Chapter 5

An Ordinary Office Worker - Chapter 5 (5/180)

< Chapter 5 >

Even though he was kicked out of the house, Camangi couldn't give up.

"An ordinary person shouldn't attack a monster, but there's no law that says you can't raise one."

"Growl!"

"There's certainly no law that says a monster can't attack another monster. Got it, Camangi?"

"Growl!"

It didn't seem like he understood.

"If I raise you well and use you for monster hunting, it might work out somehow. The best way would be to leech off my brother, though."

But I'd get a slap from Mom.

I know it's difficult to raise a monster for monster hunting.

If a player with taming skills did it, it might be different.

But if an ordinary person raises one, regulations will be imposed immediately.

Still, if I let Camangi out, he'll eventually be caught and killed by a player.

There is one player in our house, but I'm confident I can keep Camangi from being caught by my brother.

I haven't seen my brother go to the backyard in years.

If I set up a small barrier, he won't even notice Camangi is right in front of him.

I hid Camangi in the back of the yard and went back inside.

If Camangi doesn't listen and leaves the house, there's nothing I can do.

I've taken some light precautions to prevent him from attacking the family.

Camangi won't attack anyone.

Mom only opened the door after confirming I came back without the dog.

It's heartbreaking.

***

Another day, another commute.

I don't want to go to work.

I want to quit, to quit.

The pedals feel heavier than usual.

"Should I just take this road?"

Controlled Zone.

My brother said it's a controlled area because monsters appeared here before.

There are so many such alleys that the government can't manage them all, and most are managed by guilds.

Even in areas with low foot traffic, they just put up a no-entry sign.

"It doesn't seem particularly dangerous, so it should be fine."

If I arrive 10 minutes early, I can buy a coffee and go up.

In horror movies, the person who does what they're told not to do usually dies first.

But I'm confident I can survive if the ground suddenly collapses or a monster appears.

While I was having these silly thoughts, I sensed something.

A person?

"Damn!"

It's a player facing off against a monster as tall as a two-story building.

Is it a standoff?

The person is just cursing and trying to run away.

That person will die if this continues.

Should I help?

I don't want to get involved in work, and I might be late.

If I see their face, I'll get dragged into something annoying.

While I was thinking, I noticed a black plastic bag on the bicycle handle.

A plastic bag containing a convenience store sandwich and a banana-flavored milk I bought for lunch.

***

South Korea is famous for having a large number of top-tier players.

Naturally, the top two guilds in the world are based in South Korea.

Hero Guild and Transcend Guild.

While they only compete for the top spot in name, it's a well-known fact among players that the Hero Guild is overwhelmingly the best.

That doesn't mean the Transcend Guild, which is in second place, is weak.

Kim Hanbi was a C-rank player, but not an ordinary one.

He was a member of the Transcend Guild.

Even his B-rank friend envied him for being in the Transcend Guild.

Of course, he wouldn't stand a chance against a Hero Guild member.

"I heard the Hero Guild's deputy leader lives around here. Is it true?"

While patrolling the controlled zone, this thought suddenly came to mind.

Someone said they saw the Hero Guild's leader and deputy leader passing by this area recently.

"Ugh, Hero Guild or whatever. I need to finish my patrol quickly."

Even though I know it's safe, I can't help but worry when patrolling alone.

Normally, patrols are done in pairs, but my partner was attacked by a Hound-type monster in this area recently.

Fortunately, he wasn't seriously injured.

Being attacked by a monster that looks like a dog is embarrassing, so he kept it secret from the guild and said he was going to the hospital today.

What an idiot. If what he said is true, there might be a dog-like monster in this area, and he left me alone.

A dog-like monster.

"Grumble..."

A strange sound from behind made me shiver.

It can't be, can it? A dog monster?

With a sense of unease, I turned around.

I wished it was just a dog monster.

A large monster.

A large monster?

"Damn!"

I quickly turned my body.

I need to run!

Should I request backup from the guild first?

No, what would backup do? I'd already be dead by then.

A large monster suddenly appearing in this alley?

Large monsters can be predicted to appear using advanced radar developed by the research institute.

Most large monsters appear near portals.

This area is not near a portal, and it was announced that no large monsters would appear for at least a few months.

But why, suddenly! Today! In my location! An irregular appears!

I'm going to die, die, die!

This is definitely going to kill me.

"Ah, aah...!"

I glanced back and saw the large monster swinging its fist at me. I closed my eyes tightly.

I'm dead.

'Boom!'

A dull sound and the ground shook.

Am I dead?

I didn't feel any pain. Did I die too quickly to feel anything?

But why am I still thinking? Did I become a ghost?

I cautiously opened my eyes.

And I was shocked by what I saw.

The large monster was shattered into pieces.

A man in a suit was standing in front of it, dusting off his hands.

"What... is this...?"

Did the man attack the monster? He wasn't holding any weapon.

A thud, and I opened my eyes in less than a second.

If I put it together, the man knocked down the monster with a single punch.

It's impossible.

In Korea, no, anywhere in the world.

I've never seen a player who can shatter a large monster with one punch.

If such players existed, the number of monsters would be half of what it is now.

Kim Hanbi turned to look at the man who caused this.

For some reason, the man, who had a black plastic bag over his head, was dusting off his suit and getting on his bicycle.

"Ah, blood splattered. Blood stains are hard to remove."

"Hey..."

The man, who was rubbing the blood on the bicycle with his finger, turned his head at the sound of his name being called.

Of course, Kim Hanbi only saw a black plastic bag, not a face.

How did you kill the monster? Did you know the monster was going to appear? Was that a skill you used? Why are you wearing a plastic bag?

All these questions swirled in his mind, but only one came out.

"Who are you?!"

In response to Kim Hanbi's desperate question, the man in the plastic bag answered cheerfully.

"I'm an office worker."

"Huh?"

"I'm an ordinary office worker."

With that, the man on the bicycle rode away, and Kim Hanbi could only stare in shock.

***

What the hell.

It's been three and a half years since the first monster appeared, and the regulations related to monsters and players are still strange.

Ordinary people are not allowed to attack monsters.

Even if a monster attacks them or they witness a monster attacking someone else.

In the early days when monsters first appeared, people thought they could become players by attacking monsters and ended up getting killed.

Or, they would try to help someone being attacked instead of running away, resulting in more deaths.

The law was created to prevent such situations.

It means that attacking a monster will only result in a quick death, so prioritize running away.

"Does the system not consider people who went to another world for a few years to build up their strength and came back to find themselves classified as ordinary people?"

I don't know if there are others like me.

"I wish they would consider people like me. Let me hunt some monsters. My plastic bag just got a hole in it for nothing."

While putting on the plastic bag, I made two holes for my eyes.

The sandwich and milk won't fall out, but it's still annoying.

I want to change my bicycle.

Blood splattered on it. Isn't that a good enough excuse?

But what if my brother asks where the blood came from?

Why is the salary for a researcher so low?

If I could sell the monster's remains from earlier, I could buy a new bicycle.

But I had to wait for the cleanup team and show my player ID, which I don't have, so I ran away.

I only helped that player.

I grumbled as I headed to work.

No one will look for someone who covers their face and clearly doesn't want to reveal their identity.

If they're grateful for saving their life and giving them a benefit, they might.

***

"We have to find him!"

Kim Hanbi slammed his desk and shouted.

"Even if we find him, what are you going to do? He's probably affiliated with some organization."

"I've never seen anyone like him!"

"He had his face covered. How can you recognize him?"

"But... but! Covering his face is suspicious, right? He doesn't want to reveal himself. Maybe he's a hidden master."

A hidden master might not be affiliated with any guild.

We should find him and recruit him.

Kim Hanbi argued passionately.

"Covering his face... oh, right. Maybe he didn't wear makeup?"

"He was a man."

"Then maybe he had huge pimples on his face. Just ignore it."

Frustrated that his team leader, Han Gyeore, wasn't taking him seriously, Kim Hanbi pounded his chest.

He explained the situation as it happened, but the only response was a reprimand for acting without permission.

"Don't worry about it. Honestly, I think you were just too scared and didn't properly assess the situation. It was probably a few minutes of fighting, not a one-hit knockout."

"It's not true!"

"Alright, fine. Was the man you saw the Hero Guild's deputy leader?"

"Player Lee Seonghyun?"

"Yeah. Haven't you heard the rumors? He apparently lives around here. It's not a rumor; it's true. He lives just a five-minute walk away."

"Really?"

It makes sense.

I've never heard of a player who can defeat a large monster one-on-one.

But if it's Lee Seonghyun...

"Still... even if it's Player Lee Seonghyun, defeating a large monster alone..."

"How well do we know his world-ranking first-place skills? Maybe he learned a skill that lets him do it alone."

"Maybe..."

Yeah. If I think about it that way, it makes sense.

But something still feels off.

I feel like I'm missing something.

"Whether it's Lee Seonghyun or not, he definitely defeated the monster without any skills."

"Sure, sure. Go take a break. You must have been scared."

The atmosphere is one of disbelief.

Of course, they wouldn't believe it. Winning without skills means winning based on pure stat values.

Not just an ordinary monster, but a large monster.

The more I thought about it, the more I doubted what I saw and felt.

Maybe it was just a delusion.

"I don't know. What if it's true? What if it's not? I'll take a few days off."

It's probably nothing.

Kim Hanbi decided to think that way.

< Chapter 5 > End