Unlocking the Affection Point System
Because my body temperature had kept climbing so fiercely that I was barely conscious, I remembered almost nothing of how the meeting afterward unfolded.
“That’s a relief. His temperature has returned to normal.”
“Yeon-woo, you’ve been through so much, haven’t you?”
“Look at those exhausted eyes… oh dear.”
Thanks to the researchers’ genuine, heartfelt care, I recovered quickly after being moved to the recovery room.
“Um… are you feeling a little better now?”
“Y-yes…”
“If your fever rises again, you have to tell me right away, okay?”
Of course, lying there with my shirt off while surrounded by older sisters was already a situation that could raise my temperature, but they had worked hard for my sake, so I decided to keep quiet.
“Let’s see, may I come in now?”
While I was thinking that and hastily pulling my top back on, the recovery room door opened with careful hesitation.
“Ah, Association President.”
“Yes, you may enter now.”
The person standing before the researchers, who instantly adopted polite expressions and bowed, was a white-haired elder with deep lines of dignity carved into his face.
“H-hello…”
“……”
“I-I’m Do Yeon-woo…”
Having only seen him in hunter magazines and online communities while stuck in the hospital room, I knew exactly who he was, so I greeted him with the utmost courtesy.
“Yes, yes. How does your body feel now?”
“Yes, sir.”
“My goodness, what an adorable face.”
Gwon Seong-muk, President of the Korean Hunter Association. A towering figure who had supported Korea’s hunter society for decades, a first-generation S-rank hunter, and one of the world-class heroes who resolved the very first gate incident. He was also the man infamous for single-handedly slaughtering over half of the country’s villain organizations in his younger days.
“Would you like a piece of candy?”
“Th-thank you.”
It felt strangely surreal to watch someone like him smile like a kindly grandfather and offer me sweets.
“Yeon-woo, hehe.”
“……?”
“This old man has one question for you.”
While I quietly chewed the candy and watched his expression, President Gwon suddenly asked me a question with a far gentler smile than before.
“Haven’t there been people bothering our Yeon-woo lately?”
“……”
“Go on, tell this old man about it.”
What was this about? In the past when the whole world had despised me it might have made sense, but now that I possessed the ability to be loved by everyone, there was no way I could be hated.
“I-I don’t remember anything.”
“Hmm?”
“I have no memories at all since waking up in that back alley.”
Even as I answered, I felt a twinge of guilt under the president’s piercing gaze that seemed to see right through me.
“…Poor child.”
After a long silence, he quietly rose from his seat.
“From today onward, the Hunter Association will protect you.”
“Wow.”
“While you’re here, live without a single worry.”
Fortunately, he seemed to have no intention of pressing me further.
“We’ll speak again about the S-rank hunter judgment once enough time has passed.”
“……”
“You’re still so young. There’s no need for you to shoulder such burdens yet.”
He turned to leave the recovery room, but I had something I desperately wanted to say, so I timidly reached out and caught the hem of his coat.
“U-um…”
“Hmm?”
“I-I want to become a hunter.”
A heavy silence settled over the recovery room.
“Hmm. And why is that?”
Seeing his expression grow solemn in the quiet, I continued while my whole body tensed with nerves.
“I want to help people like me.”
“……”
“If I just stand by because I’m young, it feels like I’m committing a sin.”
His lips, which had been quietly watching me, curved upward in a gentle smile.
“…You’re better than most hunters already.”
I wasn’t sure why, but even though I had only said something obvious, it seemed the president had taken a liking to me.
“This old man will gather opinions and discuss the matter thoroughly.”
“Thank you…”
“Yes, hehe.”
Since becoming a hunter had been my dream for so long, my heart swelled with emotion as I bowed deeply. That was when it happened.
“Ah, yes. There’s someone I should introduce to you.”
The president, standing near the recovery room exit, suddenly opened the door and ushered someone inside.
“Huk.”
For a moment I could only freeze, mouth hanging open.
“This is Yu Chae-rin, an A-rank hunter affiliated with the state.”
“……!”
“She’ll be your personal security detail starting today, so feel free to ask her for anything.”
The ‘security personnel’ he introduced was none other than the hoodie girl who had scolded me earlier.
“Wh-what about Seong-a Noona?”
“I deliberately excluded her because she’s your guardian. Would you prefer to have Seong-a as a subordinate?”
“N-no, that’s not what I meant!”
I had mentioned her in my panic, but after the president tilted his head, I shook my head frantically.
“Then Yu Chae-rin is indeed the right choice.”
“……”
“In the entire Hunter Association, she’s the only A-rank hunter whose skills rival Do Seong-a’s.”
Well, since I had received S-rank judgment based solely on my magic beast taming ability, having a dedicated escort wasn’t all that strange. But of all people, it had to be this scary-looking hoodie sister.
“……”
She was already leaning crookedly against the wall with both hands in her pockets, watching me with a dark expression.
“Well then, get along well from now on.”
“Hik…”
Before I could even finish mentally preparing myself, President Gwon let out a hearty laugh and strode out of the recovery room.
“…Assemble the execution unit.”
“Yes?”
“It’s been a while since a group has gone too far.”
Conversation soon echoed from the hallway, but with my nerves completely focused on the hoodie girl, none of it registered.
After President Gwon Seong-muk left the recovery room, an awkward standoff lingered for a long while.
“Hey, kid.”
“Huk.”
In the silence where neither of us had spoken a word, the first to open her mouth was Yu Chae-rin.
“Come out here for a second.”
In truth, she had been carrying a heavy load of guilt since the chocolate incident and simply wanted to apologize to me through this chance.
“I-I’m sorry!”
“No, um…”
“I’ll leave right now!”
When I jumped up from the bed in a cold sweat, she—who had always been terrible at communicating—panicked and changed her words.
“Do you even have anywhere to go if you leave?”
“Uh… no.”
“Then where were you planning to go?”
The situation had somehow turned into her interrogating me. Yu Chae-rin inwardly regretted it, then bit her lip at my next answer.
“Th-the street?”
“……”
“This is A-Sector, after all. I won’t starve.”
No matter how excellent the security was in Korea’s safest district, those were absolutely not words a normal child should say.
“Where did you used to live?”
“F-F-Sector.”
“…You lived there?”
Curiosity got the better of her and she continued the conversation, only to regret her choice again.
“F-Sector is actually pretty decent…”
“……”
“There’s lots of trash, so you can find treasures, and sometimes there’s even food that hasn’t gone bad…”
She had assumed I was simply an unlucky victim of the Rebirth Cult’s human experiments. She had no idea just how wretched my life had truly been.
“…Hey, eat this.”
Only then did Yu Chae-rin snap out of it. She pulled out the cotton candy she had prepared and held it out to me.
“Th-thank you?”
“……”
“But… how do you eat it?”
I accepted the cotton candy with a dazed look. Since I seemed to be seeing it for the first time, her heart ached even more.
“Hap!”
“…Is it good?”
“It melts in my mouth!”
The moment I carefully bit into it, my eyes widened and my face lit up with excitement. Seeing that, her heart ached twice as much.
“Sorry about earlier.”
“Yes?”
“I was bothering you, wasn’t I?”
Yu Chae-rin waited until I finished the cotton candy, then turned her gaze aside and spoke with courage.
“Was that you bothering me?”
The answer that came from me as I tilted my head with a blank face was completely unexpected.
“But you didn’t hit me.”
“What?”
“There weren’t even any bruises, so why do you say you bothered me?”
My way of thinking was so far removed from common sense that Yu Chae-rin was left speechless, staring at me in a daze.
“Since Noona didn’t hit me, you’re a good person!”
Then, as I smiled brightly, she unconsciously reached out to brush the bits of cotton candy from the corner of my mouth.
-Swipe…
But at that exact moment, my laughing body suddenly flinched.
“Hik.”
I curled up tightly, eyes darting around in panic.
“A-are you going to bother me now?”
“……?”
“I-I understand. Then… here.”
When I hastily lifted my shirt to bare my stomach, Yu Chae-rin covered her eyes in alarm.
“Not my face… Please do my stomach or chest.”
“……”
“Th-this way the marks won’t show much…”
Only for a moment. She lowered her hand, face hardened like stone.
“What exactly are you doing right now?”
Her voice had sunk low. The answer I gave was horrifying.
“In F-Sector, instead of giving food they would hit you once for being filthy.”
“…What?”
“Since Noona gave me something really delicious, I won’t complain even if I get bruises.”
A heavy silence settled over the recovery room.
“Ah?”
I was still holding my shirt up, braced for impact, when her hand reached out again—this time gently stroking my head. My eyes widened in confusion.
“…I’m sorry.”
Unable to look me in the eye, Yu Chae-rin hung her head and muttered in a choked voice.
“Noona was wrong…”
It was hard to believe this was the same A-rank hunter with the worst interpersonal evaluation in the Hunter Association, the one notorious for excessive force and multiple disciplinary actions, labeled a complete emotional wreck.
‘She gives food and strokes my head—she’s actually an incredibly kind person!’
Of course, since I didn’t understand the situation at all, she simply looked like a warm, emotionally rich new guardian.
‘I need to grow up quickly and leave so I don’t become a burden to someone like her.’
At the same time, a small misunderstanding began to take root.
“Hwaaam…”
The next morning, after returning from the recovery room to the Female Hunter Lounge, the first thing I saw upon waking was welcome news floating before my eyes.
Tutorial Quest STEP 2 Cleared!
Hunter Association Female Hunter Lounge Mascot (1/1)
Reward: Affection Point System Unlocked
The constellations watching you have grown even more curious and interested!
Even though I didn’t fully understand it, the positive message made the corners of my mouth lift.
“Yeon-woo.”
“Mmm…?”
“Good morning.”
I strolled around the lounge with much lighter steps. When I heard a voice beside me, I perked up and turned my head.
“Are you hungry, Yeon-woo?”
“Um…”
“Want to have lunch with Noona?”
Do Seong-a had come out of the dormitory with her colleagues. She smiled warmly as she asked.
“Yeon-woo, come here~!”
“Let’s eat with us!”
“I wonder what our Yeon-woo likes to eat?”
At the same time, her colleagues began waving at me with bright smiles.
“Aigoo, how sweet!”
“Our little S-rank hunter, shall we eat and grow big and strong?”
“…Even if you don’t grow, we’ll raise you!”
I glanced around nervously before stepping closer. The women crouched down and showered me with kind words all at once.
“……”
I watched as they unconsciously reached toward me, then flinched and lowered their hands to their knees. Once again I felt an inexplicable sense of disappointment. That was when it happened.
Tutorial Quest STEP 3
📍 Objective: Accumulate a set amount of affection points! (0/100)
📍 Difficulty: Low
🎁 Reward: First upgrade to communication and advice functions with the constellations
‘I can communicate with and receive advice from the beings who gave me skills?’
Of course, this was another mandatory quest with no reason to refuse.
“N-Noonas.”
“Yes?”
“I-I have something to say.”
After a moment of hesitation, I steeled myself and spoke with courage.
“…I-it’s okay for you to touch me now.”
A brief silence fell between me and the women.
“Ah.”
“Uh.”
“Mm.”
The women, who had frozen mid-motion, glanced at Do Seong-a—who was also standing rigidly—before finally managing to speak.
“Y-Yeon-woo. You shouldn’t say things like that so carelessly…”
“R-right. People might misunderstand.”
“Yeah, that was a little dangerous.”
I knew the words could easily be taken the wrong way, but it couldn’t be helped.
“B-but still…”
Recommended Action: Direct skinship is the most efficient way to gain affection points!
I wanted to clear the tutorial quest quickly and debut as an S-rank hunter.
“I think it would be fine if it’s you, Noonas…”
Once again, a heavy silence settled over the Female Hunter Lounge.