I Became The Rankers’ Number One Pick [EN]: Chapter 70

70.

As expected, many people chose Seo-ah and Su-jeong, who seemed to be the weakest.

Of course, Yoon-ji Noh was among them, and so was Doo-hee Yoon.

Seo-ah turned around and looked at Doo-hee Yoon, who nodded slightly as their eyes met. Her eyes looked much calmer than before.

Seo-ah also slightly bowed her head to Doo-hee Yoon and looked forward. After all, the choice was up to Su-jeong Kang. Su-jeong Kang immediately chose Yoon-ji Noh.

“This one!”

Su-jeong flapped the card, even puffing out her cheeks. Thanks to her, the people behind could see the letters on the card. Those who confirmed the name ‘Yoon-ji Noh’ clicked their tongues in disappointment.

Yoon-ji Noh smiled triumphantly and stood up, approaching them.

“Su-jeong Kang, are you crazy? You’re really going to fight me?”

Even as she said that, Yoon-ji Noh seemed quite excited.

“Why? Is there a problem?”

“There’s no problem. I’m just worried. I heard you’re coming out too? Hunter Seo-ah Park.”

“Yeah, I’m going out too.”

“I attack healers too. If I just leave the healer alone, the fight will just drag on.”

“It’s okay, you can do whatever you want. It’s your match, after all.”

Seo-ah said calmly in a gentle tone, and Yoon-ji Noh turned away, seemingly having nothing more to say.

Seo-ah and Su-jeong checked their weapons in the corner, while Yoon-ji Noh chewed on her thumbnail, watching them from afar. Just then, Doo-hee Yoon came to Yoon-ji Noh’s side.

“Don’t underestimate them.”

“What, oh, Senior?”

Yoon-ji Noh turned to Doo-hee Yoon with a sullen face.

“What do you mean? Don’t underestimate them.”

“Just what it says. If you underestimate them, you’ll get a bloody nose.”

“What is it, oh, right. I heard you got your butt kicked by Hunter Seo-ah Park in a sparring match before, Senior Doo-hee Yoon. How did you lose to an E-rank?”

“It wasn’t a proper sparring match. I wasn’t allowed to attack. But it’s clear that those two aren’t just any E-ranks.”

“Well, I guess so. That’s why the Guild Master brought them in.”

Yoon-ji Noh was aware of that much. So, at first, she tried to be nice to Su-jeong, trying to get along with her.

But it turned out that Su-jeong Kang was just an ordinary E-rank hunter, and she kept saying ‘Seo-ah unnie’ [Korean term for older sister, used by females] at every turn, praising her until her mouth was dry.

Everyone else wanted to look good to Yoon-ji Noh, but Su-jeong seemed to only care about someone named Seo-ah Park.

She felt petty and mentioned ‘Seo-ah Park’ a few times in a negative way, and Su-jeong immediately jumped at her, which was ridiculous and pathetic. On the other hand, she was also envious of that ‘Seo-ah Park’.

She had often heard the name ‘Seo-ah Park’ within the guild. She wondered what kind of person she was, so she looked into it, but there were only rumors.

But Seo-ah Park, whom she actually saw, also looked ordinary on the outside.

She was already curious about why she was getting so much attention, and she felt like she would find out today.

‘While I’m at it, I’ll put Su-jeong in her place.’

There was still some time left before the match started. Yoon-ji Noh left to warm up in advance.

Seo-ah and Su-jeong squatted down, put their heads together, and came up with a strategy.

Just then, someone carefully approached them. They looked up and saw Doo-hee Yoon.

“Hunter Doo-hee Yoon?”

Seo-ah stood up and called out to him, and Doo-hee Yoon coughed slightly, looking embarrassed.

“Hello, Hunter Seo-ah Park.”

“Ah, yes. But what’s the matter?”

“I’m sorry about that day.”

Doo-hee Yoon bowed politely. Seo-ah, who didn’t expect to receive an apology so suddenly, quickly bowed her head as well.

[Skill ‘Gentle Sunlight’ is activated!]

She was puzzled by the skill that was activated only now, but Seo-ah calmly faced Doo-hee Yoon.

“Um, I saw on the card earlier that you applied for a sparring match… maybe again.”

“Ah, please don’t misunderstand. It was just that I wanted to test myself.”

“Test?”

“I reflected on that day. I was too arrogant.”

“Ah… but it’s true that Hunter Doo-hee Yoon was very considerate of me. If there hadn’t been an attack penalty, I wouldn’t have lasted even a second.”

She could tell because her stats had increased. Even now, Seo-ah was confident that she could subdue the Seo-ah from that time within 10 seconds.

How weak must Seo-ah have looked in Doo-hee Yoon’s eyes? It was only natural for him to be arrogant.

Doo-hee Yoon shook his head lightly at Seo-ah’s words.

“Still, I definitely knew what I was lacking that day. Instructor Cheol-doo Kim scolded me a lot… so I’ve been training in my own way since then, and I wanted to test myself against Hunter Seo-ah Park.”

Doo-hee Yoon was definitely more polite than when she first saw him. Well, even back then, he seemed to have a quiet and calm personality, except during the sparring match.

She didn’t know if it was because he was really sorry, or because Seo-ah was a person protected by the powerful people in the Sun Guild, but Seo-ah didn’t feel particularly resentful towards him. Rather, she had received a lot of help, hadn’t she?

“If that’s the case, it’s always possible next time. Don’t be disappointed.”

“Is that so? Then I’ll ask you next time.”

“But, as much as Hunter Doo-hee Yoon has become stronger, I’ve also experienced a lot. It’ll be different from last time.”

“I’ll look forward to that.”

Doo-hee Yoon smiled slightly at Seo-ah’s confident words. His smiling face definitely looked kind.

‘People definitely have many sides to them.’

Even if he’s like this, something might trigger him and he might get angry or show a different side.

“And Hunter Yoon-ji Noh is a tanker and close-range dealer who uses gauntlets on both hands.”

“Ah, yes. I see.”

“Be careful, she’s achieved quite a bit for her young age. The environment is a factor, but she also has natural talent and works hard.”

Seeing Doo-hee Yoon say this much, Yoon-ji Noh must be a hunter in the upper ranks of C-class.

Seo-ah listened carefully and didn’t take it lightly.

“Thank you for the advice, Hunter.”

“Yes, then I’ll be going.”

After Doo-hee Yoon left, Seo-ah turned to Su-jeong Kang.

“Su-jeong, did you hear that?”

Su-jeong glanced at Seo-ah while swinging her twin swords in the air.

“Yes, I heard.”

“It seems Yoon-ji Noh is strong.”

“She’s strong. Hmm, the Tarantula was a C-class monster, right? Similar to that? No, well, Yoon-ji Noh is human, so she’s smarter.”

“Even so, comparing her to a monster…”

Seo-ah muttered and looked at the arena. The matches in Group 2 seemed to be coming to an end.

Before the matches of the C-class hunters in Group 3 continued, Seok-hyeon Han came down to the waiting area.

Finding Seok-hyeon Han looking around, Yoon-ji Noh approached him.

“Hello? Guild Master.”

Seok-hyeon Han accepted Yoon-ji Noh’s greeting meticulously, even though he seemed a bit flustered.

“Ah, Hunter Yoon-ji Noh. Thank you for speaking well to your father. Thanks to you, we prepared the tournament smoothly.”

“It’s only natural since I’m in the Sun Guild. I’ll speak well to him again next time.”

Yoon-ji Noh said confidently without hiding her contribution. Seok-hyeon Han bowed his head lightly to her.

“Yes, thank you very much. I have someone to see for a moment, so I’ll be going.”

“Ah… yes.”

Seok-hyeon Han, who was looking around the arena, headed straight for Seo-ah Park and Su-jeong Kang. Yoon-ji Noh pursed her lips and glared at them before turning her head away.

Still, she could hear the conversation clearly.

“Hunter Seo-ah Park.”

“Guild Master?”

“Yes, is there anything wrong? Are you unhappy with your opponent or something?”

“No, it’s okay. You didn’t have to come all the way here…”

“Ah, hmm. Someone kept giving me the eye to go and check on you.”

Seok-hyeon Han smiled bitterly and gestured towards the VIP seats. Then Seo-ah smiled awkwardly with him.

“I have somewhere to go right away, so I won’t be able to watch the match. So don’t get hurt. He gets a little scary when he’s angry.”

“Ah… yes. I’ll try. But my opponent is so strong, I don’t know if it’ll go my way.”

“Who’s your opponent?”

“It’s Hunter Yoon-ji Noh. The one you were talking to earlier, Guild Master.”

Seok-hyeon Han turned around, and Yoon-ji Noh, who was glancing this way, pretended not to notice.

“Ah, um. I see. Good luck, Hunter Seo-ah Park. Hunter Su-jeong Kang too.”

“Thank you for your support.”

“Yes, I’ll be going.”

Seok-hyeon Han scratched the back of his head with a troubled expression as he left the waiting area.

It was true that he was able to hold the tournament comfortably thanks to Yoon-ji Noh. Originally, to hold such a large-scale competition with a high probability of bloodshed, he had to report to the local government and the police, as well as undergo various 까다로운 [Kkadaraoun – Korean for ‘difficult’ or ‘picky’] screenings.

Because Yoon-ji Noh belonged to the Sun Guild here, and her father, Congressman Hak-yeong Noh, provided convenience, all of that went quite smoothly.

And Yoon-ji Noh herself was growing steadily as a talent who could lead lower-level hunters, so Seok-hyeon Han considered her a valuable asset.

‘The problem is that her personality hasn’t been refined yet.’

Still, compared to Seo-ah Park, well, there was no comparison. If something happened to Seo-ah Park within the Sun Guild, Yu-ji-an would immediately twist Seok-hyeon Han’s neck.

Just then, a loud microphone sound came from behind.

“The matches in Group 2 have just ended. Following that, the matches in Group 3 are scheduled to begin in about 10 minutes!”

Seok-hyeon Han stroked his neck for no reason and left the arena door.

“I hope everything ends without any problems…”