The SSS-Class Hunter’s Garden Log Chapter 4

Hana filled a plastic bottle with lukewarm tap water and tentatively poured it near the tomato stem.

 

However, she failed to control the flow, and the water overflowed. 

 

“Ack, sorry…!” 

 

While she was hurriedly patting down the scattered soil, she accidentally brushed against a leaf, causing the delicate foliage to wobble helplessly.

 

“…It’s too weak. I’m actually scared I’m going to kill it.” 

 

The very concept of ‘farming’ was foreign to Hana. 

 

Because of this, she felt like she was being tested every single day.

 

“There! Okay, little tomato. Grow big and stro—huh?”

 

After finishing the repairs, Hana clumsily stroked the tomato stem slightly—really, just a tiny bit.

 

But the moment she touched it, the stem snapped.

 

The tomato stem, that precarious sprout, snapped clean off as if its head had been taken by a guillotine.

 

“W-what’s wrong with this?”

 

Flustered, Hana waved her hands about frantically. 

 

“I really didn’t touch it that hard!”

 

She tried to prop the stem back up, but it had the opposite effect. The tomato stalk simply slumped over.

 

The system window, having watched this catastrophe unfold in real-time, popped up with loud sound effects. 

 

【SYSTEM】

< Tomato Murderer detected! Tomato Murderer detected! >

 

“No, no! That was a genuine mistake!”

 

【SYSTEM】

< Skill Acquired! Snapping Crops in Two with Your Fingertips Lv. 999!! >

 

The system window teased her playfully, but as always, it immediately provided a solution.

 

【SYSTEM】

< Current Crop Growth Status: Danger! >

< Recommended Action: Supply growth-promoting organic matter. >

< TIP! Bubblepuff droppings are excellent for tomato growth! >

 

【SYSTEM】

< A new mission has been granted. >

< Objective: Collect 10kg of ‘Bubblepuff (F-rank)’ droppings. >

< Reward: 13pt Experience >

 

“…Bubblepuff?”

 

It was a monster she had never heard of. 

 

Then again, how many monsters could Hana possibly know when she had only awakened a little over a month ago?

 

However, at the word ‘droppings,’ Hana’s expression brightened.

 

“Poop?”

 

For the past few days, for the sole reason that it was good for crops, she had been collecting the excrement of various monsters from various Gates. Of course, they weren’t dangerous Gates; most were F-rank Gates suited to her small and precious rank.

 

“Okay! Let’s go!”

 

However, when Hana arrived near the Gate, she let out a sigh.

 

A large warning sign was posted among the hunters guarding the entrance.

 

「 Entry forbidden to anyone other than Association registered hunters. Unauthorized entry subject to punishment. 」

 

“Right. I haven’t even registered yet.”

 

Of all things, her first chance at registration was ruined when an A-rank Gate burst open just as she was leaving the community center. Since then, a series of A-rank Gates had appeared near Yangpyeong.

 

Due to the risk of a Gate rampage, all roads leading out of Yangpyeong had been restricted for several weeks.

 

Still, she heard the restrictions would be lifted tomorrow. 

 

“Hunter registration. I’m definitely doing it this time.”

 

With a firm resolve, Hana stealthily circled around to the back of the entrance. In any case, entering through the official route was currently impossible.

 

Did that mean she would give up?

 

No!

 

Hana had another way. 

 

She familiarly rolled up her work pants and snapped her fingers.

 

【SYSTEM】

< Skill ‘Farming Starts with Gathering! – Opening a Shortcut for Fertilizer Collection Lv. 1 (F-rank)’ is being activated. >

 

Shhhhhh—

 

Light flashed, and a small rift opened in the air behind the bushes at the back of the hospital.

 

It was one of Hana’s few skills. This skill had a rather unique function: instead of breaking through the front of a Gate, it opened a small ‘shortcut’ on the outskirts.

 

While the portals hunters usually used were like massive gates, this was more like a secret door—a literal crawlspace hidden next to a garden fence.

 

Hana grabbed her sack, shovel, and boots, and squeezed her body through the rift. It wasn’t stylish, but it was optimal for gathering.

 

At that moment.

 

Above that shortcut that no one had seen.

 

New text flickered over the faint remnants of the skill effect.

 

【SYSTEM】

< Skill ‘Gate Open Lv. ∞ (SSS-rank) – User Unique Skill’ is being converted according to the user’s current status. >

 

How much time had passed since then?

 

“Ugh… it’s so heavy!”

 

Hana emerged from the Gate, lugging two large sacks in her arms. Sweat was trickling down her face, but her expression was clear and proud.

 

“This is all for the sake of the tomatoes.”

 

And, it was also for the sake of Yoon Hana herself. Just like right now.

 

Hana looked up at the system window floating above her head with satisfaction.

 

【SYSTEM】

< Mission Complete! >

< 13pt Experience Reward has been distributed. >

< Current Experience: 20pt >

 

Then, she slightly narrowed her eyes.

 

“I’ve been curious for a while… what is this experience for? Where do I use it?”

 

* * *

 

“Ugh, S…Sunbae.”

 

Seo Kang-hyun, curled up haphazardly on a leather sofa, groaned with a furrowed brow. The hand gripping the thin blanket trembled. His angular shoulders heaved, and beads of cold sweat formed on his forehead. His breath was shallow and rapid.

 

In his dream, Seo Kanghyun was still trapped in that day.

 

Three years ago, the Gangnam Station Gate. Inside that nightmare.

 

The rampaging Gate, the blood-red air, the solitary screams. And the voice that had spoken so playfully.

 

“Hoobae-nim, do you not trust me?”

 

“…!”

 

Seo Kanghyun bolted upright, gasping for air. His black hair, wet with cold sweat, clung to his forehead. His jaw was tightly clenched, and his lips trembled beneath his sharp nose.

 

His eyes wavered unstable, and his breath came in ragged bursts. The dark shadows cast over his pale face evoked a strange protective instinct.

 

“…Damn it, that dream again.”

 

Seo Kanghyun rubbed his face irritably. He was sick of it—this nightmare that found him every time he closed his eyes.

 

‘I feel like I’ll go crazy if I just stay still.’

 

Seo Kanghyun took a sip of water and began packing his gear bag out of habit.

 

“Hey, don’t tell me you’re going out again?”

 

The door burst open and Taegyeom walked in. He took one look at Kanghyun’s haggard appearance and frowned.

 

“I thought you’d been quiet lately, so why are you like this again?”

 

“…”

 

“If you go into a Gate like this, something’s going to happen. You’re in a state where it wouldn’t be weird if you collapsed right now, you hear me?”

 

Kanghyun didn’t respond. Only his hands, which were tightening a buckle, paused for a moment.

 

Yoon Taegyeom grabbed a water cup and downed it in frustration.

 

“Do you still think that incident was your fault?”

 

Taegyeom’s voice lowered.

 

“How many times do I have to tell you? ‘1’ didn’t die because you couldn’t save her.”

 

Grind.

 

A chilling sound came from Kang-hyun’s grinding teeth.

 

“I could have saved her.”

 

“You were barely A-rank back then. It wasn’t a situation where you could have done anything. Even if you re-awakened later—”

 

“Yeah, that damn re-awakening. If only I had done it a little sooner, I could have saved Sunbae.”

 

The veins stood out on Kanghyun’s neck, which was hidden by a black turtleneck. 

 

Kanghyun, who had been merely an A-rank hunter, re-awakened as an SS-rank at the exact moment the Gangnam Station Gate went on a rampage.

 

To be precise, at the very moment ‘1’s’ connection disappeared from the hunter database.

 

“That’s just useless guilt. It’s a tragedy what happened to ‘1,’ but that was her own choice.”

 

Sigh.

 

Seo Kanghyun leaned his head back.

 

‘Useless guilt? You wouldn’t say that if you knew what that person meant to me.’

 

A self-mocking laugh played on Kanghyun’s lips.

 

* * *

 

30 minutes later, at the Northern Yangpyeong Gate.

 

Beyond the red police tape, an emergency response team composed of A-rank hunters had finished their preparations and were waiting to enter. Every one of their faces was stiff with tension.

 

“They say this Gate is A-rank or higher. Is it going to blow like the Gangnam Station Gate three years ago?”

 

“When is Hunter Seo Kanghyun coming? Why do all the S-rank hunters have to be in other regions at a time like this?”

 

Fear spread like a plague. 

 

Fortunately, before the brewing terror could turn into panic, news arrived like a ray of hope.

 

“Hunter Seo Kanghyun has arrived!”

 

As soon as Kanghyun arrived, sighs of relief broke out everywhere.

 

‘We’re saved.’ Such murmurs could be heard.

 

It felt as though the very air changed with his presence. The tension and fear visibly eased, and the site quickly shifted into organized preparation.

 

The Gate was on the verge of expansion. The energy fluctuations, which had been throbbing like a heartbeat, appeared to be reaching a breaking point.

 

However—

 

“…It stopped?”

 

The energy that had been soaring toward a rampage suddenly began to subside.

 

Kanghyun narrowed his eyes and approached the Gate.

 

There was only one reason for such a thing to happen: when the ‘Core’ that maintained the Gate—the Boss monster—was defeated from within.

 

He immediately asked the supporter guarding the entrance.

 

“Did someone go in before me?”