NOVEL NEXT Chapter 47
Chapter 47: The Serious Staff
The staff of the Hunter Association in front of the gate wore serious expressions. The day had long since turned dark. If things continued as they were, it might not be until after midnight that they would finally get some answers. The staff brought lights to illuminate the area in front of the gate.
Team Leader Seo of the Inspection Bureau sat on a bench, anxiously smoking one cigarette after another.
“Team Leader, the Sun Guild has cleared their schedule for tomorrow,” a subordinate reported as they approached. Originally, they were supposed to launch an attack today as soon as the gate opened, but it hadn’t opened as expected, resulting in changes to their plans.
“Tell them I appreciate it,” Seo replied.
“Understood.”
“By the way… why won’t it open?”
Seo muttered to himself, as if questioning the universe.
“Even if it’s an A-Class, can’t a monster just run away or hide? They must be able to hold out for a while…”
“Have you ever been inside an A-Class gate?”
“…No.”
“It’s not a place that two B-rank Hunters could just withstand.”
“Got it.”
The subordinate nodded.
Seo, despite being the head of the Inspection Bureau, was also a talented A-rank Hunter. He had been personally scouted by Ryu Geon-woo, the president of the Hunter Association, when he was still a promising young A-rank Hunter.
Given that A-rank Hunters were highly valued in the market, the number of A-rank Hunters working for the government association was quite small. There were even rumors that he was promised the position of the next head of the Inspection Bureau. Hence, it made sense that at the age of mid-thirties, he was the team leader there.
“Ah! It opened! The gate has opened, Team Leader!” shouted a staff member keeping watch.
Seo threw his cigarette into the trash bin and rushed towards the gate.
“What’s the color of the gate…?”
Seo had a disbelieving expression on his face. If the raid team had been wiped out, the gate would remain red.
However, the color had changed to white.
…Could it be that they defeated the boss?
“They’re coming out!” shouted another staff member. As he said, people were emerging from the gate’s entrance. Though they looked bloodied and utterly exhausted, joy at having returned alive gleamed on their faces.
“Check the injured’s condition first, and then get them immediate treatment,” Seo instructed.
◈ ◈ ◈
Three injured individuals were sent to the hospital for treatment. Considering they had just returned from an A-Class Double Gate, that was a miraculous number.
The Hunter Association staff were also taken aback by the state of the group. They were dying to know what had happened inside the gate.
However, it seemed like Team Leader Seo was holding back from discussing it.
Among them, the most seriously injured was Hyung-cheol. He had been struck hard in the abdomen by a giant monkey, to the point of spitting up blood, meaning his organs likely weren’t intact. A thorough examination was absolutely necessary, and his face was still pale.
“…Please,” Hyung-cheol said before getting into the ambulance heading to the hospital, indicating towards Jin-soo’s corpse, covered with a white cloth.
When the staff first saw the body, their faces turned pale with shock. Some of the staff who were particularly faint-hearted even vomited. It was that gruesome of a sight.
“Do not worry,” Seo replied solemnly. Hunters and death were an inseparable relationship; they had to grow accustomed to death.
However, they had to be wary of becoming desensitized. That was the minimum threshold to keep their humanity intact.
Seo always recalled that when he looked at the deceased Hunters.
“Thank you,” Hyung-cheol bowed his head in gratitude before getting into the ambulance. With him, the transport of the injured to the hospital was completed.
Seo approached the remaining group. With one person dead and the issue of the Double Gate at hand, an investigation was inevitable. Seo was as curious as anyone about what had transpired in the gate.
It had been a gate where surviving was virtually impossible with their power level. What on earth had occurred that allowed almost everyone to return safely, except for one? No matter how he thought about it, he couldn’t even begin to guess.
But Seo suppressed his curiosity. The Hunters looked incredibly fatigued, and it seemed they desperately needed sleep. Moreover, given how late it was, he felt it would be best to postpone the investigation until tomorrow.
Seo spoke up.
“You all worked very hard today. I know you must be mentally and physically exhausted. For now, go home and rest, and report back to the Hunter Association by 9 AM tomorrow morning. You will need to be investigated by the Inspection Bureau regarding this incident.”
◈ ◈ ◈
As soon as Si-hyun arrived home, he collapsed onto his bed. The extreme fatigue made it feel like he didn’t want to move a single finger. While in the gate, he had been in a constant state of tension, so he hadn’t noticed this level of exhaustion.
However, now that he was out of the gate, it felt like all the fatigue of the day came rushing in at once.
‘I defeated a Giant Monkey.’
Si-hyun murmured internally as he recalled the gigantic form of the creature.
He still couldn’t fully grasp the reality of it. That monster had swiftly taken the lives of B-rank Hunters. And yet, he had defeated it.
He had been incredibly lucky. If it had been any other monster that had a weakness to sound, he might have lost his life there.
The staff hadn’t informed him of the exact rank of the Double Gate they had emerged from, perhaps because they still had investigations pending.
However, considering the strength of the Giant Monkey and the expressions of the staff, it was reasonable to guess it was at least a B-rank gate.
Ah, and the unique item.
Unique items also dropped from gates rated at B-rank or above. Thinking of that, Si-hyun opened his inventory to check the unique item he had received from Tae-seong. In the chaos, he had only glanced at the item’s name without examining it closely.
[Leather Armor of the Giant Monkey][Unique]Physical Resistance: +21%Magic Resistance: +21%Poison Resistance: +10%Fire Resistance: +18%-An armor made from the leather of the Giant Monkey. While it has no magic applied, the leather itself possesses special resistances. It also provides warmth, making it suitable for the winter. However, it will be quite hot during summer.
‘All resistances?’
This option was something he’d never seen before. All the armor Si-hyun had previously looked at had focused on physical resistance. It made sense, as physical resistance was paramount in raids. Most Monster attacks were physical attacks. Armor that raised other resistances was rare, at least among rare-grade items.
But here, two resistances exceeding 20% for all types was extraordinary. When Si-hyun had browsed the store looking for armor, he hadn’t found a single rare-grade piece exceeding 20% in resistance. Truly unique, indeed.
‘…But it doesn’t look fancy at all.’
One would typically imagine unique armor to be flashy and magnificent. However, this was just a simple red fur leather armor.
It looked like something hunters would wear.
“Well, as long as it performs well, that’s what matters,” Si-hyun muttered.
◈ ◈ ◈
This was the second time he was visiting the Inspection Bureau. When he first became a Hunter, he never imagined he would end up coming here twice.
Except for the injured, the remaining team from the previous day was reassembled. Those who had been hospitalized were undergoing investigations by Inspection Bureau staff.
Si-hyun thought he would be heading to the interrogation room again, but unexpectedly, he was led to a room labeled Team Leader’s Office.
Before entering the room, Si-hyun had one thing weighing on his mind. Just like during the face-avoidance technician incident, it would be revealed during the investigation that he was a public servant. In the previous case, an Inspection Bureau staff member had laughed and turned a blind eye to that.
However, what if the person adhering to principles and rules decided to report him? For now, it seemed he could only hope that they weren’t such a person.
Upon entering, the man he recognized as Team Leader Seo Yong-gil greeted him politely. He gestured towards a sofa with a coffee table for Si-hyun to sit.
Once Si-hyun sat down, Seo took a seat across from him. Interestingly, he wasn’t using a laptop or tablet. Instead, he pulled out a notebook and a fountain pen, placing them on the table.
He seemed to be quite an analog person.
“I’ve heard from the earlier arrivals,” Seo began.
“Really?”
“You defeated the boss, the Giant Monkey.”
Now, Si-hyun understood why he had been brought into the team leader’s office. It seemed that perhaps the Hunters who arrived early had shared some stories about what transpired in the gate.
“That’s correct,” Si-hyun admitted. It was the truth, and he had no reason to hide it.
“Interesting. If it’s not too much trouble, may I measure your magic power?”
“Of course.”
“Thank you.”
Seo brought out a device and pressed a button towards Si-hyun.
Beep.
-101.
“Uh?”
Seo had an astonished expression at the unexpected number.
“What’s wrong?”
Si-hyun asked nonchalantly, knowing the reason.
“Um, no, it’s nothing. Just a moment. Let’s try again.”
Beep.
-101.
“….”
Seo looked puzzled. The device was new, and there should have been no errors. Just a few days ago, it had been functioning perfectly.
So why the discrepancy?
“Hunter Lee Si-hyun, I was told you’re an E-rank Hunter?”
“That’s correct.”
“But your reading is showing 101. The device shouldn’t be malfunctioning…”
“Looks like it’s stuck at 101,” Si-hyun feigned innocence. He had simulated this scenario several times at home before coming here. Given that he had defeated such an outrageous monster, he had anticipated they might check his magic power, and it turned out he was right.
“Are you saying you expected to read 101?”
Seo regarded him with a quizzical expression.
“Yes, that’s right. Actually….”
Si-hyun paused for effect.
“Actually?”
“Um, you’re aware that my magic power was originally 99, right?”
“Yes, I am.”
“But the moment I defeated the Giant Monkey, it increased. Precisely by 2.”
“Wait, it went up?!”
Seo’s eyes widened in surprise. He then rested his chin on his hand, deep in thought.
‘…It’s possible.’
99.9% of Hunters possess fixed abilities throughout their lives.
However, there exist the 0.1% exceptions who see their abilities rise. The exact causes had not been uncovered, but most frequently, it occurred while participating in raids. Although the increase wasn’t usually substantial, it typically remained below 5.
As a result, it never dramatically empowered them or altered their fate. Nothing new was gained, just slight increases in power. Regardless, it was indeed a strange phenomenon that was challenging to explain.
Could it be similar to how experience points function in online games?
Some initially thought that might be the case.
However, this wasn’t true. Even veteran Hunters with ample experience in slaying monsters found that their abilities remained steady. At this point, the prevailing guess was that there was something that allowed them to surpass their limits at certain pivotal moments, thereby increasing their abilities.
“I’ll measure it one more time,” Seo resolved.
Beep.
-101.
“…It’s certain now.”
Seo nodded. It seemed there was no deceit in Si-hyun’s statements. The magic power numbers couldn’t be manipulated at will like play-dough.
When he initially received his license, it had registered 99; now, it was 101.
Given that it was measured by the power gauge, it was definitive. Furthermore, unless it related to the rare phenomenon of power increase, there was no way to explain the jump from 99 to 101.
Seo continued.
“Congratulations. If you wish to renew your license, you can do so today.”
Coincidentally, due to the increase from 99 to 101, his rank had also changed. It was an exceedingly rare occurrence. As a Hunter, there couldn’t have been any greater luck than this.
“Thank you. I’m still in disbelief,” Si-hyun said.
“You mentioned that defeating the Giant Monkey caused the increase?”
“Yes.”
Seo scribbled that down in his notebook.
“Now, could you please explain the situation step by step from the moment you entered the Double Gate?”
Seo began his set of serious questions.