The Tone-Deaf Healer Kills with a Song - Chapter 7

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

Tone-Deaf Healer Kills with Song – Episode 007
His thick black hair fell straight, and when he tilted his head even slightly, his somewhat lengthy bangs naturally swept to the side.
The eyes I had taken for black revealed their true color only when sunlight poured across his face.
A deep wine-red hue—it reminded me of the door’s color when I first entered this place.
It wasn’t uncommon for appearances to change after awakening due to skills or various circumstances, so I assumed he was one such case.
“I worked the night shift at a Convenience Store.”
“Why the night shift?”
“They paid an extra 200 won per hour.”
The more I spoke, the more exposed I felt, and my voice grew progressively quieter.
He asked me meticulously—how many hours I worked the night Convenience Store shift, when I typically slept and woke up.
I wondered if the Guild really investigated such details, but since I was new to being a Hunter, I had no way of knowing what was standard, so I answered his questions faithfully.
“So, since you came in near morning, you would normally wake up in the afternoon.”
“Yes.”
“Then you must be quite drowsy right now.”
‘Is it okay to just say yes?’
Jung Hwan rose to his feet, speaking with an expression I couldn’t quite read—whether he was testing me or genuinely concerned.
He had been staring at the screen with narrowed eyes as if trying to verify something, but now he lifted his gaze and looked at me.
“Then starting tomorrow, how about you get plenty of rest and we begin at three in the morning?”
“Pardon?”
“Forcing yourself to abandon your natural sleep schedule won’t yield optimal efficiency. Even if not three o’clock, I’ll make time in the early morning, so just contact me when you wake up. I won’t do anything strange—that would violate our contract.”
“…But the last trains stop running by then, so it would be difficult to commute to the office at dawn.”
Taking a taxi would mean paying a surcharge. It was petty, but I couldn’t help thinking about it. I didn’t have a license yet, and obviously no car either—what was I supposed to do?
Jung Hwan fell silent for a moment at my words, as if at a loss. But only briefly; soon he retrieved the black jewel I had returned to him earlier.
“May I ask what that is?”
“It’s something like a gift from my assigned staff member. It appears in different forms to different people, but only I can see its true shape.”
“Ah, but you carried something so important in your pocket and gave it to me…”
He fell silent as if struck by the truth. It seemed he had a more careless side than I’d thought.
With a desperate pretense of not hearing, he held it aloft in the air. As he moved his lips as if whispering something, wine-colored light scattered in all directions.
“I’m not sure if Yeom Ye-ah properly read it, but our contract contains such a clause. I bear all necessary expenses related to my work—meals, transportation, and so forth.”
“Ah, yes. I saw it.”
“I could cover your transportation costs, but I’d rather not entrust my dedicated Healer to a driver I don’t know.”
When I opened my eyes, a black, fathomless void-space door spread before me. Jung Hwan, his back to it, met my gaze.
“I’ll pick you up. Whenever you wake, wherever you are.”
This came alongside the assurance that it didn’t have to be three in the morning specifically.
“…”
“Ah, don’t worry—I’m not the type to do anything shameless like breaking into your home.”
“No, that’s not what I’m worried about. Don’t you sleep at night?”
“You don’t need to concern yourself with that. It’s a company benefit.”
Was the Guild really the kind of place that adjusted the Guild Master’s sleep schedule to match the Healer’s timetable, all in the name of company benefits?
By any reasonable standard, it made no sense, yet he spoke of it as though it were a Guild Master’s basic duty.
Jung Hwan-jae checked the time as if to signal that his guidance had concluded, then adjusted his posture.
“Unlike typical corporations, the Guild finds it difficult to have new members jump directly into work after training. In our case, we provide foundational education for those who’ve just become Hunters. Would you like to attend that, at least?”
His tone suggested I was free to leave if I preferred.
If this were a Convenience Store, I would have bolted without hesitation. By the time I heard that offer, I’d likely have been working overtime anyway.
But this was different. I was still under the effects of the Hanttae buff.
The Hanttae buff—a state that radiated with enthusiasm and ambition to work diligently, burning with the fervent will to seek out tasks and accomplish them, all because it had been only one day since joining.
“Forgive the imposition, but I’d be grateful for the opportunity!”
“…Of course we provide it. There’s nothing impertinent about it at all.”
He blinked slowly, seeming taken aback by my spirited response. After what appeared to be a phone call and some file shuffling, he turned his gaze toward me.
“If you head to the 11th Floor now, you should be able to receive the training. Once you finish the machine-based portion, we’ll move into situational briefing or coaching depending on circumstances. I’ll be personally handling Yeom Ye-ah’s coaching. Oh, and this is my business card. If you need to contact me, send it directly to this number.”
Jung Hwan-jae extended an elegant business card toward me, then offered a light bow. I sensed this was my appropriate moment to exit and stepped back.
Should I say goodbye? Or should I say I’ll see you tomorrow? If neither of those felt right….
“Guild Master, I’ll c-call you at dawn!”
Only after I’d hastily turned away did it occur to me that my words might be misunderstood by anyone who overheard them.
But it wasn’t I who had suggested the early morning hour—it was him. I descended to the 11th Floor, silently blaming him for it.
Contrary to my expectation that someone would be waiting, the space was divided into narrow booth-like compartments. A single line of text glowed on the display panel before me.
[Please enter your desired booth, put on the headset, and play the training file from the desktop.]
Quite an analog approach for the age of great Hunters.
I casually moved toward a booth and sat down in one at random. The black headset looked rather expensive. I placed it over my ears and manipulated the computer before me, clicking the file on the desktop.
At that moment, the booth’s display transformed as if through augmented reality.
In truth, calling it augmented reality undersells what I was experiencing—it felt as though I’d been dragged into an entirely new world.
“No, please! Who are you!”
Had a figure clad in something resembling armor not suddenly appeared before my eyes, I might have continued marveling at the sight.
Standing with noble composure in a space so vast I could scarcely believe I remained in that narrow booth, the figure faced me with their visage concealed behind a veil.
“Hello. I am your guide, here to assist you with the Valkyrie Network orientation. This guidance is official material distributed by Balder to all Hunters, and direct interaction is not possible. If you have questions, please direct them through your assigned staff member.”
Rather than a voice, what struck my eardrums was a droning, reverberating sound that seemed to hammer directly into my consciousness. The figure stood with their back to me, gazing into empty space.
It appeared to be an educational mascot of some kind.
Since it wasn’t created in-house by the Guild but distributed from somewhere higher up, that made sense.

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