Chapter 279. Side Story   - Change Pt. 4

Before his regression, the Korean Association had been powerful and had a secret organization hidden behind the scenes led by Odin. Back then, the Korean Association couldn’t be ignored by anyone in the world and competed for world supremacy.

Even now, after he had regressed, things were no different from the past.

“Well, it looks the same.”

The new form of Hunters, the Players, had abilities just like those of characters in games. It was said that the Koreans quickly adapted to such changes because Koreans were on another level when it came to games.[1]

Before his original regression, it was said that the advent of the Gates had occurred about two years before Lee Jun-Kyeong had regressed. However, history had changed when he regressed after the death of the Sponsors and the disappearance of the Demon King.

When he returned the second time, the advent of the Gates had occurred fifteen years earlier. Therefore, his companions had been able to accumulate great power even without Andlangr.

‘There were others, too.’

Over seventeen years had passed since the Gates had appeared, and more powerful people had appeared than in the past. Currently, secret organizations no longer existed. Instead, they were in the form of guilds rather than working secretly behind the scenes.

However, the guilds had maintained just as much, if not more, power than what they had in the past. Their power had been accumulated continuously over a longer period of time. Korea was still the country with the highest level of skill in the world of Hunters, and the owner of the Association that held the focus of that power was still Odin.

“Odin...”

“Did you want to meet Odin?” Heimdall asked carefully.

From what Lee Jun-Kyeong had heard, Odin seemed a little different from what he remembered.

‘They probably would have taken care of him already if they thought he was dangerous.’

His companions would have already taken Odin down if he had been a concern, but Odin was still alive and still held power. That meant that he wasn’t as dangerous as before.

“No.”

Nevertheless, Lee Jun-Kyeong didn’t want to meet Odin just yet. There was no particular reason; he just felt a little uncomfortable.

“I understand.” Heimdall nodded in agreement.

Crreaak.

Suddenly, the car stopped. As soon as the luxury sedan stopped, all gazes became focused on them. Hunters belonged to the upper tier of socioeconomic standing. However, even for them, the car that Lee Jun-Kyeong and Heimdall were riding boasted an unreasonable cost.

“Siegfried, that bastard, rides an even better car.”

As the Guild Leader of the Northern Army Guild, one of Korea’s three largest guilds and one of the world’s top ten guilds, Jeong In-Chang seemed to be earning more than he expected.

“Are you jealous?”

“No. It’s just a little irritating whenever that little brat flaunts it around.”

“...”

Well, it wasn’t as if Jeong In-Chang was doing it with malicious intent. He was just teasing Heimdall.

“I’m gonna knock some sense into him someday.”

Although Heimdall had been the Guild Leader of the rising League Guild in Korea in the previous timeline, he wasn’t currently maintaining a guild. He was someone who took great pride in his activities as a Hunter. However, Lee Jun-Kyeong knew that the reason Heimdall didn’t lead a guild was himself.

‘He said he wanted to spend time with me...’

Heimdall had wanted to spend time with him rather than going on raids and thus had organized everything and just waited for him. Still, that didn’t mean that he hadn’t done anything, as he still had to make a living.

“Huh??! It’s Heimdall!!!”

“What’s going on?”

“Has a Great Gate appeared?”

The Hunters whispered as they watched Heimdall get out of the car. Heimdall shrugged as he looked at Lee Jun-Kyeong as if the response of the crowd was a frequent occurrence.

“I have to go meet the President of the Association first...”

“I’ll see you soon.”

“Are you planning on registering as a Hunter?” Heimdall asked with a deep smirk. Taking Lee Jun-Kyeong’s silence as an affirmation, Heimdall’s smirk grew even deeper.

“Do it in moderation,” he said as he moved on.

Suddenly, people who appeared to be employees of the Association appeared and escorted him somewhere. Unlike before, Heimdall wasn’t the Guild Leader of the League Guild. He wasn’t even a member of the secret organization Asgard. He was just an individual Hunter.

“He’s an SSS Rank Hunter! Heimdall just passed us by!”

He was someone with a rank that not even ten people around the world had reached. In this timeline, he had reached the highest level. Lee Jun-Kyeong smiled as he watched the Association become noisy. From the crowded place due to Heimdall’s appearance, a familiar face approached him.

***

“The Korean Association puts more effort into nurturing new talent than anywhere else in the world,” the man said as he pointed to several places.

Those who clearly appeared to be rookie Hunters were receiving instruction in various places.

“From equipment for new Hunters...”

There was a well-arranged array of weapons off to one side.

“We even have a training center for people to develop their skills.”

There was even a training ground that looked solid. It certainly seemed like the Korean Association was putting a lot of effort into nurturing new talent.

In a stiff tone, the man continued to explain, “Moreover, the number of Hunters in Korea is by no means insufficient compared to other countries. There are so many people aspiring to become Hunters here that in terms of percentage, it would rank among the top three in the world.”

Lee Jun-Kyeong had heard that before. People could choose to be Hunters by their own choice, not by the whims of a Sponsor.

The world had changed, and there were no longer as many dangerous things for ordinary humans. Despite that, the lives of Hunters were still the same. It wasn’t that there were no risks, just that they were simply reduced due to the structured system. The time Hunters spent in the Gates was still enough to endanger their lives. Nevertheless, there were still a lot of aspiring Hunters in Korea.

“There are few places where Hunters have better recognition than Korea,” the man finished.

The man had a stiff tone of voice and a stony expression. However, suddenly, he began to laugh.

“Do you plan on becoming a Hunter?” the man asked quietly.

Lee Jun-Kyeong responded lightly, “Yes, I plan to.”

Before he knew it, Lee Jun-Kyeong saw a big hand in front of him.

“It is an honor. I’ve been waiting for today...” the man said. “Mr. Lee.”

The man called Lee Jun-Kyeong by name, his eyes beginning to water.

“I am also honored,” Lee Jun-Kyeong said, smiling. “Mr. Kim.”

The man before him was a man who had helped him in many ways as he became a Hunter in the past regression. However, because of his weaker strength, the time they had been able to spend together hadn’t been long. Still, the man had tried in many ways to help him all the way to the end.

Lee Jun-Kyeong said sincerely to the man standing right before him, “Thank you.”

Kim Su-Yeong.

Unlike the others, who had awakened their memories of him quickly, Kim Su-Yeong had said that it hadn’t been that long since he had awakened his memories of Lee Jun-Kyeong.

Lee Jun-Kyeong had heard that after doing so, Kim Su-Yeong had left Korea. As before, Kim Su-Yeong had been working as a low-level employee of the Association and had quit his job the day he had awakened his memories of Lee Jun-Kyeong, traveling the world.

“I tried to become stronger,” Kim Su-Yeong said. “I tried with everything I had.”

After quitting his stable job, Kim Su-Yeong had risked his life by traveling through Gates all around the world. He had spent all of his time trying to become stronger. Having finally returned, it was just yesterday that Lee Jun-Kyeong heard the news of his return. That was why Lee Jun-Kyeong had even shown up at the Association.

It was said that as soon as Kin Su-Yeong had returned to the country, he had come straight to the Association.

‘Please take me again.’

What he had wanted from the Association after he had grown in fame was nothing but to request to be accepted as a junior employee once again. From the Association's point of view, it was an absurd ask. Although the Association had offered him a high-ranking position in response, Kim Su-Yeong had reportedly declined.

“From now on, I have been assigned as the dedicated manager of the Association for Mr. Lee...!”

There was only one thing that he had wanted: to be of aid to Lee Jun-Kyeong.

“I will be by your side! For! Ever!”

That was it.

“It would be an honor to serve the Hero who saved the world. Would you grant me that honor?”

Lee Jun-Kyeong slowly nodded. Kim Su-Yeong was also a companion, so he grasped the offered hand into a vigorous handshake.

“Let’s start by registering as a Hunter.”

There was something still important that remained.

*** Kim Su-Yeong stood in a neat suit.

“That’s Kim Su-Yeong, isn’t it?”

“I heard he came back to Korea...”

“What guild did he join?”

Gazes and voices followed him around. There were many people who were interested in him, but none of them could easily talk to him.

“I heard he didn’t join a guild?”

“Then is he working solo?”

“I even saw Heimdall today, too... They really are living the high life.”

The attention of the Hunters was focused on him. Among them, there was one with a sharp eye.

“Huh?”

Noticing something, he raised a question.

“The nametag...!”

“Huh?”

“Look at the nametag!”

The Hunters focused their gazes as soon as he finished speaking. It was true. There was a yellow name tag that didn’t match the neat suit. The yellow name tag meant one thing.

“A manager...?”

“There’s no way!”

“You’re saying that he’s running around after some newbie? Kim Su-Yeong??!”

The title manager meant that one was an employee who managed the growth of the new Hunters. Then, their gazes naturally turned over to the Hunter standing next to Kim Su-Yeong. The Hunter that they had thought was merely an acquaintance of Kim Su-Yeong was just a new Hunter? And with Kim Su-Yeong as his manager??!

“Wow, what a lucky guy.”

“But it doesn’t seem like he’s a Hunter yet?”

“He doesn’t have a Hunter mark.”

The Association gave certificates to registered Hunters, provided as an item desired by all Hunters in the form of a brooch or accessory. That item had become the mark that identified Hunters. However, the person next to Kim Su-Yeong had no such mark. Any Hunter, or rather, any Hunter that joined the Association, had to wear a mark.

“Then are they just friends?”

As the crowd tried to figure out what was going on and gossiped among themselves, the observant Hunter from earlier shouted again.

“Huh??!!!! They’re going to the Hunter Registry!!!”

***

In the past, mana had been measured during a Hunter’s registration, verifying one’s mana reserves and the skills one received from a Sponsor. However, the system had changed quite a bit in this timeline.

‘Mana is not important.’

That was what Odin had said. Mana was a great tool to measure the strength of Hunters. The more powerful a Hunter’s mana, the more likely that Hunter would be strong.

However, Odin thought otherwise. It was true that mana was important, but he had decided to look at more than just someone’s grasp of raw mana.

‘Use of skills, physical ability, ability to handle weapons, etc. There are many things you need to know to check a hunter’s strength.’

He wanted to focus on real strength. It was rumored that Odin had a reason for thinking that way. He had met an unidentified Hunter while he had been going through several Gates for training. Although the Hunter had definitely had much less mana than Odin, Odin had been defeated miserably on that day.

After that day, the Korean Association’s system had changed from a method of measuring a Hunter’s rank in terms of mana to a method that evaluated overall ability. Furthermore, that method was soon adopted by Associations around the world because it proved to be a much more accurate way than measuring mana alone.

“Firstly, are there any weapons you know how to handle?” asked an employee at the Hunter Registry. The employee seemed nervous as Kim Su-Yeong was watching from the side.

Lee Jun-Kyeong looked at the array of weapons and exhaled. “It doesn’t matter which one you choose. Moreover, even if you can’t handle any weapons...”

As the Hunter manning the registry spoke, Lee Jun-Kyeong had already walked forward.

Thud.

He stopped before an object on the display shelf: a spear. Lifting the spear, Lee Jun-Kyeong’s hand began to shake. Although the others thought that his arms were shaking because the spear was too heavy, in reality, it was different. Lee Jun-Kyeong could hear a voice in his head.

–Drop it.

It was the voice of Surtr, his treasured spear, being jealous.

‘Please let it go, this one time,’ Lee Jun-Kyeong carefully asked Surtr.

. T1T1T1T1 ALL ROADS LEAD TO ME (iyknyk) ?