D-Rank Constellation Hunter… Stuck Without Internet! - Chapter 43

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 43
“A path I must walk?”
“Yeah.”
There are certain conditions that exist on the path of shonen manga.
What some call clichés.
Right now, I’m sitting across from Ha Gyuhyuk on the bed, chattering away.
Since he seemed to want a proper pajama party, I’d changed into matching sleepwear.
Seeing himself reflected in me wearing the same pajamas, his face flushed red with embarrassment—it was quite adorable.
But that was brief; as muscle soreness gradually set in, he occasionally writhed about in discomfort.
Even potions didn’t seem to help.
[ Franson: That client seems pretty weak in that world too, doesn’t he? ]
[ Franson: I’m starting to think Se-um might be overestimating that client, you know? ]
Is that so?
I found myself speaking unconsciously, my expression turning serious.
It seemed Franson and Tasha were sitting in front of my monitor, watching this entire situation unfold.
[ Tasha: Well, the kid we sponsored from Jong-nam last time wasn’t physically weak. ]
[ Tasha: But this client… if something goes wrong, it wouldn’t be strange if his entire body fell apart. ]
I’ll admit that his body could literally fall apart if I’m careless.
After all, I’m only now remembering just how fragile humans truly are.
The client from the martial arts world I’d sponsored previously had a naturally sturdy body, so it seems I overestimated this one.
“S-so, um, Ulrim… what should I…?”
“First, drink this.”
[ The Constellation of the Entangled Apocalypse’s Finalizer has sponsored their client with a ‘Superior-Grade Pain Relief Potion’. ]
He stared blankly at me while holding the potion bottle that had dropped into his hands.
Fortunately, sponsorships are getting faster now.
If the Server continues expanding like this, soon enough there’ll come a day when I can just toss and catch potions with a whoosh and a whoosh.
When that day comes, I’ll show you a real karma-draining spectacle of what I can do for you, Ha Gyuhyuk. So look forward to it.
“It’s so much better…!”
While I was lost in layer upon layer of fantasy, Ha Gyuhyuk broke into a wide smile and nodded enthusiastically.
I knew a Superior-Grade potion would definitely be effective.
Seeing him smile like that feels good.
“So can I continue with what I was saying?”
“Yes!”
“What you need, then, is comrades.”
“Comrades?”
“Yeah.”
Every journey, it seems, begins with finding trustworthy comrades.
People who share some degree of mutual trust and can watch each other’s backs in dangerous situations—something like that, anyway.
Of course, in this bleak Korea, it would be simplified as a Team that tackles Dungeons together or a Hunter Guild.
When I explained it in terms of Teams and Guilds, his expression immediately turned serious.
“But honestly, respectable Guilds tend to have entrance requirements that most people can’t meet.”
“I know that already.”
Before coming here, I’d searched desperately for a Guild that would accept my boy.
I couldn’t describe how much it hurt that none of them satisfied my standards.
Ha Gyuhyuk must have noticed my expression darkening, because he glanced at me cautiously.
“This country really is too merit-obsessed. Should we just destroy it and rebuild from scratch?”
“Ulrim…”
“I’m joking.”
“Even if you say it while hugging a pillow, it’s terrifying. You’re really joking, right?”
“I’m serious.”
What exactly did he think I was?
I could already feel a headache forming just imagining how much Franson and Tasha would be laughing if they overheard this conversation.
Sometimes my intended meaning and what my clients actually understood diverged like this.
At first, I’d attributed it to cultural differences between dimensions, but if it happened on Earth too, what did that make me?
“That’s why I want to propose something to you—let’s create a Guild ourselves.”
“Who would ever join a Guild created by someone like me?”
“There you go with that low self-esteem again!”
“Ow! That hurts.”
“No, it doesn’t.”
“Yes… it does.”
I swung the pillow and hit Ha Gyuhyuk once, and he rubbed his forearm with a sorrowful expression.
If he claimed it hurt after being hit with a pillow, how was he supposed to survive in these brutal Dungeons?
Every time he spouted that self-deprecating nonsense, I’d point it out like this—maybe eventually he’d snap out of it.
“So what should I do?”
“There is a faster way, but you were born with a good nature, so even if I showed you the easy path, you wouldn’t take it anyway.”
“Mm.”
His expression made it clear he didn’t want to do anything wrong. How could I push him further than that?
I shook my head and raised my hand.
A faint violet light pooled in my palm, scattering in all directions.
“Finding trustworthy companions is truly difficult. There’s even a saying that if you meet just one person whose heart aligns with yours, that person’s life becomes a success.”
“Yes, and that’s why… having someone like you, Ulrim, descend into my world, into my life, feels like a miracle to me.”
“Hm?”
“I’m not daring to say our hearts align or anything like that.”
He could say that if he wanted.
If anything, I found it rather welcome that he felt that way about me.
But he carried himself as though he wouldn’t dare harbor such feelings.
He denied his own words several times before continuing slowly.
“Isn’t meeting a god willing to listen to your heart even more difficult than meeting someone whose heart aligns with yours?”
“If we’re going to talk about probabilities?”
Sensing he was about to become sentimental, I deliberately kept my tone light to gently ease the tension in the atmosphere.
If I suddenly started crying or showed signs of being moved here, my temperament wouldn’t be able to endure that atmosphere.
Fortunately, whether he’d noticed or simply thought what he’d said was sufficient, he refocused on the light.
“…In any case, it might be difficult to gather plausible Guild members before entering the first Dungeon. So for now, let’s just assemble the bare minimum and then go inside to find trustworthy people.”
“Ah, you mean in there?”
“Not everyone will necessarily be Guild members.”
“Yes!”
“Let’s think about how to persuade them after that.”
“Yes!”
I’d given him a drastically condensed explanation, omitting the intermediate steps and my schemes, yet he responded faithfully to every word.
Even if I told him I was making soy sauce from red beans, he’d probably agree, saying “Yes, Ulrim, you’re absolutely right.”
“You’re getting sleepy soon, aren’t you? Come on.”
“What about you, Ulrim?”
“Yeah, yeah. Let’s sleep together.”
When I lie down beside him, he doesn’t seem to fall asleep easily, so why does he insist at times like this?
As I flopped my body onto the bed, he smiled shyly and huddled against the edge of the sheet, curling up.
“I don’t toss and turn when I sleep, so just come inside. You’ll fall off.”
He flinched slightly and carefully moved further in, closing his eyes.
How long had it been since his continuously tense body began to rise and fall gradually, his breathing becoming shallow and even?
The potion’s effect.
I propped myself up halfway and gazed at his sleeping face, then ran my fingers through his hair.
“He wouldn’t even notice if someone carried him away.”
[ Franson: Carry him to Sungdo. ]
[ Tasha: That’s not happening. ]
After seeing the messages from those two—like a demon and an angel—I chuckled softly and slipped out of bed.
It’s time to go handle some mischief the boy doesn’t need to know about.
* * *
Ha Gyuhyuk came by today.
Perhaps because of that, Kim Gyuwun couldn’t fall asleep easily.
He’d tried to survive by putting his own life on the line, and despite receiving degrading treatment from all sides, he’d pretended not to notice.
No amount of atonement could earn forgiveness.
If guilt could serve as punishment, why would this world have laws and rules?
Even if it hadn’t been his choice, the weight of all that responsibility rested on him.
‘So I couldn’t refuse, but shouldn’t I back out now?’
Creating a spot in the Dungeon conquest wasn’t particularly difficult, but if it was Ha Gyuhyuk, that changed everything.
He was a D-rank Hunter who could easily lose his life.
Even if he’d be hated and criticized, it might be better to pretend this never happened.
“You’re that worried?”
Kim Gyuwun thought he was hearing things due to stress.
Still sitting on the bed, he turned his head.
It was a window designed so it wouldn’t open.
But someone was sitting on the windowsill without a single trace of broken glass.
‘I didn’t hear the sound of glass breaking. And this is a place where even an S-rank Hunter couldn’t enter without leaving a trace.’
“Who are you?”
I barely managed to speak the words.
Laughter echoed through the air.
A distant voice.
I’d heard it before—when my mind grew hazy and blood rose in my throat.
When I thought I was going to die.
【 Since what you desire is to erase that. 】
Kim Gyuwun’s eyes widened.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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