Chapter 58: Civilian Items

The next day.

As soon as Kim Hyeon-jun finished his daily routine, he headed toward the Platoon Leader’s office.

"Loyalty! Sergeant Kim Hyeon-jun! I am here to see the Platoon Leader on business!"

He was there to obtain permission to possess civilian items.

Now that he had reached the rank of Sergeant, there would be many more occasions where he’d have to face stronger monsters. He needed a decent item.

While it was said that Sergeants who cleared high-grade dungeons were given better-issued weapons... those didn't really catch his eye. Their performance wasn't actually that great.

"I was actually planning to look for you myself. You timed it well."

Unexpectedly, permission was granted quickly. The Platoon Leader even handed him approval stickers in advance.

"The Battalion Commander already pre-approved it."

Second Lieutenant Kim Dong-woo handed him several stickers, telling him to put them on whichever items he wanted.

'What is this? Getting permission for civilian items is usually incredibly difficult.'

It varied by unit, but that was the case for the Biryong Unit. The Company Commander and Battalion Commander were normally very strict about these things. Because of that, Hyeon-jun had even prepared a plausible excuse... but now there was no need for it.

'I knew they were backing me, but I didn't expect them to pay attention to these details.'

An army where rewards came back to you the harder you worked. On top of that, having the Battalion Commander personally push for him. Other soldiers wouldn't believe it if they heard.

"You just need to roughly write down the type of item here. And you know, right? This is only happening because it’s you, Hyeon-jun."

"Yes. Also, by any chance, is the source okay? I’m planning to get a slightly special item."

"How special are we talking? As long as it’s not illegal, it’s fine."

"Understood."

With this, he could use the Ruyi Bang fragment openly.

'Everything worked out well.'

The power of an approval sticker was great. Once it was attached, people generally wouldn't pry.

"Thank you! I will work hard!"

"If you work any harder, you’ll end up becoming a Second Lieutenant, you rascal."

"Haha."

Actually, he was planning to become a Second Lieutenant, but he didn't bother saying it out loud. He had only just become a Sergeant. While the Battalion Commander was pushing for him, the rest depended on his own actions.

After briefly filling out the item request form, Kim Hyeon-jun received three approval stickers. He had obtained permits that usually took up to a month to process in just a few minutes.

"Life really is unfair."

He headed to his private training room to go shopping. He had already decided where to use the approval stickers.

'One for the Ruyi Bang fragment. Another for the new weapon I’m buying.'

He decided to keep the remaining one safe. Based on the Platoon Leader’s words, it seemed like they would give him more if he needed them... but this was enough for now.

"Looking at it again, the prices in the Hidden Trait Shop are steep."

When he opened the shop window, a brutal price list caught his eye. Unlike skills, equipment started at a minimum price of 4,000 gold. Although he had over 4,000 gold, what he could buy was limited.

Still, he couldn't keep using the issued spear forever. Thinking there was a reason for the high prices, he carefully selected a spear.

"This definitely looks okay."

The spear he chose was the Paladin's Spear. When he pressed the purchase button, a flash of light occurred, and a spear appeared in the air. It was a spear with a white base and red accents. Someone might even think it was a ceremonial or decorative spear.

**[Paladin's Spear]**
A spear imbued with holy power.
It contains divine energy and is effective against the undead and demons.

Grade: Rare

The reason he spent 4,000 gold on this despite the flashy appearance? It was because of the Divine Power.

'Divine Power is hard to get unless in special cases.'

In the Hunter Army, it was usually manifested by chaplains or chaplain officers. In terms of religion, it was a power manifested in monks who had taken refuge in Buddhism, or faithful believers in Christianity or Catholicism. To replace their power through items, one had to pay a massive price.

This was the reason why Hunters with Divine Power were so highly valued.

'But since I bought this, it means I can somewhat replace Divine Power.'

It might not be as good as a chaplain, but having it was better than nothing. Even with his Hidden Traits, it was impossible for Hyeon-jun to manifest Divine Power on his own.

'Whether I have this or not makes a difference even in my immediate military life.'

Cases like special dungeons exclusively handled by chaplains were a perfect example. Dungeons where undead, ghouls, or demons appeared. Without Divine Power, the difficulty of clearing them skyrocketed, so chaplains or chaplain officers usually took charge of them.

"The basic specs seem decent, too."

It was heavier than it looked, and the blade was quite sharp. The basic specs were far superior to the issued spear. He had hesitated before buying it, but it was an item worth the money.

"I don't even need to charge the Divine Power separately."

Usually, holy equipment available on the market required periodic replenishment of Divine Power. The prices were breathtakingly high, and the maintenance costs were significant as well.

'Maybe I can run some special dungeons with undead when I go on leave later.'

Or he could take on special requests. There were tasks that could only be performed if one had Divine Power. He felt like his options had widened in many ways.

'Everyone will wonder where I got this when they see it, but...'

As long as the permit sticker was attached, everything was okay. Since his rank was Sergeant, it was easy to give a vague explanation.

"The approval sticker is the strongest, and a Sergeant is invincible."

***

"Whoa... Sergeant Kim Hyeon-jun. Did you get civilian gear as soon as you became a Sergeant?"

"Isn't that a weapon enchanted with Divine Power? Gasp! Where did you get this?"

On the way to the weapon storage with the Paladin's Spear. He happened to run into his squad members who were returning after finishing weapon maintenance.

Corporal Han Ji-han looked at the spear and reacted with surprise, asking if Hyeon-jun was actually from a rich family. It was understandable. Equipment imbued with Divine Power was incredibly expensive.

"Wow... I've never seen a spear coated in Divine Power before!"

"I feel like undead would just melt if you poked them with this!"

Private Yu Dong-ha and Private First Class Son Seok-jun looked at the spear with sparkling eyes.

"I got lucky and managed to obtain it."

He wondered if this was how it felt to show off a new car. He held the spear closer, telling them they could look as much as they wanted.

In the midst of that, one squad member was slowly backing away. It was Corporal Kang Cheol-su.

Kim Hyeon-jun brought the spear close to his face. Then, holding it vertically, he mimicked the act of chanting a spell.

"You foul spirit! Get out of Kang Cheol-su's body!"

"Pfft!"

The juniors tried to hold back their laughter, while the corporals smirked.

"..."

Corporal Kang Cheol-su simply remained silent. Looking at his expression, he seemed displeased, but he couldn't say a word. Kim Hyeon-jun was a Sergeant. He was now the king of the barracks.

***

At the same time.

Second Lieutenant Park A-young of the Special Task Force was reading news articles. Starting with the Hunter Defense Daily, a news outlet for the Hunter Army, she looked through various internet news for a long time.

All of them were similar in content.

"I should have caught him back then, no matter what."

She was currently reading about Kim Hyeon-jun’s achievements. She hadn't been able to think about him lately due to her busy missions, but as expected, he had done it again. Not only did he perform well enough to be featured in the news, but he also received a special promotion to Sergeant.

According to rumors, he might even rise to the rank of Second Lieutenant, though the source of that was unclear.

"...Is there no way to pull him out further?"

She wanted to use the influence of the Special Task Force to contact Kim Hyeon-jun somehow. Her gut was telling her that if she dragged this out any longer, she would lose him forever.

Moreover, if it was now, the Special Task Force could offer benefits that were incomparable to before. Since a mere soldier had proven this much ability, wouldn't most proposals pass even if she reported them to her superiors?

"I need bait..."

One important thing was ultimately his own will. She had made a suggestion when they were doing the Villain Special Education before, but he didn't seem particularly interested in the Special Task Force.

She needed something the regular Hunter Army couldn't give, but the Special Task Force could.

"Loyalty. Company Commander. This is Second Lieutenant Park A-young."

After tapping the table and contemplating for a while, she contacted her Company Commander.

"That debt you owed me before. I’ll need you to pay it back now."

***

A few days later, in the Biryong Unit’s Battalion Commander’s office.

Colonel Wu Hyeon-seok was on the phone with the Battalion Commander of the Special Task Force.

"You did this last time, too. Are you now openly saying you're going to take one of my soldiers away?"

Judging by his scowl, it wasn't a pleasant conversation. Not content with including Kim Hyeon-jun in the previous villain response training, they were now recommending him for a fixed position.

— This is a very exceptional case. If the higher-ups even allowed it, that should say enough.

Colonel Wu Hyeon-seok was slightly flustered by the following words from the Special Task Force Battalion Commander.

— And wouldn't he need achievements? If you're going to send Sergeant Kim Hyeon-jun to become an officer.

This was because the other side brought it up as if they already knew about the plan to promote Kim Hyeon-jun from Sergeant to an officer. Based on the words that followed, it seemed like a casual remark... but there was truth to it.

'To go from Sergeant to Second Lieutenant, he needs many achievements...'

Not just ordinary achievements, but extraordinary ones. And one or two wouldn't be enough. If he accepted the Special Task Force’s proposal, it would certainly be smoother for Kim Hyeon-jun to transition to Second Lieutenant. Of course, this was based on the premise that Hyeon-jun himself performed well.

"...Phew. Give me some time to think."

After finishing the call, Colonel Wu Hyeon-seok fell into thought. He felt that managing an excellent soldier... was truly not an easy task.

***

After Kim Hyeon-jun was promoted to Sergeant, things were relaxed for a while. He finished his routines as usual, trained, and occasionally sparred with his immediate junior.

Recently, he had entered a dungeon with Private Yu Dong-ha, and the boy had performed the role of a tanker excellently. He had a good reputation among the tankers because he showed a willingness to work hard at everything.

'I’m proud of him for no reason.'

However, he still seemed to struggle with controlling his Gigantification trait. But that was fine. Gigantification was handled differently by every Hunter.

'That takes a while to master properly.'

The best way was to let him get a feel for it himself. Besides, Private Yu Dong-ha hadn't been at the unit for very long. Time would solve it.

"Good work today."

"Good work, sir!"

On the way back to the barracks after finishing the daily routine as usual.

"Hyeon-jun."

Suddenly, the Platoon Leader, Second Lieutenant Kim Dong-woo, appeared and gestured to him.

"Loyalty! Sergeant Kim Hyeon-jun."

"Yeah. I have something to talk to you about. Come to the Platoon Leader’s office."

"Understood."

Was something wrong? He had a troubled look on his face. More accurately, he looked like he was being hounded by something.

"Want a cup of coffee?"

"Yes. Thank you."

Once they reached the office and Hyeon-jun took a few sips of the mixed coffee, Second Lieutenant Kim Dong-woo let out a small sigh and started speaking.

"Hyeon-jun. You remember the Special Task Force?"

"Yes."

Hyeon-jun wondered why he was being so hesitant. As he waited quietly, he couldn't believe his ears at the Platoon Leader's next words.

"Continuous support?"

The Special Task Force had requested continuous support. Not as a unit, but specifically for him. That was said to be quite exceptional.

"Isn't that something only exchanged between special units?"

"Normally, yes."

The shortage of Hunter manpower affected special units as well. In fact, the labor shortage was even more severe over there. Since the number of Hunters was already insufficient and they only selected elite soldiers, it was a natural result. Because of this, special units often used each other's soldiers as mercenaries depending on the need, and that was "continuous support."

A special unit had requested that continuous support from a regular unit.

'This is completely different from when I went for training.'

That was a one-time thing. Continuous support meant they would call him whenever necessary.

"It’s probably because you, as part of the regular Hunter Army, suppressed and caught villains. Not just once, but twice, wasn't it?"

The Platoon Leader told him that as dangerous as it was, the rewards would be certain.

'Continuous support.'

If he accepted, a regular Hunter soldier would be performing the missions of the Special Task Force. This meant he would officially encounter villains much more often.

'...This is good.'

It meant it would be much more dangerous, but it also meant the rewards would be greater. Just how much performance points and prize money would come in from catching a villain like Heo Yong-pal?

'I’ve actually wanted to catch a few more villains.'

However, he hadn't wanted to do so to the point of joining the Special Task Force. The Special Task Force had much greater restrictions compared to the regular army.

'Especially since outside activities are almost forbidden.'

Solo dungeon clearing? He wouldn't even be able to dream of it. That would be fatal for Hyeon-jun, who needed to utilize his list of hidden gems from before his regression. He also wouldn't be able to receive the special benefits he got thanks to the Battalion Commander.

But if he accepted this proposal, he could catch villains while remaining part of the Biryong Unit. And much more often than before.

"I’ll do it."

Kim Hyeon-jun answered without much hesitation. He had quickly accepted a proposal that most regular Hunters would refuse.

And that day, Kim Hyeon-jun was registered in the Special Task Force’s electronic information system.