Pipo-. Pipo-. Pipo-.

 

I blankly watched the students being taken away in an ambulance. 

 

‘Goodbye.’

 

Anyway, the missing person was rescued, and apparently the criminal was arrested safely while we were struggling inside the gate. 

 

I have nothing to do now. 

 

The police will take care of the rest. 

 

‘Tomorrow is the end of the two weeks I promised.’

 

I suddenly thought about the schedule in my head. 

 

By the way, earlier, as a way of thanking Seonwoo Yeon for saving me, I smiled! 

 

How will the natives react when they see my expression of emotion? 

 

‘I practiced it from time to time at home, but this is my first time using it in real life.’

 

Thump, thump. 

 

I turned my gaze cautiously, full of anticipation 

 

Then, in the distance, Seonwoo Yeon’s face appeared. 

 

The expression on her face…looks as if she is in shock. 

 

‘Did I look that weird?’

 

I trained hard for 10 days…

 

As expected, communicating with facial muscles didn’t seem to be a good choice. 

 

I tried to ignore Seonwoo Yeon, who was looking at me, and swallowed my tears. 

 

Damn it, someday I will express emotions that even earthlings can’t tell the difference between. 

 

***

 

The Eunpyeong-gu disappearance case has been closed.

 

Today is her first holiday since that incident.

 

Seonwoo Yeon went into a brand cafe near the Hunter Association and ordered a weekend limited set menu. 

 

“Ah! Hunter Seonwoo Yeon! Hello. The weather is really nice today, right?” 

 

As she was killing time, the person she was waiting for also showed up quickly. 

 

Seonwoo Yeon greeted him calmly. 

 

“Right? Hunter Ahn Yoonseung.” 

 

Today she had an appointment with A-Class hunter Ahn Yoonseung. 

 

“By the way, why did you call me? You don’t normally make weekend appointments.”

 

Ahn Yoonseung is an outdoor hunter who focuses on dealing with dungeon breaks. 

 

Seonwoo Yeon also often stays outside due to circumstances preventing her from entering the gate 

 

It’s natural to create a mealtime opportunity when schedules for work overlap in this way, which helps build a close relationship. 

 

“It’s just, I have something to ask you briefly.”

 

Yoonseung didn’t give it much thought and gladly took Seonwoo Yeon’s offer of free coffee. 

 

“Are you close with Hunter Kim Kiryeo?” 

 

However, no matter how A-Class awakened he was, he had no talent for preventing coffee from flowing back up his nose. 

 

“Ugh!” 

 

“It hasn’t even started yet, but it’s already making me suspicious.”

 

“N, no. I was surprised when someone else’s name suddenly appeared…”

 

Seonwoo Yeon looked at Yoonseung coldly, the corners of her mouth lowered. 

 

“I’ve known for a long time that you and Kim Kiryeo know each other well.” 

 

“Is it because of the kidnapping?”

 

“At first, I didn’t think much about it, but after seeing A-Class and F-Class coming out of the gate together, I wondered what was going on.” 

 

Slurp.

 

Seonwoo Yeon takes a sip of hot Americano before carefully choosing her words 

 

“How did you get to know Hunter Kim Kiryeo?”

 

Then Ahn Yoonseung crossed his arms and avoided eye contact. 

 

“Why are you suddenly asking that?”

 

“Well, it must be quite confusing in Yoonseung’s situation. For now, don’t worry. Because the association has nothing to do with it.” 

 

“Really?” 

 

“It’s just a personal concern.”

 

It’s quite a defensive attitude.

 

Seonwoo Yeon tilted her coffee cup and looked over it. 

 

“To be honest, I think Kim Kiryeo is likely a criminal.” 

 

“Yes?” 

 

“So, if Hunter Ahn Yoonseung is in trouble due to being caught by bad awakener, I will help…” 

 

“What did you say?” 

 

Listening quietly to those words, Ahn Yoonseung was about to slam the table but managed to stop just before doing so. 

 

“No, that’s ridiculous! What crime does Hyung-nim have! That person is…!” 

 

“He’s hiding his awakening value.”

 

“Yes?” 

 

“Reporting false rank is also a crime. A crime.”

 

Tuk. 

 

Seonwoo Yeon put down the mug she was holding strongly.

 

Her eyes were full of confidence.

 

“In an industry where a single rank increase changes the pay scale, making a downgrade report is quite serious.”

 

“Hmm.” 

 

“Such people usually try to gain some other benefit from this cheating.”

 

“That’s right.” 

 

“Is it odd to suspect Hunter Kim Kiryeo as a dangerous individual?”  

 

Seonwoo Yeon took a deep breath and spoke calmly. 

 

Somehow, Ahn Yoonseung is at a loss for words and is restless, but she didn’t originally intend to push him like this. 

 

“I’m not saying I’m going to catch you or Kim Kiryeo right away…I just want to check the facts.”

 

Check the facts?

 

At those words, Ahn Yoonseung raised his head. 

 

“Everyone in the association knows Hunter Ahn Yoonseung is honest and diligent, so it’s strange for someone like you to be associated with that F-Class…” 

 

“Yeah.” 

 

“I wonder if there is something wrong with the fraudulent registration.”

 

“Hmm.” 

 

“Or on the other hand, it could be that he is an awakened person who can’t even be A-Class, and that the soft-hearted Ahn Yoonseung-ssi is being taken advantage of without being able to speak.” 

 

She was recalling numerous assumptions within her at this moment.

 

This is because the F-Class awakened person never revealed his true intentions, making it difficult to distinguish between good and evil.

 

He gives advice on how to use skills, and only at the very end does he reveal his hidden power and irritate people.

 

His whereabouts are also very questionable.

 

“I need information. This is information to judge a person named Kim Kiryeo.”

 

Seonwoo Yeon let out a deep sigh. 

 

“That’s why I called Ahn Yoonseung-ssi. I thought you might know something if you are in contact with Hunter Kim Kiryeo.” 

 

But unlike her, whose expression darkened, Ahn Yoonseung’s complexion quickly returned. 

 

An employee of the association suddenly asked about Kim Kiryeo, so he wondered if they were going to catch him. 

 

‘Phew, that wasn’t the reason.’

 

He was lost in thought.

 

Judging by the employee’s reaction, it seems like Kim Kiryeo might have already revealed his true awakening abilities to some extent?

 

‘I heard there was a gate accident during the search for the Eunpyeong-gu case.’

 

Ah, it seems  he had no choice but to use his skills to protect Seonwoo Yeon and the missing people… 

 

In fact, this is obvious even without looking.

 

Then, the disguise of being F-Class has been broken, so what’s the point in keeping all the information secret? 

 

‘Hmm…’

 

Ahn Yoonseung thought about this problem from a different perspective. 

 

How about revealing the truth to clear up the misunderstanding? 

 

Ahn Yoonseung decided that it would be much more helpful to Kiryeo. 

 

Kim Kiryeo himself probably doesn’t want to continue to receive keen attention from the association’s staff. 

 

“Then I will tell you about Kiryeo Hyung. Can you please keep these stories a secret?”

 

Yoonseung made up his mind and made a suggestion.

 

Then Seonwoo Yeon nodded her head with straight eyes. 

 

“Of course. I promise.”

 

She vowed to keep her silence, knowing she would be the second to break it, and the promise would be strictly upheld.

 

Five minutes passed like that.

 

“It was one summer day that I met Hyung-nim…” 

 

The A-Class Hunter, speaking in a deep voice, began to describe the first meeting of the day. 

 

“Did you know that my team was overthrown at the strange mutation gate?”

 

“I know. It was a pretty big accident.” 

 

“But at that time! It was all thanks to him that I came back alive. I mean!”

 

Seonwoo Yeon listened to his words without wavering. 

 

“I still can’t forget that scene. He easily subdues a golem that I couldn’t even touch and rips out its heart!”

 

Although long explanations continued for some time, the event when Hunter Ahn Yoonseung and Kim Kiryeo met might be summarized simply as this. 

 

‘Instantly killing a boss-level monster that Ahn Yoonseung couldn’t handle? Minimum A-Class confirmed.’ 

 

How many steps in total did this gentleman fake? 

 

Seonwoo Yeon’s eyes became slightly dirty.

 

“Uh, as expected, is it because of Kiryeo Hyung’s awakening level that you’re feeling a bit troubled? 

 

When Seonwoo Yeon’s reaction wasn’t very good, Yoonseung defended Kiryeo even more actively. 

 

“But I think there are circumstances behind it all, so can you please look at it a little bit…” 

 

“What are the circumstances?”

 

“I’ve never asked directly, but maybe it’s because I’m concerned about interference from the world…” 

 

Ahn Yoonseung put his hand on his chin, thought about it for a moment, and then spoke the next word as if something had occurred to him. 

 

“And he usually goes around looking like a fly with magical powers.”

 

Fly.

 

It’s definitely true, but the words are a bit wordy.

 

“It seems like he’s putting too much effort into restraining power; perhaps it could be a case like Jung Haseong.” 

 

“Jung Haseong?” 

 

“He’s being careful that people around him might feel uncomfortable. That happened… to the person in first place during that interview.” 

 

Ah. 

 

When the word interview came up, Seonwoo Yeon seemed to understand. 

 

The hunter who boasts the undisputed #1 ranking is famous for having an incredibly high awakening value.

 

“There have been cases where ordinary people fainted in groups due to magical power.”

 

Of course, it may not be to that extent, but starting with A-Class hunters, it has enough of an effect on the people around them. 

 

“Haha, but in a way, it was natural that Hyung-nim was caught with a false grade.”

 

“Because he didn’t look uncomfortable when he was next to you.”

 

“He’s not afraid even in front of the S-Class, so what do you expect?”

 

Ahn Yoonseung quenched his thirst by drinking Americano with half-melted ice. 

 

“Anyway, that’s what I want to say. He is definitely not someone who would engage in crime.”

 

“….”

 

“If he lied about his rank for evil purposes, he would have to be interested in murder or dirty money, but that’s not it, right?” 

 

“As expected, does he not have material desires?”

 

“Our Hyung usually eats Gukbap!” 

 

Positive answers follow one after another.

 

However, Seonwoo Yeon could hardly straighten her expression. 

 

“Why do you think so highly of Kim Kiryeo’s personality? He’s someone you just met.” 

 

Then Yoonseung paused for a moment and smiled bitterly. 

 

“But I received so much help.”

 

Yoonseung briefly recalled what happened last time 

 

This is what happened when he captured the hunter who was hunting other hunters—a frog.

 

“I think Kiryeo Hyung was worried that I would live a life buried in past failures.”

 

“Worry?” 

 

“So one day, he personally helped me find confidence.”

 

“….” 

 

“He sacrificed his own body without any hesitation.”

 

How can he doubt someone like this? 

 

Seonwoo Yeon couldn’t refute these words. 

 

If she thinks about it, she also went through a similar situation herself. 

 

‘The reason I was able to use my abilities was because he got hurt on purpose…’

 

Suddenly, an image of him bleeding to the point that his shirt was dyed red flashes through her mind. 

 

‘There was no recovery medicine, so I was so worried because I thought Hunter Kim Kiryeo would end up in the same situation.’

 

But who went to such lengths to persuade her to use her skills?

 

When she thinks about how anxious she was back then, she feels bad even thinking about it again.

 

So, Seonwoo Yeon made an unnecessary point in an annoyed tone.

 

“I don’t know. I still don’t trust him. There are also circumstances where that awakened person attacked a certain hunter within the gate.”

 

Ahn Yoonseung, who heard this, asked a question out of curiosity. 

 

“Are you talking about the White Maze? About what happened with Jung Haseong.” 

 

“…!” 

 

“As far as I know, that’s the only time he hit a fellow hunter?” 

 

She can’t believe he hit a fellow hunter. That’s a confident tone.

 

So, does that mean that the incident where they claimed that F-Class or something knocked out the top-ranked player was true? 

 

“It wasn’t Kang Changho’s action or something like that, but it was actually Kim Kiryeo’s own doing?”

 

Seonwoo Yeon lowers her voice as she breaks into a cold sweat. At that moment, Yoonseung hurriedly defended Kiryeo. 

 

“Wait a second! Please don’t misunderstand. I know the whole story! That wasn’t a fight with Hunter Jung Haseong…” 

 

He looked very aggrieved.

 

Not long after, an explanation of the incident came out of Hunter Ahn Yoonseung’s mouth.