STC chapter 40

* * *

Talking with Hunter Ryu Min…

Among the supporting characters, Hunter Ryu Min was the one I was least close to, and I knew the least about him personally.

At the young age of twenty-five, he had risen to the position of vice-guild leader of Idea. He was an A-rank physical attack-type hunter.

His weapon was a longsword, and he had a history of attempting to smuggle Ha Seonglim, the protagonist, out of the guild (although he was caught by the main character before succeeding).

Despite his pretty and bright appearance, he had a tendency to put up walls with people.

‘And he’s also close with Chae Gohae. He gets along well with Chae Goya, but seems to be disliked one-sidedly by Ye Ilhu.’

Hunter Ryu Min’s sly and playful nature probably didn’t mesh well with the always prickly Ye Ilhu.

While pondering various things, an incident that had happened not long ago suddenly came to mind. Sitting with my knees drawn up, I turned my head toward Hunter Ryu Min. I had something I wanted to ask him.

“Hunter Ryu Min, did you know that I was planning to leave Idea?”

Although the overall management of Idea was handled by the guild leader, Chae Gohae, I had heard that the personnel authority over hunters was Hunter Ryu Min’s responsibility.

So Hunter Ryu Min might know more about Kang Baram’s intention to leave Idea.

I had a personal curiosity, but I also needed to uncover why Kang Baram died, as part of a side quest. To do that, I needed to learn everything about what happened to Kang Baram during her time in Idea.

However, I had to be careful not to reveal that I wasn’t actually “Kang Baram.” I had given Chae Goya a vague excuse that my memory was a bit hazy, but Hunter Ryu Min was quicker to catch on than she was.

Moreover, as someone in charge of personnel, he might know more about Kang Baram than I did.

Despite the cautious nature of my question, Hunter Ryu Min nodded readily.

“Yes, I had a counseling session with Baram. But why are you asking about that all of a sudden?”

In the brief moment when I hesitated to answer, Hunter Ryu Min spoke first.

“Ah, it seems you’re still uneasy because I didn’t properly explain the reason back then.”

“The reason… yes.”

What reason is he talking about all of a sudden? I had no idea what Hunter Ryu Min was referring to, so I couldn’t respond carelessly. I just nodded and pretended to agree for the time being.

“I’m sorry for insisting that you stay in the guild. But I also had my reasons…”

Ah, so that’s why my resignation wasn’t accepted.

But why? From what I remember, at that time, Kang Baram was mentally exhausted.

His determination to quit was strong enough that he even went to Chae Gohae’s office in person, despite his timid nature.

To be blunt, Kang Baram wasn’t particularly essential to the idea. He hardly ever got summoned to gates and mostly stayed holed up in the dormitory and library.

“What was your reason?”

When I asked directly, Hunter Ryu Min hesitated a bit. But when I kept staring at him without backing down, he let out a small, defeated laugh.

“Gohae… I mean, the guild master told me not to let you go.”

I flinched at Hunter Ryu Min’s answer. Goosebumps ran up my spine as all the hairs on my body stood on end.

Seeing my face, which couldn’t hide my bewilderment, Hunter Ryu Min looked just as confused. Fortunately, he misunderstood my emotions.

“It seems the guild master was keeping an eye on you, Baram. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have insisted so strongly.”

“He insisted strongly…?”

“Yes.”

For some reason, whenever I thought about Chae Gohae, I felt uneasy and uncomfortable. I remembered how he would look at me with cold eyes. Although he had a smile on his face, it never reached his eyes.

Why does Chae Gohae keep getting involved whenever I try to dig into matters concerning Kang Baram?

Sure, let’s just say it’s because of the scene where I went to his office in Kang Baram’s memories. After all, I went to see the top leader to resign from Idea.

‘But why would Chae Gohae stop Kang Baram from quitting Idea?’

He was someone who dismissed even his own brother, Chae Goya, because he was only a C-rank. Why would he pay attention to a D-rank like Kang Baram? That’s laughable.

‘And it wasn’t just this time.’

I recalled the first day of my sparring with Ye Ilhu. Even though he knew that my memory was failing, Chae Gohae didn’t kick me out of the guild.

Someone who knows best how dangerous the inside of a gate is would never leave a hunter with a head issue unattended. It was suspicious at the time.

‘There must be another reason. Why they keep trying to tie Kang Baram to the guild… and whether that’s why Kang Baram ended up dead.’

Though it was just speculation, my instincts were usually quite sharp.

Hunter Ryu Min looked at me curiously as I was lost in thought. Since I couldn’t express my doubts about Chae Gohae in front of Hunter Ryu Min, I changed the subject casually.

“Maybe that’s why you entrusted me with Goya’s training.”

“Yes, exactly. Even though he pretends otherwise, Gohae actually cares about people.”

Yeah, right. Hunter Ryu Min, you really have no sense of judgment. Think carefully.

Since it was such a private setting, Hunter Ryu Min was casually calling Chae Gohae by his name again. I snorted and said,

“You seem to be quite close to the guild master.”

It was only then that Hunter Ryu Min realized he had made a slip of the tongue. He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, blushing.

His bright and pretty face turning shyly red made him look like a delicate flower.

Even though he seemed reluctant to talk about Chae Gohae, Hunter Ryu Min was the one who brought up the topic in the first place. Realizing this, he hesitated before speaking again.

“We’re the same age, and our parents know each other, so we’re somewhat close.”

Oh, that’s quite a personal detail.

“So you’ve known each other since you were very young.”

“Yes, we’ve known each other since before we could walk. The reason I came to Idea was all thanks to Gohae’s grandfather. He was the one who took my hand and brought me to the awakening center.”

If not only their parents but also their grandfather knew each other, then they were practically like family.

I know that Guild Idea was founded by Chae Gohae’s grandfather.

It was largely thanks to him that Chae Gohae became the guild master of the largest guild in South Korea at such a young age.

Of course, his capabilities as an A-rank hunter couldn’t be ignored either.

“I’m glad we both awakened as A-rank. If our ranks had been different, we could have drifted apart easily.”

No matter how close they are, the difference in rank could still cause them to drift apart, especially since Chae Gohae is the guild master.

‘Rank difference…’

If that’s the case, Ye Ilhu and I might drift apart exponentially someday too.

For now, he’s interested in me… no, my powers, so we get along quite well.

Hmm, drifting apart from Ye Ilhu…

I might feel a bit sad about that.

‘Wait, hold on!’

I was startled and quickly shook my head.

What kind of dreadful thought was that?

No matter how often I’ve been seeing Ye Ilhu lately, how could I think something so gross?

‘I was the one who wanted to distance myself from Ye Ilhu in the first place!’

It seemed that being stuck in the cave was making my thoughts go haywire. Moreover, being sent to the perilous golem might have made me sentimental.

As I scratched the back of my head in self-reproach, Hunter Ryu Min tilted his head curiously.

“What’s wrong, Baram?”

“I just had a really dreadful thought…”

“What?”

“…It’s nothing.”

I had always thought I was the one holding onto the string of my relationship with Ye Ilhu, but maybe that’s not the case.

If someday Ye Ilhu gains confidence in his powers and becomes the strongest hunter, then he could easily…

‘Enough, stop thinking. He’s neither my friend nor anything to me.’

Exactly, so there’s no reason to feel sad. I have Jeongyeon, Heo Taekgyun, Chae Goya, and Dukbong. If anyone should feel sad, it should be him, not me.

Ye Ilhu hadn’t even said anything to me, yet I was imagining drifting apart from him and feeling sorry, kicking the dirt for no reason.

‘Why did I feel sad about that? Have I grown attached to him?’

I raised my head in realization.

That’s it!

I’ve always liked being around people, so my feelings must have transferred to Ye Ilhu.

Thinking that made me feel more at ease.

As I calmed my chaotic emotions, Hunter Ryu Min suddenly asked,

“Do you have any concerns, Baram? I’m known for giving great advice.”

Yeah, you certainly seem like it.

Concerns… As I searched my mind, I recalled the most troubling issue I’d had recently.

“I’m just really tired these days.”

“Why?”