Chapter 255: Changing Jobs (2)

Four days had passed since the day I slept with Sihee and Eunbyul.

The morning of the interview, I woke up with a mix of excitement and anxiety, quickly took a shower, and started preparing to head out for the interview.

For over ten minutes, as I combed my hair and adjusted my clothes in front of the mirror, a soliloquy slipped out unintentionally.

“…This should be good enough.”

After checking my outfit several times, I could confirm there was nothing particularly out of place.

Normally, I didn’t pay much attention to my clothes, but on an important day like today, it was only natural that I’d be concerned.

Still, I couldn’t just focus on my clothes and hairstyle the whole time, so after getting my mind somewhat settled, I reviewed potential interview questions and my answers a few times.

“Sung Taekyung-ssi? How long have you been a Hunter?”

“I’ve been active as a Hunter using my awakened abilities for about 5 months. During that time, I operated under the alias Kim Sungchul within the Hunters’ Autonomous Union. Although the actual period I’ve been active as a Hunter is short, I’ve invested nearly 10 years learning the knowledge needed to become a Hunter and how to handle awakened abilities. Because I had a solid foundation built up over that time, I could immediately apply my awakened abilities in real combat as soon as they manifested, which became the driving force behind my rapid rise to B-rank Hunter within the Union.”

“As a Hunter, there’s more to do than just hunting, right? How do you usually handle monster corpses after a hunt?”

“Since I primarily use my blade-wielding awakened ability, I have no problem dismembering monster corpses. Materials like White Slime fluid or Skeleton thigh bones, I try to collect whenever possible, but for monsters with colossal bodies like the Treralodon, I don’t get greedy and just extract the magic stones.”

“What do you think sets you apart from other Hunters? I’d like a meaningful answer, not just ‘because I’m a male Hunter’.”

“I’m skilled at fighting monsters using a variety of awakened abilities. I can wield both a spear and ice magic, so I can create ice spears for elemental attacks, and my healing ability lets me quickly recover from minor combat injuries. My abilities shine brighter as a team asset rather than for solo activities, so I want to form a party with like-minded colleagues at the company and grow further.”

…Besides these, I brainstormed various other potential questions and practiced appropriate answers for three days straight, so I figured I wouldn’t mess up the answers badly enough to fail the interview.

Still, the tension tightening my chest hadn’t disappeared.

“…Just do as I practiced, just as I practiced.”

This level of tension was the first time since facing the Kraken one-on-one two months ago. Back then, I truly went in with the mindset that there was no turning back if I fell.

Compared to then, this isn’t quite that important…

…No, on second thought, it was that important. At least, if I wanted my future plans to proceed smoothly.

Considering how rare it is for a male Hunter to be affiliated with a company, I had to feel at least that much tension.

If I failed to join the company as a B-rank Hunter, I wouldn’t be able to face Min-ah or Eunyoung Noona. And it would be a bit awkward for Hye-eun and Cha Yuri, who were waiting for my job change.

Of course, the reason there were hardly any male Hunters in companies until now was simply because there were no Awakened among male Hunters, so as an Awakened myself, I should be able to overcome that barrier.

If the company representative, Seo Ok-hee, truly possessed the ‘Insight’ ability and recognized my potential despite me being a male Hunter, that would be great, but.

If things didn’t go smoothly, I’d need to leave some room for self-promotion. Planning to request a field test if necessary, I set off, conspicuously carrying my greatsword on my back.

With those thoughts, calming myself down repeatedly, as soon as I stepped outside the front door, my childhood friend’s familiar smile greeted me.

“Ah, Taekyung!”

“…Yeah.”

To Hye-eun, who called my name and waved as soon as she saw my face, I also greeted her and approached.

“Were you waiting?”

“Yep, yep! Because it’s your first day going to work together!”

“You could have gone ahead. Today isn’t even my work day, you know. I’m just on my way to the interview.”

“Because I know you’ll definitely pass, Taekyung, today is your first day!”

“Are you putting pressure on me before I’ve even had the interview? If I fail, I won’t be able to show my face anywhere out of embarrassment.”

“Oh, no! I didn’t mean to pressure you… It’s just, I, I thought you, Taekyung, could definitely pass…”

“I was just kidding. No need to overreact like that.”

Hye-eun probably wasn’t actually hoping I’d fail the interview. And her saying I’d pass wasn’t just empty words either.

“Is the CEO that scary? I keep thinking about what you said last time.”

“It’s not that she’s scary… more like someone who naturally makes you nervous… She has a charisma that makes you babble incoherently just by standing in front of her.”

“Hmm…”

“Ah, b-but she’s not the type to mind that stuff, so it’s okay! Besides, the CEO knows she has charisma, so she doesn’t criticize people for being nervous! As long as you can speak properly in front of her, there shouldn’t be much of a problem!”

She didn’t seem that charismatic when I saw her on TV before. According to Hye-eun, the impression must be quite different in person.

Or maybe it’s because the last time I saw her on TV was 10 years ago.

How you perceive someone can change depending on whether you see them as a child or as an adult, so that’s something you can only know by meeting them directly.

As we strolled leisurely towards the company, chatting about this and that, this time, someone with a familiar face started approaching from the right side of the intersection.

“Ah, Min-ah!”

“Hye-eun hi~! …A-and Sung Taekyung, hello to you too.”

“……”

Her greeting clearly had a different tone, so, feeling a bit mischievous, I decided to tease her a little.

“Aren’t you going to say ‘Taekyung hi~!’ to me?”

“W-what are you talking about… Getting worked up over something so trivial…”

“What? Is Hye-eun your only friend? Am I not one too? Even if we haven’t met for 2 years, that’s too harsh.”

“W-we couldn’t meet because of my heat cycle, it couldn’t be helped… A-and if I had accidentally pounced on you because of my heat cycle, Hye-eun would probably have…”

“…Done what?”

“……”

“Uh, uh?!”

…Whoa.

I wondered who that low voice suddenly cutting in belonged to; it was Hye-eun, who had been listening to Min-ah and me.

Her voice, which could make even me tense up, made Min-ah seem flustered, her eyes darting around before she quickly started speaking again.

“I-I mean I don’t have the face to face Hye-eun and you! It’s not like, H-Hye-eun would do anything to me or anything!”

“That’s right. Would I really do anything to you, my friend Min-ah?”

“……”

Seeing as they were having a conversation suddenly filled with strange tension, I quickly cut between them and changed the subject.

“Right, Han Min-ah. Did you bring that properly?”

“Huh? Oh, that? Of course, I brought it.”

Min-ah pulled out a sheet of paper from behind her back and held it out to me.

For reference, there was no bag or pocket visible behind her back.

It’s a sleight of hand I could never figure out, even back in school.

“It’s amazing even after all this time. Where do you even hide that stuff?”

“It’s a unique skill, so even if I told you, could you even understand the principle? Stop wondering about useless things and just take this.”

Indeed. There’s nothing more foolish than coveting someone else’s unique skill.

Instead of focusing on pointless things, I took the sheet of paper she handed me and glanced at its contents.

A cute letter of recommendation filled with heartfelt handwriting, enough to fill one A4 page.

“Wow, you wrote all of this by hand? That’s really touching.”

“…Sorry, I don’t have a computer or printer at home. This is the best I could do.”

“Actually, I prefer it this way. Isn’t it proof of how much you care about me, written so carefully by hand?”

“W-what are you talking about ‘caring’! I just wrote it because you asked me to. Why are you assigning some weird meaning to it…”

“Can’t I just keep this instead of submitting it to the company? It’s too cute to just use and discard.”

“I’ll fucking kill you. If you’re going to talk nonsense, give it back.”

“Just kidding, just kidding. You put effort into writing it, I wouldn’t do that no matter what.”

Regardless, it was still true that I felt it was too precious to just submit.

As we continued walking and chatting with Hye-eun and Min-ah, the three of us soon arrived in front of the main entrance of the Eun & Ok Co., Ltd. building.

Standing in front of the company building after so long brought back a flood of emotions.

…Was it the first time since visiting for my final trainee Hunter experience around my third year of high school?

I never thought I’d be visiting this place again as a Hunter.

With that thought, I stepped into the building with them, who were A-rank Hunters.

“Hello, Kang Hye-eun-ssi, Han Min-ah-ssi.”

“Yes.”

“Hello~.”

“…Excuse me, but the person with you is perhaps…?”

“Oh, this is my friend, and I brought her along because today’s the day she’s interviewing for a job transfer.”

“Ah, I see…”

From the eyes of the employee who greeted Hye-eun and Min-ah, I could clearly feel a gaze lingering with unspoken questions.

I know. I know that my presence here is a bit out of place.

“As you suspect, I am indeed male.”

“…Excuse me.”

“It’s alright. I’ll have to get used to it eventually anyway.”

It wasn’t just this employee whose gaze held questions and curiosity directed at me.

Seeing me carrying a greatsword on my back, they could tell I wasn’t just an office worker, but a Hunter. Yet, as a man who looked like a man, my entry into the building drew rude stares.

…It’s going to take quite a while to get used to these stares.

This was ultimately my choice, so I had no choice but to accept it.

One ‘Kim Sungchul’ hiding behind a ‘mysterious mask’ was enough.

It was time to stop hiding behind a mask and proudly operate as a male Hunter.

As the world’s only male B-rank Hunter, Sung Taekyung.