Daddy is too Strong-Chapter 291

There were five main ways for Hunters to grow stronger: leveling up, learning new skills, receiving mana injections, equipping high-grade artifacts, and lastly, gaining combat experience.

Of course, it was ideal to pursue all five at the same time, but if someone had to choose just one, every single person would agree without hesitation on the fourth option: Artifacts. The so-called “gear advantage.”

Even the weakest F-rank Hunter could proficiently hunt in C-rank Fissures if equipped with an S-rank artifact.

In the second-year Class A classroom at the National Hunter Academy, students were buzzing with chatter.

“Forget everything else. Just splurging on gear is the best choice. The rich keep getting richer, even among Hunters. If you have the money for S-rank suits and weapons, there’s nothing to fear.”

The upcoming “Harvest Festival” was likely what had them excited. It was a special day for the Academy’s second-year students.

At the end of the first semester every year, the second-year students participated in a provisional rank exam administered by the Hunter’s Bureau. Although they couldn’t receive official ranks since they hadn’t yet graduated, the academy held these exams annually to motivate students.

“Well, I’m definitely getting a B-rank this time. My dad gave me an A-rank artifact as a gift for the exam. If I don’t get at least a B-rank with this, I might as well kill myself,” one of the students boasted.

“Damn, look at that shiny new gear.”

Naturally, parents were deeply invested in their children’s provisional rank exams. Korean parents were famously obsessive about their children’s achievements, and before the Harvest Festival, smithies were flooded with calls from parents wanting to buy gear as gifts for their children.

Though the exam was supposed to be on an equal playing field, the reality wasn’t that ideal. Society was clearly divided between the wealthy and the poor, and the disparity in their parents’ financial ability was reflected even among Academy students.

Yoon-Hee was sitting quietly in the corner by the window. Hye-Jung approached and tapped on her desk. Startled, Yoon-Hee looked up at her.

“What are you daydreaming about?” Hye-Jung asked.

“Oh, I was just... thinking about something.”

“The Harvest Festival, right?”

Yoon-Hee forced an awkward smile.

“Of course. It’s the only thing on second years’ minds this time around.”

Hye-Jung could guess why Yoon-Hee seemed so distracted.

Most of the students in Class 2-A held a “silver spoon,” meaning they were children of society’s upper class. Although the Academy was a public institution, the tuition sharply increased with each year of study, making it nearly impossible for an average family to afford.

Occasionally, there were exceptions, such as young prodigies who manifested Hunter abilities and enrolled despite financial hardships, but most of them ended up dropping out and working as Hunters early on to make ends meet.

In contrast, the students who stayed at the Academy weren’t exactly in immediate need of money. They were on the so-called “path to elite,” building their connections and knowledge in this social hub. Their ultimate goal was to earn top grades and join one of the “Big Four Guilds,” securing both wealth and honor and bringing prestige to their families.

“Everyone’s desperate to get a high provisional rank to catch the Big Four’s attention,” Hye-Jung said.

“Yeah...”

Noticing Yoon-Hee’s discouraged expression, Hye-Jung sighed. “Hey, don’t worry so much—”

She reached out to lightly slap Yoon-Hee’s back but stopped mid-motion. It felt as if an invisible barrier was blocking her hand.

“What’s wrong?” Yoon-Hee asked, noticing Hye-Jung’s dumbfounded expression.

“Huh? Oh, it’s nothing...”

Then, another voice came from behind. “H-hey, Yoon-Hee.”

A male student nervously approached. It was Jin-Soo, holding something behind his back. Hye-Jung narrowed her eyes at him, but Yoon-Hee greeted him with a bright smile.

“Hey, Jin-Soo.”

“I-I found this and thought you might like it. Here.”

Jin-Soo placed the item he had been hiding on her desk: a shimmering silver suit. It was a Silver Wing Suit, an A-rank artifact worth billions of won.

Blushing furiously, Jin-Soo scratched the back of his head.

Meanwhile, Hye-Jung watched with an incredulous smirk. ‘Found it,’ my ass. He definitely begged his dad for it.

Jin-Soo was the second son of the chairman of IG Group, the fourth-largest conglomerate in Korea. This silver spoon had spent 5 billion won at the Korean National Smithy to buy the Silver Wing Suit for Yoon-Hee, whom he had a crush on.

“You’re giving this to me...?” Yoon-Hee asked.

“Y-yeah.”

Yoon-Hee looked visibly uncomfortable. Even she could tell that his “found it” excuse was a lie.

While she hesitated, unsure how to respond, the front door of the classroom slid open, and an instructor walked in, striking the blackboard with a ruler.

“Today’s class will be in the old training room. Get ready and head over.” With that, the instructor left the room.

Yoon-Hee stood up.

“Looks like we’re moving. Let’s go.” She left the classroom in a hurry.

Staring blankly at the suit on the desk, Jin-Soo looked utterly dejected.

“Hey,” Hye-Jin called.

“What...?”

“You flirt like an idiot,” Hye-Jung commented as she followed Yoon-Hee out of the classroom.

Alone now, Jin-Soo pulled out his smartphone, opening a certain article.

“Effortlessly Cool Pickup Lines That Women Love”

“But they said this would work...”

***

Hye-Jung was also born with a silver spoon in her mouth. The eldest daughter of the head of the Je-Il Smithy, one of the top three smithies in Korea, she watched Yoon-Hee in the training room with a look of sympathy. Yoon-Hee was sweating profusely as she practiced Release, one of the three mana manipulation techniques.

Her classmates had all acquired high-grade artifacts in preparation for the Harvest Festival. But Yoon-Hee’s father was a civil servant, making it impossible for him to afford or even rent A-grade artifacts that were worth billions.

She must be feeling dejected. How can I help her without hurting her pride?

Hye-Jung knew that offering her A-grade gear outright would result in rejection. It was just the kind of person Yoon-Hee was. Moreover, it could end up wounding her emotionally. At such a delicate age, it was only natural to feel sensitive about such things. Thinking of how she would feel in Yoon-Hee’s shoes, Hye-Jung cautiously approached her.

“Yoon-Hee.”

“Hm?”

“I hope you won’t take this the wrong way.”

Yoon-Hee tilted her head in curiosity.

“The Harvest Festival is an important test for us, right?” Hye-Jung asked.

“Yeah...?”

Everyone had been showing off their gear for days, competing to see who had the best equipment. Yoon-Hee was well aware of this.

“This test doesn’t directly affect our grades, but guild managers consider it very important. You know that, right?” Hye-Jung asked slowly.

“Yeah.”

“I think that, with the same gear as everyone else, you have the skills to outperform just about anyone. You’re that good. What I mean to say is... I don’t want you to end up with a lower ranking than people less skilled than you just because of equipment.”

At last, Yoon-Hee realized what Hye-Jung was trying to say. For some reason, she smiled. Hye-Jung was such a good friend, genuinely concerned about her.

“Thank you, Hye-Jung,” she said sincerely.

“Do you get what I’m trying to say?”

“I do. But can I just accept the thought behind it instead?”

What Hye-Jung didn’t know was that Yoon-Hee had access to equipment far superior to what anyone else could imagine. The Ivela’s Pouch she received from Do-Jun contained countless Hidden Pieces from the Core. These artifacts were on an entirely different level compared to anything created on Earth. In fact, even a single one of them was enough to annihilate most of Earth’s monsters.

“Of course, I want to achieve a high provisional rank. But... I want to use this Harvest Festival as an opportunity to test my true skills and see where I stand. I’m curious to see how much I’ve improved since I first entered the Academy. That’s why I plan to use only the basic equipment provided by the Academy for this test.”

Yoon-Hee pulled Hye-Jung into a hug. “Thank you for thinking of me and saying this. I’m really lucky to have a friend like you, Hye-Jung.”

For some reason, Hye-Jung found herself smiling. Ah, right. Yoon-Hee was always like this.

She closed her eyes gently.

***

Yoon-Hee was standing in an empty dimension somewhere, which Yong-Yong had opened up for her. With the Harvest Festival just a day away, Yoon-Hee was training in there.

A bullet shot out from her mana gun. When mana was infused into the gun, it converted the energy into a projectile. Yoon-Hee was practicing her accuracy, aiming at a target fifty meters away.

Yong-Yong yawned loudly as he watched her train.

“Can we just call it a day and go home for snacks?” he whined.

“Can’t I do just a little more?”

“No matter how much you practice, you’re going to get S-rank tomorrow anyway.”

Yong-Yong grumbled as Yoon-Hee’s mana bullet hit the target, exploding with a bang.

Yoon-Hee pouted. “Are you going to keep teasing me?”

“What did I do?”

“I’m not S-rank material. How could I get an S-rank?”

“True, your skills aren’t S-rank. If you ask me, you’re about A-rank... No, even that’s generous. More like B.”

Bang!

This time, the bullet missed the target.

“Ha! Nice miss,” Yong-Yong snickered.

“Oh, come on!”

“I know I’m teasing, but you’re definitely getting S-rank tomorrow,” Yong-Yong said.

“I’m B-rank at best. How could I get S-rank, you dummy?”

“You really don’t know, huh?”

Yoon-Hee frowned and retorted, “Know what?”

“Master didn’t tell you?”

“Father?”

“Wow, you seriously don’t know. When was the last time you fought a monster?” Yong-Yong asked.

“Lately, we’ve only been doing theory classes at the Academy.”

“Let me ask you this, Yoon-Hee. What’s more important: skill or artifacts?”

“Skill...?”

“Wrong. The answer is that it doesn’t matter before Master.”

“What kind of answer is that? Your question doesn’t make sense,” Yoon-Hee complained.

“Just listen. No matter what you do—skill or artifact—none of it matters before Master. It’s all equal in the end. It’s one hit. For me, too. Even though I was once the King of the Deep Realm, I’m still one hit.”

What was he trying to say? Yoon-Hee lowered her mana gun.

Yong-Yong continued, “But what if there’s an artifact imbued with Master’s power? Let me ask you again: what’s more important, skill or artifacts?”

“Artifacts...?”

“Exactly. I used to think it was skill, too. After all, I became the king of the Deep Realm with nothing but my own abilities, no artifacts. But now I realize... nothing beats good gear.”

Yoon-Hee didn’t know what to say.

“See that ring on your finger?” Yong-Yong glanced at Yoon-Hee’s hand.

“Oh, yeah.”

It was the Elder Elf’s Ring, shimmering with a brilliant green light, a gift from Do-Jun.

At that moment, the ground shook violently. Startled, Yoon-Hee asked, “Y-Yong-Yong? W-what are you doing...?”

Yong-Yong was preparing to unleash Breath—directly at her. And then, it was released.

“Eeek!”

A deafening explosion followed.

Moments later, Yoon-Hee’s surprised cry was heard. “Huh...?”

“You’re fine, right?” Yong-Yong asked her.

“How... How is this possible...?”

No human could survive a dragon’s breath. And yet, here she was, completely unharmed.

“What do you think? It’s the gear.”