Murim Login - Chapter 78

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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 78
All Hunters are heavy drinkers without exception.
Even the lowest-ranked F-grade Hunters possessed physical abilities and metabolic rates that far surpassed ordinary people.
The saying that there are Hunters who don’t drink, but none who can’t drink, exists for a reason.
“Hic. One more.”
Yet here stood an exception.
Song-i’s eyes had grown noticeably glazed as she shook her empty glass with fervent intensity.
“One more!”
Even drunk, she looked beautiful—no, wait. Wasn’t this getting a bit dangerous? I watched Song-i with worried eyes.
‘She drank way too fast.’
The moment the drinking session began in earnest, she’d downed an entire bottle of soju like it was nothing, and had been in this state ever since. Occasionally, her slurred words would mumble incomprehensible things about bad luck or jinxes.
‘Did something bad happen to her?’
While Lim Hyuk-jun refilled her glass, I leaned over and whispered to Choi Team Leader.
“Team Leader, did something happen to Song-i?”
Choi Team Leader answered with a reluctant expression.
“…Well, yes.”
“I thought so.”
“And it happened very recently.”
“Oh. I see.”
Song-i’s misfortune was my misfortune. Watching helplessly made my heart ache.
“I hope it gets resolved well.”
“…”
“…”
Both Choi Team Leader and Kim Butler, sitting beside me, stared at me with peculiar expressions.
Something felt off about this.
“What?”
“Nothing, sir.”
“That’s understandable at your age.”
Their response felt lukewarm, but that wasn’t the priority right now.
Crack.
“Drink! Let’s drink until we drop!”
Song-i, now on her third bottle of soju, was going absolutely wild.
“Ha ha! This is why I love Song-i so much!”
Like a fish in water—or rather, like a bandit finding alcohol—Lim Hyuk-jun eagerly joined in beside her.
“Shouldn’t someone stop her?”
“Oh, Song-i?”
“Yes.”
Choi Team Leader shrugged.
“It’s fine. I’ve known her long enough. That’s just how Song-i drinks normally.”
“Even so… wait, hold on.”
I fixed Choi Team Leader with a hard stare.
Something had felt off from the start, but now I’d finally caught him in it.
“How would you know about Song-i’s drinking habits, Team Leader?”
“We’ve had drinks together, so I know.”
…
Who does this bastard think he’s fooling? Did it seem like I didn’t know that?
“That’s not what I’m getting at.”
“Then what are you getting at?”
“Well…”
Now that I’d said it out loud, the words dried up. When I thought about it, what business did I have questioning the relationship between two people?
Just as my voice faltered, Choi Team Leader suddenly spoke up.
“Ares. You’ve heard of it, right?”
“Of course.”
Ares, the God of War.
A deity from ancient Greek and Roman mythology. Though by now, it had become famous for different reasons.
“Who hasn’t heard of the Ares Guild?”
The pride and honor of Korean Hunters.
Hundreds of guilds existed domestically, but there was only one apex—the Ares Guild. The achievements they’d accumulated from the early days of the Cataclysm to now were beyond counting.
‘Truly a legend. An absolute legend.’
Educational comics, instructional animations, films and novels—even textbooks featured them.
The Ares Guild’s position in Korea was equivalent to a living King Sejong, or an active General Yi Sun-sin. Perhaps even greater.
‘Because they’re so famous worldwide.’
If you asked most foreigners “Do you know King Sejong? General Yi Sun-sin?” they’d probably wonder what this Asian was babbling about. But the Ares Guild was different.
– Do you know Ares?
– Oh, yes!
Even a gruff Texas grandfather would tap his twin revolvers and understand—or so academic consensus claimed.
“But why the Ares Guild?”
Choi Team Leader swallowed a mouthful of beer before answering.
“Because I was there.”
“Ah. I see… Wait?”
What did I just hear?
My mouth went dry. I blinked stupidly for a long moment before finally speaking.
“You were part of the Ares Guild?”
“I was a Team Leader there. Though admittedly, at the very bottom of the hierarchy.”
The Ares Guild’s threshold was impossibly high. They selected only the best and cultivated only excellence. For Choi Team Leader to have worn the rank of Team Leader there, even at the lowest tier, was extraordinary in itself.
Though right now, he just looked insane to me.
“Why did you leave that place?”
Money, prestige, status.
For any Hunter—for any man—it was the ultimate dream job. And he’d just walked away from it!
“Did you get bullied or something?”
Choi Team Leader, who had been pondering the question, finally answered.
“That could very well be the case. Song-i was the only person who treated me comfortably.”
“…So Song-i is also from the Ares Guild?”
“She was on my team. We found out about her drinking habits during a team dinner.”
I swallowed hard, my throat constricting.
‘These are complete elites.’
My gaze alternated between Choi Team Leader sipping his beer and Song-i blowing into a bottle, before settling on one person.
“Is it possible that Kim Butler is also…?”
“Me?”
Kim Butler smiled kindly and waved his hand.
“I retired a long time ago. Hehehehe.”
“Pardon?”
So he was a former Hunter.
Suddenly, the sense of incongruity I’d always felt around Kim Butler came to mind. The fact that I’d never once tried to perceive him through my ki-sensing.
‘What is this man’s true identity?’
Just as I was about to raise my ki-sensing.
Lim Hyuk-jun, who had been steadily consuming alcohol and meat regardless of our conversation, spoke up.
“Hey, the burner went out. Song, is there no more gas?”
“Hic. That was the last one.”
“Aw man, we can’t break the momentum. Should we just eat it?”
Toward Lim Hyuk-jun, who was grumbling while flipping the undercooked meat, Kim Butler offered a gentle smile.
“That won’t do.”
And in the next instant, two things happened simultaneously.
Snap!
Kim Butler flicked his fingers.
Whoosh!
A wave of intense heat erupted. Blue flames shot up precisely over the grill, instantly heating the metal plate and cooking the meat before vanishing.
“This is….”
Lim Hyuk-jun and I exclaimed without hesitation.
“A mage!”
“That cooked it perfectly!”
“….”
“What? Tae-kyung, you eat too.”
That’s enough from you, I thought, shaking my head slowly.
So Kim Butler was a mage all along. No wonder something felt off about him.
“I’ve been completely fooled.”
Kim Butler picked up a perfectly cooked piece of meat.
“I had no intention of deceiving you. As I mentioned, I’m already a retired relic.”
A relic? If Kim Butler was a relic, then half of the mages currently active in the field should bash their heads in.
‘At minimum, B-rank or higher.’
With merely a snap of his fingers, he summoned flames and controlled them with such precision that the meat was neither charred nor undercooked—perfectly grilled. From the context, he must have belonged to the Ares Guild before his retirement.
If he was active even during the Great Cataclysm.
‘…This guy’s a heavyweight.’
And on top of that, a senior from an incomparably distant past.
I asked carefully.
“Um, which Hunter Training Institute did you graduate from?”
“Nonsan. And you, Tae-kyung?”
“Wow. I’m from Nonsan too. 28th Regiment 1st Battalion.”
“Really? What a coincidence. I came from the 28th Regiment 1st Battalion as well. Which company were you in?”
“2nd Company.”
“Maybe it’s not coincidence but fate. Haha.”
There was no need for further words. I rose from my seat and bowed deeply.
“It’s an honor to meet you, senior.”
There’s a saying in South Korea about school ties, regional ties, and blood ties. Hunters are no different.
The awakening probability is 0.1 percent. One in a thousand. Because of such slim odds, it’s rare for someone you knew in society to awaken as a Hunter. What seems like an insignificant Hunter Training Institute is actually the starting point of networks.
“Please, don’t be so formal. Have a seat.”
“You don’t need to speak so carefully either.”
“I don’t concern myself with such things….”
Just as Kim Butler and I were creating a warm senior-junior atmosphere, Choi Team Leader, who had been watching quietly, suddenly interjected.
“Kim Butler. Don’t you think it would be better to do as Jin Tae-kyung suggests?”
I’d never seen such audacity. How dare he tell a senior what to do….
‘Hmm. I suppose he can.’
Come to think of it, Choi Team Leader is the bigger shot. After all, he employs a mage from the Ares Guild as his butler.
‘What kind of family is he from, anyway?’
Is his grandfather a president and his father a prime minister?
As my curiosity only grew, Choi Team Leader continued.
“At this point, we should clarify the titles. He’s the face of our Guild, after all. We can’t keep calling him butler or mister indefinitely, can we?”
Kim Butler, after a moment of thought, replied.
“I shall defer to your judgment, young master.”
Choi Team Leader nodded and swept his gaze across everyone with a stern expression.
“Then from now on, we will unify our address for Kim Butler as Guild Master. Does anyone object?”
Lim Hyuk-jun and Song-i responded.
“Damn, this meat is incredible. Is it because it’s grilled with magic?”
“There’s alcohol in it. Alcohol! Lots and lots of alcohol!”
“….”
Choi Team Leader gazed at the two of them with a look of regret, then turned his attention to me. I deliberately raised one arm.
“What does that mean?”
“I have a question to ask.”
At least this one’s somewhat better. That’s what Choi Team Leader’s expression seemed to say.
“Go ahead.”
“Wasn’t Choi Team Leader the Guild Master?”
“….”
Choi Team Leader, wearing an expression of betrayal, pulled something from his pocket and handed it over. I examined it—a business card.
“I have this, you see.”
“What does it say?”
“Peace Guild Team 1 Leader Choi Min-woo.”
“Yes. I’m the Team Leader.”
“Ah.”
“Kim Butler is the Guild Master. I’m the Team Leader. The other three are team members. Do you understand now?”
Whether Kim Butler was the actual owner or just the figurehead, I wasn’t sure, but I nodded anyway. If I didn’t, Choi Team Leader looked like he might cry.
“Did the others understand as well?”
Lim Hyuk-jun and Song-i answered Choi Team Leader’s question.
“Man, this alcohol tastes incredible. Is it because the grilled meat is cooked with magic as a side dish?”
“How much longer are you going to make me shoulder dance? My shoulder’s dislocated. Dislocated! Dislocated!”
“….”
What, seriously?

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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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