Finding Her Wasn't Difficult

Finding her wasn't difficult. The status window even displayed the locations of my territory residents. Seeing that she floated up to the surface even after we finished eating, she seemed to be nocturnal. Or perhaps she had stayed up all night doing something and fallen asleep at dawn. The location was straightforward—just head straight down. Miya still seemed scared of the siren, but she followed along once I started moving. As we descended the mountain, the sea came into view. Since the marker pointed to the shoreline, I scanned the area carefully.

"...A corpse?"

Something wrapped in white cloth was floating on the sea. With light blue hair spread out like seaweed, limbs dangling underwater, and only her back visible as she lay face down, it looked exactly like a human corpse at first glance. Even Miya was startled; she spat out the tail she had been chewing on and let out a surprised sound.

The South Sea isn't as extreme as the West Sea, but it still has tides. That meant the waves were fairly strong. The human-shaped figure naturally bobbed up and down with the movement of the waves. Anyone who didn't know better would have fainted at the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠sight. At least it was a relief that hardly anyone came to this part of the sea, so there were no witnesses.

I took a photo of the scene with my phone. After all, Asne wouldn't be able to see what she looked like while sleeping. I'd have to show her later and tell her not to do that.

"But she's pretty far out... Is that okay? Won't monsters think she's food and eat her?"

The place where Asne was floating was right on the boundary between shallow sea and the suddenly deepening ocean. The water color split between sky blue and deep navy.

"Sirens are fine. Nothing can enter their territory even while they're sleeping."

"Territory?"

"Yeah. There's a certain area around a siren. The moment something enters that range, it gets sleepy. Unless it's an incredibly powerful creature, it won't even be able to get close, you know?"

Miya was incredibly strong too. Yet even she feared this siren. From what I'd seen yesterday, Asne just looked like a beautiful noble lady. I couldn't even begin to guess how strong she really was.

"Hmm... Well, if it were dangerous, she wouldn't be sleeping so openly like that."

"Right, right! That's why no monsters even come near her!"

"You can see that?"

"Yep!"

Even in shallow waters, the tide doesn't completely recede. There were plenty of safe spots available. But the fact that she had chosen the boundary of the deep sea instead meant Asne was confident in herself. She had made that choice precisely because she could afford to.

"Waking her up right now seems difficult. Miya, could you stay here and tell Asne when she wakes up that I had some business to take care of and stepped out for a bit?"

"Minsoo, where are you going?"

"I need to register as a hunter. There's a branch office in Haenam, so I'll head over there."

"Hunter registration?"

"Awakened people have to register, or it's illegal. Yesterday was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠late so it couldn't be helped, but I have to do it today."

"Okay! Got it!"

The Hunter Association closed at six. Even if I'd awakened and headed out yesterday, I would have been too late. Of course there were people who worked overtime, but registration was best done during business hours. So today was the day.

The reason I came to see Asne now was in case she woke up. I needed to explain ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the situation before leaving.

"I actually want to take you with me... but neither you nor Asne can leave the territory, so it can't be helped."

"That can't be helped! That registration thing isn't dangerous, right?"

"Nope. I just have to tell them I've awakened, get measured, and that's it."

"Minsoo's body is weak, but he has many abilities!"

Miya, who believed in me. The ones who had hunted her for slavery had been human, yet she trusted me. It was probably because she knew not all humans in the world were bad. No matter how brutal the world was, if everyone were evil, that would be too much.

"I might be late, so I'll leave some food. When Asne wakes up, you two can eat together."

"Uuu... siren..."

"She's a fellow territory resident, so it's not dangerous."

"R-really?"

Miya's reaction made me even more curious about what kind of being a siren truly was. I'd have to find out gradually.

"Here, take this."

"Thank you!"

Since it was winter, there was no worry about food spoiling. I bought things that didn't need cooking. I could have bought cooking equipment, but I was still debating it. That could wait until after I cleanly finished the hunter registration.

"Asne might not be able to eat some things, so ask her properly."

"Got it!"

"Then I'll be back."

"See you soon~!"

I left Miya behind and walked back to where I'd parked the car. I'd left it at the entrance to Ttangkkeut Village, so it was quite a distance. Even walking quickly, it took nearly an hour. The lack of a proper path meant I had to take a long detour. Since I couldn't change the territory, I'd have to figure out a solution somehow. I couldn't keep taking the long way around every time. But for now, there was nothing I could do. I'd think about it later.

Clank clank— Vroom!

It was an old car, so even starting the engine made it creak. My beloved steed that I'd bought with what little money I had. Yesterday it had been in a state of fresh seaweed, so there wasn't much gas left either. I set the navigation while planning to fill up at a gas station on the way to the association and set off.

"Ugh... I didn't expect there to be no gas stations except near the association..."

To be precise, there had been some. But the problem was that most were closed because monster activity had reduced the number of visitors. At least the association seemed to be operating since people still came there. The gas wasn't urgently low, and since it was self-service, I decided to register first.

The association building was quite shabby, as expected in a rural area. When I opened the door and entered, the interior looked deserted. It resembled a bank counter area. After looking around, I spotted a machine for taking numbered tickets and pulled one. Immediately, a ding-dong sound rang out, and my number was called.

I approached the floating number and a female employee greeted me with a smile.

"This is the Haenam Branch of the Hunter Association. How may I assist you?"

"I awakened yesterday afternoon and came to register."

"Congratulations on your awakening. Could you please submit your ID?"

There seemed to be a procedure. The employee took my ID and asked various questions. I answered calmly while waiting.

"Identity verification complete. If you exit to the left, you'll see the Awakened Examination Room. They'll assist you with the rest of the registration there."

"Alright."

I had looked up what to do after awakening, so I knew the procedure. First was identity verification. It primarily checked whether the person was a criminal. Most criminals didn't register in the first place, but those with minor offenses sometimes came to register since it could reduce their sentence. Anyway, if there were no issues, the next step was a physical examination. Many people experienced bodily changes upon awakening, so it was necessary. In my case, my eyesight had improved, and I'd grown about five centimeters taller. The last time I'd measured, I'd been 175cm and 80kg. Now I was 180cm and 75kg. The reflection in the mirror showed a balanced physique. The chubby belly fat had completely disappeared, seemingly converted into height, which made me feel good.

"Growth can continue for a few days, so if you'd like additional measurements, you can visit a public health center or the association."

"Thank you."

I followed the instructions of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the employee working in the measurement room and completed the tests. What remained was the most important part—rank measurement.

"Please stand in front of that device and relax."

"Understood."

I stepped into a cylindrical device about three meters tall, and the door closed. Soon after a voice said they would begin the measurement, a soft light enveloped my body. About a minute later, I heard that the measurement was complete.

"The measured rank is 1st Grade. Does that match?"

"Yes. It matches the rank shown in my status window."

"What is your awakened class?"

"Lord."

"Lord...?"

The employee who had been typing my answers into the computer looked at me. The look in her eyes clearly asked, Is that right? I simply nodded calmly.

"What abilities or skills can you use?"

"Territory Declaration."

For a hunter's abilities or skills, registering just one was enough. Since not everyone in the world was good, information leaks had to be prevented. Therefore, it was standard to register a skill that represented oneself. I only had two skills, but it would be good to hide the summoning if possible. In the current situation, it was essentially my hidden ace.

"May I ask about the skill's capabilities?"

"It's exactly as the name suggests. It declares a territory. Actually, I have something I'd like to consult about regarding that..."

I explained what had happened yesterday, appropriately omitting some details. How I'd gone to see the sea while in a mentally and physically weakened state. How I'd awakened at that moment. And how, in a fit of anger, I'd used Territory Declaration. I left out the part about meeting the Sea Grok and using summoning.

"Hmm... There is a hunter law that recognizes ownership of land restored by a hunter after a monster break. You can develop the land yourself, or the government can purchase and manage it."

What a sweet law. The worry about how to buy land that had already been turned into territory was completely unnecessary.

"What about taxes or similar things for restored land?"

"After restoration is confirmed, taxes are waived for one year. After that, basic land tax and..."

The government was also trying to resolve breaks. But restoring this narrow strip of land was difficult. Especially since many areas weren't worth the effort financially, it was a headache. Most of the land adjacent to the sea on three sides fell into that category. They were focusing all efforts on restoring the metropolitan cities of Busan, Ulsan, and Incheon. Other port cities were also being worked on by hunters.

From what I could tell, although Haenam—which I'd turned into my territory—had a port at its southernmost tip, it wasn't considered a major port city, so it wasn't very popular.

"Have there been any successful cases?"

"Not yet. Even if the land is restored somehow, monsters coming up from the sea destroy it again. And we can't exactly go into the ocean to eliminate all the monsters, so it's a real headache."

In summary, there was a policy where the government would provide support while also granting ownership of the land. It felt like a policy perfectly tailored to me, to the point where I could sense some kind of guiding will behind it. Of course, it wasn't all good. If I drew attention, checks and interference would surely follow. In that sense, it might be good to subtly test the waters.

"My abilities are still low, so I just want to give it a try. Is that possible?"

"As I mentioned earlier, many hunters are attempting it. Haenam has had five attempts already. All of them failed, though."

Countless hunters across Korea had already challenged it and failed. The places drawing the most attention were the metropolitan cities and major port cities. In that case, it seemed I wouldn't attract much notice yet. When you have neither power nor connections, the best thing is to exist without standing out. I was confident that with my abilities, I could create an enormous territory. This was just the foundation for that. Of course, I couldn't announce it openly, so I kept my words vague.

"Right now, I've used my ability around Ttangkkeut Village, and that area has entered the range of my power. I'd like to apply for that area. Is that possible?"

"Of course it's possible. Then please fill out these documents..."

There was quite a cumbersome procedure. I examined each one carefully and filled them out. There were so many documents that time flew by. I'd arrived around one o'clock, and after four hours, it was already five.

"You've completed all the basic documents. Additional procedures can be handled through the hunter app. How would you like to proceed?"

"I'll install and register it now."

"Understood. Please install the app and..."

I installed the hunter app that only awakened people could use and signed up. It linked with my hunter license, allowing me to check the registered hunter rankings. When I glanced at mine, I was ranked 73,213rd—dead last. I'd heard that awakened people made up about one to two percent of the population, but seeing the actual number really drove it home.

"Registration is complete. You can check additional information through the app."

"Thank you."

With that, I completed my hunter registration and signed up for the policy that would fully recognize my territory, then left the association.

"Oh, right. I need to fill up on gas."

I filled the car until the tank was full, then headed back to my territory with a light heart. I'd spent more time than expected. But with good news to share, I wanted to see our beautiful territory residents as soon as possible.