Chapter 50
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 50
Chapter Title: 최후의 거인족이 되었다-50화
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 50
Chapter Title: Became the Last of the Giant Clan
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Having just conquered the Jeju Island D-rank Red Gate—a ordeal that had nearly brought death upon her—Yoon Hee-na was rushing back to Arena without a moment's rest.
“Ugh!”
A sudden surge of pain hit her.
Yoon Hee-na winced, clutching her abdomen.
“It hurts...”
It was the injury inflicted by the Warlord's fist.
She had received hasty treatment, but the wound wasn't fully healed—her stomach still bore a deep blue bruise.
“Hoo...”
However, she couldn't let her condition show upon entering the guild.
Forcing down the pain, Yoon Hee-na wiped the cold sweat trickling from her forehead.
Composing her expression, she stepped into Arena's headquarters.
“Welcome back, 3rd Team Leader.”
The Arena guild members who spotted her offered greetings.
Among them, at the pinnacle.
Standing before her father Yoon Han's office, Yoon Hee-na knocked on the door.
“...Mission complete. Returning to base, Master.”
With those words, the door slid open on its own, revealing Yoon Han gazing out the window.
“You failed.”
Instead of a greeting came a rebuke.
“You let prey that you could have easily taken down with full effort slip away to someone else.”
At his utterly cold demeanor, Yoon Hee-na's eyelids trembled faintly.
But that was all.
“...I'm sorry.”
“You'll receive the appropriate punishment. Go rest.”
Without another word about the punishment handed down, she turned on her heel.
Thud!
The door closed behind her once more.
Left alone, Yoon Han stared out the window.
And murmured in contemplation.
“...Another unexpected development. Who knew he'd grow this steeply.”
Then, the corner of his mouth lifted.
Right after the Jeju Island expedition wrapped up, the reports that reached him.
Those reports were laced with numerous unbelievable tales.
‘D-rank hunter Kang Team Leader hunted the Warlord!’
‘He killed the Night Orc in a single blow!’
‘It wasn't Ice Princess Yoon Hee-na or Supreme Commander Lee Hyun-woook who dominated the battlefield! It was Giant Kang Hyuk!’
But the testimonies from eyewitnesses who had been there were so consistent and identical that he couldn't dismiss them.
Moreover, having met the bearer of that S-rank talent face-to-face.
The first impression of the man named Kang Hyuk somehow made those absurd feats ring true.
‘Those eyes I saw back then... For a man harboring such ambition, this isn't all that surprising.’
Then he started running the calculations.
Arena's gains from this expedition.
‘In the end, we pulled off decent results. Tusinjeon... That guild led by my thorn in the side got completely wiped out. Meanwhile, most of Arena's forces survived and returned.’
Annihilation versus survival was, of course, a world of difference.
And that massive gap would profoundly impact their performance metrics.
They might even reclaim the top guild ranking spot they'd lost, thanks to this expedition.
Having thought that far, Yoon Han burst into laughter.
“Kukuku... Looks like I got some unsolicited help. So... what now.”
In truth, per the original plan, this expedition's true target had been Kang Hyuk.
To keep that S-rank in check.
But with the results laid bare, they'd ended up aided by Kang Hyuk himself—and reaped unexpected rewards to boot.
‘A chance to forge... not a bad relationship.’
Murmuring as much, Yoon Han smiled again.
Ever since becoming a hunter, he had crushed every last foe who dared oppose him to claim his current throne.
Yet here was a one-year hunter veteran shaking his convictions.
‘But... if that man's got S-rank talent, that's another story entirely.’
With that murmur, Yoon Han resolved to embrace the shift.
‘It's power more than worth it.’
A smile playing on his lips, he lifted the receiver and issued an order.
“Send that item... to the Association, in Kang Team Leader's name.”
President Choi Jong-hoon downed his coffee.
Gazing at the black sedan pulling away from the Blue House, he muttered.
“What a humiliation—nothing tops this. Right?”
At the question, his Chief of Staff broke into a cold sweat.
“W-Well...”
“A nation's president personally steps up to negotiate, and gets shot down?”
The barbed remark sealed the Chief of Staff's lips.
Experience had taught him that silence was the wisest course in moments like these.
“Kuhum... Did the presidency strike him as some lightweight gig? Or was it me he was looking down on? Or maybe...”
By then, Choi Jong-hoon had slyly turned, a smile curling his lips.
“...he's got the guts to pull this off. Beats me.”
He set down his now-cold teacup.
The Chief of Staff swiftly cleared it away.
“Out.”
“Yes, sir!”
As the response came, Choi Jong-hoon closed his eyes.
Sinking into thought, he murmured.
‘A patriotic kid who lucked into power. That's all I figured him for.’
The era had shifted—hunters were now the heroes.
And today's heroes minted money and brewed power.
Yet most hunters lacked the chops to handle that vast wealth and influence.
‘Not surprising. Awakenings hit mostly from early teens to late twenties. Weird if someone that green grasped what money and power really mean.’
Thus, Choi Jong-hoon pegged that famed S-rank as just another in the bunch.
A lucky punk with newfound strength.
Nothing more.
But meeting him face-to-face laid bare his misjudgment.
‘22? 23? Something like that?’
He stood apart.
Not merely in skill, but from the archetype of youth he'd encountered.
‘Felt like I was boozing with opposition hacks after ages... From a twenty-something, no less.’
He didn't quake before the president.
Nor fanboy out.
He masked emotional flickers masterfully, stayed polite without simpering.
What truly jolted Choi Jong-hoon wasn't the poise, but the ‘eloquence’.
‘Apologies, but this doesn't strike me as something to rush into here.’
‘...Hm. So you're turning down the offer? Salary not cutting it?’
‘No, sir. Money's not the issue— I simply wasn't primed to hash this out today.’
‘...Not primed?’
‘I was informed this was a private audience with the President. Hence... this topic hadn't crossed my mind.’
Eloquence that danced around while nailing the point.
‘My bad—got ahead of myself. Then... next time we meet, can I take that as a positive lean?’
‘...’
When cornered, he held a perfect, telling silence.
‘...We'll see then. For now, though.’
Shocking enough, but the finale was masterful.
‘Hard to say. Stay in Korea or head abroad? I'll keep mulling it over.’
A warning.
If pressed too hard, he might bolt from Korea—that warning left even Choi Jong-hoon rattled after ages.
More shocking still: the groundwork laid to drop that bomb.
‘That opener just now... No. He'd plotted this reveal from the jump.’
That's when it clicked.
The S-rank before him had foreseen the meeting's flow and prepped accordingly.
Laughter bubbled up, mingled with disbelief.
‘Hates tying up with me...? Or just dodging politics altogether.’
Murmuring thus, Choi Jong-hoon's lip twitched.
“Still, blowing off the President of Korea's pitch like that... Sheesh...”
Then his eyes snapped open.
He eyed the documents from the Hunter Association on his desk.
‘Most of Korea's past presidents winding up in jail... No coincidence. Was angling for solid insurance, but this?’
Hence his personal sit-down.
Astounding in one light, petty and undignified in another.
But Choi Jong-hoon wasn't one to fuss over decorum.
‘Fussed over that, a line-less guy like me never hits this chair.’
He always swung bold, shocking moves—while securing his gains.
This mess stemmed from just such a play.
‘Once Jeju Gate expedition news spreads, the world'll chase that S-rank again. If I jump the gun, snag a re-sign before elections—no losses there, regime rolls on.’
But the gambit flopped spectacularly, souring into awkward ties.
Leaving his position dicey, checkmated.
“Nngh... Feels engineered.”
Licking his lips in a mutter, Choi Jong-hoon grumbled.
“If he weren't a hunter, I'd drag him into politics, groom him proper...”
But knowing it futile, he shelved the whim.
‘Why would an S-rank hunter bother with politics?’
After some brooding, he shifted his gaze.
To the neat stack of papers on his desk.
Including ones from the Hunter Association.
Plucking them up gingerly, Choi Jong-hoon smirked.
“Fine, play along. But...”
He stamped the approval line.
“The price'll be steep. I'm a greedy old bastard, after all.”
Having wrapped up his meeting with President Choi Jong-hoon and scored some vacation time, Kang Hyuk reflected.
‘That sit-down was risky on multiple fronts. Tangling with politicians never ends well—let alone the president.’
Power comes with strings.
Backing from presidential clout promised perks aplenty, but so did the shackles and hazards.
‘From my position, no need to stomach that risk. But...’
Conversely, spurning a shot at presidential leverage chafed too.
So he left a door ajar.
‘A hook to latch onto me. A politico who's climbed to the presidency... He'd sniff out my intent.’
How far he'd read into it remained unclear, but for now, that sufficed.
Thus pondering, Kang Hyuk turned to the black coffin.
Mewooo!
Black—now nearing adulthood—flailed and flitted above it.
Yet unable to breach into the otherworld through the coffin as before.
Mewooo!
A plaintive wail escaped the Black Wyvern.
Stroking its scales, Kang Hyuk muttered.
“Warlord... Sealing the coffin by taking him down?”
He narrowed his eyes at the coffin.
But no message popped up like before.
‘Lost its item function, huh.’
Chin in hand, Kang Hyuk mused.
Quite the intriguing wrinkle.
‘Normally, an item's powers fade only if destroyed outright.’
Yet this coffin sat intact, yet inert.
Thus concluded, Kang Hyuk murmured.
‘Key takeaway: to seal this coffin's otherworld, eliminate the boss monster inside.’
A grin tugged his lips.
‘In other words, same as closing a gate. Hunting's cut off now that it's sealed—bummer. But confirming this? Priceless in its own right.’
Those five ‘traitors’—when they tried prying open a gate via this coffin, he'd have one way to shut it down.
Rising, Kang Hyuk shouldered the coffin.
Mew!
As Black shrilly followed him out of the bunker, a familiar ringtone blared.
Click!
Fishing out his smartphone, Kang Hyuk checked the message.
[Why no reply!! (-_-) You ignoring me!? (ㅇ-ㅇ!)]
A barrage of over-the-top emoticons flooded his view.
Tsking, Kang Hyuk muttered.
The sender? None other than Tusinjeon's guild master.
Korea's No. 1 all-rounder, to boot.
‘Do all folks over fifty spam emojis like this?’
After a beat of hesitation, he fired off a curt reply.
[Been swamped, sorry for the delay. I'll reach out soon.]
A split-second later, another ping—not even a second—but Kang Hyuk deliberately ignored it.
‘Bae Soo-ji... The pinnacle hunter from before my active days.’
Before Kang Hyuk's name etched into Korea's lore, she shook the world as the all-master.
No direct clashes, but Kang Hyuk had heard the rumors aplenty.
‘She'd snag any hunter she fancied, earning her the Recruiter Queen moniker. Detractors dubbed her a scheming poacher for it.’
Hence his deliberate distance.
‘No plans to join Tusinjeon now, and leaving wiggle room just invites hassle.’
Thus resolved, Kang Hyuk slung on his backpack, prepping to head to the new forge of master smith Bak Je-woo.
‘OPKG. Entrust the gauntlet repairs there... And have him inspect this coffin in the pack.’
He'd held off on the coffin appraisal till now.
‘Pre-Jeju clear, it linked to anotherworld. One slip, and Bak Je-woo could've tumbled in.’
But now inert.
Safe to hand off for inspection.
‘Pick up my other gear too. Tour the new forge, kill some vacation time.’
As he geared up to head out.
-Breaking news!
The TV he'd left on to fend off the home's emptiness.
-Members of the Tailent Guild, responsible for Jinju City in South Gyeongsang Province...
The broadcast snagged Kang Hyuk's ear—and halted his steps.
He turned.
And.
-...were all found as corpses in their residence. Police and the Hunter Special Investigation Team have been dispatched. Cause of death under probe, but tentatively...
Another breaking update widened his eyes.
“What?”
A man's voice flashed in his mind.
‘Whew! Gotta pay off that debt somehow. Who knows? We might...’
Gangwon Province mountainside dungeon.
The voice of the man who'd nearly met his end, duped by Swift Shadow's sly fib.
‘Tailent’ Guild—poised for top-10 someday?’
Memory fading, a chyron scrolled onscreen.
Police and Hunter Investigation Unit confirm: Tailent Guild members killed—homicide!
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