Exposed Chests Are the Norm at the Hunter Association
The Hunter Association Seoul Branch was a thirty-minute subway ride away. The train car was just as packed as any regular rush hour, everyone glued to their phones. An everyday scene. It almost made me doubt if yesterday I'd just lost my mind and hallucinated the whole thing.
Skill is currently active!
But the message in my skill window confirmed it all—yesterday was real. This world was still utterly insane.
What if I get found out? What happens then?
The question had been nagging at me since yesterday. Honestly, I had no clue. It felt completely unpredictable. Being treated like a lunatic might even be the better outcome. If those bastards who caused this mess caught me, I could end up as a lab rat—or quietly "disposed of" if I became a nuisance.
...Just wild speculation. But it didn't hurt to be cautious. Staring at the tunnel walls blurring past the window, I steeled myself.
The Hunter Association headquarters in Korea. Always swarming with hunters trading mana stones or handling paperwork. Hunters and Association security teams. I could brush off Dayeon or the people on the street yesterday, but these folks? I had to be extra careful. Their eyes were sharp—on another level. Even if nothing happened right away from looking "off," it wouldn't do me any favors.
Naturally. Like it had always been this way. With a touch of tension, I got off the subway. A short walk later, the Association building loomed beyond the open plaza. I'd been here a few times for errands since awakening, so it was familiar. I scanned my hunter terminal and passed through security.
"What brings you here?"
"Filing a complaint."
"What type of complaint?"
"Uh... gate-related anomaly."
The receptionist tapped her keyboard a few times and directed me to the third-floor complaints office.
That was close. Almost fucked up.
Since when did Association uniforms standardize on exposing their chests? I nearly died keeping my eyes in check. And now I had to get used to this crap?
"Haa..."
Honestly, I wasn't confident. Just walking around outside felt like it'd drain my life force. Gritting my teeth, I ignored the female staff I passed and stared straight ahead.
Third-floor complaints office. The elevator was crowded, so I took the stairs. Pulled a number ticket, waited a bit, and my turn came quick.
"Number 53, this way."
The complaints desk clerk was a calm-looking woman. My gaze instinctively drifted to her chest before snapping to the ID badge on her neck.
- Hunter Association Seoul Branch Comprehensive Complaints Team Leader Shin Se-hee
The card, stamped by the Association president, had her photo. Team Leader Shin Se-hee looked just as expressionless and prim in the picture, chest bared.
"Hunter Kim Geon?"
I pulled my eyes away and looked up.
"Ah, yeah. Got lost in thought for a sec... But how'd you know my name?"
What the hell? How does an E-rank nobody like me ring a bell?
"Hmm... I have a knack for memorizing. I know the faces of most hunters active in Seoul."
Even so? I calmed my surprise, pulled up a chair, and sat. This woman wasn't ordinary. But that's why she might know something. Team leader at headquarters, after all.
"What can I help you with?"
"Well, uh. It might not even be gate-related."
I chose my words carefully.
"People around me seem kinda off. Hard to put it... like they're acting different from usual."
"...?"
Team Leader Shin tilted her head. Figured it'd sound weird. She'd probably just think, So what? Her blank stare made me embarrassed. I awkwardly scooted my chair back.
"Uh... no, forget it. Probably nothing."
"Hold on."
She put a hand to her mouth and eyed the stack of papers, thoughtful.
"I'll look into it. Can you give me the details?"
Seizing the chance, I explained everything. With some filtering, of course.
"—I see. So people acted strangely after you cleared a D-rank gate?"
"Yeah. But the gate might not be related."
"How exactly?"
"Well..."
"No need to force it if it's hard to describe."
She tactfully cut me off, typing her notes into the computer throughout.
"I'll investigate and get back to you. Just in case, get a physical exam before you go. If it worsens, see a private clinic."
"Uh... sure."
What? Why was she so competent? The bureaucrats I knew started shuttering ten minutes before lunch and passed the buck on every form. Did the altered common sense fix this too? Anyway, it worked out. As I stood to leave, she added while sorting papers:
"Anything unusual yesterday afternoon? Like a mana surge?"
A surge. That thing I felt yesterday.
"...Why?"
"A few similar complaints around then. Just checking."
She was already typing. What? So I wasn't alone? Others felt this dissonance too? Nothing certain, no way to check. For now, I headed for the physical exam as advised.
Sixth floor, examination room.
"Close your eyes for a moment."
Vmmm—
I stepped into the scanner, posed routinely. After the mindless measurement, I checked the results.
"No major issues, but your mana level's up a bit?"
"Pardon?"
"It was 1 at registration, now it's 5. Happens sometimes with skill level-ups or new acquisitions."
Skill level-up. Ignoring the staff, I quickly checked my skill window.
It leveled up. For real. After a year of grinding like a dog with no progress, it finally grew today. Probably because... of this ongoing common sense alteration. The skill ran non-stop for 24 hours, racking up exp. Passive skills grow slower, sure, but passive growth was huge from a rice-eater's view...
"Sir? Hunter?"
"Ah, sorry. What was that?"
The staff eyed me slyly. I wrapped up at the Association and hurried home. Normally I'd dive into any gate for scraps, but I had business now. Dayeon must be at school—house was empty.
"Status window."
I opened the skill window. Something to check.
Selectable traits available.
A trait, huh.
Yeah, I'd heard of it. Like weapon proficiency rising with use, skills level up from heavy use. Most just amp power, speed, or stats. But some offered choices—traits—that could wildly alter growth paths.
"Was I a growth-type all along...?"
Memories of flinging myself around with just a scrap shield welled up, swelling my chest. Plenty of times I nearly quit hunting for part-time gigs, but that B-rank skill kept me going. You're finally paying your dues.
Even if nothing useful popped now, it'd level again. No big expectations.
Cognitive Protection Barrier hitting Lv. 2 boosted my mana, so it'll keep rising. High-rank gates might open up.
Even C-rank would give combat utility. Easier parties, better income.
...Of course.
Deep down, I wanted a busted trait. You kept me alive this long. Let me feast like an S-rank.
Select a trait?
"Yes!"
I tapped the air, heart pounding with hope.
——Thump.
No. The instant I touched it, everything froze. Me? The world?
——Thump.
The one-room grayed out, silence absolute, leaving me alone in the empty living room. Then, cards appeared.
——Thump.
Unlike the space, vibrant cards spun around me. They halted. The heartbeat in my ears stopped.
"...What the hell is this?"
No time to admire the flair—I assessed fast. Floor-to-ceiling window on one wall. Amid Seoul's skyscrapers, a massive hourglass towered, sand trickling down. Eyes back to the cards.
Ornate backs only, orbiting, hiding faces.
This... no way.
"...Random draw?"
My trait was gacha loot.