The White-Haired Hunter
The white-haired hunter.
Her white hair scattered on Antico's wind, catching the light and shimmering like silk. Peach-pink eyes softened her features, yet the cut of her gaze was sharp as a blade's edge — a quiet warning that she was no gentle soul. A face so striking it seemed sculpted by design, and for that very reason it drew every eye. The massive greatsword, utterly mismatched to her slender frame, only made her stranger still.
White hair and a greatsword.
Lately, a hunter who had set Antico ablaze with talk had shown herself at the Association grounds.
Selene, Antico's receptionist, had heard the stories too. Spend enough time greeting hunters and every rumor in the city found its way to you eventually.
The cold-blooded monster hunter who had emerged from the floodlands. The one who never stopped until her white hair ran red. And a user of Flowing Water — an ancient greatsword technique even the Association never spoke of.
Selene found the rumors absurd.
The white-haired hunter she knew was a girl who had only just become a hunter. She hadn't looked the part, either. The Alice Selene knew was a little socially awkward, but pure enough to light up at the thought of becoming a hunter.
"Hello, Hunter."
Even standing face-to-face with her now, Selene still couldn't quite believe the talk.
"What kind of request are you looking for today?"
"…I'm not looking for one."
Alice shook her head at Selene's words.
"Then what brings you in?"
"…Completing a request."
"I don't believe you have any requests currently on file, Hunter."
"Matillo's request. I took it verbally."
Selene pressed her lips together at that.
Blacksmith Matillo had filed a request just yesterday. He'd also left word that if the white-haired hunter came in, she was to be paid the full reward even if she failed. Fair enough — asking a Rank 1 hunter to take down a Kakari alone was a tall order to begin with. Was it even possible?
A mid-tier hunter who'd bagged a Kakari dozens of times could manage it, sure. That was how Selene had priced the job in her head.
Which meant Alice was at least that caliber.
"The request target is a Kakari, though."
"…Here."
Alice shattered every one of Selene's expectations.
Inside her bundle were Kakari byproducts. No receptionist who handled hunter requests and payouts day in and day out could fail to recognize them.
"…You did this alone? The request was restricted to solo completion."
"I'll vouch for her."
It was Noah who backed her up.
A five-year veteran like Noah had no reason to lie about something like this. And what would lying even gain her? A false claim would only hurt her own standing.
If it had been a lie, that would be one thing — but the fact that it was true made it all the more astonishing.
Clearing a Kakari solo on her very first request.
The hunter growth Selene knew didn't look like this. Normally you started with Pienos and worked your way up until you reached Kakari. Skipping the beginning entirely was something else entirely.
"…All right."
So the rumors weren't completely baseless after all.
Soloing a Low-grade monster this early meant she was a genuine prospect. Most exceptional hunters announced themselves with feats just like this — a trail of the extraordinary. But had there ever been a talent who stirred up this kind of talk from Rank 1?
Selene brought out the reward.
What Matillo had left was nothing more than money. But for Alice, it meant far more. She had earned Matillo's trust — and a reputation for clearing a Kakari at Rank 1.
"Here, I'll update your hunter card. Could you hand it over?"
"…Mm."
Name:Alice
Rank:3
[Kakari]
Alice wouldn't stop here. She would keep expanding that list of monsters, keep building herself up. Selene smiled to herself as she looked at the hunter card.
How far would Alice go? Perhaps a new Master might even be born.
Of course, that was nothing more than a pleasant daydream. Alice was still a rookie. Far too early for expectations like that. But if a new Master did rise in this peaceful age, that would make for a rather delightful story of its own.
Selene handed the hunter card back to Alice.
Alice glanced at her card, then held it out for Noah to see.
"My rank went up."
"So it did. Kakari is a pretty tough monster for a beginner. Plus it was your first request, and you took it down alone — they give you a lot of credit for that."
"Didn't go up much."
"Well, Kakari is a Low-grade monster."
"Mm."
Alice sounded thoroughly unsatisfied. Watching from the side, Selene chuckled softly.
My rank had hit 3, but according to Noah, that was already a generous jump. Normally you'd challenge something like that as a group, so the credit would be split among everyone. I'd gotten the full settlement alone — of course it looked decent.
Still, it was a little disappointing. A whole day of tracking and killing monsters, and all I got was Rank 3.
The Kakari had been a relatively quick find. If I hadn't spotted its trail that day, who knows how many days it would have taken.
Hunters went through all that hardship just to scrape up a pitiful rank increase. Then again, the honor of taking down a monster was unmatched by anything else in hunter society, so maybe it made sense. And if you wanted to make money, you didn't have much choice.
Being a hunter carried enormous risk to begin with.
Imagine packing up a mountain of gear and heading out, only for the monster to refuse to show itself for days on end. You burn through money, time, and stamina — and if you get hurt by accident, you're finished for real.
When I went after the Kakari, I'd packed light with the intention of just camping in the trees. But the proper way was to haul a full backpack. Find a safe zone, catch a few hours of sleep, eat, and keep tracking the monster. That was the daily grind.
Compared to most people, I'd been absurdly lucky this time.
And there was no guarantee that luck would hold.
Well. Beginner's luck, maybe. It was my first request, after all.
"Alice, so what now?"
With Matillo's request settled, what came next was already decided. Take other requests and hunt monsters. Keep upgrading weapons and armor with monster materials, and push past these lower-tier creatures toward the higher-grade ones.
"You're a higher-ranked hunter, right, Noah?"
"…Well, for now, yeah?"
"Then… can you come with me? I want to learn."
I needed to get used to party play for the long run. I couldn't just hunt monsters alone forever. Fighting itself was one thing — but the process leading up to a fight was especially brutal. If the actual battle took a day, getting there could take several more.
Tracking the Kakari had made me realize my own strength wasn't enough. If I hadn't been alone, it might have taken longer, but I could have managed my condition better while taking it down.
Honestly, the reason I'd gotten hit by that breath attack was pure exhaustion from the forced march. If I'd paced my stamina even a little better, I could have finished it with a perfect no-hit clear.
"Of course."
"I'm not being a burden, am I?"
"No. I'm still lacking myself, so…"
Honestly, I wondered if this was okay. Noah's rank was far higher than mine. She must still have plenty of her own work to do.
But Noah just smiled and said it was fine.
I'd been half-afraid she'd turn me down. She was the person I was most familiar with, and she'd already helped me so much. I was starting to lean on her without even realizing it. Grateful, and guilty.
If it were mutual help, that would be one thing — but it felt like I was the only one with a straw stuck in Noah, and that left me more than a little uneasy.
"Hey."
While I was lost in that spiral of thought, someone spoke to me.
A man with brown hair and a rather friendly face.
"…Who are you?"
"Ah, hey. I'm a hunter too."
"What do you want?"
I wanted to sound at least somewhat friendly, but this body absolutely refused to allow it.
"Want to party up with us? I've heard a lot about you — the white-haired hunter."
"…Uh. About me?"
"Yeah. They say you fight really well."
So the rumors were combat-related after all. At best it was just, She doesn't get hit and fights well! I stared at the man in silence.
Our eyes met. He blinked, scratched his face, and looked away from my gaze.
"…You really are pretty, though. Just like the rumors said."
He said it in a daze, and honestly, it left me feeling a little strange. I'd originally been a guy. Getting that kind of look from another man felt… off. Not a great feeling.
"Anyway, we're heading out on a request soon. Want to come along if you're free?"
"Sorry."
"Yeah? Well, got it."
He gave up fast. Refreshingly so, without any hard feelings. He probably hadn't expected a yes even as he asked.
I watched his back as he returned to his group. His party gave him a hard time, and he just laughed it off with an easygoing haha.
Didn't seem like a bad person.
"Would've been fine to go with them, you know?"
Noah said so too. Even to her eyes, the guy seemed like a decent sort. For Noah — who'd been so blunt with Matillo — to say that much meant something.
…Of course, Matillo was the kind of person who'd come off as pure trouble if you didn't know his backstory. He was only a good person to players. He'd earned every bit of that reputation himself.
"They've got three right now. Probably short one person. Two guys and one girl — if you joined, the gender balance wouldn't be bad either…"
"Mm. I'm fine."
Noah studied the other party calmly as she spoke, but I shook my head.
"I already said I'd go with you."
"…Aigoo."
Noah set a hand on my head.
"So first, you want to learn how party work is supposed to go, right? Then learn about parties from me. Later you can put one together yourself and try it out."
"Yeah. Sounds good."
"Right. Teach you one thing and you figure out ten. You'll pick it up fast."
"Don't worry."
I nodded and puffed out my chest. I was thoroughly confident about this too.
"Then… shall we start slow again from Pienos?"
"Huh?"
"Just because you took down a Kakari doesn't mean you can jump straight past it. One step at a time."
Ah, no…!
Anything below that is so boring…!
"Don't make that face."
Noah took hold of my cheeks and stretched them upward. I had no choice but to surrender.
Fine. I'd think of it as learning…