The Association President's Summons
Feels like it's been ages since I last came here.
This was the first time Hyun Jisu had set foot in the Hunter Association Headquarters since Heeyeon — then the test director — had summoned him, back when Justice Coin had skyrocketed and he'd grown powerful. The memory was still vivid, as if it had happened only last week, yet a surprising amount of time had already slipped by.
They say time flies faster as you get older. Is that actually true?
It was a rather pretentious thought for a young man who was still only twenty-five, but like anyone else, Jisu was entitled to the freedom of idle speculation.
With those useless thoughts occupying his mind, he was just about to step through the entrance of the Hunter Association Headquarters when he stopped cold.
"...?"
Jisu could only stand there, dumbfounded by the spectacle unfolding before his eyes. A red carpet had been rolled out inside the building, and on either side, people in immaculate suits stood with their hands clasped in front of them, every last one of them facing his direction.
What the hell is this?
Before Jisu could even open his mouth, the young people before him looked at him in unison and bowed their heads deeply.
"Welcome, Hunter Hyun Jisu!"
A voice rang out from right beside him as well.
"Welcome, Hunter Hyun Jisu!"
A sudden barrage of greetings.
"Ah — yes. Hello."
After that somewhat awkward exchange, the woman at the front walked over to Jisu and spoke.
"We've been expecting you, Hunter Hyun Jisu. This way, please."
She bowed at the waist, ushering him along with exaggerated gestures of her hands and feet. Jisu waved her off at the excessively deferential display.
"You really don't need to be so formal. If you could just relax a bit..."
"That won't do. Now, this way, please."
Jisu started to say something, then promptly gave up. No matter what he said, it didn't seem like it would get through to these people.
They call me to headquarters out of nowhere, and this is what they pull?
Following her lead, he looked around. It was clearly some kind of secret passage — like those VIP-only routes they supposedly had at airports. Once they boarded the elevator, he considered striking up a conversation with the woman beside him, but her robotic demeanor made him abandon the idea. All he could do was wait for the ride to end.
How high had they gone?
"This way, please. Hunter Hyun. It was an honor to escort you, even if only briefly. I'll take my leave."
"Yes, thank you."
And so he exchanged farewells with the woman who had guided him this far. After the elevator doors closed, he turned around and surveyed where he'd arrived.
Where am I?
The interior was reminiscent of a European castle. Whether it was historically accurate, he honestly had no idea — it was simply a hallway that gave off that kind of vibe. The floor was a black-and-white checkered pattern, and on either side, decorative suits of armor stood guard like sentries.
I knew the building had this kind of aesthetic, but whose taste is this, exactly?
The room where he'd once lost consciousness and fallen asleep had this same feel, too — a chandelier hanging from the ceiling, antique wooden furniture. The more he looked around, the more remarkable it seemed that a building like this even existed in Korea.
There's only one way to go... Looks like a one-way path.
Jisu started walking forward. The sound of his own footsteps echoed with unusual volume in his ears. How far had he walked before a door finally came into view — a massive pair of double doors that opened outward on both sides.
Do I just go in through here?
He was still debating whether to open the door or knock first when a woman's voice came from the other side.
"?!"
Was this a voice he'd never heard before? He had a faint sense that he'd heard a similar one sometime in the past... or maybe he hadn't. Either way, it was clearly someone who'd been watching him approach. He opened the door and stepped inside.
A creak, and then the interior of the room came into view.
This is...?
The room was an ordinary office. Aside from the interior matching the building's overall aesthetic, nothing particularly stood out. More than the room itself, what seized Jisu's attention was the woman inside it.
Yes — he'd seen her before. Long, platinum hair falling straight down her back. Vivid golden eyes. A chest so large it looked ready to split her clothes at the seams. Thighs wrapped in stockings that seemed on the verge of bursting.
The only woman permitted to stand at the very peak of Korea's hunter world.
"This is the first time we've met since the duel, Hyun Jisu."
It was Yoo Chaerin, President of the Hunter Association.
"Why won't they let me cover anything today?"
He'd started out so motivated, but how many days had it been now of just loitering around the Hunter Association Headquarters with nothing to show for it? Jeong Seok could only click his tongue at the bitter taste in his mouth. On top of that, today he hadn't even been allowed to hang around the Association at all.
They kicked me out even after I showed my press credentials. Something must be going on, right?
Having come here determined to land a story, he wanted to take something — anything — back with him. But all he'd done so far was wander the area and survive on cup ramen, so Jeong Seok himself was just as frustrated as anyone.
I figured the Strongest Hunter on Earth would show up at the Association at least once.
There'd been a strange sense of anticipation when he'd started, but thinking about it rationally, there was no particular reason for the man to come to the Association. It was just a journalist's hunch that he might. But Jeong Seok was a rookie reporter, and that only made him more anxious about his lack of results.
I'll just look around until today, that's it.
Since he'd been kicked out, there wasn't even anything more to look at. Still, since he'd already come out, he decided to kill time until the end of the day, glancing around the area once more as the hours drifted by. Jeong Seok plopped down on a nearby bench.
What should I cover tomorrow...
He might not have much to show for it, but at the very least, Jeong Seok was living diligently.
"So? Hyun Jisu. The reception we prepared — were you satisfied?"
"By reception, you mean... all the greeting and bowing and everything?"
Chaerin, her expression unwaveringly serious, offered nothing more than a light nod. Jisu let out a long sigh.
"It was a bit over the top."
"Was it? I'll tone it down next time."
"No, I mean the reception itself... Never mind."
He briefly considered how to even begin explaining, but facing Chaerin's earnest expression, it seemed pointless. He gave up.
"Right. Anyway, I called you here, Hyun Jisu."
"...Why do you keep talking down to me, though? You don't look that much older than I am."
Jisu was generally a polite person, but that only applied when the other party respected certain boundaries. If Chaerin had clearly been much older at a glance, he wouldn't have minded — but no matter how he looked at her, she seemed around the same age.
"Hyun Jisu. You can speak casually with me too. That's fine."
"...Haa."
Jisu sighed deeply once more. So she was this type of woman. It was hard to put into a neat, intuitive explanation, but people like this did exist.
There's no malice in her words, and she doesn't seem to be looking down on me. I should just let this slide.
"No. I'm more comfortable speaking this way."
"Is that so? Then let's get to the point. I called you here. There's something I'd like to look into."
"Something you'd like to look into?"
Her beautiful voice carried the intense, commanding presence of the Hunter Association President. An ordinary person would have felt fear facing Chaerin, and that wouldn't have been strange at all. But Jisu wasn't intimidated in the slightest, and he was holding his own just fine.
"That's right. It's about a raid. I'd like you to participate in one. In secret."
Jisu couldn't help thinking that everyone at the Hunter Association seemed to have so many secrets, but he answered without letting it show — or rather, he was supposed to have.
"Why do you Hunter Association people have so many secrets?"
It had been so absurd that he'd blurted out what he actually thought, but Chaerin didn't seem to mind in the slightest.
"Well. I ended up in this kind of position, that's all."
There was nothing in her reply. Just the barest sense of you asked, so I'll answer. Even though he'd just been rude, she seemed completely unbothered — a kind of easy composure.
"Ah, I apologize."
"No, it doesn't matter. Anyway. Hyun Jisu, and Seo Ayeon. I'd like the two of you to handle something. You don't have any complaints."
A statement that ended with a period, not a question mark. It wasn't a question. It was an order. But looking at it rationally, as long as he was affiliated with the Hunter Association and drawing a salary, the words of Yoo Chaerin — the head of the Association — were absolute. And asking him to run a raid was, when you thought about it, simply a hunter's duty. Nothing particularly strange about it.
That aside, Seo Ayeon... Who's that?
"Seo Ayeon is an S+ rank hunter. She won't hold you back. I promise."
Jisu was startled, as if she'd just read his mind. She maintained a consistent poker face even in her expression — a woman whose thoughts were utterly unreadable.
Her chest is seriously, ridiculously huge.
Born a man, he couldn't stop his gaze from being drawn to Chaerin's enormous chest, whether he liked it or not.
"Going on a raid itself is fine with me."
"Good. Understood. Then you're free to go."
"...Excuse me?"
He was taken aback by being suddenly sent home, but Chaerin maintained her taciturn demeanor.
"What is it? Do you have something else to say?"
"So I can just leave now?"
"Yes. I'll summon you on the day of the raid. That'll be all."
Then just tell me this over the phone!!!
He'd slipped up earlier, but this time he at least managed to keep his inner voice to himself. It was a bit awkward, but he gave a brief nod of farewell and left the office.
After Jisu had gone, Chaerin sat in her chair, lost in thought.
It's strange, after all. Someone that strong is right in front of me, and yet I feel nothing... I called him here just in case, but there's definitely something about him.
Then she lifted her head and gazed at the ceiling. Looking upward, Chaerin's eyes carried the melancholy of someone longing for the past.