What Are You?
"Our closest ally?"
At Jisu's words, Chaerin nodded, her face expressionless.
"That's right. Which means something that should never have happened is happening. And it's been going on for months now."
She said it, then turned her head toward Ayeon.
"As an SS-rank hunter, how far up the clearance levels could you go?"
"I can access every classified file except G-rank secrets."
Chaerin closed her eyes for a moment at Ayeon's answer, then went on.
"Fine. There's no reason to hide this from you, Hyun Jisu. You're under me now, after all."
Technically, she wasn't wrong. He did fall under the Association now. And yet, hearing this woman declare it so plainly — that he was under her — left a distinctly sour taste in his mouth.
"It's America. The ones who sent this monster are the American Hunter Association. I'm certain of it."
"America?"
He suddenly felt like he'd been dropped into an alternate-history novel that was hosing him down with catharsis out of nowhere, with zero buildup to justify it.
America is sending monsters to Korea?
Never mind the history of the US-Korea alliance and the unshakable faith built on top of it. The very idea that a superpower like America would single out a regional power like South Korea and start sending monsters at them felt completely divorced from reality.
Of course, before any of that, the question that actually occurred to Jisu was more fundamental.
"You can create monsters artificially?"
"Yes. It hasn't been made public, but about three years ago it came out that things similar to the monsters that appear in raid fields can be manufactured. It's not at a perfect stage yet, but... anyway."
Chaerin picked up a red, rock-like chunk that had been sitting on the desk. It was the same kind of thing that had been embedded in the chest of that stone giant earlier.
"This ore is only found — and even then, at a low drop rate — in a handful of dungeons in America. The dungeons that produce it are under thorough control and management at the national Association level."
"How do you know that?"
"Well. The Korean Hunter Association isn't just sitting around taking it."
Chaerin offered no further explanation. She had learned of it thanks to Iran. On the surface, Iran was supposed to have left the Association and be traveling the world as she pleased — but in truth, she had been investigating this.
The unidentified monsters had begun appearing several months ago. From the Association's standpoint, sealing off those sites to keep the matter from leaking hadn't been particularly difficult. The Hunter Association was a state-managed institution. Even if America really was the one sending them, the judgment had been that going public would not be a politically sound decision. More precisely, they had received an order based on that judgment. The one making that call would have been the President, of course. Even the Hunter Association President couldn't just decide everything as she pleased.
At any rate, as far as Chaerin was concerned, there was no need to tell Jisu every last detail. SS-rank hunter or not, they hadn't known each other that long.
"So today was the day you were confirming it? That's why you went so deep into a place that remote."
Chaerin didn't offer much of a response, but Jisu could read the atmosphere well enough. Her silence wasn't a denial.
"Well. That wasn't the only reason."
She said it, then shot a glance at Ayeon. Ayeon seemed to understand. She closed her eyes, bowed her head, and spoke.
"Please excuse me."
With that, Ayeon walked out of the office. A bang filled the quiet room as the door shut. Soon the sound of her footsteps receded beyond it, and before long even that fading sound cut off.
Only Chaerin and Jisu remained in the silent office.
What's this about?
Left alone with her, the air felt somehow awkward. He was wondering whether he ought to say something first when, surprisingly, it was Chaerin who broke the silence.
"Hyun Jisu."
"Yes?"
"When did you awaken as a hunter?"
"It hasn't been that long. Why do you ask?"
Chaerin didn't answer. He was about to press her when she spoke again first.
"Everyone panics when they first realize their ability. I'm sure you were no different."
Jisu fell silent for a moment at that. Come to think of it, he had awakened after meeting that old man he'd never seen before in his life. He'd picked up a coin that looked like a toy, and then — with no connection whatsoever — his power had simply opened its eyes. It clearly hadn't been that long ago, but recalling it now, it felt like something from a distant past.
"Well. I think I've adapted pretty well by now."
"Have you? There are people who take over a year just to figure out their own ability and learn to use it. Looks like you managed to grasp yours pretty quickly."
"It just kind of happened that way."
Jisu was the type to answer most people as politely as possible, but something about Chaerin's interrogative manner sparked a strange defiance in him. He was answering as coldly as courtesy would allow. Not that the person listening seemed to care about any of that in the slightest.
"From the looks of it, you have quite a variety of skills. I take it you're not having trouble managing your mana? If you need it, the Association is willing to provide support for mana recovery."
"No, I'm fine. I make it a point not to owe anyone."
"Is that so?"
Chaerin said it, then suddenly lifted her head and looked him in the eyes.
"Or was it that you didn't even need to use any skills?"
"......!"
Jisu was startled, but he managed to keep his expression reasonably composed.
"What is it you want to ask me? I have no obligation to discuss my ability. As Association President, I'm sure you're well aware of that."
He spoke in a fairly hard tone, but Chaerin didn't even reply. Instead, she quietly stood up from her chair.
The woman whose chest was so enormous it practically qualified as a deadly weapon began clicking toward him in her heels.
"W-what are you doing?"
"Hyun Jisu."
As Chaerin strode toward him, Jisu found himself stepping backward without thinking. It wasn't that he was scared. If a woman built like that came charging in to press herself against you, anyone would have done the same.
Long, straight silver hair. Golden eyes that caught the light and glittered. Wide hips, and a chest so absurdly large it looked ready to split her dress shirt at the seams. A captivating voice that seemed to hold all of it together at once. Yoo Chaerin was the kind of woman who, if she wanted to, could throw a man into complete disarray with her looks alone.
How far back had he gone? Before he knew it, his back was against the wall. There was nowhere left to retreat.
"Hey — what the hell are you doing?"
Jisu raised his voice, but Chaerin still didn't answer. Instead of answering, she came closer. The distance had closed to the point where they were a breath away from colliding. He could hear her breathing. He hadn't done anything wrong, and yet he was tense — like a thief who'd been caught by the cops.
Chaerin stared into his eyes for a long moment. Then she grabbed his forearm—
BAM!
"Ghk!"
She seized one of his arms and slammed it against the wall.
"W-what are you doing?!"
"Hyun Jisu."
Chaerin, who had ignored everything he'd said until now, finally opened her mouth.
"You have a truly absurd amount of power. It's not just that you picked up a monster and threw it during the raid just now. You can take down a wyvern with a single punch, too. Can't you?"
"...W-what does that have to do with this right now?!"
He tried to pull free, but her grip was far stronger than he'd expected from a woman. An unbelievable strength radiated from those slender arms.
"That's strange. With your power, you should be able to shove someone like me right back. No — you could probably demolish this entire Hunter Association building. There's no way I could beat you. Anyone looking at this would think that's the reasonable conclusion. Don't you agree?"
"If you know that, then why are you doing this?! You'd better let go before I actually do it!"
Jisu didn't back down. He glared hard at her as he shouted. But Chaerin's attitude was unyielding.
"That nickname is something the world just decided to— anyway, I don't want to hurt the Association President. It'd be in your best interest to let go while I'm still asking nicely."
He snapped it back at her, but the truth was that in his current state, he couldn't even push her off, let alone hurt her. Outside a raid field, his stats didn't apply. He hadn't gone through any training or special process to strengthen his body, either. Which meant that Jisu's current stats, including his physical strength, were the ones from that very first moment — when he had only just awakened to his ability. The stats he'd had before investing in Justice Coin.
Kh—!
There was no way he could beat Association President Chaerin — a woman called the strongest hunter alive — somewhere that wasn't even a raid field.
What do I do? How am I supposed to get out of this?
His mind raced. No matter what, he didn't want to talk about his ability. He didn't even understand why she'd suddenly pulled this in the first place. He was still trying to figure out how to break the deadlock when Chaerin spoke first.
"Hyun Jisu. You didn't use anything like an ability the entire time you were fighting."
......!
Jisu was stunned. Strictly speaking, she was right. His ability was more like a passive that was constantly in effect. On top of that, he had no mana, and not a single skill he could use. People around him had just made their own assumptions after seeing his overwhelming strength, or watching him cough up blood. His ability itself had been the same from the very beginning until now.
Chaerin spoke as if she were reading those very thoughts.