Returnee's S-Rank Management Guide

Mysterious S-Rank (1)

What Baek Hojun had called an S-rank gate was crushed with a single punch before it could even fully take shape. The problem was that this scene was broadcast live for everyone to see.

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Forum Post: Is that... for real?

Was that really an S-rank gate that Baek Hojun mentioned?

But can someone really take care of it with just one punch?

Reply

ㅇㅇ: I can't believe what I just saw myself.

S-rank Wraith: LOL, he split the sea with his fists; if an S-rank gate has any sense, it should cower too. LOL

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The footage aired just now was instantly captured and turned into memes, setting every online community abuzz.

Countless awakeners and former hunters claimed that he was definitely an S-rank awakener, and the majority of people seemed to think the same.

After all, if you can break an S-rank gate with a single punch, it would be stranger if you weren't an S-rank awakener.

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ㅇㅇ: So, does that mean we've gained another awakener in Korea? Wasn't it not long ago that Lee Soo-ah appeared?

HeavenSeoul: Whoa, just how many awakeners do we have in such a tiny country?

Ayunlove: LOL, that's 7 now, right? Is it for real that we're tied with China for the most S-rank awakeners in Asia?

Don't-jinx-it: It hasn't been officially announced that he's Korean yet, so don't count your chickens.

ㅇㅇ: Right. He could just be a tourist visiting Jeju from abroad.

==

Thus, the man at the center of this unprecedented attention was heating up the internet.

Presumed to be a new S-rank awakener, he was currently in a hurry, changing clothes and running toward the air-raid shelter in Ae-wol.

'No one saw me, right?'

To be honest, even Park Jung-woo hadn't expected the appearance of an S-rank gate.

He had sensed something unusual on the Ae-wol coast, but never imagined it was a sign that an S-rank gate would open.

After confirming it was an S-rank gate, Jung-woo had quickly changed into his emergency spare clothes and had no choice but to close the gate himself.

To close an S-rank gate, you needed at least S-rank force, and the only S-rank hunter currently on Jeju Island was Shin Ah-yeon.

'Well, as long as it's solved.'

Jung-woo never considered that someone might have seen him.

He was so focused on the S-rank gate that he hadn't noticed the helicopter flying in the distance.

'This wasn't JM's doing... or was it?'

Considering the level of previous gates, it was unlikely that the S-rank gate was something JM had planned.

Still, the rapid succession of gate incidents was surely having some effect.

The very space itself had become unstable, leading to the emergence of an S-rank gate.

Most gates or dungeons were caused by demons, but with Earth's ecosystem becoming what it was now, quite a few would begin occurring naturally.

This S-rank gate must have been one such case.

'If that's so, it means the terraforming is already quite far along.'

The recent surge in the frequency of dungeons and gates seemed to be for this reason.

At this rate, the likelihood of a major incident occurring soon was high.

'Should I poke around JM or Javelin's side quickly...?'

Honestly, Jung-woo wanted to deal with things personally, but he knew that would be a bad move.

Although only those two factions had revealed themselves so far, it was impossible to believe they were all there was.

Even if he wiped out JM or Javelin, if the demons went into hiding, he'd just have to search all over again from scratch.

There was no way all the demons would be holed up in guilds, so making the first move was something to be avoided.

'For now, I have no choice but to keep an eye on them until the opportunity arises.'

With that conclusion, Jung-woo cautiously approached the air-raid shelter.

Luckily, as most monsters had been subdued, he was able to get close without causing much commotion.

"Oh?!"

A hunter patrolling near the air-raid shelter spotted Jung-woo and shouted out.

"A-aren't you Manager Park Jung-woo?!"

At the mention of 'Manager Park Jung-woo', all the other hunters nearby turned their attention at once.

A few among them were JM-affiliated hunters.

'Relax, boys. Loosen up those faces.'

Jung-woo secretly felt relieved at the expressions of the JM hunters.

'Seems things went well on Ah-yeon's end too.'

Otherwise, there's no way they would so transparently show such sour faces.

Jung-woo trusted Ah-yeon, but he couldn't help but worry.

Especially since you never knew what kind of trick those guys might have up their sleeves.

"You're safe! We were really worried."

Inside the air-raid shelter, hunter Han Dong-hyun rushed out and greeted Jung-woo as if he'd been waiting.

Ever since hearing that Jung-woo, who had been luring monsters, had fallen off a cliff, Han's nerves had been on edge, so he was greatly relieved to see him return alive.

"I heard you fell off a cliff."

"Yes, I really thought I was going to die. Luckily, I managed to grab onto a tree root sticking out as I fell, so I came out unscathed."

"Oh."

Han Dong-hyun thought, are there even tree roots on cliffs like that? but didn't bother to ask.

After all, the fact that Jung-woo was alive was proof enough.

Otherwise, there's no way anyone who fell off a cliff to the shore could fight off monsters and make it back here.

"Anyway, I'm so relieved that you made it safely to the air-raid shelter in Ae-wol. Honestly, I was worried."

"That's all thanks to you, manager Park, for luring the monsters. According to the latest from the association, most of the gates have been handled, and all that's left is to take care of the remaining monsters."

If all the gates were closed, clearing out the leftover monsters was only a matter of time.

A day spent in the air-raid shelter, and they'd probably get out safely.

"Manager Park!"

Han Dong-hyun wasn't the only one happy to see Jung-woo.

Director Cha Jae-seok, who had come along to the Ae-wol air-raid shelter, and his film crew also ran over the moment Jung-woo returned.

"Do you know how shocked we were when we heard you'd gone missing? Who would've thought it was Manager Park luring those monsters!"

"It was a bit reckless. Honestly, I thought I'd die."

"Phew, please don't do that next time. By the way, we have footage of that moment—would you like to see it?"

"You filmed that?"

At Jung-woo's question, Cha Jae-seok nodded with a cheerful face.

He hadn't just been quaking in his boots throughout the multi-gate incident.

He had racked his brain for ways to make the most out of the situation he'd been given, and filming the whole thing was what he'd come up with.

"I thought maybe we could use it for movie promotion. Who would have guessed the hero who saved refugees would be Manager Park himself?"

"... Hero, huh? That's a bit embarrassing, you saying it like that."

"No! If you hadn't been there, we'd have been surrounded by monsters and in real trouble! Thanks to your distraction, we barely escaped—otherwise... Phew, just thinking about it gives me chills."

With that, he showed Jung-woo the footage he'd recorded with the camera.

The video had started recording far earlier than Jung-woo had expected—the moment he began persuading people to leave the air-raid shelter for Ae-wol.

"Was that why you volunteered to help the refugees heading to Ae-wol?"

"Ahem, that's a misunderstanding. As the person in charge of this shoot, I couldn't leave you behind and go somewhere else, manager Park."

He had certainly filmed Jung-woo a lot, but he wasn't lying.

How could Cha Jae-seok have predicted Jung-woo would act in such a way?

Since he was able to capture some good scenes thanks to Jung-woo's safe return, he was very satisfied with his choice.

"This... You probably can't delete it, even if I ask you to, right?"

"Pardon? You want to delete such good footage?"

"I just don't like attracting too much attention."

"U-um. Of course, if you ask, I won't make it public..."

Regret was plain on Cha Jae-seok's face as he said this.

'Oh well, can't be helped.'

Jung-woo didn't like attracting attention in this way, but it was to his advantage to stay on Cha Jae-seok's good side for the future. Besides just Ah-yeon's movie, the director wielded considerable influence in the entertainment world.

And as Cha had said, it would be helpful for promoting the movie too, so Jung-woo had no choice but to agree for Ah-yeon's sake.

"But since it's just between you and me, director Cha, I'll give you special permission, but..."

"But?"

"When you make the video, could you also include footage of Hunter Shin Ah-yeon's exploits?"

"Ah-yeon-ssi?"

Cha Jae-seok hesitated for a moment at Jung-woo's words, then smiled.

"Of course, if we can get any video of Ah-yeon-ssi. We weren't able to film her, so we'll have to find footage elsewhere. Still, without any video, we can't include her, right?"

"That's fine, that's all I ask."

There would be video shot by the association, and with all the CCTVs on Jeju, it shouldn't be hard to get what they needed.

'That wraps things up.'

The gates were closed, and he'd gained quite a lot in the process.

On top of that, there was the 'loot' from destroying the S-rank gate, so even though he was a bit tired, it was a fruitful trip to Jeju for Jung-woo.

'But...'

He had no intention of letting those JM-affiliated hunters who looked half-dead just go free.

Jung-woo committed their faces to memory for the future.

He might not be able to raid their company, but dragging off a few hunters for questioning shouldn't matter.

'I'll have to ask Yeon-ji for a favor.'

The demons wouldn't care if a few humans disappeared, so bringing them over wouldn't be too hard.

"W-wait, you can't just barge in like that!"

At that moment, commotion arose at the entrance of the air-raid shelter.

Wondering what was going on, Jung-woo turned to see a woman sprinting toward him at incredible speed.

"Jung-woo oppa!!"

Shouting like that, Ah-yeon looked absolutely furious for some reason.

***

On her way to the air-raid shelter in Ae-wol, where Jung-woo was, Ah-yeon had been searching for him the entire time.

She'd even checked the cliff where he'd reportedly fallen, and there she'd found massive signs of destruction.

'What on earth happened here?'

Ah-yeon had no idea an S-rank gate had almost opened at this spot.

At the time, she'd been in the middle of fighting Ivan inside an illusion.

For that reason, the enormous devastation Jung-woo had wrought while closing the gate looked very different to her.

'If Jung-woo oppa was caught up in something here...'

Could another rift have opened?

But the traces were too small for that.

Even so, there had clearly been something threatening.

"Ugh, seriously!"

For some reason, her thoughts kept drifting toward the worst-case scenario.

Perhaps because the magic Ivan had used on her had lingering effects, the image of Jung-woo being sucked into a rift kept overlapping in her mind.

"He always makes me worry! Just wait till I find you—I'll..."

Muttering anxiously to herself, Ah-yeon kept searching the area.

She checked beyond the coast, into the nearby village, and finally reached the air-raid shelter there.

"By the way, hunter Shin Ah-yeon. Isn't it a relief?"

"Sorry? What is?"

Upon arriving at the Ae-wol air-raid shelter, Ah-yeon had to wait at the entrance for a moment.

She hadn't originally been dispatched to Ae-wol, so she had to report to the association before entering.

"I mean, manager Park. I was surprised he came back so healthy after falling off a cliff."

"... Sorry?"

When told that Jung-woo had returned, Ah-yeon gripped the arm of the hunter at the entrance hard.

"Is that true? Is Jung-woo oppa here right now?"

"Huh? Oh, yes, yes. He only just arrived about an hour ago."

With that, Ah-yeon couldn't help but dash into the shelter.

She completely forgot about procedures or anything like registering.

"Jung-woo oppa!!"

Just as the hunter had said, Jung-woo was chatting and laughing with Director Cha Jae-seok.

'He has no idea how worried I was!!'

Now that she had reception, wouldn't a single call have been nice?

"Oh, you're here?"

Jung-woo waved nonchalantly at the hastily running Ah-yeon.

Something about his carefree attitude made Ah-yeon's blood boil.

"If you went missing, the first thing you should do is let me know you're okay—!"

She rushed to grab Jung-woo's wrist and let him have it, but the instant she did, a strong wave of dizziness struck her and the scenery changed.

'Huh?'

As the dizziness faded, Ah-yeon saw that she was no longer in the air-raid shelter.

'Wh-where am I?'

A dense forest, unlike anything she had ever seen, stretched out before her.

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
One-punch Man-ager...
I am not ashamed of the pun.
Also, a sudden change in scenery. Is it Goddess-nim?
【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】