episode_0003

[ Hey, really, please save me just once! ]

I frowned slightly at the sound of Kim Jun-hyung’s voice booming through the speaker, took off my phone, and gently put the phone to my ear again and said.

“Junhyung. I really want to help, but I’m not in a good mood today. I’ll help you later.”

Then, Junhyung Kim on the other end of the speaker seemed to hesitate for a moment, and then asked carefully in a lowered voice.

[ you… , What’s really going on? ]

there is.

It was a very big thing to be abandoned by friends who had been like family for 10 years.

“uh.”

[Umm… . ]

Kim Jun-hyung groaned lowly as if he was in trouble for a moment, and finally spoke calmly as if he understood my situation.

[ … okay. I won’t ask you what’s going on. however… . It’s really urgent for me too. I have no one else to ask for except you. ]

‘What on earth is happening?’

Kim Jun-hyung was a man with a bit of a lighthearted side, but he was not so loyal that he would ignore other people’s circumstances and prioritize his own requests.

The fact that you are asking so earnestly means that it is an important matter.

Even though he was a fictional character who didn’t even appear in the novel, he was an old friend of mine.

“What’s wrong?”

In the end, unable to betray my loyalty, I asked Kim Jun-hyung about his situation.

[ that is… . Our city hall suddenly made a fuss about creating a hunter team… . ]

“Team?”

I was able to hear an unexpected story.

*

next day.

After leaving home after two days to soothe my troubled mind with work, I headed to the city hall located in the center of Seoul.

“Jihyuk! Here!”

Kim Jun-hyung, whom I met at city hall, seemed really happy and waved both hands to welcome me, but I was a little embarrassed by his behavior, so I approached him without pretending to know as much as possible.

“Thank you so much for coming! After all, there is only you… ! I’ll buy you beef after work. With Korean beef!”

“It’s not money anyway… .”

“It’s the taxes I paid, it’s my money! Let’s go in!”

After briefly saying hello to Kim Jun-hyung, who was making such a fuss, I followed him into the city hall building and asked for more details.

“So, why are you forming a team out of nowhere?”

“I don’t know. I was suddenly struck by lightning… .”

The situation was like this.

The story goes that the mayor, who needed achievements to show off ahead of the election, promoted the hunter team project, but passed the job on to Kim Jun-hyung from above.

“The top tells you to do something, and they also give you fear… . I really can’t live.”

“You’re having a hard time.”

I comforted Kim Jun-hyung and thought about why the mayor was suddenly paying attention to the hunter team business.

Perhaps the author of the original work liked idols, but the world’s hunter team business in ‘The Strongest Master’ shows similar aspects to the modern idol business.

Hunter unit managed by the guild.

It feels like an entertainment agency and an idol.

Like modern idols, the Hunter team pours money in, but if they succeed, there is no ceiling to their income, and if they reach the top 10 rankings, the added value increases to an astronomical level.

Last year, Queens took first place in the rankings and received nearly 11 figures in renewal fees alone, so you can guess how much it is.

Of course, as the market is large, it costs a lot of money to run a team normally.

Usually, a team consists of 3 to 5 people, and sometimes up to 9 people, but each team member spends a huge amount of money on management costs, requires a lot of supporting staff, and of course, huge maintenance costs come with it.

In this information age, there is no way the mayor would not know this behind the scenes… .

‘You’re saying you’re trying to pull your share.’

The fact that they were willing to spend tax money to enter the uncertain hunter team business meant that they wanted to extract some money using business costs as an excuse.

“Really, everyone is rushing towards me.”

“I brought you here so that I wouldn’t get into trouble. Queens executive producer, Do Ji-hyuk… !”

I waved my hands moderately at the sound of Kim Jun-hyung’s harsh words, followed him into the elevator, and asked him about the most important thing.

“So, who is on the team?”

It goes without saying, but the most important thing in a hunter team is the team members.

In the entertainment industry, a celebrity.

In terms of soccer, he is a soccer player.

No matter how much money the parent company has and how large the guild is, if the team members playing on the field are of a poor standard, they are all in vain.

“Still, it is a business run by the country… . It will be at least B grade, right?”

“Don’t be surprised when you see it. Because it’s truly the best ever… !”

Kim Jun-hyung speaks quietly with a meaningful expression on his face.

‘With what confidence can you do this?’

I looked at him with anticipation, hoping that he might know something.

*

Do Ji-hyuk arrived at City Hall and was briefly saying hello to Kim Jun-hyung’s bosses.

Same time.

Queens office.

Unlike the atmosphere of the office, which had a great view and a lively interior, there was a gloomy atmosphere in the office.

“Now that we are all together… , let’s get to the main point.”

The leader of the Cheonhwa Guild, Gook-il, glanced at the three Queens members with a strange expression and spoke quietly.

“First of all… , Jihyuk decided to cover up this matter as quietly as possible. Well, being agitated isn’t a good thing… .”

The moment Do Ji-hyuk’s name came out, the atmosphere in the director’s office became even heavier.

The moment when Hong Yu-ra and Seol Joo-hee’s expressions were horribly distorted.

Lim A-rin slowly opened her mouth with a worried expression.

“Then… . Now Jihyuk… ?”

Then, Gookil firmly answered Im Arin’s question.

“Maybe I’ll find another team.”

“!”

New team.

In other words, Do Ji-hyuk is leaving Queens.

“… … .”

Hong Yu-ra quietly closes her eyes as if what is to come has come, and Im A-rin lowers her head with a dejected look.

This was the first breakaway since Queens was formed.

In fact, it was all thanks to Do Ji-hyuk that the three people came together in the first place, that they were able to explode their potential at an early age and rise to the top, and that three people with different personalities were able to get along well.

If you think about it, you can say that the three people were able to succeed thanks to Do Ji-hyuk creating Queens.

but… .

Now that it was revealed that it was all a ruse carried out by Do Ji-hyuk with a sinister mind, no one could protect Do Ji-hyuk.

“… Nonsense… .”

Lim A-rin, who had been trying hard to hold back tears, eventually couldn’t hold back her sadness and hid her face in sorrow.

Seol Joo-hee, who had been silent the whole time, shot back with a disapproving expression.

“Is that the end?”

“!”

Hong Yu-ra and Im Arin raise their heads in surprise at the sharp remark.

“Shouldn’t I file a complaint or something like that?”

“… Joo, Joo Hee… .”

“Sol Joo-hee. you… .”

The two people tried to stop her, but she glared at them and scolded them.

“You guys, come to your senses. As if deceiving us for 10 years wasn’t enough, he even sold our information!”

“Joohee. Even though… .”

“Hong Yu-ra. You haven’t forgotten what that bastard said, have you?”

“That’s… .”

Hong Yura was speechless.

Because the voice of Do Ji-hyuk, who was belittling and insulting himself, remained intact in his heart.

Seol Joo-hee glanced at Hong Yu-ra as if she knew that would happen, and made a threat while gnashing her teeth.

“The very fact that I valued such a scumbag is so disgusting that it makes me sick. never… , I can never just get over it.”

Hong Yu-ra and Lim A-rin became a little worried at the sight of Seol Joo-hee burning with revenge.

Because I don’t know what she will do when her eyes turn in anger.

however… .

The two cannot stop Seol Joo-hee.

Because they were both victims.

*

Like all hunters, ‘The Strongest Master’ also uses a simple rank setting.

Generally, from the highest grade, S grade, to the lowest grade, F grade.

The same rank is given to items, monsters, and abilities, and the original protagonist, Seol Joo-hee, has an Ex rank that cannot be measured.

Except for special cases such as Queens, which consists of one unprecedented Ex-level member and two unprecedented S-level members, most general hunter teams are made up of various members ranging from B-level to S-level… .

‘Is this really a joke?’

After receiving a list of candidates from Kim Jun-hyung, I was dumbfounded by the list of team members who were far from common sense.

“Is this right?”

“Isn’t it the best ever?”

As Kim Jun-hyung said, the number of team members recruited by Seoul City Hall was at an all-time high.

Their average rank is D.

Even the lowest candidate’s rank is F.

‘This is outrageous.’

E-class and F-class are actually at the level of ordinary people.

I couldn’t believe that they were trying to form a team with candidates like these, so I threw the folder on the table.

“Are you kidding me? Are you paying taxes to make these guys a team? Spew out my taxes, you bastard!”

“No, listen… ! I wonder if I would have nominated these guys because I like them!”

“What?”

It turns out that Kim Jun-hyung also initially tried to recruit candidates who were at least B rank or higher.

Anyway, since I took on the task, I thought I had to go halfway.

however… .

“The above keeps telling me to only hire cheap kids… . What power do I have? If I have to peel it, I have to peel it.”

It is said that an order came from the top to form a team with low-rank hunters.

‘He’s really trying to make a living.’

The fact that they recruited such low-ranking candidates is like saying that they had no intention of spending almost any money on the team in the first place.

“I’m not the type of person to work for a team like this… .”

Feeling more disgusted than expected, I leaned crookedly in my chair and glared at Kim Jun-hyung.

“Jihyuk. I ask you this… . If I keep doing this, I’ll get really fat… !”

Looking over Kim Jun-hyung’s shoulder, government officials sitting outside the conference room come into view.

He probably didn’t want to take responsibility for a business that was sure to fail, so he passed it on to Kim Jun-hyung.

Otherwise, there is no reason to entrust such a large project to a low-level civil servant like Kim Jun-hyung.

“Jihyuk, please help me… !”

I felt slightly weakened by the sight of Kim Jun-hyung pleading that he was in danger of being demoted, so I clicked my tongue and gently pulled up the resume I had thrown away.

‘Class D, Lancer. E class, fighter… .’

And while I was looking through the resume again… .

“… ?”

A candidate with a rare style suddenly caught my eye.

[ Name: Bang Han-na Rank: D Specialty: Shield ]

‘Not a shield and a sword, but a shield?’

When writing down special skills, it is common to write down the weapons or abilities you use.

but.

This was my first time using only a shield.

‘Did I write it wrong?’

I didn’t think it was a big deal and passed her resume aside, then checked the rest of the resumes and prepared for the interview.

and.

“This is Hanna Bang. His specialty is shield techniques!”

‘Why is this real?’

I was truly startled by her appearance holding only a small shield.