Home/The F-class hunter wants to get a job again today/ch 2

Chapter 2

Seong Si-hyeon, the current number one ranker in the Republic of Korea.

He wasn't just powerful—he was devastatingly handsome. Droopy-lidded eyes contrasted by sharp black brows, crimson pupils that burned vividly even in the dark, and a chiseled nose bridge.

It was the kind of face that screamed, Yes, I'm the protagonist of this novel.

There was a common saying that the stronger an awakened one's abilities, the more beautiful or handsome they became. It seemed to hold true.

Damn, he's gorgeous.

That was my first impression of him.

As I stared blankly at him, the novel's plot flashed through my mind like a slideshow.

The protagonist of The S-Class Ranker Climbs the Tower Thousands of Times, Seong Si-hyeon, lost his parents at age twelve and awakened right then and there as an A-rank awakener.

He was later scouted by Taesan Guild, the largest guild in Korea—but there, he suffered all kinds of abuse from Lee Seong-ho, a man consumed by inferiority complex toward Si-hyeon.

Simply because they had awakened at the same rank.

Against a group of Lee Seong-ho's henchmen in their late twenties, a twelve-year-old child was nothing but prey. A newly awakened kid couldn't possibly defeat several A-rank Hunters.

The abuse wasn't limited to Si-hyeon alone. It extended to Park Do-hyun, Nam Min-hyung, Kim Min-seok, and other comrades who were kind to him—all of them fell victim to Lee Seong-ho's cruelty.

Lee Seong-ho, who had risen to the guild's second-in-command, harbored an unimaginable hatred for Si-hyeon.

He forced the young Hunters close to Si-hyeon into high-rank dungeons and the Tower of Trials.

The official reason was "stat enhancement for young Hunters."

But Si-hyeon knew the truth. It was a warning. This is what happens if you stay close to Seong Si-hyeon and protect him.

Those who extended a helping hand to Si-hyeon either went missing in dungeons or barely survived, crippled for life.

Lee Seong-ho's abuse continued until Si-hyeon killed stronger bosses, obtained special skills and higher stats as rewards, and eventually became an S-rank Hunter.

As he returned from dungeons, leaving his comrades' bodies behind, Si-hyeon made two resolutions.

I will never lose another comrade.

And—

I must grow stronger and close as many dungeons as possible as quickly as I can.

To keep children from becoming orphans, he protected the adults. To keep children who lost their parents from becoming Hunters, he cleared dungeons with relentless effort.

And whenever he had time, he climbed the Tower. The higher the floor, the stronger the monsters and traps—but the rewards were equally substantial. Of course, death in the Tower meant true death, but Si-hyeon was willing to risk even that to become stronger.

Yet even the mighty Seong Si-hyeon eventually died once in the Tower. But strangely, the Tower granted him a reward—a blessing and a curse: the Infinite Regression skill.

Each floor of the Tower presented different quests and themes. Clearing them granted stat boosts and various hidden rewards—which was why Si-hyeon surged past the world's number one ranker in the latter half of the novel.

Above all, the gods who created the Tower had promised any reward to those who reached the 100th floor.

Near the end, after thousands of regressions, Si-hyeon reached the 100th floor and wished for the extinction of all dungeons. Finally, the Tower and all dungeons vanished, bringing peace to the world.

And if my guess was right, this was the period shortly after Si-hyeon had left Taesan Guild and established his own.

He frowned and spoke coldly.

"You're a Hunter, right?"

"Ah, no, I'm not."

His voice snapped me back to reality. Instinctively, the word no slipped out. If I admitted to being a Hunter, I might get dragged into his party. In the novel, he hadn't gotten entangled with me this way, but caution never hurt.

I shook my head, lying.

Then he smirked and tossed my Hunter ID card in front of me.

Wait, when did he get that?!

"You are a Hunter. Want to die?"

"No, sir. I want to live."

I quickly dropped to my knees and begged. In the novel, Seong Si-hyeon was a cold-blooded protagonist. Having been betrayed countless times during his Hunter life, he despised liars.

By the way, this ill-mannered bastard.

He'd seen my ID—he knew I was older than him—yet he still spoke in banmal (informal speech).

But in the Hunter world, rank mattered more than age. I was F-rank, far below him, so in Hunter terms, Seong Si-hyeon was my senior.

Especially when caught in an irregular rift, sticking close to the strong was the only way to survive.

Yes, yes, exactly.

Seong Si-hyeon let out a baffled laugh at my display.

"This is a first."

"I get that a lot."

Shut up. I nodded my head.

Seong Si-hyeon, with eyes that seemed to have seen it all, spoke.

"Listen carefully. Right now, the only Hunters here are you and me."

"B-But I have no abilities!"

"You're a healer."

"Even treating bruises is questionable..."

"Hah, more useless than I thought..."

He clicked his tongue lightly. But desperate as he was, he continued.

"Anyway, you've been in a dungeon before, right? There are 23 civilians trapped—I've gathered them in a cave further in. And you. You know how to get out of an irregular rift, don't you?"

"Oh, no, not at all?"

Crazy.

I'd never even been inside a dungeon. The previous Han Yu-on might have, but not me. I'd even quit the small guild I'd joined!

Terrified, I shook my head vigorously. Seong Si-hyeon rubbed his face, already seeming frustrated at the thought of dragging me along.

"Ha... I have to take this idiot with me. Listen carefully. The rift only closes when we defeat the dungeon's boss."

"The boss?"

I squeaked. He quickly covered my mouth and muttered.

"The civilians will panic. Keep your voice down. At least I've already cleared the surrounding monsters."

"B-But the boss—"

"You don't have to do anything. Just stay in the back and heal."

That's the problem—I can only heal scratches.

He seemed to be weighing his options—whether to take me along or leave me with the civilians.

Ideally, I'd rather he leave me behind and handle the boss himself. I had zero confidence. Zero.

Holding onto that small hope, I looked up at him. As if reading my mind, he curled one corner of his mouth.

"Sorry, but this boss room requires at least two people to enter. It's probably an A-rank dungeon or higher."

"No..."

No, my death flag.

A grim premonition stabbed the back of my head. Surely I wasn't destined to die here?

Just six months ago, I'd been an ordinary civilian outside this novel. Even seeing a monster made my knees tremble instinctively—there was no way I could enter a boss room.

Cautiously, I asked him.

"Um..."

He raised an eyebrow, as if to ask what I wanted. Even that gesture was statue-like—so annoyingly handsome. I had to swallow my breath.

"What?"

"Well... It's awkward to say this about where I live, but... isn't this place a bit shabby for someone like Seong Si-hyeon to be staying?"

"None of your business."

He dismissed it flatly and stood up.

"I'm leaving."

This bastard—so curt.

I scrambled to my feet too. Whether I liked his tone or not, I had to follow him to get out of this rift.

I wanted to avoid entering the boss room—I'd mentally drafted "How Not to Enter the Boss Room (Final).hwp," "(For Real This Time) How Not to Enter the Boss Room_Final Final.hwp," and even "For Real Last One_Final.hwp"—but I had no choice. As he said, it seemed to require a party of at least two.

Still wearing my interview suit, I awkwardly followed him. The cave passage stretched endlessly ahead. Judging by the monster carcasses scattered everywhere, his claim of clearing them all seemed true.

The charred remains—probably from fire magic—were gruesome. I turned my head, holding back nausea. Then, without looking back, Seong Si-hyeon spoke.

"You're new to dungeons, aren't you?"

"It's Han Yu-on."

"What?"

"My name is Han Yu-on. So if possible, I'd appreciate it if you called me by name instead of 'you.' We're going to clear the boss together, after all."

He snorted derisively at that.

"I'll be clearing it alone. And calling each other by name so familiarly after just meeting? Cringey."

Right.

This was his personality—cold to anyone outside his inner circle.

I'd only remembered the gentle Seong Si-hyeon who was endlessly kind to his comrades, so I'd momentarily grown too comfortable with him.

I shook my head and spoke again.

"Right. Then call me 'Hey you' or something."

"Right?"

"What? It's just a common Korean filler word."

His instincts were sharp—he didn't let my muttered "Right" slide. Annoyingly perceptive bastard. I made a mental note never to talk to myself around him.

He stopped walking and turned to face me.

"Anyway, it's not your first time, is it?"

"It's... complicated."

"Either it is or it isn't. What's complicated?"

"I've been in dungeons before, but I don't really remember now... Hehe."

"Haah... no skills and stupid to boot."

Unable to lie well, I decided to play the fool. I grinned stupidly at him. He frowned as if looking at a hopeless idiot.

"Stay in the rear. Never come out. If the boss comes toward you, run—though I'll have dealt with it by then."

"I feel safe because Seong Si-hyeon is here."

I heard him mutter under his breath: "Where did this fool come from? What rotten luck." But I decided to ignore it. Surviving was all that mattered—being called stupid was nothing.

And I knew why he grumbled like that. He did it on purpose. He was afraid that if he grew attached, he wouldn't be able to protect me again.

"We're here."

He stopped abruptly. I looked up and saw a massive door blocking our way.

Was there a door to the boss room? I don't recall that description in the novel...

Anxious, I glanced up at him beside me.

The A-rank luminescent stone he held lit the area, making his face clearly visible. His expression was blank—no, filled with deep weariness and fatigue.

"This is the boss room. I'll do the mental preparation—you don't need to. You won't have anything to do anyway."

"Thank you!"

I bowed deeply. Without a flicker of emotion, he began forcing the massive door open with sheer strength.

Creeeeak—

The door swung open, revealing a vast interior. Unlike the damp, dripping cave walls we'd passed through, the inside was entirely covered in crimson soil.

As the two of us fully entered, the huge wooden door closed with a heavy thud. Once we were completely inside, torches along the walls burst into flames.

Something feels ominous.

I silently glued myself to his back. He shook me off like an annoying bug.

"Get off."

"Fine."

If he said get off, I'd get off. But I maintained about 30cm of distance and stayed behind him. He sighed in defeat.

"Go over there."

"Where?"

"That far corner."

"Got it."

Being an obedient Hunter, I was about to scurry to the corner when—

Krrrrrrrr—

The ground began to shake violently, and I lost my balance, collapsing. But despite the tremor, Seong Si-hyeon stood firm. Calmly, he drew his longsword from his inventory.

A blazing red blade that matched his eyes.

But that wasn't the issue.

One hundred percent—no, one thousand percent—this was right before the boss appeared. I had to get out of the way. I crawled frantically using my elbows.

He glanced back at me briefly and muttered with amusement.

"You're really something."

Thanks for the compliment, my lifesaver.

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