I was Mistaken for a Noble Hunter Chapter 46 - Assault (7)

Kang Ian’s medal ceremony made quite a few headlines.

 

An unusual gate rampage had occurred in the city.

 

And his commendable achievement of rescuing civilians by tirelessly running around was something to be praised.

 

If Kang Ian had been an A-rank Hunter, he would have gained national hero-level support, but unfortunately, he was a D-rank Hunter at the time.

 

Of course, that was his superficial rank—those in the know were aware that Kang Ian’s potential was much higher. But for the general public, the term ‘D-rank’ stood out.

 

The buzz around his medal ceremony had started to die down, but then, a post appeared on a community forum.

 

<Title: I saw Hunter Kang Ian today. He got promoted.>

 

– It seems like all the previous articles need to be edited. He’s not D-rank anymore, he’s C-rank. Promotion successful. Even his personality is amazing. His skills were so good that the Association suggested a two-rank promotion.  But he refused, saying it wouldn’t be fair to others.  ㄷㄷㄷ

 

Since Kang Ian had been in the spotlight recently, the post quickly got a lot of comments.

 

– ?? There haven’t been any articles about Hunter Kang Ian getting promoted, though?

 

└ Ah, that happened today, so it hasn’t been announced yet. There will be articles tomorrow

 

└ Then how do you know?

 

└ I’m an Association official, lol.

 

└ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋPfftㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋAssociation officialㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ. If you’re an Association official, I’m the Association President

 

└ ?

 

The responses weren’t exactly positive. Posts like this usually weren’t seen as reliable in these kinds of forums.

 

– Here we go again with someone spouting delusions. If you’re going to lie, at least do your homework. Who the hell gets promoted two whole ranks from D to B? What a joke

 

└I agree with the comment above. Honestly, going from F-rank to D-rank was amazing, but does it make sense to jump two ranks again? A B-rank Hunter is at the threshold of the upper ranks, it’s not something just anyone can achieve

 

└ Well, I understand he’s devoted to volunteering and has a good nature, but that has nothing to do with skill. Stop overhyping

 

└It seems the writer wanted to pretend to be an Association employee, so let’s just pretend we didn’t see itㅋㅋㅋㅋ. Everyone close your eyesㅋㅋㅋㅋ

 

Bang!

 

“Damn it. I’m telling the truth, why don’t they understand?”

 

The woman writing the post, Lee Seyeon, a section chief at the Hunter Association, slammed her keyboard in frustration.

 

Even though she was telling the truth, they were stubbornly refusing to believe her.

 

“Hunter Kang Ian was truly amazing…”

 

Lee Seyeon usually had an expressionless face that others might perceive as cold.  This was because her friends once told her, ‘You’re too goofy when your true personality comes out, so at least keep a cold expression.’

 

Since she was also beautiful, it helped her in her social life. It kept unwanted attention away.

 

But that meant she was so used to keeping people at a distance that, when she finally met Kang Ian in person today, she couldn’t bring herself to be warm or friendly.

 

“What if he thought I was rude…”

 

She’d first discovered him through the article about the gate rampage. And like many others, she became a fan right then and there.

 

His courage and boldness in selflessly rescuing citizens. It made her want to learn from him.

 

Therefore, when she was told she would be conducting Kang Ian’s Hunter promotion test, she was overjoyed.

 

However, when she met him in person, she couldn’t bring herself to speak to him properly. She was so used to being aloof in her interpersonal relationships that she ended up acting the same way in this situation.

 

So she felt regretful, and made a firm resolution.

 

“Next time… I’ll get a little closer.”

 

Even though Kang Ian was now a C-rank hunter, she’d definitely be seeing him again.

 

From what she saw today, it wouldn’t be long before he came back for his B-rank test.

 

‘Until then, I need to improve my skills too.’

 

There weren’t many Hunters within the Association that she could consider rivals, but after seeing Kang Ian today, she felt a strong urge to work harder.

 

* * *

 

Even in a world where Gates appeared and Hunters and monsters emerged, some things remained unchanged.

 

University rankings were one of them. Korea University was still the best university in the country.

 

At a Starbucks cafe in front of Korea University.

 

Four women were gathered.

 

“Wow. I heard that Hunter got promoted?”

 

“Who?”

 

“You know, the Firefighter.”

 

“Ah! The Hwaseong City hero? Let me see!”

 

One of the excited women slightly tilted her tablet PC towards herself and checked the news window. Several articles related to Kang Ian were posted there.

 

<The Hero who saved Hwaseong City, Hunter Kang Ian, promoted to C-rank!>

 

<According to an inside source, he could have been promoted two ranks to B-rank!>

 

<A hero equipped with not only personality but also skill!>

 

<At this rate, he is sure to become a prominent Hunter representing the country!>

 

“He really got promoted. But didn’t they say this Hunter awakened not long ago?”

 

“Yeah. So if he’s already C-rank, that’s crazy fast, right?”

 

“I want to ask other hunters what they think. Like how impressive this really is.”

 

“Also, he’s kind of handsome. Not like stunning at first glance, but the more you look, the better he looks.”

 

“Right! Right!”

 

However, among the four, one person seemed uninterested.

 

One person.

 

A woman with her hair tightly tied in a bun on top of her head was diligently reading a book.

 

“Hey, Kang Isol. Look at this.”

 

“What? I’m busy.”

 

“Busy doing what?”

 

“Aren’t you guys studying for the exams?”

 

“…Let’s not talk about that.”

 

At Kang Isol’s rebuke, her friends’ heads drooped. They weren’t just ordinary Korea University students.

 

They were Korea University medical students!

 

The title of top medical students at the top university in the country was certainly impressive, but at this moment, they were merely underdogs fighting the monstrous burden of studying.

 

On top of that, they were second-year med students. The workload of medical school was beyond imagination, and exams came every single week.

 

The viciousness squeezing the students made it hard to even breathe.

 

Normally they would be holed up in the library studying, but they’d decided they couldn’t live like that anymore and they gathered together.

 

They came out to the cafe to study as a change of pace.

 

One of her friends clapped lightly.

 

“As expected of our Kang Isol-nim! The top student! The face of Korea University’s medical school! You were already smart, but you even study like a beast!”

 

“Stop it. I told you not to say things like that.”

 

“Hehe. Why not~?”

 

“Sigh. So, what is it?”

 

At her classmate’s slight aegyo, Kang Isol sighed lightly.

 

“Look at this. You don’t know, do you? There’s this really hot Hunter these days. They say he’s skilled and has a really good heart. And, if you look closely, don’t you think he’s handsome?”

 

“······?”

 

Kang Isol’s eyes wavered.

 

She had practically cut herself off from the world, spending almost 20 out of 24 hours a day studying.

 

To the point where she couldn’t even keep up proper phone calls with her parents.

 

So she hadn’t seen any recent news at all—but now, she was at a loss for words.

 

‘Why is Oppa… here?’

 

Seeing a blood relative in a news article was a strange feeling.

 

* * *

 

“Hmm…”

 

After the promotion was completed, Kang Ian was contemplating.

 

It was the same dilemma as always.

 

Shopping dilemma.

 

“What should I buy that could be called a good purchase…?”

 

[Evil Souls in possession: 2603]

 

[Nobility Points in possession: 2933]

 

He had gained an additional 500 Nobility from receiving the medal this time. Moreover, including the amount steadily accumulated from his daily volunteer work, his Nobility had reached nearly 3000.

 

He felt content—as if just closing his eyes made him feel full.

 

Not long ago, he had desperately wished for just 1 or 2 points of nobility, but now his heart felt abundant.

 

However, that didn’t mean he could buy just anything.

 

There were plenty of items and skills in Devil Road 3 that were out of reach with just this many points.

 

In the game, since it had only been open for a few weeks, there were plenty of players who had reached max level and decked themselves out in legendary items, but that wasn’t the case for Kang Ian in reality.

 

To buy those kinds of things, he would have to diligently save up in the future.

 

“Now that I’m a C-rank Hunter, I can enter C-rank or B-rank dungeons…”

 

It was said that while C-rank dungeons were manageable, the difficulty spiked drastically at B-rank.

 

Even if he had raised his weapon mastery to intermediate, he needed to improve his specs.

 

He had to purchase additional items and skills in preparation for that time, but he was worried about what to do.

 

‘Should I try reinforcing the Floating Shield and utilizing it more?’

 

The skill Kang Ian had used the most so far was ‘Floating Shield.’

 

He used the sharp edges of the shield to grind enemies like a blender, and even if not for that, its automatic defense function was incredibly useful.

 

But it had its limits.

 

He would be encountering higher-ranked monsters in the future, and against such foes, a simple attack with the shield’s surface was unlikely to work.

 

Besides, wouldn’t it be pointless if the shield bounced far away the moment it blocked an attack?

 

There were two solutions.

 

Either strengthen the skill or take another route.

 

‘If I strengthen the skill, I think I’ll need to buy a new shield even though the one I have is from a quest, and a better weapon too…’

 

Since there were so many things to buy, he got a headache.

 

That was when it happened.

 

– Ring~

 

His smartphone rang, and he checked the screen.

 

[Hopoong hyungnim]

 

“Oh? It’s Hyungnim?”

 

Mountain Kang Hopoong Hyungnim. A man with muscles like a mountain.

 

Kang Ian immediately answered the call.

 

“Yes, Hyungnim. Are you calling to go work out together?”

 

-Yeah, dongsaeng. Working out is good. I’m already at the gym, so just come over.

 

“······?”

 

He felt like this hyungnim was permanently stationed at the fitness center.

 

– Ah, but I’m not calling about that right now. It’s about what we talked about before, about needing a buffer.

 

“Ah, yes, yes!”

 

-Hmm… I’m sorry to say this, but that will be a little difficult.

 

“Ah…”

 

Kang Ian clicked his tongue in disappointment.

 

‘So it fell through.’

 

Kang Hopoong had said he was going to do a job with his friends, and Kang Ian wanted to join them.

 

Since they were an A-rank Hunter and his friends, wouldn’t they all be formidable members?

 

The price of the mana stones handled by that level would definitely be enormous.

 

The maximum amount Kang Ian currently received per commission was 150 million won.

 

That was only possible thanks to the consideration of the Red Rose Guild.

 

But with high-level decision stones, even if split equally, the cost was bound to be way higher.

 

Besides, he could have experienced high-ranked monsters in a safe environment, and he could have learned how many Evil Souls they gave.  Why did it have to turn out like this?

 

‘It can’t be helped… but still, what a shame.’

 

Kang Ian’s disappointed expression seemed to have been conveyed over the smartphone.  Kang Hopoong’s flustered voice quickly followed.

 

– Dongsaeng, it’s not because your skills are lacking or anything. We’ll be doing most of the heavy lifting anyway. But we’re bringing you as a buffer, and the place we’re going needs buffs of specific attributes.

 

“Uh… What attributes are they?”

 

– Flame and Light attributes. So it’s a bit—

 

“Ah, yes. I have both. I already have the Flame attribute, and I can also purchase the Light attribute buff… I mean, I have it.”

 

-…You have it?

 

Kang Hopoong paused. Even through the smartphone, Kang Hopoong’s bewilderment could be felt.

 

– Really? You really have both???