“Oppa, let’s break up.”

A sharp and cold statement struck my heart.

She threw the words while staring blankly elsewhere, with an expression that was icy and unfeeling.

Her tone was utterly devoid of emotion, as if she had no heart left.

My heart, which had been soaring with joy from her achieving S-Rank 1st place, plummeted in an instant

The expression of joy on my face hardened within moments.

“What?”

I could only look at Suhyeon with a distorted expression.

Chae Suhyeon.

She had just reached the pinnacle of South Korea’s S-Rank, no—she was at the top of all hunters.

After years of struggles and challenges, we had finally reached S-Rank.

And today was the day she claimed the highest position of S-Rank.

Yet here she was, saying something absurd at the celebration.

“What do you mean? You want to break up?”

“Didn’t you hear? I said let’s break up. It’s time for us to part ways. I want a clean break, you know? I don’t like messy situations. You don’t like them either, right?”

It was evident that it hadn’t been this way before she confirmed her S-Rank 1st place.

Of course, I had sensed something was amiss, but every couple goes through a phase of monotony.

I thought it was just that.

Or perhaps it was a result of the intensifying difficulties that came with nearing S-Rank 1st place.

S-Ranks who were ahead of us had shown such signs.

Once everyone reached a certain level, they began to exhibit abnormal symptoms.

As if they were carrying various mental disorders.

Because of that, Suhyeon was able to make a leap forward.

Ultimately leading her to achieve S-Rank 1st place today.

To be precise, it was because of me, after all.

I possessed a rare characteristic that set me apart from regular hunters.

The ability to allocate the points gained from hunting activities to others.

Points could be earned by completing quests assigned within dungeons.

And those points could be distributed to modify one’s stats.

This was a basic and common cycle in the current South Korea.

The era of hunters had begun due to dungeons that appeared suddenly one day.

Naturally, the basic principle was to invest the stats into oneself, but that wasn’t the case for me.

I could also distribute points to others.

That was a peculiar feature of my status window.

In the beginning, I had quite the struggle adapting.

No matter how much I searched and asked, there was no one who understood.

“Eh? You can give points to others? What does that even mean?”
“If it’s me, why would I give it to someone else? I worked hard for this! Can you just give it away like that?”
“Sigh… haven’t you ever played games? How can you give stats to someone else? It’s not like it’s money or anything.”
“Come on, if that were possible, wouldn’t rich people just buy all the stats they wanted? That can’t be the case…”
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a game like that…”
“I’m sorry, but it seems like such a feature has not yet been reported to the Hunter Association.”

Of course, no one understood.

Not only regular people but even the employees of the Hunter Association.

“No. Damn… what the heck is this?”

It took quite a while for me to understand my unique trait.

I had no choice but to experiment and learn through trial and error.

“Eh? You can invest points in others?”

That was when I met Suhyeon.

The only person who could understand what I was saying.

I can still vividly recall the sparkle in her eyes.

“Uh… Oppa… then, wouldn’t the recipient grow faster…? I’m not really good at games, so I don’t know, but isn’t that an amazing trait…?”

She was definitely quick-witted in this regard.

As soon as I spoke, she started planning everything immediately.

“Oppa! How about it? Shall we team up? Let’s date! Starting today, day one!!!”

“Here’s the thing. We’ll go dungeon exploring together and gather points quickly. Then you can funnel them to me, and I’ll grow twice as fast!”

“Ah, Oppa. Just think about it. I’ll grow at double speed and become S-Rank quickly, then I can lead you too. From then on, you’ll grow comfortably and quickly. What do you say?”

“Ah Oppa, don’t you trust me? It’s me, Suhyeon. Chae Suhyeon.”

“Oppa, I know you’ve had feelings for me. You’ve been following me for years, haven’t you? Now you’re fulfilling your dream. Hehe…”

As soon as I heard the words about breaking up, memories of the past rushed through my mind at lightning speed.

“Ha… this is ridiculous…”

I sighed internally as I recalled the events of the past.

“Did I do something really foolish by selling myself to a woman? Damn…”

“What are you doing? Aren’t you supposed to answer? Why are you just staring blankly? If you’re not going to answer, I’ll just leave. I was only waiting out of courtesy, anyway. There’s only one answer you can give, right?”

While I was lost in thought, a voice startled me back to reality.

It seemed she was annoyed since I hadn’t responded.

“Hey. Was this always your goal? Huh?”

She started to interrogate me with a deeply furrowed expression.

“What? What goal? This is ridiculous. Do I need a goal to break up? I just don’t like you anymore. We don’t match.”

“What?”

“And, oppa, I’m now S-Rank. Meanwhile, you’re still E-Rank. Our ranks don’t match. When will you level up? You want me to go through all that hardship again? Ugh. I’m just tired of it, and I want to enjoy my life now. I’m going to take a break.”

“You’ve grown faster than others using all my points, and now you want to break up? Are you serious?”

I’m usually not one to get angry, but today, I couldn’t hold it in.

All the effort and memories we shared seemed to be flying away in an instant.

“Ugh. A man is being so petty. Just because you gave me some points, you’re acting all high and mighty? What do you want me to do? Are you going to ask for those points back now that we’re breaking up? Huh?”

She turned to leave but glanced back at me with a look of disdain.

She shook her head disapprovingly.

“If you want to take them, go ahead. How would you take them, anyway? You said there’s no way to get them back, right? Ugh. Live a little more generously. I’ve endured your arrogance until now; it’s been a mental strain for me, no less.”

“What? Mental strain?”

“Take them, take them. Ugh. Whether you take them or not, what difference does it make? Anyway, I’ve said everything I needed to say. I’m busy now. I’ve been focused on gathering points and have turned down all external requests, right? I’m going to be super busy going forward. I was bound to drift apart from you anyway.”

She made a face as if she were looking at a bug.

“Wow. This is ridiculous?”

This was the first time I had ever been blindsided like this in my life.

No, it wouldn’t happen to anyone. No one could have expected such a betrayal.

Aren’t all basic principles in society about give and take?

This woman didn’t even possess the basic traits of a human.

Not even realizing that. I can’t believe it.

“Oppa… It’s tough… Just a little… Hang in there… I’ll soon… be D-Rank…”
“Oppa… I’m about to become C-Rank now.”
“Phew.. I’m not far from S-Rank!! Give me a little more strength. Oppa~”

“Ha… Damn… Those sweet words. Were you just playing with me?”

I couldn’t help but feel that I had been toyed with.

Isn’t this clearly deceitful behavior?

But that didn’t mean there was anything I could do.

As she said, I couldn’t recover my points.

Not only had I been blindsided, but all the points I had accumulated until now had also been taken away.

I was now completely broke.

What was left for me was the lowest level—E-Rank Hunter.

All my efforts until now had turned to nothing.

What was I working so hard for?

“Hey. You damn cheating scumbag.”

“What?”

Hearing my words, she immediately frowned deeply.

Instantly, there was a reaction.

She looked very displeased.

“I guess you’ve struggled hard to deceive me all this time. You must have had quite a hard time. But you know what? I don’t even want to think about that s*ty past with you, so get the hell out of my sight right now. I don’t know who you’ve teamed up with, but they’re probably the same kind of scum as you, so I hope you get back this terrible treatment one day. Damn you.”

If I could have said it more logically, that would have been great, but all I could spit out with my current state of mind was just that.

If only other party was a man, I might have been able to confront him with more spirit, but since it’s a woman and an S-Rank at that, it’s too much.

If I picked a fight, I’d end up getting hit.

“Ha. How did I end up like this?”

Just moments ago, I had felt the liberation of finally reaching the peak and was in a happy situation.

But I had fallen into the abyss in a matter of moments.

All I could do now was to let out some curses.

I knew exactly how she would react, having seen her temper countless times before.

“Well, regardless of the consequences, I have to say what I want to say. It’s the last time after all.”

Chae Suhyeon was trembling with her fists clenched, glaring at me fiercely.

“Ugh, you’re pathetic. This is exactly why I’m leaving. I’ll let it slide this time, but I want this to end cleanly. Never contact me again. I’m going to block you.”

With those absurd words, she abruptly turned away and left.

“What the hell? Damn, did she at least have a shred of conscience?”

Sure, it was a situation where she could have slapped me, yet she held back and just walked away. Could she have really felt so little attachment?

“Ha… damn… how did it come to this…”

For a while, I just stood there in a daze, feeling utterly defeated.

After Chae Suhyeon left, some time passed before I began to grasp the situation.

“What the hell have I been working so hard for all this time?”

“Was it just to waste my efforts on someone like her?”

“Ha… my points… damn it. If I had just invested that in myself, I would have at least reached B-rank. Damn it.”

I thought of my friends who were all thriving.

The ones who became Hunters and those who found jobs were all doing well.

“Ha… what do I even do now…”

With my strength drained, I could only crouch in one corner.

I threw whatever I could grasp in frustration, but it couldn’t fill the void in my heart.

Amidst all this, something caught my eye.

“Huh? What’s that…?”

The status window had never shone on its own before.

It usually turned on only when the user activated it.

[You have met the conditions. You can retrieve points invested in others.]

[Would you like to retrieve them?]

A large red button labeled “Retrieve” was sparkling right in front of me.

“Huh? I can actually retrieve them?”