Deputy Director Allen’s previously relaxed expression vanished as his eyes shook violently.
“H-How did you…?”
He seemed thoroughly stunned that Jeon Jae-woo possessed not one, but two Additional Ruin Clear Passes.
Then again, Allen’s reaction was only natural.
Even the United States, a Hunter superpower, possessed only three such passes in total.
One of those belonged to an individual Hunter, meaning the government itself owned only two.
And yet a Hunter who was unaffiliated with any organization and had only recently begun his career somehow possessed two of them?
Owning two Additional Ruin Clear Passes was an entirely separate matter from personal strength.
That was how extraordinarily rare the items were.
No matter how many Ancient- or Legendary-grade Ruins someone cleared, Additional Ruin Clear Passes were not easy to obtain.
‘Did the South Korean Hunter Administration give them to him?’
No. There was no way a comparatively weaker Hunter nation like South Korea had managed to secure two Additional Ruin Clear Passes.
The only reasonable explanation was that Hunter Jeon Jae-woo had obtained them through his own efforts.
‘So the Ancient-grade Ruin he cleared recently actually contained Additional Ruin Clear Passes…’
Apparently, the man possessed extraordinary luck in addition to extraordinary ability.
Jeon Jae-woo soon rose from his seat.
“Then I’ll be going. One or two Additional Ruin Clear Passes aren’t enough to make me consider changing my nationality.”
“Ah, wait…”
Allen reached out, but he could not stop Jeon Jae-woo from leaving.
As Jeon Jae-woo walked away after rejecting the offer, Myeolgeop spoke to him.
[Creator. Would it not be more beneficial to accept their proposal?]
Jeon Jae-woo understood why Myeolgeop was saying that.
Every single available Ruin clear would become precious from now on.
“We can obtain plenty of Additional Ruin Clear Passes with your abilities anyway, can’t we? Thanks to Novum, we already know which Ruins contain them.”
[Even so, obtaining even one additional pass would be beneficial to the Creator. You can clear Ruins in the United States just as easily, can you not?]
“Is the current situation really worth taking on all the risks that would come with moving abroad?”
He had already said that if he accepted something from a government institution, he would eventually have to do something for that country in return.
And if he moved overseas, public criticism would pour down on him all at once.
Jeon Jae-woo was too ordinary and thin-skinned to willingly endure all of that criticism for no real reason.
If he were shameless enough to ignore every insult directed at him, perhaps it would be different.
After leaving the Americans behind, Jeon Jae-woo finally arrived in front of his house.
Just as he was about to enter, he noticed someone sprinting toward him from nearby.
He narrowed his eyes and looked closer.
It was Commissioner Yoo Jeong-tae.
The moment Yoo Jeong-tae spotted Jeon Jae-woo, he charged toward him at incredible speed.
“Hunter Jeon Jae-woo!!!”
“Y-Yes?”
“You aren’t, right?”
“What?”
“You’re not going to America, are you??”
“……”
Yoo Jeong-tae clung to him like a child, practically crying and sniffling as though determined not to let him go anywhere.
He was so desperate about it that passersby began glancing over and whispering among themselves.
‘But how did he even know I just met with the Americans?’
***
After clearing up the misunderstanding with Jeon Jae-woo, Yoo Jeong-tae returned to the Hunter Administration.
All the tension that had been gripping him disappeared at once, leaving his legs almost devoid of strength.
Minister Lee Cheol-su was waiting in the Commissioner’s office for Yoo Jeong-tae to return.
The moment Yoo Jeong-tae entered, Lee Cheol-su shot to his feet.
“W-What did he say? What about Hunter Jeon Jae-woo?”
Seeing Yoo Jeong-tae trudging toward him in exhaustion, the Minister’s heart sank as he wondered whether something terrible had happened.
“D-Don’t tell me…?”
Yoo Jeong-tae sat down across from Lee Cheol-su.
“He says no.”
“W-What do you mean, no?”
“He did meet with representatives from the United States and receive an offer to change his nationality, but Hunter Jeon Jae-woo rejected it.”
“Haaaa…”
Lee Cheol-su let out a tremendous sigh of relief, just as Yoo Jeong-tae had earlier.
For now, they could breathe easier knowing Jeon Jae-woo had rejected the American proposal.
Lee Cheol-su immediately called the President, who had also been anxiously awaiting news, and informed him of what had happened.
Ally or not, the government intended to protest to the United States with everything it had over this incident.
But they could not simply relax because Jeon Jae-woo had rejected the offer.
Foreign officials had openly entered South Korea and attempted to poach one of its own talents.
There had been occasional attempts to lure away valuable personnel in the past, but rarely had another country acted this openly.
That only showed how desperately they wanted Jeon Jae-woo on their side.
They had already expected that foreign countries might try all manner of methods to recruit Hunter Jeon Jae-woo.
“We just didn’t expect them to move this quickly.”
Considering how extraordinary Jeon Jae-woo’s achievements had been, however, it was understandable.
The major Hunter powers in particular would covet him desperately.
If one of those nations recruited Jeon Jae-woo, a country that had merely been one major power among several could instantly transform into a superpower beyond anyone else’s reach.
“What exactly did those Americans offer Hunter Jeon Jae-woo?”
“They offered him one Additional Ruin Clear Pass simply on the condition that he become a citizen of the United States. Naturally, that would be separate from whatever other benefits they intended to provide.”
Lee Cheol-su flinched.
“…That certainly is an offer any Hunter would find difficult to ignore.”
Especially an exceptionally powerful Hunter rather than an ordinary one.
South Korea had never secured even a single Additional Ruin Clear Pass, so even if the government wanted to provide one to Jeon Jae-woo, it simply could not.
Even Hunter powers such as China and India possessed only a few.
And the United States had offered one merely in exchange for changing his nationality and becoming an American citizen—not even for joining an American government organization.
Frankly, it was almost strange that Jeon Jae-woo had rejected the offer.
“If he turned down something like that, then perhaps Hunter Jeon Jae-woo does have some affection for his homeland after all. Isn’t that good news?”
Yoo Jeong-tae shook his head.
“No. I don’t think patriotism was the reason.”
“?”
“The rewards from the Ancient-grade Ruin he cleared recently were apparently two Additional Ruin Clear Passes. I think he simply saw no reason to accept America’s request when he already had two of his own.”
Lee Cheol-su’s mouth fell open.
“…That young man has incredible ability and incredible luck too.”
“It is only good for us if the strongest Hunter in South Korea is lucky.”
“Still, we have no idea when another country might approach Hunter Jeon Jae-woo. And every time that happens, are we really supposed to just sit here and watch…?”
Lee Cheol-su leaned back against the sofa before suddenly saying something strange.
“Commissioner Yoo. Hunter Jeon Jae-woo isn’t married yet, correct?”
“Yes. As far as I know. He’s only in his mid-twenties.”
Why was he suddenly asking about Jeon Jae-woo’s marital status?
Lee Cheol-su appeared to think seriously for a moment before speaking.
“I heard Hunter Kim Yu-min lives next door to him. What if we tried bringing the two of them together?”
“……??”
Yoo Jeong-tae frowned at the completely unexpected suggestion.
Was he planning to create some sort of Hunter marriage alliance like the arranged marriages of old conglomerate families?
Well, Kim Yu-min was around Jeon Jae-woo’s age, strong enough to be one of the first Hunters people associated with South Korea, and certainly attractive.
Kim Yu-min was even more popular than many top idols.
If the two developed a good relationship, it might help the Hunter Administration maintain a smooth relationship with Jeon Jae-woo as well.
But ordering Kim Yu-min, an S-grade Hunter of all people, to seduce someone was absurd.
‘And even if things went well between them, what if they became a package deal and moved overseas together…?’
Yoo Jeong-tae shuddered at the horrifying possibility he never wanted to imagine.
If they ended up married, instead of losing one Hunter overseas, South Korea might lose two at once.
“…I think it would be better to leave them alone rather than trying to force anything.”
If the two naturally became attracted to each other without anyone interfering, then perhaps there would eventually be good news.
Meanwhile, after returning home, Jeon Jae-woo used all of the Additional Ruin Clear Passes he had entrusted to Myeolgeop.
They would have been perfectly safe in Myeolgeop’s possession, but people might eventually come looking for the passes, so he thought it would be better to simply use them in advance.
“But how do I use these? Do I inject Mana into them and activate them like Scrolls?”
“You tear these Scrolls to use them, Maker.”
-HUMMMMM…
Just as the Elder Lich said, the moment Jeon Jae-woo tore an Additional Ruin Clear Pass, strange Mana enveloped his body.
[You have used an Additional Ruin Clear Pass.]
[You have used an Additional Ruin Clear Pass.]
His Status Window then showed that two additional Ruin clears had been added.
[Number of Ruins Available to Clear (7)]
After clearing another Ancient-grade Ruin, his remaining number had fallen to five, but now it had risen back to seven.
Good.
Jeon Jae-woo nodded with a satisfied smile.
Then a rather interesting thought suddenly occurred to him.
‘Wait. Couldn’t I have put an Additional Ruin Clear Pass into Heaven’s Box?’
The entire ability of Heaven’s Box was to amplify the performance of whatever materials were placed inside.
If things went well, perhaps a one-use Additional Ruin Clear Pass could emerge as a two-use or even three-use version.
However, the Elder Lich discouraged him from acting on the idea immediately.
“Think carefully, Maker. The results produced by Heaven’s Box are random. Even if the fundamental value of the material increases, something strange that is no longer an Additional Ruin Clear Pass might emerge.”
“But whatever comes out of the box should still be more valuable, shouldn’t it?”
“Perhaps. But when you put in the same soil, you do not know whether it will become high-quality earth, transform into a mineral such as a Magic Stone, or produce a Golem like Myeolgeop, do you?”
Hmm.
That was true.
[I agree as well, Creator. I recommend exercising greater caution before placing an Additional Ruin Clear Pass into Heaven’s Box.]
Myeolgeop also advised against the idea.
Even if the original material’s performance improved, what Jeon Jae-woo needed right now was specifically an Additional Ruin Clear Pass.
It would be troublesome if the box transformed it into an item with an entirely different effect.
Still, once he had accumulated a more comfortable number of available clears, he could try it once.
Who knew?
Perhaps the effect would be amplified dozens or hundreds of times, producing a pass that granted hundreds of additional Ruin clears.
Some time later, the month ended without further incident, and the Ruin clear rankings were announced.
Naturally, South Korea took first place after clearing no fewer than two Ancient-grade Ruins.
Having achieved the greatest monthly result in the history of the Ruin System, South Korea’s excitement did not merely boil over.
It exploded.
[South Korea Makes History! First-Ever No. 1 Ranking in Ruin Clears!]
[No Previous Country Has Cleared Two Ancient-Grade Ruins in a Single Month. Who Exactly Is Hunter Jeon Jae-woo?]
[Both Ruling and Opposition Lawmakers Applaud Together Following News of South Korea’s No. 1 Ranking.]
┗Ah, first place tastes good. I’m full.
┗Is South Korea really No. 1? My chest is swelling with pride…
┗It does not mean much when we only got first place by depending on one person.
┗Honestly, though, there is no way this would have happened without Jeon Jae-woo. Hahaha.
┗I work at the Hunter Administration, and apparently some people from the United States came by recently. Could it be…?
Amid the celebratory atmosphere, the month came to an end.
Then another month began, and a new set of Ruins was announced once again.