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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: Moving Organs (1)
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It had been four days since Kang Sa-hu entered the F-rank solo gate.
His other teammates, having already cleared the reserved gates, were waiting in front of the gate for their leader.
"Just you wait until he comes out. I'm not letting him off easy. No way is it okay for him to just up and leave for some 'training to grow stronger' all by himself?! And he's the leader?!"
Kang Ji-ye sat in the chair she'd gotten from the gate management staff, crunching on a snack with deliberate emphasis.
Bae Deok-ho cleared his throat from behind her and tried to soothe her.
"Well, I'm sure he had his reasons. And it's not like the leader just ditched us without a plan, right? He laid everything out in detail."
Bae Deok-ho waved the printed messages from Kang Sa-hu, speaking on his behalf.
As he said, the printed group chat was packed with detailed plans and instructions: which gate to assign to whom, and why.
Judging by the timestamps, he'd sent them right before entering the gate, but the level of thought and time he'd put into the plans was evident.
Thanks to those instructions, they'd cleared the remaining gates without a hitch.
Even so, when Kang Ji-ye didn't soften her scowl, Bae Deok-ho landed his trump card.
"More importantly, do you like the clothes I bought you? I picked out something that'd suit you perfectly."
"...Hmph, you did a good job picking something pretty. I'll treasure the new shirt and wear it well."
Kang Ji-ye pouted and turned her head away at his teasing.
Sure enough, the luxury T-shirt she was wearing was a gift from Bae Deok-ho—an apology for spitting grape ade on her and for the mishap while hunting the frog monster.
He'd felt so guilty that, despite her saying a 30,000-won T-shirt was more than enough, he'd insisted on buying this one himself.
With her mellowing a bit at the mention of clothes, Bae Deok-ho seized the moment.
"Exactly. You look so pretty in that outfit—don't ruin it with a frown. Come on, smile for us."
"...Fine."
At his urging, Kang Ji-ye pulled out her phone, opened the camera, and checked herself out.
Seeing herself in the long-coveted outfit she'd only dreamed of wearing, her lips curved up ever so slightly.
"Hee-hee-hee!"
"..."
Kim Ho-myeong eyed the two with a sour look before turning back to the gate.
In front of the gate, Lee Yu-rim paced back and forth restlessly, arms crossed and face tense.
"Lee Yu-rim, calm down and take a seat. You know you've been pacing like this every time you come here for the past four days, right?"
"I'm fine."
He'd only meant to express concern, but her sharp retort made Kim Ho-myeong drop the subject with a sigh.
Gazing quietly at the gate Kang Sa-hu had entered, Kim Ho-myeong muttered to himself.
"The leader's not just talented—he's got some brilliant ideas too. Who would've thought to use a gate as a training ground..."
Gates connected to other worlds offered vast expanses of land to use freely.
Of course, that required the power to subdue the boss monster without killing it, but it seemed like no issue for their leader.
By neutralizing the boss without slaying it, he could use the space as a training area right up until a gate break.
It was a method no ordinary hunter—obsessed only with clearing gates for cash or slaughtering monsters—would ever conceive.
Of course, someone like Kim Ho-myeong would sooner build a gym on unused land than resort to that, but for those who couldn't, it was a game-changing idea.
"Ahem. My brother's got a creative mind, or maybe just a totally different perspective from everyone else."
Given his powers—manipulating blood, flesh, and muscles, handling corpses—Kang Sa-hu had few places to train even if he wanted to.
One slip-up, and he risked being labeled a serial killer or psycho.
He needed a private, spacious area all to himself.
"It's like he's running from someone. I can't stand it when things don't wrap up quickly. Sigh."
Though she grumbled like she was complaining about her brother, Kang Ji-ye secretly admired his focus and decisiveness as a necromancer.
And though no one said it, the fact that the others had gathered here to wait for him showed how much trust and faith they'd built in him in such a short time.
The gate, marked yellow for "hunting in progress," began slowly shifting to blue.
"Oh? He's finally coming out!"
Kang Ji-ye jumped to her feet and shouted, drawing everyone's eyes to the gate.
As soon as it turned fully blue, a foot emerged from within.
"Oppa! Why are you coming out now?! You just drop a message and vanish on your own—!"
Kang Ji-ye, who'd been stewing the whole time, unleashed a torrent of words before freezing mid-sentence.
The others gaped in shock at the sight of Kang Sa-hu.
His already gaunt face had hollowed cheeks exposing his cheekbones, and his eyes were deeply sunken.
Bloodstains and bits of muscle clung to his unwashed body.
Worst of all, a rotten stench wafted off him like an aura.
"L-Leader...?"
Bae Deok-ho barely managed to call out, and Kang Sa-hu looked at him with hollow eyes.
"You're all here. What have you been up to?"
"W-Well... we came to greet you when you came out..."
"I see. Thank you."
Kang Sa-hu bowed his head in thanks.
It was just a simple gesture, but onlookers worried his head might flop off from the strain.
"What the heck?! Oppa, what's wrong with you?! What happened in there?!"
Kang Ji-ye recovered first and screamed as she rushed toward him.
But Kang Sa-hu shook his head as if it was nothing and held out a palm to stop her.
"Nice shirt. Don't come closer—I'm a mess. You'll ruin it."
"Who cares about the shirt right now?!"
As Kang Ji-ye pressed him relentlessly, Kang Sa-hu glanced at her, then turned away before answering.
"I messed up."
"What?! What kind of mess-up does this?!"
"...I got caught up packing other materials and skimped on food. The work took longer than expected."
"...?"
Question marks popped up over everyone's heads at his response.
"L-Leader...? D-Don't tell me...?"
Lee Yu-rim asked, hands trembling, shaking her head in denial.
"You've been... starving... the whole four days...?"
"...No. Only two days completely."
Her legs gave out at his reply.
As Lee Yu-rim sat there dazed, staring at him, Kim Ho-myeong jumped in urgently from the side.
"I've booked a restaurant nearby. Let's head there so you can eat right away."
"In this state, they'll probably turn us away. I should wash up first..."
"Hey! Washing can wait! Drink this first! Eat!"
Kang Ji-ye shoved a snack into his mouth.
Kang Sa-hu flailed in panic, trying to spit it out, but his weakened arms from days of exhaustion couldn't overpower Kang Ji-ye, who'd bulked up on reward meat since becoming a hunter.
Thankfully, Bae Deok-ho and Lee Yu-rim intervened in time, saving him from doom.
After wetting his throat with the drink she'd given him, Kang Sa-hu let the others lead him along in a daze.
He showered at the inn Bae Deok-ho had booked, changed into clothes Lee Yu-rim bought, and only after a meal at the upscale restaurant Kim Ho-myeong reserved did color return to his face.
"Phew, we saved him just in time!"
Kang Ji-ye, who hadn't lifted a finger, wiped imaginary sweat and declared it, earning eyerolls from everyone but Lee Yu-rim.
"All you did was stuff your face at the restaurant..."
"Huh? What'd you say?"
Kang Ji-ye shot Kim Ho-myeong a look, and he promptly clammed up.
"Nothing at all."
With Kang Sa-hu's emergency care done, the mood softened into something more relaxed.
Seizing the better vibe, unusually quiet Bae Deok-ho spoke up.
"So, since we're all fed—shall we grab coffee to cap it off? Quick sip, quick sip?"
"Whoa... look at this mood-killer... that line was straight concrete..."
Bae Deok-ho flushed red at Kang Ji-ye's horrified reaction to his attempt to liven things up.
"Hey, Ji-ye! Why do you only roast me?"
"Because you're the one spouting weird stuff! Ho-myeong oppa and Yu-rim unnie barely talk, so no issue there!"
"Wh-What? Fine, I'll shut up too!"
Pretending to be offended, Bae Deok-ho turned away—then froze at the sight of something.
Thinking he'd sulked for real, Kang Ji-ye shook her head and tried to placate him.
"Aish, why go quiet again? It was a joke, a joke. We all know you're our mood maker, Deok-ho ajusshi~"
But when Bae Deok-ho didn't respond even to that, Kang Ji-ye panicked.
"D-Deok-ho ajusshi? Are you actually mad...?"
As she called him again, she noticed three men in black suits approaching their group.
Realizing Bae Deok-ho wasn't sulking but on alert for strangers, Kang Ji-ye turned to eye the suited men too.
For some reason, Lee Yu-rim stared at them wide-eyed, a faint hostility flickering in her gaze.
Of the three who reached them, the man in the middle—wearing dark sunglasses—stepped forward and addressed Kang Sa-hu.
"Hello, Hunter Kang Sa-hu. It's an honor to meet you. I trust your hunt went well?"
"It did. And you are?"
Kang Sa-hu returned the greeting calmly and asked in turn.
Such a sudden approach by men in black suits would rattle most, but he showed no surprise or agitation—leaving the sunglassed man taken aback instead.
"You're not even startled?"
"Why should I be?"
His counter-question, as if baffled, left the man momentarily stunned before he grinned.
"Ah, of course not. I should introduce myself first, as you said. I'm in this line of work."
He pulled a business card from his suit pocket and handed it over.
As Kang Sa-hu took it, everyone's eyes—except Bae Deok-ho's—locked onto the card.
"Mind if we all take a look?"
"I usually prefer privacy... but if Hunter Kang Sa-hu trusts the others, it's fine."
Kang Sa-hu nodded and unhesitatingly lowered the card for all to see.
His casual sharing stunned the suited men and his teammates alike—but that shock was swiftly overshadowed by the card's contents.
"N-Nat...!"
"Ah! Don't say it out loud, please? I gave it discreetly for a reason."
"Nat... ion! I wanna eat rice!"
Kang Ji-ye bumbled through some nonsense to cover, but no one paid it any mind.
"Why do you want to meet our leader here?"
At Lee Yu-rim's wary question, the sunglassed man shrugged and shook his head.
"I'm not here for you—don't be so hostile. I'm here for Kang Sa-hu, the one and only EX-rank hunter."
"Why are you looking for me?"
Kang Sa-hu pressed, and the man turned from Lee Yu-rim with a smile.
"I'd rather explain properly somewhere else. It's not a long story... but not a short one either."
When Kang Sa-hu silently stared at his sunglasses without responding, the man sighed lightly and added,
"It's about the prophesied C-rank gate with one week left. Aren't you curious?"
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