"I promise you. This is a really good potion. It only works if I do it myself. So open it."
"Heck, dude!"
"Quit being shy boy. She'll be here soon, so hurry up and open your mouth."
"I'm chill! Shut it, man. What if someone heard this and we all screwed up? I said no already. No!"
With wide eyes, Jin-ah couldn't believe what she had just heard. Did her brother and Ken just talk about something spicy? No matter what they were talking about, it sounded really…
She then slid the door open with considerable force and shouted, "Jin-woo! Even if you sexually harass a boy, I won't let you— ow?!"
She only saw her brother holding a beautifully engraved glass bottle. She sighed in relief, realizing that nothing suspicious had happened.
"What harassment? I'm trying to heal your boyfriend here."
Jin-ah blushed as she screamed, "Who the fuck is my boyfriend?! Anyway, is it really good for recovery?"
Jin-woo simply nodded. "Yeah. Something like that. Also, this is quite an expensive and rare potion."
Ken deadpanned, knowing exactly where Jin-woo had gotten it.
"I see! Well, if you put it that way, Ken, you have to try it."
"Like I said before, I humbly refuse the offer."
"Come on! It won't have side effects, right?"
"I already healed a long time ago. Look, I was literally bringing people back to life, and you think I couldn't heal my own ass?"
"And yet your S-rank ass is in the hospital! Just open your goddamn mouth already. Treat this as a supplement. Anyway, Jin-woo, shove that thing into his throat."
"Shut your mouth, Jin-ah! Get off me! I don't want people to misunderstand!"
As this was going on, Song-yi stood behind the door, blood dripping from her nose, her face as red as a tomato, unable to gather the courage to open it.
---
Ken was finally alone after everyone left his hospital room. It wasn't long after that when a knock came from behind the door.
He flinched but soon calmed down when he recognized the mana being emitted by the person outside.
"Please come in," he said.
Soon, an old man opened the door and smiled at him.
"How is your health, Guardian?" Go Gunhee asked as he entered the room. Woo Jin-chul placed a bucket of fruit on the table and then left to stand guard outside.
"I'm better now. Thanks."
"Hoho… I'm pleased to hear that. I was quite far from your location and couldn't arrive in time. However, it's fortunate that you were able to defeat Hunter Hwang."
Ken sighed. "I was able to win because he didn't expect my spell. I guess I was quite lucky."
Go Gunhee's eyes shone with interest. "A spell? I see… I've already read Mr. Woo's report stating that you used a destructive spell."
Ken simply nodded. "I hope I won't get myself into trouble, right?"
Go Gunhee chuckled loudly. "Rest assured, you won't. However, we might need to be prepared if Thomas Andre decides to take action."
"Oh? About that? I don't think we'll need to."
"Hm? I know that you resurrected Hunter Hwang, but he may conspire to seek revenge."
Ken smiled. "Don't worry, Chairman. Besides, I revived him. I could also alter his memories and force him to believe his business here was finished. Of course, it won't be permanent, but it gives me enough time to prepare."
Go Gunhee fell silent for a moment. If Ken could revive someone using only their remains, then altering a person's mind would be easily achievable. Go Gunhee realized that Ken was a mage with extremely versatile abilities. Now that Ken had proven he could revive an S-rank hunter of Hwang Dongsoo's caliber, Go Gunhee sharpened his gaze. He needed to make this young man stay in Korea—whatever it took.
"Right, should I keep calling you 'Guardian'?"
Ken's eyes widened. "Please, just call me Ken, Chairman. Right… I think I lost my mask back there."
Go Gunhee chuckled. "About that—we've recovered your items, but as you can see…" He opened the box beside him. "The mask is badly split, and your wand as well. I'm afraid the artisan said they couldn't fix the wand, though they could repair the mask. Of course, if you'd like, we could provide a new one."
Ken stared at his shattered mask and wand. 'What a waste. My +1 Luck, Stamina, and +20 Mind.' He didn't care about appearances, but it was a shame to lose them. He wasn't even sure whether the buffs would still apply now that they were broken.
"It's alright. I'll keep them for now."
"Very well. Since you still need rest, I should be going." Go Gunhee rose from the sofa. "Before I leave, I was wondering will you remain hidden from the public?"
Ken sighed inwardly. Since the mask was broken anyway, what was the point?
"Should I take an assessment?"
Go Gunhee looked intrigued, as if Ken had chosen a different path. "Hoho. You could simply stay at home, and we'll send your Hunter ID to you."
"Wait so you won't test my abilities?"
"Haha! I've seen enough already. Though I do need to confirm one thing. Would you like your class to be a heale—"
"Mage."
His tone suddenly sharpened.
"I see… of course."
Go Gunhee wasn't certain, but he could sense a hint of pride from that.
"May I ask something?" Ken said.
Go Gunhee smiled. "Of course."
"Please postpone the announcement of my rank assessment until next week. Also, I'd like a temporary Hunter ID as an A-rank mage. Is that possible?"
"That can be arranged, Ken-ssi. However, with your enormous mana, others will surely notice that your rank doesn't match your true abilities. S-rank hunters could tell the moment they meet you."
"Ah… about that…"
Ken glanced toward the door as he activated his Elemental Sight. It took less than a second to assess Woo Jin-chul's mana, which was equivalent to a high A-rank. Using this as a reference, Ken suppressed his own mana to match it closely.
"Hm?"
Go Gunhee's eyes widened. The mana emitting from Ken gradually weakened, as if he could control it at will. While rare, some hunters could do this but for someone with S-rank-level mana, it usually required exceptional skill. In Ken's case, Go Gunhee could no longer sense any fluctuation at all. It was as if Ken were truly an A-rank.
'Could he be even stronger than that?' he wondered.
S-rank was an unknown territory, as current machines couldn't distinguish between S-rank, SS-rank, SSS-rank, or higher.
Ken might be far beyond that. Even after defeating Hwang Dongsoo, he had revived him using only his severed leg. Such a feat required an immense amount of mana. Go Gunhee could only guess had Ken used Hwang Dongsoo to test his own limits.
'That kind of confidence belonged only to the strong.' he smile faintly.
It was unfortunate. Ken was so young maybe around the same age as his granddaughter yet he already possessed S-rank-level abilities.
"I understand. You shouldn't have any issues with that. Well then, I'd like to discuss Jeju Island with you, but it's best to let you rest for now. I hope we can talk again soon, Hunter Ken."
Ken nodded. "Sure, Chairman. Before that, would you consider leaving Jeju Island to me?"
He stopped and looked back at Ken.
"May I ask why? When we first met, you also want to raid Jeju Island by yourself. No matter what, it would be a suicide mission unless you were a national-level hunter."
Ken hummed inwardly. He wasn't sure how to explain it. Technically, it was to farm experience so he could level up.
"It's personal."
Seeing the determination in his eyes, Go Gunhee wasn't sure why he was so insistent on raiding Jeju Island.
Soon after, Go Gunhee left the room. He later sat in his office, waiting for Woo Jin-chul. A man came in and handed him a pile of documents. It was the material he had requested about Takakura Ken.
But then he notice something strange happened to Woo Jin-chul.
"What's wrong, Chief Woo?"
His face was pale as a sheet.
"I… I don't know either, Chairman. I suddenly felt like something was watching me back in the hospital. But the feeling has eased now, so I'm fine."
Go Gunhee wished him well, as he needed to read the documents now.
"I see…"
He placed the papers back on the desk and sighed to himself. Ken's parents had been on Jeju Island when the gate broke out for the first time. A reckless desire for revenge would have fit his age, but he remembered the calm yet determined look on Ken's face which suggested the opposite.
Considering that his abilities as a hunter were still unknown to him, Go Gunhee knew he wouldn't go there without a plan.
He chuckled at the ambitious young man's resolve. "What a rare young man…"
---
-Author Note-
I just quit my job, and here I am. I was wondering why, the moment I stepped into adulthood, the world decided to destroy itself. Like, bruh…
Anyway, hit that stones, you guys still here right?