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n19. A-Rank Crack

n‘No kidding.’

nKo Byeong-gap felt a strong desire to smoke. He even took a pack of cigarettes out of his inner pocket. However, he took out one and put it back instead of biting it. It was because Kim Hana, who stood next to him, was bothered by it. So he just looked ahead.

nA sight where children who hadn’t even lost any baby fat on their cheeks slaughtered monsters.

nJane, Do Eun-ho, Kang Han-cheol. All three wielded their own giant sword the size of their own body. He was worried that they would cut off their own ears.

nWell, it was a useless worry. If a wildcat were worried about a lion, it would only make one laugh.

n“Kuga-ga-ga-bah!”

nThe monster that appeared with the horde of Gados was the Cabra, an insect-shaped monster with a dinosaur’s head on a spider’s body. It was the size of a small bus.

nGados and Cabras were strong monsters with sore mouths. If those monsters appeared in the middle of downtown, it wouldn’t be a problem for about 100 people to reach their ends.

nThere was a gap between the top 19% and the top 2%.

n“Kihak!”

n“Geeeek!”

n“Yuck!”

nJane, the girl with black hair and pale skin, seemed to be doing some kind of magic. That was because she was silent on the other side without coming into direct contact with their enemies.

nDo Eun-ho, the youngest boy with black hair had a lot of strength. He gave the impression that he was wielding a mountain instead of a sword, and he did it all with a blank stare.

nLastly, Kang Han-cheol, who he couldn’t catch with his eyes. If he were asked to catch any afterimage of him, bloodstains would rise far from where he was looking. The gray-haired boy wasted no time for blood.

nKim Hana used her hawk eyes as she watched the three children fight. It was like a robot lacking emotions. It had been about an hour and a half since they began the subjugation of that world.

nThere had been several battles so far, and Kim Hana never looked satisfied.

n‘What exactly are these people?’

nKo Byeong-gap couldn’t shake his thoughts. They didn’t go round the cracks to make money.

n‘I think she’s doing some kind of test…’

nHe was lost in thought as he looked at Kim Hana’s side. A monster sprang up from the front.

n“Argh!”

nIt was a Gados. The one who jumped high fell and aimed at Ko Byeong-gap and Kim Hana.

nKo Byeong-gap gulped down and instinctively grabbed the handle of his sword, but it wasn’t his turn to step up.

nAs the Gados approached 5 meters ahead, its body suddenly exploded with a bang.

n‘Wha… What just happened?’

nShrik!

nKim Hana took her sword. Ko Byeong-gap couldn’t even gauge what had happened.

n‘The woman did that? She was just standing next to me. When did she ever do that?’

nKo Byeong-gap alternately looked at the body of the Gados, which had been shredded into a thousand pieces, and Kim Hana.

n“… Ttt!”

nKim Hana bit her lips tightly. She looked angry no matter who looked at her.

n‘She’s angry again…’

nIt seemed that she didn’t like the fact that they missed the monster in front of them. Ko Byeong-gap took a step back for nothing.

n‘By the way, isn’t it time for the boss monster to appear?’

nThey had probably eliminated 200 of them so far, and about 80 new monsters had almost been cleared up. The boss monster should appear at the latest.

n‘Well, let’s get ready for my job.’

nKo Byeong-gap hummed and took his hand with a dagger tied to his belt. That was the moment…

n‘…?!’

nHe sensed an instinctive threat beyond description. He felt like someone was putting a gun in the back of his head.

nHe didn’t have time to think and sleep. He quickly drew the long sword and swung it behind him.

nFlick!

nHis blade collided with something.

n“Ouch!”

nA tremendous shock was transmitted through his blade. His whole body trembled. Ko Byeong-gap saw the presence that brought his surprise, opening his eyes.

n‘Raven!’

nRaven. It was a humanoid-type A-rank monster about two meters tall. Its muscled body was grayish, and pipe-like blood vessels appeared all over its body. It had no features on its face, only eight red eyes.

nThe Raven was famous since it could freely transform its limbs. Currently, its arms were in the shape of a pointed wedge.

n‘You son of a bitch!’

nKo Byeong-gap’s body moved according to its instinct. He attacked by stepping on his footsteps and stabbed his sword in a momentary gap. The blade hit the Raven exactly on the neck. However, it didn’t even make a dent, let alone dig in.

nOops!

n“Damn, I should’ve used my Karma!’

nLow-level awakeners rarely used their Karma. What was there to do in the first place with Karma the size of a rat’s tail?

n0.1 seconds. No, a shorter time, perhaps half of 0.1 seconds.

nKo Byeong-gap, who made eye contact with the Raven, noticed a certain voice that flowed into his head.

n– Being that is different from us, what are you?

nThose were Raven’s words.

nSlurry!

nRaven played another game. It was its stealth function. It must’ve been the reason why it was able to approach without any hesitation.

nKo Byeong-gap hurriedly sent his Karma to his long sword when he recognized that he was about to run away. At that moment…

nDang kang!

nThe Raven’s neck was gone. It was Kim Hana’s work. She looked at Ko Byeong-gap straight at his face.

n* * *

n‘… Who is this man?’

nKim Hana stared at Ko Byeong-gap with surprised eyes. A cold sweat ran down her forehead.

n‘No matter how distracted I was, his reaction was faster than mine. And what about his last move?’

nKim Hana saw it clearly. Ko Byeong-gap blocked the Raven’s attack and then immediately inserted a counterattack. The motion was as straight as a bamboo grain and as flexible as water.

nOf course, Ko Byeong-gap’s attack didn’t work even though he hit the counter correctly. That was because it was a ‘live’ attack that didn’t carry Karma.

n‘Is he supposed to be a top awakener?’

nKim Hana once again scanned Ko Byeong-gap from head to toe. It was the same as the first time. The Karma she felt in him was still weak. He was a low-level awakener.

n‘A low-level awakener being able to stop an A-class attack? What’s more, a stealth attack?’

nShe felt like her head was getting cluttered. When the Raven died, the world began to vibrate slightly. Apparently, it was the boss of that crack.

n“Whew…” Ko Byeong-gap rubbed his arms and frowned.

nKim Hana hastily deterred him, “Don’t touch it! It must be broken.”

nEven if he blocked it by luck, he was bound to receive a fracture since he was lower class attacked by a high-level attack.

nNo, it wasn’t weird at all if the bones in his arm were broken, but Ko Byeong-gap was calm.

n“No, it’s not broken. It’s just numb. I’ll be better in a little while.”

n“… I beg your pardon?”

nShe grabbed his bruise for a second or so.

n“Excuse me for a moment.”

nKim Hana felt an unbearable need to get Ko Byeong-gap’s arm. He could feel the muscles wriggling inside his tough skin like a tree trunk.

n‘Really. No bones were broken. More than that, this man… How much have you trained yourself?’

nShe didn’t know she wasn’t paying attention, but looking back, he wasn’t normal. His body was as tough as raw rubber and hard as polished iron.

nIn the world of hunters, where the amount and concentration of Karma was the measure of strength, he had a body that she rarely encountered.

nKim Hana peeped into his Karma while facing Ko Byeong-gap.

n‘Is he a D-class?’

nHe was, but it was insignificant. Also, she didn’t care.

n‘She uses a sword, but she’s pretty soft.’

nKo Byeong-gap felt strange when Kim Hana touched his arm. He didn’t expect to see the S-class Hunter face to face. Shouldn’t he brag about it to the whole neighborhood?

n‘Well, there’s nowhere to brag. I’ll do it to the Goblins.’

nKim Hana wriggled his arms for a moment before she took off her hand. She opened the side compartment of Ko Byeong-gap’s backpack. It contained the highest quality potion, the so-called Elixir.

nIt was an expensive item that cost more than 3 million won per 100 millimeters. The Elixir was as high quality as its price, but the quantity was so small that some hunters couldn’t even afford it.

nKim Hana took the lid off of the Elixir and held it out to Ko Byeong-gap.

n“Drink about a fifth. Don’t drink it all.”

nKo Byeong-gap pondered for a moment in front of the Elixir. Could he drink that precious thing only because of a numb arm?

n“Is it free? Or is it deducted from the daily rate?”

nKim Hana looked like he had said something incomprehensible.

n“I don’t take money. You were hurt by my carelessness.”

nFree? So, there was no reason to refuse. Ko Byeong-gap carefully accepted the Elixir.

n“Drink one-fifth. Don’t drink any more.”

n“Oh, yes, yes.”

n‘You give me something to drink, and I looked at you dirty.’

nHe put his lips on the Elixir and released it. He probably drank about 18 millimeters.

nKo Byeong-gap savored it. He felt the pain in his arm go away in an instant. That was all? His shoulders, which had been stiff from carrying the backpack for a long time, were refreshed as if they had been washed.

nThey said it was good medicine, and it was, but was it worth the money?

nWhile Ko Byeong-gap was admiring it… Kim Hana still looked at him with vigilant eyes.

n‘If he had died, it would’ve been a pain in the butt, but I’m glad.’

nIf Ko Byeong-gap wasn’t the porter she brought that day, she would’ve paid the price.

n“Master.”

nThe three children came after taking care of all the monsters. Kim Hana looked at them with a cold gaze, and the children bowed their heads rigidly. She sighed briefly and said, “Let’s go back and talk. Ko Byeong-gap, please collect the magic stones. You guys help him.”

n“Yes, Master.”

nKo Byeong-gap and the children set out to collect the magic stones. He glanced at Kim Hana as she was thinking something through.

nHe asked Do Eun-ho, next to him, in a whisper, “How old are you?”

nWhen he spoke, Do Eun-ho was startled. He couldn’t answer easily and looked into Kim Hana’s eyes.

n‘What? Can’t you talk without that woman’s permission? Damn, isn’t this child abuse?’

nIt wasn’t an absurd delusion. If that was really the case, how should he behave? Should he call the police? Or the association?

n“… I’m 14 years old.”

n“14 years old?”

nKo Byeong-gap was astonished. Even though hunters had men and women of all ages, wasn’t 14 a little too much? He looked into Kim Hana’s eyes. She didn’t pay attention to that.

n“Are you okay?”

n“Yeah?”

n“I wonder if the three of you are going through some kind of absurdity right now. Maybe by Ms. Hana…”

nHe tried to ask, “Are you being mistreated by that woman?”

nBefore that, Do Eun-ho answered and shook his head, “The Master is kind.”

n“Ah… Okay?”

n“Yeah.”

n“What’s your relationship with each other?”

n“…”

n“If you don’t want to say it, you don’t have to.”

nSilence.

nThe two silently dug out the magic stones and put them in the backpack.

nKo Byeong-gap hated such silence. He felt like he had to say something.

n“Don’t be too discouraged. All three of you are great, in my opinion. Well, I’m only a D-class, so I don’t know much about your world, but I do know one thing about how great you guys are. And all three of you are still young. Your future is still bright.”

n“Ah… Yes. Thank you.”

n“And in hindsight, Ms. Hana was a little… Hmmm.”

nWhen Ko Byeong-gap saw Kim Hana’s head turn, he quickly shut up.

nKim Hana soon caught his eye.

n“Anyway, cheer up.”

nThe collection of magic stones was soon over when four of them rushed in. They got out of the world behind them and went back to where they were parked.

n“I paid right away. Please confirm it.”

n“Ah yes. I got a text message… Hmm?”

nKo Byeong-gap tilted his head when he saw the money transferred.

n“What? You sent 6 million won, not 3 million won?”

n“That’s the right thing to send. I made a mistake, so I added a little more.”

n‘What? No, why?’

nFrankly, he didn’t understand. Being a porter was also a profession that made money with their lives as collateral.

nThat meant that Kim Hana had no obligation to ‘keep Ko Byeong-gap safe.’

nHowever…

n‘Let’s just be still.’

nHe didn’t have to question it for no reason.

n“Then, get home safely.”

nKo Byeong-gap and Kim Hana’s party broke up immediately. She stood still and watched Ko Byeong-gap leave.

n“What did you talk about with him?” She asked Do Eun-ho.

nDo Eun-ho hesitated and answered, “He asked me how old I was.”

n“Is that it?”

n“… He even asked if the Master was harassing us.”

n“So, what did you say?”

n“I replied that the Master was a good person.”

n“Yeah, well done.”

nKim Hana paused for a moment and then said, “Do you also think that I am tormenting you?”

n“No, Master.”

nThe three children spoke in unison. Sadness crept over Kim Hana’s face.

n“Everyone, come here.”

nShe held three children in her arms. The children were hugged without resistance.

n“I’m sorry. Please bear with me even if it’s hard.”

n“Don’t say that, Master.”

n“We’re happy to be with the Master. It’s not hard.”

n“I’ll always be with you, Master.”

nThe four of them did that for a while. After a while, Kim Hana let the children go.

nShe asked in a slightly refreshed voice, “What did you think? Didn’t you feel something special about the man you were with today?”

n“What?”

n“Anything special?”

nThe children tilted their heads. It was a reaction that meant they didn’t know.

n“Well, I didn’t feel anything.”

n“Me too.”

n“He felt like a low-level awakener. Why?”

n“No, it’s not a big deal. Let’s go back.”

nKim Hana got into the car with a faint smile.

n‘If he’s really exceptional, even if I leave him alone, the day will come when we will meet again.’

nKim Hana soon erased the existence of Ko Byeong-gap from her mind.

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