A Public Servant Hunter Who Exploits Skill Combinations – Chapter 1
Translated by: Hanzo
Chapter 1: Whirlpool of Time
I’ve always been terribly unlucky.
Still, I tried to live my life as earnestly as I could. I wasn’t part of an extraordinary guild, but with some accumulated experience, I eventually became a team leader in gate management.
“Team Leader Jung Tae-sung.”
“Yes.”
“What’s with these results?”
“...I’m sorry.”
“Sorry? If you were sorry, you wouldn’t have messed up in the first place.”
“...”
Manager Eom Deok-gu picked up the documents on his desk and threw them at me.
As the papers flew toward my face, I briefly considered dodging—but that would only provoke him further.
Whap!
The documents scattered across the floor.
‘That bastard... He’s only one rank above me, but because he’s riding on the coattails of his seniors, he acts like such a big shot...’
Eom Deok-gu and I had graduated from the same Hunter Academy.
He was a senior by one class—infamous for his trashy personality.
How did I end up in the same guild as someone like him?
“Did you bring the coffee?”
“...Yes, here’s your iced Americano...”
“And the syrup?”
“I asked them to add it.”
“It’s not in here, you idiot!”
“...”
That’s strange. When I tasted it, it was definitely sweet...
Did my saliva overpower it?
The reason I keep getting scolded by this guy is simple.
Our guild failed to secure gate management rights this time.
‘I should’ve just stuck to hunting monsters like I was told...’
No.
Now that I think about it, running around catching monsters isn’t exactly humane work either.
“Go meet the Association folks right now and figure something out. If you can’t resolve this local issue, don’t even think about coming back.”
“...”
“Did you hear me?”
“...Understood.”
Damn it.
How did things end up like this?
‘Back in my day...’
Ah, does that make me sound like a boomer?
Still, I needed to say it.
Back in my day, being a monster hunter was the coolest and most prestigious job.
It has been 20 years since gates first started opening and 10 years since I awakened.
Today’s news reported:
“Today, the Awakener Center recorded a historic number of new awakeners. The magic measurement devices used for registration were overloaded, causing delays of over an hour...”
In other words, now anyone and everyone can become a Hunter.
The gates were limited, but the Hunters were overflowing.
We had officially entered the era of a Hunter surplus.
Every year, new awakeners appeared.
The ones above pressed down, and the ones below climbed up.
Like in any workplace, only the best were truly treated well.
No, even the best Hunters couldn't work now unless the Hunter civil servants approved them.
While guild leaders cling to pride...
How long could that last?
As I was heading out of the office, I overheard some guild staff chatting.
“Hey, did you hear?”
“Hear what?”
“This year, 50% of our national budget came from gate-related activities.”
“Wow... Isn’t the Hunter Association getting too powerful?”
The Hunter Association was established, and staff were assigned to manage it, completely reversing the dynamics.
The Association was a government-established organization.
It oversaw the guilds, and above the Association was the Hunter Department.
And the one in charge of the Hunter Department?
The Minister of the Hunter Department.
From magic stones to skill cards and various items, there wasn’t a single thing that didn’t make money.
So, of course, everyone wanted to get on the good side of the Association president. They had no choice.
Power turned into money, and money turned into authority.
Korea’s notorious “ppalli-ppalli” (hurry-hurry) culture shined in this field as well.
What took a day overseas, we could clear in half a day.
Typical of a gaming powerhouse...
We were also a stronghold in gate-clearing.
I overheard more of the employees’ conversation.
“Man, I want to join the Hunter Association.”
“Are you kidding? Once people get in, they never leave. Maybe ten years ago, but now all the positions are full.”
“I heard they’re getting bonuses again this year...”
In the end, it became a world where Hunter civil servants ruled.
The cost of drinks we’ve bought for the gate management department’s team leader probably equaled a decent gate’s profit.
From my perspective, this era belonged to the Hunter civil servants.
‘And on top of that, they’re skimming off skill cards and magic stones under the table...’
And they acted like they didn’t.
Wow. The more I thought about it, the angrier I got.
I should’ve listened to my parents the day I awakened...
Mom said if I just followed her advice, good things would come.
‘Sigh... I was crazy. What’s so cool about being a Hunter...’
Still, I had to endure.
Hunting is all I know. What else can I do?
Then one day, as I endured the daily grind, swallowing my pride, and tolerating the filth...
Our team finally secured management rights for a local gate and went to clear it.
That’s when disaster struck.
While hunting monsters, we were unlucky enough to encounter a double gate.
‘Damn it.’
I was trying to save a rookie who was panicking when my arm got melted.
“Arghhh!!”
“Tae-sung! Tae-sung!”
***
10 Years as a Hunter ended there.
In just 10 years.
I became obsolete.
I received my retirement and compensation money.
But what was the use when I’ve become disabled?
So I drowned myself in alcohol.
There was nothing else to comfort me.
Eventually, I ran out of booze.
I hadn’t watched the news in a while, but my eyes naturally shifted to the Hunter Magazine displayed on the convenience store rack.
"Skill Combination Formula Discovered! Combine Skill Cards to Create New Skills..."
"New S-Rank Gate Emerges! Even Top S-Rank Hunters Are Powerless!"
"Combination? What does that mean?"
"Oh, you didn't know? It's been about a month now—they say you can combine skill cards."
Up until now, skill cards could only be obtained by defeating monsters.
But here, 30 years after gates first appeared, this new discovery emerged: skill cards could be combined.
As I stared intently at the magazine, the convenience store clerk chimed in with an explanation.
"These days, hunters are obsessed with finding formulas to combine skill cards. Some guilds are offering billions just for sharing a formula."
"How does it work?"
"I'm just a regular guy... I only know from watching the news. But if you check blogs, you'll probably find a lot of info, though they’ll mostly be low-tier ones."
That day, I turned on my computer for the first time in years.
Hunter blogs filled with the latest information already had hundreds of formulas shared.
An overwhelming amount of data about skill cards I'd never even heard of poured out.
It felt like a single ray of light in pitch-black darkness.
"But how could something like this only be discovered 30 years later?"
The internet detailed it extensively:
Awakened individuals had access to an inventory window, a space that could only store items obtained from gates.
It consisted of 100 slots, including a special 9-slot "combination zone."
If you placed items in the combination zone and either said or thought "combine," a new combination could occur—but only if the items were placed in the correct sequence.
Considering this complexity, it was remarkable that it had taken 30 years to be discovered.
"If this much has been revealed, there must be even more hidden."
Who in their right mind would willingly disclose something that only benefits themselves?
Some might share out of a desire for attention, but surely no one would reveal the truly valuable stuff.
It dawned on me then.
"A skill card to reverse states... maybe it could restore my arm..."
If a skill could rewind time for 10 hours, that implied the possibility of one for 100 hours, 1,000 hours, or even years.
Perhaps even 10 years.
I headed straight to the skill card shop.
"I'm here to buy skill cards."
"What kind are you looking for?"
I opened my banking app on my phone and showed my balance.
"All of it."
I bought thousands of skill cards.
And then, without any particular strategy, I started combining them.
I wanted to try everything, even if just to restore my arm.
Using every piece of information on reversal skills or time-related skills, I attempted every combination I could.
But discovering a new formula wasn’t as easy as it sounded.
As time passed, I became more and more exhausted.
While others dismissed me as a washed-up has-been, my only friend, Junhyuk, came to visit me.
"So this is what you’ve been doing, combining skill cards?"
"...Yeah."
"Well, at least you're not drinking. But what are you even trying to create?"
"...Something to go back..."
"Come on... There’s no such skill."
"...But there are skills that can reverse states or rewind short periods of time."
"Those only apply to specific targets."
"So you're saying it’s impossible to rewind time entirely?"
"I don’t know... There’s no information about anything like that yet. Honestly, I thought you were just trying to restore your arm."
"I did at first... but I’ll be 50 soon."
It was far too late.
In an attempt to console me, he said:
"Fifty's still young enough, man."
"..."
What could a one-armed man even do at this age?
I thought I’d find a combination formula within a year, but 20 years had passed.
In that time, many new skill card formulas had been discovered, and I had even found a few of my own.
But in the end, I never got what I wanted.
I had failed.
I lost all my money.
My life was a complete failure.
Seeing my bitter smile, Jun-hyuk awkwardly mumbled:
"I’m retiring soon too, but I’m worried about how I’ll make a living afterward."
The guy lives in a 300-pyeong (approx. 10,000 sq. ft.) house and still worries about such things.
Not wanting to make him feel guilty, I changed the subject.
"How’s your wife and kid?"
"They’re good. Both of them are living it up spending the money I earn."
Damn...
I’ve never even been married.
I wonder how Yeong-sook is doing.
Jun-hyuk and I shared drinks for the first time in ages.
We reminisced over drinks for hours, but eventually, Jun-hyuk left because it was late.
I kept drinking alone.
Damn... I want to go back.
How did my life end up like this?
Pouring with one hand was too inconvenient, so I drank straight from the bottle.
The 30 years that had passed felt so cruel.
If I had known life would end up like this, I would’ve enjoyed it more.
There were things I shouldn’t have done back then.
But what’s the point of regret now? It’s all in the past.
I drank the rest of the alcohol, unwilling to let go of my lingering feelings.
Still holding onto hope, I opened my inventory and kept trying combinations until, at some point, I blacked out.
***
The Next Day
When I opened my eyes, I found a single skill card glowing black in my inventory.
"W-What? Is this... an Legendary Skill Card?!"
Staring at the card, the likes of which I’d never seen before, I was left speechless.
"What is this? What combination formula did I even use?"
With trembling hands, I checked the skill card’s details.
----
[Whirlpool of Time]
- Return to the initial state upon use.
- Can only be used once.
----
"Return to the initial state...?!"
....
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