Chapter 9
In front of an F-rank Gate located on the outskirts of Gangseo-gu, Seoul.
"Looking for one hunter! Any rank welcome!"
"Two hunters needed for a party with an E-rank hunter!"
Amidst the noisy atmosphere, over thirty hunters were searching for party members around the entrance.
'This many people?'
Lee Seong-jun hadn't spent the past week training just for physical improvement.
He had researched general knowledge about living as a hunter.
The internet clearly stated that for low-rank gates like E or F, parties usually consisted of only 2-3 people, so the entrance shouldn't be this crowded.
But his surprise was short-lived.
'Well, it doesn't matter.'
He expected some discrepancy between online stories and reality.
Moreover, since Seong-jun had planned to hunt solo from the beginning, the number of hunters gathered at the entrance, whether many or few, was irrelevant.
As Seong-jun was calmly walking towards the gate entrance, Kim Seong-hoon spoke up.
"Are you planning to hunt alone?"
Seeing Seong-jun nod silently, Kim Seong-hoon continued with a short sigh.
"It could be dangerous. I believe the boss monster's appearance cycle is approaching."
Boss monster. As the name suggests, it was the leader of the monsters.
Naturally, boss monsters that appeared were usually more powerful than the gate's rank.
However, Seong-jun's expression showed no signs of wavering.
"For an F-rank, wouldn't the boss monster be at most E+ rank?"
Although he had been exhausted from battling the Hunter Association members, Seong-jun had managed to hunt a baby troll classified as a D-rank monster.
Of course, Kim Seong-hoon knew this fact, so he wouldn't have worried about a mere E+ rank monster.
"Rank isn't everything... Boss monsters are different from regular monsters."
Even the same type of monster could use unique abilities or have special equipment, making them much more difficult to deal with.
It meant that the boss could have strength comparable to the troll he faced before, and that too in its prime condition.
But there was no need to back down out of unnecessary fear.
He hadn't been idle for the past week.
He had continuously trained and made efforts.
He had become incomparably stronger than when he first fell to Earth.
"Thank you for your concern, but I'll be fine."
Seeing Seong-jun's calm attitude, Kim Seong-hoon reluctantly nodded.
"If that's your wish, Lee Seong-jun returnee, I can't stop you."
His eyes were already filled with determination.
No words could dissuade him now.
Any further advice would be unnecessary meddling.
Moreover, he had promised not to interfere and was accompanying him in that capacity.
All that remained was to silently observe.
'This might actually be good.'
No one was unaware of the value of their own life.
If he could save Lee Seong-jun when he encounters the boss monster and falls into danger, it would instantly create a good impression.
In the future, when Lee Seong-jun becomes a high-ranking hunter, it would be much easier to make requests or proposals.
'Even if he doesn't have as much ability as expected, he's still a promising talent...'
According to data accumulated over many years, all individuals labeled as promising talents had grown to at least B-rank.
A B-rank hunter was certainly capable, so creating a debt wouldn't be a loss at all.
'Dealing with an E+ rank boss monster shouldn't be too difficult.'
Just like the hunter's world, the Association headquarters also operated on a meritocracy.
Therefore, those working and active in the Association headquarters located in the metropolitan area were hunters with practical experience of at least E-rank or higher.
In fact, Kim Seong-hoon was a C-rank hunter, and if he gave it his all, he could easily take down an E+ rank boss monster.
Compared to that, the potential benefits could be enormous.
'Is this what they call low risk, high return?'
A smile spread across Kim Seong-hoon's face as he naturally walked alongside Seong-jun.
Meanwhile, Seong-jun, who had already reached the gate entrance, was presenting his newly issued returnee registration card.
"Confirmed, you may enter."
After receiving his card back from the Association staff guarding the entrance, Seong-jun stepped into the gate without hesitation.
Weeeing-!
As he passed through the gate, he felt a ringing in his ears and his vision seemed to distort.
'It's a strange sensation, just like I read about on the internet.'
Immediately after, his vision cleared, and he saw a lush green forest with trees stretching straight up to the sky.
"Well then, let's go."
After stretching lightly in place and checking his condition, Seong-jun moved forward.
* * *
Kim Seong-hoon felt as if he were dreaming.
He couldn't help but feel this way because Lee Seong-jun, despite this being his first hunt, was engaging in combat that could only be described as overwhelming.
Whoosh-, Crack-!
With each movement of his hands and feet, F-rank monsters, goblins, met their demise.
Kim Seong-hoon couldn't close his mouth as he watched, mesmerized by the rapidly accumulating goblin corpses and Seong-jun's continuous combat.
'This is supposed to be F-rank movement? Impossible.'
He was displaying movements that wouldn't be out of place even if judged as E-rank or higher right now.
'He's fast.'
Of course, speed alone wasn't everything.
But Lee Seong-jun's movements possessed a unique ability that more than made up for any lack of speed.
He was clearly moving as if sliding across the ground, but suddenly his form would blur and disappear from sight.
It felt almost as if one were seeing a ghost.
Among all the promising talents Kim Seong-hoon had observed while working at the Association headquarters, none had shown such bizarre movements as Lee Seong-jun.
Naturally, from Kim Seong-hoon's perspective, this came as an enormous shock.
'What on earth is this? Was he hiding his return and living in seclusion?'
Very rarely, returnees with malicious intent would hide the fact of their return and secretly accumulate power.
However, according to the report he had checked earlier, Lee Seong-jun had clearly appeared in response to a mana detector.
This meant there was no chance he had been hiding his return and living in seclusion.
'Is he showing these movements with F-rank status...?'
If it were just his movements that were exceptional, it might have been somewhat understandable.
But the abilities possessed by Lee Seong-jun weren't limited to just strange movements.
'...His destructive power is outstanding as well.'
The fists that Lee Seong-jun casually threw out had destructive power akin to swinging a mace.
In reality, as soon as Lee Seong-jun's fist made contact, the goblin's neck bones would break in a single blow.
There wasn't even a hint of hesitation when it came to killing his opponents.
The monsters, objects of human fear, were instead terrified of Lee Seong-jun's cruel hands.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say the tide of battle had already turned, but Lee Seong-jun continued to hunt the goblins without showing even the slightest opening.
'He's both fierce and cool-headed.'
He possessed not only excellent hunting skills but also the clear judgment to back them up.
'Incredible! Lee Seong-jun is one for the ages!'
What cemented this thought for Kim Seong-hoon was watching Seong-jun deal with the last remaining goblin.
With ghost-like movements, he deflected the incoming attacks, and his finger grazed the goblin's head.
He thought that was all, but the stationary goblin's head exploded like a watermelon and collapsed.
Further observation was meaningless.
'At least A-rank, maybe even... he has the potential to reach SSS-rank.'
Currently, Earth is in an era where a hunter's strength directly translates to national power, an era that respects the strong.
For Kim Seong-hoon, an employee of the Association headquarters already struggling with friction between China and Japan, the existence of Lee Seong-jun felt like a treasure.
Thump! Thump!
Not only was a smile spreading across his face, but the sound of his heart pounding with excitement was ringing in his ears.
As Kim Seong-hoon was suppressing the joy threatening to leak out, he heard the sound of undergrowth and a ferocious roar.
"Graaah-!"
Kim Seong-hoon immediately frowned and turned his head at the thunderous sound that couldn't possibly have come from a goblin.
'What's this?'
Where his gaze landed, emerging from the undergrowth was a monster with green skin and a pig's nose - an orc.
But unlike ordinary orcs, this one emerging from the bushes was clad in silver armor all over its body.
Kim Seong-hoon's eyes naturally narrowed.
'Boss monster.'
He had thought they might encounter one, but he didn't expect to actually face it.
"It's dangerous!"
Contrary to his urgent shout, Kim Seong-hoon's mouth was curved in a smile.
He couldn't help it because if he could become the life-saving benefactor of Lee Seong-jun, a hunter with the potential to reach at least A-rank or even SSS-rank, there could be no greater fortune.
"I'll take care of it, please step back."
Just as Kim Seong-hoon was about to step forward, adjusting his posture to show a strong and cool image, Seong-jun's words stopped him in his tracks.
"This is my prey."
Kim Seong-hoon urgently shook his head at Seong-jun's claim of ownership.
"It's an armored Orc Warrior, it's too dangerous!"
Lee Seong-jun clearly possessed strength that couldn't be considered F-rank.
However, the opponent was an E+ rank monster, an Orc Warrior.
Moreover, it was judged to be a boss monster and was in an armored state.
In contrast, Lee Seong-jun was in a bare state, wearing only light training clothes.
Although his destructive power was quite impressive, it wasn't enough to pierce through the iron armor and tough, thick leather that the Orc Warrior was wearing without any proper equipment.
One didn't need to see the result of the fight to know.
"If you're worried about the by-products or bounty after the hunt, I'll give everything to you, Lee Seong-jun returnee. So please, let me hunt it."
It wasn't a bad condition.
It could be said to be a condition where he could wipe his nose without touching it, but there was also something that couldn't be transferred.
'Experience points.'
He had directly experienced the system's cheating ability.
Just by leveling up and gaining bonus points, one could become stronger.
Moreover, boss monsters could provide experience points several times that of regular monsters.
Seong-jun, who needed to become stronger quickly and earn big money, couldn't help but be tempted by the massive amount of experience points.
"Didn't you agree not to interfere?"
Faced with Seong-jun's resolute tone, Kim Seong-hoon couldn't easily open his mouth.
"..."
The words he had uttered earlier now felt too harsh.
But he couldn't just regret past actions.
He needed to think of a way to maintain a good relationship with Lee Seong-jun while ensuring he doesn't get injured, for the brightest possible future.
In a brief moment, many thoughts crossed Kim Seong-hoon's mind, and he carefully opened his mouth.
"Then, if you happen to be in danger, may I intervene immediately? Of course, I'll give all the by-products from the hunt to you, Lee Seong-jun returnee."
"I won't stop you from doing that much."
Seong-jun nodded readily at Kim Seong-hoon's proposal.
He was confident because of his earlier hunting of the goblins.
With his current physical condition, he could easily crush a troll like the one he had faced before.
In other words, there was no chance of him being in danger from an Orc Warrior like the one before him.