Chapter 30: Slaughterer

The principal, Jin Baek-ho, a living legend in the Hunter world, exuded an extraordinary aura.

‘Peak superhuman.’

I wouldn’t have sensed it before receiving Ymir’s body, but now I could tell.

This man was stuck at level 299.

I’d seen countless people face that wall in the martial world.

It didn’t matter how quickly they reached the Transformation Realm.

Whether it took 20 years or 40 years, they all hit the same wall.

Only a select few broke through to the next realm.

This wasn’t something advice could fix, so there was no need for me to interfere, like I had with Jin Baek-ryong.

“Thank you for your hard work, Principal.”

Alice responded to the principal’s greeting. I echoed her sentiment.

“Thank you.”

Jin Baek-ho smiled at us.

“Haha, it was nothing. These are small gifts from the academy.”

He handed us each a wooden box.

Mine contained a High-grade elixir; Alice’s, an Intermediate-grade one.

‘This is almost Highest-grade.’

The energy emanating from it was remarkably potent for a High-grade elixir.

““Thank you.””

Perhaps due to our synchronized hosting of the ceremony, we responded in unison. Jin Baek-ho beamed.

“You two look good together.”

‘Careful, Principal, you’re treading on dangerous ground.’

Thankfully, the other students had left. If my wives heard that, the principal wouldn’t know what hit him once they regained their full power.

A gentleman’s revenge is a dish best served cold, and they all had excellent memories.

Of course, considering his age, they might show mercy and punish me instead for my infidelity.

All I’d done was cover for Alice when she wet herself and pat her head.

“Is that so…?”

Perhaps he meant we looked good together as fellow elites, not romantically.

Alice seemed to interpret it that way as well.

“Indeed. Now that I’ve given you your gifts, I’d like to shake hands with the two individuals who will carry the future of the Hunter world. Would you mind?”

He’d just said anyone could rise or fall in the rankings, and now he was calling us the future of the Hunter world.

He must have said that to motivate the lower-ranked students.

He couldn’t just tell them, ‘You’ll be stuck at the bottom forever.’

‘Speaking of shaking hands…’

I was slightly traumatized after the girl who’d wet herself from shaking my hand.

I glanced at Alice. She looked at me with her bright eyes, seemingly oblivious to my thoughts. A relief.

She hadn’t noticed I was thinking about the lemonade incident.

“Of course, it would be an honor.”

I shook the principal’s outstretched hand.

Unlike Alice, he didn’t suddenly wet himself.

But I caught a flicker of surprise and suspicion in his eyes.

He quickly recovered, but I’d seen it.

It was a fleeting moment, less than 0.1 seconds, but with my past experience at the Transcendent Realm and Ymir’s body, I wouldn’t miss something like that.

‘Why…?’

What had he gleaned from our handshake to warrant such a reaction? I had no idea.

I hadn’t done anything wrong.

I’d killed people in past lives, but not in this one.

My only crime was unauthorized Gate raiding for profit.

A minor offense, undetectable through a handshake.

And if he reacted this strongly to such a petty crime, politicians wouldn’t be able to stand in his presence.

The handshake ended without me finding any answers. Alice shook his hand next.

A normal, uneventful handshake, unlike mine.

‘… Why did only I cause an accident?’

And the principal’s expression hadn’t changed when shaking Alice’s hand.

There was something unique about my handshake.

I examined my hand for any hidden poison or curse, but found nothing.

A poison or curse I couldn’t detect would have to be from a realm-level expert, and I hadn’t made any such enemies in this life.

“Thank you both. Shaking hands with the future heroes of the Hunter world makes me feel like I made the right career choice. There are no classes today, so you may proceed to your dormitories.”

“Thank you. We’ll be going then.”

“It was an honor to shake hands with a legend of the Hunter world. I’ll be going now as well.”

We bowed to the principal, and I headed to my dormitory with a lingering sense of unease.

Alice exhaled as she walked towards the dormitory.

‘He’s changed so much in just two days…’

Thanks to our handshake three days prior, she’d managed to avoid another accident when he’d patted her head. It felt even more comforting now, like being enveloped by nature.

As if the world itself was caressing her. How many people could undergo such a drastic change in just two days?

He still felt incomprehensible, an enigma. But it wasn’t unpleasant.

It was ironic and exciting that dealing with people, something she’d always found easy, had become the most challenging thing.

‘How would it feel to completely conquer someone like him?’

To have such an extraordinary being shower her with attention, crave her affection? It was a tantalizing thought.

But it wouldn’t be easy.

She’d never felt inadequate, but the women surrounding him were all exceptionally beautiful, with figures far surpassing hers.

‘I’m not exactly small…’

Alice self-consciously cupped her D-cup breasts.

Larger than average, but all four women around him were more… endowed.

It was as if he’d deliberately surrounded himself with such women.

“Such a… libertine…”

The thought made Yu-won seem like a womanizer.

“But it felt so comforting.”

Her father had never shown her such affection.

His large hand, bigger than her face when fully extended, stroking her hair… it felt incredibly good.

“Will he do it again…?”

She already missed his touch.

Jin Baek-ho, left alone, was lost in thought.

‘What… was that?’

Two exceptional students in this year’s class: Kim Yu-won, the top student, and Alice Strauss, the second.

Both highly skilled and with personalities befitting their talent.

He was particularly fond of Kim Yu-won, who’d not only defeated his grandson but also offered him crucial advice that helped him break through a wall.

He’d only observed from afar, but after Yu-won spoke to his grandson, the boy had suddenly achieved a breakthrough.

It was clear Yu-won’s advice had been instrumental in his grandson’s growth.

He hadn’t wanted to intrude on their moment.

He’d even chosen the best High-grade elixir, almost Highest-grade, for Yu-won’s reward.

Some might accuse him of favoritism, but it was natural to be more generous towards those you liked.

It wasn’t against the rules; it was simply a wise use of his authority.

But his positive impression of Yu-won had been shattered by their handshake.

The Hunter Association taught a secret skill to the most trustworthy S-rank Hunters: an advanced version of Observe called Insight.

Its effect: to glimpse the Status Window of the person they touched.

As a former chairman, Jin Baek-ho possessed this skill.

If the target was weaker than him at their respective peaks, he could see most of their information.

If they were equal or stronger, he could only see their name, age, gender, kill count, and karmic alignment.

The skill was entrusted only to trusted S-rank Hunters to identify and discreetly eliminate villains infiltrating society.

If its existence became widely known, villains would become more cautious.

But the information he’d gleaned from Yu-won’s Status Window was shocking.

________________________________________________________________________________

[Name: Kim Yu-won
Age: 137
Gender: Male
Kill Count: 3739
Karma: Absolute Good]

________________________________________________________________________________

Only the name and gender were unsurprising. They matched his records.

But 137 years old? Older than himself. And what followed was even more shocking. The kill count only increased when one directly killed another human.

Indirect kills weren’t counted.

He was a murderer, having taken at least 3,739 lives.

No villain had ever reached such a high kill count.

Some might have caused more deaths through terrorist acts, but those weren’t counted by the skill.

And yet, his karma was Absolute Good.

Absolute Good.

According to the Insight skill description, those who committed world-altering evil deeds were labeled Absolute Evil, while those whose good deeds saved the world were Absolute Good.

He’d saved the world. What kind of life had he lived to accumulate such contradictory information? It was baffling.

‘This makes no sense…’

But one thing was certain:

He needed to keep a close eye on Kim Yu-won.