Chapter 198: Oh, Tae-hee...
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 198: Oh, Tae-hee...
3
After being transported with Si-ho to the location where the rapid dimensional gate had activated, I looked around.
We were on a street lined with shops.
But it was different from any ordinary street.
This is…
Overgrown thickets and dense fog.
The buildings were covered in moss as if they had survived the apocalypse.
“An Erosion-type.”
A man standing next to me let out a low groan.
He was Shin Tae-hee, the president of S University’s Hunter Department.
Currently an A-rank with S-rank potential, he was viewing the situation with extreme gravity.
This was because an Erosion-type phenomenon was a common occurrence when a returnee came back to Earth.
“This is serious. It seems a returnee has appeared.”
Shin Tae-hee had apparently reached the same conclusion, as he spoke with a deathly pale face.
“Then this must be the first returnee of the year.”
Watching him, I spoke nonchalantly, stroking my chin as I surveyed our surroundings.
Judging by the Erosion-type phenomenon, it seemed to be a fantasy world.
I wonder which one.
Shin Tae-hee stared at me incredulously.
“...Excuse me, but it’s a returnee.”
“Yes? Oh, right. It would be a returnee, wouldn’t it?”
His reaction caught me a little off guard.
We blinked at each other for a moment before I recalled my own attitude.
Come to think of it.
Even if relations with returnees were improving, one who caused a dimensional gate phenomenon was still someone to be wary of.
Returnees who had just come back often failed to grasp the situation properly and had a high chance of causing trouble.
But perhaps I had just dealt with too many of them.
Honestly, my first thought wasn’t about the returnee, but about closing the dimensional gate.
After all, the fact that this Erosion-type phenomenon had been left unchecked suggested that the returnee wasn’t particularly powerful.
In the case of S-rank returnees, an Erosion-type phenomenon rarely occurred in the first place.
Though I should still be careful, since there are cases like Ahyu.
But if it were a returnee of that caliber, Baeksan would have reacted by now.
Seeing him look around with disinterested eyes meant this was a returnee who hadn’t left much of an impression in his memory.
“Ah, my apologies. Yes, a returnee.”
But since Shin Tae-hee had no way of knowing our circumstances, I raised my phone.
“Then let’s call in the experts.”
“...Experts?”
“Yes. Returnee issues are the Association’s business.”
“What? The Ass-Association? Do you mean the World Returnee Association?”
While he stammered in shock, I called Seol-hyang.
The call connected after just a few rings.
[So you went there.]
The moment I called, Seol-hyang spoke as if she already knew the situation.
Well, Eunhyeon was hovering around me.
She must have reported it immediately.
“What’s the plan?”
[I’ve already sent people over. It’s someone you know, Ha-chan.]
Someone I know? Who could it be?
Ahyu?
Just as I was thinking that, the sky darkened for a brief moment.
Sensing a presence, I looked up just as a woman landed squarely in front of us.
A woman in a nun’s habit, wearing an eyepatch marked with a crest.
“Ms. Orjia?”
“It’s good to see you.”
We ran into each other at the company from time to time, but maybe because it had been a while since I’d seen her outside, I greeted her with genuine delight.
She was the first returnee I had met, aside from Ahyu, and in a way, the one who started it all.
I already knew she was helping the World Returnee Association.
But I hadn’t expected her to be dispatched for this incident.
“It’s good to see you, too. Are you in charge of this returnee case, Ms. Orjia?”
“Yes, that’s how it turned out.”
She was much more accustomed to modern society now, so there shouldn’t be any major problems.
“A… a returnee.”
Meanwhile, I saw Shin Tae-hee staring at Orjia with a bewildered expression.
He then looked at me with eyes that seemed unable to comprehend the situation.
Well, it was a natural reaction. People with connections to returnees were rare.
“And one more person will be arriving.”
“One more?”
Just as I wondered if it was Eunhyeon, I saw a flash of red lightning in the distance.
Recognizing it instantly, I let out a small smile as a person arrived before us.
White hair and red eyes.
Those eyes, staring at me with a sullen expression, were all too familiar.
“Heuksan.”
“What.”
Her reply was as prickly as ever.
She had changed quite a bit since our major clash before Eunnamu’s incident.
While she was still wary of people and had a sharp tongue, she had at least started to act cooperatively on the surface.
As proof, she was now helping Seol-hyang with the Association’s work.
It was truly leaps and bounds of progress, and I felt a sense of pride.
After all, Baeksan and I had played a huge part in her change.
“I was told to follow Mr. Ha-chan’s orders for the returnee search and the dimensional gate operation.”
“My orders?”
Did she delegate everything to me?
Then again, I was the one who had studied this field the most.
She probably entrusted me with field command.
“Understood. Then let’s split into two teams. One will handle the dimensional gate, the other will handle the returnee.”
With this many people gathered, it shouldn’t be too difficult.
“I’ll leave the dimensional gate to Si-ho, Ji-eun, and Ms. Orjia.”
With Orjia for combat, Ji-eun to guard against any potential mental attacks, and Si-ho to handle the gate itself, they should be able to resolve it without any major issues.
“And Heuksan and I will take the returnee.”
Neither Heuksan nor I had much trouble with one-on-one combat.
Besides, I had the most information on returnees, so this was the best way to structure the team.
“What about that guy?”
Just then, Heuksan jerked her chin toward the side, and I realized I’d forgotten about Shin Tae-hee.
Their team had three, ours had two.
In terms of splitting the numbers, it made sense for him to join us, but our target was a returnee.
In that case, it would be better to send him to the other team, even if it meant an excess of personnel.
“Mr. Shin Tae-hee will…”
“I’ll be on this team, of course.”
He walked over to our side as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
Seeing him, I blinked.
He might have to fight a returnee, yet he came over here without hesitation?
“Mr. Ha-chan, you’re a civilian, aren’t you? I will protect you while the returnee over there fights.”
I had to blink again at his response.
Right, when I first introduced myself, I said I was Si-ho and Ji-eun’s manager.
In this industry, it was the norm for managers to be ordinary people.
After all, if they had abilities, they would have become hunters instead of managers.
Perhaps because of that common sense, Shin Tae-hee seemed to think I was a civilian.
His character isn’t bad.
He had the right mindset for a hunter. He surely knew how dangerous returnees could be, even for a high-rank hunter like himself, yet he could make this choice in an instant. It meant he had a strong sense of professional duty.
“Civilian? Who?”
Heuksan, who had been listening from the side, turned to look at Shin Tae-hee with an expression of disbelief.
The problem was, his logic only held up if I were actually a civilian.
Then, as if sensing his power level, she clicked her tongue with a pathetic look in her eyes.
“Where did you pick up this fledgling?”
“...I may seem like a fledgling to a returnee, but I’m not so weak as to be dismissed as one.”
Shin Tae-hee showed a flash of anger at her remark.
Hunters have a lot of pride in their skills, so I understood why he was upset.
But regardless, Heuksan shot me an annoyed look.
“You protect him.”
Was she saying she absolutely wouldn’t?
“Yes, I will protect him.”
Shin Tae-hee replied, completely unaware that the person she was telling me to protect was him.
I considered clearing up the misunderstanding, but it felt awkward to introduce myself properly.
If I showed an active hunter like Shin Tae-hee my SS-rank Hunter ID, it would cause a huge uproar.
Besides, he was Si-ho and Ji-eun’s senior. I didn’t want to start any rumors and cause problems.
It might be better to just play along and pretend to be a civilian for now.
If he learned the truth, he might fall into a pit of despair over the comment he just made.
There was no need to crush a rookie hunter’s spirit.
With that thought, I turned to Si-ho, Ji-eun, and Orjia.
“All three of you, be careful and come back safe.”
“Si-ho will be back soon.”
Si-ho said, looking at me with a hint of disappointment.
It seemed she was upset about having to part ways again right after we’d just met.
I stroked her head, and only then did she flash a bright smile.
At that moment, I felt Shin Tae-hee’s gaze on me intensify for some reason.
Why is he like that?
A brief question crossed my mind, but I waved goodbye to the three of them as they left and turned back.
“Let’s go.”
Heuksan took the lead with an irritated expression and started walking.
As I followed her, Shin Tae-hee moved to my side, his expression wary.
He was probably on the lookout for dimensional entities.
He may lack experience, but…
In truth, Shin Tae-hee was only being underestimated because he was being compared to our group.
Out in the actual hunter world, he was a talent that every company would drool over.
He was an A-rank hunter with S-rank potential, one of the few in our country.
If nurtured properly, he would undoubtedly become the face of any company.
He was also quite handsome.
Though he wasn’t on Seo-ho’s level, with the right marketing, he could definitely secure a spot right behind him.
That’s why the Rodri Company made him an offer, too.
If he joined Rodri, he would probably be used alongside Seo-ho as one of the faces of their marketing campaigns.
As I was thinking, I sensed a presence.
It looked like a dimensional entity.
It had the form of a tiger, with stripes only on its forehead.
Its massive body looked like it could tear a person to shreds in an instant.
Looking ahead, I saw Heuksan continuing to walk, paying the entity no mind.
Well, for someone of her level, it was rarer to be harmed by a dimensional entity than not, so it was natural.
And I, too, possessed an ability that was the ultimate counter to dimensional entities, so unless it was an unclassifiable threat, I wasn’t particularly concerned.
But Shin Tae-hee, next to us, was different.
“...An A-rank!” he shouted, his face a mask of shock, being the last of us to spot the entity.
He quickly moved to stand in front of me and drew a sword made of dimensional entity material from his waist.
Flames erupted from the rather expensive-looking sword.
It was his ability, Ignition.
“I’ll handle this. Mr. Ha-chan, please get to the returnee!”
An A-rank dimensional entity is not an easy opponent, even for an A-rank hunter like Shin Tae-hee.
Yet, his decision to prioritize protecting a civilian showed that he was a proper hunter.
Again, that is, if I were truly an ordinary civilian.
I keep making him look like a fool.
It was my fault for not revealing my identity, but the power gap was so vast that even his desperate efforts seemed somewhat lacking.
Feeling a little sorry for him, I scratched my head and looked at Heuksan.
When I gave her a look that pleaded for help, she glanced at me with annoyance before raising her hand.
Crackle!
In that instant, red sparks flew, and a bolt of red lightning shot out, tearing the dimensional entity’s head apart.
As Shin Tae-hee stared with wide eyes, Heuksan flicked her hand to dispel the lightning and continued walking forward.
“Don’t waste time on things like that.”
So cool and aloof.