Doing Good Deeds Will Bring Blessings¿

Han Jaeyeong clicked their tongue. Information moves so slowly here. It’s frustrating.

If this had been Korea, things would have been different. They would have been able to find out who had put the Golden Drake’s heart up for sale, whether that person truly had a connection to Leila, and even track down Leila’s whereabouts using that as a lead. But this was New York. No matter how exceptional an S-rank Hunter Han Jaeyeong was, gathering information quickly in New York was impossible. This place ultimately belonged to Estella.

Han Jaeyeong rubbed their smooth chin, sinking into thought. The real problem is how that Estella will respond…

Just then, someone hurried toward the room and was stopped by a security guard.

After recognizing who it was, Han Jaeyeong signaled that it was fine.

“It’s okay. Let them in.”

“H-Hunter Han Jaeyeong!”

The person who rushed in was Lee Pyeonghwa.

“My interview ran late, so I just got out.”

In Lee Pyeonghwa’s case, it wasn’t by personal choice, but since she had been stranded during basic military training, the procedures and interviews she had to go through were inevitably longer. That was why she was the last to hear that Jeong Daon had been kidnapped.

Lee Pyeonghwa’s expression, learning the situation so late, was pure confusion. Then she voiced the question everyone there was wondering.

“Why on earth was Jeong Daon kidnapped?!”

“Exactly. That seems to be everyone’s question,” Han Jaeyeong replied.

Why had Leila Lopez targeted Jeong Daon specifically? And with such meticulous preparation, no less.

“Because she’s a potential S-rank Hunter, so she has high value as a hostage…?”

“Well, maybe if she were contracted with Estella. But as it stands, she’s a Hunter affiliated with Korea.”

Jeong Daon was indeed quite famous as a potential S-rank Hunter. Above all, a video had been uploaded showing her using incantation magic immediately after awakening. But this was the United States. Jokingly called the “hyperpower nation” online, the U.S. had capital and talent pools incomparable to Korea’s. And regardless of the truth, Jeong Daon was still publicly nothing more than a “potential S-rank.”

As for the incantation video, Han Jaeyeong knew it was real, but it defied common sense so completely that many people claimed it was fabricated or edited. So even if Jeong Daon were kidnapped, only those who truly understood her value would care. It wouldn’t make negotiations with the U.S. government any easier.

Of course, the Korean government, including the Korean embassy, was in a panic…

But since Leila Lopez was a criminal of U.S. nationality, intervention still required time and procedure.

Lee Pyeonghwa let out a frustrated sigh. “So right now, we don’t even know the purpose. She hasn’t even been back long from the dimensional disaster, and now she’s kidnapped… Have you informed Jeong Daon’s brother?”

“No. Not yet.”

“What? Why not? Shouldn’t her family know?”

Han Jaeyeong shrugged at the perfectly reasonable question. “I agree, but since the fugitive was a Hunter affiliated with the Hunter Association headquarters, they say information leakage must be prevented.”

Besides, telling Jeong Dajeong, Jeong Daon’s brother back in Korea, about the situation when there was no solution wouldn’t change anything.

Even if Jeong Daon were here, she would’ve said not to tell him.

Despite being six years younger, Jeong Daon often acted like the older sibling. She clearly wouldn’t want to make Jeong Dajeong worry.

“And right now, Hunters from the New York headquarters have been dispatched and are tracking the traces of the teleportation magic circle.” As they spoke, Han Jaeyeong lifted their chin, gesturing toward the crowded waiting room. “It’s been two hours, but it doesn’t look like they’ve made much progress.”

The Hunter Association is an international organization with around 190 member countries. Each country has its own branch, but the headquarters that oversees them all is located here in New York. It’s usually referred to casually as the World Hunter Association—or simply the headquarters.

And the Hunters dispatched from the World Hunter Association headquarters whipped their heads around at Han Jaeyeong’s mocking tone, glaring at them.

“What the hell is that bastard saying? He’s still annoying as ever.”

“Don’t make things bigger than they need to be. Picking a fight with a mad dog only hurts us.”

“Hey, hey. A dog? I’m mixed Asian too. Watch the discriminatory language.”

“Don’t take it personally. But that guy really is crazy. At least dogs are cute.”

“By the way, do Koreans really eat dogs?”

“That’s enough! Focus on the investigation.”

“Whatever. He can’t understand us anyway.”

Profanities and blatantly racist remarks flew back and forth at a speed that would have been difficult for any foreigner to follow. Fortunately, or unfortunately, Lee Pyeonghwa, who couldn’t understand a word of it, looked at Han Jaeyeong with a puzzled expression.

“Don’t those people use translators?”

“It’s an interesting thing, but Americans tend to believe that everyone in the world should naturally speak English. Americans whose first language is English very rarely use translators.”

“Uh… but still…”

“That’s probably why Association President Estella is so popular.”

The fact that Estella had used an item with a Korean translation function was, in its own way, a gesture of goodwill toward the other party. Even so, since it was goodwill granted from a position of superiority, Han Jaeyeong didn’t like it.

Lee Pyeonghwa asked in an anxious voice, “But even so, we can’t just leave everything to others and do nothing. Can’t we join the investigation too?”

“I’d like to, but there’s the issue of our status.”

Han Jaeyeong shook their head instead of nodding. They hadn’t failed to consider the same thing. There were circumstances. They hadn’t entered the country formally and were staying in the U.S. as temporary refugees due to being victims of a dimensional disaster. It wasn’t a situation where they could step forward freely.

Yu Hanul let out a sigh as well. “At least I entered the country legally, so I don’t have any status issues. I did say I wanted to participate in the investigation, but…”

“Yeah. There’s no way those guys would leave tracking Leila Lopez to outsiders.”

Although both Han Jaeyeong and Yu Hanul belonged to the Hunter Association, in this case they were outsiders in all but name. That was how distant the Hunter Association headquarters in New York was from Hunters affiliated with national branches.

“After all, she stabbed Association President Estella in the back and ran.”

The Hunters affiliated with the Hunter Association headquarters were a group that blindly devoted themselves to Estella. And Leila Lopez was a veteran figure from the Item Development Department, essentially the core of the headquarters itself. For someone like her to betray Estella, steal items, kidnap an East Asian Hunter, and flee… The headquarters Hunters must have felt deeply humiliated.

No, if it were merely humiliation, that would be one thing. Wouldn’t they see it as a stain on Estella’s prestige?

Given that, it was obvious they wouldn’t welcome a powerful outsider like Han Jaeyeong participating in the investigation. Even if they formally requested to join, it was unlikely to be accepted, and even if it were, proper information sharing probably wouldn’t happen.

“And even putting all that aside, they don’t like us very much. Don’t make eye contact. They’ll go out of their way to pick a fight.”

“Us?” Lee Pyeonghwa asked.

“To be precise, they hate me.” Yu Hanul spoke in a dry tone. “I get compared to the Estella Association President a lot, since I’m an S-rank Hunter.”

The obsession with “VS matchups” wasn’t limited to Korea. Footage of Yu Hanul’s exploits had already spread widely, and globally, they were regarded as someone whose combat power fell behind no one. And to Estella’s fanatics, that was deeply unpleasant. Especially for racists, the fact that an East Asian was even considered a point of comparison was something they found extremely offensive.

“They consider the comparison itself an insult. Thanks to that, every time I come to the U.S., I get picked on at least once.”

At that, Lee Pyeonghwa forgot the situation for a moment and bristled with indignation. “That’s ridiculous! That’s not Hunter Yu Hanul’s fault at all!”

“If we’d snapped back at them within reasonable limits, it wouldn’t have been our fault, but…”

As Han Jaeyeong trailed off, Yu Hanul, rarely, responded with a flash of irritation, “It was within reasonable limits.”

“Yeah, I think so too. Anyway, that’s why we’re not on good terms with the Hunter Association headquarters.”

That was also why they’d been especially sensitive about Estella approaching Jeong Daon. If Jeong Daon had been tempted by Estella’s offer and joined the headquarters, then on top of an already hostile attitude toward Korean Hunters, territorial bullying would likely have followed. It wouldn’t have ended well.

Though Jeong Daon isn’t the type to get dragged around by that kind of atmosphere…

Lee Pyeonghwa asked cautiously, “Then… could it be that because of that bad blood, the investigation is being delayed on purpose…?”

Han Jaeyeong smiled faintly at the question. “That’s a possibility~? Considering it’s taken over two hours just to cast a single tracking spell.”

“Yes. I don’t think we can just sit around and trust this investigation.”

“Hey! Watch what you’re saying!”

The shout came from one of the Hunters who had been huddled together earlier, whispering among themselves in rapid English.

So the one who said they were mixed Asian really could speak Korean after all.

The Hunter’s face flushed red as they strode straight toward Yu Hanul. “So what, are you saying we’re deliberately half-assing the investigation right now?”

At the threatening momentum, Lee Pyeonghwa unconsciously hunched her shoulders. “Uh, I didn’t mean it like that—”

“Stay still.” Han Jaeyeong quietly took hold of Lee Pyeonghwa’s shoulder and pulled her behind their own back.

Startled, Lee Pyeonghwa whispered, “Wh-what should I do? I misspoke…”

“If we thought it was a slip of the tongue, we would’ve stopped you.”

Since she didn’t, Han Jaeyeong had let her keep talking on purpose. In fact, they had nudged things along. Starting a confrontation themselves would have been a matter of appearances, after all.

“If what I said is wrong, then all you have to do is prove it with results,” Yu Hanul said as he stepped forward.

At that pressure, a sharp intake of breath could be heard from several people. The presence emanating from Yu Hanul was overwhelming the entire room.

A seasoned veteran Hunter instinctively seizes control of the mana around them; even a shift in emotion can change the density of the air. That’s why, when an S-rank Hunter is angry, the wisest choice is simply not to get anywhere near them.

“As Hunter Han Jaeyeong said, it’s already been over two hours since the victim was kidnapped. And yet you haven’t just failed to complete the tracking spell. You haven’t even made contact with the culprit.”

But the Hunter who had approached Yu Hanul of their own accord was already too late to retreat. Everyone in the room was now watching Yu Hanul and the Hunter facing him.

With all eyes suddenly on them, sweat began to bead on the Hunter’s forehead.

“That’s—!”

“If you’re not doing a sloppy investigation, then what is it? Incompetence?”

For Yu Hanul, this was rare. He seemed genuinely angry.

And honestly, Han Jaeyeong thought to themself, You were the one who left your post, and now you’re venting your anger…

But unaware of that backstory, the headquarters Hunter bristled at Yu Hanul’s words.

“Hey, that’s going too far! We’re trying our best—hick!”

Yu Hanul casually extended an arm. At that motion alone, the opposing Hunter reflexively gasped and flinched.

But Yu Hanul had merely crossed his arms. He had only changed his posture, yet the fear was so obvious it was clear Yu Hanul was completely overwhelming them.

No, more precisely, threatening them.

“I haven’t even started saying anything harsh yet.”

“Wh-what did you say?”

There’s something people often misunderstand. Of course, Yu Hanul is fundamentally upright in character, someone who doesn’t ignore others’ suffering, a human with such rare goodness that even Han Jaeyeong, a fairy hybrid, can’t help but click their tongue in amazement.

“To think this many people have gathered just to waste time tracking nothing more than the traces of a teleportation circle.”

In modern society, evil is carried out with surprising normalcy and rationality, while good deeds tend to be astonishingly inefficient and troublesome. In such a world, how could someone who refuses to overlook wrongdoing be weak?

In reality, the virtuous must be far stronger than the wicked.

And Yu Hanul was not the kind of person who would tolerate the corruption of letting personal feelings interfere with public duty, especially in a criminal investigation.

“You’d be better off using police dogs. At least they’re cute.”