The Skill Maker

Edited By: Sebas Tian

“English is too difficult. I need to get used to it before school starts.”

Hyuna visited Hyun-Soo’s room and rolled on the floor while holding a book.

‘I’m the one who’s in a hurry here. d.a.m.n it, not only English, but it’s been awhile since I’ve studied and I didn’t think I’d regret it this much.’

He didn’t really study much when he was in school.

English was the same.

He knew the alphabets and basic words, but he would never use it in a conversation or would be able to understand it when hearing it.

‘I’m trying to adapt, but this language barrier is a serious issue.’

He thought about approaching the hunters that were in the break room, but there wasn’t much he could say.

Kim Yoo-Na and Eugene were there and he thought there wouldn’t be a big issue because he understood commands and words used while hunting.

‘There’s a lot of issues.’

Kim Yoo-Na was busy, so she couldn’t always stay by his side.

Eugene often left too saying that he had his own business to take care of.

That’s why, even if he went to the Center Room often, that’s all he would do.

‘I know I need to show them my skills, but I can’t just randomly use my skills when they’re working together.’

If they don’t attack him, despite the misunderstanding, that would be best.

“Hyun-Soo, hurry up and study. You said we should study together.”

“Oh. Yeah…”

That’s why Hyun-Soo decided study to English with Hyuna.

Thankfully, they had a tutor, but that tutor was Kim Yoo-Na and she would come late at night after she was done taking care of her business.

“Are you adapting well?”

“It’s only been two days. I’m sure I will in time.”

He was feeling rushed on the inside, but he answered with ease.

“Okay. There’s nothing harder than taking the first step. But, you managed to achieve that, so I’m sure everything will be easier now. They say that a good beginning is half the battle, right? Okay, now open the script.”

Even though she was kind, she was also strict, which made Hyun-Soo and Hyuna open their thin books quickly.

After checking that they both opened to the correct page, she played the DVD.

A fun song started playing.

Cute characters appeared and they started talking about something fun amongst themselves.

Hyun-Soo and Hyuna listened carefully and started reading the script that they had.

“This is the best method.”

This method helped them improve their listening skills within a short time.

Kim Yoo-Na suggested reading the script of a children show.

The animation was created to target children and because of that, the dialogue was easy and the p.r.o.nunciation was on point.

“If you continue listening for a couple of months, you’ll start to understand. It should only take you a week to carry a simple conversation.”

Kim Yoo-Na talked boastfully.

‘It was really childish at first, but it’s actually fun.’

He wasn’t sure if it was effective since they just started, but since he’s been listening to it for two days, it was pretty fun.

Kim Yoo-Na’s English cla.s.s went on like this every night.

On top of that, Hyuna came in during the afternoon and asked him to study with her, so he forcefully listened and studied with her.

“Hyun-Soo, don’t you think this is a pretty good idea? I don’t think I need to look at the script anymore.”

“I still need to look at it. There are words that I don’t know, so I need to memorize them.”

It was required, but it was pretty painful.

Hyun-Soo was on the floor and holding a list of words while his body was wriggling in pain.

Eugene opened the door and when he entered, Hyun-Soo’s eyes met his.

“Oh, sorry. The door was open…should I go?”

“No. Don’t worry about it. What brings you here?”

“Ha ha. It’s true that I wouldn’t be here unless something happened, but you’re pretty cold-hearted to ask my reason for being here right away.”

“Oh, right. So, why are you here?”

They both knew that he was here for a reason, so was there a need to exchange greetings?

On top of that.

‘It seems like he purposefully visits whenever I’m with Hyuna.’

It was probably his older brother instincts.

This hasn’t happened very often, so he wasn’t all that sure, but it didn’t hurt to be cautious.

‘It’s great if that’s not the case. Well, maybe I was being too sensitive about it.’

Also, Hyuna was his responsibility.

Hyuna didn’t care about the tension between them because she was too focused on the DVD and was not interested in them at all.

“How about going to the Center Room?”

“Is it because of the others?”

He didn’t say it directly, but it was the same thing as him asking if Hyun-Soo was scared.

Hyun-Soo smirked without knowing.

Eugene saw Hyun-Soo’s face and a confused look appeared on his face.

“I guess there are people that are curious about me.”

Hyun-Soo promised that he was going to adapt as soon as possible.

However, after Eugene showed him around the building on the first day, the only place Hyun-Soo went to was the restaurant.

What will happen if the Asian hunter that Kim Yoo-Na brought only greeted on the first day and never showed their face after that?

And they were suspecting him of getting scouted through a connection.

They’ll probably be angry and frustrated at first, and then they’ll get curious and as time pa.s.ses, they’ll probably make their move.

Like now.

He could try to be friendly with them with the excuse that he was new, but he already knew that he had negative points when it came to their level of friendliness.

On top of that, they couldn’t communicate.

That’s why he waited.

They’re at a disadvantage, not Hyun-Soo.

“Oh…ha ha, it’s not just that. Wouldn’t it be better for you to exercise and train?”

“Will I be sparing when I get there?”

“Well…”

Eugene didn’t finish his sentence.

‘Just from his expression, it looks like they’re waiting to jump on me.’

“Okay, fine. I should check it out at least once.”

“Yeah? Let’s go.”

Eugene was being used as a messenger by the other members and reacted to Hyun-Soo’s decision.

Hyun-Soo purposely wanted him to react this way and was expecting to spar with the others.

Even if he fought head-on, he was confident that he wasn’t going to lose.

Kim Yoo-na and Katrina guaranteed it.

However…

“Thank you for the suggestion, but it’ll be difficult to go now. As you can imagine, I’m not in the best situation.”

Hyun-Soo turned around and showed him his messy room.

There were English books, worksheets with a list of words and tests with red markings all over the room.

“Oh, um…as someone that has studied a foreign language, I understand.”

“Also, I was told to wait since the security registration hasn’t been completed yet. Kim Yoo-Na said she would let me know. When she does, I’ll go.”

He needed more time. That’s why he made the excuse that he needed to study.

Eugene felt guilty about it and instead of trying to convince him, he said he would stop by next time and left.

“He’s trying to call you out on purpose, right?”

As soon as Eugene left, Hyuna, who was focused on the DVD, asked.

It looked as if she wasn’t interested, but she must’ve listened to their conversation.

“Yeah. Looks like it.”

“They should just come here instead of calling you out this late at night. And on top of that, they’re using Eugene.”

“It’s probably because they don’t know me well.”

“You’re awesome, Hyun-Soo!”

“Wow, are you saying that because you want something to eat? Want me to bring you something?”

“Jeez, it’s not like that!”

Like how Hyun-Soo was taking care of Hyuna, Hyuna was worried about Hyun-Soo too.

Even though she was pretty young, she was old enough to catch the underlying meaning.

Hyun-Soo noticed that she was being blunt and joked around.

After making a couple of blunter comments, she turned her attention back to the DVD.

Hyun-Soo sat next to Hyuna to study and started watching the DVD with her.

Hyuna was also part of the reason why Hyun-Soo didn’t accept Eugene’s offer right away. It’s been awhile since they spent time with each other.

Hyun-Soo wanted to spend as much time as he could with his family in the future.

Much more now since they couldn’t before.

He concentrated on his studies with his loving sister, but another thought popped in the back of his head.

‘Right, since I came all the way here, I should leave a good impression.’

A way to leave a strong impression.

Hyun-Soo started thinking of ways to do that while studying.

“This is the card reader. It also works as a security key, so please have it with you.”

A couple of days after Eugene visited, Kim Yoo-Na handed him something.

It was a box that was as big as a fist and had fancy wrapping around it.

Hyun-Soo opened it with the thought that it was a present, but it wasn’t what he expected.

“Isn’t this…a Hunter Link?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“It’s a bit too much for it to be called a security key.”

Hunter Link.

It was a card reader that looked like a bracelet and was made just for hunters.

It’s was like a smart.w.a.tch because it had the same functions that a cellphone had.

However, since it was only made for hunters, it can only be used when it’s related to the hunter.

A hunter needs this item when they go on hunts.

That’s why it was pretty expensive.

Since it’s used by the hunters and it could break during a hunt, it was made with monster composite material.

Because of that, it felt like this already expensive item got way more expensive.

‘That’s why I didn’t even think about buying it.’

Since he had Interface, he didn’t think about it.

But.

‘I’m not sure if I’m generous or if I’m just acting like a poor person.’

“It’s a basic item that we provide, so don’t be burdened by it.”

“…Thank you.”

“Try it. I picked out the design. Do you like it?”

“Yes, it’s simple so I like it.”

The shape of the Hunter Link was similar to a bracelet.

It’s because it wasn’t burdensome and it was light.

But the Hunter Link that Kim Yoo-Na gave was similar to a normal wrist.w.a.tch.

It was actually pretty simple and didn’t stand out, so he liked it.

“It actually looks good on you. I think I picked out a good one.”

“Thank you for taking care of me.”

He was expecting to receive one key card and didn’t expect to get something like this.

Kim Yoo-Na had a small smile on her face and handed a box with pretty wrappings to Hyuna.

‘Hm, I guess she got something for Hyuna too.’

Hyuna excitedly opened the present and when she saw a girly-looking bracelet, she thanked Kim Yoo-Na and hugged her.

It wasn’t a Hunter Link since she wasn’t a hunter, but it was an item that had somewhat similar functions.

“Thank you, Yoo-Na!”

“If you update the translation and dictionary function, it’ll help you out a lot.”

“This has those functions? Interesting.”

“Oh, yours has it too, Hyun-Soo. But, the translation function isn’t all that great yet.”

And Kim Yoo-Na added that they needed to continue studying English because of it.

‘She’s using the same method she used when training me…’

Her method was pushing it to the limit.

There were times when he was tired, but it was effective when it came to learning.

She said the translation function wasn’t all that great, but for Hyun-Soo, it was better than nothing.

‘It’s time to go.’

His destination was the Center Room.

They weren’t waiting for him there to welcome him with open arms.

Since there was difference between ranks, they were expecting the high-ranked hunters to take the win.

Tap, tap.

‘I don’t think that will work.’

Hyun-Soo placed his fist into the palm of his hand and breathed in deeply.

End.