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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 33
Chapter Title: A Calculated Move
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“How amusing.”

It wasn't a genuinely amused expression. Only the corners of her mouth lifted slightly; Deputy Chief Park's eyes weren't smiling.

Her gaze was fixed on her chopsticks as she rolled the last piece of sashimi in water parsley, but Kwon Wook knew she was seeing something else beyond that.

“A Constellation that forces people to fall in love… Sounds like a childish comedy show, my boy.”

“Well, I'm the one living in that comedy show.”

“Oh, come on, Wook. You're living a great life. Why would you say that?”

Waving her hand dismissively, Deputy Chief Park suddenly let out a small laugh.

“And of all people, it's Yoon Se-heon? Oh, that's hilarious. I'm cracking up right now.”

“You don't seem to find it funny at all.”

“No, I do. He's Assemblyman Yoon's son, on top of everything. I doubt Assemblyman Yoon has any intention of having a civil servant for a daughter-in-law.”

Assemblyman Yoon. She was referring to Yoon Se-heon's father, a conservative party assemblyman. He also happened to be close to Deputy Chief Park. Her words like ‘amusing’ and ‘hilarious’ always held a hidden meaning.

Kwon Wook moved his chopsticks in silence. It had been ten years since he became an S-rank Hunter.

Of all the people he knew, Deputy Chief Park was the most difficult to read. On the surface, she was all smiles and friendly banter, but no other superior was as inscrutable as her.

“So that's why Jeong Yu-jin was so adamant about not knowing anything at the disciplinary committee. And here I was thinking she had some beef with Lee Eun-ju.”

Jeong Yu-jin, Lee Eun-ju. Both were from the Dungeon Assault Division.

Being an E-rank from birth, Deputy Chief Park, a working-level official who couldn't aim for a position higher than deputy chief, could never be on good terms with them.

The Hunter's Office is largely divided into two categories. The Dungeon Assault Division, which covers ranks from S to C. And below that, the Public Support Division.

The high-rank Hunters who entered dungeons despised the Public Support Division as trash who shared incentives while they risked their lives. Meanwhile, the low-rank Hunters, while boasting that South Korea wouldn't function without them, suffered from an inferiority complex towards their high-rank counterparts.

Deputy Chief Park wasn't one to outwardly show her inferiority complex, but that didn't mean she liked high-rank Hunters.

“Jeong Yu-jin's been trying to act like a good boss lately, which doesn't suit her. If she's going to act that way, she should go visit the graves of the kids who died because of her and pay her respects.”

Deputy Chief Park sneered at the absent Mapo branch chief. At the same time, she casually pushed the menu towards Kwon Wook again.

“Wook, you must be hungry coming here at this hour. Don't just pick at the sashimi, have some blowfish soup before you go. The blowfish soup here is delicious. When I pull an all-nighter, it's the only thing I can stomach.”

“You pulled another all-nighter?”

“Don't even ask. Our director is desperate to make a big case before he leaves. He's dying to become a minister.”

Deputy Chief Park frowned, sweeping back her softly curled hair.

It was inevitable, as any head office director's next goal was to become a minister.

The Director of the Hunter's Office was infamous for going to the National Assembly or the Blue House at 9 AM, only to return to Sejong after 6 PM and hound the working-level staff. He supposedly said he was determined to become the Minister of National Defense at least once.

“Wook, this is how tough the administrative work is, you see? You guys think only entering dungeons is hard? What am I doing at my age, suffering like this? It's killing me.”

“I'm not like that. I know better than anyone how hard you have it, Deputy Chief.”

Deputy Chief Park let out a small laugh.

“So you're going to live a good, quiet life without causing any trouble?”

“Yes.”

“You shouldn't do that, Wook.”

Kwon Wook, who had readily agreed, hesitated. Deputy Chief Park shrugged.

“Cause some trouble. Something big. That's the only way to get anything done. This country is like that. If you stay quiet and still, nothing happens. Understand?”

“If I cause trouble, you'll hate me, Deputy Chief.”

“Not at all. I like people who cause trouble, Wook.”

Deputy Chief Park's makeup-free lips curved into a smile.

The smile was somehow chilling. But it wasn't as if he didn't know she was this kind of person.

“Let me meet that young lady, Kang Ha-ra, sometime. I should play matchmaker.”

Right, on your way out, grab some donuts from my car trunk. My secretary's husband runs a donut shop just around the corner. He brings them every day, and I'm sick to death of them. Ten donuts won't get you in trouble with the anti-graft law…

Deputy Chief Park rambled on about her life. Kwon Wook just smiled and nodded along.

“I love donuts. I'll eat them in the taxi on the way.”

“Good, don't starve yourself for a diet. You eat all those donuts. Look how skinny you are.”

“I have to watch my weight. Think of how many views the promotional videos would lose if I gained weight.”

Deputy Chief Park reached out to touch Kwon Wook's red hair, then recoiled in disgust.

“Aish, before worrying about views, do something about your hair. What is this mess? It's all damaged.”

Kwon Wook grinned sheepishly.

“You're like my mom, Deputy Chief.”

“Don't say such creepy things. I'm not even married yet. What do you mean, mom?”

As she said that, Deputy Chief Park picked up her phone and scrolled through her contacts.

Kwon Wook glanced at her before pressing the call button. A *ding-dong* sound echoed, and a moment later, an employee slid the door open and entered.

“I'll have one blowfish soup, please.”

“Yes, sir.”

As soon as the door closed, a deep voice came from Deputy Chief Park's phone. At the words, “Ah, Deputy Chief Park,” she made a laughing sound with her mouth only, engrossed in the call.

“Yes, Assemblyman Yoon. It's me. Are you well? I thought you might be sleeping at this hour, but you answered. These days…”

The blowfish soup arrived, and the call still hadn't ended by the time Kwon Wook finished his meal. When he bowed his head, Deputy Chief Park waved him off while still on the phone.

Outside the restaurant, Deputy Chief Park's secretary, who had been waiting, escorted him to the parking lot and opened the car trunk. A neat donut box.

Kwon Wook took the box and got into a taxi.

“Sangam-dong, Seoul, please.”

He vaguely heard the driver say, “Wow, that's a long way,” as he peeked inside the box. It didn't contain donuts, but a few faintly glowing Magic Stones rolling around. Kwon Wook swept his hair back and closed the box.

“Cause some trouble. Something big.”

“Let me meet that young lady, Kang Ha-ra, sometime.”

That must have been the main point.

The taxi passed through the city and entered the highway. The highway leading out of Sejong was only two lanes. In this city with its narrow entry and exit roads, Kwon Wook had no doubt he would have to return soon.

＊ ＊ ＊

There are a total of eight S-rank Hunters in South Korea.

Among them, one is Lee Eun-ju, the head of the Seoul branch, and two bolted to create their own guilds the moment their mandatory 20-year service period ended.

As a result, there were only five Dungeon Assault teams in Korea that actually included an S-rank Hunter.

Of those five teams, the most famous was, of course, Team K. Not only did it have many young, high-rank Hunters, but its media exposure was also high, thanks to being centered around Kwon Wook.

However, despite their fame, they faced many restrictions. Because they were civil servants. Consequently, Bok-hee was the only member with a social media presence.

Naturally, most of Team K's fans followed Bok-hee's social media. Fortunately or unfortunately, Bok-hee was what you'd call an “attention seeker,” so he posted quite a few pictures, sometimes even including photos of Kwon Wook.

But a picture posted today rather annoyed Kwon Wook's fans.

[@bokheethegenius Unveiling Team K's new member hehe Oh yeah, look forward to the season's greetings too hehehe]

What, is it a girl?
┗The hand is definitely a woman's.
┗Is there any reason for someone new to join Team K right now?

The photo showed a hand holding something like a white flashlight, and in the background, Bok-hee making a V-sign next to a sample of the season's greetings.

The intention was likely to promote the calendar and related merchandise coming out in December, but what the fans were curious about was Team K's new member.

Since the list of high-rank Hunters was generally well-known, fans speculated about who might be joining.

Judging by the hand in the photo, it was a young woman. But most young, high-rank female Hunters already belonged to a team.

Aren't Team K grinding right now anyway? Why a new member?
┗Someone's probably leaving.
┗There was a sighting of Kim Jin-hyeong and his family on a flight to Jeju Island. Is he finally quitting?

Attention-seeker Bok-hee, at it again. He's gonna reveal it soon anyway, just post the picture already.
┗So busy trying to be efficient, promoting the greetings and teasing a new member at the same time.

Looks like Team K is filming something with a broadcast station. My older sister is a staff member there and said she's going on a business trip.
┗Proof pic or it didn't happen.
┗Stop with the 'my acquaintance said' rumors.

Curiosity abounded in the online communities as well. While most were disappointed that Bok-hee had only posted a single photo, they also hoped the new member recruitment signaled the start of some new content.

After all, Team K had recently been stuck grinding in Sangam-dong, so their video uploads had come to a halt.

Whether it's a young woman or not, I just hope they're entertaining. There's a limit to just looking at Kwon Wook's photoshoots… With that thought, the Kwon Wook fan turned off their phone.

＊ ＊ ＊

“Mics on, please!”

“Over here!”

Near an abandoned mine in Eonyang.

The cave, said to have produced a huge amount of amethyst during the Japanese colonial period, was now a desolate ruin where not a single person passed by. After the dungeon opened, even the few people who used to wander through were restricted, making the place utterly bleak.

But today, with winter just around the corner, the area in front of the abandoned mine was bustling with people. It was none other than for the documentary filming of Team K, including Ha-ra.

“Nervous?”

Kwon Wook casually joked to Ha-ra. Ha-ra, who had been marveling at the small microphone clipped to her collar, flinched.

“Ah, yes. A little…”

“Relax. You practiced hard.”

“Ahahaha…”

Ha-ra forced a laugh. The week, which was called “special training” but felt more like “Ha-ra's personal hell,” had passed in a flash. Kang Ha-ra, an S-rank who wasn't truly an S-rank, had trained with Team K's Rae-young while Kwon Wook was away.

“But I only trained on how to run away…”

“In a dungeon, that's the most important thing.”

Rae-young, whose specialty was teleportation, looked at Ha-ra's stats and focused on her agility. A mere 3 in agility and 1 in luck. With a single comment—“At this rate, you'd die in a D-rank dungeon in an instant”—Rae-young had Ha-ra start with running.

Frankly, Ha-ra, who had expected to receive a weapon and learn how to wield it coolly, was bewildered. It was no exaggeration to say she had unwillingly spent the entire week just running her legs off.

“You weren't able to unlock any other skills, right?”

“No. Somehow…”

“It's fine. I expected as much.”

Kwon Wook shrugged.

“Because the ultimate goal is to complete the quest, after all.”

Completing the quest. Kwon Wook's gaze fell on the broadcast team over there.

The broadcast team was currently testing their lighting, parked near the Eonyang Gate. And in their midst was the man in question.

Yoon Se-heon.

Ha-ra also glanced in his direction. Se-heon was checking a script outlining the general flow of the shoot while having his makeup touched up.

“So men wear makeup too…”

“What are you talking about? I did too.”

Kwon Wook's eyes widened as he pointed to himself. Ha-ra chuckled and gave him a gentle push.

“Hunter Kwon Wook, you're an idol.”

“Hey now. I've just had my profession stolen from me. I'm a Hunter, you know?”

“Ah, well, you're a Hunter now, of course, but…”

Ha-ra trailed off.

Kwon Wook waved his hand, saying it was a joke. Then he whispered quietly.

“Anyway, I really hope this works out.”

“Works out…”

Ha-ra looked down at the object in her hand, her face blushing. It was a script, the same kind Se-heon was holding.