I was Kicked Out of the Hunter’s Guild

“What? Are you saying he just left like that?”

“Yeah, he said something about feeling responsible for the incident. Apparently, the higher-ups accepted it without much issue since there wasn’t really anything to argue about on that front.”

“Hmm… I see…”

Listening to Jiyoon’s report, Isena looked momentarily taken aback.

Honestly, everything that had happened so far could be seen as Choi Han carrying out her instructions.

However, she hadn’t expected him to actually submit a transfer request and leave the guild altogether under the pretense of moving out.

Although she had entertained the idea of replacing him as her aide-de-camp, since she didn’t like him very much. She never imagined it would happen so quickly or so decisively.

‘Well… since this is how it turned out, I should think positively. The person who was going to leave anyway is gone, and maybe someone better will take his place.’

Trying to comfort herself with this thought, Isena struggled to maintain her composure.

However, as she put on a calm facade, Seo Jiyoon inwardly clicked her tongue in disapproval.

‘What a pathetic bitch… I knew this would happen. Who in their right mind put someone like you in charge as a guild master? Now that Choi Han is gone, you’ll soon realize just how much damage you’ve caused with your own hands.’

The embarrassment of barely succeeding in a B-class mission was just the beginning.

It had been less than a month since Lee Jinhyun, their former lieutenant, had left.

In Jiyoon’s eyes, cracks were already forming throughout the guild, cracks that couldn’t be handled by just any ordinary adjutant. These were issues that only someone with Lee Jinhyun’s unique skills could have managed.

‘Well… another new adjutant will eventually arrive, but how long will they even last? Unless someone truly skilled takes over, this might just get worse…’

Despite her cynicism, Jiyoon tried to cling to a shred of hope as she considered the possibility of a competent replacement.

Just then

Bang!

A loud noise broke the silence as the door was flung open.

Startled, Jiyoon and Isena instinctively turned toward the door, both assuming it must be Na Jiseon.

But instead-

“Ughhh!”

“Huh? Choi Yujin? Why are you…”

“What’s going on? Why are you in such a hurry?”

Choi Yujin stood in the doorway, gasping for breath as if she had sprinted there.

Seeing her disheveled appearance, both Jiyoon and Isena looked puzzled and questioned her.

Then

Choi Yu-jin held out her phone, her voice trembling with urgency.

“Look… look at this… ha… it’s a big deal!”

“What on earth are you talking about?”

Isena and Jiyoon quickly took the phone Choi Yujin offered.

And the moment they looked at the screen…

Their faces turned pale with shock.

Displayed on the screen was a news article.

The article was about the recent B-class mission handled by the 28th Guild. Its shocking focus was on how the guild had suffered massive losses during a mission that even S-class hunters should have been able to handle with ease.

The most damning part was the cause identified by the article:

“The S-class hunters’ poor preparation for battle… and the atrocities committed by disregarding the commander’s orders.”

Isena read the words, her anger boiling over. Her voice trembled with rage as she spoke.

“How… How did this happen? How could the media know about this… about us leaving for the mission without properly managing our weapons?!”

Her icy glare locked onto Yujin, her hatred almost tangible.

“I… I don’t know,” Yujin stammered, taken aback by Isena’s overwhelming presence. “The only people who knew about this were the hunters under our command… and the adjutant, Choi Han, who’s already left…”

“That bastard…” Isena growled, her voice low and dangerous. “Where is he? I don’t care which unit he transferred to! That dog—no, that filthy traitor doesn’t deserve to walk this earth! No, screw that, I’ll go find him myself and wring his damn neck!”

Her killing intent was so intense that Yujin visibly flinched.

At that moment, Jiyoon, watching Isena’s explosive reaction, did her best to stay calm. She spoke in a steady tone, carefully choosing her words.

“Guild Master, I understand how you feel, but we can’t act out of pure emotion here. Above all else, there’s no concrete evidence that Choi Han is the one who leaked this information.”

“What?!” Isena snapped, her eyes burning with fury. “What nonsense are you spouting? Who else would pull a stunt like this? He’s the only one who would have a reason to stab us in the back! That bastard left because he was tired of us and decided to screw us over on his way out!”

“Ha…”

Jiyoon sighed heavily, though her calm demeanor never faltered.

Isena was clearly furious, but Jiyoon wasn’t ready to give up on reasoning with her.

“Think about it carefully, Guild Master,” Jiyoon said, her voice firm but collected. “If Choi Han isn’t a complete idiot, do you really think he’d try to sabotage us in such an obvious way? He must’ve known what kind of retaliation he’d face if he provoked you so blatantly. Don’t you think this is a little too straightforward for him?”

“…That… that…”

Sena was momentarily speechless at Jiyoon’s words.

Seizing the opportunity, Jiyoon continued in a calm and measured tone.

“Also, there’s another fact you’re overlooking. While only a limited number of people were privy to the conversation about the state of your weapons at that time, the battle report video tells its own story. Someone sharp-eyed could’ve picked up on your situation—like how you kept turning the Rosecutter off and on or how Yujin was forced to ration your ammunition during close combat. Those details are visible, you know.”

“Ugh…”

“Kuh…”

Yujin let out a frustrated sigh and nodded slowly, while Isena clenched her fists, unable to refute Jiyoon’s point.

It was true—combat videos recorded from the commander’s perspective were always reported to the higher-ups unless there was a specific reason to withhold them. And during that process, some details inevitably became visible to the media.

In fact, even the footage being played on the news right now was showcasing those moments, item by item, harshly criticizing Isena and Yujin.

Given this, Jiyoon’s argument made sense, it wasn’t necessarily Choi Han who leaked the information.

“Damn it!!”

Bang!

Isena slammed her fist into the desk, pouring out her frustration on the helpless furniture.

As Isena fumed, Yujin turned to Jiyoon with a worried expression, quietly asking, “Well then… setting aside whether it was Choi Han or not, what should we do now? News like this is going to stir up a lot of noise for a while…”

“Haa…” Jiyoon let out a long sigh before responding. “Since it’s been openly exposed that this level of incompetence happened during a B-class mission, there’s no use trying to make weak excuses. If an interview request comes in, it would be better to apologize and admit there was a mistake on our side. Trying to justify it with a clumsy excuse will only make things worse.”

“An excuse?”

At Jiyoon’s words, Yujin’s expression showed a glimmer of hope. Jiyoon, however, remained calm as she scrolled through the comments on the news article, scanning the angry responses from netizens.

“Yes, something like… there was confusion in the chain of command due to the recent change in adjutants. Or maybe it was an emotionally difficult situation after the transition. Those are plausible angles.”

“Hmm…”

Yujin wasn’t particularly happy with Jiyoon’s suggestion, but after thinking it over, she reluctantly agreed.

As Jiyoon pointed out, trying to make a flimsy excuse would only risk making the situation worse. It was far better to admit some fault, appeal emotionally to the public, and then stay quiet until the storm passed.

“Haa… since it comes to this, I’ll have to cancel all the CM deals. The cancellation fees are going to cost us a fortune…” Eugene muttered bitterly.

“There’s nothing we can do about it,” Jiyoon replied. “In a way, we should be thankful it didn’t get worse. If even one person had died, there would’ve been no way to recover from this.”

“I guess that’s true, but still…”

The two women sighed, feeling bitter about the inevitable damage the guild was about to suffer.

However, unlike Yujin, who chalked the situation up to bad luck, Jiyoon had a different perspective. She could already guess who was behind this entire debacle.

‘Even though I said otherwise, I’m certain it was him… No matter how many combat videos were released, only a handful of people would bother to watch them closely enough to catch those details. And considering how strangely specific the coverage is… yes, it has to be him.’

Despite her suspicions, Jiyoon knew she had no choice but to protect Choi Han, at least outwardly.

As much as she hated the current situation, she understood that if Isena were to retaliate against Choi Han without clear evidence, it would only escalate the problem.

In fact, Jiyoon figured that the reason Choi Han had exposed the guild’s flaws indirectly, rather than outright revealing the absurdities he endured in the 28th Guild, was because he understood this reality as well.

Ultimately, the officers of the 28th Hunter Guild, including Jiyoon, found themselves in an unenviable position. Because of Choi Han’s actions, they were forced to issue a public apology, bowing their heads in disgrace before the entire country.

The S-class hunters, Isena included, had to face the shame of taking responsibility for the guild’s failings, their reputations tarnished.

‘Damn… why did it have to come to this?’

‘Keep your head down. If anyone makes a scene here, we’ll all go down with them.’

‘Ha… because of these useless bastards, even I’m being dragged through the mud.’

‘Jinhyun oppa… please come back…’

However, their misfortune didn’t end there.

Unbeknownst to them, Choi Han’s post on the adjutant-exclusive forum, despite including a plea to avoid spreading it, had already made its rounds among the community of adjutants.

The story of how the once-promising 28th Guild had become an “adjutant’s grave” spread like wildfire. Soon, the 28th Guild earned a notorious reputation as the number one guild to avoid among adjutants.

This development crushed Jiyoon’s hope of recruiting a skilled replacement for Choi Han. Any competent candidate who heard the rumors would steer clear of the guild entirely.

In the end, this marked the beginning of a cycle where the 28th Guild was forced to replace its adjutant on a monthly basis, perpetuating a steady decline in the guild’s stability and credibility.