Chapter 92
Chapter 92
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 92
Chapter Title: The S-Rank Screening
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GHO branches were established only in nations strong enough to be called hunter superpowers.
Among them was the newly appointed director of the Korean branch, now that Korea had risen to superpower status.
Palton flashed an awkward smile and rubbed his hands together as he faced the two figures seated before him.
"Ha, haha. Sorry for keeping you waiting so long. I had some business to attend to... haha."
It was the classic obsequious act.
Hardly fitting for someone in the lofty position of branch director.
Naturally, it didn't sit well with Tusin either.
Tusin and Yong-un, sitting amicably at opposite ends of the long sofa, exchanged glances and let out soft chuckles.
"For a debt we saddled him with, the benefits to us are huge. Can't even complain about living it up now."
"Great minds think alike, huh?"
"Pardon...?"
Palton jumped into the conversation between Yong-un and Tusin.
But Tusin quickly wiped the smile from his face and set down the paper he'd been holding the whole time.
"Y-Yes... as expected..."
Palton took the paper with trembling hands, his expression turning uneasy.
Yong-un turned to Tusin.
"Who'd you pull strings with? Who could make the UK branch director and the Korean branch director sweat bullets like this?"
In response to Yong-un's question, Tusin winked.
"I've spent my life repaying debts to others and holding debts over them."
He raised his index finger and pointed at the ceiling.
"And since it's your request, the top of the GHO food chain wouldn't cut it otherwise, right?"
The pinnacle of the GHO?
The words slipped from Maria, who had been providing simultaneous interpretation from behind.
"It was Krashter, the man serving as both Secretary-General and Director of the GHO, who lent his aid."
In guild terms, he was like the guild master—the single most powerful figure in the GHO.
For over twenty years, he'd reigned supreme over the world's hunters with overwhelming support.
His orders carried weight that even hunter superpowers couldn't defy.
"I told you. I pulled some strings."
And the scrap of paper Tusin had brought transcended mere paper.
Its contents weren't something to scribble on an A4 sheet.
Tusin stood from the sofa, his playful expression vanishing.
He bellowed at Palton.
"From this moment until the screening concludes, all my commands and authority are equal to those of Director Krashter!"
"Yes, sir!"
Palton shot to his feet and saluted Tusin hastily.
Tusin looked down at the quivering man.
"I order you: commence the screening immediately."
"Yes, sir!"
"And Palton, you're fired from your position as branch director effective now."
"P-Pardon?"
"Don't you get it? You're no longer branch director. And that UK branch director Ollie is fired too."
At the mention of UK branch director Ollie's name, Palton's face crumpled like he was about to cry.
"Wh-Why Ollie...?"
"Why? You should've picked your opponents better."
Palton's gaze shifted past Tusin to Yong-un on the sofa.
"He's strong. And from what I hear, quick-tempered too. So why would he sit around waiting for you clowns?"
"W-Well..."
Tusin leaned his massive torso down, bringing his face close to Palton's.
Then he grinned.
"To take you out in one shot..."
Palton's flushed face drained to a ghostly pale.
If it ended with him, fine—but firing UK branch director Ollie too?
That turned the lifeline he'd clung to into a rotten noose.
"Th-This can't be..."
Palton collapsed to his knees with a thud.
He'd probably envisioned a smooth path ahead upon becoming branch director.
But Palton never realized that Ollie, his mighty lifeline, was little more than a rubber band doomed to snap.
Impressive.
Tusin, looking down at Palton, turned his gaze to Yong-un.
He'd pegged him as just a straightforward powerhouse.
But this incident shattered all those assumptions.
Yong-un wasn't just simple.
When it came to enemies, he was sharper, more ruthless, and utterly thorough than anyone.
Frighteningly so...
As Tusin mulled this over, he saw Yong-un yawning hugely and shrugged.
"Whatever."
He relaxed his serious expression into a smile.
"As long as he's not the enemy, it's all good."
Tusin thought to himself.
A munchkin with immense power, brilliant mind, and flawless tactics for crushing foes.
Never make an enemy of that guy.
And at the same time, he was damn glad to have him as an ally.
"Tusin, even Krashter won't stay quiet about such drastic personnel changes, will he?"
As Tusin gathered his thoughts, Maria approached with the question.
Firing two branch directors at once was a massive move, even for the director.
Her concern was valid, but Tusin flashed a broad, confident smile.
"Even if Krashter himself came, he'd do the same. Hell, I'll probably get praised when I get back."
"You think...?"
"Of course. All these orders might as well have come from Krashter himself."
From Director Krashter?
How did he...
Maria's curiosity dissolved with Tusin's next words.
"You wouldn't know, but one of Krashter's men has been here for weeks, digging into everything. What went down, what corruption festered."
"Ah..."
Maria knew of the corruption; no way Krashter's agent didn't.
No, they'd have burrowed deep, rooting out everyone involved.
That's who Krashter was.
When it came to corruption, he was a blade without a shred of mercy.
"That's why he's terrifying. I just passed along Yong-un's words to him. And boom—two directors' heads roll. Whose power do you think that is?"
Maria, along with Tusin, turned to Yong-un on the sofa.
They shared the same thought.
Yong-un's power.
= = =
Judgment had been passed on the enemies.
Yong-un had set the stage for it all.
Tusin deserved credit for summoning a top general onto that stage.
Perhaps in recognition of Yong-un's contributions.
Normally, earning GHO-recognized World S-Rank Hunter status required a mountain of procedures.
But Krashter streamlined it all by dispatching Tusin himself.
Into a single duel with Tusin.
In the underground fourth-floor arena of the GHO Korean branch.
Myung-un, long awaited, finally stepped down toward Tusin.
But Myung-un looked off.
His body seemed drained of strength, shoulders slumped, eyes deeply sunken with dark circles.
And not just that.
His sunken cheeks differed starkly from the photo on his screening application, filling Maria with worry.
"Is he even fit for the screening?"
"Don't worry."
Unlike Maria's concern, Yong-un stood with arms crossed, smiling.
She'd thought him the family-obsessed type, but apparently not.
They're all insane.
Yong-un wasn't the only mad one.
Tusin, arms also crossed, grinned as he drew up his mana.
Crackle.
The air trembled, thick killing intent enveloping the vast arena over 100 pyeong.
Just standing there, the prickling malice stabbed at the skin.
This is S-Rank No. 1!
Tusin, grinning with delight, uncrossed his arms and channeled mana into his hands.
Maria caught sight of the thick yellow mana spreading around his body.
It lasted only a moment.
Thud! Boom—
Tusin's massive foot crushed the ground reinforced for S-Rank power.
Using the cratered earth as purchase, he surged toward Myung-un amid a fierce gale.
At this rate...
One thought dominated Maria's mind.
He's dead.
She summoned mana and stepped forward to shield Myung-un.
"Stop—"
"Shh."
As she moved to halt the duel loud enough for all to hear.
Yong-un's arm rose in front of her.
"You're crazy. All of you!"
She tried shoving his blocking arm aside.
But Tusin's actions outpaced hers.
Too late...
Tusin's yellow-mana-charged fist rocketed toward Myung-un.
And the feared happened.
Rumble rumble boom!
Not No. 1 S-Rank for nothing.
Tusin was strength incarnate.
His yellow mana detonated right before Myung-un's face, the blast shaking not just the arena but the entire GHO Korean branch.
"Kyaaak!"
The shockwave hurled Maria back.
Not even a direct hit—just grazed by the wind, and it was this bad.
Save myself first.
Her body lifted from the intense pulse.
If she flew back like this, she'd splatter against the wall.
She reversed her mana flow to create repulsive force against the wind.
But it barely offset the rebound; Maria gritted her teeth.
Then.
Grab.
"You okay?"
Amid a shockwave deadly enough to conjure death.
Yong-un gripped Maria's hand.
Were his feet rooted?
Thanks to Yong-un's immovable stance, Maria endured without flying off as the wave dissipated.
Th-This... top ranks...?
She couldn't hide her shock at Yong-un's unchanged expression amid the blast.
But only briefly.
Maria's head snapped around.
"My-Myung-un!"
Finally, worry for the S-Rank candidate surged.
If the shockwave was this bad, what of the target?
H-He must be dead.
Plop. Crackle.
Debris rained from the shattered entrance and ceiling into the dust cloud.
Maria could picture the horror inside without looking.
Bloody smears and mangled corpse chunks beyond recognition.
Her eyes locked on the dust clearing via the ventilation as her hellish vision unfolded.
Whoosh.
And Maria was stunned.
"Told you. No need to worry."
The scene after the dust settled gaped Maria's mouth wide.
"I know my little brother best. Worry is my job."
"Kuhuhu."
As Yong-un spoke, Tusin's grin deepened.
Myung-un, hands wrapped in jet-black mana.
Maria couldn't help but be astonished.
Blocking Tusin's power head-on? How could she not?
"As expected of Yong-un's brother."
"Urgh..."
Thud.
Having squeezed every ounce of strength, Myung-un knelt, watching Tusin's yellow mana disperse.
"Blood ties are one scary thing."
He'd clearly exhausted himself.
Yet Myung-un's eyes burned undimmed.
Glare at Tusin all he wanted—come at me again, his feral gaze dared.
The fading jet-black demonic energy slowly gathered back around Myung-un.
Just like Yong-un battling demons corrupted by the Demon-Slaying Sword.
"Not just that, then. Blood ties plus Yong-un's training."
Tusin withdrew all the mana that had shaken the arena.
He extended a hand to Myung-un.
"You pass."
"Th-Thank... you..."
Thump.
Myung-un, reaching for Tusin's hand, blacked out and collapsed sideways.
Tusin was beyond Myung-un's league, after all.
Yong-un supported the fallen Myung-un.
With Myung-un over his shoulder, Yong-un looked up at Tusin.
"What do you think?"
"Hard to believe he was really C-Rank."
"Heh, you knew from the start. That's why you went all out."
"Like a starving wolf. Or a bear? Nah, a dragon's brother?"
Tusin and Yong-un shared smiles.
"Cocky for good reason."
"Watch out. I plan to teach him everything."
"The one to worry isn't me. Or those gates out there. You're not treating fellow hunters as enemies, right?"
"As if. What I said was for those who make enemies of Myung-un and me. If there are others lurking there, consider it a warning."
"Not sure if any are, but yeah, better stay sharp."
Tusin chuckled.
He pulled out what he'd prepared and handed it to Yong-un.
"World S-Rank Hunter license."
"Quick work."
Tusin already had Myung-un's in his pocket.
"For your brother? Expected."
In Tusin's mind, Yong-un was etched thus:
Like his subordinates believed—if he moved, the impossible became possible.
"I won't forget this favor."
Yong-un pocketed the license and playfully punched Tusin's gut.
Tusin returned the gesture to Yong-un's shoulder.
"Don't. I'll cash it in big later."
"Anytime. See you around."
The long-awaited reunion between Tusin and Yong-un ended like that.
Amid Maria's stunned silence, they parted ways.
= = =
Yong-un laid Myung-un down and summoned Mu-hee.
"Mobilize the Night Slaughter Society. Spread word of everything that's happened."
"As the Supreme One commands. But is that wise?"
"What do you mean?"
"You won't kill them?"
True to the Night Slaughter Society leader.
Defense Minister Jeong Myung-hwan.
They were debating his fate—death.
But for Yong-un, it was over. No desire to escalate for his family's sake.
"No killing."
That didn't mean blanket forgiveness.
Anyone baring fangs deserved uprooting as an example.
"Then... word will spread nationwide that the Night Slaughter Society is under the Supreme One..."
"Don't worry. I've handled that."
"Pardon?"
As she wondered when.
She recalled Jeong Myung-hwan clutching his neck, eyes rolling back.
"No way—that time..."
"Wiped his memory with soul possession arts."
"So..."
"He's a vegetable now."
Worse than death.
That was the price for crossing Yong-un.
"As expected of the Supreme One."
Mu-hee bowed.
For everything wrapped up, her demeanor felt off.
Yong-un looked down at her.
"Something wrong?"
Mu-hee flinched at the question.
She voiced what she'd held back.
"The captives escaped."
"You mean the Special Advance Squad?"
"Yes. Their squad leader was hiding his power."
"How strong?"
"Geum-sal, who subdued the squad, got taken down. Didn't die, but the squad leader passed a message."
A message?
"Said he remembers Demonus."
Yong-un's brow twitched at the sudden Demonus mention.
Mu-hee's next words filled even her own face with dread.
"And... Geum-sal said the power felt familiar. Like... facing Yi Gwi-hon..."
Yong-un's expression twisted.