Chapter 6
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Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 006
Chapter Title: Market Value (Illustration)
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Korea's largest Awakener community.
Naturally, most Hunter-related issues get hashed out here first.
So when the SSS+ clear announcement dropped, the place exploded.
Something weird is showing up in my eyes.
Holy shit, what the hell was that announcement?
You seeing it too? So this isn't a hallucination?
What are you all talking about? What happened?
Are you a non-Awakener?
Yup.
A nationwide announcement just popped up for all of Korea.
Oh damn, is it something good?
Looks good, but... holy shit, I've never seen anything like it. Can't wrap my head around it.
????
Someone summed it up.
Title: Here's the content of that system announcement that just went up.
Content:
[### Nationwide Announcement for Korea ###]
[### Haegyeom Yi has cleared the 1st floor of Korea's Salvation Tower with SSS+ grade! ###]
That's it.
But is there even such a thing as SSS+? It's so absurd it doesn't feel real...
At least try harder with your bait. SSS+? Not even plain S lol;;
Not bait. I'm Awakened too, and I saw it.
?? Is this some massive prank cam?
Awaken already. Then you'll see the announcement.
...Just make it happen already, you bastards!!!!
LMAOOOOOO
At first, most reactions were disbelief.
The highest known grade for Tower clears until now had been S.
Especially since non-Awakeners, who made up the bulk of the community, couldn't see system announcements, the confusion was off the charts.
But as time passed...
Whoa, SSS+! But isn't this a Korean doing it?
Yeah, says nationwide announcement for Korea, so Korean for sure?
Damn damn damn, insane! Does this mean we're a Hunter powerhouse now?
The facts checked out naturally.
A Salvation Tower SSS+ clearer had been born in Korea.
It was only the 1st floor, but an unprecedented feat in history.
Big enough to warrant a 'nationwide announcement'—the kind that rarely even shows up without massive events!
All eyes were on it.
Holy crap. So what's this guy's Unique Ability? How's he pulling off such overwhelming performance from floor 1? Damn.
More like stacked with items? Gotta be some chaebol kid no matter how you slice it.
Nah, doubt it. Look at that Jeong Moon-yong guy's mug lololol
Lol that dude who wrapped himself in 50 billion won worth of gear and still only got A-grade?
Honestly even A-grade seemed fake. Dude fought like trash;;
Anyway, whoever pulled this SSS+ has gotta have some insane ability.
What is it? Fires super plasma beams from his hands or something?
Nah. Looks like black hole summon to me.
From folks speculating on Haegyeom's 'Unique Ability'...
But SSS+ with nationwide announcement means world first, right?
Yeah, highest so far is America's Wyvern Rider with S-grade.
? Aren't there more S-grades? Arcane Gunner and Sword Emperor too, I think.
Wrong lol. 😆 Actually I'm a Wyvern Rider fan 😆
;;; Crazy fanboy stfu
😆 Wyvern Rider's so cool, right?
Get lost.
Something... something's happening in Korea!
Land of the Hunters!
So we're safer now? This SSS+ guy protecting us???
I hope so...
To those hoping this would propel Korea into Hunter superpower status...
You think? Lololol wake up, this is Korea.
Awakener export megacountry lol
Just the high-rank Korean Hunters poached abroad could fill a truck...
Fr, gather 'em and you could make a few raid teams.
And that's not even all? If all Hunters are dungeon crawling, who's catching villains lololol
Oh villains ah fml
Why?
Went to Gangwon for vacation last time, got jumped by bandits at Daegwallyeong and robbed blind.
You wanna get wrecked that bad? Why go there lololol ...But bandits there too?
Yeah fml, stopped our car unarmed and threatened us...
Oof;
Anyway, if it were me, I'd bounce Korea first.
Yeah, that's the move.
To the pessimists predicting even this SSS+ clearer would flee Korea.
Reactions of every stripe mixed together.
And among them, the most heated discussion was this.
So who the hell is it? No one watching Tower Stream?
Right? Tower Stream must've been on.
Lol who watches a floor 1 stream?
No one seems to have watched? Or if they did, not coming forward?
Ugh so damn curious;;
Fr... just please not a villain tech tree.
The burning question: Who was the SSS+ clearer?
It made sense.
Compared to the hype-building nationwide system announcement, there was barely any info out there.
All they knew: A Korean Hunter. That's it.
Someone spill some info pls.
Fr, we'll praise you to high heaven, so show up already!
That was actually me.
Ooo...!
Lol this guy's a notorious troll.
Fuck.
LMAOOOOOO
The Awakener community descended into total chaos.
And amid that chaos...
Ugh idc just pls don't go abroad!
Bureau or guilds, pls throw money at him and secure him no matter what!!!
Expectations for Haegyeom were visibly skyrocketing.
At the same time.
Haegyeom, the center of nationwide attention, scrolled through the Awakener community, muttering to himself.
"I have no plans to bail to another country right now."
It wasn't some grand patriotism.
To him, patriotism was just preferring to stay in Korea if conditions were equal.
Staying in Korea was purely rational calculation.
"Even big money offers abroad are just mountains of debt."
Sky-high salaries from foreign offers? Not all upside.
The bigger the paycheck, the more strings attached.
'High-grade Gate clears, high-risk villain hunts...'
When you tallied it up, not such a great deal.
Plus, changing nationalities wasn't easy.
Realistically, try it twice and your value tanks.
"No one's gonna pay top dollar for a Hunter who might bolt anytime..."
Better to...
"Use immigration as a bargaining chip."
Stay in Korea while keeping the option to leave open.
That, Haegyeom figured, was the way to inflate his value most.
"Anyway."
Haegyeom kept browsing the community.
"...This is more fun than I thought."
The whole site was hunting for him.
Expressing expectations, analyzing him.
Some even praising him.
Dopamine overload.
"Is this why everyone egosearches? ...Oh."
There was this post too.
Title: SSS+ Clearer HAS to be a Regressor. Straight Facts EU.
Content: Can't be anything else but a regressor. Definitely triggered a hidden piece on floor 1!!!!
"Facts my ass."
Pure cringe.
Seeing even this stuff drove home just how insane his feat was.
And this post's comments were positive too.
Doesn't make sense lololol but neither does SSS+ tbh.
I buy the regressor theory. Floor 2 onward, SSS+ spam incoming!
Regressor-nim, pls save this shithole Hel Joseon.
Time for the inferno peninsula improvement patch!!!
A mix of emotions washed over him.
Fun, proud, burdensome.
"Hm..."
But above all, they all seemed pretty desperate.
"Can't blame 'em."
Dozens of years since the Great Cataclysm.
Society had somehow limped along, but lately it was crumbling fast.
Salvation Tower top floor? No progress.
Gates popping everywhere.
Villains rampaging wild.
"Honestly, looking at other countries, it's a miracle Korea's holding together this well..."
Despite massive Awakener brain drain, Korea was punching above weight—but everyone felt the limits closing in.
In that context...
"Someone cleared the Tower SSS+?"
Even just floor 1, that freak SSS+ score?
Of course they'd short-circuit with joy at a monster Awakener showing up!
Haegyeom thought for a bit, then muttered.
"......Nice."
Expectations for him were surging.
And this just hours after the announcement.
"Scouts will see this reaction too..."
A hot prospect everyone wanted.
Obviously, recruitment efforts would ramp up.
If he could pit the Bureau against guilds in a bidding war amid all the hype?
"My value shoots even higher."
Perfect.
"I can haggle harder."
No risk of overplaying and crashing.
So squeeze every last won.
Haegyeom wrapped up his thinking.
And then.
"Huuuuh. Time to rest till tomorrow."
Big exhale, shaking off tension.
"Busy day today."
Gate entry, survival and hatchling move-in, quitting, confirming Tower potential, SSS+ reactions.
Urgent stuff done.
Now just relax.
One entry per day, so floor 2 tomorrow.
"Gotta sleep solid."
Rubbing his heavy, tired eyelids, Haegyeom glanced at his open Inventory.
Pweh?
Hatchling tilting its head, yellow eyes peering over.
"Thanks, Drong. Looking forward to tomorrow too."
Pweh!
A warm smile crept up.
Haegyeom reached into Room 101, petting its head.
Pet pet.
Grrr rumble.
Its eyes half-closed in bliss.
"Hm."
Sleep with hand in Inventory?
The next day.
Haegyeom entered the Tower.
[Salvation Tower of Korea, 2nd Floor]
[Mission: Defeat the Hobgoblin Triplets]
And realized.
[Tower entry activates Tower Stream.]
[Live Viewers: 104,875]
"......Over a hundred thousand?"
His market value was way higher than expected.