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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: The Hunter Administration Bureau (2)
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"How much do you know about the Hunter Administration Bureau?"
Baek Seol-hee walked ahead, asking me as she strode along.
"As much as anyone else knows."
Well, truthfully, I know far more deeply and broadly than that, but I should probably answer like this for now.
"Is that so? Then this conversation will be quicker."
*Velvet Hunter Academy* and the *Hunter Administration Bureau*.
These two organizations were, without exaggeration, the two pillars supporting Korea in the Gate Era.
They were the organizations that grabbed Korea by the scruff of its neck, pulling it back from the brink of ruin due to monster invasions, and restoring everyday life.
If the Velvet Hunter Academy was an institution focused solely on cultivating the Awakened's combat power,
then the Hunter Administration Bureau was responsible for overall regulations related to the Awakened, including fiends, guilds, laws, public opinion, and so on.
'But that's already an old story…'
Everything stagnant eventually spoils with time, and the Academy and the Hunter Administration Bureau were no exception.
Of course, in the Academy's case, Director Leena's authority was so immense that the degree of corruption wasn't severe,
but the Hunter Administration Bureau had complex interests intertwined, significantly reducing its former prestige.
It was a place where, despite being old timers who did nothing, their influence remained, with some jackal-like individuals constantly eyeing the Velvet Academy, while others who weren't so bad were also mixed in.
'After all, there are even fiends occasionally mixed among the Hunter Administration Bureau's executives.'
It was truly ironic to have fiends residing in an organization meant to root them out, but well…
'It should be quiet for now, at least.'
Baek Seol-hee kindly explained things I already knew.
"But there's no need to be nervous. The Director and my colleague we're going to meet are relatively reasonable people."
The Hunter Administration Bureau was located where the Seoul Metropolitan Government Office used to be in the original world.
It was situated in Jung-gu, Seoul.
"We'll discuss the rest once we're inside."
Baek Seol-hee said to me, standing before a building that looked like a wavy work of art.
*
"Yes, Ms. Baek Seol-hee, Cadet Jin Yu-ha's identity has been confirmed. Here are your access cards."
The guard in front handed us neck-worn access cards.
We put on our access cards and headed straight to the Director's office.
Knock, knock, knock—
"Come in."
Creak—
As we opened the door and entered, we saw a blue-haired woman with stacks of documents on her desk, her hands clasped together on its surface.
'This person is the current Director.'
A woman with long, straight blue hair, exuding the aura of a cold beauty.
This is the first time I've seen her face.
Former Director Kim Ji-won.
As the 'former' title suggests, she's a character whose name only appears in the game, but her face never does.
Someone who gets demoted soon after the tutorial ends.
It must be coming up soon.
'Hmm, but in the game, she was described as incompetent and trash… I didn't have high expectations, but Instructor Baek Seol-hee definitely said she was a reasonable person, didn't she…?'
"Baek Seol-hee."
"Yes."
Kim Ji-won called out to the Instructor in a stiff voice. Baek Seol-hee responded with a short nod.
"Thank you for coming in person. Make yourself comfortable."
"Understood."
Then her gaze turned towards me.
"And you're that Jin Yu-ha…?"
"Ah, yes. It's a pleasure to meet you."
I stared blankly at her for a moment before hastily greeting her.
"...Cadet Jin Yu-ha, I apologize for last time."
"Pardon?"
Kim Ji-won suddenly bowed her head and offered me an apology.
"I made an absurd mistake, misunderstanding a regular cadet for a fiend. And thank you for taking the lead in subjugating the fiend. What you did was no small feat. You prevented the Velvet Academy from being shaken. Be proud."
Her expression was cold, but a hint of apology and gratitude flickered in her eyes.
"However, I won't offer separate compensation for that, as it has already been relayed to His Majesty."
She expressed her apology and gratitude honestly, yet clearly drew a line by considering the gains and losses.
"Hmph… Everyone here is so self-willed; there's no one who properly listens."
She leaned back in her chair and sighed in exasperation.
'This person is supposed to be that trashy character…? She seems quite a person of integrity, though?'
I was a little flustered by her appearance, which didn't match my knowledge from the game.
That's when it happened.
"Whoa! You really came! Seol-hee! You granted my request!?"
A lively voice interjected from behind.
"...Yes, people like that one."
Kim Ji-won looked towards the door with annoyed eyes.
As I followed her gaze and turned my head,
there was a girl with light brown hair and red and blue heterochromatic eyes, peeking her head in.
'Don't tell me the person we were coming to meet today was her…?'
* * *
"Wow! The real thing! You actually brought him!"
Ji So-yeon, the Deputy Head of the Talent Management Team, suddenly approached the boy Baek Seol-hee had brought.
Truthfully, Ji So-yeon had asked Baek Seol-hee, but hadn't really expected her to comply.
'It was already surprising that she didn't ignore my request in the first place, but she brought him right away, on the very same day?'
Ji So-yeon's heterochromatic eyes sparkling as she stared intently at the boy's face.
"Whoa… He really is handsome, isn't he? It wasn't just the photo!"
Glossy black hair, tall stature, and broad shoulders.
His jet-black eyes were a deep, inky hue.
His appearance was incomparable to what she'd seen in photos.
Honestly, he could make a living just with his looks.
And that thought soon spilled from her lips.
"With looks like these, he could probably make a living without even being a Hunter…?"
"He's my disciple."
At that moment, Baek Seol-hee's voice came from beside her. Ji So-yeon's body froze for a moment, unable to comprehend her words.
She soon thought, 'Nah, I must have misheard,' and picked at her ear.
Then she put on a gentle expression again and said,
"Hm? What did you just say? I didn't quite catch that!"
"I said, he's my disciple."
"...Di-disciple?"
She hadn't misheard!
She couldn't help but wear an expression of shock.
Kim Ji-won, the Hunter Administration Bureau Director, who was sitting in her chair, also stiffened.
"...You?"
She had merely called him to satisfy her curiosity about his looks, only to suddenly hear something insane.
"Hm, he's my direct disciple."
"Even, direct…?!"
Baek Seol-hee, who usually maintained a blank expression, was now subtly puffing out her chest, looking proud.
Like an overdoting teacher showing off their disciple to a friend.
'Is she, by any chance… showing off to me right now?'
At her colleague's never-before-seen behavior, Ji So-yeon's jaw dropped in disbelief.
The 'Slaughter Maniac' who knew nothing but her sword, acting like a machine to eliminate fiends.
She truly believed that Baek Seol-hee would never take on a disciple, even if she was affiliated with the Velvet Academy.
Her colleague, Baek Seol-hee, was a good person once you got to know her, but honestly, she was a little… no, a lot… socially inept.
"...Then, the Slaughter Mad Dog…?"
The words slipped out unintentionally, and the air instantly froze.
She covered her mouth belatedly, but it was too late.
Baek Seol-hee glared at her as if she wanted to kill her.
'I, I'm dead…'
To save herself, she frantically changed the subject.
"M-my words slipped out! U-uh, yes! That's right! Seol-hee! You brought him to me because you're asking for *that*, right?"
"Th-that's right! Instructor Baek Seol-hee. If you've brought your disciple, wouldn't it be important to measure the extent of his potential!?"
At that, Kim Ji-won also quickly interjected from the side, helping to smooth things over.
Baek Seol-hee, who had looked ready to pounce, then closed her mouth.
"...Hurry up and do it."
'She's enduring *this*...?'
Even gesturing that she would agree and move on.
At this point, it was beyond absurd; it was disheartening!
By now, her curiosity about what kind of person this boy Baek Seol-hee had brought was skyrocketing.
What on earth did this guy do to make Baek Seol-hee like this?
'It seems her claim that he's stronger than Shin Se-hee or Kang Do-hee was serious after all? His potential might even surpass theirs…'
Ji So-yeon swallowed hard.
She possessed eyes that could see the innate limits of an Awakened.
What she called 'Star'.
An ability to roughly ascertain an opponent's potential.
Based on this, she could advise on future growth directions.
Having earned the title of Deputy Head of the Talent Management Team with that single ability, her credibility was quite high.
Baek Seol-hee had brought Jin Yu-ha precisely to confirm that potential.
'Kang Do-hee was definitely a 5-Star when I saw her before, and Shin Se-hee was a 4-Star…? Both of them were incredible, but what about him?'
Ji So-yeon gently closed her eyes and drew forth her mana.
Opening her eyes again, the boy's image was reflected in her red and blue heterochromatic eyes.
"Uh-oh…?"
Ji So-yeon couldn't help but utter a flustered sound.
"...No way."
She had intended to see how far he could grow, to see his limits…
"N-no, this can't be…?"
"Pardon?"
"...Y-you, what on earth are you!?"
What she faced was.
Fear.