“Damn it, why can’t I hit him?!”
“Fuck! Fuck!”
At first, I thought maybe they were underestimating me because I looked inexperienced, and that’s why they weren’t showing their full strength.
But that wasn’t it.
All of them charged in, faces flushed red with effort, but I couldn’t even imagine getting hit by them.
There was just no way.
And by this point, it was more disheartening than anything else.
“With skills like this…”
They dared to challenge—and harass—my idol?
They would’ve been better off training instead of wasting their time on pointless bullying.
In the life of a Hunter, where death is always close, neglecting one’s training is like walking on thin ice—foolish and reckless.
Even if not for self-development, they could’ve spent that time with someone they love, or gone to see something beautiful.
Life’s too short to waste it hurting others.
I really couldn’t understand the mindset of people who choose to do bad things.
Still, I had a realization of my own.
“Ah, now I get it.”
The reason my punches had never even grazed Cha Taeyang.
They say to put yourself in someone else’s shoes.
And now that I’m in Cha Taeyang’s position, facing someone less skilled than me, I finally understand.
All their moves were exaggerated.
Too much force, too eager, too desperate.
All of that resulted in overly telegraphed attacks.
I could read every intention as if they were shouting it—what they aimed for was embarrassingly obvious.
Which is why, now… I felt like I could do it.
Confidence rising, I didn’t hesitate.
I clenched my fist and threw a punch—small, precise, but with real force.
“AAAGH!”
— Smack!
The sharp sound echoed—similar to the one Taehwan made when he once punched an unregistered Awakened who had come after me.
Someone went flying.
It was the first time I’d ever seriously used force on someone else.
I tensed at the sound of their scream, but quickly calmed down.
I was sure I hadn’t overdone it.
Even though I’d never actually landed a hit before, I’d learned exactly where and how hard to strike to neutralize an opponent.
I’d practiced endlessly on sandbags, hoping that one day I might land the first hit on Cha Taeyang.
That desire for victory had driven me—and it paid off now in the form of a clean, accurate blow.
“…What the hell.”
“Is that bastard really… an S-rank…?”
Up until now, maybe they were just being stubborn and charging in out of pride.
But seeing one of their own go down must’ve snapped them back to reality.
“If you sincerely apologize even now, I may consider going easy on you.”
I’d said it calmly, holding back my anger and offering a final chance.
But their reaction was, once again, terrible.
“You fucking what?”
“This little shit still wet behind the ears…”
“Die, you bastard!”
Not only did they trample on my goodwill—they threw something at me.
A translucent bottle.
It looked like a recovery potion at a glance, but inside, a dark red glow flickered like flames.
I could instinctively tell—it was dangerous.
I expected the fight might escalate into weapons eventually—but I hadn’t anticipated them just throwing something like that.
I froze for a moment.
I barely thought of using my blue line to push it far away—but by then, it was already too late.
The fiery red object was right in front of me.
“It’s gonna explode…!”
Even though it wasn’t moving fast—and I could’ve responded—I completely missed the timing.
With no other choice, I raised my arms to protect my head and curled up, hoping at least to guard my vitals.
And then—someone shielded me.
Not just my head, but my whole body.
— KABOOM!
A deafening explosion rang out, loud enough to make my ears go numb.
But… I didn’t feel any pain.
I wasn’t burned either.
Even though an intense wave of heat surged like a waterfall the moment it exploded, none of it reached me.
Someone had wrapped me in a strong, broad embrace.
And we’d been far enough from the blast too.
My heart pounding, I cautiously opened my eyes.
Those who had thrown the flame potion—they were the ones screaming in pain.
“AAAAAH!”
“It’s hot! Water! Someone get water!”
“AHH! AAAAAHH!”
The potion had been redirected back at them.
Maybe it hadn’t hit them directly, but the fragments and contents must’ve splashed within range.
Their clothes were on fire, or they’d gotten hurt—they were rolling on the ground in agony.
Were they seriously injured?
I wanted to check, but before I could, a hand gripped my shoulder.
The person who’d protected me from the blast.
My idol.
“…Are you hurt anywhere?”
“Ah. Th-thank y—…”
Before I could finish saying “thank you,” he was already checking me over.
Even though his eyes were covered, I could feel it—he was genuinely worried about me.
He checked my face, my clothes, my hands, feet, even my hair for burns or injuries.
But he was the one more exposed to the explosion.
Why was he this worried?
This felt almost like…
“Wait…”
The situation felt strangely familiar.
Even the way I instinctively raised my arms to show I was okay—it was like a reflex.
Natural.
This kind of intense worry… reminded me of Taehwan.
“Are you really unhurt?”
“Ah.”
He had already checked me from head to toe, but he still looked painfully anxious.
“I’m really okay.”
“…Haah. Thank goodness.”
“And what about you, Hunter—? Ah.”
“I’m fine.”
He finally seemed relieved.
Just as I was about to worry about him, he pulled me tightly into his arms.
I could feel the loud thudding of his heart against my chest.
The way he gently stroked my hair—he was trying to calm himself too.
So I let myself rest in his arms.
…Honestly, I hadn’t fully come down from the adrenaline either, and the touch of his hand was oddly comforting.
Only after both his breathing and heartbeat had settled did he finally let out a deep breath.
“Stay here. You’ve done more than enough. You were amazing—leave the rest to me.”
“Ah, but I…”
“I want to show you how amazing I can be too.”
“…”
Even with the stinging smell of gunpowder, smoke, and dust in the air—somehow, it felt like a nostalgic scent lingered too.
Feeling the large hand patting my back after stroking my hair… it made something in me relax.
I couldn’t help but let a small smile tug at my lips.
“…Okay. I’ll leave it to you.”
There were screams and explosions—such a noisy mess that it ended up attracting a whole swarm of monsters, and we had to deal with them.
But in the end, none of them could stand up to me or the man in the ‘gray coat.’
Especially him—his performance was incredible.
He said he wanted to show me his “cool side,” and he really was so captivating I couldn’t take my eyes off him.
It seems he’s completely recovered now.
His skills were just like what I’d seen before—no, maybe even better.
I couldn’t understand why he’d let himself be taken down so easily by that pathetic gang of malicious hunters before.
He took down the monsters in an instant.
Even though he was badly injured in the explosion, he still managed to subdue those lunatics—who clearly hadn’t learned their lesson—without letting them get hurt any further.
And then he even gave them first aid.
The sheer kindness and composure of it all moved me deeply.
Of course, he didn’t forget about legal action either.
Their persistent harassment was still something tricky to punish by law, but since the flame potions they’d used were illegal artifacts, we could have them arrested as flagrant offenders under existing laws.
“I’m aware of the malicious actions they’ve taken. We’ll open an investigation to ensure they receive proper punishment, so please leave it to us.”
That was what the officer said when they arrived in response to our report.
He added that they’d continue looking into the harassment charges and left the scene after collecting evidence.
After that, we were finally able to focus on our original goal: clearing the dungeon.
With the biggest nuisance gone, there was nothing in our way, and everything went smoothly.
Most of the monsters had already been drawn out in the earlier chaos, so the interior was relatively quiet, and we were able to finish the raid fairly easily.
On our way back—after my first independent dungeon raid not under the guidance of the seniors from ‘Sun’—we passed through a remote area far from any nearby villages.
That gave me a chance to chat with ‘Gray Coat,’ and what he told me was quite shocking.
“It hasn’t been fully confirmed yet, but… it seems there are people who hold a grudge against me because of that dungeon you saw me in before—Wind Hole. After I cleared and closed it, some people weren’t too happy. The group we just dealt with is suspected to be one of the parties they hired.”
“…What?”
I remembered the past bullying fueled by jealousy and inferiority and had assumed this was more of the same.
But the truth was far more serious.
And yet, once I heard it, a lot of things began to make sense.
‘Ah… so that’s why…’
I had felt something off in their conversations.
I’d also wondered how a group like them, with so little ability, had gotten their hands on an item capable of tracking ‘Gray Coat.’
But if someone was backing them, that explained it.
“There was even an attempt to kidnap you, just for having been in contact with me. I’m sorry.”
“Oh…”
I was stunned.
Was this connected to that day, too?
The group that barged into the campsite out of nowhere with three cars—was that attack because they were targeting someone close to ‘Gray Coat,’ without even knowing who I was?
