Cyborg-tl
“What on earth is going on...?”
The Hunter Association’s chairman had just decided on Chae Soo-hyun’s permanent expulsion. She was the first hunter to be permanently banned. While the rules had always allowed for such an outcome, no one had ever faced it before.
She was grinding her teeth in frustration.
“Our Hunter Association has become a laughingstock.” “I-I’m sorry. We should have monitored things better...” “How does the ranking office even function to allow this?” “...”
The interim head of the Hunter Ranking Office remained silent, wearing a baffled expression as if they couldn’t comprehend how this had happened.
“I apologize. We’ve initiated an internal investigation... Once we have results, we’ll inform you immediately. According to our records... Chae Soo-hyun was verified as S-rank through cross-checks...”
He wore a scowl, as if biting into something bitter.
“This must never happen again.” “Yes...” “Notify Hunter Chae Soo-hyun immediately.” “Yes, understood.”
“Per...ma...nent...expul...sion?”
Chae Soo-hyun’s eyes trembled as she stared at the Hunter Association’s employee, who was waiting for her signature.
“Please... sign here.” “Wait... Are you kidding? You’re saying I’m permanently expelled as a hunter?” “Yes... I don’t know the details myself. I didn’t make the decision. Just sign, please.”
The employee looked irritated as Soo-hyun sat there, staring blankly at the document from the Hunter Association.
“This doesn’t make sense... No one’s ever been permanently expelled, right? So now I’m just... a regular person? Not even a hunter?” “Yes. You’ll be treated as a civilian under the rules.”
Soo-hyun’s face was filled with despair.
She had hoped to handle the situation and return to being a hunter.
“If you use your hunter abilities without being registered with the Association, that’s illegal, you know?”
The employee clicked his tongue, as if to say she should’ve known better.
“Does this mean... I can’t even enter dungeons?” “Right. You won’t be allowed into dungeons, you won’t get a civilian license, and you can’t use your Succubus ability. If you use your power without registration, you’ll be arrested.”
He was clearly frustrated, eager to leave, but Soo-hyun kept dragging things out.
‘Ugh, I don’t want to be near her. What if she drains me or something?’
He couldn’t wait to get out of her presence.
“Sob... sob... how... how did it come to this...?”
In an instant, everything had turned upside down. She had no one left. Not Jin-hyuk, not Ji-hoon, not the Hunter Association, not Blue Guild, not Baekho Guild.
All she had left were people’s scornful gazes.
“Yes... I understand...”
She signed and dismissed the employee, then collapsed onto the couch, staring blankly at the ceiling.
“Ha... ha... I’m... completely finished... ha...”
She had fallen to the bottom and lost all will to fight.
‘Hmm... Now, for the final step...’
He felt that things were almost wrapped up.
‘Once I reveal myself as ID Paraparis, it’ll be over.’
This would be the perfect end to his relationship with Chae Soo-hyun and the beginning of a new chapter.
“Hyung-seok, I’d like to hold a press conference. Can you set it up?” “A press conference? Alright, I’ll get right on it.”
They moved quickly.
“Huh? Did you hear? Ji-hoon is holding a press conference.” “Yeah, I heard. Everyone’s buzzing about it. What could he possibly have left to say?”
Everyone was still excited from the whirlwind of the Soo-hyun scandal. Soo-ah and Ha-na were curious about what Ji-hoon could be up to next, though he was already gone, leaving them unable to ask.
Creak.
As they entered Ji-hoon’s office, they found Cha I-seul there.
“Oh?” “Hunter Cha I-seul, hello. What brings you here?”
Soo-ah and Ha-na gave her a slightly annoyed look. To them, she was just the newcomer who had taken Ji-hoon away.
“Well, we came to see if you knew anything about Ji-hoon’s press conference. Do you know what it’s about?” “No, I haven’t heard anything.”
‘Even I-seul doesn’t know? Then what could it be? Is it something he hasn’t told anyone?’
They couldn’t help but feel even more curious.
“What’s this press conference about?” “I have no idea. Apparently, Ji-hoon is going to make an announcement.” “Could he be revealing that he’s not really S-rank too?” “Nah... No way. Is this like a chain confession?”
The journalists were abuzz with confusion. The Chae Soo-hyun scandal had thrown them all for a loop.
“Did you hear anything?” “Nope. Even Blue Guild doesn’t know. I used my sources, but nothing came up.” “Hmm~ What could it be?”
Unable to make any guesses, they waited for Ji-hoon’s announcement.
Tap, tap, tap.
Finally, Ji-hoon stepped into the press conference. As someone who rarely made public appearances, all eyes were on him.
“Hello, everyone. I’m Baek Ji-hoon, representative hunter of Blue Guild.”
He started calmly.
“Recently, there’s been a lot of buzz around a certain auction.”
As he mentioned this, a murmur spread through the crowd. The reporters exchanged glances, wondering if this could be it.
“An ID by the name of Paraparis has been placing rare and well-known S-rank items up for auction.”
The reporters’ fingers flew across their devices, realizing that this could be another major story.
“I am that ID, Paraparis.”
As soon as he finished, the room exploded with noise. Reporters raised their hands, desperate to ask questions. But Ji-hoon left without answering, disappearing from the stage.
“What...???”
Soo-ah, Ha-na, and I-seul gaped as they watched the press conference unfold on TV from Ji-hoon’s office.
“Ji... Ji-hoon is... ID Paraparis??? See! I told you!!! It’s all Ji-hoon! It’s him!”
Soo-ah, clearly excited, shouted. Ha-na and I-seul looked as if they still couldn’t process what they’d just heard.
‘Huh...? Ji-hoon is... really Paraparis...?’
I-seul could hardly believe it. She’d never suspected her childhood friend of being such a person.
‘No way. Ji-hoon...? He was collecting those incredible items?’
She knew about the auction, of course. But she never imagined Ji-hoon was behind it. She’d always thought of him as just her childhood friend.
‘So he made hundreds of billions just like that...?’
It was hard for her to wrap her mind around it.
“Ji-hoon! Why did he hide so much from us?”
Soo-ah glanced at I-seul, wondering if things could have been different if she’d known Ji-hoon better from the beginning.
‘Ugh... but I didn’t treat him badly... right?’
But it felt like the ship had already sailed.
‘Ji-hoon is ID Paraparis... There’s no room for me anymore...’
She began to wonder if she should give up on Ji-hoon altogether.
‘Instead...’
She glanced at Park Hyung-seok, feeling that Ji-hoon had now moved too far ahead, completely out of reach.
She thought she might have a chance as long as there were still areas where she had an advantage, but now it felt impossible.
‘How can I compete... He’s been throwing out S-rank items like they’re nothing...’
She shook her head in disbelief.
“What...???”
Back at her place, still sobbing, Soo-hyun stood frozen in the middle of the living room. She’d been holding onto a tiny sliver of hope after hearing about Ji-hoon’s press conference.
Despite everything, she had clung to her hope for Ji-hoon.
‘Ji-hoon oppa... is Paraparis...?’