The SSS-Class Hunter’s Garden Log Chapter 25

“Huh?”

 

As Hana raised her head, a middle-aged man caught her eye.

 

Wearing a suit tailored just as sharply as Kanghyun’s and his hair slicked back, the man was frowning deeply.

 

It was an expression as if he were displeased that the whole world wasn’t moving according to his will.

 

“It’s the first time I’ve seen this kind of item.”

 

As if having grasped at once that the rice seed was an item, the man handed the rice seed to someone standing behind him who looked like a secretary.

 

The action was so natural that even Hana was briefly mistaken. Wondering if that rice seed originally belonged to that man.

 

“Appraise it.”

 

At the man’s command, the secretary pushed up the glasses he was wearing.

 

Then, with a small click sound of operation, a mysterious light wavered around the glasses.

 

It was a pair of glasses with the function to appraise an item’s rank and efficacy.

 

“Vice President, it is a rare-grade item.” 

 

“A rare-grade?” 

 

The Vice President’s eyebrows shot up.

 

He slowly scanned Hana up and down.

 

“Was there an item like this originally?”

 

“Not to my knowledge, sir. There is no record of it being registered in the hunter market either.” 

 

“An unregistered item, huh.”

 

This time, looking straight down at Hana, he asked.

 

“Are you affiliated with Haechi?”

 

“Yes.”

 

It was temporary, but it was true she was affiliated.

 

Hana’s head bobbed up and down.

 

“Your rank.”

 

Why did everyone harp on about ranks every single time they saw her? 

 

A sullen dissatisfaction subtly flared up, but Hana answered for now. 

 

From what she heard, he seemed to be called the Vice President, so wasn’t he a high-ranking person.

 

“I’m F-rank.”

 

“F-rank?”

 

The Vice President snorted.

 

“Ha. A mere F-rank possesses a rare-grade item?” 

 

His gaze turned to the rice seed again.

 

“And an unregistered item at that?”

 

No sooner had he spoken than the Vice President snatched the rice seed from the secretary’s hand.

 

“Since it’s not something a low-rank Hunter should have, I will take this.”

 

“No—!” 

 

【SYSTEM】 

<What?! Can someone really be that shameless? Just snatching other people’s things like that! User, someone like that deserves to be taught a lesson! (＃｀д´)ﾉ> 

 

Hana, who was just about to protest, became bewildered because Chirpy was flying into greater rage than she was. 

 

No, well. To the point of teaching a lesson.

 

He was even said to be the Vice President. Wouldn’t it be enough to just ask him to return it?

 

But Chirpy flew into a rage like never seen before.

 

As if it had run some sworn enemy. 

 

【SYSTEM】 

<New Skill ‘Get Lost, Thief! (D-Rank)’ has awakened.>

<When someone attempts to forcibly appraise or inspect an item owned by the user, a ‘Veil (Masking)’ will be applied to the appraisal result, causing false information to be displayed.> 

 

Following that, another phrase faintly appeared behind the system window, then quickly disappeared like smoke before Hana even had the chance to notice it.

 

<The skill ‘Shadow in the Smoke (L-Rank)’ has been automatically scaled down to match the user’s current condition. Its effect of preventing recognition of physical existence has been applied to an object.>

 

This time, there wasn’t even a choice asking if she would cast the skill.

 

The skill activated automatically as if it had been waiting.

 

Then, a blue light hovered on the lenses of the item appraisal glasses the secretary was wearing.

 

The blue aura that wavered very briefly disappeared, and new information floated up in the secretary’s vision.

 

“…?”

 

The secretary tilted his head.

 

Because an efficacy different from what he had checked a moment ago appeared on the glasses.

 

【SYSTEM】

<‘Red Rice Seeds (Rare Grade)’>

<Effect: Unshakable Composure. You can weave even lies as though they were the truth, with complete ease.>

 

The secretary narrowed his eyes and verified the text floating above the lenses. 

 

‘Is it an error?’

 

Since there were often cases like this during the process of appraising items, the secretary shrugged and whispered lowly into the Vice President’s ear.

 

“Vice President, a unique effect has been confirmed. ‘Imperturbability.’ It appears to belong to a category that causes falsehoods to be recognized as truth.” 

 

The moment he heard those words, the Vice President’s eyes flashed with greed.

 

“’Go Away Thief’? What kind of skill name is this?”

 

Then, hearing Hana’s muttering, he glared up menacingly with wrinkled eyes.

 

“Thief? Are you saying that to me right now?”

 

Hana, who had unconsciously muttered the newly created skill name, suddenly received the Vice President’s scolding. 

 

The way he got angry looked exactly like a thief with a guilty conscience.

 

‘I guess he feels a bit guilty?’

 

She felt like nodding her head, but Hana showed a harmless smile.

 

“How could that be? As if I would call the high and mighty Vice President a thief. Haha.”

 

“Anyway, young Hunters these days have no manners. Tsk.”

 

Looking down at Hana as if glaring sidelong, he turned his body as if she wasn’t worth dealing with anymore.

 

“I won’t bother asking why a low-rank Hunter like you had an unregistered rare item, so be careful from now on!”

 

Unbelievable. He wasn’t asking because it looked like he was stealing it.

 

Hana stuck her tongue out slightly at the back of the Vice President heading to the Guild Master’s office.

 

At first she was completely nervous hearing he was the Vice President, but she wondered what kind of shameless human was that.

 

‘I have plenty of rice seeds in the cabin anyway, so it doesn’t matter if one gets taken, but it still doesn’t feel good.’

 

Hana thought.

 

If possible, she hoped an incredibly plausible fake trait that would tempt the Vice President would show up. 

 

So she wanted the Vice President to swallow that rice seed whole at once.

 

‘And then get a terrible stomachache.’ 

 

As someone who had experienced her insides catching fire and going in and out of the bathroom all day after trying a handful of rice seeds because she couldn’t suppress her curiosity.

 

Hana prayed very earnestly.

 

* * *

 

Meanwhile.

 

The Vice President, having already put Hana out of his mind, stopped in front of the Guild Master’s office.

 

“Seo Kanghyun… this arrogant b*stard.”

 

The Vice President ground his teeth.

 

When he had left the investigation of the Gangnam Station Gate to him, the brat hadn’t shown his face for days, only to contact him this morning and abruptly say what? 

 

“That he would purchase the Gangnam Station Gate under Haechi’s name?”

 

Other Association figures considered the Gangnam Station Gate as nothing more than an empty shell.

 

So the atmosphere was welcoming of Kanghyun’s decision.

 

Because there was no reason not to welcome someone offering to buy something practically like garbage with money.

 

But those were words they could say because they knew nothing.

 

“Don’t tell me he noticed something.”

 

The Vice President bit his nails in anxiety.

 

Three years ago.

 

The real reason the Gangnam Station Gate went out of control.

 

Surely, he hadn’t found out about that? 

 

He had been living at peace ever since ‘1’ disappeared, but perhaps he had grown too complacent. 

 

If things went wrong, That Person wouldn’t leave him alone.

 

The Vice President quickly touched his chilling nape.

 

“I definitely recovered the core properly back then. Were there traces left behind?”

 

At that moment, the secretary carefully opened his mouth.

 

“…Vice President, please enter.” 

 

His thoughts cut off by that voice, the Vice President cleared his throat once, forced his crumpled expression to smooth out, and lifted his chin.

 

It wasn’t something that would be solved by worrying alone.

 

But now that he was actually here, he didn’t really feel like going into the Guild Leader’s office.

 

If by any chance Seo Kanghyun had found out something, the moment he opened this door, it might end up exposing his own hand first instead.

 

‘That damn Eyes of Haechi.’

 

The Vice President gritted his teeth.

 

Among Seo Kanghyun’s numerous skills, the Eyes of Haechi was exceedingly annoying.

 

A skill that distinguishes truth and falsehood.

 

“If I could just avoid that, things would be much easier.”

 

The Vice President, who had been taking several deep breaths to conceal his anxious mind, suddenly recalled the efficacy of the rice seed his secretary had conveyed a moment ago. 

 

“Wait. Did he say this item’s efficacy was Imperturbability?”

 

Heaven is helping me.

 

The corners of the Vice President’s mouth curved up refreshingly into an arc.

 

Examining the rice seed only briefly, the Vice President tried to eat it.

 

Seeing that, the secretary urgently stepped forward.

 

“Since it is an unregistered item, eating it after its safety is confirmed would be, ugh.”

 

“Shut up! Where do you get off arrogantly lecturing me?”

 

However, the Vice President kicked that secretary’s shin and tossed the whole rice seed into his mouth.

 

Gulp.

 

Swallowed without even chewing, the rice seed traveled down his esophagus and made its way into his stomach.

 

Wiping his mouth, the Vice President threw open the door to the Guild Leader’s office with a much more imposing momentum.

 

* * *

 

The Guild Master’s office door opened roughly, but Seo Kanghyun didn’t even twitch an eyebrow.

 

As if it were a scheduled visit, he merely paused his hands which had been organizing some paperwork. 

 

“What brings you all the way here?”

 

It was a calm voice.

 

Snorting at that arrogant attitude, the Vice President buried his body into the sofa with a look of dissatisfaction.