69
069 ― Tablet
It was something he had never even thought of. Even after leaving the 3rd floor, the connection with the god's blessing still remained?
He had never heard of such a thing. If this kind of thing had been possible from the beginning, wouldn't many Hunters on Earth have been active while receiving god's blessings?
But there wasn't a single case like that. God's blessings were exclusive to the 2nd or 3rd floors, and it was natural for them to disappear once you left those places.
If that weren't the case, why would Lin Shenlin have stayed in the 3rd floor for several years? He could have just returned to Earth and received God's blessing in his hometown of Hong Kong.
"How are you talking to me? Don't tell me I'm still inside a gate... That can't be right."
For a moment, he thought he might still be in the 3rd floor, but of course that wasn't the case. This was his house in Seoul, and right now he was hugging popcorn while watching Netflix.
There had even been an incident where the plane almost crashed on the way back from New York, so there was no way he could be mistaken.
[The God of Moonlit Forest is being impatient.]
However, there was no answer, only a message saying she was being impatient. Jin-woo glanced at his hand, checked the remote control, and slightly manipulated the Netflix menu.
He opened the page of the children's animation he had skipped earlier and enlarged it greatly. However, he hadn't pressed episode 1 yet.
"If I press this, the first episode will start. Do you want to watch it?"
[Yes, yesss......]
A still faint voice could be heard. No, it felt even thinner and fainter than when he was in the 3rd floor. Did being outside the Gate have some degree of influence?
"Then answer my questions properly. If you answer me faithfully, I'll also reward you faithfully."
[The God of Moonlit Forest tilts her head. What are you curious about?]
"What I asked earlier. How are you conveying words to me? Why does the blessing remain even though I left the 3rd floor?"
Jin-woo placed his hand on his chest. There was a blessing like a glass orb that carried the scent of the forest.
The fragrance of a moist forest with morning dew settled on it. Not his nose, but his entire body was sensing it.
[It's...... A little different from a blessing......]
"Different from a blessing?"
[The God of Moonlit Forest answers. That is something that gathered the power of the divine artifact that was enshrined in the temple.]
"The power of a divine artifact?"
[Nod nod.]
He was truly surprised. Several times more than when she suddenly started talking to him.
He had thought it was simply a blessing received from the 3rd floor. A god's blessing that boosted strength, cleared the mind, and cleansed the soul.
But it wasn't just a blessing level - it was actually the power of a divine artifact. A part of the divine artifact had been completely implanted in Jin-woo's body.
When exactly?
There was no need to think about it. It was right when he flew to the 6th floor.
[When opening the Gate to the 6th floor together with the divine artifact of the Lord of Oppression and Ceiling...... I created and implanted it then.]
"......Why?"
He couldn't understand the reason. Why would she do such a thing as to tear off the power of a precious divine artifact and hand it over?
.......
There was no answer.
Whether she didn't want to give that answer or couldn't give it. However, if he were to infer, there were words he had heard from the God of Moonlit Forest on that day when he returned from the 6th floor.
―Next time, please come find me.
At that time, the God of Moonlit Forest, the World Tree, had asked him to find her in the 6th floor. Opening the passage to the 6th floor had been for that purpose in the first place.
So if she had handed the divine artifact to Jin-woo during that process, it meant it would help in finding her.
'She should have told me.'
If that was the case, she should have told him in advance. Then his course of action in the 6th floor might have been different.
If he had known that the blessing boosting his strength from within his body was actually the power of a divine artifact, he might have more boldly explored the 6th floor.......
'No, maybe not.'
No, thinking about it, nothing would have changed even if she had told him.
Even if she had said something about divine artifacts or whatever, he would have still crouched like a turtle, seeking maximum safety, and wandered around looking only for blue portals.
There was no way he would have thought to boldly cross the 6th floor just because he had one more divine artifact.
[Did that answer your question?]
"Ah, yes. But I have many other things I'm curious about......"
[The God of Moonlit Forest fidgets. She confesses that she can't hold back any longer.]
"......Should we watch one episode first and then talk?"
[Yesss!]
A much clearer answer than usual. Seeing that she couldn't focus on the conversation, Jin-woo pressed the remote control button. The screen enlarged, the production company's logo passed by, and episode 1 of the animation began.
From that moment on, no words could be heard from the God of Moonlit Forest. No words could be heard, but breathing sounds.
Huu-eung― huu-eung― breathing sounds like an excited child. Jin-woo ended up being unable to turn his head properly and was forced to watch the children's animation together.
When he turned his head briefly to look for cola, she made a fuss, saying she couldn't see the screen. It seemed like the God of Moonlit Forest was watching TV through his eyes.
'Alright, alright.'
Since she was enjoying watching it so much, there was no need to spoil it.
Some time later, when Jin-woo came to his senses, he had been binge-watching season 1 of the animation with the God of Moonlit Forest until the very end.
***
For something that was supposed to be a break, his daily life was unexpectedly busy.
On the first day, the God of Moonlit Forest talked to him. His impression after binge-watching season 1 together was that it wasn't too bad.
Being for children, it was inevitably childish and one-dimensional, but even considering that, it was a well-made series. He could enjoy it for its relatively fresh appeal.
However, sitting in one place and binge-watching an entire season was only on that day.
[The God of Moonlit Forest whines. Can't we just watch one more episode?]
"No. Didn't we decide on 3 episodes per day?"
[The God of Moonlit Forest protests. She didn't decide that!]
"What's not allowed is not allowed. Be patient until tomorrow. Instead, let's go out to the park in the afternoon."
Showing everything at once wasn't good for education. Being so absorbed in one thing that you stay up all night could be done after becoming an adult. When you're a child, there are more important things.
......Somehow, it had become like raising a child. And here he was, not even married yet, let alone having children.
[Park, good...... The parks here are a little uncomfortable.]
"Are there parks you like and parks you dislike?"
[It's not that I dislike them...... But there are parks that the grass and trees dislike. There are many in the 6th floor too.]
That made sense. Parks weren't naturally formed forests but places designed for humans or others. From the trees' perspective, they might not like it.
Still, she said all the nearby parks that Jin-woo frequently visited were good. She could see that the grass and trees were comfortable and growing well.
'Thanks to Shartia.'
It was probably because Seoul's parks were being managed by Shartia. While the direct management itself was handled by government offices, Shartia was exerting considerable influence as an advisor.
Not only the director of the Hunter Management Bureau but even Mayor Ma Du-sik stepped forward to strongly support her, so a single government office couldn't ignore her.
'It's all win-win since citizens give great reviews too. Only the civil servants with an increased workload would be tired.'
Some parks only received light advice, but others went to the level of completely overhauling everything, from sidewalk blocks.
The parks changed this way, all received good evaluations from citizens, and thanks to that, public opinion toward Shartia was quite positive. Especially among families with children, who were the main users of parks.
It might be unfortunate for civil servants who usually just killed time during work hours, but that wasn't Jin-woo's concern. He was paying enormous amounts of taxes as much as he earned big money.
While living this healthy child-rearing...... Similar lifestyle, Jin-woo also handled other schedules.
On weekends, he met with Shartia to hear various stories and received several car and bike catalogs.
"Don't buy in a hurry and research as much as possible. You don't really need to worry about the budget, right?"
"There's compensation money that came in from New York."
"You must have received more than me, so you really don't need to worry."
They also visited stores together and looked into various things. Especially, he could hear various advice about precautions and know-how for off-road driving, different from regular city driving, necessary preparations, etc.
While preparing for transportation like this, he also passed his license test well. Since his physical abilities had already surpassed human levels, driving a car wasn't particularly difficult.
Meanwhile, contact came from Ma Du-sik.
―Hunter Kang Jin-woo. Would four days from now be okay? I want to keep our promise to go to Restaurant Jeongun, even if it's late.
"Great!"
Jin-woo immediately accepted, thinking that what was to come had come.
Four days later, Jin-woo met with Ma Du-sik and headed to the restaurant. Jeongun was a Korean restaurant specializing in Korean cuisine.
Perhaps because of this, the interior design seemed to have a modern interpretation of the neat elegance of old Korea as its theme. Even though it was the sensibility of an era he had never lived in, it was a design that somehow felt familiar and nostalgic.
"This way, please."
Following the waiter's guidance, they sat down and killed time with small talk until the food came out soon.
Starting with omija punch with small pear pieces cut into flower shapes, there were dishes that satisfied the eyes, nose, and tongue: smoked croaker, Korean beef fatsia shoot skewers, charcoal-grilled sirloin, mussel pot rice, and seasonal side dishes.
For dessert, there was ice cream made with rice and soy milk, and even palate-cleansing desserts. Eating like this as a course had a different satisfaction from eating everything spread out on one table.
"How was the meal?"
"It was good. Ju-hyeok praised it so much that his mouth went dry, and now I understand why."
Cheon Ju-hyeok had praised this place so much in the 2nd floor. He said he went there with his grandfather, and there was no place as delicious as this.
Perhaps because of the delicious meal, conversation continued in a warm atmosphere. The desserts were very small, even by Jin-woo's standards, but it was also amusing to see Ma Du-sik's even larger hands picking at and eating the small desserts.
In such a good atmosphere, Ma Du-sik brought up the main topic.
"Hunter Kang Jin-woo. There is nothing left to prevent your promotion to S-rank."
"What? S-rank?"
"That's what I called you here to talk about today."
For Jin-woo, it was an out-of-the-blue story. He hadn't really been thinking about promotion in the first place. Gate entry wasn't restricted by rank.
In the extreme case, even an F-rank Hunter could enter the 5th floor. That was the structure of Gates. Ranks were just for convenient classification and played a role like reputation.
"I hadn't even thought about it."
"I thought you might say that. Usually, Hunters raise their ranks to make a name for themselves and increase their value, but that doesn't apply to Hunter Kang Jin-woo."
Kang Jin-woo's name was already known as much as it could be known. From the Tokyo incident to Ireland, the Temple of the God of Sky, and the recent airplane accident.
Since there was no need to desperately struggle to increase his value, he had naturally forgotten about ranks. Ma Du-sik reminded him of it today.
"I've already taken care of all the necessary matters. Although Hunter Kang Jin-woo's career is short, the achievements made during that short period are remarkable, and your track record is exceptional, so it wasn't difficult."
Ma Du-sik explained one by one the things needed for S-rank promotion and how he had handled them.
"The amount of magic stones achieved is somewhat small due to the short period of activity, but it's not a big problem. Processing Erosion cores instead of magic stones is also included in the evaluation, and just handling Ireland alone is at a level that other Hunters can't match."
"Ireland was indeed decisive."
"That's right. Without the Ireland incident, you might not have exceeded the standard."
Ma Du-sik continued his explanation. Most of the troublesome things had been handled by Ma Du-sik himself, but there were a few things that Jin-woo had to do directly.
Documents that only he could submit, simple test or examination results, and one last thing.
"You need to bring A-rank or higher magic stones from the 4th floor. The quantity varies depending on the size of the magic stones, but think of it as about 10 on average."
"10 A-rank or higher magic stones?"
"If you can be active to that degree in the 4th floor, you'll at least be able to survive in the 5th floor."
It was a reasonable reason. S-rank referred to those active in the 4th or 5th floors, but usually the 5th floor was set as the standard.
To prove you could adapt in the 5th floor, you had to at least not feel difficulty in the 4th floor.
"Once this is satisfied, I can promote you immediately, but still, don't rush. Hunters on the verge of promotion are especially often in danger. A single trivial desire can trip you up."
What would normally be handled safely might cause hesitation due to trivial desires. And in Gates, such hesitation is directly connected to crisis situations nine times out of ten.
That's why Ma Du-sik always firmly warned not only those promoted to S-rank but all those promoting to A-rank or B-rank. Even if he didn't speak directly, he made sure to tell the staff of the Management Bureau through announcements or instructions.
Still, every year there were Hunters who couldn't return while facing promotion.
Although he didn't think Jin-woo would be like that, he couldn't help but worry.
"It's fine. Getting S-rank isn't urgent."
Fortunately, Jin-woo didn't seem to have that kind of desire. Ma Du-sik secretly stroked his chest and sighed in relief.
Having heard the whole story, Jin-woo picked up the last palate-cleansing dessert and put it in his mouth.
'Delicious. Let's come again next time.'
For him, how delicious today's meal was was much more important than the story of S-rank promotion.
***
Even while living a busy daily life, Jin-woo was feeling a sense of fulfillment. How long had it been since he enjoyed such peace and stability?
'Still.'
He couldn't continue like this forever.
'I got my license and bought a car and motorcycle. I've also stocked up plenty of oil in my inventory.'
He had also coordinated schedules with Shartia.
Now it was time to leave.
He checked his pre-packed luggage once more and put everything in his inventory. His inventory was already like a large warehouse, so even if he were isolated anywhere, he could easily survive for several months.
What's a few months? If he saved carefully, he could live for years.
After making such thorough preparations, Jin-woo left his house. No, was about to leave.
[The God of Moonlit Forest stops him. She says something terrible will happen if he goes like this!]
At this point, the God of Moonlit Forest suddenly blocked Jin-woo. The content of the message was very urgent, making Jin-woo's expression serious.
"What's wrong?"
What's the matter? Why is she sending such urgent messages, stopping him now when he's finished all his departure preparations?
She answered.
[The God of Moonlit Forest points to something left behind.]
The tablet plugged in for charging.
The one packed full with all kinds of children's content for offline use that he had forgotten about.