Chapter 477. With All Due Respect (7)

The Hunter of the Other World Who Is Being Misunderstood

Chapter 477. With All Due Respect (7)

A few days later, inside a corridor of the Korean Hunters Association. A light tapping sound echoed, like fingernails knocking against a smartphone screen. Along with that noise, a certain sentence took shape in one human mind.

Like the anguish of that individual, the world called Earth seemed to carry the collective PTSD from the dungeon shock, yet, at times, in barely a month, most of humanity had already forgotten the importance of safety. And the cluster known as Koreans seemed especially prone to laziness and complacency. Kim Giryeo. Until now, this alien by that name had always presented large-scale disasters before they could occur.

[◆LIVE Chat Room]

[Kim Giryeo Hates Korea~ Kim Giryeo Hates Korea~ Kim Giryeo Hates Korea~]

The series of online mockeries was closer to someone seeing where they could lie down before stretching their legs. Even though the number of lives the archmage had saved was so vast that it couldn't possibly be counted—even with countless fantasies.

[Post from 4 months ago]

[An S-rank but shady as hell ㅋㅋㅋ. Made enough money and immediately bailed into retirement ㅋㅋㅋ]

Human malice has always run deep. Even when it comes to something called "safety," losing what you once had feels far more infuriating than never having it at all—so humanity spent quite some time cursing the alien.

[Seoul] ★Top Central Noble Superior 5 River Ville Apartment Disaster Restoration Management Room★

And the era of such persecution has finally come to a clean end as of today.

[New Message]

[Is this the chat room that was said to attract attention-seekers and trolls?]

[People saying weird stuff... the admin has kicked them all out.]

[First of all, I'm proving that I'm a resident of the 5th floor (photo attached). Anyway, these trolls are hilarious ㅋ ㅋ.

Thanks to that Hunter, this luxury apartment didn't get destroyed, and hundreds of people's lives were saved, so of course we have to praise Kim Giryeo. And yet, some people can't stand that and start sending disgusting images!? ㅋ ㅋ ㅋ]

[Yeah, that's right. Form some weird site. Seems like they all came as a group ㅋ]

[Anyone who posts ghost photos will get their Messenger permanently suspended if reported. So if anything like that pops up again, make sure to hit the report button!]

It was a situation as if the ground had hardened after the rain. Kim Giryeo, as a reward for having overcome a series of crises, gained a stature that would never be diminished for the rest of his life.

[Anonymous Board]

[Jux***: Does this mean Kim Giryeo is now almost on par with Jeong Haeseong in terms of evaluation?]

[p***: Nah, if these two were to stand side by side, it would be so astonishing that you'd have to thank the one ranked d for giving the boost.]

Having slain all the terrifying monsters and even prevented the building from collapsing with his remaining strength, he was now readily mentioned as humanity's strongest Awakener.

[Gold S-Rank Hunter Experiences Side Effects of Mana Depletion... "Currently Stabilizing"]

On the other hand, he was on the verge of becoming an officially recognized frail superhuman.

"The scene of Hunter Kim Giryeo collapsing spread all over the internet."

Soon, a hand appeared, naturally showing rough skin and hangnails near the fingertips.

"Since it was a video quickly shared by a civilian on their phone, it's too late to correct it later with an announcement that he didn't actually cough up blood..."

The government official, fiddling with the phone with their rough hand, looked up.

"Will this really be okay?"

The person who had just looked up was a B-Rank Awakened working for the Hunter Association—namely, Seonwoo Yeon.

"Anyway, it's always the overzealous cults that cause trouble. The proper religions were actually trying to deny the monsters that appeared this time, but it's only these cults—whose names I've never even heard—flooding the streets and filming illegally as a group, and now this is the result..."

For a while, a stream of worries flowed through the person's mind.

"Fortunately, people on the internet didn't even start speculating that aliens were behind it. Still, just in case, I should teach Kim Giryeo how to report violations of his portrait rights."

For reference, she had come to this decision four days after the Seoul ground-destruction incident. However, the government official here had never actually been to the site. Moreover, they hardly knew what had happened since then...

"Hmm."

Recently, she had only heard about these events through the news, in one way or another. They said Kim Giryeo had been rushed to the hospital immediately after wiping out the cluster of monsters.

"It's already been four days."

Since the mage hadn't been heard from for several days, it left a restless feeling in the air. So one government official decided to take advantage of this downtime—when everyone else was glued to their phones—and try sending a message themselves for the first time in a long while.

[Me: Kim Giryeo, have you been discharged from the hospital yet?]

Ding ding.

But the reply came so quickly that it took her by surprise.

"What is this?"

It felt like less than ten seconds had passed, and suddenly a single message from the alien appeared on the screen.

[Hunter Kim Giryeo: S]

What could this be?

"Is it a typo?"

The government official moved her fingers. She had originally planned to ask a follow-up question about Kim Giryeo's condition. But just as the Hunter Association employee was about to finish typing her sentence, a message arrived from the other side.

[Hunter Kim Giryeo: Sorry, could you come visit me ++]

Of course, it wasn't a difficult request.

***

Bang! Crush!

"Hunter, are you okay?"

Inside a medical facility in the capital. The off-duty government official immediately headed to the VIP section of the hospital. For reference, all the permissions had already been secured in advance. But all the frantic rushing over, worried that someone else might know she seriously ill, turned out to be unnecessary when a very particular scene unfolded before her eyes.

"First of all, I'm fine.

To be precise, a human in a hospital gown was lying sideways quite comfortably, propping their head up with one arm while one leg was bent up in the shape of the letter 'ㅅ'. In the patient's hand was a martial arts novel—borrowed from who knows where.

"What is this?"

In plain terms, he looked like a "faking patient." But the patient didn't stop there and began saying something even more unexpected.

"By the way, I really appreciate you coming all the way here. Actually, there's something I'd like to ask you."

"What?"

"I'll pay you. Please, go to the auction house in front of the three-way intersection and buy some potions for me."

"...?"

Below the neck. On the abdomen. And even across the entire arm, which had the most wounds. For reference, the appearance of the injuries looked like strange cracks, almost as if lightning had been etched into the skin. There was a reason why the alien creature had been completely immobilized in the hospital room.

"For your information, this room is completely free from eavesdropping or surveillance, so feel free to speak openly..."

Tak.

The mage gently closed the martial arts novel he had been reading and spoke.

"As you can see, my body's in this state, so I haven't been able to move properly for several days."

"My goodness... that's terrible."

"Besides, this isn't something that can be fixed with primitive planet technology. At this point, I need to stop killing time and solve it by drinking potions."

"Are you able to recover on your own?"

"Phew, of course."

This was the reason he had called Seonwoo Yeon.

"But unfortunately, it seems that the Korean delivery apps—where you'd expect to find everything—don't have an 'Artifact' category..."

"So that's why you suddenly asked me to buy potions for you."

"Seonwoo Yeon, we're still friends, right? Then just run this errand for me, please. Just once! I'll make sure to pay you, even up to the legal limit for service fees."

Come to think of it, when she was a child, she had assumed that encountering an alien lifeform would involve something like this.

"Being placed on a cold silver lab table. Or being swept up by the light pouring from a flying saucer and abducted into the air."

In reality, aliens at most just use acquaintances as potion shuttles. Seonwoo Yeon reflected on these thoughts, moving her head like an owl. However, hitting her head to one side didn't mean she was refusing. It was just that the unexpected situation had made her briefly relax the muscles in her neck.

"I understand the situation."

The government official, her hair hanging like a black curtain, spoke sincerely.

"Then I'll head to the auction house later and take care of it. If we explain the situation properly, there's no problem with someone else picking up the potions on your behalf."

"Oho."

"For reference, you can just deposit the payment into the government account I'll collect it from there."

"I was originally willing to even cover the transfer fee myself..."

"Kim Giryeo's identity and rank are completely solid. Honestly, what reason would the auction house have to give you a hard time?"

"The only real obstacle... is probably just the fact that I accepted a personal favor from an S-rank Hunter."

But then, Kim Giryeo suddenly felt a sense of déjà vu from what Seonwoo Yeon had mentioned.

"A personal favor."

This was definitely a topic that often appeared on TV, wasn't it?

[Current Affairs Investigative Channel]

[High-Ranking Superhuman Caught Using Government Official as Personal Secretary for Errands; Police Investigation Underway]

A few seconds later, both the alien and Seonwoo Yeon had similar thoughts. However, the man named Giryeo didn't seem to care much, even though he could foresee the future. After all, he was already used to notoriety...

"Anyway, in the end, I'm the one who takes all the criticism, so it doesn't matter. Honestly, since my retirement attempt, my image has already been damaged, so even if a few reports get filed, it won't make a difference."

"No, but these days it seems like you've fully recovered your reputation and are being treated like a hero again."

"Me?"

Kim Giryeo still rested his chin on his hand as he participated in the conversation.

"What? Have netizens' opinions changed again in the meantime?"

What followed was a lighthearted conversation. Since evaluations of people, in plain terms, all over the place like a mixed stock, the situation felt strange in many ways from the alien's perspective.

"You're not just receiving light praise—Kim Giryeo, you're now another hero of our country."

Seonwoo Yeon said.

"Honestly, you've always deserved that recognition. This incident just made the public treat you on the same level as Hunter Jeong Haeseong."

"Hmm."

"There's even a lot of online talk comparing it to having two suns. In that sense, you could say Korea has become like a binary star system, just like someone's hometown."

"Oh, hahaha."

The middle metaphor even stirred the patient on the bed. While Kim Giryeo laughed with his mouth wide open, Seonwoo Yeon, who was smiling alongside him, began to speak.

"Oh, right. Anyway, Giryeo-ssi, since we're on the topic, this is something I wanted to bring up."

"Yes, yes."

"First of all, I understand that the situation was resolved well, but how on earth did you recover your mana so quickly on the scene?"

"Recover?"

"The American Hunter Association released a statement. I could explain it in detail, but... it mentioned that when you returned to the country, you were in a state of mana depletion."

"Ah~ that, that's..."

But really, what was going on with this...

What are you talking about?

"Yes?"

"Actually, what happened that day was only possible because Earth helped. Moreover, this kind of special phenomenon will also be useful when traversing the immense hyperspace known as a Gate."

Kim Giryeo, who had been lying down, sat up. The true mage, lifting his gaze, finally revealed the biggest card he would use to defeat the dungeon. This was also why a mage could remain so composed even when facing a tremendous being like a Goische.

"Do you not understand what I just explained?"

"Of course not."

"Then shall we start from the basics? Just as humans have always wondered about the origin of fire, the Alphan have always tried to uncover the secrets hidden within magic."

"Hmm."

"In the process, the Alphan discovered that the mana within living beings is a key component of miracles."

The discovery of the role of internal mana. In terms of some planet, it's roughly equivalent to realizing that oxygen is used in combustion reactions. But what followed was nothing short of shocking.

"Even moderately evolved animals could wield magic with just a tiny bit of consciousness."

"Yes."

"Let me ask you a question at this point. Humans recover their mana when they sleep, right? In other words, simply by surviving, they continuously produce mana."

"Yes."

"But where did the initial mana that actually awakened us as mages come from?"

"Yes?"

"The location where energy is produced is obvious—underground! But that's according to the rules so far. The entity responsible for that mana is actually unlikely to be entirely inorganic."

The Earthling, who had loved literature since school days, couldn't quickly grasp this non-literary explanation. However, with the alien's patient explanation, she—unfortunately—began to get a rough idea of this incredible truth.

"The Alphan have hypothesized that there must be a living being inside the planet's core that generates mana."

"Y, y, yes?"

"To put it more bluntly, you could say that beneath the ground of every planet capable of miracles, there's a tiny 'god of magic.'"

Seonwoo Yeon, unwilling to accept what she had just understood, spoke reflexively.

"No, in that—that's... when, if you analyze it with science, I learned in school that the inner core is just made of hot iron..."

But the alien firmly refused her.

"Have you ever split a planet in half and seen the inside yourself?"

"Yes?"

"The mage wasn't staring blankly like a madman; as usual, his reasoning shone with clarity.

"I asked if you've ever split a planet's core and seen it yourself."

"... No."

"But, honestly, observation itself isn't even that important. In some ways, it's naive to think that the master of such mysteries would be visible to our eyes."

Whoosh.

Kim Giryeo roughly tossed the book he was holding onto the top of a drawer. Then he continued.

"But there's a reason why I, as a scholar, believe in such absurd hypothesis."

"How..."