Chapter 3:Hello, I'm S-rank Hunter Hwang Eun-ha (2)

"W-What? Why are we here?" 

"Why? Because our dear friend here has been holed up in her room, refusing to buy clothes. So, I took it upon myself to drag you out."

"What nonsense—let’s just go to school."  

"Cut the crap. Do you know how much your mom begged me? ‘Do whatever you want, just make sure she lives like a normal human being.’"

"Ugh."

"Honestly, looking at you now, I can’t even blame your mom for scolding us both." 

His words shut me up instantly.  

Sure, I’d been living carelessly since returning to the modern world, barely acknowledging my gender. But this? It felt like my mom had outright hired him as my babysitter.  

"We’re not buying much—just a couple of outfits."  

"...Fine."  

"And honestly, it’s a waste letting a pretty face like yours rot away."  

"Ugh, shut up. I told you not to say stuff like that."  

We walked into the first clothing store we saw.  

The clerk greeted us cheerfully. "Welcome!"  

I wasn’t sure if anything here would suit me, but there were plenty of nice options.  

"Go ahead, pick something. You can try anything once."  

"Really? Then let’s go somewhere else."  

But shopping in a physical store was torture for a homebody like me. The moment I stepped outside, my head spun. Why had I let him drag me here?  

"Jin-wook, are you that desperate for a girlfriend? Even so, I’m not exactly the best choice." 

"No, you idiot—not that store." 

Since Jin-wook was far more socially adept than me, I figured I’d let him pick. Instead, he pointed to a cheap street vendor’s rack.  

Of course, I joked about the lingerie shop next door.  

"Wow, if you were any prettier, I’d ditch the whole ‘friends’ thing..."  

But Jin-wook’s disgusted glare shut me up fast. One more wisecrack, and he’d genuinely lose his temper.  

"Sorry."  

"Look, objectively, you are pretty. But the way you act at home? Zero femininity."  

"What? How can you say that—" 

"Should I tell your mom how you’ve been living?"  

"Jin-wook, let’s settle this between us—no need to call my parents." 

And truthfully?  

If my parents found out I’d skipped school to game, they’d never let it slide. If I wanted to avoid trouble, I had no choice but to obey.  

"You want me to get dragged back to the countryside with an S-rank Hunter title?"

"The way you act, it might do you good." 

"And I call this guy my friend..."  

"Wanna try this on?" 

Jin-wook handed me a coordinated set—more suited for early winter than late autumn. It wasn’t the youthful style of a typical 20-year-old but a mature, noona-like ensemble.  

"Okay, wait a sec."  

I took the clothes and headed to the fitting room. Earlier, I’d thought there was no way I’d wear this to school, but the mirror showed just how sloppy I’d looked before.  

"Whoa, this is amazing."  

Stripping off my old tee and underwear, I slipped on the beige slacks, layered shirt, and ivory knit. The scraggly girl was gone—replaced by a sharp, unapproachable noona in the mirror.  

"Done?"  

"My taste never fails."  

"It’s just the hanger doing the work."  

Jin-wook snorted. But honestly?  

This body was blessed—zero maintenance, yet my figure stayed toned, my skin flawless, and my features striking. Not to mention, my chest was... respectable.  

"Ugh, becoming a Hunter just made you worse. We’ll take these."  

"Of course! I’ll ring you up."  

Jin-wook casually pulled out a card—but as I turned to leave, the clerk called out:  

"Sir, this card’s over its limit..."  

"Huh? That’s impossible." 

"I’ve tried twice. Same result."  

No way. That card—  

I tensed to bolt, but Jin-wook’s lightning-fast grip seized my collar.  

"So, S-rank Hunter*?"  

"Y-Yes?"  

"Care to explain? S-ranks are supposed to be rolling in cash."  

Cold sweat dripped down my back. If he found out I’d blown my money on in-game purchases... I was dead.  

"Well, you see, Jin-wook—" 

"You spent it all on microtransactions, didn’t you? Or game packs?"  

"Please don’t tell Mom—!"  

"Oh, I’m telling. I’ll buy the clothes, but we’re visiting your parents first."  

"NO!"  

***

"Damn it, Jung Jin-wook, that rotten bastard."

I lay sprawled on the lecture hall desk, cursing the unseen Jin-wook.

Thanks to that jerk telling Mom I spent all my money on game microtransactions, I got chewed out big time.

I almost got dragged off to the countryside.

'If you keep this up, I might just come down there and shove you into the local defense force!'

Mom's final words were genuinely terrifying.

Of course, since I'm an S-rank Hunter, the country wouldn't just stick valuable manpower like me into some local defense force.

But my mother was the type of person who could chase off any government clerk or whatever...

"Hey, was there someone like that in our department?"

"I know, right? First time seeing her."

"Isn't that her, Hwang Eun-ha?"

How long had I waited like that?

Gradually, students started coming in, and soon, those who recognized me began to appear, bringing the lecture hall slowly back to life.

Comments also arose about how the girl who usually just wore hoodies suddenly came dressed properly.

"Ah, Hwang Eun-ha?"

"She skipped class so much I thought she was on academic probation, but I guess not."

Haaah.

This is why I didn't want to come to school.

This kind of excessive attention doesn't suit a natural-born outsider like me at all.

I got enough attention back in the day, that was plenty.

'I wanna go home.....'

As I lifted my body from its slumped position and stretched, I felt stares from all around for some reason.

Having been a guy once, I kind of knew why.

Anyway, it wasn't a good feeling.

"Oh, Eun-ha, hi! Long time no see?"

While fiercely feeling the urge to go home in my heart.

While seriously flipping a coin in my head about whether to jump out that window right now.

I heard a man's voice from the front, greeting me familiarly by name.

"Not joining your guild."

"What the heck, I just said hi and you shoot me down immediately?"

"Not joining your guild."

Kang Tae-woo.

He attracts the gazes of female students at my university.

But he brushed off all their advances and, at one point, persistently followed me around, trying to get me to join his guild. This annoying guy also showed up.

Honestly, for me, who just wants to live quietly, 90% of the reason I hate coming to school is this guy right in front of me.

"What, got a problem?"

"No, but I do have water."

"Can I kill you?"

"I'll pass on that. If an S-rank gets hurt killing an A-rank, that in itself is a huge loss of combat power."

What the hell is this guy talking about.....

I rested my chin on my hand, adopting a 'Go on, spit it out. I'm sure it's bullshit, but I'll at least listen' posture.

Kang Tae-woo made a face that made me want to smack him right then and there, saying, "That look kinda hurts, you know."

"Guess an A-rank dying isn't considered a loss, huh?"

"Whoa, why are you being so scary?"

"Just saying."

I said that and pulled my phone out of my pocket.

Thanks to bringing a portable battery this time too, this should be enough to roughly kill time during the lecture.

My attitude might seem a bit delinquent in the eyes of the professors, but I'm the kind of existence even the country doesn't mess with easily.

And from the school's perspective, having me around is beneficial, so they probably won't say much.

"Hey, Kang Tae-woo."

"Yeah?"

"Let me say it again, I'm not interested in raiding monsters or whatever the hell. Even if my abilities are strong, you should probably just think of it as pearls before swine."

"Hmm, I wonder."

Kang Tae-woo gave a meaningful smile at my question.

I shouldn't have fought in front of that guy.

"Anyone who saw you fight wouldn't think that."

"Hey."

"Honestly, I've kept quiet because you hate being asked why you fight so well, but I'm still curious about it."

I shut my mouth at Kang Tae-woo's words.

The reason I didn't want to come to school wasn't anything special.

I just want to live quietly now.

But this guy, Kang Tae-woo, kept trying to mess up that life.

If he'd at least approached me with some hidden lust, trying to get something out of it, I could have shut him down decisively.

He talks about the guild and whatnot.

But that wasn't Kang Tae-woo's real intention.

"Well, you wouldn't tell me even if I asked."

"You still remember what happened back then?"

"Of course, I do. How could I forget? Who was it that blocked the blade right before it pierced my heart?"

I was his lifesaver.

And this guy, Kang Tae-woo, quickly climbed the ranks to an executive position in the guild and was doing this supposedly to make my life a bit easier.

Knowing his intentions, how could I just push him away completely?

"Just forget about it already. Back then, I wasn't specifically trying to save you."

A Trick-type Gate.

Back when Kang Tae-woo was still in high school, he attempted to raid a Trick-type Gate with his guild members, failed, and was about to lose his life to the boss in the boss room. At that moment, someone intervened, and he barely escaped with his life.

In the Hunter industry, it's the kind of story you'd call lucky.

Was it about a year after I came home?

A Gate had opened near the neighborhood I lived in at the time.

Since I was a minor back then, even as an S-rank, the Association had no authority to force me to deploy.

As a backup plan, the Association put the raid rights for that Gate up for auction, and the winning bid went to the guild Kang Tae-woo belonged to at the time.

Of course, the result, as mentioned before, was a complete failure of the raid.

Thanks to that, the Gate was ultimately about to break open.

Unable to just stand by and watch that happen, I personally stepped in and barely managed to prevent the Gate break. Saving Kang Tae-woo wasn't really my intention.

It was just something that happened in the process of stopping the Gate break.

"How could I forget? The only reason I'm alive now is thanks to you."

"Right. And thanks to the mask I was wearing getting knocked off, you're here annoying the hell out of me now."

"Hunters always repay their debts, don't you know?"

"Yeah, I don't know, so please get lost."

It was then.

Perhaps because it was time for the lecture to start, the front door of the classroom opened, and the professor came in, telling the students, "Alright, everyone, please take your seats."

Kang Tae-woo, who had been sitting backwards the whole time, said smoothly, "Well then, I'll just listen to the lecture and then get lost," finally turning to face the front and sit properly.

I felt like talking to him had completely drained all my energy, letting out a long sigh, "Haaah."

'He'd actually be a pretty good guy if he wasn't so annoying.'

Resting my chin on one arm on the table.

I briefly had that thought while looking at the guy facing forward.

Anyway, in the Hunter industry, being saved by a colleague is pretty common, right?

It's just that the circumstances back then were a bit dramatic.

"Hwang Eun-ha."

"Here."

"Oh, Student Hwang Eun-ha is here too. I was worried since I hadn't seen you after the second lecture...."

"Sorry. I've been a bit busy lately....."

"Still, as a student, I hope you'll attend regularly. Next, Hwang Jin-yi...."