Artifact? (1)
A sudden question pops into my head. Could the Black Book be an artifact? That's what I'm thinking as I step out of the cafe.
Artifacts. In simple terms, they're "objects with skills." Swing a hiking staff, and it spews orange flames. Open a frog umbrella, and it rains within a 10-meter radius. Touch a chameleon statue, and your hair changes color... stuff like that. Depending on how you use them, they can be fun toys or a "second skill" to carry with you for life. Or, if you mess with them wrong, they become bombs that take out several lives.
"Does this bus go to the Hunter Association?"
"It does~."
Eunha glances down at the heavy suitcase as she boards the bus. So, what about the Black Book? Is this an artifact too? It teleports her from the cafe to her home, words written in blood appear on its pages, and terrifying things like the Red Woman or the Bug Princess come knocking.
Logically speaking, it has to be an artifact... But something feels off. Eunha has only ever seen artifacts from afar on the internet or TV, so she can't say for sure.
"Haa... Yes, this is Artifact Management Department Team 3, Kim Song-a. How can I help you?"
That's why she's come to the Hunter Association today. Eunha isn't the type to think things through deeply anyway. Better to leave it to the experts than have an clueless cafe worker like her fumbling around trying to figure it out—that's safer for everyone.
"Oh? If it isn't 'Resident Ghost'? Failed the promotion exam again, huh?"
"Nice to see you."
On the second floor of the Association building, in the office labeled "Artifact Management Department." She opens the firmly shut door and steps in, and a neat-looking staff member spots her right away and acts all familiar.
Resident Ghost of the promotion exam hall. Malang Jumeok of Euncheon-gu. No other F-rank hunter is as famous.
Eunha drags her suitcase with a rattle into the office. The other staff must be out somewhere—it's just Kim Song-a here.
...The name sounds feminine, but this guy's got total thug vibes.
Maybe because he's alone in the office. The male staffer, tie loosened uncomfortably wide, badge gleaming with "Kim Song-a," approaches her.
"Huh?...... Wait, Resident Ghost is a girl? No joke?"
"Haha..."
"Should've said so sooner~ I get mistaken all the time because of my name... Hey, I know all sorts of promotion exam tips. Interested?"
Realizing she's the perennial F-rank hunter Eunha, he grins slyly and teases her. His eyes flick to her ample chest, and Eunha, wearing her usual drowsy smile, casually covers herself with one arm.
"Hard to climb to E-rank, right? I heard someone say there's nothing more pathetic than clinging to an impossible goal... Just saying! Why not switch careers? With that face, you'd blow up on personal streams."
"...I'm here for a precise artifact inspection."
For some reason, this Artifact Management Department staffer only picks the worst things to say. Eunha ignores him and sits in the guest chair at the desk. Too annoying to deal with.
What she needs right now is to uncover the true nature of the Black Book, figure out a safer way to manage it. Or means to repel or seal away "those things." And an artifact ownership permit to avoid future trouble. That should be enough for now.
Of course, for the "precise inspection," she'll have to leave the Black Book with the Association for a few days... But since she's already memorized the "guidebook" inside, it shouldn't be a big issue.
Ignoring the staffer's mockery lightly, Eunha cuts straight to the point.
"I picked up a weird item two days ago. Seems like an artifact, so I want a precise inspection. And if possible, an ownership permit..."
"Yeah, yeah~. See that application form over there? Just fill out the parts marked with highlighter and bring it back~."
She chooses her words carefully since lives are on the line. But Kim Song-a cuts her off with a perfunctory reply, points to the stack of "Precise Inspection Applications" nearby, and turns back to his own work.
His toneless voice drips with barely concealed annoyance.
...Well, yeah. Who has time to consult every single customer these days? Call any company's customer service, and it's always an automated voice going "Press 1 for this, 2 for that," never connecting you to a real person. Reality's gotten as stiff as those recordings. Sad times.
"Should I hand over the artifact right away?"
"We'll handle checking it, so just fill out the form, Resident Ghost~."
"I'd like that too. But this thing is more danger—"
"Resident Ghost. You F-ranks might not know, but accidents happen when people handle artifacts without expertise."
Eunha returns with the precise inspection application, about to warn him about the Black Book, but Kim Song-a interrupts again, blustering on with unshakable confidence. He reveals a self-assuredness that F-rank hunter Eunha lacks, and laughs.
"Remember that incident in Daegu a couple years back where a bunch of people died? Someone left luggage at a restaurant, the owner didn't know it was an artifact, touched it, boom! Explosion."
"That's not the issue here..."
"It is that kind of issue~. We've handled artifacts plenty. Don't make a fuss when you don't know jack... Anyway, worry about your own future, Eunha~."
What gives him that overflowing confidence? If he got his limbs sawed off by a rusty saw once, or died and come back, he'd listen. Maybe.
Uneasy, but she lets it slide. Personality's childish and he seems like a jerk, but he's still an elite working at Hunter Association HQ. An expert in artifacts, no less. He must have something up his sleeve. Like a skill to block attacks from "those things." And with all the B- and C-rank hunters at the Association, maybe they could even crush the terrifying Red Woman with raw force. She thinks optimistically.
If that confidence comes from real skill, no need for her warnings.
...Still feels off. Aren't F-rank complaints scary? A bit miffed, Eunha quietly fills out the form, thinking she'll see about that.
Applicant's name and contact, her own thoughts on the artifact she wants inspected. Known effects, precautions, etc... She recalls every detail about the Black Book.
The eerie voice of the Red Woman singing that bizarre tune shimmers like a mirage. Eunha bites her lip quietly, feeling her hand tremble around the pen.
After that, things went smoothly. She writes the circumstances of acquisition, signs the highlighted sections. Scribbles for a bit, and the form's done.
Eunha, clasping her trembling hand, hands the paper to Kim Song-a. He glances at her face while idly tapping his smartphone, then crumples the documents into a desk drawer like he's issuing an eviction notice.
Eunha rubs her stiffly frozen smile.
"All filled out? Put the artifact in that box over there and you're good~. Precise inspection takes a few days, so come back when you get the text."
"...Please take good care of it."
"Looks like you're hoping for a jackpot with that artifact, but it ain't that easy~. Even if the results suck, don't make a fuss at the Association—accept it's F-rank life, got it?... Off you go."
Hunter Association HQ alright. Boldly ignoring F-rank complaints. Whatever. He'll learn when it hits him.
Eunha sets the suitcase with the Black Book next to the artifact submission box and leaves the office.
"Tch... Damn, what rotten luck."
After Eunha leaves the office, a low curse slips from Kim Song-a's lips as he finishes filing his nails. Perfect timing—the damn section chief took the other staff out on business. Alone in the office for once, sucking on some sweet downtime, and some clueless F-rank hunter barges in without permission.
More than enough to irk Kim Song-a, elite of the Artifact Management Department and a B-rank hunter.
Oversized hoodie hiding her figure, black suitcase rattling on wheels. He knows who it is. The F-rank pest who shows up every 1st for the promotion exam. Called "Resident Ghost" because she haunts the place like a ghost on test day. Pretty face gives her some fame, and apparently some secret fans.
Still just an E-rank reject pest.
Kim Song-a snorts and pulls out the crumpled application from the drawer.
The form is a joke. Circumstances? Packed with weird "rules," especially the part about never telling anyone—makes him chuckle.
Picked up an artifact two days ago for inspection? Obvious. An F-rank who can't even enter the Artificial Rift Zone "finding" one? Stolen or scavenged, ninety-nine percent. Free game if it disappears midway.
That Resident Ghost bitch has rubbed me wrong since she started strutting on her looks. What? Super dangerous artifact?... A F-rank whelp lecturing a B-rank like me?
These types need a good schooling. Time to teach her life's a battlefield.
Smacking his lips, Kim Song-a approaches the suitcase Eunha left behind.