Chapter 4
Chapter 4
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 4
Chapter Title: Hunter Corps Training Camp - 2
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"So, what kind of image did you have in mind for a hunter?"
"I pictured one who pulls off flashy skills and racks up levels nonstop after taking down monsters."
Ah.
That'd be perfect for Isgard.
Kim Min-jun smirked and gave the trainee's shoulder a light pat, as if to say, "Hang in there."
"Any trainee who finishes in under 30 minutes gets an outing pass."
Before the start, Lee Seung-ho pulled the pass from his pocket and dangled it teasingly.
It was meant to boost morale.
And since the pass was his to give, he set an almost impossible condition.
"Haa... He's at it again."
"Even Captain Africa couldn't pull that off."
The trainees shook their heads, clearly having fallen for this trick before.
He'd dangle an unreachable goal like bait.
But among them, only Kim Min-jun's eyes lit up.
'That's mine.'
It hadn't even been that long since arriving at camp, and he was already craving chicken.
As soon as the starting signal went off, Kim Min-jun bolted to the front and began climbing the stairs.
"If you go up that fast, you'll burn out later!"
"Pace yourself!"
His fellow trainees shouted warnings as he raced up the stairs like they were nothing,
'Is this supposed to be hard?'
But he wasn't even thinking about it.
'Chicken and DNF are waiting for me!'
"What the hell is that guy?"
Sergeant Lee Seung-ho gawked as Kim Min-jun neared the top in under ten minutes.
He'd seemed unnatural lifting the Red Stone earlier, but to climb these increasingly steep stairs without a hint of fatigue?
"Huff! No way that's possible."
"You've gotta see it to believe it."
The other trainees needed over an hour for the stairs, but Kim Min-jun cleared them in just 20 minutes.
He'd even taken it easy, enjoying the climb.
"Didn't you say the one who finishes gets the outing pass?"
"Uh? Oh, yeah... Here."
Lee Seung-ho handed it over without protest, staring at the sweat-free Kim Min-jun.
'What a freak. After graduation and assignment... Nah. Physical strength isn't everything.'
What mattered in the Hunter Corps was how you handled monsters.
Of course, solid base stats were a given prerequisite.
'Too early to judge, but I should keep an eye on this guy.'
The overall physical training didn't wrap up until after 6 p.m.
The trainees looked ready to collapse, their legs trembling.
"M-My stats went up! Stamina +1!"
"Whoa... What were they at before?"
One of them yelled in excitement over the stat gain.
Seeing them marvel at +1, Kim Min-jun wondered if hunters were weaker than he'd thought.
In Isgard, slaying monsters bumped stats by tens routinely.
'No, it's only day one. Don't jump to conclusions.'
He shook his head and followed his comrades to the mess hall.
"Enjoy your meals, then take the rest of the time to relax freely."
"Yes, sir!"
After a quick brief on tomorrow's training, Sergeant Lee Seung-ho left.
"Whoa... Insane."
Kim Min-jun's jaw dropped at the spread before him.
So this was why everyone raved about the Hunter Corps.
Korean, Chinese, Western dishes, even desserts.
The quality was unimaginable for army food.
He'd heard regular army grub was prison-tier slop online.
Hunter Corps must be on another level.
"Can we really eat all this?"
"Yes, it's buffet-style."
No way!
A buffet, on top of that!
From what his comrades explained, top chefs were even on staff.
"Even regular army food this good these days?"
"No chance. Only Hunter Corps training camp does this. Those guys are having cod stew and seafood mixed rice sauce today, from what I heard."
"Oof."
He had no clue what those were exactly, but the names alone screamed nasty.
Kim Min-jun felt he'd made the right call joining the Hunter Corps.
'I was ready to squeeze out every last drop of mana and bail if it sucked.'
After rolling through hell in Isgard, coming back to Earth just to get shipped to the army?
Who'd want that?
But after today's so-called hellish training, he concluded it wasn't half bad.
'They make you exercise just enough to stay fit, feed you like kings, and pay top dollar.'
Plus that DNF 13-piece legendary weapon set!
Other guys would curse him out as crazy, but Kim Min-jun genuinely liked army life.
"You won an outing pass today—when are you using it?"
"Never seen anyone snag one from Sergeant Lee Seung-ho before."
As he savored the heavenly chow, trainees naturally gathered around.
Kim Min-jun chatted with them, smirking.
Back when he was a warlock in Isgard, people avoided his gaze like he was cursed.
'Training camp life... Not bad at all.'
After eating, Kim Min-jun headed straight to the nearby PC bang.
Unlike regular army, Hunter Corps training camp was super lax.
Haircuts were just training sport cuts.
No checks after duty hours.
No evening roll call, even.
He wondered if this was really the military.
"Still, tons of trainees wash out midway without finishing."
A trainee next to him shook his head, saying the perks came with good reason.
"They push insane, limit-breaking training. Without the downtime, all ten out of ten would quit."
Insane training, huh.
Like the sandbag stair climbs earlier?
"And the final week? Intensity goes off the charts—drives people mad, they say. But..."
The trainee glanced at Kim Min-jun's monitor and stood up.
DNF.
Playing DNF without a care for the stares.
"What? You play DNF too?"
"N-No. I'm heading out to rest first."
You can't judge by appearances.
But seeing Kim Min-jun glued to DNF, he decided to steer clear.
'I'll sleep an hour or so, then.'
That night.
Kim Min-jun burned through every bit of his DNF fatigue points before finally crashing.
**
Final week of training.
Trainees gritted through the brutal conditioning, inching their stats up one by one.
-What's your name~?
Dawn at 6 a.m.
Not a bugle, but an idol's fresh voice woke the barracks.
"Ughhh..."
"My back's gonna snap... Ow."
Groans rose from the plush beds—not cheap mattresses.
"Feels it every night, but these mattresses are killer."
Kim Min-jun, having slept a full two hours, woke refreshed.
In Isgard, one hour was a big sleep; back home, he couldn't fight the drowsiness.
"You're a beast, Kim Min-jun."
"Don't look tired at all."
The grueling routine had bonded them naturally.
Especially watching him dominate training, they found new motivation.
"Hit max level on ten alts last night."
"You maniac..."
"Went gaming again after yesterday's brutal session?"
He aced training while indulging fully.
Was this guy even human?
"Let's move. Time for the run."
Others wanted the rec facilities too, but it might as well have been pie in the sky.
They crashed hard after training.
They sluggishly pulled on combat gear.
For the two-hour Hunter run starting at 6:10 a.m.
"40 km in two hours? How?"
"Madness. Just kill me."
"Hunters are human too!"
Whining aside, they headed to the parade ground.
In under five minutes, it filled with trainees.
"Form up on your own, then loosen up for one minute. Execute."
"Execute!"
A platoon leader took the podium, announcing the Hunter run in one minute.
"Listen up while stretching. Our Hunter Corps goal is wiping out as many monsters as possible. That doesn't mean slack on drill! Align those rows properly!"
"Yes, sir!"
"Got it!"
"Hunter Corps are still soldiers! You gonna half-ass it at your units too?"
"No, sir!"
At the platoon leader's bark, trainees snapped into perfect formation.
"Trainees not hitting 40 km in two hours skip breakfast."
Groans erupted at the sudden bombshell.
"So make it happen, even if you have to claw it out. Go!"
At the start signal, trainees surged forward.
'Hm. This batch feels a bit shaky.'
Meanwhile.
The platoon leader scanned evaluations, pondering if to amp up the intensity.
Nothing beat stamina for safely clearing dungeons.
Unknown monsters and terrain drained it fast.
'Hm? This one...'
Flipping through.
One eval stood out.
'Kim Min-jun.'
Sergeant Lee Seung-ho had highlighted him as a promising hunter.
'Come to think of it, his scores are crushing it.'
How had he overlooked this?
'Can't waste talent like that in the rear. Would be a loss.'
He'd monitor through training, then slot Kim Min-jun frontline.
"1 hour 58 minutes—cut!"
"Water! Water!"
"Haa! Heuk!"
Hunter run over, trainees sprawled on the dirt like stars.
Kim Min-jun finished in an hour, casually resting.
"Open up. Here's water."
He generously shared his canteen with comrades.
To him, this was just a light morning jog.
"Look at Kim Min-jun—no sweat."
"40 km in one hour? Impossible."
"Total monster."
"What? Don't wanna drink?"
"We meant your stamina's monstrous, comrade."
Kim Min-jun bantered lightly, tossing the whole canteen.
Late arrivals after time limit stomped in frustration.
"Argh, Hunterian for breakfast today!"
"What's Hunteria? Like that Nottria knockoff?"
"Don't compare it to that hole. Chefs stack double premium beef patties on the burgers."