Chapter 378: A Clue (5)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 378: A Clue (5)
A while back, a TV station produced a program called ‘Agent H.’
The premise was simple.
Awakened Beings and Hunters from all over the country would gather to show off their abilities. A panel of judges would score them, and those recognized for their potential would be recruited by major or mid-sized guilds.
The concept was perfect.
The station secured viewership by showcasing the Hunters' powers, the large and mid-sized guilds got a chance to strengthen their ranks by recruiting hidden talent, and the still-unknown Awakened Beings and Hunters got an opportunity to display their skills to everyone.
It was a perfect trifecta, and I was offered a position as a judge, which I gladly accepted.
Selecting competent Hunters who would be responsible for the future of South Korea was certainly beneficial for me too, and to be honest, I happened to be free at the time with not much else going on.
So, on a show I had joined lightly for fun, I got my first taste of public criticism since becoming the nation's top Hunter.
The reason was simple.
I gave a failing grade to a Hunter everyone else had passed, and a passing grade to one everyone else had failed. Not only that, I even used the "free pass"—of which each judge only got two—to force one of them through. People started saying I wasn't judging with any sincerity, or something along those lines.
Despite the growing calls for my removal, the show went on.
With Son Si-woo taking all the heat and drawing in all the aggro, the ratings skyrocketed. The station was in a position where they would have had to beg me to stay even if I’d wanted to leave. And as for me, I was confident.
The filming continued for twenty weeks amidst the first wave of criticism I had ever faced.
During the live finale, the two Awakened Beings I had saved with my free passes showed explosive growth throughout the pre-recorded episodes and ultimately stood on the final stage. The criticism against me turned into cheers.
From that day on, you could criticize other things about me, but any haters who dared to question my eye for talent were wiped off the face of the earth.
There’s a simple reason I’m suddenly reminiscing about the past.
“We will now begin the tryouts for the Twilight Guild… no, the ‘Waving the License’ club.”
It was time for my insight to shine once again.
“The test is simple. You will fight against one of our club members, who will be acting as an examiner.”
Someone shot their hand up.
“Do we have to win?”
“You can’t win. Winning or losing has no bearing on whether you pass, so just be sure to show us your true skills.”
If anyone here actually manages to beat one of my kids, I’ll personally offer them a massive contract bonus to join.
But that’s not going to happen.
They’re only second-years—or wait, will they be third-years after the break ends?
In any case, it’s been a long time since my kids surpassed the level of an average Korea University student.
“Alright, let the test begin.”
The matches wouldn’t take long.
At most, they’d exchange two or three blows before my kids claimed victory.
That would be enough.
More than enough to gauge the skills and potential of the applicants facing them.
Actually, even two or three exchanges were unnecessary.
All I needed to see was one attack and one defense.
I really hope there’s at least one diamond in the rough who catches my eye…
With my heart full of anticipation, I watched the tryouts begin.
Four makeshift arenas were set up on the first floor of the auditorium.
Im Na-eun, Shin Yu-jeong, Son Seo-yeon, and Elena stood in each one.
One by one, the applicants stepped up.
I brought the microphone to my lips.
“Ready… begin.”
The moment I gave the signal, the four applicants charged forward.
As I watched them, each trying to land the first blow, my eyes gleamed with anticipation.
Fwoom!
“Next person, please step up~”
With a single spell from Im Na-eun.
Thwack!
“Next.”
With a single, merciless punch from Shin Yu-jeong.
Clang!
“…Next?”
With a single swing of Son Seo-yeon’s sword.
CRASH!
“Are you the next sacrifice?”
The applicants were sent flying in an instant by the massive shield Elena swung.
“Uh, um.”
…This isn’t how it was supposed to go.
Seeing the remaining applicants trembling in fear after the shocking one-shot rush, I quickly grabbed the microphone and shouted.
“…We’ll take a short break!”
The unexpected had happened.
The applicants had been defeated without even getting a chance to land a single blow.
Thanks to that, all I learned was how skilled my kids were, since they only had to make one move each during the spars.
“When did they get this strong…?”
I’d been so preoccupied with other matters lately that I hadn’t been able to look after them.
They were kids who always did what they needed to without slacking off, so I’d figured they would have grown moderately in my absence, but… this was on a completely different level.
As I sat there, dumbfounded, Ju-yeon, who was sitting next to me, spoke with a voice full of amusement.
“Hehe… you’re pretty surprised, aren’t you? That the kids grew so much all of a sudden.”
“…I am.”
“You have no idea how hard they worked while you were away. Did you know that after they found out I joined the guild, they’d intentionally rough themselves up and come to me, bossing me around to heal them?”
As Ju-yeon feigned crying, I looked down at the four of them, standing in their respective arenas in different poses.
“Haha.”
They definitely had the air of real Hunters now.
Before the break, they had an ambiguous presence, somewhere between a Hunter and a college student.
I guess I can’t call them chicks anymore.
Feeling pleased, but also needing to fix my derailed plan, I quickly sent them a message.
“This is a test to check the applicants’ skills, not a stage for you to show off. Please, control your strength, kids.”
At that, they looked at each other across the arenas and grinned.
They had expressions that screamed, ‘Everything is going according to plan.’ …Could it be they did this on purpose for me to see?
They must have been annoyed that I was planning to pick out others with talent similar to their own.
So they wanted to show me.
Do you really think there are other students at this university with talent like ours?
It was a rebellious attitude, mixed with a bit of childishness.
But it was exactly the kind of spirit a Hunter needed, the kind of attitude I had hoped for. Looking down at them, I couldn’t help but smile.
“I lose. I’ll make it up to you somehow, so let’s test them properly now.”
Only then, as if they had been waiting for it, did they give me a thumbs-up from the first floor.
Good grief.
It feels like I’m raising four daughters.
Shaking my head, I picked up the microphone again.
“We will now resume the test.”
Now, it was really beginning.
* * *
Whether one wants it or not.
Sometimes, a person finds themselves at a crossroads.
And depending on the choice they make, their life can change dramatically.
For her, the first choice came back then.
It was a time when she had accidentally Awakened and was slowly making a name for herself as a mage and a Hunter.
After losing her parents early and living a difficult life, she was just beginning to feel a sense of relief, thinking she could finally live without worry.
That was when her younger sibling, the only family she had left, suddenly collapsed.
She rushed to the hospital, and after a thorough examination, the diagnosis was ‘Congenital Mana Deficiency.’
It was an incurable disease that appeared with extremely low probability in children born after the appearance of the rifts that threatened the world and the Awakened Beings who fought against them. Sufferers were born with an abnormally small amount of mana.
The low mana reserves have no effect during childhood.
But as one gets older and the body grows, the problem reveals itself.
While the body’s required mana capacity increases with physical growth, the congenitally deficient mana pool cannot keep up.
That was why her sibling had collapsed.
The deficient mana could no longer support the rapidly growing body.
“…Back then, I truly wanted to die.”
Faced with the crisis of losing her only family, she was devastated.
She would rather have died.
No, it felt as if the entire world was pushing her toward death.
Otherwise, how could it be that just as she was seeing a glimmer of light after a life of endless misfortune, she was handed yet another unbearable trial?
Despite feeling that way, she did everything she could to find a way to save her sibling.
But as mentioned before, ‘Congenital Mana Deficiency’ was incurable.
There was no other way but to forcibly extend the life of the unconscious body by regularly injecting mana to prevent it from dying.
Even the cost of that was astronomical.
The mana infusion was only possible with the latest machine developed by the Magic Tower, a technology that had not yet been commercialized. To keep her sibling alive, she had to enter dungeons every single day.
Eventually, when she was pushed to her physical and mental limits.
“…I did my best.”
She resolved to die with her sibling.
As time passed, there was no sign of a cure being developed.
She was tired of entering dungeons every day, of seeing people get hurt and die.
But she didn't have the confidence to live on alone if she gave up on her sibling. This was the only option she had left.
Just as she had made her firm decision and was slowly getting her affairs in order, a new choice was added to her life.
A man suddenly appeared before her and said this:
—“We have the cure for your sibling.”
At first, she was suspicious.
It was an incurable disease for which no treatment could be found anywhere in the world.
Did it make any sense for them to have a cure for such an illness?
But, knowing that, she accepted their offer.
She was desperate enough to clutch at straws.
Living with her sibling was a hundred, a thousand times better than dying.
She was prepared.
Even if they were a villain organization, as long as they gave her the cure, she would pledge her loyalty.
But they didn't trust her resolve in the slightest.
The cure did exist.
But it was not given to her.
We’ll give it to you once you’ve made more contributions. We don’t trust you enough to give it to you yet.
Amidst these repeated words, she was appointed as a professor at Korea University.
They wanted one thing from her.
To select talented individuals and spirit them away.
“…Has it been five years already?”
She spent five years like that.
She delivered students who were exceptionally skilled but mentally unstable into the organization’s arms.
Some were grateful, others resentful.
Amidst the alternating gratitude and resentment, she was tormented, yet she wished for this life to continue.
It was far more peaceful than when she had to raid dungeons twice a day.
As she was drifting day by day in a precarious peace with no end in sight.
Another choice was finally presented to her.
“Kim Do-jin…”
A man who had been marked as a recruitment target for the organization but had turned into a potential threat.
Should she help him and betray the organization?
Or should she report him to the organization and prove her loyalty once more?
After several days of deliberation, she placed her hands on her computer keyboard.
Click. Clack.
[I have something to report regarding the organization's security.]
After sending the message through the organization’s custom-developed messenger, she let out a small sigh and prayed.
Please, let my choice not be the wrong one.