## Chapter 2718 – 2718. Dragon Hunter
Flack Trading Company.
The best trading company in the metropolis of Gigantria. Which meant it was arguably the best trading company in the world.
The head of the Flack Trading Company was Oswald. Originally, he was just a merchant, but he ousted the previous head of Flack and surpassed his rivals to take the position.
It was an open secret that Seong Yu-jin of Gwangroe had helped him. In fact, Oswald subtly encouraged the rumors himself. He established his authority by letting it be known that Gwangroe was behind him. This was only possible with Gwangroe’s permission. Oswald knew his place as a merchant.
Gwangroe gave Oswald a task. An order to spread a video throughout Gigantria. It wasn’t a difficult task. If it hadn’t been an order directly from Gwangroe, Oswald would have had a subordinate do it and not given it a second thought.
‘This is Yu-jin’s order. I will personally oversee everything from start to finish.’
First, Oswald checked the video.
It was a video of Seong Yu-jin hunting the Lightning Tiger Dragon. Oswald frowned.
‘…Yu-jin seems to be getting pushed back by the Lightning Tiger Dragon. I’ve seen Yu-jin rampaging in the city before. With the power I saw then, Yu-jin should be overwhelming the Lightning Tiger Dragon. But this video is….’
The video showed Gwangroe acting as a meat shield while a blonde beauty of a mage ended the Lightning Tiger Dragon’s life with a single grand spell. Anyone could see that the mage was the star.
Oswald, who had been lost in thought while watching the video, snapped his fingers.
“Yu-jin has many enemies! Most of them have only heard rumors of Yu-jin’s power. The purpose of this video is to mislead enemies, including Do Hwang! I understand your intentions, even if it’s late!”
Having reached a conclusion alone in his office, Oswald began to work.
The video, taken with a magic tool, would be re-shot and shown to countless people in theaters.
‘I should save it on DVDs separately and sell them in other cities too.’
Most of those with DVD players were rich, and those rich people would be very interested in this video and want to collect it. It was a battle video of the S-Class Hunter Gwangroe and the High-Dragon class Lightning Tiger Dragon.
Oswald stroked his neck and smiled. His neck felt cold. He had bet on Gwangroe. He had staked everything on Gwangroe. Thanks to that, he had seized the position of head of the trading company and gained wealth and power.
If Gwangroe were to lose and die, Oswald would also lose everything and die.
But if Gwangroe won, Oswald would gain even more wealth and power than he had now.
• • •
Do Hwang Baek Jeong-su checked the Lightning Tiger Dragon hunting video. Contrary to expectations, Gwangroe didn’t play an active role in the battle. The one who shone was the blonde, blue-eyed beauty mage. Already famous as a skilled mage, she earned the nickname Cheonam (天巖) through this event. It meant Heavenly Rock, as she dropped a giant rock from the sky.
‘Mir’s clanmate. I heard she gave Mir the heart of the Lightning Tiger Dragon without asking for anything in return. So, she didn’t get it by offering her body to Gwangroe. There aren’t many mages of that caliber even among A-Class Hunters. Gwangroe probably handed over the Lightning Tiger Dragon’s heart considering their future relationship. I would have done the same.’
He wanted to go find Cheonam right away and recruit her into the Association. The Association was also involved in magic tool manufacturing and distribution, so they needed skilled mages even if they weren’t on the combat side.
‘Recruiting her would be difficult. Aside from her relationship with Mir… Gwangroe is keeping such a close eye on her that he even gave her the Lightning Tiger Dragon’s heart. Approaching her carelessly would be like provoking Gwangroe. There’s no need to provoke Gwangroe right now. And the fact that Gwangroe couldn’t recruit her means… she’s a mage who can’t be recruited even with a High-Dragon class heart.’
He decided to keep an eye on Cheonam. It seemed she already had a strong relationship with Mir anyway. For now, it was enough that she didn’t antagonize the Association.
Baek Jeong-su focused on something else. Gwangroe’s combat.
‘He’s being pushed back by the Lightning Tiger Dragon much more than I thought. Is it because Gwangroe’s lightning ability doesn’t work on the Lightning Tiger Dragon?’
Baek Jeong-su had seen Gwangroe’s might as he single-handedly annihilated the Extreme Sword Squad. He had also received reports that Gwangroe had destroyed cities.
‘…Gwangroe, who doesn’t use lightning, still has outstanding martial arts.’
Even if others didn’t, Baek Jeong-su could see Gwangroe’s technique.
‘Most hunters use specially made large weapons and large shields. I also use a large sword with a wide blade. Basically, to fight dragons that are bigger than humans, the equipment must also be large. Gwangroe is fighting the dragon head-on in a one-on-one battle with an ordinary straight sword.’
It was absurd.
No matter how strong an S-Class Hunter was, they couldn’t compete with a High-Dragon class dragon with just physical abilities. Strengthening the body with magic power? High-Dragon class dragons also knew how to use magic power. Therefore, humans could never catch up to High-Dragon class dragons with just physical abilities.
‘Gwangroe deflected the Lightning Tiger Dragon’s forepaws with martial arts. That’s why the Extreme Sword Squad was annihilated. The difference in technique is too great.’
Baek Jeong-su’s brow furrowed. He simulated fighting Gwangroe one-on-one in his head. Of course, the Gwangroe in his head was wielding lightning.
‘…Under the condition that I fight after taking an electric immunity potion made using the Dragon Heartblood of a High-Dragon class Lightning Dragon, my win rate is about 75%. It’s ridiculous. Even though Gwangroe’s lightning doesn’t work on me, my win rate is only 75%.’
Was there no way to beat Gwangroe 100%?
Mobilize the vice-presidents? Unfortunately, the vice-presidents were not in agreement. Gwangroe had a hand in it, but it was also a problem that existed even before Gwangroe appeared.
‘If the vice-presidents had just followed my orders, Gwangroe wouldn’t be rampaging like this…. The world is never easy.’
Baek Jeong-su thought of the Dragon King class dragon. But that was only a last resort.
‘…Hmm.’
Baek Jeong-su’s worries deepened.
And some time later, Baek Jeong-su met Mir. Mir, who had eaten the heart of the Lightning Tiger Dragon, had definitely become stronger. In just one day, he was wielding yellow lightning around his body and launching tricky attacks.
“Mir. You seem to be in a good mood today. It doesn’t seem to be just because you’ve gotten stronger. Did something else happen yesterday?”
According to Baek Jeong-su’s plan, Mir should be filled with anger towards Gwangroe right now.
“Ah, nothing special happened. I was just suspecting my colleagues. There was a bit of a big deal last night… but we resolved it amicably over breakfast today.”
“…Was it related to Gwangroe?”
“Yes. Hytera and Jina said they had met with Gwangroe separately. But that was it. Nothing special really happened. I trust Hytera and Jina.”
You can resolve inner doubts just by talking a little? Baek Jeong-su didn’t believe it.
‘…He used a virginity detection magic tool. Judging from Mir’s expression, both of them were virgins. Gwangroe didn’t defile those two…. I feel like I’ve been hit in the back of the head.’
Baek Jeong-su avoided the topic of Gwangroe. Any more would be too obvious. Even the inexperienced Mir could realize his intentions.
‘It seems like nothing has been going well lately.’
His mouth tasted bitter.
• • •
Unlike Do Hwang, who gave a relatively accurate assessment after watching the video, the public’s evaluation was quite harsh.
“Look at this? Gwangroe just got beat up by the Lightning Tiger Dragon and became a bloody mess. Could it be that Gwangroe’s power has been exaggerated?”
“It was strange if you think about it. Gwangroe supposedly made a mess of other cities? But there’s not much to show for it in Gigantria.”
“Cheonam did everything. Cheonam took the heart of the Lightning Tiger Dragon, and a hunter named Mir, who is Cheonam’s colleague, ate the heart of the Lightning Tiger Dragon.”
“At this point… I feel like I could hunt a High-Dragon class dragon too? Anyone want to hunt a High-Dragon together?”
“The High-Dragons nearby were hunted by Gwangroe. Damn it. I was a little scared because everyone was talking about High-Dragon class, High-Dragon class, but after watching this video, High-Dragon class doesn’t seem like much.”
“Was it true that most of the rumors about Gwangroe were created because someone else helped him….”
Mir nodded as he watched the hunters chattering at the Hunter Association headquarters.
‘Gwangroe. After watching the video, he does seem worse than the rumors. He would have failed the hunt if it weren’t for Hytera. It was only natural that Hytera got the heart of the Lightning Tiger Dragon. It would have been better if I had seen this video at the Association yesterday.’
It would have been better before using the virginity detection tool. It was a meaningless thought. The past doesn’t come back.
“Why don’t we raid him this time? Gwangroe has a lot of stuff, even if nothing else. What was it, Gwangroe is the owner of those popular novels and comics these days? Besides, he’s buying Dragon Hearts and Dragon Heartblood with the money he’s making from seasonings and spices. We might be able to change our lives if we do it right, don’t you think?”
“You want to raid Gwangroe, who killed Salgui? Are you as crazy as Gwangroe? But I kind of feel like it’s possible too.”
Those who had been afraid of Gwangroe and couldn’t even say his name properly until yesterday were mocking Gwangroe today. Mir chuckled at their attitude and focused on the video that was playing repeatedly on the wall of the first-floor restaurant at headquarters.
Even to Mir, Gwangroe was being pushed back without dealing any meaningful damage to the Lightning Tiger Dragon. But upon closer inspection, he could find something surprising.
‘Even though he’s covered in blood, he hasn’t actually taken any critical damage. Fighting a High-Dragon class dragon head-on in a one-on-one battle… is that even possible?’
Mir swallowed hard. Mir, who was being mentored by Do Hwang, was growing rapidly. In his eyes, Gwangroe was definitely not weak.
‘Still, the Association President could do this too. And I could follow along if I had the time.’
The fear of Gwangroe that everyone felt was gradually fading in real time.
