Chapter 21

Chapter 21

The slime caught in the net had completely melted, raining down like water, visible through the blue light of the exit gate.

[Boss Monster 'Iridescent Giant Slime' has been defeated.]

[Tutorial Dungeon - Special Hard has been cleared.]

[Level has become 5.]

Almost simultaneously with the notification appearing before my eyes, I was enveloped in a blue light.

“I’m back…”

The dungeon was always dark, so I couldn’t tell the exact time, but it was already evening, and the sunset had dyed the stone walls of the dungeon red.

“You managed to clear it somehow.”

I was taking off my windbreaker and catching my breath, but Ki Yuhyeon didn’t look the least bit tired. Why am I the only one like this after running together? I guess I really need more exercise.

Anyway, the goal was achieved.

“Thank you for today.”

“I should be the one to thank you for coming with me.”

“Come to the shop in a few days. I’ll treat you to some delicious coffee.”

Wait for it, 10 million won.

Ah, no, my true intentions just slipped out. Wait for it, Americano.

After parting ways with Ki Yuhyeon and heading back to the shop, I realized I had forgotten something important.

Ah, I didn’t eat the kimbap.

* * *

Creak.

The room was as quiet as when Ki Yuhyeon left.

After checking again that no one was outside the window, Ki Yuhyeon carefully slipped inside.

Trying to muffle his footsteps, he was about to lean against a chair when the door burst open.

“Guild Master, where have you been!”

“Cough, cough, what’s the matter, Han Isung Hunter? I’ve been here the whole time.”

“Take the leaves off your shoulder and talk.”

Ki Yuhyeon hurriedly reached for his shoulder to remove the evidence of his outing, but there wasn’t even a speck of dust on it.

“You’re lying.”

…Caught.

“Don’t make excuses. I know you went out.”

Realizing that Han Isung was already certain, Ki Yuhyeon slumped his shoulders.

“…The twins have grown up.”

Han Isung, the deputy guild master of the Cheongra Guild and in charge of external affairs, often had a headache because the guild master would disappear whenever he turned his back.

Even though Han Isung handled all external affairs, there were still things that required the guild master’s approval.

It wasn’t possible for him to monitor Ki Yuhyeon all day while also handling his own busy tasks.

So, he assigned the twins, Joo Shinwoo and Joo Shinhee, as monitors.

These A-rank hunters, who had recently joined the guild, admired Ki Yuhyeon and had no urgent missions. They were the perfect monitors.

“Follow him like leeches.”

“Yes!”

“You can count on us.”

Despite their enthusiastic nods, Ki Yuhyeon managed to slip away from the twins’ watchful eyes.

Since they admired the guild master so much, the twins couldn’t scold him harshly and just fidgeted. They could have been much stricter with a guild master who was always slacking off.

Today, the twins ran over again to report that the guild master had disappeared.

In the end, Han Isung had to step in. He was ten years older than Ki Yuhyeon and had known him since before the guild was established, making him the closest person to Ki Yuhyeon in the guild.

However, by the time Han Isung found Ki Yuhyeon, he had already entered the tutorial dungeon.

“…Do you know how hard it was to control the area around the tutorial dungeon?”

“No one in our guild would go with me, so I had no choice.”

“Is that what you call a reason? Do you have a conscience or not?”

Han Isung rubbed his forehead.

The current guild master and top-ranked hunter. Just by that fact alone, he was already a difficult person to deal with, and then he suddenly suggested going to a beginner’s tutorial dungeon. What would a hunter think upon hearing that?

If we compare it to a company, it’s like the CEO suddenly calling someone in to make a cup of coffee and saying…

“Are you having a hard time lately?”

“But Kim Jum is really nice. I like Kim Jum a lot.”

It’s the same as hearing the same thing over and over.

“Is the guild master… thinking of firing me? I was a bit slow with my skills before, and I’m not much help…”

“Do you mean that the tutorial dungeon is suitable for my level?”

“Cough, I’m sorry. I will take your advice to retrain from the tutorial level!”

If the guild master really meant it, Han Isung had to calm down the guild members who were ready to quit or retreat to a mountain for training.

“…Do you really care that much about him?”

After a moment of complaining, Han Isung changed his tone.

Scolding the guild master for disappearing frequently was enough. He was curious about why Ki Yuhyeon had gone to a beginner’s tutorial dungeon.

Until now, Ki Yuhyeon had shown no interest in anything and seemed uninterested in everyone.

Suddenly, he showed interest in something else.

There was only one reason that came to mind.

“…It’s not like that.”

But Ki Yuhyeon shook his head with an ambiguous expression.

“The twins told me everything. You went to the cafe in front of the dungeon gate a few days ago.”

“It seems there are no secrets in the guild.”

“They said you didn’t react strangely.”

“That’s true.”

Han Isung thought of the cafe owner at the dungeon gate that Ki Yuhyeon was concerned about.

He only saw her when the monster incident happened, and she didn’t leave a strong impression.

She seemed gentle and kind, but she didn’t seem suspicious enough for Ki Yuhyeon to be concerned.

“If there’s something suspicious, I’ll send someone to investigate.”

“No, don’t do that.”

Ki Yuhyeon immediately stopped Han Isung. He repeated firmly.

“Absolutely, don’t approach until I give you a separate instruction.”

Ki Yuhyeon was lost in thought.

The Ring of Cthuga.

A masterpiece that Master Kim Deok created after ten years.

Wearing it allows you to summon the interdimensional god Cthuga, making it priceless.

Originally, it was an item that no human, even a master craftsman, could create, but Kim Deok miraculously succeeded.

The only one of its kind in the world, a unique item.

In the past he remembered, the Ring of Cthuga fell into enemy hands because the master was deceived.

Ki Yuhyeon knew that the master would secretly visit the Hunter Market that day. He went to meet her.

It wasn’t to get the ring. He had already made a contract with the interdimensional god, so he didn’t need it.

He just wanted to warn her to be careful of those who might target the ring.

However, when Ki Yuhyeon arrived, the master had already left, and the ring was in the hands of Gwon Yeeul.

“You bought a good item.”

“Huh?”

That utterly surprised expression.

She even seemed unaware of what the Ring of Cthuga was.

He didn’t know why the master had opened a consignment shop in the Hunter Market while hiding her identity or why she had given the ring to Gwon Yeeul. She was a mischievous person, so she must have had some reason.

But now that Gwon Yeeul was the owner of the ring, he needed to know more about her.

Ki Yuhyeon made up an excuse and entered the tutorial dungeon with Gwon Yeeul, using a skill.

‘Gaze of the Abyss.’

Gaze of the Abyss was a skill that read a hunter’s information.

He couldn’t read information from someone stronger than himself, but there was no one in Korea who was stronger.

Depending on the results, he was even prepared to eliminate her right there in the tutorial dungeon.

However.

Name: Gwon Yeeul

Class: □□ □□(F) (Lv.2)

Status:

HP 100/100, MP 100/100

Strength: 8, Intelligence: 12, Agility: 9, Luck: 12

Achievements: ¾ÆÁÖ °·ÂÇÑ ±â´ÉÀ» °¡Á

ø ÇÁ·Î±×·¡¹Ö ¾

……

———END———

Judging by her low stats, Gwon Yeeul’s claim of being non-combat was likely true. However, her class was blocked and the text was garbled, making it unreadable.

This was the first time this had happened.

James’ survival, the Ring of Cthuga, the skill malfunction…

Could all of this be a coincidence?

No way.

Ki Yuhyeon didn’t believe in coincidences. All the signals and his intuition pointed to Gwon Yeeul. She was definitely hiding something.

Was this a positive or negative fact? He needed to observe her more.

‘I’ll have to keep monitoring her.’

If he was certain she was a threat, he could eliminate her later.

However…

“I’ll treat you to some delicious coffee.”

He looked forward to that in a purely positive way.

Meanwhile, Han Isung was thinking something entirely different as he looked at Ki Yuhyeon.

‘Maybe I’m completely off the mark?’

He thought Ki Yuhyeon was concerned about the cafe in front of the dungeon gate because it was suspicious. But instead of sending someone to monitor, he said, “Absolutely, don’t approach.”

Moreover, he had just been lost in thought and even smiled faintly.

It was as if…

Now that he thought about it, the cafe owner and Ki Yuhyeon were around the same age.

25-year-old Ki Yuhyeon and 23-year-old Gwon Yeeul. A young couple with a two-year age difference.

Her dark brown hair and gentle appearance would surely be attractive.

Removing the preconception that Ki Yuhyeon was the top S-rank hunter, this was a perfect picture.

‘I’m so blind!’

Han Isung, a father of a 5-year-old and a former avid viewer of “We Got Married,” looked at Ki Yuhyeon with affectionate eyes.

Ki Yuhyeon became a hunter at 13. The first and strongest S-rank.

But the journey wasn’t easy.

Memories of the arduous times flashed through his mind.

When Ki Yuhyeon was 15, Han Isung founded the guild and made him the guild master.

It wasn’t because Han Isung had grand ambitions.

The boy seemed uninterested in anything, needing no one and having no connections. The darkness in his calm eyes was unsettling.

Although it seemed inappropriate for the strongest S-rank hunter, he felt the boy would die somewhere if left alone.

So, he created the guild. The boy needed a place to breathe and trust.

Gradually, Ki Yuhyeon seemed to regain his smile and find some ease.

…Or so it seemed.

But Han Isung knew. There was no change from the time he stared blankly at the remains of monsters.

Inside him was something terrifying that Han Isung couldn’t even imagine.

But now, Ki Yuhyeon looked more vibrant than ever. His dark eyes sparkled with light.

After all, Ki Yuhyeon had been an adult for five years.

The boy with dark, sunken eyes was now at an age where he might look elsewhere.

“Guild Master, are you planning to reveal your identity?”

Feeling a sense of time’s passage, Han Isung asked. Ki Yuhyeon slowly shook his head.

“No… not yet.”

After all, it would be too sudden to reveal his identity when they weren’t that close yet.

‘I won’t interfere, so please do your best.’

With this ridiculous misunderstanding, Han Isung decided to watch over Ki Yuhyeon with warm eyes.