Korea's First ICO
The top floor of the Hunter Association. And the office that occupied it.
The antique design still carried the tastes of whoever had originally conceived the building, and in that impressive space, the woman who stood at the Association's absolute peak sat lost in thought.
Eyes the color of golden light. A figure no other woman could hope to match — a chest so full it looked ready to burst. The world looked at her and did not hesitate to call her the absolute sovereign of Korea's hunter industry.
Yoo Chaerin.
Already, that name alone meant the summit — at least within the industry.
Hyun Jisu.
Ever since the day he and the Holy Moon Society's "dog" had fought one-on-one, she had replayed that scene again and again. Of course she had. From her perspective, something that should never have been possible had taken place.
They called him the Strongest Hunter on Earth, didn't they? But throughout the entire match—
Chaerin flicked a long stick lying in front of her with one finger and knocked it over. A soft clack filled the empty office, little by little.
He didn't use his ability at all. At least, that's how it looked to me.
Chaerin could read it. Having been taken in early by someone who recognized what she was, having climbed to this position on her own ability alone, she could roughly gauge how strong an opponent truly was. Exact stat numbers and momentary fluctuations were beyond her, but she could at least look at a powerful person and discern whether they were the real thing.
From Hyun Jisu, she couldn't read that feeling at all. If anything, she couldn't even sense the kind of aura you'd commonly find in a C-rank hunter anywhere in the industry.
So then? Was some hidden, hunter-unique ability at work?
Even granting that, it was riddled with oddities. A hunter who displayed power transcending SS-rank without any penalty whatsoever? It wasn't as if such a thing was forbidden by the laws of the world — but wasn't it far too unfair? At the very least, every hunter of SS-rank and above that Chaerin had ever seen came with a corresponding cost if they possessed that kind of power. Something that ate into their lifespan, or some other hardship that was difficult to put into words.
That part seems to be the blind spot.
The Jisu she was looking at now, despite appearing to have no ability at all, was flaunting formidable power — at least inside a raid field.
Chaerin bit down hard on her fingernail. Words to the effect of from now on, I'd prefer you didn't step forward anymore circled around her ears. For someone who had spent her years as a being who merely reigned at the very top — half by her own will, half not — it was the first time in a long while that she felt the cells in her body opening their eyes and stirring.
This man named Hyun Jisu. I'll need to look into him more thoroughly.
The beauty who had seemed lost in a sleep from which she would never wake was slowly stretching, beginning to rise.
Jisu was waiting for someone in front of a street stall.
It had been a long time since he'd gone out. Ever since becoming a hunter, he'd spent his days at home checking coin prices, and the thought struck him that even this much social activity felt like something from another life. He wasn't the type who particularly enjoyed wandering around outside to begin with.
"Jisu!"
He turned at the welcome sound of a voice he hadn't heard in ages, smiling. Standing in front of him was the man who had believed in him, supported him, and cheered him on since the days when Jisu had been a nobody.
A somewhat slight build. A short athletic cut. A lean frame behind a pair of round-lensed glasses that left a distinct impression.
"Jihan-hyung!"
The reason Jisu had come out at all after so long was because Woo Jihan had been the one to call. Before Jisu had ever awakened to a hunter's talent, this was the man who had always brought him easy, paying work — the benefactor and mentor who had believed in him and stood by him even when he made mistakes. To Jisu, Jihan was still the one solid backing he could always trust.
"Man, it's been ages. You look like you've gotten a little more stylish since I last saw you."
"Oh — do I?"
Jisu was dressed in a clean, well-fitted casual suit. He had the looks to carry it, so just changing his clothes had given him an air of quality. Until now he'd rotated the same leather jacket, hoodie, and varsity jacket with nothing resembling actual going-out clothes, but he was earning plenty these days. There was no need to keep walking around in worn-out things.
Of course, Jisu had been planning to wear what he always wore. But Seyeon had said, You're going to meet someone who's like a benefactor to you, aren't you? I can't send you out looking shabby. Try this on. She'd put the outfit together for him, and he'd simply worn it as she'd dressed him.
"All right, shall we head in?"
"Ah, hyung. If it's all right with you, I'd like to pay today. I'm not wanting for anything in my life anymore, and you've treated me so many times. I really wanted to return the favor this time…"
Jihan waved him off.
"Come on. How am I supposed to let you treat me? Even if you're doing well now. It's not like I'm struggling."
"But still."
"Drop it. If I really hit hard times, I'll ask then."
At that, Jisu didn't push any further. He wanted to respect hyung's wishes — and if this was a matter of pride, he wanted to protect that too. In Korean society, it still wasn't common for an older man to let someone younger pick up the tab.
"Then let's go over there. We used to go all the time."
Jisu pointed at the stall in front of them. It was a place they'd sometimes dropped by to rest their exhausted bodies after a day of hard labor.
"Hey, I'm paying, so pick whatever you want without worrying. You like sashimi, right? Want to go get some of that?"
"No, hyung. I already gave up on paying, so today we're going in there."
Having already received far too much, Jisu's honest feeling was that he didn't want to impose on Jihan any further. Not that Jihan would ever have thought of it as an imposition.
Jihan seemed to understand. He nodded and stepped into the stall.
Once they were inside, two bottles of soju and a few simple side dishes ordered, the conversation of everything that had happened until now began to surface, one topic after another. Jisu started unfolding the things he'd been through — stories that, the moment he tried to explain them, sounded like something out of a dream.
"Yeah? So a hunter's talent just… woke up all of a sudden?"
"Yes. So I'm a hunter now. I'm sorry I told you so late."
They were close enough that Jisu had worried he was delivering something this important far too late, but Jihan didn't seem to mind in the slightest. He spoke with a warm, easy smile.
"That's seriously amazing! Once you become a hunter, you don't have to worry about making a living, right?"
"…It's not necessarily like that."
"Yeah? Well, I wouldn't know the details. Right — is your mother doing well?"
"Yes. There's someone who looks after her when I'm not around."
Ever since Seyeon had come into the house and started caring for his mother, Jisu had been able to set down a great deal of the weight on his heart.
"You made it. Thank god. Watching you work yourself to the bone and feeling like nobody around you even noticed — it used to eat me up inside. I'm so glad things turned out well."
There was not a trace of inferiority or jealousy in Jihan's manner. His face held nothing but the pure, uncomplicated joy of a friend succeeding, and Jisu could feel it vividly.
Where do you even find someone like this these days.
It was a harsh world in which you couldn't afford to trust anyone easily. But if you had to believe in one person, someone like Jihan was the right answer.
"So how's it going? What's your hunter rank? Ah — is it okay to ask that?"
"Ah, my rank? That's… well. It ended up being a bit on the high side, somehow."
"Yeah? B-rank? Don't tell me you're A-rank?"
Jisu's official rank was SS-rank. He was the kind of otherworldly hunter whose rank swung wildly at the drop of a hat, but if you looked him up at the Hunter Association, it came back SS. Even so, just saying Ah, yes, I'm SS-rank. Heh heh heh would have been weird in its own way. He hadn't particularly intended to hide it — but S-rank and above already made you a public figure, famous enough to count as an influencer.
While Jisu sat there not knowing how to answer, Jihan seemed to catch on well enough. He nodded.
"If there's a reason, you can tell me next time. It's not like you have to say everything."
"It's not that I don't want to tell you. It's just still… hard to put into words, exactly. Thank you for understanding."
"Sure. Anyway, you look good, and that's what matters. Being a hunter — that's not the kind of job where your life is on the line, is it?"
Jihan was like the old Jisu: a man with no hunter's talent. To people who didn't know the industry, the public face of hunting was nothing but staking your life on raids, so the worry came out of him naturally.
"I don't really know yet. I haven't done all that much, and I haven't been in a situation where my life was actually at risk."
Given Jisu's ability, he was a long way from any crisis of death unless every coin on the market crashed at once — but he didn't bother explaining that in detail to Jihan, who wouldn't have known the circumstances.
"I see. I don't know the particulars either, but they say hunting has a higher fatality rate than people think. And unless you're a fairly high rank, making money isn't that easy either. I'm glad it's working out for you, but I can't help worrying."
"Ah, I'm fine, hyung. Never mind me — how have you been lately? I think I heard you'd started something that could turn into real money."
He remembered the day he'd told Jihan he didn't need to keep bringing him work anymore — the implication in Jihan's voice that there would be plenty of money to be made going forward. Jihan had been helping him in every way he could even while running a small business on his own, so Jisu had been genuinely happy to hear it.
"Ah, right. I should tell you, shouldn't I? You've been busy, so I don't know if you've been reading the articles, but…"
Jihan filled the empty glass as he spoke. A slow glug drifted outside the rim.
"You know — that thing about a startup preparing to issue Korea's first ICO. You haven't heard?"
"I don't really read the news, but… wait, what?"
ICO? He'd heard that word somewhere before.
Jihan knocked back his drink and opened his mouth.
"Jisu. Do you happen to know what Bitcoin is? You know, the thing everyone's making a fuss about these days."
Jisu choked so hard it was painfully obvious something was wrong. He kept hacking and wheezing after that, and Jihan looked at him with concern.
"Did it go down the wrong pipe? You okay?"
"Ah — I-I'm fine, hyung. Bitcoin…. Yes. I know it."
He'd never imagined he'd end up talking about Bitcoin with Jihan-hyung, of all people. Jisu took a moment to collect himself.
Right. I knew I'd heard ICO somewhere. Coin HODL chats, signal groups, Coinler — I'd definitely seen it in places like that.
"You do? That's a relief, then…. Anyway. The CEO of the startup in that article is me."
"What?"
Jisu looked at Jihan's face. It was the same expression he'd worn even when nothing was going right — the one he put on when he shook it all off, smiled, and moved forward again. Upright. Unbreakable. Wearing that look, Jihan had always felt like a giant to Jisu, even if his actual frame was the much smaller of the two.
"I'm going to issue Korea's first ICO and list it on an exchange."
Having said that, he drained the rest of his glass clean.