The SSS-Class Hunter’s Garden Log Chapter 35

“Hana-ssi! I’m really, really sorry!”

 

“Hunter Yoon Taegyeom?”

 

Hana’s eyes went round.

 

Yoon Taegyeom’s bear-like frame flopped down right in front of the door.

 

“I definitely confirmed receipt and deposited the remaining balance, but it seems there was some kind of error in the middle. And of all things, Kanghyun’s phone broke so I couldn’t even log back in…!”

 

As if rapping, Yoon Taegyeom laid out his circumstances in detail.

 

To summarize, it was this.

 

Taegyeom had definitely pressed the button to send the remaining balance on the Hunter Exchange app as soon as he received the potatoes, but it seemed there was a problem with the app server right at that time.

 

Well, the Hunter Exchange app did glitch often.

 

Moreover, since Yoon Taegyeom was originally a regular customer, she found his words trustworthy too.

 

“But why did you borrow Seo Kanghyun-ssi’s phone to buy it with a new ID instead of your original ID?”

 

“That’s… because Hana-ssi blocked me…”

 

“Ah, right!”

 

At Yoon Taegyeom’s downcast appearance, Hana clamped her mouth shut.

 

“Whatever the reason, I am truly sorry. I will deposit it right now. Adding interest to the remaining balance I originally owed you!”

 

After Taegyeom, who appeared like the wind, apologized multiple times and left, Hana checked her newly fattened Hunter Exchange app account with a satisfied face.

 

“Thank you, Seo Kanghyun-ssi. It was resolved well thanks to you.”

 

“If you’re thankful, I’d like you to fulfill the new contract clauses now.”

 

“Of course!”

 

Hana, who turned off her phone screen, folded the new contract neatly and asked as she put it away.

 

“But how should I help you fall asleep?”

 

“For now, just staying by my side should be enough, probably.”

 

“Is that really all?”

 

Right.

 

Even Kanghyun couldn’t understand this situation.

 

An existence so reassuring that he could fall asleep just by having them by his side.

 

“Then what about the location?”

 

“As for the location, here is fine, or I could go to your vegetable patch. Let’s decide that on a case-by-case basis depending on the situation.” 

 

Hana nodded.

 

“Sounds good. Then shall we do it right now?”

 

Just as Kanghyun was about to close his eyes after looking at Hana for a moment.

 

Hana lightly clapped her hands together as if she almost forgot.

 

“Ah right, this first before that.”

 

Hana pointed to the rice seeds she had taken out earlier.

 

Even without her speaking, he could grasp what she wanted. 

 

Soon, red energy wavered from Kanghyun’s hand, then was sucked straight into the rice seeds.

 

* * *

 

‘Oh.’

 

Hana looked with fascinated eyes at the rice seeds nibbling away at Kanghyun’s fire energy.

 

The husks of the seeds, having absorbed the energy, glowed faintly red.

 

In that moment, a system window popped up before Hana’s eyes.

 

【SYSTEM】 

<‘Flame-Resistant Rice Seeds🌾’ has reached Growth Stage 1.> 

<Reward granted: 700 EXP> 

<The previously accumulated EXP will be reset upon obtaining ‘A Fragment of Lost Memories.’> 

<Upon reaching 7,500 accumulated EXP, you will receive 2× ‘A Fragment of Lost Memories’ as a reward.>

<Current EXP: 700/7,500pt>

 

7,500pt?

 

Hana’s jaw dropped.

 

No, even granting that her EXP reset because she obtained a memory fragment, 7,500pt?

 

Isn’t that not just twice but three times the previously required amount.

 

‘This is too much!’

 

【SYSTEM】 

<Life is all about taking on one challenge after another. If everything came easy, where would the fun be? (>∇<)ﾉ>

 

What do you mean fun.

 

Hana, grabbing the back of her neck at the system window that was becoming more annoying by the day, took a deep breath.

 

At any rate, even if the conditions had become stricter, it wasn’t completely impossible.

 

Besides, there was something else she needed to do right now anyway.

 

For now, putting aside the matter of finding her new memories, Hana looked back at Kanghyun.

 

Kanghyun was already laying his body down on the sofa.

 

With his eyes covered by his arm, his long legs stretched out well past the end of the sofa.

 

“Do I really just need to stay here? Or should I sing you a lullaby?”

 

At Hana’s joke—or half-joke—tossed out lightly, the corners of Kanghyun’s mouth dropped minutely. 

 

“…No need, so just stay comfortably. You must be quite tired today, so if anything, Yoon Hana-ssi should also get some shut-eye for a moment.”

 

With those words, Kanghyun spoke no more.

 

His breathing continued evenly.

 

Hana watched that sight for a moment before squatting down at the bottom of the sofa.

 

Because looking down at him from above felt burdensome for no reason.

 

‘Is it really okay to just do nothing like this?’

 

It pricked her conscience a bit to just sit there when she had even agreed to receive additional allowance.

 

It was then.

 

The deep wrinkle between Kanghyun’s eyebrows caught her eye.

 

It was a look that didn’t seem relaxed at all even though his eyes were closed.

 

Without realizing it, Hana scowled, following Kanghyun.

 

“If you sleep like that, you’ll get wrinkles…”

 

Muttering quietly, Hana extended her index finger without realizing it.

 

And without touching Kanghyun’s face, she made a gesture of lightly tapping the inner and outer ends of his eyebrows in the air.

 

“Relax a bit.”

 

It was a whisper that flowed out almost like a breath.

 

But the moment, Kanghyun’s eyelids, who she thought had fallen asleep, lifted.

 

Because of that, Hana suddenly ended up making direct eye contact with his gray eyes.

 

“What are you doing right now?”

 

Hana quickly pulled her hand away with a flustered face.

 

“Oh, I’m sorry. Did you wake up because of me? I just thought Seo Kanghyun-ssi looked uncomfortable so—.”

 

“No, not that.”

 

Kanghyun’s brow furrowed even more intensely than a moment ago.

 

His gaze was fixed on Hana’s fingertips.

 

“That thing just now. Who did you learn that from?”

 

At Kanghyun’s sharply edged voice, Hana’s eyes widened in an instant.

 

“Huh? Just… isn’t that normal? Saying to relax if there’s tension between your brows—” 

 

Over Hana’s clear voice, there was a voice that overlapped vividly in Kanghyun’s head.

 

‘You’re getting wrinkles between your eyebrows, Hoobae-nim. Relax a bit.’

 

Whenever he frowned without realizing it, ‘1’ would always say that and make a gesture of lightly tapping around his brow bone.

 

But she did the exact same thing. Yoon Hana did.

 

Kanghyun’s expression hardened stiffly.

 

“I’m sorry, I’ll really stay still so please go to sleep quickly.”

 

At Hana’s face tinged with apology, Kanghyun took a short breath.

 

But his already chaotic mind showed no sign of settling down again.

 

What Hana did wasn’t such a unique action.

 

It was just that he reacted sensitively because it overlapped with the action ‘1’ habitually used to do.

 

His head had already given the answer.

 

It’s a coincidence.

 

That was all.

 

But strangely enough, his heart reacted first.

 

Kanghyun squeezed his eyes shut and opened them again.

 

If he left things like this, he felt like he would say more sharp words for no reason.

 

“Let’s just call it a day here today. You may leave now.”

 

“Pardon? But then what about your sleep?”

 

“It’s still bearable.”

 

Kanghyun purposefully sat up completely and even added the gesture of raising his wrist to check his watch.

 

“And I had a schedule from 3 o’clock anyway, which I had forgotten about. Today doesn’t seem to be my day in many ways.”

 

Hana also raised her wrist to check the time.

 

2:40 PM.

 

There were still 20 minutes left until 3 o’clock, but Hana didn’t bother to press him on that point.

 

Because Kanghyun very graciously got up and even opened the Guild Master’s office door for her.

 

“Please tell me whenever you need my help.”

 

As Hana stepped out the door saying that, Kanghyun closed the door without any lingering attachment.

 

Click.

 

The sound of the door closing rang quietly.

 

Silence settled back into the Guild Master’s office.

 

Kanghyun didn’t move for a while.

 

Yoon Hana is definitely not ‘1’.

 

Kanghyun knows that better than anyone, too.

 

Even so.

 

Why does Sunbae keep coming to mind whenever he sees Yoon Hana.

 

Kanghyun roughly swept his face with his dry palms.

 

His sleepiness had already completely flown away.

 

* * *

 

Having come out of the Guild Master’s office like that, Hana stopped in front of the door for a moment.

 

This was already the second time.

 

Being kicked out while bewildered like this.

 

“Honestly, this is the problem, this.”

 

Hana muttered as she looked down at her index finger that had extended out due to unnecessary nosiness.

 

“Why do my hands act so willfully again?”

 

Hana sneaked a glance back at the door.

 

“By the way, will he be okay? He should get some shut-eye, even just for a moment.”

 

If anyone heard, they might snort asking if an F-rank was worrying about an SS-rank.

 

But Hana had already seen it.

 

Entangled in Lee Haechan’s ability, Kanghyun’s nightmare.

 

Seo Kanghyun, who was thrashing around crying out for his sunbae in there, was not the top-tier Hunter revered by everyone.

 

He just looked like a young child terrified of losing something precious.

 

That appearance like a lost child kept coming to mind. Perhaps because of that, it bothered her for no reason.

 

“Whatever, he’ll manage on his own.” 

 

Hana shook her head once and walked down the hallway.

 

Then, her foot caught on a pitch-black lump crouching next to the Guild Master’s office door, and she almost fell spectacularly.

 

“Uuugh!”