Chapter 40
Hunter Association Promotion Management Department, Seoul.
Assistant Manager Kim's fingers suddenly froze over the keyboard.
He leaned closer to the monitor, then rubbed his eyes hard.
"Team Leader, I think there's an error in the system."
At Assistant Manager Kim's call, the Team Leader, who had been sipping coffee, walked over with an uninterested expression.
"What is it this time? If it's another missing mana stone record from a low rank dungeon, handle it yourself."
"No. It's a new clear record that was just registered in the system."
"What's wrong with a clear record?"
"The Gray Swamp. It was just cleared."
The Team Leader's eyebrow twitched.
The Gray Swamp was an uppermost C-rank dangerous area that even experienced hunters tended to avoid.
"So they finally killed that disgusting Water Dragon. Which guild party was it? Must've been a fairly large group, right?"
"That's the thing. It wasn't a party."
"What?"
Assistant Manager Kim pointed at the monitor with a trembling hand.
"Only one person was registered as entering."
"Who would be crazy enough to do something that stupid? It has to be an error. Call the system team right now and tell them to update it."
The Team Leader clicked his tongue and was about to turn away.
"The appraisal center has already finished receiving the materials. The Water Dragon's venom gland and mana stone were officially submitted. It's not an error."
The Team Leader stopped dead.
He hurried back toward the monitor and stared sharply at the screen.
Only one name was clearly displayed in the results.
"Lee Chae-ho? Never heard of him. Is he some B-rank hunter who got demoted after disciplinary action?"
"No, he's C-rank. And he hasn't even been C-rank for very long."
"A newly promoted C-rank cleared the Gray Swamp alone? What about the Venom-Horn Water Dragon?"
"Confirmed as a solo kill. The appraisal center is also making a fuss because the condition of the loot is unbelievably clean."
A disbelieving laugh escaped the Team Leader's mouth.
"Pull up his previous records."
Assistant Manager Kim's fingers moved quickly.
The farther they scrolled down, the wider the mouths of both men opened.
Zero casualties during the mutated boss battle at the Red Iron Mine.
Clean coordination across multiple parties, along with records of rescuing others during dangerous situations.
It wasn't only his combat power. Even his ability to control a situation was far beyond ordinary.
"At this point, he's already beyond the level of someone who should still be in C-rank."
The Team Leader muttered while rubbing his face.
"He's already passed the promotion requirements by a large margin. His contribution points and achievement score are both full. In fact, he has more points than he even needs."
"Contact him immediately. He's too talented to leave sitting at this rank. Tell him that we can process an application for a B-rank promotion evaluation right away."
"I'll call him now."
Warm water flowed down Chae-ho's shoulders.
After turning off the shower, Chae-ho stepped out of the bathroom while drying his wet hair with a towel.
The smartphone he had tossed onto the bed was flashing wildly.
When he turned on the screen, dozens of missed calls and message notifications poured in like a waterfall.
They were scouting offers from well known mid sized guilds and major guilds that almost everyone in South Korea would recognize.
It seemed they had all rushed toward him the moment news of his solo clear of the Gray Swamp appeared in the Association's system.
The signing bonuses and conditions they were offering were on a completely different level compared to just a few days ago.
Chae-ho casually swiped through the messages.
They're impatient. I haven't even taken the B-rank promotion evaluation yet.
He had absolutely no intention of choosing an organization carelessly.
The moment he accepted billions of won, he would lose his freedom and be dragged around according to a guild's schedule.
More importantly, hiding his secret ability and freely choosing his own dungeons would become much more difficult.
Chae-ho sent the rejection message he had prepared in advance to all of them.
It was firm but polite, saying that he had no plans to join any organization for the time being.
The moment he finished sending the messages, his smartphone buzzed as if it had been waiting.
The caller was the Hunter Association's Promotion Management Department.
"Hello."
"Ah, is this Hunter Lee Chae-ho? This is Assistant Manager Kim from the Association's Promotion Management Department."
"Yes, this is Lee Chae-ho."
The voice on the other end sounded extremely excited.
"We just confirmed the Gray Swamp record in the system. To think you even defeated the Water Dragon alone, that's truly impressive."
"Thank you. What are you calling about?"
"We recently reviewed your performance again. Including the Red Iron Mine incident, your accumulated contribution and combat data are already far beyond the upper range of C-rank."
The employee continued speaking smoothly.
"You've exceeded every requirement necessary for promotion to B-rank. The Association would like to strongly recommend that you take the B-rank promotion evaluation. If you apply through the portal site at any time, we'll give your evaluation schedule top priority."
Chae-ho lightly nodded while placing the towel around his neck.
He had already stayed in C-rank long enough to test his own abilities.
There was no reason to remain at this rank and waste more time.
"Understood. I'll prepare and apply."
"Yes! We wish you the best of luck!"
After ending the call, Chae-ho changed into comfortable clothes and left the house.
Today was a day when he did not need to care about how noisy the hunter community was or how desperate the major guilds had become.
His destination was his parents' home.
When he met his parents after some time apart, their faces were filled with both happiness and relief.
Chae-ho took them to a high end Hanwoo restaurant in the center of the city.
After being guided by an employee into a quiet and spacious private room, his father looked around and cleared his throat.
"Why did you bring us somewhere this expensive? We could've just gone to the barbecue place in the neighborhood."
His mother also widened her eyes while looking through the menu.
"Son, these prices aren't normal. You aren't pushing yourself too hard these days, are you?"
Chae-ho smiled and gently lowered the menu from his mother's hands.
"It's fine. Work has been going really well for me lately. Just for today, don't worry about money and eat as much as you want."
Soon, bright red cuts of top grade Hanwoo beef were placed over the charcoal fire.
Sizzle.
The rich smell of cooking meat filled the room.
Chae-ho skillfully handled the tongs, cutting the meat into easy to eat pieces and placing them onto his parents' plates one after another.
Even while putting a piece of meat into her mouth, his mother continued looking at him with concern.
"When I watch the news, hunter work sounds so dangerous. Monsters are always appearing and people keep getting hurt."
"The cases on the news are unusual ones. Normally, it's not that dangerous."
"You still need to be careful. I still get scared whenever I remember you coming home with an injured shoulder back when you worked as a porter."
"Things are different now. I'm not working as a porter anymore. I'm in a good position, and I know how to work safely, so don't worry."
Chae-ho calmly turned the meat over as he spoke.
If his parents found out that he had spent the day rolling through mud alone while avoiding deadly poison and fighting a gigantic Water Dragon, they would probably both drop their chopsticks.
"All right. I'm sure you know what you're doing. But always put your health first. Money is important, but not getting hurt is more important."
His father spoke heavily while raising his glass of soju.
"Yes. I'll remember that."
Chae-ho smiled and lightly clinked his glass against his father's.
As he watched his parents enjoy their meal, Chae-ho quietly did some calculations in his head.
Once the settlement for today's loot and mana stone was completed, his parents would have an even larger reserve of money for living expenses and hospital bills while staying in their current apartment.
If he kept saving steadily, the day when he could buy them a home of their own would not be far away.
This peaceful moment in front of him.
This ordinary life where his family could smile without worry.
To protect it, he needed to climb one step higher.
That was the greatest reason he continued heading into dangerous dungeons.
After finishing the meal and taking his parents back home, Chae-ho returned to his own room.
On one side of the room, his equipment was neatly arranged after all the swamp mud and traces of monsters had been cleaned away.
Chae-ho leaned back in his chair and pulled his hunter identification cards from his wallet.
His worn D-rank Hunter ID, its edges already frayed.
And his still crisp C-rank Hunter ID.
He lightly rubbed the surface of the cards with his thumb.
Suddenly, he remembered the day he had been removed from his old party because his combat power was too low.
The dark expression on Party Leader Oh Sang-min's face.
The apologetic tone in his voice.
Chae-ho had never blamed him, not even once.
In fact, if Oh Sang-min had not apologetically handed him that one time Random Skill Book instead of severance pay that day, the Lee Chae-ho of today would not exist.
A miraculous ability obtained despite impossibly terrible odds.
But Chae-ho had never allowed himself to become drunk on the power of his skill.
What good was slowing down time?
Even if he could see deadly poison coming and read the trajectory of enormous claws, he would still die if his body could not keep up.
From the moment he obtained the ability, he had trained every day, pushing away his limits and building his strength.
He had driven himself relentlessly to reduce the gap between his brain's commands and his body's reaction speed.
Observing the enemy's muscle movements, using the environment, and taking full control of a situation with the smallest possible amount of skill usage.
Complete tactical control.
The fatal strike he had driven into the Water Dragon's neck had not been the result of simple luck or coincidence.
It was the result of the training and judgment he had built through his own hard work.
Chae-ho turned on the laptop on his desk.
With familiar movements, he opened the Hunter Association portal site and logged in.
A notification written in bold letters appeared in the center of the screen.
[Hunter Lee Chae-ho, you are now eligible to apply for the B-rank Promotion Evaluation.]
Chae-ho moved the mouse and placed the cursor over the application button at the bottom of the screen without hesitation.
"Time to move on to the next step."
Click.
The crisp sound of the mouse briefly echoed through the quiet room.
