None of Your Business
Cheon Ji-hoo's life after crossing into that other world had been harsh. Impoverished and an outsider whose language no one understood, he faced persecution everywhere he went. Black hair was rare there, and people saw it as ominous, often chasing him out of villages. In that unfamiliar continent, Cheon Ji-hoo was a complete stranger.
He surely would have met his end torn apart by wolves on some remote mountain. But Cheon Ji-hoo survived. The sole fact that he had a little sister back on Earth filled him with unyielding venom. He couldn't leave her alone—that tiny, tiny girl who needed him. With that one burning resolve to find a way back no matter what, he clung to life.
One day, foraging for edible herbs in the mountains, he slipped and tumbled off a cliff. Several bones shattered. In that moment, Cheon Ji-hoo sensed death closing in. His legs wouldn't move properly, and with bones piercing his lungs, even breathing was agony. He thought he was done for, immobile and helpless.
"...But do you know how I survived that?"
Cheon Ji-yoon, who had been peeking her head out from under the bed while listening to her brother lying below, shook her head.
"I fell into a mana vein by chance."
"A mana vein? What's that?"
"A massive flow of nature's energy. Think of it as a river made of mana, but its position shifts constantly, so it's rare to encounter one even in a lifetime."
"And then? What happened after you fell in?"
"I spent a long time in that mana vein. Overwhelming mana churned through my body, reshaping it completely before I even came to my senses. That's why my hair turned white."
Cheon Ji-yoon figured it had been a few weeks, but in truth, it was decades. His memories from then were hazy—just a faint sensation like a long dream. It was like the reconstitution of the body from martial arts novels, a total transformation. Swimming in the mana vein had turned his entire body into a conduit for mana. Surviving alone was heavenly luck, but this change? It could only be divine intervention.
"And then?"
"That's the end of tonight's story. I'll tell you the rest later. Now sleep."
"...Okay. Then tomorrow, you have to tell me about Mom and Dad too, right?"
"Yeah."
Cheon Ji-hoo reached out and pushed Cheon Ji-yoon's head, which had poked out from the bed, back inside. But it popped right back out with a pwang! and she asked,
"Oppa, but what was that? Back at the graveyard, the chrysanthemums growing from your hand."
Cheon Ji-hoo gave a small smile at her question. "Magic."
"Magic? Like what hunters use?"
"Different from that. Just some miscellaneous tricks I picked up in the other world, but pretty useful."
Like smashing a dragon's skull, or crafting a dimensional transfer magic circle. Or grabbing an emperor by the collar and shaking him. Truly miscellaneous. The ultimate all-purpose tricks.
"Whoa, so you're a mage, oppa?"
"Yep."
"Strong?"
"Decent enough."
Decent enough to kill a god, he thought proudly. If he could recover all the mana he'd had in the other world.
"Then show me one spell! I still can't quite believe you're a returner, but hearing you learned magic in the meantime has me dying of curiosity!"
"Lie back and look at the ceiling."
At Cheon Ji-hoo's words, Cheon Ji-yoon lay flat and stared up. He lightly drew on his mana and clapped his hands softly. Nothing seemed to happen at first, the room staying quiet. Then a soft blue light began to envelop the dim little space.
The blue glow spread, bringing a dark night sky to the ceiling. As the room plunged into complete darkness, Cheon Ji-yoon let out a small gasp. Stars soon dotted the starry night overhead, dense and twinkling. It felt just like lying in a meadow, gazing at a beautiful night sky.
"This is... magic?"
"Yeah, magic."
Cheon Ji-hoo twisted both hands, and the stars began to whirl, forming a Milky Way. Shooting stars rained down in endless streams. The breathtaking spectacle unfolding before her made Cheon Ji-yoon's eyes sparkle as she held her breath.
This is magic? Something this beautiful is magic?
The fantastical scene under the name of magic was enough to steal her heart. Cheon Ji-hoo clapped again, and the illusion on the ceiling vanished in an instant. Cheon Ji-yoon felt a twinge of regret but figured he'd show her again someday, so she asked,
"Can I learn it too?"
"If you've got the talent."
Magic was mostly about talent. Cheon Ji-hoo, having swum in a mana vein until his body became a perfect mana channel, was a walking bundle of it.
He briefly considered training her as a mage but quickly dismissed the idea. The path of a mage was long and grueling. Without true genius, it took years to master even one spell. And to him, Cheon Ji-yoon didn't seem to have much aptitude for it.
"Do I look talented?"
"Nah."
"...."
At the blunt reply, Cheon Ji-yoon poked her head out and glared, but Cheon Ji-hoo reached out and shoved it back in.
"Sleep. You've got school in the morning."
"What about you, oppa?"
"Gonna look for a job, scout some places to move."
"I'm fine like this. As long as I've got you."
"Might as well live well while we're at it."
"Totally!"
The officetel was way too cramped for two anyway. Plus, he wanted to give his sister a life she could be proud of—one overflowing with the love she'd been denied, more than enough to make up for all the neglect. That was Cheon Ji-hoo's vision of happiness. And step one was getting a proper home.
School's close by here... Top floor of this apartment wouldn't be bad.
Pricey as hell, sure. Unthinkable in the past, but now he had the means. Tomorrow, after some sleep, he'd meet that watcher. With that thought, he closed his eyes. Cheon Ji-yoon was already fast asleep.
* * *
Lee Joo-hwan was an A-rank hunter with the Hunter Association. More precisely, he belonged to the HCU—Hunter Control Unit—a government-linked force for suppressing rogue hunters. A talented man too valuable for mere surveillance.
But his target wasn't ordinary. A man who emerged from a massive rift—perhaps even bigger than a great rift. Lee Joo-hwan had been there, witnessing S-rank hunters get crushed with a mere gesture. If the target wanted, he could burst him like a grape in an instant.
"Ugh... I'm beat...."
He'd been shuttling between Hunter Way on old Yeouido and Incheon like a dog on a treadmill. A target even his sonar couldn't track. Thanks to that, he'd written a report yesterday, and dark circles shadowed his eyes.
Superhuman or not, fatigue was fatigue.
"Maybe catch a quick nap?"
He parked near the officetel where Cheon Ji-yoon and Cheon Ji-hoo lived, reclined his seat. He'd set an alert for if Cheon Ji-hoo stepped out, so a short snooze until then...
But his hopes shattered after three seconds.
"Let's talk to your boss."
A voice came from the passenger seat. Cheon Ji-hoo was suddenly there, arms crossed. Startled, Lee Joo-hwan jolted up and yanked at the door, but it locked with a clunk and wouldn't budge.
Damn it, driver's seat and it won't open!
His mission was surveillance only—no contact. Government didn't want unnecessary friction. Stuck, Lee Joo-hwan sat primly and shut up.
Cheon Ji-hoo crossed his legs and spoke again. "Connect me to your boss."
"...How'd you get in the car?"
"None of your business. I said contact the top brass."
He looked seriously pissed. Maybe Lee Joo-hwan's curiosity had irked him. Gauging his mood, Lee Joo-hwan pulled out his phone and called his superior on speaker.
The HCU commander.
-What.
A husky woman's voice, skipping any "hello."
Lee Joo-hwan replied swiftly. "Commander, it's Lee Joo-hwan."
-So what.
"Uh, Cheon Ji-hoo wants to talk to you...."
-...You made contact?
"No, I'm telling you, it's not my fault! I was just sitting here, and he appeared in the passenger seat."
-Fine, we'll sort that later. Put him on.
"He's listening beside me."
Cheon Ji-hoo snatched the phone from Lee Joo-hwan's hand. The A-rank hunter stared in stunned silence, unable to react.
"Nice to meet you. You know my name, so I'll get straight to it."
-What do you want.
"Nothing much. I'm looking for work worth my time, figured you could hook me up."
-Go to a job center if you need work....
"I need big money. You don't want me robbing banks, right?"
HCU Commander Hong Ji-hwa felt a migraine coming on. She'd warned Lee Joo-hwan no contact, and he'd blown it. Now Cheon Ji-hoo was straight-up threatening—not really, but close. Hand over work or he'd hit a bank? Probably not, but if he did? No hunter could stop him. She'd seen it firsthand at the descent.
-You want to do hunter work?
"Not really. Could if I had to, though."
-You've fought monsters before.
"Yes."
-Put Lee Joo-hwan back on.
"Listening, Commander."
-Drive to HQ now. We need to talk face-to-face.
"Got it. You okay with that, Mr. Cheon?"
Cheon Ji-hoo nodded, handed back the phone, and buckled up. Lee Joo-hwan ended the call and started the engine.
* * *
HCU HQ sat on the outskirts of Hunter Way, traffic-perfect for rapid deployment anywhere. Not a full military base—more like half corporate office.
After parking underground, Lee Joo-hwan led Cheon Ji-hoo to the elevator. Unlike yesterday's slippers and sweats, he wore sneakers and jeans today. White tee unchanged.
"This way."
The elevator stopped; Lee Joo-hwan guided him to a reception room. Seated on the sofa, waiting briefly, the door opened. In walked a woman in a suit, red hair cascading wildly. Striking feature: two sleek, dark-red horns protruding from her forehead.
She was HCU Commander and S-rank hunter Hong Ji-hwa.
She bowed slightly to Cheon Ji-hoo. "Hong Ji-hwa, HCU Vice Commander and Commander."
Short intro done, she sat opposite, silent a beat, then smacked her lips. "Frankly, Mr. Cheon, we have no work for you."
"No work? Everyone here looks swamped."
"We're short-staffed, true. But you're a special high-priority watch subject. Hiring you? Who knows what backlash we'd get...."
"Just trying to contribute to the national interest as a Korean citizen, and it's a no?"
"I know it sounds bad, but that rift only shows up with monsters. First-of-its-kind, but suspicions aren't fully cleared. Not like standard returner methods either."
"Hm."
Cheon Ji-hoo pondered, then spoke. "I made that rift."
"Pardon?"
"Searching for a way home in the other world, I developed a dimensional transfer magic circle. Forced dimensions together with massive mana attraction—artificial hole. You call it a rift, but it's straight-up magic."
"...Explain it simpler."
"As long as my sister's safe, I won't wreck this country."
Hong Ji-hwa heard: Threaten her, and I flip everything. Not wrong.
"Whatever, test me. World's gone mad—proving guys like me exist should be easy, right?"
Words fail? Show strength. Cheon Ji-hoo smirked arrogantly.