The Hunter of the Other World Who Is Being Misunderstood Chapter 422

Chapter 422

Chapter 422. Deepening

After all, being pushed toward an undesired path would be infuriating anywhere in the universe.

'Let’s not add any more unnecessary words here.'

It was around the ti the Archmage wisely fell silent. Kim Giryeo and Seo Esther had shared quite a bit of conversation while browsing the item market, but as ti passed, they inevitably reached the mont when they had to part ways.

“Oh, right. Giryeo-ssi, I need to quickly use the restroom. Would you mind looking around at the items by yourself until I get back?”

“ alone?”

“My lips will probably dry out in the anti, so I’ll need to reapply lip balm. Anyway, I thought I’d take this chance to tidy up my outfit a bit. Co to think of it, even though this is a shopping building, I wonder why there are so few mirrors.”

The restroom... an unavoidable necessity for any living creature. Yet, to suddenly be separated from the group like thi

My lips will probably dry out in the anti, so I'll need to reapply lip balm. Anyway, I thought I'd take this chance to tidy up my outfit a bit. Co to think of it, even though this is a shopping building, I wonder why there are so few mirrors.

The restroom—an unavoidable necessity for any living creature. Yet, to suddenly be separated from the group like this...

'What if Esther gets into so sort of conflict with a foreign female S-rank inside?'

It was a fleeting thought. Kim Giryeo stood still, considering a worry that was unlikely to co true.

'And what if the cursed sorcerer, unable to stand being ignored, just explodes? A country with two S-rank individuals who have assault records is truly unmanageable in many ways.'

So he considered keeping watch near the restroom for a mont, but on second thought, an archmage like himself had no need to waste ti on such a trivial precaution.

'Well, even a fight between S-ranks can be sensed from afar.'

Kim Giryeo soon accepted the situation calmly and moved. Following Esther's suggestion, he headed to the stall alone to make efficient use of his ti.

'There's a 50 million won necklace here too. When I first arrived on Earth, I used to tremble at the sight of a price tag like that.'

to make efficient use of his ti.

'There's a 50 million won necklace here too. When I first arrived on Earth, I used to tremble at the sight of a price tag like that.'

But as he wandered alone like this, the sensation gradually entered the Archmage's awareness.

Thud.

The blond man took his eyes off the item he was examining and stepped out of the store. The spot where he stood was on the second floor of the vast auction house building. But because the ceiling height allocated to each floor was enormous, he could survey almost the entire lower floor just by leaning his neck slightly over the railing. And it was only after going through that process that a slow realization took hold.

'It seems a new S-rank hunter is approaching from the direction of the building's main entrance...'

Maybe it's because he's encountered so many powerful beings, but by now, distinguishing the level of one's mana was a simple task for him.

'Could that be the awakened Esther ntioned?'

But it was still too far away to confirm their appearance.

'Hmm.'

The alien pondered sothing and kept silent.

'By the way, what kind of person was that Earthling who supposedly proposed to Esther?'

If possible, he wanted to resolve everything peacefully, but to be honest, from his position, the future ahead was nothing but uncertain.

Step, step, step.

Heavy footsteps echoed across the marble floor, polished spotless by the cleaners. When he looked up at the sound, he saw a face that seed strangely familiar. The hair color was hard to define—sowhere between brown and orange.

A pair of distinct black-rimd glasses stood out on his face, paired with a slightly stocky build. These days, the advent of potions—the ultimate problem-solver—had vastly expanded the range of vision restoration thods. Yet this man, perhaps the cautious type who preferred to observe technological progress from a distance, still wore thick lenses without hesitation as he surveyed the world.

"Ha."

For reference, the place he had just stepped into was a world-renowned artifact auction house.

'As expected, I'm definitely [cursed]. Otherwise, how else would I get caught up in yet another airport taxi accident and end up an hour behind schedule?'

He hadn't ant to be this late, but sohow half the schedule had already slipped by. Soone hurried their steps, glancing at the hunter's watch strapped around their wrist.

'That hunter must be sowhere inside this building.'

Since he'd recently had a conflict with a certain Korean, he hurried along, worried that he might suddenly run into the person in question.

'It'll be troubleso if we run into each other again when I'm unprepared. I should take care of my business first.'

But at that mont, the first person to co to mind wasn't the one with purple hair, but the one with golden hair. Co to think of it, back when he was stuck on the road because of the taxi accident, he'd received a ssage from a friend who had already arrived at the auction house.

'That awakener Giryeo must be sowhere in here too.'

At this point, the alien creature's thoughts were turning upside down.

'I thought he'd co alone, but he's with that Asian man again. Then maybe the rumors going around in Korea are true—that there's really so kind of relationship between those two.'

If Kim Giryeo had heard that, he probably would've been shocked and asked, “Why are you labeling a pervert out of nowhere?” The thought had simply slipped through the man's mind—but given the circumstances, there was plenty of room for misunderstanding when it ca to Seo Esther and Kim Giryeo's relationship.

But.

'The first S-rank retiree, huh...'

Even without all those trivial excuses, the truth was that he had already been quite interested in the awakened man nad Kim Giryeo. The blond hunter, known as South Korea's fourth S-rank, had long drawn the wary attention of other nations. After all, the S-ranks of that particular Asian country—one that had always leaned toward an “everyman for himself” ntality—were a peculiar bunch. Jung Haseong was a work-obsessed youth, while Seo Esther was constantly busy, always scheming to seize whatever power she could.

And Kang Changho... Well, anyway—looking back on it, South Korea's hunting industry was unusually devoid of contact between its S-ranks.

'Well, it’s true—cases where S-ranks beco genuinely close friends are rare, even when you look at it on a global scale.'

But then, in this fiercely individualistic world, a certain anomaly suddenly appeared one day—Kim Giryeo. And what's more, that superpower didn't just make an appearance; he sohow managed to strengthen the bond between South Korea's S-ranks, which had always seed impossible. How could anyone not pay attention to that? Analytical articles about the phenonon had already circulated overseas, so by the ti the man stepped into the building, he was already roughly aware of the chain of events that had unfolded in Korea.

'They say the S-ranks who'd never cared about each other before started coming together after the appearance of the fourth awakened one.'

Half true, half false. But the biggest mystery here was how that newcor managed to persuade the notoriously head strong first and second ranks in the first place... Setting aside the so-called cyber Lü Bu crowd—those whose only hobby was tearing down celebrities—most Koreans generally had a favorable view of the fourth S-rank. Still, that fondness was nothing more than a natural response to a powerful mutant who happened to protect the public.

Awakeners of high rank were never fond of seeing new heroes erge. After all, if you'd spent years believing you were the strongest in society, only for another predator—fangs and all—to suddenly appear right beside you, it'd be hard to greet them with open arms.

'Honestly, the fewer people there are who could hurt at any ti, the better.'

But why had that so-called blond figure even received enthusiastic support from the other S-rank hunters?

'Hmm.'

Ssshk.

If one were to give him a nickna, it would be sothing like “the failed suitor,” and he lowered his head accordingly. The reason this side was being so careful with their gaze was actually simple.

If one were to give him a nickna, it would be sothing like "the failed suitor," and he lowered his head accordingly. The reason this side was being so careful with their gaze was actually simple.

'As expected, that person Kim Giryeo likely dominated the industry through exceptional power...'

The speculation was that the fourth S-rank hunter had established a vertical hierarchy through sheer power, prompting even the first and second-ranked hunters to cooperate without protest. If Kim Giryeo himself heard this, he would probably be quite surprised at such nonsense—but to a third party, the scenario so far seed fairly plausible.

Those proud, self-important S-rank hunters—accustod to being at the top—suddenly bending over backward for a newcor. And on top of that, all of them were sending gifts almost daily to the fourth S-rank. Could such a complete reversal of relationships really be achieved by the character of a single person alone?

'It hasn't even been that long since [Inevitable Malice] was defeated. There's absolutely not enough ti to build trust.'

At least, this foreign hunter didn't think so. Without overwhelming strength or charisma—without those specific factors—it would be nearly impossible for the wild, untad Korean hunters to calm down.

'Judging by the fact that he commands the respect of not only Seo Esther but also that other... hunter, he must be soone with truly remarkable abilities.'

The Western Awakener, continuing his train of thought, adjusted the shoulder bag he was carrying.

'So, the Magic Tower Guild Master is also into that Awakener?'

Even though he was a retired hunter, he reaffird to himself here that he would never casually underestimate Kim Gi ryeo.

'So that's why I got kicked around and had to suffer because of the [curse]?'

But despite careful consideration, sothing suddenly seed to shatter his resolve..

***

A few minutes later.

'Whoa.'

A certain awakened hunter who had failed in a marriage proposal happened to run into Kim Giryeo. For the record, it was by no ans intentional. As the empty surroundings suggested, the place he was in was one he generally preferred to avoid encounters with others.

'Oops. How did we end up running into each other right by the restroom?'

It was the afternoon, just one hour before the start of the top-tier artifact auction. On the first floor n's restroom of the VIP-only building, a famous figure was spotted near the sinks. Artificially dyed blonde hair. Eyes shaped in a way typical of East Asians. And, most surprisingly—the reason this eting was so unexpected—their magical power was suppressed to an astonishing degree.

'I couldn't feel any mana at all, so I thought no one was here!'

Of course, it's always difficult to distinguish the facial features of soone from another country, but with this many clues, you could recognize at least one person.

'So this is Hunter Kim from South Korea.'

The foreign Awakener was taken aback the mont they saw Kim Giryeo in person. They had heard the stories from articles before, but they never imagined that an S-rank Hunter could be so completely undetectable.

'At this level, he's practically at an ordinary human's level.'

rticles before, but they never imagined that an S-rank Hunter could be so completely undetectable.

'At this level, he's practically at an ordinary human's level.'

A fleeting thought crossed his mind.

'Is that really the Imoogi Hunter who amazed everyone? That long-ti unknown prodigy?'

Humans are creatures naturally influenced by their senses. Perhaps because of this, the man with the horn-rimd glasses began to feel a creeping suspicion toward a certain superpowered individual... yet the mana he sensed converged almost exactly to zero. Setting that aside for the mont, the person he had co face-to-face with already posed a problem just from their outward appearance.

'There's nothing more to explain. Simply put, he just looks weak.'

Compared to the charismatic images circulating in various foreign news articles, the person standing before him seed far less imposing in reality.

'Compared to the recorded footage, he's so skinny.'

Glancing around as he walked into the restroom, even during that brief mont.

'Has he lost weight?'

The foreigner pondered.

'I'm not sure. Since the person never really had much flesh on their face, I can't be certain they've lost weight.'

And at this point, another factor that affects a person's presence beca apparent. Esther had been quietly concerned, ever since before departure, that the retired Kim Gi-ryeo wouldn't be subjected to uncomfortable attention. As a result, she had gifted him these new clothes through an acquaintance.

'Moreover, perhaps because of the way he's dressed, his presence feels... off sohow...'

Clothing. More precisely, a pair of jeans and a white T-shirt—so ordinary that even the brand was hard to make out—lay before him. Today, Kim Giryeo wasn't wearing his usual work attire or suit. Yet, the person clad in such plain fabrics had skin that looked parched, as if he hadn't eaten properly for days.

'He just looks like one of those 30-sothing construction workers you sotis see back in our country?'

In a positive sense, familiar; in a negative sense, ridiculously easy to underestimate. The foreigner cast a sidelong glance at him and turned away.

'Is he trying to talk to ?'

He didn't want to spark any conflict with the Korean already, so he refrained from greeting first.

'What is it? Don't you know ?'

Moreover, Kim Giryeo's side— for so reason unknown—didn't acknowledge him either.

'He just washed his hands and left...'

Their brief encounter, too short to even asure in minutes, ended as they imdiately parted ways. Thus, at that mont, the Western awakener thought there would be no need to observe Kim Giryeo any further.

"Phew."

But what was going on here?

“Huh?”

“Leo!”

It hadn’t been long since he returned from the restroom. Around this ti, the failed proposer ran into a familiar industry colleague.

“You’ve arrived!”

“Damn taxi accident made a bit late.”

“I told you not to turn off your phone notifications. Why didn’t you reply quickly?”

“As you know, we’re S-rank hunters, so our hearing is highly developed. That ans if a sudden loud phone ring goes off, a human’s delicate ears—”

“Don’t start spouting nonsense all of a sudden. I just turned it off out of habit because it usually gets in the way when I’m relaxing.”

“Don’t start spouting nonsense all of a sudden. I just turned it off out of habit because it usually gets in the way when I'm relaxing.”

At first, they drifted into everyday topics.

“Anyway, even top-tier Awakened are still just human! Who would’ve thought that just because of the restroom, every one would end up seeing each other so close up?”

“Everyone...? What do you an, everyone?”

“Earlier, I saw KIM coming out through this corridor.”

But due to their respective notoriety, the conversation quickly steered in a particular direction.

“Have you ever encountered a South Korean S-rank awakened around here?”

Of course, they've t face to face.

“Anyway, whether you've t him or not, just listen to first.”

Hmm? The awakened, whose eyesight was a bit poor, frowned as if trying to read distant text. While he was expressin

Anyway, whether you've t him or not, just listen to first.

Hmm? The awakened, whose eyesight was a bit poor, frowned as if trying to read distant text. While he was expressing his doubt with that expression, a friend from the sa country appeared in the hallway, smiling broadly as they started to share so story.

Sothing quite interesting happened around the ti you were wasting ti on the road.

What was it?

Maybe that Asian hunter really retired because sothing went wrong with his abilities. Earlier in the lobby, there was an ‘incident’ where soone needed cold water, but apparently so awakened didn’t give a single drop.

Maybe it’s just because he’s unlicensed or sothing?

I just explained that an ‘incident’ happened.

Ah~

Author's Thoughts

Hi, from now on, I will update this novel 3 chapters/week. Thank you for all your support so far:)