Chapter 7

“Everyone, this is Kang Ha-chan, who will be joining us from today.”

“I’m Kang Ha-chan.”

Joining Rodri Company, I was welcomed more warmly than I expected.

Everyone seemed to have heard about my joining in advance and welcomed me.

‘Including me, there are 12 members. It’s a new company, so the number of people per department is still small.’

Well, with this number of people, the workload per person will increase, and with more hands, it’s only natural to be welcomed.

I heard that the team leader here knows the professor who thought highly of me.

Considering he even mentioned the conversation I had with the professor during my second year about dimensional movement, it must be true.

“Mr. Ha-chan, your seat is here. First, here are the materials on the hunters we’ve been nurturing recently. Usually, one person is in charge of a team of three, but since you’re new, let’s start with one person. There’s a new hunter who just joined.”

“Is it okay? I haven’t even graduated from university, let alone have any experience. Being assigned to a team without a mentor?”

“Normally, we would assign a mentor, but the company is still new and lacks resources. You’ll understand when you see the materials.”

I nodded without complaint.

I clearly felt that they were making a lot of considerations for me.

Even though I attended the university with the best hunter training program in Korea, I didn’t even graduate.

The theoretical classes were far from practical experience, and to active hunters, I must seem quite lacking.

‘Assigning a newbie to me must be part of that consideration.’

It’s like saying, grow together.

‘Then the first hunter’s rank might not be that high.’

It’s quite possible.

Pairing me with a suitable hunter and growing together to be useful to the company.

That seems the most plausible situation.

“I’ll pull up the materials for you.”

The team leader immediately displayed the new hunter’s materials on my screen.

The hunter’s name is Yoon Ji-eun.

She’s 19 this year and hasn’t officially been issued a hunter license yet.

“She’s young?”

“Yes, but her potential is A-rank. Currently, she’s B-rank.”

Even though she’s a minor, isn’t it too much to assign her to a newbie?

I thought she would be at most C-rank.

‘No, since she’s a minor, shouldn’t she be paired with a more experienced person?’

I made a vague expression but soon decided to go along with it.

The main reason must be the lack of hands, as the team leader mentioned earlier.

Even if she has the ability, since she’s a minor, she won’t be involved in dimensional gate-related work.

Being a minor and a newbie, it’s probably to build rapport early on.

Gradually, when she becomes an adult, she’ll either be assigned a mentor or I’ll be replaced, thinking of me as a temporary fix.

“Then shall we go meet her? She’s here because it’s the school’s anniversary.”

“Yes, let’s go.”

Since I came to work, I decided to follow along obediently.

The hunter training facility uses the entire third basement floor.

Seeing the noise prevention measures and high-strength walls to prevent training accidents, I had to question if this was really a new company.

It definitely seemed like a company with some backing.

As the basement door creaked open, hunters training or resting were visible.

“Miss Ji-eun is over there.”

Looking around, I saw a girl sitting in the corner.

Dressed in casual clothes with bright yellow hair, she had earphones in and was looking at her phone.

Wow, a high school girl.

And she looks like a delinquent.

At 26, approaching a delinquent high school girl is daunting.

“Miss Ji-eun, Miss Ji-eun.”

As I hesitated to speak, the team leader approached her first.

“Hello, Team Leader!”

“Yes, Miss Ji-eun, it’s commendable that you came right away on the school anniversary.”

“I want to become a hunter quickly.”

The girl, with a noticeable mole near her eye, had light makeup on, likely for hunter training, but her beauty was still striking.

‘If I hadn’t seen Ayu or Baekseolhyang recently, she’d be the prettiest girl I’ve seen in years.’

Meanwhile, the team leader introduced me to her.

“Let me introduce you. This is Mr. Kang Ha-chan, who will be in charge of you from today.”

“I’m Kang Ha-chan. Nice to meet you.”

As I bowed first, she followed suit.

She’s more polite than she looks.

Well, since she came here willingly, it’s only natural.

“Then you two can chat and get to know each other. Miss Ji-eun, you have a training schedule soon, right? From now on, Mr. Kang Ha-chan will be in charge of that, so keep that in mind.”

“Yes, Team Leader.”

The team leader left us with a friendly smile.

Left alone with her, Ji-eun stared at me intently.

That gaze is quite burdensome.

What should I talk about with a high school girl?

‘No, I’m here for work. Let’s erase the thought of her being a high school girl from my mind.’

First, I felt the need to get closer to her.

“You said you want to become a hunter quickly. May I know why?”

The hunter profession has recently become like a celebrity on TV or YouTube, making it one of the dream jobs for kids.

But that’s just a dream.

Reality is different.

Hunters are in a dangerous profession.

The reason the country provides a lot of support and money is that they have to risk their lives fighting dimensional beings.

The mortality rate of hunters is slowly decreasing, but it’s still the highest among all professions.

If you want to work in a hunter-related field, it’s more realistic to work as a hunter assistant like me rather than being a hunter.

‘There are reports that ability awakening greatly reduces the fear of combat.’

Without that, there would be almost no awakened individuals wanting to be hunters.

“Are you going to say something because I’m young and taking it lightly?”

“Huh? No. On the contrary, it’s admirable.”

Hearing my answer, Ji-eun’s eyes widened.

Despite knowing the dangers, jumping into it is what being a hunter is about.

If a young person aims to be a hunter, they should be praised.

“I also dreamed of being a hunter when I was young, but my awakening rate was too low.”

Seeing Ji-eun’s expression, I can guess what she’s heard from others.

Being a minor who awakened, she must have been told by those around her that she’s just caught up in the hunter craze.

In reality, the younger and less experienced, the more likely they are to quit due to the harshness of the hunter profession.

“Do people around you say it’s a waste of time? That if you don’t succeed, you’ll only ruin your body and suffer in old age? That you’re too young to understand the world?”

For some reason, adults belittle and disparage children’s dreams.

Is it because they couldn’t achieve their own dreams?

They always bring up reality to pull children back to reality.

Especially towards kids who look like delinquents, they’re even harsher.

“But those who don’t understand the world are those people.”

I calmly explained to her the other realities that adults know.

“Hunters are a high-risk profession, but they’re the top priority for maintaining the world, so the country provides numerous support industries. The compensation system for accidents is the most well-supplemented in Korean law, and there are many support industries for hunter growth. If you look well, you can live comfortably by dealing with dimensional gates just four or five times a year.”

Being a high-risk profession, the benefits are countless.

Every year, hunter-related laws are continuously improved, and their treatment is akin to national heroes.

“And it’s our role as hunter assistants to manage all these benefits and support industries. So that Miss Ji-eun can focus entirely on being a hunter. So, you don’t need to pay much attention to such words. If Miss Ji-eun wants to be a hunter, we’ll make you a hunter.”

“…….”

After hearing my words, Ji-eun was silent for a while.

I’m not sure if she understood well, but I hope I’ve eased her burden a bit.

“You’re the first person to talk to me like this.”

“Don’t mention it. So, why does Miss Ji-eun want to become a hunter?”

Ji-eun avoided my gaze.

“……Well, I want to earn a lot of money. I also want to try being a hunter YouTuber.”

This, the reason was lighter than I thought.

Under my gaze, Ji-eun blushed slightly and gave an awkward smile.

Maybe I didn’t need to be so serious.

“I really dreamed of being a hunter YouTuber! It’s a bit embarrassing to say it myself, but I look pretty good, right? Don’t you think so, Brother Ha-chan?”

Since when did I become ‘oppa’?

Seeing Ji-eun easily closing the distance, I smiled awkwardly.

I don’t want to get caught making a mistake.

“It’s okay. I also came to work because I couldn’t pay the rent. Money is important.”

Money is the most important thing in the world.

When I mentioned rent, Ji-eun’s eyes sparkled even more.

I don’t know why she’s like that.

“Ji-eun, it’s your time. Come on.”

“Ah, it’s time for training, so I’ll go! See you later!”

After hearing my answer, Ji-eun bowed and went to the training instructor as her training time had come.

Though too lively, her sincerity in being a hunter was evident from her training.

‘Rather.’

Money, huh.

Earning money as a hunter isn’t hard, but she’s still a minor.

The company must be giving her some advance payment to keep her.

‘There must be a reason she wants to earn money.’

I need to talk more about this, but talking to a high school girl is surprisingly draining.

That unique liveliness of teenagers is burdensome to adults who have tasted the bitterness of life.

‘Speaking of which.’

I remembered someone when I thought of high school girls.

I do know one, don’t I?

Someone who was a high school student just a few months ago.

[ So, you called me for that? ]

“There’s no one else to ask.”

The person I called was none other than Ayu.

She was a high school student until last year.

Maybe I can get some advice on topics high school girls are interested in.

[ Oppa, do you remember I’m a Returner? In a way, I’m second-hand. ]

Although she attended high school according to her registered age, perhaps because of her experiences in the martial world, Ayu didn’t claim to be purely a high school student.

“But you did attend school last year, right? The kids around you were high school students.”

[ I won’t deny that, but… I was a bit of a loner at school. ]

“I’m sorry.”

[ No, there’s nothing to be sorry about. ]

“I’m sorry. I apologize.”

[ I said there’s nothing to be sorry about! I told you I got into some trouble at school and ended up being alone. ]

“I’m really sorry.”

[ Hey, where are you? ]

If I tease her more, she’ll come find me.

I decided to stop here and continued.

“So, the conclusion is that it’s hard to help?”

[ That’s not it. YouTube, huh. Who was the person the kids watched a lot? ]

I do watch hunter YouTube, but I shouldn’t assume that what I watch overlaps with what a teenage high school girl watches.

If she wants to do hunter YouTube, just support her in that direction.

Looking into it briefly, Rodri Company has quite a few programs to promote hunters as celebrities, so it seems quite possible.

‘From the company’s perspective, hunters are also advertising products.’

In any case, if you’re popular, it’s always a plus for the company.

Especially for someone like Ji-eun, who’s still a minor and can’t be involved in hunter work, it would be even more welcome.

“Blackstar Yoo Ah?”

[ Yoo Ah is the supreme dignity and a socially popular figure, but YouTube is just a hobby. Originally, Yoo Ah had popularity, and YouTube followed. It won’t be a reference. ]

A hobby YouTube with over 10 million subscribers.

World-class idols are scary.

“Then starting as an idol is also a way.”

[ Don’t underestimate idols. How harsh is this world? New kids rise and fall every day in this world. ]

The determination of an idol fan is quite terrifying.

[ Rather, since the idol topic came up, is she quite pretty? ]

“Yes, a bit less than you, though.”

When I answered honestly, Ayu suddenly fell silent.

[ Ha, hmm, hmm, well, of course, she can’t be better than me. But if she’s pretty, it’s easier to succeed in this field. ]

She snorted and sounded quite pleased.

The lip service worked well.

[ Ah, right, this person is watched a lot. How about referencing her since she’s a woman? ]

At that moment, Ayu sent me someone via KakaoTalk.

The YouTube name is Skeleton Girl.

She seems to be a person with a necromancer-type hunter profession.

She creates haunted houses using her abilities and does hidden camera content, which is quite innovative.

Her YouTube is close to 1 million subscribers, and her views always exceed 1 million, so she seems to be growing steadily.

[ Hunter YouTube isn’t something people watch for professional content, right? That’s on the news every day. Regardless of her profession, it’s good to create content that utilizes her profession like this. ]

“Oh, thank you.”

I felt grateful to Ayu for actively giving her opinion.

The acquaintance chance is indeed great.

[ So, oppa, are you enjoying flirting with a pretty high school girl at your first job? ]

Somehow, her voice felt chilling.

Enjoying? Well.

“It’s tiring.”

She closes the distance too easily.

[ Why do men go crazy over high school girls? ]

“No, going crazy over a kid? It’s rather burdensome to talk to her.”

[ You always say ‘high school girl-chan hawa-wa’ online. Like military veteran high school girls. ]

Where does she pick up such things?

“That’s online.”

[ Hmm, so you’re not interested? ]

“Why does the conversation keep going that way?”

[ Oppa, it’s fun to tease you. ]

“I’m not playing Duel Links with you today.”

[ I can’t play today anyway because I’m registering as a hunter officially. Also, the Returner Association called me because of yesterday’s incident. ]

Threats don’t work on her.

[ Anyway, call me if you need anything. Among your acquaintances, I’m the most helpful, right? Right? Our Ayu is the best, right? ]

Ayu knows my narrow human relationships well.

[ You can call me when you’re bored. ]

After saying that, she hung up with a giggle.

She’ll probably chatter in the game chat room anyway. What a pointless girl.