Infinite Evolution Hunter - Chapter 8

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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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8
The moment I stepped out of the Academy, I opened the Hunter App.
“It’s been a while since I’ve used this.”
In my previous life, successive Gate Break incidents had collapsed most government systems, rendering this app useless in the chaos.
I searched the Gate information on the app and found one I could enter immediately.
“An F-rank Goblin Gate. Perfect for my current situation.”
F-rank Gates, the lowest tier, were numerous enough that reservations weren’t difficult to secure.
I ducked into a nearby Supermarket, loaded up on high-calorie energy bars and carbonated drinks, stuffed them into my bag, and hailed a taxi.
“Please take me here.”
I showed the taxi driver the Gate’s address and we set off.
Checking my bank balance, I realized that after paying the fare, I’d have almost nothing left. Most of this month’s allowance would be gone, but once I cleared the Gate, money would come in, so it didn’t matter.
“We’re here.”
Lost in thought, I hadn’t even noticed we’d arrived until the driver spoke.
“Thank you.”
I stepped out of the taxi and walked a short distance before the Gate came into view—a blue Gate about five meters tall, similar to the one I’d seen during the graduation exam.
I showed my Hunter License and the reservation details from the Hunter App to the Gate Management Official guarding the entrance.
“You’re going in alone?”
Even for a Goblin Gate, it was a natural question—an F-rank Hunter shouldn’t venture in solo.
“Yes.”
“What about weapons?”
“I don’t need items thanks to my abilities.”
I was wearing only the thin protective suit the Academy had issued as a graduation gift, with no weapons. The Academy didn’t distribute weapons.
“Think it over carefully and come back another time?”
He looked at my information and, concerned, urged me to reconsider.
“It’s fine. Going alone doesn’t violate regulations, does it?”
“That’s true. Go ahead then. Good luck.”
The Awakener Management Bureau official, as if he’d done his due diligence, entered my information into his tablet and returned my Hunter License.
The government considered its obligation fulfilled by making the Academy mandatory. The current situation wasn’t stable enough to personally prevent every rookie Awakener from dying due to recklessness.
Of course, Hunters who acted recklessly, entered, couldn’t hunt, and only fled were common enough. In such cases, they’d just be wasting a Gate slot, and their Hunter license could be revoked.
I placed unnecessary items in the storage locker at the entrance. Uncleared Gates had a weight limit—roughly equivalent to one’s body weight—so these lockers were provided.
I stretched thoroughly and entered the Gate. The same dim Cave I’d seen during the graduation exam greeted me. I tracked the goblins and plunged into the darkness without hesitation.
After walking for a while, a goblin hiding in a corner lunged at me from behind.
I spun quickly and kicked the goblin’s chest, sending it flying. Even without attending the Academy, I knew goblin ecology inside and out—I’d seen enough of it in my previous life.
Now it was time to hunt in earnest.
I shook out my fists and charged toward the fallen goblin, finishing it with a stomp to the head before sprinting deeper into the Cave.
Whenever I encountered a pack of goblins, I charged in without regard for their numbers or weapons, crushing them one by one.
The Academy taught defense and counterattack, but that didn’t suit my abilities. The more I took damage, the tougher I became, and my regeneration skill improved proportionally.
Even with goblins clinging to my back or slashing my legs with their blades, I dispatched them one at a time. Their dull weapons merely scratched the surface—they couldn’t pierce my reinforced muscles.
Some of them seemed to have poison on their blades or hadn’t maintained them properly, as the wounds burned, but my poison resistance made it fade quickly.
Once no goblins remained standing, I didn’t rest—I sprinted onward to find more.
Running a marathon inside the Gate as if I were sprinting a hundred meters left my heart feeling like it might burst. No matter how superior hunters’ stamina was compared to non-Awakeners, I doubted any hunter hunted the way I did.
By the time I’d pushed through what felt like my limit several times over and defeated roughly twenty goblins, something shifted.
[Your level has increased.]
At the Academy, I’d only trained without hunting, so my stats had risen but my level hadn’t. Now, hunting alone, my experience points filled up rapidly.
My body felt immediately lighter. Riding that momentum, I tore through the Gate like a tiger straining against its chains, sweeping through everything in my path.
* * *
After encountering goblin groups I’d lost count of, I crushed the last one’s skull and a pale blue light spread throughout the Gate’s interior.
The Gate clear signal.
Now came the tedious work. Collecting Magic Stones and materials.
I retraced my path back through the Gate, carving open goblin corpses to harvest Magic Stones and gathering usable materials. Since I didn’t have a specialized Magic Stone extraction dagger, I used a decent one from the goblins’ own weapons.
Ultimately, the Magic Stone collection took longer than the actual hunt, but with no money to my name, I couldn’t leave the stones behind.
As I exited the Gate after finishing the extraction, the Gate Management Official stared at me with wide eyes.
“You look absolutely terrible.”
Even I could see I was in rough shape. The protective suit from the Academy was in tatters, and dried blood caked my body in various places, making me look like I’d been seriously injured.
“Hey, are you alright?”
Seeing my dire condition, the Gate Management Official asked with a worried expression.
“Oh, yes. I’m fine. Please record the Gate clear. Thank you for your work.”
The bewildered Gate Management Official watched me walk away for a long time.
I used the Hunter App to find the nearest Magic Stone Trading Post. Fortunately, it was within walking distance. Given my appearance, I didn’t want to travel far.
As I entered the Magic Stone Trading Post, the Magic Stone Trader looked at me with the same expression as the Gate Management Official, but I ignored it and pulled out the goblin Magic Stones from my bag, laying them out on the table. Though it was a small F-rank Gate, since I’d defeated everything alone, I’d managed to harvest around fifty Magic Stones.
“You’re here to sell Magic Stones?”
I held out my Hunter License as I spoke.
“Ah? Oh! Yes!”
The young employee quickly snapped to attention and began examining each Magic Stone one by one, cleaning them and weighing them.
“Do you also buy goblin weapons?”
“I can only offer scrap metal prices for those.”
He glanced at my bag and continued.
“I’ll take them anyway.”
I handed over the entire bag and leaned against the wall to wait while the employee finished calculating.
“The total is 9,058,000 won.”
After finishing the calculation, the employee handed me my registration certificate and receipt.
“Thank you.”
Looking at the receipt, I saw they’d deducted a 30% commission on the Magic Stones. The Magic Stone Trading Posts near Gates survive on these commissions. The money automatically transferred to my account registered with the Awakened Management Bureau, and the transaction was recorded there.
Seeing that commission made my chest ache. Next time, I’d have to find somewhere else.
* * *
“Hey! Are you okay?!”
As I opened the door and stepped inside, Jae-won saw my condition and came rushing out in alarm.
I couldn’t walk around naked, so I’d bought a cheap t-shirt at a nearby Convenience Store, but my head and arms were still covered in dried blood scabs.
“What? This? I’m fine. Really fine. Let me wash up first. Then let’s go out and grab some food together.”
Leaving the flustered Jae-won behind, I headed into the bathroom and washed away the blood with hot water. After cleaning up and changing into fresh clothes wearing only underwear, I put on clean clothes. They were too tight since my body had grown, but this was all I had for now.
“Your physique has improved tremendously. I’m jealous….”
“Your body would improve too if you exercised.”
“Pass on that. I knew hunting was dangerous, but I never expected you to come back covered in blood right after Academy training ended.”
“Don’t worry. I’m fine. See? No wounds. Let’s go out. I’m starving to death. We can talk while we eat.”
“I’m out of pocket money, so I can’t go out to eat. I’ve prepared dinner at home. Let’s eat there.”
“Come on! I’m a Hunter now! My treat! Let’s go!”
I spoke to Jae-won with exaggerated inflection and volume.
“Senior!”
Apparently, money makes one worthy of respect—Jae-won immediately called me senior.
Jae-won and I devoured meat like madmen at a nearby Meat Restaurant. We consumed a total of fifty servings in less than an hour. I probably ate forty-five of those myself. Eventually, the Restaurant Owner grilled the meat for us at the next table.
After that, we ate cold noodles and rice, and the owner and all the staff came out to watch me with expressions of amazement.
As we were paying and leaving, Jae-won looked at me with an exhausted expression and spoke.
“Do Awakeners normally eat that much?”
“Probably just me.”
As one’s energy storage capacity and compression ratio increase, I’ll need to consume even more in the future.
“I’m jealous, Ji-seok.”
On the uphill path back to the Shared Apartment, Jae-won’s expression grew somewhat dark. He seemed depressed because his job search wasn’t going well.
“Don’t be jealous. If you try it, it’s not all rosy.”
“Why?”
“That’s just how it is. You’ll find employment soon. Don’t worry. If it doesn’t work out, can’t I feed you?”
I could say this because I knew he’d find a job quickly. And even if employment fell through, finding him a position would be no problem at all.
“Kid, I appreciate the words alone.”
With Jae-won’s expression slightly brightened, we bought soju by the box and returned to the Shared Apartment. We ordered three chickens and drank heavily, but thanks to my poison resistance, I didn’t get drunk. I might get intoxicated if I drank hard liquor like water, but I felt no need to do so.
After cleaning up the leftovers, watching Jae-won sleep while snoring so heavily he seemed to stop breathing, I suddenly realized how precious this ordinary daily life truly was.
In this lifetime, I will protect it at all costs.
* * *
Though I had no hangover, my stomach was empty, so I dragged the whimpering Jae-won out for hangover soup. Despite how much we’d eaten yesterday, I devoured several bowls of hangover soup in succession, stacking the empty bowls on the table.
“You certainly eat well….”
Jae-won looked at me with eyes full of exasperation.
“Well, I’m heading to a Gate again, so I’ll see you this evening.”
“Again? Weren’t you just in one yesterday? Aren’t you supposed to go once a week or so?”
Jae-won was surprised that I was going to Gates more frequently than expected.
Some people say, “Awakeners are superhuman, so they could do that.” But consider boxing or other sports. After a single match, athletes take about a month of rest. Therefore, it’s nearly impossible for Awakeners—who wield weapons and fight for their lives against otherworldly monsters—to recover both physically and mentally in a single day.
“A beginner like me has no time to play around. I have much to do ahead.”
“You’ll injure yourself that way. Is it for money?”
Jae-won was genuinely concerned for me.
“Well, I do need to earn money, but it’s not just about that. I’m someone who received a commendation and graduated from the Academy. Don’t worry. I’ll see you this evening.”
After that, I spent several days clearing Goblin Gates, but my stats didn’t increase from them. Now I needed to enter Gates of a higher rank. To do that, I had to be promoted.
To be promoted, I had to meet several mandatory conditions, one of which was the number of Gate clears, so I had no choice but to continue clearing F-rank Gates.

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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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