Another Gate's Owner

As I pondered the idea of meeting another gate owner, a thought struck me that I hadn't considered before.

"What if that person has Observation too?"

That was the concern. If they had the Observation skill, they might recognize me on sight. It gave me pause. But after thinking it over, I figured the odds were low. If they'd used Observation on the Brann chickens, they wouldn't have just called them regular chickens. Of course, that could just be wishful thinking on my part. Still, I needed to confirm it for sure. I'd never met a gate owner before in my life.

From what was known, there were fewer than fifty gates in Korea—and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠thus fewer than fifty gate owners. The chances of crossing paths with one of those rare individuals were slim to none.

For now, I headed to the Cheongju Factory to meet the factory manager. First, though, I picked up Hoya. At minimum, I needed to ensure my own safety.

Nyaang! Hoya settled into the passenger seat with an expression that screamed utter annoyance. With Hoya aboard, I set off straight for the Cheongju Factory. After a couple of hours on the road, I arrived to find the factory manager welcoming me.

"Welcome."

"Good to see you again."

"Shall we head out right away?"

"No reason to wait, right?"

"Of course. I'll guide you. My car or yours?"

"If possible, mine."

We opted for my car because of Hoya. As we got in, the factory manager wrinkled his nose slightly.

"Bringing a cat along like this..."

As a pet owner himself, he frowned at the sight of Hoya in the car. It wasn't exactly normal.

"Sorry about that. She's got bad separation anxiety..."

It was a ridiculous excuse. Cats didn't usually warrant dragging them out like that—not like with dogs. That's when it happened.

Nyaang! Hoya swiftly turned on the charm for the factory manager, rolling onto her back with her belly up. It struck me as blatantly performative, but the manager seemed dazed, his mouth twitching into a smile.

"Well, not all cats are the same, I suppose. She looks healthy, no signs of stress."

Working at a pet food factory developing and managing feed, he was practically half-vet. After that little hiccup, we were on our way.

"So, he's a friend of yours?"

"Yeah, we've known each other since we were kids in the neighborhood."

"Any... personality quirks?"

This was crucial for the contract. You had to know who you were dealing with.

"Great guy. After becoming a gate owner, he even opened it up to people without restrictions."

"Have you been inside yourself?"

"Haha, what would an old guy like me do in a gate? No dreams of becoming a hunter."

In typical web novels, hunters were portrayed as rich and powerful. That made sense in those worlds. With monsters roaming ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠everywhere, hunters who could slay them would be highly valued. But in my world, no monsters had emerged from gates yet—at least, none reported. And from what Seon-woo had told me, even top hunters were barely level 20. That meant superhuman compared to normals, but not Superman-level. Sure, they might earn more than average office workers, but it was a "might"—not guaranteed.

Lots of young people dreamed of being hunters, but few actually pursued it. In my circle, Seon-woo was the only real one—and I'd only just learned that. So maybe the numbers were smaller than they seemed. Even if his friend was a gate owner, the factory manager might not have jumped into hunting.

"We're here. My friend's a reasonable guy who listens to reason, so the contract should be smooth."

"That's a relief."

I parked where he indicated and followed him into what looked like a detached single-family home. Inside was the gate—identical in appearance to the one in my room. I stared at it intently.

This gate was bidirectional like mine, owned by someone named Kang Mi-young. As I examined it, a beautiful middle-aged woman emerged from the living room.

"You're here."

"Yeah, you're out already?"

Kim Taek-su's friend was a woman. I'd vaguely assumed gate owners were men. Half the world was women—why had I thought otherwise?

"Oh, and this is...?"

"Someone from our head office."

"Hello. I'm Assistant Manager Choi Si-woo from KF."

"I got word you were coming. I'm Kang Mi-young."

I shook Kang Mi-young's hand while studying her closely. Before Observation even triggered, another alert appeared.

Her level was lower than mine, and her stats were far inferior. What stood out was the Care stat and Care skill. No farming skills, but high levels in livestock and cooking. Crucially, no Observation. That put me at ease. She couldn't tell I was a gate owner.

"We got the test results—the chickens are in excellent condition."

"Good to hear."

"But can you really supply that volume...?"

"Don't worry. They breed fast inside the gate."

"Really? I've heard gate time flows differently from ours. Is that it?"

"Where'd you hear something weird like that? Do other gates work that way? What about you?"

The factory manager looked just as surprised by Kang Mi-young's question.

"First I've heard of it. Where'd that come from, Si-woo?"

"Oh, just some internet rumor, haha."

They both nodded.

"Yeah, a lot of gate info gets exaggerated. Not sure about others, but ours is like that."

"I see. So what's inside your gate...?"

"Lots of animals, mostly herbivores. There are carnivores, but small ones—not dangerous to people. Not many visitors because of that."

If that's all there was, leveling up would be tough. It probably wasn't popular with aspiring hunters.

"Just chickens?"

"No, cows and pigs too. They look a bit different, but still cows and pigs. Been looking for horses, but no luck yet."

Kang Mi-young clearly loved her gate. Her personality seemed perfectly suited to it.

"Anyway, if supply's steady, let's contract."

"Sure, I'll take a look."

"Take your time."

"Want to check out the gate while you do?"

Tempting. But Hoya tugged at my leg. A clear don't go in. I didn't fight it.

"Nah, I'm kinda chicken, haha."

"I get it. Not everyone needs to go in."

I'd need to talk to Hoya later. She'd definitely tried to stop me. With her intelligence and spirit dwarfing mine, there had to be a reason.

"I'll review this."

"Sure."

As Kang Mi-young pored over the contract, a few people emerged from the gate. I Observed them. Levels mostly 4 to 6. Combat skills like archery, swordsmanship, spear arts. One had a trap skill. No lifestyle skills. No special stats either. Unlike Seon-woo. Maybe gates varied—or people did.

"Good work."

"You too."

They greeted each other and Kang Mi-young before heading out, carrying animal carcasses and plants from the gate. Observation showed effects like stamina recovery or vitality boosts. Nothing for raising stats. That seemed to be this gate's specialty.

"Who are they?"

"Oh, they pay a daily fee to hunt. Stuff from our gate sells well."

"Got it."

The system was clear now. She let people in for a fee and ran farms inside. Multiple livestock operations, from the sound of it.

"Can't others build livestock pens too?"

"Weirdly, their animals don't breed fast. Must be a gate owner perk."

"Yeah, could be."

Gate owners had privileges. I'd vaguely thought so, but another owner confirming it meant there was more to it than I realized. Access control, internal perks...

Kang Mi-young scrutinized the contract thoroughly before signing. Through her, I learned a few more things about gates.

After wrapping up the contract, I skipped the office and went straight home. Then I asked Hoya,

"Hoya, you were saying not to go in there, right?"

Nyaang! An affirmative meow.

"Would it be dangerous for me?"

Nyaang! That too, apparently.

"Why?"

Nyaang nyaang nyaang nyaang nyaang! She seemed eager to explain, but cat speech was beyond me without the nuances. Still, one thing was clear: Hoya instinctively knew I shouldn't enter. Maybe the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠flip side of gate owner privileges—a penalty of sorts?

"Well then, now what I need to do is."