Chapter 55 – Class Reunion (2)

“Fuck, why are the elves attacking us?”

“Didn’t you see that weird window pop up earlier? It said there’s a doppelgänger among us, and since we can’t find it, they’re attacking everyone.”

“Shit, I thought elves were supposed to be the good guys.”

The people, swept into the gate without understanding why, chattered amongst themselves.

Five battles had already taken place.

The number of attacking elves was steadily increasing.

First, there were five. Then ten. Then fifteen, and so on.

As the number of elves grew, so did the variety of their ranks.

Some elves wielded greatswords, while others were clad entirely in black.

It was a situation that would have been plenty threatening for ordinary people.

But they were feeling a sense of security, or perhaps something akin to exhilaration.

There was only one reason.

“Wow, that’s insane. Seriously.”

“Is that guy even human? They said he was weak because he’s a porter.”

Without a single slip-up.

Lee Hyunbin faced the attacking elves all by himself.

Even when the creatures swarmed him all at once, Lee Hyunbin continued to wipe them out with skilled and swift movements.

“You morons. Are you the type to be amazed that a PC bang part-timer can cook ramen well? Of course he’s good at his own job.”

“Then why are you just standing here? Why don’t you go out there and swing a sword?”

“I don’t have a weapon, you asshole!”

No one believed the bully. He scowled, a wave of irritation washing over him, and grabbed the collar of the classmate who had challenged him.

“You’re really pissing me off, you know that?”

“Hey, what, what’s wrong?”

“What’s wrong? You think I’m a joke? Huh?”

A surge of anger welled up inside the bully.

He had suddenly heard about an alumni reunion.

The reason was simple.

Someone had found out that Lee Hyunbin, the hero of the Seoul Station Earth Dragon incident that was currently the talk of the nation, had gone to the same school.

That evening, a group chat was created for the reunion.

And the chat was filled with nothing but talk of Lee Hyunbin.

One person becomes a celebrity in just a few months, while another remains a mere D-rank porter for years.

“What the hell? It’s been ages since we graduated, and you’re still acting like a bully?”

“This is the same bastard who couldn’t even make eye contact with me back in school.”

The injustice of it all made his resentment soar.

***

What are they doing?

Even if I’m here to protect them, they’re fighting amongst themselves.

The elves had stopped their attacks. More than fifty of them had already fallen to me alone.

They probably wouldn’t attack again today.

I should get ready to leave the gate. Since they aren’t attacking anymore, it’s not efficient to stay.

I’ve leveled up Katrinne as planned, and my appointment is coming up soon.

“Alright, everyone, gather around. Let’s get ready to head out.”

“Did you find the doppelgänger?”

The people’s faces lit up at the mention of leaving.

“No.”

Their expressions changed in an instant, as if their previous cheerfulness had never existed. This was amusing.

“But I’ve figured out a way to find it. Doppelgängers are masters of transforming to look exactly like people.”

It was a well-known monster, so everyone was familiar with the concept.

“But beyond mimicking facial features, they can also perfectly replicate clothing and accessories. Why do you think that is?”

A doppelgänger’s cells can be altered at will, to the point where they can even imitate the clothes a person is wearing.

In other words, what looks like clothing is actually their skin tissue.

“We should be able to check just by plucking a single strand of hair from everyone.”

“With something that simple…?”

“Yes, with something that simple.”

Once separated from the main body, the cells revert to their original form.

To be honest, I knew this from the start, but I held off on purpose.

I needed to party up with Katrinne and get her some experience points.

“I-Isn’t this person the doppelgänger?”

“You’re right! This person has nothing to pluck!”

Like Moses parting the sea, the crowd backed away from the gym director.

The director, with his shiny head, looked around before his eyes landed on me.

Seeing the murderous glint in his eyes, the people began to tremble in fear.

“Ah, right. The director doesn’t need to pluck any.”

“Hyunbin, you’re messing with me on purpose, aren’t you…?”

The bald director looked at me with a wounded expression. I didn’t mean to. If he really wanted to pluck something, he could use an eyebrow.

But even after hearing my words, the people couldn’t shake their suspicion.

I gave a bitter smile and spoke to my former classmates.

“Stop with the useless worrying and just pluck your own hair.”

Stop worrying about others.

“Why can’t you pluck one?”

Let’s not bully the poor bald man.

“…”

A moment of silence.

Then, my classmates revealed their true nature, their nails sharpening as they lunged at me.

“You little punks.”

Good to see you, my friends!

***

As it turned out, the majority of the people who had entered the gate were doppelgängers.

Except for a few, like the bully and the class president.

“*Sob*, Hyunbin… Are you doing this because I rejected your confession…?”

This one’s really committed to her role.

The brown-haired classmate—no, the female doppelgänger—was still trying to flirt with me.

If she wanted to stay in character, she should have at least fixed her transformed face.

Spouting such words with a monster’s face was just grotesque.

“Just be experience points.”

“You monster!”

-The Gate Core has been destroyed.

-You have leveled up.

-The gate will collapse in 5 minutes.

I stepped out into the silence of the building’s interior.

Armed soldiers had set up a safety fence and were guarding the gate’s perimeter.

A quick glance revealed a few dead elves that had been killed.

“Hey, Lee Hyunbin’s coming out!”

People who had been watching from a distance due to the cordon were shouting at the sight of me.

“Hey, Lee Hyunbin! Hey!”

“I’m an acquaintance, can’t I go through? The gate is gone now.”

The brown-haired classmate was trying to push her way toward me. Doppelgängers fundamentally absorb a person’s memories, so their behavior patterns are similar.

“You all have fun now.”

I patted the shoulder of the bully, who was slumped on the floor.

It looked like he needed a change of pants, but I decided to just leave him.

He seemed to be in deep shock, but…

Considering how he acted back in high school, I didn’t feel like helping him.

“I’m… I’m sorry…”

You shouldn’t do things you’ll have to be sorry for.

Ignoring the bully’s pathetic call, I left the scene.

***

*Sizzle.*

The pork belly on the grill made a pleasant sound as it cooked to a golden brown.

“Finally, I can show you the grilling mastery of Kim Samgyeop!”

With every flip of the meat, Kim Tae-yang praised himself for his perfect timing.

Regardless of his grilling skills, Katrinne, who would eat anything well, was continuously stuffing lettuce wraps into her mouth.

“Every time I see you eat, you have such a hearty appetite.”

“Heheh. We’re running out of meat.”

He thinks Katrinne’s gluttony looks like a hearty appetite.

That Kim Tae-yang fellow must have something wrong with his eyes.

Just look at Kim In-ho in front of me.

His agitated eyes darted around, unable to find a place to rest as he watched Katrinne eat.

I poured soju into each of our glasses with a gurgling sound. After passing the drinks around, I spoke.

“Come to think of it, this is our first team dinner.”

“It would’ve been nice if Hyun-ji was here. It’s a shame.”

I gave a wry smile at Kim Tae-yang’s words.

“We can see Seo Hyun-ji again when she has time. Today, I have something to say to you two hunters.”

“Aw, come on, Team Leader. It’s about time you spoke casually with us.”

“That’s right. Please speak comfortably.”

“The honorifics are just such a habit.”

With that, I asked the two of them.

“Why did you two become hunters?”

Our glasses clinked.

“Uh, if you’re asking me… I was originally thinking of becoming a martial artist. I wanted to see who was stronger, you know? But then I found out I had talent as a hunter, so I entered this world.”

A simple-minded answer, just like Kim Tae-yang.

“It’s embarrassing, but I needed the money,” Kim In-ho followed with his honest reply.

“What about you, Team Leader?”

“Mine is a mix of both of your answers.”

Back when I first fell into the other world, I wasn’t interested in becoming stronger. But as time went on, I started to care about how strong I was.

Who knew that I, who was once content to just quietly read textbooks, had such a fighting spirit?

I downed my glass, then peeled the label off the soju bottle as I refilled their glasses.

“I’ve taught a lot of people, and you two are good. You both have plenty of room to grow in the future.”

“It’s all thanks to you, Team Leader.”

“Well, I am pretty amazing.”

Kim Tae-yang boasted, his cheeks flushed red after a few glasses of soju.

I chuckled and continued.

“I’m going to get stronger and more famous from now on.”

Honestly, if I had said this just a short while ago, people would have thought I was bluffing. But now, the entire nation knew my name.

Even now, I could see people outside the restaurant window raising their phones one by one.

“I’m going to need people who will become stronger, people with conviction.”

I can’t do everything by myself.

What the Demon King once told me. He said I should try creating a knight order again.

I had intended to.

But I was hesitant to create one.

There was a line drawn. I never crossed it, and I never let others cross it either.

The soju was sweet and went down easy.

My knight order. The people who always stood by my side, who were always with me, are gone now.

Not because I came to a different world.

“You’re both strengthening your abilities every day, right?”

“Yes, we’re doing it every day as you instructed.”

“I do it every other day?”

“Ah, it looks like Hunter Kim Tae-yang needs some special management.”

“I-I’m doing it every day.”

The special skill one gets upon awakening, the ability skill, is practically a meal ticket.

The current number one ranked hunter, Yeomje, got his title because his ability is flame-based, and the reason I’m the Deliveryman… Still, no matter how many cheesy titles there are, what kind of name is Deliveryman…? A wave of disillusionment washed over me.

“By the way, Team Leader. How do you know how to strengthen abilities?”

“Right. At first, I thought you were joking.”

The concept of a status window wasn’t properly established in the modern world yet.

Modern civilization was more advanced, but the awakening system was more developed in that other world.

“It’s hard to explain precisely, but I just know. And a lot of other things, too.”

I glanced at the two men’s faces, which were dying of curiosity, then raised the corners of my mouth and dangled the bait.

“Would you like to experience something else?”

“Uh. For some reason, this feels dangerous.”

Recalling the grueling training, their expressions quickly turned to fear.

I activated the Knight Order skill.

-Conditions for Knight Order have been met.

-Conditions for Knight Order have been met.

As expected, the two of them were highly compatible with me. They immediately met the conditions for the Knight Order.

“It’s called the Knight Order system. It connects us through the system.”

“Like a party?”

“You could say it’s similar.”

Except for the fact that I can edit the data of anyone who belongs to my side.

I briefly explained the advantages of the Knight Order.

I could forcibly set growth indicators and manage their stats. Thanks to that, they could become much stronger in the future.

“Then what are the disadvantages?”

“Of course, there are disadvantages.”

Kim Tae-yang had a ‘knew it’ look on his face. He looked worried, as if he might have to sell his soul.

Hey, what do you take me for!

“Ten percent of the experience points gained by hunters connected to my group comes to me. And…”

“And?”

“You won’t be able to attack me.”

Kim Tae-yang’s expression turned to one of disappointment.

This little brat.

“Of course, I can still attack you.”

“That’s a scam! No way! I’m not doing it!”

“I’ll do it!”

“What? Hey! You traitor!”

Kim In-ho connected to me through the system. And a second later, Kim Tae-yang joined right after.

The knight order I had tried not to create. But from now on, I would need people, too.

If I wanted to paint the picture I envisioned.

I smiled and clinked glasses with the two men before me.

“Let’s do well from now on, you two.”

It seemed I could finally start speaking comfortably with them.