Chapter 509. What's With You (3) |
[The Hunter Daily]
[Strong Opinions on Kim S-Rank Naturalization... "There's No Place Better Than One's Birthplace"]
This was a persona deliberately shown to the people of the great powers who had taken an interest in the individual known as Kim Giryeo.
[[Breaking] Top-tier Hunter Appears on Streaming Channel. First Words Out Of Mouth: OOOO?]
[Report: Kim Giryeo stated he does not wish to stay long in a country without acorn jelly.]
[Comments]
• [Trkawi: Reporter... what exactly is this supposed to mean!?]
If an S-rank Hunter revealed almost obsessive love for his homeland, no one in their right mind would attempt to scout him.
'Just as everyone refrains from making contact with Zhan, who is clearly a powerful mage...'
'I think it should be fine since I'm keeping my expression neutral, but it would be troublesome if my beloved bug—human—specimens were used in the scouting process.'
A way to refuse politely without emphasizing his true weakness. At this level, it was a rather genius outcome.
'I couldn't exactly talk about live octopus out of nowhere on a major network like YTV News. It was unavoidable...'
The S-rank Hunter's sudden live broadcast naturally caused a stir. It's difficult to explain in detail because the internet was such a mess. To put it simply, this blond body had earned a new nickname: [The Patriotic Hunter].
'If a celebrity did something like this, such reactions are inevitable.'
Nevertheless, I was satisfied. After the streaming video was uploaded, no more proposals regarding naturalization came in.
"Waaah!"
"Hunter Kim Giryeo!"
"I love you so much!"
"They aren't screaming just because of my appearance, right...?"
Mission accomplished. I thought so calmly and finished my tasks.
—Thud!
Ah. As for why a dull sound effect suddenly occurred here, it was for this reason.
"Giryeo-ssi. Did you buy new equipment?"
I had recently sold some dungeon rewards for cash. With that money, I purchased new equipment at an auction.
[Grade: Unique]
The level of contained magical power was mediocre. However, boasting a long body of a whopping 180cm that made its presence clear even from a distance...
[Name: World Tree Staff]
Well, there it is. On Earth, for some reason, this seemed to be the item that naturally followed the word "Mage."
'Later, I should pour in all sorts of materials and craft my main equipment in this exact form. It's a perfect plan.'
The moment I saw this long magical weapon, I thought, 'I've finally found the answer key.' The orbs that Esther occasionally used tended to have the weapon's power concentrated in the center. To use a metaphor, it was like handling electricity without any insulation, so of course, there were many inefficient aspects. But this tool called a staff protected the core where the magic flowed out in a more refined and grandiose manner.
'It's limited to the old era, but surely there were warriors on Alphauri who occasionally used tools of this form.'
Not bad for primitives. I liked the structure of the staff enough for such high praise to come to mind. So for now, I was just using a decent staff as a sort of trial run for the tool I would craft in the future...
—Click, click!
Apparently, I was using the tool a bit strangely. Judging by that camera sound just now.
'Esther keeps staring at the part of the staff stained with monster fluids.'
When a companion reacts clearly, even an alien lifeform quickly notices.
"Hunter Esther."
"Uh, yes?"
"By the way, is there something wrong with how I use my staff?"
If so, let's talk to the witness and pinpoint the strange part.
"It's not exactly wrong."
Esther hesitated briefly before explaining.
"Usually, one doesn't use the end of a beautiful magic wand to bash a monster's head in."
Using the staff as a long blunt weapon... was that the problem?
"Good heavens."
Just as she said, I had primarily been swinging the staff. Since the monsters scattered around were mostly low-rank, the situations were resolved with physical attacks alone. But I never imagined this method would look strange.
'But if you can't strike the enemy in the first place... why did the magic tool need to be so long...?'
In my hometown, this was normal. To think I'd be treated as someone lacking common sense just because the location changed.
'Did they not make such a composite weapon for the purpose of fighting with dignity while keeping as much distance from the magical beast as possible?'
At first, I was happy because I could hit enemies with a tool much longer than something like a longsword. But I shouldn't take this thought lightly. I rolled my eyes and did some pondering. However, even so, I couldn't fully understand the human mind, so I tentatively asked for further explanation. To this, Esther revealed the detailed mammalian circumstances.
'So it was a matter of concentration.'
It turned out Earth's residents could rarely cast spells and respond physically at the same time, giving rise to a culture that valued staffs. If they sacrificed one hand's freedom for a magical staff, they likely played a key role in team techniques—large waves, or group buffs.
But then again, to cast such high-intensity magic, a primitive would naturally have to be nailed to the spot.
'Furthermore, the perception that a shaman's body is weak apparently existed even before the Dungeon Shock. It's a coincidence, but quite fascinating...'
Additionally, it seems that many staves coming out of dungeons are flimsy, with many being the type that shatter if the crystal ball area is struck. Various factors acted in combination to make the gentle utilization of a staff the norm.
Well, the direction for future correction was clearly set. When making a new weapon, I should design the head to be as sturdy as possible, and I must not swing the staff recklessly in front of people. With that resolve, I finally dispatched the last of the monster specimens.
—Squeak!
—Squeak, squeak!
Two S-ranks had come out because the Hunter Association said it was an urgent matter. Honestly, at this level, I thought there was no need to even see Esther's face.
"Are these really the last ones?"
"Yes, yes! All escaped entities confirmed, and we've taken measures regarding their nests to thoroughly block the entrances."
Now, back to casual discourse.
"Perfect timing—it's lunch hour..."
Click.
Checking the current time on my phone, I spoke like a true Earthling.
"Director Esther. The work is done, so would you like to go eat a baekban with me later?"
For the record, the restaurant I just mentioned is a place that only takes orders for a minimum of two people. It's a rather trivial reason to make use of the owner of a massive corporation.
"Baekban? Oh, sounds great!"
But since the other party had affirmed it like this.
"Right. Talking about food suddenly reminded me of something strange."
"What is it?"
"Hunter Moritake Ito."
"Ah, Japan's top fire-attribute hunter."
The conversation flowed. Actually, I had omitted it because it was unimportant information, but surprisingly, Japan's representative S-rank hunter had set foot on Korean soil during the Great Dungeon incident. Of course, Esther, who had requested additional reinforcements by proxy, had her own reasons.
'When I went inside to catch the transparent fish. Outside, a certain local gate accidentally caused a break, adding to the chaos.'
So, Esther had hurriedly left for a place called Muju-gun, and she had called Moritake Ito to protect Seoul while she was away.
'I heard he ran into Jeong Haseong, who had escaped first, and ended up in a lot of awkward situations...'
There were some side effects. Still, with so many hunters gathered in the capital, the foreigner couldn't dream of anything negative. Even if he was called as an insurance policy, in the end, the Japanese man helped a lot with the field restoration work, so wasn't it fine?
'S-ranks are physically powerful, so they're useful.'
While I swallowed my words. The purple-haired hunter continued.
"But actually, Moritake Ito said something before returning to Japan."
"That was probably around the time I hurriedly went abroad to help."
"Yes, yes."
"So, what did the fire-attribute hunter say?"
"He asked if the gift he gave to Giryeo-ssi was still doing well...? Well, he asked me to check in like that."
A gift. I can't forget what the item mentioned here is even if I tried. Because what the Japanese hunters yielded was a [Legendary] grade armament. Korea, seemed rather grateful for being called....
But I couldn't bring myself to smile at Esther's words as she continuously delivered good news.
"Gift."
I only answered weakly while rolling my sambaegan eyes.
"Well, of course... it's doing fine."
If the Japanese people found out that the [Greatsword of the Sun God], which was once a magnificent weapon, had changed into that state, they might fall ill and take to their beds. So, I hid my cold sweat as best I could and turned the subject of conversation back.
"Hunter Seo. By the way, aren't you hungry? The baekban place I found has an early break time, so I think we should get a seat as soon as possible..."
"Were you going to eat at a restaurant?"
"Yes."
For the record, the Number 1 hunter in the domestic rankings was currently touring various regions to clear dungeons. Jeong Haseong was like that even before my Second Awakening. I heard that this tour-hunt was being done in the company of his mother, visiting national tourist sites along the way.
'Building memories! A truly good thing.'
Well, the filial son is busy traveling with his family anyway, so it can't be helped. Seo Esther and I, who had come to the scene, went to eat lunch together without much thought it was a natural daily occurrence, with nothing that could be a problem.
Author's Thoughts
Hi, from now on, I will update this novel 3 chapters/week. Thank you for all your support so far:)