What followed was the act of inviting the neatly dressed awakened one inside.

‘Last time, right in front of the gate, Hunter Jeong Haseong even unleashed his magic… I was so startled that I ended up asking the alien for a solution.’

But even as Seonwoo Yeon let the alien into the room, she kept pondering continuously.

‘Moreover, he just casually asked if there were any monster photos, and I ended up sharing the Association’s materials so naturally. Really… I was too careless this time. I need to get a grip.’

This was also a strong rebuke directed at herself.

‘From now on, I mustn’t rely carelessly on that S-rank. And conversely, if they try to exploit my position illegally, I need to refuse firmly.’

Seonwoo Yeon finally became aware of the flexibility she had unconsciously allowed herself. She firmly vowed at that moment not to show favoritism toward acquaintances anymore. Maintaining this resolve, she carefully guided the visitor from another world.

“It’s not about the money. Through this work, I pursue a certain sense of self-fulfillment, so resigning from my position right now would be difficult.”

“I see.”

“But today, why on earth did you end up asking that question—what were you pondering all by yourself?”

“Well… the truth is, I suddenly found myself in need of some workers, from the perspective of a business owner…”

“Hmm?”

“Like you said, let’s go inside first. I think I’ll need to wet my throat with some iced tea before I can even begin to explain.”

“You speak as if you’ve already set aside some green tea for me.”

Workers? And a businessman?

There wasn’t enough time to process the words worker or businessman. Kim Giryeo was showing signs of urgency. So, to address the question that had arisen, Seonwoo Yeon decided to first brew the green tea as her guest had requested.

.
.
.

But who would have thought the aliens would bring such a ridiculous topic?

“Seonwoo Yeon-ssi, I’m currently recruiting guild members here on Earth.”

It happened just as the conversation was getting underway. Seonwoo Yeon and Kim Giryeo were quietly sitting across from each other at the tea table. Blowing gently on the brewed green tea, Seonwoo Yeon suddenly paused, lost in thought.

‘That’s right. I’d completely forgotten since the guild is so inconspicuous. Come to think of it, the hunting business was actually registered properly after all.’

She was specifically recalling the online reviews of a certain business.

‘Ordinary people don’t know the secret of that fourth S-rank. Well, back when the guild was first established, it did become a topic of discussion…’

Kim Giryeo’s guild. Even if the name sounded outdated, the amount of attention the company received was immense, simply because the guild master was an S-rank Hunter.

【HunterNet】
[lm***: No way!!!!! At first, I thought you’d filter employees like Garion did, but not even recruiting new members at all??? Aaaaaah, accept my application, accept my application, accept my application, accept my application!]

└ [08*: Why on earth does this person want a hunter like Kim Giryeo as their boss, haha;]

└[Mu***: Usually, working under a tiger-like boss is exhausting and tough. But in this industry, at least you actually learn something, haha.]

The man who had long ignored such fervent public interest had now announced his decision to resume the guild’s operations. And as Seonwoo Yeon listened further, it turned out that the alien was facing nothing less than the cliff of “tax exemption cancellation and full withdrawal of benefits.”

“Giryeo-ssi.”

Tak.

Seonwoo Yeon put down the teacup she had been holding.

“I understand your situation, for now.”

“Yes.”

“But if it’s just about meeting the minimum guild requirements, couldn’t you simply post a recruitment notice? You could hire a few hunters while you’re at it.”

The black-haired woman’s remark was nothing if not perfectly reasonable.

“I’m sorry, but that’s a bit…”

However, the blond guest waved his hand dismissively, saying that there was a problem.

“I was looking for a worker I could really trust—someone whose rank is, well, conveniently low.”

“Would it absolutely have to be someone other than an S-rank Hunter?”

“Yes. Well, it’s not like I’m doing this just to fill up the headcount with random Hunters.”

“Is that so?”

“The only reason things are delayed right now is because the Hunter Association president is overseas. My license is going to be reinstated soon anyway, so it’s not like I’m short on hunters or anything.”

“Oh, right.”

From the sound of it, Kim Giryeo didn’t seem to be thinking only about taxes.

“Hmm.”

And as if to prove that the homeowner’s intuition about the taxes wasn’t wrong… the blond alien soon began to roughly explain the situation he was in.

“Hunter Seonwoo Yeon-ssi. As I mentioned earlier, I’ve been working on a way to exterminate the monsters of this world.”

What followed from the guest were statements that, from the perspective of hunting, were perfectly natural.

“I want to take down the mastermind responsible for creating the gates.”

“Yes.”

“But if you’re planning to catch and destroy something, you first need to observe where it is and what condition it’s in, right?”

“That’s right.”

“So the first thing I’ll try to build is something like a telescope for spotting hunting targets.”

“Telescope?”

“More precisely, I need a telescope made with a certain special mineral.”

Fortunately, the alien who had settled on Earth wasn’t one to shy away from using metaphors. Thanks to that, Seonwoo Yeon had no trouble following along and grasping the gist of what he was saying.

“Just like how people here mine and use iron ore, I’m planning to dig up some of the anomalous underground resources contained within the Gates and use those instead.”

“I understand.”

“Of course, one fortunate thing is that, since I happen to be a genius, I somehow managed to complete the mineral detector itself…”

What he’d just said could basically be taken as bragging about having invented litmus paper all the way out in deep space.

-Sshk.

Then, the alien sitting across from her took something out through his [Item Box]. What Kim Giryeo presented with a lifeless expression was a very thin, elongated rod.

“If you plant this in the ground and wait for about two hours, you can determine whether the minerals I need exist in that area.”

However, Seonwoo Yeon had always preferred subjects like literature and history since her school days. In other words, she’d never been particularly interested in science or technology,
so she had no real desire to hear about how the device actually worked.

“I see.”

Besides, the alien also wanted to make efficient use of his time.

“But even though I somehow managed to complete the tracking device, the problem is I have no idea which dungeon might contain the minerals I need.”

The conversation flowed smoothly.

“So I roughly narrowed it down to domestic dungeons that seem like they might have the right environment. Most of them turned out to be low-grade hunting grounds, from F to D rank.”

“Ah.”

“And it’s not like I’ll get results after just one or two tries. To find even a single mineral, I’ll probably have to raid a dungeon a hundred times over…”

“So that’s why you needed guild members.”

The man, whose hair was dyed with hair coloring, nodded and continued. Of course, this gray rod—by Alphauri standards—was created with very primitive technology, so even if it leaked or was copied, it wouldn’t pose a major problem. Still, the alien seemed intent on assigning the mineral exploration task to a worker trustworthy enough to keep the secret.

“Hmm.”

Seonwoo Yeon thought there might be an alternative solution to the matter. So, in a calm voice, she offered a different suggestion.

“I understand well what you’re worried about, Giryeo-ssi.”

“Yes, yes.”

“But if your concern is about the leakage of technology within the guild, I think you could simply add a confidentiality clause to the employment contract, just like other companies do.”

This time, the alien’s eyes widened as if listening to a story from another world.

“[The Knight’s Oath] or not, do you really think people will keep a promise just because it’s written on a scrap of paper?”

But Seonwoo Yeon’s demeanor remained calm and composed.

“Employees who unlawfully leak guild know-how can be made to pay substantial damages under the law.”

“Aha.”

If they slip up even slightly, they could be sued by an S-rank hunter and end up penniless. Besides, what courage would weak hunters—whose main turf is low-grade gates—have to refuse orders from someone like Kim Giryeo? And above all, just look at the face of the guild master.

“And that inspection rod… when handing it out to people, there’s no need to go around explaining its exact function to each person…”

“Ah, I see. So… you mean I should just tell people that the rod is roughly a secret soil moisture detector I developed?”

The golden-haired magician was eventually persuaded by her companion’s words.

“Alright. Listening to you, Seonwoo Yeon, I can see your point really makes sense.”

“I’m glad it was helpful.”

The alien nodded and continued speaking.

“Indeed, you can’t avoid making kimchi just because you’re afraid of maggots. If it’s for important research, you have to accept a certain level of risk.”

“Haha, where did you learn a proverb like that?”

“Apparently, that proverb was already in Kim Giryeo’s brain dictionary.”

“…”

Then, since he has finally made up his mind…

“Anyway, thank you for the consultation today. I’ll see you again next time.”

“Are you leaving?”

“Staying too long would just be a bother.”

“Whoa~ That was really something only a human on Earth would say.”

“And I’m especially grateful that you shared the Elixir monster photos last time. I’ll make it up to you gradually, so if you ever need quick cash later, be sure to contact me.”

Drrrk.

Kim Giryeo stood up.

“I’ll follow your advice and try hiring a regular worker.”

His attitude seemed confident and bright.

‘It’s a bit of an issue that the boss is an alien, though.’

After all, this one is a universe-level work-averse being who completely understands a worker’s hardships.

Kim Giryeo straightened his back and began outlining a hopeful plan for running the guild.

***

And a few days had passed since then.

“….”

For reference, on the planet Earth, it was common for heads of public institutions to travel abroad. Since the new association head wasn’t expected to return until the middle of this month, Kim Giryeo decided to postpone the return of existing hunters for a few days and focus first on recruiting the long-awaited new hunters.

Generous salary offerings. Comprehensive leave and vacation policies guaranteed.

Moreover, recently, a proper office was even rented in the capital for guild operations. Surely, no applicant would fail to show up at such a reputable establishment, right?

‘In life, it’s all about serving the right person.’

The alien had completed the maximum preparations it could manage and was waiting for contact from someone in the industry. Yet, today marked a full 48 hours since the recruitment of new employees had begun.

[Received Emails: 0]

These shocking results were revealed.

“Why?”

For reasons not yet understood, Kim Giryeo’s guild had an unusually low number of applicants.

“Even though I’ve put up so much money, why can’t I find a proper employee to send out for soil exploration?”

The even more absurd thing was that, even now, if he checked the internet, there were posts shouting that people desperately wanted to work with Kim Giryeo. Using the information he had recently learned, Kim Giryeo skimmed through the emails he had already read once more.

[From: Jeong Haseong]
[From: Jeong Haseong]

[From: Jeong Haseong]

But as expected, there was nothing positive to be found in that list. In fact, this itself was a major reason hindering the modest operation of the guild.

Click.

Kim Giryeo sent the emails marked in gray as “confirmed” to the trash and briefly covered his face with both hands.

‘But… in the middle of summer, is there really any tax notice that an awakened like this would have to receive?’

Exemption. Reclamation. With just these fragmented words, there was absolutely no way to grasp the overall context.

“Hmm.”

Jung Haseong almost looked at the text message in more detail, but then, realizing that peeking wasn’t a good idea, he belatedly consciously looked away. Still, his curiosity remained, so he couldn’t help but call over the person involved to demand an explanation.

“What on earth is it that you’re staring at so intently?”

The serious face of a blond retiree was filled with this concern.

“I just got a text from the tax office.”

“Yes, yes.”

“They’re saying over there that I recently received improper tax benefits, so I have to pay a fine of about five million won for certain violations…”

“A fine?”

“But in the message, it only mentions which part was violated by listing the law’s name. Do I need to click this link to find out the exact violation?”

For reference, it was common sense not to recklessly touch a hyperlink included in a text message. Therefore, Jung Haseong took this opportunity to formally ask for permission and reviewed the contents of the message directly with the cell phone’s owner.

“Ah~ the law they’re referring to as being violated here is probably this one.”

Thankfully, the tax office’s notice this time was about something the national hero was familiar with.

“Now that I think about it, Kim Giryeo-ssi, you briefly established a guild before, didn’t you?”

“That’s right.”

“But since you, as the guild master, quit working as a hunter before filing for closure, it seems that violated the hunting-related law, which is why the fine came up.”

“Uh…”

“It’s really a situation that came from a tiny mistake. Haha. Still, well—for a fine of this size, couldn’t we just think of it as a small donation to the country?”

Five million won. For an S-rank hunter, that was pocket change—money that could be earned in an hour’s work. How could something so trivial ever become an issue? From the perspective of the nation’s top-ranked hunter, the matter was utterly insignificant, so Jung Haseong explained everything in a calm, even tone.

[Text Message Inbox]
[-Hunters who have violated the above requirements will be subject to a recovery of the previously applied tax benefits.]

However, the problem was that one person in this room hadn’t been an S-rank from the very beginning.

“I see. So it was against the rules for a guild master to quit before officially closing the guild…”

To hide the fact that he was a forsaken weakling of F-rank, he had spun a web of bluster, lies, and deceit. Looking back on it now, he couldn’t help but wonder—just how many sins had he committed with his tongue to cover up all those acts?

Having finally come to terms with his situation, Kim Giryeo calmly gathered his thoughts. And at last, he spoke.

“Haseong-ah. For now, make sure you have a good meal with your mother today, and get home safely on your own.”

“Yes?”

“The sun’s still up, so… I think I need to stop by somewhere for a bit before coming back.”

Elixir! The man who had so generously handed over that eternal treasure—the benefactor of the century—was just leaving? Shocked by the sudden turn of events, Jung Haseong’s expression changed in disbelief.

“Y, you’re leaving just like that?”

Of course, the one feeling restless wasn’t just him. It wasn’t as if the man was some neighbor dropping by to hand out rice cakes on moving day. After being cured of what was practically an incurable illness, how could anyone just sit back and let this go?

“Please don’t go like that. Kim Giryeo-ssi , why don’t you at least stay and have a m, meal with us?”

Before long, the two Earthlings—whose features bore a strangely similar impression—pleaded earnestly, insisting they wanted to repay him somehow. But the one standing before them was no Korean. Strictly speaking, Kim Giryeo wasn’t even a soul that belonged to this Earth.

“Sorry, but now isn’t the time for me to be sitting around eating rice or anything like that…”

“Y, yes?!”

Koreans run on rice. Even Geumgang Mountain should be seen after a good meal.

In the end, all those sayings were nothing more than alien words to the Archmage. Thus, Kim Giryeo coldly rejected their offer to at least share a meal, and promptly hurried outside.

***

Anyway, what kind of bolt from the blue was this supposed to be?

‘First of all, I need to get a grasp of the situation.’

A short while later, Kim Giryeo arrived at a tax accountant’s office in the city center. The accountant there was a seasoned professional who had previously handled his tax issues. Moreover, the man was known for his kindness—the sort who personally brewed coffee for his clients as a gesture of hospitality…

“Yes, yes! So what brings you here today?”

“Because of this text.”

For reference, upon hearing that a former S-rank Hunter would be visiting, the accountant’s office had hurriedly bought an Americano from a popular café. And, just as the client usually preferred, the drink contained about two pumps of syrup. In other words, to an Alphaurin, it was the equivalent of a “sugar-diluted adhesive solution.”

“Oh! Sir, why are you only bringing this to me now? You should’ve received a notice about this issue quite some time ago!”

“I was a bit out of it for a few weeks, so I guess that’s when the agency must’ve called…”

Strangely, however, Kim Giryeo didn’t even think a single word about the horrendous drink. With his mind and body in utter chaos, it was hardly surprising.

“I haven’t saved the numbers for the tax-related agencies, so it’s hard to check right away whenever they call…”

All he ever wanted was to be happy.

Besides, he had achieved his dream through retirement—a way that didn’t harm anyone—so how could the importance of protocol suddenly become such a pressing issue?

‘Somehow, ever since summer began, there hasn’t been a single day without tears.’

The situation of South Korea’s fourth S-rank hunter could be summed up like this.

Kim Giryeo had received significant tax deductions through the benefits of founding his own guild.

The government had called it a hunting industry promotion policy or something along those lines. There had been all sorts of interests tangled up in those tax benefits, but there was no need to recall them now.

[Dictionary Search Result] — Guild:
An organization, or company, that generates monetary profit by hunting monsters.

Surprisingly, it was this simple fact that had caused the current problem. Just like any worksite where appointing a safety manager is mandatory, the hunter industry also required meeting certain prerequisites before being allowed to make money. A guild—a company engaged in the monster-hunting business—was legally obligated to employ at least one legitimate “hunter.” In other words, the world did not recognize any gate-related enterprise made up entirely of civilians.

The head of a certain guild suddenly retired mid-operation, becoming a civilian.

But then—things just had to turn out like this.

To make matters worse, that guild—with a name as plain as any run-of-the-mill diner you’d see on the street—hadn’t even hired any regular staff for various reasons. It was basically an empty shell with only the representative left on paper, and that’s precisely how all this trouble started.

‘This is a state of emergency.......’

The Kim Giryeo Guild had no hunters, rendering the company’s establishment invalid. However, this Alphaurin had already taken full advantage of every possible startup benefit. Once the government realized the situation, it belatedly classified him as an improper beneficiary—and was now demanding that he return all the tax benefits he had received so far.

‘You Earthlings… when I really think about it, you’re always a little too harsh on helpless immigrants.’

However, it was also hard to say that this entire mess was 100% the retiree’s fault.

“Anyway.”

The tax accountant sitting on the sofa explained calmly.

“This wasn’t something Mr. Kim Giryeo did with any particular malice, was it?”

“Of course. It’s just that the order of things got a little mixed up.”

“Actually, this incident also happened because there haven’t been many cases of a hunter retiring and becoming a civilian, so the related administrative procedures are still pretty rough around the edges.”

“I see.”

“So if you just call the department and briefly explain that there was no malicious intent, it really won’t turn into a big issue. Things like this usually don’t.”

According to the tax accountant’s follow-up explanation, there was also a high chance that the fine would be canceled.

“Hmm…”

However, since there was indeed some fault on his part, it was clear that a simple apology alone wouldn’t be enough to resolve everything.

“But as I mentioned a few months ago, sir—I think you really should hire another hunter as soon as possible.”

The tax accountant explained that the hunting industry benefits are usually plentiful only in the first year. From the following year onward, a guild’s profits change drastically depending on factors such as the number of employed hunters and the number of conquered gates. In other words, the system was structured so that only by actually contributing to national safety could the business see positive results—meaning that leaving the company idle like this was far from the best option.

“In my opinion, it would still be much better to try recruiting some members and keeping the guild running somehow.”

Kim Giryeo took a moment to think.

‘Come to think of it, Seo Esther handles only the [Korea Magic Tower], yet she’s one of the wealthiest around… Doesn’t that prove that the guild system is actually quite profitable?’

If he were to look at things purely from a financial standpoint, just as he had lived so far—well, then maybe running the company according to that advice wouldn’t be such a bad idea after all.

“But I still don’t feel like it.”

By now, he had become someone so devoid of selfish desire that he could impulsively buy something like the [Fairy’s Promise] just to give it away. These days, all that occupied his mind was the cosmic parasite known as Gisimche, and he spent every day researching ways to keep that pest at bay. After much deliberation, Kim Giryeo finally spoke his mind.

“I don’t really feel up to running something like a guild right now.”

After all, the guild’s lacking qualification requirements would all be resolved if he, the representative, simply returned to being a hunter. The alien didn’t particularly dislike a solitary life, anyway.

Having lived through countless ages as an archmage, he even knew how to enjoy solitude. Thus, Kim Giryeo once again decided to leave the carelessly named company as it was.

‘For the time being, I’ll just focus on my personal research.’

However, as time went on, the S-rank Awakened’s thoughts began to change drastically. After all, life is something you can never predict. Even if the one living it was an alien, the truths of the universe were not all that different.

***

Some time after that.

-Tak, tak, tak.

Around the time when countless office workers were hurrying home, their footsteps echoing through the streets.

‘Today, the day feels unusually long.’

Likewise, a certain civil servant who had just left the Association building got into a navy-colored used car in the parking lot. Then, operating the car’s old manual transmission, she headed toward her home.

‘I wonder if they’ve already arrived and are waiting for me?’

She had received that alien’s message while she was still busy working at the office, after all.

[Sender: Kim Giryeo]
[Are you available to talk right now?]

A human named Seonwoo Yeon had replied to the alien’s message.

[Honestly, it’s difficult unless it’s important.]

At the time, she had been diligently fulfilling her duties as a public servant for the people. Being a responsible official, she didn’t bother to engage in idle chatter with an acquaintance.

[I see. Well, I don’t think this is an extremely urgent matter… Then, could you spare me a moment after work?]

[Yes, yes.]

However, when an acquaintance reached out so politely to arrange a meeting, how could a flesh-and-blood human possibly turn him down cold?

‘I wonder what he’s looking for me about this time.’

Not long after, Seonwoo Yeon arrived at her apartment. After pressing the elevator button twice, she soon reached the sixth floor—the one where her room was located.

‘He really is.’

For reference, the moment the elevator doors opened, the first thing she saw was that very retiree.

‘Now that I think about it, I never gave him the code for the main entrance. Could it be that he used some kind of magic to get in here?’

His posture was mostly upright, as if trying to emulate an ideal human form.

– Bow.

Moreover, being an alien who knew how to bow politely when meeting people, Kim Giryeo hardly displayed any oddness for an extraterrestrial of cosmic scale.

“Hello, Seonwoo Yeon-ssi.”

But that ordinary atmosphere lasted only for a moment. Soon, the alien at the entrance spoke.

“I just came to ask you a quick question today.”

As soon as the greeting had loosened their vocal cords, the other party immediately launched into a peculiar question.

“Pardon me, but do you have any plans to quit your current civil service job in the near future...?”

‘The humans are smiling brightly.’

Their expressions were bright. From the hospital director, whose hair was streaked with white, to all the other medical staff, everyone nodded cheerfully before finally speaking up.

-Guardian Jung Haseong! Please come in.

As the welcoming atmosphere suggested, the treatment had been successful.

.

.
.

‘Although it’s hard for the hair that’s already grown to turn black again, your skin definitely seems to have improved.’

A few seconds later, Jung Haseong returned to the hospital room and stood there, lost in thought. More precisely, he was reflecting on the suffering he had endured until now.

‘M, maybe not? It’s been so long since I last saw my mom open her eyes that, honestly, I’m not really sure.’

Come to think of it, back when he visited more closely, there were so many times he quietly held the hands of that family.

‘Because I would have gone crazy from anxiety if I hadn’t checked her pulse myself.’

This could also be a side effect of the nuclearization of the family. The Awakener, who was treated as a hero by all citizens, relied excessively on his sole family member from a young age, and consequently regarded the situation of his mother falling ill and him being left alone as his greatest nightmare.

‘Even having a few trustworthy relatives would have been nice.’

For reference, his mother had never said anything specific to her young child. But judging from the circumstances, it was likely that relatives on either the paternal or maternal side had consistently caused financial troubles, leading to a complete loss of contact.

‘When I secretly listened to phone calls from my bed as a child, most of them were about Mom lending money to others and then worrying over it.’

The only relatives he still had contact with were on his father’s side, but even they felt distant in some way. In the end, he had only one truly precious family member. He could hardly believe it. The patient who had just sat up in bed before his eyes was that one person—the very person he had longed to see and meet eye to eye again.

“My son!”

“M, mom…”

And when the voice that had been fading endlessly in his memories returned, Jung Haseong couldn’t help but burst into tears again.

“You just woke up not long ago—are you sure it’s okay to be standing like that? W, what about water? Did you drink any after the examination?”

But tears came naturally from her side as well. No matter how extraordinary an awakening to S-rank might be, to most parents, their child remains a precious part of their very being for life.

Thud.

In the middle of the hospital room, the two of them held each other tightly and wept.

‘Come to think of it, Earthlings sure are comfortable with such risky, close-contact gestures like hugging.’

If not for the alien creature’s mood-killing thoughts, it would have been an even more touching scene. Fortunately, since there was no mind-reading technology on Earth, the two members of the Jung family continued their conversation in peace.

“I didn’t expect that I’d awaken the moment I got up—it really startled me.”

“For a day or two starting today, things are going to feel a bit overwhelming. You’ll have trouble controlling your strength, too. That’s just how it is on the day you gain superpowers, Mom.”

Jung Haseong still couldn’t fully grasp the reality of this reunion.

“Yeah, I heard about the strength thing from the medical staff too. But what surprised me even more was that I… apparently used some kind of bizarre ability.”

“Bizarre?”

“Life really doesn’t go the way you want it to, does it? To be honest, I always wanted to use the same ability as my son.”

“Fire attribute? Ah, so that way… even if your power suddenly activates, neither of us would get seriously hurt?”

“Of course.”

In addition, the family members didn’t bother asking any health-related questions. After all, one could easily confirm a person’s condition just by looking with their own eyes. So the conversation naturally shifted to another topic.

“But somehow, I had a feeling my awakening would turn out like this too. Haseong, you really take after your father a lot…”

“Heukh.”

“Still, I thought your quiet personality had improved a lot as you grew up, but I guess it’s true that a child can’t help but show traces of their parents.”

“Whether I take after Dad’s side or yours, what does it matter? Either way, you raised me well, Mom.”

“Raised you well? Nonsense! My son always grew up just fine on his own. As for me… when my child was going through the hardest times, I couldn’t even be there to help…”

Crying.

But just as another wave of tears was about to break out—

“Haseong, by the way... excuse me, but who is that person standing behind you?”

“Ah!”

When the middle-aged woman asked that question, the number-one-ranked hunter flinched in surprise and quickly turned his head.

“Ahem! Kh-hehm. W, well, that person over there is...”

Up until now, he had been too overwhelmed to control his emotions, but thinking about it, there was a third party present—someone before whom he shouldn’t be showing such an undignified display. So, belatedly clearing his throat, Jung Haseong spoke.

“This is Kim Giryeo-ssi, a former hunter! More precisely, he’s also a newly emerged S-rank awakened individual who appeared while you were asleep, Mom.”

“Aah.”

“He’s helped me a lot over the past few years.”

“I’m so grateful…”

“He’s the one who helped us tremendously. Mom, the only reason you were able to wake up at all is because he got the medicine for you, you know?”

While trying his best to sound composed, Jung Haseong suddenly stopped speaking. The dark-haired man furrowed his brow slightly, as if something had just come to mind.

“Oh, right. By the way, while we’re on the subject…”

What followed was a question directed at the alien sitting in the corner of the room.

“Awakened Kim Giryeo, by the way… what should we do about the [Elixir] matter?”

“Hmm?”

“If we recklessly disclose the origin of that remarkable potion, it’ll surely cause an uproar everywhere.”

At first glance, they all sounded like perfectly reasonable assumptions.

“Besides, I forgot to mention this earlier, but some guy named Kang Changho showed up while you were away and caused a huge scene!”

“What kind of trouble?”

“He was acting like he’d entrusted you with a bottle of Elixir himself—raising a huge fuss just to see the real thing…! But imagine what would happen if someone like him caught wind of the rumor about the genuine article.”

Jung Haseong recalled the fury he’d had to swallow in silence twenty-four hours ago—unable to utter even a single word of protest. Along with that, he went on to explain in detail what had happened during the time when Kim Giryeo had been away from Korea.

“Hmm.”

But this didn’t seem like particularly significant information.

“Kang Changho showed interest in a rare item, you say.”

The man, whose hair had been dyed with cheap coloring, finally spoke a word. And Jung Haseong’s next remark immediately followed without hesitation.

“That S-rank hunter showing interest in new items has been happening for a while. I only found out recently, but apparently, about three years ago, he was driving a black sedan and suddenly poking around various gates…”

“I’ve seen a similar situation myself.”

“If he’s someone that interested in items, there’s no doubt he’ll cling to the [Elixir]. So it’s better to keep its source hidden as much as possible.”

The last sentence was ultimately true. But from the alien creature’s perspective, when you examined it point by point, there were a few odd aspects.

‘Now that I think about it, that person already roughly recognizes the Gisimche, right?’


The individual named Kang Changho possesses a certain kind of uniqueness.

[Anonymous Bulletin Board]
[zJiJonlr: Gates are divine punishment@@@]

More precisely, he seemed fully aware that such a statement was blasphemous. But then, despite understanding the inner workings of the gates, he still caused incidents and accidents every time he met other hunters—what was that about?

‘On top of that, I’ve heard that when Kang Changho acquires the Elixir, his audacious goal is to make me work…’

Kim Giryeo consciously opened and closed his eyelids.

‘So he’s not completely avoiding human labor after all. In any case, he still needs the workforce of his own kind, huh?’

At that moment, the alien thought. If it were in Kang Changho’s position, it probably wouldn’t have deliberately confronted the compatriots with whom he was supposed to protect Earth. Moreover, depending on the situation, he might even try to cleverly manipulate them into actively taking his side. As Jung Haseong’s case shows, humans were pure-hearted, leaving plenty of opportunities to exploit them in various ways…

‘It seems like they feel like they should feel sorry for that black mammal.’

Kim Giryeo considered every possible scenario. Only after organizing his thoughts to some extent did he speak calmly.

“For now, let’s not worry about Kang Changho.”

To simply ignore such a bundle of unpredictable behavior.

“Honestly, confronting S-ranks doesn’t get you any support from the government. But judging by how that person acts every time…”

“You mean, judging by how he acts?”

“It’s probably just one of two things, right?”

“Hmm.”

“Either the type who thinks there’s no benefit in getting close to us, or the type whose social skills are so lacking… well, the ones with a problem in the frontal lobe.”

“Are you referring to a disorder related to impulse control?”

“Well… I suppose I can’t really use that as a metaphor for him, since actual patients might take offense.”

Murmur, murmur.

The alien summarized his assessment of the mammal and continued the conversation.

“Anyway, there’s no need to pay Kang Changho any attention, whichever type he is. But as you said, it’s definitely best to keep things like the [Elixir] and the fact that my lungs are fully healed hidden.”

“Even up to that point?”

He remembered the suggestion he’d heard from Seo Esther.

‘Just as bragging about money often leads to jealousy, there’s no benefit to revealing your power anyway.’

With the mindset of not drawing anyone’s attention, Kim Giryeo spoke to Jung Haseong. He instructed him never to reveal the details about the [Elixir] anywhere. No matter how skilled a journalist might be, they wouldn’t be able to write a proper article without a silent eyewitness.

“Yes, yes! I’ll keep that in mind. Of course! From now on, I won’t take a single word you say lightly, Awakener.”

“Uh, it’s burdensome…”

But this kind of overwhelming response is a bit much.

“What couldn’t I possibly do for you, Kim Giryeo-ssi? At this point, even if you suddenly told me to drop dead, I’d honestly at least pretend to do it!”

At that moment, the blond visitor suddenly raised both hands slightly. It was a friendly gesture—a silent way of showing that there was nothing threatening in his grasp.

“He’s just exaggerating on his own.”

And the reason the alien suddenly displayed this behavior was only one.

“I don’t have any plans to overwork Jung Haseong. Honestly, I just had some leftover medicine and decided to give it to him, that’s all.”

Even in that Alphauri, which was little different from a realm of monsters, mages didn’t recklessly harm their own offspring. So why create such a scene in front of his mother?

“Of course, there will be times when I ask for something as an equal S-rank awakened. But I won’t expect any extravagant reward for this—”

Kim Giryeo made a sensible judgment and tried to quickly steer the conversation to another topic.

[Ting!]

Even if a certain alien creature hadn’t made any effort, the atmosphere here would have changed quickly anyway.

“Just a moment. Let me check my messages.”

“As expected of you, Kim Giryeo-ssi. Someone with such excellent information skills to acquire a remarkable elixir like this naturally keeps a thorough check on messages at all times…”

Tak.

Kim Giryeo ignored the flowing deification and pulled out his electronic device. But the message he had just received wasn’t exactly the kind of lighthearted topic one could call a simple change of subject.

‘Should I even change my words now and say I’ll make Jung Haseong work like a serf?’

The alien even soon entertained a rather trivial thought. But from a human perspective, the atmosphere was inevitably confusing. Jung Haseong—the number-one-ranked hunter politely tilted his head and glanced at the message the other was viewing. What caught his eye were unusual words like “reduction”… or “reclamation.”

“Oh, that’s right.”

In simple terms, Jung Haseong’s mother had awakened. Come to think of it, [Magic Addiction] was essentially also a [Failed Awakening Syndrome]. This condition occurred when individuals who had stumbled at the threshold of evolution fell asleep—either to recover from damage or to buy themselves time to adapt to magical energy. At least that’s how it appeared to me, and it wasn’t far off from what Earth’s medical experts were speculating.

So, that’s what it was.

‘Did they successfully awaken an insect that had failed to metamorphose, and artificially complete it into a mage…?’

The touching reunion ends here.

Immediately afterward, the newly awakened mage—still not fully conscious—recklessly unleashed their powers in every direction. As a result, Jung Haseong and I had to scramble to manage the situation. No, to be precise, it was mostly just me struggling. The top-ranked hunter of South Korea was, after all, a blazing embodiment of justice; if I let that fire-wielding human loose while a fellow Earthling was rampaging, things would only escalate further…

***

Anyway, what kind of mess was this?

“Haseong-ah. Your mother….”

Bang!

A short while later. Once the hospital room had been somewhat tidied up, and the medical staff were called in to check the patient’s condition one last time—Jung Haseong and South Korea’s fourth-ranked S-class Hunter finally managed to slip out into the corridor. There, the two began a brief conversation.

“Before she fell into a coma, what exactly did your mother do for a living? And for your information, I’m asking what her job was.”

A politely measured voice resonated in the air.

“She was a special effects makeup artist.”

“Ah.”

“Before I was born, she worked as a regular makeup artist, but most of her career was focused on high-difficulty projects—the kind used in films or on stage.”

“So that’s why.”

“Yes?”

“So that’s why her powers manifested in such an artistic way.”

“I’m sorry.”

“What was the proper term for that again?”

“Probably something like a created creature you’d see in horror movies… At least, as far as I know, there’s no monster that looks quite like that.”

For reference, the lines being spoken now were just small talk about the chaos from three minutes ago. A magical outburst so powerful it completely wrecked a hospital room that costs millions of won per day to stay in.

“An illusion-type skill, huh.”

“As expected, what we saw wasn’t real?”

Ssshk.

The blond man turned his head to the side. In the hospital room before them sat a Korean woman who appeared to be in her fifties or sixties.

-…! …!

She politely bowed her head to the doctor and obediently underwent the examination. At one point, she even looked over in their direction and waved, greeting everyone with the gentle demeanor of an undeniably kind-hearted Earthling.

“She doesn’t look like the kind of person who just scared us all by conjuring up a horrifying monster.”

“Ugh.”

“A special effects makeup artist… I wonder how many of those grotesque figures she saw on a daily basis for her subconscious to manifest an illusion like that.”

“I am truly sorry.”

“It’s okay. Of course I was joking when I said I was surprised.”

Jung Haseong wiped his face, which was a mess of cold sweat and tears.

“I never imagined my mom would awaken.”

How on earth did a beautiful reunion end up like this?

“Anyway, she woke up safely—that’s what matters.”

Judging from the commotion caused during her awakening, the family of the nation’s top-ranked Hunter was presumed to include an illusionist capable of creating phantasms. To be honest, it didn’t seem like a particularly practical ability for fighting real monsters — but at least she had acquired a measurable mana level, which meant the chances of her falling ill again were low.

‘No more colds, no more eye infections… from now on, she’ll stay healthy for good….’

Realizing the reality that had finally come true, tears welled up in his eyes once again.

“Hmm?”

Crying.

Jung Haseong bowed his head so deeply it nearly touched the floor. Without making a sound, he nodded and let his tears stream down freely.

“Really...”

His throat was too tight for him to finish a full sentence, but at the very least, he could still manage to say something as simple as this.

“Thank you so much.”

But... can today’s events really be brushed off with just a simple remark like that?

“How many times exactly are you going to save me unilaterally?”

“Hmm?”

“My mom... she’s really my only precious family. So honestly, I’d thought to myself that if things went any worse here... I might not be able to go on living alone anymore...”

Just a moment ago, it was “mother.” And now, it’s “mom.”

Around the time the alien being took notice of this series of name changes, Jung Haseong slowly lifted his head again and spoke to the awakened one before him.

“What on earth should I do next?”

There was considerable strength in the man’s tone.

“Of course, I remember that even when you, Kim Giryeo-ssi, shared important information… you never expected any great reward in return.”

‘Isn’t 3 billion a big price to pay?’

“But this time, I just really, really want to give you a proper reward! Truly, thank you so much!”

An internal objection from the alien flickered through midway, but it didn’t matter.

“Are you still not interested in the [Sunset Sword] at all?”

“What?”

“For now, of the things I have, this sword is clearly the most valuable.”

“No, that’s.”

“Moreover, I recently discovered a new feature of this [Sunset Sword]. It seems to help its owner when they’re in danger?”

Now, Jung Haseong was even willing to offer that national treasure–level item.

‘Exchanging Legendary and Elixir…’

The blonde alien thought for a moment, having never considered a deal like this before. After all, even on this planet, health was ultimately the most important factor.

If you want to obtain legendary-grade gear, healing someone like this is actually the orthodox way to do it.

“No, forget it.”

But the problem lies in the role of the weapon presented now. Unless it’s that greatsword sitting somewhere in Japan, the [Sunset Sword] had been personally modified by someone to protect a specific mammal. And now, for the original owner to just take it back… that’s a bit much.

‘It makes no sense at all. That weapon is only useful when it’s protecting Jung Haseong’s safety.’

Still, since it’s such a rare opportunity, should I take it and at least try disassembling it?

[;;]

The top-ranked hunter still had his customary one-handed sword hanging at his waist today.
If you fix your gaze on the sword for a while, you get the peculiar feeling that the hilt is quivering ever so slightly…

“That weapon is for you to use, Jung Haseong. Like I said before, I don’t like close-range weapons.”

The deliberation ended there. Kim Giryeo, guided by the Earthly sense of attachment he had gained after reincarnation, ultimately refused the reward. For an archmage, it wasn’t really an item of great necessity anyway, so even with the lofty title of “elixir of all cures,” it was a transaction he could carry out without lingering attachment. Yet, no matter how trivial it seemed from the giver’s perspective, the Earthling who had regained his mother could hardly take it lightly.

-Well, it wouldn’t be surprising if the problem was solved by luck.

Even the blond man who gave him the elixir said that he was doing all of this just because “Jung Haseong lived a good life.”

‘For the past few years, even when all I got online were insults, I just kept working while being constantly plagued by this strange sense of indebtedness…’

To think that an S-rank hunter would recognize the achievements of the number-one ranked person, whose efforts seemed unacknowledged even by the high heavens! And on top of that, to reward all the hardships endured so far in this way…

‘How did I end up meeting such benefactors?’

At this moment, Jung Haseong thought.

There’s a saying in this world that one shouldn’t take in a black-haired beast. In a way, it’s a natural expression. How could someone not be called a beast when they forget the kindness they’ve received?

‘Honestly, I still can’t believe this situation.’

Jung Haseong glanced once more at the hospital room door where his family was sitting.

‘Mom really, really woke up…’

No matter how many times he thought about it, it was a reality that filled him with emotion to the very throat. So instead of uttering a hundred shallow words of thanks, Jung Haseong decided to make one sincere promise.

“I will truly repay this kindness for the rest of my life.”

After all, he would probably just say it was fine even if he wanted to properly thank him right now. So he’ll think carefully each time about how to act in a way that benefits him. He’ll ponder every single day what he truly needs. Jung Haseong envisioned his plans for the future and nodded with a resolute expression.

“I will never forget what you did for me today, not even until the day I die. If there ever comes a time when you need my help, please don’t hesitate to contact me right away.”

“You don’t have to go that far.”

“I mean it, so please do! If you ever ask me to do something, I’ll do everything I can to make it happen!”

For reference, this hospital was also famous for letting sunlight pour in from anywhere. And at that moment, gentle sunlight quietly streamed in through the window beside Kim Giryeo. On any ordinary day, it would have been just a meaningless natural phenomenon. But to Jung Haseong, it looked almost like a halo radiating from a person. He then continued to show endless respect and gratitude toward the benefactor who had saved his mother.

===============
[Changes 3.5]
Acquired an S-rank subordinate
===============

Looking at the situation as a whole, there was really no argument to be made. After all, he had handed over a single item and, in return, had made the number-one ranked person voluntarily perform labor.

‘Since he wants to repay the kindness like that~ isn’t it also rude to refuse too much?’

The alien creature standing there couldn’t even bring itself to think of the word “inhuman.” And in that state, it managed to solve a few problems.

‘Well, with just Seonwoo Yeon, there’s a sense of unease. That person has a low rank and is in a position where she can’t really make use of her special status as a public official.’

The first thought that came to mind was about an acquaintance.

‘Besides, this time, because I thoughtlessly asked for the information to be corrected quickly, Seonwoo Yeon almost got punished. From now on, I’ll have to work through Jung Haseong, even if I have to force it.’

Somehow, the more he operates on Earth, the more awakened individuals he can make use of…But he’ll just chalk that up to his imagination for now.

“Anyway.”

Kim Giryeo finished organizing his thoughts and spoke lightly.

“Don’t be so desperately grateful just because you received an elixir. For now, just act as you normally do.”

“As normally do?”

“I ask you to protect the country while living in Korea. Even if I return, it’s not like I’ll be working much.”

“Ah.”

“If the number-one ranked person leads the way and does well, then I can finally relax and go eat galbitang on my days off without worry.”

“Do you need some galbitang?”

“Huh?”

“Should I order it by phone right now? No! I’ll just run out and buy it myself!”

But something seems a little wrong here.

“….”

Ssshk.

The blond archmage turned his head to glance at the nearby hospital room. As he directed his gaze that way, the patient inside the room responded with a bright smile, but the alien creature maintained a subtle, expressionless face while rolling his sambaegan eye.

‘Yeah. Well… anyway, that worked out.’

Even though this life will end in an instant anyway, Jung Haseong will be happy for a long time because of this.

‘Of course, fighting those cosmic monsters that have descended from the void is important, but that doesn’t mean my current life is any less meaningful.’

Just because he hadn’t answered for a moment, the top hunter of South Korea nearly stormed into the restaurant. However, since many procedures still remained before the patient’s final discharge, the alien with golden hair calmly held back the elderly awakened individual’s guardian.

Come to think of it, just yesterday I’d set foot on Western soil while approaching the [Elixir] Gate. Yet somehow, seeing this familiar view stirred me more than the emerald-colored coasts of that foreign land. It struck me, suddenly, that perhaps my settlement on this planet had gone better than I thought.

‘Hmm, still, I did prefer the palm trees over there a bit more. They really gave off that otherworldly vibe, so it was unique.’

Then, I decided to quickly put the jet-lag from my overseas trip behind me.

First of all, as I just thought, the reason I removed the lung tumor could be shared with anyone.

○ (From a mage’s perspective) the available fuel was always in short supply.
○ Thanks to pain immunity, I can ignore it, but this body is still sick and in pain.
○ There’s hope that, with gradual upgrades, even the primitive creature’s characteristic glass body will improve.

Disease treatment. Originally, this action had been triggered by these three causes, but to Earthlings, it would ultimately be interpreted this way.

○ To stay healthy!

Much better phrasing. Of course, since I had previously brushed things off and avoided taking action, it’s only natural that someone might ask why I suddenly changed my approach…

‘It’s up to the patient to decide whether to treat their illness.’

So what. I could just as easily explain things like the timing of the treatment.

-No, I mean, how on earth did the cancer disappear before awakening? I’m sorry for questioning you like this, but up until now, there hasn’t been a single case like that…

And while that black-haired human was still in shock, there had actually been plenty of evidence all along that my lungs were fine. For example, let’s recall what happened when I actually obtained the [Elixir].

‘Come to think of it, how did they set up the environment like that to make mammals awaken?’

Certain gates were, quite literally, completely underwater. Yet I had managed to make it through that otherworld filled to the brim with water—all on my own.

Ah. Additionally, the monster that appeared in that gate was indeed a genuine B-rank [Black Trumpet Snail] from historical records.

‘On the contrary, it was such a water-adapted creature that I can’t even imagine how it could have functioned on land.’

But this isn’t the important part.

‘Ah, right. Come to think of it, that’s true too. Their ranks were completely different—so why on earth were the Earthlings fooled by a mimic creature…?’

Since there wasn’t really anyone to share it with, I’d kept it to myself until now. But in truth, I’d recently undergone this kind of modification.

=================

[Changes in 3.4.111]
The Third Breakthrough
: I gained the ability to influence the vertebrate-specific airways connecting the lungs and the back of the throat using spatial magic.
=================

Is it just my imagination, or does revealing an Alphauri’s research log always make things sound unnecessarily long? To put it simply, it goes something like this.

‘It means I no longer have to rely solely on the throat passage to live.’

This is something that can be easily understood even from the way the [Inevitable Malice] was hunted. Most terrestrial creatures living on Earth have extremely fragile necks. Simply put, once the airway is breached, life is over… Yet sorcerers all have lungs as a fundamental weak point. So is there really any need to add more areas to protect here?

‘I thought there was no need for that.’

That’s why I was fine even after spending several hours underwater alone. Now, even if organs in the face, like the nasal passages, were attacked, I could continue breathing without issue. Of course, by utilizing the Alphauri’s characteristic precise spatial awareness, it’s also entirely possible to equip air pockets and engage in extended underwater dives.

‘All of this is ultimately proof that I’ve consistently paid attention to my “respiratory system.”’

Study, study, study.

Since I never let go of Earth’s anatomy books, the results were good. After all, through constant effort, I did achieve the current results, though…

‘The problem lies in the method I used to cure this disease, the lung tumor.’

Sorry to say, but Alphauri-born mages were never particularly skilled at manipulating genes. Without the proper experimental environment, there was truly nothing they could do. Mages, by nature, made their living by borrowing from mana—but wishing for it to “rearrange genome sequences this way or that” in their natural state? Well, that never really worked.

‘Unless you meticulously adjust the spell, it won’t function properly.’

To put it simply, the result was this. I meticulously searched through every abnormal cell in my body and removed them one by one. Then, I went through a manual cleanup process to restore the vacant spots…

‘Brutal manual labor.’

Besides, in Earth’s slang, there was an even simpler way to put it.

‘Damn it, if I’d known it’d come to this, I should’ve just reincarnated as a whale. Those guys don’t seem to find tumors nearly as deadly—kind of like Alphaurians.’

The more terrifying part is that even after suffering through this for two whole months, I still haven’t managed to deal with the metastasized cells. But… let’s put that aside for now.

‘Reincarnated as a primitive person, what on earth is all this suffering for?’

I finished my contemplation. Then, spreading my arms lightly, I began to speak as humanly as possible.

“If you want, we can just run a CT scan to check!”

“Yes?”

“You can check my lungs if you want. We’re at a hospital anyway.”

“R, really?”

“Honestly, Jung Haseong, you act like you respect people, but you’re the most suspicious of them all, aren’t you?”

“Gasp! I’m so sorry if it made you feel that way!”

As you can probably tell from the introduction so far, the fact that Alphaurin technology was used to restore my lungs to their original state has been kept under wraps.

“But it’s just that my humble knowledge couldn’t comprehend it.”

“‘Humble,’ you say.”

“Medicine has advanced so much, and yet treating a pre-existing disease before awakening has always been a major challenge. I—I’ve never once heard of a successful case like that before!”

Jung Haseong then asked a series of questions. Had I perhaps gone to the United States for surgery? Or maybe met some extraordinary doctor over there, someone capable of miracles?

‘Uhm.’

I listened to his questions and thought to myself. Perhaps somewhere on Earth, there really could be medicine that advanced. But when it came to [Magic Addiction]—that was a disease no one could ever promise to cure.

‘Why do you think I kept quiet all this time, even though I knew all about Jung Haseong’s situation?’

You could say, “What can’t an alien who crossed the universe do?”—but this one really was an exception. To put it in terms that mammals could understand… it was like an obligate anaerobic microbe born on low-oxygen Earth saying, “Let me breathe oxygen too.”

‘Just hearing it gives me a headache.’

Even at the moment I was born, Alphauri was already a planet that had long completed its adaptation to magic. So problems this outdated were something no scholar had ever even bothered to ponder in the first place.

‘I couldn’t even imagine it. This is the first time I’ve seen a case of Mana Evolution failure since coming to Earth. Seriously.’

Of course, since I’m a bit of a genius, even something like this could probably be worked out—given enough time, that is.

‘It’s just not efficient.’

As time went on, this fleeting illness would rapidly dwindle in occurrence—there was no way I could stake my lifespan on it. No matter how I thought about it, it would only ever be a waste of valuable effort. In the end, the only thing I could do was to pass along this one bottle of panacea I had obtained.

‘Hmm.’

But well—it’s not as if that’s a bad thing. Human lives are short. I’ve experienced that truth firsthand, living in a mammalian body and feeling it in countless ways. So now, at the very least, I just want the few people within my sight to live their present days in happiness.

“Gasp!”

All the better if I can achieve that goal by simply handing over an item.

Ssshk.

It happened right after that. I finally took out the high-grade loot I’d been keeping carefully stored in my item box.

Elixir. Elixsir. Or perhaps—the panacea.

Still, I couldn’t help but wonder—just what kind of extraordinary substance could cure every illness without exception?

‘Well, if something feels strange, nine times out of ten it turns out to be magic-related anyway.’

The liquid in this vial could be described in another way—a literal wish potion.

To put it simply, it’s a potion that grants the drinker’s deepest wish—in the broadest possible sense.

‘When you put it that way, it does sound pretty impressive.’

But come to think of it, is that really the only thing in this world that does that?

Magic. Those particles scattered throughout the air, in the end, aren’t all that different—they, too, listen to the mage’s words.

So, when you really break it down, the Elixir isn’t exactly some impossibly rare treasure—it simply turned out to be an item with a few distinctive advantages.

=============
ⓐ A liquid that allows even a novice mage with little knowledge—or an animal with very low intelligence—to wield the same kind of magic equally.
ⓑ However, it should be noted that most animals harbor an unconscious fear of illness and aging. Unless a proper spell has been prepared in advance, the potion ultimately exerts its power to make the drinker’s body as healthy as possible.
=============

If Earth’s emotion specialists were to write it out in prose, the instructions would roughly read like this.

‘Anyway, for an archmage who knows how to handle magic in a modern way, this isn’t really a necessary item.’

A potion made by intricately mixing otherworldly substances to concentrate mystical power to the utmost. I stared at the pearly liquid for about three seconds. I ran a component analysis, of course—the ingredient makeup wasn’t something that could be mass-produced. With such a small amount, even if used offensively it wouldn’t be particularly effective. Besides, unless someone—like that one case—had a pre‑awakening disease such as lung cancer, most Awakeners aren’t likely to suffer a major illness over the next sixty years, so the calculation’s done.

‘In a place like Earth, where bodily restoration magic hasn’t advanced, this is the best we can do.’

I approached the pristine white hospital bed to hand over the potion.

“Wait a minute!”

But then, suddenly, the Earthling shouted from beside me.

“B, but still. Are you really saying you’ll give something like this to my family?”

The black-haired mammal broke out in a cold sweat as he cautioned. Soon after, he shouted, straining his conscience, warning not to make an irreversible decision rashly.

“Yeah.”

But no matter how the other party reacted, I wasn’t going to change the decision I had already made.

“Anyway, it’s a divine punishment I received without doing anything wrong, so if things happen to work out by chance, there’s nothing strange about that.”

Tak!

First, I removed the oxygen respirator of the mammal. Next, I poured the [Elixir] completely into the exposed mouth before me.

“H, huh?”

Giving the potion indiscriminately to an unconscious patient seemed to leave the Earthling quite bewildered.

‘Is he worried she might choke?’

But this alien mixture had the characteristic of evaporating very quickly.

-Whoosh.

Suddenly, a blue smoke began to rise. I lightly spread my hand to prevent the potion’s components from dispersing too widely. Then, holding over the patient’s mouth to buy a moment, the hidden final advantage of the [Elixir] gradually revealed itself.

‘The effect is fast.’

Flutter. Flutter.

The first thing observed was a few twitches of the eyelids. Next, the patient’s breathing gradually became clearer. And little by little, the things that had been off balance began returning…

‘Is it all done?’

The treatment was quicker than expected. The middle-aged woman lying in the hospital bed opened her eyes in less than a minute. It wasn’t immediately obvious from her appearance, but the potion had likely improved her overall physical health as well.

‘It’s fascinating, even for me, since I’ve never seen this phenomenon before.’

I witnessed with my own eyes a rare case of [magic addiction] treatment.

But at that moment…

“M…”

Naturally, a man who had been standing vaguely in one corner of the room rushed forward.

“Mo…?”

Jung Haseong first muttered the family title in a tone that suggested he couldn’t quite believe it. After that, he knelt to meet the patient’s gaze, as she still hadn’t fully sat up. Struggling to align his eyes with his family’s, he finally seemed to grasp reality and reacted profoundly.

“Mom!”

The nation’s hero shed clear, transparent tears. By the time his fully conscious mother began calling his name, Jung Haseong was observed to lose control in the opposite way, crying out loudly. Like a child just awakened from a terrible nightmare. Who would have thought that the composed pyromancer would so helplessly pour out all his emotions?

“It must have been so frustrating that even someone who had retired wanted to return.”

“Jung Haseong.”

“I’m sorry. In the end, all of this... it’s all because I was thoughtless and unworthy...”

The alien shook his head in disagreement repeatedly during the conversation, but Jung Haseong didn’t accept it. Once the other party ignored my intentions, there were hardly any options left.

‘Here we go again with the overthinking.’

Anyway, exchanging a hundred words right now wouldn’t make any difference.

Tub.

Kim Giryeo grabbed the white fabric fluttering in front of him with his hand.

“H, huh?”

Moreover, after firmly holding onto the human, he did nothing remarkable. All he did was enter the hospital room with ordinary footsteps that made a clumping sound.

“Haseong-ah, I guess you haven’t really realized this because you’ve been living such a proper life all this time.”

Because the top-ranked fighter was being dragged around by force. If anyone had seen it, it would have been quite a shocking sight.

‘Gasp! He’s not even a superhuman with enhanced strength… so what’s with that monstrous power…’

Drrrk.

As he entered the hospital room, Kim Giryeo, following proper etiquette, closed the door first. Only after completing this move did the blonde man speak his next words.

“Anyway, no matter where you go, people in this world generally don’t pay much attention to the society around them.”

“Y, yes?”

“It’s a decision to go back to such a tough job—how could this possibly be a choice made just out of disappointment with the industry’s standards?”

“T, that.”

“Just so you know, this happened because I messed up while doing the Fire exercise on my own—none of the other hunters are involved at all.”

What flowed from the mouth of the fourth S-rank was nothing but the truth. Even after that, Kim Giryeo offered positive encouragement, saying, “I have no complaints whatsoever about the public safety you’ve maintained as the top-ranked hunter.” Before getting to the main point, he was simply setting things straight to keep the conversation from getting tangled.

“Then let’s stop wasting time. Like you said, let’s finally deal with the main reason we came all the way to Seoul.”

As soon as he stepped into the room, the first thing he noticed was that peculiar scent of medicine often found in medical facilities. While he was subconsciously analyzing the distinct notes of the smell lingering in the air, a certain scene came into view. There, by the window where thin curtains filtered the sunlight, a person was lying down.

‘Mom.’

A woman whose prematurely graying hair could easily make her mistaken for an old lady. The planet native lying in the hospital bed was a family member who shared the genetic makeup of the nation’s hero.

‘Hair dye is usually toxic, so I had no choice but to leave the gray hair as it was… but I never thought I’d end up bringing someone from the industry into this hospital room.’

Moreover, the patient before him was suffering from a new kind of illness that had emerged in modern society—a rare case of what was known as magic addiction.

“Hmm.”

When looking at the incidence rate by age group, cases were almost nonexistent among those in their teens and twenties. It was a new type of illness that surged sharply among people aged fifty and above. Yet, despite being a rare condition that not everyone experienced—unlike the awakening phenomenon—why did it have to strike our family of all people? Jung Haseong once again found himself revisiting the same question he had asked hundreds of times before.

“As expected, it seems it’s going to be difficult to wake her with ordinary methods…”

It was after that that the blond guest finally spoke.

“Actually, I’ve been in and out of major hospitals myself, and I’ve seen patients with [magic addiction] a few times, but… hmm?”

Whoosh.

The alien creature finally stopped talking and turned around.

“By the way, why have you been standing so far away?”

The guest asked in a puzzled tone. And the reason the man in the suit suddenly changed the subject was simple—for some reason, the family member of the [magic addiction] patient was pressed up against the wall, keeping an unusually large distance.

“Jung Haseong. There’s something I need to talk to you about, so come a little closer.”

Moreover, even when he made such a suggestion, the only response he got was a reluctant one.

“…power.”

“What?”

Jung Haseong muttered something under his breath. It was such a faint sound that even with heightened hearing, it was hard to catch. Kim Giryeo furrowed his brow and asked him to repeat it. But then, raising his voice, the national hero spoke words no one had expected.

“I’m afraid my magic power… might have a bad effect on her.”

[Magic addiction], in short, was an illness caused by mana. And S-rank Awakeners, by their very nature, were beings who carried far greater amounts of that mystical energy than anyone else.

“I usually made my visits from outside the hospital room.”

The black-haired young man spoke with his head lowered, his words coming out with difficulty. However, the somber mood that was about to settle was fortunately broken soon after—by the arrival of another visitor.

“What kind of ridiculous nonsense is that supposed to be?”

“Nonsense?”

“Did your school, by any chance, teach that all hemoglobin sticks to magnets just like pure iron?”

“Ah.”

“Of course, they share the same origin to some extent, but the mana within living beings and the mana in the air are obviously different… vastly different.”

Rustle, rustle.

While he spoke, Kim Giryeo gestured with his hand for him to come closer.

“And [Magic Addiction] is definitely affected by the natural environment, so don’t worry about it.”

To think that this biological power, which used to knock out even a perfectly healthy twenty-something young man when he couldn’t control his emotions, has no effect on that terrible disease.

“Really?”

Hesitantly.

The S-rank hunter reacted a moment later. Jung Haseong relaxed his stiff posture and awkwardly leaned forward, closing the distance between them.

There was no scientific proof of any connection between Awakeners and magic addiction. So, deep down, even he had thought that this was nothing more than a baseless worry…

“Was it really… okay?”

Jung Haseong still held back his words, speaking with cautious restraint.

“Why are you so nervous in front of someone who’s about to wake up anyway? What, were you planning to avoid seeing your mother even after she woke up?”

But was this a dream or reality?

Ssshrk.

Kim Giryeo then took out a subspace artifact—one that unlicensed hunters were forbidden to use. In other words, he had just revealed the existence of his [Item Box].

“Jung Haseong. I literally told you just ten seconds ago that I brought an elixir from overseas.”

Of course, that was true. But no matter how much he turned it over in his mind, it was a story that only left him full of doubt.

“Uh, well… in that case, let me ask in advance—was the amount of elixir you got enough for two adults to share?”

The man with the thick eyelids turned his gaze away.

“No way.”

“Then why would you offer to give such an item to someone else?”

The emotion Jung Haseong showed next was something close to sheer disbelief.

“No, this is definitely not a topic that should be brought up so casually.”

“Let me ask just one thing. Haseong, what exactly is bothering you right now… that you’ve been muttering and asking again and again since earlier?”

“Well, I suppose if it’s you, Hunter Kim, you could very well make that choice. But by the logic in my head, this is impossible and an utterly absurd suggestion.”

“Absurd?”

“Am I somehow stronger than you? Or better at doing the work?”

“Well, you’re a bit better at the work, yes.”

At that moment, before discussing the elixir transfer, Kim Giryeo revealed the most crucial piece of information.

“Haseong. Just so you know in advance, I don’t need a cure-all like this anymore.”

“Haha, seriously…”

“If it were something I could use, I obviously would’ve swallowed it myself and never even made this offer. But why the silly laugh in the middle of such an important explanation?”

But the national hero’s reaction was negative.

“I’m just… curious now.”

After a moment, the black-haired Awakener, looking pale, asked a question.

“Why, of all the people, did you choose to say this to me? I just… want to at least understand the reason now.”

“You want me to explain it in a way that makes more sense?”

“Being told something like this out of the blue is actually painful for me.”

I’ll give you the immortal potion you’ve always wanted! Of course, this was the kind of situation any person would dream of, but from an Earthling’s point of view, it wasn’t something that could be accepted so easily.

“This is kind of confusing.”

The alien tilted his head. However, the Alphauri also wasn’t entirely unable to understand the other’s feelings. The black-haired hero had spent several years alone after the Dungeon Shock. At a young age, the top-ranked hunter of South Korea had ended up taking on the role of protecting others.

Moreover, even in that small matter of hiring a caregiver, he hadn’t been able to rely on his family’s help for over a thousand days. And yet, if someone suddenly stepped in to solve this overwhelmingly difficult ordeal out of the blue…

‘Do you think I’d just meekly accept it!’

The black-haired Earthling frowned, looking clearly aggrieved.

“Honestly, I have no idea how I’m supposed to answer this.”

“Is that so?”

“The truth is, I’m not really acting all that logically either, which makes it even more of a problem.”

But what exactly is this expression?

“Haseong-ah, have you ever raised any animals or plants in your life?”

“Yes?”

“Except for humans.”

The national hero stood there dumbfounded.

Tuk, tuk.

Kim Giryeo took long strides, moving even closer to the hospital bed. At the same time, he looked at the patient as if to satisfy his curiosity and said.

“I don’t know about you, Haseong, but I’ve never raised anything just as a pet.”

To be precise, that meant he had never raised a potted plant or a dog either.

“I never cared about that kind of thing in the first place, thinking, what’s fun about taking responsibility for a species less intelligent than me?”

“Well, there are naturally all sorts of opinions in the world. I understand.”

“What—”

“I’m concerned about bugs.”

Paused.

Jung Haseong couldn’t hide his surprise at the unexpected words.

“Insignificant, tiny. And on top of that, their reproductive ability isn’t bad, so there’s no risk of extinction—why would I bother with such pests…”

“Bugs?”

“On top of that, it wasn’t even a single insect I was carefully raising in a glass cage—I just suddenly grew fond of some bugs I happened to find wandering by the roadside.”

“….”

“Logically, losing two or three ants shouldn’t change an adult’s entire life. So why did it happen to me like this?”

“Um… excuse me, but I don’t really understand what you mean. What exactly is the point of the story you just told?”

“I see the people of this world as insects.”

It was around this point that the national hero’s acclaim suddenly stopped.

“It’s just a metaphor, of course. I mean, that’s how little interest I’ve had in people. Honestly, I’ve been living every day looking down on all of you.”

Tak.

“So stop interpreting me as some kind of noble, righteous person.”

“Is… that so?”

“But there’s no need to be too shocked. Like I just mentioned, I’ve recently changed my mind.”

Kim Giryeo leaned his arm against the nearby bed rail.

“From my experience, it oddly feels bad when neighbors who seemed as insignificant as ants get hurt.”

“….”

“Even watching an ant I was observing scurry away with a crumb of snack somehow makes me feel a little happy too.”

“….”

“So… recently, while working as a hunter, I’ve started wanting to look out for the acquaintances I’ve made in Korea in my own way.”

“If we live well, does that make you feel better too, Kim Giryeo-ssi?”

“If I wasn’t even going to be able to do what I wanted to this much, then I might as well not have been born into this world in the first place.”

Kiieek.

“The reason I’m trying to give you the elixir ultimately comes down to that.”

One alien openly confessed to living life in his own lone-wolf manner.

“By the way, my own family matters are complicated, so I don’t really know—but if this patient recovers, is it really true that it will make you genuinely happy?”

But before Jung Haseong could even add a word, another absurd remark slipped out.

“Are parents really that important in your life? Well, honestly, you’re already an adult, so you don’t really need their support anymore anyway.”

Is that even a valid argument?

‘Psychopath…’

At that moment, the S-rank superhuman—with no formal psychiatric knowledge—suddenly formed a strong deduction.

‘This is completely a psychopath.’

For reference, this was actually incorrect information. But from the perspective of Earth resident J, the entire conversation so far seemed to suggest exactly that. After all, the Sambaegan-eyes young man hadn’t exactly done only one or two things that could be easily misunderstood.

‘A cold-blooded person who can’t properly understand someone and treats other lives like trash… I—I’ve seen this kind of thing on TV all the time.’

Jung Haseong fell into a brief moment of thought. Still, even if the person before him was a cold-blooded individual who had learned human emotions mechanically, he first needed to address this matter.

“Of course, I’d be happy when my mother wakes up.”

“Right.”

“B, but! If I receive the elixir, wouldn’t that mean your illness gets neglected?”

“Illness?”

“Sorry, but that’s too much of a burden for me, and my mother would never be that selfish. I’m sorry, but we don’t want to go so far as to kill someone outright just to get medicine…!”

But Jung Haseong hadn’t even finished speaking at that moment.

“Oh, right.”

Tuk.

Kim Giryeo pointed to his torso with a calm expression. Then he said.

“I haven’t said this clearly yet. Uh, I fixed my lungs, you know?”

“Huh?”

“My illness is already cured. That’s why I’ve been saying since earlier that I’m able to transfer the elixir.”

“W, what do you mean?”

“Because you were so suspicious, I had to choose my words carefully, so our conversation briefly went off track…”

At this point, it’s worth explaining that this blond man had been given about two seasons’ worth of time up until now. To be more precise, the rest period had been far too long to spend solely obsessing over the fantastical magic-science task of reviving a living being.

Especially for an archmage, it could even be considered an abundant period. Kim Giryeo ended up producing a new result during this time. After all, even doctoral students on Earth often run multiple experiments at once. But would the life of a researcher really be different just because of a single difference in origin?

“Awakened Kim Giryeo…?”

But without any major issues, he greeted as usual, and soon a voice responded.

– Haseong-ah.

“Yes!”

– Y, yeah, it’s been a while since we last talked. Judging by you answering the call, I take it you’re not in a dungeon right now. What have you been up to?

“I’m off today. Off.”

– Ah~ Off, you didn’t go to work.

He seemed ordinary. As Jung Haseong had thought before, Korea’s fourth S-rank Awakened possessed a strangely down-to-earth quality over the phone. Speaking casually with a ‘everything is bothersome’ attitude is a trait like that of an older neighborhood brother. And yet, he always manages to slip in a greeting like, ‘Have you eaten?’, which sometimes makes him seem truly like a respected elder or teacher met somewhere.

‘It’s all an analogy that ages him up, but honestly, his voice does carry the weight of someone older, so it can’t be helped.’

But if the conversation continued in this way, the situation would take a different turn.

-Then where exactly are you right now? If you didn’t go to work, are you at home?

“Yes?”

-Are you home now?

“No, no. I just went out for a bit today because I had something to do.”

-Where exactly did you go?

“The general hospital next to △△ Road. And just so you don’t worry, I’m not here because I’m sick.”

-Can I meet you there?

“Yes?”

-Actually, I wanted to talk to you about something. I called to set up a meeting.

For some reason, halfway through the call, Kim Giryeo suddenly expressed a desire to meet in person.

‘He must have just returned from overseas… what’s this? Isn’t he tired from the time difference?’

Jung Haseong honestly felt uneasy about the proposal he’d just received. The thing was, if he met Kim Giryeo in person, he wouldn’t seem like a laid-back neighborhood guy but more like a formidable veteran… Well, of course, that impression did have some effect, but still.

“Ah, a… appointment? Uh…”

It was shortly after the failed reappearance of the Elixir. As a result, his mood was restless. To put it more precisely, Jung Haseong, secretly feeling guilt toward the tumor patient he had been avoiding, naturally found it difficult to face Kim Giryeo.

But he couldn’t understand why—and, moreover, why he had to run into him in a place like this.

***

South Korea. Seoul. A general hospital in the bustling city.

“I had a rough idea as soon as you said you’d be here. So, Hunter Jung Haseong, you came today to visit your mother?”

A short while later, Jung Haseong found himself standing in the open lobby of a certain hospital. At the same time, he sank slightly into a moment of self-reproach.

‘Is it because I’ve been living just for hunting? How can a person’s social skills be this lacking…’

What follows is a brief flashback.

-Why, is it not okay to meet at the hospital now? Do you have some prior appointment or something?

-Ah, no. It’s not… it’s not like that.

-So… can I see you for a moment, or not?

-Y, you can…

Tak.

To explain first, the national hero rarely engaged in conversations with others due to the nature of his profession. So today, he fumbled over his words—and before he knew it, an appointment had been set.

‘If I had just said no, it would have been fine. Why did I have to make things like this?’

The man with black hair pressed his palm against his face. Yet, blaming his own lack of social skills wasn’t the whole story—there were other reasons to fault himself. Kim Giryeo carried an aura akin to a drill sergeant; honestly, how many people would answer his call and not turn into a yes-man?

“….”

For now, he ran through various arguments in his mind, but none of them offered any real comfort. Jung Haseong lifted his head.

“Is this the room where your mother is staying?”

Facing him was the S-rank Awakener he hadn’t seen in quite some time. In other words, Kim Giryeo looked at him and asked the question.

“Yes.”

There seemed to be slight differences compared to the last time he’d seen him… In truth, Jung Haseong was just as insensitive to changes in the appearance of his fellow countrymen. Especially when the person in question wasn’t some dungeon prey, he was all the worse at spotting subtle differences. The hero never even thought to consider weight and simply spoke plainly.

“I purposely cleared my schedule today to see my mother.”

But now that the topic came up, he wondered why Kim Giryeo had insisted on meeting him in person today.

“Hmm.”

Glance.

The blonde esper stood on tiptoe, peering toward the south. Today, as always, the fourth S-rank appeared in a suit, surveying the facilities of the hospital. White walls emitted a subtle sense of luxury. The transparent materials were used so that medical staff could monitor the area at all times, yet the small, narrow windows in the doors ensured at least a minimal level of privacy. And so on.

‘Mom…’

In the room they were observing, someone lay quietly. It was a sunlit room. A large respirator covered the person’s mouth, making it difficult to discern much about the patient’s expression.

“By the way, I heard it was quite chaotic here yesterday because of the Elixir Dungeon?”

It was at that moment. Jung Haseong, who had been craning his neck like a meerkat, immediately straightened up in response to the person beside him.

“Yes?”

He hadn’t expected it at all. Of all things, the idiotic monster confusion incident was being brought up first.

‘Ever since I picked up the call, I had a feeling… Could it be that you rushed back just to scold the hunters who got into that ridiculous misunderstanding?’

A few seconds later, Jung Haseong, flustered, hurriedly began to explain.

“Oh, I’m sorry!”

His first words were a blunt apology.

“As for the misclassification of the monster, I have a hundred things to say, yet none feel enough. We should have checked properly, but… we were just foolish.”

“Hmm?”

“Moreover, getting so carried away by rare treasures that I raised my voice at fellow hunters… Considering all that Hunter Kim Giryeo has contributed to maintaining stability in the industry, I should never have acted that way.”

“Wait a minute.”

“I, I really shouldn’t have acted so childishly.”

As he paused for a moment, the national hero’s long, drawn-out apology poured out across the corridor. At least, the listener’s occasional interjections prevented it from going on even further.

“Jung Haseong.”

At that moment, the black-haired Earthling fell silent, his expression full of frustration.

“My stern expression seems to have caused some misunderstanding again… That—I didn’t bring this up to scold anyone, you know.”

The unusually shaped pause in the conversation was filled by the disciplined awakened. The superhuman, who always kept their hair a bright color and had rather peculiar tastes, spoke in a dry, measured tone.

“I was just mentioning something that happened recently and naturally started a bit of small talk.”

“S, small talk?”

“You know, just acknowledging that something happened yesterday and building rapport that way. In a way, they say that’s the foundation of human relationships.”

“Rapport?”

“Is that something you shouldn’t say when you’ve already met often? But well, whatever.”

Ssshk.

In the middle of the conversation, someone shifted their piercing, fish-eye–like gaze into the void.

“Let me make it clear in advance: I don’t think this was a stupid mistake.”

Jung Haseong focused on Kim Giryeo for a moment.

“It was something anyone, unless they were experts, could experience.”

“Hmm…”

“For example, among the insects here, there are the Blue Morpho butterfly and the Pale Blue Morpho butterfly.”

“By this place, do you mean Korea?”

“O, of course.”

“Yes.”

“Anyway, I’ve looked at photos of those butterflies side by side, but no matter how much time passed, I just couldn’t tell the difference between the two.”

“Ah, so they’re butterflies that look similar… I see.”

“Even tiny creatures have their species classified by subtle differences, so imagine a monster deliberately mimicking an entirely different order like the one that appeared yesterday. Naturally, it’s enough to give anyone a headache.”

The retired man in a suit spoke at length for a while. To summarize, he expressed that he fully understood the mistakes that had occurred this time and reassured that there was absolutely no need for self-blame.

“But it’s also true that I was careless, isn’t it?”

But how could things have escalated like this just seconds after receiving such positive advice?

“I was sure I had studied the Elixir monster thoroughly, yet I missed all the details that I should have noticed with just a bit of careful attention.”

“That could be true.”

“A, awakened Kim… you can identify it immediately just from a single photo sent remotely.”

It was around the moment when the nation’s hero began to belittle himself. From one side of the corridor, the foreigner standing there made an unusual gesture.

“No, I told you not to be pessimistic.”

He waved his arms in the air with palms fully open—a gesture roughly meant to stop the other person.

“And you really don’t need to apologize for the whole Elixir thing. If something like that appears, it’s only natural that no one could just laugh it off.”

No matter how alien a creature is, as long as it’s intelligent, it at least has basic comprehension.

“Besides, Jung Haseong, you had your own personal matters to deal with as well.”

The blond esper trailed off mid-sentence, letting his gaze drift southward. Through his eyes, the familiar scene came back into view.

An artificial respirator covered him, and there he lay—a middle-aged Earthling, sleeping silently without a single word.

“Is that person hospitalized because of [Magic Addiction]?”

The Awakener with the lean appearance asked, as if confirming something. In response, Jung Haseong lightly nodded his head.

“Yeah.”

“Mhm.”

“I’ve known about it from various articles up until now. I just hadn’t come to see it in person until today.”

It was only natural. After all, most people rarely have the chance to meet the family of an industry colleague in their lifetime.

‘Unless it’s a major event or a special occasion…’

Jung Haseong felt a bit uneasy as he looked at the guest standing before him, dressed entirely in black from head to toe. Yet, it seemed the other person didn’t notice his gaze at all.

“Mind if I step inside for a moment?”

Kim Giryeo pointed toward the single-patient room in front of him and finally spoke. He was essentially asking if he could get a closer look at Haseong’s family. The problem, however, was that this fourth S-rank Hunter of Korea was the kind of awakened being whose mere presence radiated tension. But this lump of discomfort keeps beating around the bush without getting to the main point.

“Uh, um.”

Feeling the weight of the situation, Haseong couldn’t help but reveal his true thoughts.

“Of course, it’s fine for you to go in and see her. But….”

“Yeah.”

“If possible, I’d like to take care of my business first. Excuse me, but may I ask what brought you here today?”

In other words, he urged the guest forward, thinking it better to face the matter head-on first.

“Because of the elixir.”

But what kind of unimaginable main point was this?

“Yes?”

“Do you know why the first thing that came to my mind when I heard that an Elixir Monster appeared in South Korea was suspicion?”

“Because you noticed a difference in its appearance?”

“Actually, the real Elixir dungeon appeared abroad around the same time. Looking back, it might have been arranged that way just to make humans confuse each other and fight, but still…”

“Wait a moment. Then, could it be...”

“Yeah. And as you’ve probably guessed, I managed to obtain that item while I was abroad. While I was sitting there analyzing its composition yesterday, you suddenly came to mind.”

“…”

“Come to think of it, there’s only one person around me with a sick family member. At least, for now.”

Kim Giryeo. The blonde figure was still staring in the direction of the hospital room. His hands, for lack of a better comparison, were stuffed deep into his pockets, as if to avoid flailing like ocean currents. To a typical Korean observer, it was hardly a polite posture. Yet, in that slightly crooked stance, Kim Giryeo made a statement that carried a solemnity bordering on sacredness.

“So here’s the thing. I’m actually thinking about whether I should give you this [Elixir] right now.”

“...”

“Since I’ve already obtained it, why not use it in a valuable way?”

It was such an absurd statement that his brain nearly rejected it on the spot.

Perhaps that was why. Jung Haseong didn’t focus on the part about “giving the potion”; instead, he immediately zeroed in on this part of the story first.

“Wait a moment. But when you say you obtained the Elixir abroad, do you mean you actually went into a dungeon and hunted the monsters yourself?”

“That…”

“So you actually entered the dungeon without any permission or license?”

One of the S-rank hunters, who seemed about to answer matter-of-factly, suddenly paused mid-sentence.

“No, well… I didn’t actually go in… I somehow got it through another channel… I bought it, bought it.”

With a face that could easily sit at a poker table without giving anything away, the retiree had a real knack for hiding the truth. At that moment, Jung Haseong stared intently at him, certain that the other was lying.

“You don’t believe me?”

“Yes.”

“You’re smart.”

Then, it’s too late to fool him.

“Alright. I’ll be honest. The truth is, I did clear the dungeon and personally collected it myself.”

“Hmm.”

“But it’s really fine. This matter has been settled with the local authorities, and I’ll be renewing my hunting license very soon.”

“Huh? Yes?”

“I’m returning to the industry soon. So don’t go spreading stories about entering the dungeon and causing unnecessary trouble.”

At that moment, Kim Giryeo made up his mind. Having tangled himself in too many lies and deceptions before, he decided that from now on he would approach the humans he saw often with a bit more honesty. That was why he even mentioned his license, intending to reveal the full story behind his canceled retirement.

“Hunter-nim, are you returning?”

The national hero’s expression changed in an instant.

‘Ah, what is this again…’

At first, the human was startled. Then came a surprise. Jung Haseong quickly covered his mouth in horror, as if he had realized something on his own. For reference, the young man with black hair had turned so pale that a bluish tint spread across his face. All of this happened in just three seconds.

The guild master of the Korean Magic Tower assessed the current situation with complexity.

‘Even I, hearing about Jung Haseong’s situation, feel compelled to yield out of pity.’

Without a sense of compassion, how many ways are humans truly better than beasts? That thought briefly drifted through the back of their mind.

‘Is it wrong that I want to beat that sociopath to death?’

Of course, it was a thought that should never be acted on. True to her specialty in curses, Seo Esther quickly began entertaining a dangerous idea—but that was just one of several factors complicating the situation on site.

“Then you should have criticized the ranking system before a gate like this appeared! Why did you stay silent when the Association treated the top-ranked Hunters well for years?”

“Are those tiny little commission benefits even the same issue as this? Huh!”

Above all, the national hero’s face twisted in anger as he became furious.

‘If this continues, it wouldn’t be surprising if a superpower war breaks out.’

His only family had already been battling illness for years, and now, people who usually didn’t even pay attention to Hunter rankings were invoking the media to block his mother’s chances of recovery…No one could predict how the national hero would act next.

‘Is a fight about to break out?’

The argument between Jung Ha-seong and the third guild continued for several minutes. Seo Esther couldn’t help but feel worried. But she wasn’t the only one thinking this way. Someone who had been anxious up until now, sharing the same concern, finally spoke up with a fairly well-known voice.

“E, everyone.”

This was a figure who had been largely unnoticed until now, among top-tier guilds that didn’t even deal with A-rank Hunters. However, for a position of such national importance, it was impossible for there to be no public officials present. Moreover, S-rank Hunters, who could easily make the weak suffer if their emotions wavered even slightly, inevitably required special volunteers once again.

“Oh my!”

For Hunters who often ventured on outdoor hunts like the Red Gate, the face of the woman who just appeared would be very familiar.

“I heard the Association was sending someone, but so it was our Yeonie?”

“Y, yes!”

“Oh, you were guarding the off-limits area. I should have recognized you just by looking at your back.”

The moment Esther spotted the B-rank Awakened official, her expression softened. Yet the words that followed were extremely serious.

“Sorry for suddenly intervening.”

“Hmm.”

“Excuse me, but could I ask everyone to focus for just a moment?”

Listening attentively to someone polite. Well, these days, it’s not exactly a difficult thing to do.

“Go ahead and speak.”

“Ah, yes!”

“Just to be sure, I have to ask—could it be that foreign thieves aiming for treasures have finally shown up in our country?”

Seo Esther voiced her concern based on a logical assessment.

“No, it’s nothing like that. I just wanted to inform you of this before the conflict escalates…”

But Seonwoo Yeon shook her head and began speaking about matters far removed from foreign thieves.

“I’m really sorry, everyone, but it seems that the monsters appearing in this dungeon aren’t [Elixir] monsters?”

Bam.

With that single statement, the atmosphere on site changed dramatically. To be precise, the predators who had been shouting over a legendary, near-mythical item suddenly fell silent. The news was that shocking.

‘So what we’re looking at… isn’t the hunting ground for the elixir?’

But the people gathered here weren’t exactly veterans with just a year or two of experience.

“What on earth do you mean?”

“That…”

“The monsters appearing in this gate have definitely been confirmed by the Korean Magic Tower.”

“Yes. They even distributed photographic evidence through the Association.”

“My goodness. If you still doubted the identity of the monsters even after seeing those photos, I can only shake my head.”

For a moment, everyone present realized something. Although the sources were different, the hunters here had all seen the appearance of that particular monster before. Seo Esther had even personally dragged the monster’s minions outside to take photos for classification samples. And the afterimage captured in that single JPG file was…

‘Hmm.’

Its semi-transparent black legs wobbled like a ghost draped in clothing. Its face jutted forward sharply, as if someone had stretched dough with their fingertips. In short, a speckled creature with a beak as sharp as a farmer’s pitchfork was said to be crouched inside that nest.

“Ms. Civil Servant.”

At that moment, someone who had been quietly listening on one side of the scene spoke up. It was a question raised by Jung Haseong.

“Sorry, but I don’t quite understand what you just explained.”

“Ah.”

“The species appearing in this gate is remarkably similar to the ones documented in the past…”

The [Elixir] monster, which first appeared on the planet Earth, could still be studied in countless ways today. Specifically, there were detailed films capturing every aspect of the creature’s appearance. Dissections. And some parts of that artificial lifeform still existed, preserved proudly in formalin solution. Moreover, present here was a Hunter who had never neglected a single day of study in the field of gate monsters.

“Indeed, the problem is that there are no living samples of that monster. Its appearance came during such a chaotic time, after all.”

Haseong. The undisputed number-one Hunter in South Korea. In other words, even this walking encyclopedia of monsters hadn’t suspected the appearance of the [Elixir] gate.

“However, according to the information disclosed by the Swedish side under the international treaty, the corpse of that monster is in this form.”

“My goodness. How much storage does your phone have to carry all these monster photos?”

“Anyway, when compared with the photos shared by Hunter Seo Esther here, they’re exactly the same.”

“That’s right! It’s just a bit thinner since the fluids are gone. Everything else is the same.”

Its body is entirely black. Round and swollen. A few wobbly fins like those of a carp. Even at a glance, the two photos match perfectly—so are we really to believe that the creature standing before us isn’t the one that produces the elixir?

“I just don’t understand why you suddenly said it’s not an [Elixir] monster…”

At that moment, when even the renowned Hunters were all puzzled, the official observing the situation finally managed to add a comment.

“It’s different.”

She was even certain of it.

“They do look similar, so it’s easy to mistake one for the other, but first, the number of splits in the fins is different, and more importantly, the spacing of the spots on the body…”

“What?”

“So to conclude, the one that appeared this time isn’t a vertebrate. It’s a monstrous lifeform that merely mimics the appearance of the previous [Elixir] monster.”

“Y, you mean it imitated it? A monster imitating another monster?”

“To be more precise, it’s a monster that mimics—or camouflages itself as—the other… that’s the information I just received.”

The official tried to calm everyone down, explaining details like the number of splits in the fins—things you couldn’t notice unless you deliberately squinted.

At this point, Esther naturally voiced a counterquestion.

“Who was the one that relayed that information to Seonwoo Yeon?”

But the answer was unexpected.

“Kim Giryeo-ssi.”

A wealthy individual leading a top-tier guild. Moreover, a name capable of silencing the number-one Awakened—symbol of South Korea’s hunting industry—in an instant. When this retiree’s name was mentioned, the Awakened present at the scene were left dumbfounded.

“I, I’m sorry. I’m not very good with words, so some important parts got left behind.”

“….”

“But anyway, the fact that this gate has little connection to the [Elixir]… that was the information they shared.”

“….”

“By the way, I sincerely apologize here for sharing the information without authorization. Next time, I will voluntarily submit myself and fully cooperate with any disciplinary procedures…”

“Alright. That appraiser from the Gimhae Kim clan isn’t exactly known for being loose-lipped. Anyway, controlling these people any further was meaningless once they caused a commotion. As the copyright holder of the sample shots, I’ll just let it slide.”

“Uh, um… w, well then. I have a bit more to say to all of you while we’re at it.”

Seonwoo Yeon scrolled through her phone, fumbling as she read through the numerous messages from overseas senders that filled it.

“The simplest way to check would be to catch one of the minion monsters and flip it over?”

“Yes?”

“They say the skin of that gate monster is only for imitation purposes. So if you dissect it, you’ll see that the inside is completely different.”

“Huh.”

“More importantly, he says it has blue organs…”

“The real [Elixir] monster, on the other hand, had innards that were strangely mechanical in form, so that actually makes this believable.”

“Yes.”

“By the way, did Giryeo-ssi tell you that information again?”

“Yes. Since they have already left the country, I’m relaying the information on their behalf.”

“No, wait a minute. You said he left the country?”

Just how careless had the media become! Esther was shocked to hear that there had been a schedule she hadn’t even been aware of.

But in a way, this was only natural.

Non-appearance. Retirement.

He was already someone who rarely went out, making it hard to generate news about him. It wasn’t unusual for a once-popular Awakened to become a has-been and face lawsuits over it. Nowadays, even writing an article about Kim Giryeo offered no guarantee of clicks, so naturally, no working journalist would want to run around chasing after a retired figure.

“In truth, I never expected to hear such a taxonomical assessment. I simply sought the opinion of a former industry colleague out of a desire to somehow prevent friction between high-ranking Awakened…”

The public official continued the conversation with a serious tone.

“But Awakened Kim said, ‘If anyone doubts this information, you may kill a monster to verify it…'”

“That’s right. Well, the item tables would be different, after all.”

“Ah!”

“Unless they’re closely related like Black Dragons and Red Dragons, most monsters don’t share their rewards at all.”

“T, then.”

“Even just by looking at the loot, the truth becomes clear.”

And as the Korean Magic Tower guildmaster explained, the prime gate discovered in the urban artificial forest soon revealed its shabby true form. In simple terms, the items were completely different. From the low-tier loot to its internal organs, there was not a single part that matched previous cases—the creature here was entirely its own entity.

***

It feels as if he has briefly buried his face in an oasis.

“….”

The only problem was that it was a mirage that didn’t actually exist.

‘I don’t even know how the day passed.’

It was about 24 hours later. At that moment, Jung Haseong thought of his family. Humanity had suddenly fallen asleep one day, as if fleeing from a massive threat.

‘This kind of situation has been repeating for years already.’

He thought he might finally be able to get his mother back on her feet now…

[[Advertisement] “Magic Addiction,” Once Hard to Treat, Shows Hope: Korean Scientist Uncovers Key Clue]

Whenever he turned on his phone, countless bogus articles popped up immediately. Jung Haseong always felt a pang of anxiety reading those clickbait pieces online. He knew all too well that developing a cure wasn’t easy, yet he couldn’t help clinging to hope, however painfully. And now, after letting people hope so intensely, only to snatch it away in such a cruel way—it was utterly devastating.

‘Doppelgänger… right. In an industry where even a boss monster goes by that name, why hadn’t he properly examined the creature’s appearance?’

At that moment, the emotion rising in Jung Haseong’s mind was paradoxically not disappointment. To be honest, he felt a strange calm—so much so that a surge of self-directed disgust almost simmered beneath the surface.

If he had actually obtained the elixir, he would have been forced to make an extremely burdensome and uncomfortable choice.

‘No matter what, as expected, my mom still comes first.’

He stood on a stark white corridor, brushing his face with his hand.

‘Of course. This is something that no one could possibly handle!’

For a while, all that continued was self-reproach with no one to listen. But he couldn’t afford to waste time like that. So Jung Haseong struggled to pull himself together and deliberately redirected his thoughts elsewhere.

‘At this point, it just feels like that… There are so many people in this world who are way smarter than me. I just wish they’d take care of all these problems now…’

But what a creepy coincidence.

-Diriririri. Diriririri.

His phone rang with the default ringtone. And the person calling this time was revealed in just a few seconds.

【Hunter Kim Giryeo ☎】

‘Yeah…He’s really smarter than me.’

Now that he looked, he noticed a minor error in the contact name. But, for now, he decided to let it slide.

-We came in properly without any violence. All we did was show our S-rank Hunter IDs and explain that we, too, had been summoned.

-....

-Of course, the fact that it was a lie is a bit of a problem.

-The newly hired security team’s training is a mess. Don’t they even double-check this?

-Isn’t that proof that the Hunter Association hasn’t faced much hardship lately? Complacency. Ah, though, it’s not entirely a bad thing either.

As can be inferred from overhearing this conversation, there hasn’t been a single injury so far. But the elixir has reappeared. Word of this spread quietly among the public, and no one could guarantee what would happen next.

‘Phew.’

Anyway, this world really does have a lot to worry about. Esther, who was surveying the situation as a whole, paused for a moment in thought.

‘I’d forgotten, since we haven’t had to deal with monsters for a while, but as expected, Dungeon Shocks come with way too many things to worry about.’

Yet there is likely no one here more bewildered than that young man. [Magic Addiction] is a phenomenon that typically erupts only in the early stages of a Dungeon Shock. So, in the perception of others, it had long been cemented as a rare disease one would scarcely encounter in a lifetime. Yet, this sudden, catastrophic event—one that should have existed only in distant footage—has struck none other than Korea’s representative Hunter…

***

A little later, Jung Haseong arrived at the familiar location, wiping the cold sweat from his brow.

A blue glow. Alien mana lingering in the surroundings. Before him lay a gate—now so common that even explaining it felt like a bother.

‘Oh my goodness!’

However, the scene was exactly as he had been informed over the phone.

“Ah! There you are. You’ve come.”

“Excuse me. Does a black, crawling monster come out of this gate?”

“Our guild heard all about this! But really, some worthless folks think they can just snatch this up just because their rank is high.”

“Neo and the Magic Tower actually went out of their way to set up guards, huh?”

Fine, let’s say the Elixir has appeared. But why on earth did those people get angry all on their own?

“Phew, everyone. Hello.”

“You can’t say hello!”

“Sir, blocking newly discovered gates is a procedure that existed even five years ago, and on our large guild’s side, we’ve merely dispatched personnel.”

“But, the thing is….”

“Let’s calm down a bit first.”

The commotion gradually subsided. The others might have been startled by the unexpectedly strong presence of the Awakened, but Jung Haseong and Esther ignored that and focused on the conversation first.

“Even though a top-tier guild discovered and blocked this dungeon first, you’re telling us not to get excited?”

“Guild Master Esther. Are you saying only your guild counts as a guild? Even if you’re stuck in third place, we’re contributing just as much to national security.”

Judging by their reaction, it seems the meeting held by the Hunter Association hadn’t spread at all.

‘We just came to check out the news that the [Elixir] had appeared, and well, it seems the Awakened were already blocking the way, so they got surprised and pushed back.’

By the way, there’s a saying that if you just stay in your room surfing the internet, you become an adult child younger than your actual age. Surprisingly, social skills can return quickly with some practice. So Esther leveraged the eloquence she had built up over many years to explain the situation.

“Now, let’s start by organizing the situation. I’ll make this clear from the start: the Elixir Gate is set to become a public asset proudly belonging to the Republic of Korea, okay?”

Whether it’s a medicine limited to the boss or not. Right now, since they don’t know the truth, the obvious strategy is to kill as many minions as possible.

“A public asset?”

“Are you saying you’re going to release hunters into the plains like you do at Gate II?”

A brief question-and-answer exchange followed.

“Not exactly, but I still want to give as many Hunters as possible a chance. Is that such a wrong intention?”

“Didn’t the Association say they would hold an auction?”

“They think similarly to me on that point as well.”

“S, similar? If a public institution has already verified it, then I have nothing to say….”

At this point, what popped up again was a remark about the “peculiar phenomena unique to gates.”

“Wait a moment, Hunter Esther. But the thing is, the current market trend…”

Whether the photographer had leaked the information to every media outlet remained uncertain. Fortunately, only a few here had doubts. The hunters on site were from a 1.5-tier guild, following in the footsteps of the Korean Magic Tower and Neo Sisters.

“This… gate, I don’t know if it’s some sort of divine punishment from the heavens or what. In any case, it seems to strongly oppose Hunters gathering and loafing around in one place.”

“Hmm.”

“That’s why, upon clearing a dungeon, it’s become more common for the gate’s resource laborers to be summoned to the surface.”

“Please continue.”

“Guild Master, you also know why [Knight’s Oath] has become so rare recently, don’t you?”

However, how to reach an agreement moving forward remains somewhat daunting.

“In Europe and elsewhere, monsters nicknamed Tristan are rapidly decreasing in number.”

“….”

“In the past, dungeons were treasure troves that constantly yielded rewards. Now, even ordinary monsters don’t seem to guarantee repeatable hunting.”

“There have been no reported cases of monsters completely disappearing.”

“Still, is it really wrong to make sure everything is settled before breaking ground on a task?”

Seo Esther was a mutant who easily ranked in the top 5% of humanity in terms of money, power, and the sheer force she could exert. Therefore, it was natural for her, holding the reins, to speak as the representative.

“I wouldn’t go so far as to call it wrong, but then, if I may, I’ll state my position as the one who first discovered the dungeon.”

Even if the monsters in this gate are limited in number, she believed it would be unreasonable for a single person to monopolize the space. Even now, everyone is keeping each other in check and chaos has broken out; if the gate’s rights completely passed to one side, accidents that insurance couldn’t cover could occur. Just as with the [Beast] incident, she suggested that even if a band of thieves appeared, the public would willingly step in—so this treasure gate’s authority should be shared among multiple people.

“If you prefer, we could even pull the monsters out of the gate one by one and bring them outside—then distribute them according to rank.”

For reference, if the lottery-like chances were distributed this way, even the Hunters whose minds were starting to wander would get back to work like oxen. From Esther’s perspective, this was quite rational. Safe. And it was even a noble choice, one that gave up all the advantages of being the S-rank Hunter who first discovered the gate.

“What did you say? By rank?”

“I knew it!”

However, the reactions of the nearby hunters were not favorable.

“Absolutely not! How are we supposed to know when our turn will come!”

The capital is a city where gates appear frequently. However, most of Seoul’s prime hunting grounds are swept up by large guilds with substantial capital.

Therefore, it was only natural that top-ranking hunters were concentrated with the Neo Sisters and the Korean Magic Tower. Moreover, high-ranking A-rank Awakened who occasionally slipped in were often from the provinces, monopolizing certain areas…

‘What exactly is the problem with that last remark?’

Seo Esther shot a glance at the Hunters before her, who had received leaked information.

Anyway, in the end, their argument was simple.

‘So, they’re whining that if assets are distributed by rank, the share for them, ranked third in the metropolitan area, is too small?’

At this point, Seo Esther felt a strong sense of doubt.

‘But even if the gate’s owner were chosen by some other method, there’s no way they’d end up first, right?’

After all, they were individuals lacking money, scale, and even the modern power of supernatural abilities.

This is a trait that’s seen all too often online. In short, it could be assumed that the Hunters in these positions envied and tried to check those who had more resources.

“If gate entry is done by rank, then later you’ll even hand over the right to kill the boss in the same way, won’t you?”

Moreover, Esther was not the only target of their attacks.

“He has contributed the most to the country, and he happened to have a [Magic Addiction] patient at home. Everything will really pass to Jung Haseong in the blink of an eye, won’t it?”

“No, that’s…”

“Since when are incurable or hard-to-treat patients only over there? Everyone here has their own circumstances too!”

What on earth was Jung Haseong thinking at this moment? The capitalists from the third guild soon pointed at the young man in white.

“But now that such an extraordinary treasure gate has appeared, you’re just going to hand all the rights over to one person?”

“There really isn’t a better alternative, is there?”

“No, we can’t. We reached an agreement before coming here, and we absolutely don’t want to set such a precedent.”

What did you say? Truly, it was the kind of sentence that naturally provoked such a question.

“[The Elixir] isn’t just an item that makes its user stronger. It’s a medicine that can save a person’s life!”

“Exactly. But are you saying only the higher-ups get to share the chance to obtain it?”

“If you’re the ones protecting this world, fine, no complaints. But even if just the C-rank Hunters go on strike, let alone A-rank, the country would fall into chaos. So why assume it’s natural for S-rank Hunters to get special privileges? Huh?”

Questions followed in quick succession, asking, “Are you the only heroes of the nation?”

“At this rate, every time a national treasure appears it’ll just be taken away as if that’s only natural. If that’s how it’s going to be, let’s just make it a lottery draw instead!”

“Whether the Elixir Gate gets raided or whatever, let the side that gains ownership deal with that themselves!”

“If not even that, then voting… What about a vote? After all, this is a democratic country.”

At this moment, Seo Esther muttered her dissatisfaction inwardly.

‘What is wrong with everyone’s heads? If they adopt time‑dragging measures like votes or lotteries, just think how much will be siphoned off into defense costs while that drags on. We’ll have headaches from all the shady schemes pouring in from every direction.’

On this side was an S-rank Hunter who had earned countless ranking points and, with a solid track record of regular activity, firmly held the second-place position.

‘And if I happened to obtain the Elixir, I could have even negotiated a private deal with the Neo Sisters’ president.’

Naturally, she had carefully considered her own benefits in making every argument. But now that it was on the verge of being overturned, a sense of emptiness rose within her.

‘What a shame. The chance to surpass the rival guild I’ve been rivaling for years is just slipping away like this?’

Moreover, the curse user smiled amiably, yet a peculiar contempt began to creep into their gaze.

‘Honestly, I don’t even know if those people understand the concept of capitalism or competition.’

Though she seemed genuinely concerned with protecting the weak, she also had a tendency to harbor grudges easily. The person with purple hair had been observing the situation and was about to interject with a remark tinged with irritation.

However, this person spoke a little faster.

A one-handed sword of crimson day. An otherworldly cloak retrieved from the glowing blue corridor. Finally, a well-known figure clad in such items stepped forward.

“Everyone.”

These were Jung Haseong’s first words.

“This is already a well-known story, but I’m in a position where I want to treat my sick mother. And yet, all I’m asking for is just one chance for the effort I’ve put in… Do you really have to oppose me to this extent?”

He didn’t stop there, but added a few more words.

“No, well… we have sick people in our family too. My mother also has a hereditary disease that modern science can’t cure…”

“Still, medicine in this world isn’t free, is it?”

“Huh?”

“Everyone talks a good game about how the lives of the poor are just as precious, but in the end, new drugs with fewer side effects and higher success rates have always been priced beyond the reach of ordinary families…”

Watching the situation, Seo Esther instinctively realized that Jung Haseong was not in a rational state.

“Moreover, even dogs… even those tiny lives called puppies, their surgery costs aren’t covered by insurance, so they’re always at risk of being abandoned.”

“…”

“But just because they’re pitiable, a single veterinarian can’t possibly take in and raise all the stray dogs in the country, right? Realistically, everyone knows that.”

“…”

“This is a world without equality.”

“…”

“But now, after someone has worked themselves to the bone and lived diligently, it’s finally their turn to receive the benefits… so why now… of all times, why now, of all times?”

Since the normally calm Hunter gradually raised his voice, it was easy to discern the desperation of his opponent.

“Ah… please. I don’t even know what to say.”

“H, Hunter-nim.”

“I know this request is half unreasonable! But I’m really in a hurry.”

Moreover, within a few seconds, the situation became so alien it was almost suffocating. Jung Haseong had started his social life young. Because he was often dismissed due to his age, he had deliberately hidden his inexperience until now. But now, unable to control his emotions, he was showing tears in a public setting. From the start, such a reaction couldn’t have been suppressed by individual strength alone.

“Please. I need the [Elixir] more than any other item.”

Who in the world wouldn’t feel sorrow thinking of a sick loved one? Generally, people are much the same, unless we’re talking about some alien occupying a son’s body.

“If this is likely to set a bad precedent, I’ll write a formal pledge. I won’t receive any preferential treatment from the ranking system anymore.”

“Oh my.”

“And I really didn’t want to say this… but no matter how much I think about it, it just won’t work.”

“W, what?”

“I feel like I’d only be at ease if I somehow obtained the right to defeat this dungeon’s boss. Otherwise I’ll go crazy. I think I’d try—even if it means telling the government officials I’m emigrating—just to give it a shot…”

“Gasp!”

“I’m so sorry.”

My goodness. Jung Haseong had turned down all the lavish offers that came from abroad. Yet the national hero, who seemed destined to stay in Korea forever, suddenly played an unexpected card.

“But if you all can restrain your protests—I mean, if you don’t oppose me too strongly—I’ll personally guarantee the rewards from the gate’s ordinary monsters as compensation. So please…”

Emigration. He never thought that word would actually come up.

“Oh, really?”

“Yes?”

“Are you telling me to go mess around with my nationality in front of the officials?”

But that’s how society has always been. As the case with Seo Esther and the European shows, for example. Older people often find it harder to apologize than immature teenagers. Where does the perception come from that lowering one’s head first makes you a loser? And when this tendency evolves into what people call “stubbornness,” it becomes an even bigger headache.

“Have you even been listening to a word we’ve said? I told you—the reason I’m against giving you any special treatment is precisely because you can threaten and manipulate the government whenever you want!”

Sociopath.

Jung Haseong usually thought of such words in front of Kim Giryeo. But the person standing before them—more precisely, the friendly face that looked as if they’d just stepped out for a neighborhood stroll—actually fit that concept far better. Therefore…

“Why act like that just because you awakened as an S-rank without any real effort? And why, on top of that, are you selfishly saying you’ll go to another country and put us in a difficult spot? Yes?”

“D, Director…”

A sociopath of modern society began spewing bitter words, metaphorically with a knife in their mouth. Meanwhile, the subordinates around them glanced nervously, clearly unsettled.

‘For hunters, that’s practically common sense.’

Let’s recall the interview of a certain awakened individual who first encountered the [Elixir] in Sweden. That rural resident, who had been caring for sick parents, went through tremendous chaos during the Dungeon Shock. Not only were they unable to evacuate properly…

As a result, they were unable to evade the horde of monsters that poured into the village and had to face the danger head-on. Of course, it was precisely through enduring such hardships that they became an awakened one—but still.

‘I’ve read that interview article about the elixir dozens of times and honestly have it memorized word for word.’

Ultimately, the important point was that even the legendary elixir’s acquirer didn’t know the exact truth. Whether it was given probabilistically just for defeating minions, or if the boss monster they killed in a trance-like frenzy had dropped the potion. According to that awakened one’s testimony—

After clearing the entire horde of attacking monsters, the items were scattered so chaotically that it was impossible to tell which one had dropped the [Elixir]. Typically, the loot composition of a gate differed slightly between the minions and the boss monsters. More precisely, it was the rule beyond that blue corridor that dungeon bosses prepared the better rewards.

‘Well, the [Elixir] could very well be a drop exclusive to the boss monster…’

At this point, should she move on to explaining the next slide of the presentation?

Esther thought for a moment. In fact, it’s not like she hadn’t considered such an obvious option. Initially, she could share the dungeon for a set period to observe it. If the desired item didn’t appear, only then would she fully determine ownership of the dungeon. Esther had originally intended to propose something along these lines, a somewhat utilitarian approach. Being the one who had first discovered the dungeon, she even considered leveraging that fact to request boss-hunting rights—but that was merely a thought.

“Everyone, I truly apologize.”

At that moment, a voice sprang from the dark corner of the room where the projector’s light couldn’t reach.

“So then—if the boss monster must be killed… would you transfer the hunting rights to me?”

For reference, the tone was one of such desperation that no one could possibly ignore it.

“Ah.”

“Um… I think I’ve been living my life diligently all this time.”

“Hunter Jung Haseong…”

“To be honest, at this point, I’ve truly worked hard for Korea. Really! I’ve devoted myself to work every single day like never before in my life.”

“Just calm down for a moment. There are ordinary people here who are sensitive to mana…”

“Besides, even this very morning! I woke up thinking about how to make this country safer.”

In this world, there’s a term called “cold-blooded.” It refers to someone so composed that you might suspect their body and blood are made of cold iron instead of flesh. Or it’s usually a label given to those who are excessively individualistic or selfish. Cold-blooded. And the hero sitting on the east side of this room had once been given this nickname too, thanks to their uniquely flawless way of handling tasks, but…

“Please.”

But in this moment, it was different. Jung Haseong truly gave off the impression of warm blood flowing through him as he lamented in painstaking detail.

“I have a patient with a magic power addiction in my house……”

Back in school, he had been a top student. Moreover, he had awakened at the S-rank, leading a life where he rarely had cause to complain. He had never imagined that he’d end up sharing personal stories in a social setting like this. Yet Jung Haseong couldn’t even think about his pride—he scrambled and made his plea in earnest.

“Ot, others, other diseases can somehow be treated, right? Medical science has advanced a lot…! Nowadays, there are hardly any illnesses that humans can’t do anything about.”

“Haseong-ssi.”

“I’ll be honest. I… really, desperately need this dungeon. Please, I’m asking you to grant me the right to clear it.”

A man whose widowed mother, who had raised him with utmost care since childhood, still couldn’t open her eyes—there was no way he could remain rational in front of an elixir. On top of that, Jung Haseong was relatively low on funds even among S-rank hunters.

‘Well, if the dungeon entry ticket actually fetches a proper price, Haseong wouldn’t stand a chance, of course.’

He had been fooled by the former association president’s claim that it was “for the safety of the citizens” and ended up donating several years’ worth of items.

‘Even thinking about it again, I want to kill Go Byeongdo. Although I kept him alive to make his suffering last longer.’

Being an awakener with a fairly long period of activity, Esther already knew how things would unfold.

Eventually, her heart wavered. By nature, she was stingy toward her own kind due to her innate talent with curse skills, yet she still retained a basic sense of compassion.

“Transfer?”

Meanwhile, just as the guild master of the Korean Magic Tower Guild was deep in thought, someone interjected into the conversation.

“That’s a bit strange.”

She never imagined there could be someone stingier than a cursed awakener in this world.

“Of course, Hunter Jung Haseong deserves praise for working so hard all this time, but using that as a reason to demand the nation’s precious gate… well, that’s a bit off.”

So he’s really trying to pick a fight. Esther thought at that moment. More precisely, she recalled a certain raid she had witnessed before. She didn’t know the exact mechanics, but Jung Haseong’s entire body would transform into blue flames, scorching the surroundings… It seemed he had recently awakened that powerful skill. Anyone who had seen the growth of a fire-attribute awakened hunter firsthand couldn’t help but come to that conclusion.

‘With that kind of power, wouldn’t even fellow S-rank hunters be reduced to ashes in no time?’

But what is Kang Changho so confident about all the time? Could it be that he’s been living without watching the news and has no idea that the hero has grown stronger? Is that why he acts so excessively nonchalant?

‘The more I look at him, the more shameless he seems.’

He was a rather rare mixed-race among Koreans, so his nose was noticeably prominent. For a moment, Esther thought about smashing Kang Changho’s nose, but—

Whatever the case. The low-voiced man soon picked up where he left off.

“You won’t get everything just by saying you’ve worked hard until now and will continue to work hard in the future.”

“…”

“By that logic, the South Korean government could just use the [Elixir] to recruit foreign S-rank Hunters.”

“You mean by staking a Knight’s Oath, or something similar…”

Kang Changho currently had his hands clasped together over his stomach.

Moreover, he was sitting in the chair in a slightly reclined, comfortable manner, but when Jung Haseong said something, he finally adjusted his posture.

“To speak the truth, you, the number one ranked, are basically trying to buy the item out of pity.”

Kang Changho now rested his chin on one hand.

“Unfortunately, most people in modern society dislike this kind of approach.”

Whether this was a show of self-pity wasn’t clear.

“No, do you really have to scold me like that?”

Jung Haseong was hit like a blow to the head by Kang Chang-ho’s words. As he naturally criticized his own actions, he couldn’t come up with any defense. In the sudden silence that followed, an infuriated Esther spoke up in a sharp, formal tone on someone else’s behalf.

“Scolding?”

“How on earth does someone like this come out of the same South Korean public education system? Ah, right—you did study abroad, didn’t you?”

“Hunter Esther. Your tone has been a bit…”

“Ugh, I can’t hold back my cursing anymore, you damn bastard!”

The vice president of Neo Sisters, who had inadvertently witnessed the argument, tensed up, fearing a fight might break out. Yet even after hearing all of Esther’s words, Kang Changho’s expression remained unchanged.

“As expected, things get complicated whenever I step out into society.”

Hunter, wearing a slightly sullen smile and a slightly sullen expression, muttered a few words.

“Still, being around others like this is a bit less boring than being alone.”

Tuk.

Kang Changho slightly moved his clasped hands to the side.

“All right, let me make one thing clear. I’m actually fully on the side of the person ranked number one over there.”

“What?”

It was a statement that undeniably drew a rebuttal.

“If a single Elixir can keep the nation’s hero alive, it’s a small price to pay. Surely our Jung Haseong wouldn’t just take the treatment and run off abroad with his family, would he?”

“T, that’s right.”

“But the reason you’ve been nitpicking all this time is that, in the conference room, you’re trying to decide the boss hunting rights just among the people present…”

“…”

“Because, in many ways, it’s not exactly an ideal setup.”

“From the perspective of those who haven’t had a chance to voice their opinions, it could feel unfair.”

“But still, not all of a nation’s rules are decided by a majority vote of its citizens.”

For reference, the indoor air was dry due to the air conditioning. However, Kang Changho spoke normally, without clearing his throat or anything.

“Anyway, if it leaks outside, it’s still a problematic matter. So, now that the risks have been sufficiently warned…”

Since his goal had been singular from start to finish, uttering the next words was hardly difficult.

“Listen carefully. I’ll keep the fact that you shared information about the Elixir completely secret.”

“What did you say?”

“Anyway, I never intended to directly tackle such a precious gate. As you, Director Seo Esther, said earlier, there really isn’t enough cash to use in the auction.”

“Huh.”

“The part where I said I had a lot of money was obviously just boasting and a lie.”

Kang Changho continued to insist.

“In return, I want you to promise me just this one thing.”

This was the main point he truly wanted to make.

“Whether you use the item to help Jung Haseong, to save a tuberculosis patient, or split it among yourselves to make soup—it’s none of my concern.”

“Huh.”

“But if the elixir actually appears, I’d really like you to show me the real thing at least once.”

“Why? Planning to snatch it while looking at it?”

“If that’s uncomfortable, no problem—just let the appraiser I bring in later examine it.”

“Are you serious?”

“I just want to collect information on rare items. I’ve always been like this. Besides, in the age of Dungeon Shock, it’s not exactly an unusual hobby, is it?”

As he stated directly, the reason Kang Chang-ho had made the atmosphere so uncomfortable until now was simple. He could have spread rumors at any time and thrown the area around the [Elixir] gate into chaos—but he didn’t. Because he intended to make demands from the people present here under the pretext of keeping them quiet.

‘This is ridiculous.’

The proposal that Kang Chang-ho had thrown out was, in many ways, repulsive. In her heart, she wanted to tell him to just get lost, to outright reject the suggestion. But to be honest, given the circumstances, that was easier said than done.

‘Surely there’s justification for confirming a ranking system through the Association, and anyway, even if an auction were held, one of us would end up taking the dungeon…’

What if she refused this request and the appearance of the [Elixir] Gate actually spread worldwide? How would anyone handle that chaos then?

‘Perhaps, the association president, seduced by the prospect of enormous tax revenue, might fall for someone else’s arguments.’

Ssshk.

A few people quietly pressed their fingers to their foreheads. And after a brief moment of contemplation, they came up with this thought.

‘Somehow, we have to solidify the association’s stance here. That would be far more advantageous.’

Anyway, this gate will remain open for the next six months or so. There’s no need for anyone to buy it outright for an astronomical sum from the very start.

‘If you painstakingly buy it only for the items to not appear by chance, that would be a huge loss.’

Since everyone present shared that thought, the subsequent conversation flowed smoothly and quickly.

-What should we do?

-What can we do…

-That’s what they’re like.

-If things go wrong, they’ll make a fuss and cause trouble without hesitation.

They decided to reluctantly accept the intruder’s request. For now, while the Elixir Gate remained a secret, those gathered at the table calmly proceeded to settle the remaining matters.

Muttering.

There’s no need to keep the room dark any longer.

By now, the Hunter Association’s conference room was bathed in bright electric light. Just when it seemed the meeting could finally wrap up without incident…

[Tiring.]

[Beep.]

It was still too early to properly decide who would claim ownership of the boss monster. Jung Ha-seong, sweat pouring down his forehead, fumbled for his phone. But the notification that just came through wasn’t his.

“Huh? What’s this?”

Neo Sisters. Korean Magic Tower. In short, only the major guilds in South Korea that were aware of the Elixir Gate received the notification.

“No. What…”

The guards they had stationed in front of the gate were now surrounded by citizens.

“The other hunters?”

“Did Director Seo receive a report as well?”

“They say another guild has already arrived at the dungeon after hearing the news?”

Has the legendary alchemical potion monster already been exposed? As this news reached them, the dry atmosphere in the room shifted instantly. However, the person standing on this side wasn’t completely oblivious either.

“It wasn’t me.”

Ssshk.

The awakened individual, who had been lingering without leaving, soon began to explain. He playfully raised both hands, as if expressing innocence. f81769756925
“Ah, it’s always sad when people automatically think someone’s bad just because they have a criminal record.”

“Sad? Then just spit that out instead of talking nonsense.”

“Still, since we’re in front of young people protecting the country, I’ll specially hold back. If I may give some free advice, in situations like this, it’s best to first be suspicious of the Gate Investigation Team that initially handed over the materials.”

“Damn it.”

“If you sell the info to ten people, your pay per hour would be ten times higher.”