I Became The Rankers’ Number One Pick [EN]: Chapter 8

“What are you doing?”

“Ah.”

I regretted it as soon as I touched him.

Yoo Ji-an turned around, his eyes full of suspicion.

“That’s…….”

Just as I was freezing under the intense gaze of the S-Class Hunter, Baek Eun-hee rescued Seo-ah at the perfect moment.

“Seo-ah, get in my car. I’ll take you home.”

“Ah, I’m okay.”

“Are you going to take the bus again? Absolutely not, you’re our contractor now. Royal Guild can’t allow that.”

Seo-ah couldn’t refuse Baek Eun-hee, who insisted on taking her home, so she went with her.

‘Phew, scary. I aged ten years.’

Seo-ah knew that Yoo Ji-an was still looking at her, but she tried to ignore it.

* * *

After Seo-ah left, Han Seok-hyun also left, saying he had business at the Association.

Left alone, Yoo Ji-an stared blankly at the fingertip where Seo-ah’s hand had brushed against him earlier.

Although not clearly visible in the status window, the energy within his body fluctuated slightly before calming down.

It must have been caused by contact with Seo-ah.

“Baek Eun-hee seems to have noticed it too.”

Yoo Ji-an muttered, staring at his status window, which he had been keeping open.

[Title: Annihilator (Locked)]

[※ If you fail to activate the title ‘Annihilator (Locked)’ within the period, you will die! (D-870)]

“I have more time left than I thought.”

Before, it was ‘Berserker.’ When he was a Berserker, he would go berserk every time he used Brainstorm. But in that gate where he met Seo-ah, his title changed to ‘Annihilator (Locked),’ and he didn’t go berserk there. Although he adjusted his output to half.

‘I seemed to be able to withstand up to half for sure.’

However, the locked state still meant that he couldn’t properly control ‘Berserk.’

In the previous life, he obtained the ‘Annihilator’ title as soon as he found the orb in that sudden gate. This ambiguous ‘locked’ state was something he encountered for the first time in this life.

But this time, even after catching the boss and searching the gate all day, he couldn’t find the orb. Yet, he had half the control.

If so, there was only one thing that mattered.

Could Park Seo-ah be like the orb from his previous life that unlocks ‘Annihilator (Locked)’? If so, Park Seo-ah would definitely become a necessary person for him.

‘But.’

In the 2nd playthrough [a term for replaying a game or life with prior knowledge], Yoo Ji-an clearly saw Park Seo-ah’s face when he died. In his memory, that life ended with her final blow.

Because the memory of that time came to mind, Yoo Ji-an had to suppress his killing intent the whole time he was with Park Seo-ah.

He suppressed it as much as he could, but it leaked out a little whenever he let his guard down. Each time, Park Seo-ah’s face turned pale.

The fact that he died in the 2nd playthrough wasn’t really making him angry now, but reacting to something threatening was an unavoidable hunter’s instinct.

Just in case, he kept observing her, but he hadn’t found anything suspicious about Seo-ah yet.

“I wonder if in this life.”

Whether she will be his savior or an axe to grind, he doesn’t know. But for a while, he was going to keep her by his side and watch her.

As Yoo Ji-an turned his gaze away, the status window disappeared.

* * *

As soon as Seo-ah returned home, she opened her status window.

[Mission 1. Touch a Hunter. (5/10)]

“Hehe, one more.”

Thanks to summoning the courage to touch Yoo Ji-an earlier, she gained 1.

“Why would you glare at me like that for just a little touch.”

It was really just a slight graze. Of course, to make sure, she deliberately touched his exposed finger instead of over his clothes.

‘Why is Yoo Ji-an being like that to me?’

Yoo Ji-an’s attitude today was ambiguous throughout.

He seemed to want her very much, but sometimes he showed a cold look in his eyes. That ominous feeling must be because of Yoo Ji-an.

Nevertheless, the reason she accepted the contract with the Taeyang Guild was not only because Yoo Ji-an was her savior but also because she met someone who knew about the system’s threatening warnings.

Seo-ah stared intently at ‘Supporter (S-Class/Locked).’

“It must be related to that.”

The fact that Baek Eun-hee’s power suddenly increased in the earlier place, and the fact that Yoo Ji-an said he would die without her, for some reason. Of course, it was an exaggerated expression.

Anyway, it might all be related to that supporter.

However, even the S-Class hunters could only guess at Seo-ah’s abilities, but they didn’t know exactly.

Seo-ah turned on her computer and typed ‘supporter’ in the search bar. The first thing that came up was the dictionary definition. It was what she saw in the (!) in the status window.

She skimmed through it and kept clicking through the search bar. There wasn’t much information.

She re-entered ‘hunter, supporter’ at the same time. Again, she quickly skipped through meaningless search results, and when she got to the end of the webpage, there was something that caught her eye.

<……Now there are no perfect hunters in this world. Everything is gathered in an 'supporter' compressed folder. If this is unlocked……>

When she clicked on it, it said it was a deleted post.

“Phew, let’s stop.”

Seo-ah flopped onto the bed.

Today was quite a tiring day for an E-Class hunter with a stamina of 3. Will it be different when the S-Class supporter is unlocked?

First, she needs to be able to use the recovery skill proficiently.

‘I have a day off tomorrow, so I should go to Gun-hoo’s hospital. After going there…….’

I should see his face before going on the first raid to feel relieved.

Thinking so, Seo-ah wriggled into slumber.

* * *

“I’m Park Seo-ah, who contacted you before.”

“Ah, you’ve arrived. I’m Kim Dae-hoon, the party leader. I’m a D-Class melee dealer.”

Kim Dae-hoon was about to shake hands with Park Seo-ah, but the male hunter next to Seo-ah grabbed Kim Dae-hoon’s hand first.

“I’m Ahn Ji-yoo.”

Kim Dae-hoon smiled a little awkwardly and accepted Ahn Ji-yoo’s awkward greeting.

“Ah, Hunter Ahn Ji-yoo. You’re one of the two who joined last. It’s a great relief. I was in trouble because two people suddenly dropped out yesterday, but how did you contact me so perfectly.”

Kim Dae-hoon glanced at the female hunter next to Ahn Ji-yoo.

“Then, Hunter Park Seo-ah, please take care of me. Healers are precious. Even if they are E-Class.”

“Ah, yes.”

Kim Dae-hoon was about to shake hands with Park Seo-ah again, but this time the female hunter snatched Kim Dae-hoon’s hand and shook it vigorously.

“Hello? Hunter Kim Dae-hoon. Thank you for accepting me so readily even though I contacted you suddenly?”

The female hunter seemed to be polite, but she was somehow overbearing.

“Ah, yes……. Hunter Seo Hee-eun.”

Seo-ah glanced sideways at Ahn Ji-yoo and Seo Hee-eun. They seemed familiar, but she didn’t know them at all.

“Hunter Park Seo-ah here is an E-Class healer. You two said you were D-Class. Let’s see, Hunter Ahn Ji-yoo is a mage, and Hunter Seo Hee-eun is a tank [a character specialized in defense]. Perfect.”

Kim Dae-hoon nonchalantly gave up shaking hands with Seo-ah. Instead, he checked his phone and nodded, then carefully examined Ahn Ji-yoo and Seo Hee-eun.

His brow furrowed slightly.

Putting aside the E-Class, even though they were D-Class, they were almost bare-bodied.

Seo Hee-eun was wearing leather gloves with all her fingers exposed, and Ahn Ji-yoo was wearing a bracelet that looked crude, but they didn’t look like hunter equipment at all.

‘They’re completely beggars. I had some expectations because they were D-Class.’

Kim Dae-hoon quickly came to a conclusion based on their appearance alone.

“And Hunter Kang Soo-jung there is said to be an E-Class dealer. You two are D-Class, but you will be joining the 2nd team because you provided support late, is that okay with you?”

“I don’t care.”

“Me neither.”

They both answered immediately as if they had promised.

In the meantime, Seo-ah looked at Kim Dae-hoon, who was moving away, with a slightly disappointed look. It was an opportunity to raise 1.

‘Well, there will be another opportunity.’

Kim Dae-hoon’s party had a total of 8 people.

4 members of the 1st team, including Kim Dae-hoon, who would be the main attack force, and 4 members of the 2nd team.

At first glance, the 1st team seemed to know each other. The equipment they were wearing also looked expensive and shiny.

On the other hand, the 4 members of the 2nd team not only saw each other for the first time today, but their appearance was also relatively shabby.

Seo-ah and the two others didn’t even have weapons, and only Kang Soo-jung, who was said to be an E-Class dealer, had a pair of swords attached to her belt.

As Park Seo-ah was looking at the people, Kang Soo-jung got up and approached her. When she looked at her up close, she still had baby fat that hadn’t completely disappeared, and she looked quite young.

“Hello? Let’s say hello too. I’m Kang Soo-jung. As you heard, I’m an E-Class dealer. I have a total of 4 raid experiences.”

Kang Soo-jung deliberately greeted her in a mature tone.

“As you heard earlier, I’m Park Seo-ah. This is my first raid. But Hunter Kang Soo-jung. Excuse me, how old are you?”

“Why are you asking that? I’ve just eaten enough [a Korean expression meaning ‘I’m old enough’].”

She reacted sensitively when asked about her age. Then Seo Hee-eun scanned Kang Soo-jung up and down.

“You look like a middle schooler at first glance, or a high schooler at best.”

“How old are you, auntie? What does age matter in raiding?”

“What did you say? Auntie? I’m just curious because you’re chasing after gates instead of going to school.”

Park Seo-ah was restless in the middle, and Ahn Ji-yoo didn’t seem interested in this conversation at all.

Anyway, Kang Soo-jung was a child even to Seo-ah. Although she had little experience and not much ability as a hunter, minors deserved to be protected.

Seo-ah naturally put her hand on Kang Soo-jung’s shoulder and spoke to her kindly. Of course, it was intentional contact.

Ahn Ji-yoo and Seo Hee-eun flinched at the same time when her hand went up, but Seo-ah didn’t notice.