My Assigned Hunters Climb the Tower - Chapter 20

========== CHAPTER 20 ==========

[Community: Hunter House – Awakened Chat Room]

Title: Is it for real that I just saw Kang Ji-hyun at the entrance of the [Bucheon Abandoned Warehouse Dungeon]? (Photo)

Author: RoseQueenJi-hyeon | Views: 38,201 | Likes: 245

Wow, holy shit… looks like our Ji-hyeon-eonni is finally back!!! ㅠㅠㅠ

She disappeared, then suddenly appeared and started swinging her staff; her presence is still top-tier.

But who are the guys and the kid next to her? They’re all faces I’ve never seen before…

They don’t have guild marks, and there isn’t a single article about them, so I’m super curious.

[412 Comments]

Anonymous 1: F-real, that’s Kang Ji-hyun? Wow, it’s been so long ㅠㅠ But what’s up with the visuals of the guys next to her?

Anonymous 2: That tall guy over there, he’s wearing a mask, but his physique and vibe are no joke… The handsome aura is piercing right through the mask.

Anonymous 3: ^F-real, just looking at that masked man’s vibe, he’s at least actor-tier. Him wearing a suit and shooting water was badass.

Anonymous 4: The guy next to him who weirdly gives off priest vibes is also insane lol. He uses gravity, and his face is literally holiness itself.

Title: Does anyone really not know the affiliation of that ‘Kang Ji-hyun Party’ spotted today?

Author: HunterAppraiser | Views: 25,302 | Likes: 30

Does anyone know why Kang Ji-hyun is hanging out with rookies?

The combination is really unique.

Kang Ji-hyun: 1st generation top-class Witch. No explanation needed.

Masked Man: He’s wearing a mask so I can’t see his face, but his vibe is almost celebrity-level. Seems like a water-attribute hunter.

Priest Style: A gravity user, but his vibe is so clean and holy.

Kid: A curse-type kid hunter.

These four are always stuck together, but the guild or manager managing this team is nowhere to be seen.

[124 Comments]

Anonymous 1: I saw them at the dungeon entrance today too, and I didn’t see anyone like a boss or manager. They only move among themselves.

Anonymous 2: There’s no way Kang Ji-hyun joined a startup… Did Kang Ji-hyun start a guild herself?

Anonymous 3: I’m really curious about the masked man’s identity lol. Just looking at his eyes makes me want to stan, so why does he keep it covered?

Anonymous 4: The biggest mystery is that there isn’t a single article about that team. Is it a mystery concept?

Title: Is the ‘Masked Man’ next to Ji-hyeon-eonni perhaps a new hunter? (Vibe summary)

Author: HunterStan | Views: 31,481 | Likes: 110

Ji-hyeon-eonni’s team was spotted again today near the [Underground Shopping Mall Dungeon]!

While everyone was focused on Kang Ji-hyun and that priest-like guy, I only watched the masked man lol.

He has his face completely covered so I don’t know who he is, but his standing posture and vibe are really cool.

It’s like he’s a protagonist with a backstory, you know? The way he wields water jets is no joke.

Is it really true that Ji-hyeon-eonni started this?

[82 Comments]

Anonymous 1: Kang Ji-hyun didn’t start it. But there is absolutely zero info on that team lol. They say it’s Management Gyeol, but no one knows who the boss is or where the office is.

Anonymous 2: I guess the boss doesn’t even show up on-site? Usually, for a team of this level, the boss would follow them around to promote them.

Anonymous 3: Why does the masked man keep it covered… He even wore a hat later. It’s too wrapped up to be just a mystery concept.

Anonymous 4: That team’s kid, Kang Hoon, is also cute ㅠㅠ Ji-hyeon-eonni takes such good care of the baby lol.

Title: The current biggest mystery in the Hunter scene: Kang Ji-hyun’s agency

Author: FactChecker | Views: 21,302 | Likes: 65

They took in a big shot like Kang Ji-hyun.

They put together a combo of a masked man with an insane vibe + a holy gravity hottie + a curse-type kid.

But they haven’t released a single PR article.

The boss is nowhere to be seen, and they just keep grinding dungeons among themselves.

Doesn’t this mean the agency has a ton of money, or the boss has incredible confidence?

[45 Comments]

Anonymous 1: I’m betting all my assets on the masked man’s identity. He’s definitely a super handsome rookie.

Anonymous 2: I heard the boss’s name is ‘Go Gyeol’? I want to see his face once lol. How did he gather a team like that?

Anonymous 3: It feels like they won’t release a single article until the Tower opens lol. That’s some proper mystery marketing.

Anonymous 4: What is the boss doing! Strike while the iron is hot!!

After the first dungeon raid was successfully completed, the rewards provided by the System were better than expected.

[Main Mission: Arcadia Shopping Mall Clear Reward]

Reward: 20 Gold

Current Gold: 100 Gold

Finally broke into triple digits. However, Go Gyeol couldn’t just be happy.

‘Missions aren’t popping up as much as I thought.’

Unlike the tutorial missions that poured in right after the regression, the System had been strangely silent since the first real battle ended. Go Gyeol knocked on the abyss of his consciousness and tried to call the System, but unlike usual, there was no answer.

Just as he was staring out the window, wondering what the reason could be, the office door swung open roughly.

-Kkiiik!

When Go Gyeol looked up, a black shadow was standing at the entrance. It was Lee Seong-ha, dressed in a long, flowing black cassock. He slammed the large leather bag he was holding onto the table with a loud thud, then threw himself onto the sofa.

“……What’s with the cosplay all of a sudden? Are you planning on going back to the cathedral?”

When Go Gyeol asked with a crooked smile, Lee Seong-ha ruffled his hair roughly with a deeply distorted face.

“Don’t even ask. Those old geezers at the Vatican, their stubbornness is no joke. They said returning to secular life is absolutely out of the question or something.”

“So?”

“I got conditional permission for Hunter activities. The condition is that I must wear the priest’s robe when active. And I have to maintain the title of ‘Vatican’s Hunter.’ Fuck, does this make any sense? They want me to wear these dragging clothes while rolling around in the dirt in a dungeon?”

Go Gyeol chuckled as he looked at the hem of Lee Seong-ha’s clothes sprawled on the sofa.

“It’s for PR. A handsome young priest beating up monsters—I can hear the sound of the believers’ donations being collected from here.”

“……Shut up. I’m embarrassed to death, too.”

Lee Seong-ha muttered, covering his face with both hands. Seeing that he couldn’t deny it, it seemed he had already grasped the situation. Go Gyeol propped his chin on his hand and pointed to the bag on the table.

“Still, if they’re going to make you the face of the team, they must have given you something, right? What’s in that bag?”

Lee Seong-ha waved his hand as if it were a nuisance.

“Take it and see. Just carrying that thing around is a chore.”

Curious, Go Gyeol approached and unbuckled the heavy leather bag. The moment the bag opened, a subtle white magic power filled the office.

Inside the bag, finely crafted sacred artifacts were neatly placed.

The first thing that caught his eye was ‘Benedict’s Silver Thurible.’ The thurible, cast in pure white platinum, had an intricate relief of Archangel Michael defeating Satan engraved on it, and the transparent jewels embedded in between were emitting a holy radiance.

Next to it lay the ‘Staff of the Seven Stigmata.’ The top was in the shape of a cross decorated with flashy gold leaf, but the bottom had a sharp and sturdy steel tip, enough to pierce a monster’s heart. It was a bizarre yet sublime piece of equipment where merciful salvation and ruthless judgment coexisted.

“……This, this isn’t just a prop for PR, is it?”

Go Gyeol’s eyes narrowed. He could feel it even without an artifact appraisal eye. These items were deeply imbued with the ‘holy protection’ that the Vatican had accumulated over hundreds of years.

“They told me to carry that around and recite prayers. People will go crazy, right? Seeing a holy priest swinging a thurible and purifying demons.”

Lee Seong-ha muttered, looking at the ceiling as if he had given up.

“But hey, Go Gyeol.”

“Yeah.”

“I don’t know how to use this. Should I just use this to smash heads?”

Go Gyeol frowned slightly as he watched Lee Seong-ha, who was trying to solve things with his muscles while swinging the holy thurible.

“Didn’t the head priest who gave you that teach you how to use it? It’s a sacred artifact, for crying out loud.”

At Go Gyeol’s question, Lee Seong-ha looked at the silver thurible in the bag as if it were a disgusting object and replied.

“Teach me? What do you mean teach me? They just shoved it into my arms like they were handing over a rat with the bubonic plague, and then they ran away at full speed saying they were busy?”

“…….”

Go Gyeol was silent for a moment. It was obvious that even the high-ranking priests of the Vatican didn’t know how to use it and had run away. It was clearly a ‘hot potato’ being passed around. Go Gyeol clicked his tongue and put the sacred artifacts back into the bag.

Lee Seong-ha suddenly lifted his head with a serious expression and asked in a voice filled with despair.

“Hey, Go Gyeol. I’m asking because I’m genuinely curious…… is what you said last time true? That if we enter the Tower, everything we do—fighting, resting—is a broadcast system transmitted to the outside?”

“Yeah. Once the ‘Channel’ opens, viewers from all over the world will watch in real-time. They’ll even send donations.”

“Ughhh……!”

Lee Seong-ha let out a beast-like groan and covered his head.

“Then we’re screwed! Fuck, we’re screwed! We have to act like benevolent priests even when we’re eating inside the Tower, sleeping, and smashing monster heads? 24 hours a day? Calling people sister, brother?”

“The concept is clear and good. The viewership ratings will be huge.”

“You son of a bitch, worse than Satan!”

The exploded Lee Seong-ha sprang up from the sofa like a spring and grabbed Go Gyeol by the collar. Then, he began to shake Go Gyeol’s body back and forth.

“This is all because of you! If it weren’t for you! If you hadn’t come to find me that day and filled my head with nonsense, I would be quietly sipping on mass wine in the basement of the cathedral by now! Give me back my peaceful unemployed life!”

Go Gyeol didn’t change his expression at all even while being grabbed by the collar. He lightly tapped Lee Seong-ha’s hand that was shaking him and said.

“Why are you worrying so much? If the benevolent priest concept that doesn’t suit you is too hard, you can just change it.”