Volume 1, Episode 25
025
There were several reasons the guild members disliked the new guest members.
But the one reason they all had in common was this:
*‘Do they dare think they suit the name Tyrion?’*
That they weren't qualified to bear the name Tyrion for even a moment.
One looked like some third-rate thug who'd rolled in from who-knows-where, and the other was a high schooler who didn't even have dry blood on his head.
No matter how much one shouldn't judge people by their appearance, there was such a thing as dignity.
Kim Juwon and Lee Hyeonu—those two absolutely did not fit Tyrion's dignity.
*‘At least that man….’*
Lee Seojun.
He was the exception.
Because at least in bearing, he was worthy of the great name Tyrion.
It didn't matter if the clothes he wore were shabby or not; the hanger itself was top-grade, so it was fine.
But those two….
Swish.
All the guild members' gazes that had been directed at Lee Seojun now turned back toward Kim Juwon and Lee Hyeonu.
"Wow…. So this is Tyrion."
Look at him marveling at Tyrion in a place where only elites gathered.
His bottom dollar was completely exposed.
They could see he had not an ounce of dignity.
"T-Tyrion…."
And a child was, in the end, just a child as the word implied.
The eyes of those who had gone through countless experiences could not be deceived.
The high schooler trying his best to hide his emotions was ultimately no different from that guy.
"Haa."
In short, these two were, in other words, nothing but fools indistinguishable from stray mongrels who'd wandered in off the streets.
It was a situation that made one sigh just looking at them.
On the other hand.
*‘What on earth….’*
Lee Seojun, who remained affiliated as a temporary guild member, was markedly different from them.
He showed not the slightest sign of intimidation before the great name Tyrion.
No, beyond that, he displayed an overwhelming presence that subdued even Yun Hyeongi, the guild leader, themselves included.
*‘What kind of relationship do they have?’*
That was why they couldn't understand.
Didn't birds of a feather flock together?
But because their appearances were so contradictory, curiosity was inevitable.
What on earth was the relationship between Lee Seojun and them?
And finally.
"Try it."
Those two advancing toward the orc at Lee Seojun's command.
They had already disliked entering a low-level Gate because of them, but watching this scene truly made it feel like their stomach would burst.
Clatter, clatter, clatter.
Hunters exist to slay monsters.
And the process one undergoes to become such a Hunter is precisely the Tutorial.
"Did they not even do the Tutorial?"
They must have surely completed the Tutorial as well.
Yet look at them trembling at the sight of a monster now.
This was truly absurd.
*‘They have no qualifications.’*
A Hunter is not someone who is pushed by others into the profession, but one who walks to the Association and registers of their own accord.
There would be no one who registers as a Hunter with a light heart.
After all, even ordinary people all know how dangerous Gates and monsters are.
*‘And yet they're behaving like this when they should be rushing in right away.’*
But wasn't that the very image of those who'd thrown away any pride as Hunters to the dogs?
They deserved to have their Hunter licenses confiscated and their qualifications revoked.
Moreover….
Swish.
That stupid movement.
Movements that hadn't even mastered the absolute basics.
What was that supposed to be?
"Hieeek."
Were they truly Hunters?
No, how had they even become Hunters?
"Haa."
They had sighed so much because of these two that it felt like the ground would cave in.
If they had any skill at all, the guild members wouldn't have thought this far.
Nevertheless, the reason the guild members kept their mouths shut was….
Swish.
Because of Lee Seojun—the man watching this entire scene with an expressionless face from beginning to end.
"Ha."
Yun Hyeongi, the guild leader, felt the same frustration.
The life held as collateral by Lee Seojun—he had to use each and every moment efficiently.
*‘Damn it.’*
But those precious moments were now scattering into dust.
And it was because of none other than those very people Lee Seojun had brought along.
*‘Still, since Lee Seojun is the one who brought them, I thought they might have something….’*
Judging from the situations experienced earlier, Lee Hyeonu seemed to have talent in something other than being a Hunter.
So to some extent, it was understandable that he lacked skill as a Hunter.
*‘But what the hell is that guy?’*
However, the one called Kim Juwon was different.
He had been watching carefully, yet couldn't identify a single remarkable point.
He was truly a third-rate Hunter.
No, even worse than that.
*‘Why is he doing this?’*
That was why Yun Hyeongi simply couldn't understand.
Why on earth had Lee Seojun brought those two to Tyrion, and to a Gate of all places?
"It'd be faster to just clear the Gate and use that money to hire bodyguards rather than waste time like this."
Why was he doing such inefficient things?
Anyone could easily figure it out with a little thought.
That what Lee Seojun was trying to do now was pouring water into a leaky bucket.
"Crazy."
And it didn't take long for them to open their mouths wide and spew curses.
When Lee Seojun said the check was over and moved himself.
"Kuaaaaack!"
What unfolded was a hell on earth.
* * *
Originally, a D-rank Hunter could hunt an orc alone, albeit with some difficulty.
Clatter, clatter, clatter.
But Kim Juwon looked nervous even facing a goblin—said to be the weakest among monsters—let alone an orc.
His pupils and the hand gripping his sword trembled uncontrollably, and cold sweat trickled down his forehead.
Fwoosh. Fwoosh!
Like that, Kim Juwon showed himself barely killing a goblin with clumsy attacks from a clumsy stance.
Watching that display, the guild members could tell.
"He must be bottom-rank even among D-ranks. And he barely has any combat experience to boot. You could totally call that an E-rank."
That Kim Juwon was essentially not even D-rank.
They could easily intuit that he would be weaker than experienced E-rank Hunters.
Combat wasn't something where you could seize victory simply by being strong.
"What about that one. No need to even think about it."
And Lee Hyeonu, an F-rank, was in a situation where he couldn't even be considered a full-fledged combatant.
"Do you have potions?"
Feeling a bizarre pressure at Lee Seojun's question, Yun Hyeongi answered.
"I'm still Yun Hyeongi, after all. You can use potions without limit."
It didn't take long for Yun Hyeongi to regret his words that he had spoken in haste.
Glug. Glug.
What they were drinking like water was intermediate-grade potions worth quite a tidy sum.
"Don't feel burdened and use them to your heart's content. To your heart's content."
Yun Hyeongi spoke with a composed expression.
"It's fine. It's fine, so don't hold back."
Like that, empty bottles began piling up on the floor one by one.
The speed was frightening.
Clink. Clink.
The sound of empty bottles rolling across the floor rang out without cease.
"……."
Then Yun Hyeongi's face gradually hardened.
His words rapidly vanished too.
Splaash.
Now, when he was practically pouring it on them like a shower.
"Y-you. You crazy bastard!"
A curse burst from Yun Hyeongi's mouth.
Lee Seojun was using all the potions like water.
On Kim Juwon and Lee Hyeonu, that is.
Yet he couldn't tell them not to use potions.
"Kuaaack!"
Because if he didn't give potions to those two in their truly horrific state, it looked like they would die right away.
"Is that really training?"
No.
"That's torture… no, he's just trying to kill them."
All the guild members watching this scene were thinking the exact same thing.
It was certain.
That was absolutely not training.
*‘…….’*
Kim Juwon and Lee Hyeonu were ones who couldn't even properly kill goblins.
So it was obvious as fire that even if the two rushed in together, they couldn't kill a single orc.
Yet Lee Seojun.
"Kuwark!"
Thud! Thud!
Pitted three orcs against them at once.
—Survive.
And that single word was all.
By the time Lee Seojun stepped in, it was the absolute last moment—either an instant death from a single blow or a state where injuries were compounded and they couldn't move at all.
That was why all the guild members had thought the same thing.
*‘…How is this training.’*
They said it wasn't training.
Because no master who shoves their disciple into hell telling them to die could possibly exist.
"Haa…. Haa…."
But despite that, those two continued this bizarre training without a single complaint.
Even though they looked like they would collapse at any moment, with bloodshot eyes they poured potions down their throats, rose up endlessly, and fought like they were going to die.
*‘…….’*
Even if they kept pouring potions, there was a limit.
The body didn't recover cleanly in a short amount of time.
Of course, potions that could perfectly recover you in a short time did exist, but those intermediate-grade potions were not them.
*‘Their minds will go crazy.’*
Moreover, using potions didn't heal the mind.
They only served to alleviate the physical damage taken.
Thud!
"Keuheok!"
That was why every time they were hit by the orcs countless times, the sensations that flared up.
The terrible memories of writhing in pain remained intact.
If things continued like that, their minds would break before their bodies were smashed to pieces, which was another kind of death in itself.
Clatter, clatter.
Kim Juwon and Lee Hyeonu grabbed their trembling, shaking knees and stood up.
Thud! Thud!
The orcs glared at them with gleaming eyes and charged again.
Trudge. Trudge.
And Kim Juwon and Lee Hyeonu also took one step, then another toward the orcs.
"Kuwark!"
With rough roars, the orcs' massive fists swung down.
"Kuaaack!"
"Keoheok!"
The two were hit by them, slammed into walls, and explosions of sound erupted.
Like that, the space inside rang endlessly with screams of agony without rest.
"Ku, kuheok!"
Before long, the ground was dyed deep red.
As this scene repeated over and over.
"……."
The watching guild members couldn't easily open their mouths at that pressure.
They only quietly sent their gazes toward them.
*‘I can't watch anymore.’*
The two they had pitied and felt compassion for now looked far too wretched.
What they could do was….
"Please survive…."
Only close their eyes tightly, clasp their hands, and offer prayers of mourning.
Even after that, the two's screams rang out without end.
* * *
A Hunter awakens and realizes mana.
And as time passes, the more they hunt, the stronger they become.
*‘They become accustomed to using mana.’*
Using mana appropriately in combat at the right time and place.
And becoming accustomed to using not only the realized mana but also the mana dormant within the body—that was how one grew stronger.
However, the true meaning of growing stronger existed separately.
*‘The Awakening rank and later rank often differ.’*
Something that never happened easily.
The limit of growth at this time was considered to be about two ranks above the Awakening rank.
The first rank a Hunter receives upon awakening at the Association is their potential.
And drawing out that potential by whatever means was what made it possible.
*‘No one knows how.’*
But the reality of the current Hunter world was that even the Association hadn't figured out the exact method and was still researching it.
That was why.
*‘It is nearly impossible.’*
Like that, five days passed.
And now.
"Haa…. Haa…."
The two men roughly catching their breath.
Kim Juwon and Lee Hyeonu had hunted an orc for the first time.
Thud!
"That crazy bastard."
The guild members and Yun Hyeongi cursed with a different meaning this time.
The greatest villain in history had returned.