Chapter 23
Chapter 23
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: The Spreading Rumors
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Even though the parties involved and the Titan Guild members had kept quiet about it.
Rumors began to circulate that a C-rank Hunter had taken down the new type of monster that appeared in the sky.
Despite many people dismissing it as an absurd tale, the rumor spread reliably from mouth to mouth.
Even the news of the killer targeting only hunters from major guilds was overshadowed by Kang Jin-hyuk's exploits this time.
Scouts from major guilds, ever sensitive to information, launched their own investigations upon hearing the news.
Though the info lacked credibility, the "what if" possibility was worth betting on.
In this era of guilds expanding their forces and competing fiercely, a promising hunter was a valuable human resource.
Guilds eager to solidify their positions naturally took interest in the matter.
Altron, the top-ranked guild in the country, was no exception.
"I heard the Titan Guild Master made contact personally?"
"Yeah, I heard that too. But he turned it down, right?"
"If an S-rank Hunter stepped in, he's no ordinary talent."
Altron's scouts, already deep into their investigation, found themselves in a dilemma.
Titan was one of the top five prestigious guilds in Korea.
If even their guild master had failed to recruit him personally, it was clear that half-hearted offers would be rejected.
'Just how impressive is this guy...?'
As a hunter who had suddenly burst onto the scene, there was woefully little solid information available.
Amid all the rampant rumors, the scouts had confirmed only two facts.
He wielded an aluminum bat as his main weapon, and the A-rank Hunter who had challenged him had been thoroughly beaten and was now laid up in the hospital.
"Any info on the hospitalized A-rank Hunter?"
"Yeah, Hunter An Do-yoon from Titan."
"What? That guy's skills were legit. He's not the type to go picking fights he can't win."
Despite his rotten personality causing constant scandals, An Do-yoon hadn't been kicked out of Titan thanks to his high combat prowess and track record.
"That's exactly what I'm saying. He even made it to vice guild master once. And he got wrecked by some C-rank Hunter...?"
The fact that a proven powerhouse—not some nobody—had lost meant the opponent was that skilled.
"Looks like we can suspect a Hidden Class here."
"Isn't that jumping the gun?"
"No, it's totally plausible."
The Altron scout trusted his instincts.
Hidden Classes, possessed by only 0.1% of all hunters.
Nothing short of that cheat-level ability could explain a C-rank Hunter taking down An Do-yoon.
"If he really has a Hidden Class..."
"We need to move before another guild snatches him."
Altron's scouts grew anxious.
Their guild's dominance in Korea stemmed from having Hidden Class holders.
With three as key members, they held a competitive edge.
Having felt the power of Hidden Classes firsthand, Altron was wary of rivals acquiring one.
The best counter? Recruit them to your side.
If not, destroy them before handing them over to enemies—that was Altron's way.
"We'll need at least a vice guild master to step up."
"You think it's that serious?"
"What are you talking about? Titan's guild master personally tried and failed. If grunts like us go, we'll just get shut down at the door."
"Fair point."
They had no intention of underestimating him just because he was a C-rank Hunter.
They were already all but convinced Kang Jin-hyuk had a Hidden Class.
But contrary to their assumptions, Kang Jin-hyuk had no such thing.
The hunter who merely had a dungeon in his attic lay sprawled on the floor like a starfish, paying the price for overtaxing his stamina.
Oblivious to the buzz his actions had caused, he wandered in dreamland for over two days.
He only realized the issue surrounding him when he woke up, gripped by ravenous hunger.
* * *
Rising from bed, Kang Jin-hyuk grabbed his smartphone to check the date.
"What the hell?"
He was shocked to learn he'd slept straight through for two whole days.
Heading to the living room, he got another shock seeing Lucia casually rummaging through his fridge.
Their eyes met, and Lucia paused mid-reach for an apple from the veggie drawer, waving happily.
"You're finally up. When you collapsed right after I arrived, I thought you had some deadly disease."
Kang Jin-hyuk froze, racking his brain to make sense of the scene.
No matter how he thought about it, what he was seeing defied logic.
"Why are you still here?"
"Well... after all the care I gave you while you were out cold, this is the thanks I get?"
"Care my ass. You're still in the same dirty clothes you collapsed in."
Realizing he'd slept for two days covered in dirt made him feel grimy.
Lucia scoffed at his complaint, as if it were ridiculous.
"Put yourself in my shoes. Would you want to touch those filthy clothes and change them?"
"Put myself in your shoes? Ohhh."
Hearing his exclamation, Lucia flushed beet red and hurled the apple she'd grabbed.
"What the hell are you imagining, you pervert!"
Kang Jin-hyuk ducked just in time, and the apple shot out the open window like a cannonball.
"Stop wasting my food and get out already."
"If I could leave, I'd have gone ages ago. Why would I stick around in this polluted hellhole?"
"What are you talking about?"
"What do you think? I want to go but I can't."
"......?"
It should have been as simple as returning the way she came.
The fact that she couldn't do something so straightforward left Kang Jin-hyuk dumbfounded.
"The door leads to a dungeon, and you couldn't go through it?"
"Yeah. Sounds ridiculous, but it's true—I couldn't."
Judging by her expression, she wasn't joking.
Just to be sure, Kang Jin-hyuk walked to the attic door, tensed slightly, and flung it open.
Relief washed over him as the dungeon appeared perfectly intact, unlike his fears. He let out a hollow chuckle.
"It's connected just fine."
"What? No way."
"Don't believe me? See for yourself."
Lucia approached the attic and confirmed the labyrinth was clearly visible, just as he said.
Even seeing it with her own eyes, she tilted her head, muttering that it couldn't be.
"It really wasn't there when I tried..."
To test it, Lucia nudged Kang Jin-hyuk aside and closed the door.
Opening it again, the dungeon vanished as she'd expected—just an ordinary attic.
"See? It's gone!"
"Huh?"
Kang Jin-hyuk, watching the results, felt like he'd witnessed a magic trick.
He couldn't fathom how opening and closing the same door could yield such different outcomes.
"What's the principle behind this?"
Since the dungeon appeared in the attic, no one else had ever opened that door, so he'd never anticipated this.
Lucia, arms crossed and deep in thought, seemed to have a hunch.
While a starving Kang Jin-hyuk ordered delivery, she settled on the most likely hypothesis.
"Looks like the mage embedded dimensional coordinates that include you."
"......Can you explain that in simpler terms?"
"Basically, this dungeon came here targeting 'you' as the destination."
Lucia spoke with over fifty percent certainty.
But Kang Jin-hyuk struggled to follow.
Talk of dimensional travel flew in the face of common sense, and him being the destination was absurd.
"Then why didn't the dungeon crash on my head instead of appearing in the attic?"
"Because the magic failed."
If it had succeeded, he'd have been squashed flat under the dungeon by now.
Lucia grinned as if joking.
"In short, one slip-up and I'd have died without knowing what hit me?"
"You're quick on the uptake. Exactly."
Kang Jin-hyuk had felt deep gratitude toward whoever sent the dungeon here.
But from this moment, his opinion flipped completely.
Whoever was responsible—didn't matter where they lived—he'd punch their lights out if he ever caught them.
He clenched his fist as if swearing an oath.
Then, a loud gurgle erupted from his stomach, right on cue.
His gut, unable to endure the hunger any longer, began protesting.
"Delivery take long?"
Two days of sleep had left his stomach practically glued to his back.
Luckily, like a tiger summoned by its mention, his phone rang from the delivery guy before it got unbearable.
[Excuse me, could you repeat your address?]
"My address? It should be exactly as in the app..."
Kang Jin-hyuk recited it again, plunging the delivery man into confusion.
[I'm right nearby, but I can't find your place at all. Could you come out?]
"Ah, sure. Got it."
The area wasn't that complicated, so this was a first.
It was odd, but if the delivery guy was struggling, what choice did he have? He'd go meet him.
Kang Jin-hyuk stepped outside to find the delivery man.
Spotting him, he was speechless at where the guy had been wandering.
"......What are you doing here?"
The delivery man had been lost right in front of Kang Jin-hyuk's house.
Only after Kang Jin-hyuk emerged did he seem to notice there was a house there.
"Huh? Are you the customer?"
"Yeah, that's me."
"Weird. How did I miss a place this close?"
The delivery man left still puzzled even after payment.
Kang Jin-hyuk was equally baffled.
Losing your way right in front of the house? No matter how he sliced it, it was strange.
Head full of question marks, he headed back inside.
"Who was it?"
To Lucia's question, Kang Jin-hyuk replied while unpacking the food.
"Got delivery 'cause I was starving."
"He actually found this place. I cast Perception Impairment magic to make it hard to spot."
Kang Jin-hyuk froze at her words.
That wasn't something to brush off.
"You cast what?"
"Perception Impairment magic. Simple, but effective."
"Why'd you do that?"
"While you were sleeping, weird people kept showing up."
"Weird people?"
"Yeah. Something like... Guardian? Altron? Anyway, they said they were from some guild."
The names Lucia mentioned were Korea's top two guilds.
People from there seeking him out was no small matter.
Wondering if some incident had blown up, Kang Jin-hyuk searched latest news on his smartphone.
In the hunter community forum, he spotted his name trending in real-time searches.
"Huh? What's this?"
Among posts with his name were videos from two days ago, when he'd helped Titan.
Grainy footage from the chaos, but enough to prove his skills.
And the hottest topic? The new monster incident.
Before returning home, Kang Jin-hyuk had seen Titan's prideful executives issue a gag order.
Since Lucia had helped with the hunt, he hadn't wanted to spread rumors either.
Yet detailed accounts were already topping the best posts on the community.