“Strange?”
He had definitely killed the boss monster back then, and the clear notification had appeared too. Whatever the cooldown was, it hadn’t even been half a day yet, so there shouldn’t be anything urgent.
— Not sure. I don’t know the details either. Looks like you’ll have to confirm it yourself. We already put out a notice because of it, so once enough people gather, you’ll probably be heading out tomorrow.
Rubbing his forehead, Gong Siyoung glanced toward the room where Yurian was sleeping.
“…Got it.”
Yeah. This was only happening because the guild master told him to do it, so he had no choice.
Who’d think he was paying attention because he felt bad about splitting that sword apart and leaving it in the dungeon?
He was going because the dungeon was supposedly strange. This absolutely was not because Yurian’s sword was bothering him.
If he happened to see the sword while inside, he’d just pick it up while he was at it. It wasn’t like he was going in specifically to look for it.
— What are you muttering about?
At Gong Sijin’s question, he flinched.
Saying it was nothing, he hurriedly changed the subject.
“Just be on time tomorrow. Don’t be late. I’m hanging up.”
Not even giving him time to reply, he ended the call in a rush.
Either way, things were moving exactly as he’d decided.
Gong Siyoung leaned back against the sofa at ease.
* * *
“Ah, so you want to know my rank, is that it?”
The moment morning came, he felt rough hands shaking him awake.
Yurian jolted up like someone struck by lightning, only to find Gong Siyoung standing over him with a razor-sharp stare.
Without even getting the sleep grit out of his eyes, he got dragged off somewhere. He had to blink back tears from holding in a yawn.
While he rubbed at the corners of his eyes, Gong Siyoung shoved him between the shoulder blades.
“Move it, hurry up.”
“Is someone chasing us? Why are you in such a rush?”
Practically pushed into the car, he clicked the seatbelt into place.
One thing he’d realized since yesterday was that Gong Siyoung really seemed to dislike him.
But had they even talked enough to hate each other?
Separate from his curiosity, Yurian didn’t dislike Gong Siyoung at all.
For one thing, the man was attractive right from the outside. His prickly face that reminded him of Kkambi was cute, and the mole pressed neatly into his cheek was kind of cute too. No matter how he looked at it, the guy had a face full of appeal.
Even the grumbling and irritated attitude didn’t really bother him that much.
Among Yurian’s old comrades, there had been plenty with personalities far worse than Gong Siyoung’s. He’d managed just fine around those bastards, so this level was almost charming.
To be more honest, the prickliness actually put him at ease.
No one in the world was kind for no reason.
Someone openly being wary and irritated like Gong Siyoung felt far more human and honest.
“That’s because I’m not as free as someone like you.”
Gong Siyoung shot back immediately.
If he really hated him, he could just ignore him, but he answered every single question. Was that just his personality?
Yurian looked at him with growing interest.
Whenever he asked something, the answer came right back, even if it was laced with irritation.
The “No wow, no what’s this, no gasping” rule was still in effect, but if he asked without being annoying, useful information came out well enough.
Thanks to that, Yurian had learned the name of this soft, comfortable vehicle.
Automobile.
Even the name was cute.
More importantly, he’d also started to understand what they wanted from him.
Gong Siyoung hadn’t said it directly, but the flow of events made it obvious.
They were convinced Yurian’s world lay “beyond the dungeon.”
How he crossed over, where he came from, what that place was like—through the flood of questions, Yurian realized how important the information he possessed really was.
In the end, they were in a position similar to his own.
They needed to verify whether his information was valid and truthful, and to do that, they needed to build trust.
There had been all sorts of excuses attached, but the proposal itself was simple.
Wouldn’t he like to return with them to the same dungeon where they first met?
That part wasn’t difficult.
He had no intention of lying anyway, and he had already planned to go back once to retrieve his sword.
But unlike what Yurian had assumed, it seemed a dungeon wasn’t the sort of place you casually dropped by like taking a stroll.
Apparently, to pass through a gate, you needed something called a Hunter Registration Card.
And to get that card, you had to go to the Hunter Management Bureau and undergo a rank assessment.
Why was everything here so complicated?
A mercenary just had to pick up a sword, slap down a name, and anyone could do it.
In that sense, hunters seemed closer to knights than mercenaries.
“Hey, I’ve got something I’m curious about.”
As if asking what now, Gong Siyoung narrowed his eyes.
Still, since he didn’t tell him to shut up, it probably meant he could ask.
“How long does this rank assessment thing take?”
He needed to get the assessment done quickly to enter the dungeon, and only then could he retrieve his sword.
“Well, it differs from person to person. Mine took about five hours. The lower the rank, the faster it ends. The higher the rank, the longer it takes.”
“I see… So does five hours mean yours ended pretty quickly?”
“What exactly is that supposed to mean? Are you saying my rank is low?”
“I never said that.”
Without a frame of reference, how was he supposed to know whether five hours was long or short?
Despite Yurian’s innocent expression, Gong Siyoung’s face didn’t relax at all. His tone turned oddly stiff.
“Five hours is long as hell. You do know I’m S-rank, right?”
He did not.
He’d figured out Gong Siyoung was a hunter, sure, but he had no idea what S-rank even meant, so how would he know whether the guy was one or not?
“What’s S-rank?”
“…Hunter ranking. Don’t tell me you don’t even know what ranks are.”
“Come on. Even I know ranks. Like 1-circle, 2-circle, stuff like that. Higher means better.”
He didn’t know whether S-rank was high or low, but at least he understood the basic concept of ranking.
As he answered, Yurian casually stretched out a hand.
Just as he was about to stealthily press the triangular button, Gong Siyoung caught it like a ghost and smacked his hand away like he was swatting off a bug.
A sharp sting flared, and the back of his hand reddened.
Before he could even complain that it hurt, he met a vicious glare.
Before Gong Siyoung could explode, Yurian quietly straightened up in his seat.
“…Hunter ranks are divided into seven levels. From F to E, D, C, B, A, and S. I’m only explaining this once, so listen carefully. And if you even think about pressing another button, I’m dumping you right there.”
Yurian nodded.
Only after seeing him settle down did Gong Siyoung let out a sigh.
“F-rank isn’t that different from an ordinary person, honestly. They can use skills and items, but physically they’re often worse off than civilians.”
“What are skills and items?”
“…What I used on you in the dungeon. Things like that. Techniques used to attack or defend against monsters.”
Ah, then skills were probably something like magic.
And items must be something like magic tools.
He almost asked to confirm, but his eyes met Gong Siyoung’s.
The look plainly told him to stay quiet, so Yurian awkwardly shut his mouth.
Only after confirming the silence did Gong Siyoung continue.
Maybe it was his imagination, but his voice sounded even more irritated than before.
“The class above that—starting from E-rank—the abilities themselves don’t necessarily change. It’s more a difference in application and impact. Like how a D-rank healer can close a torn wound, while an S-rank healer can reattach a severed leg or arm.”
From F through E, D, C, B, A, and S, the rank rose higher, and once awakened, the rank itself could not be changed.
You could use items above your own rank, but their effect dropped drastically. An S-rank hunter using a B-rank item was far more powerful than a B-rank hunter using an S-rank item.
In this world, the hunter’s rank was the absolute measure.
“So if someone gets marked F-rank once, they stay F-rank forever? It’s not something you can climb through effort?”
“In theory.”
The more he listened, the more confused Yurian became.
At first he’d thought it was “something kind of like mages,” but after hearing all this, it really wasn’t.
Magic started with everyone at 1-circle.
Through awakening and training, it was possible to raise your circle.
It was hard as hell, and talent absolutely imposed limits, but it wasn’t impossible.
He himself had clawed his way from 1-circle all the way to 5-circle.
“So how does the rank assessment work? Is it some kind of exam?”
“As if. Once we get to the Bureau… well, it’ll just be there, so think of it like that. It’s nothing complicated.”
Maybe he was already tired of explaining, because the answer came out strangely half-assed.
Yurian had plenty more questions, but it didn’t feel like asking would get him a proper answer.
Reading the room, he wisely kept his mouth shut.
Honestly, the main thing he seemed to be gaining from conversations with Gong Siyoung was social intuition.
‘Speaking of that… now I’m thinking about food…’
How long had it been since he’d eaten?
Yesterday had been so chaotic he hadn’t really noticed, but thinking about it now, it had been a pretty long time since he’d had anything at all.
He’d left for the extermination front two days ago, so… around two days?
He first checked Gong Siyoung’s expression to gauge whether this was the kind of moment he could ask for food.
The man kept his mouth stubbornly shut, clearly with no intention of saying anything else, eyes fixed straight ahead.
The automobile sped swiftly down the wide-open road.
“Hey…”
“You see that building? That’s the Hunter Management Bureau. I’ll drop you at the entrance, so take a good look.”
Gong Siyoung’s finger pointed toward the massive building in the distance.
Yurian’s gaze followed it.
He let out a small sound of admiration.
“It’s huge.”