NOVEL WEB Chapter 30
“Thank you for your hard work.”
“…You too.”
[All Hunters, please gather immediately at Outpost 3!]
[Hunters who are injured, please wait in place!]
The Erosion Dungeon, from the country’s perspective, added new lands and resources, but on the flip side, it was like a hole opened up to an entirely different world, requiring regular cleanup of the monsters that sometimes flooded through.
Even after more than 60 years since the first Great Rift, Dungeons and Monsters were still incomprehensible entities from the human perspective, with much more unknown than what had been revealed.
“Sigh, now goblins are showing up armed with guns…”
“Hey, are you okay? Didn’t you just get hit by something like a cannon?”
“Cough, it’s fine. If I just smear some ointment, it’ll heal… *Gak!?”
“Stop with the nonsense and get to the hospital.”
“You little brat! You have no idea how to talk to your boyfriend.”
“What are you even saying, you fool?”
The hunting party comprised A-rank Hunters that had received their Hunter Names and was busy cleaning up after obliterating a Goblin Ranger squad that had come to plunder the human world like a band of thieves.
The Goblin Rangers were a special force from the Goblin Empire, ruled by the Emperor Goblin, who had disappeared after invading the human world over a decade ago.
Composed of hundreds of goblins with an average rank of C to B, they would occasionally invade or loot the human world in an irregular manner, attacking small rural homes to abduct women as breeding stock or stealing food. Sometimes, they would show up at military bases to plunder modern weaponry.
Since the formation of the dungeon hunting party made up of A-rank Hunters, damage caused by goblin Rangers had significantly decreased, though many local governments still complained of losses back in the early days.
In this latest raid, there were indeed some injuries, but thankfully, no fatalities occurred.
“Phew…”
Among the A-rank Hunters in the hunting party was Yeonhwa, also known as Icicle Nine, who had recently received her Hunter Name.
“Yeonhwa, you did great.”
“……Gominjun-senpai.”
A familiar face approached Yeonhwa, who was resting and catching her breath at the outpost made by the Association.
His name was Gominjun, the vice-leader of the Yeonpung Guild, one of Korea’s top ten enormous guilds, and he was a senior who graduated from the same Hunter Academy as Yeonhwa.
“It’s your first raid, right? You did well. You looked cool wiping out the goblins by yourself earlier.”
“….Thank you.”
Minjun, who had quietly sat next to Yeonhwa, cautiously spoke up.
“Hey, Yeonhwa. Do you have a moment? I have something to discuss. Can we talk at a cafe after the hunting party’s debrief?”
“If you have something to say, just say it here.”
“This isn’t something to discuss in front of so many people.”
“It’s fine. We can talk here.”
It was probably another recruitment pitch anyway.
Before she became an A-rank, many guilds attempted to recruit Yeonhwa, but after she received her Hunter Name, the number of invitations skyrocketed.
“Alright, I’ll say it right here.”
With a sigh, Gominjun settled into his seat next to Yeonhwa and spoke.
“Your abilities are certainly impressive. But if you keep doing things alone, you’re going to run into big trouble someday.”
“…..”
Yeonhwa shot him a glare at his words.
She always ventured into dungeons alone.
In her quest to become stronger, she had lived a life where she spared neither her life nor body, but fundamentally, ever since her sister Yeona died protecting her, she had avoided depending on others.
To her, group actions felt extremely awkward.
Having someone to lean on was undoubtedly a good thing, yet Yeonhwa practically fought the Goblin Rangers alone.
“I have to admit, it’s hard to believe that you just became an A-rank. Honestly, I was really surprised.”
“Thank you for the compliment.”
“However, monsters and dungeons are no joke. Recently, there have been increasingly unique gimmick dungeons, and mutations among monsters are becoming more frequent. The Goblin Rangers we dealt with today are getting better at mimicking human tactics, making them harder to deal with. I know you’re Yeonseo’s granddaughter, but please pay heed to what the seniors are saying…”
“Get to the point.”
When Yeonhwa shot him a cold glare, he sighed.
“…Join our Guild. As an A-rank Hunter, you’ll build connections. Not only will you get support, but we’ll also give you priority access to the dungeons our Guild occupies.”
“I appreciate the offer, but I’ll have to decline.”
“Think about it. Other guilds are constantly trying to recruit you because they want you on their team. This is a big opportunity for you. After seeing your performance in the Goblin Ranger raid, I realized that you’re an invaluable asset to us. Joining our Guild wouldn’t be a bad thing for you…”
“I’m not interested in joining any guild.”
Yeonhwa stood up, as if she had expected this reaction from him.
The report to the Association would be handled by someone else; there was no need to continue this noisy debate here.
However, Minjun stood in her way as she tried to leave, wanting to say one last thing.
“No, wait… I don’t understand why you’re doing this. Most Hunters are desperate to join big guilds since their academy days, yet you are still avoiding guilds? Why is that?”
“That’s none of your business.”
“Sure, I admit we’d gain a lot from recruiting you since you’re Yeonseo’s granddaughter.”
Yes, she knew that all too well.
Yeonhwa, the only descendant of the living legend Yeonseo, had garnered fame since her time in the Academy purely based on her bloodline.
Whether good or bad, she was born famous, with even the Hunter Wiki documenting her past timeline without her knowing.
“But Yeonhwa, you can’t survive as a Hunter on your own. There’s a limit to your abilities. I’m saying this for your sake, so join a guild.”
“I’m fine as I am. You saw me fight earlier today.”
“What about?”
“I can’t afford to trust anyone else with my back.”
Yeonhwa’s ability was freezing powers.
At such a young age, she possessed powerful ice control, to the point where there were almost no Hunters with her level of AOE attack capability.
The reason she fought solo during the Goblin Ranger raid wasn’t just due to her outstanding abilities; it was also that coordinating with other Hunters simply proved impossible.
Uncontrolled ice was bound to freeze everyone nearby, and guilds ultimately function as profit-driven entities, where group living is inevitable.
“I appreciate your suggestion, Senpai. But I’m leaving now.”
“…Tch, this is why your old nickname in school was the ‘Spear Ghost’!”
CLINK!
In that moment, facing Yeonhwa’s chilling gaze, Gominjun felt a shiver of fear.
The icy aura emanating from Yeonhwa indicated that she had momentarily failed to control her emotions.
“…Let’s pretend I didn’t hear that.”
“…..”
As Yeonhwa walked away, Gominjun could only sigh.
This wasn’t how he wanted it to go…
“Sigh, I messed up…”
○○○○
Living as the granddaughter of the greatest Hunter Yeonseo didn’t mean Yeonhwa’s life was all sunshine and rainbows.
She enjoyed many benefits.
The reputation and wealth amassed by Yeonseo were unquestionable in the Hunter world, bordering on the realm of superhuman status.
However, her personal life was far from fortunate.
Her already frail mother passed away shortly after giving birth to Yeonhwa.
Her sister Yeona died protecting her during the Second Great Rift.
On the day a monster escaped during an Academy incident, one of the teachers who partnered with Yeonhwa was gravely injured while taking the hit for her.
The partner Yeonhwa teamed up with during dungeon explorations met a tragic end due to an unfortunate accident.
Anyone who had tried to get close to Yeonhwa or show her kindness met unfortunate ends.
As time went on, there was nobody left who sought to get closer to her.
Upon returning home in her electric car, Yeonhwa reflected on her conversation with Minjun.
Her nickname from back in school… yes…
It must have felt that way.
“The Spear Ghost…”
The Spear Ghost was a vengeful spirit that transforms into a tiger after being killed, haunting and causing harm to others.
For Yeonhwa, being the Spear Ghost meant working for the wicked, aiding against monsters.
To others, she could seem like a monster.
If someone who didn’t know her saw her that way, they might agree with it.
Even when teetering on the brink of death, Yeonhwa always managed to survive.
Yet, she lost her mother, sister, teacher, friend… aside from her grandmother Yeonseo, everyone else departed from her.
At first, she felt sadness and loneliness.
She distanced herself from people out of bitterness. Accepting an unpleasant future was challenging, leading Yeonhwa to take on everything alone.
She became a dungeon addict, gnawing away at her own body, doing whatever it took to grow stronger while engraving the memories of those she lost in her heart.
Ironically, the result was bearing the moniker of the ‘Spear Ghost.’
The Spear Ghost searches for sacrifices to free itself from the tiger’s clutches, targeting family and friends in a series of tragedies. It is said that those affected by tragedies of this kind never mingle with the affected households again. Yeonhwa truly embodied this fate.
Yet, at school, none dared openly despise Yeonhwa as the ‘Spear Ghost.’
Her strength was immensely superior to her peers, and above all, she was Yeonseo’s granddaughter.
No one would dare confront Yeonhwa, but she had the wits to grasp the unfolding situation.
Seeing her peers fearfully regarding her as a ghost was enough to infuriate her.
As she struggled with unsavory memories, Yeonhwa finally arrived home.
“Welcome back, Miss.”
“…I’m tired, so you all can have dinner without me.”
“Yes.”
Even after arriving at the Yeon Family estate, Yeonhwa couldn’t shake her foul mood.
Her self-centered personality often turned her into a source of hardship for her competitors.
Yeonhwa recognized she was different from others and had lived a different life.
While she resembled a tender flower, she possessed thorns; as a rose, she was not beautiful.
Shaking off the faint feelings that arose, Yeonhwa lay on her bed, still not having taken off her coat.
“Sigh… This sucks, maybe I should check the gallery.”
Surprisingly, one of Yeonhwa’s hobbies was browsing community forums.
With few conversations with others, Yeonhwa had no friends since she first received her Hunter license.
Yet, it was impossible to fully isolate from the world, so she had naturally started exploring the internet. More specifically, she had begun to step into community forums.
She wasn’t actively posting or chatting.
As a Hunter interested in the field, she frequently visited the domestic largest community forum, the Hunter Gallery.
People still uploaded strange frog memes and nonsensical comments, which she found baffling, but now Yeonhwa was used to her years of wandering in the community.
Watching the hilarious nonsense from the gallery-goers became an enjoyable pastime for her.
While there were occasionally insane users who performed visual terror, with the real-world community becoming minuscule, naturally, Yeonhwa’s activity in the community increased.
And while exploring notable posts, something familiar caught her eye.
[My Heart is Awed](211)
ㄴRecommendation Count: 1034
Seeing that it had received over a thousand recommendations, she clicked on it, expecting something impressive, and was greeted by a video of a silver-haired woman slaughtering wyverns.
SDVIMVFoanVzY1YwSVhjamMzUkt1ZDFOMXdIclFMRW1PbHovbzljQVJlMit3MEJNUHNjNmdwYmZMQXhFeVZXYg
‘What the heck?’
It was Shia.
Without a doubt, it was her older sister, Shia.
Doubting her own eyes, Yeonhwa blinked to dispel her disbelief before redirecting her gaze back to the post.
『I was exploring the low-tier broadcast room earlier.
As you can see from the photos, this Noona is anything but ordinary.
The tag for the low-tier broadcast shouldn’t be there, and just the name ‘Hunter Isia’ appears, probably her real name.
I’m unsure if it’s a concept or not, but she was completely oblivious that she was broadcasting.
I entered thinking the maternal feeling was grand, but as soon as I stepped in, it was absolutely amazing.
Her face was stunning, and her maternal qualities were off the charts, but the important part was how she dealt with the wyverns.
Some might have caught on after seeing the wyvern pics, but she’s in the Kurtala Mountains near Gyeryongsan where only A-rank and higher Hunters are allowed; you can’t sneak in either. If an intruder appears, they’ll be dragged out immediately due to the Guard Unit and Second Security Unit.
I have all the detailed battle footage in gifs and clips, so check it out.』
[So who the hell is she, you nerd?]
ㄴ[Read the post, idiot…]
ㄴ[She’s Hunter Isia.]
ㄴ[What the hell is that gif???]
ㄴ[No way that’s a fake, right?]
ㄴ[If that’s fake, a movie studio would be recruiting her immediately lol.]
ㄴ[B-rank Hunter. From my perspective, she’d easily surpass an A-rank, no doubt.]
ㄴ[Is it for real?]
ㄴ[Yeah, check her speed. The way she leaps off a wyvern to fly again isn’t something any ordinary A-rank can replicate. Plus, her striking the wyvern’s head with one punch proves she’s on another level in strength and reflexes.]
ㄴ[Shut up already, but I saw some B-rank kids doing stunts on their broadcasts, and it looked roughly like that.]
ㄴ[You can’t compare someone skillfully performing stunts with prior knowledge to someone obliterating wyverns indiscriminately, can you?]
ㄴ[LOL right?]
[Wow, insane.. she leaps off a wyvern like it’s nothing.]
[And that maternal quality is awe-inspiring.]
ㄴ[For real LOL.]
ㄴ[Mom! I wanna be a maternal figure when I grow up!]
ㄴ[You freakin’ weirdo LOL.]
“…..What the hell is this…”
Why was Shia’s story suddenly appearing in the genre Hunter Gallery?
As far as Yeonhwa knew, Shia had received a temporary Hunter license and went to Gyeryongsan for her mission.
When and where did this happen? Why?
Why was Shia’s story, so detailed like a streaming broadcast, circulating in the vile Hunter Gallery?
Yeonhwa didn’t look down on those who streamed their Hunter exploits.
In fact, she admired them personally.
Communicating with viewers while risking their lives in dungeons and putting on a spectacular display of combat — sometimes mixing in banter shows a level of dedication and stress Yeonhwa could hardly imagine.
Realistically, she often watched Hunter broadcasts herself, and above all, her grandmother Yeonseo sometimes streamed as well.
“Is there a reason Shia is…?”
[Have you heard of the Kanta Piya Saint?] (322)
ㄴRecommendation Count: 1942
Seeing that bizarre term, Yeonhwa hesitantly clicked on the thread, half-expecting the absurdity.
“…..What the… *Pfft!?”
The moment she saw the high-definition gif, Yeonhwa couldn’t hold her laughter.
The gif depicted Shia, beaming brightly, covered in wyvern blood on one cheek, smashing the head of an A+ ranked wyvern over and over.
Shia was beautiful.
Setting aside her impressive maternal qualities, she was tall and had great overall style.
But in that wild scene, tentacles moved chaotically, resurrecting fallen wyverns, crushing heads upon resistance, and bending spines — visions that left viewers dazed.
『Hey, are you waking up, wyvern?』
[Wow… that psychopath LOL.]
ㄴ[For real LOL.]
ㄴ[How hilarious is it to let them live only to frickin’ kill them again?]
[Argh! I’d rather you just kill me, please!]
ㄴ[That heavy and chilling sensation…]
[I’m dead…]
[Huh? Why are you dying? You should counterattack!]
[Wyvern, come back!]
ㄴ[LOLOL.]
The community was already in utter chaos.
Originally, the genre Hunter Gallery was a madhouse where several thousand bored individuals shared daily shenanigans across diverse topics.
Once a fresh piece of bait started rolling in, everyone logged into the gallery began discussing Hunter Isia.
[Let me sort out Hunter Isia.](119)
ㄴRecommendation Count: 783
『First off, here’s a list of those who recently advanced to A-rank Hunters.
It’s a trustable list officially released by the Hunter Association.
Based on the names, it looks like they’re Korean.
But the name Hunter Isia doesn’t appear at all.
So, without verifying further, it suggests she’s not an A-rank Hunter. Even checking the foreigners section shows no matching candidates for her.
The most probable explanation is that she’s a Returnee; if this Kanta Piya Saint is indeed a Returnee, then she would be the first Returnee to arrive and immediately become an A-rank after almost 11 years.
Moreover, the ability shown in the gifs suggests she shatters wyvern skulls with one hand and displays no signs of fatigue; she might either have incredible stamina or some form of healing ability at play.
In terms of features: she’s stunning, her maternal aspect is incredible, her strength is absurd, and her reflexes appear to be high. Judging by the angles of the drone cameras, they seem like state-of-the-art ones that aren’t available on the market, so I have no idea what they are.
What intrigues me the most is the tentacle-looking things on her waist. It seems like they might either be part of her or a mutant-like extension of her abilities.
When she’s reviving the wyvern with a shattered skull, it’s clear if this isn’t fiction but a genuine ability, then our country would have a real saint who can heal following the Chinese saint.
But with her abilities, she appears less of a pure healer and more a saint who goes after and crushes the sources of injuries.
It’s still unclear whether she can heal humans, so that’ll need verification later.
But looking at the overall, she could likely strive for S-rank. If she truly achieves S-rank, the Kanta Piya Saint would be the first Returnee-born S-rank in 48 years since Hunter Yujin.』
[Analysis—]
[Analysis—]
[But who gave you the right to talk like an expert?]
ㄴ[Shut up, you that’s nonsense.]
ㄴ[LOL, crawling for clout again.]
ㄴ[S-rank, who do you think this is?]
ㄴ[Of course, she could be A-rank, I guess.]
ㄴ[Whether that video is real or not raises doubts. ]
ㄴ[That’s the crux. The fact that the broadcasting host didn’t even realize she was on air and the quality of the drone video and shooting is top-notch hints at something being fishy.]
“S-S-rank?”
Yeonhwa, who had first seen Shia, wholeheartedly believed she’d achieve S-rank in no time.
After all, she quickly took down the Black Minotaur right before Yeonhwa’s eyes, cooking up a feast of updrain meat together. What else could qualify her as S-rank?
Her brows furrowed as she acknowledged that someone in the gallery had deduced the truth.
Yet still, the questions loomed large.
Why was Shia, who merely went to fulfill a mission for her temporary Hunter license, now portrayed like a full-blown streamer here in the despicable genre Hunter Gallery?
‘…Maybe she mishandled the drone camera controls?’
Shia was not tech-savvy.
Having returned after 64 years, she might lack familiarity with modern technology and gadgets. If she mistakenly activated the new drone camera without realizing she was broadcasting, everything would make sense.
“What a relief, this isn’t as grave as I thought…”
Yeonhwa chuckled to herself, clicking through the posts closely related to Shia.
Meanwhile, there were plenty of posts that crossed the line.
Yeonhwa was appalled by the countless comments sexualizing Shia’s maternal features. Groundless rumors and speculative derogatory comments had multiplied.
“…This is annoying.”
She felt an urge to use the Yeon Family’s influence and teach those idiots the brutal realities of being a Hunter, but Shia had likely yet to realize she was even broadcasting.
If those crossing the line continued causing issues, they could be reprimanded once Shia expressed any desire for consequences.
As she thought this, Yeonhwa soon saw images of Shia enjoying a meal with a Hunter named Cheon Ah-Young whom she had coincidentally met in the dungeon.
[A-grade Cheon Ah-Young and the Saint enjoying a meal of a 100 million won egg](424)
ㄴRecommendation Count: 1731
『[Video Clip] The wyvern’s egg costs over 100 million, and it looks delightfully delicious.』
[What sort of lunatic doesn’t sell a wyvern egg worth over 100 million but rather eats it? LOL. That’s impossible.]
ㄴ[Ta-da! There’s no ‘impossible’ here.]
[No way, she’s amazed?]
ㄴ[Was she going so hard on the wyvern just to swipe the egg?]
ㄴ[Here’s a gif of her snatching the wyvern egg.]
ㄴ[LOLOLOLOLOL!]
[What in the world is this?]
[Someone turn this into a meme.]
ㄴ[LOL, she snatched it up with her tentacles.]
[What’s with that expression, LOL? She’s so cheerful!]
[This is driving me insane, LOL.]
[Oh, my stomach hurts LOL.]
[How can this be… the Saint…?]
[But it looks so delicious, and Ah-Young seems to love it too?]
ㄴ[Cheon Ah-Young has been starving for three days, so that would make sense.]
ㄴ[If an egg worth 100 million isn’t delicious, that’s just odd! LOL.]
ㄴ[But the so-called Saint. Didn’t she go to the dungeon to cook with some ingredients?]
[That’s true?]
ㄴ[LOL, good point!]
The moment Yeonhwa glanced at the scene, she recalled the phone call she had received from Shia earlier that day.
The panicked voice saying she mistakenly put in regular soy sauce instead of pure soy sauce rang clearly in her mind.
“…So that means she was flustered back then.”
Pfft! Yeonhwa couldn’t help but chuckle.
It wasn’t mockery.
She grasped the thought of Shia fervently preparing the soy sauce and garlic to create the wyvern stew depicted in the gifs, and that made her smile.
Was it getting interesting? Startled by her own emotional response, Yeonhwa began clicking through any posts once related to Shia.
Something felt amusing.
For reasons unknown to her, a sense of dreariness faded away as she watched Shia’s joyful face enjoying her wyvern stew.
The feeling of resentment tied to her nickname of the Spear Ghost and the lingering sadness over her sister faded as her lips curled upwards.
‘Had I ever felt this way…?’
This feels odd.
Shrugging away the perplexity, Yeonhwa stood up from her seat.
The gloominess enveloping her disappeared, and she felt tired, so it was time to wash up and then check the Hunter Gallery again.
In the past, whenever she felt gloomy, it would haunt her for the entire day, but thanks to Shia… a truly bizarre occurrence.
Knock knock knock
“Who is it?”
“It’s me, Miss. A guest has arrived.”
“A guest?”
“Yes, someone named Shia is here.”
“…..!”
At those words, Yeonhwa draped her crumpled coat back over her shoulders and stood up.
“Please show her to my room.”
“Yes.”
As the voice trailed off, Yeonhwa checked her outfit.
After all, she was about to meet her sister; she couldn’t show her a disheveled appearance.
While smoothing out creases in her clothes, footsteps echoed from afar.
Knock knock knock
“Come in.”
“I’ll be entering now.”
It was Shia.
She hadn’t changed that much since their first meeting.
The only noticeable difference was that, just like in the gifs, one of Shia’s cheeks was stained with dried blood.
Could it be wyvern blood? Did she come directly here in that state?
“Shia, why are you here at this hour…”
“Nothing much….”
Shia pulled out an egg roughly the size of her head from her backpack.
It was a wyvern egg.
The very egg Yeonhwa had seen earlier in the gallery, the one Shia had made into a stew.
“This is a gift.”
“……..Oh, I appreciate it, but you’re running low on living expenses, right? You should sell this in the Hunter Market instead…”
“Just accept it.”
Shia smiled radiantly, bringing forth a tingling sensation in Yeonhwa’s heart.
“I made a stew out of this?”
“……”
The gifs, the broadcast clips… they weren’t fabricated; they were real…
“It was really delicious. I wish you could have joined me. The stew was great, but I thought about you the whole time I was eating.”
“Really?”
“Yes, and that’s why I brought you this gift. You helped me with the soy sauce, so I wanted to express my gratitude.”
To Yeonhwa, from the Yeon Family’s perspective, a wyvern egg was not an extraordinary token.
She had eaten unique foods like those several times.
However, it was her first time receiving such a gift.
“It seems a pity; I hesitate to eat it.”
“Try to consume it as soon as possible. Fresh is the best flavor.”
“…I’ll do my best.”
Then Shia smiled again, placing her hand on Yeonhwa’s head.
“You’ve worked hard too.”
“Excuse me?”
“Your hair is disheveled. Dust has settled on your shoulder. Plus, your face looks tired.”
“……”
“Great job. Well done, my silly girl.”
“I’m not silly…”
“Sure, sure… Then I won’t keep my silly girl from resting, so I’ll be leaving early.”
“Don’t go just yet…”
Heading out, Shia turned without a hint of reluctance.
“This will be a night for my hard-working silly girl to newly rest.”
“……..”
For a moment, Yeonhwa pondered how many people had told her to rest like that.
Yeonseo adored Yeonhwa dearly, but as a living legend, she lived a busy life, making it difficult for them to see each other often.
Those working at the Yeon Family estate dutifully served Yeonhwa, but their roles were mainly tied to obedience to orders.
Hearing someone tell her “You worked hard, good job, rest well” felt incredibly rare.
“Goodnight, silly girl.”
“….Goodbye, sister.”
Waving goodbye to Shia, whose figure slowly faded away, Yeonhwa turned her gaze back to the round wyvern egg in her hands.
“…She seemed to enjoy it.”
Shall I make wyvern egg stew myself…?
With a small smile, Yeonhwa stroked the wyvern egg, still holding onto the warmth of Shia’s touch.