Chapter 279 – Epilogue (12)

-After the descent of the worst Demon King who would destroy the entire world, he becomes a teaching aid for the Absolute.

A famous prophet known as the Blue-Eyed Prince, Daniel Eger, had delivered an inscrutable prophecy.

Consequently, jokes began to circulate that perhaps his abilities were finally fading.

When asked what it meant, he had only smiled cryptically, a detail that found its way into a small corner of the news.

-Massive Boss Monster, Presumed to be a Transcendent 6-Star, Hunted in a Single Night!

Stories about the boss monster from the previous day circulated in the news. A Transcendent 6-Star. In other words, it had surpassed the 6-star level.

Currently, the highest boss monster rank in the world was 6-star.

And even that rank had only emerged during the last Demon King raid.

Calling it a Transcendent 6-Star was just another way of saying its true power was unknown.

-If something like that really appeared, Korea would have been destroyed.

Someone said as much.

They weren’t wrong. For a monster of such rumored magnitude, things were far too quiet.

If such a creature had appeared, every hunter in the country, no, they would have had to request support from other nations.

But despite all that, Korea remained remarkably peaceful.

-The S-Rank Hunter Who Returned to Hunt a Transcendent 6-Star Boss Monster. The Delivery Man’s Comeback.

People who saw the article scoffed. The Delivery Man was dead.

Four years had passed since that incident, and despite law enforcement agencies worldwide searching for him, he was never found.

Eventually, it was tentatively concluded that the Delivery Man had been sacrificed in a great battle.

The news agency that published the article had to endure a flood of protest calls and criticism.

It was the price for what they called desecrating the dead—using a deceased hero for clickbait.

“Damn it, it really is the Delivery Man.”

The reporter looked at the single photo he had risked his life to take, feeling wronged.

A man holding a long sword of light.

As far as he knew, only one person used such a weapon. But the man’s physique was so different from the Delivery Man people remembered that the photo was being dismissed as a fabrication.

“Fine. When the Delivery Man starts working again, I’ll be the first to cover it. Let them disbelieve for now.”

The reporter scoffed as he read the hateful comments directed at him.

Humanity’s greatest hero was alive. And he knew it.

That fact alone made the reporter puff out his chest with pride.

And besides the reporter, there was someone else whose shoulders were squared with pride from knowing a secret others did not.

“Sirrr. Hehe.”

“Yep, three more laps of running.”

“Aw, come on, don’t be like that.”

Han So-yul approached Hyunbin with a charming smile.

The training grounds on a weekend.

It was a day when academy students usually took a voluntary break. But for skipping class, the Top 3 were receiving supplementary weekend lessons.

“I have to go to Ah-yeong’s house today.”

“You can go after your training is done, can’t you?”

Seeing that Hyunbin was impervious to her charms, Han So-yul pouted.

Because she had bled from her nose after overusing her powers, he had declared he would thoroughly whip her stamina into shape.

Han So-yul felt it was unfair.

If her opponent hadn’t been such a terrifying monster, she never would have burned out like that in the first place.

“I’m… no, *we’re* protecting you, Sir.”

“Protecting? Who? You guys are protecting me?”

At Hyunbin’s words, Han So-yul’s eyes narrowed as she smiled meaningfully.

“We’re keeping your identity a secret, aren’t we?”

“Identity?”

“The. De. Liv. Ery. Man. Hehe, I never knew our sir was such a famous person.”

Han So-yul giggled as she spoke.

Hwang Jae-hoon and Hong Jae-young, also aware of Hyunbin’s identity, now looked at him differently.

Before, they had thought he was just there to torment them. But if he was humanity’s strongest hero, that was a different story.

Thanks to that, they were now training without complaint, just as they were told.

“It’s not like I’m really hiding my identity.”

“Huh? You’re not? You’re not hiding on purpose, like some kind of Earth Defense Force?”

Han So-yul blinked, surprised by Hyunbin’s words.

Hwang Jae-hoon and Hong Jae-young, who were in the middle of their run, also perked up their ears at his statement.

“Well, it would be a hassle if my identity was revealed.”

“Right? You really are hiding your power, aren’t you?”

At Han So-yul’s words, Hyunbin broke into a grin. Seeing that expression, she took a step back.

She had learned from past experience to be wary of him when he smiled like that.

“I’d get pestered with calls from all over. That part might be a nuisance.”

Hyunbin said, then continued in a gentle tone.

“Looks like you haven’t had enough of my love. Our So-yul must not be tired enough.”

“No, that’s not it. I’ve had plenty! Ah, but I can’t help being curious. Why are you working as a teacher?”

She was genuinely curious. Incredibly curious.

Why would someone so amazing be playing teacher in a place like this?

A teacher’s salary was meager. As a hunter, he could earn in an hour what most people make in a lifetime.

“Because I enjoy putting people through the wringer.”

“Ah, putting people through the… huh?”

“It suits my disposition.”

Seeing Hyunbin’s sinister smile, Han So-yul’s pupils trembled with anxiety.

“Alright, my little delinquents. Time for another fun sparring session, isn’t it?”

“…You’ve got to be kidding me!”

“Kidding you? Go do twenty squats.”

“Damn it.”

“Twenty more for ‘damn it’.”

“…”

Hong Jae-young’s lips parted, but he could only start lifting the weights as ordered.

“Sir, are you going to hit a delicate girl like me?”

Han So-yul feigned fragility. This, from a girl who could send a dozen adults flying if she put her mind to it. It was absurd.

“Don’t worry. I’m not the one sparring today.”

“So you’re just going to make us kill each other?”

“Where do you pick up these strange ideas? Don’t worry. It should be pretty fun.”

No sooner had Hyunbin finished speaking than the school principal entered.

He was dragging some objects shrouded in cloth behind him.

“Principal. Is it ready?”

“Of course. It’s all prepared, just as you said.”

The principal and Hyunbin met each other’s gaze and shared a wicked smile.

Seeing them, Han So-yul and the others felt an inexplicable sense of dread.

“This is the Graham 3.1 version, made with your advice this time. The White Reaper.”

The tense Han So-yul and her friends soon let out a small laugh.

“Aww, I was wondering what it was. It’s just a punching bag.”

It was a training dummy personally developed by the principal, who enjoyed inventing things.

Saying that just hitting it one-sidedly was meaningless, he had equipped it with a beam saber and a beam shield, but it had never posed a real threat to the awakened students.

“If we’re sparring with this thing, that’s fine by me.”

The students were confident, while Hyunbin and the principal exchanged meaningful smiles.

“Do you guys happen to like tag?”

“Come on, how old do you think we are? We don’t play games like that.”

Han So-yul replied to Hyunbin’s random question as if it were childish.

“Is that so?”

Hyunbin nodded and continued.

“You’ll have to play whether you like it or not.”

“…?”

With those words, Hyunbin ordered the students in supplementary lessons to begin sparring.

“Sir, where are you going?”

“Oh. I’m going to a friend’s wedding.”

“What, take us with you.”

Han So-yul said as she watched Hyunbin prepare to leave, but there was no way he would listen.

She puffed out her cheeks and stared at the dumb-looking tin-can punching bag.

Apparently, Hyunbin had also participated in making this one. So she felt a little petty revenge was in order.

“Sir, is it okay if we break this?”

“Be my guest.”

“How long do we have to spar?”

“Until you win.”

The Top 3 let out a dry laugh at Hyunbin’s words. Hong Jae-young, in particular, confidently cracked his knuckles and bared his teeth.

“You mean it’s okay if I finish it in one minute, right?”

It was then. A gleam of light flashed from the punching bag’s eyes.

As the dummy finished its algorithm, a mechanical voice surprisingly flowed out of it.

-The Master wants your teeth.

“What’s this? What’s a tin-can piece of scrap like you saying—ugh!”

The kids were stunned.

Its movements were different from the punching bags they had seen before. Hong Jae-young was sent flying by a surprise counterattack, and after a brief struggle, Han So-yul and Hwang Jae-hoon started to flee.

“It’s a success.”

“Of course. Look who made it.”

The principal and Hyunbin raised their wine glasses and toasted.

“You really are a madman…”

Watching the scene, Olivier let out a quiet sigh.

“Oho. Going on a date with Sir Lee today?”

The principal said, looking at Olivier. She, who shone even in a simple white t-shirt and jeans, was clearly dressed up in a blouse and skirt.

“It’s the wedding day today.”

“Ah, that’s right. Look at my memory.”

The principal tapped his forehead and let out a hearty laugh.

“Mr. In-ho and Mr. Tae-yang are waiting outside. Let’s go, Sir Lee.”

“Really? What are they doing here?”

“We all agreed to go together.”

“Ah, did we?”

“Gosh, you two are both so single-minded.”

Olivier glanced between the principal and Hyunbin and lightly clicked her tongue.

“Sir! Sir, I want to go too…! Kyaaah!”

Han So-yul, distracted by Olivier, was hit by a surprise attack and sent sprawling.

“It doesn’t hurt, which makes it twice as infuriating!”

The punching bag was designed with student safety in mind. As a result, its attacks were like cotton puffs.

It didn’t hurt to get hit. The only problem was the humiliation of being knocked down.

“All three of you, review well. I’ll be back later to check on you.”

“Hmph.”

Han So-yul got up from the floor at Hyunbin’s words. Seeing him leave with the school nurse made her stomach churn for some reason.

Because the two adults, even to her eyes, looked good together.

“Give it up, give it up.”

“What are you talking about, you bald rat!”

At the sound of Hong Jae-young clicking his tongue teasingly, Han So-yul’s face hardened as she attacked the punching bag.

The survival of the Delivery Man, Lee Hyunbin.

If this news got out, the country would probably be turned upside down.

No, maybe the whole world.

But the kids had no intention of revealing that fact to the outside world.

If people found out, he might no longer be a teacher just for them.

‘There’s plenty of time until then.’

Han So-yul watched the two of them walk away and wrinkled her nose.