Chapter 18
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 18
Chapter Title: 17. Club
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Korean Hunter Association.
Around the time when the Hunter Community and the Academy's anonymous board were buzzing hotly over the Black God Cult issue, Vice Chairman Jeong Na-yoon of the Hunter Association felt something off about this incident.
"It's strange. For a mere training dungeon, the demonic energy was way too thick. Even if that monster Kim Seung-jun leaked it, no human could withstand that."
"Huh? Didn't those folks hold up?"
The hunters who had gone into that dungeon—Kim Bbeom-mi, and the Hansung Academy first-year cadets Reina and Han Su-ji—had all come out fine, hadn't they?
"According to Cadets Han Su-ji and Reina, they barely hung on fighting for their lives, and Yoo Eun-ha handled it all by herself."
"Maybe Yoo Eun-ha is better than we thought?"
She was the crazy cadet who scored a 9999 on the wooden dummy test on day one.
Of course, she was Yoo Jin-seok's little sister—no, she might even surpass him. Guilds were already eyeing her.
Rumors even swirled that villain organizations wanted to recruit her. That said it all.
"If Reina or Kim Bbeom-mi, being archers or mages at B-rank or higher, sniped Kim Seung-jun from range, sure. But Yoo Eun-ha's a close-combat type. She'd have to take the demonic energy head-on. And yet she pressured the monster at speeds invisible to active hunters?"
Even ignoring her strength, her speed alone had already surpassed Yoo Jin-seok's.
That was what bothered the vice chairman.
"Didn't they say she fought and collapsed? Could be the demonic energy."
"Cadet Han Su-ji said it was nicotine withdrawal, and Cadet Reina said it was from overusing her abilities. A kid her age isn't chain-smoking enough to collapse from withdrawal, so probably the latter. But that proves she wasn't affected enough by the demonic energy to spam abilities in it."
Demonic energy fundamentally disrupts a person's mana circuits, interfering with unique abilities and skill use.
The longer it's eroded by demonic energy, the more the mana circuits get corrupted, eventually awakening the person as a monster.
So what exactly was she trying to say?
"Come to think of it... What are you getting at?"
"The demonic energy detected in that dungeon is thick enough that even A-rank hunters can barely endure it. No matter how talented she is at her age, she can't have S-rank or higher capability, or she wouldn't have collapsed."
Vice Chairman Jeong Na-yoon's words made Chairman Choi Cheol-shik's face go pale.
She was beating around the bush, but it all boiled down to one thing.
"Are you saying you suspect Yoo Jin-seok's sister, Yoo Eun-ha, is a monster?"
"Not exactly, but it wouldn't hurt to have the Association or a guild monitor her with some skilled hunters, just in case. There's also the chance the Black God Cult might retaliate. Hunter Yoo Jin-seok would accept that."
"If Yoo Jin-seok heard the truth, he'd be pretty bummed."
Choi Cheol-shik sighed.
Of all people, Yoo Jin-seok's sister getting monster suspicions. But there were enough red flags to not just let it slide.
In that case, dispatching hunters under the pretext of protecting her from Black God Cult retaliation made sense.
"What about Kim Seung-jun's family?"
"His mother went into a vegetative state after Kim Seung-jun attacked her that morning. His sister, Kim Ji-seon, works in the Association's admin office. She said it was a relief the kid who tormented their parents died as a monster. Apparently, she's been covering his tuition because of their mom for a while."
The Kim Seung-jun family was perfectly ordinary. He didn't have exceptional hunter talents either. Naturally, entering the academy via general admission meant hefty tuition.
After pouring her savings into her brother, only for him to become a Black God Cult monster—it was understandable.
"At least that's a relief. Send them some condolence money, appropriately."
"Yes, sir."
Monster or not, they lost a son and a brother. It was only right for the Association to provide condolences.
Of course, Yoo Eun-ha was getting a much larger reward bounty.
In the end, I couldn't ask the protagonist anything.
This world was too twisted from the original. I was scared that asking would lead to answers I didn't want.
No way.
The protagonist couldn't have regressed. At least, not the original I knew.
Even after discharge, the doubts lingered.
What could I even do if I looked into it?
"It's probably just coincidence."
Maybe read a book.
Come to think of it, the old Yoo Eun-ha must've been a bookworm—her shelves were packed.
What kind of novels were these?
I got curious and pulled one out. It was about mythology.
European myths or religions from the Persian region, like Iranian ones.
"What is this? Was Yoo Eun-ha really this into religion and myths?"
Atropos? Nyarlathotep? What? Why obsess over this boring stuff?
Evil dragon Azi Dahaka?
What the hell. No, don't read it. My head hurts. No need for this deep stuff.
I'm barely surviving my own life—what does it matter what the old Yoo Eun-ha knew?
—Don't come to the academy for a while. Got it? I told the others.
I didn't know what Choi Si-woo said, but Reina and Han Su-ji kept texting.
All mushy, affectionate messages flooding my inbox.
As someone not from this world, I had no reason to be loved. So I deleted all the lovey ones.
"Guess I still don't know when the event kicks off."
Kim Seung-jun's monsterization signals the story's real start.
That's when Choi Si-woo begins powering up at the academy.
No way catching one monster left him frail. That guy's too worrywart anyway.
"The outside vibe feels off too."
I'm not a clueless idiot.
Since discharge, I hadn't left the house.
A total shut-in now.
From day one out of the hospital, something's been watching me outside.
Maybe Black God Cult retaliating for killing their follower, or Association people.
"Forced break from school isn't bad."
What about Choi Si-woo? For me to survive, he needs to protagonist his way through.
No, why should I listen to him?
Logically, no reason to stay cooped up.
They're not raiding the house, so those presences are probably Association guards protecting me.
Shouldn't I be the one monitoring Choi Si-woo?
Yeah. As a third-party observer, I have a duty to watch how the original unfolds. So I gotta go to the academy.
Who is he to treat me like an invalid and bar me?
"Pissing me off all of a sudden?"
I threw on my crumpled academy uniform and stormed out.
By late morning, I strutted into the academy just before being late.
I casually scanned the cadets in Class 1-A.
My story had spread widely, so all eyes locked on me.
Some friendly and admiring, some sticky stares, plenty wary too.
"Huh? Aren't you out today?"
"Hey, class rep. Morning."
A short-haired girl in glasses greeted me warmly.
I didn't bother remembering extras' names—too trivial—but she fit the class rep look.
"You okay? That must've been rough."
"I'm fine."
Kim Seung-jun was doomed anyway.
Killing him before the Black God Cult reclaimed the core was a good move.
Time to shine as Class 1-A's hero.
"Yoo Eun-ha. You okay?"
"That had to be tough."
Cadet reactions split to extremes.
One side saw me as the hero who beat the monster. The other, a merciless killer who offed a fellow cadet, monster or not.
The latter probably stung more from inferiority over my feats. Still, killing a peer like Yoo Eun-ha would unsettle them.
The former were mostly second- and third-years.
First-years were rookies without real hunter resolve, clueless about the Black God Cult or this rotten world. Upperclassmen knew better and envied the monster-slaying achievement.
"Oh, and Eun-ha. Interested in clubs?"
The class rep following me asked.
"Kinda."
Club activities were peak school life, right?
I'd try it once. Never did in my old life.
"Hit five members, you can start a new one or join an existing club."
"We can make our own?"
"Yeah, club budgets overflow anyway. Hunter Association funds them."
Still, joining an existing one sounded good.
The list had swordsmanship, magic research, magitech club, movie club, gaming club—tons of variety.
"Internet broadcasting's popular even now."
Internet Broadcasting Club.
Not just global games, mukbangs, or chit-chat—but hunter-focused streams.
Fitting for a hunter academy club.
Looks fun. Probably dungeon runs on camera.
"This could be good."
"Broadcasting? Didn't peg you for that."
I didn't love streams.
Saw some game ones early on, but felt like time sink.
"Popular here?"
"Kinda dying now. Black God Cult rumors in dungeons mean guild dungeons only for streams now. Costs too much manpower."
"Ah, the Black God Cult."
Those guys ruin everything.
Maybe skip clubs altogether. Wait.
Internet Broadcasting Club. Leader's Lee Yoo-jeong.
Lee Yoo-jeong's one of protagonist Choi Si-woo's heroines.
In the original, he joins under dungeon pretext, bonds with her.
Undeterred by Black God Cult threats, they dungeon together trusting only his Divine Sword, love blossoms.
Eventually... that kind of relationship.
Especially rolling around in the club room...
"...That bastard."
Lucky son of a bitch.