The Perfect Stand-In
Cha Eun-seong asked the [Mutation] Card, “Can you attend the training in my place?”
“Of course, Master. It is only natural.”
The card responded as though the question itself were absurd. “Is that even possible?”
“Why would it not be? Simply give the order.”
“But if your personality suddenly changes, won’t everyone find it strange?”
“When I assume Master’s appearance, I also inherit a portion of your memories and abilities.”
“Oh?”
“Basic training should pose no difficulty.”
“How long?”
“I estimate four hours at most.”
“Good.”
After the incident at home, he had felt a twinge of reluctance, yet if the card could truly stand in for him, there was no reason to refuse.
“Understood. Then…”
A soft glow pulsed from the [Mutation] Card. With a faint hiss, another version of himself materialized before his eyes.
“This should be indistinguishable,” the duplicate said.
“You’re right. I can’t even tell us apart.”
Cha Eun-seong studied both reflections in the wall mirror. From head to toe, they were identical—voice, mannerisms, even the smallest expressions. No wonder his father had been completely fooled.
“Then I’ll leave it to you.”
“Of course, Master.”
“By the way, what’s your name?”
“A faceless being has no name worth mentioning. Haha.” The duplicate offered a faintly melancholic smile. “However, it would be inconvenient to keep calling me ‘hey’ or ‘you.’ Please call me Helkian.”
“Helkian?”
“Yes, Master.”
“All right. From now on, you’re Helkian.”
“I am honored.”
“Where did you come from, anyway?”
“I do not know. I have no memory of my origin or what manner of existence I truly am.”
“I see. Makes sense.”
The question had been impulsive, and the answer was exactly what he had expected. Beings that emerged from gates were always like this. They knew nothing about themselves. Every inquiry was met with the same hollow response.
Even the Dragon Lord, an 11-star monster, had been impossible to truly converse with. Expecting anything more from a rune was foolish.
“Sorry. That was a pointless question. Go attend the training. And don’t fall asleep.”
“Yes, Master.”
Helkian left the bathroom and headed toward the training area. Cha Eun-seong turned in the opposite direction.
I should head to the cage and check Hunter Link.
While Helkian attended training in his stead, Cha Eun-seong lay on the cot and summoned the Hunter Link interface.
Ding!
A forum-style UI materialized before his eyes. At this point in time, he was the only one who knew how to access the community without actually logging into Hunter Link. But now that he had shared the method, within days everyone would be doing the same.
Over eighty thousand comments had already piled up beneath the post he had shared.
Related threads were flooding in at a rapid pace.
Hmm.
Judging by the atmosphere, the unidentified 10-star hunter had gained a fair amount of credibility.
Before long, his alias on Hunter Link had become Supernova. The name fit surprisingly well. A 10-star hunter appearing in an era where only 7-star hunters existed was worthy of such a title.
Still, he wondered where the rumor that he was Japanese had come from.
First, I need to warn them about the Jebudo incident.
At the earliest, today; at the latest, within a month, a large-scale spatial transfer event would occur centered on Jebudo. As Supernova, posting a warning on Hunter Link was the only way he could prepare people for the coming disaster. If his post moved the hunters to action, even one more life might be saved.
I might as well make an account with that nickname.
Since things had come to this, he decided to create an account under the name Supernova. Hunter Link was a highly flexible platform, so it would likely allow multiple accounts.
A new account is being created!
Please enter a nickname!
As expected. Because the unidentified 10-star hunter had already gained recognition and influence within Hunter Link, he had been granted permission to create a sub-account.
He typed in the nickname Supernova and pressed the creation button.
A new account has been created!
Success again.
Hide nationality, language, and gender. Only show the nickname and hunter rank.
He made sure to conceal his personal information completely.
Carefully.
Hiding his information wasn’t enough. He typed with extreme caution, keeping the tone restrained and dry so that neither nationality nor gender would leak through the post. He avoided mentioning any country names or the exact location of the Special Forces Training Center.
Large-scale spatial transfer event scheduled.
Earliest: today.
Latest: within 29 days.
This should be fine.
Satisfied with the post, a small smile tugged at his lips.
Post has been registered!
Ding! The moment the post went live, notifications exploded.
One comment stood out among the rest.
Meanwhile, the Korean hunter [Broken Blade] had openly hurled insults at him. His real name was… Geon Woo, if he remembered correctly. One of Korea’s few 7-star hunters, famous for his fiery temper and habit of picking fights wherever he went.
To think I have to save even a guy like this. Sigh.
In the original timeline, Broken Blade—Geon Woo—had been fated to die during the Day of Lament. But now that Cha Eun-seong had returned and was spreading information as Supernova, the chances of that man surviving had increased dramatically.
Still, it was infuriating. How dare he curse at the very person who would save his life? Part of him wanted to start a public argument right then and there, but he held back for the sake of Supernova’s dignity. Supernova had to remain a prophet for humanity and a pioneer for all hunters.
This is why reading comments is bad for your mental health…
Just then, the door opened and his teammates poured into the cage.
“……!”
Startled, he hurriedly closed the Hunter Link window. He had been so focused on reading comments that he hadn’t noticed them entering.
“Huh?”
Jeong Ho-bin spotted him lying on the cot and tilted his head in confusion.
“Didn’t you say you were going to the bathroom earlier, Eun-seong-nim?”
“What? Oh, right. I did. I went to the bathroom.”
“You’re already back? The bathroom’s on the other side.”
“I’m pretty fast. Haha……”
Cold sweat ran down his back. He couldn’t afford to be found out already.
“Where are you going?”
“The bathroom.”
“Didn’t you just come back from there?”
“I drank a lot of water earlier……”
After making a vague excuse, he hurried toward the bathroom. Retrieving the [Mutation] Card—Helkian—was the top priority now.
Meanwhile, Minister Ahn was receiving a report from Major Im regarding Eun-seong. Currently, Eun-seong was the most promising talent the Defense Strategy Department valued. Since today was his first day at the Special Forces Training Center, it was only natural that every single action of his was being reported all the way up to the minister.
“He fell asleep during training? On his very first day?”
Minister Ahn spoke with disbelief.
“Yes, sir.”
Major Im averted his gaze, looking ashamed.
“According to the instructor’s report, he looked like a reservist who had shown up for mandatory training.”
“So he’s completely out of shape.”
“Yes……”
“Cha Geun-woo’s son fell asleep during training.”
“His attitude is poor, but his evaluation scores are excellent.”
“Hmm?”
“If you look at the detailed evaluation, he scored full marks on all practical assessments for today’s curriculum.”
“Hmm. It seems Cha Geun-woo gave his son proper early education after all.”
“You already know this, sir. Before even entering the training center, Eun-seong cleared a 4-star gate. He practically soloed the boss of the Cursed Fortress, the Count. Perhaps the training here holds no meaning for him at all.”
“That may be true, but unfortunately Cha Geun-woo isn’t a hunter himself. At the very least, hunters need basic knowledge……”
While speaking, Minister Ahn scrolled through the Hunter Link bulletin board. Lately, checking whether the unidentified 10-star hunter known as Supernova had posted anything new had become just as important as monitoring Eun-seong.
“Hmm?”
Minister Ahn’s brow furrowed as he discovered Supernova’s latest post.
“Supernova has officially created a nickname and posted something new. Did you know about this?”
“I was busy with work and hadn’t checked yet. My apologies.”
“No need to apologize. It’s not like you have two bodies. By the way, do you recognize these coordinates—37.1689°N, 126.6186°E?”
“37.1689°N, 126.6186°E…… I’ll look it up right away.”
“It’s Jebudo. Where the training center is located.”
Major Im’s eyes widened.
“Supernova is claiming that a large-scale spatial transfer event will occur at Jebudo.”
Minister Ahn’s eyes gleamed sharply as he stared at the post.