The Hunter of the Other World Who Is Being Misunderstood

Chapter 119:

[Silent Graveyard].

This is an E-rank gate located in Gampo. And this gate had its own unique role. 

It would store the waste generated in the area inside. Once the trash accumulated to a certain level, hunters called by public institutions were scheduled to enter and kill the boss. 

So what would happen as a result? In fact, this was a new waste disposal method that took advantage of the fact that cleared gates disappeared from Earth. Unlike burning or burying, it doesn’t cause any environmental pollution, which is why it’s widely used by most countries. 

Even if it’s not a port city, many regions are indeed using gates to dispose of their waste. This process also brings incidental benefits to humanity. The E-rank gate called ‘Silent Graveyard’, as mentioned earlier, is already known among hunters for its low profitability.

“No items dropped, no useful skins or anything. Ugh, honestly, doesn’t it just end up being a loss to visit places like this?” 

“Right. It just adds to the cost of potions.” 

It was only natural for unprofitable hunting grounds to be avoided. Therefore, the government, eager to make use of these troublesome, unpopular gates, gladly adopted this waste disposal method. 

But today, an accident occurred at that waste disposal gate.

“Let’s see, the graveyard disposal site is starting to fill up.”

One day ago, a certain government official from the Association called in a Hunter team to close the gate that had been filled with waste. Naturally, since the Silent Graveyard was an E-rank gate, they hired E-rank Awakener as cleaners.   

“Alright, everyone. From now on, we’ll head inside, clean up the monsters that have piled up, and quickly take care of the boss. Got it?”

“Yes.”

“Yes!”

But guess what? The E-rank team that went in to clean up didn’t return by sunset. So the official in charge, who found this unusual, checked inside the gate. It was only at this point that they belatedly realized the source of the problem.  

“W, what’s this? What are those little birds? This gate was supposed to only have slimes living here…” 

A rapid change in the internal ecosystem. That’s right, the so-called phenomenon of abnormal mutation had even reached this garbage dump. This place was no longer an E-rank gate. 

‘Crazy!’

That’s why there was a regulation to measure the gate’s difficulty again before allowing cleaners to enter. The association staff had been negligent in oversight, thinking that nothing significant could happen at such an E-rank gate. And today, the price of that negligence has finally been paid. And it came in the form of the deaths of five E-rank hunters. 

‘What should we do?’

Of course, there is some responsibility on the hunters who didn’t cross-check on their own, but… the primary cause at the moment is these people who violated safety regulations. 

The person in charge was horrified to see the accident in front of them. The subsequent response was even more of a spectacle

“What? The Silent Graveyard has undergone a strange mutation?” 

“Y, yes!” 

“What’s the new rank?”

“Uh, well, it’s a D-rank! There were some small birds flying around inside, and when analyzed, it came out as D-rank!” 

The Hunter Association branch he belonged to immediately dispatched D-class hunters after hearing only the report from the lowest level. This hasty decision soon resulted in another loss.  

The strange mutations observed these days tend to be radical and unpredictable.

– Grrrrk.

– Chirp, chirp chirp…

Therefore, situations where high-rank monsters are mixed within the depths of a gate like this must be carefully considered. 

– Gaaaaaaah!

The two additional D-class cleaners who entered were caught in an unavoidable situation due to the association’s lax handling of the matter. When they actually entered the dungeon, contrary to what the association said, they found that the place was swarming with enemies whose magical power reached C-rank.

However, by the time they noticed this, the two hunters had already suffered fatal injuries.

Moreover, the people of this planet, as always, tend to sacrifice some degree of safety under the pretext of saving a budget. 

“Heuk!” 

Public institutions push the garbage dump to the limit in order to reduce the cost of hiring cleaners. In simple terms, these E-rank gates are left unattended for a full 6 days until the monsters inside are saturated. However, this gate has already failed to be conquered twice during such an important time…

“Kyaaak!”

Eventually, the result was that the [Silent Graveyard] caused a dungeon break. 

And one hour later…

“What on earth is going on?”

The once quiet port was thrown into chaos as the commotion spread. The red cocoon surrounding the pine forest was so conspicuous that it was easily noticeable. 

“Everyone, stay away! It’s a dungeon break.”

Soon, onlookers gathered. The dispatched staff quickly set up a no-entry line and stopped the residents. Now, all they had to do was wait for high-rank hunters to deal with this monstrous nest. 

“Oh my!”

“Don’t push me!”

But then.

Among the gathered crowd, an elderly man with white hair rushed in breathlessly. As soon as he saw the staff in front of the cocoon, he shouted loudly.

“E, excuse me! Association staff. Have you seen someone named Han Sooyeon around here?”

“Han Sooyeon?” 

“Yes. She’s my granddaughter, and she said she was going to work at this graveyard today, but I haven’t been able to reach her…” 

It turned out that he was a family member of a hunter. Hearing the news report that there was a problem with the dungeon his granddaughter had gone to, he rushed over immediately. 

However, what followed was truly a devastating statement for the old man. 

“That… if you’re referring to Han Sooyeon, the D-rank hunter, she was confirmed… dead by a colleague’s testimony just now.” 

He grimaced at the thunderous news. His heart had been pounding since he put on his shoes earlier. The old man, who had been standing there in shock, finally spoke after a long time.

“T, then, where is the child now…?”

The staff member looked silently toward the red cocoon.

Who would have thought that his granddaughter would be in such a terrible place? The old man started to scream as soon as he heard that answer.

“Did you say that my child is still in there? Oh no! Sooyeon-ah!” 

“E, Elder! You can’t go in there!”

“Get out of the way! How can you just stand there when my granddaughter is left in such a place? Huh?” 

Moreover, the voice of the white-haired man gradually filled with anger.

According to the news, this incident happened because the person in charge of managing the garbage dump made a mistake. 

You guys are the ones who did the wrong thing, so why did my granddaughter have to die? And why don’t you take responsibility and bring back our child who died because of you guys?

It was a huge scream that was hard to believe was coming from such a pitiful body.

“F*ck!”

“E, Elder. Please calm down.” 

“Oh dear. What on earth is this.” 

The residents who watched this all felt pity for the old man, but at the same time, they also thought it was an unavoidable situation.

This place has fewer people and therefore less danger. Therefore, there are fewer hunters. The few awakeners would go to other areas to find a gate that matches their level. 

“While you guys are acting like this, are you telling our granddaughter to become monster food? Huh? You worthless scoundrels!” 

As the old saying goes, ‘You fix the barn after losing the cow.’ It wasn’t until the incident escalated that the association decided to send an overwhelming A-rank team to the Silent Graveyard. Because of this, the overall handling of the situation became several times slower. The port lacked A-rank hunters, so they had to recruit personnel from other cities. 

So, how many hours will it take until all the cleanup is finished? And what will happen to the D-rank bodies surrounded by monsters in the meantime?

“Huh…”

The white-haired old man now started clinging to the staff’s clothing and begging.

“At the very least, please retrieve the bodies.” 

But there was no answer.

“Please… someone, at least retrieve my granddaughter’s body…”

Some staff even cast cold glances. While the situation was pitiful, honestly, asking them to enter a dangerous area just for the sake of retrieving bodies was unreasonable. 

“Oh my, her mother raised her with so much love and care. How, how could something like this happen in our family…” 

If this continues, they’ll have to hold a funeral with an empty coffin. The old man was heartbroken. Meanwhile, the reporter present at the scene took photographs of the entire situation without missing a detail.

Wait a moment. Just now, he had a feeling that he saw something unusual move in one corner of the viewfinder… 

“Hmm?” 

The reporter absentmindedly adjusted the direction of the lens. And with this, they realized that what they had seen was not an illusion. 

“Heuk!”

Srrk.

Just now, someone was walking out of that nest.

Click!

The reporter instinctively pressed the shutter button on the camera, but when he saw the scene that followed, he almost dropped the equipment in surprise.

‘K, Kim Kiryeo?’

What appeared from the nest was none other than a fourth S-Class? But for some reason, the other person wasn’t in a normal state.

A blood-soaked upper body. Silver spears embedded in the wounds. Just looking at this, the atmosphere was ominous. 

At that moment, the old man who had been sitting down suddenly shouted while pointing at the woman in the hunter’s arms.

“S, Sooyeon-ah!” 

Could that sky-blue hair be the granddaughter he mentioned earlier? 

There was no time to ask questions. The old man had already run toward his family. 

“Yes, that’s her! It’s Sooyeon, our granddaughter.”

By the time the elderly Earthling was sobbing uncontrollably, a surprised association staff member asked.

“No, who are you, and why are you coming out of here…” 

It seems like this person doesn’t usually watch the news. 

“Huh? N, no way, Hunter Kim Kiryeo?” 

Fortunately, not everyone reacted the same way. The other staff members standing nearby soon recognized the person’s face. 

Even when Kiryeo’s name was called, he didn’t respond for a while. In the brief silence, someone spoke loudly. 

“Thank you, sir!”

It was the old man’s cry.

“Thank you so much for bringing our child. Sob.”

Crying and repeatedly bowing his head, the old man received the body of his family member from the hunter in front of him. At that moment, it seemed that Kim Kiryeo was reluctantly letting go of the body, unable to resist the old man’s earnestness… but that was probably just a feeling. 

“Excuse me, Hunter, but if you don’t mind me asking, why are you coming out from inside there?”

Now it was time to explain the situation. The staff, having not been informed in advance, were quite surprised by the appearance of an S-rank. After a brief moment of contemplation, Kim Kiryeo delivered a few dry statements. 

“I’m sorry. Earlier, I happened to overhear an association staff member saying that there was a dead hunter inside this cocoon.”

It was essentially a confession…

“I went inside briefly to retrieve that hunter.”

“That’s all?” 

“Yes.” 

However, a confession is considered a significant mitigating factor under Korean law. Moreover, there are a few more excuses that can be used in this situation. 

“…But anyway, the body was returned to the bereaved family, so it’s all good in the end, right?”

“Yes?”

“Well, this time…I’m asking for leniency because I didn’t harm anyone. Of course, I’m also reflecting on my actions. I will never do this again.”

Confession.

Emphasize that the crime was attempted.

A heartfelt apology.

Soon after, Kiryeo made a desperate attempt for leniency. However, there was one thing he overlooked.

‘Hmm?’

That is the subject. Why did all the previous statements somehow lack this crucial element?

‘What has this person been asking me to see since a while ago?’

The association staff paused for a moment after hearing Kiryeo’s words. They soon arrived at a similar conclusion. 

‘Oh, is he apologizing for entering the restricted area without permission?’

Logically, that was the only thing an S-rank hunter would have to apologize for.

“Phew, it’s fine! It’s okay.”

The association staff immediately waved their hands and said,

“You seem to be mistaken right now. This no-entry line was put in place to prevent civilians from crossing without knowing, and it doesn’t apply to hunters in the first place.”

“….”

“T, that means you can enter the dungeon without our permission. And you’re an S-class Hunter.” 

How unexpected this explanation must have sounded to Kiryeo?

“?”

A few seconds later, the man with the Sambaegan eyes realizes that their conversation doesn’t align. 

“Yes.” 

However, from his perspective, this is advantageous, so he decided to go along with it for now.