Chapter 42 – Hidden Event 1: Clear! (2)
The hospital was equipped with a variety of amenities. Gale and Abito entered a quiet cafeteria.
“Mmm~ Not bad at all.”
Gale let out a small murmur of appreciation as he took a sip of the aromatic coffee.
“Still can’t beat the butler, though. But it’s decent enough.”
Their time together hadn’t been long, but perhaps his stomach had already been captivated by Nahrhan’s extravagant cooking. Gale had become more sensitive to subtle differences in flavor.
Considering how, during his mercenary days, he’d eat anything from burnt stew to a noble inn’s full course meal without distinction, this was quite the development.
Clack—
But now wasn’t the time to savor the pleasures of taste.
“So then, dear clever little pre-Hunter, what might you want from this poor fellow, hmm? Quit dancing around and just spit it out.”
“…Haha. You’re no different from me, Mr. Gale. Let’s skip the pleasantries.”
Abito smiled awkwardly—then his eyes turned serious.
“But you’re right. Beating around the bush isn’t really my style. I’ll get straight to the point.”
After glancing around, he leaned in and spoke in a low voice.
“The Imperial Special-Class Hunter—please… let me meet Sir Elwin! I must see him, no matter what…!”
His voice was desperate, like someone gazing up at a rope thrown down from heaven.
Even this young boy seemed to have something he desperately wanted to achieve.
—Please. Tell me about him. Or better yet, take me to where he is.
Just like Sercia, who couldn’t quite mask her urgency while pointing a gun at Gale—Abito was no different.
“Sorry, but I really don’t know.”
Unfortunately… there was only one answer Gale could give.
He recalled what Elwin had said when they signed the contract not long ago.
—This contract is basically like hiring a mercenary. You don’t need to have some noble sense of duty as a Hunter. Just think of becoming a Hunter as part of completing the mission.
—But there’s one condition you must follow, Gale… Obey my orders without question. No matter what. Don’t ask why.
—And, of course, as is expected of any mercenary… keep everything confidential, yes?
The way Elwin had pressed a finger to his lips, his eyes narrowing with meaning—it had felt like a warning.
‘Ugh. Scary little punk.’
Gale shuddered.
‘He did seem particularly interested in Abito Yully…’
But he feared what kind of payback he might suffer if he slipped up and said the wrong thing.
“B-But Mr. Gale, you’re staying at the Imperial Palace, aren’t you?!”
Abito protested in disbelief, but Gale just gave a shameless shrug, as if that was all there was to it.
From the labyrinth up until now, Abito was still misunderstanding.
He thought Gale must be someone important to Elwin.
‘That kid went out of his way to find me for his own goals… I must be of some use, sure.’
But was Gale Garav someone who held any true significance to Elwin Krieger?
“Who knows…”
If anyone, it would be that butler, Nahrhan Ferdic, who had real potential.
Nahrhan was highly capable in many fields and devoted to serving Elwin with utter reverence. He clearly had deep involvement in Elwin’s plans.
But not Gale. He didn’t have that kind of authority to begin with.
They had a clear, professional relationship—client and mercenary.
“Haven’t been back to the palace in a while. Seems he’s busy with this whole incident.”
“I… I see…”
Abito lowered his head, and Gale sighed unconsciously.
“Haa. I’m not the meddling type…”
But that young face, still round with baby fat, looked so utterly crushed and world-weary. It was not a pleasant sight.
“Well, can’t be helped. If I see him later, I’ll try dropping your name.”
“…Ah! Really?! Th-Thank you! Thank you so much, Mr. Gale!”
“Yeah, yeah. Don’t get your hopes too high, though.”
Gale grinned at the beaming brown-haired boy.
A quiet but not uncomfortable silence settled between them.
“I wonder what he’s doing right now.”
“Beats me. Wonder what he’s thinking…”
Propping his cheek on his hand, Gale murmured as he watched the drifting white clouds.
“Our great and mighty Special-Class Hunter.”
***
At that same time, Elwin…
“You’re getting better with each passing day, you know?”
He was leisurely enjoying his tea under the midday sun.
“Nahrhan.”
Right beside him, Nahrhan poured tea into his empty cup with polite precision.
“You honor me. If it pleases you, then that alone brings me joy.”
He offered a respectful bow and a faint smile.
“By the way, Sir Elwin. There’s something I must report. Mr. Gale went out today.”
“Hm? The destination is obvious. Why are you reporting this?”
“He seems to be meeting his fellow examinees, yes—but also someone else. A person of interest, you might say.”
Nahrhan then produced an envelope from beneath the tray.
“Just as you predicted. That person of interest approached Mr. Gale directly.”
Inside were photographs of Gale Garav and the brown-haired boy—Abito Yully.
They’d clearly been taken in secret, every angle skewed and slanted, but the faces were unmistakable.
“Hmm? Already started investigating? Must be in quite a rush.”
Elwin flipped through the photos with a chuckle.
“Clever little fox.”
Knowing who ‘Abito Yully’ really was, Elwin found his act of pretending to be a normal kid both irritating and… oddly cute.
“But are you sure it’s safe to just watch? According to what you told me, that boy…”
Nahrhan spoke with concern.
Having been briefed in advance, he understood better than anyone the potential danger of the “power” that boy possessed.
“And of all people, he approached Mr. Gale…”
He trailed off, but Elwin caught the meaning immediately.
“Nahr, you think so too, huh? For a famous merc, Gale’s too soft-hearted.”
In a grim and cruel world like this, someone with Gale’s level of humanity was a rarity.
And those types usually died young—torn apart by wolves the moment they let their guard down.
“It’s fine. He’s a bit too smart for his age, sure, but he’s not a bad kid.”
…At least not yet. Not while Timur was still alive.
Elwin didn’t say the rest aloud.
“Besides, he’s not officially a Hunter yet. His access to restricted information is minimal.”
But Elwin, knowing the boy’s future, couldn’t rest easy.
“I was planning to keep him under my command anyway. Oh, and make sure Timur isn’t allowed to leave the hospital under the pretext of a full evaluation. Double the guards and surveillance.”
“Yes, I’ll take care of it immediately.”
“And about that ‘thing’ I mentioned before—can I ask you to deliver it in my place?”
“Consider it done.”
With a deep bow, Nahrhan exited the room.
Left alone, Elwin sipped his tea and savored the moment.
“When’s Pan getting back…”
Looking bored, he glanced at the clock, then poked around before casually opening a box on the desk and popping a snack into his mouth.
“Oh. All the furniture and interior stuff got replaced too. Nice.”
Elwin was currently in the top-floor president’s office of the World Hunter Association.
And he was lounging around like it was his own private study!
Crunch—
Munching away, Elwin spotted the mountain of documents piled on the desk.
“Wow. In that short time, you already got the entire Elder Council detained and collected this much dirt on them?”
As he flipped through some files, Elwin shook his head slightly, a little overwhelmed.
“No way there was this much even under the rug. Guy really doesn’t mess around.”
“Who do you think pushed me to that point, Elwin?!”
BANG!
Just then, the office door slammed open, and its rightful owner returned.
A short, stocky dwarf—Pan Tveron.
“Ah, welcome back.”
“‘Ah, welcome back’—?!”
Pop!
A vein bulged on Pan’s forehead as he leapt up and yanked on Elwin’s ear without restraint.
“You little brat—!”
Dwarves, a race of stone, traditionally dwelled in deep caverns and mined the rock hidden in the earth.
That meant—unsurprisingly—they were born with incredible grip strength.
And Pan, a former Hunter himself, was far stronger than any average dwarf.
“Ow ow ow! That hurts, Pan!”
Even Elwin, a Special-Class Hunter, couldn’t help but cry out.
Earlobes weren’t exactly something you could train.
“I want it to hurt, that’s the whole point!”
“But didn’t you say you’d overlook whatever schemes I pulled?!”
“Yeah, well! Seeing that smug little face of yours just pisses me off!”
Pan shouted and twisted Elwin’s ear even harder.
“Lying brat! You little gremlin!”
“Ugh! You crotchety old dwarf!”
It was hard to believe that one of them was the Imperial Special-Class Hunter and the other was the President of the World Hunter Association.
Their childish bickering continued for quite a while.
“…Haa. You’re exhausting. What is this, Pan? You’re not a kid anymore.”
“I should be saying that! You’ve been an arrogant punk since you were knee-high…”
Eventually, the two sat facing each other with weary expressions.
“Still, didn’t it work out well for you too? I heard the Elder Council used to obstruct you at every turn.”
Elwin sipped his now-cold tea.
“Technically, thanks to me, you got your chance to dissolve them, right?”
“…”
“Plus, we uncovered a bunch of talented pre-Hunters! The special report said so too, didn’t it? ‘A New Golden Generation, Recognized Even by the Imperial Special-Class Hunter!’ You achieved your main goal and got a bonus. What’s the problem?”
Pan sighed deeply as he looked at Elwin’s bright-eyed smile.
Elwin might be polite and well-mannered on the surface—but his way of thinking certainly wasn’t.
Legal processes and proper procedures mean nothing to that kid.
Holding his forehead as if to stave off a migraine, Pan grumbled.
‘A polite little devil.’
That was one of the best ways to describe Elwin Krieger.
“Haa… Noel, why did you leave me with such a headache of a kid…”
Pan tightly shut his eyes.
—Elwiiiiiiin—! Ugh!
He still didn’t know…
That instead of a bright and hopeful future, what lay ahead was a long road of migraines and rage-induced collapses.