The Only Enhancer - Chapter 5

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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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Episode 5
Episode 5 – Could She Be a Healer? (3)
Lee Sang-min spat out a crude curse and felt a surge of satisfaction.
After spending a fortune to finally purchase a single Grade 1 item, I could at last go on a raid.
I was nothing like that pathetic, broke bastard!
‘Where the hell did he get the nerve to bring an ungraded item and try to ruin everything?’
In truth, Lee Sang-min had heard similar words directed at myself countless times.
I’d scraped together some money to buy an item, only to be viciously mocked as carrying junk gear and kicked out of the raid.
After that, I’d taken out a loan and scraped together every last coin to finally purchase a Grade 1 item.
Now I was beginning to understand.
Why ungraded items were so despised.
Dealers had no one else to look down on unless they did this.
There was no way a Traitless would ever join a raid party.
In reality, Dealers occupied the absolute bottom rung of the hierarchy.
Lee Sang-min was no exception.
Everywhere I went, I was beaten down and disrespected.
So when I saw someone like myself with ungraded gear, I spoke with open disdain.
Above all.
‘Maybe the party leader will look more favorably on me now?’
It happened occasionally.
There were Dealers who used other Dealers as sacrificial lambs to curry favor with the party leader.
Lee Sang-min was exactly that type.
Of course, it wasn’t without reason.
The party leader had clearly said they were bringing someone late, and I’d confirmed this person wasn’t an acquaintance of theirs.
They hadn’t even explained much.
What Tank would be so kind as to give a Dealer such detailed information?
If they were an acquaintance, they would have said so.
But if they weren’t the Tank’s acquaintance, what audacity brought them here with ungraded gear?
Looking at it this way, the newcomer’s nerve was truly astounding.
Just moments ago I’d been in the same position, yet here I was, already seeing prey to devour.
But I hadn’t said anything untrue, had I?
As this thought crossed Lee Sang-min’s mind, I felt emboldened and opened my mouth again.
“Seriously, look at this bastard. Shows up late with nothing but junk gear hanging off them, doesn’t even apologize first, just stands there with that ‘Who, me?’ look. Pathetic.”
Be honest.
The other party members were agreeing with me, weren’t they?
Lee Sang-min was simply speaking more harshly, but the other members wore similar expressions of agreement.
They hadn’t gone into debt buying Grade 1 items for nothing.
But something felt off.
Why was that person just standing there so calmly?
Despite being insulted so thoroughly.
Just as Choi Jung-min, the party leader, was about to step forward, the one carrying the low-grade item moved ahead first.
Well then, let’s hear what you have to say.
Lee Sang-min watched him with a sneer, as if curious what excuse he might offer.
His gaze sharp as a viper’s.
He—no, Kim Min-jun—let out a soft chuckle at Lee Sang-min’s expression.
‘Why am I not afraid?’
Normally, Kim Min-jun would have been terrified, trembling with fear long ago.
This was the perfect moment to recall those school days.
But why?
He felt nothing of the sort.
If anything, it seemed almost laughable.
Ever since awakening his trait, he’d developed this sort of disposition.
Was it because his confidence and self-worth had surged?
Or was it somehow connected to his trait?
It didn’t really matter.
Right now, he simply wanted to be rid of this annoying person.
“I’m a Healer.”
“What, what, what?”
“I said I’m a Healer. Healers can equip low-grade items without issue, can’t they?”
This wasn’t Kim Min-jun speaking from some newfound sense of privilege—it was simply the truth.
To hunt Disaster Zone level 1 monsters, one must possess at least a 1-grade item.
Only then could one ignore their barriers and land a hit.
But a Healer’s trait wasn’t about striking monsters.
It was a noble trait—restoring the Hunters who did strike and granting them buffs.
Did such a Healer need to equip a 1-grade or higher item?
No.
Unless it were a special skill-amplification type item.
Besides, such items didn’t even appear until 3-grade, and since a Healer had no need to strike monsters, there was no reason for them to equip 1-grade items or higher.
And everyone here knew that.
Lee Sang-min included.
Tremble, tremble, tremble.
Surely not? Please, no.
A real Healer?
Tell me it’s not true.
Please.
I’d rather this were a dream.
Contrary to Lee Sang-min’s wishes, it was reality, and Kim Min-jun stepped forward to face him.
Lee Sang-min was seized by panic.
What could he even say?
“Y-you’re a Healer?”
At those words, Kim Min-jun smiled faintly.
Then he uttered something he’d heard before.
“If you made a mistake, you should apologize first instead of asking if I’m a Healer. Tsk tsk.”
He’d simply turned Lee Sang-min’s own words right back at him.
Just without the curses.
The reaction was quite something to witness.
Lee Sang-min’s face went ashen, his mind completely blank.
He trembled, swallowing hard.
Soon realizing his mistake, he quickly bowed deeply in apology.
“I-I’m sorry. I-I was just worried that if a D-Dealer with low-tier equipment joined, the w-whole party would be in d-danger, so…”
His trembling apology might have seemed pitiful, but Kim Min-jun’s expression remained cold.
It wasn’t that he wouldn’t forgive someone genuinely remorseful and reflective.
But the thing was.
Was Lee Sang-min truly remorseful and reflective?
Who knew?
At least, Kim Min-jun didn’t think so.
‘Would he act like that if I weren’t a Healer?’
No, of course not.
If I were just a Dealer, he’d have torn into me like prey.
That was what disgusted me.
So I reached a clear conclusion.
“Well, no. Honestly, you might not have known I was a Healer.”
At Kim Min-jun’s words, Lee Sang-min’s expression brightened momentarily.
But it didn’t last long.
“Well, since I’m not to your liking, I’ll just leave. I’ll find another party.”
At those words from Kim Min-jun, Choi Jung-min’s expression—who had been merely observing until now—hardened instantly.
Lee Sang-min’s expression?
There was nothing to say about it.
His face had gone beyond pale, like a corpse drained of all blood.
Surely he wasn’t serious about this.
Lee Sang-min thought this as he watched Kim Min-jun, but he was wrong.
Kim Min-jun turned to leave without a shred of hesitation.
Then.
“W-Wait a moment. I’ll resolve this, Kim Min-jun.”
“Ah, Party Leader.”
Choi Jung-min desperately grabbed Kim Min-jun.
He’d judged that Kim Min-jun would really leave if he didn’t stop him.
And that judgment was correct.
Kim Min-jun had genuinely intended to leave.
But now that Choi Jung-min was holding him back.
I deliberated for a moment.
If I followed my instincts, leaving would be the right call.
There was nothing holding me back anymore.
I could always find another party later.
But finding a level 2 tank from a major guild like Choi Jung-min was genuinely difficult.
‘Hmm, besides, if I just left, it would be inconsiderate.’
Regardless of my feelings, the others would be left in a bind.
So I decided to compromise.
“However, since there’s someone who doesn’t wish to party with me while I’m equipped with beginner gear…”
“…Yes?”
“One of us will have to leave.”
Though I phrased it as though offering a choice, there really was no choice at all.
Lee Sang-min felt despair in that instant.
A moment’s thought made it clear.
Once marked by a healer, survival in a raid becomes nearly impossible.
Yet Lee Sang-min couldn’t bear seeing all the other party members—save Kim Min-jun—gazing at him with resentful eyes.
“I… I’ll leave.”
With those words, Lee Sang-min rose weakly from his seat, gathered his belongings, and departed the Disaster Zone.
Such was the end of one who had tried to wield petty authority.
After the whirlwind had passed, the party members seemed drained of energy despite not having even begun the raid.
Watching them, I felt a great many things.
‘I’m sick of being discriminated against.’
Perhaps it was from a lifetime of such treatment?
Lee Sang-min, trusting in his meager position and acting arrogantly, was particularly unbearable to witness.
Above all, I didn’t want to become like him.
The party members were the ones who suffered from the clash between Lee Sang-min and myself.
So I bowed my head and apologized to them.
“I’m sorry for ruining the atmosphere.”
In that moment, everyone—including Choi Jung-min—was startled by my apology and stared blankly.
A healer apologizing first?
While my experience as a hunter wasn’t extensive, this was unheard of.
Even for a novice healer.
Besides, what just happened wasn’t even Lee Sang-min’s unilateral mistake.
There was no reason for me to apologize.
“No! Rather, I should have stepped in to resolve this first. I’m the one who should apologize.”
In response to my apology, Choi Jung-min apologized instead.
As the party leader, he hadn’t fulfilled his responsibilities, after all.
Temporary party or not, a party leader was still a party leader.
Regardless, once I apologized, the atmosphere couldn’t help but clear.
And for good reason.
“No way. This is the first time I’ve ever seen a Healer apologize like that.”
“His manners are seriously impressive.”
“He’s a Healer with such a great personality too. Usually….”
“Shh!”
They spoke cautiously, worried he might overhear, but every word was praise.
There was no reason for me to feel bad about receiving compliments.
While the other party members chattered away like that, Choi Jung-min could only nod in agreement.
‘His response was clean and decisive.’
Honestly, watching him take command so assertively left Choi Jung-min utterly mesmerized.
Was he really a novice Hunter?
The way he naturally dominated the atmosphere—how could one even describe it?
The casual confidence he exuded, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, was enough to make even Choi Jung-min, who worked for the major Han-byul Guild, flinch.
You couldn’t pull off something like that without genuine self-assurance and conviction.
Yet here was a Healer who’d just awakened a trait doing exactly that?
If he lacked confidence in his abilities, he could never have carried himself that way.
That’s when Choi Jung-min caught the scent.
The scent of something extraordinary.
‘He’s definitely not your average person.’
Most Healers, the moment they awakened a trait, became intoxicated with a sense of privilege and wielded their newfound power recklessly.
Eight out of ten were like that.
But the truly exceptional ones were different.
And Choi Jung-min detected that rare quality in the way Kim Min-jun had shifted the atmosphere with his apology.
‘I absolutely have to contact the guild.’
That was precisely why he, a Level 2 member of the major Han-byul Guild, was here.
To discover talent worth recruiting.
In other words, he was a scout.
And Kim Min-jun was talent that exceeded his expectations by over 1,000 percent.
He wanted to bring him in before anyone else noticed.
But rushing things only led to failure.
‘Let’s take this slow.’
In any case, once the tension eased.
Choi Jung-min took the initiative, clapping his hands to draw everyone’s attention.
“Well then, now that the commotion has settled, shall we introduce ourselves properly? You’ve all heard my introduction already… Han Dong-jin, why don’t you start?”
“Ah, yes!”
Even Choi Jung-min, being a Tank, watched as the remaining three Dealers introduced themselves with sharp discipline.
The man called Han Dong-jin was a Dealer with spear-related skills.
Next was a woman dressed similarly to Kim Min-jun, who introduced herself as Kim Mi-hee and said she was a magic-type Dealer.
Lee Sang-min seemed to have been confused by their similar attire, but it was ultimately his own mistake.
Finally, the man wielding a bow gave his name as Jung Woo-jin, a Dealer with bow-related skills.
One melee Dealer, two ranged Dealers, and a Level 2 Tank from a major guild to boot.
And that was the final flourish.
“I’m Kim Min-jun, and I recently awakened my trait. I’m a Healer, and my initial awakening skill is buff-based. I look forward to working with you all.”
His polished and straightforward introduction drew the most enthusiastic cheers and applause from the crowd.

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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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