The SSS+ Rank Hunter Who Farms

8. SSS+ Hunter

When a Hunter awakens, they receive a single ability.

They can purchase additional abilities or skills using Hunter Points, but the higher the ability’s rank, the more points are required.

This makes the initial ability granted at awakening a crucial factor in determining a Hunter’s potential.

If a Hunter is lucky enough to receive a high-rank ability, their growth potential skyrockets.

Just like when I selected Melee Weapons as my SSS+ ability—my Strength, Stamina, and Agility all shot up to S-rank.

Most abilities provided stat bonuses based on their rank.

No need for complicated explanations.

Being a Hunter was just another version of the rich get richer, the poor get poorer.

Your awakening determined your future—just like the circumstances you were born into.

An F-rank Hunter would never be able to grind enough Hunter Points, level up, and save up for an A-rank or S-rank ability.

The only exception?

If they were insanely rich and could afford to hire top-tier Hunters to carry them through dungeons.

Meanwhile, those who awakened with A, S, or SS-rank abilities soared through the early game, gaining powerful skills and abilities at an accelerated rate.

So no—Hunters weren’t all the same.

Awakening was already like winning the lottery.

But even among winners, there were 5th-place tickets and 1st-place jackpots.

And me?

"I… became an SSS+ Hunter just by playing a game for ten years?"

This sounded like the title of some ridiculous web novel.

I couldn’t believe it.

Sure, while playing Farming World, I had wished real-life combat worked like a game.

But I had never seriously entertained the thought.

I’d been too busy grinding.

And besides—if gaming actually led to power, wouldn’t everyone have sunk their lives into it?

Yet… it actually happened.

I should have been jumping for joy, screaming in excitement.

But for some reason, I wasn’t.

Instead—

I felt like I had simply received what I was owed.

"So effort really does pay off."

…Or maybe, deep down, I was afraid this was all a dream.

That if I let myself celebrate too much—

The moment I woke up, I wouldn’t be able to bear returning to reality.

"Ah!"

Besides, I had more pressing matters to deal with.

SSS+ Hunter or not—

What happened to my Farming World?

The game map that had been taken from me.

I rushed back to the capsule and booted up the game.

[Su-hyeon’s Farming World 1 – Playtime: 41,284 hours – Day 12,119]

"Huh?"

The map was still there.

I logged in, half-expecting some error message to block me.

But—

Nothing.

Everything was normal.

My level 999 character, my SS+ maxed-out stats, my fully decked-out ability list, my mansion, my farm—All untouched.

Like I had reclaimed my home.

A deep breath of relief escaped me.

"What the hell?"

But… what about those system messages I saw earlier?

Had I misunderstood something?

Didn’t I receive the Secret Farming Map when my original one was taken?

I logged out and checked the capsule’s saved files.

There was no trace of a Secret Farming Map.

Not in any of my saved data.

"…No way."

When I entered the game, I became my game character. But when I returned to reality… I still had access to the Secret Farming Map’s inventory.

The map didn’t exist within Farming World, yet the login system remained active in reality.

What would happen if I logged in now?

Could I connect without entering the capsule?

Reality and the Secret Farming Map… They were synchronized.

And that raised a terrifying question. What would happen if I died in reality?

In Farming World, when a character dies, a portion of their farm is confiscated, and they respawned the next day in a hospital.

Technically, the game framed it as: ‘An NPC found your critically wounded body and saved you.’ Early on, this cost a fixed amount of resources, but later, it took a percentage of whatever you had.

But in reality?

There was no way resurrection was an option.

And that’s what I wanted to know.

If the Secret Farming Map wasn’t part of Farming World if it wasn’t a game, would I still revive like I did in Farming World?

There were a few ways to test this.

Ask the community.

But since I was probably the only one with this map, the replies would be:

“Curious. Try dying once.”

“Die and give us a review. LOL.”

“That map doesn’t exist, dude.”

“Maybe you should see a doctor?”

If someone else asked this, I’d probably leave the same dumb comments and move on.

Test it myself.

But the problem? There was a 50% chance I wouldn’t wake up.

The Secret Farming Map followed Farming World’s mechanics.

From the tutorial to commands, everything mirrored the game’s structure.

That’s why I assumed it was a game.

So… wouldn’t the death system work the same way?

It was likely.

But if I was wrong, I’d never open my eyes again.

"Can I actually do this…?"

To be honest, I wasn’t afraid.

With ten years of Farming World experience, I hadn’t died in the last two.

Even accounting for a stable environment, my SSS+ abilities meant my survival rate was absurdly high—as long as I didn’t do something stupid.

The safest option was to do nothing.

With an SSS+ ability alone, I could live a comfortable life. With S-rank Strength, Stamina, and Agility, I didn’t even need to enter dungeons.

I could make money doing safer, low-risk jobs.

At 26 years old, I—once a jobless loser—could now live in luxury just from my Farming World 1 map.

A peaceful life, completely risk-free.

But…

Wouldn’t that be boring?

"This is going to be fun."

I had been holding on to Suhyeon's Farming World 1 for ten years, not just because of the sense of stability and healing it provided, but more because of the hunting system that made it feel like I was actually a Hunter.

The thrill of fighting SS-rank monsters and the dopamine rush when I killed them—I still couldn't forget it.

So when I received the SSS+ Secret Farming Map—

I was excited.

The only reason I had ranted and raged was out of anger for losing ten years of my time against my will.

But now that I had confirmed my ten years were still intact—an SSS+ map, a new challenge awaited.

On top of that, the more I played the Secret Farming Map, the stronger I became as a Hunter in reality.

How was I supposed to hold back?

I had to rethink everything.

"From today, the life of Kim Su-hyeon is reborn."

I opened the dark door and stepped outside.

A wide living room, brightly lit and completely different from my room, came into view.

A monster sprawled on the large sofa, and the spicy smell of stew wafted from the kitchen.

"Mom!!!"

"What’s this? You’re actually up at this hour?"

Ignoring the nonsense spewing from the monster on the sofa, I proudly declared to my mother.

"I awakened. Starting tomorrow, I’m the head of this household and going into dungeons, so just know that."

"Awakened? Son. If you awakened, why would you go into dungeons? That’s dangerous."

"I became a Hunter, Mom. I’m an SSS+ Hunter now."

"What nonsense."

She glanced at me while cutting pumpkin, clicked her tongue, and went back to making stew with a look that said, There he goes again.

Her true thoughts were spoken aloud by my sister, who was lying on the couch.

Right.

I understood.

It wasn’t the first or second time that her good-for-nothing, unemployed son had made such a declaration.

But what mattered was that this time, it was real.

"Hey, does your crappy guild have a spot? I need to check something, so I want to do some dungeon hunting. Weren’t you D-rank? That should be just right."

"What are you talking about? I’m C-rank. And don’t be ridiculous. You’d die in a C-rank dungeon."

"Who’s dying? I’m SSS+."

"Why do you spout nonsense after eating? Just go back to sleep."

"Tch."

Dodging my sister’s flying foot, I returned to my room.

It wasn’t like I needed someone else’s help to enter a dungeon.

I just wanted to tag along because it was a hassle.

If that didn’t work, I’d just go in on my own.

And now that I thought about it—

The ragged, tattered starter outfit I was wearing.

The farming belt strapped around my waist.

That meant…

"Wow..."

The inventory in my belt opened, and when I pulled out a wooden sword, it materialized right in my hand.

"This actually works?"

Strictly speaking, this was a game item.

Was the Secret Farming Map a game?

That was now a question mark.

But if not just my character, but the Secret Farming Map itself was synchronized—

"I can bring resources from the SSS+ map… into reality?"

SSS-rank resource rarity.

SSS+ resource deposits.

I had struck gold.