I was trembling from the cold rather than fear. It was my first time experiencing such strong winds with my whole body.

“Yes, but…”

As we climbed up the cliff, a dense forest filled our view. Feeling closer to the sky than the ground made me feel like my insides were opening up.

Through the clouds clustered like cotton candy, I could see winged monsters flying energetically. I felt as free as if I had grown wings myself.

As we reached the higher ground, the true form of the dungeon that had been hidden by the cliff was revealed. Giants who seemed to be over 5 meters tall were walking through the forest.

Beyond the horizon, a tall mountain peak was visible. There was thick fog surrounding it.

“What’s that over there?”

“That’s the dragon’s nest. It’s the area where the third mid-boss resides. No one has managed to defeat it yet.”

The dragon area is an unexplored zone. It’s a dangerous area, so one shouldn’t enter carelessly.

“Would you like to go closer?”

“No, it’s okay! Seeing it from afar is enough.”

I was satisfied with secretly glimpsing something that an ordinary person would never see in their lifetime.

After a while, the shadow griffin descended to the ground. Hunter Chae Dong Hwa, who got off first, offered his hand.

“Thank you.”

I got off the griffin’s back with his support. My legs trembled as the tension released.

Before us was a majestic rocky mountain that seemed to stretch endlessly. The rocky mountain was dotted with holes on each level, like an apartment building.

A spiral path led to the summit. The cave entrances varied in size from human-sized to large enough for giants to enter.

“In jungle-type dungeons, dark attribute monsters are rare. They mainly appear in caves, and even then, you need to be lucky to encounter them.”

I see, so that’s why we came to a place with many caves clustered together, in case we couldn’t find any in just one cave.

“Then what kind of dark attribute monsters are in these caves?”

“There are ghosts, vampire bats, gargoyles, gremlins, skeletal soldiers, and so on.”

“Ghosts… you mean, spirits?”

“Yes. They’re not that strong, being the second weakest monster after vampire bats. They’re B-rank.”

I was scared of ghosts not because they were strong, but because they seemed frightening. And even if their rank is low, I heard from my mother that dark attribute monsters are tricky to deal with because they use curse skills.

‘Let’s try swinging the hammer if something jumps out.’

First strike wins. I won’t be able to attack if I get bound.

I took out my crafting hammer.

“Shall we go in now?”

“Yes.”

Hunter Chae Dong Hwa took the lead. My hand holding the hammer became clammy with sweat.

I stepped into the cave, as dark as a moonless night.

* * *

Han Ryeowoon.

Four years ago, he awakened as an A-rank and immediately entered the Korea Awakened Academy run by the country.

Usually, new hunters attend the academy to gather information about guilds and consider which one to join, looking at the conditions of different places, but Ryeowoon didn’t do that.

With graduating top of his class at the academy as his first step, he had only one goal.

The best guild, the highest salary!

He aimed not for a place that was reasonably good for a new hunter, but for a place where he could receive the best treatment.

As planned, after graduating with high evaluations, numerous guilds approached him with good offers.

‘Is Cheongwoon still the number one guild? I heard Hwarang has been rising lately…’

He had already narrowed down his candidates to some extent since his awakening. However, he was still undecided about which one to choose.

‘Money, just money. Let’s go with the place that pays the most.’

His brief deliberation reached a simple conclusion. Although his initial goal included the best guild, what was more important was the highest salary.

This was because he had massive debts left by his parents and three young siblings to take care of.

But a few days later.

Bang, bang, bang!

“Who is it!”

Someone came to the house. When he opened the door, men in black suits filed in.

“What, what is this? Who are you people!”

“Are you Hunter Han Ryeowoon?”

“Yes. Who are you to barge in like this!”

As he was bewildered by this sudden turn of events, a man with a large build walked through the suited men.

His fingers, wrists, shoulders, and neck were adorned with accessories embedded with what looked like expensive magic stones.

How much would all that cost…

“I can pay off the debt soon! Please wait a little! Once I join a guild…”

At first, he thought debt collectors had come. The atmosphere was that intimidating.

“Debt? You have a lot of debt?”

“Huh?”

But the middle-aged man’s lips curled up as if he had learned something new. For some reason, the news that Ryeowoon had debt seemed to please him.

“I don’t know how much it is, but.”

Thud!

One of the black-suited men standing in a row beside him put a heavy bag on the table. With a click, the bag opened.

“What is this…”

Inside the bag was an amount of money he had never seen before in his life.

“I think I can pay off all of Hunter Han Ryeowoon’s debts.”

What’s going on?

Are these people from a guild, not debt collectors?

Do top guilds usually offer this much signing bonus?

It wasn’t like this when I looked it up on community forums…

“Are you perhaps from a guild?”

It didn’t matter anymore. Ryeowoon was already blinded by money.

Ready to sign the contract immediately at the dazzling sight filling his vision.

“The Korean Awakening Association.”

“Pardon?”

For hunters, the Association was a place low-ranking hunters went when they wanted a stable income. After all, the Association didn’t have jobs difficult enough to employ high-ranking hunters, and consequently, the salary and incentives were low.

But to offer such a large sum of money. Although he thought it was suspicious, before he could be wary, the man continued speaking.

“Join Reconnaissance Team 7 and protect my daughter.”

“Your… daughter?”

“I am the president of the Korean Awakening Association.”

That day, Ryeowoon was sold, no, joined the Korean Awakening Association. To be precise, rather than being affiliated with the Association, he was hired as a personal bodyguard for the Association president’s daughter.

When he heard that the daughter he had to protect was a hunter, he thought she must be quite weak for the Association president to intervene like this. If she’s that weak, she shouldn’t be a hunter, but she insisted on being one, so things must have come to this.

He inwardly clicked his tongue, thinking every family has one precious child.

But as it turned out, she was an A-rank hunter.

“You want me to accompany her?”

And she was Moon Ga Young, a year his senior at the academy.

“I don’t want to.”

“…”

On his first day of work, Ryeowoon recognized Ga Young immediately. How surprised he was when he first saw those sharp eyes.

Hair tied up high in a ponytail and an upright posture. The arrogant gaze typical of hunters skilled in close combat.

Ga Young was already famous among hunters as a rising star. As soon as she saw Ryeowoon, she rejected him.

“You look weaker than me.”

Ah, right… She was also famous for her bad personality.

A scratch was drawn on his male pride. She seemed to have immediately realized he was a supporter by looking at his white hair color. The mana of supporters usually emitted a bright light.

Of course, Ga Young was a combat class and Ryeowoon was a supporter, so physically he was weaker…

“He graduated as the top supporter class from the academy this year.”

That’s right. I’m currently the most sought-after rookie among supporters!

“He’ll provide at least minimal protection.”

The Association president, despite having paid a large sum to contract Ryeowoon, didn’t seem to expect much, as he placated her with the words ‘minimal protection’.

“He seems like he’ll just be a burden…”

“If you don’t accompany Hunter Han Ryeowoon, I won’t allow you to join Reconnaissance Team 7.”

“What? Tch… Fine. I said fine.”

Although her attitude suggested she had no choice, inwardly his pride was seething, but he endured it steadfastly.

Let’s at least earn my keep since I’ve been contracted.

It’s a one-year contract, so I just need to endure for a year.

I was sold for money. I was sold for money.

Just grit your teeth and bear it for one year!

And so, Ryeowoon joined Reconnaissance Team 7 with Ga Young and became her exclusive supporter.

* * *

The work in Reconnaissance Team 7 wasn’t particularly difficult.

Occasionally, high-ranking hunters would receive support requests from the attack team, but under the protection of the Association president, Ga Young and Ryeowoon were excluded.

Since they didn’t participate in expeditions and didn’t have many miscellaneous tasks, the work environment was excellent. It was natural, given that Reconnaissance Team 7 was created solely to find Hunter Jo In Young.

But the problem lay elsewhere.

The person he was supposed to guard was too strong. Unnecessarily so.

[‘Han Ryeowoon (A)’ uses ‘Holy Booster (A)’ on ‘Moon Ga Young (A)’.] [‘Moon Ga Young (A)’s abilities increase dramatically.]

“Huff, huff. Senior, please wait for me!”

And she was too fast. She would often disappear, abandoning her supporter as soon as he took his eyes off her.

It was a natural result of slathering all sorts of buffs, including speed buffs, on someone who was already swift.

[‘Moon Ga Young (A)’ uses ‘Crush (A)’.] [‘Mimic (A)’ evades.]

“That thieving bastard!”

The monster Ga Young was currently chasing was a ‘Mimic’. While they were sleeping in the cave, the Mimic stole Ga Young’s necklace and ran away.

Mimics are treasure chest-shaped monsters that like shiny or valuable items.

Perhaps because all its abilities were focused on agility, it wasn’t easy to catch even with Ryeowoon’s buffs.

Ga Young chased after the Mimic with fire in her eyes.

“Wait a moment! Senior Moon Ga Young! Let’s calm down and go together, I said!”

“Why are you so slow! We’ll lose it at this rate!”

“We came here to find Hunter Chae Dong Hwa, not to catch a Mimic!”

“It took my necklace, I tell you!”

[‘Mimic (A)’ uses ‘Catch Me If You Can (A)’.] [‘Mimic (A)’s movement speed increases dramatically.]

“That…!”

“Senior!”

Ga Young grew more and more distant before eventually disappearing into a dot.

Even though Ryeowoon was A-rank, he was still a supporter class. The Blue Starlight Valley was dangerous for him.

“Haah, ha… This is why I said we shouldn’t go just the two of us!”