Chapter 27

Chapter 27

Immediately after Deus left,

Kang Ha-min sent Shin No-seop a message.

He told him that they had met the injured Deus,

talked things through,

and avoided a fight.

[Shin No-seop: Thank you! Truly, thank you! Hunter Baek Cheon-myeong really is the greatest Hunter representing South Korea!]

Shin No-seop sent an almost excessive amount of gratitude.

Well, I guess that makes sense.

After Deus's private jet crashed,

the United States must have become much more sensitive.

One wrong move,

and South Korea and the United States could have ended up in a diplomatic conflict.

Kang Ha-min had stepped in and prevented that.

Shin No-seop, caught in the middle,

must have gone through hell trying to solve the issue.

Now the situation had been resolved thanks to Kang Ha-min.

Of course he would be relieved.

This reminds me of my civil servant days.

People called civil service an iron rice bowl,

but civil servants were also worked mercilessly.

Ha-min felt sympathy for him.

The incident had technically started because of their side anyway.

[Shin No-seop: The nation will compensate Hunter Baek Cheon-myeong for his efforts!]

Again with the compensation?

They had already received a house

and every tax benefit imaginable.

Yet Shin No-seop still wanted to give them more.

There's nothing scarier than free things.

Though this time,

Ha-min had actually worked hard.

The reward only felt excessive compared to what he thought he had done.

Wait. If I think about it, didn't I actually do something pretty amazing this time?

Look at what had happened in South Korea after Baek Cheon-myeong's press conference.

His challenge toward Deus had completely changed the flow of the Korean Hunter market.

Korean stocks had jumped.

The entire world had turned its attention toward Korea's Hunter industry.

Not long ago,

South Korea had suffered humiliation after losing an S Rank Hunter to China.

Its Hunter market had looked weaker than even China's.

But the appearance of Baek Cheon-myeong had reversed that humiliation in an instant.

The higher-ups were probably celebrating right now.

And not only them.

[Comments]

Deiq: Baek Cheon-myeong! Baek Cheon-myeong! Baek Cheon-myeong!

Park Do-hyeong: Look at Deus getting scared and not coming lololol

FinishJane: New York Times, Hunter of the Year, Baek Cheon-myeong.

9resai: An S Rank Hunter even enters a B Rank Dimensional Break to protect civilians. This is what a Hunter should be.

sedmuna: Other S Rank Hunters should seriously reflect. Money isn't everything.

8493: Is the world afraid of Korea?

MoriSand: Compilation of worldwide reactions to Baek Cheon-myeong's press conference.png

Bongbes: After the press conference, Baek Cheon-myeong didn't appear on TV shows, variety programs, or YouTube. The only thing he did was go to Dimensional Breaks. Sudden worship activated.

Even ordinary Korean citizens were filled with national pride for the first time in a while.

When criticizing their own country,

nobody was harsher than Koreans.

But when national pride appeared,

everyone united just as quickly.

That was simply how Koreans were.

And Kang Ha-min was Korean too.

Watching the reactions online,

his shoulders naturally rose with pride.

Of course,

the press conference had been Baek Cheon-myeong's decision.

But I was the one who solved the situation!

For the first time in a long while,

his confidence rose toward the sky.

This was usually the kind of moment when someone made a mistake.

But right now,

he wanted to enjoy feeling proud.

"Master, why not use the reward to ask them to investigate the Returnees?"

"Ah, that's true."

That was a good idea.

He already had more than enough material wealth.

Shin No-seop wanted to reward him,

but Ha-min couldn't think of anything he needed.

He could simply ask the government to invest its resources in that instead.

[If you truly want to compensate me, investigate the Returnee group with all available resources.]

[Deus said the people responsible for attacking his private jet were Returnees.]

Ha-min immediately sent the message.

He thought that solved another problem.

Then,

Riiiiing!

Baek Cheon-myeong's phone screamed.

The caller was Shin No-seop.

Eek.

The demon of the twenty-four-hour Baek Cheon-myeong response team.

"What is it?"

Baek Cheon-myeong calmly answered instead of the startled Kang Ha-min.

Receiving a call immediately after sending a message was bad for an Estrogen Man's heart.

Shin No-seop's urgent voice came through.

"Hunter Baek Cheon-myeong, is it true that Returnees attacked Deus, just as your message said?"

"He said so himself."

Silence followed.

Kang Ha-min listened nervously from beside Baek Cheon-myeong.

After some time,

the sound of several documents being moved came through the phone.

Then Shin No-seop spoke.

"Recently, there have been repeated incidents around the world involving Returnees disappearing again."

What?

"It's embarrassing to admit, but Returnees were treated as research materials by governments."

"Rather than prioritizing their human rights, countries studied them under the justification of investigating Dimensional Breaks."

...So it really was true.

Kang Ha-min swallowed.

The idea that Returnees were used as research subjects hadn't been a conspiracy theory.

Most Returnees with monster-like bodies have damaged mental states too.

They had been trapped inside Dimensional Breaks

and even had their bodies transformed.

Remaining mentally stable after that was difficult.

Governments knew that.

So they didn't treat Returnees as ordinary humans.

If someone wasn't mentally stable,

they couldn't properly demand their rights anyway.

And people still die every year because of Dimensional Breaks.

The world already had too many deaths to care deeply about one or two Returnees.

Even if a few disappeared,

the entire world wouldn't react.

It was a bitter truth.

Maybe it's actually fortunate that my friend never returned.

If his childhood friend had finally survived and returned,

only to suffer again,

Kang Ha-min didn't think he could endure it.

"Then it wouldn't be strange for Returnees to gather together with another purpose."

Baek Cheon-myeong was right.

Governments and countries had used them as research subjects.

Of course Returnees could hate them.

They certainly wouldn't feel gratitude.

Even ordinary people barely cared about Returnees.

If Returnees grew angry at the world and committed terrorism,

the world had little right to act surprised.

"Yes. But even so, we can't simply ignore them."

"I want to report this to the higher-ups and begin a formal investigation. Is that acceptable?"

"Do it."

"And they will probably target other S Rank Hunters besides Deus."

"Do you know something?"

"Instinct."

Pure instinct.

Sometimes,

instinct was more accurate than evidence.

"I'll keep that in mind."

Shin No-seop didn't dismiss it.

He trusted Baek Cheon-myeong,

someone who had personally faced Deus.

In reality,

the one who had faced Deus was Kang Ha-min.

But Shin No-seop had no way of knowing that.

The call ended.

Kang Ha-min looked complicated.

They still didn't know what the Returnees wanted.

But their hatred was ultimately the result of the world's own mistakes.

In a world like this,

there was only one thing he could do.

"...We really need to climb the Tower."

The world had become like this because everything was unstable.

Then the most urgent task was preventing the next disaster,

the Second Trial.

"Master is finally becoming a proper Hunter."

For some reason,

Baek Cheon-myeong looked proud.

"You'll still be the one actually climbing it, though."

Climb the Tower.

That was the only thing Kang Ha-min could do.

[Congratulations on clearing the Ninth Floor!]

[You have cleared the Ninth Floor in the fastest time in the world.]

[You have cleared the Ninth Floor in the fastest time in the world.]

[Achievement registered: Ninth Floor Fastest Clear Record Holder.]

[The gods are watching you.]

[Achievement registered: Ninth Floor Fastest Clear Record Holder.]

[The gods are watching you.]

They had finally reached the Ninth Floor.

Only one floor remained before Baek Cheon-myeong finished the First Floor Realm, the so-called tutorial.

Once again,

Baek Cheon-myeong had broken the record.

At this point,

it was almost routine.

"The clear time really is getting a little longer."

"My training is lacking."

It was still only around one minute.

How was that lack of training?

Either way,

thanks to him,

Kang Ha-min had reached Level 38.

His leveling speed had definitely slowed compared to before.

But it was still completely ridiculous.

"Will things be okay starting from the Second Floor Realm?"

"Challenging a floor is simply the process of obtaining entry authority, so I don't think there will be a problem."

"No. I'm talking about the Floor Lords."

The lower floors were where the position of Floor Lord changed most often.

Early climbers had the advantage of reaching new floors first.

But later climbers could study information

and break records more efficiently.

That was why later Hunters often challenged existing Floor Lords.

"I think the lower Floor Lords are going to care a lot about you."

Baek Cheon-myeong was breaking every record.

That meant he could also earn the right to challenge Floor Lords.

"If Master wants, I'll take their positions."

"No! That's not what I meant!"

Baek Cheon-myeong grinned.

Kang Ha-min immediately panicked.

This man genuinely would take every Floor Lord position if Ha-min asked.

"I'm just saying they probably won't stay still."

Starting from the Second Floor Realm,

clearing a floor naturally led into the Floor Lord's territory.

Whether Ha-min liked it or not,

Baek Cheon-myeong would be forced to meet them.

The Floor Lords above would naturally hope he never reached them.

Ha-min was worried they might try something.

"Master, don't worry."

Baek Cheon-myeong didn't care at all.

"If they come, I break them."

"It's always the same method."

For some reason,

he looked happy while saying that.

Kang Ha-min desperately wished he wouldn't.

He was already worried enough.

And the Returnee side is still strangely quiet.

The government still had no new information regarding the Returnees.

Yoo Ah-rin also hadn't contacted them regarding the sword.

So Kang Ha-min had no choice but to continue training.

And through that training,

he learned one important fact.

I'm really terrible at using my body.

His talent with mana was enough to impress Baek Cheon-myeong.

But when it came to physical movement,

he had almost no talent.

He had avoided exercise his entire life.

So even after inheriting Baek Cheon-myeong's swordsmanship,

his posture still looked awkward.

"Woof! Woof!"

Sometimes,

the Shih Tzu running beside him looked more athletic.

I still need to name this guy.

He had delayed it because his pride was slightly hurt.

It was sad,

but there was nothing else he could do.

He simply had to learn slowly.

"I should collect the Ninth Floor reward."

The Tenth Floor was next.

I hope this time I get something that makes climbing easier for Mr. Baek Cheon-myeong.

[Ninth Floor reward distributed.]

[You have obtained a Dimensional Invitation.]

And once again,

something strange appeared.