NOVEL NEXT Chapter 16
Chapter 16
“Would you like some coffee?”
“No.”
“Then how about some tea?”
“Um…… what do you have?”
Everyone is being nice to me.
Jeonghyeon was currently in another room inside the Hunter Association’s basement, within the office that had been labeled Investigation Division 3.
It was where Seokung had quickly brought him after he answered that he was fine when asked about his condition.
Presumably, it was a room for taking statements, as he had mentioned. Unlike the interrogation room, it was a cozy and comfortable space.
That was good, but it was quite awkward to see the unfamiliar employees constantly coming in and out with bright smiles on their faces.
Why are they so excited?
“Well, we have a variety of things. Manager-nim pays a lot of attention to employee welfare. Though it seems like he buys them for himself…… Ah, that’s a secret.”
The employee said, showing him various teas from the shelf.
Not only various herbal teas, but also green tea, Solomon’s Seal tea, Cassia Seed tea, and so on. It wasn’t just a ‘variety’.
From a quick glance, it seemed like they had all kinds of coffee as well.
“Uh, can I just have the Cassia Seed tea?”
“Of course. Cassia Seed tea is good for your eyes.”
The employee said, quickly making the tea and placing it in front of Jeonghyeon.
Just like that, the employees had already brought him tea, cookies, a slice of cake, snacks, and gum, one by one.
It was a collection of everything imaginable in terms of snacks.
It seemed like everything that was going to come out had already come out, as there were no signs of anyone else entering.
“I wonder if I can take this with me.”
It was too much to eat all at once, and at first glance, it didn’t seem like cheap stuff, so he even had such a thought.
‘What should I do now?’
While people were coming in and out, it was awkward, but now that no one was coming, Jeonghyeon was getting bored.
He briefly checked his phone, but nothing seemed interesting.
Then, he remembered the 10 coins that were still left after achieving the achievement.
“Ah.”
When he used 3 coins before facing Jucheol, he was in such a hurry that he couldn’t properly check the list.
After all, there’s nothing like shopping to kill time, right?
“Trait Shop.”
『Shop List（Refresh Cost: 2 Coins）
「Decent Kick」（F, Lv.1）, 1C
━
「Poor Healing」（F, Lv.1）, 1C
「Somewhat Agile Movement」（F, Lv.1）, 1C
「Decent Punching」（F, Lv.1）, 1C
Current Coins: 10』
Still mediocre traits.
The probability of an E-rank appearing was a whopping 25%, but seeing that it had only appeared once so far, Jeonghyeon couldn’t help but think he was incredibly unlucky.
“Well, still, I have two E-ranks now.”
It was a result that made such things into minor complaints.
Statistically, the probability of gaining a trait after awakening once and then gaining another trait, the so-called ‘Re-Awakening’, was only about 1% among all Hunters.
Even if he managed to break through that tremendous probability and Re-Awaken, he would only have two traits.
Considering that, Jeonghyeon’s Trait Shop was beyond the norm.
After briefly scanning the shop list, Jeonghyeon chose one without hesitation.
‘Let’s at least secure one Movement trait.’
He had already fully experienced the taste of evolving a trait from F-rank to E-rank.
It was beneficial to stock up on overlapping traits no matter what.
With this, he now had two 「Somewhat Agile Movement」 traits as well.
There was also the possibility that the synergy itself would be strengthened if the ranks of the two traits forming the synergy both increased, so there was no need to hesitate.
‘By the way, it seems there’s no Adaptation Pain when a trait levels up through the shop.’
The Adaptation Pain that had made Jeonghyeon writhe in agony every time he filled a trait slot.
However, there was no particular pain when the Battle Sense trait rose to E-rank.
If there had been Adaptation Pain in that case as well, his body would have been split in two by Jucheol’s axe, regardless of rank.
Looking back, it was a risky move to use coins aiming for a rank increase.
“Hmm……”
Thinking such thoughts, he scanned the list, but the remaining traits weren’t particularly useful.
There were no empty trait slots, and they weren’t attractive enough to hoard.
‘Then it’s time to refresh.’
He had 9 coins left anyway.
Normally, he would have put off refreshing because the 2 coins needed for it were precious, but his coin sense had dulled a bit.
And the moment 2 coins were deducted for the refresh.
『「Trait Shop」（EX）’s Proficiency Level has increased from 1→2.』
Along with a rather flashy effect that contrasted with the dry message, the Trait Shop’s Proficiency Level increased.
“Ugh!”
Jeonghyeon was startled by the bright light that erupted before his eyes and almost fell backward, but he managed to regain his balance.
For a moment, he was flustered because he couldn’t grasp the situation, but in the end, what he saw before his eyes was simple.
The Trait Shop had become Lv.2.
“Right, it said the level would increase after using 10 coins.”
He hadn’t paid much attention to it, but he had already vaguely used 9 coins so far.
Including this reroll, it was 11 coins, so it was natural for the level to increase.
After staring blankly at the repeating effect for a moment, Jeonghyeon hurriedly brought up the shop’s information.
“Trait Shop Information.”
『「Trait Shop」（Lv.2）
Coins needed for next level: 29
Equippable Traits / Storable Traits: 0 / 7
Trait Probability: F 62%, E 30%, D 4.5%, C 2%, B 1%, A 0.4%, S 0.1%』
“Whoa!”
This time, Jeonghyeon really had to force himself to regain his balance as he almost fell backward.
What on earth was this brilliant information?
It could be said to be a small change, but each and every one of those small changes felt significant to Jeonghyeon.
“S-rank…… There’s a probability for S-rank?”
Naturally, the first thing that caught his eye was the probability.
A tiny probability, but it had appeared for A-rank and S-rank traits, which were previously at 0%.
0.4% and 0.1%, respectively.
If the probability of winning the lottery was about 1 in 8 million, the probability of an S-rank appearing right now was 8,000 times higher than winning the lottery.
“It’s doable…… It’s doable……”
His eyes looked a bit dangerous for some reason.
Jeonghyeon was almost drooling with vain desire.
Then, as if he suddenly came to his senses, he looked around and cleared his throat.
There was something else that had changed more realistically than the A-rank and S-rank probabilities, which combined were only 0.5%.
‘Still, the most practical change is this.’
The F-rank probability had decreased to the early 60% range.
Furthermore, E-rank, which could be considered his current highest rank, was at 30%, and D-rank above that was at 4.5%.
Of course, the probability drastically decreased once it reached D-rank, but it wasn’t a completely unrealistic figure.
Every time he refreshed, the list provided 5 traits, so it wouldn’t be strange at all if one of them was a hit.
Considering the difference in combat power that Jeonghyeon had experienced every time he acquired an E-rank trait, the effectiveness of acquiring a single D-rank trait was unimaginable.
It was a realm that Jeonghyeon had yet to properly experience.
However, it wasn’t that he had no regrets.
‘Is this not going to increase?’
He had speculated that if a trait leveled up, additional equippable slots would be given, but unfortunately, it didn’t seem to be the case.
He didn’t know if it would change at a higher level, but at least at level 2, it remained the same.
“This is a bit of a problem……”
The traits that Jeonghyeon currently possessed were,
「Decent Battle Sense」
「Somewhat Agile Movement」
「Minor Physical Enhancement」
These three.
In this situation, what if an E-rank or D-rank trait appeared?
“Which one should I remove and replace it with?”
Simply based on rank, it would be right to remove the F-rank Movement trait, but it was currently creating synergy with Battle Sense.
He was also hesitant to remove the Physical Enhancement trait because it was so versatile.
It combined well with the other two traits, and most importantly, as he had experienced, the improvement in natural healing was almost always beneficial.
In the end, it wasn’t easy to replace a trait unless it was completely overwhelmed by an existing trait or a higher-ranked superior version.
“Hmm……”
Jeonghyeon groaned involuntarily in this situation that made him contemplate.
However, there was no point in worrying just by looking at the probabilities.
He had to at least check out the new trait list that he hadn’t seen yet because he was busy checking the level-up results.
‘But then, would the new probabilities apply, or the original ones?’
The difference in probabilities was significant, so that was also important.
Jeonghyeon’s forehead, which had been furrowed with thoughts about the slots, now smoothed out, and a light smile appeared on his face.
Even if a usable trait didn’t appear right away, the feeling of pulling a gacha was always enjoyable.
Especially if it was something good that could change his life.
“Hehehe……”
The moment Jeonghyeon chuckled softly and was about to bring up the list.
“You seem to be in a good mood?”
“Of course I am…… Huh!”
Jeonghyeon, who was about to answer without thinking due to the words that came from beside him so naturally, was startled.
A woman was standing next to him.
Moreover, she was even matching her gaze as if she was looking at the same status window as him.
The woman, who had been making eye contact with Jeonghyeon with innocent eyes for a moment, smiled faintly and moved to the seat opposite him.
“Did you level up your Proficiency Level? Well, it’s understandable since you caught two D-rank Villains.”
“……!”
How did she figure that out just by glancing at him?
Of course, it wasn’t exactly accurate, but still.
Yerin smiled faintly and spoke again.
“Anyway, I apologize if I surprised you. I made enough noise, but you didn’t seem to notice.”
“Ahem, it’s fine.”
“I’m Cha Yerin, head of Investigation Division 3.”
She put down the laptop she was carrying and took out a business card from her pocket.
‘Head of Investigation Division 3?’
As Jeonghyeon was reading the business card, someone suddenly came to mind.
The back of the woman who was dealing with the reporters in front of the Gate.
Come to think of it, the clothes she was wearing and her hairstyle were the same.
But for someone this young to be a division head at the Association.
Moreover, she had fair skin and was one of the most beautiful people Jeonghyeon had ever seen.
It didn’t match the image that came to mind when he thought of an investigator.
Seeing Jeonghyeon looking back and forth between the business card and her face, Yerin asked.
“You’re thinking ‘How can someone so young and pretty be a division head at the Association?’, right?”
Jeonghyeon, who was taking a sip of Cassia Seed tea because he was thirsty, almost choked.
“Cough, cough. No, that’s not it.”
“It seems like it. It’s okay. I am young and pretty.”
‘What’s with this person?’
From her first appearance and her attitude that seemed to read his mind, Jeonghyeon felt goosebumps.
Besides, he could understand her being young, but for her to say she’s pretty so casually.
‘Is this the experience of an investigator……’
He remembered seeing a professional investigator on a variety show who seemed to be able to read celebrities’ minds like that.
Wasn’t it similar to that right now?
Jeonghyeon straightened his posture once again.
It wasn’t like he had done anything wrong, and strictly speaking, the Association should be thanking him.
He had nothing to be ashamed of.
“Anyway, I’ll be taking your statement, Mr. Jeonghyeon. First of all, on behalf of the Association, thank you.”
“No, it’s nothing……”
Jeonghyeon bowed his head involuntarily at the sight of Yerin bowing her head.
It wouldn’t have been like this if a grim-looking middle-aged man had come in. He couldn’t get used to it.
Meanwhile, Yerin, who seemed to be full of composure, smiled faintly as she looked at the food piled up in front of Jeonghyeon.
“It seems our division members are very grateful to you, Mr. Jeonghyeon. It’s understandable. They were quite a nuisance.”
“Is that so?”
“They were only D-rank, but they were a pain, changing their faces and targeting low-rank Hunters who are vulnerable. We can’t do a nationwide Gate investigation every time either…… Ah, you can take it with you if you can’t finish it all.”
“Thank you very much.”
As expected, with Yerin’s permission that seemed to read his mind, Jeonghyeon didn’t refuse and swept the food into his bag.
He had now turned things around to the point where he didn’t have to worry about food, but he couldn’t easily shake off the habits from his days of poverty.
“Then shall we start now? Let’s start with how you met those guys.”
Jeonghyeon’s evaluation of Yerin had already been upgraded from a frighteningly accurate investigator to a kind guardian of the people.
Jeonghyeon began to talk without hesitation.
“Yes, so how it happened was……”