6
Ho sighed after looking at Hwan’s gift.
He wasn’t sure what brand it was. He had never seen these letters before. It looked just like an ordinary glass bottle, but upon closer inspection, it was totally different. There was purple liquid inside the bottle.
“It’s an elixir. Have you heard of it?”
Ho shook his head. Hwan, with a smile, then started to explain about it.
“I brought this to fix your arm, but since that’s already done, you can use it for another purpose. Take this. All you have to do is drink. Once you drink the potion, you’ll be restored to full health, even if your limbs are gone, or your heart is penetrated. But keep in mind that it won’t have an effect when the head is gone.”
Ho just accepted it without any question. The brother’s conversation ended just like that. He had a lot of work to do. Even if his long-lost brother just returned, he can’t stop his work. Ho was not the boy he used to be.
Ho still had a cigarette in his hand. That was due to psychological reasons.
Even if everything told him that the man was his brother, he was not sure whether the man was his actual real brother.
While climbing up to this position, he had seen and experienced a lot of horrifying moments.
When the day finally came that he could wholeheartedly believe that this man was truly his brother Hwan, perhaps he could stop smoking.
However, right now, his cigarette was still burning; smoke was still floating in the air.
* * *
It was undeniable that having a rich brother was very convenient.
He was living in a penthouse. I searched for the price and saw that it was about 20 million dollars.
Additionally, staff from the Cheon-Myeong guild came and gave me a credit card.
I took it and went out to go to a convenience store called GS26. I was glad that it still existed. Before I was taken to the Valhalla continent, I used to visit this convenience store quite often.
I entered a convenience store and bought an ice cream named BBK. However, the price was twice as much as what I remembered.
“Price escalation. Wow.”
With a simple expression, I bought some ice cream, biscuits, and beers.
It was such a peaceful day. I was planning to roam around the street, but I stopped and stood straight.
I saw a woman who was entering the convenience store. And that woman was the one that I knew.
“Hunter Yoo?”
“…..Mr. Lee?”
Why was this woman here?
“What are you doing here?”
“You just saw me. Entering the convenience store.”
She didn’t say the word, but her face was telling me that she was entering a convenience store that she used regularly.
“I heard that only residents could use it. Do you know what I mean?”
She paused for a bit and hesitated for a while. Then, she nodded and answered quietly.
“…Yes.”
I observed her for a while. Suddenly, a realization hit me. Can this woman be…?
“Am I thinking this right?”
“What are you talking about?”
“Admit it. You know what I’m talking about.”
“….”
“Wow, you were scarier than I thought!”
“Don’t get this wrong. It is a good choice to invest in the place where famous hunters are living.”
“A-ha, so you’re called an ‘investor,’ huh?”
“Yes. Master Ho is undeniably one of the strongest hunters among the big three, and he invested a lot to build this apartment. So unless something significant happens, the value of apartments usually does not fall. For the past five years, the stock price has been rising and never dropped.”
And so on. Just like last time, she explained the whole story about my brother.
It was hard to hold back my laughter. Encountering this woman was the funniest thing that happened right after returning to the Earth. I called her out and asked.
“Why don’t we have a drink together? I got some beer.”
“Beer?”
“Yep.”
Her face told me that she wanted to drink it badly.
I would say that it was the face of someone who had been struggling. I had seen that kind of face multiple times.
As I lifted the beer can, I could see that her eyes were attracted to it. She then asked, “What about snacks?”
“How about saewookkang? Traditional shrimp crackers.”
Ee-Na laughed at what I suggested. “That’s such an old taste. Nowadays, people eat Jagalchi. It’s an unofficial rule.”
I shrugged. How was I supposed to know that? Saewookkang was the trend when I was around.
“I’ll set the table. Buy any snack that you want.”
I only had beer, saewookkang, and ice cream. She nodded and rushed to the convenience store.
I found a table and set a place for drinking. While waiting for her, I thought of my reunion with my brother.
To be honest, it was a weird feeling. I could tell he still doubted me, but I never felt the same toward him. That guy was definitely my brother. He had grown so well, much more than I could have expected.
While I was in Valhalla, I felt worried about him a lot. His arms were injured, and he was introverted and weak. I actually thought that the possibility of him being a panhandler was far larger.
That was why I yearned to return home. That was why I left everything I had in Valhalla.
I looked up at the night sky. The air was fresh and nice.
His dream was to become an artist. I wanted to help him to become one, but in his own way, he achieved it in another way.
I could not stop the growing smile on my lips. Seeing him and knowing he was fine was already a gift for me. Well then, how should I help him?
As I continued staring at the night sky, I realized that the Earth’s sky was better than that of Valhalla.
* * *
“So, how was your reunion?”
I smiled quietly.
It was not like a reunion. My dear Ho still didn’t think that I was his brother, anyway.
“You don’t want to talk about it?”
“Why are you asking? Are you curious about it?”
“A little?”
I smiled again.
“It went well. Can’t you tell by seeing me here? Though it’s sad to hear that he will go out for an overseas business trip. Poor guy… He seems to be a very busy man.”
Ee-Na did not say much. She just continued to drink with a frown on her face.
“I could easily tell that you needed a drink.”
“Whew… do you think so?”
“Did your boss scold you a lot?”
“It’s my supervisor. You saw the man from the hologram, right?”
“Yes. You told me his name is Lee Joo-Heon, right?”
“Wow, you have a great memory. Yes, that’s him.”
She drank the beer quickly and sighed.
“That jackass doesn’t like me.”
She continued drinking beer in her hand. “At first, he acted like a proper advisor. But suddenly, he began to treat me unfairly. His words are harsh, and he scolds me in front of everyone whenever I make a mistake, even trivial ones.”
Then, she slammed the table with her palm.
“Everyone knows that he is an A-ranked hunter. He always emphasizes his rank and tells me to listen to whatever he says. If I do wrong, he criticizes me and says that is the reason why I’m staying as a B-ranked hunter. He always tells me that I only have a pretty face and nothing else. ‘Quit the f***ing job.’ ‘You can be replaced easily, scum!’ or so on. Since everyone is afraid of his vengeance, no one sides with me.”
“That guy sure is a jackass.”
“Yeah. I was recruited by a special method. I was hired to replace his former staff. He also quitted because of that supervisor’s action. As I took that staff’s place, I am now his target. You heard what he said. He told me to bring you back home.”
“He did.”
“So I returned right after leaving that building. Then he criticized me for being late. ‘Why did you come late? Did you have fun? That brat…… You had sex with that hiker, didn’t you? Let me guess. You went to the motel.’ Can you believe it?”
I know it was not the right time, but her imitation was on point. Then, I realized that jackass was not a word to describe him. He was far worse than that.
“So what did you do?”
“All I did was tell the truth. But… you’ll be shocked if you hear what he said.”
“What did he say?”
“He sniffed and then shouted. ‘I smell a man’s trace on your body! Don’t lie to me, you b****!’ I had no choice but to apologize. Even if it wasn’t my fault.”
I sensed that this was not the end of the story. As I looked at her eyes, she shrugged for a bit and continued her story.
“I cried in the bathroom. And that helped a lot.”
After hearing that, I couldn’t understand get the reason why she was still working under that man.
“Why….”
“Pardon?”
“Why do you continue your work when you are treated like this?
She smirked. I definitely could tell that she was drunk for a bit. “You know the hunter’s hierarchy?”
“What’s that?”
“It’s an unofficial law for hunters. Highly ranked hunters getting everything, I suppose?”
“They have that kind of rule?”
“It’s just simple. A-ranked hunters are superior to lower-ranked hunters. For instance, A-ranked has a higher position than B-ranked. Meanwhile, B-ranked has a higher position than C-ranked. In short, we must comply with the ones who have a higher rank than us. It’s an unofficial rule.”
It was quite a natural phenomenon. Usually, people who possessed power demanded respect.
“I heard that hunters could work as a freelance hunter. Do you really have to stay there? Even with that treatment?”
Ee-Na, with a smile, answered the question.
“I was a freelance hunter.”
“Well? Why not return as a freelancer?”
She shook her head.
“I want to stay in that team. Even if the treatment I get is the worst, I just want to.”
It was hard to understand her decision. If I were her, I would rather attack instead of getting hit. But what she said next allowed me to understand her intention.
“Seven years ago, while everything was chaotic, hundreds of orcs invaded our city.”
“Really?”
“Yes, I thought I was going to die. Five orcs were rushing toward me. Luckily a man from that team saved me.”
“I see. So, you followed his path.”
After hearing her story, I was curious about the man.
“What is he doing now?”
“He is dead.”
I had no idea what to say after that.
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