The SSS-Class Hunter’s Garden Log - Chapter 36

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 36

 

Hana quickly put strength into her wobbling legs and steadied herself.

 

“A-are you okay?”

 

The black object wriggled and then suddenly stood up.

 

Its identity was Lee Haechan.

 

Due to the deeply pulled hood and bangs covering his eyes, Haechan’s face was barely visible.

 

He was still tightly holding Popcon in his arms.

 

“H-here’s the puppy…”

 

Haechan carefully held out Popcon to Hana.

 

Seo Ganghyeon realized it immediately, but neither Choi Kwon, Yun Taegyeom, nor even S-rank Lee Haechan seemed to recognize Popcon as a monster.

 

They probably thought it was a summoned creature or something.

 

Occasionally, there were hunters who carried summoned creatures around.

 

Hana took Popcon into her arms.

 

But Haechan’s hands didn’t easily let go.

 

“Um, could you please loosen your grip?”

 

“Ah…! Yes!”

 

Even as he belatedly let go, Haechan’s fingertips lingered around Popcon. He seemed quite reluctant to part with it.

 

Haechan, who had finally withdrawn his hands, kept bowing repeatedly.

 

“I’m sorry. Because of me, everyone almost got into danger… I guess I’m truly hopeless…”

 

Haechan’s voice grew smaller and smaller.

 

It was the tone of someone accustomed to putting themselves down.

 

Hana found herself bowing along with him.

 

“No, it’s not like you did it on purpose.”

 

She could feel the gloomy aura slowly spreading from Haechan.

 

At that moment, the oyster mushrooms she had gathered inside the Gate came to mind.

 

‘Oyster mushrooms tinged with melancholy.’

 

What if she used those on this person?

 

Hana hurriedly rummaged through her pocket.

 

“Wait a moment. Here, take this—”

 

“Hii, hiik!”

 

But he must have seriously misunderstood something.

 

Startled, Haechan sprang up like a spring and jumped far away.

 

“I-I’m really sorry! P-please don’t be angry!”

 

Then, before she could stop him, he ran away in the blink of an eye.

 

Hana, who had inadvertently ended up looking like she was trying to bully Haechan, blinked blankly.

 

“No, I was telling you to take this…”

 

-Take this. This, this.

 

Her voice, filled with injustice as she cried out while holding the oyster mushroom she had belatedly pulled out, only echoed in the empty corridor.

 

Ugh, whatever.

 

Hana stuffed the oyster mushroom back into her pocket.

 

“Let’s not worry about it.”

 

Hana firmly held her head, which kept trying to turn back toward the Guild Leader’s Office and the direction Haechan had disappeared, and strode toward the end of the corridor.

 

With the thought that one was SS-rank and the other was S-rank, so they would surely handle things well on their own.

 

* * *

 

“Right, they’ll handle things well on their own. They will.”

 

Hana set down the watering can on one side of the garden with a thud.

 

“But why do I keep worrying about it?”

 

Hana let out a sigh and looked at the garden.

 

The garden was peaceful today as well.

 

The rice seeds were growing vigorously, and the crops were doing their part without any problems.

 

It had already been several weeks since visiting Haechi Guild.

 

In the meantime, she had handled various trivial system missions and gathered 80 more experience points.

 

It was a small but steady achievement.

 

But that was the problem.

 

“It’s peaceful. Too peaceful.”

 

Hana threw off her work gloves, took out an ice cream from inside the cabin, and trudged to the bench.

 

With the ice cream in her mouth, Hana plopped down on the bench.

 

And she wrinkled her nose for no reason.

 

Because everything was going smoothly, she was even more worried.

 

About Seo Ganghyeon, who had completely cut off contact since that day.

 

When was it that he first asked for help?

 

Hana flopped down on the bench.

 

“I don’t know. I don’t know. I won’t worry about it.”

 

Maybe she had been sleeping well in the meantime.

 

Hana stretched out both arms and muttered while looking up at the sky.

 

But instead of the clear sky, something else suddenly intruded into Hana’s view.

 

“Hello, benefactor!”

 

It was Choi Kwon.

 

“Aaah!”

 

Hana jumped up in shock.

 

Choi Kwon, who had been standing upside down gripping the bench, grinned.

 

“You know what, I finally got into Haechi Guild?”

 

As if he had been waiting, he pulled out a card-type access pass from his pocket and held it right in front of Hana’s eyes.

 

It had the Haechi Guild logo embedded on it, the same as the one Hana had received.

 

“Look, look. Right?”

 

Choi Kwon proudly squared his shoulders and confidently extended his hand.

 

“So now I’m qualified to eat your crops too.”

 

Choi Kwon extended his hand further.

 

“So give it to me. The rice seeds.”

 

* * *

 

A moment later.

 

“Ah, why won’t you give them to me again!”

 

Choi Kwon grabbed Hana’s pant leg and raised his voice.

 

Hana covered her ears with both hands in dismay.

 

“It’s not that I won’t give them to you, I can’t give them yet! The rice seeds aren’t fully grown yet!”

 

“Then when will they be fully grown!”

 

“Uh… um…”

 

Hana closed her eyes for a moment and recalled the state of the rice seeds.

 

Although the shells had turned reddish, they were far from the deep red color they had when in the Boss Monster’s nest.

 

Not even half. No matter how generously she looked at it.

 

Hana slowly spread her fingers.

 

“Generously speaking, a month?”

 

“What?”

 

Choi Kwon’s face became the expression of someone whose world had collapsed.

 

“A month means it’ll get hot! You want me to keep wearing this hat until then?”

 

Choi Kwon vented all his frustration and tapped the knit hat on his head.

 

Despite how he looked, Choi Kwon seemed to cherish the knit hat he received from 301 Grandmother.

 

After tapping it a few times, he carefully brushed it off, worried that the hat might have been damaged.

 

After another round of bickering, only after getting a promise from Hana that she would “try to grow them as quickly as possible,” did Choi Kwon finally let go of her pant leg.

 

“Benefactor, you promised. You’ll give me the rice seeds within a month, right?”

 

“Ugh, I said I got it.”

 

Hana, instantly deflated, crunched through the rest of her ice cream and swallowed it.

 

Seriously, if he’s going to call me his benefactor, he should use formal speech.

 

If he’s going to speak casually, he should change that title first.

 

Hana shook her head back and forth, then suddenly brought up a topic as if it were nothing.

 

“So… how is Seo Ganghyeon doing these days?”

 

Ah, just to be clear, this isn’t because I’m worried.

 

Listening to Choi Kwon’s strange mix of formal and casual speech just reminded me of Seo Ganghyeon.

 

He also walks that tightrope between formal and casual speech.

 

Since he came to mind, I naturally got curious and asked.

 

Really.

 

Probably…?

 

Hana unnecessarily furrowed her brows.

 

“Our guild leader? He’s doing just fine.”

 

I see, so he’s doing well.

 

That was certainly good news to hear.

 

Hana’s brown eyebrows twitched as she chewed on her ice cream stick.

 

“Ah, but what kind of person rushes to every Gate that opens without even resting? He doesn’t seem to sleep at all.”

 

“He doesn’t sleep?”

 

“Yeah. There are even rumors that he can’t sleep.”

 

Hana’s eyes narrowed.

 

What? His insomnia wasn’t cured?

 

“Hmm.”

 

Hana chewed on the end of her finished ice cream stick.

 

She might not have known before, but now that she knew Seo Ganghyeon still couldn’t sleep, she couldn’t just sit back and watch.

 

Contracts exist to be kept, after all.

 

It had already been well over two weeks.

 

Seo Ganghyeon might not need her help, but she needed his help. If only for the rice seeds.

 

“…”

 

Hana suddenly shot up from her seat.

 

“Why, why are you suddenly getting up?”

 

“Let’s go to Haechi.”

 

“What?”

 

“I actually organized the crops to send today anyway. Let’s go together while we’re at it.”

 

“Hey, so suddenly?”

 

Hana had already gotten down from the bench and was efficiently organizing the crops she’d put in the garden boxes.

 

Choi Kwon approached Hana and resisted with all his might.

 

“Ah, I don’t want to! I just got off work!”

 

But when Hana tucked one of the pots with rice seeds under her arm and said something, Choi Kwon’s complaints immediately disappeared.

 

“Did I mention? These rice seeds need Seo Ganghyeon’s flame energy to grow big and strong quickly?”

 

As soon as those words fell, Choi Kwon’s expression completely changed.

 

Kwon, now wearing an incredibly serious expression, immediately turned around and respectfully spread both hands toward the path Hana would take.

 

“If that’s the case, you should have said so earlier. Let’s go, the guild leader said he’d come to the guild as soon as he finishes the Sindorim Station Gate raid this afternoon.”

 

He’s probably heading to the guild right about now, Choi Kwon said hurriedly, urging them to go quickly.

 

It was such a complete turnaround that you’d wonder if this was the same person who was talking about getting off work just moments ago.

 

Hana chuckled.

 

Choi Kwon stepped forward, saying he’d help carry the load, and grabbed a box.

 

“Geez, why is this so heavy?”

 

Hana, who was carrying three or four stacked boxes, looked at Choi Kwon strangely instead.

 

“It’s not heavy at all though?”

 

Hana looked pitifully at the frail Choi Kwon who couldn’t even properly lift one box, then strode ahead.

 

“Benefactor, she’s really not F-rank, is she?”

 

Kwon, looking at Hana in shock, groaned and hurried after her.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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