Hyeon Il-hwan had an immense interest in monsters, perhaps more than anyone in this world, and simultaneously, a deep hatred for them.
Since he was a child, much like other kids who loved dinosaurs, he adored flipping through monster encyclopedias.
Beings from other worlds, gigantic beasts.
Whenever he caught sight of new species of monsters still being discovered, he felt an excitement he could hardly contain, reminiscent of the time he first awakened his magic power.
However, he also found himself disgusted each time he realized that because of these creatures, he had forgotten the joys of everyday life.
“Woo-seok.”
“Yes, hyung.”
“I’m not eloquent, nor do I have the confidence to change you just by talking. From now on, let’s go hunt some monsters together.”
“Y-Yes?! Me? But hyung, you usually deal with monsters that are akin to great beasts, right? How can I survive against something like that?”
Woo-seok turned pale.
Hyeon Joong-gil and Hyeon Il-hwan, too.
Only because they both possessed incredible mental fortitude could they calmly endure such a life; living as an average hunter for even just half a year was a nearly impossible feat.
Fighting against monsters every single day and getting drenched in their repulsive blood—it was horrifying just to think about.
Moreover, there were stories that the monsters they caught offered little to no rewards, making it all the more unappealing.
“Woo-seok, think about what you’ve done. I can’t bear to face the guests I welcomed. Even if things had gone according to your plan, what would we have gained? Did you really intend to harm those innocent hunters?”
“That was never my intention…! I-I’m sorry…”
As Woo-seok gazed into Il-hwan’s clear eyes, a wave of fear washed over him, forcing him to bow his head.
“Damn it… I can’t look into those eyes.”
Woo-seok thought to himself how pathetic he felt.
“There must be at least a reasonable punishment in the eyes of others. You’ll publicly participate in monster hunting while spending time in reflection. Understand?”
“… I understand.”
Seeing Woo-seok with his shoulders drooped, Il-hwan sighed.
Yet, to Il-hwan, Woo-seok was someone he had to drag along no matter what.
Therefore, Il-hwan was exercising superhuman patience to resist the urge to swing a club at him right then and there.
“It will be difficult, but it will be rewarding. Training alone is good, but gaining this kind of experience will surely foster growth you haven’t experienced before.”
“But hyung…! If no one acknowledges it, what’s the point?! I’ve never understood that since I was a child.”
“…….”
There’s a saying that the articles about monsters in the media cover less than one-fifth of the actual incidents.
Surprisingly, reality was even worse, and it was only through hunters like Hyeon Joong-gil, who operated worldwide, that the balance of the world was maintained.
However, as Hyeon Woo-seok mentioned, those actions were stories of hidden heroes, unrecognized by anyone.
Woo-seok didn’t like that.
Il-hwan, too, could relate to that feeling.
“Woo-seok… just come with me for now. You will surely feel something.”
“…Understood.”
Hyeon Woo-seok couldn’t refuse any longer in this situation.
He was slowly beginning to realize how ridiculous his actions had been.
“For now, I’ll follow as quietly as a mouse. Then I’ll bide my time and—”
Woo-seok felt a growing discomfort with Il-hwan.
He couldn’t quite recall when that feeling began.
Nonetheless, he was eager to break free from Il-hwan as quickly as possible and return to operating solo.
As soon as he showed enough progress and results, he figured Il-hwan would let him go.
And Il-hwan thought, looking at Woo-seok who was putting on a strangely calm facade,
“It’s clear you plan to slack off.”
But once they truly stepped onto the front lines, Woo-seok would soon realize how naive that thought was.
These were busy times, busy enough that he could hardly spare a thought for his cousin’s concerns.
Every day, he was engulfed in hellish tasks, fighting horrendous monsters—it felt more like punishment.
Moreover, given the incredibly increased number of monsters recently, his team was also losing strength.
His companions were becoming mentally drained.
Even if their physical strength returned, mental fortitude was not so easily regained.
Thus, some went mad and fell away.
Some couldn’t endure the loneliness and sought out love, eventually leaving.
Some were swallowed up and killed by monsters.
The chronic manpower shortage didn’t spare even the organization known as the heir to the Sword Master’s legacy.
“I need to drag him through this no matter what. The talent is undeniable. I have to cultivate him well. First off, I’ll make sure he can hold his weight in North Korea…”
Also, since Woo-seok was an essential piece of Il-hwan’s plans, he couldn’t afford to delay his growth here.
“Get going now. We’ll set off tomorrow, so make sure to pack your belongings in the space ahead of time.”
“T-Tomorrow?!”
“It’s better to get moving rather than idle with unnecessary thoughts.”
“Ugh… understood.”
As Woo-seok stumbled out of the room, Il-hwan shook his head disapprovingly.
Thus, they found themselves on an unexpected journey together.
And after Woo-seok left, Il-hwan gazed at the ceiling and spoke.
“Young Ah.”
“Yes—”
Someone who hadn’t shown themselves responded in a chilling voice.
“Hyeon Joong-seob’s rampaging has gone too far. When will the potion be ready?”
Il-hwan chose to call out by name rather than using the title of “uncle.”
“It should be done in about two months.”
“I specifically gave you the twisted recipe of Killbard, didn’t I?”
“I apologize. The alchemist we recruited recently turned out to be more skilled than expected. They unraveled it quickly.”
“The reason I had you stay by Hyeon Joong-seob’s side was to prevent things like this. It’s too early for the potion to be released. If consumed early, we won’t be able to plan for the future.”
“…….”
“After this, Ilseom’s reputation will drop even further. My father struggled to build up the status of Ilseom…”
Il-hwan was well aware of how hard his father worked for this world. Yet, with each passing day, fewer people acknowledged that effort.
“I shouldn’t take this for granted…”
His sense of injustice only grew stronger.
Some were risking their lives to protect the world, while others, blinded by power, busied themselves with foolish acts.
“Hmm— Jang Yu-chan said he’d try to control the situation, but soon this will come to light. Make sure to feed the media appropriately. Throw them a bone big enough to smother this minor transgression.”
“Understood.”
“And… through the talk about this duel, I’ve realized something.”
“What is it…?”
Il-hwan rubbed his forehead for a moment and replied.
“When Gyeon-seob used the potion for the first time, the reactions of the opposing hunters were rather strange. Do-yeon mentioned it.”
“Strange, you say…”
“It felt as if they had prior knowledge of the potion’s existence. Of course, they pretended not to know, but Do-yeon’s instincts wouldn’t let them escape suspicion.”
“……”
“There’s a rat in our guild. Go weed them out. There are surely those enthralled by enchantments. Look into the kids who’ve been frequenting the shadow side lately; they’ve been active externally.”
“… Understood.”
A brief silence ensued.
Il-hwan nodded, then added one last thing.
“About Heo Min-sol…”
Just that statement was enough for the being named “Young” to immediately know what he desired and where his words trailed off.
“I’ll deal with it as quickly as possible.”
“Hm—”
Il-hwan nodded and subtly gestured.
Now, Hyeon Il-hwan was wholly left alone, savoring his solitude.
“My father must not go on like this…”
His voice, laced with firm resolve, echoed softly.
*
The following afternoon, we gathered in a quiet café.
“I’ll share the information gathered from the meeting and what’s to be done with Hyeon Woo-seok.”
As Joo-ah began when her comrades were all present.
First, about the punishment of Hyeon Woo-seok, who had caused this incident.
“Hyeon Woo-seok will participate in monster hunting for the next three years.”
“Oof…”
“Is that true?”
“That’s incredible! Isn’t that a heavy sentence? ”
“Right? Since they won’t always meet monsters that have information, it’s like they’ll always be risking their lives.”
It was already a known fact that several transcendents, including Hyeon Joong-gil, were at the forefront of monster hunting.
However, from a general perspective, it was something nobody wanted to do—it was practically a punishment.
Indeed, there were hunters who, after causing trouble, donned special mana restraint gear and lived out their sentences.
Some of those skilled hunters signed contracts to reduce their terms by engaging in monster hunts, showcasing the perception of monster hunting.
Hyeon Joong-gil of Ilseom bore such arduous responsibilities, which was why he was worshiped as the “Sword Master” without contention.
But having to do such tasks for an entire three years?!
“I heard Hyeon Il-hwan’s party usually takes on the ones lurking in the border territory. So he probably won’t get many drops. Monsters in those areas scatter as soon as they’re defeated, leaving behind no by-products.”
The intel Hae-yoon received from the ‘Witch’ was more valuable than expected, yet she shared it nonchalantly.
“Wow—that’s pretty harsh. It’s like providing free labor for three years.”
“Ha ha! Serves him right!”
“Still, fighting monsters should yield quite a lot of experience points, and ultimately, that should raise his level. Isn’t that a profit?”
“Hmm—considering his personality, I think he’d definitely be in pain.”
“Unless we can throw a punch ourselves, it’s out of our league to intervene.”
“Right. Even Il-wol could only inflict the slightest wound.”
“Hmm…”
Although we felt a twinge of disappointment, the fact remained that no one on our side had been harmed, making it difficult to demand much of anything.
“It unnerves me that only when someone dies or gets hurt will they hand out rewards. Their intentions were blatant.”
“Tsk… What can we do? We’re powerless.”
Anyway, since Hyeon Woo-seok would be punished one way or another, we moved past that and began talking about the rewards we had hoped for.
“Originally, when discussing compensation, they argued we got too much and were a bit taken aback.
Apparently, the tickets for the hidden dungeon are quite limited. That fool Hyeon Woo-seok must have tossed them around assuming he’d never lose.”
“So they’re not giving us anything?”
“No, they proposed to just provide information about the dungeon.”
“Which is fine since we hadn’t expected more than that anyway.”
And they even hinted that they might offer a little monetary compensation as part of the entry fee.
“More importantly, I want to discuss the most critical matter. The information regarding the first dungeon relates to monsters. It seems it’ll be quite an unusual exploration.”
Gulp—
Everyone leaned forward as soon as the word monster was mentioned, showing heightened interest.
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