<Episode 6>
“Are you waiting for someone, by any chance?”
“Ah, yes! They usually pass by around this time, but they’re a bit late today.”
The customer who had just received freshly made bungeoppang looked around anxiously. Apparently, there was someone they really wanted to give this delicious pastry to.
‘Youth, huh.’
Watching them fidget, wanting to hand it over before it got cold, brought a small, warm smile to my face. I found myself curious… who was the lucky person receiving that bungeoppang?
“Ah! There they are!”
Before long, the customer’s face lit up. They ran up to someone and, as if making a confession, abruptly held out the bag of bungeoppang.
“R-Ria Hunter! Please take this!”
…The person they wanted to give it to was Ria Hunter?
Her name was Ria Minogue, her wheat-colored hair tied up high. She was an ace attack-type hunter belonging to Team 1, led by Hunter Lee Hyunwoo.
With a Korean mother, she spoke fluent Korean. Despite her beautiful appearance, she was known for her cold personality. And one more thing…
‘They said she came to Korea to see Hunter Lee Hyunwoo, right?’
When asked why an A-rank hunter from Australia came to Korea, she had confidently answered just that.
<Australia A-Rank Ria Minogue: “I came to Korea to see an S-rank hunter!”>
<“I want to see Hunter Lee Hyunwoo.” Ria Minogue’s shy confession>
At her single remark, countless articles poured out. For a while, if you searched her name, “Lee Hyunwoo” would immediately appear as a related keyword. Of course, it was later revealed that it wasn’t admiration or fandom like the reporters speculated… but rather her competitive spirit, wanting to test her skills against him.
Either way, it was true that many people admired her for her straightforward manner of speaking and her bold ambition to challenge an S-rank.
“Mm, thank you. I’ll enjoy it.”
Looking at the woman who was holding out the bag with a flushed face, Ria accepted it with a calm expression. With only a slight nod and no change in expression, she seemed quite used to situations like this.
As Ria Hunter disappeared from view, the hunter who gave the gift staggered slightly.
“I didn’t mess anything up, right?”
“What are you talking about? That was perfect!”
She looked just like a fangirl meeting her favorite idol. Her flushed face and excited chatter were so cute that I let out a small laugh.
At my laughter, Hanyang tilted its head as if asking what was funny.
“A hunter loved by other hunters. That’s pretty amazing, right?”
“Who? That girl from before, nya?”
“Yeah. I heard she’s incredibly skilled, and she never skips training either. She must be really disciplined.”
“You can’t know anything just by appearances, nya.”
Muttering something meaningful, Hanyang stared intently in the direction Ria had disappeared.
“Why? Is something bothering you?”
“Who knows, nya…”
Hanyang hesitated, something it rarely did before speaking.
“That girl is struggling a lot right now, nya.”
Struggling? Ria Hunter?
I was curious, but Hanyang kept its mouth tightly shut.
“What the heck! You can’t just make me curious and then not tell me anything!”
“Even if I don’t say it, you’ll find out soon enough, nya.”
I shot Hanyang a subtle glare at its incomprehensible remark.
‘It’s not like I’m a mind reader… how am I supposed to know why she’s struggling?!’
But as time passed, I, too, began to feel a strange sense of unease whenever I saw Ria Hunter.
“Please give me the same thing I had last time.”
“Yes! One red bean bungeoppang, right?”
It seemed she had quite liked the bungeoppang she received as a gift, as she would often line up at the shop. But while waiting, she suddenly frowned and pressed her eyelids tightly.
‘She looks tired again today.’
She was trying to appear calm, as if she didn’t want to reveal her condition. But she couldn’t hide the dark circles under her eyes, nor the red veins in the whites of her eyes.
She looked like she hadn’t slept properly for at least a week.
“Hunter, are you heading to training again today?”
“You only improve if you move your body every day.”
She answered firmly.
But that firmness didn’t sound like a response to me… it sounded like an order to herself. Like a command forcing her exhausted body to keep going.
“…That’s really impressive.”
I said it like admiration, but she looked like someone who needed rest more than anyone else. Still, it wasn’t my place to give advice when I didn’t know anything about her situation.
I swallowed the words of concern that had risen to the tip of my throat.
“Here’s your red bean bungeoppang. It’s hot, so be careful.”
Instead, I quickly packaged the golden-brown pastry and handed it over.
But just as she reached out to take the bag…
“Ah,”
Ria Hunter swayed slightly. She held her head, closed her eyes, and steadied her breathing for a moment.
“Hunter! Are you okay?”
“Yes. I’m fine.”
She quickly returned to a composed expression and took the bag. Still, she looked like someone in desperate need of rest.
“Hunter, maybe you should take a short break–”
“I don’t have time to rest leisurely.”
At my cautious suggestion, she firmly shook her head. Then, as if she had no intention of continuing the conversation, she turned and immediately headed toward the Management Bureau.
‘Is she really okay?’
She was dizzy enough to stagger, yet she was going straight to training. Watching her back as she walked away, I muttered:
“…She looks dangerously unstable.”
Ding
At that moment, a status window I hadn’t called for suddenly popped up before my eyes.
—
MISSION: A Night Without Sleep
Let’s unlock a special effect for a hunter who has forgotten how to rest peacefully.
* Target: Ria Minogue
* Status (Danger): Insomnia, accumulated fatigue, anxiety
* Required Materials: 20 Solsol Grass
Reward: 1,000P
Failure: Special effect cannot be unlocked (permanent)
—
A mission? Unlock a special effect?
And Ria Hunter’s condition was serious enough to be marked “Danger” in red.
“So… I can solve Ria Hunter’s problem?”
It seemed like I could grant her a special effect if I obtained something called Solsol Grass…
As I blinked blankly, Hanyang spoke.
“The mission finally popped up, nya?”
“You knew about this mission?”
“Hmph, didn’t I say you’d get a chance to earn points soon, nya?”
Only then did my eyes fall on the reward section at the bottom. The reward for completing the mission was 1,000 points, at that.
If I converted that into money… yikes!
“Y-You’re really giving that much? Just for getting some grass?”
“You can’t convert these points into human currency, so give up that dream, nya.”
“…Ah, I see.”
For a second, I thought I was about to become rich.
Still, with 1,000 points, I could buy the bungeoppang mold I wanted from Underworld Dot Com… and even get something else on top of that. Not a bad reward at all. In fact, it was exactly what I needed.
“But Solsol Grass? I’ve never heard of that.”
To complete the mission, I needed something called Solsol Grass, but even the name sounded unfamiliar. Even searching it online yielded no results.
“Try selecting it in the system window, nya.”
Following Hanyang’s advice, I clicked on Solsol Grass. The screen changed, and a description appeared.
—
Solsol Grass: A magical sleep-inducing herb that gently lulls one into slumber. Its stem has a bluish-silver hue, and its leaves are round and fluffy like clouds.
* Habitat: Gate ‘Crimson Plain’ [Enter]
* (Image)
—
Wait. I rubbed my eyes as I read.
“…Do I have to enter a Gate to get this material?”
Hanyang nodded as if it were obvious. I stared at it in shock.
I’m F-rank! With my stats, entering a Gate is insane!
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