanted was not to kill me but to subdue me. Therefore, even if god sent down sickness and made me suffer from illness, He did not directly harm me for His own benefit.

"However, at that time, Baek Young was solely consumed with the thought of killing me. The deaths of other people... were more of an unforeseen event."

She had offered to spare everyone if Seo Gangrim handed himself over. While it might have been a lie, the atmosphere suggested it was unlikely.

"And there's something strange. Baek Young didn't seem to recognize me. She was killing anyone because she didn't know my face."

Somewhere, things didn't quite add up. Various speculations came to mind, but they were all just guesses. Finding Baek Young to uncover the truth seemed to be the most certain path.

"First, we need to find a clue about Baek Young."

"How do you plan to find her? All you know is her name and face. You don't even know who her god is."

It would have been good if they could at least determine which god she belongs to, but her Destiny was protected. With such limited clues, finding Baek Young was a daunting task. That's why Seo Gangrim needed Kang Dohyeon's help.

"Still, there are some leads. There aren't many abilities as high as a Divine First-class. If Baek Young is a powerful figure like that..."

Seo Gangrim looked at the mask that Kang Dohyeon was holding.

"Perhaps she's the head of the Bureau."

"The leader?"

He seemed briefly surprised but then fell silent. Kang Dohyeon muttered quietly, "There is something suspicious about it. Even her face is not known."

The identity of the Bureau's head was a top-secret matter, and the leader had never once revealed their face to the public. Even the agents had only seen the leader's face a handful of times. Nevertheless, despite her face not being known, the presence of the Bureau's head was formidable. Whenever high-grade, Divine-level monsters appeared in the city, the leader would appear and swiftly eliminate them. Such strength would easily justify the title of Divine First-class.

"So, you're not thinking that... you want me to..." Kang Dohyeon's voice trailed off, as he seemed to understand what Seo Gangrim was implying. Kang Dohyeon looked at him as if he were crazy. Seo Gangrim also knew that it was an excessive request.

Seo Gangrim had considered joining their organization to investigate internally, but that would come with too many restrictions. That's why he had to confide in Kang Dohyeon about future events.

Seo Gangrim's request seemed too unreasonable to Kang Dohyeon, and he knew it.

"My rank is at most an Agent. I don't have the clearance to access top-level secrets like the Bureaus's head's identity."

"I see, it might be too much... In that case, I'll handle it on my own."

"Is it really too much?" Kang Dohyeon suddenly gave me a piercing look, as if he wanted to kill me.

It seemed Seo Gangrim had touched upon his inferiority complex once again.

He changed the subject, "For now, at least, confirm Baek Young's face."

Seo Gangrim used an item to project Baek Young's face and showed it to him.

Kang Dohyeon received the image quietly, then spoke, "You've become quite audacious in my absence. Don't twist words..."

Kang Dohyeon was about to say more but stopped himself when he saw the picture. His gaze was fixed on it.

After a long silence, he spoke with difficulty. "I... I've seen this woman before."

"You've seen her before?"

Seo Gangrim asked in surprise, wanting to know more.

Kang Dohyeon nodded with a solemn expression.

"A few days before my mother passed away, I saw this woman near our house."

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