Chapter 9 – West Branch
“Is it still the same?”
“Yes, sorry. The matter is still being reviewed internally.”
Inside the West General Hunter Branch.
There, a hunter and his staff were having an untimely argument.
“I think you said that three months ago.”
“I always tell you with the results approved above.”
” Ha····. “
S-class hunter Kim Yoon-jung, who wondered if the stomach would explode, spoke again while messing with his head.
“That idiot! No… Didn’t you write down the details of what that hunter did and submit an inquiry form in accordance with the form? In addition, proof was attached! But does it make sense that the processing continues to be delayed?”
As she vomited her anger, her face turned red as if it was unfair.
An action that would be unimaginable for an S-class hunter.
Whose dog’s name is S-class?
That was absolutely not the case.
High-ranking talents who are said to be doing well in Korea as well.
Belonging to the category of the top 5% was never lagging behind, but rather, it was so great that you should be proud to stretch your shoulders and feel relaxed.
However, Kim Yoon-jung’s appearance, on the contrary, let alone her composure, made her face turn red and purplish, making her angry.
So, it was like a rich man with a fortune of about 5 billion was filing a complaint at the district office.
“The branch manager said he’s sorry about that…”
“Ha-You said it well. Let’s see where the branch manager is waiting. Today I have to go after hearing the results!”
“A riot within the general branch is a cause for obstruction of business. Please refrain from doing so.”
Suddenly, a group of people appeared with their eyes shining and stood behind her.
But she screamed even louder.
“No! Does it make sense to do this to the hunter who sent out the formal inquiry? What kind of work should I do! You’re going through all the procedures right now!”
“A high-pitched voice is also a reason for obstruction of business. If not, it would be nice if you lowered your voice.”
“Ha- fuck! Really!”
Kim Yoon-jung was boiling with anger, but she sat down again, barely pushing her rising double desire into her mouth with just one word.
After all, she had a lot to lose if the branch messed up.
Putting aside the rumors, I didn’t even have the confidence to defeat those groups.
Those ignorant lumps of scrap metal equipped with high-performance AI easily subdued even a strong person like themselves.
According to the rumors I picked up, I heard that an S-class hunter like himself, who had recently been in a riot, was knocked out with a punch from that chunk of scrap metal.
All I could say was that it was amazing to see him dodging all of them as if he already knew the technique and neatly subduing them in a single blow.
The employee who glanced at Kim Yoon-jung, who was getting angry, snapped his fingers and a lump of scrap metal passed water in front of him.
“Drink some water and calm down.”
Kim Yun-jeong was taken aback, but she still couldn’t refuse her sincerity, so she gulped the water like an idiot and gave her cup back to the scrap metal lump.
“How- did you feel relieved?”
“After- yes.”
“Okay. Then let’s continue talking. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to see the branch manager’s face. Recently, he’s very busy, so he rarely comes to work here.”
“Then what do you mean? To keep waiting for news without a promise like this, just sucking your fingers?”
Her staff handed her A4 paper and a pen to her as she lamented.
“Please write down everything you want to say to the branch manager. Then, when I arrive, I will directly deliver Hunter’s complaints.”
She didn’t know how many times she had written like this, but Kim Yun-jung let out a sigh and began to scribble down her complaints on her paper as if she couldn’t help it.
How long has it been
She handed the pen and A4 paper back to her staff.
“Thank you. And I will definitely give this paper to the branch manager.”
“Please, please this time. Hu- I really… It’s unfair.”
Kim Yoon-jung, who was chewing on her lips, trembled at her body and left her general branch.
“Yes, good bye.”
The clerk said hello and put the paper roughly in the drawer.
She then sighed, then picked up her pack of cigarettes and signaled to her colleague who was wearing her earphones beside her.
In response, her colleague took out her earphones and looked at her with a puzzled expression.
“I’m going to smoke a cigarette.”
“Okay. Yeah, what did you just say?”
She looked like she was playing, but she was clearly at work.
She must have been working on the phone. She quickly put on her earphones because it wasn’t something she’d done once or twice.
The employee who moved to the employee-only smoking room lit a cigarette and sighed.
“Fuck, are you doing this because you like me?”
As she exhaled her smoke and brushed the ashes, she cursed at her, as if she was annoyed.
In fact, I had no choice but to be annoyed.
Because her hunters were harassing her with the same inquiries all day today.
All employees had their own part.
For example, the phone call that her colleague who was next to her earlier was watching. And the computer management work of managing the branch’s computer system or entering values.
There were many other small tasks, but this task of managing inquiries right away was quite laborious.
Most of the others were non-face-to-face or could have been able to work at their own pace without being pressured, but it was not an inquiry.
In fact, I had to face the hunters and check them one by one to do my job.
The inquiry was, in a word, like a complaint.
It was a job that asked me to get things done quickly because I had these complaints, but this stress was no joke.
Since we talked in a face-to-face manner, the rapid consumption of emotions is a matter of course, but truth-like hunters who come back for the reason why they don’t deal with it quickly.
From one to ten, the consumption of mental energy was no joke.
“No, it’s just… You only need to sacrifice one person, so why…”
She sighed as if she didn’t understand, then looked at her watch and sighed even louder.
It was time for her to report to the branch manager.
As she tried to light another cigarette of hers, she put it back into her pack, as if she had caught her temper.
*
– Smart
“Chief? It’s time to get a report.”
“Uh- come in.”
She heard the soft voice of the branch manager from inside, and she opened the door and entered the branch manager’s office.
Contrary to her elegant voice, which seemed to be doing paperwork, a woman who looked quite old was lying on her chair, fiddling with her cell phone.
Upon seeing this, she changed her expression completely different from before and began to shoot her branch manager fiercely.
“Another mobile game?”
“Ah- I just turned it on.”
“Do you turn it off quickly before you curse?”
At the words filled with anger, the branch manager quickly glanced at her and put her cell phone down.
Of course, without turning off the game, it automatically restarts.
“What did I say?”
“Ah- what’s wrong Mr. Ahn~ We all communicate…”
“Turn it off.”
The branch manager, who couldn’t overcome her pressure and ended the game, showed a disapproving expression.
“Don’t make that face, have you forgotten who you’re suffering from?”
“That’s… I’m sorry.”
“If you know, don’t play games and run with your feet.”
“Kheum – from the report.”
Whether she was pretending not to hear or ignoring it, her heart broke again at that appearance, but she knew that this was not the first time that Seong-yeon had happened, so she endured it and started the briefing.
“Today, we received over 20 inquiries about the same thing. In particular, Mr. Kim Yun-jung came to us three times.”
“Yoon-jung again? He’s really strong…”
“After- and this.”
She put down the A4 bundle she had been carrying on the desk of her branch manager.
It was quite large, but it looked like half of an encyclopedia.
“This is… What?”
“It’s a petition sent by the hunters. Keep in mind that it came in a week.”
The branch manager, who had laughed, checked the petition, threw it away, and continued.
“Any other inquiries?”
“No. Of course.”
” Okay? “
The branch manager smiled bitterly and looked out of her window.
Then, shortly after, she snapped her fingers, the door opened, and the same lump of scrap metal as before approached. He put a cup of coffee on the branch manager’s desk and stood there staring at Seong Ahn.
” What would you like to drink? “
“Tea.”
After answering without difficulty, the lump of scrap metal made tea and went out the door.
It seemed that it was tea time unintentionally, but Seong Ahn-yeon laughed as if she was familiar with this, and she brought up the story.
“Have you heard the rumors about the barrier?”
“Huh? Why? Have there been any bad rumors?”
Barrier was the name of that lump of scrap metal, or AI.
He was also a grateful guard who guarded the branch’s facilities, as well as a competent servant who cleaned and handled all miscellaneous tasks. Barrier was a guy that was indispensable to the branch in a way.
“Because of the subject of scrap metal, even the hunters were subdued, so the image is at the bottom.”
“A piece of scrap metal. How lovely is the AI barrier?
“The image is not about cleaning… I’ll see you always show up when there’s a chaotic Hunter and just subdue it, so of course the floor. A lump of scrap metal… There’s no room for refutation.”
“Huh- I’m sorry. Ahn-yeon says that even though you know everything?”
“I speak calmly because I have affection.”
“How can you ignore my work that combines the essence of magic engineering and science…”
“Why don’t you change your appearance a bit? You don’t want to look old because it looks vintage. I think if you change your appearance, your image will be much better.”
“It’s impossible because of Garisel. His exoskeleton itself is so worn out… Besides, the original paint itself doesn’t work. And to maintain regular output, there’s nothing like that, but it’s impossible.”
“How about Tritran’s exoskeleton? The color is pretty… And the output is pretty…”
“Do you know that tritran is falling from the sky? Where can I get that expensive one?
“You have one?”
“Huh? Who…?”
“Are you talking about knowing now?”
“Oh, Kang Se-ah…?”
“Yes, ask him for a favor. To be honest, he’s not the only one who’s been harmed by the general branch.”
As soon as Kang Se-ah’s story came out, the branch manager’s expression hardened sharply.
But when she heard Seong-yeon’s words, she laughed again.
“Well, that’s embarrassing. You know that if you get caught rolling a hunter privately just for that reason, you and I will be killed right away, right?”
“Would I say something like this? I’m talking like this because there are many of us who have been avoided.”
This time, Seong A-yeon and Kim Yoon-jung opened the lid.
The contents of the inquiry were all complaints about Kang Se-ah.
It was because when she asked her to make a team with her, she always did her own thing.
She always called or texted me at important moments, or for some reason, she was victimized by killing monsters.
Even if she strategically attacked the gate by matching the sum of the hunters, there was no choice but to be dissatisfied because she only held on to her phone and said she didn’t know me.
Most of them were complaints about the damage that she or her colleagues were injured.
If you had to choose a gate to attack easily with her skills, what would it be?
She says that she, who has to fight, is just fiddling with her cell phone and not thinking of helping her.
Eventually, the number of victims increased exponentially.
It was because only her high-ranking hunters who had organized her party with her suddenly died, believing only in her hunter’s prestige as the SSS class.
As a result, it was no exaggeration to say that her reputation almost crawled to the bottom.
Her reputation for her commission was absolutely perfect.
In any case, her request was successfully completed.
However, his reputation with other hunters was a problem.
She didn’t listen to anyone else and fell for her boyfriend, and waited until an unexpected monster appeared and turned all other hunters into half assholes, and then she handled it easily.
There were already rumors that he was a crazy bitch among hunters of S+ rank or higher.
He is a psycho who gets pleasure from hurting people on purpose. Or rumors that there might be a fetish on your side.
In a word, it was the worst.
“The justification is sufficient. Even if the Hunter Headquarters investigates, wouldn’t you rather pay a penalty to Kang Se-ah?”
“It’s not wrong. But the reputation of the hunters’ personal reputation and the reputation of the request are completely different. That alone can’t be a sufficient reason.”
” It’s true that the reputation of the request is high. But look at the many petitions. The complaints are sky-high, right? Besides, almost everything about the inquiry is correct. The evidence is overflowing. Do. “
Usually, the conditions for disqualification of a hunter were only when the ‘reputation for commission’ reached the bottom or when another hunter used force equivalent to murder, but Kang Se-ah was not included in either of the two, so it was unreasonable for her to make a rash decision. .
Besides, she is one of the rare SSS-class hunters.
Literally, she felt like her head would hurt if she just stripped her of her Hunter qualifications, and it would be like throwing a talented person on the floor.
“I don’t understand. Branch manager.”
” Understanding? “
“Yes, that’s the reason why they surround Ms. Kang Se-ah so much. I admit that she is one of the few SSS-levels in the world and that she has good skills. It’s understandable that the branch manager can’t beat her because of that. I think it’s more foolish to lose the trust of many other hunters.”
At Seong Ah-yeon’s words, the branch manager just stared at the window without saying anything.
The calm expression seemed to represent the branch manager’s feelings, but they were all right.
Even if the SSS class is important, the trust of many other hunters is different.
If it continues to surround the SSS class, this general branch will lose the trust of the hunters and eventually lose its existence value.
“Shouldn’t we sacrifice a cow for the generation? It seems that the Maginot Line is just around the corner. Branch manager.”
At Seong A-yeon’s assertive words, the branch manager finally washed his face dry.
This means that the branch manager is also aware of it.
It wasn’t just playing games.
“Can I call Mr. Yerim?”
“Yes? Mr. Yerim, why are you suddenly…”
“I have something to ask… Ah, ask Se-Ah Kang to come too. I’ll ask.”
” Yes. “
Seong Ahn could not hide her joy in her heart.
It was because the fact that the branch manager moved meant that anything would produce results.
In other words, this is a sign that she too can be freed from Moon’s duties.
Her steps were lighter than ever.
