#31
Just a moment ago, when Seo Yi-young announced his decision to stay here overnight, he definitely made eye contact with Choi Do-jun.
He should be grateful that Choi pretended not to notice him, but he couldn’t feel that way.
It was Seo Yi-young who had been trying to ignore Choi Do-jun, but now that he felt ignored instead, he was getting angry.
And the fact that he even cared about this made him even angrier.
Still, it’s not like he could go up to Choi Do-jun and ask why he wasn’t saying anything.
Choi Do-jun still kept his habit of staying apart from other hunters during breaks, so he wasn’t visible right now. But he never wandered too far, so Seo Yi-young could probably find him nearby if he moved around a bit.
Honestly, there was no need to do that.
No need at all.
But it was bothering him too much.
They say humans repeat the same mistakes.
Even while clearly knowing his blood pressure would rise, he still went ahead and did it.
Seo Yi-young had become one of those foolish human beings.
When he stepped outside the makeshift rest area created by one of the support hunters’ abilities, he immediately spotted Choi Do-jun. Though he had expected him to be nearby, Seo Yi-young was surprised to find him so close and stopped in his tracks.
…So Choi Do-jun brought an eye mask too.
Seo Yi-young bit his lip hard, not expecting him to be wearing a comical eye mask with drawn-on closed eyes. He couldn’t tell if Choi was asleep or awake. While he was quietly observing Choi Do-jun’s state—
“If you have something to say, just say it.”
“…I’m startled.”
Seo Yi-young drew in a surprised breath at Choi Do-jun’s words.
“Isn’t that why you’ve been staring at me?”
It was astonishing that he knew everything despite covering his eyes with the mask.
But since he’d been so obviously caught, it was actually easier to speak. After all, Choi had practically invited him to talk.
Speaking in a naturally lowered voice to avoid waking the other hunters sleeping in the rest area, but still clearly, he said:
“You’re right. Yes. Why aren’t you saying anything? Earlier when Hunter Jung Ui-jin was injured, you know I used my ability to heal him, right?”
Choi Do-jun seemed to be listening quietly to Seo Yi-young’s words, but showed no particular reaction. Instead, it was Seo Yi-young who couldn’t stay still. Just as he was about to speak again out of impatience, Choi Do-jun opened his mouth while still wearing that ridiculous eye mask.
“Am I supposed to say something?”
When he heard those words, Seo Yi-young felt a sharp pang inside his chest, as if something had stabbed him.
After finishing his sentence, Choi Do-jun slightly lifted the bottom of his eye mask with one hand and looked at Seo Yi-young. His piercing gaze felt so sharp it almost stung when it touched Seo Yi-young’s skin.
Seo Yi-young stubbornly bit his rolled lips.
“Forget it if you don’t.”
Leaving only those words behind, he headed back inside.
His footsteps hit the ground roughly.
What an inconsiderate bastard.
No matter what, if Seo Yi-young approached him first, couldn’t Choi Do-jun have at least spoken a bit more humbly? Especially after doing… that kind of thing to him.
Having thought that far, Seo Yi-young clenched his teeth.
He shouldn’t think about it anymore. Hadn’t he decided to just bury that incident?
For today’s matter, he could simply blame everything on Choi Do-jun and be at peace. That was the actual truth anyway. If Choi Do-jun hadn’t done that, hadn’t said those things, none of this would have happened.
Seo Yi-young acted like a stubborn child who knew the truth but refused to admit it. Without this defense, he felt he might burrow into the ground from embarrassment right then and there.
Squirming his way into the sleeping bag and pulling it completely over his head, Seo Yi-young stayed that way for a while before peeking just his eyes out.
Now that he’d calmed down, he realized how petty his actions had been. He’d rarely acted so childishly before. But somehow, when it came to Choi Do-jun, he couldn’t maintain his composure.
“…”
Choi Do-jun was the same way.
Still, he didn’t have to speak so coldly.
Different dimension or not, his unpleasantness remained unchanged.
Seo Yi-young resolved that until the dungeon conquest ended, he would absolutely avoid meeting Choi Do-jun. He wouldn’t speak to him again and wouldn’t even look his way.
He made this pledge anew.
And he kept his promise until the dungeon conquest ended.
Choi Do-jun also didn’t deliberately approach Seo Yi-young. Not only that, he didn’t even look at him. Seo Yi-young briefly felt his gaze when he picked up the small scissors that appeared after defeating the dungeon boss, but that was all.
It should have been Seo Yi-young doing the ignoring, but when Choi Do-jun acted that way instead, it felt aggravating. Still, it felt awkward for Seo Yi-young to be the one to speak first.
And that was only possible because nothing major happened until the boss mob conquest.
Without any unusual incidents, Seo Yi-young safely completed the dungeon conquest and returned home, carrying an unsettled feeling inside him.
After a hot bath, he flopped onto his bed and fully enjoyed the soft texture of the bed sheets.
Even though he’d completed the dungeon conquest, showered, and was now lying down, why did he still feel like something was left unfinished? He knew the reason. It was because of Choi Do-jun. It was Seo Yi-young himself who had decided to ignore him. So he shouldn’t feel this way, but why did he?
Seo Yi-young made a groaning sound as he rubbed his face against the pillowcase.
*
“…What is this…?”
‘Don’t let strange rumors spread. Don’t forget that the title “South Korea’s S-Class Hunter” comes before your name. It would be troublesome if you forgot that.’
Recalling Choi Do-jun’s words, Seo Yi-young had searched his own name during his break and now muttered quietly while holding his phone. He had wondered why Choi suddenly mentioned “South Korea’s S-Class Hunter,” but now he understood why.
On Seo Yi-young’s phone screen was a clip from a program broadcast in Japan.
It was a video translated and uploaded by a Korean YouTuber, with over 8 million views.
Apparently, rumors about Seo Yi-young drinking potions and using his abilities in dungeons had spread all the way to Japan.
The show featured panelists holding paper signs that read [What’s Happening with Hunter Seo Yi-young?] as they discussed the topic. They seemed unusually interested in a hunter from another country, analyzing the situation from multiple angles.
He could tolerate opinions suggesting he had depression, was showing off his abilities to transfer to another agency, or was in love and therefore in high spirits. But seeing a panelist suggest it was related to Korean ethnicity made his blood pressure rise, causing him to temporarily turn off the screen.
In the comments, Korean and Japanese netizens were battling it out.
But if Choi Do-jun knew about this, it meant he had also looked it up.
Seo Yi-young had thought Choi wasn’t the type to care about such things, but apparently that wasn’t the case. Imagining Choi’s cool face while internally seething as he watched this video was somewhat amusing.
However, realizing that he was being discussed even in foreign countries made him newly aware of his significant influence. Of course, he wasn’t completely unaware of it before, but his honest feeling was more like, “To this extent?”
He needed to be more mindful.
It was exactly as Choi Do-jun had said.
It wasn’t just about himself; he was carrying the mark of South Korea on both shoulders. Yes, almost like a representative of South Korea. Thinking of it that way made his shoulders feel heavy.
To be honest, he hadn’t fully grasped it yet. Although he had seen the enormous number of comments and views, they were just numbers displayed on a screen. “Unbelievable” would be a more accurate description.
Nevertheless, his mindset had changed somewhat.
Rather than simply thinking of himself as just another hunter as he had been doing, he could now approach his work with the determination that the name of South Korea was attached to his actions. That alone would surely make a significant difference in his performance in dungeons.
People often talked about national representatives, but he had never dreamed he would be in that position.
Until now, he hadn’t had the chance to realize this.
For Seo Yi-young, who had been just an ordinary person, suddenly entering dungeons was already an earth-shattering shock, let alone encountering mobs and using abilities. Still, he had adapted quite well, all things considered. From now on, he just needed to do better.
Although he wanted to live comfortably without putting in effort, the situation left him no choice.
This wasn’t a situation where he alone could give up.
After letting out a sigh, Seo Yi-young was about to get up for a meal when the sound of his phone ringing made him pause. Until now, his phone had been quiet with no incoming calls. There were no saved contacts, no messages, completely empty like a spare phone, but since the previous Seo Yi-young had used it properly, it was at least charged, and the current Seo Yi-young also kept it charged. Now that phone was ringing.
Surprised, Seo Yi-young picked up the phone, glanced at the screen once, and answered.
“Hello?”
“Ah. Hunter Seo Yi-young.”
The person correctly called his name.
Though he didn’t know who it was, the voice sounded familiar.
“Yes. Please go ahead.”
“The day after tomorrow at 3:30 AM, I’ll see you at the previous building.”
He received an extremely abbreviated message.
Seo Yi-young had no idea which building the “previous building” referred to. Before he could ask for clarification, the other party hung up.
This unpleasant feeling was accompanied by an inexplicable sense of déjà vu.
Moreover, there weren’t many people who communicated with Seo Yi-young so one-sidedly. Since coming to this dimension, everyone had been intimidated by Seo Yi-young, and those who treated him with such disregard could be counted on one hand.
Who was that?
As he frowned and tried to recall, Seo Yi-young soon remembered something.
It was him.
Jo Tae-su’s secretary.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
