My Meddling is World-Class (1)
The gomtang joint at the Cheongsung Gate Recruitment Office was already packed with people.
Day laborers living hand to mouth, their faces caked with exhaustion they could barely endure. Yet they moved their spoons in stoic silence.
Han Jo-hee and I squeezed into a spot amid the crowd. Unlike the boisterous chatter at the other tables, an suffocating silence hung over ours.
Unable to bear it any longer, Han Jo-hee ventured a word.
"What'll you have?"
"Beef gomtang."
"I said I'd treat you to a meal, and I drag you to a dump like this. Sorry about that."
She gave an awkward smile. To me, who figured on instant ramen back at the goshiwon, it was a feast fit for a king.
Even after ordering, the silence lingered between us.
Then again, what was there to talk about? We weren't exactly buddies.
Though we'd been working together for months now, up until today, I hadn't exchanged more than a few words with Han Jo-hee.
It wasn't her fault. Back then, I was mortified by my lot—graduating from the academy only to scrape by as a gate miner. I kept everyone at arm's length.
The only one who'd approached my standoffish ass was Im Hyun-su, that backstabbing prick. And even he only did it to sell me out later.
I glanced at Han Jo-hee's face.
Everyone here looked beat, but she was in especially rough shape. Her lips, turned blue from mana poisoning, were cracked and oozing in spots, and her nails were split and ragged.
At that stage, just moving must hurt like hell.
She must be desperate for cash to drag herself out like this.
No wonder Im Hyun-su was drooling over her.
The silence grew unbearable, and Han Jo-hee reached for the remote.
"Auntie, mind if we turn on the TV?"
"Go ahead, watch whatever you like."
The news came on.
The screen switched to Seol Rokjin at the podium, his voice booming.
"The Sirius Guild is withholding raid information from the public for their own profit. They've overlooked that gates aren't mere profit machines for mega-guilds—they're threats that endanger ordinary citizens' lives."
Even in his forties back then, Seol Rokjin had that rare idol-level fandom among politicians. But in his early thirties now, his face practically glowed.
Should've gone into entertainment instead of politics. Then Korea might not have gone to hell.
That angelic mask hid horrors beyond imagining.
While I lost my appetite the second his face appeared, the aunties at the surrounding tables lit up with fond smiles.
"Aigoo, just looking at him fills me up. Call him over."
"And that voice— so smooth and pretty. These big guilds are all blinded by greed. What's wrong with everyone just eating well and living well?"
A few words, and he'd painted the Sirius Guild—heroes who'd risked their lives on an A-grade gate—as greedy opportunists.
Since gates appeared, society split into two: Awakeners and non-Awakeners. The empowered and the powerless. Non-Awakeners outnumbered us by far, making it tempting to see it that way.
Korea was a nation of laws, made by non-Awakeners.
We were one of the few countries with mandatory Awakener registration early on, but it didn't ease the public's fears.
Why? Awakeners were unknowns—monsters beyond normal comprehension.
So even if we preached serving society, non-Awakeners couldn't buy it.
Seol Rokjin exploited that fear.
Handsome face, silver tongue, and he fed them exactly what they wanted to hear. How could they resist?
Yeah, frolic while you can. I'll be coming to wreck your world soon enough.
Han Jo-hee caught my expression.
"Food not to your taste?"
I whispered low.
"Nah, just some appetite-killer on TV."
She nodded knowingly.
"No Awakener likes that guy."
His anti-Awakener policies had tanked his rep among us. Not just unpopular—he'd been targeted by actual terror attempts. Which he spun to his advantage, of course.
Han Jo-hee sighed.
"I don't care what happens to me, but I want a better world for my little brother Seohyun."
"Seohyun—the brother you mentioned earlier?"
Her face brightened instantly. Just thinking of him did that. They must be close. But the glow faded fast.
"Yeah. He needs a training item for his internship. That's the big issue. Rent hike's bad enough, but the item..."
Hunter Academies like Babel provided solid basics—potions for wounds, sim gates for practice—given the steep tuition.
But some specialized gear wasn't covered. And her brother's talent apparently required one.
"Gotta make it happen somehow."
She bit her lip hard. Those weren't cheap.
Anyway, not my problem. I'd done enough meddling by helping him today.
"...By the way, rumor has it you graduated from Babel. True?"
I blinked. Never expected that from her.
"Where'd you hear that?"
"Just around. Sorry, shouldn't pry if you didn't say it yourself..."
She trailed off. How could I blame her for gossip?
Seeing my discomfort, she added quickly.
"No bad intent—just curious. You don't see many Babel grads here."
"Yup, Babel grad."
I shrugged.
"Though spotting a Babel dropout ain't common either."
Babel Hunter Academy was Seoul's—no, Korea's—top school. Entry required C-grade potential or better.
Most grads became hotshot hunters or carved out elite niches. Graduating Babel alone earned respect.
But outliers like me existed.
Unless she was mocking my fall, I didn't mind satisfying her curiosity.
"Didn't mean it like that. I just... think it's impressive."
She scrambled to salvage the mood.
"You're pushing through your way. And you even helped me..."
She continued.
"Honestly, I've resented being born an Awakener. More like, born with this talent. Why not something cooler? What good is this crap?"
She was darker than I thought. I paused mid-bite, blinking.
Can I even eat now?
"When my brother was born, I was straight-up jealous. Doomed to be a half-assed Awakener forever, while he's got A-grade potential."
A-grade, no less.
Who the hell was this kid?
"But he's so damn kind. Follows his worthless half-assed big bro for real. Calls me 'hyung' and means it."
"Don't talk like that."
Her gloom tugged at me.
"You're the impressive one. Devoting your life to your brother like this. You really care."
"If he succeeds, I do too."
"How many think that way? Family or not, people ditch each other. And you're not just using him."
Just a guy in his mid-twenties, groaning under life's weight as family breadwinner. What crime was that? No way I'd mock someone grinding their best.
Couldn't save him, but I could offer real comfort.
"You're already doing your utmost. Don't beat yourself up."
Though yeah, her brother succeeding first made more sense.
"A-grade could've gotten him into Babel, right?"
Babel covered all costs—gear included. Even family living expenses sometimes. He'd have spared her this grind.
"Seohyun was born with black magic."
"Ah."
That explained it.
Babel had its share of narrow-minded fossils. That uptight bitch had cost them countless talents.
She fancied herself an angelic gatekeeper, rejecting anything outside her rigid standards.
No wonder Korea's top academy flopped internationally.
Her word was law there. Misfit kids got the boot.
"Plenty offered scholarships, but they all had clauses about slaving post-grad for years."
"Not worth it. Better to tough it out and get a legit placement after."
"My take too. So we're hanging in there."
Despite blue lips from mana poisoning, she beamed.
Bitter taste in my mouth. Too many like her in this world—clinging to hope, facing tomorrow.
And too many crushing them for personal gain.
"Don't trust Im Hyun-su too much."
That was the best advice I could give.
The awkward meal with Han Jo-hee finally ended. On my way home, my pocket phone buzzed.
When you free?
Dinner on me. Let's meet.
The second I saw it, I froze solid.
The sender? My best friend—the one I'd killed. Jeong Hosan.