The SSS-Class Hunter’s Garden Log Chapter 30

“You punk! Just because I asked you to hit me, does that mean you have to hit this hard?! Be honest with me, you’re not an F-rank, are you!”

 

“No, you were the one who asked to be hit!” 

 

Feeling deeply wronged, the inner ends of Hana’s eyebrows rose sorrowfully.

 

“Even so, I didn’t know you would hit this hard!”

 

Choi Kwon, who also seemed to be in considerable pain, didn’t back down and shot right back at her. 

 

Despite the serious situation, the voices of the two bickering echoed inside the gate.

 

While they were doing so, with a secretive sizzle sound, the arrowroot vine that had pulled Hana here was slithering towards the center of the gate.

 

* * *

 

Meanwhile,

 

Outside the gate, Kanghyun with a cool face was glaring at the entrance of the gate that hadn’t fully opened yet.

 

The rift that had formed in the front yard of the Haechi Guild was repeatedly opening and closing incompletely, as if catching its breath.

 

The entrance definitely existed, but it was nowhere near a size big enough to enter yet.

 

Seo Kanghyun frowned deeply.

 

Yoon Taegyeom, who was checking the energy-measuring terminal outside the Gate, scratched the back of his head roughly. 

 

“This is a mental-type gate, though? It’s dangerous to enter like this without a mental defense skill. I’ve called Hunter Lee Haechan, so wait.”

 

He felt like a troublesome gate had appeared of all things.

 

“I wonder if Hana-ssi will be okay. It’s a relief she didn’t go in alone, at least.”

 

Kanghyun, who was barely listening to Taegyeom’s words, let his hand drop to his waist. 

 

Click.

 

Along with a short sound effect, the blade of the sword that had been sheathed flashed and revealed its form.

 

“We don’t have the luxury to wait.” 

 

【SYSTEM】 

<Skill ‘Spatial Slash (S-rank)’ is activated.>

 

As Kanghyun lightly swung the sword, the red ornament attached to the sword hilt swayed minutely.

 

Boom! 

 

Contrary to the simple movement, a thunderous roar erupted as the edge of the blade clashed against the Gate entrance. 

 

Soon, a long, diagonal crack formed in the blue entrance.

 

Just as Kanghyun was about to step towards the forcibly opened entrance, an urgent voice was heard from behind.

 

“W-wait a moment!” 

 

It was Lee Haechan, an S-rank mental-type Hunter affiliated with Haechi who had been urgently called.

 

With bangs covering his eyes and wearing a gray hoodie pulled down low, he stopped with a somewhat hunched posture.

 

“Y-you mustn’t go in just like that.” 

 

With somewhat anxious gestures, Lee Haechan stammered.

 

“Even if you are an SS-rank… it’s difficult to avoid the debuff if it’s a mental-type Gate.” 

 

It might be a different story if he possessed a top-tier mental defense skill like the one ‘1’ had.

 

Otherwise, no matter how strong a Hunter was, unless they were immune to mental attacks, it was hard to avoid status abnormalities.

 

“I-I’ll cast a defense skill on you.”

 

“Do it quickly.”

 

Kanghyun stopped and irritably swept back his bangs. His usually bored expression looked slightly impatient.

 

Lee Haechan’s hand hesitated in the air for a moment before carefully activating the skill.

 

【SYSTEM】

<Mental Defense Skill activated on the target.>

 

“It’s all done.” 

 

As soon as Lee Haechan’s hand went down, Kanghyun turned around and headed straight into the gate.

 

“Phew, what an impatient personality.”

 

Yoon Taegyeom, who had equipped his protective gear before anyone noticed, approached Lee Haechan. 

 

“Please cast the skill on me too.”

 

Lee Haechan flinched, then nodded his head.

 

Right then, a black spot dotted on the back of Lee Haechan’s hand caught Taegyeom’s eye.

 

But Taegyeom brushed it off as nothing important and handed protective gear to Lee Haechan as well.

 

“A-Am I going in too?”

 

“Yes, there are Hunters who were swept inside. We need someone to cast mental defense skills on them too.”

 

“Ah…”

 

“Sorry, but could you hurry up a bit? It’s urgent.”

 

“Y-Yes! Let’s go!”

 

Lee Haechan couldn’t hide his reluctance, but he followed Taegyeom and moved his steps toward the gate.

 

Scratching the back of his hand.

 

* * *

 

“What on earth do you do for a living, Benefactor?”

 

“Why?”

 

Hana, who had roughly picked up a cardboard box from the ground and put it over her head, looked back at Choi Kwon.

 

Choi Kwon was no different.

 

He too was wearing a box over his head, following Hana’s lead.

 

“Why, you ask? Whhhyyyyy?” 

 

Choi Kwon raised his voice an octave higher.

 

“You’re casually harvesting mushrooms in a Gate, so how could anyone help but ask that?” 

 

It was exactly as Choi Kwon said.

 

Hana was picking a mushroom that had grown by squeezing through a crack in the broken building floor.

 

It wasn’t like she had a particular purpose.

 

It was just that a mushroom that had popped up boop next to where she was sitting caught her eye.

 

Furthermore, when she tried touching it thoughtlessly, the system window actually reacted, so she had simply become curious. 

 

【SYSTEM】 

<‘Melancholy-Absorbing Oyster Mushroom 🍄 (B+ rank)’> 

<Effect: Absorbs the user’s melancholy.>

<Special Property: Can be combined with other items.>

 

“My poor life. Right, what would an F-rank know. I’m the only one tense, only me.”

 

With the monster still nowhere to be seen, Choi Kwon kicked a stone on the ground in dissatisfaction.

 

“Hmm…”

 

Hana half-ignored Choi Kwon’s nagging and slipped the mushroom into her front pocket. 

 

She didn’t particularly like the effect. 

 

The explanation that it absorbs depression felt somewhat uncomfortable to begin with.

 

She was also worried that if she planted this in the garden without knowing better, the other crops might fall ill.

 

But the phrase ‘Can be mixed with other items’ was quite interesting.

 

She thought maybe she could try mixing it with the garden crops when she got back.

 

‘How do I cultivate mushrooms? I should look it up later.’

 

Noticing that Hana was thinking about something else, Choi Kwon narrowed his eyes. 

 

“You’re not listening, are you? Hey? Is this any time for us to be peacefully playing harvesting games?” 

 

Just then, a low, dry voice dropped from above their heads. 

 

“You do look peaceful for someone who got dragged in.” 

 

“Seo Kanghyun-ssi!”

 

Discovering Seo Kanghyun, Hana sprang to her feet.

 

His cold gray eyes felt exceptionally welcoming.

 

Above Seo Kanghyun’s head, a transparent semi-circular shield, seemingly generated by a skill, floated like an umbrella.

 

As the raindrops touched its boundary, they slipped down smoothly.

 

Kanghyun looked down at Hana and let out a short breath.

 

Only then did he realize.

 

The fact that he had been quite tense until a moment ago, worrying that something might have happened to Yoon Hana.

 

It was unfamiliar even to himself.

 

Why would his nerves be on edge over a person he had only seen a couple of times.

 

But Kanghyun immediately organized his thoughts.

 

It was just that he was bothered because he watched someone get dragged into a gate right before his eyes.

 

Or because it would be troublesome if an accident happened to a pretty decent item supplier he had just found.

 

‘That’s all it is. If something goes wrong with Yoon Hana, it’s true that it’s a loss on my end too.’

 

The moment he neatly organized his emotions under the name of ‘necessity’, Yoon Taegyeom and Lee Haechan revealed themselves behind Kanghyun.

 

“Hana-ssi! Are you okay? You were shocked, right!” 

 

Yoon Taegyeom fussed over Hana, asking if she was hurt anywhere.

 

Even then, a cardboard box was draped over Hana’s head.

 

“Seriously. I don’t know if your hobby is just picking up and using whatever.” 

 

Letting out a faint chuckle of disbelief, Kanghyun snatched the box away and took out a raincoat item.

 

Rustle.

 

With the sound of thin plastic brushing, the raincoat landed on Hana’s shoulders.

 

“Thank you.”

 

“No need to thank me.”

 

Kanghyun said, turning his gaze away.

 

“I’m just putting it on you so you don’t catch a status abnormality for no reason and become a hindrance.”

 

Hana’s lips jutted out.

 

There he goes again. She was just thinking that it seemed he would get a rash if he spoke nicely anyway.

 

Choi Kwon stealthily slipped in between the two.

 

“Excuse me, Guild Master Seo Kanghyun? Is there any raincoat for me by any chance?”

 

Without even looking properly at Choi Kwon, Kanghyun took a raincoat out of his inventory and tossed it roughly.

 

“It-it’s all done.”

 

The raincoat landed squarely on Choi Kwon’s face.

 

“Ack!”

 

While Choi Kwon flailed to take off the raincoat, Lee Haechan had cast mental defense skills on Choi Kwon and Hana before she knew it, and hid behind Yoon Taegyeom.

 

“It-it’s all done.” 

 

Choi Kwon, who was shoving his body into the raincoat, discovered Lee Haechan and wiggled his eyebrows.

 

Then he confidently asked Yoon Taegyeom a question in an informal speech.

 

“Who is that guy?”

 

“You speak formally so diligently to the Guild Master, but why do you use informal speech with me?”

 

“Because you’re weak. Aren’t you an A-rank like me?”

 

“Haha. Seems you left your manners at home.”

 

“No?”

 

Choi Kwon shrugged his shoulders.

 

“I didn’t have manners in the first place.”

 

The urge to smack him surged up, but Yoon Taegyeom barely held it in.

 

Instead, he vowed inwardly.

 

As soon as they get out of here, he must definitely tell Seo Kanghyun never to accept Choi Kwon into Haechi.

 

Yoon Taegyeom twitched the corner of his mouth as he introduced Lee Haechan. 

 

“This is Lee Haechan-ssi, an S-rank mental-type Hunter affiliated with the Haechi Guild.”

 

“Ah ah. Mental-type.”

 

With both hands interlaced behind his head in a delinquent posture, Choi Kwon passed by Lee Haechan.

 

The sight of him looking gloomy with his hoodie pulled down low seemed somehow familiar.

 

‘I think I’ve seen him somewhere before… Am I mistaken?’

 

That instant.

 

The spot on the back of Lee Haechan’s hand began to creepily extend a black line outwards.