Chapter 6
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 006
Chapter Title: Academy Trainee Kim Geuk [4]
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The same phenomenon repeated the next day, and the day after that.
I kept seeing the horrific corpses of the trainees I'd encountered at the academy.
Lee Jong-ho, both arms torn off, bleeding profusely as he died.
Kim Jin-jun, his head crushed, brains spilling out in twisted coils.
Seong Mun-yeong, his chest riddled with massive holes...
Of course, they were all hallucinations. In reality, they were all perfectly fine. But it was hard to feel relieved. Every time I snapped out of one, I was hit with overwhelming rage and depression.
And the dreams—that damn dream—kept coming, just like tonight.
"Fuck..."
I bolted upright, gasping for breath. Wiping the drool from my mouth, one thought crossed my mind.
This isn't normal. Should I see a psychiatrist?
As I washed up and got ready for the academy, the idea solidified. Was it time to actually go to a hospital?
The aftereffects of the dream lingered. My heart pounded relentlessly, and even boiling a single pack of ramen left my head spinning with déjà vu.
But I didn't have the money for a hospital visit, and showing up for mere nightmares and déjà vu would probably just get me laughed at by some smug doctor asking if I thought they were a pushover...
Screw it. To clear my troubled mind, I habitually booted up my computer.
Logging into HuntWeb—now a familiar site—I spotted a post from a username I recognized.
Ⓐ syberMagneto: On my way, a non-Awakener didn't bow deeply to me, so I wiped out his whole clan. Gimme some praise.
This guy never got a single reply but kept flooding the board with similar nonsense. How was that even allowed? It went against the board rules.
Uncles! Don't off-topic posts on the Hunter board get you warned and banned? Why hasn't that cyber-magneto old fart gotten banned yet~?
HuntWeb had an insane number of users. Even in the morning, replies poured in right away.
Because he has the A badge.
What's that A badge thing~?
The badge next to nicknames once you're verified as an Awakener.
Probably the A from Arisen or Awakened—the Western terms for Awakeners.
If you have that badge, you can post off-topic without getting banned~? Why~?
It's an Awakener privilege perk.
Such a fine tradition, I thought, typing away.
Not very democratic~
Replies flooded in immediately.
Whining about democracy, you pathetic porter scum lol.
Act all democratic and a Democracy Spirit descends to slay monsters for you?
A hundred porters like you grinding away couldn't match the value of one casual Awakener post, retard.
Not happy? Go hang yourself with your whore mom.
Irritated by the nasty replies piling up, I looked into how to get that Awakener verification and went through with it.
The submission page had instructions: Download the dedicated app, snap pics of your Awakener docs, and a staffer verifies and issues the badge.
But one line at the bottom made me frown.
- As of June 5, 2012, badges are no longer issued for 16 types of inferior abilities deemed unfit for Hunter duties. We apologize for the inconvenience.
Top of the list of "Hunter-unfit" abilities ineligible for Awakener badges? My little sister Kim Seon's ice ability. The discrimination was so thorough it was shocking.
Of course, my abilities weren't unfit for Hunter work. Not by a long shot.
I snapped photos of the required docs with my phone camera and submitted.
A site staffer must've been on duty already. Soon, a system message arrived confirming the badge issuance.
Awakener verification complete.
Ⓐ Badge issued to BabyBerserker.
Ⓐ BabyBerserker: Does the A badge suit me well~?
I immediately posted my brag, and comments started rolling in.
This dude was acting like a non-Awakener in his last post, but he was prepping to flex all along? Lol scary.
Flexing comes so naturally...
Thought you were non-Awakener trash, but you're one of us? Welcome!
More comments kept coming, and I grinned as I scrolled through them.
Jealousy, envy—the reactions to my verified Awakener status were hotter than expected. Guys suddenly calling me "bro," asking for my nick to friend me in some RPG, all sorts trying to buddy up.
Even got a DM from some Hunter I'd never messaged, offering to buy me a meal and share industry info as a senior if I hit him up.
Oh, another DM. This one more serious. From past posts, he didn't seem active yet, but he sent his number and resume, asking if I'd consider adding a vet Hunter to my future team. He wants to work with me. Cute.
I was savoring each comment and DM with glee.
Then a sucking sensation pulled at me, and new comments appeared before my eyes... Fuck.
Sudden disgust surged. I clenched my fist.
You mom-fucking bastard. Roleplaying, flexing, doing it all, you piece of shit. Think you're hot shit just cuz you lucked into Awakening?
Follow your dead mom and dad to hell quick and catch the hell bus.
Why the sudden hate from this guy? Fuming, I checked the comments again and frowned.
Where'd that trash comment go?
Looking closer, the insults were gone. I hadn't refreshed, so even if deleted, they should've shown. Why?
Another hallucination?
Seemed like it. Thinking back, I'd felt that telltale pull into a hallucination. So those comments never existed in the first place.
I sighed and refreshed. Scrolling new comments, my eyes widened.
You mom-fucking bastard. Roleplaying, flexing, doing it all, you piece of shit. Think you're hot shit just cuz you lucked into Awakening?
Follow your dead mom and dad to hell quick and catch the hell bus.
The exact comments from the hallucination were there.
Suppressing my anger, I tried to make sense of it. What the hell? What was this?
I headed to the academy without answers.
And on the way, it happened again. Several times.
"Ah, fuck!"
I stepped in shit mid-walk and fumed, only to snap out and realize I'd stepped in nothing.
Another hallucination.
Still wary, I eyed the ground carefully—and froze.
What the...
Staring wide-eyed ahead, I saw a massive coiled turd lurking in the tree shadows, just like in the hallucination. If I'd kept going blindly, I'd have stepped right in it.
Further along, a vending machine pissed me off next. Coins in, no drink out—I raged.
Hallucination again. Snapping out, no vending machine in sight.
That damn thing appeared about ten minutes later.
Testing it with coins, sure enough—no drink.
Similar stuff hit me at the academy too.
The hallucination during criminal law class was especially vivid.
The instructor was fed up with students skipping his class or just scrolling phones when they bothered showing up.
Whether venting legit frustration or asserting his presence, he'd occasionally quiz random students.
This time, me.
"Remember when I said if a Hunter captures or imprisons a criminal, it's still false imprisonment? A Hunter's criminal law status is just that of a private citizen... Of course, law always has exceptions. What are they, Mr. Kim Geuk? Care to answer?"
No way I could've answered that. No clue what "criminal law status" or "private citizen" even meant.
But I did answer.
"Cases where the capture or imprisonment qualifies as legitimate self-defense, emergency necessity, or self-help action?"
The secret? I'd seen the answer in the hallucination.
"Great job in class, Mr. Kim. Keep it up!"
Turns out the instructor thought I was a model student. After class, he bought me a coffee—but I wasn't thrilled. Each hallucination left me choking down rage and gloom.
Once the emotions settled, I started pondering.
What if these weren't mental illness, but some superpower?
Hey, I could teleport—why not precognition?
Maybe I'd Awakened again without realizing, becoming some low-rent prophet.
Of course, it could be schizophrenia faking future memories—but I tabled that. No cash for psych right now.
Anyway, if I was glimpsing future moments...
Were those academy trainee deaths I'd seen looming ahead?
Hard to ignore. I'm no psychopath shrugging off gruesome ends for people around me. And rationally? Each hallucination dumped my own rage and despair into me.
So their deaths probably weren't random far-off events—they involved me.
Why would they die? Fighting alongside me? Because I failed to protect them? Explains the rage and despair every time.
No clue.
But I had a rough idea what to do.