Chapter 35: The Secret Behind the Scenes
“Ch-Choi, Assistant Manager Choi, are you okay?”
“Ah, yeah. My hand just moved on its own.”
A dagger was clutched in my hand. I scanned it with Observation, but it wasn't some item or anything special. Just your standard-issue military dagger.
The key point was that it was a military dagger. Something a civilian couldn't easily get their hands on. The main users would be special forces soldiers.
Regular army units wouldn't typically carry these. So, that meant this hunter named Gyeong Jin-su was probably involved with the military somehow—or belonged to a gate under military management.
“Th-that crazy bastard threw a weapon at a person?”
Jung Manager seemed furious. Of course, he didn't shout it out loud. Who knew what else this lunatic might hurl? He sidled behind me for cover.
“Choi, you were special forces or something, right?”
Could special forces really catch a flying dagger like that? I didn't bother denying it, though. Right now, what Jung Manager thought of me mattered less than this guy, Gyeong Jin-su.
What was interesting was that one of them was glaring at me like he wanted me dead for catching the dagger. Gyeong Jin-su himself.
“Y-you... you're the one sent to kill me.”
At this point, I had no choice but to hesitate. Taking down Gyeong Jin-su wouldn't be hard. Just like how I'd effortlessly snatched the dagger he'd thrown moments ago.
But that would lead to problems afterward. My identity as a gate owner would likely get exposed.
Damn it, should I just go all out?
That was when a familiar silhouette caught my eye. Extremely familiar. Adorable. Lovable.
And then.
Meow!
Thwack!
Along with a familiar, cute sound, something flashed against the back of Gyeong Jin-su's head. Then Hoya vanished like a ghost.
Our house to here was about a 30-minute drive. Even if cats could outrun humans in short bursts, their stamina wasn't that great. Cheetahs might be fast, but could they sprint 10 kilometers nonstop? Absolutely not. They couldn't sustain it.
A normal cat might make it here, but it'd be exhausted. Hoya wasn't a normal cat, though. She had to be close to the strongest entity in this world, whatever her exact level.
So, her showing up and knocking out Gyeong Jin-su wasn't all that surprising. What was surprising was her perfect timing.
Is my Hoya a hero or something?! The thought flashed through my mind.
But she'd probably come here because of me. Thanks to her, I didn't need to reveal my abilities anymore.
“What just happened?”
“No idea. That crazy guy just dropped like a sack.”
“Whoa, is this what they call divine punishment?”
The people from our department started chattering.
Gyeong Jin-su convulsed, his body shuddering violently, before passing out completely. I checked his status window again. Everything else was the same, but the special note had vanished.
And shortly after.
Black vans arrived at the scene.
Several black vans pulled up where Gyeong Jin-su had collapsed. Soldiers in uniform poured out—about a dozen of them, fully armed. They surrounded him.
A few more arrived and scanned the bystanders. Checking for smartphones.
A man with a very friendly face approached our group.
“Sorry about this. Could I see your phones for a moment?”
In this day and age, who listens to that? But surprisingly, our department folks handed them over without hesitation. I followed suit, playing along.
While doing so, I scanned the man.
Kim Myeong-jin (Level 21)
Class: Hypnotist
Skills: Hypnosis (Active) Lv. 5
Crazy. I cursed inwardly.
His class was Hypnotist. That explained why everyone obeyed so readily.
Then an alert popped up.
Opponent is attempting hypnosis.
Will you resist?
The system informed me. Kim Myeong-jin was trying to hypnotize me.
Resist.
• Opponent's level is lower: Resistance succeeded.
• Mental Resistance (Passive) Lv. 3 skill created.
• Spirit +3.
What? Is this guy Santa Claus? He gave me a skill and boosted my Spirit. Talk about gifts.
Of course, I couldn't exactly feel warmly toward someone who'd tried to hypnotize me in the first place.
Still, I played along like the others. Kim Myeong-jin had no idea his hypnosis had failed on me.
“Thank you for your cooperation. Now, the one who caught this dagger...?”
“That was our Assistant Manager Choi.”
One of the female employees pointed me out, and Kim Myeong-jin looked my way.
“Are you a hunter?”
“Just a company man.”
“So, not a hunter?”
Of course not. I was a gate owner, not a hunter.
“Yes.”
“I see. Lucky, then?”
“Pardon?”
“Ah, nothing. Now, everyone, look at me for a moment. I'll erase what happened here from your memories. Simple, right?”
“Yes!”
“Sure.”
They all answered in unison. I mouthed the words along with them.
“Alright, go about your business. Thanks for your help.”
This seemed routine for them—Gyeong Jin-su was already loaded into a van, which peeled out. Kim Myeong-jin scanned the area one last time before getting in, muttering.
“At least no victims today. Let's go.”
From his words, I pieced a few things together. This wasn't their first rodeo. Just consider the time from incident to arrival.
And Kim Myeong-jin, the hypnotist. He wasn't a gate owner, yet he had that skill. He used it to manipulate memories.
If my level had been lower, I'd have fallen under it and might've spilled that I was a gate owner when he asked if I was a hunter.
The puzzling part? Even after I—a supposed civilian—caught the dagger, he didn't suspect much. Anyone in his line of work should know that wasn't just luck.
Maybe a skill backlash?
He'd tried hypnotizing me, but I resisted. Instead of simple failure, perhaps it rebounded on him.
Since I didn't say anything contradictory, he bought my story too easily. Whether from overconfidence in his skill or the backlash, I couldn't say.
“Lunch break's almost over. Why are we still hanging around?”
At Section Chief Kang's words, everyone checked the time.
“Let's hurry.”
“Huh? What just happened?”
“What do you mean?”
“Never mind. Whatever. Back to the office, quick.”
Jung Manager's group headed off. I spoke up.
“Hold on, I think I see a client over there. Just gonna say hi real quick.”
“Sure, grab a coffee on them.”
“Got it, Manager.”
Such things were routine for sales reps, so he shrugged it off and led the team away.
I slipped into a narrow alley crammed with AC outdoor units between buildings.
Meow.
Sure enough, Hoya was there.
“Hoya! Why'd you come all this way?”
Meow meow!
Meow meow meow!
“You sensed I was in danger? From a scrub hunter like that?”
Hoya shot me a look like I was an idiot.
“Kidding. I'd have been in trouble without you.”
I scooped her up. Cats out on the street usually pick up that distinct road smell humans miss. Like how you notice it on a dog after a walk.
But Hoya had none of it. I figured it wasn't just because she's a cat. Probably because she's special.
“You can open doors, huh?”
She flinched. Busted.
Meow?
Playing innocent? But I'm not that easily fooled.
“No more sneaking out doors like that, got it?”
Meow!
She rubbed her face against mine, full aegyo mode. Irresistible. I caved.
I didn't know how she tracked me here, but she clearly came for me.
“Thanks for today. Let's head to my car. Early quitting time.”
She could get home alone, sure. But after coming all this way for me? No way I'd send her off like that. Humans would treat a person to a meal; for a cat, I'd take her myself.
I let her rest in the car, told Jung Manager I had an errand outside, and he approved without fuss. My solid work record helped—and even with memories wiped, he'd subconsciously remember I saved him.
Thus, I headed home with Hoya.
“This isn't something to take lightly. Hunters causing incidents? Probably happens more than we think, right?”
Meow.
“That's why they have that dedicated response team. A hypnotist, though? Never saw that coming.”
Hypnosis was controversial. But in reality, it was used for therapy or other purposes.
What if it manifested as an official skill inside a gate? The effects would be insane.
I figured that's why hunter accidents and gate stuff stayed under wraps.
Headbutting bare ground? Tough, like my failed magic attempts.
But a trained hypnotist turning it into a skill in a gate? Easy. Like how I got Cooking without hassle.
Not some grand mind control—just Hypnosis. That had to be the key hiding gate secrets right now.
And one more thing.
“Turns out Spirit isn't just mana capacity.”
Resisting hypnosis bumped it by 3. Had to be tied to resistance skills.
“Hoya, time to grind some levels.”
Meow!
No guarantee today was a one-off. We dodged it, but I needed intel on Kim Myeong-jin.
Before that, though—like Hoya said—leveling up came first.