F-Rank Secretly Becomes Stronger - Chapter 26

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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26

The squelching swamp.

This was the most challenging environment of any Gate I had entered so far.

Even walking just a little bit accumulated twice the usual fatigue in my lower body.

“If we push through the grass field just a bit more, it should appear right away.”

“Understood.”

Jung Juhyeok walked forward, cutting through the thick grass ahead with his sword.

Carefully advancing to avoid getting cut by the grass and infected, he soon revealed a wide open area without a single blade of grass.

“I’ll wait in the back. If there’s any problem, I’ll help immediately, so fight comfortably.”

“Yes. I’ll be back.”

Steps taken under the reliable support of an S-rank Hunter.

As he entered the swamp with a clear view, an eerie scream echoed.

Kkeureuk—! Kkeuraek—!

An intense cry that struck the ears.

Along with it, a small dot in the sky gradually grew larger, then landed on the ground with an intense bursting sound.

Kkeuraraek—!

The Frog I had encountered before entering the boss battle.

It had all the same characteristics as them, but was definitely different.

‘Frog King.’

The crown worn on its head.

Skin that glowed blue instead of green.

Its size also seemed to be about 1.5 times that of the Frogs I had met so far.

The Party Members who were quietly holding their breath and watching thought to themselves.

‘Can an F-rank really defeat a B-rank boss?’

A level completely different from the monsters encountered so far.

Of course, he had easily slaughtered the Frogs he met, but the Frog King was on a different level from them.

Therefore, everyone watching from behind couldn’t let go of their tension.

Park Hanseong watched with anticipation and various complex emotions.

“Do you think he can defeat it?”

“Well, we’ll have to watch and see.”

A confrontation that even an S-rank Hunter found difficult to judge easily.

Since there had never been even a rumor of an F-rank fighting against a B-rank boss, it was difficult to make a light judgment.

“Supporter, if there’s any problem, you need to provide support first.”

“…Huh? Oh, yes! If it seems dangerous, I’ll provide support with Protection Magic.”

The Supporter answered with noticeable confusion.

The Party Members felt she was nervous because she would be the first person who had to move if any problem arose.

Since it was better than being complacent, they didn’t bother saying anything to her.

Everyone was discussing how to respond if problems occurred.

Not long after having that conversation, the Frog King’s roar was heard again.

Kkeyaek—!

The Frog King leaped into the sky with its roar.

It fell toward him from a high position with its sword raised.

The reason it briefly observed Jung Juhyeok and then rushed at him without any hesitation.

It was simple.

Any monster would obviously think of a guy with merely F-rank mana amount entering its territory alone as a chunk of meat that had rolled in.

The Frog King simply thought that daily sustenance had luckily entered its territory.

However, that was exactly what certified the Frog King’s low intelligence.

How could a guy with merely F-rank mana amount have made it this deep into the King’s Lair?

It didn’t address at all a problem that would raise sufficient questions with just a moment’s thought.

“….”

The blue Frog falling from the sky.

A posture that didn’t feel dignified for a king.

Areas filled with openings.

In fact, most Frogs did have crude swordsmanship skills, but Frog Kings possessed higher intelligence than them, so they had basic knowledge of swordsmanship.

However, right now it had gotten excited facing an F-rank, so it approached with such a stance full of openings.

Keuhaek―!

And that was its fatal mistake.

“…Huh?”

“What the….”

Everyone watching was stunned.

Unlike the fierce battle they had expected, it was over in just one strike.

Jung Juhyeok calmly watched the Frog King falling from the sky while standing still.

When it entered his reach, he swiftly dealt with the Frog King.

“D-did you see that, Hunter Park Hanseong? We couldn’t follow what just happened with our eyes….”

Jung Juhyeok swung his sword a few times and the Frog King collapsed to the ground with a thud.

After that, it couldn’t get up and lay there bleeding like a fountain.

When everyone looked at the S-rank Hunter, unable to understand the scene, he answered quietly.

“…I thought I couldn’t pierce the Frog King’s hide, so I aimed precisely for the eye.”

Park Hanseong had seen it clearly.

Before the Frog King’s sword could hit him, he quickly grasped the Sword Path and dodged slightly.

“I thrust deep through the eye, then attacked the brain thoroughly while slightly twisting the handle.”

With its brain twisted, it could only let out a short scream before collapsing.

It probably reached death immediately from the shock of having all its nerves severed precisely.

“You won. In less than 3 minutes.”

“….”

An F-rank rookie had taken down a B-rank boss.

And in just one exchange at that.

Everyone was dumbfounded by the unbelievable situation and could only quietly watch the scene before them.

As silence flowed, the Supporter was the first to speak up.

“Cra… Crazy!”

The Supporter stood up excitedly, holding a cell phone that no one knew when she had grabbed.

She started filming Jung Juhyeok in front of her with her cell phone and began talking to herself.

“Did you all see that? That person is just an F-rank Hunter but he took down a Frog King alone! I swear on my channel this isn’t fake!”

“….”

She chattered excitedly into the air.

It was roughly possible to understand what kind of situation this was without even looking.

She had been excitedly talking by herself for a while when she felt the gazes pouring from everyone.

“Ah.”

A death rattle as she realized something had gone wrong.

She smiled awkwardly and explained the current situation.

“I couldn’t help myself….”

“Ha.”

The cell phone screen that was slightly visible.

The chat window visible within it was scrolling up like crazy.

*

[Shocking! F-rank Hunter solo defeats Frog King video. Is this a manipulated video?]

[That trending Hunter already has a record of carrying alone in a D-rank Gate.]

[F-rank Hunter Reawakening test results show no change in abilities whatsoever. Hunter Association corruption suspicions only grow.]

“Thanks to that, you’ve become incredibly famous.”

“….”

Articles he checked as soon as they came out of the Gate.

The live broadcast had already spread through the community and even made it to portal news, becoming the hottest topic.

For the protagonist who didn’t want his artifact to be discovered, this was completely unwelcome.

Of course, he had expected word to spread as he cleared Gates here and there, but he never wanted to become famous this rapidly.

“I told you not to film like that.”

“B-but…”

Eyes welling up with tears from the continuous scolding.

She began whining as if she couldn’t help it.

“How could I resist when an F-rank newbie is taking down Frogs all by himself?”

Rationalization without any remorse.

Of course, none of the party members defended her.

They had seen that Jung Juhyeok was reluctant to appear on broadcasts from the start, and they knew full well how troublesome it would become if news about him spread.

Everyone looked at her with cold eyes as she remained oblivious.

“Just apologize to Hunter Jung Juhyeok.”

“….”

Finally hanging her head after being criticized from all sides.

She politely clasped her hands together and bowed her head as she apologized to Jung Juhyeok.

“I’m sorry. I’ll delete the video right away…”

“….”

His heart remained unsettled even after receiving the apology.

The urge to stomp on and destroy her cell phone right then and there surged up, but it would be pointless now.

The milk had already been spilled.

Jung Juhyeok thought about the best he could do in this situation.

“It’s fine. You don’t need to delete it.”

“Huh…? Really?”

“It’s already spread anyway, so what’s the point of deleting it now?”

Even if she deleted it right now, the video would already be spreading everywhere.

With the situation already noisy enough to make it onto Hunter news, deleting the video wouldn’t change anything.

Since it had come to this, he had to make the most of this situation.

‘Let’s think positively. It was difficult to enter B-rank Gates as an F-rank, but now that the video has spread, people will know I have sufficient skills.’

This time, he had luckily gotten to go to a B-rank Gate with Master Han Sanguk’s help.

It would have been difficult to easily access B-rank or higher Gates again, but now that the video had spread, it served as proof of his abilities.

There shouldn’t be any problems finding parties in the future.

‘Of course, I can’t avoid becoming incredibly bothered by all the attention.’

Even trying to think positively, his head ached thinking about how noisy things would become.

“Hunter Jung Juhyeok. Will you be okay?”

“I’ll be fine. It was something I’d have to face eventually.”

Hunter Park Hanseong approached cautiously.

As Jung Juhyeok answered calmly and was about to take out his cell phone while thinking about how to handle things going forward, Park Hanseong spoke.

“Since the video has spread, you’ll probably get a lot of scout offers.”

“I suppose so.”

“Then let me speak up before someone else snatches you away first.”

He pulled out an elegant business card from inside his jacket.

Park Hanseong held out his business card to Jung Juhyeok and said.

“How about our Haetae Guild?”

“….”

“I won’t bother explaining the guild. Any Hunter in South Korea would know about it.”

Haetae Guild.

As he said, it was a guild that not only South Koreans but even foreigners working in the Hunter industry would have heard of at least once.

It was a guild with worldwide influence extending not just throughout Korea but to foreign countries as well.

“I promise adequate treatment on my name.”

A scene he couldn’t have imagined when he was attending the Academy.

The very fact that he was being scouted by Haetae Guild made him feel somewhat good, but that didn’t mean he felt inclined to accept.

‘Unfortunately, I can’t risk having my artifacts discovered.’

Jung Juhyeok sighed inwardly.

“I have no intention of joining a guild—”

He was about to recite the line he had uttered countless times to Park Hanseong.

“Jung Juhyeok!”

A familiar lion’s roar struck his ears and cut off his words.

A voice that shouldn’t be heard here.

Juhyeok turned his head and looked in the direction where he heard his name being called.

“You’ve really lost your mind!”

There he saw Mother with support equipment on her leg, furiously scolding him.

“Ah.”

He had completely forgotten.

The reason this B-rank Gate raid absolutely couldn’t be discovered.

‘I’m screwed.’

An appearance more hair-raising than the B-rank boss Frog King.

Juhyeok was dragged away while once again resenting the Supporter who was the root cause of all this trouble.

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