Chapter 45
“What… what just happened just now…?”
The party members were all dumbstruck.
As Juhyuk dragged over the bandits—whose hands and feet he had severed—and tied them up, the leader finally managed to speak after stifling his own shock.
The vanguard who had been watching with him added,
“An arrow flew at Mr. Juhyuk.”
“We didn’t shoot it, right?”
“No. There was definitely an intruder who slipped into the gate.”
The very situation they had feared.
A bandit who had infiltrated the gate to kidnap the grandson of the Hanul Corporation chairman.
They still needed to find out how he had managed to sneak in without being detected, but right now no one had the presence of mind to think about that.
“He caught an arrow fired from outside his field of view, and the moment he did, he killed the Wolfbear.”
Juhyuk, who had been growing sloppier in posture from excitement…
While he barely managed to deflect the Wolfbear’s attack and was falling to the ground, an arrow flew straight toward his skull.
Everyone noticed it—but far too late.
Evading an arrow flying in from outside his line of sight was impossible.
Before he caught it, and even now after catching it, they all knew the same thing:
“Are we… really inside an A-rank gate right now?”
“There’s no way we mixed that up.”
“No, I mean—even if he’s an irregular, an F-rank shouldn’t be able to…”
How could an A-rank boss be taken down with one strike?
No one said it aloud, but they all understood what was being implied.
Irregular.
It wasn’t that they were belittling the meaning of that title.
But the problem was the word F-rank attached to it.
Everyone was still trapped by that label.
Even if he had been classified as an irregular, even if the Association had approved letting him enter an A-rank gate—
None of them had imagined he would be strong enough to solo an A-rank boss.
A typical A-rank hunter couldn’t even do that alone.
“It was only because of the unwritten rule.”
The unwritten rule within gates: distribute monster kills evenly.
Even though Juhyuk could have solo-cleared every mob, he held back and yielded monsters for the sake of that rule.
“That’s why killing the Wolfbear and immediately apprehending the infiltrating bandit was possible.”
“….”
At those words, everyone looked toward the Wolfbear’s corpse.
A clean stab through the neck—perfectly executed.
Then they turned to Juhyuk, who was tying up the unconscious bandits.
No matter how many times they compared the two scenes, it didn’t make sense.
“How is that even possible?”
“It isn’t.”
The leader spoke firmly.
If they tried explaining what they’d witnessed to someone else, they’d be laughed at for bragging.
Even he would react the same way if he heard such a story.
“We just witnessed something impossible.”
He had seen it—no, they had all seen it with their own eyes.
A sight unbelievable even when witnessed firsthand.
The leader stared at Juhyuk for a moment before speaking quietly.
“Korea just gained its third S-rank hunter.”
The long-awaited S-rank.
His mana capacity might be F-rank, but in terms of skill, he was easily S-rank.
If anything, the fact that he had S-rank combat power despite having F-rank mana made him even more extraordinary.
“If that guy ever awakens again…”
“….”
If, someday, he re-awakened and reached even B-rank mana.
Everyone imagined it.
If Juhyuk gained more mana and acquired more skills—just how terrifying would he become?
While everyone fell silent, overwhelmed by the unimaginable future, Hyunsoo finally spoke.
“He’d be the strongest.”
His eyes sparkled as he said it.
Hyunsoo felt something swelling in his chest as he looked at Juhyuk.
“He’s only F-rank… and he still became that strong.”
Even with F-rank mana, Juhyuk was about to reach S-rank purely through combat ability.
Honestly, even without re-awakening, he was probably already one of the top hunters in all of Korea.
‘I want to get closer to him.’
How did someone with only F-rank mana become this strong?
How did he climb up while being constantly belittled for being F-rank?
Hyunsoo felt like he was going crazy with curiosity.
He had always liked people—but Juhyuk was the first person to make him this interested.
*
“Great work, everyone.”
“Juhyuk worked the hardest.”
After they escorted the bandits out of the gate, gave verbal accounts, and filled out the written report, the party disbanded.
As Juhyuk was heading home, he noticed a familiar car parked ahead.
I really can’t go anywhere alone, can I…
He sighed internally and approached the car. The window slid down.
Yena was in the driver’s seat, not smiling at all.
“Did it go well?”
“…How did you even know to come here?”
“You didn’t call me for help even once, so I thought something might have happened.”
The car belonged to Yena.
He’d ridden with her a few times, so he recognized it.
“I heard everything. You even dealt with the intruder.”
“Yes. Apparently they were trying to kidnap someone.”
“The Hanul Corporation chairman’s grandson, right?”
She spoke like she already knew everything.
Yena let out a small sigh and complained,
“You could’ve just asked me for help. Why take on all that trouble alone?”
“It was a good experience.”
“Cutting off people’s wrists and ankles doesn’t sound like a good experience to me…”
“For a hunter, it is.”
Today, it had only been wrists and legs—later, he’d have to cut throats too.
Better to experience it now than freeze up later.
Hesitation meant death inside a gate.
Thinking today had been worthwhile, he answered. Yena frowned at his response.
“Get in. I’ll take you home.”
As he opened the passenger door—
“Excuse me! Mr. Juhyuk!”
He turned to see Hyunsoo running toward him.
Out of breath, Hyunsoo stopped in front of the car.
“If it’s alright with you… would you like to have dinner with me sometime?”
“Dinner?”
“Yes, my treat.”
Juhyuk blinked at the sudden invitation.
Hyunsoo continued quickly,
“You handled everything with the bandits today, so I really want to thank you properly.”
“I mean… I’m already getting compensation…”
He was receiving three hundred million won, yet Hyunsoo also wanted to buy him dinner.
It felt too much, so he hesitated. Sensing this, Hyunsoo added carefully,
“My grandfather heard about what happened and said he’d really like to have dinner with you too… Is that uncomfortable?”
“….”
Well, it made sense. If someone saved your grandson, you’d want to express gratitude personally.
He didn’t really need that kind of thanks, but there was no harm in forming connections with someone like the Hanul chairman.
If he ever created a guild, it could be useful.
Building connections early is important too.
In Korea, a hunter needed both skill and connections.
Juhyuk quickly finished calculating and replied with a smile,
“I’ll go if it’s beef.”
“I’ll reserve the best restaurant in Korea!”
“Haha, I’ll look forward to it.”
Hyunsoo’s reaction was almost excessively joyful.
It was hard to understand why an invitation to dinner made him that happy.
“Then I’ll contact you later by text!”
“Yes, see you next time.”
Hyunsoo ran off while making a call.
Yena, who had watched the conversation quietly, finally spoke.
“Judging from what he said about his grandfather… he must be the grandson they were talking about?”
“Yes. Rich kid, but he’s not rude.”
If anything, his friendliness was so strong it was overwhelming.
He kept staring at me while we were leaving the gate…
Ever since the bandit incident, Hyunsoo’s gaze had been fixed on him.
He probably wanted to build a connection with an F-rank irregular.
“He’s like a puppy.”
“His face?”
“That too, but his personality. He’s very puppy-like.”
An invisible tail seemed to be wagging behind him.
When Juhyuk looked like he might refuse dinner, Hyunsoo’s expression had visibly drooped.
Round features, gentle eyes—he really was puppy-like.
“He must really like you.”
“Well… I did catch the bandits, so I doubt he dislikes me.”
“I don’t think he likes you just as a benefactor.”
“….”
Yena gave him a knowing smile.
He had no idea what she meant.
“He didn’t seem like he had… that kind of preference.”
“Not that.”
She laughed at the sudden implication of him being gay.
“I mean he really likes you. As a person.”
Hyunsoo admired Juhyuk.
For a normal B-rank hunter, Juhyuk must have looked incredibly cool. An F-rank who cleared A-rank gates—of course he’d be admired.
It wasn’t something that inspired jealousy. It went beyond rivalry and into admiration.
Seeing an F-rank crush an A-rank monster, no one could feel jealousy.
How much effort must it have taken?
An unimaginable amount of time.
Even if someone spent every waking moment training, they might not achieve it.
Anyone who saw that would naturally admire and respect him.
Hyunsoo’s desire to be close to Juhyuk was only natural.
“If he’s from Hanul’s family, it could be helpful for you. Try to get along.”
“…Not a bad idea.”
And so, after clearing the gate, Juhyuk returned home.
This time, he gained not only compensation but also a connection to Hanul Corporation.
