The SSS-Class Hunter’s Garden Log Chapter 36

Hana quickly put strength into her staggering legs and held her ground.

 

“A-are you okay?” 

 

The pitch-black object wriggled, then sprang up.

 

His identity was Lee Haechan.

 

Because of the hood pulled down low and the bangs covering his eyes, Haechan’s face was barely visible.

 

He was still hugging Popcorn tightly in his arms.

 

“H-Here’s your puppy…”

 

Haechan carefully held Popcorn out to Hana.

 

Seo Kanghyun noticed right away, but Choi Kwon, Yoon Taegyeom, and even the S-rank Lee Haechan didn’t seem to recognize Popcorn as a monster.

 

They likely thought of him as a summoned beast or something. 

 

Because there were occasionally Hunters who carried summoned beasts around.

 

Hana accepted and held Popcorn.

 

But Haechan’s hands didn’t fall away easily.

 

“Excuse me, could you relax your grip a bit?”

 

“Ah…! Yes!”

 

Even as he belatedly took his hands away, Haechan’s fingertips lingered around Popcorn. He looked thoroughly reluctant to let go. 

 

Having barely withdrawn his hands, Haechan bowed repeatedly.

 

“I’m sorry. Ev-everyone almost got put in danger because of me…… I really must be hopeless……” 

 

Haechan’s voice grew smaller and smaller.

 

It was the tone of someone accustomed to belittling themselves.

 

Bewildered, Hana bowed along with him.

 

“No, it’s not like you did it on purpose.”

 

She could feel a gloomy aura slowly spreading from Haechan.

 

At that moment, the oyster mushroom she had gathered inside the gate popped into Hana’s head.

 

‘Depression-Infused Oyster Mushroom.’

 

What if she used that on this person?

 

Hana hurriedly rummaged through her pocket.

 

“Wait a minute. Have one of these—.”

 

“H-Hiik!”

 

But did he perhaps misunderstand something firmly?

 

Startled, Haechan sprang up like a spring and backed far away.

 

“I-I’m really sorry! P-Please don’t be angry!”

 

Then, before she could even stop him, he ran away in the blink of an eye.

 

Having suddenly become like someone trying to bully Haechan, Hana stared blankly and blinked.

 

“No, I meant for you to take this…”

 

-Take this. This, is.

 

The voice that shouted with a sense of unfairness while holding the belatedly taken-out oyster mushroom only echoed in the empty hallway.

 

Ah, whatever.

 

Hana shoved the oyster mushroom back into her pocket.

 

“Let’s not mind it.”

 

Hana put firm strength into her head that kept trying to turn back toward the direction the Guild Leader’s office and Haechan disappeared in, and strode towards the end of the hallway.

 

With the thought that one is an SS-rank and the other is an S-rank, so they’ll surely figure it out well on their own.

 

* * *

 

“Right, they’ll handle things fine on their own. I’m sure they will.” 

 

Hana put the watering can down with a thud on one side of the vegetable patch. 

 

“But why does it keep bothering me?”

 

Letting out a deep sigh, Hana looked at the garden patch.

 

The garden patch was peaceful today as well.

 

The rice seeds were growing rapidly, and the crops were doing their part without any trouble.

 

It had already been a few weeks since she visited the Haechi Guild.

 

In the meantime, she had handled trivial system missions and gathered 80 more EXP.

 

It was a small but steady achievement.

 

But that was the problem.

 

“It’s peaceful. Way too much so.” 

 

Tossing aside even her cotton work gloves, Hana took out an ice cream from the cabin and trudged to the wooden bench.

 

With the ice cream in her mouth, Hana plopped down on the wooden bench.

 

And she scrunched up the bridge of her nose for no reason. 

 

Because everything was smooth sailing, she was actually more bothered.

 

Seo Kanghyun, whose contact had been completely cut off since that day.

 

Who cared if he was the one who asked for help first? 

 

Hana sprawled out completely on the wooden bench.

 

“Whatever. Whatever. I don’t care.”

 

Maybe he managed to sleep well in the meantime.

 

Stretching both arms out, Hana muttered like that and looked up at the sky.

 

But instead of the clear sky, something else suddenly intruded into Hana’s vision.

 

“Hello, Benefactor!” 

 

It was Choi Kwon.

 

“Ack!”

 

Freaked out, Hana sprang up.

 

Choi Kwon, who was standing holding the wooden bench upside down, grinned widely. 

 

“You know what, I finally joined the Haechi Guild?” 

 

As if he had been waiting, he took out a card-type access pass from his pocket and thrust it right in front of Hana’s eyes.

 

With the Haechi Guild logo stamped on it, it was exactly like the one Hana had received.

 

“Here, look. It’s real, right?” 

 

Proudly puffing out his shoulders, Choi Kwon confidently thrust his hand out.

 

“Which means even I now have the qualification to eat your crops, Benefactor.” 

 

Choi Kwon extended his hand further.

 

“So give it to me. The rice seeds.”

 

* * *

 

A short while later.

 

“Ah, why aren’t you giving it to me again this time!” 

 

Choi Kwon grabbed Hana’s trouser hem and raised his voice.

 

Disgusted, Hana covered her ears with both hands.

 

“It’s not that I’m not giving it to you, I’m saying I can’t give it to you yet! The rice seed hasn’t grown yet!” 

 

“Then when will they be fully grown!”

 

“Uh… um…”

 

Hana briefly closed her eyes and recalled the state of the rice seeds.

 

The husks were dyed red, but they fell far short of the deep crimson they had when they were in the Shrieking Bird’s nest.

 

Not even half. No matter how favorably she looked at it.

 

Hana slyly opened her fingers.

 

“A month, at the most?”

 

“Whaaat?”

 

Choi Kwon’s face turned into an expression like the world had ended.

 

“The weather gets hot in a month! You want me to keep wearing this hat until then?”

 

Throwing every tantrum possible, Choi Kwon patted the knitted hat he wore over his head.

 

Despite looking like that, Choi Kwon seemed to somewhat cherish the knitted hat he received from the Grandma in Room 301.

 

Seeing as he patted it a few times and then carefully brushed it off, worrying the hat might be damaged.

 

Even after that, only after a bout of scuffling and extracting a promise from Hana that she would “try to grow it as fast as possible” did Choi Kwon finally let go of her trouser hem.

 

“Benefactor, you promised. Giving me the rice seed within a month?” 

 

“Ugh, I said I got it.”

 

Her energy drained in an instant, Hana crunched and swallowed the remaining ice cream.

 

Honestly, if he’s going to call her Benefactor, he should use formal speech.

 

Or if he’s going to use informal speech, he should change that title first.

 

Shaking her head side to side, Hana suddenly brought up a topic, pretending to be nonchalant.

 

“By the way…… how is Seo Kanghyun-ssi doing these days?” 

 

Ah, to be clear, this is not because she’s worried.

 

It’s just that listening to Choi Kwon’s peculiar mix of formal and informal speech reminded her of Seo Kanghyun.

 

Because he too tightropes between formal and informal speech.

 

It came to mind, so she naturally got curious and just asked.

 

It’s true.

 

Prob…ably?

 

Hana put strength into her eyebrows for no reason.

 

“Our Guild Master? Of course he’s doing very well.”

 

I see, he’s doing well.

 

That was quite a fortunate thing to hear.

 

Hana’s brown eyebrows, as she chewed on the ice cream stick, twitched.

 

“Ah, but I don’t know what kind of person doesn’t even rest and just rushes out whenever a gate bursts. I guess he doesn’t sleep at all.”

 

“He doesn’t sleep?”

 

“Yeah. There are even rumors going around that he can’t sleep.”

 

Hana’s eyes narrowed.

 

What, so his insomnia hadn’t gotten better? 

 

“Hmm.”

 

Hana chewed on the end of the finished ice cream stick.

 

It would be one thing if she didn’t know, but knowing that Seo Kanghyun still couldn’t sleep, she felt iffy about just sitting back and watching.

 

Because a contract is meant to be kept.

 

It’s already been well over two weeks.

 

Seo Kanghyun might not need her help, but she needed Seo Kanghyun’s help. If only for the rice seeds.

 

“…”

 

Hana suddenly jumped up.

 

“Wh-why do you suddenly stand up?” 

 

“I’m going to Haechi.”

 

“What?”

 

“I already packed the crops to send today anyway. Let’s go together while we’re at it.”

 

“Hey, all of a sudden?” 

 

Hana had already gotten down from the wooden bench and was efficiently organizing the crops placed in the garden boxes.

 

Choi Kwon approached Hana and resisted with all his strength. 

 

“Ah, I don’t want to! I just got off work right now!”

 

But when Hana tucked one of the flowerpots where the rice seeds were planted under her arm and said one sentence, Choi Kwon’s complaining completely vanished.

 

“Did I mention it? That for these rice seeds to grow rapidly and well, Seo Kanghyun-ssi’s fire energy is needed?”

 

As soon as those words fell, Choi Kwon’s face changed drastically.

 

Becoming the most serious expression in the world, Kwon immediately turned around and politely extended both hands towards the path Hana would pass.

 

“If that’s the case, you should have said so earlier. Let’s go, the Guild Master also said he’d come into the guild as soon as he finished the Sindorim Station Gate raid in the afternoon.”

 

Saying he’s probably on his way to the guild by now, Choi Kwon hurried her to go quickly.

 

It was a change in attitude that made one wonder if he was the same person whining about getting off work until just a moment ago.

 

Hana chuckled.

 

Saying he would step up and share the load, Choi Kwon grabbed a box and lifted it.

 

“Ugh man, why is this so heavy?”

 

Hana, who was holding three or four boxes stacked together, instead looked at such Choi Kwon strangely.

 

“This isn’t heavy at all though?”

 

Looking pitifully at the frail Choi Kwon who couldn’t even properly lift one box, Hana took the lead with large strides.

 

“Isn’t Benefactor really not an F-rank?”

 

Looking at such Hana in astonishment, Kwon trailed after Hana while groaning.