* * *
“Because I was just a civil servant.”
“What do you mean?”
“The Awakening Safety Department’s offer was the worst, and everyone avoided it. But someone had to do the job for the sake of the world. That’s all there is to it.”
“…….”
Seohwa thought for a moment, then chuckled.
“If I knew you liked that kind of thing, I should’ve offered you minimum wage. What a shame. Get some rest.”
“Guild Leader, I have something to ask, too.”
“Yeah? What is it? Salary? Incentives? Benefits? I’ll give you the bare minimum. Super harsh conditions.”
“Why did you create the Danbaek Guild?”
“I feel like I’m being interviewed. My heart’s pounding. Wanna touch my chest?”
“……No, thanks. Please leave.”
Seohwa laughed out loud.
The big, dark man making such a sullen face was incredibly cute.
If anyone else saw him, they’d say, “That’s not a sulky expression, that’s a ‘I want to burn everything down right now’ look.”
Seohwa opened the door.
But before stepping out, he didn’t forget to answer the question.
“I just wanted to try liking the world a little more.”
“…….”
“That’s all there is to it for me, too. Get well soon. Bye.”
∗ ∗ ∗
“After you’re discharged, you must complete 56 hours of beginner training, 120 hours of intermediate training, and clear a total of 12 dungeons ranked Level 1 or 2 within six months. Level 3 dungeons will only be accessible after finishing all previous courses.”
“Yes, sir…”
“How does a C-rank hunter who even cleared a Level 5 dungeon end up eating mushrooms inside a dungeon? If the Hunter Cho Wookwon hadn’t been there, the Darwin Award of the Year would’ve gone to you, Hunter Lee Lee Yuje.”
“You’re absolutely right. Truly a blessing. Could you pass on a message to Hunter Cho Wookwon? Tell him I love him so much. We’re friends, after all.”
“Give your thanks to Hunter Cho Wookwon in person.”
After scolding him for nearly an hour, Kim Biyul finally stood up.
As a party leader, he must have gotten a major reprimand from higher-ups as well.
Seohwa felt genuinely sorry for that.
But instead of getting out of bed, he just waved lazily.
“Leader, thanks for handling my hospital admission. Take care, and may you get lots of loot.”
“I’ll be back in a week when you’re scheduled for discharge.”
“Oh, you don’t have to come.”
“I don’t want to come either. But as the party leader, I have a duty to ensure my party member’s condition has improved.”
“Even though I was just a mercenary, not a full-time member?”
“Yes.”
“The Danbaek Guild is seriously an amazing place.”
Hearing praise for his guild even while angry seemed to improve Kim Biyul’s mood.
His gaze softened slightly. Danbaek Guild members were notoriously loyal.
That had always been the case, throughout the guild’s history.
After Kim Biyul left the hospital room, Seohwa let out a drained sigh and flopped onto the bed.
“Talking one-on-one with people is seriously exhausting….”
His body was already a wreck, and now he had overexerted himself mentally, too.
Seohwa had planned to check into the center, but his plans went sideways, and he ended up hovering between life and death for three whole days before regaining consciousness.
Eating just one or two poisonous mushrooms wouldn’t have been enough to cause full-on poisoning.
An S-rank healer could’ve cured him instantly, or a few of Anis’s antidote potions would’ve done the trick.
So, to make sure he stayed hospitalized for at least a week, he just ate the entire mushroom cluster.
It wasn’t like he was going to die anyway.
While hallucinating and hearing voices, he wandered through the distant past, the past, and the present—until he finally opened his eyes, three days later.
Because a mercenary had nearly died from eating poisonous mushrooms, the entire guild had been in an uproar.
For three days, he’d undergone stomach pumping and even had Anis personally come in to brew and feed him a detox potion on the spot.
“I didn’t think I had gotten this weak.”
Back in the day, if he felt a little hungry, he’d just grab a handful of poisonous mushrooms, chew them up, and swallow.
…Okay, that’s an exaggeration.
Realistically, maybe just one or two.
Still, he had built up a decent resistance to dungeon mushroom toxins, so he had assumed he’d just suffer for a few days and then be fine.
But after three years without healing magic, his body had become a complete wreck.
And in the three years following that, he had been in hiding—his poison resistance must’ve dropped significantly.
Resistance needed to be maintained by continuously and periodically ingesting poison.
With an undying body, all it meant was prolonged suffering.
If something like this happened again, he’d have to be more careful. He sat up in bed with a sigh.
The hospital room was meant for four patients, but he was the only one there.
There weren’t many patients admitted to the hunter-exclusive medical center.
Hunters got injured often but rarely needed hospitalization.
Most wounds healed naturally thanks to their regeneration abilities, and more serious injuries were treated instantly by healers.
If even a healer’s magic wasn’t enough, there usually wasn’t a need for hospitalization—because it meant immediate death instead.
So, the hospital rooms were mostly empty.
The few admitted patients were those who required potion-based treatment.
People suffering from CURS—derived from “curse”—or those poisoned, like Seohwa and Kang Yigeon.
CURS patients were housed in a separate ward, but both sections were likely just as quiet.
“Ugh…”
As soon as his feet touched the floor, his head spun.
Dizziness, blurry vision, and weak limbs.
The poison was still lingering.
To completely detoxify, he’d need potion IV drips twice a day, for a total of twelve more doses.
Judging by the poison still in his system, he figured he could neutralize it using the poison mist of his Kobami.
Using poison to fight poison.
Kobami’s venom wouldn’t harm Seohwa’s body, but it could break down and eliminate other toxins.
“But if I do that, they’ll put me on a watchlist. They’ll wonder why I suddenly recovered.”
Until he confirmed Kang Yigeon’s condition, he had to stay poisoned.
He limped out of his hospital room and walked down the hallway.
The center had few inpatients, but it was bustling with medical staff, researchers, and outpatients.
He wandered from the underground parking lot to the rooftop garden, familiarizing himself with the changed layout.
Kang Yigeon’s hospital room was on the ninth floor.
The entire floor was an intensive care unit, and he was placed in a special high-risk patient ward.
Two broad-shouldered hunters stood guard at the door.
Both were wearing Danbaek Guild uniforms, but Seohwa didn’t recognize them.
The thought of walking up and talking to them made his skin crawl.
He just wanted to run back to his bed and hide under the covers.
But swallowing hard, he stepped forward.
As he peeked around, one of the guards blocked his way.
“You’re not allowed in here.”
“Oh, okay. But is it true that Kang Yigeon Hunter is really admitted here? There are so many rumors going around.”
“Please leave immediately.”
“I’m actually a big fan of his. Can you get me an autograph—whoa, okay, I’m leaving! I’m going!”
The moment he saw the eerie energy swirling in the guard’s clenched fist, Seohwa quickly backed off.
“Both of them are A-rank? Placing two A-ranks in a safe hospital….”
They must have assigned sharp-sensed hunters in case Kobami came back for another check.
As the former Danbaek Guild Leader, it felt like a waste of manpower—but at the same time, it meant they were desperate to find him.
So, he let it slide.
That evening, after receiving another dose of the detox potion, Seohwa returned to his hospital room.
When he logged into DanbaekHome using Lee Lee Yuje’s phone, he found a few messages waiting.
Direct Message
Sender: Kim Youngtae Mercenary
Are you looking for a Covenant? We have F-rank to A-rank. Call 010-0000-0000.*
Direct Message
Sender: Moon Seoryeon
If you get a message from Gaius Jung, please let me know too ㅠㅠ
[email protected]
Direct Message
Sender: Ahn Ira
A-rank Covenant ‘Go Siyeon’ is fine.
[email protected]
The information he wanted wasn’t there. Meanwhile, in the community, Lee Yuje was becoming a bit of a hot topic.
C-rank mercenary wiped out a poisonous mushroom colony and got hospitalized for poisoning ㅇㅅㅇ?
Posted by: Kim Tuyeon
How did Lee Yuje even become C-rank? ㅇㅅㅇ;
Kim Tuyeon, this guy…
Yoon Aji – This is why we need regular exams, lmaooo
Kim Geomgeom – The fact that he wiped out an entire colony is hilarious. How hungry was he?
Shin Ellie – At this point, we should call it a suicide attempt, hahahahahaha
I saw a Yuje Mushroom today
Posted by: Kwang GyuMercenary
(Attached Photo)
It’s obviously poisonous, so how did he wipe out an entire colony of this?
Comments
Yoon Aji – Yuje Mushroom, lmao
Lee Jungman – Who knows, maybe it actually tastes good?
Kwang GyuMercenary – Someone should try eating it.
Whipping – Yuje Mushroom, lol. We should register it under its scientific name.
Ryu Sian – Let’s ask Lee Yuje what it tastes like when he gets discharged, lol.
They even turned it into a meme called “Yuje Mushroom”?
More people taking notice of my existence is not a good thing.
Feeling a growing concern, Seohwa opened the system window.
Current Status: One S-rank Oath Contract in effect.
Contract Partner: (Gaius Jung)
Oath Violation Rate:
■■□□□□□□□□
Those two bars were always filled, so nothing had changed.
That was a relief.
Seohwa summoned Kobami.
* * *
