HunterNet, Korea’s most active Hunter community.
Today, as usual, new opinions related to the Hunter world were being posted.
[Top 10 Villains to Watch Out for After Eraser’s Capture] +42
[They say the fastest record for an F-Rank Hunter to be promoted to E-Rank is 6 months. Is that true?] +40
[The Standard Equipment Rules You Need by Hunter Skill Type] +33
Since no new System Window had appeared for several days and other new topics had emerged,
mentions of Meteor Lord had also decreased considerably in just two short days.
[Seeing how quiet he is today too, Meteor Lord really was overrated. Haha.] +31
However, they had not disappeared entirely.
That was because of a user named “Myeongwang,” who repeatedly posted almost the same topic every day: “Meteor Lord is overrated.”
-Seolmeng: Agreed, agreed. The country made way too much of a fuss over a Hunter.
└Myeongwang: Does the news that Eraser was captured not seem fake too?
-andre: Do you have nothing to do? Why do you check another Hunter’s schedule every day?
└Myeongwang: No, it is a fact.
└SubiSubisu: Fact or not, take care of your own business……
└Myeongwang: Look at that. You have no logic to refute me, so you just say, “Take care of yourself.”
-rmswjekd: He has been quiet for about two days, but is that enough to call him overrated?
└Myeongwang: He was someone even the media was praising. If it has been two days, then yes, he is overrated. By now, he is probably suffering after getting caught in the wrong dungeon somewhere. Haha.
Myeongwang continued responding to the comments like that,
feeling a sense of accomplishment that he had won the keyboard battle with his “logic.”
[If the completely overhyped Meteor Lord takes first place again, I will cut one off. Seriously. Haha.]
When the responses died down, he uploaded another post and waited for comments to battle against.
At that moment, a system window appeared in the air.
“Damn it! I am busy. What is this?”
【E-1430/Goblin Settlement】 Cleared
『Mid-Bosses (Elder Goblins) Subjugated (3/3)』
-Contribution Rate 100% ‘I Am Meteor’
『Boss (High Elder Goblin) Subjugated (1/1)』
-Contribution Rate 100% ‘I Am Meteor’
『Time Taken: 00:00:12:10』
-Shortest Record Updated ‘I Am Meteor’
“…….”
The moment the System Window appeared before everyone, HunterNet paused for a moment.
Then a comment notification rang on “Myeongwang’s” account.
DING—
-Sir……
And that day, the notifications did not stop.
DING— DING— DING—
-You need to cut one off now, correct?
-How are you going to verify it?
-That is not the important part, everyone. Look at the dungeon rank.
In everyone’s System Window, the dungeon Meteor Lord had cleared was displayed as E-Rank.
If one looked only at the rank itself, it was not such a high-difficulty dungeon.
If a newly Awakened person built up experience in F-Rank Dungeons, then with enough speed, they could clear an E-Rank Dungeon in about three months.
However, everyone knew that less than a week had passed since Meteor Lord’s Tutorial Dungeon.
Meteor Lord had once again proven himself with an unprecedented new record in history.
Korea’s Hunter community began burning up once more.
[Myeongwang ← Where did this person go after saying he would cut one off?]
And the username Myeongwang could no longer be found on HunterNet.
At the same time, in an ordinary-looking office, the first-place notification for Meteor Lord appeared before Gong Yeong-beom’s eyes as well.
However, he had no time to look closely at the notification and remained focused on the call he was making.
“Yes, yes, of course. Magic Stones need to be multiplied. If you just leave them alone, their value will fall.”
[Is that so? A lot of Magic Stones have been dropping from dungeons lately…….]
“That is right. Korea’s drop rate has gone up now too. That is why, honestly, no one knows how much further their value will fall. At a time like this, you need to entrust them to an expert and increase them significantly.”
[Then…… Mm, I will think about it a little more.]
“Yes, but please understand that if you think too long, the waiting list will only get longer.”
Click.
On the desk, numerous phones and sheets of scrap paper lay scattered in disarray.
Gong Yeong-beom hung up and tossed the phone down as he had the others.
After letting out a short sigh, he opened his mouth.
“Ah, that bastard is disgustingly cautious. I am just trying to make some money here.”
The face that had worn a pleasant smile was now twisted into a sneer.
Gong Yeong-beom soon searched through the scrap papers and found one with the words “Trading Room” and “Yoo Seonghyeon” written on it.
Then he sank deep into thought.
RIIING!
At that moment, a sharp ringing came not from the phone on the desk, but from somewhere else.
Gong Yeong-beom hurriedly opened the drawer beside him and took out the single phone inside.
Then he answered it very carefully.
“Yes, Team Leader.”
[Well, Mr. Gong Yeong-beom. How is the task I assigned you? Is it going well?]
“Ah, yes, yes. Of course!”
[How many Magic Stones have you worked on?]
“Ah…… The Magic Stones gathered so far amount to about ten thousand.”
Unlike before, Gong Yeong-beom answered with his body tense.
Then the person on the other end sighed and continued.
[……Mr. Gong Yeong-beom, listen carefully.]
“Yes…… Yes, sir!”
[Right now, Eraser, whom the boss considered the greatest nuisance, has been captured. And this is our Burang Party’s chance to take control of Asia.]
“That is correct!”
[For that preparation, the Magic Stones allocated to us number one hundred thousand. Is that so difficult?]
“I-I apologize! Since dungeon drop rates have risen lately, Hunters are not desperate enough…….”
The Villain organization that had clashed most severely with Eraser.
It was none other than the Burang Party.
The Burang Party, which had secretly expanded its influence, was now preparing a grand undertaking to establish itself as the greatest Villain organization in Asia.
One of the funding channels for that purpose was Gong Yeong-beom.
[Ah, is that so? So you are not desperate either, Mr. Yeong-beom. Is that right? Should I…… make you desperate?]
“No! I have a money source I have been watching.”
[A money source?]
“There is an individual Hunter in my area who goes to the Trading Room. He awakened not long ago, but he seemed to use the Trading Room alone, both the sales area and the purchase area. With that much, he is either someone who got lucky with a drop and became an overnight rich man, or someone who was already well-off.”
[……It seems I misunderstood you. You were someone who could be this desperate. There will be no mistakes, correct?]
“Yes! I have almost reeled him in already. He is definitely the type to take the bait.”
[Good. You should secure a position for yourself through this opportunity.]
With that, the call ended.
Gong Yeong-beom’s eyes reddened as though madness were rising within them.
***
An easy first-place finish even in an E-Rank Dungeon.
Seonghyeon returned home with the lingering impression of that incredible Meteor still in his mind.
『Meteor (EX)』
Level: 5 (1▲)
Details: ……
Skill Mechanism:
……
Material – Iron Meteorite
Diameter – 20 cm
Speed – 10 km/s
Traits – Precision, Long-Range Sniping.
Plunder (New!): Randomly plunders an item from a target struck by Meteor.
……
‘Plunders an item? Does that mean it steals?’
The newly acquired trait, “Plunder.”
Since the other options had been flashy things like lights or glittering effects, he had been forced to choose it.
But in the first place, when monsters were hit by Meteor, did they not die and give items?
If he had to take only an item without necessarily dealing damage, then the target would naturally be…… a person?
‘It feels as if this is gradually becoming a Villain skill…….’
If it was that kind of trait, then he simply had to use it honestly. He resolved to use it only when absolutely necessary.
Then, to check the loot he had obtained this time, he opened his Inventory.
【Inventory】
Low-Grade Magic Stones 84,167
Dire Wolf Claws 43
Soul Fragments 7
Honed Goblin Dagger 1
Mo Enchantress’s Cloak 1
Giant Bull Hide 4
‘Oho, eight thousand this time!’
Since the clear speed had been similar, he had thought there was not much difference between ranks, but perhaps because it really was an E-Rank Dungeon, the increase of eight thousand Magic Stones, aside from the various loot he had obtained, struck him deeply.
Eighty million won a day…….
He was beginning to feel that he needed spending to match that.
BEEP—
And then, the front door opened, and his parents arrived home.
“Mm? It looked like you went out earlier, but you came back in time for dinner.”
“……You were here.”
“Mom, Dad, you are back?”
They were holding grocery bags in both hands, as though they had gone to the mart.
If he had known they had gone to the mart, he would have gone downstairs himself to carry the bags.
Feeling uncomfortable, Seonghyeon quickly took the bags and moved them.
“Son, you have not eaten dinner yet, right? We bought pork belly. Let us grill meat today.”
“Oh! Meat sounds great!”
Seonghyeon finished organizing the items and spread newspaper on the floor.
After all, pork belly was most delicious when grilled while eating.
“Hm? But what is this?”
At that moment, a surprised voice suddenly came from the kitchen.
It was his mother, Kim Gyeong-ae.
When he checked the kitchen, his mother was tilting her head while holding the two Thousand-Year Ginseng roots he had wrapped in newspaper earlier.
“Ah, those…… are ginseng roots. They are a little old.”
“Did you bring these, Son? Where did you get them?”
“I was going to tell you anyway. Let us talk while we eat first.”
After they finished preparing, the pork belly began grilling golden-brown on the thick iron plate on the floor.
His father, Yoo Jung-wan, quietly picked off the fine roots of the Thousand-Year Ginseng and divided them into three soju glasses.
“Dad, I already ate one ginseng root, so I am fine.”
“Hm? The more you eat, the better, no?”
It was not Hundred-Year Ginseng, but Thousand-Year Ginseng, so Seonghyeon tried to stop him because he did not know how terrifying Meteor might become.
His mother said it was all right.
However, his father removed the roots from one soju glass and divided them between the remaining two glasses.
“It is not good to eat too much ginseng.”
It was the moment a bit of wide-area monster slaughter was reduced.
Putting aside his regret, the meal began.
His father placed well-grilled ginseng and pork belly on top of lettuce, then finished it with garlic.
His mother picked up only pork belly, ginseng, and scallion salad without wrapping them.
As Seonghyeon wrapped a mushroom dipped in ssamjang with golden-brown pork belly and ate it, he watched his parents eat.
When his parents tipped back the soju containing the ginseng roots,
a short while later, both of their faces flushed along with brief exclamations.
“Oh my, what is this?”
“At least. More than fifty years old.”
As if heat was rising in their bodies and their blood was circulating, their faces became red.
Soon, their expressions brightened, and their skin gained elasticity.
He could feel vitality from his parents, and they seemed to regain a little youth.
The effect of the expensive Thousand-Year Ginseng was outstanding.
“Where did you get such good ginseng?”
“Actually, I awakened.”
At the word “awakened,” his parents’ hands, which had been picking up meat, stopped for a moment.
“Awakened? You mean you became a Hunter?”
“Yes, a Hunter who enters dungeons.”
“Oh my, what in the world is this? I thought you were going back to university soon.”
“I think I will have to take another leave of absence from university. If I enter a dungeon, I do not know when I will come out.”
In truth, he could clear a dungeon in a few seconds, but he did not want to reveal that he was Meteor.
And it was not as though graduating from university would give a Hunter additional incentives.
His parents seemed shocked by the sudden situation.
Even though ten years had already passed since Gates appeared, it was still a world difficult for their generation to understand.
So he decided to use a slightly more effective method.
“So, Mom, Dad. Please stop working so hard now, and travel a little too. I can send you.”
“You said you awakened not long ago. Do you have that kind of income?”
“Yes. Around eight hundred million won so far.”
His mother struck a pose as if she were about to collapse from shock.
However, the energy of the Thousand-Year Ginseng was too powerful for her to actually fall.