hotmtlnovel Chapter 61
Chapter 61
After Yoo Han-ul left with those words, Han Jae-young tilted his head.
“Well, forget about me, but Da-on, you too? ‘I don’t know what kind of scheming you’re up to’... Since when have you become someone who would do such things?”
“I’m wondering the same thing.”
No matter how suspicious I might seem, the fact that Yoo Han-ul sees me as equivalent to Han Jae-young is quite a shock.
Does he really think that someone like me, who’s eaten up a fox disguised as a snake, is similar to him?
What exactly is he seeing?
I shook my head.
“...Of course, it doesn’t really matter how Yoo Han-ul sees me.”
“No, it seems like you’re more affected by this than you’re letting on. Anyway, I suppose it’s not important to me.”
Han Jae-young grinned. His face looked irritating.
“Why is the Central Administrative Office keeping an eye on you?”
The Central Administrative Office.
More than anything, I never expected those words to come out of Yoo Han-ul’s mouth.
“Hm, that’s a little concerning too.”
Han Jae-young’s expression grew serious as well.
“Well, I’m closer to the Hunter Association than the Central Administrative Office... but recently, there hasn’t been anything problematic.”
The Hunter Management Office is a government agency, whereas the Hunter Association is a private organization where individual hunters join to pursue common interests.
In this capitalist society, guilds are also special corporations with unique profit structures.
“Has there been something problematic in the past, then? What kind of problem?”
“Well, if we’re talking about problems... it’s the relationship between businesses and the government. They’re always looking for ways to squeeze more taxes out or threatening to bribe them if they don’t want regulations.”
“You’re saying, if you evade taxes, you can either escape or bribe them for benefits?”
“Haha, that depends on how you word it. I just pay my fair share whichever way.”
That’s when Han Jae-young started talking like a corrupt businessman rather than a hunter.
Considering how much money this guild makes, it might be a natural way of thinking.
Even if I’m S-rank, they can deposit tens of billions of cash directly, meaning the cash flow at their disposal is enormous.
“Anyway, I haven’t thought of anything recently. Sure, as an S-rank Hunter, the government might keep an eye on me, but...”
Han Jae-young trailed off, but the meaning was clear.
He’s saying that while he’s someone the government would watch, there’s no need to probe through Yoo Han-ul.
“I still don’t get it. Maybe did some talk about the item leak through the True Light Church’s victims to the government?”
“That’s unlikely.”
The information about the ‘Soul Core’ was obtained through the system, so there’s no way it would have leaked.
However, unlike Han Jae-young, who was clearly confused, I had an inkling of an idea.@@@@
‘If there really is an “enemy of mankind” in the Central Administrative Office, Yoo Han-ul might be probing me.’
They can’t possibly be unaware that I’m working with the system.
Searching for the location of the ‘Soul Core’ to find the ‘enemy of mankind.’
With the information about the Soul Core acquired during the True Light Church incident, they’re likely feeling pressure, and now they seem to be tracking the dungeon entrance based on traces of the Soul Core.
If that’s the case, it makes sense that they would be curious if I’m really working alongside the ‘Hero.’
If I am, things will become much trickier.
Of course, all of this is just a hypothesis for now.
‘This is so unsettling.’
From the moment Imanbok mentioned the Central Administrative Office to Yoo Han-ul openly approaching me, everything feels too perfectly timed.
It’s almost as if they’re trying to make me suspect the Central Administrative Office.
The naive hero might follow every clue presented, but I’m too skeptical for that.
“Well, for now, we can just keep it in mind. We can figure out later who leaked that information.”
“Yeah, let’s do that.”
For now, once this Soul Core search is over, it seems necessary to investigate the Central Administrative Office.
But first, the dungeon expedition tomorrow.
“Alright, let’s get to the point.”
Han Jae-young, observing my reaction, tapped on the tablet in front of him.
The screen displayed various training results from the VR program, showing data from my battles with monsters.
Seeing the objective data was interesting.
“Well, now that we’ve met the minimum requirements, let’s meet at the dungeon entrance tomorrow.”
“One thing to clarify. Let’s meet at my house tomorrow. I’ll pick you up, since you don’t have your license yet.”
“............”
This is really unlucky.
Next morning.
In the end, I ended up riding Han Jae-young’s car and arrived at the dungeon on Yeongjong Island.
After this is over, I’ll definitely get my driver’s license... Wait, is this a death flag?
Fortunately, we avoided the morning rush, and we arrived at the dungeon in less than an hour.
Exiting the road, we reached an open space, where an unreal diamond-shaped shape marked the dungeon entrance.
If the system had any sense, it would have avoided this.
The system does not accept complaints based on personal preferences.
This bastard.
As I bickered with the system, Han Jae-young, who followed me out of the car, frowned as he put on a mask.
“It’s a trash heap, so I expected it, but the smell’s bad.”
“Told you.”
I got one too.
The open space was filled with piles of trash, all collected to be thrown into the dungeon.
“Apparently, they throw out trash every three days. The time spent in the dungeon is about three hours. According to the system’s safety rules, it’s a bit tight.”
System Guide: It is recommended to clear the dungeon as quickly as possible.
System Guide: The longer the time spent in the dungeon, the greater the risk.
That’s right.
The system doesn’t recommend staying in the dungeon for long.
After all, dungeons are basically "other worlds," and from Earth’s perspective, they’re direct pathways to the invaders’ headquarters.
The longer humans stay in the dungeon without clearing it, the closer the distance to other dimensions becomes.
The system forces players to return as soon as they meet the clearing conditions to prevent this.
However, that’s just the system’s policy for ensuring humanity’s survival.
“Well, if they’re throwing out 450 tons of trash every three days, three hours is definitely not enough.”
From a human perspective, it’s a different matter.
For humans, dungeons are like a hidden paradise, especially when resources are running low.
If necessary, even with the system’s warnings, they might deliberately delay the dungeon clearing to stay longer and gather valuable resources.
It’s not surprising.
Despite warning about the dangers of rising sea levels, people ignore the heat they face in the present.
Ignoring visible dangers, what’s the harm in invisible risks?
For now, it’s more important to throw away this trash to another dimension without spending much money.
"Why do you look so scared?"
"...Me?"
"Yeah, Jeong Da-on Hunter. Look here, here, you’re still young, but the wrinkles on your forehead..."
"Can’t you just leave me alone?"
"Meow!"
As Han Jae-young reached for my forehead to smooth out the wrinkle, Leo, who had been in my arms, raised his paw and swatted at him.
I couldn’t help but feel proud of my creation.
Han Jae-young let out an exaggerated sigh, almost as if his flesh was about to be torn by Leo’s sharp claws.
"Wow, is this what it feels like to be scared for your life? Can you at least tell me we’re teammates here?"
"Who’s your teammate?"
"Hey, while we’re temporarily guildmates, we’re teammates, right? Oh, look, a few more temporary teammates are arriving."
With that, Han Jae-young pointed toward an SUV coming into the open area.
Several people got out of the SUV, and the first to catch my attention was a woman with short hair and a longsword, wearing light leather armor.
She was tall, with a well-toned body.
A typical swordsman’s appearance. She looked to be in her mid-twenties.
The woman spotted me and Han Jae-young, then quickly darted over to us like a bullet.
"Wow, Jeong Da-on Hunter! It’s really you, right? I’ve wanted to meet you ever since I saw you on the news! Nice to meet you! I’m Shin Ji-eum."
Shin Ji-eum greeted us with lively energy, extending her hand.