The Hunter of the Other World Who Is Being Misunderstood Chapter 401. Problem (3)

Kim Giryeo spoke toward the figure he had spotted.

“Hunter Kang Changho. What on earth is this?”

But the response he received was underwhelming.

“Casual chatter inside a dungeon is considered bad behavior.”

After the [Knight’s Oath] had been nullified, there had been almost an entire season without any contact, and yet, the very first greeting between two Koreans upon seeing each other was nothing more than that.

“By the way, Hunter Kim Giryeo, why did you co in here? I clearly said in the interviews outside that I’d be fine on my own.”

“You might be touched when you hear the reason.”

“Oh.”

“I heard this [Sin Classification] dungeon was strong, so just in case, I entered to rescue anyone in danger.”

“Then get going. I’ve already checked that the raider is fine, so stop just standing there.”

For reference, Kang Changho looked much the sa as usual. If one were to nitpick, the only surprising thing was that his clothes were cleaner than expected.

He’d reportedly in a state where he can’t even use his skill stones anymore. Well, I suppose it makes sense that he’d still have a few techniques that can kill enemies without even touching them.”

The first challenger had co out with an obviously negative attitude, but Kim Giryeo paid it no mind.

“Strictly speaking, this Castle of Sloth doesn’t exactly have a specific owner, does it?”

Since Kang Changho had practically forced his way in with a quasi-threatening claim, the first-arriving esper could have been misconstrued as unlawfully occupying the hunting ground. Kim Giryeo stood his ground confidently. Perhaps understanding the lack of justification, Kang Changho no longer said anything further about additional entry.

“Fine. Then just make sure you don’t touch the boss monster behind that door.”

“The boss?”

“I went through all the effort to set the table, and if an S-rank who shows up late just snatches the guaranteed epic item... that wouldn’t exactly be ethical, right?”

Their argunts were certainly understandable.

“Yes. I understand.”

But this one thing he can’t just accept and dismiss.

After a brief silence, Kim Giryeo began to organize and lay out the truths he had just realized.

“Let’s say the matter of the boss is settled. But coming in with the intention of helping, seeing all of this leaves sowhat dumbfounded.”

“Really?”

“Why is Hunter Kang Changho so powerful?”

“Suddenly giving praise, huh.”

“The status ailnts caused by the Castle of Sloth, are even to , set far too harshly. Yet you’ve overco such a high level of hindrance and, without a single scratch, brought the gate clear to the brink in just a few minutes.”

“It doesn’t really sound like praise, does it?”

“So it wasn’t that you didn’t protect the contractor during the Kagoshima raid because you felt your life was in danger, was it?”

The questions that followed were legitimate.

“The more I think about it, the stranger it seems—how can a superhuman holed up in Korea handle their abilities so flawlessly? And all that information they had about dungeon creation... why is it only Hunter Kang Changho?”

But the person being questioned, as expected, didn’t provide any useful information.

“But you know, Kim Giryeo.”

A sentence followed that could hardly be comprehended, whether by the soul of an Alphaurin or the flesh of a mammal.

“You know ?”

The person known as Kim Giryeo showed no particular change in expression.

“It seed like our involvent ended with what happened in the U.S. I don’t understand why you keep talking to since then.”

“Hunter Changho.”

“Now, trying to intimidate by flexing your magic like that won’t have any effect...”

Even if he concentrated his mana as if ready to unleash a powerful spell at any mont, there would be no reaction. Kim Giryeo therefore briefly studied the area around his opponent’s eyes. On Kang Changho’s face, there was clearly no sign of any eyewear.

“By the way, [The Dragon’s Eye] effect causing inconvenience in daily life was recently resolved.”

“How?”

“There are plenty of skilled technicians in this country. As long as you pay them properly, custom lenses like that can be made in no ti.”

Lens, lenses...

So what he ant was that he had already obtained factory-made contact lenses that physically regulate the effects of the [Dragon’s Eye].

“Humans are really peculiar. Who was the first to think of putting sothing like that on the cornea?”

It was regrettable in many ways that the thod of blinding the opponent during a fight had been blocked. But before the alien could properly complain, the conversation partner spoke first.

The monsters of [Castle of Sloth] lay strewn everywhere. He had been sowhat concerned, but contrary to his expectations, the conqueror showed not a single scratch. And the speed of the dungeon’s clear was utterly incomprehensible.

Kang Changho nodded at the blonde Korean. Considering all these factors, it was only natural for a latecor to feel puzzled. However...

“To get straight to the point, he’s not going to explain the process himself.”

Anyway, that’s the point.

“Dho. And on top of that, you’ve been spouting nonsense to the public, claiming you’re a water-elent Awakener, yet here you are, throwing in a jab about why only you should reveal your abilities...”

Unlike the natural mutation before him, the blonde hair had been artificially dyed. Kim Giryeo, with that hair adorning his body, quietly listened to the other’s words—and had paused a mont for ponder.

“If Kang Changho’s hidden abilities were this significant, then I’ll can’t help but take a renewed interest in every move he’s made so far.”

But just as he was deep in thought, an awakened being—bearing the appearance of a survivor from the dungeon shock—spoke unexpectedly through Kang Changho’s mouth.

“Anyway, it’s just the short lifespan of a fruit fly. What’s so remarkable about it that you always go around boldly questioning others like that?”

This is a sentence where the obvious designation ‘Hunter Kim Giryeo’ is omitted. At first, Kim Giryeo thought it might be a challenge to fight.

“But actually, I like you.”

But then, what’s with this sudden and out-of-the-blue expression of approval?

“After all, you’re a gifted individual coming to protect Seoul without any particular reason.”

“_ _”

“The more people like you... no, heroes like you exist, the easier it is for to live. So honestly, this whole tug-of-war of questioning and watching each other is uncomfortable. What I an is, I want to maintain as smooth a relationship with everyone as possible.”

At this point, Kim Giryeo naturally raised a question.

“You said on the phone earlier that you were planning to enrage it things got out of hand.”

Of course, it wasn’t a question that was hard to answer, so Kang Changho responded imdiately.

“That was a lie.”

“Huh!?”

“I was just joking, wondering if showing too much of my lastes would make vulnerable. But seriously, why would I have this wonderful Korea? Like I’ve said before, there aren’t many places that are comfortable to live in if you’ve got the money.”

Hahaha.

He spoke with a laugh that sounded almost chanical. One could only wonder if this ti he was truly being sincere.

“Are you really staying in Korea purely out of personal preference? You’re not holding onto so other information by yourself, are you?”

Using the instinct peculiar to a long-lived being, Kim Giryeo said this. Yet his counterpart’s deanor remained completely confident.

“Then what? Even if I had been lying from start to finish, what could you possibly do about it?”

In many ways, it was the attitude of soone who had sold off [Justitia] without a second thought. What this Kang Changho didn’t realize, however, was that the young man standing before him was an alien being.

“_ _”

The Alphaurin mage, capable of extracting mories from the heads of dead animals, maintained an awkwardly tense silence. Fortunately, the situation wasn’t dire enough for him to resort to unethical magic. As for Kang Changho, he had no choice but to step out—if only because of the deal deals he’d already purchased—but you, being a righteous person who could enter [Castle of Sloth] without such concerns, wouldn’t be able to use lies to tornt others anyway.

“No...”

Additionally, he spoke in a friendly manner, pointing out that even now, despite his aggressive words, the other party hadn’t lifted a finger in response.

“He just wasn’t acting up because he was recovering his mana.”

A brief misunderstanding about his character flashed through his mind.

Anyway, despite speaking quite favorably, Kang Changho seed entirely unbothered by keeping a frosty distance from the fourth S-rank. He would laugh heartily, enough to reveal the muscles along his cheeks, yet when asked about his abilities, he would issue a subtle threat, insisting only that people rember he possessed [Improvent]—a true S-rank Awakener.

“He’s surprisingly audacious, not even realizing he’s facing an archmage.”

Conversely, it seed as if Kang Changho himself held extre contempt for anyone who challenged him.

“But by staying silent like this, all I can do is grow more curious. What exactly were the twenty skills he had set up that let him clear the dungeon so quickly? And is his obsession with South Korea really for such ordinary reasons...”

It was at that mont—precisely when the alien’s inner thought had tilted toward ‘let’s just open his skull after all.’ He’d previously silent that S-rank hunter suddenly sprang to his feet. Without hesitation, he opened the rear iron gate and imdiately finished off the boss monster that had been left in a near-death state.

‘Judging roughly from the remaining wounds on the boss’s corpse, it seems that the entity still relied on its usual [Physical Enhancent] ability while hunting.’

“But why did you suddenly finish clearing the gate instead of taking a proper rest?” The man in his thirties, addressed by Kim Giryeo, replied in turn.

“Because even breathing started to feel like a hassle.”

For reference, this wasn’t so idle joke. The place they were standing in was a Sin-concept dungeon. And the very voice that the gate’s minions hated most happened to be [Sloth]. This served as the clearest possible reminder that the status effects had reached a level that couldn’t be ignored.

“Hadn’t that part been perfectly prepared for?”

True, even at the Snn Gate, there didn’t seem to be any particular resistance either.

While Kim Giryeo was lost in such thoughts, the boss of the pocket dinsion died, and the gate followed its familiar procedures: the castle that had tornted countless humans collapsed, an epic-level reward was granted to the lone contributor to the clear, and any living beings left in the now useless treasure chests were expelled.

‘Before I even blinked, I was already outside.’

Of course, even with the environnt having changed, Kim Giryeo’s attitude remained the sa for a while. On the contrary, he was sowhat irritated that a primitive being acted surly when a grand archmage like himself spoke, and he even wondered if he might have to demonstrate his power at any mont.

But the remark Kang Changho suddenly made turned out to be an unexpected, devastating blow.

“But you know, Kim Giryeo? In this world, there’s actually far more information that’s better left unknown.”

“Yes?”

“So if I keep certain things to myself and don’t reveal them, just assu I’m acting for the best and let it slide.”

After that, Kang Changho continued to probe at the part of the mage’s conscience that could even be called his moral compass. No matter how he’d prickly his attitude had been, ‘I even helped prevent the [Castle of Sloth] from breaking! And recently, I tried to contribute to the country by donating to a children’s shelter. I even read online that you volunteered at the Tomorrow Orphanage, and that inspired ,’ and so on—such words kept coming.

“What are you talking about? I’ve never done any volunteer work.”

“This Alphaurin may be offended, but... your logic is sound nonetheless.”

Despite any past grudges or annoyances, Kang Changho truly bore no guilt in this matter, so he concluded that acting against his will would be morally impermissible.

So, in the end, things wrapped up fairly smoothly, more or less.

–Tudutududu...

The sound of people running could be heard from sowhere nearby.

“Wow, impressive work ethic.”

The coordinates where the S-rank hunters erged were just a short distance from the site of the temporary disaster response headquarters. As a result, reporters gathered nearby spotted the superpowered individuals and ran over—b ut unfortunately, they couldn’t get an interview with the actual dungeon clearers.

“Bringing the motorcycle out today was pointless. I simply don’t have the energy to ride it back.”

“Then should I call an ambulance?”

“Just accept my heart.”

The driver he usually relied on must have had the day off, because Kang Changho forcibly hailed a taxi roaming the streets. The cabbie, who had been trembling so much it seed doubtful he could even press the accelerator properly, quickly regained his motivation after Kang Changho handed him a check.

–Brrrrr.

The conqueror of [Castle of Sloth] returned ho. There wasn’t much gain aside from trivial questions, yet still, it was worth celebrating that the alien’s second holand had been freed from danger.

***

Swaying, swaying.

A small figurine bobbing on the taxi’s dashboard. After it moved two or three more tis, the man sitting in the back seat suddenly changed his expression. Kang Changho, sitting in the taxi, stared blankly into the air, mouth slightly open, then suddenly widened his eyes a little and let out a silent, peculiar laugh.

“Do you happen to know, driver, that if you make a donation, you can get a corresponding tax deduction?”

“Yes?”

And what’s with this random question?

Vroom.

By now, the evacuated citizens were grumbling as they returned, and traffic had beco congested. Naturally, it would take quite so ti to reach his private residence. No further remarks were made. Kang Changho maintained silent silence, thodically re-equipping the magical suppression devices he had previously set aside.

–Brring, brring.

Then, at that mont, the ringtone of a brand-new cellphone suddenly rang.

It’s a number that normally shouldn’t be calling... yet today, it’s unusually persistent.

The na “Yoon Jangwon” appeared at the top of the screen. Seeing this, Kang Changho answered the call without much thought.

“Yes. Hello.”

For soone who claid it was a hassle just to breathe, his pronunciation was surprisingly clear.

“Oh, Mr. Kang. Have you finished the raid?”

“You’re not asking if I’ve eaten, but instead wanting to know about the raid. I guess you’ve seen the news.”

“Oh, of course. Of course.”

They chatted naturally, as if they had known each other for so ti—discussing which monsters had appeared in the dungeon, or how the progress was going in other [Sin Classification] dungeons.

“Kim Giryeo entered the site, and if I hadn’t been careful, that guy could’ve gotten buried there too. Lucky for him, I’m a decent person.”

Anyway, it was all information that even the taxi driver could hear without issue. So Kang Changho maintained his usual tone, sprinkling in the predictable jokes, when the person on the other end of the call got surprised and brought up a new topic.

“Is Hunter Kim Giryeo there? That quickly?”

Moreover, rather than questioning the teleportation, he seed surprisingly focused on the man’s na itself.

“Hmm... then, since that na just ca up, I was going to ask about it. Ah, no, wait. I’m not sure if I should be asking you this. If you happen to see that S-rank, it would be a bit awkward to gossip carelessly.”

“Who, you an? Kim Giryeo? If it’s about him, there’s no connection worth worrying about. Just speak freely.”

Kang Changho was interested in the other person’s comnts.

Kim Giryeo.

Anyway, whatever debts existed with that peculiar Awakener were settled back in the U.S., so their relationship was neither positive nor negative now. If there was any gossip about that could make it into the dia, it would just be interesting from this side.

“Really?”

However, the next sentence went far beyond what Kang Changho had anticipated.

“No, I just... I’ve heard so really strange stories from a friend who works in the Presidential Office.”