Kim Kang-hoon’s office at the Hunter Intelligence Agency.
The incident at the Hunter Association had certainly ended successfully.
And that result had undoubtedly flowed according to ‘Meteor Lord’s’ scheme.
That was why the Intelligence Agency had decided to feel relieved and take its eyes off the case related to Eraser.
‘What matters now is Meteor Lord’s identity…….’
First of all, it was certain that Meteor Lord was not an ordinary person.
He possessed a mind capable of drawing in an S-Rank Villain and the skill to control his ability with such precision.
Moreover, judging by the fact that none of the Hunters registering with the Association over the past few days had awakened such an incredible skill, that seemed certain.
Based on those grounds, if they made an estimate,
Meteor Lord was either an agent of some secret organization unknown even to the Intelligence Agency,
or he narrowed down to a Villain raised by a Villain organization that had yet to reveal itself.
And Kim Kang-hoon had judged, based on the fact that Eraser had been subdued, that Meteor Lord likely belonged to the former category.
At least, until he checked Eraser’s final interrogation report today…….
!!!
“Is this report true?”
“Yes, Director. Eraser apparently confessed that he had been involved with multiple Villain organizations.”
As he confirmed it again with his secretary, Kim Kang-hoon fell into confusion.
Had he judged Meteor Lord too hastily……?
Sa-hyeon’s report contained many details that could be interpreted as showing a high likelihood that Meteor Lord was connected to a Villain organization.
‘In that case, he may not…… be an ally.’
And Kim Kang-hoon knew better than anyone that Sa-hyeon’s skill did not produce lies.
That made the results of the interrogation all the more difficult to believe, and the outlook was poor.
According to the report, Eraser had often entered Korea even before this.
And in order to obtain something called a ticket, he had made contact with Korean Villain organizations.
Among them, there had been an incident where he clashed with an unnamed Villain organization.
‘A Villain organization powerful enough to clash with Eraser…….’
If a Villain from such an organization had awakened a powerful skill…….
Even if he had only just awakened, it would make sense that he could dispose of Eraser through a profound scheme.
They had not yet determined exactly what this “ticket” was, but if there was enough bad blood between them, it was entirely understandable.
Since he naturally could not receive the bounty, handing Eraser over to the Association as he was also fit the picture.
The fact that Korea was continuing to take first place,
could no longer be viewed only in a positive light.
Even if he had achieved the feat of defeating Eraser, if he was a Villain, it would become a problem…….
Just as Kim Kang-hoon’s wariness was growing,
the Intelligence Agency staff were busily contacting cooperating organizations.
The timing of the calls all differed, but their contents were the same.
[Hello! This is the XX Branch of the Association. May we receive information regarding Meteor Lord’s identity?]
“…….”
The Intelligence Agency could not easily answer the Association’s information requests.
Various analyses were being carried out, but nothing was certain yet.
If they unnecessarily stimulated public anxiety, something serious could happen.
Whether among the citizens or with Meteor Lord.
Thus, there was only one answer the Intelligence Agency could give.
“As of now, it is Class-1 Restricted Information, so we cannot disclose it.”
And that answer, which sounded somewhat secretive, was creating another major misunderstanding at the Association.
***
The Seoul Headquarters of the Hunter Association.
Jo Dong-seok, an employee of the Operations Department, was shredding tip-off documents.
“Whew…… I can finally escape this paperwork hell.”
The task of collecting information on Meteor Lord had been concluded as of today.
According to Operations Director Jo Gyeong-uk, the higher-ups said Korea had properly cultivated an agent this time.
The Meteor Lord they had been searching for was, in fact, affiliated with the Intelligence Agency…….
Since the information was being controlled under Class-1 restriction, they were told to discard all tip-offs coming into the Association.
‘Ah, then they should at least put out a press release.’
He no longer needed to examine the information piece by piece as he had until now.
But the annoying work remained.
Tip-offs were pouring into his inbox in real time.
Since it was Class-1 Restricted Information, he could not tell anyone about it, so he would have to endure this for the time being.
‘Damn it.’
The document disposal was now finished.
He returned to his computer and was about to delete roughly one hundred tip-offs that had arrived by email.
BUZZ—
[Ansan Min Ju-ho – 010-XXXX-XXXX]
Suddenly, his phone rang.
It was a junior colleague from the Association whom he had not heard from in a long time.
It was Min Ju-ho, who had joined directly under him back when he had worked at the Ansan Branch.
Jo Dong-seok answered the call with a glad heart.
“Hello? Mr. Ju-ho?”
[Senior, have you been well?]
Because it had been so long since they had contacted each other,
there was some awkwardness even in the greetings before they got to the main point.
“I have been well. Anyway, what made you call?”
[It is nothing else. You are still working in the Operations Department, correct?]
“Yes, I am. Why? Are you trying to see whether there is an opening here?”
[No, that is not it. I sent you an email, and I was wondering if you had checked it.]
Jo Dong-seok was surprised by the unexpected purpose.
They were not particularly connected through work, so why an email?
And considering he had even called to check, it must have been urgent.
Jo Dong-seok opened the inbox he had already been looking at.
[Inbox – 247 Unread]
‘Ah, even more piled up in the meantime.’
In the ever-growing inbox, he barely managed to find an email sent under Min Ju-ho’s name.
[(Hunter Association/Ansan Branch) Regarding Submission of Ansan Branch F-Rank Defense Battle Clear Report]
“Hm? Defense Battle reports should not be sent here.”
[Yes, I know that. Senior, but there is something suspicious.]
“What is it?”
Jo Dong-seok could tell without hearing the answer directly.
In the email Min Ju-ho had sent, the words “Suspected Individual Matching Meteor Lord” were highlighted.
Now the problem was how to tell him it was not true.
Without mentioning the Class-1 Restricted Information.
“Ah, so this is why……. But it probably is not that person.”
[What? It is not? Has his identity been revealed?]
“No, it is not that……. Anyway, it is not him.”
[I am sorry when you are busy. Could you perhaps check just once?]
“No, the thing is…….”
Jo Dong-seok was in a difficult position.
Judging by Min Ju-ho’s tone, he seemed to think Jo Dong-seok simply found it bothersome, but Jo Dong-seok was not in a position to explain even if he wanted to.
Well, they were close, but he needed to be cold about this matter.
Otherwise, lingering doubts would surely remain.
“I understand why you are asking me to check. But there are already 421 people claiming that they themselves are Meteor Lord, and there have been 23 reports from the branches. Is there a reason I should check yours first in particular?”
[Ah, that is…….]
Naturally, Min Ju-ho could not give a clear answer.
The meaning of what Jo Dong-seok had said was, “Do you have evidence?”
How could he provide evidence for the existence of someone even the Association could not properly find?
As the atmosphere of the call suddenly turned chilly, Jo Dong-seok felt sorry.
After all, Min Ju-ho had always worked hard in ways that benefited the Association.
Jo Dong-seok added a few words.
“Well, it seems the Association has already identified who Meteor Lord is. Seeing as they told me to stop searching for Meteor Lord too…….”
[So that was the case. I apologize for bothering you.]
“No, I am the one who is sorry for speaking so harshly. But if he is a Hunter strong enough to make you think of Meteor Lord, how about recruiting him to your team?”
[Oh, that sounds good too. I should contact him before another organization notices.]
And with that, the call ended.
To think he was still this absorbed in his work.
Jo Dong-seok thought that Min Ju-ho had truly not changed.
***
Yoo Seonghyeon opened his eyes in bed.
Because of the aftereffects of the ordeal in the Defense Battle last night, he felt as though he had slept for twelve hours straight.
“Nnngh…… hhh…….”
First, he stretched and got out of bed.
He remembered somehow making it home.
But considering that he had woken up in bed, his physical ability was definitely still at a low point.
In novels, people ate elixirs at times like this and clicked their physical specs upward.
He thought it would be nice if something like that existed right now.
“I think I would buy it even if I had to pay a fortune…….”
Wait. Because he had been so exhausted, his memories of yesterday were muddled.
Yesterday, the price of Wasp Wax had definitely been four thousand Magic Stones…….
Was that not a dream?
He urgently accessed the Hunter Auction site.
【Auction House Trading】
[Purchase]
[Sell] (!)
[My Bids]
Oh, the familiar appearance of the auction site.
The exclamation mark meant there was a new bid.
Even if he tried to hold it back, the corners of his mouth kept rising.
Then,
[Sell]
Wasp Wax (4) - 16,100 (Korean Hunter Association) (!)
Soul Fragments (7) - 42,400 (Brada Company) (!)
Giant Bull Hide (4) –
Deathwing Claws (21) - 10,500 (Hunter Agriculture and Forestry Cooperative) (!)
Skeleton Bone Fragments (11) - 8,800 (Hunter Agriculture and Forestry Cooperative) (!)
Mo Enchantress’s Cloak -
‘Ah…… so this means.’
Seonghyeon did not know what to do with himself.
The pleasant event from yesterday had not been a dream.
Because of that, he felt even better.
But seeing that he had obtained around eight hundred million won in an instant, he had no idea how to react.
And another thought occurred to him.
‘That means I can purchase things here too?!’
In other words, the site clearly had an Official Store.
And in the Auction House, he could also place purchase bids.
His physical ability had been his greatest concern since awakening Meteor.
If he could obtain an elixir, he might be able to resolve it.
The thought made many things feel clearer.
On the other hand, he felt daunted by how long it would take to exchange eighty thousand Magic Stones into cash.
[Purchase]
[Elixir……]
He immediately searched for elixirs in the Auction House purchase window.
[Purchase]
Elixir of Strong Bones -
Elixir of Swiftness -
Elixir of Vitality - 1,800 (Choi Seop*)
Elixir of Fortune -
…….
Perhaps elixirs were not that popular, because there were not many with bid prices attached.
Most elixirs with the name “Vitality” attached had prices, though.
[Inner Core……]
[Pill……]
[Ginseng……]
When he searched to see if there were elixirs with different names,
such things did exist,
but no listings themselves appeared.
Since he could not confirm what their effects were,
Seonghyeon roughly looked over the elixirs and placed bids on a few that he liked.
Since it was his first time, he matched exactly the starting bid.
Elixir of Strong Bones - 500
Endurance Elixir - 500
Hundred-Year Ginseng - 750
Small Summoning Pill - 2,000
The thought that he had used nearly forty million won suddenly felt burdensome.
He had never spent so extravagantly before.
Just as a slight wave of regret was about to come over him, he saw the 78,000 Magic Stones sitting in his Auction House wallet.
‘…….’
Maybe it was not that big a deal?
Seonghyeon accessed the Auction House again and raised a few more bids.
Thousand-Year Ginseng (2) - 6,000
Since he was going to spend excessively anyway, it would be nice to include something for his mother and father too.
This many Magic Stones could be recovered by running one dungeon, no, he would earn even more than that.
When it was time to spend, he should spend without hesitation.