Chapter 59

‘The skills were triple A, right?’

It was a waste to leave him alone, but I hadn’t thought about using the optimized Awakening skill that I could only use once each month . And I didn’t want to apply the keyword either . But now that it was possible to optimally Awaken people three times per month…

‘It’s not like A-Rank special skills are common either . ’

Should I foster a sense of closeness for now?

-Hello . Yes, it is a new kid I have acquired^^

As soon as I sent the message, a reply came back .

-Ahh you repliedㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ Thank you! Iii was really impressed by the broadcast! Peace is so cute and Chirpie is reallycompletely love!!!

-Ah, yes . Thank you .

-Ireally my dream is to awaken and enter haeyeon guild! I want to go and be peace’s feet washing cloth!!!

I was going to leave Haeyeon soon though . Before that, why feet washing cloth?

‘How should I reply?’

I couldn’t be like ‘be his feet washing cloth you say, yes, please do so’ .

-It is not easy to Awaken^^

Not yet, that is . When the Awakening Centers form soon, even dogs or cows[1] could Awaken and put themselves forward saying they would become Hunters, and because of that, there was a commotion again . Anyways, it was a mess .

-That is trueㅠㅠㅠㅠ I tried all sorts of things but they would not work ㅠㅠ So I asked an Awakening broker!!

What?

-ah i cant talk about itㅠㅠ It is a secret:)

Cutting off your nose to spite your face[2], this idiot .

‘So he got into an accident in a dungeon . ’

No wonder I didn’t have any memory of seeing his face . Getting an injury serious enough that he couldn’t be active, or possibly dying . It probably was one of those two .

Ah this, what do I do with this guy .

-Awakening brokers, those are scams .

-Scams?

-Yes . So please do not meet with a broker .

The chat that was like in real time momentarily didn’t give a reply .

-I already came here though…

Damn . Which brokers were they? Most of them were guys who would nicely let you go if you said you wouldn’t take back the money, but a minority were evil people who pulled people over to kill them from the start . If they bought exclusive entrance passes and then after entering the dungeon, swipe, neither the corpse or evidence would remain .

Of course, if they did that several times, they probably would get caught, but it wasn’t treated as murder to drag ordinary people to dungeons yet . It was just an unfortunate accident .

Even if they were caught, at the most, it would be done with their Hunter licenses being suspended . Brokers were usually low rank Hunters, so it wasn’t considered a huge blow .

-Where are you? Who are the brokers?

-At a D-Rank dungeon near the Yeouido Wonhyo Bridge . I don’t know their names, but there are C-Rank Hunters and D-Rank Hunters . The leader is apparently a C-Rank Hunter

Shoot . If it was a team including C-Ranks, they would shut his mouth as thoroughly as how very much they had to lose if they were caught doing broker work . He wouldn’t come back out at all .

-Should I just say I won’t do it?

-No, please wait . When will you go inside?

-Not all the people have come yet . Just a while ago there was contact that the team leader would be about 30 minutes late .

30 minutes . If it was Wonhyo Bridge, it was close to here . Should I contact Haeyeon Guild and send people? Or .

‘Should I just go and get him out?’

Without making a big deal out of it, I could just use Thorn Trap slightly, hide by sharing the Hidden Puzzle skill, and just come out .

-Are you inside a building?

-I am inside a van outside .

As expected, the leader must have gotten a successful bid . You needed a password as well as a Hunter license chip, so they couldn’t go inside yet .

-i was managing my fans but they said to turn off my phone nowㅠㅠㅠㅠ

-Please listen to them well, and stay there quietly .

It wasn’t difficult and while I was at it, let’s add some debt . He would probably come over easily if I confessed something like ‘for safety, I can’t go out secretly but I was so worried, I came here directly’ and such . He wanted to be a Hunter that bad, so I should bring him over and use him as the face[3] of my group .

It was a time when people entering was at its height so going out was quick . When I got near the Wonhyo Bridge D-Rank dungeon building, even with a glance, I could see a suspicious looking van parked by the roadside . The car was black and the windows were black .

‘Did that leader guy not come yet?’

The dungeon building was inside an alley . I could use Thorn Trap while passing between that alley and pull Bak Hayool out .

‘No, rather than that, should I save him right before he goes into the dungeon?’

While I was at it, it would be better to make a little more dramatic situation . Right after he went in would be okay too . A dungeon gate was open for one hour, and inside the dungeon, I could use the attack skills as much as I wanted . The earrings’ shielding skill could be applied to others too . So Bak Hayool wouldn’t get hurt .

The most effective time would be right after those guys showed their evil intentions . Since Bak Hayool should also be unsure whether my words were right or wrong .

Let’s decide after seeing the situation .

‘I also have to try out the Hidden skill to see how far it goes . ’

Should I use it with Yoohyun as the opponent? I should tell him about the Can’t Be Found title . How should I say I earned it? Because that little brother tried so much to hide me? There would be no other stat F-Ranks that got this much protection from S, A-Ranks, other than saints .

-Screech

Just then, one car quickly came in and stopped at the roadside . So they finally came .

I pushed off from where I was leaning my back against the wall and stood up . The car door opened and a large man stepped out .

Seeing that face, I unconsciously laughed without a sound .

‘…Wow, this is really . ’

Things just happened so that I would even meet a guy I had killed . It was really thrilling . If it were up to me, I would’ve gone up to greet him or something . While smiling brightly .

Hi, we met 4 years ago, possibly 1 year later . You about halfway killed me, and I stabbed your neck . It’s quite a fun recollection . Don’t you think so?

All the faces coming out of the van were familiar . The guy I killed second, the guy I killed third, fourth, fifth, sixth . They would have killed Bak Hayool-ssi before then .

‘Rather than I couldn’t think of it, it was that I didn’t think of it . ’

Of course they were alive . The dead people . The killed people .

An F-Rank Hunter’s initial probability of survival was low . So for the first year where you didn’t have experience and proper equipment, half ran away and half of the remaining half died or were wounded irreversibly .

Simply speaking, of the people who resolutely stepped into dungeons, half were carried out . On top of that, I had become an Hunter when the Awakening Centers had just formed so it was a situation of utter chaos where the number of newbies had piled up and there were even a lot of problems socially .

‘It was enough to make that Yoohyun shiver . ’

If it was then, it would have been hard for that guy to look after me . The public opinion wasn’t good in various ways, and there were too many scrutinizing eyes for him to secretly look after me .

If I thought about it now, I wondered if there wasn’t something like a kind of operation that went on targeted on me . The response was too excessive to simply be the work of a couple of trash journalists . It was a matter that could be packaged up excitingly, and I was an F-Rank so I was easy to use, and at that time, in the point of view of the public opinion, you could also drag Haeyeon Guild down .

Whether it was the government or the Association or rival guilds, not using me was being stupid .

Anyways it was that kind of chaotic situation, but I didn’t die . Even without a proper team, I got through the 1st year and passed 2 years somehow stably settled into my position .

Last Repayment . The skill where I received all the skills and abilities of the target with twice the effect for one hour upon the death of a keyword-applied target .

The keyword of the ‘Caregiver’ title was quite easy to apply . It was done with amiably buying and passing around something like coffee, having some idle chats, and smiling while saying ‘do your best’[4] several times . By being diligent, around the time I had to go into a dungeon, it was possible for around two people to have the keyword applied .

“Let’s quickly go in . While our client covers his face well . ”

Bak Hayool followed the instructions and pulled his hood far down over his head . He was also wearing sunglasses .

…I swear I didn’t apply the keyword aiming for the Last Repayment skill . Besides when I was killing those guys . It was a tiny 10% growth buff, but I had applied it since it was better than nothing . Since, among them, there were people I wanted to continue working with .

And most of them died . I survived .

A spearman with buff skills . It was a position of dying late . Around the time I was in danger, Last Repayment was applied, and thanks to that, I survived .

So, that was why, well… It was like that, but now they were things that didn’t exist……

Me killing those guys, those guys torturing me, also became things that didn’t exist .

I quietly walked, following those guys . They were C~D-Rank . Even if I stuck close right next to them, they wouldn’t notice me . Not when we went inside the building, and not even when we were standing in front of the dungeon gate .

“Are the preparations ready?”

“Put on the equipment properly . ”

Maybe because it was a high grade dungeon even among D-Rank dungeons, the preparation was thorough . The size of a high grade D-Rank dungeon was smaller than a low grade C-Rank, but the income came out as much as 50%, so compared to the amount of labor, the efficiency was good . The amount of time going around was a quarter, and it was safe . It was considered that if you were aiming for jackpot in one blow, it was a C-Rank, but a stable average, it was D-Rank .

“So this is a dungeon!”

As soon as I passed through the gate, Bak Hayool shouted with an excited voice . Geez, this guy .

Puk!

“Ugh!”

One Hunter kicked Bak Hayool’s shin . Then they warned him in a low voice .

“You think just because you’re a celebrity, you can go around advertising to monsters? Don’t pull aggro and shut up . ”

“……Yes . ”

Bak Hayool really didn’t have a sense of crisis . Though Unawakened People were usually like that . Not having been Awakened was similar to being a peaceful modern person who hadn’t properly suffered through even a dungeon break . Whether it was a dungeon or a monster, it was obvious that it would be hard to feel a sense of reality .

That was why right after the Awakening Centers appeared, quite a lot of newbie Hunters died . One part was probably also because the amount of Awakened People had increased so much that novice training quality had fallen .

“We’re going in in a 3 o’clock direction . Mark it on the entrance . ”

The team’s leader said . This dungeon was a rock environment where the valley was divided into various sections . It wasn’t as difficult as a labyrinth, but if you wanted to decrease the amount of fruitless attempts, it was better to mark along as you went .

I stuck close behind the dispirited Bak Hayool and slowly followed them .

-Shiiik!

Pajik!

A monster that seemed like a mix of a snake and a caterpillar burst out of the rock wall .

Tung!

The monsters lunging as if pouring out were bounced off shields, and,

Kwajik!

The spearman behind the shield accurately pierced the monster’s head with the end of their spear . Blood splattered into the air and the long body that was wiggling like a reeled fish soon sagged . Then another one again, a second one . A hunt close to repetitive work continued .

The C-Rank leader at the very front, shields and spears on both sides, the C-Rank defense type Hunter at the very back, and finally the one acting as assistance and porter .

It was a team with a total of seven and a good[5] balance .

‘From now on, they’re probably going to continue to hunt for an hour . ’

They probably wouldn’t show their true colors until the gate was deactivated .

C-Rank Hunter team, Gosan[6] . They were an established central team with 2 and half years of work experience when I had met them, and now with 1 and half years . With two C-Ranks, it was enough combat power to even make a guild, but they stayed as a D-Rank dungeon specialty attack team, and in their own way, their name was known .

Their image was okay too . Since nobody knew what those guys did as a side job .

“Magic stones are coming out pretty well today . ”

The assistance plus porter moved the item with a magic stone detection function here and there . Every time the snake caterpillars’ bellies were cut open, Bak Hayool’s eyes also moved here and there . Still, even for an Unawakened Person, he was enduring it pretty well .

The Gosan Team aimed at Unawakened People and low rank Hunters they thought would make some money through their side job . They showed off a good image, and chose and reeled in, not just anybody and everybody, but prey with comfortable bank balances or who could be used well .

Even just talking about Bak Hayool, he was a celebrity who only needed to get famous . Glancing over his social media, it hadn’t been long since he debuted, he had already paid for fame with his face, and his movie role was one with high importance . It meant that if you only grasped him well, he was prey who would sufficiently provide money .

Thought it seemed like they had killed him as a mistake or because there was a problem, but originally, they should’ve planned to keep him alive and use him well .

After brainwashing him with that C-Rank leader’s skill .

[Awakened Person – Kim Yongjin

Current stat rank C

Possible Awakening stat rank C

Optimized Initial Skills

Chopping Down❨C❩ Acquired

Puppet’s Strings(D) Acquired

Kicking(D) Acquisition failure]

Puppet’s Strings . D-Rank special skill . Exactly what was he doing before Awakening that a brainwashing skill was an optimized initial skill?

Mind-related skills mostly had low effects compared to the ranks . If it was about D-Rank, it didn’t work well on even F-Ranks . That is, if the F-Rank’s state was normal .

So those guys lured F-Ranks and Unawakened People into dungeons and put them into states where they couldn’t be normal . Once the Puppet skill was applied, they didn’t have to worry about anything and just be relaxed .

It wasn’t that the Gosan Team pointlessly didn’t make a guild and only attacked safe D-Rank and lower dungeons . They could comfortably trick out money, so why would they risk their lives and unnecessarily suffer? They just needed to do attacks enough to maintain their image .

The long continuing valley ended and a wide open space appeared . It wasn’t that it ended, but that it should have been around the middle point . The time was also around passing one hour .

“Alright, let’s rest here and then go . ”

The leader, Kim Yongjin, said . As soon as his words fell the defense Hunter and the shields inspected the surroundings . They really were a good team . They meshed well .

“You said you were Bak Hayool, right?”

Kim Yongjin took off his studded gloves as he went toward Bak Hayool, who was hovering awkwardly . Bak Hayool nodded his head .

“…Yes . ”

“You really are pretty good looking . How could a person look this way? Once the movie releases, a ton of things like commercials would probably come in . ”

“I do not know yet if it will be successful . And I am going to be a Hun- . ”

“Anyways a bastard with everything wants more[7]!”

Bam!

Kim Yongjin’s fist slammed into Bak Hayool’s face . By his estimation, it was a lightly thrown fist without much power behind it, but the thin[8] body couldn’t handle it and swayed like a reed .

“If you were born with that kind of face, you should be thankful and work hard selling it!”

“Ah, hyung-nim . You shouldn’t touch the face . ”

“Don’t worry . If it’s that much, there won’t be a trace if you apply a potion . ”

Amidst the snickering, Bak Hayool was frozen with a stupid expression . Blood was spilling from one side of his nose . Even with a nosebleed and that expression, he was still good looking .

“E-e-excuse me……”

“How long do you think will this bastard hold out?”

“A million won on 30 minutes . ”

“I heard celebrities are actually pretty tough; I’m one hour . I’m putting in five million . ”

For me, I was an Awakened Person and had a little bit of work experience, so the guy who put in the least called five hours . I was remembering the memories I had forgotten .

“Please wait, that’s……”

Bak Hayool furtively stepped backwards . Those guys were laughing as they watched him . The gate had already closed . Even if it was open, it was close to impossible for an Unawakened Person to reach the gate alone safely . And those guys waiting for the gate to close, would have been in case someone came to save him, not because they were worrying that Bak Hayool would get away . Since he was a famous person in his own way .

“Should we start by breaking one of his legs?”

“There can’t be a hindrance to the actor-nim’s activity . Carefully, do it carefully . To a point we can fix with potions . ”

The atmosphere was so gentle; how did they even go so far as to think of him not being able to move?

“S-spare…ugh!”

A D-Rank Hunter kicked Bak Hayool’s stomach . The guy staggering and falling backwards,

Tuk

I grabbed him .

“W-What?!”

The Hunter who kicked Bak Hayool hurriedly stepped back . The other Hunters simultaneously got ready for combat .

“What do you mean what?”

I didn’t come wearing my hat, and I took off my sunglasses and released Wall Lizard as I smiled . Bak Hayool’s eyes became round .

“Oh, oh-!”

“Please wait here nicely . For good measure, while closing your eyes . ”

It was going to be a bit of a stimulating scene for Unawakened People to watch .

[1] a commonly used phrase to mean ‘anybody/everybody’, but it’s easy to understand as is, so I left the lit . tl

[2] lit . ‘lying down and spitting’

[3] lit . ‘face madame’ where ‘madame’ is the french word transliterated into krn . He doesn’t say ‘of my group’ but in eng you have to say ‘face of sth’ in order to have that meaning, and a ‘face madame’ is (besides the female owner of an alcohol house, etc . ) ‘sb who is typical and characteristic of a group or field enough to represent it’, according to the krn dict . The krn-eng dict gives ‘madame’ (the usage in krn) as ‘figurehead’ but that didn’t seem completely in line w the krn dict so I went w the krn def .

[4] lit . ‘have/give strength’ which is slightly different from ‘do your best’ but they’re both standard cheering phrases in their respective languages

[5] the word is closer to ‘okay’ or ‘fine’ than ‘good’, but usually in eng if you use ‘okay’ as an adj in front of a noun like this, it has the negative connotation of ‘just okay’ or ‘mediocre’ so I changed it to ‘good’ . Same for a bit down the ch .

[6] normally means ‘high mountain’, or if as a modifier noun/adj ‘alpine’, but it seems like a name and so it might mean sth else . If it’s relevant, the hanja would be in parenthesis after it (as with Haeyeon), which it isn’t here, so it’s not that important I guess .

[7] it’s more like ‘bastard who has [it] does more’ but that kind of sounds weird in eng, so while the tl isn’t quiet right, I think it gets the gist across

[8] author uses a word that isn’t in the dict, but I’m p sure it’s supposed to mean sth like this, like maybe it’s 마른 듯한 (seem skinny) shortened into 마릇한 (the word used)