Chapter 134: Why Do Hunters Have to Do This Too (1)

The conversation returned to the memoirs.

“So, the most pressing matter is the ‘Return of the Heaven Realm’s Lost Child,’ then?”

Three sets of eyes landed on Ion.

“Why are you looking at me? Why are you looking at him? That’s not about me. I’m just someone with blended blood like the Holy Emperor; I’m not a lost child.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“That lost child is eighteen, and I’m twenty.”

“…Aha.”

“I am twenty years old. I’ll be twenty-one soon.”

“I see.”

As Ion glared, Jin Seong-ha and Sa-on exchanged looks. Ion found their silent communication extremely unpleasant.

“Well, whether On-on is that kid or not, a lost child returning home safely isn’t exactly a bad omen. Let’s move to the next item.”

The group discussed keywords from the memoirs, frequently glancing at Ion. They were hoping for hints similar to when they deduced the Apostle’s identity. However, Ion knew nothing about the subsequent contents.

As the conversation wound down, Se-on tentatively raised his hand. Having stayed quiet after being told to shut up by Sa-on earlier, he finally earned Ion’s attention.

“Se-on, if you have something to say, say it.”

“It’s just… am I the only one curious about why Ye-on didn’t awaken until recently? We all awakened simultaneously on the Day of Cataclysm. Why… why only Ye-on… and only now, with the help of System Age…?”

“What is there to be curious about? It’s because he’s a total failure.”

Ion flinched. Usually, Sa-on was hyper-sensitive to Ion’s reactions, but he was too busy being sarcastic to notice.

“A stupid brat who couldn’t eat even when the food was spoon-fed to him. He should have just been left behind. A piece of trash with no talent, crawling around until he finally got a single psychokinesis skill, and now he’s acting all arrogant. If our On-on got serious, he’d crush a loser’s skill like that in an instant. Right, On-on?”

Ion—now labeled a “stupid, failing, talentless piece of trash who couldn’t eat when spoon-fed”—glared at Sa-on.

“Huh?” Sa-on tilted his head.

“What’s with your eyes? Why is our On-on angry?”

“…….”

“Why are your lips pouting? Is it because Hyung badmouthed Dam Ye-on? But he really is just a loser who couldn’t even eat the meal the Breeder prepared for us to awaken….”

“By the way, A-son, when do you think Guild Master On-il will arrive?”

Jin Seong-ha cut Sa-on off, abruptly changing the subject.

“…I don’t know. He said he’d be here before the SS-rank dungeon.”

Sa-on frowned but answered the question obediently. It wasn’t so much a submission to a power hierarchy, but rather a vibe of, ‘Fine, Jin Seong-ha probably has a reason for asking.’

Ion was grateful to Jin Seong-ha, but on the other hand…

‘The guy who wouldn’t even listen to Il-on is actually listening to Jin Seong-ha.’

Ion began to wonder what on earth had happened while he was away.

As they left the villa, Sa-on spoke up.

“On-on, let’s grab a meal. Noona hasn’t been back for so long, so I have to eat alone every day. It’s boring and lonely.”

“Stop the bullshit. I’ve seen the news that D-NATE’s Guild Master A-son is partying day and night.”

“Hey, partying and dining are two different things.”

Sa-on laughed slickly and threw an arm around Ion’s shoulders.

“Let’s have dinner. Hyung’s treat.”

Ion adjusted his hold on Sanse and dodged the arm. Before he could open his mouth to refuse, Jin Seong-ha stepped in.

“The Commander just ate, so I doubt he’s hungry. We ate together near the villa.”

Sa-on blinked rapidly, tilting his head at an angle.

“You ate together?”

“Yes, just the two of us.”

“Two of us…?”

“T-the two of them have gone to the cafeteria t-together a few times too.”

At Se-on’s words, Sa-on’s eyes narrowed.

“Cafeteria, a few times, together…?”

Sa-on repeated the words like a parrot. It was rare to see this slippery guy malfunction, so Ion felt a sense of satisfaction without even knowing why.

“We did. I wonder how Team Leader Son knew that.”

“J-Jin Seong-ha Hunter and Ion are both… celebrities within the guild, after all….”

“Next time, Team Leader Son should join us for a meal.”

“Hieeeek! N-no! No way! I-I’ll just eat alone. Please…!”

“My, it was just a joke.”

“I-I should be going now. See you later, Ion….”

Se-on, nearly having a fit, hurried away.

“Eating together, huh? That’s a good change. A positive sign. In the past, he would have had a seizure, asking how anyone could dare sit at the same table as the ‘Protagonist’.”

“Are you picking a fight?”

“No. I’m truly moved. Let’s eat together later then. Get home safe.”

Sa-on waved his hand airily. And then… his body collapsed.

It was a again. Ion wondered if the guy ever actually walked around in his real body. Jin Seong-ha didn’t look surprised, as if he already knew about this skill.

Since Ion hadn’t brought his own car, he got into Jin Seong-ha’s.

“Get in the back. I’ll take you home.”

“Okay, thanks.”

Without declining, he sat in the back holding Sanse.

Purrung.

Purre flew over and perched on Jin Seong-ha’s shoulder.

“Purre, thanks for being well-behaved. What a brave, good bird.”

Purrung!

Even though his clothes were getting dusty, Jin Seong-ha didn’t mind and showered Purre with affection.

‘Baba would have been even better-behaved.’

The car started smoothly. Jin Seong-ha asked if he wanted to listen to music, but Ion declined. Instead, he asked the question that had been bugging him.

“Since when did you get close to Sa-on?”

“Do we look close?”

“You changed the subject earlier and he just let it go. Given his personality, he should have been sarcastic for an hour, but he suppressed his temper.”

“Well. We got closer by badmouthing someone every time we met. People tend to bond over a common enemy.”

Ion scowled. His views on the Teacher had changed somewhat, but he still didn’t like hearing him being referred to as a “common enemy” so bluntly.

“Stop badmouthing the Teacher. You know now. He was just a Breeder following orders….”

“Why do you assume it’s the Teacher? It could be you we were badmouthing.”

Ion, who had been burying his cheek in Sanse’s leaves, looked up. He spoke bluntly.

“That guy doesn’t badmouth me.”

“…Sibling affection runs deep, I see.”

Sibling affection, my foot. Ion knew. The reason Sa-on didn’t badmouth him wasn’t because of affection.

‘Sa-on pities me.’

Ion couldn’t understand it, but the orphans pitied him. Se-on was the only one who was somewhat normal about it; the others all looked at Ion with such guilt and pity they didn’t know what to do with themselves. They all grew up in the same circumstances, yet he still couldn’t fathom why they looked at him specifically with those eyes.

‘No, we weren’t in the same circumstances.’

The ones who had to endure that harsh training without abilities like “Temporary Magic” were far more pitiable. They were the unfortunate ones.

. . .

Before he knew it, they arrived in front of his house. As he prepared to get out, Jin Seong-ha’s phone buzzed. Checking the screen, Jin Seong-ha smirked.

“Tomorrow is going to be very interesting.”

“Tomorrow?”

Ding.

Ion’s phone buzzed too.

[Team Leader Lee Jin-ah]: Cameras will be attached to us all day tomorrow. I just received the word and am notifying you now. For those who wish to hide their faces, please prepare in advance before arriving at the site.

Ah, tomorrow was that day. Why does a Hunter have to go this far? A sigh escaped him involuntarily.

[Hong In-soo]: Hey, make sure you enter through the main gate and greet the cameras if you see them! [Hong In-soo]: People are looking for you like crazy haha [Hong In-soo]: You’re wearing the clothes I gave you, right? Make sure there are no wrinkles and check your appearance before you go in!

Well, since it was a video that would be exposed to the public, he did need to check his appearance. Ion carefully wiped each of Sanse’s long leaves, grooming his plant.

“Not a speck of dust. When did you get so tidy? You’re so pretty.”

“…….”

“Let’s wear an accessory for once. You’re so beautiful, our Sanse.”

Ion painstakingly decorated a leaf with two miniature ladybugs. Placing the cute red ladybug models on the vibrant green leaves made it look truly adorable and lovely.

“The cameras are only going to want to film Sanse. Why are you so pretty? You should have been moderately pretty.”

“…….”

“Now Sanse is going to become a total celebrity. Is a fan club going to start?”

“…….”

Ion didn’t usually take many photos, but looking at Sanse, he couldn’t help but pick up his phone. Click, click, click. After taking over ten shots from various angles, he stepped out of the car.

“Oh, right.”

Click.

Ion returned to the car and put on a hat, a mask, and horn-rimmed glasses. He felt a full mask might be too much, so he chose a more ordinary method.

‘No matter how much I think about it, this isn’t right.’

While Ion was in Idea, the Public Support Division of the Horizon Guild had been looking for ways to secure public intimacy and trust toward the guild. One of those ways was to increase the public exposure of hunters. Even if it’s someone people weren’t interested in, repeated mentions on TV or the internet tend to close the psychological distance.

‘At least it’s a relief they’re only filming outside the dungeons.’

Filming inside dungeons was strictly prohibited because it was too stimulating and gruesome. Therefore, they decided to film what hunters do when there are no dungeon raids scheduled. They were going to broadcast the hunters’ “off-days.”

There are about 300 members in Horizon who go on dungeon raids, including the byproduct collection teams. There are five main attack teams that primarily target A-rank dungeons or higher: Special Team 1, Astro, Pegasus, Bulgil, and Haechi.

After Pegasus and Bulgil, it was finally Special Team 1’s turn. Ion had heard about this from Da-on before leaving the Idea-Earth connection dungeon.

‘Hunters aren’t idols… is there a need to be so intimate with the public?’

‘Ion, two members from Astro died during a raid the month before last, and three from the collection team died last month. Of course, many people mourned… but I want the public to take the deaths of Awakened people more to heart. I want them to feel a great shock and sense of loss, and to remember them for a very long time.’

Da-on had smiled bitterly.

‘In the past, we couldn’t even mourn. We couldn’t be overly sad, and we had to forget immediately. In fact, we weren’t that sad, and we forgot easily. I think that’s… partly because of that man, but also because we weren’t close. If people become friends with hunters, they will mourn their deaths more deeply. With a sense of reality, like when a close acquaintance dies.’

At that time, Ion had sensed a certain madness in Da-on, but regardless, due to Da-on’s push, Special Team 1 also had to proceed with filming for a few days.

“Ah, he’s coming. Let me introduce Commander Ion. Though I’m sure you all know him.”

As he entered the main gate, Team Leader Lee Jin-ah was waiting with cameras. The external production crew were non-Awakened and looked excited. Since the cameras were already rolling, Ion didn’t take off his mask.

After an explanation that they would be filming training processes, team bonding, emergency rescue operations during rest periods, and individual interviews, Ion greeted them with a slight smile.

“Yes, I’ll cooperate as much as possible. I look forward to working with you.”

Then, he pointedly adjusted his hold on Sanse. The camera focused on the plant.

“Ah… so this plant is the famous companion plant, the Sansevieria. Your teammates talked about it a lot.”

“What did they say? That it’s beautiful, gentle, obedient, and brilliant?”

“Well… they said many good things in various ways. Haha.”

“You can pet it. It likes people. It’s not poisonous and feels very smooth.”

“Ah… okay.”

The production crew awkwardly patted Sanse. Ion generously allowed everyone a turn to pet the plant.