The F-rank Hunter Who Turned Into a Golem Is Overpowered Chapter 18

Chapter 18

The moment rewinds to when Shim Young-jin was screaming and made eye contact with the Examiner.

Do-jae left the scene immediately.

‘Is that the Examiner?’

He then recalled the scene he had just witnessed.

Overwhelming power.

Speed, strength, destructive force — nothing was lacking.

‘I wonder how strong he is? Could he be an A-rank Hunter?’

The strongest Hunter Do-jae had seen was A-rank Hunter Song Deok-hoon.

Even then, he had only seen him from a distance, never really knowing his full abilities.

The people he interacted with daily were mostly E or D-rank Hunters, and now that he had reached C-rank himself, he could only speculate.

‘But why did I run away?’

After the Examiner instantly dealt with the monster, Do-jae hastily left the area.

He wasn’t sure why, but he just felt the need to get away.

Looking back now, it might have been because he didn’t want to get involved with Shim Young-jin.

But that doesn’t make sense.

Hadn’t he resolved not to hold ill feelings toward them?

‘Why, though?’

He tried to recall the memory.

Hearing the scream and heading in that direction.

The scene of the iron bar falling over Shim Young-jin’s head.

The Examiner stopping it.

The boss monster’s head and body being separated soon after.

And the Examiner licking the blood off his lips.

‘Yes, the aura around the Examiner was too ominous.’

It wasn’t just his appearance being fierce or his actions being savage.

It was the sheer repulsion he felt from the very presence of the Examiner.

An instinctive feeling, a warning to stay away.

Do-jae trusted his instincts to a certain extent.

Hadn’t he found mana stones mostly relying on his gut feeling?

Even if his instincts were wrong this time, it was wise to avoid the Examiner.

There was no need to foolishly pick a fight with him.

‘But now’s not the time for this. How much is that thing I picked up worth?’

Do-jae pulled out the point necklace to check.

On his way toward Shim Young-jin, Do-jae had come from the direction of the cliff.

As he was making his way down, he had noticed a small shining object.

It was a golden coin engraved with the mark of the Subjugation Army.

[1280]

‘1,000 points?’

It truly was treasure-worthy.

One item had pushed him past the passing score.

‘Luck is also a skill.’

With that, his minimum goal was achieved.

But he couldn’t stop there.

Do-jae started moving again to collect more points.

************

After the three-day survival test ended.

Do-jae received a call from his brother’s doctor and hurried to the hospital.

“He’s much better now. But I recommend continuing mana treatment for a while. After observing for about a week, we can move him to a general ward.”

Money is a powerful thing.

His brother’s condition, which had been stagnant for years, was rapidly improving after spending a few billion won.

It was so easy to treat, yet he had felt sorry for making his brother suffer for so long.

Screech-.

His brother was still in a special care room.

His brother had always watched other kids around his age get better and leave, but soon, it would be his turn.

“I’m here.”

“Hyung!”

His brother had gained a lot of weight, likely thanks to the effective treatment.

Though he was still smaller and thinner than other kids his age, the difference was noticeable to Do-jae.

“I told you, right? Just three more treatments, and you’ll be fine.”

“Yeah! But my doctor changed. He’s really nice and handsome!”

Do-jae chuckled.

It seemed his brother saw it that way.

It made sense — earning more money would make people more relaxed and able to take better care of themselves.

“But I have something to tell you.”

“What is it? Don’t tell me you didn’t bring the Metallic Hero?”

“Oh, Metallic Hero is… Ta-da!”

Do-jae pulled out a large box from his bag.

Metallic Hero Mark Eleven.

The 11th suit, improved for free movement even underwater.

The color was blue, with white stripes resembling waves, as if to represent the ocean.

“Wow! Hyung, I saw this two days ago! He lifted a ship out of the water and saved people!”

“Pfft, I already saw it ages ago.”

“What? When? How does he fight the Naga?”

“Huh? Naga? How do you know about that?”

His brother pointed to the bookshelf.

On it was a book titled “Aquatic Monster Encyclopedia.”

It seemed his brother had been reading one of the books Do-jae had left behind.

“Don’t concern yourself with monsters. You’ll never have to deal with them.”

“Why? Can’t I be a Hunter like you when I get better?”

“No!”

“Hmph.”

When Do-jae sternly rejected him, his brother pouted.

He had said it out of admiration for his older brother, but Do-jae’s cold reaction had hurt him.

Feeling he might have been too harsh, Do-jae softened his tone.

“Actually, I wanted to talk to you about something else… Would you like to stay with Aunt for a while?”

“Aunt?”

Do-jae had already prepared a house for them to live in, and his brother would soon be discharged.

But when Do-jae received the acceptance letter yesterday, he had to change his plans.

Because the acceptance letter didn’t list his first choice, but his third.

[Acceptance Letter]

[Name: Lee Do-jae]

[Assigned Unit: 3rd Subjugation Corps]

[Training Unit: 3rd Subjugation Corps Training Battalion]

…….

After all the hardships of the three-day survival test, he ended up in the 3rd Subjugation Corps.

The reason he had hoped for the Subjugation Headquarters was that it was in Seoul.

If he could commute, he could still take care of his brother, but the 3rd Subjugation Corps was too far away.

It was in Cheol-won.

The 3rd Subjugation Corps was located in Cheol-won, where he had taken the second practical test.

With a final score of 4,910 points, he thought he had a good shot at a top rank.

In the end, Do-jae, after much deliberation, decided to leave his brother with his aunt temporarily.

After all, he needed to be inside the Subjugation Army to seize any opportunities.

He would find a way to transfer to the headquarters and bring his brother back as soon as possible.

“Aunt will make you delicious food and buy you nice clothes. I’ve told her everything.”

Normally, there wasn’t a single call between him and his aunt.

After their parents passed away a long time ago, they lived together briefly, and since then, he had completely lost interest in whether she was alive or dead.

The memories of that time were far from pleasant, but for his brother’s sake, he had no choice.

Of course, he had made some preparations.

Money.

The first thing Do-jae brought up in his conversation with his aunt was money.

And for the first time, Do-jae realized her voice could sound so sweet.

“No! Can’t I stay with you?”

“I probably won’t be able to come home often from now on. I might not come back for several days.”

Once he moved to Cheol-won, traveling back and forth to Seoul would be difficult.

Besides, if he went on a subjugation mission, the time spent away from home would only increase.

Subjugation missions were entirely different from regular dungeon raids.

His brother was still at an age where he needed someone to take care of him.

Even though their aunt had treated him harshly, an adult was still necessary.

“Big brother, I’m always alone anyway. The nurse or doctor only comes for a little while, and I can just wait for you while watching TV or reading comics like today.”

His younger brother grabbed Do-jae’s arm, on the verge of tears.

“Big brother, can’t I live with you?”

Do-jae stared at his younger brother.

The past memories turned into a feeling of guilt, stabbing at his heart.

“Alright, let’s do that.”

His younger brother smiled brightly.

Yes, that’s right.

Do-jae had endured everything up to this point just to see this smile.

******************

A few days later.

There was still some time left before his commissioning.

In the meantime, Do-jae decided to tackle the quest that had been pestering him daily like spam emails.

[Quest]

Category: Main

Content: A Great Being is watching you closely. The Great Being wishes to test whether you can fulfill their expectations. If you fail to meet the Great Being’s expectations, you will have to give up your heart.

Restrictions: None

Reward: Recognition from the Great Being

Failure: Destruction of the Golem’s Heart

‘Why are they all so eager to break my heart?’

A quest that blatantly demanded his heart.

It had gotten to the point where his stubbornness kicked in.

No matter what, he was determined to survive and figure out what the quest truly wanted.

He looked at the final line.

[Do you accept?]

Do-jae had already prepared thoroughly.

Of course, everything was stored in his subspace, so he looked no different than usual, but his expression was resolute.

“I accept.”

As soon as Do-jae finished speaking, his surroundings blurred.

He felt as though his body was floating.

And when his feet touched the ground again, he was in a completely different place.

“A temple…?”

Do-jae found himself standing in a massive structure where a cold wind blew from somewhere.

The towering ceiling and thick stone pillars gave a sense of refreshing openness.

There were intricately carved ornaments, paintings of monsters that seemed alive, and runes whose meanings were incomprehensible.

It was oddly familiar, reminiscent of the dungeon where he had first gained his abilities.

Dooong—

A bell tolled, sending a shiver through his entire body, echoing through the temple.

A heavy yet feminine voice resonated in his ears.

— ‘I do not yet acknowledge you.’

The owner of the voice was nowhere to be seen.

But the tone was curt, as if harboring some dissatisfaction with Do-jae.

“Are you the Great Being?” Do-jae asked cautiously.

The Great Being mentioned in the quest—he wanted to confirm if the voice belonged to them.

— ‘Indeed. I am the one who sees through the essence. I can see everything, even your weakness.’

What kind of entity could say such things?

Do-jae once again politely asked.

“Are you a god?”

It was a thought that had crossed his mind before.

The being who had bestowed him with such power and abilities—could it be a god?

It was a natural thought for a human to have.

Miracles and transcendent beings.

In this world, where awakeners and monsters clashed, there had yet to be a being that could truly be called a god.

— ‘A god? Well, if that’s how you define a god, then you may call me that.’

Do-jae flinched in surprise.

So there really was such a thing as a god? He couldn’t help but be amazed.

Reverence, mystery, awe, and glory—emotions swirled and filled his chest with exhilaration.

But humans are such fickle creatures.

Soon, countless questions popped into Do-jae’s head.

And as if reading his mind, the owner of the voice responded.

— ‘How foolish. What is it you seek? Are you looking for answers?’

Why had the god put him through so much?

Why had his brother been made to suffer?

Gradually, his feelings toward the god turned into resentment.

— ‘Do not waver. I am not your god, weak one. I shall seal your golems. However, if you prove your worth, then we shall become your gods!’

Do-jae snapped back to his senses.

He opened his subspace, but the golems didn’t appear.

If they weren’t his gods, then whose gods were they?

Did the mention of ‘your god’ imply the diversity of religions?

That didn’t seem to be the case.

Thus, Do-jae focused on one particular word.

‘We?’

Could it mean there were other gods?

No more answers came.

Instead, in the distance, a massive stone slab rose from the ground.

Doooong—!