—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Wjin
—————————————————————–
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Gulp—
The reporters swallowed nervously, a question forming in their minds.
‘Just how strong is he?’
Countless hypotheses flashed through their minds, but they shook their heads, dismissing them.
‘I can’t figure it out just by thinking without any expertise.’
What mattered was that a series of incredible scoops had just unfolded before their eyes. They had witnessed events worthy of record-breaking views. Seeing the reporters’ eyes gleaming, Lee Seong-joon smiled.
‘Not bad.’
It wasn’t what he had planned, but the situation itself wasn’t bad. To be precise, it was rather favorable.
‘Once these articles are published… those small fries won’t even dare to approach me.’
As a satisfied smile spread across his lips…
Whoosh—!
With a gust of wind, Ko Taehyun appeared, having leaped over the reporters’ heads, and checked on Lee Seong-joon.
“Are you alright? Are you injured?”
Fortunately, there were no visible injuries. Thinking about it, it was a natural outcome.
‘What was that summon just now?’
For assassins, the first strike was usually decisive. But the red figure that had suddenly appeared had deflected Yang Joon-hyuk’s attack with movements like a martial artist. It must have been an unexpected variable for Yang Joon-hyuk.
To be precise, it was an unexpected variable for anyone.
‘Excellent judgment and swift movements… it was clearly a high-level summon, S-rank or higher.’
Normally, summoning S-rank or higher summons required special preparations or casting time. But Hunter Lee Seong-joon had summoned it without any prerequisites.
It was a feat that would surprise even summoner-type hunters, and Lee Seong-joon was a martial artist. It was something that shouldn’t be possible.
‘…Was it a reward from the Treasure Gate?’
He was both surprised and curious, but the summon’s identity wasn’t important right now.
“I apologize. This is truly inexcusable. I should have paid more attention to your security… This is my fault.”
Ko Taehyun bowed his head and apologized. If their relationship hadn’t been good, he might have used this incident to corner Lee Seong-joon, but the Association was currently more amicable than any other group. There was no need to create conflict.
“It’s alright. It was just an accident.”
Lee Seong-joon shrugged casually and turned his gaze towards the collapsed Yang Joon-hyuk.
“I’ll leave the cleanup to you.”
Ko Taehyun had observed and interacted with Lee Seong-joon for three months. Although not completely, he understood him to some extent.
‘He’ll probably accept it as an unavoidable accident for now…’
But the aftermath would be different. The Association’s competence would be judged by how they handled this incident.
‘…We have to handle this perfectly.’
Hunter Lee Seong-joon had solo cleared a Treasure Gate.
‘He even broke the world record, demonstrating his true abilities.’
To maintain their mutually beneficial symbiotic relationship, he, the Association, also had to prove his worth. Their future relationship depended on how they handled today’s incident.
Ko Taehyun had no intention of breaking ties with Lee Seong-joon, the Association’s current hope. His eyes filled with determination, he nodded.
“We will uncover the mastermind behind this incident, even if it means mobilizing all the Association’s resources.”
“Good.”
Lee Seong-joon smiled faintly at Ko Taehyun’s satisfactory answer.
“Then, trusting in the Vice President, I’ll take my leave.”
He had achieved his original objective of establishing his presence. There were still some minor interviews left, but they were about information that could be released through the Association later.
There was no need to waste his time being held up by reporters. Although he was surrounded by reporters, making it difficult to move, it wasn’t a problem. The moment Lee Seong-joon signaled his intention to leave, Ko Taehyun nodded.
“…Please, allow us to escort you.”
The Association hunters, including Jo Kang-hyun, who had been waiting nearby, began to move as if on cue.
Tap. Tap.
A path opened through the crowd. Lee Seong-joon walked along the cleared path, got into a waiting Association vehicle, and left.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
The next day, in his office on the top floor of the Nuri Guild headquarters, Yoon Min-soo, the SSS-rank hunter known as the Sword Master, narrowed his eyes.
“Is… this information accurate?”
The report he’d just been handed contained information about Lee Seong-joon and the Treasure Gate, a matter of great concern to him. If he thought the information was false, he wouldn’t have even brought the report to him.
Park Han-taek, the 1st Information Planning Team Leader, nodded confidently.
“Yes, this information was just obtained through a contact at the Association.”
It wasn’t strictly legal, but all the major guilds, not just the top five, had informants within the Association. Yoon Min-soo was aware of this, so he usually accepted Park Han-taek’s information without question. But the contents of the report were difficult to comprehend.
“Solo clearing a Treasure Gate and breaking the world record is astonishing enough…”
And a Doppelganger had appeared as the boss monster. A fight against oneself, not one-on-one, but three-on-one. An inherently disadvantageous battle. But Lee Seong-joon had overcome it.
To be precise, he had dominated. He even had enough strength left to easily subdue the S+-rank villain Yang Joon-hyuk, the Shadow Walker.
‘Of course, there’s a possibility that Hunter Lee Seong-joon lied.’
The information from the Association was based on an interview with Hunter Lee Seong-joon himself.
‘But there’s no reason for him to lie.’
He had already cleared the Treasure Gate and broken the record. The difficulty of the boss wouldn’t change his achievements. Moreover, Yoon Min-soo had no reason to disbelieve it.
‘Underestimating and dismissing an opponent’s abilities is something only fools do.’
At this point, it was better to overestimate Lee Seong-joon’s abilities. Yoon Min-soo’s expression hardened as he pondered.
‘I made a mistake. I shouldn’t have left this to Seung-jun.’
Lee Seong-joon wasn’t just a fleeting wind. He was a dragon, a hidden dragon worthy of the name. He was at least SSS-rank, or perhaps even beyond, possibly reaching the Grand Master level, comparable to the world’s top rankers.
Of course, like other returnees, his growth could suddenly stop. But he couldn’t rely on such luck.
‘One must always assume the worst-case scenario.’
Just as he had believed the Doppelganger report. He wouldn’t be careless. A lion hunts a rabbit with all its might. This was the principle by which the current Nuri Guild was built and Yoon Min-soo’s usual mindset.
Of course, that didn’t mean he would use villains like Hwansung or personally eliminate Lee Seong-joon. Yoon Min-soo was currently the number one hunter in South Korea. The pride he had cultivated to reach that position wasn’t insignificant.
‘I will defend my position with my own hands.’
As he had said, he couldn’t rely on Song Seung-jun any longer. He had to grow stronger himself. He had to reach the Grand Master level himself.
‘It might cause some disruption if I suddenly disappear…’
But it had to be done. If he remained passive, the Nuri Guild, which he had painstakingly built, could be swallowed whole by this hidden dragon.
‘This is the only way to prevent the worst-case scenario. A necessary sacrifice for the future.’
Having made his decision, Yoon Min-soo, his eyes gleaming, began preparing for closed-door training.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
That evening, at the Bulsae Guild building.
“Master! A big fish! A super-sized fish has appeared on the market!”
A shout echoed through the office of Lee Ye-rin, master of Bulsae, one of Korea’s five major guilds. The voice belonged to Choi Chang-woo, the second SS-rank hunter of the Bulsae Guild and its vice-master. There was a reason why the vice-master himself had rushed in shouting.
“Lee Seong-joon! Hunter Lee Seong-joon has declared free agency!”
Lee Ye-rin’s eyes widened in surprise.
“What? Hunter Lee Seong-joon declared free agency?! Is that even possible?”
He was currently the most sought-after hunter in South Korea, a goose that laid golden eggs. Anyone would want him. But he was already affiliated with both the Association and the Baekho Guild. And now he’d declared free agency?
“…What’s the Association and Baekho’s reaction?”
Choi Chang-woo gulped and answered cautiously, “They’ve stated that they support Hunter Lee Seong-joon’s decision.”
“Crazy…!”
How was that even possible? While dual affiliations were rare in Korea, though not unheard of for exceptionally talented hunters, triple affiliations were different.
Even for hunters who increased a guild’s value just by being affiliated, if their contribution was split three ways, their value became ambiguous.
‘Currently, there are only about five cases of triple affiliation worldwide…’
And all of them were SSS-rank hunters, among the strongest rankers, belonging to the Guardians, a group of only nine individuals.
In short, they were transcendent beings.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
