Chapter 75
Chapter 75
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 75
Chapter Title: E-rank Hunter
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Yesterday, to celebrate Oh Jun-hyuk becoming an E-rank Hunter, we drank and partied all night.
First stop was a barbecue joint, second was karaoke, third was the club.
The club we hadn't hit in ages was more disappointing than I'd expected.
I did get hit on by some girls. Being a Hunter helps, and I'd gotten even more handsome since officially awakening.
Oh Jun-hyuk hooked up with a girl he clicked with and went to a motel. I went home alone.
'Not really my type.'
She was pretty enough. Dressed up nice, had her charms.
But her tits were small.
'If her face was celebrity-level or her ass was killer, maybe...'
I could enter the Vampire Detective world anytime. There, I could hook up with women more gorgeous than anyone in reality. No need to tie myself to some club pickup. I wasn't that desperate.
I popped into Vampire Detective whenever I had a spare moment for sex. No chance of going hungry for it.
'Plus, something just felt off.'
Bzzz.
My smartphone vibrated. It was a message from Oh Jun-hyuk.
Oh Jun-hyuk - Yo, you get home okay?
Sung Yu-jin - Yeah. Just woke up.
Sung Yu-jin - How was the girl you took to the motel?
Oh Jun-hyuk - Don't even ask, fuck.
Oh Jun-hyuk - Saw yellow powder in her handbag when she pulled out a condom.
"Yellow powder? Flash powder? ...Hah."
I let out a hollow laugh.
Flash powder was a drug.
Specifically, it was made by grinding the petals of the Pheralplesia, a C-rank plant-type monster.
You could eat it straight, mix it with water, or inject a concentrated version with a syringe. No matter how you took it, flash powder worked once it hit your system.
The concentrated liquid was called Heaven Flash.
The side effect? It slowly destroyed your mind. Every country banned it. Insanely addictive, but eventually, you'd lose your marbles so bad you wouldn't recognize your own parents.
Sung Yu-jin - So you still did it?
No way Oh Jun-hyuk would sleep with a druggie, even if he loved women. But he shattered my expectations.
Oh Jun-hyuk - Yeah.
Oh Jun-hyuk - Pretended not to notice and went for it.
Oh Jun-hyuk - She was chugging water mid-fuck.
Oh Jun-hyuk - Surprisingly good. Pussy was gushing when I pounded her.
Oh Jun-hyuk - Water made her tighter too. Skipped the kiss tho lol
I froze.
He'd fucked a girl on drugs and it was good?
Oh Jun-hyuk wasn't one to lie about shit like this. If he said it was good, it was.
'The girl who hit on me last night came with Oh Jun-hyuk too. Meaning she probably had flash powder... Damn! What does it even feel like? Why the hell did I go straight home?!'
I clenched my fist and bonked my head. Dodging that girl had left my curiosity raging unsatisfied.
Sung Yu-jin - What you up to now?
Oh Jun-hyuk - Eating hangover soup.
Oh Jun-hyuk - Hungover as fuck lol
Sung Yu-jin - The girl? You just ditch her?
Oh Jun-hyuk - One-night with a druggie, obviously.
Oh Jun-hyuk - Bounced while she was sleeping.
Oh Jun-hyuk would be fine from now on.
Club rat that he was, he'd dealt with this shit before.
Sung Yu-jin - Girls were all over you once you hit E-rank?
Oh Jun-hyuk - Lol yeah. Surprised me too.
Oh Jun-hyuk - Been slacking on Hunter gigs cuz annoying.
Oh Jun-hyuk - Regret not hitting E-rank sooner.
Oh Jun-hyuk - You keep grinding Hunter stuff properly. Don't regret like me.
Sung Yu-jin - Yeah.
Sung Yu-jin - Planning to anyway. Woke up late compared to others.
Sung Yu-jin - Goal's E-rank by end of the month.
With my current skills, E-rank was no problem.
Jin Se-young said if you ignored physicals and just looked at Youngcheon-ryu skill, I was D-rank level.
'Big wall between D and C, though.'
My physicals were upper F-rank now. Wouldn't get crushed by E-rankers.
Oh Jun-hyuk - Lmao.
Oh Jun-hyuk - With your skills, E-rank's fine.
Oh Jun-hyuk - How's your achievement score?
Sung Yu-jin - 730 points.
Oh Jun-hyuk - You been Hunter what, 3 months?
Sung Yu-jin - Yeah.
Oh Jun-hyuk - Average pace. Steady grinding?
Sung Yu-jin - Yeah. Just form public parties and hit dungeons.
I'd been doing public parties once or twice a week.
Not huge profits, but built achievements. Made some connections too. Well, no one I actually talked to.
Oh Jun-hyuk - E-rank in a month? Nah.
Sung Yu-jin - No, possible.
Oh Jun-hyuk - Every day? Give up. Rest is key for Hunters.
Sung Yu-jin - Gonna do E-rank dungeons.
Oh Jun-hyuk - You could handle it, but E-rankers won't take you.
Sung Yu-jin - Heh. Ways around it.
Chatted a bit more with Oh Jun-hyuk, then got ready to head out.
Starting today, E-rank dungeons.
???
"Sung Yu-jin?"
I looked up from my phone at the voice calling me.
A young guy, not much older than me, approached with a greeting. Big build, armored up.
"Yes. Sung Yu-jin."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Ki Bu-seon, leader of the 'From Today On' party."
He offered his hand. I pocketed my phone and shook it.
"Looking forward to today."
"Haha. No worries. I'll get you through safe and solid!"
Ki Bu-seon said energetically.
I followed him to the dungeon entrance.
The 'From Today On' party had two more members. One I knew.
"That's our passenger today?"
Short sporty hair guy. Spear in hand.
"Hurry to the dungeon... Oh, Senior Sung Yu-jin?"
The redhead spotted me and waved like we were close. Leather armor, sword on her hip.
I blinked in surprise. She was a junior from the Hunter Department.
"Im So-yeon? You're F-rank, right? Oh, passenger like me?"
"No, I'm in the party. Never thought I'd see you here, Senior Yu-jin!"
Im So-yeon beamed.
She was a Gukcheon University freshman. My junior.
Not close. Just nod-in-the-hallway types.
"Oh? What a coincidence! This is Sung Yu-jin, our passenger today."
"Sung Yu-jin. Nice to meet you."
I greeted them. Knew Im So-yeon, but spear guy and I were strangers.
"And that stoic guy's Im Sung-ui. So-yeon's brother."
Ki Bu-seon explained.
"Im Sung-ui. You're my sister's senior? Take care of her. She's a bit scatterbrained."
He dropped his guard and bowed.
"No need to bow like that. Not super close with So-yeon. But she's a rising star in the Hunter Department, doing great."
I fed him some smooth talk. Im So-yeon gave an awkward smile. Lip service was free.
And it wasn't wrong.
Im So-yeon had classic pyrokinesis—manipulating flames at will. Her red hair wasn't dyed; it turned that way on awakening.
'Hair or eyes changing on awakening... Means talent.'
We chatted briefly.
No dirty thoughts about Im So-yeon.
Cat-eyed upturn. Average height, B-cups. Red hair to her collarbone—mid-bob. Mole near her left lip.
'Killer body might tempt me, but not my style.'
No plans to dick around in reality. Could attract annoying clingies.
We wrapped up talk and entered the E-rank dungeon 'Wild Dog Ruins.' Home to corrupted wild dogs, E-rank monsters.
"Into the dungeon! Sung Yu-jin, you don't have to lift a finger!"
Ki Bu-seon pumped up. He was D-rank.
"F-rank like me would just get in the way. I trust you guys."
Hunter parties had "achievement taxis." Paid gigs carrying one member. Like boosters in games leveling newbies for cash.
'Dropped 3 million won for this taxi. Chump change for me.'
I was party-affiliated but no claim on monster byproducts. Just entry, hunt time, and achievement points.
In return? Do jack shit. Follow quietly.
'6 hours for 400 points? Profitable.'
F-rank dungeons gave 50-70 daily. E-rank: 300-400.
Corrupted wild dogs had poison, bumping points. Could hit 400+.
'At 700 points now... 2,800 left. 7 more taxis.'
Didn't plan taxis from the start.
Tried public E-rank parties for experience. Theory allowed one rank up.
But E-rank Hunters everywhere. Public parties skipped F-rank risk.
Even my own parties got no takers. F-ranks didn't need E-rank adventures for points.
'This is comfy.'
I tailed them reading novels on my phone. Filler time for creative works. Playful Life app limited to what I'd consumed.
'Ooh. That character's illust... Nice. Massive tits!'
Glanced at the fight.
Ki Bu-seon tanked and DPSed. Corrupted wild dogs dying to his sword and shield. Steel armor ignored claws and fangs.
'...Shield skills top-notch. Wouldn't beat me easy.'
Solid mid-D-rank.
'Achievement taxi side gig on his schedule?'
D-rank publics rare. Fixed parties dominate; scrubs filtered out.
Fixed parties had schedules. Idle D-ranks did taxis for pocket cash.
'Im Sung-ui. No slouch. E-rank but near D.'
D-ranks die to E-dungeon lapses. But Im Sung-ui backed Ki Bu-seon instantly. Covered misses or surrounds.
Im So-yeon looted byproducts.
Not first rodeo.
'...No orders needed. Fixed party perks.'
Publics noisy.
Leaders micromanaging. Show skill, they wary or suck-up for connections.
'Join a fixed party?'
Tired of public party hassles every run.
"Senior Yu-jin. Whatcha reading?"
"Novel."
"Novel? Fun?"
"Nah."
I said straight.
Novel sucked. Korean author, Korean text, reeked of Japan.
"...Why read it?"
"Hot female chars."
Straight answer.
Heroines and side chicks mostly stacked.
"You always like this?"
"Yeah."
Casual reply. Zero interest in Im So-yeon.
"......"
"......"
Silence fell.
Later, approached Ki Bu-seon on break.
"Ki Bu-seon. Wanna 1v1 a corrupted wild dog? Possible?"
"Ah, itchy for action? Sure."
Grinned friendly, nodded.
"Got antidotes. Go wild."
Couldn't go wild.
Wild dog couldn't dodge Youngcheon-ryu and died in one slash.
'...At least frontal 1v1, wouldn't lose.'
Lost interest in wild dogs.
After, Ki Bu-seon grilled me eagerly. Eyeing my skills. Gave vague answers, back to phone.
'Hm. Pink-haired char's pubes pink too?'
Vital pondering.
'Rainbow hair? Rainbow pubes?'