The Regressed SSS-Rank Supporter Who Turned Dark - Chapter 28
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
#Episode 28
Now that I think about it, I wielded tremendous credibility within HunterLink alone.
Though I’m merely a 2-star Hunter now, within HunterLink itself
my previous life’s rank applied without alteration.
It seemed HunterLink graded users not by physical prowess, but by the rank of their soul.
That’s why I could dominate the owner within another user’s domain.
Just as I had counterattacked against Choi Yu-ra’s pressure.
Because of this, the comment reactions were nothing short of explosive.
[Anonymous] ?
[Anonymous] What rank is this?
[Anonymous] ??
[Anonymous] Who is this person??
[Anonymous] 10-star???
[Anonymous] Is that even possible?????
[Anonymous] Bug? How can there be a 10-star Hunter?
[Anonymous] Insane lol
It wasn’t just Korean Hunters.
[Anonymous] WTF????? 10star???
[Anonymous] 十星?系统里根本没有这个等级
[Anonymous] Le système ne se trompe pas à ce point
[Anonymous] Десять звёзд? Это вне классификации.
Hunters from around the world were equally astounded by the mysterious 10-star Hunter.
[Information] Events to Unfold in the Near Future 1 (1,372)
Only five minutes had passed since I posted, yet over a thousand comments had already accumulated.
Of course, everyone would be shocked.
Generally, for a Hunter beyond 5-star to climb even one rank requires unimaginable effort and grueling trials.
Beyond 6-star, it becomes nearly impossible to grow stronger through effort alone—one must have fortune bordering on destiny on their side.
Perhaps there were only about twenty Hunters who had reached 10-star, myself included.
[Anonymous] Is this actually real???
[Anonymous] Seems like bullshit
[Anonymous] Eva lol;; How is it possible that a 10-star hunter’s name isn’t known lol;; It’s probably just a bug
The Hunters shocked by my rank paid little attention to the actual content of my post.
Ah, come on.
Look at the post content, not the author’s rank.
I went through the trouble of warning about future events….
But I had certainly succeeded in capturing their attention, so I was more than satisfied.
By operating as a mysterious 10-star Hunter and gradually revealing what I knew, I would gain absolute trust.
Then preventing the Day of Lamentation would be entirely possible.
[A comment has been posted!]
[A comment has been posted!]
[A comment has been posted!]
…
[A comment has been posted!]
Comments continued to flood in in real-time.
It wasn’t just comments.
[General] Is that bullshit? (17)
[General] A 10-star Hunter suddenly appears and prophesies the future? Does that even make sense? (331)
[General] Seems possible though, but a 10-star though;;; (58)
[General] Anyone got a guess who it is? (113)
Heated debate erupted over my identity and the authenticity of my post.
Ding!
A notification window appeared.
[Your post has been moved to the Integrated Best Posts board!]
[Your post is currently ranked #1 in real-time views and comments!]
[HIT!] Events Coming in the Near Future 1 (6,117)
My post had already claimed the top spot in view count among all posts on HunterLink, with a massive banner plastered across the Integrated Best Posts board.
It was no exaggeration to say I’d turned the entire Hunter world upside down, not merely caught their attention.
“Ha ha….”
Feeling somewhat bewildered, I disabled all notifications.
I never expected my first post to generate such an explosive response….
* * *
Meanwhile, Ahn Guk-seon, the Defense Strategy Department Minister and a first-generation Hunter, was reading a report on the day’s events.
Seated formally before him was Lim Captain, the very person who had written the report.
“…The more I read, the more remarkable it becomes.”
Ahn Guk-seon clicked his tongue as he continued reading.
“Excellent situational judgment, sharp instincts, and skilled in combat. So you’re saying the only flaw is that he’s recklessly bold—otherwise flawless?”
“At least, that’s what I observed.”
“A born monster. Blood truly cannot lie, can it?”
“Where else would that blood go?”
Lim Captain smiled faintly, recalling Cha Eun-sung’s family history.
Cha Eun-sung’s grandfather had been a legendary North Korean operative attached to the Navy Intelligence Unit, successfully executing multiple maritime infiltration operations into North Korea.
His father, a Navy Special Forces veteran, was now a Regional Defense Force commander—a living legend still commanding special operations in the field.
Cha Eun-sung himself had enlisted as a Navy officer and was scheduled to apply for the Navy Special Forces, so the saying “blood cannot lie” could not have fit better.
But what truly captured Ahn Guk-seon’s attention was Cha Eun-sung’s abilities.
“He seals the spiritual weapons of dead Hunters into card form… uses cards to heal allies, and on top of that, summons some mysterious woman?”
“Yes, Minister.”
“Yet he’s not even a support-type Hunter—when he defeated the Count, he enchanted cards onto an axe-shaped spiritual weapon and fought with it? What do you make of this fellow’s true identity?”
“Honestly, I have no idea. All I can say is that he’s fundamentally different from any Hunter we’ve encountered so far….”
“Pointless question. You wouldn’t know anyway.”
“Ha ha….”
“A new role-class owner has emerged in South Korea—and from the Cha family, no less.”
“I believe it’s truly fortunate.”
“Fortunate?”
“There’s an old saying, isn’t there? A nation with no natural resources has only one path to survival: its people. When we’re already outnumbered in high-tier Hunters compared to China and Japan, the emergence of a talented individual like Cha Eun-sung is surely a tremendous blessing for South Korea, wouldn’t you say?”
“Whether it’s a blessing or a catastrophe remains to be seen.”
“I beg your pardon…?”
“Don’t expect a member of a patriotic family to blindly dedicate himself to the nation. Young people are unpredictable.”
“I-I apologize.”
“There’s no need to apologize. Just remember this: there is nothing more terrifying than someone with immense power who begins to act on their own whims.”
Ahn Guk-seon lit a cigarette.
“Care for one?”
“No, thank you. I quit some time ago.”
“Smoking cessation in times like these? Your willpower is truly admirable. Exhales.”
Ahn Guk-seon moved toward the window, smoking as he spoke.
“Hunters’ power grows stronger by the day. Control becomes increasingly difficult, doesn’t it? The emergence of a Hunter with formidable strength could be a blessing for South Korea and humanity—but never forget it could equally be a catastrophe. Even I cannot be certain how much longer I can hold this position.”
“Minister…”
Lim Captain’s words trailed off.
He understood the profound anxiety underlying Ahn Guk-seon’s words.
Separate from the threat to humanity, the political landscape was treacherous—like walking on thin ice each passing day.
Moreover, several Hunters were openly advocating regime change, and evidence of their attempts to act on these plans was surfacing constantly.
Ahn Guk-seon’s inability to quit smoking was likely rooted in such concerns.
Buzz!
Lim Captain’s phone vibrated.
“My apologies, Minister. Allow me to check this message briefly.”
“Go ahead.”
“Minister…?”
Lim Captain’s voice trembled as he read the message.
“What is it? Has something happened?”
“On HunterLink… a 10-star Hunter has posted something.”
“…?”
“Someone posted anonymously, but the author information shows ten stars next to their name.”
“A 10-star Hunter exists?”
“It appears so. They posted something akin to a prophecy, and the Hunter Link Forum is in absolute chaos over it.”
“I need to see this for myself.”
“Yes, Minister.”
Lim Captain stepped aside so Ahn Guk-seon could access HunterLink.
Hunters were vulnerable during HunterLink access, so the protocol was to connect only in secure locations and when alone.
Before accessing HunterLink, Ahn Guk-seon closed his eyes to concentrate.
“A 10-star Hunter… What in the world…?”
A murmur of astonishment escaped Ahn Guk-seon’s lips.
The shocking emergence of a 10-star Hunter had eclipsed all thoughts of Cha Eun-sung from my mind.
Cha Eun-sung was certainly a promising prospect worth monitoring closely, but a 10-star Hunter at this juncture represented humanity’s greatest concern.
* * *
The next day.
I headed to the Swimming Pool right after waking up to loosen my body.
In truth, the Swimming Pool was little different from a treadmill for me.
I had learned to swim from my Father since childhood and was accustomed to swimming and diving in the ocean.
Pool swimming held no excitement for me whatsoever, yet I sought it out regardless—simply because I loved the water itself.
I adored that sensation of my body submerged beneath the surface.
After finishing my swim, I went to the Restaurant to grab a quick breakfast, and I noticed the gazes of several residents upon me.
“Aren’t you the Hunter from yesterday’s Sindorim incident news? The one Minister Ahn Guk-seon has high hopes for?”
“I think his name was Cha Eun-sung?”
“Oh my. He really is handsome.”
Since my awakening, my physical abilities had sharpened—I could hear every whisper the residents exchanged.
Some of them even pretended to check their phones while secretly snapping photos of me.
‘If you’re going to do it, just take the shot openly. Why the secrecy?’
I let out a quiet chuckle to myself.
Once you become a Hunter, there’s no escaping cameras.
You have to learn to ignore them and live your life—otherwise the stress will consume you.
People’s attention follows you everywhere.
“Cha Eun-sung. So you’re here.”
“Oh? Lim Captain, what brings you at this hour?”
“I came to deliver something. I was planning to contact you by phone, but the carrier said you’d canceled your number.”
“Ah.”
Of course.
He’d figured it out and tracked me down already.
“But you look exhausted. You didn’t pull an all-nighter, did you?”
“That’s what happened.”
“You’ve been through a lot. What’s the matter?”
“Ah, you wouldn’t know yet. A 10-star Hunter appeared on the Hunter Link Forum yesterday.”
“What?”
The Minister ordered us to analyze the post—I haven’t slept a wink.
“Haha…”
So he’d lost sleep because of me.
“But what brings you here?”
I came to deliver a notice and provide an explanation.
“A notice? Ah.”
The Special Armed Forces Training Institute.
Abbreviated as the Special Operations Bureau.
A training facility that teaches newly awakened Hunters essential tactics and survival knowledge.
The training program spans five weeks—intensive, rigorous, and comprehensive—but the problem is it’s “entirely” unnecessary for me.
“Could I be exempted? You’ve experienced dungeon raids with me, so you know my capabilities, Lim Captain.”
“Of course, I’ve witnessed Cha Eun-sung’s skill and talent firsthand, and I’d love to grant you an exemption, but….”
“So that’s a no.”
“Government institutions have procedures to follow.”
“What if I asked the Minister directly?”
“That likely won’t work. The Minister….”
“He’s a stickler for the rules, isn’t he.”
Iron Blood wasn’t entirely inflexible, but when it came to fundamentals, he leaned toward strict principle—which meant there was virtually no chance of getting the Special Operations Bureau requirement waived.
“Yes, the Minister does have that tendency.”
“Ugh.”
A sigh escaped me involuntarily.
Here I was, a seasoned hunter worn down by years in the field, forced to endure five weeks of basic training alongside greenhorns….
“Still, it won’t be a bad experience. Beyond the training itself, the Special Operations Bureau is an excellent opportunity to build connections with your fellow recruits from the same cohort.”
“I don’t really need that sort of thing….”
“I think you will.”
“Why’s that.”
“I’m telling you this in confidence, but there’s a mage in your cohort.”
“A mage…?”
“You may have crossed paths with her when you visited the Defense Strategy Department. Her name is Ra Si-hyun—a mage with exceptional potential.”
My body reacted before my mind could catch up.
The moment I heard the name Ra Si-hyun, I tensed involuntarily.
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————