Chapter 443

Anyway, why is that person here...

‘She’s clearly in good shape overall, but her complexion looks pretty bad too.’

Kim Giryeo glanced at the woman in front of him for a moment. But since she was sitting there without any apparent difficulty, it didn’t seem like her health was in immediate danger. He finally asked why she had come.

“By the way, I’m a little surprised to receive an application so suddenly. How exactly did you come to find my guild?”

The tall, slender woman answered.

“I came here through Seonwoo Yeon-ssi’s introduction.”

Seonwoo Yeon. To think that name would come up now.

To give some background, there was a certain civil servant in her twenties in South Korea who possessed a strong sense of duty. One day, however, she witnessed a tragedy befalling her fellow citizens. Regretting that she had been unable to help people in difficult circumstances beforehand, she took action afterward.

She had given Choi Jin her personal contact information and said something along the lines of, “Since you’re a hunter, if anything ever comes up that needs to be handled through the Hunter Association, contact me. I’ll help as much as I can anytime...” In other words, she had already made it clear in advance that she was willing to help.

“The civil servant named Seonwoo Yeon—she’s quite young, isn’t she? But she’s a very kind person with a strong sense of responsibility.”

The hunter sitting on the folding chair spoke as she recalled the past.

“So she couldn’t just ignore my situation and ended up mentioning you to me while I was taking a break.”

At that moment, Choi Jin had her arms crossed as though hugging herself. She had often taken this posture during their previous conversations, so it seemed to be an unconscious habit, much like Kim Giryeo’s habit of touching the bridge of his nose.

“By the way, I can’t really ignore this, so I have to say it. Honestly, Kim Giryeo-ssi, you don’t seem to be doing very well right now.”

Hmph.

Once again, this was a guild run by an alien. Naturally, there were no thoughtfully prepared drinks or anything of the sort.

Choi Jin continued speaking with a dry mouth.

“I was incredibly immature, and I spent an entire season resenting you.”

“Yes?”

But what came next was unexpected.

“Do you remember the last conversation we had before we parted ways?”

“Of course.”

“I was the one who asked first, but after hearing what you told me about my sister’s circumstances, Kim Giryeo-ssi, I was completely lost for a while.”

“Hmm.”

“I kept wondering whether this man was lying just to hurt me. Maybe I was so pathetic that he saw right through me, hated me for it, and treated me that way... I spent my days blaming other people while entertaining those ridiculous thoughts.”

The tall Earth woman with unusually jet-black hair suddenly looked unwell. Cold sweat broke out across her skin as though she were nauseous. Kim Giryeo noticed belatedly and tried to stop the conversation. But Choi Jin, as though determined to get this one thing off her chest, waved her hands and finally managed to say it.

“But now that some time has passed, I can accept it.”

The guild master sitting across from her listened attentively.

“We acted like sisters who couldn’t live without each other, but honestly, even in the past, there were times when I hated my younger sister.”

“What did you say?”

“Just as she thought, there really were times when I considered my own family less capable than me.”

“Hmm.”

“On top of that, after my younger sister awakened and bit someone on the neck, she started to feel especially burdensome to me.”

Flinch.

At that point, the person who had once illegally drawn blood lowered his gaze, feeling guilty for no particular reason. Still, Kim Giryeo continued listening closely to his guest.

“Anyway, how can a person be so hypocritical? Back when I was in school, I only ever saw my sister as the weaker one, and I thought families with only sons must have it easy because they wouldn’t have to worry about things like we did...”

“Have you changed your mind now?”

“When the day finally came that my younger sister became strong enough to hurt other people—ah, honestly, I just wanted to close my eyes and die.”

“Oh my God.”

“It was the worst experience of my life.”

People naturally tended to belittle situations they believed they would never experience themselves.

And even if she had only felt uncomfortable with her younger sister inwardly, could those feelings really have been hidden completely?

“So, in the end, most things are like that. This must be the punishment I earned for spending my life mocking and looking down on other people’s pain.”

“Hunter Choi Jin.”

“How much do you think all the terrible thoughts I’ve had throughout my life unknowingly affected Jinhe?”

“...”

“It’s just that, overall, I... I made a lot of mistakes in that matter. It really was all my fault.”

Choi Jin stared straight ahead.

“So I hope that you, who did nothing wrong, don’t end up suffering too much because of this.”

The preamble had been rather long, but this was ultimately what she wanted to say.

“When I saw your face, Kim Giryeo-ssi, you looked completely haggard. I felt sorry for you and ended up saying a few things.”

He had been wondering why she had been blaming herself so heavily all this time. It seemed Choi Jin genuinely wanted to comfort the person in front of her by any means she could.

“But anyway, the really important point... isn’t this.”

Tuk.

The guest who had come to the building straightened her posture slightly. They finally began the real conversation face-to-face.

“I heard that Kim Giryeo-ssi has been having trouble recruiting guild members lately, haven’t you?”

Kim Giryeo answered immediately.

“Yes! But as I mentioned earlier, Choi Jin-ssi, your rank is far too high.”

“I understand. But please hear me out for a moment.”

What followed was the sound of an adult woman clearing her throat and barely swallowing in an attempt to moisten her dry mouth.

“Actually, I used to play something of a senior or veteran role at my previous company.”

“At [Faith]?”

“Because the CEO was trying to save on labor costs and ended up dumping all the little tasks, like training new employees, on me...”

“Just hearing that sounds horrifying.”

“Still, it wasn’t unbearably difficult. Maybe it was because it was my home turf. Strangely enough, the awakened people who joined were all mild-mannered and considerate.”

“Really?”

“To put it simply, our personalities meshed well. And once I taught them what they needed to know, they encouraged each other and worked quite well on their own.”

Unbeknownst to most people, the person sitting across from her was actually an alien. But since a certain Alphau had once had its name listed on corporate websites, the alien understood the hardships of office workers perfectly well and nodded in agreement.

And around that time—

“But this guild, which was full of such wonderful people, collapsed this year.”

A predictable story followed. A few scoundrels in the guild had been freely accumulating misdeeds, and perhaps it might have gone unnoticed if they had kept quiet—but the whole affair had even made the news.

“A considerable number of former [Faith] guild members are currently taking a break from work.”

“A considerable number?”

“Those with higher ranks can find work anywhere pretty quickly, so they’re fine...”

“Ah.”

“But these days, when high-level gates are scarce, how are F-rank people supposed to make a living as hunters?”

It was at that moment. As the conversation continued, Choi Jin’s position in this matter gradually became clear.

“So, to get straight to the point, because of my circumstances, I happen to know a few mid- to low-rank freelance hunters.”

“Don’t tell me.”

“They’re all people who have followed me since my previous guild. In fact, if you just give the word, Kim Giryeo-ssi, I can call them here right now.”

“Kim Giryeo-ssi?”

The hunter claimed that she could easily bring in the low-rank personnel this place needed. But the alien, distracted by something else, was momentarily slow to respond.

“Kim Giryeo-ssi?”

It was currently summer in the country they were in. And yet Choi Jin was wearing clothes that covered her entire neck in this sweltering heat...

“Hmm?”

Kim Giryeo found that odd and stared at her for a moment. Of course, given his circumstances, he had absolutely no sense of fashion, so he couldn’t really comment on it.

“Choi Jin-ssi, I’m sorry, but there’s no need to call hunters here just to repay me.”

Job hunting was something that required careful consideration. And what could anyone possibly trust about a company that didn’t even have its name listed on corporate review sites? Kim Giryeo, the head of a newly established guild, instead tried to discourage her.

“Of course, I didn’t come here just because of you.”

But Choi Jin immediately shook her head.

“More importantly, this guild has excellent conditions, doesn’t it?”

For one thing, the CEO was ‘that’ Kim Giryeo, so he wasn’t going to prey on hunters. And beyond that, the guild had plenty of other advantages.

“Anyway, for low-rank hunters, joining a guild is definitely more advantageous than working freelance.”

“Why?”

“There are a lot of benefits when it comes to health insurance and income tax.”

“Ah... Taxes. Right, taxes really are... something you absolutely have to take seriously.”

“Besides, even if awakened people of C-rank or lower join a large company, they generally don’t receive much support. So they might actually prefer a place like this guild, where raid rewards are heavily guaranteed.”

After asking permission, Choi Jin briefly raised her phone. Then she checked the detailed conditions of the [Kim Giryeo Guild] once again.

“Let’s see. First, F- to D-rank hunters are guaranteed a base salary, and there’s no separate deduction for appraisal fees.”

“Ah. Since the operation is so small, I’ll be appraising the loot myself...”

“Even looking at it again, the profit-sharing policy is absurdly favorable to the employees. I want to ask in advance, though—can a business actually survive with a ratio like this?”

Ssshk.

As the interviewee asked the question while looking at her phone, the guild master replied.

“I didn’t start this guild to make money in the first place.”

“Aha.”

“On the other hand, we don’t have much capital for reinvestment either, so there’s no chance we’ll be bidding for valuable gates like other guilds.”

“Still. Even so, this is a very good guild. Above all, there’s no homework.”

“What do you mean by ‘homework’?”

“Don’t they call it that in Seoul? I mean... I’m talking about the monthly minimum hunting quota.”

“Hmm.”

“Most guilds have a ‘homework’ system. Since they need to receive government subsidies, everyone has to take responsibility for a certain number of undesirable gates.”

Choi Jin had already gone through a major ordeal and was regularly attending psychological counseling. She had no desire to force herself into dreaded hunting grounds simply because professionals expected her to fulfill what they called “duties.” Of course, that didn’t mean she was particularly eager to go back to work either.

After weighing all the circumstances around her, the A-rank hunter finally spoke in a quiet voice.

“Since I’m bringing my people with me too, I’ve been extremely cautious about this. But still, I think I could work reasonably well under your leadership.”

At those words, Kim Giryeo let out a long, thoughtful sigh.

“Hmm.”

Until now, out of conscience, he had refused A-rank hunters. But Choi Jin was someone he had already helped before, and she was also someone he could trust with the work...

Moreover, having someone like her in the guild would make it much easier to protect rookies sent out on field explorations. In any case, things would become much easier going forward.

“Hmm.”

Kim Giryeo thought for a while, then nodded.

“Honestly, I’m already in over my head, so I don’t have much else to say. Then please help me out for a while.”

Not wanting someone who was already wounded to suffer a second time, he added one more warning.

“Choi Jin-ssi, though, I should tell you in advance—our guild really doesn’t offer much in the way of benefits.”

“Do as you please.”

“The only thing I can do is occasionally guard the site myself when abnormal mutations occur.”

At that, Choi Jin showed a strange reaction. The hunter, who had been slouching listlessly until then, suddenly raised her eyebrows, her eyes gleaming at the guild master’s words.

“...Wait a minute. If an S-rank personally shows up, isn’t that an incredible benefit?”

Of course, the reluctant alien worker did not react very positively.

“No. The truly incredible benefit this world can offer workers is a first-place lottery ticket so they can become unemployed. Anyway, since life is exhausting enough for both of us, let’s stop joking and get on with exchanging employment contracts.”

“Alright.”

“And please tell the lower-rank hunters who’ll be transferring here to contact me separately later...”

This was the solution.

“Our guild can finally operate normally.”

Kim Giryeo had a rather successful reunion with the owner of [Dragon’s Heart].

Their skills were guaranteed. And after quietly observing them, their personalities seemed reasonably decent as well. Securing personnel from a collapsed guild was an added bonus.

.

.

.

But if one were to ask how the guild operated after that, the answer was a little complicated.

“...”

A week later.

To be precise, Kim Giryeo still had not had his license restored, while the employees Choi Jin had brought over had already completed their onboarding. As for the previously restricted A-rank hunter being added to the roster, netizens seemed to conclude on their own that it was probably because Choi Jin had already taken one of the spots.

“...”

The mage, managing a small guild for the first time in his life, checked his phone.

[010-xxxx-xxxx]

[Hello! Guild Master Kim Giryeo, I would like to sincerely congratulate you regarding the news article on ‘Top 3 Raid Records in a Newly Established Guild.’ If it’s not too much trouble, may I request an interview before the follow-up report...?]

However, despite his smartphone addiction, Kim Giryeo quickly lowered the electronic device in his hand.

“This is strange.”

This was truly a situation he had never anticipated.

“Why does the guild’s reputation keep rising all by itself?”

It felt as though something was going seriously wrong.