090. Kang Do-hee, Shall We Do It? (1)
090. Kang Do-hee, Shall We Do It? (1)
In a world where civilians carry weapons because no one knows when or where a Giant Monster might appear.
In such a world, Hunters bear the front-line responsibility for the public's safety, so perhaps the intense spotlight on them was only natural.
Little kids scribble down their future dreams of becoming an S-Rank Hunter,
and the name of a Hunter is guaranteed to appear in every conceivable cultural product and industry—its popularity goes without saying.
At the center of it all stood Velvet Hunter Academy.
A world-class elite educational institution founded by the Magic Emperor, ranked number one.
The school dreamed of by anyone who has awakened a status window.
Yet only a tiny handful of Hunters are actually admitted.
So when Cheonhwa and Fighting Dog, two celebrities who had entered the academy, formed a party and came back with news of a successful dungeon clear before even taking their Midterm Evaluations,
this level of attention was an inevitable sequence of events.
Against this backdrop, the ball thrown by Shin Se-hee was growing at a rapid pace, swelling like a snowball rolling down a slope.
『[Issue Check] Star Prospects Fighting Dog and Cheonhwa Return....... The Korean Peninsula Quakes with Anticipation!』
『Incredible......! The Utopia Party Leaves America in Awe, China in Shock, and Japan on Its Knees! “Why Doesn't Our Japan Have a Party Like That!!!!”』
『[Hunter Talk!] Fighting Dog! The Reason the Lone-Wolf Formed a Party... Because of Loneliness?』
Even though a torrent of stories had already poured out while we were inside the dungeon,
newspapers that hadn't even attended this press conference seemed determined to jump on the bandwagon,
churning out articles full of patriotic fervor and sensational wording.
Articles breeding more articles, which were then recycled like reblogs—a phenomenon akin to self-replication.
The comments attached to them also multiplied by the dozens in the blink of an eye.
First, the reactions to Shin Se-hee and Kang Do-hee, who had been quiet for a while after entering the academy.
─ Waa! Hello Se-hee! Nice to meet Se-hee! Se-hee YEEE! Scream with your pants off!!!
─ I thought I wouldn't see our goddess for a while now that she's in the academy T_T
─ Crazy lolololol Fighting Dog is on another level lol She came back in a party with Shin Se-hee lol
─ A party managed by Cheonhwa? So all those Fighting Dog fans who always bullied Shin Se-hee for being weaker than Kang Do-hee have their mouths completely shut now, right?
┖ Bullshit. This is Cheonhwa officially admitting she can't keep up in combat and declaring she's stepping back to the sidelines. Anyone who disagrees is a flower-shop bastard lol. Fighting Dog is god.
┖ Yeah. Lift.Slam.Do-hee.
┖ Yeah, Back.Seat.Se-hee.
And then, the new face who had carved out three syllables of his name right between Cheonhwa and Fighting Dog.
Jin Yu-ha had also emerged as a hot topic among the comments.
─ No, jeez. What's up with this guy's face? Did they seriously pick the party leader based on his face?
─ A man...... is as strong as Kang Do-hee? And that's the face he has? Fr this is shocking....... Is that face level real?
─ Wow, crazy, you think Cheonhwa would stake her name on a lie? That means it's real that he's stronger than her, what the hell really.
─ explain what it means that he lifted her and slammed her explain what it means that he lifted her and slammed her explain what it means that he lifted her and slammed her explain what it means that he lifted her and slammed her explain what it means that he lifted her and slammed her.
─ Yu-ha....... Is this it? Is this where I die?
┖ ●▅▇█▇▆▅▄▇
─ I didn't know, but I'm starting to like Jin Yu-ha.......
Fortunately, perhaps because Shin Se-hee's media manipulation had been quite effective, the majority were expressing favorable reactions and anticipation for Jin Yu-ha.
However, there were bound to be some who viewed it unfavorably.
─ Hmph, kinda disappointed in Fighting Dog and Cheonhwa. Seems like they just propped up a pretty-boy party leader as a figurehead for some noise marketing with his looks.
─ If you read the articles closely, he's a male quota student. Looks like they used him to draw aggro at the academy? No reason to hype a guy who got in without an exam this much.
─ Tsk tsk tsk, they say he fought and beat Fighting Dog? It's obviously total bull, look at you guys raging and rushing in. Do you go all-out when you fight a guy? He probably just pulled off a lucky punch while she was going easy and then claimed he won.
┖ If the article was wrong, there's no way Fighting Dog's personality would let it slide. Don't you know she throws gender-equality punches when she's pissed? And cadet testimonies have already come out, so what nonsense are you spouting.
While I scrolled through the comments on my phone, Shin Se-hee, who had been peeking over from beside me, stiffened her expression and bit her lip.
"They dare......."
When I glanced over, Shin Se-hee quickly recomposed her face and wore a worried expression.
"A-are you okay?"
"Huh? About what?"
"Um, don't pay too much attention to the comments! They're just things people say without knowing anything......!"
"What, are you worried I might get hurt from reading this?"
"......."
Shin Se-hee shut her mouth, but her silence was as good as an admission.
"Don't worry. I don't really care about this kind of stuff."
After all, I have no parents either before or after I transmigrated, so I'm immune to mom jokes.
My mentality wasn't so fragile that it would crumble under attacks from people I've never even met.
"You might be fine now, but it could suddenly come to mind later, when you're going to sleep, during a meal, in your daily life......."
I let out a short, deflating laugh.
"I said it's fine. I'm actually surprised it's less than I thought. If you hadn't set it up like this, it probably wouldn't have just ended with swear words, you know? You did a good job."
"Well, if that's the case, I'm relieved......."
Shin Se-hee looked at me with a dubious expression.
"Hmm, still, I think it'd be better to explain things properly."
"Huh?"
"I fully understand why you put the article out like this, but I don't think that person over there does yet."
I gestured with my head toward the back.
There stood Kang Do-hee, her entire body wreathed in surging Mana.
"Ah."
Because this whole incident had saddled her with a somewhat harsh nickname.
Ahem, ahem.
Shin Se-hee gave a fake cough and walked up to Kang Do-hee, parting her lips.
"Kang Do-hee. I truly regret that this article came out the way it did."
"......What? Regret?"
At Shin Se-hee's words, Kang Do-hee's eyebrows twitched.
"Yes, I only stated the facts, but I believe the article came out a bit sensationalized."
"Facts? Sensationalized......?"
Kang Do-hee let out a dry laugh as if she were dumbfounded.
"Yes. However......."
Shin Se-hee chose her words carefully, touching her lips.
"Did I state anything that was untrue?"
"What?"
"You did acknowledge Jin Yu-ha. Isn't that why you joined the party? And it's true that you lost your sparring match with Jin Yu-ha, and well, the wording about being 'lifted and rammed' was a bit strong....... but I wasn't the one who said it."
"......."
"And it was to protect Jin Yu-ha by utilizing our fame, so...... why are you so angry? Honestly, I'm having difficulty understanding."
Shin Se-hee tilted her head as if she truly didn't know.
"......."
"......."
Kang Do-hee closed her mouth and glared at Shin Se-hee.
In response, Shin Se-hee didn't back down and stared right back at her.
And then.
Surprisingly, the one who turned her head away first was Kang Do-hee.
"Tch."
Kang Do-hee clicked her tongue, turned her back, and stomped off briskly toward the Warp Gate.
'Hmm.......'
I scratched my chin as I watched Kang Do-hee's retreating figure.
"Shin Se-hee."
I turned my head to look at Shin Se-hee.
"Yes?"
"You can distribute the party member profits fairly, right? To all party members, equally."
"All of them? But as the party leader, you, Jin Yu-ha......."
"Split my share equally among the party members too, fairly. Ah, and I clearly said, all party members?"
"......Are you seriously thinking I'd use what just happened to disadvantage Kang Do-hee?"
Shin Se-hee furrowed her brows as if asking whether she looked like that petty of a woman.
I smiled and shook my head.
"No. It's because I was worried you might leave out Shin Se-hee."
At that, a guilty look flashed across her face.
"I was worried one party member who worked hard today might leave her own name out because she thought she hadn't done anything."
"Th-that's......."
"I've acknowledged you as a party member; you're not planning to reject that from your end, are you?"
"N-no......."
"Good, then I'll leave the cleanup to you. I've got somewhere I need to get to."
I looked toward the Warp Gate as I spoke.
* * *
Fundamentally, Kang Do-hee as a person is someone with an enormously strong ego and pride.
She always speaks bluntly and directly, no matter where she is, never backing down,
and if someone shows an attitude of disregarding or looking down on her, she doesn't hesitate to punish them, whoever they may be.
It may seem simple at a glance, but there was always a valid reason behind her every action,
and her rough behavior was only ever triggered when someone crossed a certain line.
'That same Kang Do-hee really held herself back significantly on this dungeon trip.'
Even when we were clearly going off-road, Kang Do-hee followed me without raising a single objection to my orders.
Kang Do-hee, who had always operated solo and had no history of bothering with byproducts other than Magic Stones.
Even so, when Lee Yu-ri made a comment that pricked her pride by asking if the byproducts were a joke, she silently picked the thorns.
And finally, even when her nemesis Shin Se-hee had the media put out sensational coverage without a word of warning.
In the end, Kang Do-hee had set aside her pride.
'That's just like the real Kang Do-hee.'
The Damage Dealers' dormitory, the Hall of Valor.
I stood in front of her door with a small smile.
Knock—knock—knock—
"Who is it."
A low voice came from inside when I knocked lightly.
"It's me."
"......Jin Yu-ha?"
Creeeak—
The door soon opened, and Kang Do-hee came out, a bewildered expression on her face.
"Hey, Kang Do-hee."
I smiled at her, crinkling the corners of my eyes.
"Shall we...... do that?"
At that, her expression twisted bizarrely, as if questioning what nonsense I was spouting.
"......What?"