Chapter 102
“…Supervise?”
“Yeah. You’ll get the Gate proceeds too. The Rank A Hunter who was originally supposed to take the job can’t make it.”
“Even the Gate proceeds? How urgent is this?”
Even a low-rank Gate should pay at least a few hundred, right?
“Apparently, their baby’s due.”
“Ah.”
Nothing you can do about that.
“It’s a fixed C-rank Gate in Chungnam. You can take the shuttle they provide.”
C-rank, huh.
You might think it’s nothing special, but this isn’t an Outbreak Gate.
It’s a fixed Gate managed by a guild.
If we could secure the rights to it, it should pay pretty well.
At least I could buy what I needed with the supervisor’s fee.
This time, I was thinking of selling spices and various classical gadgets.
Maybe I could adapt something like a typewriter into an Imperial-style version.
Though a large part of it was simply that I found using Scribe Magic bothersome.
‘The White Tiger Guild said I could commission research from Kim Hana.’
It had come up briefly when we signed the contract.
As it happened, Kim Hana had also said she wanted to meet Chloe.
Anyway, I needed some money.
And if I could scarf down all the magic stones we got from it...?”
Maybe I could hold out until I made money selling spices, at least.
Magic stones could be sold in the other world too, so I could exchange them for silver coins.
The calculations were complete.
“Sounds good. When is it?”
I might as well go right away and sweep it clean.
“Today, a little later. You have your equipment, right?”
“I always carry it with me.”
I pulled out my wand.
I flicked it downward.
A white blade emerged.
“What does a supervisor do?”
It’s not like I’d ever done it before.
“Protect the rookies and faithfully fulfill your role as acting party leader.”
“Can I run them ragged!?”
“Do as you like.”
“Oh, you’re not going to stop me?”
“Getting knocked down a peg can be a good experience.”
Sera spoke as if I was going to crush their spirit.
“No, how much could I really do?”
“I still haven’t forgotten boot camp.”
* * *
In front of the White Tiger Guild’s main entrance.
In front of the vehicle taking us to the Chungnam Gate, I met the newbies... no, the rookies.
“So, today we’ll have Hunter Yumia serve as your temporary supervisor.”
Isera introduced me to them.
“She may look like this, but she has considerable experience... so please trust her and follow her lead.”
A three-person party.
It consisted of a warrior, a mage, and a healer.
“I’m Lee Gilsu, a C-rank Hunter! I’m the tank for Party 16!”
“I’m Lee Sujin, a C-rank Hunter. I’m the mage.”
“I’m Kim Seyeon, a B-rank healer. I’m the healer.”
Apparently, the first two had the potential to become B-rank Hunters.
They greeted Sera, then turned their eyes to me.
“I’m Yumia. My experience includes... taking down B-rank criminals and various other things? I’ll be supervising you today. I look forward to working with you.”
Lee Gilsu looked at me and began speaking with an awkward expression.
“Uh... excuse me?”
“Yes?”
“It’s just... you look awfully young for your apparent age.”
Sigh.
Should I just reveal my entire résumé?
Or pick a fight?
Before I could draw my wand, Sera spoke first.
“Hunter Yumia is a First-Generation Hunter.”
“…A First-Generation Hunter!?”
“You’ve heard that Hunters with high mana amounts look young, haven’t you?”
“Ah.”
“It means their apparent age may differ from their actual age. I guarantee it. Hunter Yumia is more than capable.”
Sera explained calmly.
She managed to smooth things over like that.
Impressive.
“Almost too capable, which is the problem...”
“What?”
I thought I’d heard something strange.
“Nothing.”
Gilsu still didn’t look completely convinced.
“If that’s what you say, Ms. Sera...”
It was sad. So sad.
How sad that this world judged people solely by their appearance.
‘Back in the day, whenever a Gate broke out, I was summoned every single time.’
I still get calls asking me to help these days.
Of course, I ignore them all because I barely have time to play.
Even when I was a non-ability user, ability users were always calling for me.
And now I had to be treated like this.
Unforgivable.
* * *
And so, we rode toward the fixed Gate.
It was a fairly large vehicle, so I sat in the middle while they took the back seats.
“Is she really strong?”
“Is she a parachute hire?”
“No, but her mana does feel pretty weak.”
“What good is that if she has no technique...? What are her Traits?”
“You know it’s rude to ask about someone’s Traits, right?”
I can hear every word, you little shits.
They seemed to think they were whispering among themselves.
But because of a certain someone, I was several percent less human than before.
My senses were much sharper.
I casually checked the Gate’s situation on my phone.
I had to know the basics, at least.
And I sensed something slightly off.
‘This looks a little more difficult than an ordinary C-rank Gate.’
* * *
We arrived at the Gate in Chungcheongnam-do, and everyone got out of the vehicle.
They took all the equipment out of the trunk, then selected and put on their own gear.
Chain mail, swords, greaves, a large wand and robe, a priest’s staff and brooch, and so on.
There were a lot of artifacts, and gearing up took just as much time.
“Um... Ms. Yumia, don’t you have any equipment?”
Lee Sujin, carrying a large wand, approached me and asked.
“Me?”
I pulled a wand from my Inventory.
Silver Scale.
A UR-rank magical tool from the other world.
“This is enough for me.”
“That’s really enough...? Uh, where did it come from?”
“It’s magic.”
“Pardon?”
“There’s magic like that.”
I didn’t know either, but apparently it was magic.
Once we had more or less finished preparing, Gilsu spoke to me.
“Ms. Yumia, I’ll be frank.”
“Yes?”
“We don’t need your help.”
So that was what they’d been discussing in the back seat after all.
“We have our own coordination and methods. Rash advice or interference could risk ruining them...”
“But I have no intention of interfering.”
“Pardon?”
I looked him straight in the eyes and said,
“I have no intention of disrupting your style. Like you said, interference would ruin your coordination. Of course.”
At my words, Gilsu and the party members looked at me with surprise.
“I thought you were just going to drag us around against our will...”
“She’s more reasonable than I expected?”
I respect other people’s methods.
If a problem comes up, that’s where we’ll start.
Besides, if auto-hunting worked, I’d have it easiest.
“However. If you request my help or a situation arises where you need my help, you will follow my orders without question from that point onward.”
“It’s only a C-rank Gate. Do you really think that will happen?”
He said with a laugh,
“If such a situation does arise, we’ll follow all your orders, Supervisor.”
At least he wasn’t completely unreasonable.
Still, he did seem to lack experience.
Well, I guess you only know by going through it.
“Mr. Gilsu, we’re ready!!”
Kim Seyeon called out to Gilsu.
We threw ourselves into the rippling Gate.
* * *
A blue forest.
It was a C-rank jungle-type Gate in Chungcheongnam-do.
Our objective was to reach its deepest point, leave a record on the terminal, and return.
That would mark their transition from apprentices into full-fledged Hunters.
“Hyaaaaaah!!”
“Burn up, Fireball!”
“Cure!”
I observed them from a tree some distance away.
Green monsters wielding kukris.
There were a great many of them, but they were being swept away by firepower approaching B-rank.
Their flags burned, and all their spells were blocked by the healer.
Fireball’s firepower was respectable too. It could roast a goblin in one shot.
The situation was under control in less than five minutes.
We collected all the magic stones and put them in my Inventory.
That had been the agreement.
“Great, let’s keep going just like this!”
Gilsu shouted energetically.
“Mr. Gilsu, shouldn’t we take a break?”
Seyeon suggested it, but Gilsu seemed to have a different opinion.
“We’ve cleared plenty of C-rank Gates before. We can pick up the pace a little.”
Seyeon looked at me, but I said nothing.
And so we proceeded toward the center of the forest.
A fixed Gate’s area was incomparable to that of an Outbreak Gate.
So the number of monsters should have been proportionally greater as well.
But aside from the one group of monsters we’d encountered so far, they hadn’t shown so much as the tip of their noses.
‘They should’ve figured it out by now.’
But I didn’t bother telling them.
This was experience, too.
“Is it just me, or are there no monsters around?”
“Strange. They should be appearing by now.”
We emerged into an oddly spacious clearing.
“There aren’t any plants growing here.”
“Let’s rest here for a bit. Nothing’s showing up on your Detection Trait, right?”
“No.”
“Then it should be safe...”
Just as Gilsu let his guard down and sat down,
—Thud.
At that sound,
green monsters appeared around the edge of the clearing.
“W-what the!?”
“They’re not goblins!”
“What happened to your Detection Trait!?”
“T-that’s strange! They didn’t show up on Detection!?”
They weren’t goblins.
They were orcs.
Upper-tier C-rank monsters.
And we were completely surrounded.
“We fight!”
Gilsu made the best choice available to him.
He drew his sword and charged forward, striking first.
“Hraaah!!”
The orc’s blade swung for him, but he deftly deflected it.
The blade sank straight into the ground.
A blatant opening.
Just as he was about to slash at the orc’s arm,
—Grrk.
The orc quickly let go of its blade and recovered its stance, then clamped a hand around Gilsu’s neck.
“Urk!! Gack!!”
“Mr. Gilsu!”
“Fire!”
The mage fired a spell of flame, but the orc took it head-on as if to show off.
As though it were being protected by something.
“W-we have to help...”
Kim Seyeon, the healer, tried to rescue Gilsu somehow, but...
“Hold your position. Just keep healing Mr. Gilsu.”
My words reminded her of her duty.
Right. If she went over there, she’d only get counterattacked.
Orcs.
They were extremely strong monsters, but—
“There’s no way it should be that fast.”
“Casting Bullet.”
—Squeeeeeak!!
I blew away one of the orc’s legs—the one gripping Gilsu’s neck.
At the same time, I charged in.
By then, blue Aura had already coated my hand, and I drove it straight through the orc’s heart.
“Krah!”
Gilsu escaped its grasp.
When he saw what was covering my hand, he jumped in shock.
“Sword Aura!?”
It’s not sword aura. It’s Aura.
I read the flow of mana.
An orc shaman covered in tattoos on the opposite side of the clearing.
That one was the problem.
“Casting Bullet.”
A white line streaked across the clearing.
There was no need to use a homing spell.
It couldn’t dodge at this distance anyway.
—Khaaaagh!!
At that, the orcs panicked.
Their chieftain’s head had been blown off in a single shot.
The party members’ mouths fell open.
“M-magic!? How...!?”
“You call that magic!? That casting speed is impossible!”
“And she even has sword aura...!”
The way they looked at me changed completely.
“Ms. Yumia, what rank are you, by any chance...?”
Kim Seyeon asked me cautiously.
That was none of their business.
Besides, saying I was D-rank was embarrassing.
I looked at them.
“From now on, you’ll follow my orders. Understood?”
They obediently nodded.
They were completely different from before.
I grinned at them.
Now I was ready to put them through their paces.