I Picked Up the Greatest Villain in the Story

7.

Jian knew through his status window that the body he had possessed was an S-class Hunter, but for some unknown reason, the Hunter ID in his wallet said C-class. He wasn’t particularly interested in showing off his power, so he was content living as a café owner.

He had no combat experience, and all the skills he saw in his status window had some unsettling aspects, making it awkward to use them carelessly.

Moreover, Jian originally disliked violence. He had been beaten so much since childhood, and from high school, he had been tormented by loan sharks to the point of nausea.

Just hearing the word ‘violence’ made him break out in cold sweat and feel short of breath, so the life of a Hunter fighting monsters held no appeal for him.

For some reason, no one came looking for this body, so he focused solely on earning money through the café’s daily operations.

The more money, the better, and he was happy just seeing the money he could hold onto without worrying about paying off debts. He felt grateful, thinking this might be compensation for his difficult past.

When he saved the child yesterday, he momentarily lost his reason. Even now, the situation was similar. He did something he usually wouldn’t do because of a customer mistreating the child.

He clearly saw the approaching fist. The Hunter’s punch carried an incredible force that he instinctively felt. If he were an ordinary person, his nose or cheekbone would have been broken on impact. Just before the fist touched the tip of his nose, Jian instinctively ducked his head to the side.

A sharp wind sound brushed past his ear. Simultaneously, he grasped the thick wrist and applied force.

“Aaargh…!”

The customer let out an unpleasant scream and wildly swung his free left arm.

Jian quickly stepped back, releasing his grip on the wrist. The customer, clutching his swelling wrist, groaned and glared at Jian.

Jian returned the glare with equal intensity. Such people are often weak against the strong and strong against the weak. If underestimated, they would likely keep coming back to the café to cause trouble.

“You… were a Hunter…?”

The end of his gruff voice trembled uncontrollably. Kim Soo-chul, a B-class Hunter, was frightened by the café owner’s unexpectedly strong power.

The world of Hunters was, simply put, a world of survival of the fittest. Regardless of age or background, the strongest was the best.

However, he had never heard rumors that this café owner was a Hunter. Easily blocking a surprise attack from himself, a B-class Hunter, and seemingly without much effort, yet causing a bone fracture – this would only be possible for at least an A-class Hunter.

‘He must have dealt with anyone who knew his identity…’

Soo-chul’s face turned pale as he finished his wild imagination. As Jian had expected, he was the epitome of being strong against the weak and weak against the strong.

A chill ran through his body at the thought of having poked a sleeping lion’s whiskers. Unfortunately for him, he had been under close supervision by the Hunter Management Bureau for a month due to involvement in a violent incident.

If there were CCTV in the café, it would have recorded him attacking first. Moreover, if the opponent was indeed an A-class Hunter as he suspected, the Hunter Management Bureau would undoubtedly side with this café owner.

“Shit!”

Leaving behind a short, sharp curse, Soo-chul vanished with the wind. Watching the customer flee in an instant, Jian let out a long sigh.

Perhaps due to the release of tension, his body swayed back and forth. As he steadied himself on the counter and caught his breath, he sensed a presence beside him.

“Big brother…”

The child clutched Jian’s trouser leg and whimpered. Seeing tears welling up in the child’s eyes, clearly very frightened, Jian quickly crouched down to meet the child’s gaze.

“You were scared, weren’t you? It’s okay. That person is gone now.”

Just yesterday, this child had been beaten bloody by an adult man. Even Jian, a grown man, had broken into a cold sweat when the menacing customer yelled and tried to use violence, so how frightened must the child have been?

He gently stroked the child’s hair and firmly held the slightly trembling hand. A smile formed on Jian’s face as he felt the child’s hand gripping back.

“Shall I make you a sweet drink? Sweets are the best when you’re startled.”

In his previous life, when faced with overwhelming situations, Jian would buy the cheapest chocolate from a convenience store and slowly let it melt in his mouth.

Even when everything seemed bleak and frightening, as the sweetness filled his mouth, he would be enveloped by a feeling that everything would be alright.

This was partly due to one of the few memories he had with his parents. When Jian cried from injury or fear of non-existent ghosts, his mother would comfort her young son by popping a piece of chocolate or candy into his small mouth.

He sat the child on a chair next to the counter and made a chocolate drink topped with plenty of whipped cream.

When he handed the finished drink to the child, the child hesitated to take it, not reaching out promptly. Large eyes were filled with worry.

“What’s wrong?”

Jian caressed the child’s cheek with a concerned look. Thinking the child might be more shocked than expected, he was considering whether to go to the pharmacy to buy some herbal anxiety medicine when:

“I want to grow up quickly and protect you, big brother…”

Jian’s lips slowly parted at these tearful words. This child, much smaller and weaker than him, expressed a determination to protect him.

How did such a child appear before him? With these words, the walls in his heart that he thought had already crumbled completely collapsed.

To think this child had been having such thoughts while watching him being threatened by the customer. He thought he had dodged the punch and chased away the customer quite impressively, but in the child’s eyes, he must have looked only in danger.

He felt as if he had taken a big bite of the sweetest chocolate, filling his mouth. He had never heard such a confession before, and probably would never hear it again.

The unpleasant feeling caused by the troublesome customer had completely transformed into fondness and affection for the child.

“Just hearing that makes me feel strong. It’s like I already have the coolest ally in the world.”

It felt as if he could overcome any difficulty from now on. Jian held the child’s hand as if it were the most precious thing in the world and handed over the drink that had started to melt.

“Still, I’ll protect you until you’re all grown up. Do you have somewhere else to go? Any guardians?”

He hadn’t yet asked the child about their thoughts on staying with him. It didn’t seem like there was a guardian, but you never know. As he waited for the child’s answer, his mouth went dry.

The child blinked and shook their head slightly. Then, putting down the drink on the table, they grasped Jian’s hand tightly. Jian’s eyes softened as he looked at the hand that wasn’t even half the size of his own.

“I want to stay with you, big brother.”

“Okay. Let’s do that.”

After hearing the child’s answer, Jian felt he needed to change. Perhaps not using the power he possessed wasn’t the right answer.

There was no guarantee that something like today wouldn’t happen again.

This world was similar to the one Jian had lived in, yet very different. Everything revolved around Hunters.

The monsters emerging from the gates were almost impossible to deal with using modern firearms, and only Hunters, who appeared alongside the monsters like counterparts, could defeat them.

A world for Hunters, by Hunters, dominated by Hunters. In this world, the logic of power worked much more strongly than in the world he originally lived in.

In principle, all Hunters had a duty to protect civilians, but Jian had lived within a framework where fists were closer than the law.

It’s too late to regret after getting seriously injured or dying. As an S-class Hunter, he probably wouldn’t get hurt in most situations, but it was different for the child.

To protect the child, he needed power. Especially since the child’s appearance was too eye-catching, increasing the possibility of exposure to various dangers.

“It’s yummy.”

The child’s face broke into a wide smile after taking a sip of the drink, seemingly a bit more at ease now. A smile also appeared on Jian’s lips.

While wiping the cream off the child’s mouth with a wet wipe, he asked something he had been curious about all along.

“My name is Lee Jian. Can I ask what your name is?”

Not knowing the name made it awkward to call the child. Calling them ‘kid’ seemed strange, and saying ‘hey’ didn’t feel right at all.

“Jian big brother.”

The child’s cheeks turned as red as ripe apples as they immediately called out the name Jian had just shared.

It was a name he had been called countless times in his life, but hearing it from the child felt more special. Perhaps due to the not-yet-mature pronunciation, it felt like his name had been transformed into something cute.

“I’m Sehun.”

“Sehun?”

“Yes.”

Jian tilted his head upon hearing the child’s name. The name sounded familiar.

It wasn’t an extremely common name, but it wasn’t so rare that he had never heard it before either.

Jian squinted his eyes as numerous people flashed through his mind. As he searched for why the name Sehun was familiar, a memory he couldn’t ignore suddenly surfaced.