Chapter 49
Chapter 49
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: Proposal
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“Fervent Believer...”
A skill that applied only to a select few among his believers—Fervent Believer.
It was a skill that boosted the efficiency of the demonic energy he bestowed upon a believer.
By more than five times, no less.
It had felt like a pain in the ass back in that other world, but now it was a welcome sight.
“Good. You head overseas like this and gather intel. Don’t do anything dangerous.”
“Yes, sir! Leave it to me, Kim Min-jun!”
“Here. Exchange this for cash and use it. Startup funds.”
Kim Min-jun handed Lee Bong-gu a million won in cash.
“Huh? H-huh?!”
Lee Bong-gu’s eyes widened at the sight of the thick wad of bills.
He’d eaten out at gukbap joints more than ten times with the hundred thousand won he’d gotten before, and still had money left over. This was ten times that amount!
“I’ll track down every last scrap of demonic energy out there!”
With that, Lee Bong-gu finished speaking and transformed into an eagle, soaring high into the sky.
“Alright. With that done, maybe it’s time for a PC bang run after ages—hit up some Dungeon & Fighter burning events.”
**
Time passed, and the day to return from leave arrived.
‘Huh? What’s this? Did she go on leave too?’
On his way back to base, Kim Min-jun spotted Son Eun-seo.
A mischievous impulse struck him in the moment, so he suppressed his presence and sneaked up on her without her noticing.
“Waaah!”
“Kyaaah! What the—?!”
Son Eun-seo jumped in shock at the sudden scream, then scowled when she saw Kim Min-jun’s face.
“A-are you insane? What kind of stunt is this out of nowhere?!”
“Can’t friends mess around? You back from leave too?”
“Ha... you lunatic.”
She shook her head at Kim Min-jun, who was grinning like he was having the time of his life.
“But seriously, how do you get leave so often? Don’t tell me...”
“What? It’s not whatever shady thing you’re imagining. I’ve been saving up leave without taking a single day until now.”
“Oh, really? Well, good luck then. I’m heading in first.”
“Hey, wait up.”
Son Eun-seo stopped Kim Min-jun and asked if he’d gotten into some trouble outside.
“Dad was on the phone at home for ages, and I heard your name come up a few times. Looked like a call from Hunter HQ to me?”
Ah.
That story, huh.
Yeah, he had caused a bit of a stir.
Of course, in a good way.
“You’ll hear all about it in time.”
Kim Min-jun shot her a meaningful look before heading into the base.
**
At the same time, Hunter Headquarters.
The major generals had gathered for a meeting.
They’d been urgently summoned over the incident in the camouflage dungeon.
“Get the PPT up.”
“Yes, sir!”
As one major general spoke, a captain moved swiftly to prepare the materials.
You could tell from his face that he was in a foul mood.
The brigadiers and other major generals watched his mood carefully, sipping their coffee in silence.
“Son Tae-ho. Can’t you manage your battalion commanders? Who gave permission to shorten the dungeon investigation timeline?!”
After poring over the documents for a while, the major general finally spoke.
At his outburst, Son Tae-ho quickly apologized.
“107th Division will undergo an audit from Hunter HQ. And effective immediately! All dungeon approvals will go through the division commander for final sign-off, bypassing the battalion commander!”
“Yes, sir!”
“Understood!”
In the end, there’d been no casualties, but it was still true that over ten hunters had been trapped inside the dungeon.
And it wasn’t just any slip-up—the battalion commander had ignored protocol, turning it into a major incident.
If even one person had died in that dungeon, trust in the Hunter Army would’ve plummeted.
“And Colonel Lee Sang-jin. We’ll hold a separate disciplinary review for that one later. Tell him to prepare for demotion to lieutenant colonel.”
“Yes, sir!”
The meeting dragged on in a heavy atmosphere.
Then, when documents on Private First Class Kim Min-jun came up, the major general’s anger eased slightly.
“Phew. Alright. Private First Class Kim Min-jun. This soldier charged into the dungeon himself to rescue the trapped hunters?”
“Yes, sir!”
Son Tae-ho gave a concise report based on what Kim Min-jun had told him.
“Huh. Facing monsters in a camouflage dungeon for 24 hours straight, armed with nothing but a military knife... Hard to believe. And against special monsters, no less.”
“We secured statements from all the soldiers who were trapped at the time! They all match up!”
“Fine. Most of those trapped were low-rank privates anyway. We’ll let that slide.”
After flipping through the documents a few more times, the major general turned to the 104th Division commander.
“Don’t you think it’s a waste to have Private First Class Kim Min-jun stuck in a regular unit?”
“Y-yes, sir!”
It really was a waste.
To minimize contact from other special forces, they’d pushed him through to private first class ahead of schedule.
But what could they do?
The gap between two stars and three was enormous.
The major general bringing it up meant Kim Min-jun’s reassignment was already more than half approved.
“But lately, irregular monsters have been popping up frequently around Cheorwon... and emergency incidents are on the rise.”
“Hmm... Fair enough? We’ll just pull a few privates from other units then.”
The 104th Division commander tried some token resistance, but it had little effect.
“We won’t force it, so don’t worry too much. The soldier’s own wishes come first, right? It’s not like the old army days.”
“...Understood.”
That day.
The division commander mentally killed the major general ten times over.
The next day.
—2nd Company, 2nd Platoon Private First Class Kim Min-jun. Private First Class Kim Min-jun, report to the platoon leader’s office immediately.
As morning duties kicked off, Lieutenant Kim Cheol-min urgently called for Kim Min-jun in a tense voice.
“What’s up? Did Min-jun get in trouble on leave?”
“Platoon leader doesn’t sound happy.”
No sooner had the squad mates started asking questions than Corporal Kim Kwang-sik burst through the barracks door.
“Holy crap! Breaking news! Breaking news!”
“What breaking news?”
“Y’know! That rumor about the camouflage dungeon popping up a while back!”
“Yeah, that. Wasn’t it fake?”
“It wasn’t fake! It was real!”
Kim Kwang-sik spat it out fast and pointed at Kim Min-jun.
“Nearly ten hunters from 107th Division got trapped, and Private First Class Kim Min-jun charged into the camouflage dungeon to save them!”
“......”
“...What?”
At that, all eyes in the squad turned to Kim Min-jun.
He was calmly putting on his combat uniform.
“That for real, Min-jun?”
“Yes.”
“Holy crap! Into a camouflage dungeon? Weren’t you scared for your life?”
“You went into a dungeon on leave? Why the hell would you do that?”
What else?
To rocket through promotions.
And level up his stats while he was at it.
Kim Min-jun told his hyped-up squad mates it was all sorted now, then headed to the platoon leader’s office.
“Sir!”
“Oh, Min-jun?”
Inside the platoon leader’s office were Lieutenant Kim Cheol-min plus two more officers.
‘That insignia. Special forces mark.’
That red rank tab.
Hunter Special Task Force, was it?
“Sir! Private First Class Kim Min-jun reporting!”
“Right. You’re Private First Class Kim Min-jun? We came after hearing about you from Hunter HQ.”
Kim Min-jun saluted the other officers too, and a sergeant who looked to be in his thirties smiled warmly and offered a handshake.
“Heard you rescued all those hunters from the camouflage dungeon. Too good to waste on regular infantry.”
“Thank you, sir!”
“We’re from the Hunter Special Task Force—all special forces operators.”
The sergeant said to relax and chat casually, then took a seat.
Lieutenant Kim Cheol-min fidgeted nervously as he brought out drinks.
‘Oh. This must be it?’
Scouting pitch... or more like a transfer order?
If they promised rapid promotions, he wouldn’t mind going.
As he thought that, the sergeant began introducing the Hunter Special Task Force.
“Unlike regular hunters, our Hunter Special Task Force focuses mainly on special missions.”
While regular hunters prioritized dungeon clears, the task force specialized in infiltration, abductions, VIP rescues, and the like.
“As you know, some civilians have hunter potential. Most enlist here, of course, but overseas it’s different.”
In Korea, any healthy guy had to serve.
That’s why most male hunters joined the Hunter Army.
The perks were good, and after discharge, they could leverage their experience as civilian hunters.
Civilian hunters who were Hunter Army vets got top treatment.
‘I get the vibe.’
Countries like the US or Japan still used volunteer systems.
Overwhelmingly more civilian hunters there.
In the end, the special hunter task force mainly handled suppressing rogue hunters causing criminal issues.
‘Not bad? Sounds kinda fresh.’
Seeing Kim Min-jun’s interested look, the sergeant seized the moment to drop his prepared line.
“Hunter HQ has a conditional special promotion offer for your outstanding performance.”
“Special promotion?”
Oh.
He’d thought sergeant was still far off, but a promotion?
He’d have to hear the terms, but otherwise it sounded like a yes.
“Private First Class Kim Min-jun. Transfer to our Hunter Special Task Force, and we’ll promote you to sergeant on the spot. Not only that, but the task force promotes faster than regular Hunter Army units.”
“How much faster?”
“Merit-based, so it depends on you, but think at least twice as fast.”
Plus, discharge pensions were way higher, and pay blew regular Hunter Army out of the water.
Above all, the promotion speed.
‘No reason not to go.’
He was about to say yes when he paused.
He’d overlooked something crucial.
“Can I use the internet freely?”
He’d heard they operated mostly overseas.
Laggy internet would drive him nuts.
‘Can’t play Dungeon Fighter on a stuttering connection.’
Coughing awkwardly at the unexpected question, the sergeant replied that personal info exposure was forbidden, so internet and all electronics were banned.
“How often can I take leave?”
“Leave is same as regular Hunter Army. But no electronics even on leave.”
At the sergeant’s answer, Kim Min-jun’s burning enthusiasm fizzled out.
‘Damn it. Sounded perfect till now.’
Good thing he hadn’t jumped without thinking.
No smartphone, no PC, no TV?
Might as well go back to that other world and live it up.
“You’ve got to endure minor inconveniences like that. Not just anyone can join the Hunter Special Task Force.”
What?
Minor inconvenience?
It was major for him.
Huge, even.
“The generals at Hunter HQ deliberated long and hard to offer you these benefits. So think it over...”
Before the sergeant could finish, Kim Min-jun cut in sharply.
“I’ll stay right here.”
“...What?”
Stunned by the unexpected response, the sergeant demanded an explanation.
“You messing with me right now?!”
The sergeant scowled fiercely and shot to his feet upon hearing Kim Min-jun’s answer.