S-Class Hunter Heals with Monsters - Chapter 153



Only Noblemtl

Episode 153: Reunion with the self-proclaimed disciple

“Sir, what is that disciple’s name? If I know his name, it will be easier to find him. If he’s alive, I can ask him about the research center, just like you said.”

“I don’t remember the name. I almost never called it.”

“You didn’t call me?”

“Because we weren’t close enough to call each other. He wasn’t a real disciple to begin with.”

The child just called him teacher and followed him around. They were not actually teacher-student relationships.

Moreover, Cheon Do-woon was often away from the lab because he was out on punitive expeditions. In other words, there wasn’t much contact.

No one would remember that child’s name for decades.

“Then there are no special features?”

“As for the characteristics… I remember that the surname was unique. It was Seok.”

“Suk! That’s unusual!”

Kim Na-ri shouted as if she would remember. While they were talking like that, they arrived at the swamp.

There are two things to find.

A doppelganger in the form of a white swamp and a man in a wheelchair that Goo-woo spoke of.

Cheon Do-woon looked at the swamp and laughed in vain.

“The swamp that Gu-u mentioned has a unique color. I thought I could find it quickly… but this is an unexpected variable.”

Because it was winter, the snow was piled up and the whole world was white.

At this rate, it was difficult to tell where the swamp was and where the land was, let alone find the white swamp.

-It’s not urgent, so we can look for the swamp later. We can even come back in the spring. Let’s find the doppelganger first.

As I didn’t expect much, Goo-woo was calm.

The group nodded because Goo-woo’s opinion was reasonable.

“Kim Na-ri. Scan the area. If you detect anything moving in the shape of a human, let me know.”

“I get it.”

A red line spread out like a net centered around Kim Na-ri.

Cheon Do-un also covered the area with mana and began to detect the movement of living things.

Blue’s mobility added to that.

If it’s like this, I can find it today, Cheon Do-woon thought with a smile.

* * *

Slum Alchemist’s Branch.

Manager Kim guided the man pushing the wheelchair to the guest room.

“If it’s Mr. Chun, he’ll be here soon. He seems to have come from far away, so don’t go right away, just wait. There’s a guest room next door where you can rest.”

These are the people who hold the key to the TDA Research Institute.

Of course, he is not directly involved, but I wanted to hear the information, so I planned to hold him until Cheon Do-woon arrives.

Manager Kim, who guided them to the room, looked back at the man.

“I’m talking about someone who’s interested in remains number 17. What’s your name?”

“I’m not good at it either… I’ve only formed a couple of teams. I don’t remember because there were so many people in that subjugation team.”

“Then what’s your contact information?”

“I need to find out about that too. I was thinking of contacting the team leader through him since he has his contact information.”

The man spoke, recalling his memories.

“Oh, but I remember this. His last name was Seok. It’s unique, so I remember that.”

“Seok? That’s definitely not a common surname.”

It wasn’t all that rare, but it wasn’t a common sight either.

When Manager Kim showed interest, the man continued.

“He also has a unique personality. He’s mystical or something, no one knows where he lives, and he doesn’t have any close friends. He’s not interested in what’s going on in the world, so he doesn’t go on the internet.”

Up until that point, I could just say he was a bit of an odd person.

But I was surprised by what he said next.

“I heard that he loses contact several times a month. I think he goes on a solo expedition. He even goes in the winter.”

“Even in winter?”

Winter is a time when all hunters are reluctant to cross the gate.

It was certainly strange to go on a mission alone without a team during those dangerous times.

“Other than that, there’s something special… Ah. He’s a clone. He can become exactly like the person he touches. That’s why he’s nicknamed Doppelganger because he looks just like a mud monster.”

Manager Kim tilted his head as he listened to him.

As information began to gather, one person crossed my mind.

“Isn’t his name Seok Woo-hyuk?”

“That’s right! Seok Woo-hyuk. That was the name. Do you know him?”

“No. I thought of you when you mentioned that Mr. Seok has the ability to clone. That ability is rare. Isn’t he an A-class free hunter? I saw it in an article before.”

Manager Kim recalled an article he had seen one day.

“I remember the interview because it was so unique. The person I respect is my teacher, the person I want to meet is my teacher, and the person I think of now is my teacher. When I was young, I was a bully, but my teacher helped me become a human being… There was a lot of talk about who that teacher was.”

According to the interview, his teacher went missing a long time ago and his whereabouts are unknown.

It’s common in the hunter industry, so I thought that part would be like that, but the interview that followed was not like that.

“He left a message to his father saying that he had lost contact. He said that if he was alive, he should not be seen by him… If he was seen, he would kill him. He left such a message openly.”

There are more people with complicated family backgrounds than you might think. However, it is rare for people to talk about this openly in interviews.

It was an article that was even more memorable because of its uniqueness.

“It was him. If you can contact him, please let go of his leg.”

“all right.”

Manager Kim nodded at the man’s answer and left the room.

Now all you have to do is wait. In the meantime, there’s only one thing you have to do.

‘Let’s study the formula to improve the tail feathers of a parrot.’

Manager Kim, who had 10 years’ worth of his skills mortgaged, was busy as usual today.

* * *

Cheon Do-woon and Kim Na-ri explored the surroundings while riding Blue.

The swamp was large. Not as large as the forest, but still considerable.

It wasn’t easy to find even one doppelganger in such a place.

“Sir, Blue seems very tired.”

Flying non-stop was hard work, even for the most dexterous of parrots.

Let’s take a break. The moment he thought that, two monsters appeared in Cheon Do-woon’s eyes.

Kim Na-ri also discovered it and pointed it out.

“Sir, that guy over there! His face looks exactly like the guy in the wheelchair!”

Cheon Do-woon laughed. He didn’t know he would find it when he was trying to take a break from searching.

“I’m being chased by a monster. It’s a bear monster! D-doppelganger seems to be hurt! He’s limping! What should I do?”

“Leave it. That’s good. If you keep running away like that and it feels like it won’t work, you can undo the transformation and return to your original form.”

“Original appearance?”

“Clumpy mud. If I return to that form, physical attacks won’t work. This is a swamp. I’ll release my transformation and run away into the swamp nearby.”

If left alone, the goal of making the doppelganger undo his transformation would be achieved. So there was no reason to stop that chase.

‘I was going to pick up a doppelganger. I can just pick it up once the transformation is over.’

It’s killing two birds with one stone because the problem of picking up a doppelganger has also been resolved.

Cheon Do-woon watched the situation. The doppelganger that was running away got his arm bitten by a bear monster.

“Whoa, I got bitten!”

“It’s okay. I’ll just throw away the bitten area.”

“What do you mean throw it away?”

“It’s a characteristic of doppelgangers. When attacked, they break down their body parts and run away, just like a lizard would cut off its tail and run away.”

There was no problem because it could be restored to its original state by gathering mud from the surrounding area and sticking it there.

That doppelganger will soon tear off the bitten arm and run away.

I thought so, but what unfolded was different from what I expected.

“Ugh…!”

The doppelganger groaned when bitten by the monster. Still, it did not throw away its arm and run away.

-Grrr!

The bear monster once again sank its teeth into the doppelganger’s arm.

At that moment, the bitten area was covered with blue scales. This prevented the bear’s teeth from sinking deep.

“Oh! Dude, look at that. It looks like the doppelganger is undergoing another transformation. He’s turning into a reptile. Maybe he’s going to fight as a reptile!”

“No… that’s not a variation of a doppelganger.”

Each time a doppelganger transforms, its body disintegrates once.

It didn’t come up like scales growing out from under the skin like that.

‘I’ve seen it.’

Cheon Do-woon had seen such a transformation a long time ago.

[Master, look at this. This thing grew on my arm!]

The young boy who was taken to the gate. The son of the director of the research institute who called himself his master.

‘No. It can’t be him. There aren’t just a few monsters that transform their bodies like that.’

Even as he thought about that, Cheon Do-woon stood up. There was no harm in checking.

“Wait here.”

Cheon Do-woon jumped down from Blue’s top.

Meanwhile, the bear turned its head while biting the doppelganger’s arm.

The doppelganger’s body floated away.

Normally, the arm would have been ripped off and the main body would have run away.

But this time the doppelganger didn’t let go of his arm.

As the doppelganger rolled on the floor, the bear ran towards him with its mouth wide open.

This time I’m aiming for the neck. Wrong. I can’t avoid this. I don’t have the stamina to avoid it anymore.

That bear is a hungry winter monster. Once it bites, it will never let go.

The doppelganger closed his eyes tightly.

I was prepared to die, but no matter how long I waited, the pain did not come. Instead, I heard a thud as I landed.

It blocked his path and stopped the bear.

‘Who, who…?’

When I opened my eyes, what I saw was the back of a young man.

Cheon Do-woon stopped the bear by grabbing its snout. The bear, panicking, swung its arms.

Sharp claws protruded like blades, but Cheon Do-woon was faster.

As he snapped his fingers, a thread shot out from his fingertips and wrapped itself around the bear’s body.

When Cheon Do-un gave a push, the bear lost its balance and fell backwards with a heavy sound.

“I’ll let you go. You can choose whether to run away or attack. But there will be no next time. If you show any intent to kill, I’ll kill you, so know that.”

Cheon Do-woon said as he untied the bear. He also revealed the energy he had been hiding.

The snow piled up around them was blown away by the energy and scattered like a blizzard.

The bear backed away at the sensation of the hairs on his body standing on end. This was not prey he could do anything about.

“go.”

Cheon Do-woon said. The bear monster, who had been watching the situation, realized that the hunt had failed and ran away.

Cheon Do-woon, who had wrapped up the situation, looked back at his doppelganger.

The doppelganger was lying on the ground, holding his injured arm.

He just looked up at Cheon Do-un with a blank expression and couldn’t move.

‘If someone saw me, they’d think I was really hurt.’

Cheon Do-woon thought with a smirk.

Considering the physical characteristics of a doppelganger, such a wound would have torn the body apart long ago.

It seemed strange that he maintained his human form until the end.

“ah….”

The doppelganger groaned. The eyes looking at Cheon Do-woon widened as if they were facing an unbelievable situation.

Just as I was starting to question that strange reaction, the doppelganger opened his mouth.

“Master…?”

Cheon Do-woon paused at the unexpected words.

Aside from the fact that he suddenly called himself master, I had never heard of a doppelganger speaking human language.

‘The doppelganger would only have the intelligence of a normal monster?’

It would be the same even if you cloned a human’s appearance. Cheon Do-woon made a puzzled face.

The doppelganger stood up unsteadily and looked Cheon Do-woon up and down.

If I’m not mistaken, the man in front of me pulled out the thread and subdued the monster.

The same abilities as one’s master.

Although he looked more mature than he remembered from his late teens, it was clearly his teacher before him.

“Yes, it is you. It is you, Master. It is you, Master. It is me.”

“Who am I?”

“Don’t you know me? I… Ah! I’m still like this. Just a moment.”

The doppelganger’s form collapsed and he turned into a young man in his twenties.

Cheon Do-woon looked at him, but no face came to mind.

When he showed no reaction, the man laughed.

“I am Seok Woo-hyuk.”

Seok Woo-hyuk. He is someone I don’t remember.

But there was one person who came to mind with the unusual surname Seok.

I just remembered it because we were talking about it a little while ago.

The first impression was that he was a spoiled brat.

A child with a runny nose who cried and cried when he was taken to the Demon World.

“The research institute director’s son?”

When I asked, “Really?” the man laughed.

“Yes. You remember.”

Cheon Do-woon’s face became delicate.

The son of the research institute director, as he remembered, was mixed with a reptilian monster.

He who had been like that was now standing in front of me with the power of a doppelganger.

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