Chapter 71

 

“Need a lift?”

 

Yang Su-cheol shook his head when his father asked him after opening the door.

 

“It’s okay. You have to go to work too.”

 

“Our hunter Yang is going to work so of course, I will do that for you.”

 

“No, it’s alright. I need to get ready!”

 

“Alright, alright. I won’t bother you.”

 

He couldn’t remember how excited he was when he got home after passing the interview. His parents already knew that he was entrusted with a secret mission alongside high-ranking hunters from some underground workshop. He couldn’t just show them the ordinary workshop. Although the confidentiality clause regarding the entire workshop was included in the contract… Well, this much should be fine, right?

 

After eating the galbi-jjim his father had prepared for breakfast, he headed to the workshop with a slight hesitation.

 

“Good morning—.”

 

The little boss ^[1] Yeon Seung-yeon is referred as ‘the little boss’ here.  , holding a box full of items, was taken aback when he turned around and noticed him, then visibly disappointed.

 

“Hello. Su-cheol ssi.”

 

“Can I help you?”

 

“No, I can handle the lobby, so you can go ahead and do your work.”

 

“Okay. What about boss?”

 

“He went somewhere for a moment.”

 

“Where?”

 

Honestly, he couldn’t care less about where the big boss ^[2] The big boss is our MC: Joo Ho-hyun. went. He just asked out of courtesy as a new employee. But suddenly, the little boss made a surprised expression, then quickly turned his back and replied.

 

“You don’t have to worry about that, Su-cheol. I have to go downstairs now…”

 

“Sure? Okay…”

 

Su-cheol scratched his head, put on his uniform, and sat down at the counter.

 

“Haaaa……”

 

As expected, it was quiet. Although there were still people milling around near the workshop, nobody came in because of the strange tree outside, and there wasn’t a single customer in sight. So, he continued to guard the empty lobby alone instead of the bosses who were holed up underground. Of course, he didn’t mind.

 

“Ah, it’s so damn comfortable. I should suggest having jjajangmyeon for lunch today…”

 

Not long after, the big boss returned and went down to the workshop. Finally, with no worries about who might come, Su-cheol looked around. Another day passed with no customers…

 

Getting up from the counter, Su-cheol walked out into the lobby and plopped down on the sofa. The couch was firm yet plush, providing the perfect comfort. He passed the time snacking on the delicious treats given by the big boss, and after a bit of cleaning in the afternoon, his tasks would be done. 

 

Even though there were hardly any customers and not much to clean, the salary was comparable to what mercenaries earned elsewhere. Making money while lounging like this was quite a perk.

 

“Hehehe. I might stay for a while, but I made a good choice.”

 

He remembered how surprised he was when he walked into the interview room and saw the hunters there. It was none other than Zero and Lim Cheong, the sibling of Lim Dan, who had told him not to make eye contact if they met in a dungeon.

 

At first, he wondered why they would come to such a low-grade potion shop, but then he realized that if he worked as a mercenary with Lim Cheong and Zero, it would be a significant achievement when he joined the guild later. Recognizing this, he quickly put aside his pride and grabbed the part-time job. From what he overheard, the materials they were seeking were of a grade he couldn’t even dream of obtaining, indicating that the bosses weren’t ordinary either.

 

To pass the time, Su-cheol logged into Hunterpolis on his phone. He browsed through various forums to check today’s discussions. Seeing how everyone was struggling to survive in the dungeons made him chuckle. Finally, he entered the Free Talk board and began typing.

 

[Chat] Ugh, went to work…. I’ll post my observations of Named Hunters soon!

 

As soon as he posted, numerous comments flooded in. Since he had started sharing stories a few days ago, quite a few people were eagerly awaiting Su-cheol’s updates. Before writing a new post, he scrolled through the previous ones he had written.

 

[Chat] My colleagues at work turned out to be monsters I stumbled upon. (121)

 

[Chat] There are too many comments and it’s scary, thinking about deleting it;; (32)

 

[Chat] I have a lot of requests so I’m considering turning it into a series as long as my personal information is not leaked… What should I do? (25)

 

[Chat] Named Hunter Observation Journal 1 – Meeting, and getting to know each other. (202)

 

Su-cheol chuckled at the enthusiastic responses. Just reading the discussions about his posts on the Free Talk board made him feel proud, as if he had accomplished something. He still had a mountain of stories left to tell, and more would surely pile up in the future. Lim Cheong, in particular, was the famous Lim Dan’s sibling, yet her face remained unseen, making her a topic of much speculation within Hunterpolis. He had stumbled upon a photo of Lim Cheong in a deleted post while browsing Hunterpolis late at night, but he was fortunate enough to have recognized her name without immediately connecting her to Lim Dan.

 

—I’m looking forward to the next content, very intriguing!

 

—S-rank, you say? Wow.

 

—Is your workplace like a major guild or something? C R? lol. N S?

 

└ Doesn’t seem like it. Based on its small scale, it’s probably one of three: subcontractor for a major guild, workshop, or a newly formed guild.

 

—So damn interestingㅠㅜㅠㅠ Please tell us more

 

“Wait a little longer. Do you think it’s easy to talk like this?”

 

Reading the comments filled with demands for the next episode, Su-cheol was laughing contentedly until he came across a particular comment that made him furrowed his eyebrows.

 

—You’re writing a novel. Who would believe it with no verification?

 

└ The writer asked from the beginning to avoid questions that reveal personal information.

 

└ Why are you starting a fight? Just ignore if you don’t believe it, stop bothering the author.

 

└ Why not do an abacus lantern instead?

 

└ The author was going to delete it because they were worried, but they linked it to Hunpolers to look at it. It’s because of bastards like you that posts aren’t posted on Hunpol.

 

└ Seriously? Weren’t there only one or two fake posts until now? Since when did non-verified posts get such a good response? LOL;; This is a story dreamed up by some unemployed F-grade loser with nothing to do

 

└ Yes. Please leave~

 

His face flushed with anger.

 

“Ha, this jerk… Who does he think he is accusing me of making it up?”

 

Frustrated by the suspicions of fabrication added to the annoyance of not being able to share even the most impressive information due to the confidentiality agreement, Su-cheol’s anger flared up. 

 

Feeling overwhelmed, he stood up and glanced around, then took a slightly angled photo of the displayed potion bottles. Despite the need to maintain secrecy due to the contract, he reasoned that since there were countless potion shops in Wolgye Naru, no one would be able to identify the exact location.

 

Just as he was about to write and upload a post with the attached photo, something white entered his field of vision, and suddenly his phone slipped from his hand.

 

“Huh…?”

 

With a dumbfounded expression, Su-cheol turned around to find an incredibly handsome man standing there. Beneath his lightly drooping eyelashes, his chilly eyes were fixed on something… on Sucheol’s phone.

 

As Su-cheol saw the face he had only seen in pictures now standing before him, he involuntarily took a step back, bumping into the display shelf behind him.

 

“M- Mystic ^[3] Seong San-ha’s other persona is “Mystic,” a very famous hunter in case you forgot. Mystic was introduced way back in the first 10 chapters and popped up a few times in Seong San-ha’s storyline. ? What are you doing here?”

 

“A little rat sneaked in. Really… our puppy doesn’t seem to notice people.”

 

With a crunching sound, the phone folded in half. Su-cheol’s eyes widened in disbelief as large chunks and shattered fragments fell to the ground at the tap of the man’s foot.

 

“M-My phone…”

 

In disbelief, Su-cheol could only murmur while staring at his phone, but his neck was suddenly grabbed and lifted up.

 

“Gah, spare me! I’m just a part-time worker here, not some weirdo!”

 

As Su-cheol met eyes with Seong San-ha, who elegantly arched his eyebrows, he asked gently,

 

“Do you want me to give you a reason to stop on your own?”

 

The otherworldly gleam in Seong San-ha’s eyes felt merciless, as if there would be no hint of mercy. Sensing impending doom, Su-cheol trembled and lowered his head.

 

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’ll delete everything! And I’ll make sure something like this never happens again…”

 

“I don’t trust people like others do.”

 

Seong San-ha raised the hand grabbing Su-cheol’s neck. Su-cheol, with nowhere to run as he was lifted off the ground, eventually closed his eyes tightly in fear. Just then, there was the sound of a door opening downstairs, followed by the thumping sound of someone running up the stairs.

 

“Su-cheol ah, are you asleep? Why aren’t you picking up the phone? What do you want to eat?”

 

It was Joo Ho-hyun’s voice. Seong San-ha, with a slight frown, released Su-cheol’s neck that he had grabbed. As Su-cheol fell to the ground, Joo Ho-hyun appeared in the lobby.

 

“Yang Su-cheol… Oh, Seong San-ha! When did you… Su-cheol ssi? What are you two doing?”

 

Seong San-ha smiled softly and waved at Ho-hyun who was curiously alternating look at him and Yang Su-cheol, who was suddenly sitting on the floor.

 

“Long time no see.”

 

“Long time my foot.”

 

“You didn’t want to see me?”

 

“What’s with the guy who ignored all my texts? If you were going to act like this, you should’ve just stayed away.”

 

“You were waiting for my reply? I thought you didn’t care, but this is touching.”

 

“Haha! I was waiting for you? Me? Ridiculous!”

 

“Yeah, got it. Sorry. I’ll make sure to reply from now on.”

 

“You…!”

 

About to shout in frustration, Joo Ho-hyun remembered there were employees around and barely managed to suppress the urge to curse out loud in order to maintain the dignity of a boss. He glanced at Seong San-ha and then asked Yang Su-cheol with folded arms.

 

“Why are you sitting there on the floor? Did you two have a fight or something?”

 

Instead of Yang Su-cheol who was still trembling, Seong San-ha replied smoothly.

 

“It’s my fault. His legs went weak and collapsed the moment he saw me.”

 

“What nonsense…”

 

“You know who I am, right?”

 

Seong San-ha bent down and reached out his hand to Su-cheol.

 

“Right?”

 

Realizing the meaning in his eyes, Yang Su-cheol bit his lips and nodded with a forced smile.

 

“Yes, yes… I’m a fan.”

• 1. Yeon Seung-yeon is referred as ‘the little boss’ here. 
• 2. The big boss is our MC: Joo Ho-hyun.
• 3. Seong San-ha’s other persona is “Mystic,” a very famous hunter in case you forgot. Mystic was introduced way back in the first 10 chapters and popped up a few times in Seong San-ha’s storyline.