Chapter 118
Chapter 118
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 118
Chapter Title: The New Neighbor
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Whoosh—
"?"
It was clearly just ordinary magic, nothing special.
No, if an S-Rank Hunter had cast it, one could argue it was special precisely because it was too weak.
Nam-shik and Ye-rin's expressions briefly crossed as they watched Ji-hee produce a fireball about the size of a soccer ball.
Both looked surprised, but while Nam-shik's face was one of sheer shock, Ye-rin's was more one of puzzlement.
Ye-rin couldn't quite grasp what was happening here.
Sure, it was astonishing that Ji-hee had cast magic even after being injected with a trait suppressor, but Ye-rin hadn't experienced it herself, and more importantly, she didn't know Ji-hee all that well.
"How is it?"
In contrast, Jeong-hyeon and Nam-shik were perfectly in sync.
"This is impossible. What in the world...?"
The confident Jeong-hyeon and Nam-shik's response, which satisfied him completely.
And Nam-shik's shock didn't end there.
After demonstrating the spell once, Ji-hee turned back to where they stood and asked,
"Is this good enough?"
"My God...!"
There was still a hint of shyness on her face, but that alone was enough for Jeong-hyeon to be certain.
This single sentence was by far the longest thing Nam-shik had ever heard Ji-hee say.
"......?"
Of course, Ye-rin was still tilting her head in confusion, unable to make sense of the situation.
"You said it's a trait suppressor, right? How many do you have?"
"Eight, but I used one, so seven left now. That should be enough, right?"
"Of course! You said it was made with an S-Rank trait, so I can't guarantee a perfect copy... but I think it's possible."
After spoon-feeding him this far, it had better work.
Whether they recruited an S-Rank with a similar ability or mimicked it with an A-Rank poison mage as a lower-tier version, that was now the Association's problem.
And Jeong-hyeon didn't think it would be that hard.
'Weakening the effect a bit should be sufficient anyway.'
The temporary full paralysis was the only side effect, but that was just because the suppressor's effect was too potent.
Taking that into account, using a lower A-Rank or below poison trait might actually be better.
"And regarding the trait suppressors, we should treat them as separate from the existing rewards."
Now came the main point, the most important to Jeong-hyeon.
They'd only gathered four people for the test due to the chaotic atmosphere, but using the trait suppressor to weaken Ji-hee's penalty was a huge deal.
It was providing the key to turning an S-Rank who was essentially a liability into a proper contributor.
Nam-shik clearly understood, nodding with a bright smile as if to say not to worry.
"Don't worry. That's why we set aside contingency funds, isn't it? I'll handle this one personally, staking my position on it."
"I'll trust you, Section Chief. Then."
Having wrapped up his business, Jeong-hyeon gave Nam-shik and Ji-hee a nod and left the observation room.
He thought Ye-rin might stay longer, but she left with him, apparently having no further business.
"Shall we go together?"
"Sure."
As the two exited the observation room, Ye-rin let out a deep sigh.
"Haa... What a headache."
"Even you have those moments, Section Chief."
"Huh? Oh. Right."
Ye-rin glanced at him briefly—his words catching her off guard—before looking away.
Jeong-hyeon hadn't expected this side from Ye-rin, who always seemed inscrutable and handled work flawlessly.
She probably wasn't used to situations like this either.
He'd gotten the better of her more than once or twice, but he had no hobby of teasing her endlessly over it, so he broached the subject gently.
"Because of the trait suppressor?"
"Yes. I don't know how Daibok Guild got their hands on something like that... but if it hits the market, it'll be a disaster."
A disaster indeed.
Jeong-hyeon was the perfect counter to trait suppressors.
That's how he'd managed to subdue Jeong-jun and Yun-ho, fortunately.
But if villains—not just state-backed hunters—could obtain trait suppressors?
That would be a catastrophe in a different way.
Even if only for tens of minutes, it meant hunters could theoretically be subdued by civilians in extreme cases.
"Well... it depends on how you look at it. If managed well, wouldn't Investigation Division make great use of it?"
"What are you... Huh?"
Ye-rin started to bristle at first, as if asking what nonsense that was, but then tilted her head.
It went without saying, but trait suppressors didn't discriminate between villains and regular hunters.
In other words, if usable for capturing villains, even the urban operations the Association dreaded wouldn't be impossible.
Of course, that would mean the suppressors becoming public knowledge, creating another side effect.
"Anyway, that's for you Section Chiefs to figure out. Not the important part."
"The important part?"
Jeong-hyeon nodded at Ye-rin's question.
Frankly, the mere fact that Ye-rin hadn't thought of this yet showed the extent of her shock and anger.
It was the obvious next step given the circumstances.
"A storm of blood is coming to the Association."
"Ah!"
Ye-rin finally let out an exclamation.
The leak of an S-Rank's hunting info meant there was a spy in Operations Division, the core of S-Rank management.
Not to mention...
Jeong-jun and Yun-ho had brazenly obtained fake hunter IDs for their operation.
That wouldn't be easy without help from the issuance line.
Two obvious leads right there.
And tracing back from Daibok Guild could uncover all Association staff involved with them.
Of course, Jeong-hyeon didn't spell all that out.
Cha Ye-rin was plenty capable.
She was already sprinting down the hall, only pausing to greet Jeong-hyeon belatedly.
"Thanks so much for today! I'll properly thank you later!"
"Good luck."
Ye-rin vanished before Jeong-hyeon's smiling reply even finished.
'She's still scary as ever...'
Jeong-hyeon clicked his tongue watching her go.
He'd been hopeful after catching those two A-Ranks this time.
Even at level 4, subduing them so easily—maybe Ye-rin was finally within reach?
But the gap remained.
Higher ranks had massive level gaps, so level 6 Ye-rin was incomparable to Jeong-jun or Yun-ho.
Plus, while he'd been farming coins in 4- and 5-level gates, she hadn't been idle either—she'd gotten even stronger.
That brief aura he'd sensed earlier was no joke.
Still, the overwhelming wall from before had lowered quite a bit.
'Not much longer now.'
Jeong-hyeon's eyes sharpened as he stared at the spot where Ye-rin had disappeared.
Level 5 was just around the corner.
Of course, due to the "Trait Shop's" nature, raising its level wouldn't instantly make him stronger, but one thing was certain.
At level 5, he'd definitely catch up to Ye-rin.
'And then we'll hunt together, and I'll say it right to her face.'
*You're weak, huh?*
That was Jeong-hyeon's idea of revenge.
If Ye-rin threw a tantrum in outrage upon hearing it, he'd want for nothing more.
In the end, the winner writes the history, right?
He vowed never to enter a gate with her until he was confident he could beat her.
***
A housing complex on the outskirts of Seoul, sparsely populated.
It had several luxury homes, but for safety reasons, hardly anyone lived there anymore.
It was also where Jeong-hyeon now resided, officially registered as a Republic of Korea S-Rank Hunter.
"Whew, another fulfilling day."
Jeong-hyeon stretched idly as he headed home.
After the spirit gate incident, he'd resumed hunting to farm coins.
He wanted to train Ji-hee more, but the Association asked him to wait.
Their internal affairs were messy, and suppressor research was progressing faster than expected.
In any case, he had no choice but to hunt solo.
He wanted to hit the golem gate once he had enough daggers, but no word from Doil yet.
'The golem core must be tricky.'
Jeong-hyeon would rather wait for a perfect product than rush a subpar one.
A standard 4-level gate was easy enough—swinging the mace around was plenty to steadily earn 3 or 4 coins.
Meanwhile, after Daibok Guild's operation failed, the news buzzed with Association internal scandals for a while.
Naturally, Ji-hee's story stayed under wraps.
Instead, stories poured out about Association staff colluding with China to sell info, leading to mass arrests and punishments.
That part wasn't bad.
But recalling what came next, Jeong-hyeon frowned.
'They still missed the real issue.'
Long story short, Daibok Guild was gone.
But in reality, it was just a name change—China's government relaunched as "Wonhwa Guild" in Korea.
Even in a dimension driven more by political logic than principles, this was absurd.
Details of the prior agreement weren't public, so the public initially raged to expel the Chinese guild outright, but after the name change and full executive replacement, things settled back to normal.
"Tch..."
If they quietly recruited S-Ranks, who could complain?
It annoyed him, but Korea was desperate securing S-Ranks like other developing nations, so he let it slide.
But they'd crossed the line.
And they'd nearly harmed him too.
In frustration, he kicked a loose pebble.
Ping—
It embedded into a wall with a sharp crack.
That was why he'd moved somewhere deserted.
His strength was now too immense—he could accidentally hurt someone without realizing.
Of course, he'd be extremely careful around people, but who knows what might happen.
'That's why they're talking mandatory hunter personality training... Hate that.'
Shaking his head at the recent news, Jeong-hyeon resumed walking when,
"Hm?"
Something caught his eye.
A moving truck was parked at the gate of the house next door.
Busy movers shifting boxes, and among them, a petite woman who stood out.
"Whew, this little lady's hauling stuff better than us despite her size! We'll be done quick."
"Hey, she's a hunter! You can't compare her to normies like us!"
"Who doesn't know that? I'm just saying she's nicer than most hunters, that's all."
"......"
Amid the movers' boisterous chatter, the woman silently carried loads heavier than she looked, without a word.
Noticing someone had stopped in the alley, she turned and spotted Jeong-hyeon.
It was someone he knew well.
"Huh?"
"......!"
She blushed as he recognized her instantly—Ji-hee.
Without a chance to speak, she vanished inside the house.
"Guess she moved here."
Jeong-hyeon glanced at the gate she'd entered, then headed home.