How to Win Over an S-Rank Hunter with Bungeoppang – Chapter 63

Author: Cireng

A visitor came to the shop early in the morning.

It was none other than Hunter Park Jaemin.

Thud.

Placing his wallet on the counter, Park Jaemin smiled brightly.

“How do you like my wallet? I just got a new one.”

“…It just looks like an ordinary wallet.”

No, it wasn’t. That wallet wasn’t something he’d recently bought.

It was the very wallet I had taken from his office yesterday before having Seah leave it in a corner of the event venue.

The only difference from yesterday was that it looked completely flat, as if there was nothing inside.

Looks like he threw everything away.

‘I shouldn’t let on that I recognize it.’

I reacted as though I were seeing it for the first time while trying not to show too much interest.

After observing my reaction, he shrugged.

“Actually, saying I bought it new was a lie. Some little rat stole it. Though I got it back pretty quickly.”

I stopped stirring the tteokbokki sauce and looked up at him.

Meeting my eyes, his smile deepened.

“These days, little rats are surprisingly clever. If you keep calling them cute, they start coveting other people’s belongings too.”

“What exactly are you trying to say to me?”

“The strange thing is, I know for certain the little rat stole it, but I can’t figure out why.”

“Maybe it wanted to buy some cheese?”

He chuckled softly at his own lame joke.

“Customers will be arriving soon. If you don’t have a reservation, could you move aside?”

When I looked at him as though I were thoroughly fed up, Park Jaemin nodded obediently.

“Sure. But there is one thing you should know.”

He stared directly into my eyes.

“Everything that was inside my wallet has already been disposed of. So, oops. All that information you worked so hard to steal turned out to be useless.”

While maintaining eye contact, he tossed the wallet into the trash can.

Then he tapped the area near his chest.

“Thanks to that, I got myself a new wallet. Thank you.”

Hearing someone enter the shop, he immediately returned to his usual gentle smile.

With a small nod, he turned around.

“Hunter Park Jaemin.”

I called out to him just as he was about to leave.

“Have you ever killed a person? Not a monster… a person.”

His hand stopped on the doorknob.

Turning only his head, he looked back at me.

Slowly tilting his head to one side, he smiled.

“Of course not.”

The paper sign hanging from the door jingled as he left.

Ari, who had just returned from taking out the trash, finally released the breath she’d been holding.

“Why does that guy always act so dramatically? What, does he think he’s the main character in some TV drama?”

As if trying to dispel the heavy atmosphere, Ari vigorously shook her head.

Even I, someone with almost no magical power, had felt pressured by him.

Ari must have felt it even more strongly.

“Boss, are you okay? I could’ve dealt with him instead.”

“No. Seah already clashed with him once, remember? She should avoid him today.”

“Thank you for being considerate.”

Seah, who had been waiting upstairs at my request, cautiously came down to the first floor.

Perhaps she had heard everything from upstairs as well, because her face was pale.

“Still, that was way too reckless, Boss. There’s nothing to gain from provoking him right now.”

“Exactly! Unnie. I don’t know what’s going on, but the atmosphere was terrifying.”

Yeah.

Even I thought my final question had been a bit dangerous.

I readily admitted it and nodded.

“Sorry. But I wanted to ask him at least once.”

I was curious about how he would react.

What emotion would appear on his face when all of his ugly crimes were exposed?

Fear?

Guilt?

Or perhaps panic?

But there had been nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

As if what he’d done meant nothing to him.

As if crushing ants beneath his feet wasn’t even worth acknowledging.

‘Your confidence won’t last much longer.’

I clenched my fist tightly.

I desperately wished for the day when his crimes would be revealed to the world.

I wanted the kind of ending where justice prevailed, and evil was punished.

The kind of ending that should have been obvious.

But the world wasn’t nearly that simple.

“Hm, I understand what you’re saying.”

The reporter sitting across from me at the café table awkwardly fidgeted with his coffee cup.

“The Incheon Gate Incident isn’t really something the public is interested in anymore… and making an enemy of Deputy Director Park Seongcheol would be a burden for us too.”

“…Even with all this evidence?”

“I’d like to help, but it’s impossible. Let’s just pretend I never heard any of this.”

The reporter shook his head without even examining the evidence I had brought.

He wanted absolutely nothing to do with it.

“Wait! Reporter, please, just once–!”

But he coldly left the café, ignoring my plea.

That made five rejections.

Even reporters who normally boasted about exposing corruption within the hunter industry lowered their heads at the name Park Seongcheol.

I’d thought that once we had evidence, bringing down Park Jaemin would only be a matter of time.

But in front of the wall of immense power, I was completely helpless.

When I returned to the shop, dragging my feet, Seah noticed me and immediately stopped what she was doing.

Approaching carefully, she asked,

“Boss… they rejected you again?”

I nodded weakly.

“I don’t think this is going to be easy. Everyone’s too busy worrying about Deputy Director Park Seongcheol’s reaction… they won’t even look at the evidence.”

“Ugh. What a bunch of cowards.”

Seah bit her lip in frustration.

After thinking for a moment, her eyes lit up.

“Then, how about I post everything online? On hunter forums or major community sites! We can upload the evidence anonymously. Wouldn’t that create a huge issue?”

The suggestion was tempting.

But I shook my head.

“No. If people start saying it’s fabricated evidence or government sabotage, the backlash would be even worse.”

Once something gets branded as fake news, people won’t believe the truth later, even if it’s genuine.

‘We only get one chance.’

We had to corner Park Jaemin so thoroughly that he wouldn’t even be able to make excuses.

But how?

No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t come up with any good solution.

After parting ways with Seah, who said she’d continue looking for anyone who might be able to help us, I returned to the dormitory with heavy steps.

After showering, I turned on my laptop.

Hanyang immediately leaped onto my lap.

“What are you trying to do now, meow?”

“…Just in case, I’m going to keep looking for more evidence. Maybe I missed something.”

I typed Incheon Gate Incident into the search bar.

Thousands, tens of thousands of articles and posts appeared.

Most discussed the tragedy itself, the hunters’ heroic efforts, and the government’s compensation plans.

‘I already know most of this.’

I kept scrolling.

Page 1.

Page 10.

Page 50.

Just as my eyes began to ache from staring at the screen, one old post buried deep in the results caught my attention.

[Looking for anyone who witnessed something suspicious at the Incheon Gate Incident site.]

Comments: 3

The title alone was unusual.

As if possessed, I clicked on it.

Author: dongxxx

If anyone has photos or videos taken at the scene during the Incheon Gate Incident, please send them to the email below.

Compensation will be provided.

[[email protected]](mailto:[email protected])

The post had been written six years ago.

The comments were ridiculous.

– This guy’s back again. At this point, it’s nice to see him.

– What does this guy even do? Why is he always collecting videos? Does he have money to burn?

– Should I just make something with AI and send it to him lol

The comments were full of mockery and ridicule.

But the author clearly hadn’t given up.

When I checked his posting history, I found that he’d been uploading similar posts regularly for years.

‘My younger sister died during the Incheon Gate Incident, but something about it doesn’t feel right…’

Through his earlier posts, I finally understood why he was searching for photos and videos from the scene.

He was another victim, just like me.

But his most recent post was from one year and four months ago.

After hesitating briefly, I copied the email address.

I couldn’t just ignore someone who had searched so desperately for evidence.

—

Subject: Hello. I’m contacting you regarding your forum post.

Although it’s late, I have obtained CCTV footage from the Incheon Gate Incident.

I have secured evidence showing that a hunter, not a monster, brutally murdered civilians, and several victims are currently working together to bring the case to public attention.

If you’re willing to help, it would be a tremendous assistance.

Please reply.

—

After hovering over the button for a moment, I finally pressed Send.

Would he reply?

The post was so old.

What if he never checked that email again?

Part of me even wondered if he’d already given up.

About an hour later, a notification appeared at the bottom of my browser window.

New Email Received.

I hurriedly opened it.

—