Contract with Me and Become My Adjutant
By the time I had hurriedly put myself in order and come back downstairs to the café, Suyoung was already there, deep in conversation with Are.
I was sure she’d still be asleep… Looks like she got up early and was already prepping in the back of the café.
Realizing that a little late, I found myself once again confirming that this noona’s alcohol tolerance was far more impressive than I’d given her credit for.
Just last night she drank even more than I did, yet she looks completely fresh…
With that thought, I carefully approached the two of them. They both turned to look at me at the same time, giving me the uncanny sensation of facing a pair of mirrors.
“Sleep well? The bed wasn’t too uncomfortable?”
“Uh… yeah. It was fine enough.”
Suyoung offered me a gentle smile as she looked at me, making it clear which of the two she was. Feeling a little awkward, I took a seat, and right after that she formally introduced me to Are.
“Looks like you’ve already said hello, but I’ll introduce you properly one more time. This is Lee Are—my little sister I told you about yesterday. And Are, this is Lee Jinhyun, the one I’ve been talking about all this time. He was the adjutant of the 28th Hunter Guild until a few days ago, when he was discharged.”
Receiving the formal introduction through Suyoung, the two of us exchanged a light bow of acknowledgment.
“For the record, I met Are about two years ago. Someone who looked exactly like me walked into our shop by chance, so we checked a few things, and it turned out she was the little sister I’d been separated from as a kid. I’ve been wanting to introduce her to you for ages, but I never got the chance until now.”
“I see… Well, looking at the two of you, you’re practically carbon copies of each other.”
I nodded slowly at Suyoung’s explanation, which lined up pretty closely with what I’d already guessed. Then, wearing a strangely satisfied expression, she turned to me again.
“Anyway, Are says the work she’s doing these days has something to do with hunters, so talk it over properly. Both the professional side and… everything else.”
“Everything else…? What do you mean by that?”
“Heh… You’ll find out soon enough.”
With that, having finished her role as intermediary, Suyoung rose from her seat and spoke to us in an easy voice.
“Well, I’ve got to get ready for opening and make breakfast, so my part ends here. Good luck with the interview.”
“Got it. Thanks, noona.”
“Yes, thank you, unni.”
Are expressed her gratitude to Suyoung with carefully polite speech. I felt a slight awkwardness at that, but given that these were sisters who had been separated for over twenty years, I decided not to dwell on it too deeply.
Once Suyoung disappeared into the back of the café, the two of us were left alone. Are looked at me with an expressionless face and began the interview.
“Then, if it’s all right with you, I would like to move straight into discussing the work.”
“Ah… yes. That’s fine.”
At the word “work,” the faintly buoyant feeling I’d been carrying until a moment ago began to settle. As Suyoung had said, if it was something related to hunters, I was reasonably confident in my abilities. Of course, as a man, becoming a hunter myself and fighting on the front lines was out of the question—but after four years of fully managing a hunter guild’s operations as an adjutant, I was proud of my competence when it came to support and everything that went with it.
That said, separate from my actual skill, four years of being thoroughly worn down meant that anything involving hunters still triggered a reflexive sense of aversion I couldn’t quite shake.
At best it’ll probably just be some military-related subcontractor… but I still can’t help feeling instinctively uneasy about it.
Watching me sit there with a mix of anticipation and worry, Are began speaking in a calm voice.
“First, allow me to explain the work I am currently engaged in. At present, my colleagues and I are employed by a Black Hunter company.”
“Black Hunters…?”
Unlike the subcontractor stories I’d expected to hear in connection with hunters, this was a somewhat unexpected turn, and my surprise showed on my face. Looking at me, Are asked quietly,
“Are you familiar with them at all?”
“Yes… a little.”
“I see. In that case, would you first tell me what you know about Black Hunters in relation to us? Before I go into specifics, I think it would be good to confirm your perspective.”
“Understood. Well then…”
Following Are’s request, I carefully began recounting what I had learned about Black Hunters through my work while I was still with the guild.
Black Hunters.
In general, most hunters operated as national military assets, holding the status of soldiers. Given the enormous costs of hunter procedures and training, and the danger posed by individuals who possessed superhuman strength far beyond ordinary humans, that was only natural.
However, there were those who, even after undergoing the procedure and becoming hunters, never managed to adapt to military life and were discharged—or who caused major incidents that made it impossible for them to remain as soldiers. Such people inevitably returned to civilian life while still possessing a hunter’s body.
And a considerable number of them used their superhuman physical abilities to take on various jobs within human society for a fixed fee as private individuals. The public had come to call these people Black Hunters.
In other words, if regular hunters are soldiers, Black Hunters are something like mercenaries… private enterprises that move for money. But it isn’t quite that simple.
The work Black Hunters took on included the hunter’s fundamental duty of battling Abysses, of course, but also personal protection and security, and—though rarer—even participation in wars between nations. Compared to ordinary hunters, their range of activities was considerably broader.
In the process, conflicts between Black Hunters themselves could arise. Depending on their nature, some even took on dirty work connected to crime, such as assassination. The pay might be good, but approaching them carelessly could easily lead to disaster.
I finished what I knew with a note of concern in my voice. Looking at me, Are remained as composed as ever as she replied.
“I see… Overall, what you know is largely correct. As you said, among Black Hunters there are quite a few who become involved in crime or commit illegal acts. That is why the government has attached a number of regulations to the profession of Black Hunter.”
“Yes, I’m aware of that as well. And while we’re on the subject, I would also like to make it clear that if the work Ms. Lee Are is involved in has any connection to crime, I have no intention of taking part in it.”
No matter how high the pay, I had not the slightest desire to get involved in that kind of work. I wasn’t desperate for money, and more than that—even though I’d been discharged—I still carried the personal convictions of a soldier who had once held a sense of duty to protect the country.
Hearing my declaration, Lee Are allowed a quiet smile to form at the corners of her mouth for the first time—a beautiful smile that, for an instant, stirred something in me.
“Regarding that point, I would first like to assure you that you need not worry.”
“I… is that so?”
I asked again for confirmation, my face coloring slightly. Are nodded and answered in a clear voice.
“Of course, there are those among Black Hunters who commit illegal acts. However, the work our company undertakes is limited strictly to legal matters. Moreover, as a company that has even received legal certification in connection with this, you may trust us.”
“Then that’s a relief, at least for now.”
I would need to look into the details more carefully later, but for the moment I decided to take her at her word and moved on to the next topic.
“In that case, could you tell me more specifically… what kind of work you would want me to do if I joined your company?”
“Very well. I shall.”
With that, Are took another sip of water as if her throat had gone dry, then spoke to me in a voice that carried a faint tension.
“Jinhyun-ssi. I want you… to become the adjutant who manages me and my colleagues.”
“Mm…”
I had more or less expected something like this from the moment I heard the words “Black Hunter,” yet the proposal still landed with an instinctive lack of welcome. Given everything I had endured in connection with adjutant work until now, I flinched slightly in spite of myself.