Chapter 9
The day before Yeon Harim visited Yoo Hyun's pet shop to pay the remaining balance
【 Korean Hunter Gallery 】
- [ Free ] Kya lol, Yeon Harim's A-Rank solo clear is insane lol
- [ Free ] We live in the age of Yeon Harim.
- [ Free ] But she really got fucking strong out of nowhere;; What's with clearing an A-Rank Gate alone?
- [ Free ] Yeon Harim skyrocketed after getting a new pet, yeah. The pet probably played some decisive role…?
- [ Free ] For real;; Pet-related stocks are hitting their upper limit right now??? Did she really clear an A-Rank Gate because of the pet???
- [ Free ] Baek Seol-ah is finished—!! Finished—!!! Finished—!!!! Dongbaek is getting crushed—!!!!!
- [ Guild ] Moonshadow's guild ranking is climbing in real time, holy shit lol What the hell is going on lololol
- [ Free ] The Korean Hunter Gallery's admin is Queen Harim now. No objections accepted, yeah
- [ Free ] Where'd Baek Seol-ah's fan club go? It's dead quiet lol
Guild Master Yeon Harim of Moonshadow was lying on her bed, grinning as she searched her own name.
“Hehehe….”
Until recently, the media had constantly compared her to Baek Seol-ah, using her as a prop to glorify Baek Seol-ah while keeping her in the position of perennial runner-up.
But now everyone was praising her.
The community, the media, and even her fellow Hunters.
And that wasn't all. Some people were even predicting that Yeon Harim, who had steamrolled through an A-Rank Gate with overwhelming power, would become Korea's next S-Rank Hunter.
She had become Korea's undisputed number-one female Hunter.
All of this was thanks to the Ceraunos model, which had enabled her to use her etherization ability.
Yeon Harim took the Ceraunos model out of its cage and held it in her arms.
“…Chirr.”
“Chirungi… What am I supposed to do? I'm so happy right now, you know??”
The dopamine flooding her brain had fried it so thoroughly that she couldn't sleep.
She was scheduled to raid the A-Rank Gate she had won at auction again tomorrow, and it looked like this might interfere with her schedule.
Thump—Thump—
It was a night when her heartbeat sounded unusually loud.
The face of the man who had created the Ceraunos model exclusively for her shimmered in Yeon Harim's mind.
“……Mr. Yoo Hyun.”
Outstanding pet-making ability and astonishing insight.
Neither one was merely “excellent”; both surpassed that level by a staggering margin.
According to the personal information in Cynthia's report, he had only recently begun to stand out.
It wouldn't be long before Yoo Hyun's abilities were revealed to the world and countless Hunters came looking for him to obtain pets.
“……”
“Chirrrr….”
“I want him.”
She wanted to make him hers before anyone else could lay a hand on him.
It was the first time in her life she had ever wanted a person, even though she had wanted things before.
It was self-evident that Yoo Hyun was the only person in the entire world capable of creating the pet she needed to make use of her ability.
Knowing that this once-in-a-lifetime connection would never come again, Yeon Harim grew impatient. Other Hunters would soon learn of his existence, and perhaps even Baek Seol-ah might set her sights on him.
No, she was certain of it. Baek Seol-ah would come looking for Yoo Hyun.
As she thought that, Yeon Harim felt a thick, surging possessiveness rise from the depths of her chest.
“I want him!! I want him for myself!!!”
Squeeze—!
Yeon Harim hugged the Ceraunos model, Chirungi, with all her might, and Chirungi struggled violently, spewing lightning.
“Chirrrr—!!! Chirr!!!!!”
Flap—!
Crackle—!! Crackle-crackle—!!!
That day, the fire alarm went off in the officetel where she lived.
*
And that was why Yeon Harim had made an uncharacteristically forward move on Yoo Hyun and asked him to sign a personal contract.
Yeon Harim straightened her posture and spoke calmly.
“Ahem, I think very highly of your abilities, Mr. Yoo Hyun. You know it yourself, don't you? That you possess an extraordinary talent. But your abilities aren't merely special—they're absurdly exceptional, aren't they? There will certainly be people who covet you, even if they have to resort to somewhat coercive measures.”
“Certainly….”
It was a sufficiently plausible assumption.
I might not have drawn much attention yet, since I was only occasionally creating pets at a hole-in-the-wall pet shop, but as long as I continued making pets, these peaceful days would probably soon come to an end.
‘When that happens, if I don't have some means of protecting myself—whether power or authority—I'll be in a very difficult situation.’
Hunter Yeon Harim was probably referring to that very point.
“So… I want to protect you personally, Mr. Yoo Hyun.”
Hmm, was a Hunter being touted as Korea's next S-Rank offering to guarantee my safety? It certainly sounded reassuring when I thought of it that way.
But… an individual would have limitations.
Besides, she couldn't protect me twenty-four hours a day.
Of course, considering how rapidly her standing was rising, having her backing alone would be a considerable help…
‘Why doesn't she want to do this through a guild contract?’
I asked her, voicing my question.
“Why not have the guild protect me? Wouldn't that be better if protection is the goal?”
Well, I had turned Secretary Cynthia down once before, but if the terms were revised, I wasn't opposed to signing a contract with Moonshadow either.
As long as it wasn't exclusive, I was willing to sign.
……
Yeon Harim was silent for a moment before speaking.
“…If you sign a contract with our guild, another guild might harm you to keep us in check, you know? You could call it guild intrigue.”
……Guild intrigue? Wasn't that the sort of thing that only existed in urban legends?
Well, given how someone in the industry was saying it, maybe it was actually true.
Yeon Harim continued with a smile that felt somehow off.
“Come to think of it, it's not that important. Let's just sign a guild contract and a personal contract with me, too! That should do it!”
“……?”
What on earth…?
*
The contract proceeded without a hitch.
It was good timing, since I had reached the point where I needed a safeguard, too.
“Sponsorship?”
“Moonshadow would like to provide you with a monthly sponsorship in exchange for you giving priority to consultations and custom-made pets for Hunters belonging to our guild. The Hunters commissioning them would pay the production costs separately.”
In other words, I would receive both the sponsorship money and the fees for each custom-made pet commission.
“Moonshadow would also protect your person so you can continue making pets without interruption, and our legal team would handle any legal issues. Those are the main terms. There are some other minor details, so please check the parts specified here.”
I skimmed the documents she held out.
‘This is good…? It's all designed for my convenience.’
Apparently, the pets I had made had been a tremendous help to them. Why else would they be giving me such generous terms?
“……The sponsorship is one billion won per month. I wanted to set it higher, but Cynthia talked me out of it, saying it would drain the guild's operating funds….”
“No!! These terms are already far too good…!! That's more than ten billion won a year….”
Honestly, I felt like my sense of money was going numb.
Ten billion won? Wasn't that enough to live and play without working for the rest of one's life?
To be honest, Moonshadow wasn't a major guild, so even this amount was extremely high.
Especially since guilds had been fiercely competing to bid for Gates lately.
Anyway, the guild contract had changed from an exclusive contract to a sponsorship arrangement… and now there was the personal contract….
“……This is the contract?”
“Yes. Simple, right?”
The contents really weren't much.
To sum it up, I would provide her with help related to pets, and she would lend me her power.
The terms themselves weren't all that different from those of the guild contract…
The problem was…
“……”
“Here, if you install this app, we'll be able to see each other's locations, so I can rush over whenever you're in danger. And I think it would be a good idea for you to wear this watch, too. What do you think?”
“Isn't this a couples' app?”
The app's name, not to mention the heart symbol, made it look unmistakably like a couples' app.
“Oh, don't worry about it. It works as a decoy and performs well, too. And this watch has the ridiculous ability to communicate with the outside even inside a Gate! Hunters use it… It also has GPS built in, so even if you lose your smartphone, there won't be a problem!”
Something… Something was strange.
Unlike the calm guild-contract discussion, she seemed excited.
“Um, calm down first….”
“Oh, yes. Anyway… I think these are necessary measures to protect your safety, Mr. Yoo Hyun.”
It certainly was reassuring.
I didn't have any particular reason to refuse.
It did seem a little excessive, but considering what lay ahead for me, perhaps even this wouldn't be enough.
Anyway, the personal contract was finalized as well.
Hunter Yeon Harim's abilities would enter a new realm every time I created a new pet for her.
If she grew stronger, I would benefit right along with her…
Well, for now, she didn't seem to be planning to commission a new pet, since getting used to her etherization ability took priority.
Yeon Harim left the shop with a satisfied smile and said,
“Mr. Yoo Hyun, if you don't contact me every twenty-four hours, an emergency signal will be sent, so call me every day!”
“Huh? What does that mean now…!!”
“I'm busy, so I'll be going!”
Jingle—
Yeon Harim left the shop with lighter, more refreshed steps than ever.
“……”
And so I gained Moonshadow Guild's sponsorship and a powerful backer named Yeon Harim.
*
After Yeon Harim left, the members of Gamma Team visited the pet shop one after another.
Every last one of them was in disguise…!
The reason was related to the contract.
“Boss, I don't think we'll be able to visit the pet shop for a while, so I came to get a checkup and say goodbye.”
As usual, Hunter Yoo Dusik came carrying a Korean beef gift set and a cage containing Rune Turtle Rodin.
“If it's guild policy, it can't be helped. Still, now that I've officially started receiving sponsorship, come visit again once things settle down.”
With the Korean Hunter industry currently focused on Yeon Harim,
if there were signs that members of her guild kept visiting my pet shop, I could easily find myself in a very troublesome situation.
I didn't want that. Moonshadow Guild naturally didn't want other Hunters to notice my existence, either.
‘I need some time for myself for a while.’
Expanding the shop, buying new equipment, building a system for Moonshadow Guild to protect me, and so on…
I needed time.
After Hunter Yoo Dusik left.
Luxuriously wrapped boxes were piled up in a corner of the shop.
Every one of them was a Korean beef gift set.
“What am I supposed to do with all this, anyway?”
Maybe rumors had spread that I liked Korean beef; every Hunter who visited had brought a Korean beef gift set.
They had piled up at home, too, to the point where I had no idea what to do with them.
“Hmm….”
I took out my smartphone.
[ Me ] : Mom, would you like some Korean beef?
[ Mom ] : …Son. You can stop sending Korean beef now… We haven't even finished what's in the fridge.
Even my parents were getting sick of beef.
There was so much left over that these days I was feeding Happy premium 1++ Korean beef instead of dog food.
“……”
I looked at the cages inside the shop.
“Pant… Pant….”
“…Pant-pant-pant.”
“…Pant… Pant.”
Should I feed it to the Jellykkos and the other magic beasts?
*
The top floor of Dongbaek's guild building
Baek Seol-ah's office
“…Is the investigation complete?”
The cold voice of the silver-haired woman sitting with her chin propped on her hand echoed through the office.
“Most of the records, including CCTV footage, were deleted, but after checking vehicle dashcam footage and the like, we found evidence that Moonshadow's Gamma Team visited regularly. And Gamma Team is currently posting unparalleled results within Moonshadow, too. This pet shop is the most likely source. However, the owner is a Magic Beast Alchemist who only recently rose to C-Rank….”
“Give me the documents.”
The secretary handed the documents to Baek Seol-ah.
Her eyes skimmed the papers and quickly reached a conclusion.
“That's the place. If we want to improve Dongbaek's strength, we need to bring him in.”
Being overtaken by Yeon Harim was fine.
【 Korean Guild Rankings 】
13th ↓ [ Dongbaek ]
14th → [ Gaebyeok ]
……
……
17th ↑ [ Moonshadow ]
What mattered was that Moonshadow's guild ranking had climbed to just below Dongbaek.
“Make discreet contact and schedule a meeting. I have something to think about, so leave for now.”
“Understood.”
Click—
Only Baek Seol-ah remained in the office.
“……Yeon Harim.”
The public seemed determined to frame the two of them as rivals, but she didn't particularly care.
She simply always did her best in whatever position she had been entrusted with.
“Phew… Shall I take a short break?”
After murmuring to herself, Baek Seol-ah's cold eyes swept over the door through which her secretary had left.
Tap-tap—
After confirming that no one was nearby, she entered the Korean Hunter Gallery.
As expected, the only topic on the community was herself and Yeon Harim.
【 Korean Hunter Gallery 】
[ Free ] The Baek Seol-ah ship has sunk. Climb aboard the Yeon Harim ship!!
Author: Fun-to-Crush-You
Ah… Baek Seol-ah…!! A mere nobody who strutted around only before Queen Harim awakened…!!!
The age of Yeon Harim has arrived…!!
[ Comments ]
ㅇㅇ (59.1): Lmao, that lady who pretended not to care about rankings while acting all elegant, refined, and aristocratic despite maintaining the number-one spot in the female Hunter rankings…!!! She vanished from TV the instant she was pushed into second place lololololol
└ Lechawung: It's true lol She really did disappear like a ghost lololololol
Tremble, tremble…
Along with the trembling of the hand gripping the mouse, a crack appeared in Baek Seol-ah's emotionless-doll-like face.
“……H-Hoo, hoo… It's nothing. Calm down.”
Baek Seol-ah practiced mind control.
Glance
【 Korean Hunter Gallery 】
- [ Free ] Hmm, thinking about it now, we were fooled by Baek Seol-ah's distinctive aristocratic air. But is she really that good? That's debatable.
- [ Free ] Info: Baek Seol-ah's skill reserves are all hype, yeah.
- [ Free ] But why does Baek Seol-ah act like some rich young lady when she came from a rural farming family?
- [ Free ] It looks nice, doesn't it? Yeah.
- [ Free ] Maybe we've been overestimating Baek Seol-ah all along, yeah;;
- [ Free ] The Baek Seol-ah hype theory is real;;;
- [ Free ] Gasp…!! Then Baek Seol-ah might not even be second place once we take a closer look, right? Come to think of it, she hasn't even solo-cleared a B-Rank Gate, let alone an A-Rank one!!
- [ Free ] Holy shit;;; It's true. What the hell? Should we dig up her past? Yikes;;;
Clunk—!
Baek Seol-ah finally couldn't hold it in any longer and shoved her chair back roughly as she stood.
“How can they do this to me!! I haven't even done anything!!!”
She had tried to ignore it, but this was quietly humiliating.