Chapter 508. What's With You (2) |
Chapter 508. What's With You (2)
The alien did not bother hiding his displeasure and even took a subtle step back. However, since mere thoughts alone wouldn't effectively convey his feelings to the other person, he eventually spoke up.
"Why are you being nice all of a sudden?"
Even an alien lifeform could perceive the shift in Kang Changho's attitude. That was why Kim Giryeo asked, and the reaction he received in return was something to behold.
"He's sweating."
Kang Changho fell silent. Moreover, the man shifted his head, struggling to avert his gaze for a while. These were reactions that could only be described as hesitation.
"A guy like him is breaking into a cold sweat while agonizing over something?"
What exactly was the issue? It was right around the time the suspicion deepened within Kim Giryeo. Kang Changho finally reopened his mouth and spoke. His words came haltingly, difficult to grasp at once, but in summary they amounted to this: if you became aware of a being like yourself, would you really remain the same?
The explanation Kang Changho added afterward made even him nod slightly.
"Hmm."
"It's likely a disgusting proposal, but if a psychic like you happens to get their feelings hurt, unfortunately, as a citizen of Seoul, I'd end up losing all my expensive properties."
The man with bluish-purple hair wiped away his cold sweat and immediately composed himself.
"Besides, it's not really something to complain to you about. No matter how I behave, in the end it's all up to you."
Whether this was treating a powerful person with the same kind of deference he usually reserved for himself.
"I'm sorry for failing to recognize and serve you properly until now."
Had he only just realized the regrettable situation? Kim Giryeo, having received acknowledgment at last, briefly considered dropping formal speech. But at least in this country, one could not casually disrespect elders—though for some reason, the matter with Jeong Haseong had been permitted thanks to netizens' bizarre speculations—so he gave up the thought.
"Anyway, Director Kim. Now that you've expanded your guild, you must have more work. Is there really nothing you want help with? Hm?"
What followed were solely Kang Changho's words.
"The guild..."
It was quite difficult to bring up the subject of the business.
"Since the expansion, the atmosphere has certainly stabilized into the way I originally envisioned."
Bonsai Management. Or, like a so-called "auto-battle" system, the Kim Giryeo Guild was running smoothly today. There were, however, a few... unexpected problems caused by the guild members, but since speaking of them only brought heartache, he decided to omit them.
"In that case, could you bring me a few items I specify? Some of them are specialties from overseas dungeons."
Since he insisted so much on helping, Kim Giryeo selected a difficult and expensive request to test Kang Chang-ho's sincerity. It happened that he was currently crafting new equipment using [Mystic Core] as the primary material.
"Sure. I'll do that."
"Oh."
"Ah, but if I go overseas, it'll be harder to monitor things. Then shall we form a [Knight's Oath] first?"
"What?"
"Don't worry about the payment. I already have the artifact in my item box."
"That's a bit..."
"Let's write one right now so you don't feel uneasy."
"It's burdensome."
There was brief friction over the contract, but it didn't last. The two 5-rank Hunters of the Republic of Korea soon came to an amicable agreement. The Archmage, capable of tracking the man even abroad, graciously granted him freedom instead.
"I listed every ultra-rare artifact I wanted, but even for an heir to a fortune, can he really acquire those?"
At the moment the sambaegan eyes man still looked suspicious, the large Korean, who had been sitting uncomfortably, rose. While preparing to leave, he issued a quiet warning.
"Hunter Kim Giryeo. For the time being... it would be best if you stayed in Korea as much as possible, even if nothing special happens."
To this, the Archmage haded a guess as to the reason.
"Is it because the headhunters' ill-intentioned solicitations are expected to continue?"
Kang Changho had said earlier that he would personally go around catching the pests, but since they had reached a certain agreement, he would now be focusing more on obtaining the artifacts.
"That's not something to worry about too much."
So that prediction was wrong. Kang Changho didn't exactly deny the matter of overseas interest, but he brought up a different topic at this point.
"The real problem is that gate difficulty is about to spike for a while."
"Spike?"
This was coming from the 5-rank physical enhancer who, until now, hadn't cared whether the country went to ruin or not. Thus, Kim Giryeo pondered for a moment with a serious attitude.
"It's likely not because it's hungry."
Earth had suffered significant damage from this transparent fish dungeon. It was saddened to make such an evaluation based on the loss of human life. Regardless, because the boss inside the Great Dungeon had been too strong, nations lacking hunters had already suffered many civilian casualties.
"If the opponent were a Gisimche, this would have been enough to make it feel quite full."
Moreover, the gates he analyzed in spiritualized form... Their structure had been eerily similar to the "food boxes" he knew. So why predict even greater difficulty?
"Why is such a phenomenon expected?"
Kim Giryeo asked directly. Apparently the warning was influenced by hidden statistics.
"Unfortunately, it seems our countermeasures weren't fast enough."
"What?"
"The incident regarding [Artificial Awakening] has escalated more than expected."
"_-_"
"So many people bought the experimental data that artificial awakening experiments are still actively being carried out in countries with poor human rights protections."
"Have Awakened truly increased?"
"Because of that, the clear rate of gates in densely populated areas has risen excessively, and it's likely to turn into a problem soon."
"Oh my."
"But don't worry, I'll handle the matters regarding [Artificial Awakening] experiments myself. You just focus on protecting Korea properly."
"Hmm..."
"You might want to sigh, but it can't be helped. Come to think of it, the dungeon has always subtly caused misunderstandings on its own quite often."
The assessment that the gate was like a delusional patient with a high frequency of misunderstandings was by no means a positive one.
"I suppose it can't be helped."
The alien owner of a small guild reluctantly accepted the warning. Since there were no measures to be taken immediately, their conversation concluded smoothly at this point.
***
Then, a few days later. Tuesday. Today was a day to work like a diligent hunter. And just as Kang Chang-ho had said, it was a day where the gate difficulty truly fluctuated once again.
"What is this now."
It would have been fine if the opponent were simply strong, but the magical beast before him even possessed a bothersome ability. To explain, the identity of the beast that appeared this time was a rat. More precisely, a rat b*stard.
"They said only five monsters escaped from the new dungeon..."
However, because their giant incisors were imbued with sorcery perfectly tailored for modern society, I was currently in a position where I had to run around frantically to prevent the sinister rat monsters from causing further damage.
"Does it mean that if those things scurry around and gnaw on a nearby telephone pole, a massive amount of energy is immediately absorbed...?"
A battle that continued relentlessly, like the relationship between a virus and the immune system. Just when I thought I was getting used to it, another bizarre enemy appeared. Just when the hunters finally managed to increase their numbers, a stronger enemy of the next level arrived.
"Does the gate creator want to check the limits of human anger?"
A reasonable suspicion arose. But since I couldn't kill the culprits of this Dungeon Shock right now.
"Squeak!"
"Aaaah! Hunters! Over here! Here!"
"Don't provoke it! Those with low awakening levels, move this way!"
I moved according to association staff reports and eliminated the beasts. As one could tell from this scene, the residents of Korea now frequently sought out the Fourth S-rank whenever a situation arose where their homes were in danger.
"I wonder if trusting an extraterrestrial being is fundamentally the right thing to do..."
The humans standing in a disheveled line sent expectant gazes. Occasionally, they even clapped. Of course, the Hunter Association Paid the S-rank a handsome wage for every deployment, so it was a decent daily life.
"You Earthlings, everyone finally sees my value properly now."
However, as always, once one began to stand out in the eyes of the people like the sun, a shadow would conversely begin to coil around. More accurately, it was exactly as the information shared by the 3rd S-rank hunter had suggested.
"Anyway, I wonder if 'those' kinds of humans will cling to me today?"
Lately, headhunters from regions that could be called great powers had been visiting one after another. Furthermore, a stranger had come and poked around the hospital where this body's mother was hospitalized. It wasn't something this body had observed directly, but according to the report from a staff member there, that was the situation.
"He doesn't have the obligation to tell me every little thing like this, but he's a quite kind nursing home director."
Men in suits visited day after day. Furthermore, they poked and prodded here and there, agonizing over how best to entice the Korean S-rank. Well, since it was their job as headhunters, he could let that part slide to some extent.
But if humanity's attention persisted and someone discovered he was a fake mammal?
"For starters, I can't suppress all those people through fear like a certain someone does."
It was troublesome. The interest from headhunters that had continued for several days made the mage uncomfortable. Therefore, he had taken action to resolve the aforementioned problem...
[Weekly|SpreadingLoveTV ● Live Broadcast]
It happened only twenty-four hours earlier. I, an extraterrestrial being, appeared for the first time on something called an internet broadcast while wearing the skin of someone named Kim.
"I've often been used as footage involuntarily, but voluntarily showing my face like this is truly rare."
Earning money through the simple conversational act of an interview. Of course, in the past, I had a very deep interest in such safe, high-income jobs.
[Weekly|SpreadingLoveTV]
Surprisingly, this video account with the long name was not for profit.
"Since undergoing the Second Awakening, I didn't necessarily need to choose easy money to earn a living..."
The appearance fee was negligible. Yet, I had shown my face on a medium that donated every bit of income generated by the video's view count.
[Weekly|SpreadingLoveTV]
[Playlist]
[1. Shopping at a traditional market in XX region...]
[2. The best budget lunch spot in △△ City!]
A video blog of an individual traveling to various regions. But as for why an S-rank hunter suddenly popped up in a video with such a common theme— I went there and praised "all kinds of culture handed only in the Republic of Korea" until my breath ran out. To explain it in more refined Earth terms, it was practically nationalistic worship.
[Hangul subtitles]
"Wow, even someone like Hunter Kim Gi-ryeo eats at ordinary Korean buffet places?"
"Rather, I almost (never go) to places like the M*chelin-certified restaurants that were brought up as examples earlier..."
"But your income must be incredible?"
"There's no time. Like Hunter Jeong Haseong, when you work, it's hard to use restaurants where the food takes a long time to come out."
"Ah!"
"But even putting all that aside, I've always liked these buffets. Ah, if it's Korean food, I really like all of it."
Blatant praise for his home country...! But of course, when an alien outsider suddenly performed extreme patriotic behavior, there had to be a calculated reason behind it.
Author's Thoughts
Hi, from now on, I will update this novel 3 chapters/week. Thank you for all your support so far:)