Chapter 2
Chapter 2
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 2
Chapter Title: Lee Ji-ah (2)
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Late at night. A suspicious woman wearing sunglasses. She had pulled her hat low over her face and was mumbling to herself while gnawing at her nails. A sudden chill ran down my spine.
Is this woman actually insane?
I cautiously approached her from behind.
Crunch. Crackle.
The sound of her biting her nails sent shivers down my spine. Looking closer, her nails were torn off, blood trickling freely. She looked seriously dangerous. I needed to send her away fast.
"Um, miss?"
Snap!
Her head whipped around. Up close, her face looked utterly haggard. I found myself stammering without realizing it.
"I-it's closing time now. You'll have to head out soon..."
"......"
The woman said nothing. Her sunglasses hid her eyes, but she seemed dazed somehow. The silence dragged on. Growing anxious, I hurriedly added,
"H-ha ha. On second thought, I could probably stick around for about ten minutes..."
"......"
"Make that thirty minutes...?"
"......"
"An hour...?"
"......"
What was the police station number again?
I'd call 114 and ask. Did they even pick up this late? No, 112 would work. The firefighters are always nice.
I was awkwardly smiling and reaching for my phone behind my back when a single tear rolled down her cheek.
"...?"
As I stared in confusion, she carefully wiped it away. That seemed to break the dam—tears started pouring down like a waterfall.
"Th-this is weird. Why am I like this?"
Unable to hold them back, she took off her sunglasses. Covering her eyes with the back of her hand, she sobbed.
The dangerous aura from moments ago had vanished completely. As I stood there awkwardly, I realized her reaction was similar to this morning's customer.
My ability didn't just work on anger to calm people down. It applied to any heightened emotion—worry, depression, sadness, you name it.
Still, I'd never seen such a dramatic emotional shift before, and it shocked me. She looked ready to drop dead any second, but now she was bawling her eyes out in cathartic release.
This thing's got some real power. If hunter life doesn't work out, counseling could be a solid backup.
"You okay?"
I grabbed a fistful of tissues from nearby and handed them over.
"......Thanks."
She nodded slightly as she took them. Then our eyes met as she blew her nose.
Huh?
Huh?
Oh my God. I didn't need a mirror to know how wide my eyes were right now.
She stared right back, then blinked rapidly. Realizing something, she hastily shoved her sunglasses back on and turned away. Hesitantly, she asked,
"You saw my face...?"
"Yup!!"
Denying it would be a lie. We'd locked eyes for a good ten seconds.
"Do you know who I am?"
"Yup!"
"You're gonna report me for being spotted?"
"Yup!"
A brief silence.
Why's that?
I racked my brain.
Gasp!
To clear up the misunderstanding, I quickly added,
"N-no, wait!"
My head was spinning. My dream was to become a hunter. And right in front of me stood the pinnacle of Korea's hunters. The woman's identity was Lee Ji-ah, the hunter who had the whole country in an uproar with her disappearance.
Is this a dream? Am I awake?
Lee Ji-ah was grinning right in front of me.
Her face was still worn out, but her eyes sparkled with vitality.
"I'm glad I don't have to run. I was just looking for someone to talk to... Oh, right. You said it was closing time?"
Lee Ji-ah asked with a disappointed look.
"Closing time?"
I checked the clock. Closing had come and gone ages ago.
Who cares about that right now? Lee Ji-ah's right here.
It was like Messi showing up in front of an amateur soccer player. What kind of idiot would go home instead of grabbing coffee and chatting with Messi?
I schooled my expression and said,
"Did I say that?"
"Didn't you just say it was closing time?"
"Must've misheard. We're open till dawn."
"But the sign outside clearly says..."
"We changed hours yesterday."
"Ah."
She had to know that was bullshit.
"Hang on a sec. I'll get things ready."
I stepped out and hung the "Closed" sign on the door handle. Coffee-wise, Americano was quickest.
Every minute felt urgent.
Back at the table, Lee Ji-ah was staring at her phone.
What the hell had she been looking at all this time?
As I sat down, I asked,
"Whatcha got there? Something fun?"
What did top rankers even do in their downtime? I was dying to know. Was she studying that failed dungeon? Or maybe listening to classical music?
Lee Ji-ah hesitated a long time before speaking.
"......Wanna know?"
"...?"
Of course I did. I nodded. She gave an awkward smile and showed me her phone.
It was an online news article. About her, no less. Surprising. Even celebrities read news about themselves.
"A news article, huh?"
"Not that. Scroll down."
"Down?"
She swiped up. Comments under the article appeared. Curiosity piqued, I started reading—then my eyes widened in shock.
Below that, a torrent of vicious insults that were shocking they hadn't been deleted.
Apparently, that's what she'd been staring at all along: hate comments.
"......"
I was speechless. Nothing to say. Lee Ji-ah sipped her coffee, her face strangely resigned.
"Isn't it funny? People aren't lamenting the raid failure—they're loving it."
Her words clicked it into place. She hadn't gone into hiding out of fear of blame for the failed raid. It was the hate comments.
"All these negative thoughts kept swirling..."
Lee Ji-ah smiled faintly.
"But suddenly, my mind feels so clear."
She pocketed her phone. We ended up talking for hours.
"So..."
Surprisingly, Lee Ji-ah was just a normal person my age.
Lee Ji-ah was one of the top hunters not just in Korea, but worldwide. She'd been in the public eye since childhood.
But Lee Ji-ah wasn't the celebrity type by nature. She was your typical timid everyman, overly conscious of others' gazes.
That was the problem.
From promising rookie to top-tier hunter, Lee Ji-ah obsessed over every hate comment. She knew she should ignore them, but her personality made it impossible.
At some point, she developed a nail-biting habit. Her phone became an extension of her hand. For every hate comment, a fresh cut scarred her wrist.
The built-up stress finally exploded. Her patience reached its limit.
She decided to end it all. Finding Cafe Bastard was pure coincidence.
I want to experience a normal day before I die.
Just grabbing coffee at a cafe—that trivial routine was her final wish.
And the moment she sipped her coffee there, her emotional turmoil began to settle.
It was miraculous.
Twenty years of worry and anxiety melted away like a lie. Suicidal thoughts vanished from her mind.
Lee Ji-ah checked the clock. It was already dawn. She'd lost track of time chatting with the cafe employee, Kim Hyun-woo.
"......Sorry. Did I keep you too long?"
She said apologetically. Kim Hyun-woo's initially bright eyes were now shadowed and sunken.
He scratched the back of his head with a grin.
"Nah, it was fun for me too. Felt like hanging with a celebrity."
Lee Ji-ah left the cafe with Kim Hyun-woo. He asked,
"Where you headed?"
"Home."
"Wandering days over, huh."
She chuckled at his words. "Wandering" struck her as oddly amusing.
"Gotta sort things out responsibly, even if it's late."
After that cathartic cry-fest at the cafe,
Lee Ji-ah felt more energetic and positive than ever.
"When the news hits about Lee Ji-ah's comeback, can I brag it was me who sent you home?"
She tilted her head. "Brag about what?"
"That I sent an S-rank hunter back to her family."
His shameless remark made her burst out laughing. She extended her hand.
"Knock yourself out. If I ever write an autobiography, want a shoutout?"
"Hell yeah! Say I was cool and handsome."
They shook hands, and he walked off without a backward glance. Lee Ji-ah headed the opposite way, feeling light-hearted.
First, call the Association President. Apologize for going AWOL. Oh, right—gotta contact the Abyss raid team too. They must've been worried.
She thought about what lay ahead: cleaning up the mess, reaching out to those who'd fretted. Suicidal people don't plan for the future. Positive change.
Then the change hit again, abruptly.
One step, two steps.
Her heart suddenly pounded.
Three steps, four.
Intrusive thoughts crept in. New articles must've popped up overnight. With fresh comments attached.
Five steps.
Her feet stopped.
Anxiously, she bit her nail. Thick blood dripped from her thumb.
Before she knew it, her phone was out, checking news articles.
Crunch. Grind.
She gnawed her nail, hollow eyes scanning the hate comments.
The positive vibe from before was gone like a dream. Her vibrant face turned haggard again.
Lee Ji-ah stopped thinking about the future. She fixated on the hate. Extreme thoughts reclaimed her mind.
She muttered to herself.
"Why... why do this to me..."
"Is it my fault?"
"Wh-what did I even do wrong..."
I slept like the dead until noon, then flipped on the news.
—What caused top ranker Lee Ji-ah's sudden disappearance?
—Conspiracy by a secret organization?
Experts bantered as panelists. Mostly nonsense. From the coverage, Lee Ji-ah hadn't resurfaced yet.
Figured she'd bounce back right away?
Well, she looked good when we parted, so she'll handle it when ready.
I shook off thoughts of her and headed to the training center as planned. My part-time wages all went to rental fees and trainer PT sessions.
"Mr. Hyun-woo, you're here...?"
My dedicated trainer greeted me awkwardly upon arrival.
"Yup. Hey, Kang Hoon. Let's get started."
He was a former C-rank hunter. Well-regarded trainer with solid skills—excellent teaching and, above all, honest.
And that honest trainer, after the session, said to me—very cautiously.
"Hyun-woo, I can't do this anymore."
"Pardon?"
Halfway through changing, I froze in place.
Misheard? Not getting it, I stared at him. He enunciated clearly.
"I can't teach you. I'll refund the remaining PT sessions, so please don't come back."
I grabbed his shoulder roughly as he turned to leave.
"What? Explain yourself."
What? Was I a problem customer? Couldn't think of anything.
The trainer hesitated, then spoke.
"You have no talent, Hyun-woo."
"Duh, with an awakening like mine! I know I'm talentless—we going there?"
"No, not your awakening."
He launched into hunter theory basics.
"Awakening abilities help, sure, but hunters don't rely on them blindly."
Awakener powers varied wildly—from elementals to junk like mine, calming minds.
No contest which aided combat more.
But the era of depending solely on abilities was early days. Times changed.
"People become rankers with just a poke attack. There's even an A-rank with 'Cleaning Mastery'—total garbage power."
Cleaning Mastery.
Literally mopping floors to a shine like polish. That was it. He claimed his floors gleamed after a single wipe.
"Awakening's point isn't superpowers. It's transcending human limits."
The key difference between awakeners and normals wasn't powers. It was growth potential.
Awakeners could grow endlessly through training, unlike normals. Powers were secondary. That's why even I, with a useless combat ability, aimed for hunter.
"But Hyun-woo, your growth rate is abysmal—even beyond your ability."
Growth rate. Aka talent, potential.
"You've been awakened a year. Came straight to me."
"......"
"I never half-assed it. You always gave your all. And after a year, this is the result."
Not even polite to call it "good." A newbie from last month had already lapped my year's progress.
"I know how hard you've worked this year. My conscience won't let me continue. It's not just the money—your precious time's wasted on false hope."
Sorry tone, but sharp words. He planned to crush my hunter dreams here.
"Then!"
I opened my mouth, closed it—throat dry as sandpaper. No words came. A pro telling me to quit. After a pause, I finally asked,
"......Refunds at full price?"
The trainer, waiting solemnly, let out a hollow laugh.
"That's you alright."
What's that supposed to mean, asshole?