Chapter 215

Chapter 215

“I heard you’re going to lead the Korean hunters and work with me during the monster wave.”

“No. I didn’t necessarily say that...”

Kwon Yeongseung’s voice trailed off when he laid eyes on Choi Yeonseung.

When dealing with a large-scale offensive like the monster wave, it was better for hunters to stick together when moving around. However, there were exceptions for everything, and one for the current situation would’ve been more than welcome...

“That— Hunter Choi Yeonseung. In fact, Korean hunters don’t stick together that much.”

“Every country deals with monster waves roughly the same way.”

The government urged hunters to forget about their clans during the monster wave and cooperate with each other, but it was hard for hunters to do that. Not long ago, hunters fiercely competed with each other for glory while representing their own clans, each of them boasting about how many monsters they took down and ridiculing those who fell behind.

The rivalry between the current hunters was much more intense than between those from the first generation. At this point, various clans had history with each other, some relationships between them being almost at the level of enemies. It was to the extent that some clans would punish their members if they caught them hanging out with hunters from rival clans.

As such, it was unusual for Choi Yeonseung to save the hunters of other clans during the Jeju Island exchange exhibition battle.

“I think it’s virtually impossible to unite the hunters.”

“Hmm.”

“Of course, it’s good that you’ll join, but wouldn’t it be better for each clan to just move individually like they’re used to?”

“But when I asked, they said it was okay.”

“...Huh??”

Kwon Yeongseung found that hard to believe, but it was true. The leader of the Golden Blood Fish clan was Jeong Wonuk. Additionally, the Bulgae clan had a deep connection with Lee Changsik. If Kwon Yeongseung’s Six-Eyed Turtle clan joined them, that would be the three biggest clans in South Korea working together.

Of course, there were several other hunter clans, but they weren’t big enough or powerful enough to go against the norm. If the three biggest clans decided to work together, they had no choice but to follow suit.

“Hunter Han Seha is cooperating, so it should be fine.”

At this point, Choi Yeonseung had received promises of cooperation from several Korean A-grade hunters and large clans. Kwon Yeongseung felt his mind wander. How did this person, who had been in the United States all the time, manage to bring these large clans together?

‘It... It’s ridiculous. Putting aside the Golden Blood Fish clan, the Bulgae clan has a lot of pride. They will never agree to work together with other clans...’

The relationship between the Six-Eyed Turtle clan, which tried to recruit all hunters in South Korea, and Bulgae, which only went after a small number of elite hunters despite being a large clan, wasn’t good at all.

Bulgae had been likely to ignore the government’s request to cooperate with the Six-Eyed Turtle clan, but they actually agreed in the end?

The most surprising one was Han Seha. Both Kwon Yeongseung and Han Seha were young A-grade hunters, but they didn’t really get along. The former was a celebrity hero who appeared in all kinds of television shows and movies, while the latter was a controversial hero with a difficult personality who never appeared on TV and threw fists whenever someone angered her.

Han Seha hated Kwon Yeongseung and called him a parasitic man with a beautiful appearance. Kwon Yeongseung shared the same feelings and called her a rabid dog. To think that Han Seha agreed to cooperate... Had she lost her mind?

“Did Hunter Han Seha really say that she would cooperate? You might’ve misunderstood.”

“Really?”

“Well, considering her personality...”

“Hunter Han Seha is a nice person.”

“...!??!?”

Kwon Yeongseung started to worry. Had Choi Yeonseung misunderstood what she had said or had he been deceived by her? Or perhaps the South Korean government had somehow tricked him in order to attract another A-grade hunter...

‘I wonder if Han Seha will get angry and leave if she finds out she was used to trick Choi Yeonseung.’

***

“It’s been a while. This time, I’ve taken a really good look at the new Dragon Artifact product, and I have to say... I’m really impressed by its quality. No wonder it broke the market.”

“...Thank you?”

Han Seha waited with a somewhat hesitant expression, but she said what she had planned to say as soon as she saw Choi Yeonseung. Then, she looked at Kwon Yeongseung and asked with a smile, “What are you?”

“......”

Kwon Yeongseung regretted not having started the argument first. As it stood, the one who started it had an advantage.

“B... Bah. You are still childish.”

“Childish is the one who can’t speak in front of people and insults them in interviews.”

“I wasn’t insulting you. I just compared us to lighten up the mood...”

“So you’re going to twist the facts and deny having done anything wrong? Wow. Isn’t this amazing? You should try getting into politics.”

“T... This really...”

Kwon Yeongseung, who was used to hearing good things about himself, had to accept defeat in this war of words.

“Are you fighting now?”

“No! I was just saying hello.”

“......”

Han Seha immediately shouted with a different tone and Kwon Yeongseung felt dizzy, as if he had been attacked with mental magic. What a crazy situation...

“I’ve made several preparations for this monster wave...”

“You’re really amazing!”

“I haven’t even told what it is that I’ve prepared”

“Nevertheless, it’s even greater because you are amazing.”

“Yes. Thank you.”

Han Seha was Han Seha, but Choi Yeonseung, who listened to her without blinking, was also a great human being.

“First of all, the lower-grade hunters will receive their own instructions from within the clan, so there is no need for me to deal with them.”

“That’s usually the case.”

Higher-ranked hunters sometimes had the courage to wander around by themselves, but lower-ranked hunters never did so. They would at the very least move in pairs or in groups of three. That way, if one hunter screwed up or got injured, they could still get rescued by their partners.

“So rather than practicing a new command or command system, you just need to answer questions when asked. I can teach martial arts, and as far as magic is concerned, the clan hunters I brought with me can help...”

“I’ll do my best!”

“Oh, really? Thank you.”

Choi Yeonseung was grateful for Han Seha’s positive reaction. In fact, teaching lower-ranked hunters wasn’t very appealing to them.

Originally, Choi Yeonseung thought he would have to pay them a huge amount of money or give them valuable information regarding magic or skills in order for them to teach the low-ranking hunters. It was hard to believe that A or B-grade hunters would agree to teach low-ranking hunters for free. It would certainly be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for lower-grade hunters.

“...Uh, even me?”

“Of course, you're participating as well.”

Han Seha looked at Kwon Yeongseung like he just asked a stupid question. He was a bit frustrated.

“It’s not a difficult task...”

“I’m glad you think so. In any case, let’s proceed with this. If a powerful monster appears... Can you gather the hunters ranked B-grade and higher from each clan in one place?”

“I can do it.”

“It’s probably going to be difficult though...” said Kwon Yeongseung while looking at Han Seha.

Han Seha looked back at Kwon Yeongseung and said firmly, “Can you really call yourself an A-grade hunter if you can’t even manage to do that?”

“The B-grade hunters are a clan’s main source of strength. I don’t think I can get permission to...!”

“The Six-Eyed Turtle clan, the Golden Blood Fish clan and Bulgae have already agreed to it, so I guess we just need to get permission from the other smaller clans.”

“...?!?!?”

Kwon Yeongseung’s eyes widened as he listened to Choi Yeonseung.

“If you focus your power, you’ll be able to quickly neutralize monsters when they appear.”

“Truly genius...”

“It’s quite simple, so don’t praise me too much. In any case, I think that’s it. I’m going to call the hunters, familiarize myself with their skills and try to practice with them.”

Kwon Yeongseung became nervous as Choi Yeonseung spoke with ease and stood up from his seat. Would the big clans actually cooperate? No matter how hard he thought about it, those clans were extremely stubborn.

Pak!

“......!!”

However, Kwon Yeongseung was shocked when he left the building and headed to the training ground. The Korean B-grade hunters had gathered there and were waiting.

‘This is ridiculous!’

“Ah, right. “Did you practice hard what I told you to practice last time?”

“......”

Kwon Yeongseung’s face turned slightly pale.

***

In reality, just because Choi Yeonseung gathered a large group of hunters didn’t mean he had prepared incredibly complex coordination tactics. It would’ve been hard to properly employ them.

Collect tankers, ranged damage dealers and healers. That formation was enough to be able to move quickly. Some might’ve thought that there wasn’t any need to practice such a simple formation, but that wasn’t true. If chaos erupted and tens, or even hundreds, of people panicked, all with different abilities, it would be difficult for anyone to grasp the situation.

There was a reason why hunters, regardless of the country, didn’t operate like this... It was because hunters were used to only relying on themselves!

“Healers, gather in the rear!”

“Tankers, to the front! Cast the skill!”

“Is that the Icarus clan?”

“Wow. Look at their equipment. It has a different color than our equipment.”

“Is it a good artifact if it has a good color?”

“But when it comes to Icarus, they’re going to use their artifacts and items as much as they want, right? We have insurance even for potions.”

Even among B-grade hunters, reputation varied greatly. Icarus was a famous clan in the United States that received a lot of support. Thus, naturally, hunters from small clans were captivated by the Icarus hunters, even though they were also B-grade. Some were seriously trying to reach A-grade, while others were considering retirement while calculating the pension ensured by their B-grade.

“I want to ask them what skills they use. Can I talk to them?”

“Hey. You know how bad those guys are, especially since they’re from abroad.”

“But we’re training together, aren’t we?”

“That’s because an A-grade hunter told them to do it, so they had no choice. We shouldn’t bother them. It’ll be a nuisance if we get into a fight for nothing.”

However, it was a hunter from Icarus who talked to them first. Smallwood sneaked over and said, “Friends. Do you know anything about martial arts?”

“......???”

“What?”

“Is my Korean bad? Uh. Do u noe...”

“No, your Korean isn’t bad. I understand it. But martial arts?”

“Don’t Korean hunters learn a lot of martial arts?”

“......”

“......”

The Korean Hunters were stunned.

“We’ve learnt magic as well...”

“What martial arts? It’s true that it has recently resurged a bit, but how long has it been since it stopped being popular?”

“Ah. Then these friends don’t care much about tradition among Koreans?”

“...Doesn’t he sound a bit crazy?”

“Yes.”

The Korean hunters murmured as they stared at Smallwood. Something seemed a bit weird...

***

It was said that B-grade hunters only needed to practice positioning, but A-grade hunters were different. Their numbers were so small that they had no issues in coordinating their skills with each other.

“I will immobilize the monster in front and the two of you will deal damage. Get to know each other’s skills and don’t disrupt each other.”

“Can’t Hunter Kwon Yeongseung immobilize the monster and you deal the damage?”

“I’m not a tanker...!”

“Really? I didn’t know.”

Choi Yeonseung was listening to the two hunters arguing when he suddenly felt a skill awakening. It was Future Sight, the skill given by the goddess..

‘What?’

He was wondering if the monster wave was going to happen at a later time, but that wasn’t the case. According to the vision, the monster wave was indeed happening in the present. However, there was one difference...

‘...I don’t think this is South Korea...’