An Incredible Salary Offer

The interview room was narrower than expected. One window, one table, and two chairs. That was the entire space. Haneul immediately plopped onto a chair and swung her legs lightly. Her feet didn't reach the floor.

...This chair is huge. No, her body had simply shrunk. Either way, both were true. With that thought, Haneul adjusted her posture on the seat. Golden hair cascaded smoothly over her shoulders.

Across from her, Kim Jaewon set down a thick bundle of documents with a solid thunk. The stack was impressively hefty.

"We'll begin by filling out the basic forms."

"Alright."

"Name, date of birth, resident registration number——"

"Hold on a second."

Haneul raised her hand. Kim Jaewon's gaze drifted to that tiny hand. ...... He sensed something but decided to let it pass for now.

"You know how resident registration numbers work. Mine is still registered as male. The first digit at the end is a three, so how exactly should I write that?"

Kim Jaewon glanced at the paperwork. Then at Haneul. Then back at the paperwork. He cleared his throat.

"...For now, please use the existing number. We'll handle the rest separately on our end."

"How long will the separate processing take?"

"There's no precedent for this, so I'm not entirely certain..."

"I see."

Haneul calmly picked up the pen and filled in the resident registration field with a string of numbers. That first digit after the dash: three. A strange feeling washed over her.

Name, date of birth, address, contact information. The paperwork continued until it hit another snag at the Hunter registration section.

"There's a gender field here."

"...Yes, there is."

"Should I mark it male or female?"

Kim Jaewon lost his words for a moment.

"Legally, you are still male, so..."

"I'll go with male for now."

"Thank you."

Haneul circled the male option. She set the pen down and looked up.

"All finished."

"I'll review it."

As Kim Jaewon scanned the documents, his eyes stopped on one section. The emergency contact field. It was blank.

"The emergency contact is empty."

"Ah, that part."

Haneul thought for a second.

"Is it okay to leave it blank?"

"If you could provide a family member or acquaintance..."

"I don't have any family, and I haven't told my acquaintances yet. About turning into a woman, I mean. I have no idea how to explain it."

Kim Jaewon set the documents down. Haneul's face showed neither particular sadness nor distress. She was simply stating facts. Somehow, that made it even harder to respond.

...Hmm.

Kim Jaewon cleared his throat once more.

"We'll leave it blank for now."

"Thank you."

Haneul offered a small smile. The halo above her petite face glowed even brighter. Kim Jaewon kept his eyes glued to the paperwork. Deliberately.

Once the forms were done, Kim Jaewon rose from his seat.

"We'll now conduct the skill appraisal. Let's move to a different location."

"Okaaay."

Haneul hopped down from the chair. Hopped down was the accurate description. The seat was awkwardly high, so she ended up lightly jumping off. Thud.

They walked down the hallway, Kim Jaewon leading and Haneul following. Every employee they passed stopped in their tracks at the sight of her. Whispered comments trailed after them.

That's the EX-class?

So angel classes really exist.

Whoa, but isn't she super tiny?

Haneul pretended not to hear. She was still getting used to it. Not completely, but close.

The appraisal room was noticeably larger than the interview room. A single chair sat in the center, surrounded by various pieces of equipment. Two people were already waiting: a man and a woman in white lab coats.

"I'm Lee Junho, officially certified skill appraiser for the Association."

The man greeted her first. He appeared to be in his forties. His eyes behind the glasses were sharp.

"I'm Park Seyeon. I'll be assisting with the appraisal."

The woman looked to be in her early thirties and carried a clipboard. Both of them froze for a split second upon seeing Haneul, then quickly regained their composure. Hmm. True professionals.

"Would you please have a seat?"

Lee Junho indicated the central chair. Haneul walked over and sat. The chair was oversized again.

Are all the Association's chairs this big?

It felt a bit excessive, but the conversation continued.

"Your awakening skill is Divine Light, correct?"

"Yes."

"Have you activated it before?"

"No. I only awakened yesterday."

Lee Junho and Park Seyeon exchanged a quick glance.

"Understood. In that case, I'll guide the process. Just follow my instructions at your own pace."

"Got it."

Haneul nodded. She wasn't particularly nervous. Mostly, she was curious. What would her skill be like? Would it truly live up to EX-class value?

"Close your eyes. Breathe slowly. If you sense any unusual feeling inside your body, focus your mind on it."

Haneul closed her eyes. As she steadied her breathing...

...Oh.

There it was. Something. Near her chest. It felt warm, yet also faintly ticklish.

Is this the skill?

She gave it a gentle mental nudge. In that instant...

The room exploded with light. She reflexively squeezed her eyes shut. It felt as if something massive had detonated. Her entire body tingled. The ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠sensation that began at her chest spread outward like ripples through every limb.

Uh, whoa—

She tried to stop it, but it wouldn't halt. Isn't this completely fucked?!

Wait, wait just a—

The light surged outward like a tidal wave, engulfing everything. Roughly ten seconds passed. Then, gradually, the glow receded.

Haneul slowly opened her eyes. The appraisal room had fallen completely silent.

...Far too silent. Almost frighteningly so.

...?

She looked up. Lee Junho was leaning back in his chair, staring blankly at the ceiling. His expression was peculiar, as if overwhelmed by something profound or having reached a sudden realization. Park Seyeon had dropped her clipboard and was covering her face with both hands.

"...Are you both alright?" Haneul asked first.

Park Seyeon lifted her head. Her ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠eyes were misty.

"My shoulder is healed."

"Pardon?"

"Three years of frozen shoulder. It vanished completely just now."

Haneul was momentarily speechless.

Lee Junho rose slowly from his seat. He straightened his back, twisted it side to side, then bent forward.

"...My disc," he said in a low voice. "I haven't been able to move like this for five years."

The appraisal room door burst open. Three staff members from the hallway rushed inside.

"What was that light just now?"

"Did something explode? It wasn't a bomb, was it?"

"Everyone's bodies suddenly——"

All three wore dazed expressions. One examined their wrist.

"My torn wrist ligament..."

Another sniffed.

"My cold is gone. Just like that."

The last one simply stood there, stunned.

"I didn't have any specific ailments, but... I feel incredibly refreshed?"

Haneul quietly observed the scene.

...The range is wider than I expected.

It seemed to have reached beyond the appraisal room. And from the looks of it...

Everything got healed?

Now that she'd actually used it, the reality hit harder. A simple yet strikingly clear description. This is absolutely broken. An EX-class skill. The corners of Haneul's mouth twitched upward. She'd thought it might be a dud, but this was incredible. Does this mean my life just got easy?

At that moment, Kim Jaewon entered the appraisal room. He must have been waiting in the hallway. The moment he stepped inside, he froze. He swept his gaze across the room, taking in each staff member one by one with a complicated expression. Finally, his eyes landed on Haneul.

"...What exactly happened here?"

Lee Junho adjusted his glasses and spoke slowly.

"Skill activation."

"A skill activation caused all this——"

"Because it's EX-class."

A brief silence fell. Kim Jaewon's gaze returned to Haneul. She sat primly in the oversized chair, small hands neatly folded in her lap. The halo above her head continued to shine softly.

"But I don't know how to control this skill," Haneul said carefully.

Kim Jaewon and Lee Junho exchanged a look. After a silent conversation with their eyes, both turned back to her. Haneul remained seated politely, staring intently at her skill window with a serious expression on her tiny face.

Lee Junho moved first. He walked to the appraisal equipment and checked the readings. The moment he saw the screen, his hand stopped.

"...Manager Kim."

"Yes?"

"The skill grade value has exceeded the equipment's measurable range."

"Exceeded?"

"Yes. Our equipment should be capable of measuring up to S-class."

A short silence followed.

"This is an official EX-class determination. The first in Korea—no, the first in the world," Lee Junho said, his voice low and heavy. "Not only the skill's grade itself, but its range and duration are both beyond measurable levels. This is a first for me as well."

Kim Jaewon nodded slowly, his expression complex.

Just then, the appraisal room door opened again. This time, three people in ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠formal suits entered. They appeared senior to Kim Jaewon. Association badges gleamed on their lapels. High-ranking officials.

All three looked at Haneul the moment they stepped inside. She lifted her head and met their gazes. One of them cleared his throat.

"...So this is Miss Cha Haneul."

"Yes, sir," Kim Jaewon replied.

The three exchanged glances, conveying something silently just as the previous pair had. The man standing in the center stepped forward. He appeared to be in his fifties, with graying hair.

"Nice to meet you, Miss Cha Haneul. I am Han Seungmin, Vice Chairman of the Association."

"Ah, yes. Nice to meet you too."

Haneul gave a small bow. Han Seungmin's gaze lingered briefly on her halo before returning to her face.

"Thank you for coming to the Association in person today. I hope the journey wasn't too inconvenient."

"It was fine."

"I'm glad to hear that."

Han Seungmin pulled up a chair and sat. The other two followed suit. Suddenly the appraisal room had transformed into an impromptu meeting space. Haneul stared at the scene in a daze.

A vice chairman must be a really high position.

Why would someone like him come out personally? Because it's EX-class? That seemed likely. After all, she was the world's first.

Her heart began to race. Thump. Thump.

Han Seungmin immediately opened some documents.

"I'll be direct. The Association would like to extend a formal offer to you, Miss Cha Haneul."

"An offer?"

"Yes. We would like you to work as a Hunter officially affiliated with the Association. We will provide exclusive support, housing, equipment——"

"W-wait a moment."

Haneul raised her hand.

"How much is the salary?"

......

A heavy silence blanketed the appraisal room. Han Seungmin was momentarily speechless. So were the two senior officials beside him.

Miss Haneul...

Kim Jaewon quietly examined the documents. Of course money mattered in a capitalist society, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠but for a national strategic asset of EX-class caliber to ask about salary first... There would be far more substantial benefits available. And she had asked about monthly pay rather than annual. Still, they were professionals. They answered her question with the most positive smiles they could muster.

"For an S-class Hunter affiliated with the Association, the baseline is slightly higher than——"

"Give me the number. How much?"

Haneul's voice was firm. Under normal circumstances it might have seemed crude, but her doll-like appearance made it impossibly cute. Just adorable. Park Seyeon couldn't hold back a soft chuckle.

Han Seungmin stated the figure.

"If we set it as an annual salary, it would require a meeting, but the minimum would be fifty billion won. It will likely begin in the range of one hundred billion won or higher."

Haneul's eyebrows shot up.

...What? What the—?

Fifty billion? No, it could even start from over one hundred billion?? It was far, far more than she'd imagined. Was this even sane?!