Infinite Evolution Hunter - Chapter 11

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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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11
“Mother.”
I called out to her, hoping to persuade her once more.
“I wondered why you’ve been speaking so formally lately, and now I see—this is what you wanted to discuss.”
Mother spoke with a somber expression.
“Let’s eat first. The food will get cold.”
Mother prepared the meal, and we ate in silence.
Mother had always been skilled in the kitchen, and tasting her cooking after so long made it seem even more delicious. Had I not been so anxious, I would have savored it more.
After we finished eating, I continued urging her to move, but Mother remained unmoved.
I realized she was far more stubborn than I’d anticipated—this wouldn’t be resolved in a single day. I resolved to persuade her gradually over time, and as I ate the pear she’d peeled for me, I surveyed our home. It was filled entirely with aging appliances and furniture. Nostalgic and cozy, yes, but undeniably worn with age.
“Mother, at least let me replace the refrigerator. That noise it makes is unbearable.”
I pointed to the fifteen-year-old refrigerator whose constant whirring sound grated on my nerves.
“That’s enough. It still works fine. Why waste money?”
“Come on, just come look at some options. Think of it as going on a date with your son.”
I coaxed the reluctant Mother to a nearby appliance store.
“My goodness. The interior space is enormous.”
Though Mother had claimed disinterest, she became utterly captivated by the new refrigerator.
While Mother was absorbed in examining the refrigerator, I called over a salesman and ordered replacements for everything—the refrigerator, washing machine, television, rice cooker, and all the other aging appliances in our home.
“Please deliver as quickly as possible. Dispose of everything currently in the house.”
When I paid in full, the salesman’s spine bent into a perfect ninety-degree angle.
“Thank you so much!”
Mother struck my back, demanding to know why I’d bought such things and insisting the salesman process a refund. But I simply lifted her into my arms and carried her out of the store.
“When did you become so strong?”
“Mother, if you don’t accept this, I’ll just buy a house in your name instead.”
“You’re blackmailing your own mother!”
Understanding her son’s resolve, Mother reluctantly accepted the gift.
I took Mother for a walk around the neighborhood, then we returned home. After watching television together, I quietly placed an envelope of cash in her closet.
There was no need to rush. I would persuade her gradually with these periodic gifts and secure her a new home within a year.
“Mother, I’m leaving now. I’ll visit again soon.”
I wanted to stay longer, but I had much to do.
“Already? Come visit often. And don’t do anything dangerous.”
Leaving Mother’s concerns behind, I headed to Hanam City to find a house for myself. Even after securing a new home for Mother, I had no intention of living with her for a while. I needed to conduct strange training at home to level up my regeneration skill, and Mother would surely faint if she witnessed it.
I chose Hanam because it was a region where I’d managed to survive for quite some time in my previous life. Moreover, it was conveniently positioned for traveling to Gates across the country.
I toured the outskirts of Hanam with a real estate agent, searching for land. What I wanted was a spacious property with no residential neighbors nearby, and we found such a place without difficulty.
The house had fallen into some disrepair from being vacant, but the structure was sound and appealed to me greatly. The land was expansive enough for future expansion as well.
“The Rear Mountain behind this property is included. Since it’s currently vacant, you could move in tomorrow if you sign the contract today.”
With no neighboring homes visible, it seemed ideal for training.
“I’ll sign the contract.”
I wanted to pay in full immediately, but I didn’t yet have that much capital, so I paid half in cash and financed the remainder through a bank loan secured by the property.
After making several trips between the real estate office and the bank, dusk began to fall. I hurried to the automotive district.
“Welcome to—”
The moment I stepped into the dealership, the salesman’s greeting died on his lips as he took in my appearance, his expression deflating instantly.
Dressed in shabby clothes, I was apparently receiving the treatment to match. I’d have to pick up some new wardrobe when I had time.
“A pickup truck….”
“Of course. Take a look around.”
He was so convinced I wouldn’t buy anything that he didn’t even listen to me and simply walked away.
Hunters with heavy cargo preferred pickup trucks, and in my previous life, I’d driven one for a while myself. I glanced at the display model and approached a different salesman.
“I’d like to order that one.”
This model and year were known for their durability and reliability—in my past life, they’d actually commanded a premium over brand-new vehicles.
“Pardon?”
The dealership salesman looked momentarily confused, so I repeated myself.
“That one. I’d like to order it. Same specs as the display model.”
“Yes! Please have a seat over here, sir! I’m Ha Chul-soon, the salesman.”
The young-looking salesman quickly began pulling out paperwork.
“What are you doing?”
A few minutes later, the first salesman—the one who’d been dismissive—approached and tapped Ha Chul-soon’s shoulder as he was filling out my contract.
“Oh, I heard the customer was making a purchase.”
Ha Chul-soon looked up to answer, then turned his attention back to the documents.
“What? Really? No, I should help you with this. I was the one who showed you around first.”
He kept tapping Ha Chul-soon’s shoulder, trying to nudge him aside. The audacity to call that initial dismissal “showing me around” was remarkable.
“Never mind. I’m going to sign with Ha Chul-soon here.”
“No, sir. I was just busy earlier—”
“Forget it. Go back to work. I’m buying two cars today, so you’re going to be busy anyway.”
When I announced I was buying two vehicles, Ha Chul-soon’s face lit up brilliantly while the other salesman’s expression turned ashen as he retreated.
I ordered one pickup truck and bought one mid-range sedan that I could drive off the lot immediately.
The truck was necessary for hunting expeditions, but it was inconvenient in the narrow streets of Korea’s City Center.
And since my Mother lived in an older Apartment, I didn’t want to show up driving an expensive sedan, so I chose an affordable model. I could always upgrade later once I relocated her and had more resources.
I drove the brand-new sedan to my Shared Apartment.
Once I unloaded my things, I planned to move into the new place starting tomorrow.
“Jae-won!”
I called out to Jae-won as I opened the door to the Shared Apartment.
“Oh, you’re back.”
Jae-won was absorbed in an online game and barely glanced at me, responding half-heartedly.
“Let’s drink. I bought some whiskey.”
“What! Whiskey! Just wait a minute!”
His eyes widened at the mention of whiskey, but he still didn’t tear them away from the game.
While Jae-won played, I ordered a heap of food from a Chinese restaurant, and by the time it arrived, his game had ended. We spread out the drinks and food together.
“I’m moving out tomorrow.”
I told Jae-won as we ate.
“Hey, I can’t pay the rent….”
Jae-won scratched his head as he spoke. Since it was a one-year contract with rent paid through February, he seemed worried about not being able to return it.
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll cover my share for the remaining period. I’m the one leaving before the contract ends anyway.”
“Thanks.”
“No problem. I found a place in Hanam City, so come visit me later.”
“Sounds good. Here’s to Lee Ji-seok’s brilliant hunter career!”
Jae-won raised his glass in a toast.
“Cheers!”
Though alcohol never intoxicated me, drinking with a friend was genuinely enjoyable.
* * *
After saying goodbye to Jae-won, I headed to my new house early in the morning.
It had been a while since anyone had touched the place, so there was plenty to repair. Weeds were everywhere too.
I rolled up my sleeves and began cleaning. Fortunately, the interior was just messy—there wasn’t much that actually needed fixing. But the exterior hadn’t been maintained, so it wasn’t something I could finish in a day or two.
After finishing the cleanup, I ordered a mountain of appliances and bought necessities to fill the house. With my exceptional stamina, I moved several times faster than an unawakened person, yet I didn’t tire at all.
After roughly organizing the interior, I stepped out to the front yard. The area around the house was surrounded by weeds and wild shrubs.
I remembered following my uncle to visit ancestral graves when I was young. If you don’t maintain weeds regularly, they quickly cover everything in a mess.
Since I didn’t want to waste time on weeding while living here, I decided to cover the area around the house with gravel so grass wouldn’t grow.
Thinking of it as part of my training, I started working with nothing but my bare hands.
I bent at the waist, hardened my hand into a blade, and drove it into the ground repeatedly. Though the earth was hard, my hand sank in as easily as if I were thrusting it into mud. I advanced forward, churning up the ground like a farming machine.
After completely overturning the soil, I filtered out the weeds and wild shrubs, leveled the ground, then climbed the Rear Mountain to find stones.
Since the mountain was full of rocks, I easily found suitable boulders. I lifted a rock weighing several hundred kilograms with ease. My muscles bulged and trembled from the strain.
[Strength increased by 1.]
Carrying heavy rocks and climbing up and down the mountain path increased my strength. And after pushing my body relentlessly without rest, my breathing soon became ragged and sweat began to pour.
I smashed the rocks I’d brought with my bare fists, breaking them into pieces about the size of a finger joint. I’d need to make hundreds of trips up the mountain to cover the entire yard with gravel.
[Strength increased by 1.]
[Stamina increased by 1.]
After climbing up and down the mountain like a wild boar, smashing rocks, my stats increased. Stats and skills rise fastest during combat, but slowly stimulating different muscle groups outside of combat is also effective. Plus, I could raise my stats while decorating my own house however I wanted—it was perfect.
After covering the area around the house and the front yard with gravel, I sat on the veranda and pulled out water I’d bought from the mart.
I took a long drink of water, then pulled out the poison bottle I’d taken from Choi Mi-ran and mixed it into the water.
I watched as the water gradually turned green, and once it was well mixed, I drank it all in one go.
The sharp, tingling taste had its own appeal. As my body went numb, I sat for a moment waiting for the poison to be neutralized.
Poison resistance rises fastest during combat and when life is in danger, but exposure in daily life also increases it—just much more slowly.
Since I couldn’t waste time at home, I would continue to train and live simultaneously, raising my stats this way.
* * *
Clearing Gates is part of the promotion requirements, but clearing Gates alone would take far too long to reach promotion.
Extermination missions are useful for rapid promotion. Most of the high-risk monsters that escaped the Gate Break incident eighteen years ago were eliminated. However, some small and medium-sized monsters fled to the mountains and began breeding.
The collapse of the ecosystem was a problem, but as their numbers grew, they posed a direct threat to humans. In response, the government has been reducing the wild monster population through periodic extermination missions.
However, it usually required running through mountains to hunt, and the pay was poor, so it was unpopular among awakened hunters until a few years ago. To attract awakened hunters, the Gate Management Bureau began offering additional compensation based on the number of monsters caught, and only after providing special benefits for rapid promotion did a reasonable number of people start participating.
I checked the next extermination schedule on the Hunter App and found a week-long Hellhound extermination mission in Gangwon Province the following week, so I immediately applied.

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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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