Chungcheon Riverside, patrol.
Hunters who had just come out of Seide were oddly lingering around the patrol zone.
“Ugh…! Ugh…!!”
One of the top five Hunters in Namhan Nation, a rookie Hunter.
The Hunters who had just come out of the A-rank Gate had barely cleared it.
The Hunters who had just emerged from Seide stood behind a male Hunter, unable to move or do anything, calling 119 desperately.
It was because Lee Suho’s injuries were severe.
Though Seide was cleared with great difficulty, Lee Suho’s body was covered in wounds. The bleeding was intense, and even after using potions, there was no sign of the wounds healing.
Kang Juyun, an A-rank Healer ranked high among domestic Hunters, hastily used her skills, but nothing came out.
[Ensa Mana Seal Curse active: Total mana sealed.]
[Remaining time on curse: (4:40)]
“If only the mana seal is lifted, it would be fine… but it doesn’t look good. Seeing a comrade in front of me hurt like this is tough.”
To make matters worse, Chungcheon had very few fire stations nearby, and the closest emergency centers were located far from the Gate.
This meant there was a real risk Lee Suho could become disabled.
Meanwhile—
“Is there anything we can do?”
Jinwoo asked while biting into a Golden Apple Juice, his expression tense.
*****
“This… this is amazing.”
Following the sound, I went over and took a bite of the Golden Apple Juice.
I’d heard it was from another dimension, so I had my doubts, but it was even better than expected. It was far sweeter than I imagined.
The aftertaste was even stronger, as if sucking on sugar crystals.
Despite the sweetness, it wasn’t overpowering or cloying. The apple juice itself contained a lot of nutrients, so it was very refreshing even after drinking it.
“This tastes like Golden Apple Juice.”
Satisfied, I walked toward the source of the noise.
“Whoa…”
The situation was worse than I expected.
[Guardian of Life]: …Oh, the blood is boiling.
[Fate of Light]: If we don’t treat that right away, he’s going to bleed out or worse. Humans’ lives are more fragile than we think.
[Farmer’s Patriarch]: Hold on, I’m searching for a Hunter who can assist.
[Guardian of Life]: I will also try to find someone who can help the descendants.
The warm hearts of the clergy made me quietly emotional.
I had thought these clerics were just fanatic zealots obsessed with rituals.
Bah, what nonsense.
I asked the Hunters standing nearby about the situation.
“What’s going on?”
“Is this a recent Gate clear?”
“That’s right.”
They carefully explained the situation.
In short, they had cleared the Gyeongri Gate, but the mana seal curse was still active.
All potions had been used, and reinforcements like additional Hunters or Healers were late in arriving.
Every minute was critical.
“If you have any spare potions, could you spare some? I promise I’ll pay you back.”
“We don’t have any potions. The Healer says once the mana seal curse is lifted, everything will be fine.”
“Well… that’s reassuring.”
[Guardian of Life]: This kid… is this for real?
[Fate of Light]: Yes, I’m serious.
[Farmer’s Patriarch]: Hoho, so it’s thanks to me that the Hunters survive.
I opened the Golden Apple Juice again.
[Farmer’s Patriarch]: Perhaps someone else saw the Golden Apple Juice and, filtered by their vision, only saw part of the information. It’s a sponsored item by the clergy called Aidam, but no other details are available.
Thanks to this connection, I was able to obtain the Golden Apple Juice from the Hunter.
“…What is this?”
Jinwoo’s eyes widened after confirming the effects of the Golden Apple Juice.
I wasn’t used to such generosity. I wasn’t the type to enjoy much attention.
Having done all I could, I was about to return to Dendro.
“You don’t have to worry anymore.”
[EX-rank Hunter Fate of Light is sponsoring ‘100 Coins’!]
I had already received the sponsorship from the clergy, so it was settled.
“Coins? What’s that?”
I decided to head back to Dendro to figure out what coins were, using my stealth skill.
“…! Phew! Where did he go?”
“That guy just vanished?”
“First priority: save Suho!”
“Okay, move!”
Observing the usefulness of the stealth skill again, I watched many Hunters getting treated.
Once the wounds had healed to some extent, I smiled quietly and returned to Dendro.
*****
As soon as Jinwoo entered Dendro, he raised his hands toward the clergy.
“Rebroadcast the announcement. That’s all for today.”
There were many Hunters gathered.
Because the information was too difficult for ordinary people to understand and too much had happened, many just wanted to sleep quickly.
If this was a dream, wouldn’t it be better to wake up?
I even wondered if it was a dream.
If so, I’d wake up the moment I fell asleep.
Jinwoo tidied up his sleeping area, convinced that this was no dream.
[Guardian of Life]: Be sure to broadcast, or else I’ll come find you.
[Fate of Light]: Me too.
[Farmer’s Patriarch]: Me as well.
[Guardian of Life]: Descendant, you must keep your promise. Everyone, be vigilant.
Jinwoo smirked and started the broadcast.
He took out an unidentified item from his bag, examined it briefly, then lay down.
“Not sure what you are, but hurry and come out. I’m curious.”
Jinwoo fell asleep, and at that moment—
The rookie Hunters from the Gangwon Branch had to rush directly to Hunter Headquarters.
As soon as they returned to the branch, they reported everything to the branch chief.
“…You’re saying a man handed over a clerical-sponsored item and then left?”
“Yes, without hesitation, vanished in an instant. Right before our eyes.”
“And that clerical-sponsored item immediately lifted the mana seal curse?”
“Yes, exactly.”
Upon hearing this, the branch chief immediately contacted headquarters, and the Hunters were put on a vehicle heading there.
What was even more surprising was that the branch chief himself was driving the vehicle.
He was an A-rank Hunter ranked within Korea’s top 50 and was personally driving to headquarters late at night?
Something was definitely off.
After carefully saving Suho’s life, I asked cautiously.
“Branch chief, why are you suddenly heading to headquarters?”
“He wants to meet the Hunter who saved you, the Namhan Nation’s Commander.”
“…The Commander?”
An S-rank Hunter who was practically unmatched in the country.
For such a prominent figure to want to meet a mere rookie Hunter—it was astonishing.
The tension among the Hunters rose.
“He was definitely an extraordinary person… could that be why?”
It meant that the clerical-sponsored item was being delivered by the Commander of the Namhan Nation.
There were only about three Hunters in Korea with such clerical sponsorship, so naturally, many coveted it.
“But would such an important matter warrant calling us in the middle of the night?”
I wondered.
It was clear that the rookie Hunter was sought after by all the Commanders in Korea, but calling them personally to hear from the injured Hunters?
Couldn’t they have gathered the info through the branch chief?
“The person who saved you is said to be the one who cleared the A-rank Gate. The Commander wants to meet him personally.”
“…!”
The Hunters all exclaimed, as the news circulating in the Commander’s office was that one Hunter had cleared the A-rank Gate in less than five minutes this afternoon and then disappeared.
Strictly speaking, that Hunter used a powerful skill to clear the Gate in under a minute and was now being searched for by all Hunters nationwide.
What was more curious was that they didn’t even belong to a team or organization.
“Aren’t the A-rank Gate they cleared and the one you cleared the same?”
“…Yes, it is.”
“One Hunter from the Gyeongri Gate gave you the clerical-sponsored item, then vanished without a trace?”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
“To vanish without a trace, that Hunter must have skills beyond imagination, and if he’s the one, it makes sense he erased all traces after clearing the A-rank Gate.”
“Wow!!”
From that moment, speculation grew that the rookie Hunter who helped the rookie Hunters cleared the A-rank Gate in a blink.
“That’s why the Commander is calling you personally. The Hunter who finds that Hunter first will be the winner.”
“Right…”
The situation was more serious than expected.
“You remember that Hunter, right?”
“Yes, we do.”
“No mistakes. Everything must be recorded perfectly. If this fails, your achievement will be the closest to a miracle.”
“We understand!”
The Hunters tried their best to recall Jinwoo’s appearance.
*****
The next day, I started the broadcast as soon as I woke up.
[Guardian of Life]: One broadcast!
“…Yes?”
A noble Commander, and that cleric offering me EX-rank skills, yelling “One broadcast” so earnestly.
‘The community really makes people feel abandoned.’
I smiled faintly at the absurdity.
[Fate of Light]: I thought my neck was about to get snapped waiting.
[Farmer’s Patriarch]: Damn… thought I was going to die waiting too.
[Guardian of Life]: Descendant, you need to get some sleep.
_I only slept six hours.
Got up at dawn at five._
“Alright, I’m broadcasting now. Hey, Clergy members, what exactly are coins?”
I had received 100 coins as sponsorship.
I wanted to find out how to use them properly.
[Guardian of Life]: Ha, Fate of Light, you fool… you shouldn’t sponsor coins recklessly!
[Fate of Light]: …I don’t even know. It was an accidental sponsorship. Sorry.
[Farmer’s Patriarch]: Jinwoo’s coin spending looks suspicious… from now on, I’ll have to keep a close watch.
This guy, using coins to try and spend money, kept doing strange things.
The only thing that can be done with coins is receiving support from the clergy.
“Well, anyway, it must be good.”
My curiosity peaked in that moment.