The Hunter of the Other World Who Is Being Misunderstood Chapter 365. Conduit Company (2)

Chapter 365. Conduit Company (2)

But it was precisely at that mont, lost in thought, that...

"Oh, by the way, Giryeo-ssi."

"Yes?"

"Would it be okay if I shared what I just heard with Hunter Jung Haseong?"

Esther asked. The person ntioned, Jung Haseong, had recently been considering dissolving the Garion Guild. However, that plan had been delayed due to a busy schedule and governnt objections...

"This week, news about founding a guild even spread. So the Garion matter got further delayed? No, what is that supposed to an?"

Anyway, as soon as I heard her suggestion, I nodded. The company I'm about to establish is purely for tax benefits. Beyond that, it won't serve any other purpose, so I have no interest in news about high-level personnel.

"Do as you wish."

If Jung Haseong tried to join that new guild, it would actually be even more troubleso.

"You can go ahead and tell anyone, I don't mind."

Then that takes care of the explanation about founding the guild...

Slurp.

I took a small sip of my own portion of the tea I'd brewed for the guest. Then, pretending to be a native of Earth, I naturally steered the conversation to another topic.

"Hmm, since you ca all this way, I might as well start—actually, I have sothing I wanted to say too."

"Giryeo-ssi? To ?"

I have a serious matter that must be resolved before February of next year.

"I need a hunting ground that can generate high profits."

About 30 billion. That's roughly the scale of debt I need to repay imdiately. So I spent so ti trying to persuade—more precisely, I explained to the head of the Korean Magic Tower how capable I was and requested that they stop monopolizing the dungeons.

"Oh, damn it."

But achieving my goal today still seed far off. Esther, seeing so healthy, imdiately brought up the difficult topic of the high fever I had two months ago. While I scrambled to co up with an excuse, the Earthling sitting on the sofa took the opposite approach—starting to try to persuade instead.

"Even if this ends up being purely for aesthetics, I should make sure to restore the lungs later..."

As she began listing all the so-called "healthy foods" on Earth, I completely lost my composure.

***

So, after the unofficial housewarming visited by the alien mammal, how did their relationship develop?

[: So, you're saying that Hunter Kim Giryeo is planning to establish a guild for the purpose of reducing taxes?]

[Seo: Yes. Just like Garion.]

A few hours later. Haseong received a text from the head of the Korean Magic Tower guild. He had been snacking on kimbap in front of a gate that was about to be cleared when he paused to reply.

[: Does that make sense?]

Once again, suspicion was evident—enough that it might seem like a touchy temperant—but in reality, it was an entirely normal reaction.

[Seo: But that's all he actually said (T.T; )]

[: This might be a rather rude thought, but sohow, hearing what Hunter Kim says makes often feel like I want to borrow Justitia.]

[Seo: Ah, right. After that, we happened to ntion that item while talking, but Hunter Giryeo said not to bring up Justitia in front of him if possible.]

[: No, why?]

[Seo: It seems... there were a lot of circumstances he couldn't talk about...]

Kim Giryeo. A hunter who, within just a few months after his rank was officially revealed, saved the country two or three tis. Even in the briefest terms, that's the description of him. And yet, such an extraordinary superpowered individual is now acting solely in pursuit of money?

"Are you saying you have no intention of revealing the truth?"

Moreover, a certain hunter had bypassed traps in the dungeon (Labyrinth of the 13th Month) using an extraordinary thod. Yet, it was hard to comprehend logically that such a person could be afraid of nothing more than tax delinquency.

"That's completely unlike the usual image of Hunter Kim Giryeo."

There's no way such a ticulous superhuman would have simply skipped paying the righted national taxes. Jung Haseong stuffed the last piece of his gimbap into his mouth as he pondered. While eating, he mulled over the situation and had now shifted his reasoning toward a different, sowhat more plausible direction.

"Then, could it be that this Hunter is acting under the governnt's orders this ti as well?"

Unless a major incident occurs, the course of a person's thoughts doesn't change easily. The world, then as now, is rife with headhunting of awakened individuals. And in such trends, it's not uncommon for hunters to actually change their nationality.

"I rember reading an article about where the immigration rate of Awakened individuals has increased."

But for ordinary people living through the era of Dungeon Shocks, such news could only be a source of stress. Perhaps the high-ranking officials in South Korea are trying, through this, to ease the widespread unease in the country. With this line of thought, Jung Haseong tilted his head. An S-rank Hunter, Kim Giryeo, establishes a corporation in Korea—once this news becos public, it would firmly signal that a certain individual is officially tied to the Korean Peninsula.

"Hmm."

In other words, unless there's so grand objective at play, it's hard to pinpoint the exact reason why that individual took action.

"Above all, the timing is just way too random."

Why would soone who's been functioning as an S-rank Hunter in quite so ti suddenly decide to start a company now?

National tax.

In fact, even though Jung Haseong had followed the sa procedures as the other party more than anyone else, he failed to exercise his understanding at the crucial mont. So now, almost out of habit, he repeatedly brought up the sa misunderstanding without getting tired of it.

"Keugh."

For reference, it's around noon now, Mr. Yoon, who is actually affiliated with the National Intelligence Service, is having lunch.

"Anyway, what on earth is going on in this country...?"

Once again, the innocent Mr. Yoon gets wrongly accused. For Jung Haseong to dispel this misconception, Kim Giryeo, the S-rank hunter, was far too secretive. His secrecy, composure, and even the habit of pretending to be ordinary—all these traits, surprisingly, mirrored the commonalities between extraterrestrial beings and national agents.

Even with such power, Kim Giryeo the hunter has been following the state's orders all this ti? And with such a strong-willed personality, no less!"

The nation's hero soon fell into deep thought.

"And if what I'm imagining now were true, can a country that exploits its people even when they're sick really be worth protecting...?"

Truly alarming thoughts. Fortunately, South Korea itself wasn't in any real danger. The man hailed as a national hero had, in fact, received nurous calls from governnts ever since his awakening. Among them was even a nation that promised to grant him an entire territory, as if he were a dieval noble.

Yet Jung Haseong declined all those offers and remained a hunter in this country. South Korea was the land where his beloved family lived, and it was also the cherished hotown where he had built countless mories for himself.

"Ha."

To put it bluntly, he was a young man with a sense of patriotism. So instead of criticizing his holand based on unverified information, Jung Haseong decided to prepare for the situation in a different way.

"Anyway, [...]"

He finally swallowed the kimbap he had been chewing slowly and began typing on the keyboard.

[I remain skeptical about Hunter Kim Giryeo's return. I know because a relative of mine underwent cancer surgery. Even if we assu the treatnt was successful, it's not the kind of illness from which one can recover full strength in just two months.]

Tuk.

In response, Seo Esther imdiately sent a reply. No matter how busy she was, she hadn't skipped lunch to dive into a dungeon.

[Seo: By the way, Haseong, you wanted to team up with Giryeo so badly—are you really okay with keeping up this rivalry?]

Rivalry.

Indeed, if soone constantly opposes another's choices, such a relationship can naturally form. However, Jung Haseong responded with a face that showed he was ntally prepared.

[: Of course.]

Korea's fourth S-rank had seed like an enemy at first. For a while, he was an awkward and strange colleague in the industry. Yet, over ti, that blonde man beca soone to respect—a guiding lighthouse. So Jung Haseong clung to forming a team, hoping to learn even a single thing more from him, but...

"If that behavior ends up being a nuisance, how could I keep obsessing over it?"

It was around the ti he felt silent with a bitter expression. When things were quiet, his phone lit up again—this ti, I was a ssage from the leader of a major guild.

[Seo: Well, yes. I understand everything. I, too, wanted that person to rest even a little, so I firmly declined the private lesson and ca here.]

About once, a story flowed that would make even an alien shiver.

[Seo: Then, that's all we have to do, right?]

Then, a new sentence popped into Jung Haseong's phone.

[Seo: Let's get through the Great Cataclysm this coming January together. Honestly, I think even Kim Giryeo-ssi would be convinced at that point.]

[: That's right.]

Great Cataclysm! A natural cycle in which a massive ergence of new monsters occurs roughly every year. If two people were to completely handle such a disaster, surely even the most extraordinary individuals would let go of their obsession with the industry. That's why Jung Haseong and Seo Esther were even more determined to hone their skills.

"I've healed a lot of my trauma about my abilities thanks to that person."

A plan devised with the sole purpose of allowing a hunter, a true pillar of the nation, to fully concentrate on his treatnt without a single worry.

"Sotis his words are a bit too sharp. But looking back, they really were advice ant for ."

Of course, there was no way he would ever throw the words back at such a hunter, saying, "Well, aren't you a nobody too?" However, as Jung Haseong tucked the phone he had been staring at into his pocket, he made a solemn resolution. Even if the way he expressed it and the process were different, he would still move for that man's sake.

"From now on, as a way to repay the favor..."

However, the rule that nothing in the world ever goes exactly as planned was not sothing that applied only to aliens. The flow of the universe, of course, showed this planet's natives an equally rciless reality.

[Briefing on the Red Gate Rush predicted for mid-December]

Those who had reigned at the top of the power pyramid as S-rank Awakeners were shaken in an instant by a single approaching incident.

***

There's a burning sll.

"Huh? What is it?"

And the situation began with a flustered voice heard from sowhere.

It was just 1 p.m., lunchti, and the alien was grilling a reasonably priced solo al—mini pork cutlets—recomnded by Seonwoo Yeon. But as the noises now filling the room made clear, he had once again burned the frozen food. He had nearly set fire to this clean house, too.

For reference, the word recipe is quite commonly used even outside the kitchen. So why, of all people, would a top-class researcher like him fail to follow the proper heating ti?

"No! My mini pork cutlets————!"

It was all because of that insidious invention—the cellphone. Kim Giryeo had been preoccupied lately with matters concerning the establishnt of a guild.

"Having people under isn't easy after all. S, social insurance? I have to take care of things like that too? Anyway, hiring subordinates looks like a real hassle."

He revealed a clumsy side befitting an alien. But in any case, to sum up the situation—Kim Giryeo was so focused on solving problems that he couldn't even concentrate on the simple pleasure of eating.

As long as the guild was established without trouble, taxes would be reduced—or at least, that's the expression he thought best if here. If the billed amount could be cut down to around 20 billion won, he planned to work diligently from then on to pay off the national taxes.

[Ting.]

But just then, as the alien was timidly nibbling at the burnt mini pork cutlets...

"Hmm?"

A text popped up from the phone.

[Ahn Yoonseung ✉]

It was a call from an Earthling.

An Earthling's...Or, to be more precise—soone who, as of late, even when offering a simple greeting, would first send a text saying, "Excuse , Hyung-nim, are you available right now?" for fear of causing any inconvenience...

"A call."

The alien man stopped scraping off the burnt parts of the frozen pork cutlet and turned around.