I Possess Too Many Characteristics

Chapter 73

“As a national organization, it’s about managing high-rank Hunters, who are national assets.”

Having finished her explanation, Yerin rested her elbows on the desk, clasped her hands in front of her mouth.

Her fair and elegant brow furrowed for a moment.

“This isn’t really my style, but now that my work has shifted from recruitment to management, I can’t help it.”

Initially, when she heard that he had caught two D-rank Villains in the Atarok Goblin Village, she had thought he was just a promising Hunter.

Every time he gradually raised his level after that, she had to revise her expectations of Jeonghyeon.

And now, the result had reached a level that was unbelievable even for Yerin.

“Hunter Han Jeongyeon, is it possible for you to grow?”

But who could have imagined it?

Growth, that preposterous word, had accurately pierced Jeonghyeon’s essence.

“Uh……”

Jeonghyeon couldn’t answer immediately and mumbled.

Humans find it difficult to acknowledge that the system they know might be wrong.

In short, even if Jeongyeon was growing at an abnormal rate, if there were no growth factors other than proficiency levels in the general system, it meant they wouldn’t suspect that his trait itself was related to growth.

Yerin seemed to be unsure of her reasoning as well.

However, should it be considered amazing that she could even voice such thoughts, or should it be considered that there was other evidence that Jeongyeon didn’t know about?

When Jeongyeon couldn’t give a proper answer, Yerin spoke calmly, though quite surprised.

“I’ll take that as a yes.”

And having come this far, Jeongyeon had no intention of denying it either.

“Strictly speaking, it’s not growth, but…… it’s true that I have one more means to grow.”

It seemed that he had somehow broken every single shortest record in Hunter history.

Of course, in the case of S-ranks, who were in a league of their own, he couldn’t know how fast they were because their data wasn’t public, but even then, they would be slower than Jeongyeon.

Furthermore, with the guilds’ eyes on him, his absurd growth rate would soon be revealed, whether he wanted it or not.

In that case, it might be better to reveal some information to Yerin now and get the Association’s cooperation.

Although Jeongyeon loathed Yerin, in this situation, she was somehow the most trustworthy person.

Yerin shook her head as Jeongyeon’s answer confirmed her suspicions.

“Even though I thought so, I can’t believe it’s true…… Then, what is your rank?”

“Well, roughly…… it’s what you’re imagining.”

“Let’s move to a different location for now.”

Jeonghyeon didn’t reveal that he had an EX-rank trait.

Honestly, it would be hard enough for them to accept that he was growing, but to say there was another rank above S-rank?

It was better not to say anything.

And Yerin, nodding her head vaguely, got up from her seat.

‘Moving to a different location, where to?’

As Jeonghyeon looked up at Yerin with a questioning gaze, she answered.

“From now on, Hunter Han Jeongyeon, you will be treated as an S-rank Hunter. We need to follow the appropriate procedures.”

It was a very different attitude from the Yerin he had seen so far.

If she was a playful and unreadable character before, now she was an extremely businesslike and rigid character.

Jeonghyeon spoke as he followed Yerin down the hallway leading to the deeper parts of the Association’s basement.

“Manager-nim, are you angry?”

“I’m not angry.”

Yerin replied stiffly as expected.

Jeonghyeon couldn’t stand this awkward atmosphere.

‘It’s better to talk nonsense, how can you suddenly change after acting like that until now?’

Even though he said Yerin was scary, it was only half a joke.

Still, she was one of the few people he had become close to after becoming a Hunter, so he felt a little hurt by her sudden change in attitude.

“You seem angry.”

“Honestly, I didn’t think you would be an S-rank.”

It was a rather unexpected statement.

Jeonghyeon tilted his head.

What did his being an S-rank have to do with her sudden change in attitude?

It sounded like she was disappointed that he hadn’t told her he was an S-rank.

Or did it mean, you don’t even tell me that kind of thing between us?

‘That can’t be right.’

Yerin seemed quite eager to guess his rank at first.

Just like that, the two arrived at their destination without saying much.

“You can go in here.”

“Ah, yes.”

“Then.”

Yerin turned around and disappeared without another word.

“What the, really.”

Jeonghyeon clicked his tongue and looked up at the nameplate.

━ Head of the Investigation Department’s Office

‘I seem to have come to a higher place than I thought……’

The fact that he was entering the Association’s Head of the Investigation Department’s office.

Just looking at the title, the Head of the Investigation Department was the next in line after the Association President ━ Vice President ━ General Manager.

It was practically the highest position among active members.

Knock, knock━

“Who is it?”

“Ah……”

When Jeongyeon knocked, a gentle voice answered.

But how should he introduce himself?

━ It’s Han Jeongyeon.

━ Who is that?

‘This is not it……’

━ I was introduced by Manager Cha Yerin.

━ I haven’t been introduced to anyone?

‘This is even worse.’

He had run a few simulations, but none of them were satisfactory.

‘No, if you brought me all the way here, you should have opened the door yourself!’

He tried blaming Yerin, but she was long gone.

In the end, while Jeongyeon hesitated, the door creaked open.

“Who…… Ah. Hunter Han Jeongyeon?”

“Yes? Ah, yes! I’m Han Jeongyeon!”

‘You idiot! What do you mean,”I’m Han Jeongyeon”?!’

It was like standing in front of the King of Pop and saying, ‘I can dance a little.’

Jeonghyeon thought he would kick his blanket hard tonight.

But whether he knew Jeongyeon’s feelings or not, Minseok, who had come out of the Head of the Investigation Department’s office, looked around outside the door and asked.

“Where’s Manager Cha Yerin? Didn’t she come with you? Why are you alone……”

“Uh, she left me and went ahead.”

“Hmm……”

Minseok pondered for a moment.

Jeonghyeon, faced with Minseok, cursed Yerin again, thinking this was a strange situation.

Then, Minseok smiled as if he had forgotten something important and opened the door wide.

“Oh my, look at me. Please come in and talk. I can guess why you’re here.”

Jeonghyeon followed Minseok into the office.

First of all, what surprised him the most were the bookshelves that filled the room as if it were a bookstore.

And the next thing was something he only realized now,

‘Why is he so big?’

It was Minseok’s massive physique.

He hadn’t been able to see him properly because he was in a hurry earlier, but he seemed to be at least a head taller than Jeongyeon, who wasn’t short.

And was he just tall?

His shoulders seemed to be at least the width of a bookshelf, and his arms were so big that his suit sleeves looked like they were about to burst.

‘Isn’t it a national waste for someone like this to work in an office?’

Of course, a Hunter’s size didn’t directly translate to combat power.

Besides, he didn’t even know if Minseok was a Hunter or not.

But at least there was something called trust that came from one’s physique.

There was a table and chairs in the middle of the office for receiving guests.

To be precise, there were.

“Oh dear. I don’t have many guests in my office. Could you wait a moment?”

It was just that they couldn’t fulfill their role because documents and books were piled up on them as high as a person.

Anyway, with a little effort from Minseok, the books were quickly organized.

“Please have a seat.”

“Thank you.”

And as they both sat down, Minseok told Jeongyeon why he had come here.

“Judging from the fact that Manager Cha brought you here, it seems you really are an S-rank.”

“Ah…… Was it already known?”

Minseok nodded at Jeongyeon’s question.

“It was a big deal that you entered the 5-level Gate this time. And I heard you were quite active.”

Jeonghyeon smiled awkwardly.

There were no secrets in the world.

From which Gate he entered to even the details of his hunt were known.

“Anyway, S-ranks are registered and managed separately by the Head of the Investigation Department or higher, so I called you in.”

“What do you mean by managed……?”

He had heard the word”managed”since earlier, but what exactly did that management entail?

Jeonghyeon couldn’t help but be curious because he knew nothing about the lives of S-ranks.

However, Minseok laughed heartily at Jeonghyeon’s question and answered.

“Ah, it’s nothing special. As they say, if you really want to hide something, don’t hide it in a place that’s too secretive. It would be more conspicuous to take you to a safe house or a military base.”

“Well, that’s true.”

“Of course, you will have secret bodyguards, but they won’t be a nuisance. You can think of it as having an emergency contact network in place in case of an emergency.”

Jeonghyeon nodded.

Actually, when you think about it, it was funny to say that someone else was protecting an S-rank.

Who would be in charge of protecting an S-rank in the first place?

It would just be a way to prevent them from getting involved with foreign countries or troublesome matters.

“Originally, we would issue you a disguised Hunter ID, like a B-rank, but in your case, it seems unnecessary. You’ve already been quite active, and it’s only a matter of time before it becomes an open secret.”

“Yes, well……”

So they even issued separate disguised Hunter IDs for S-ranks.

‘Then I should have registered as an S-rank from the beginning!’

This was a bit of a regret.

How much had he suffered from acting as an unregistered Hunter until now?

If he had known that the Association would support him like this, it would have been much easier if he had lied and said he was an S-rank, even if not EX, and received a disguised Hunter ID.

“And…… please just fill out your basic information and the consent form here. This is my business card. Feel free to contact me anytime if you need anything.”

The documents Minseok handed him were just simple forms.

The consent forms were for protection, information use, and confidentiality.

As he was quickly filling out the contents, Minseok casually asked.

“By any chance, do you have any thoughts of joining the Association?”

“No.”

It was a truly harmless voice, as if he was trying to get permission by taking advantage of a moment of carelessness.

‘I can’t become a salaried Association employee with a meager salary after coming all the way here.’

No matter how special the treatment for S-ranks was, the moment he joined the Association, he would become a salaried worker.

However, it seemed that Minseok had brought up the topic for a different reason.

“I see. Then please sign this consent form as well.”

“This is……”

“It’s a consent form for mobilization in case of a national emergency. It’s fine if you’re an Association member, but we need your consent if you’re an individual.”

By then, he had already finished filling out the documents, so Jeongyeon carefully examined the new document he received.

A consent form for mobilization in case of a national emergency?

The name itself was ominous.

“In the event of a high-level Gate Break, the nation mobilizes S-rank Hunters to respond. Of course, you don’t have to agree. It’s just a request. However, if you participate, you will be provided with appropriate compensation.”

‘Hmm……’

There was nothing to lose.

Because, as Minseok said, it wasn’t mandatory.

Besides, if S-rank Hunters were being mobilized, it would be a national crisis, wouldn’t it?

Even if he stubbornly refused because it was bothersome, he would inevitably be affected as long as he was in Korea.

Moreover, even if he agreed, there was almost no disadvantage if he didn’t respond to the mobilization.

‘These are documents that clearly show who’s on top.’

The nation and S-rank Hunters.

In fact, the winner of this power struggle was obvious.

Since the emergence of Gates, international diplomacy could be seen as a war to secure high-rank Hunters.

If a nation didn’t have enough high-rank Hunters, they had to maintain their country by signing protection treaties with other powerful nations, and the cost was usually exorbitant.

In other words, the nation had to keep S-ranks in the country by any means necessary and wasn’t in a position to act tough.

Jeonghyeon signed the consent form without much hesitation.

He had no intention of leaving Korea anyway.

Korea.

What a comfortable and happy country it was for successful people.

When Jeongyeon readily finished signing, Minseok also grinned and put the documents away.

“Thank you. The Republic of Korea will do its best to ensure that Hunter Han Jeongyeon has no reason to be dissatisfied.”

“Don’t mention it……”

He still wasn’t used to being treated with such deference.

With this, the preparations for Jeongyeon to operate as an S-rank were complete.

However, Minseok seemed to have something more to say and gauged Jeongyeon’s reaction.

“Do you have anything else to say?”

“Ah, actually, it’s about Manager Cha Yerin.”

Cha Yerin?

Jeonghyeon leaned back in his chair again.

“I would appreciate it if you wouldn’t mind too much if her attitude towards Hunter Han Jeongyeon suddenly changed.”

“Yes?”

He definitely knew something.

“Yerin, no, Manager Cha has her reasons for acting that way towards S-rank Hunters. I think it’s also because she has a personal relationship with Hunter Han Jeongyeon…… Anyway, I can’t tell you the details because it’s a personal matter.”

She’ll probably be back to her usual self the next time you meet.

It was still an enigmatic statement, even though he had hoped to get some information.

Personal reasons?

Towards S-ranks?

Anyway, Minseok seemed to have nothing more to say.

But he seemed to be concerned that he couldn’t be of much help.

“I understand for now. Thank you for telling me.”

“You’re welcome. Please be careful on your way back.”

And Jeongyeon left Minseok’s office.

It was the same way to Investigation Division 3, and from there, it wasn’t difficult to get outside because he had been there a few times.

‘It’s refreshing not to hear things like ‘person of interest’ or ‘security’.’

And when Jeongyeon finally left the Association grounds completely,

“Ah, right!”

He remembered something he had completely forgotten.

Something very important.

“I need to earn 1 coin!”

Originally, he had planned to find a place to hunt right after leaving the leather with Doil, but he had forgotten because he ran into Yerin in the middle.

Just 1 coin to upgrade the Trait Shop to level 4.

“As expected, I shouldn’t come to the Association often.”

Jeonghyeon grumbled, looking up at the darkening sky.