The Returnee Training Camp Begins
Second among South Korea's five great guilds—Orpheus.
Its Guild Master, Jin Seo-yoon, let out a long sigh as she watched her stock price slide down the board.
"Maybe I shouldn't have just straight-up kidnapped him."
If she'd kept her hands clean, the Management Bureau would have even lent her some S-rank gate clearing rights. Instead, she'd gone and poked a hornet's nest for nothing.
Sluuurp.
Jin Seo-yoon took a sip of coffee and lifted her head slightly.
Kidnapping. Well—it wasn't as if she'd done anything fundamentally different anyway.
The Management Bureau's S-rank gate usage rights? A pittance, compared to having Hunter Lee Ji-hoon on her side.
"There's no evidence, but I'm certain of it."
"That's why we're helping you, aren't we?"
Yoon Do-ha, Guild Master of Eden—one of the five great guilds in its own right—flashed a toothy smile.
"Orpheus's money and marketing muscle, combined with Eden's technology. Together, we can uncover what's really going on with these gate anomalies."
And then his finger drifted toward the screen, landing on the image of Lee Ji-hoon.
It was camera footage of the participants in the Returnee Training Camp Project.
"So the next step is simple: we watch and we confirm. Whether he's truly the cause of all this... or whether it was all just coincidence."
Just then—
Knock, knock.
A knock, and the door burst wide open.
"Jin Seo-yoon, Yoon Do-ha. What exactly are the two of you doing in here?"
"Oh, if it isn't our dear Branch Chief!"
Jin Seo-yoon greeted him cheerfully. Her arm was still wrapped in bandages.
"...You're hardly in a position to be so friendly about it."
"Oh, come on. What's with the face, Hunter Baek Kang-hyun? We've been fighting side by side since we were kids in training school."
"Whew.... In any case—all of you had better not make a mess of this training camp. Especially—"
Baek Kang-hyun's gaze fell on the screen that Yoon Do-ha was staring at with barely concealed drool.
"If any of you so much as give Hunter Lee Ji-hoon a hard time, I will personally use the full power of the Management Bureau to grind you into paste. Politely."
"See, see? Chief, you worry too much—that's what's going to kill you someday. Isn't that right?"
"The world is worse off precisely because a mad scientist like you ended up S-rank, Guild Master Yoon Do-ha."
At that jab, Yoon Do-ha simply wore his same genial smile and gave a little shrug.
"I'll only be observing his mana patterns and characteristics, nothing more. And who knows? There might just be talent in there that transcends rankings entirely."
Just as Yoon Do-ha said, this training camp had drawn observers and recruitment teams from numerous mid-sized guilds as well—all hoping to snag promising talent if any turned up.
"Well then—"
"Pull anything shady and I will genuinely end you."
"God, you worry like it's your job. Things are different now, okay?"
"Different now?"
Yoon Do-ha tilted his head, but Jin Seo-yoon just waved a hand as if it were nothing and strolled out of the management office.
The Returnee Training Camp Project—or "Bootcamp," for short.
The project had three stated purposes.
First: the recent surge in returnees had never been given a proper stage to demonstrate their abilities, so this would provide one.
Second: returnees were largely ignorant of how Earth's common sense had changed in their absence, so they would receive basic education.
Third: top performers would be granted immediate internship placement in a guild of their choice upon completing the camp.
Three goals, each one guaranteed to set a returnee hunter's heart on fire.
And on top of that, there were no restrictions on eligibility. Even hunters who were already active in the field could seize this as a fresh opportunity.
So, to put it kindly—the applicant pool was "ordinary."
To put it less kindly—a motley rabble.
To put it bluntly—every last stray cat and stray dog calling themselves a returnee hunter had shown up.
"Wow... so this is it...."
An ordinary Korean hunter named Kim Ji-eun stood at the entrance, eyes blown wide.
The Hunter Training Academy—a facility reserved exclusively for high-rank hunters, one she'd only ever heard about in rumors. She'd never once imagined that an E-rank like herself would set foot inside it in her lifetime.
My chance finally came...!
It was true that she hadn't been kidnapped to another world (or rather, stranded there) any longer than the other returnees had. But now, at last, all that backbreaking grunt work she'd done in the other world was about to pay off.
Kim Ji-eun pulled herself together and gave her cheeks a brisk double-slap.
"Okay. Just one sip before I go in."
From her bulging, overstuffed backpack—the one she'd packed like she was moving house—she pulled out a rather unusual water bottle.
One sip of the water, and she could feel her nerves melting away.
Thus fortified, she stepped into the training hall.
Here and there, early arrivals were already settling in. Kim Ji-eun took a seat in the corner, worked up her courage, and spoke to the person beside her.
"Hi there!"
"Oh—um. Hello."
The man next to her looked timid, a bit on the meek side. Something about him seemed wary of her, too, but Kim Ji-eun wasn't about to be discouraged.
There was exactly one reason she had come here.
I am absolutely making friends this time!
She was done with being a loner hunter, and that was final!
Kim Ji-eun smiled brightly again and pressed on.
"You, um—did you come alone? I don't have any hunter friends either, so...."
"Ah, yes. I did come alone."
"Phew, what a relief! Honestly, I was hoping to make some hunter friends here. It's a short time, but let's get along well, okay?"
The man gave an awkward smile at her cheerful chattering. Phew—so he didn't mind her. And just like that, the two of them fell into small talk.
"What rank are you?"
"Oh, I'm F."
"I'm E! So we're practically neighbors. It's rough surviving at a low rank, isn't it?"
"Tell me about it. I suppose you're here for the guild placement too?"
"You too, right?! Yeah, I've got my hopes up as well. For us low-rank hunters, joining a guild is like trying to pluck a star out of the sky. Actually, there's this one guild I really like—"
Mid-sentence, Kim Ji-eun caught herself. Oops.
"Oh right, I never asked your name! What was it? I'm Kim Ji-eun."
The man hesitated for a moment before answering.
"Lee Ji-hoon."
Kim Ji-eun clapped her hands in delight.
"I'm a spirit summoner! I'm only E-rank, so I can only summon lesser spirits—and water ones at that—but I can brew a little mana-restoring water on the spot!"
She gave the distinctive water bottle from earlier a little shake to show it off.
"Ah, a summoner. I do something similar."
"Oh? What kind?"
"I'm a tamer."
At the word tamer, Kim Ji-eun tilted her head.
"You mean, like... you bond with animals and stuff?"
"Mm... yeah, something like that."
"Oh! Are those your tamed friends over there?"
She pointed at the tiny bird and baby bear frolicking at Lee Ji-hoon's side.
"Wow, they're so cute!"
The bird and the bear moved to rebuff her outstretched hand—
"Behave yourselves."
At their master's words, they screwed their eyes shut and heroically swallowed their fury.
"Sooo cute.... I actually have a cat at home, you know? So I've always been a little jealous of people who bond with animals."
"Because they can tell when you're feeling down, that sort of thing?"
"Huh?! How did you know? Oh! Do you keep pets too, Mr. Ji-hoon? I knew it! That's why you became a tamer! Tell me everything!"
Just as an excited Kim Ji-eun leaned in close—
"It's been a while, Hunter Lee Ji-hoon."
"Hah... so S-ranks get to waltz in here too, huh."
"H-h-h-hunter Jin Seo-yoon?!"
Kim Ji-eun's jaw dropped. And Jin Seo-yoon was staring at Lee Ji-hoon with eyes that practically dripped honey.
An S-rank? Why, toward an F-rank like Ji-hoon?
"Aww, what's this, what's this. Could these two be—no, surely not?"
"We're not, so please shut up. Excuse me, Hunter Jin Seo-yoon—would it kill you to just leave me alone?"
An F-rank will behave like an F-rank, thank you very much.
Ji-hoon muttered the rest under his breath, eyes narrowed. Jin Seo-yoon, meanwhile, curled her lips into a smirk and closed the distance.
"Aw, come on. Since when were you ever a typical F-rank, Mr. Ji-hoon? Back then, you handled me so... rough—"
Ji-hoon leaned to her ear and hissed a warning.
"Bring up what happened that day and I swear I'll spill every last detail about you."
"Ahahaha, sorry, sorry! Thank you for coming today."
Jin Seo-yoon offered a token gesture of thanks for what had happened at the last gate.
"Orpheus hasn't given up on you, Mr. Ji-hoon. Show us even more this time at the camp, won't you?"
"You don't need to say it—"
Because I won't show you a thing.
Ji-hoon finished the sentence in a murmur.
[Brother, if you keep talking like that, that woman is going to hear you.]
[That's right, it is. Don't tell me Brother is a pushover for women, hmm?]
"Shut up, you two!"
"Whoa, they actually talk?! Amazing, amazing! When I talk to spirits they only manage the basics—this is incredible!"
Just as Kim Ji-eun and Ji-hoon were carrying on like that, an official in a formal suit walked in and instantly commanded the room's full attention.
Huh? That person is—
Ji-hoon recognized the man's face and his eyes went wide.
"Welcome, returnee hunters! Thank you so much for taking time out of your busy schedules! I am Baek Kang-hyun, Head of Central Branch 1 of the Korean Management Bureau!"
WAAAAAAAAH—!!!
The ace of the Management Bureau. At Baek Kang-hyun's greeting, the returnees erupted into cheers.
"First, allow me to briefly explain the purpose of this camp...."
After walking them through the camp's objectives, Baek Kang-hyun swept his gaze across the room.
"Over the next six nights and seven days, you will be formed into teams and carry out team-based exercises. This is so that we can observe your full potential, so please bear that in mind and cooperate as proactively as possible. Thank you."
Applause rippled through the hall.
"So Hunter Baek Kang-hyun is grading us himself?"
"Insane. And didn't you see Seo-yoon-nim here just now?"
"We'd better impress hard. Getting into a major guild or the Bureau alone is a total win."
The S-rank head of the Management Bureau's central branch, Baek Kang-hyun. The S-rank Guild Master of Orpheus, Jin Seo-yoon. Those two names alone were more than enough to ignite the ambitions of everyone at this camp.
"Oh my god, I'm literally shaking! First Seo-yoon-nim, now Baek Kang-hyun-nim! You feel it too, right, Mr. Ji-hoon?"
"Hm? Ah, yeah. Super excited."
Ji-hoon, for his part, wore a distinctly sour expression. When Baek Kang-hyun spotted him, he flashed a faint smile.
"Now, before we get into the full schedule, allow me to introduce the camp director who will oversee this program and look after all of you."
Feels like an elementary school morning assembly.
Ji-hoon stifled a small yawn and watched a man walk up onto the stage.
"Hello, returnees. I'm Yoon Do-ha."
And this time it was Yoon Do-ha of Eden!
The cheers swelled even louder.
Two major guilds in one place! Plus the Bureau's top power player to boot!
What motivation could possibly top this?
"No way, Yoon Do-ha-nim too... I might actually faint today."
"Haah...."
Ji-hoon clutched his throbbing head.
What on earth was everyone fussing about? He'd heard Eden was one of the five great guilds, sure, but—
Then Ji-hoon's eyes locked with Yoon Do-ha's.
"...Poppy."
[Yes, Brother.]
"Doesn't that man have the same look in his eyes as Abel?"
At those words, Poppy narrowed his eyes.
[Now that you mention it... perhaps. He must be a filthy piece of work, then.]
"Let's hope it's just my imagination...."
For now, Poppy's feathers and Choco's quill-spikes weren't reacting. Probably nothing, Ji-hoon told himself, and forced his attention back to Yoon Do-ha's speech.
"We ask for your cooperation to make this camp run smoothly. We will be monitoring everything in real time—couf! —watching, so injured participants needn't worry about a thing."
Then, as if remembering one last thing, Yoon Do-ha clapped his hands together—snap!
"Oh, right. For the sake of balance, one team at this camp will have Hunter Baek Kang-hyun himself joining it directly."
Murmurmur—
On the same team as Baek Kang-hyun?
"Wouldn't that give that team a huge advantage?"
"No. Quite the opposite—it'll be a curse. Because Hunter Baek is going to be examining his teammates' abilities very, very, very thoroughly."
At those words, Baek Kang-hyun's eyes gleamed a brilliant teal.
Gulp—
He bore down on the room with crushing pressure, planting a healthy dose of dread in every heart—
"Now then, let's get this show properly on the road."
And when Baek Kang-hyun snapped his fingers—
Rrrrrumble—
Doors swung open, and large machines began rolling in on flatbed carts.
At the arrival of the imposing magical devices, every low-rank hunter in the room froze solid in an instant.
"We'll be starting with a simple body search."
It is a security-critical camp, after all.
Some grumbled—do they really have to go this far?
And Ji-hoon muttered to himself that he'd come prepared for all the tedious parts anyway.
But behind them, a few among the crowd were thinking differently.
Ha... damn it. It's all falling apart already.
Their plans had gone sideways before the camp had even begun—and they clicked their tongues in bitter frustration.