Infinite Evolution Hunter [NOVEL] - chapter 19
“Treatment is finished. He survived thanks to the potion you administered right away after he was poisoned. If not for that, he would have died before reaching the hospital. We’ll observe him a little longer, then he can be discharged.”
The doctor who had treated Sangheon told me the course of treatment and left the room.
Had I not prepared a large stock of potions for training with Sangheon, things might have turned dangerous.
It’d be nice if this incident granted Sangheon a Poison Resistance skill, but among ordinary Awakened that almost never happens. Still, he might develop some degree of resistance to this specific toxin.
While I waited for Sangheon to wake up, my stomach growled. It was already evening, and today I’d only eaten breakfast.
Leaving Sangheon—who didn’t look like he’d wake for a while—I headed toward the cafeteria.
“Oh? Hello.”
In the hallway, a familiar face bowed and greeted me. A woman in her early twenties with a naïve yet kind impression. Her style was different from the cat-featured Choi Miran, but she was the sort of beauty who’d turn heads on the street.
“Bae Nayoung…”
Her name slipped out of my mouth before I knew it.
“You remember. I’m sorry I ran off last time without even thanking you for saving me—I had to rush up to Seoul. I finally get to thank you now. Thank you so much for saving me.”
Bae Nayoung bowed in gratitude for rescuing her from the hellhound pack.
“Oh, don’t mention it. But, what brings you to the hospital?”
What would a future villain be doing here? Was that innocent face a mask, and was she here to spread some curse? Without realizing, I edged back a little.
“My mother is ill. That day her condition worsened, so I had to rush up.”
With gloom clouding her face, she pointed toward her mother’s room down the hall.
With Keen Senses now at B rank, I could detect lies, hostility, and killing intent—there was none of that at all.
I felt bad for having suspected her. Perhaps the Bae Nayoung of my previous life turned villain due to some catalyst. However I looked at it, the present her didn’t seem like the evildoer from before.
“What is your mother sick with?”
“Lung cancer.”
Her expression as she said “lung cancer” was steeped in sorrow.
After the gates opened, carcinogenic rates spiked noticeably. Mana and mana stones had become indispensable to human society, but people with zero tolerance to them grew inexplicably weak or fell ill, and in severe cases died.
“Stay strong. Since you’re a hunter too, you can earn money in gates and buy an elixir.”
Even lower-grade elixirs made from materials in higher-tier gates blow potions out of the water in healing power. At the high end they’re practically panaceas, with price tags to match.
But the low-grade elixirs often used for cancer do show up on the market in small, steady quantities, so even a low-rank hunter can buy them with hard work.
“I wish… but with my abilities it’s hard to get into a party.”
She began to explain in detail. She must think quite favorably of me.
“Want to party up with me?”
Maybe she hadn’t “bloomed” yet, but thinking of the power I’d seen in the future, there was no harm in building ties. I might even “rehabilitate” someone who would become a villain; and since she’s still F-rank and green, recruiting her early isn’t bad.
“Thank you for the offer, but my class is witch. My main skill is curse, and I can’t distinguish friend from foe—it hits party members too. That’s why no one will take me.”
Surprised at my proposal, she thought for a moment, then shook her head with a bitter smile.
So her class is witch and the skill is curse—sounds like her status window is English-based.
The system presents an Awakened’s abilities in whatever format they’re most comfortable with. Thus each person’s window and skill language base may differ.
Even so, levels and stats have absolute standards—the power is the same within the same rank.
“Even better.”
“Sorry?”
“It’s actually better if your curse hits me.”
I could build up resistance to curses. I’d planned to raise curse resistance to face villains like the future Bae Nayoung, but I didn’t expect to do it by partying with her.
“What do you mean?”
At the idea that being cursed could be good, she edged back slightly. Her eyes said, Is this guy weird?
“Oh, because of my skill. I can tell you details after we sign a contract, but if you’d like, I can advance your treatment costs.”
With my insane gate-clearing pace, I already had billions sitting in my account. If I didn’t spend it, taxes would take a chunk; if I could spend it well and in the process raise my skill, all the better.
“I’ll draft a contract and send it through the hunter app. Please review it.”
Preventing the birth of a future villain and becoming Bae Nayoung’s benefactor wasn’t a bad prospect either.
“Thank you.”
She thanked me, but somehow looked as though she wasn’t pinning her hopes on it.
—
The contract was so fair it was practically in her favor. If I acted high-handed and triggered her villain route, I’d be in for nightmares. I had plenty of money—cheap, if it prevented the rise of a powerful future villain. Of course, I would still extract everything I needed in the process.
I handed over the contract and told her to review it, then started my meal. She ordered something too, but didn’t eat—she just stared at the contract on her phone.
“Is it really okay as written?”
The terms must have looked too good—she asked me. She’d seemed indifferent earlier, but after seeing the contract, expectation appeared on her face.
“Yes, just fulfill it as stated.”
“Then… I’ll really sign?”
She asked once more. When I nodded, she signed, and we formally entered into contract.
There were many clauses, but three key ones:
First, although this isn’t an exclusive party, if I notify her of a gate schedule, Bae Nayoung must prioritize my request and join.
Second, in combat I am party leader and she must follow my orders.
Third, in exchange for an advance of a low-grade elixir, all of her gate-clear proceeds are prioritized toward repaying the elixir purchase cost.
You’d think she might worry—What if I go into a gate with a stranger and die following his commands?—but perhaps because I’d saved her once, or because she was staking her life to save her mother, Nayoung signed without hesitation.
I confirmed the signed contract. Since it was through the hunter app, breach meant legal penalties and could even lead to cancellation of Awakener registration.
“Let’s go buy the elixir.”
With the meal finished and the contract signed, we went straight to General Affairs to buy it.
I paid in cash, and behind me Nayoung burst into tears. With her mother’s long battle against cancer, both body and heart must have been worn down; seeing the end of that long ordeal, her heart finally eased.
“Deposit confirmed. Your elixir will arrive within two weeks.”
“Thank you!”
She came over and gently clasped my hands in hers.
“Oh my—sorry.”
I gave her an awkward smile at how close she’d gotten; realizing she was holding my hands, she let go and hurriedly dabbed away tears, face flushed, stepping back. So different from the previous life.
Even so, sometimes the face from my past overlapped, and it scared me.
Even for a low-grade elixir, quantities were limited, and there was a waiting list. We couldn’t let her condition worsen in the meantime, so we hired a healer for daily treatments over the two-week wait.
A healer couldn’t fully cure, but could improve her condition enough. The price was brutal—ordinary people and low-rank hunters couldn’t afford daily sessions.
“A healer too… I don’t know how to thank you.”
She thanked me again.
“Don’t mention it. For today, stay with your mother until the healer arrives and treats her. I’ll send you tomorrow’s gate schedule.”
—
“Okay, now please tell me about the skills you have.”
In front of an E-rank gate, I briefed with Bae Nayoung. With the contract signed, it was time to discuss each other’s skills.
Technically I should be moving on to D-rank, but to sync our teamwork, we started with E.
“I can use Mana Ball, but I’m E-rank, so it’s weak and I can’t use many. For curses, I have B-rank Blind and C-rank Nightmare. They spread outward centered on me and affect everyone around. Up to now, I only had Mana Ball to join parties with, so it’s been hard to get in.”
Lowering her head, she explained, embarrassed by her own kit.
“What do the curses do?”
“Blind robs not just sight but all five senses and renders you unable to act. But like I said, allies get disabled too. In darkness, where things are swung at random, monstrous opponents with superior physicality have the advantage. Nightmare shows the target what they fear most. That one also hits allies—very dangerous.”
With monsters outnumbering us, in every fight hunters would be swinging blind, taking heavy injuries, and becoming unable to battle—progress would stall.
“It’s definitely a kit most people would want to avoid.”
She drooped. She’d already received elixir funds—was I going to back out? Her eyes showed that fear.
“Most people. Not me.”
“Pardon?”
My answer startled her; she snapped her head up.
“For me, it’s not a disadvantage at all. In many ways, it’s a plus. My skill is Regeneration—when I’m stimulated and take damage, I develop resistance to it. If your curses hit me, I’ll gain resistance to mental-type skills like curses.”
“You mean like the stat boosts from leveling?”
“No. I improve even without leveling. Keep this in mind—confidentiality is part of the contract.”
Someday, when I drew attention, this would become somewhat known—but I had no intention of broadcasting it.
“Understood. I won’t tell anyone. Still… that’s amazing. I’ve never heard of a power like that.”
After sharing info, I pondered the applications of her kit.
“Let’s run a few tests inside the E-rank gate. If my guess is right, your kit will even be useful in D-rank combat.”
I took her into an E-rank orc gate.
“Alright—try using Blind now.”
After confirming there were no orcs nearby, I spoke to her.
“Okay. Blind!”
As she invoked the skill, a translucent black aura spread out in a ring from around her.