Chapter 58

One that stands out in the crowd.

No, this would be considered as being the odd one in the group.

The way they ignored and didn’t bother because they disliked someone was a way to take advantage of a newcomer.

‘It’s a world that hasn’t treated me nicely anyways.’

It was a lot better now, but the life he had before was so gloomy that he couldn’t see the future.

Because of that, he wasn’t expecting them to accept him with open arms.

That was actually weirder for him.

“Katrina and Eugene want to scout you because they recognize your potential, but they really focus on one’s skills when recruiting them into the crew.”

Katrina was squatting down between Hyun-Soo and Kim Yoo-Na and when she heard her name, she tilted her head.

Kim Yoo-Na looked like she wasn’t sure how to express herself, so she carefully chose her words and spoke slowly.

“The crews at the base are all skilled and nice people, but they have high self-esteem and pride, so they probably won’t acknowledge you right away since your rank is low.”

“Well, I wasn’t really expecting them to accept me with open arms from the start.”

Other than those that got lucky right after awakening to their powers, most of them obtained experience points, increased their rank and improved their skills.

‘I can always raise my rank by doing hunts, but it’s a way for them to find out about the other person.’

Excluding those in special situations, one’s level shows the time and effort they put into increasing their rank and they’re also able to a.s.sume the experiences they’ve gained.

‘There’s a possibility that they’ll take advantage if they’re overflowing with pride and self-esteem.’

That’s when he realized why Kim Yoo-Na scheduled three hunts within one day.

Hyun-Soo didn’t have much time and he had a lot to do.

The place that he’ll be visiting from now on was a den that was filled with monsters. Kim Yoo-Na was trying to narrow the gap.

He was extremely exhausted, but it wasn’t so bad for Hyun-Soo.

No, he would welcome it.

‘I’m a guy and I can’t hide behind a girl forever.’

And even though they had a business relationship, he was aware that he was really indebted to her.

A human should repay their debts.

And he had to get stronger in order to pay her back.

And he wanted to get stronger anyways.

He should be jumping for joy in situations like this.

“Okay, Hyun-Soo. You’re done resting up, right? Let’s go somewhere else. If we want to visit all of them, we need to shorten our resting time. No, even if you haven’t recovered, shout loudly and recover.”

“Okay…”

This was something he should be happy about.

Maybe…

“It’s delicious. It’s like jelly.”

“Don’t forget to eat it three times a day, okay?”

“Okay.”

Kim Hye-Na nodded her small head after hearing Hyun-Soo’s suggestion.

Kim Yoo-Na watched them with a pleased look.

There were times when Kim Yoo-Na would ask Hyun-Soo several times to visit Hye-Na.

From the looks of it, it seems like Hye-Na asked Kim Yoo-Na.

‘I was a bit surprised at first, but it reminded me of Hyuna when she was younger, so…’

And the way she kept on saying what he made was delicious and chewed it was cute.

“How did you make this?”

“Um…I made it with yummy ingredients. Is it not good?”

“No! It’s good, but the doctor told me to ask.”

“Tell him that it’s a secret.”

‘How dare they try to steal my idea.’

Hyun-Soo glanced over at the large container that contained medicinal herbs.

‘I should tell them to focus on storing this. The doctor might ask if they can study it. Anyways, even I think I’ve made a good one this one.’

Hyun-Soo used Interface.

——————————————–

[Low Rank Invigorating Rice Cake][Rare]

A low rank pound cake that’s been made with several medicinal herbs.

A good amount of a rare medicinal herb that increases one’s stamina has been added.

Upon intake, the stamina will be increased instantly and will be maintained during the set time.

The squishy texture is what makes it special.

Effect: +Stamina 23 [Duration: 2 Hours]

——————————————–

Khalifa’s antler added 20 points to stamina, but the rice provided 23, which was three points more.

‘On top of that, it’s rare. I made this and increased my experience as well.’

The skill increased, he gained a small amount of experience points and the activation level of Interface increased by a tiny bit.

Despite the fact that only 30% has been activated for Interface, it showed a good amount of information.

He couldn’t imagine just how much it’ll show once it reached the maximum percentage.

‘Is this the power of a SS rank?’

However, leveling up was more important.

Interface was a skill he could reveal or not reveal, depending on how he felt about it.

That’s why, his rank was the only indicator that can be seen objectively.

Hyun-Soo told Kim Hye-Na to eat it without getting caught by the doctor and walked out.

Kim Yoo-Na ordered the caregiver to make sure no one knows about this medicine.

“I’m always thankful, Hyun-Soo. I don’t think I’ll need to worry about Hye-Na for the time being. I was actually pretty worried because I’ll be traveling around a lot…thank you.”

“No, I should be the one thanking you. You said everything has been prepared already.”

“Yes, everything has been pretty much prepared, so you just have to let us know when.”

They’ve partic.i.p.ated in several hunts within the past couple of days.

Kim Yoo-Na didn’t say much when she mentioned that it was going to take some time to provide protection for his parents.

But yesterday, she contacted him to say that it was ready.

Kim Hye-Na happened to have mentioned that she wanted to see Hyun-Soo, so he gave her a rice cake that he made.

Hyun-Soo wanted Kim Yoo-Na to give it to her, but Kim Yoo-Na suggested that Hyun-Soo give it to Hye-Na.

“When will be the best for you?”

“When is a good time for you, Yoo-Na?”

“Since it’s already been decided, it’s best to do it as soon as possible.”

She was right. Hyun-Soo agreed.

He was close to opening a store for his mother.

Going out and finding a place by himself was impossible since Kim Yoo-Na tagged along whenever they went hunting.

‘I do have a couple of days to rest after the hunt…’

Those couple of days pa.s.s by really quickly when he’s resting and recovering.

That’s why Hyun-Soo hired someone.

He was having a hard time finding a decent place by himself, but the person that he hired gave him a decent list not long after he hired them.

‘Money is definitely the best.’

This is how you get your money’s worth.

His work didn’t go to waste.

He’s able to compare the information that the person brought and after him going there himself to check.

Hyun-Soo chose one of those buildings.

There’s a long process after that.

Thanks to him partic.i.p.ating in many hunts, he was able to match the minimum price.

‘Not like I was aiming to purchase one of those big buildings anyways.’

His parents needed a solution where they won’t have issues with the landlord.

It was pretty old and the building was located in the center of the main street, so Hyun-Soo was pretty satisfied with it.

He felt proud of the fact that he successfully obtained a large property.

It was also good because the agent told him that the ownership process will be completed within a couple of days.

“I’ve been wrapping things up on my end as well. As soon as I confirm that my parents have adapted well into their new shop, I think we’ll be good to go.”

“Oh, while we’re talking about your parents. I’ve thought about it and I think it would be better if they had another name. It’s better to do as much as we can to keep them safe. If they use a name from our side, they won’t be able to attack them so easily.”

Kim Yoo-Na added that she was planning on getting the doc.u.ments notarized just in case they run into an issue.

She mentioned that Hyun-Soo’s parents would need it and that she would send a lawyer that will provide legal advice.

“I understand.”

What she said made his other worries disappear completely.

Hyun-Soo nodded his head.

The day he’ll head to a bigger world.

That day was quickly approaching.

Hyun-Soo has been pretty busy.

His family was just as busy as him.

It’s because their place was being completely changed.

First, Hyun-Soo talked to his parents regarding the building on the day they’re supposed to sign the contract.

“Huh? What are you talking about? You bought what?”

“A building.”

“You bought a building? You were serious about what you said before?”

“Of course, mother. Why would I lie about something like that?!”

I mentioned it to her before, but she must’ve not thought much about it because once he mentioned the contract, his mother was pretty surprised.

His father joined later and after hearing what Hyun-Soo said, he remained quiet.

His father looked at him with a serious look and his eyes displayed more emotions than his words.

“Didn’t you say there was something you wanted to do before, mother? Use that and open a store and work with father by hiring people. You can take it easy now.”

“Hyun-Soo…”

“Please accept it. You deserve it. And if I don’t do this at least, I’ll be worried and won’t be able to travel overseas. Once I leave, we won’t be able to see each other much. So, think of this as your son treating you for working hard and accept it.”

“I feel bad for always accepting things. You’ve paid back our debt and now a building…we don’t deserve it. We haven’t done anything for you…”

Even though his parents were embarra.s.sed by it, Hyun-Soo shook his head.

“No, you’ve raised me to become the person that I am today. You’ve raised me well, so you should be treated well.”

His parents grabbed his hand and they felt bad and grateful at the same time.

Due to his job, his hands became rough and dry and his parents were able to really feel it.

And then.

Time had pa.s.sed and after fixing all the internal issues, they were waiting for the day to open their shop.

His parents quit the previous jobs that they had and worked hard on the new shop.

Hyun-Soo was worried that maybe they’ll be even more exhausted because of this, so he told them to hire some employees.

“Don’t worry. The owners of the shop need to do all of that.”

His mother told him that it was important for her to do things herself and despite the fact that the store wasn’t open, she went to the store every day.

“Wow, your shop is seriously amazing!”

They’ll be opening the shop tomorrow.

Hyuna did follow her around, but never saw it till after it was finished, so when she did, her mouth opened wide as she looked around.

“You’ve done well.”

“It’s nothing…oh, how silly of me. I’m starting to cry all of a sudden.”

When Hyun-Soo congratulated her for her work, his mother smiled brightly.

But something caused her to tear up, so she wiped her eyes with a handkerchief.

“Don’t worry about us. There’s nothing you’ll have to worry about.”

His father stood next to her and quietly spoke to Hyun-Soo.

“Mom, I really hope it becomes a success! Maybe you’ll appear on TV!”

Hyuna was so excited that she started jumping around the store.

“Yeah, don’t worry about us. We’ll be fine. It’s at a good location and the condition is great, so there’s no reason for it to fail. Right? I’m more worried about you two.”

“You guys do well over there. Listen to your brother, okay Hyuna?”

“Dad, you’ve said that 100 times already!”

While his parents were finishing up the shop, Hyuna was also wrapping things up at her school.

On the day she submitted her intent to leave notice.

Hyuna told Hyun-Soo that she was worried.

“I’ll do fine, right? I’ve been learning conversations in English at the academy, but it’s really hard. That’s why I’m worried.”

Despite the fact that she did well in her studies and was always on top of things, she had a serious look on her face.

Thanks to that, Hyun-Soo was able to laugh out loud, which he hasn’t done in a while.

“Even I’m able to do it, so you’ll be fine. We can help each other out. We need to come back home after succeeding, Kim Hyuna.”

The next day. They successfully opened the store.

His mother cried again, but she smiled throughout the day.

Several congratulatory wreaths arrived at the store.

Kim Yoo-Na’s name and her crew’s name were written on it.

Hyun-Soo planned on staying for a week, but he extended his stay to watch his parent’s store.

Thankfully, the store was doing well and there weren’t any other issues.

He also made sure that the security that Kim Yoo-Na promised worked well.

Hyun-Soo was now able to relax.

‘It’s all done. I’m having mixed emotions.’

His parent’s shop was the last thing he needed to wrap up before leaving.

Couple of days later. Hyun-Soo and Hyuna entered the plane.

Their destination was the US.

It was a larger and new world.

End.