Hunters Keep Coming To My House - Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Mr. Kim Chok.

Neatly combed black hair, a monocle over the left eye, and a black body suit on top of which he wore an impressive suit. To describe him, one word was enough beyond the external appearance. 

‘Government’s beast.’ 

So…

‘…Tiger.’

An A-level hunter with the ability to transform from a person into a tiger. Though he was a rare high-ranking hunter in the government, he was more like a ‘dog’ than the government’s beast. 

By now, you might have a question. Why did he stay in the harsh government environment instead of joining a guild? Nowadays, hunters with such ‘transformation skills’ are quite popular, so it would make sense for him to be sought after. 

‘I heard he has parents among the government officials…’ 

Due to that, he had no choice but to stay in the government… Well, this is just a story made up by those curious about why Mr. Kim Chok, who is so outstanding, works under such poor conditions. 

However…

The rumors became undeniable with Kang Yoon-soo’s words that followed.

“You still seem busy looking after your father, Mr. Kim Chok.”

Kang Yoon-soo, putting his hands in his trouser pockets, slowly opened his mouth. Thanks to him, the expression on Kim Chok’s face, gradually revealed in the field, wrinkled suddenly.

“Kang Yoon-soo, are you still spreading such useless rumors?”

“Haha, useless rumors? I’m not even lying, am I?”

“All your words right now seem like false facts.”

“Really? While being the government’s dog, haha.”

Kang Yoon-soo and Kim Chok continued their harsh conversation, exhaling animosity. 

I, who had been hiding, became a silent spectator, swallowing nervously. Even if my life wasn’t precious, at this moment, I resolved not to leave Kang Yoon-soo’s side. 

‘…There are still four of them hiding in that field.’

That meant Kim Chok’s hiding skill was at least A-level. If I complained unnecessarily here, I could end up in a situation where my neck was on the line. So, it was the right choice to quietly hide behind Kang Yoon-soo and observe their conversation. 

Afterward, I could see if there was anything useful to use later.

‘…First, I need to leave the government.’

Ever since I gained the title of ‘Owner of the Safe House Inside the Gate (SSS),’ resigning was already a decided matter. Even in the current situation, resignation seemed to be the only answer.

‘Maybe I can use this conversation to my advantage even if the government doesn’t let me go.’

Of course… I needed more details, but that was something to ask Kang Yoon-soo after this situation concluded or inquire while having a meal to gather information.

As I silently held my breath behind Kang Yoon-soo, Kim Chok slowly raised his left hand. Then, the four hunters hiding in the field gradually revealed themselves. Kang Yoon-soo laughed loudly, as if impressed.

“Wow, just four people… How much are you underestimating me?”

“Don’t delude yourself. We have no business with you, Kang Yoon-soo.”

“So, you brought four hunters just to deal with Ms. Yeon-oh? Wow, when did the government become so rotten?”

Ah, was it always like this?

Kang Yoon-soo’s mocking skill… No, his outright ridiculing ability was truly remarkable. Even I, listening from behind, couldn’t help but be impressed.

Throughout his remarks, he maintained a faint smile and an unwavering voice. What irritated Kim Chok, who was facing Kang Yoon-soo, was evident.

“I understand that you have a lot of complaints against us… but can’t you stop now? We’ve been looking out for you for quite some time.”

“That’s because I’m not doing much work, isn’t it?”

“Ah, doing things and then reporting them?”

“Haha, with so many people around here, shouldn’t we have that conversation privately?”

Kang Yoon-soo nodded as if to cut off Kim Chok’s words. Fortunately, his action worked, and Kim Chok stopped saying what he intended.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Kang Yoon-soo easily changed the atmosphere.

“More importantly, how did you know we were here? The tailing is one thing, and you’ve already been caught… Did you perhaps do something like location tracking? It’s illegal, you know?”

“…”

“Why so silent? Are you sensitive to this issue lately?”

“For safety reasons. This place is where the Gate saturation occurred before, and there might still be monsters we haven’t dealt with. We control access to civilians for safety. Two individuals who are not officials were found here for confirmation.”

“Ah, I see.”

Kang Yoon-soo sighed as if expressing disappointment. There was a sense of disappointment because the desired answer didn’t come, and even a feeling of pondering how to get the right response.

Regardless, I understood that whatever Kim Chok said now was fabricated.

‘I know of only two instances of Gate saturation happening in South Korea.’

The day the Gate first appeared in South Korea.

And the day an S-level Gate opened.

Just twice.

However, the locations of these incidents were both over the sea. That was the reason why there were relatively few casualties.

All the monsters drowned in the water as soon as they appeared.

Fortunately, the Gates that opened over the sea did not contain monsters that resembled terrestrial animals. So, Kim Chok’s words could only be false. Of course, there might be Gate saturations that I didn’t know about, but considering the current conversation, it was clear that someone had followed Kang Yoon-soo or me to target us.

However, earlier, Kim Chok had denied that it was Kang Yoon-soo, so probably… the chance of it being me was high, damn.

‘…Could they have already caught on?’

That I had the SSS-level title?

‘Nah, impossible.…’

It hadn’t been long since I came out of the Gate. Were they already suspecting me?

…The government I knew wasn’t this quick with information, right?

During the years I worked as a government-affiliated hunter, I accumulated data. Among them, what the government lacked was information. Advanced information was primarily exchanged among high-level hunters, so the government was always a step behind.

Moreover, even here, Kang Yoon-soo, who seemed antagonistic to the government, was the hunter who first identified the Gate’s creation location… That pretty much said it all.

I glanced at Director Kim Chok with a puzzled expression, and our eyes met for a moment.

“…!”

In an instant, I felt like everything about me had been read.

But fortunately…

[Mental defense is essential!

?Realize Mental Defense(??)!

?Hmm.

?Cancel, minimize.

?#%&**!*#?

However, ….]

The system window was acting strangely, but it seemed like I had acquired a skill for mental defense. Thanks to that, I was able to avoid Kim Chok’s skill. 

‘This is the first time I’ve seen the system do this?’

By now, even though it was the first time it was so blatantly weird, I wasn’t surprised anymore.

[System Error.]

[Recovering the system.]

[Time required: 01:00:00]

These windows appeared in front of my eyes. It seemed that this phenomenon was happening to other hunters, including Kang Yoon-soo and Kim Chok. Everyone stood silently, watching only their own screens.

In the midst of this, Kang Yoon-soo turned around, looked at me with interest, then turned his attention back to the front.

“Haha, this is the first time I’ve seen something like this in my hunter life. A system error during a mission.”

“…Not a time to laugh.”

“Well, that’s true… Even if the system is down, it doesn’t mean basic stats will change. Right now, the ones who should be worried are probably Mr. Kim Chok and his team.”

“Huh!”

“So, you should quickly go back. I’ll cover you.”

He was right. No matter how outnumbered Kang Yoon-soo was against Kim Chok’s team, he could probably win against those hunters alone. Kim Chok might be able to buy some time, but fighting Kang Yoon-soo in the current situation where the system was down was honestly a near-impossible task.

Knowing this, Kim Chok furrowed his brows, but in the midst of that, he turned his gaze towards me with a look that said he had something to say.

“Hunter Seo Yeon-oh.”

“…Yes?”

“Then, I’ll see you when your vacation is over.”

“Ah…”

“We’ll take our leave now. And Kang Yoon-soo, stop meeting government-affiliated hunters like this.”

Kang Yoon-soo responded with a shrug. With that, Kim Chok and the other four hunters slowly retraced their steps. Once their figures were completely out of sight, Kang Yoon-soo turned in a circle and looked at me.

“Well, the system’s down, and everything’s a mess. Ms. Yeon-oh, how about having a meal with me?”

“…What does that have to do with anything?”

“It’s just about dinner time now.”

“Ah…”

“And this isn’t payment for the help earlier. I just want to eat together with a pure heart.”

As Kang Yoon-soo said this, he smiled eagerly with an expression that indicated he was hungry.

… Does he have something in the food, or what?