Early Withdrawal (1)
Lee Do-hyeon stared at Hwang Ha-na as she suddenly appeared. He felt a bit confused, but he didn't lose his composure at all.
It seemed like she had come with some kind of announcement, so he nodded. Hwang Ha-na immediately spoke up.
“Excuse me.”
With that, Hwang Ha-na entered Do-hyeon's lodging.
The inside of the room wasn't cramped at all, and there was a table and chairs enough for a conversation. So Do-hyeon sat down first in one of the chairs, and Hwang Ha-na sat across from him.
Seeing the change in Hwang Ha-na's demeanor, Do-hyeon looked at her curiously. As she noticed his gaze, her instructor-like strict attitude softened just a little.
Then she said,
“For now, let's treat this as a conversation between two hunters, not as an instructor and trainee.”
“......?”
Just a moment ago, her tone had been strict, but now it was suddenly polite. It felt unfamiliar, but Do-hyeon nodded without thinking.
Hwang Ha-na cautiously continued.
“Although you're just a trainee who's just started training, you might not know this, but there are quite a few powerful forces inside the Black Gate. They're so strong that they make the guilds of the United States, a major power in the world, look weak.”
“Yes, I heard.”
“So, I strongly recommend that you join one of the powerful organizations inside the Black Gate, not the Korean guilds.”
“Eh?”
Hwang Ha-na's words seemed a bit out of place.
But she continued calmly.
“It might feel like a temporary loss at first, but considering Do-hyeon-nim's value, other organizations will definitely approach you. I recommend choosing at that time. Until then, support from the association should be more than enough compared to other guilds.”
“Hmm.”
She had come out of nowhere and surprised him, but Do-hyeon listened to Hwang Ha-na's words and briefly crossed his arms while reading the message that popped up in one corner of his vision.
[‘Hwang Ha-na’s words analyzed.’]
[Truth.]
Even though it was Hwang Ha-na, who was originally from the top Korean guild Taebaek, he had thought she might have come to scout for Taebaek, but he heard an unexpected story.
Moreover, it was all true.
He wasn't sure what her motive was, but after hearing Analysis's words, Do-hyeon decided to listen more closely and asked,
“What's the reason for saying that?”
Hwang Ha-na paused for a moment before answering.
“At first, as an instructor, I wanted to scout Do-hyeon-nim for Taebaek even if it meant breaking rules and getting punished.”
It was a new story for Do-hyeon, but he nodded calmly.
Considering what Do-hyeon had shown, there must have been impressive traits. He could have predicted that much.
But the following words were not what he had expected.
“However, I felt that Do-hyeon-nim's potential was too great for Taebaek. Rather, I thought that if he joined Taebaek, he might not be able to fully unleash his wings.”
It was praise, but in a way, it meant the opposite.
“It means that the powerful forces in the Black Gate are far superior to the guilds on Earth.”
“Yes. Although many people from Earth have joined other dimensional forces, there is no hunter who has joined a powerful force capable of ruling the Black Gate. But I believe Do-hyeon-nim could do it.”
Hwang Ha-na's firm reply made Do-hyeon realize everything was true, so he nodded in agreement.
The sincerity behind Hwang Ha-na's words had reached him deeply.
She had sincerely hoped Do-hyeon would succeed and sincerely wanted Korea to be even greater. That heart was clearly conveyed.
“Thank you for the good advice.”
“Thank you for listening carefully.”
Seeing Do-hyeon accept it positively, Hwang Ha-na's expression finally relaxed.
And Hwang Ha-na returned to her original instructor demeanor.
“Then, as an instructor, I'll give you the announcement.”
The sudden change from palm-flip to palm-flip was surprising, but since he had heard her sincerity, he thought it might be the case. It didn't sound as strict as before.
And the following announcement from Hwang Ha-na was an unexpected story.
“Lee Do-hyeon trainee and Ji Yu-chan trainee, I will proceed with early withdrawal from the training center next week on Monday.”
“......Early w-withdrawal?”
Do-hyeon asked in surprise, and Hwang Ha-na nodded.
Well, there wasn't much else to learn now besides magic, so it didn't matter. Of course, his skill from Hwang Ha-na, the Severing Dark King's Speed, was still there, but unfortunately he couldn't get it because his points were too low to learn it anyway.
It required at least 2000 AP to get the A-grade Severing Dark King's Speed since Hwang Ha-na was so strong, so he couldn't get it right away and had planned to get it later when he had enough points.
But if it was early withdrawal, wouldn't there be fewer things to see in the future? At that moment, a thought crossed Do-hyeon's mind.
‘Wait a second?’
If it was early withdrawal, he could quickly enter the Black Gate and catch monsters and dimensional races to quickly gain points and AP. In just over a month, he could come back to this training center to learn Hwang Ha-na's Severing Dark King's Speed, right?
When he thought that far, Do-hyeon couldn't help but smile, saying it was the perfect plan.
On the other hand, when Hwang Ha-na saw that smile, she suddenly felt a chill run down her spine and swallowed hard.
She felt like she was standing in front of a predator, but without showing it, she coughed awkwardly while looking at Do-hyeon.
“Ahem, anyway, make sure you know about the early withdrawal. A notice will be sent through the association.”
“Yes, I understand.”
Only after Do-hyeon said that did Hwang Ha-na stand up, and Do-hyeon saw her out to the door.
And after leaving, Hwang Ha-na finally shook her body in relief, getting away from Do-hyeon's piercing gaze and shaking off the creepy feeling.
She always felt uncomfortable about Do-hyeon's eyes that saw through everything.
But that was probably Do-hyeon's talent.
Either way, thinking that way, Hwang Ha-na gave similar advice to Ji Yu-chan too and came out of the building.
Now the only thing left was to report to the Hunter Association.
That's why Hwang Ha-na thought,
‘The association is going to flip out.’
It was only the second day, and they hadn't reported the information about Do-hyeon and Ji Yu-chan yet, so she giggled at the thought of the shock the association would receive.
Who could have imagined that after herself and Hana Rin, such a talented person would appear?
Thinking such silly thoughts, Hwang Ha-na headed to the association.
* * *
As Hwang Ha-na had predicted, a big commotion was happening at the headquarters of the Korean Hunter Association in Seoul.
The association had been hoping that Ji Yu-chan's stats might surpass Hwang Ha-na's record, but they had to be overturned by Ji Yu-chan's unprecedentedly rapid progress.
His physical abilities, skills, and abilities were all unmatched, and even comparing him to hunters active in the F-grade region right away, they were so overwhelming that the association members couldn't help but be surprised. However, seeing Do-hyeon's unbelievable stats that could destroy Ji Yu-chan completely, they couldn't even open their mouths.
The association executives, who had been shivering in shock for a long time, stared blankly. When Hwang Ha-na came to report, the association side had no choice but to ask her.
“......Is this true?”
“Hwang Ha-na senior instructor wouldn't manipulate numbers. Even if it was reducing them to report, there was no way she would manipulate them to this absurd level and push them in.”
“......Talented enough to combine Hwang Ha-na the hunter and Hana Rin the mage.”
“No, even looking at their individual talents, they far exceed them.”
“Ji Yu-chan also surpassed Hwang Ha-na senior instructor. It's beyond imagination.”
“Oh. It turns out the early withdrawal story wasn't just made up.”
Everyone couldn't help but murmur such words.
It was quite unusual for two such talents to appear at once.
The association executives nodded at Hwang Ha-na's report.
Since it was only natural for the early withdrawal story to come out, there was nothing more to say.
It was impossible to keep a hunter who could become immediate combat power anywhere in the world locked in the training center, so with almost unanimous agreement, they told Hwang Ha-na,
“Proceed with the early withdrawal.”
The president of the Korean Hunter Association, who represented all the executives, said this with full enthusiasm, and Hwang Ha-na bowed her head slightly while looking at him.
Then she said,
“And I have something to tell you about that.”
Hearing that, the president, A-class hunter Han Mu-yeol who had reached A-grade regions in Korea, looked at Hwang Ha-na as if to ask what she had to say.
Even without applying mana pressure, the pressure from Han Mu-yeol was felt. In front of him, Hwang Ha-na said hesitantly,
“Could you keep the story about the early withdrawal and the two's talents completely confidential?”
Han Mu-yeol guessed what she meant, but asked her.
“The reason?”
It was just one word, but the pressure and gaze that weighed on the surroundings would have made anyone shake. But Hwang Ha-na gathered her courage and said boldly,
“It's too pitiful to let the geniuses of Earth's guilds, like the aggressive ones, take them away.”
Hearing that, Han Mu-yeol's eyes lit up as he looked at Hwang Ha-na.
Aggressive guilds like that. It was an extreme expression, but there was no better way to put it. Earth guilds operated like business transactions for mutual benefit, while the organizations in the Black Gate were different from the start in their ideologies.
Han Mu-yeol asked her again while looking at her like that.
“Ho? Do you think the talent of someone who could enter one of the places called the Abyss?”
It was a talent that could belong to one of the ten powerful organizations existing in the Black Gate called the Abyss. It was enough just looking at Do-hyeon alone, not Ji Yu-chan.
But the world wasn't that easy. When Han Mu-yeol asked that question, wondering, Hwang Ha-na answered confidently.
“Yes.”
A firm answer without the slightest tremor.
Han Mu-yeol nodded in understanding.
“I will take action.”
Since Hwang Ha-na knew that if Han Mu-yeol, the Korean Hunter Association president and A-class hunter, said something, it would be done no matter what, she bowed her head in joy and expressed gratitude.
“Thank you.”
After Hwang Ha-na left the meeting room with sincere gratitude, the other executives and Han Mu-yeol smiled at the corners of their mouths as if it was interesting and muttered.
“Next week?”
Early withdrawal.
The two young people who had achieved an unprecedented feat, they wanted to know what kind of guys they were, so Han Mu-yeol asked his secretary.
“Cancel the schedule to match next week's early withdrawal.”
“......Understood.”
There were many busy schedules, but the secretary had no choice but to answer that way.
No one could stop Han Mu-yeol if he wanted to do something.
At the moment the early withdrawal was decided, he muttered with a wrinkled smile.
“Let's see how many monsters they really are.”