Chapter 11
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 11
Chapter Title: Crossroads
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“Hunter Kim Hanul, I’ve been briefed. I’ll escort you right away.”
In the basement of the Awakened Being Management Headquarters, the Mana Measurement Room.
As it happened, today was the day for the quarterly mana measurement for all Awakened Beings.
The space, vast enough to be called a ‘measurement hall’, had been a sea of people since morning.
‘This place hasn’t changed a bit.’
I thought to myself, looking at the people lined up on the sleek marble floor.
‘Everyone’s eyes are so bright.’
The eyes of those standing at a crossroads in life shone with a clear light.
This was the first gateway for ordinary people to cross over into the extraordinary, into a world they had only dreamed of.
Here, the Awakened Beings would receive proof that they had transcended the category of ordinary mortals.
After that, it was a choice.
Would they simply register as an Awakened Being and continue their normal lives?
Or would they enter the Hunter’s Den and challenge an entirely different, extraordinary life?
- Registrant 136, Kim Hyeongtae. Mana rank is E-rank.
A dry, female voice echoed through the hall.
At the sound of that voice, someone snickered.
Someone else lowered their head, their face full of self-doubt.
Few people were laughing.
After all, it would be strange for an Awakened Being with no training whatsoever to receive an A or B-rank.
The only ones who would laugh at an E-rank were rookies who had been nurtured by a guild before their official measurement.
Or they were frogs in a well who mistook themselves for being on the same level as such rookies.
“This way, please.”
And amidst the super rookies, the frogs in the well, and the ordinary people.
I walked toward the center of the measurement room, parting the crowd like a ship cutting through waves.
Naturally, all eyes turned to me.
“Who’s that guy? How can he just walk through so confidently, ignoring the line?”
“I heard he’s a Hunter getting his rank re-evaluated.”
“Why is a Hunter getting tested here? Shouldn’t he be at the Hunter’s Den?”
“You should listen to the announcements. It said his only expedition experience is a single E-rank gate. What’s the difference between that and a regular Awakened Being?”
But the gazes that had been flickering with annoyance and a bit of curiosity began to shine, mixed with a much wider range of emotions.
“Hey, th-that… that’s!”
“Wait, behind him, isn’t that Yoon Suhyeok and Yoon Sua!”
“You’re right, what’s an S-rank Hunter doing here?”
“Is Yoon Sua for real? She’s even prettier in person. This is insane.”
Walking behind me were two other Hunters.
“Wow, this place hasn’t changed a bit from years ago. Sua, remember this? When I got my rank measured, you were waving a placard and going crazy.”
The pride of the Pungbaek Guild and its Vice Guild Master, Yoon Suhyeok.
“I don’t remember, so just walk quietly. You’re already causing a scene.”
And Yoon Sua, whose recognition and ability were overwhelming enough to rival most guild masters.
Such figures had suddenly appeared in a gathering place for what could barely be called newbies—first-year Awakened Beings.
The hall naturally erupted into chaos.
“Section Chief Lee, I need more personnel! Yes, please send four people to Sector 17-2.”
The measurement room’s management team leader, who was guiding me through the closing-in crowd, urgently raised his radio.
He couldn't have predicted a situation like this.
Finally, Yoon Sua, who had been looking a bit tense the whole time, bowed her head.
“I’m sorry, Team Leader. I knew this would happen, which is why I was going to wait upstairs…”
“Hey, come on, Sua. You didn’t say it, but you were the one who wanted to see this the most. Let’s just enjoy the spotlight for now. This is proof of how successful our Pungbaek Guild is!”
“Shut your mouth, oppa.”
“…”
At Yoon Sua’s words, Yoon Suhyeok fell silent as if he’d swallowed honey.
She was right.
It was Yoon Suhyeok who had said he wanted to observe my rank re-measurement in the first place.
And it was he who had dragged Yoon Sua down with him, despite her protests that they would be a distraction.
And I had let them.
‘There’s no need to fear the gazes of others.’
To be honest, I’m not the type to shy away from attention.
If I were, I never would have dreamed of doing something like game streaming.
Nor would I have clung to the dream of being a Hunter seven years ago, even after suffering the crushing blow of an E-rank right here.
To me, they were an opportunity.
A small chance to imprint myself deeply in people’s minds.
“But who’s that person next to them?”
People are naturally more curious about the unfamiliar than the familiar.
It was the same for everyone gathered in this vast space.
The surprise that had been focused on the Vice Guild Master of one of Korea’s top three guilds and his sister…
“I’ve never seen him before. Is he really a Hunter?”
“With only one E-rank gate expedition, it’s no wonder we haven’t. Maybe he’s a promising talent Pungbaek has been secretly raising?”
…naturally shifted to me, as I moved through the crowd as if being escorted by them.
“Right, there’s no way those two would stick together like that unless he was a big shot.”
“But he looks a bit old to be a promising talent.”
“Wow, I can’t believe I’m seeing those two in person. And I can’t even take a picture. Why’d they have to collect all our phones…”
It felt strange.
Seven years ago, I was tucked away in the farthest corner of this spacious measurement room.
It was the same even after I received my rank.
Clutching the notice declaring me an E-rank Awakened Being, I watched countless people from that corner until the sun went down.
Confident super rookies, disappointed commoners, and lamenting failures all brushed past him.
It was the same now.
Except this time, I was the one passing them by.
“Thank you for your hard work.”
We had finally arrived.
The very center of the measurement room, where the mana measurement device was installed.
“Just a moment, let me see. No items worn. No physical enhancement potions taken… none. Yes, you may proceed.”
I bowed my head to the team leader who had finished the pre-measurement doping check.
“You’re the one who’s worked hard, Team Leader. Thank you.”
“As you know, Hunter Hanul, the measurement results will be announced in a minimum of five seconds and a maximum of twenty. As soon as the results are out, we will report to our superiors and begin the promotion process.”
I nodded and stared at the measurement chamber before me.
An oval space, about two meters in diameter, enclosed in reinforced glass.
Inside that space floated something like a transparent, diamond-shaped crystal mass.
This was the true ‘measurement chamber,’ and the floating diamond crystal in the center was the measurement device.
“Please step inside, place your hand on the measurement device, and hold it there. The floating stone will measure Mr. Kim Hanul’s mana and determine your rank.”
I knew.
Mana was a type of energy source possessed only by Awakened Beings who had unlocked a status window.
This diamond crystal measured that mana, quantified physical abilities and future growth potential, and determined a rank.
And more often than not, this initial Awakened Being rank carried over to become their Hunter rank.
I nodded and stepped into the space, upon which all eyes were fixed.
*Vwooom.*
As soon as I stepped inside and the glass door slid shut, the interior began to resonate.
Yoon Suhyeok, watching me intently with his arms crossed.
Yoon Sua, with a slightly anxious expression.
And beyond them, a variety of faces filled with doubt, curiosity, and a myriad of other emotions.
I placed my hand on the floating crystal.
- Commencing mana measurement for registrant 280.
An icy chill traveled up from my fingertips.
*Sssst.*
The colorless crystal began to stain with a sky-blue hue, like a drop of paint in water.
The resonant hum filling the glass tube grew louder.
Seven years ago, the resonance hadn’t even lasted five seconds before it stopped.
Exactly ten seconds later, the dry voice announcing my E-rank had followed.
But now.
-----!
Like instruments being added one by one to an orchestra.
The resonance grew more intense and richer with each passing moment.
Five seconds, ten seconds, twenty seconds.
After thirty seconds, I stopped counting.
My body was trembling.
No, it wasn’t my body that was trembling.
The inside of the glass tube, the measurement chamber itself, was vibrating.
The crystal, which had been glowing faintly, was now pulsing with a brilliant blue light.
“……!”
“……-!”
Beyond the light emanating from the crystal, I could see Yoon Suhyeok’s face.
He was staring at me, his mouth agape.
Yoon Sua was watching with a dazed expression as well.
For members of Pungbaek, they had quite foolish looks on their faces.
But they were better than the expressions worn by the team leader and the others standing beside them.
“--!”
The team leader was mouthing words like a goldfish, shouting something.
I couldn’t tell what he was yelling.
Even if the glass wasn’t soundproof, I wouldn’t have known.
The cry aemitted by the crystal was too loud to understand anything else.
*Kiiiiiiiing!*
A sound like a grinder tearing through glass pierced my ears.
And in the next instant, after a flash of blue light filled the inside of the tube.
*Click.*
As if by magic, everything vanished.
The vibration that had gone beyond resonance to something close to ultrasound, and the blue light that had seemed blinding.
Behind the traces that disappeared as if covered by a curtain, only silence remained.
- Measurement complete.
Beneath the silence that settled like dust.
The same dry voice that had determined my path seven years ago spoke once more.
- Registrant 280, Kim Hanul. Analysis result: Mana rank is S-rank.
***
[Confirming the final reward.]
The third and final reward I received after defending against the 701st wave.
[New skill, 「Lord’s Lingering Shadow Lv.1」 has been acquired.]
[Whether it was a dream within a dream for a single night, or an eternal reality, it does not matter. The important fact is that you have saved the world once again. You are qualified to continue this one-night dream.]
[You can add the stats of the most powerful monster from the wave you just defended against to your status. A total time limit of 30 minutes exists. If all 30 minutes are consumed, it cannot be activated until the next wave.]
This reward was truly worthy of the grueling 60-hour struggle.
I gazed at the information window floating in the corner of my vision.
Name: Kim Hanul
Age: 28
Gender: Male
- Stats -
Strength: 70 (10+60) Agility: 86 (6+80) Stamina: 83 (13+70) Mental Strength: 55 (5+50)
- Skills -
Regeneration Lv.1
Lord’s Lingering Shadow Lv.1 (Active - Count Gular, the Dragon Child / Time Remaining: 26 min 35 sec)
Sage’s Eye Lv.1 (Inactive)
- Linked Skills -
Conversation with the Lord Lv.1
Deal with the Lord Lv.1
- Contracted Divine Seats -
None
My pathetic stats, no different from an ordinary person’s, were gone, replaced by numbers that far surpassed even a super rookie.
Usually, a Hunter with average stats exceeding 60 is considered A-rank.
Even for high-ranking Hunters who raise their stats by clearing numerous gates, it’s rare for their pure stats to exceed 70 without the help of items.
Therefore, these numbers were absurd.
Hence, the S-rank judgment.
To add, in the past 30 years, there have only been three cases of someone receiving an S-rank in their initial measurement.
“…”
There was no cheering when I stepped out of the measurement chamber.
Once the excitement passed its ignition point and slowly died down, only shock remained.
“Ahem, hmph. Uh, not bad.”
The first to break the silence was the only other S-rank Hunter here, Yoon Suhyeok.
It was clear he was trying desperately to maintain his poker face.
But he was also the first to notice that something was amiss with the measurement device.
And the first whose eyes had widened.
“Still not as good as me, though. Anyway, you’re already a Hunter, right? I got my S-rank as a newly Awakened Being. Back in my day…”
“Hunter Kim Hanul.”
Yoon Suhyeok, who was trying to hide his cold sweat while launching into a ‘back in my day’ spiel, choked and was pushed aside.
Yoon Sua appeared in front of me instead.
Her doe-like eyes were close.
She hesitated for a moment, then bowed her head slightly and uttered a single phrase.
“You did well.”
“Thank you.”
Her face seemed to hold a thousand questions.
But it seemed she thought it would be rude to press me here.
A very her-like thought.
And in truth, I didn’t want to linger here either.
“Team Leader. I’ll be on my way now. I was told you’d contact me by phone with the promotion results.”
“Huh?”
The measurement management team leader still had a dazed expression.
He stood frozen, as if he hadn’t understood my words, before stammering out a reply.
“Ah, right. You’re a Hunter, not an Awakened Being. But your previous record was definitely E-rank… Ah, never mind. You must be busy. Yes, yes! O-of course. Absolutely. We will contact you by tomorrow, yes.”
“Yes, I’ll be counting on you.”
I turned to Yoon Suhyeok and Yoon Sua.
“Thank you both very much as well. Things got out of hand, and I ended up dragging you into this commotion.”
“Not at all. We were just doing what we were supposed to do!”
Yoon Sua waved her hands dismissively.
“Well then, I have some things to take care of, so I’ll be heading back now.”
“Ah, yes…”
As I turned to leave without another word, Yoon Sua looked like she wanted to say something more but held her tongue.
This time, a voice came from another direction.
“Excuse me! Mr. Kim Hanul.”
“?”
Yoon Suhyeok, who had been wearing a slightly sulky expression, cleared his throat and spoke.
“Let’s, uh, grab a coffee sometime.”
“Coffee?”
“Yes.”
After a moment’s hesitation, Yoon Suhyeok continued quietly.
“This is an offer from me as the Vice Guild Master of Pungbaek.”
“Ah.”
The gazes of the people in the hall, which had been fixed on me, once again colored with surprise.
He thought he was being subtle.
But everyone knew.
This was a public scouting offer.
And I replied with a smile.
“Regarding guild matters, I’ll contact your sister personally.”
“?”
“Wh-what? Personally?”
At my words, Yoon Sua’s eyes went wide.
And Yoon Suhyeok’s jaw dropped once again.
***
That evening, unfamiliar phrases dominated the search rankings on internet portals.
E-rank Hunter barges into measurement room, Third S-rank mana judgment, Pungbaek’s hidden super rookie, and so on.
As I was scrolling through the internet, *dring,* my smartphone chimed.
A text message appeared on the screen.
[Based on today’s mana measurement results, Hunter Kim Hanul’s license has been upgraded by three ranks, from E-rank to B-rank.]
[Following this promotion, you are now authorized to participate in expeditions to all S-rank and lower gates and dungeons as of today. For more details, please contact the Association Management Headquarters.]
An unprecedented three-rank promotion, and even the restriction on S-rank and lower expeditions lifted.
All the unreasonable constraints from my E-rank label had been stripped away.
In that case, there was only one thing left to do.