Fellow Sufferers
Yoon Myung-ho was an S-rank hunter.
Three years ago, he'd been little more than an E-rank hunter, but now he led the Galaxy Guild's second raid team as an S-rank powerhouse.
He had inherited the position of second raid leader when his mentor—practically his big sister—Kwon Je-na had advanced to SA-rank and become vice-guild master, leaving the spot vacant.
Given Kwon Je-na's influence as the former second raid leader and her close relationship with Yoon Myung-ho, the role was essentially her personal guard unit.
And Yoon Myung-ho was its captain.
The hunter world had been in an uproar lately.
The Hwarang Guild incidents where two raid teams had been completely wiped out. The out-of-spec high-rank monsters sighted in the upper zones.
Not just the nation's top five guilds, but major guilds everywhere and even the Hunter Association were watching closely.
Fortunately, the anomalies were confined to the Seoul Great Labyrinth, so there was no need to divert forces nationwide just yet. But precisely because it was the Seoul Great Labyrinth, swift action was essential.
It was one of the world's eight great labyrinths, drawing hunters not just from Korea but from abroad.
For national prestige and various commercial interests, they had to investigate and resolve the disturbances.
Thus, the Association had commissioned each guild to conduct investigations.
It wasn't a mobilization order with real coercive power, but given the circumstances, most guilds with spare capacity had no choice but to participate.
And the Galaxy Guild, one of the nation's top guilds, had naturally taken on the commission.
The second raid team was deployed for it.
The raid leader and members' participation was a given, and even the usually idle vice-guild master Kwon Je-na had joined.
Among the guilds that accepted the commission, Galaxy was the only one with a heavyweight like Kwon Je-na participating.
Investigations like this were typically handled individually by each guild.
This one was no different—guilds were moving separately by default—but unusually, Galaxy was teaming up with another guild.
A newly formed guild.
The Rose One Guild, to be exact.
"It's an honor to meet you, Hunter Kwon Je-na! I'm Lee Ha-na, S-rank hunter and guild master of Rose One. Looking forward to working with you today!"
True to her reputation for being straightforward and unpretentious, Lee Ha-na approached first and greeted them with a deep bow.
Kwon Je-na waved casually in response.
It was a rather curt attitude for someone who'd just received such a polite greeting. Yoon Myung-ho, standing beside her, gave an awkward smile.
"Sorry about that, Hunter Lee Ha-na... Our vice-guild master had a bit too much to drink last night..."
"Hey, you idiot! Why'd you have to say that?!"
Thwack!
As Yoon Myung-ho offered his excuse, a sharp impact echoed.
Lee Ha-na jumped at the unexpectedly loud sound, but seeing Yoon Myung-ho scratch his head like it was routine, she could only gape silently.
"Now she'll get the wrong idea. Best to be honest in times like these."
"Hey! Even so! What kind of image will I have with Hunter Lee Ha-na now?! She'll think I'm some crazy drunkard!"
"...You already look plenty like one."
Yoon Myung-ho muttered under his breath, then clamped his mouth shut as Kwon Je-na raised her hand again.
Lee Ha-na, who'd watched the exchange, smiled brightly.
"You two get along so well."
"...If that's how it looks to you, Hunter Lee Ha-na, maybe your eyesight's a little off...?"
Yoon Myung-ho shot her a sidelong glare, but Lee Ha-na just chuckled happily.
"This guy's been under me for a long time. He's like an annoying little brother."
"I don't need a big sis like the vice-guild master..."
Thwack!
Another short impact rang out, and this time Yoon Myung-ho clutched his head in real pain. Kwon Je-na ignored him and turned to Lee Ha-na with a gentle smile—a stark contrast to how she treated him.
Lee Ha-na returned a slightly awkward smile.
"Anyway, nice to meet you. I'm Kwon Je-na."
"Yes! Hunter Kwon Je-na! I've heard of your fame even back in France!"
"Ahaha, that's embarrassing... I wouldn't call it real fame."
Kwon Je-na smiled shyly for a moment before speaking up.
"Come to think of it, you were a hunter in France, right, Hunter Lee Ha-na? With that famous Lavie en Rose guild."
"Yes. I was lucky enough to catch the eye of our guild master... Hunter Charlotte Michelle."
"Must've been more than luck—your talent must've shone through. No way you'd catch the eye of one of the world's strongest like Hunter Charlotte Michelle on pure chance."
Lee Ha-na blushed modestly at Kwon Je-na's words.
Kwon Je-na watched her shy smile fondly for a bit, then spoke as if something had just occurred to her.
"So, did you start out in France? I don't recall hearing about you from Korea..."
"...No. I started here, actually. Back when I was E-rank."
Unlike her consistently bright demeanor before, Lee Ha-na's tone dipped slightly.
Kwon Je-na picked up on it immediately—there was some unspoken backstory there. She let out a quiet hum.
As the mood grew a touch awkward, Kwon Je-na elbowed Yoon Myung-ho.
Ugh! Yoon Myung-ho winced, shot her a glare, then cleared his throat.
"Anyway, looking forward to a smooth investigation. It's a rare joint op, so let's make it count."
"...Yes. Our guild's still got a long way to go, so we'll learn what we can and give it our all! Please take care of us!"
With Lee Ha-na's deep bow, the joint investigation between Galaxy Guild and Rose One Guild began.
"So, what's the focus of this investigation?"
"Hmm... You know why it's happening, right?"
"Yes. The Hwarang Guild incidents, plus the Association's commission over high-rank monsters appearing outside their zones."
"You know your stuff."
Yoon Myung-ho nodded lightly in affirmation, then continued.
"Truth is, commissions like this don't pin down a specific target. We usually just comb the labyrinth blindly... We'll probably prioritize the Desert Zone, where the first Hwarang incident happened."
"Desert Zone... I've never been there."
"Ah... You were E-rank back when you were in Korea, so..."
Yoon Myung-ho glanced at her cautiously.
He worried he'd unwittingly touched on her trauma again.
Lee Ha-na caught his look and smiled faintly.
"No need to worry. I've shaken it off over the last three years."
"...Really? That's a relief."
Yoon Myung-ho smiled awkwardly. Even if she said not to worry, the situation tugged at him anyway.
It was moments like this he inwardly cursed Kwon Je-na for shoving him toward a girlfriend.
'Vice-guild master, seriously... Why stir up unnecessary trouble...'
He sighed quietly to himself and quickly changed the subject before it got more awkward.
"France means the Lyon Great Labyrinth, right?"
"Yes, exactly. Just like Korea has the Seoul Great Labyrinth, France has Lyon."
"How's it there? Same eight great labyrinths, but I hear it's pretty different..."
"Hmm... The biggest difference is probably the zones. The monsters vary a lot too."
Yoon Myung-ho nodded in agreement.
It didn't hit home just from words, but he'd heard enough to get the gist.
"How far did you go? I think Lyon's record is floor 69? Something like that."
"I went up to 63 with the guild master. Anything higher was impossible at the time. What about you, Hunter Yoon Myung-ho?"
"Just hit 64 recently. Guild went all-out prepping... Whew, ran into the floor boss and had to retreat."
Lee Ha-na let out a quiet gasp of admiration.
"64th floor of the Seoul Great Labyrinth—that's the Lava Zone, right? I hear the heat is insane."
"Yeah, no Heat Resistance and you won't last a minute. Don't have the skill myself, so I leaned hard on gear. How about you? Lyon's 63rd is the snow mountain zone, yeah?"
"Don't remind me. The cold was brutal... If not for the guild master's quick call, we'd have lost most of the team."
Lee Ha-na shuddered as if reliving it, and Yoon Myung-ho chuckled.
"Sounds rough."
"You must've had it tough too, Hunter Yoon Myung-ho."
"Me? Vice-guild master made it worse."
"You two seemed close."
"Just your standard mentor-disciple thing... She calls it sis-bro, but I'd pass."
Like Lee Ha-na earlier, Yoon Myung-ho shuddered at the memory.
She chuckled this time.
"Kinda jealous. Looks fun."
"Huh? You don't have that? I heard you and Hunter Charlotte Michelle were like master and disciple..."
"Hmm... She's not bad. Just... strict? More mom than big sis."
"Ah, I get it. So you got it bad too? Naggy type?"
"...Embarrassing, but yeah. It was tough sometimes... Honestly, part of why I fled back to Korea."
Yoon Myung-ho nodded vigorously, fully relating.
How many times had he wanted to bolt? He just lacked an escape route.
"...We're alike, huh."
"...Yeah. You've been through a lot."
"...Let's keep at it."
"...Yeah. Let's."
Yoon Myung-ho and Lee Ha-na shared a moment of camaraderie, eyes meeting. No words needed—they could guess each other's pasts.
"Oh, speaking of... Hunter Lee Ha-na."
"Wait—sorry to cut in. Could you drop the formal title? Feels awkward."
"Ah... Sure? Ha-na...?"
Lee Ha-na beamed and nodded at his tentative try.
"Perfect."
"...Kinda embarrassing... Call me casual too."
"Sure, Myung-ho."
"......"
Her soft voice on his name made Yoon Myung-ho's cheeks heat up unbidden.
After dealing with Kwon Je-na the enemy, it had been ages since he'd heard such a kind, warm tone.
Flustered, he averted his gaze.
"So, Myung-ho. What were you saying?"
"...Oh, nothing big. Just thought we could exchange contacts...?"
Her eyes widened at his hesitant words.
Yoon Myung-ho rushed to explain at her surprised look.
"No weird intentions! Just... chatting made me want to get closer. If it's uncomfortable—!"
"No, it's not that. Just surprised... I was thinking the same."
Lee Ha-na smiled shyly, glancing away.
Yoon Myung-ho's cheek twitched.
"Th-then, maybe..."
"...Yeah. I'll give it to you on the way back."
"...If you're free after the investigation, dinner?"
His hunter-honed instincts screamed opportunity. Despite the nervous tremor, he'd said it.
Lee Ha-na looked troubled.
His face fell instantly.
"After? Kinda tricky. I'm guild master—lots to handle."
"...Got it. My bad for not considering... Sorry."
"No, not like that...! Just after the investigation is tough! Later... later's fine!"
Her hurried addition lit up his face again.
He beamed at her.
"Then...!"
"...Yeah. If later works..."
—let's have dinner.
Unable to hold back at her shy whisper, Yoon Myung-ho whooped.
"I'll treat you somewhere nice!"
"No need to go that far..."
Oddly hyped, he just grinned at her protest.
Whether she pushed back or not, his head was already buzzing with plans—where to eat, what to do.
'Go big—tastiest, priciest spot! Rooftop views? Ask the team, not vice-guild master?'
No, she'd sabotage it with some scheme.
Even if she'd pushed him into it, Kwon Je-na would meddle.
'No way I'm letting that happen. Never.'
Better ask other raid members.
Thus, the joint investigation continued, Yoon Myung-ho grinning dreamily about dinner, Lee Ha-na watching him with a shy smile she couldn't quell, oblivious to the unfamiliar shadow trailing them.