Finally Got Stronger but Ended Up Regressing

Chapter 13 Leave (4)

In the case of so-called successful hunters, many are born with their talents.

In other words, they can unlock their abilities without much effort or struggle.

Even special abilities that others can’t even dream of.

In many ways, they started from a different starting line compared to other hunters.

Han Jae-woo was different. He came from the same hunter corps as me. Not as an officer or a non-commissioned officer, but as a soldier.

I admired Han Jae-woo next to my father.

I wanted to be like him.

I wanted to write my own success story, rising from a lowly private to the master of a mega guild that the whole world pays attention to.

The result, of course, was failure.

I rolled around in this field until I was almost fifty, but the highest I reached was sergeant.

In hindsight, it was only natural.

Even if we started at the same point, Han Jae-woo was an ordinary soldier, and I was a troublesome soldier who missed promotions several times.

No matter how hard I tried, what couldn’t be done, couldn’t be done.

Personally, I was satisfied.

There were many who couldn’t even make it to sergeant before being discharged, so I was definitely above average.

It just took a bit longer to get there.

“Captain, will there be a reward?”

“Of course there will be. Even the local district representatives are involved, so the amount will be quite substantial.”

“!!”

Anyway, that’s how it was before the regression.

Now, it’s different.

There’s no reason I can’t write my own success story like Han Jae-woo.

“Also, expect a reward leave. Our battalion commander isn’t stingy about those things.”

“Yes, sir!!”

Corporal Jung Ye-som’s eyes sparkled at the mention of the reward and leave, not caring about Han Jae-woo or anything else.

To be honest, I felt the same way.

Of course, having my face next to Han Jae-woo’s is an honor, but for a soldier, money and leave are the best rewards.

I laughed with Corporal Jung Ye-som as we made eye contact.

“It’s almost 20:00. Let’s head back. There will probably be an award ceremony tomorrow morning, so take out your A-grade combat uniform and iron it well.”

“Understood! Loyalty!”

“Loyalty.”

On the way back to the barracks, Corporal Jung Ye-som was already excited, talking about buying a new bag with the reward money and going on a beach trip with the reward leave.

“This is all thanks to you, Yun-ho.”

“No, we did it together.”

“We fought together, but if you hadn’t suggested going for a second round, we wouldn’t have even looked that way.”

“Well, that’s true.”

“But it really seems like heaven helped us. It’s amazing that a dungeon was created right there, and how did it even explode?”

“I’m still amazed too.”

In fact, I knew the dungeon would explode as soon as it was created, but I kept that to myself as we returned to the barracks.

As soon as we opened the door, it was a festive atmosphere.

“Oh! The two heroes who saved the citizens are here!”

“Hey, what are you all doing! Give them a round of applause!”

All the squad members stood up and applauded me and Corporal Jung Ye-som.

Outside the door, people from other squads had also gathered.

They praised us for accomplishing something great.

They say even whales dance when praised.

A smile naturally forms on my lips.

– This is the scene at Modang Station where the incident occurred. As you can see, the traces of the dungeon explosion remain intact. Five Garoks emerged here and tried to harm the citizens. At that moment, Corporal Jeong Yesom and Private Gu Yunho from the Biho Battalion, who were passing by, immediately responded and saved many citizens’ lives…

On the crooked TV, a reporter was reporting on the Modang Station incident.

The news I had been sick of seeing for the past few days.

But now, it feels very different.

– …This has been VBS reporter Gu Minkyeong.

The reporter was my eldest sister. As her younger brother, I felt proud to have contributed something. I had always been the useless younger brother who only received.

Corporal Song Jihan, who was watching TV with me, asked.

“That reporter is also a Gu. Yunho, is that reporter your sister by any chance?”

“Hey, just because we have the same surname doesn’t mean we’re all family. What nonsense are you talking about?”

At Sergeant Song Giyong’s scolding, Corporal Song Jihan said, “The reporter is quite pretty, so I thought there might be a connection. Yunho, you have a good-looking face too.” He provided his own reasoning.

Sergeant Song Giyong dismissed it as nonsense, but I was momentarily terrified.

What kind of intuition is this?

I almost got exposed.

Of course, having an older sister who is a reporter is something to be proud of, but there’s nothing good about letting these people know.

If they find out my sister or younger sister is pretty, they’ll go crazy asking me to introduce them.

As a junior, it’s hard to refuse such requests firmly.

So it’s better to keep it a secret.

‘These guys are really funny.’

‘Haha.’

Only one person, Corporal Jeong Yesom, who knew that reporter Gu Minkyeong was my eldest sister, chuckled.

Meanwhile, the screen switched, and the battle with the Garoks began to play.

It was a video taken by citizens who were at the scene at the time.

– Everyone, run away! If you don’t want to be sliced and have your guts spill out!

“Wow, look at him calmly evacuating the citizens first.”

“Yunho, are you really a private? You don’t seem nervous at all.”

“Right. In such unexpected situations, rookies usually freeze.”

The seniors marveled at my quick response. From the beginning, I had no reason to be nervous or freeze.

It wasn’t because the effect of [Iron-Blooded Knight’s Soul] made me not intimidated by most enemies.

Garok had caught hundreds more before the regression.

In terms of pure strength, maybe, but in terms of skill, there was no way I could lose.

“Wow, the battle is amazing.”

“Look at how he calculates the attack speed of the Garoks and just turns his body accordingly. It’s fantastic.”

“We learned all this during training, but using it in actual combat is a different matter.”

Exclamations of admiration continued. And naturally, they began to wonder. The one who fought like that was me.

“Yunho, have you awakened or something? Not your ability, but yourself?”

“Are you the same Gu Yunho I know?”

Corporal Jeong Yesom answered for me.

“It’s the result of hard training. Everyone knows Yunho is always stuck in the training room every day.”

“That’s true.”

“All the accumulated effort must have exploded at some point. Maybe Yunho himself has awakened.”

That’s right.

I had awakened.

The awakening of regression.

“Well, even if you have no talent, if you train that much, it’s only natural for a person to change.”

“Yeah. And they say hard work never betrays you.”

Even the seniors started to acknowledge me one by one. Sergeant Song Giyong patted my back, saying, “Yunho, I have high expectations for you.”

“By the way, Corporal Jeong Yesom is also amazing. She turned two Garoks into charcoal in an instant.”

At Private Song Jihan’s words, Corporal Jeong Yesom shook her head and pointed at me.

“I just put a spoon on the table Yunho set.”

“Wow, you’re even humble.”

“No, if it weren’t for Yunho, I could never have fought like that. Magic is difficult in close combat.”

She gave all the credit to me.

“So you’re saying you benefited from Yunho.”

“You’re all making a fuss.”

Private Byun Jitak, who had been lying on the bed the whole time, suddenly interrupted. He frowned as if something was seriously bothering him.

“What’s so great about catching a few Garoks? They’re just slightly better than Nols or Deriphons.”

He wasn’t wrong. Garoks are only slightly better than Nols or Deriphons. Their combat power isn’t that high. They’re treated that way even among monster ranks.

Corporal Jeong Yesom chuckled and looked down at Private Byun Jitak. Her previously smiling eyes had turned sharp.

“Byun Ji-tak, are you really that stupid? Instead of questioning Garok’s level, you should be considering that the unexpected situation was handled well without any casualties.”

“What? Stupid?”

His burly body sprang up and in an instant, he was in front of Corporal Jung Ye-som.

Corporal Jung Ye-som did not avoid his gaze. Instead, she raised her head even higher.

“A guy who only relies on strength wouldn’t know that. That’s why you’re stupid.”

“You b*tch!”

“Hey, Byun Ji-tak.”

A low voice sounded from the side. Sergeant Song Ki-yong stood with his arms crossed. Byun Ji-tak’s hand, which had been raised above his head, immediately came down.

“In times like this, you should be praising them for doing well, not nitpicking over nonsense.”

“No, Sergeant Song, what I mean is…”

“Lie down. Stop talking nonsense.”

Byun Ji-tak couldn’t say another word. He lay back on his bed. Corporal Jung Ye-som pinched one of her eyes and stuck her tongue out at him.

“That’s right, Yoon-ho and I are scheduled to receive a commendation from the battalion commander tomorrow.”

“Commendation? What commendation?”

“A commendation for the heroes who illuminated the Vihodae Battalion.”

“Wow!”

At that word, Byun Ji-tak’s face crumpled even more.

*

The next day, in the battalion conference room.

“Everyone saw the video, right? It was really amazing.”

“Gu Yoon-ho isn’t originally that kind of character, is he? He’s notoriously known in our company for being incompetent.”

“What does the 3rd Company Commander think? About the remarkable performance of the lowest-ranking private under your command.”

“Well, just looking at the video, he doesn’t seem like a low-ranking private but a seasoned officer with over 10 years of experience.”

The officers gathered for the morning meeting. Second Lieutenant Noh Young-il of the 1st Platoon, 3rd Company, subtly joined the conversation of his superiors.

“I recently had a specialty training with Private Gu Yoon-ho.”

“And?”

“It was just a fleeting moment, but Private Gu Yoon-ho blocked my attack.”

“?”

“No matter how much I held back, I couldn’t believe that it was Private Gu Yoon-ho who did that.”

The superiors, especially Captain Oh Joon-beom, who was his direct superior, clicked their tongues in disbelief.

“Hey, Noh Young-il. You’ve been going out to meet women every weekend lately, and that’s why you’re experiencing such things even from a mere private. Work harder, work harder. You said you wanted to get promoted quickly.”

Second Lieutenant Noh Young-il protested, “That’s a separate issue. Private Gu Yoon-ho purely took my blow. It’s true.” But his superiors didn’t buy it.

“The battalion commander is coming.”

The chatter ended there. All the officers stood up simultaneously.

“Loyalty!”

“Loyalty!”

“Loyalty!”

“Loyalty. Everyone, sit down.”

A middle-aged man towering at 190 cm. The battalion commander of the Viper Battalion, Lieutenant Colonel Park Ui-chul.

“Let’s start the meeting right away.”

“Yes.”

Various agendas were brought up, including the weekly training plan, the list of dungeons to be cleared, and the status of the troops.

But today, there was a more important agenda.

“Company Commander of the 3rd Company.”

“Yes, Battalion Commander!”

“The tasks that required troop deployment were handled by Corporal Jung Ye-som and Private Gu Yoon-ho. It must be because the 3rd Company Commander taught them well. Good job.”

“Thank you!”

The battalion commander is not the one who decides promotions, but he can influence them.

Even the regimental commander of the higher unit is connected to Lieutenant Colonel Park Ui-chul.

Above him, there are generals with stars.

Captain Oh Joon-beom shouted excitedly.

“I believe I could do it because I received good teachings from the battalion commander!”

“Hahaha, thank you for saying that.”

Lieutenant Colonel Park Ui-chul laughed heartily and asked,

“By the way.”

“Yes, Battalion Commander. Please speak.”

“Why is Private Gu Yoon-ho still a private? No matter how formidable the opponent was, his quick response to unexpected situations and his composure in battle are not qualities of a mere private.”

As the battalion commander, he couldn’t be aware of every single soldier’s situation. Moreover, Private Gu Yoon-ho belonged to the 3rd Company, not the headquarters company.

Lieutenant Colonel Park Ui-chul didn’t even know Private Gu Yoon-ho’s name until the recent Modang Station incident.

That’s why he’s asking.

Why would someone with such skills…

“Put him up for special promotion next week. If a soldier under your command achieves results, you should reward them as a commander.”

“Well, that is…”

“Why? Is there a problem?”

Captain Oh Jun-beom cautiously opened his mouth.

“Private Gu Yoon-ho has currently been passed over for promotion three times.”

“What? As a private?”

“Yes.”

According to the Hunter Headquarters regulations, if you are passed over for promotion twice in the same rank, special promotion is impossible.

But if it’s three times, there’s no need to even discuss it.

“How could someone with such skills be passed over for promotion twice? Especially as a private.”

“I wonder about that too. He’s a really excellent guy…”

It was a blatant lie. Captain Oh Jun-beom had never once called Private Gu Yoon-ho excellent. He just saw him as a disposable tool.

Now, he was just going along with Lieutenant Colonel Park Eui-cheol’s words.

Of course, he had to reveal the truth.

Captain Oh Jun-beom pointed to the documents on Lieutenant Colonel Park Eui-cheol’s desk.

“Would you like to take a look at the records?”

It was Private Gu Yoon-ho’s service record, which he had brought just in case this topic came up.

“Private Gu Yoon-ho is certainly a good soldier, but until recently, he had not achieved any significant results in training or combat.”

“Hmm.”

“That’s the reason for the three missed promotions.”

Lieutenant Colonel Park Eui-cheol, who was carefully examining the records, finally raised his head.

All the scores were the lowest.

Especially in physical strength, the scores were so low that even calling them poor was an understatement.

The only high score he received was for his attitude as a Hunter soldier.

Of course, such an attitude had nothing to do with promotion.

“The records never lie. This is Private Gu Yoon-ho’s true ability.”

Lieutenant Colonel Park Eui-cheol laughed as if he found it amusing.

“But battles don’t lie either. Especially in such unexpected situations, luck can’t play a role.”

What could he be trying to say? The officers straightened their backs and listened attentively.

Lieutenant Colonel Park Eui-cheol, who had put down the record book, spoke again.

“About the intensive training for the privates starting this afternoon.”

“Yes.”

“I’ll be going too, so keep that in mind.”

“!!”

It was for the privates, not even the corporals or sergeants. It was like a tiger watching over the training of puppies.

And the reason was solely because of one person.

“I need to see this guy, Koo Yoon-ho, myself.”