Dark Fantasy Genius Demon Hunter

The Commission

When Gaon returned to the city, carrying a large number of the attackers’ weapons, he had thought this:

Perhaps his actions would attract the attention of skilled individuals who hadn’t cared much about him before, and the aggro might shift their way.

Still, Gaon proceeded with his return as originally planned.

After all, he had hoped for attention, so there was no reason to view it as a risk.

The results of his noisy return would ultimately be beneficial for Gaon.

Thus, his desire for skilled individuals to take notice was for the purpose of creating connections with them.

From what Gaon had experienced, most monster hunters were far beyond the usual level measurements of 1st or 2nd level. These hunters were skilled to the point where level measurements didn’t make much sense.

Such monster hunters typically had the advantage in numbers when hunting monsters, making it nearly impossible to learn anything from them.

This was especially true for Gaon, who wandered alone in the contaminated zones.

Of course, seeing the monster by-products being traded indicated that there were monster hunters even more capable than that, but Gaon had never actually seen them.

So, Gaon had hoped to refine his combat skills by finding a dojo, but when that plan fell through, he began to plan for connections with skilled individuals instead.

Of course, those skilled individuals could be an unpredictable variable for Gaon.

It was impossible to know whether they would become enemies or allies.

However, he decided to leave that worry aside for after his encounter with these potential skilled individuals.

If he could establish a friendly relationship, his chances of learning something would grow.

Even if that didn’t happen, he might at least be introduced to a proper dojo, or he could learn by watching over someone’s shoulder.

He didn’t expect that the connection would come in the form of a commission.

“A commission came in,” Ren said.

The opportunity that was reeled in with the bait caught Gaon’s attention, but he remained silent, waiting for Ren to continue the explanation.

He could always ask questions after the explanation was finished.

“Seems like they heard the rumors about you spreading in the outskirts. The monster to be hunted is a 3rd-grade Lightning Mole,” Ren explained.

“3rd grade… I see.”

Gaon had expected something like this when he heard “commission.”

Until 2nd-grade monsters, there was enough supply of monster materials without needing a commission, so this made sense.

“The client is the Shimizu Family, one of the groups established in the city.”

The city.

At those words, Gaon nodded without hesitation.

“Got it.”

This was exactly why he had made those moves in the first place— to make connections with skilled individuals or the city’s inner circles. There was no reason to refuse now.

Seeing Gaon’s immediate reaction, Ren looked a little concerned and asked.

“Are you sure you’re okay with this?”

“What’s the matter?”

“You’ve never hunted a 3rd-grade monster before, right?”

“No, I haven’t. But I was planning to try it soon anyway.”

“…”

“Well, it’s a bit earlier than I planned, but it’s not something I can’t handle.”

“Right, with your skills, it shouldn’t be something to worry about too much.”

Ren relaxed his tense expression and nodded slowly.

“Though the commission came suddenly, I’m sure you’ve been preparing for hunting 3rd-grade monsters in your own way.”

“Of course.”

“Hunting a 3rd-grade monster requires special attention, unlike the 2nd-grade ones.”

“You’re talking about its attributes, right?”

“Exactly.”

Ren nodded.

“Unlike 2nd-grade monsters, which are mostly focused on physical strength, 3rd-grade monsters often deal with elemental properties.”

“So, preparations against the element are necessary. Especially this time, resistance to electricity will be required.”

“Preparations?”

“Not yet. I’m about to start.”

Gaon shook his head.

“Well, I was preparing to hunt a 3rd-grade monster, but since the commission just came in, I guess I couldn’t have been fully prepared yet,” Gaon said.

Ren raised an eyebrow, as if a bit embarrassed.

“When monsters first appeared in this world, people used various, unstandardized names for each type of monster. But now, that’s nearly never the case. Most of the known monsters now have names.”

Ren paused and called Gaon’s name.

Gaon silently looked at Ren.

“Do you know how monster names are decided?” Ren asked.

“Well, I guess I can’t know what happened a long time ago. But when I think about it, a lot of them seem to have intuitive names,” Gaon replied.

Ren nodded at Gaon’s indifferent answer.

“That’s right. Most monster names are decided that way. Thanks to that, you can tell a lot about a monster just by knowing its name.”

Gaon subtly nodded, as if agreeing with Ren’s words.

Shark-toothed Wolf, Long-tailed Cat, Stealth Lizard, and Tentacle Spider.

Indeed, when recalling the monsters he had encountered so far, the names often gave clear clues about their characteristics.

“Lightning Mole. Most people only focus on the word ‘lightning,’ but the real key is ‘mole,'” Ren said.

“Mole, huh? Well, if there was no reason to pay attention to the mole part, they wouldn’t have used it in the name,” Gaon remarked.

“Exactly. You’re right on the money.”

Ren snapped his fingers as he nodded in agreement.

“The creature’s habitat is underground. It’s hard to find, and even if you do, catching it can be quite tricky.”

“Considering it’s like a mole, it probably has poor eyesight, but its sense of touch must be highly developed to sense vibrations from the ground,” Gaon surmised.

“That’s right, and its sense of smell is also quite good, so it uses both touch and smell to gauge the distance to its prey.”

“Perhaps its main method of attack isn’t electricity, but its claws, which allow it to easily dig through the earth?”

“…Exactly. Have you already studied the Lightning Mole? …No, I guess not.”

Ren was surprised by how easily Gaon was making these deductions, but after seeing his expression, he realized that Gaon was simply sharp and not because he had prior knowledge.

“I’ve dropped a few hints… but anyway, your judgment is spot on.”

“So what else should I remember?”

“Not much else. As you inferred, the Lightning Mole hides underground until its target passes by, then it springs up to unleash electricity.”

“And then it finishes off the stunned prey with its claws.”

“Yep. Its electric attack is usually just enough to paralyze or stun its prey. But you can’t afford to let your guard down.”

Ren lowered his voice slightly.

“Once it realizes its electricity isn’t effective, it’ll increase the output.”

“Crafty little thing.”

“Yeah, it’s a nuisance not just because it can pop out of the ground unpredictably, but also because of the hassle of dealing with it.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

Gaon thought that when he encountered the Lightning Mole, he would strike it down in one go, taking advantage of any opening it might leave.

“Do you know where it’s located?” Ren asked.

“No, not yet,” Gaon shook his head in response.

“I’ve only been active around areas where 2nd-grade monsters appear. I’ve never ventured farther, so I’ll have to start looking now.”

“In that case, try searching for places where the ground is disturbed. If it’s living there, its burrowing behavior will leave holes in the ground.”

“Right, since it has mole-like traits, that makes sense. Thanks for the advice.”

“No problem. I’m just doing it for my own benefit.”

Ren shook his head at Gaon’s thanks, then playfully made a circle with his thumb and index finger, giving a mischievous grin.

He was likely expressing his awkwardness in that way.

“Well then.”

Gaon shook his head lightly, stood up, and was about to leave.

“Ah!”

Gaon stopped as Ren let out an exclamation.

“What’s up?”

“Once you hunt the Lightning Mole, your map should be updated, right?”

“No need. Find someone else.”

Gaon quickly realized what Ren was after and shook his head firmly.

“…You haven’t even finished your sentence yet?”

“Well, it’s obvious. You were planning to sell me your map.”

“Don’t even try.”

Ren clicked his tongue at Gaon’s blunt response but straightened up, still looking disappointed.

Gaon knew that when he said no, he meant it, and Ren’s persistence had no effect.

Ren glanced at Gaon with lingering regret, but Gaon didn’t leave any room for negotiation and opened the door.

At the innkeeper’s urging, Ren had no choice but to stand up and leave.

“Let’s meet again after the hunt is over.”

Gaon lightly nodded as a response.

After Ren left the room.

The room fell silent once again.

Gaon glanced at the door for no particular reason.

The reason Ren coveted Gaon’s map was clear.

It was because Gaon’s map was that well-crafted.

In a city where numerous races lived together and various cultures and knowledge mixed, Gaon’s map held significant value.

Ren had seen through that value.

In fact, even if someone other than Ren had seen Gaon’s map, they likely would have reacted the same way.

That’s because Gaon’s map used modern techniques.

Anyone who lived in modern-day South Korea would have learned how to read a map at least once.

It’s something learned in the military.

Moreover, during middle and high school, there were many opportunities to learn about map reading and how maps are drawn.

While it may not be commonly used knowledge, it was still something that could be recalled with a little effort.

And with continued use, even vague memories could become sharp and clear.

Thanks to that, Gaon had moved beyond the rough, messy early versions of his map and had managed to create a map that would impress someone like Ren.

Though, it was still a work in progress.

Of course, Gaon had realized from Ren’s earlier reaction that the map’s quality was high.

So, even if someone were to acquire the map, Gaon had made sure that the information within it could not be easily deciphered by writing it in modern Korean characters, mixed with English and Chinese characters.

He had used these as a form of code since Korean had a relatively simple structure for encoding information.

“Well, shall we go?”

With Ren having left the room, Gaon, now fully geared up, stood up as well.

Of course, he had also tucked the map that Ren had coveted inside his bag.

The Genius Monster Hunter of Dark Fantasy