Chapter 61
Chapter 61
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 61
Chapter Title: Do I Still Look Like a Fool?
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Chapter 61
"You won't do."
Stab—
"Arghhh!"
Those words were like a death sentence.
A dagger plunged into Chae-jun's remaining leg.
Ye-rin's orders from the start had only been to keep him alive.
And a C-Rank hunter wouldn't die from something like this.
"Ugh... Why are you doing this to me...?"
"Before asking why I'm doing this to you, think about why you did what you did to others."
It was right then that Kang-jun and Jun-hyeon returned after Jeong-hyeon had sent them away.
"Han Jeong-hyeon Hunter!"
"What the hell!"
They had only stepped away briefly on Jeong-hyeon's orders, rushing back the moment they sensed signs of a fight. Yet the battle was already over.
'He's an unregistered hunter, they said!'
And here was C-Rank Level 4 Kwak Chae-jun sprawled out on the ground?
Jeong-hyeon, meanwhile, grinned ferociously as he desperately inflicted more pain on Chae-jun.
Perhaps sensing hope in these newcomers.
Chae-jun crawled toward the two men, pleading.
"P-Please... spare me..."
Stab—
"Argh! Fuck, why are you doing this to me!"
This time, it was his right arm.
The dagger hadn't just pierced his longer arm—it had pinned it straight to the ground.
"Han Jeong-hyeon Hunter. That's enough now! We've subdued him."
"The Association will take custody from here."
Fearing he might actually die, the two men tried to stop Jeong-hyeon.
But Jeong-hyeon had no intention of letting Chae-jun off easily.
"It's fine. He won't die from this, won't die."
"But..."
"Ugh... You're not... with the Association...?"
"Hm?"
Jeong-hyeon tilted his head at Chae-jun's question, as if wondering how he'd figured it out.
He soon realized why.
Jun-hyeon had called him "Hunter," not by rank, so Chae-jun must have guessed he was an outsider.
'Even while bawling his eyes out, he's sharp. Guess he still had some fight left.'
Jeong-hyeon smirked and answered.
"Yeah, I'm just an unregistered hunter. Got roped into this op."
"Then... then you know how shitty it is to be looked down on! That's why I did it, that's why!"
He was quick on the uptake, that one.
Even now, he was scrambling to build a sense of camaraderie with Jeong-hyeon.
Of course, if Jeong-hyeon fell for tricks like that, he wouldn't have stabbed daggers into the guy's limbs after the fight was decided.
"Sure, you got looked down on plenty. So what?"
"......?"
Stab—
If getting looked down on meant turning villain, Jeong-hyeon would've become a murderer ages ago.
It was nonsense.
Finally, a dagger pierced Chae-jun's last remaining arm.
His pitiful scream echoed once more.
"Please! I was wrong! I did it all wrong!"
An unexpected alert appeared before Jeong-hyeon's eyes.
[Hidden Achievement: 'Do I Still Look Like a Fool?' completed. You have acquired 5 coins.]
'Huh?'
A hidden achievement in a situation like this?
['Do I Still Look Like a Fool?'
- Completely deceive the target's rank perception and plunge them into utter despair. Only applies to confirmed villains.
Reward: 5C]
It seemed the system judged that Chae-jun—now limp and sobbing uncontrollably—had met the conditions.
"Tch. Don't think I spared you 'cause I'm in a good mood."
Though it was thanks to the unexpected coins, Jeong-hyeon grinned at Jun-hyeon and Kang-jun, feeling refreshed.
"Alright, let's report to Chief Cha now."
"I-I'll go report, sir."
Kang-jun bolted off, his face a bit pale.
He had no idea what had gone down while they were away, but seeing Chae-jun a blubbering mess on the ground, he wanted nothing more to do with this place.
Only as he ran did he finally register something off.
'But Han Jeong-hyeon Hunter's supposed to be unregistered.'
That's exactly why he and Jun-hyeon had hesitated to leave in the first place.
Cha Ye-rin had put him on the op herself, so they figured it was suspicious but gave it enough time to return—never imagining he'd wrap up the fight already.
Their opponent was a C-Rank Level 4 swordsman they might not even beat together.
They'd planned to stall and call in the outside support team, but Jeong-hyeon shattered all that effortlessly.
Maybe he wasn't really unregistered—just a secret agent in training?
The thought ballooned in Kang-jun's mind.
Ye-rin seemed like the type who could totally fool her own team like that.
Either way, he'd been half-playing around with the foam slimes, so he reached the outside quickly.
He grabbed his phone and called Ye-rin right away.
Thankfully, she picked up after just a few rings.
- Hello?
"Chief! This is Response Team Kang-jun. Op's complete!"
- Yeah? Okay. Good work. How'd you catch him?
"Uh, well..."
Kang-jun trailed off, his initial excitement gone.
But there was no hiding it.
He hadn't even seen it.
"No clue?"
- What?
It was the kind of answer that even made the great Ye-rin tilt her head.
***
"Got it. Call in support and make sure he's secured."
- Yes, sir. Sorry, Chief.
"Tch. Gotta retrain the staff."
Ye-rin hung up on Kang-jun and clicked her tongue lightly.
No idea what happened?
Was that what a response team member should say?
She got the gist from the situation, sure, but preventing that situation was their job.
"Anyway, time to make the report."
Despite her slight irritation at Kang-jun's incompetence, Ye-rin's expression was quite bright.
It hadn't deviated much from her overall expectations, after all.
She left Investigation Division 3 and headed deeper into the Association.
Her destination?
- Director of Investigation Bureau Office
It was the office of her boss—the head of the Association's investigative forces.
"Ahem."
Before entering, Ye-rin meticulously checked her appearance.
She never usually cared what others thought, but the Director's office was an exception.
- Knock knock.
"Director, it's Division 3 Chief."
"Come in."
The responding voice was thick and husky, contrasting her own.
Yet the tone was impeccably polite and warm.
With permission granted, Ye-rin quietly opened the door and entered.
The room wasn't large to begin with, and bookshelves lining every wall—some even freestanding like partitions—made it feel even smaller.
Even inside, she had to pass one layer of shelves to reach the owner.
Beyond them loomed a desk piled high with papers and books.
There sat Go Min-seok, Director of the Investigation Bureau.
His bear-like bulk, dark-tanned face, and cropped hair screamed warrior archetype.
But a suit straining against bursting muscles and glasses softened his fierce aura somewhat.
"You don't have to be so stiff."
"This is comfortable, Director."
Min-seok chuckled as Ye-rin stood ramrod straight before him.
Even after telling her it wasn't necessary, she always treated him with this untaught courtesy.
"Director, Kwak Chae-jun has been apprehended. Here for the initial report."
"Already? That was quicker than expected."
Min-seok raised an eyebrow at her words.
Had he lost track of time buried in work?
But even checking the computer clock confirmed his senses.
It had been barely an hour since the op briefing, and they'd already nabbed a C-Rank villain?
"The agents deployed were Jeong Jun-hyeon and Park Kang-jun Hunters, right? I was worried since they're rookies, but they must be pretty skilled."
On paper, they were C-Rank Levels 2 and 3.
One even had a healing trait.
Good matchup against a swordsman or not, Min-seok had thought subduing Kwak Chae-jun with just those two was impossible.
Response teams against villains needed PvP prowess.
Killing monsters was one thing; fighting fellow hunters was another.
Jun-hyeon and Kang-jun were fine hunters, but green in PvP, so he'd expected a drawn-out op.
Yet Min-seok's gaze sharpened as he read Ye-rin's expression.
"Division 3 Chief. There's something I don't know. Right?"
"Yes. Director, it wasn't the two of them. It was one."
"One? No way..."
No way tank Park Kang-jun soloed Kwak Chae-jun?
Impossible.
Then... the only other logical—albeit absurd—explanation was the wildcard on the op.
"No way. You're saying the unregistered Han Jeong-hyeon Hunter caught Kwak Chae-jun?"
"Exactly."
"Cha Ye-rin Chief. No jokes in reports."
The words were a warning, but his stunned tone and tilted head said otherwise.
Ye-rin never joked with him, not even off-duty.
Especially not now?
'At first, I thought Division 3 Chief was talking nonsense...'
Min-seok recalled the initial op briefing from Ye-rin.
- Two rookie response team members and one civilian hunter?
- Yes. Among available agents, those two are the only ones Kwak Chae-jun won't recognize.
- No, not them—the civilian hunter. An unregistered one at that? Entrusting him with a key role?
Throwing an unregistered civilian at a C-Rank Level 4.
And from the op outline, not just as bait—he'd join the fight.
It sounded like a bad joke.
But Ye-rin's face was firmer than ever.
- Kwak Chae-jun's trait revolves around money, so we'll have someone act rich but weak. It fits perfectly. And I vouch for Han Jeong-hyeon Hunter's skills.
- Huh... You hunted together or something?
He'd asked hopefully, but she shook her head.
Min-seok's head was spinning.
Ye-rin's ops were usually flawless—no notes from him except emergencies.
This one? Different story.
Even with her guarantee, deploying an unregistered hunter as main force?
Min-seok had turned serious.
- Even for Division 3 Chief, this op's a no-go. If we must use a civilian hunter due to manpower shortages, keep him out of direct combat at least.
- ...
- I'd prefer at least C-Rank, but with your recommendation, I'll overlook that. Just ensure no casualties.
In the end, Jeong-hyeon was sidelined from combat, reinforcing the external support team instead.
- Oh, and pay the assisting hunter up to 5,000 for their fee.
If Jeong-hyeon knew that "5,000" meant 50 million won, he'd foam at the mouth—with instructions on hazard pay to boot.
Anyway, the op had felt off Ye-rin's usual style from the start.
She was bold—eccentric, even—but backed it with meticulous details.
This? Just eccentric, heavy on uncertainty over sloppiness.
Yet she'd proven it with results.
"I'll submit a detailed written report later, but per Park Kang-jun Hunter's verbal account, that's what happened. Circumstantially, the two Association hunters drew Kwak Chae-jun out while away, and Han Jeong-hyeon subdued him."
"Ha. Unbelievable."
Min-seok drummed the desk lightly, repeatedly expressing disbelief.
But he had to separate shock from duty.
"Write a statement of apology as responsible party for deviating from the op plan."
"Yes, sir."
"And..."
Even ordering the apology, Ye-rin didn't blink, staring steadily.
Min-seok flushed at issuing a contradictory order but spoke anyway.
"Han Jeong-hyeon Hunter—you seem to know him well. Recruit him to the Association at all costs. I'll pull whatever strings I can."
Ye-rin smiled as if she'd expected it.
"I was already working on that."
"Ahem! Division 3 Chief's got a good eye for people, as expected."
"......"
"What? More strong hunters in the Association means a stronger nation! Matches the President's vision too. Anyway, you're dismissed."
"Understood. Excuse me, Director."
Still smiling, Ye-rin turned to leave.
As the door opened, Min-seok hurriedly added,
"Oh, good work, Division 3 Chief! Wrap up and rest today!"