Chapter 5
I was absentmindedly running my fingers over those enviable muscles when a groan snapped me back to reality.
[Shin Suha – Contamination 15%]
‘So the contamination’s dropped enough for him to wake up, huh. I’d better hurry.’
I pried the egg out of Shin Suha’s hand and stepped onto the exit gate of the boss room.
‘Even if we run into each other, there’s no way I can explain this.’
Light flared again from the gate, and when I opened my eyes, I was back on the first floor.
Fortunately, the taxi I had asked to wait was still parked in front of the tower.
“Thank you. Could you take me back to where we came from?”
“Got it.”
Thankfully, Shin Suha didn’t follow after me.
As the taxi finally pulled away, I slumped in my seat, exhausted.
“Haa… So I really have to keep doing this crap….”
I had retrieved the purification item to save hunters, but I had no intention of announcing its existence anytime soon.
Hunters could tolerate low contamination, but as it built up, the pain became unbearable.
And so, when they experienced the tranquility brought by the Purification Egg, they became addicted to it, obsessively seeking it out.
That obsession had led to horrific bloodshed in the novel—
hunters killing one another, over and over again, to monopolize the egg.
‘In the end, it always comes down to greed.’
That battle had nearly escalated into a war between nations, only ending when the hunter who possessed the egg donated it to his own country.
There’s a reason people say human greed knows no end, doomed to repeat the same mistakes.
‘The same thing will happen this time, too.’
But I wasn’t about to let the hunters I saved get dragged into pointless slaughter.
They were supposed to be tools for my return.
I couldn’t afford to let my plans unravel.
“We’ve arrived.”
“Thank you.”
Even after all this time, the house looked exactly as I had left it.
‘That bastard went out raising hell—guess he’s not coming home tonight. Works for me.’
I chuckled lightly and headed for the bathroom.
A house with hot water pouring endlessly from the shower… It was heaven itself.
‘Seriously, what was Seo Gowoon so damn dissatisfied about, living like this?’
No matter that this was fiction, I couldn’t stand his character.
After finishing my shower, I pulled the Purification Egg from my pants pocket and examined it.
They called it an egg, but in reality, it looked more like a solid, egg-shaped stone.
“Doesn’t seem like something that would just crack easily, not like in the book.”
But in the story, it had broken for the most ridiculous of reasons—
the president’s greed to convert its powers into a potion for sale.
Researchers ran endless experiments, but never uncovered how the purification actually worked.
In the end, the president, frustrated with their incompetence, carelessly handled the egg. It rolled off the desk, fell to the floor, and with a dull thud—shattered.
The inside was hollow. The cracked shell held no power of purification.
An empty shell, nothing more.
“That was when the president resigned, if I recall.”
Overwhelmed by criticism, he had been forced out of office.
Leaning back against my bed, I thought about where best to hide the egg.
‘Desk drawer? No.’
If Seo Taeju ever rifled through there, I’d be exposed instantly.
‘Between clothes? Mm… not great either.’
It could fall and break. That wasn’t acceptable.
‘The bed? Too risky. Where the hell do I hide this?’
As I was weighing my options, a chime suddenly rang out.
[Ding-dong— Additional information is available.]
“…Additional information? Oh right, I was told there’d be more.”
I pulled up my skill window and checked my active skills.
Four were currently usable:
Dismantle, Synthesize, Comprehend, Appraise.
Dismantle and Synthesize were clearly irrelevant here. That left Comprehend and Appraise.
“Comprehend?”
[Skill ‘Comprehend’ is activated.]
Something seemed to drain out of me, and then another message appeared.
[This object cannot be comprehended.]
“What the hell?”
I frowned and rechecked the skill description.
[Comprehend MAX: Reveals the root of things.]
“So is this thing without a root, or is it just that the root can’t be known?”
Annoyed at the vague explanation, I tried Appraise next.
The same draining sensation came, followed by a message.
[Appraise skill activated.]
[Appraisal successful.]
[Purification Egg]
Description: An egg of unknown origin. It is unclear when it came into being, but it has retained its shape for centuries. Emits a faint warmth.
+
Something was off. Aside from losing the question marks, the description hadn’t changed.
“Did I actually fail appraisal?”
Just then, the detailed info window for the egg flickered, and new lines appeared.
※ Can purify what is tainted.
※ Grows when infused with mana.
※ Requires a master.
+
“Grows? The egg grows? And what’s this about needing a master?”
An egg that had retained its form for centuries suddenly… growing? It didn’t make sense.
And what did it mean by “requires a master”?
The more I learned, the deeper the mystery became.
“…Forget it.”
Too tired to think further, I sprawled on the bed.
The hot shower had made me drowsy, and with the day’s tasks finished, fatigue washed over me like a tide.
‘This pathetic body… what the hell do I do with it….’
My thoughts grew hazy, and I was on the brink of sleep when—
—Ding.
A sound pierced my ears.
—Ding. Ding. Ding.
I tried to ignore it.
—Ding. Ding. Ding.
“…Annoying as hell.”
Unable to stand it, I shot upright.
A glowing blue window had appeared before my eyes.
And on it, in big letters: Quest.
Sleep vanished instantly.
[Become a Veteran Alchemist 1-1]
Once you’ve acquired an item, it’s only natural to use alchemy.
Infuse mana into the item immediately.
– Infuse mana into the Purification Egg (0/35)
Reward: ■■■
Quest Time Limit: 8 days
Failure condition: Purification Egg destroyed
+
“A… quest? Out of nowhere?”
This wasn’t a game, and I’d never seen anything like this in the novel.
‘And if I fail, the egg gets destroyed? Seriously?’
I glanced between the quest window and the egg.
“Is this because I’m a Hidden Hunter? Or because I’m a transmigrator?”
The novel had only mentioned, “There was once a hunter who possessed skills.”
So was this system normal, or unique to me? I had no idea.
“Should I ask him?”
Seo Taeju, vice guildmaster of Sunset Guild, had seen countless hunters. He might know about hidden skills.
But the thought alone made me shake my head.
“No chance.”
I could still picture the scorn in his eyes earlier, the sharp condemnation in his voice.
There was no way he’d answer honestly. He’d just curse me out again.
“Damn it. If I want to break the Cradle, I’ll have to make peace with that bastard somehow.”
Part of me wanted to beat him bloody for earlier, but Seo Taeju’s abilities were essential within the Cradle.
That was why he could drag a ragtag party of A- and B-rank hunters all the way through a boss fight.
“How the hell do I mend this screwed-up relationship….”
Groaning, I flopped back onto the bed.
For now, I had to set Seo Taeju aside and focus on the quest in front of me.
If quests were part of being a Hidden Hunter, then like the skill and info windows, there had to be a quest window as well.
On a hunch, I whispered, “Quest window.”
Immediately, a blue screen listing all quests opened up.
“…Is this really turning into a game?”
I still didn’t understand what was happening, but one truth remained: more clues were always better.
Forgetting my fatigue, I studied the quest log.
It was divided into ongoing quests and completed ones, showing even the quests Seo Gowoon had cleared before I took over.
[Completed Quests]
– Basics of Alchemy
– Intermediate Alchemy
– Advanced Alchemy
[Ongoing Quests]
– Become a Veteran Alchemist
+
I checked each completed quest.
The basic one had taught Dismantle and Synthesize.
The intermediate one unlocked Synthesis without dismantling.
The advanced one refined synthesis techniques through repetition.
“So this ‘Veteran’ quest is a step beyond Advanced, huh.”
The earlier quests were just optional tutorials—mere fundamentals.
Good thing they were already marked complete. But this sudden event quest was another story.
“…How the hell am I supposed to infuse mana into something?”
“Huff… huff….”
I collapsed to the ground, lungs burning.
I knew this body was garbage, but I hadn’t realized just how much.
Jogging a single lap around the neighborhood nearly killed me.
This body was nuclear waste.
‘And this guy awakened as a hunter? Then how weak was he before?’
I gulped down bottled water, stretched carefully, and reminded myself not to rush—exercise done wrong did more harm than good.
After finishing, I headed back toward the gate, only to see Seo Taeju stepping out in a suit.
The first time I’d seen him since that day. His eyes met mine, and he instantly wore a frosty expression.
I wanted to ignore him, but—
“I told you to hole up inside the house.”
Clearly, he didn’t.
I struggled to think of what to say. After a moment, I settled on something simple.
“…Heading to work? The suit looks good on you.”
To improve our relationship, I had decided the best approach was to avoid conflict.
After all, you didn’t avoid pests out of fear—they were just too disgusting to deal with.
If I didn’t bare my fangs, maybe he’d realize I wasn’t looking for trouble.
‘Besides, no one spits on a smiling face… right?’
I forced the most polite tone I could manage, like handling an obnoxious customer complaint.
But—
“Bullshit. Did you pop pills or something? Who asked you to talk to me?”
He spat—literally—and brushed past me, shoulder-checking me on the way out the gate.
So much for old sayings. Not only could people spit on a smiling face, they could spit well.
‘…Hold it in.’
My fists itched to plant him in the dirt and demand who raised him to be such an asshole.
But what choice did I have?
I had transmigrated into Seo Gowoon, and without Seo Taeju, I couldn’t clear the Cradle.
“…At least until I find someone more useful.”
To survive as the weak, you sometimes had to bend to the strong.
