Chapter 2
Clunk.
A lukewarm can of coffee dropped from the vending machine.
Lee Chaeho picked it up and walked over to an old faux-leather sofa tucked away in the corner of the Hunter Association branch's rest area.
It was a weekend afternoon, and the Association branch was packed like a marketplace with Hunters who had just returned from dungeon raids.
Exaggerated stories of battle and loud laughter filled the air from every direction.
"No, I'm telling you! That orc suddenly started spinning its axe around like a whirlwind! If I hadn't blocked it with my shield, you'd already be lying in a VIP hospital room."
"Hey, don't use blocking one attack as an excuse to dump the entire dinner bill on me."
Ignoring the noisy conversation from another party at the table across from him, Chaeho opened the can.
The lukewarm, overly sweet coffee slid down his throat.
At his feet, a pair of cheap shin guards covered in scratches and a blunt iron dagger were sticking out of his bag.
They were proof of the harsh raid he had just endured, rolling around in the rear of a C-rank dungeon covered in mud and monster blood.
Bzzzt. Bzzzt.
His phone vibrated inside his pocket.
The moment Chaeho checked the caller's name on the screen, his indifferent expression softened.
"Yes, Mother."
His mother's warm voice came through the phone, carrying the same concern it always did.
"Son, did you eat? You sound a little tired."
"I just finished the raid and came to the Association. I'm about to eat now. There weren't many monsters today, and the dungeon closed early, so it was really easy."
"You're not hurt anywhere, are you? I keep seeing things on the news about monsters suddenly coming out of Gates in the middle of Seoul. I've been worried sick all day. Work is important, but what's the point if you get hurt?"
Chaeho smiled faintly.
"Come on, the places I go aren't that dangerous."
He lied smoothly, without hesitation.
"Everyone in the party is experienced. They go ahead and wipe out all the monsters, while I safely carry the luggage in the back."
He added lightly,
"It's really comfortable and safe. I don't even get out of breath."
None of it was true.
Guarding the rear of a C-rank dungeon was nowhere near as safe as a picnic.
Half-crazed monsters that had been blasted away from the front lines could come charging toward him at any moment, desperate to kill anything they saw.
It was a world where looking away for even a second, or taking one wrong step, could lead to a serious injury.
But there was no reason to tell his parents the truth and make them worry unnecessarily.
"Your health comes before money, okay? Don't push yourself just because you want to stand in front with everyone else. Be careful while you work."
His mother paused before continuing.
"Your father's old truck doesn't need to be repaired right away. Buy yourself better armor first. Something sturdy. Understand?"
"Don't worry. The party settlement this month was pretty good, so I'm going to the equipment district tomorrow."
Chaeho answered casually.
"I'll transfer the money for Father's truck repairs this evening, so make sure you tell him to go to the repair shop first."
"Oh, honestly... Fine. Just don't skip meals. Go eat some meat or something filling."
The call ended.
Chaeho stared blankly at the dark screen of his smartphone.
His own reflection looked unusually exhausted.
He had acted confident and carefree in front of his parents, but the reality of Hunter Lee Chaeho's life was brutally harsh.
He didn't even need to open his banking app to know how much money was left in his account.
After paying next week's hospital bill, monthly living expenses, and the repair cost for the broken truck, he would have barely a hundred thousand won left.
Buying mana-resistant armor worth several million won or replacing his old weapon with something sharp and reliable wasn't even worth dreaming about.
For a profession where his head could be cut off at any moment, his income was painfully low.
And starting today, even that income had disappeared.
So I've really been kicked out of the party.
Chaeho leaned deep into the sofa and released a short sigh.
He didn't resent Sangmin's decision in the slightest.
If anything, he was grateful that Sangmin had allowed a D-rank Hunter with no real combat skill to work as the dedicated porter of an elite C-rank party for this long.
The party was now preparing to seriously enter B-rank dungeons.
For an ordinary D-rank Hunter with average physical abilities, staying in the rear while also working as a porter would be suicide.
In an environment where area-of-effect magic exploded everywhere and boss monsters launched sudden attacks, Chaeho wouldn't even be able to guarantee his own survival.
And the other party members couldn't destroy their formation just to protect a porter who contributed nothing to the party's fighting power.
I was pushed out because I'm not strong enough. Who am I supposed to blame?
If he had refused to accept reality and begged them to take him along just one more time, the situation would only have turned ugly for everyone.
Chaeho understood his own limits better than anyone.
Objectively.
Coldly.
But that didn't mean he intended to give up being a Hunter and return to an ordinary job.
A normal office salary wouldn't be enough to support his parents in their old age and cover the hospital bills that kept increasing every year.
Even if he had to risk his life every day, the dungeon industry was still the only place where he could earn a large amount of money quickly.
If he had been thrown out because his current ability wasn't enough, then the answer was simple.
He just had to start over.
He could join a D-rank party and find another porter position that matched his current level.
From there, he could work himself to the bone, cover the gaps others ignored, take care of the annoying jobs other Hunters didn't want to do, and slowly build more experience.
There were still plenty of ways to make a living.
Having made up his mind, Chaeho pulled the large bag closer.
He opened the zipper and reached inside between bloodstained cloth and miscellaneous equipment.
His fingertips touched something rough and dry.
He carefully pulled it out.
It was a thin booklet bound in old parchment.
The severance gift Oh Sangmin had secretly handed him with a guilty expression.
A one-use random skill book that had never been appraised by the Association.
"I really need this to give me something useful."
Chaeho muttered as he rubbed the worn cover with his thumb.
He wasn't expecting anything incredible from a cheap random skill book like this.
If he was lucky, he might get some common E-rank or D-rank support skill.
A slight increase in basic stamina.
Two extra meters of vision in darkness.
A passive skill that made carried weight feel five percent lighter.
The ability to identify monster footprints.
Even a small utility skill like that would add an excellent line to his résumé when he applied for another porter position.
Of course, if his luck was terrible, he might get a debuff skill that created a foul smell within a one-meter radius.
