94. Request
Outside the tent. Her guild members seemed to be engaged in battle.
It was chaotic.
The noise of battle made the dust fall softly and the ground faintly vibrate.
“Ugh….”
Yet, inside the tent, her comrades were all fast asleep, undisturbed.
‘Is it a monster.’
This was the daily life here.
Eternal and Durak.
Two monsters, not even named ones, just ordinary monsters. With the current forces on guard being sufficient, she didn’t rise from her spot.
Of course, if they were opponents too tough to handle alone, even those who were asleep would naturally have to rise from their spots.
How much time passed from then on?
[Situation concluded! No injuries!]
The noise subsided, indicating the end of the battle.
The camp fell silent once more.
“…….”
She gazed up at the tent roof, continuing her thoughts.
‘Just one more day. I can endure that much.’
Being a high-ranked hunter didn’t mean she could do as she pleased.
Though, maybe she could.
If she wanted to leave this place right away, there would be no one to stop her.
Jin Hwarin, she was a top-class hunter.
But she would lose trust. Even camaraderie.
Those called hunters always operated under immense pressure and responsibility.
Because without them, there would be no one to clear this nation’s dungeons.
And especially for those of higher ranks, such feelings were even more pronounced.
Most high-ranked hunters who knew this fact always firmly held their positions.
The prejudice of ordinary people who thought that Guild Master Jin Hwarin’s daily life was special was baseless.
Vroom-
At that moment, her phone, which had been silent, rang.
“……?”
Still half-asleep from exhaustion, she forced her eyes open.
‘…A message? Who could it be?’
As she squinted at the sleepy text, a familiar name appeared on the screen.
-Kim Han: It’s me, Hwarin.
‘What’s this?’
Her mind, just moments ago clouded with sleep, suddenly cleared.
The one who sent the message was none other than Kim Han.
Ding-dong-
The doorbell rang.
[Han, it’s for you.]
“I’m coming now!”
Squeak-
Jinhwa Rin was standing at the front door.
“hahahaha… I’m here.”
She waved her hand, feeling awkward as she hurriedly entered, concealing her tightly wrapped self and glancing around at the onlookers.
From Noble mtl dot com
“I’ll go in first!”
“hahahaha… sure.”
No matter how many times he saw it, he couldn’t get used to this sight.
Being completely wrapped like that.
It felt like a famous celebrity being cautious of public attention.
Of course, her fame and fan base as a top-tier hunter were far more impressive than most celebrities.
“Is it okay if I wash up a bit?”
“…?”
With a quick glance at her, he realized she was completely covered in dust.
“Oh, yes. Of course.”
“Thank you then!”
As she went into the shower room as if waiting, the sound of water echoed.
***
A little while later.
“Phew! Finally feel alive now.”
She came out to the living room, wiping her wet hair, and let out a relieved sigh.
“Thank you so much. I was really eager to wash up after coming out of the dungeon first.”
“Well, water was scarce in the dungeon, right?”
“Yes. Especially in this dungeon, where water was almost impossible to find… It was even more stuffy. Smelled bad too.”
Sitting heavily on the sofa, she let out a long sigh as if finally relaxing.
Seeing her like that, Han chuckled softly.
“It must have been tough.”
“Yes. Oh, but…”
“…?”
Jinhwa Rin smirked mischievously.
“Didn’t we agree not to say goodbye last time we parted ways?”
“Oh, right. Well, we did. Um, we did. Ha, hahahaha.”
“It’s not too awkward, is it?”
“To be honest, it’s a bit awkward.”
Han let out a forced chuckle.
But in reality, lately, taking care of the elves, he felt as close to Jinhwa Rin as he did to his colleagues at work.
After all, she always came to his house after coming out of the dungeon.
Now, she seemed rather comfortable with that side of her.
At that moment, a voice flowed from the television.
[Elf Ingrid is currently managing a busy schedule. In the morning, she mainly focuses on language acquisition, and in the afternoon, she meets various dignitaries, including ambassadors. She often introduces the culture and people of the place where she lived─]
It was a broadcast about Ingrid.
Jin Hwarin, who had been staring at her in the news for a while, spoke up.
“Wow… but isn’t that Elf Ingrid really beautiful? She’s so stunning that even other women would admire her.”
“That’s true. Because she’s an elf.”
He nodded his head.
He was someone who agreed with that statement.
Recently, Elf Ingrid’s existence had become a hot topic worldwide.
The Earth’s new species, the changes and technologies that would arise from her, even magic.
Whenever Earth welcomed these rather unusual beings, it faced significant changes.
Ingrid possessed a new power that the previous Earth did not have.
It wasn’t just her exceptional appearance that was the sole reason for interest.
Ingrid’s magic, utilizing divine power, was something that had never been seen before.
Especially, it was rumored that there was a sacred magic called Resurrection, which could revive the dead. If that was true, it made sense why there was excessive protection surrounding her from the hunters even now.
But for some reason, Jin Hwarin’s response was somewhat unusual.
As he watched her silently, she asked.
“But… why is the reaction so ordinary?”
“What do you mean?”
“Wow… just how high are your standards?”
“It’s not that, really.”
Han, who couldn’t find the right words for a moment, swallowed his answer silently.
‘It’s just that I’ve gotten used to it. Maybe I’ve become numb.’
The elves living in his refrigerator.
Seeing them every day had blurred his sense of aesthetics.
It was a pitiful phenomenon where both men and women possessed exceptional looks.
“But you know.”
Jin Hwarin spoke up.
“The content of that message I sent the day before yesterday, there’s no mistake, right?”
“That’s correct.”
“….”
Jin Hwarin watched Han intently for a moment with a serious expression.
She understood his reaction.
Perhaps the content of the message Han had sent would sound like nonsense even in a mental hospital.
“I’d like to know the source of the information first.”
“Sorry, but even if you tell me, you probably won’t believe it. It’s like there’s a ghost stuck to me.”
[It’s not a ghost, it’s a system.]
That’s the thing.
Whether ghost or system.
From the perspective of others, it is equivalent to being stuck with an identity that remains unknown.
“Still, I can answer questions to some extent. It’s just that it’s in a way only I can hear.”
“Answer… you say?”
Jin Hwarin chuckled.
“Well… I can answer many things. It’s like a chatbot trend these days. I might be able to answer things that others wouldn’t know. For example, Hwarin… the experiences you had with guild members inside dungeons, their own unique experiences.”
At those words, Jin Hwarin’s pupils widened.
“Are you talking about secrets? You know about that too?”
“Yes. Something like that. You have to trust me. If you can’t believe it, you can test me. What I say is true.”
For Han, except for the information about his refrigerator, the system’s existence was one of the biggest secrets.
Except for some secrets that exist in the world, practically all answers in the world were possible.
No one had ever revealed, nor could they, the content he was now revealing in front of Jin Hwarin.
It was due to a matter of trust.
To get Jin Hwarin to accept his request, there was no choice but to reveal this fact.
The only one who would fulfill Han’s request was the woman in front of him.
At the very least, to move her, a top-tier hunter, he needed to be sure that his words were true.
“Ask me anything. It’s okay.”
“Um… actually….”
At her words, she opened her mouth after a moment of contemplation, tilting her head.
“In fact, I have a hidden trait that even my longtime comrades don’t know about. No one knows. Can you guess what it is?”
[It’s a trait called Experience Accumulation. The more you fight, the stronger you become, little by little.]
The system’s response was relayed in full.
“Experience accumulation, you say? Getting stronger little by little as you fight.”
“….!”
Surprise flickered in Jin Hwarin’s eyes.
“Correct… No, it’s amazing. This fact, I’ve kept it to myself, not telling anyone.”
However, instead of granting permission, she moved on to the next question.
“Then, next. Honestly, it’s hard to completely believe based on just one thing, right? It’s a bit difficult for me to accept your request outright. There needs to be caution.”
“Of course.”
As the content Han requested was by no means easy, she couldn’t just agree without careful consideration.
Naturally, it was a matter that required confidence and trust.
“Our guild, including me, has cleared numerous dungeons so far. In this process, we’ve had experiences that no one would believe. It’s a secret not revealed to the public, though.”
[This content refers to an event involving the Divine Pyrelin.]
“…The Divine Pyrelin?”
Could it possibly mean something related to a divine species?
Her eyes widened in surprise as she heard his muttering.
“…What is that?”
“What, what is it? You don’t know either?”
Jin Hwarin looked at Han as if his questioning himself was strange.
Han waved his hand.
“I didn’t know anything; I was just passing on what the system said. I don’t even know what that means.”
“Oh, um, what is it then?”
[A moment passes.]
Instead of her rambling, the system answered.
[We recommend that you do not listen to this information just yet.]
“So, it was the secret to how we could all become stronger at once─”
“Oh! Hey, wait. Harin.”
“……?”
Looking puzzled, she faced him as he raised his hand.
“Just a moment. I’m not supposed to tell you this.”
“…Was that also what the system said?”
“Something like that.”
She tilted her head in confusion.
“Isn’t that a bit strange? If it told you, why keep it a secret from you?”
“I agree too. But since the system said so.”
At least, she had never suffered any losses following the system’s advice thus far.
There must be a reason for it to speak in that manner.
“Oh, but before that, I have a favor to ask.”
“Alright.”
“Huh?”
Misunderstanding, she questioned, and Jin Harin chuckled.
“What are you talking about?”
“The favor you mentioned, I’ll listen.”
Only then did Harin’s expression soften.
He chuckled softly.
“…Thank you, Harin.”
Why?
For some reason, the more time passed, the more it felt like Jin Harin was shedding her shell.
Perhaps the image of Hunter Jin Harin known to the public wasn’t too far from her original self.