I Awakened as a Dark History - Chapter 62

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

Chapter 62
I found myself turning away from the check and business card—things I’d never once imagined owning in my lifetime—only to look back again moments later.
I’d catch a glimpse while cleaning the table, then again as I passed by after finishing the dishes.
‘What am I supposed to do with this?’
Throwing them away felt wrong when they came from the world’s top-ranked Hunter, but making contact felt far too awkward.
I could have dismissed my own hesitation as irrational.
But being forced into membership of some global Dungeon Destruction association because of a skill I barely understood was nowhere in my life plan.
Why not just refuse?
I’d thought that too.
But would someone who’d staked his entire life on Dungeon Destruction really back down at a single refusal?
I shook my head with genuine conviction.
That left me with only one viable choice.
‘Go evasive.’
I’d read somewhere that knowing how to run away took courage too.
I’d dodge every hardship, every setback, every conflict that came my way.
With that resolve, I slipped the business card and check into a drawer.
It was a decision I could make only because I didn’t see the trouble already striding toward me with heavy steps.
Ring-ring. Ring-ring.
Ever since the company had suggested my resignation, leaving me in a half-fired state, my mobile phone had stayed on sound.
I simply stretched my arm out and picked it up.
For a modern person, having a mobile phone far away in one’s own home was unacceptable.
The name displayed on the screen was Seo Il-hak, Association Chairman.
How had this become so familiar?
Under normal circumstances, I might have felt a little proud to be establishing myself as a Hunter, but today brought no such feeling.
Perhaps it was because I’d witnessed up close the qualities of a true Hunter—something I could never possess.
When I recalled his firm, dark eyes, Yu Ho-yeon’s image came unbidden alongside them.
And his reproach as well.
‘If you’re going to move like that with that kind of heart, you shouldn’t …….’
Shouldn’t what, exactly?
Have power?
Well, great power brought great responsibility, didn’t it?
Since it wasn’t entirely unfamiliar logic, another sigh escaped me.
“No. Let it go. Forget it.”
I answered the phone quickly, desperate to erase that memory.
“Hello.”
—This is Seo Il-hak, Hunter Association Chairman. Is this a convenient time to talk?
“Yes.”
Having greeted me with words befitting a company employee, Seo Il-hak moved straight to his purpose.
—Have you seen the news? There must be quite a stir about Dareia Godden’s visit to Korea.
Just when I’d tried to forget, it came crawling back. Beyond a cursed doll, this was a cursed topic.
I scrunched my face like someone chewing salt.
Still, I couldn’t lie.
Or rather, it would be difficult not to know about Dareia Godden’s visit to Korea even if I claimed I hadn’t seen it.
Any lie would be transparent.
“Yes. I’ve seen it.”
—Did your Hunter friends perhaps see it together with you?
The phrasing that separated me from myself always required a moment to process.
“Yes…… Yes. We saw it together.”
—Then this will move faster.
Seo Il-hak’s voice brightened.
—You probably know this already, but Dareia Godden is called a Dungeon Destroyer among Hunters. Whether low-rank or high-rank, he closes any dungeon without discrimination. He doesn’t concern himself with utility either.
I’d noticed this much from our conversation at Huntket.
He seemed to want to erase dungeons entirely from existence.
—So when visiting other countries, he typically takes on high-rank dungeons that can’t be completely conquered and deals with them—of course, under the condition of complete conquest.
Still, he appeared to show some respect for dungeons that other people managed and used.
I’d thought he’d stubbornly insist on closing all dungeons without exception, but it seemed he didn’t.
His method seemed to be targeting dungeons of a level his country couldn’t handle, leaving only dungeons that could be closed at any time.
It was somewhat startling that such a thing was even possible.
“Then this time, he’s proceeding with dungeon conquest in Korea?”
—Exactly. The Hunter Association will provide information and mediation, and the Haje Guild will lead most of the operations, with several other guilds participating alongside them.
Then why did he call me?
I was tilting my head in puzzlement at that very question.
—The Hunter Association has taken on the role of intermediary and is gathering guilds with sufficient capability. However, there was an opinion that even individual hunters—not guild members—with sufficient capability should be brought in.
“Ah…….”
I let out a short exclamation of understanding, and I heard a faint chuckle from the other end of the line.
—You were the first person who came to mind. That’s why I called Ha Cho-eun. Would it be alright to ask you to pass this along to both of you twin hunters?
“Yes. I’ll pass it on.”
Even as I said so, I made sure to clarify the details I needed to know.
“If I accept, will you just send over the schedule and such?”
—No. There will be a meeting to coordinate strategy and schedule. I’ll send you the visit date later.
Having spent several years as a salaried worker myself, it was easy enough to read the circumstances hidden in those words.
The meeting to coordinate strategy and schedule hadn’t been properly scheduled yet, and to pin down that date, the Association needed quick responses from everyone contacted.
Even an Association chairman couldn’t entirely escape the cadence of office-speak.
I checked the current time and responded in kind.
“Then I’ll give you my answer by tomorrow morning.”
Seo Il-hak seemed pleased by the way I’d specified a date and time upfront.
—Yes. I’ll wait for your call. Thank you.
His voice brighter now, I ended the call with a lighter heart.
Only after hanging up did a belated question strike me.
“Wait—do they need the Healer or the Debuffer?”
I couldn’t bring both.
I pressed my hands to my head, troubled by the news I’d failed to clarify.
* * *
The original rule was to always postpone decisions until fire was literally at your feet—only then did they carry real weight.
……Though that’s just an excuse. The truth was, I simply couldn’t decide.
Even after spending a full day turning the matter inside out, I still couldn’t.
Seo Il-hak’s proposal had left me wrestling with two core questions.
The first was whether to go at all.
A proposal naturally carried the choice between acceptance and refusal, so that concern was inevitable.
The second was: Healer or Debuffer?
I understood it was better to bring whichever one they preferred, if possible.
But I simply couldn’t ask.
If I asked which one they wanted, the obvious answer would come back: wouldn’t both of you work?
Then I’d have to say one of them couldn’t come. They’d ask which one it was that couldn’t.
And to respond that one side absolutely couldn’t come no matter what would be…….
‘A confession. A straight confession.’
The Healer and Debuffer aren’t twins—they’re the same person. If one shows up, the other can’t. Ha ha ha!
I flopped backward onto the bed.
My phone displayed a spinning wheel, a ladder-climbing game, and various other decision tools.
Of course, none of them had actually helped me decide.
So far the Debuffer was ahead, seventy to fifty.
“Still, isn’t the Healer more useful than the Debuffer?”
You could see it in how hard Baek Moon-il, the guild master of Haje Guild, had worked to recruit a Healer.
Besides, from the standpoint of needing to build Synchronization Rate, it was simpler to go as the Healer.
The Debuffer had to be prickly, cold, and sharp—and I was already exhausted by it.
The gentle, rounded way was easier.
‘And besides, since I’m naturally brusque anyway, I don’t have to worry so much about crafting rejection lines.’
After weighing all these factors, it seemed the Healer was the better choice after all.
The Debuffer’s climbing score was ultimately cast aside.
The score might accuse me, but the decision was mine alone to make.
I picked up my phone and went to recent contacts.
Finding Seo Il-hak was easy enough among the nearly identical contact history from yesterday.
A text message would be better than a call.

Chair, the Healer accepted. But the Debuffer declined. He said he didn’t think he’d be much help with Dungeon Conquest and asked you to contact him later if something else comes up.
I sent the message concisely, covering all the important points.
It would take time for him to see it and reply, so I could simply wait without rushing.
Then I opened my laptop for the first time in ages.
Since I hadn’t used it much while working at the company, a thin layer of dust had settled on it.
I wiped the dust away roughly by hand and went online.
By now, I’d grown accustomed to checking the email from Huntket first.
[Huntket Procurement Team] Hello, valued customer. We are writing to inform you of item acquisition.
Thank you for using Huntket’s procurement support system.
We have acquired items similar to those you requested and are notifying you of their availability.
Please review the products through the attached file, and you may proceed with your purchase by visiting Huntket headquarters.
If you do not communicate your purchase intent within three business days, the relevant items may be sold to other customers.
Beneath the crisp, concise sentences lay an attachment.
I double-clicked to open it, and a neatly organized item catalog appeared.
Having conducted transactions several times before—and with high-value items at that—it was clear they’d taken considerable care.
The catalog, arranged by grade and stats for the items I’d requested… or more precisely, the ones Yu Ho-yeon had recommended, struck at my heart like a series of small jabs.
Somewhere inside me, a voice of conscience was probably crying out.
‘I let him down, but I’m using his advice anyway.’
I pressed my temples hard with one hand.
“Probably… he’d be there, wouldn’t he?”
I didn’t know how long Yu Ho-yeon would continue working with the Hunter Association.
But if that period had ended, wouldn’t it have made the news?
So for the meeting the Hunter Association was mediating—the one for the so-called “Dungeon Destruction”—Yu Ho-yeon would surely be there.
I had no face to show him again.
My mind tangled in confusion, and an excuse tumbled out unbidden.
“…No, wait. I counted the Demon King as my partner, and I’m going as a Healer anyway. I’ll just play dumb.”
If I just keep my head down, it should be fine!
“Besides, he talks like he knows way too much about everything anyway.”
Would pretending not to know do any good?
Moreover, in that moment, synchronized with him, I’d completely exposed the acquaintance of Ha Cho-eun who went by “Choi A-rin” before him.
It had been enough to make even someone who knew nothing realize something was amiss.
Carelessness had seized me by the ankle, sudden and unforgiving.
A sigh so deep it felt like the ground was collapsing rose from my throat.
“Haaah.”
Regardless of anything else, I couldn’t bear to face him.
I had shown disappointment before the person who saved me.
Could I somehow make up for it with a different face?
I’d entertained that thought, but at the same time, a cynical voice rose alongside it: ‘Make up for it? What good would that do?’
What would change if I did?
‘Items that reduce skill penalties are nice, but it’s good that there are also items that boost skill effects.’
‘….’
‘And make sure you get defensive gear and weapons. Pick up both short-range and mid-range weapons.’
I couldn’t fathom why I kept remembering that one voice—kind, heard only once.
I looked back at the laptop screen.

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