Retire 548

548 (Hunter Academy Side Story 15) The Graduates_2

College was hectic, in a different way.

As a college student, Lee Seung-yeon still hadn’t decided whether she liked it or not. Her childhood friend, Soon Soon-jin, seemed to be enjoying university life to the fullest, almost as if mocking Seung-yeon’s indecision.

‘It’s not that I dislike it…’

She had considered joining a guild, like Oh Hyun-wook or Seo Han-seong. But after much deliberation, she’d concluded that, for now, college was the best choice.

Because Lee Seung-yeon had grand plans she wanted to pursue with her friends!

‘So. Are you really going to do it?’

‘Eh. You’re asking me that now? We just had graduation yesterday!’

‘You don’t have to be a Hunter…’

‘I know, I know. Teacher, that line’s getting old. I’ve memorized it, so switch it up by March, okay? Sure, we’re graduating, but Tae-woo and Ji-eun will have to hear it for at least another year…’

‘You’ve gotten cocky since graduation.’

‘What are you talking about?’

Seung-yeon widened her eyes in mock innocence.

‘I’ve always been like this.’

‘You’re starting to sound like Teacher Han.’

‘Wow. Just because I graduated, you’re going to say that?’

Seung-yeon snickered.

Graduating high school was different from graduating middle school. Was this what it meant to become an adult? If her parents or aunt heard her, they’d probably laugh and say, “What kind of adult are you?”

But she was an adult now. Lee Seung-yeon was an adult! Legally, anyway!

No, that’s not it.

‘I’m going to try.’

Joking around, Seung-yeon still looked her teacher straight in the eye at the end.

‘I probably won’t become a Hunter. I mean, I’ll stay a Hunter through my twenties. I’ll join a guild, too. But not Daseon. If I work under my aunt, I won’t get the experience I want.’

It had started as a club. To the teachers, it must have looked like child’s play. Sometimes Hunter teachers would drop by and say a few words, and even the principal would chime in. Teacher Chae-min or Teacher Kyung would shake their heads, saying their own experiences weren’t much use, but Teacher Woo would always point out the problems seriously whenever Seung-yeon hit a wall.

That’s how their provisional guild was formed. The name had changed several times during school. Even now, they were fiercely debating a few candidates. By the time they actually formed a real guild, it might have a completely different name.

‘I don’t have the same talents as the others… but I think I can be a manager. That’s why I’m going to college. Eun-young too.’

‘Is that so.’

‘Yeah. Even if I say this, it might not work out, right?’

‘Of course.’

‘But for now, I’m going to give it my all.’

That was the Hunter’s path Lee Seung-yeon chose.

When she was younger, she’d walked this path thoughtlessly, just because it seemed cool or because she envied her friends. But not anymore. Maybe someday she’d hit her limit and give up, but until then, she’d try everything she could.

If she never felt like giving up, she’d try again and again. Wasn’t being born into a wealthy family good for something? She had access to resources others didn’t.

Some might call it privileged talk, or sneer that it wasn’t really her own strength. At first, Seung-yeon had wanted to do it all on her own, without relying on her family.

What changed her mind was—

‘What? Even Hunter Lee Mi-seon gets help from her family, and you’re going to turn it down?’

‘Shouldn’t a teacher focus more on effort, though?’

‘Does effort close dungeons by itself?’

‘But that’s the fruit of Hunters’ blood, sweat, and tears…’

‘And where do you think those come from?’

Woo Hee-jae had mercilessly laughed at her.

Right after graduation, before leaving school, Seung-yeon had gone to see Woo Hee-jae one last time.

The question about whether she was really going to try came after he’d received her “business plan.”

After hearing her answer, Woo Hee-jae had seriously looked over the plan. It was strange—he’d only ever been a D-rank Hunter, but he analyzed the business proposal with suspicious ease. And his skills were far too good for a D-rank Hunter; she’d quickly moved up in rank afterward.

She hadn’t told her friends, but Seung-yeon had her suspicions about Woo Hee-jae. Tae-woo had told her some stories, and she’d overheard plenty of adult conversations.

Well, it didn’t matter. If he were really suspicious, her aunt wouldn’t have let him stay at the school.

And above all, Woo Hee-jae had saved her life! A little suspicion was nothing. In Seung-yeon’s eyes, it just made it feel like she’d glimpsed a hidden part of the Hunter world. It was exciting.

To think there were secret agents in the Hunter world, walking around right in front of her! Some of the movies the teachers made them watch for “cultural enrichment” were just like that.

Lee Seung-yeon. Age 20. Still a dreamer…

But that meant there were things she could do.

‘Being a Hunter is about money. Why do you think Awakened risk their lives to become Hunters?’

‘Well…’

‘It’s all about money. Mana stones and monster byproducts are worth a fortune.’

‘……’

‘The principal started this school to provide at least a basic safety net.’

As she gained more dungeon experience, she started to understand everything the teachers said.

‘Seung-yeon.’

‘Yes.’

‘What you’re trying to build isn’t ultimately a guild. You know that, right?’

‘…Yes.’

‘It’s something a guild could never do.’

Woo Hee-jae handed her back the plan. She knew there were many flaws, that some parts were unrealistic.

‘The easiest way is—’

He gave her real, practical advice, as if he’d actually read all thirty-two pages in that short time.

‘Use your grandfather’s money, your parents’ money, whatever, and set up a foundation. Call it whatever you want. Something like “Virtuous Hunter Foundation”—rescue people during dungeon breaks, compensate retired Hunters injured in the line of duty. It’s good for the company’s image, too.’

‘But that’s just a one-off.’

‘It takes longer, but you could also create insurance for Hunters. Doesn’t Dayeon Group own an insurance company? And a hospital?’

‘Insurance is really far from what I want to do, Teacher.’

‘It’s about money. Where do you think Hunters’ medical bills come from? Injuries from monsters often can’t be treated by ordinary surgery, so it costs a fortune.’

In the end, the barrier was reality.

‘I think it’s great that you have a goal. It’s impressive that you didn’t just let it slide, but wrote a 32-page report.’

‘How many stickers is that worth?’

‘A full set.’

‘Really?’

‘Yes. So think a bit more about how to compromise with reality.’

‘Reality… It’s all about money, right? The money has to keep flowing… If I use family money, it just becomes part of Grandpa’s business. I don’t want that. If I did, I’d just do what my aunt told me.’

‘There’s no right answer. You still have plenty of time, and a lot to experience.’

“Hey!! We’re late!!”

Seung-yeon snapped out of her thoughts. Her childhood friend, still sporting her trademark bob, glared at her, clearly annoyed.

“What are you spacing out for?! You said you had things to get ready—did you fall asleep?”

“No…”

“Then hurry up! We’re finally meeting everyone again!”

“The main character is always fashionably late.”

“Don’t give me that crap.”

Soon Soon-jin’s face hardened, and she spoke firmly. Seung-yeon obediently packed her bag. Soon-jin frowned, then noticed the freshly printed papers in the printer.

“What’s that?”

“Even though it’s just a graduate get-together, it’s kind of like… a shareholders’ meeting? Or something?”

“A shareholders’ meeting, my ass.”

“It’s about the future direction of our club guild…”

“Hmph.”

Soon-jin’s face softened a little.

“I got some more feedback from Teacher Woo, and asked my aunt, too. I’ll have to keep revising it, but I need to ask everyone else what they think. These things should be discussed face to face.”

“If you thought that, you should’ve prepared ahead of time. Why are you doing it on the day of the meeting?”

“…Ah, assignments.”

“School hasn’t even started yet. Are you at a different university or something?”

“Ahem.”

Soon-jin grumbled as she handed Seung-yeon the stack of papers and left the room. Seung-yeon stuffed the printouts into her bag and followed.

Her aunt had said the same thing as Teacher Woo. But unlike Woo Hee-jae, who looked at her with pride, Lee Mi-seon was more blunt.

‘Seung-yeon. If you do this in a guild, it’s illegal.’

‘I know…’

‘So what are you going to do?’

‘I’m not trying to do it all at once.’

‘Is there any guarantee the others will stick with you until then?’

As a current guild master, her advice was direct. But it was what Seung-yeon needed to hear.

‘I’m not criticizing your friends. You never know how things will turn out. By the time you’re ready to do something, they might have their own lives. You, too.’

‘Yeah… that’s true.’

‘Especially since what you want to do isn’t what most Hunters want. This kind of work doesn’t make money.’

The teacher had said the same thing. In the end, it all came down to money.

But Seung-yeon had something to say about that, too.

‘There are things more important than money.’

A cliché, but this was where it all began.

‘I’m going to make it happen.’

The past, cautiously shared by Oh Hyun-wook and Seo Han-seong. The things they wanted to do in the future.

It wasn’t just about her friends, either. There were so many people who’d lost family to monsters. So many who’d suffered because of crimes related to the Awakened.

‘Teacher Woo said so.’

‘Teacher Woo?’

‘He said it’s something the system needs to fix. Like how they’re revising dungeon safety grades right now.’

After all, the current Awakened registration was handled by the Abilities Association. Many guilds had their own agreements with the Association. In big countries like the US, each city had a main guild, so it worked out, but in Korea, it didn’t fit. It would be faster if the government set up a separate management agency and outsourced to guilds. There were such agencies in Korea, but they were small and didn’t have much power.

Her teacher and aunt both said money was the key, but there would always be Hunters who weren’t bound by that. You didn’t have to look far—just look at the principal. If he wanted to make money, he’d just clear another overseas dungeon, not start a school.

Yeah. Maybe, twenty years from now, when everything’s gone according to plan, she could ask the principal to lend his name. Actually, that would be great. By then, he’d be ready to retire, and having a Hunter like that as a figurehead would make everything easier.

As she rambled on about her still-vague future plans, Lee Mi-seon’s expression grew complicated.

‘And… why are you looking at me like that?’

‘No, it’s just… that Woo Hee-jae again…’

‘Teacher Woo? What about him?’

‘He’s just like that.’

Anyway, today was both a reunion after half a year and a chance to pitch herself to Hunters who were sure to make a name for themselves in the future. Want to help me change this country?

…Not that she planned to go into politics. But! She was still young and full of dreams!

“You’re late, Lee Seung-yeon!”

She’d lost some points for being late, but—

Even so, Seung-yeon grinned as she greeted her friends.

“Guys, I’ve been thinking about the direction for our guild.”

Even without talent, there’s a way to become a Hunter.

Seung-yeon dreamed, and found ambition.