S-Rank Judgment

The instant I heard the promotion message, my vision went hazy.

"Ha. Life."

Four years had passed since I first challenged the exam. Even hunters with next to no talent supposedly ranked up within a year if they kept working after awakening. I had taken four times as long as anyone else.

But this—this was where it really began.

Sir, thou canst become the strongest in the world.

"Because you're here?"

Indeed.

Sir Isra thumped her chest with one hand.

Who dost thou think I am?

"Self-proclaimed strongest sword on the continent."

Just so! With Isra at thy side, the world's strongest is a matter of course!

An otherworldly soul anchored in a zombie. Without Isra, I never would have cleared the exam at the highest rank.

And if—if I found another soul from another world after Sir Isra… if I possessed that soul into an undead and inherited its talents…

How much stronger could I become?

World's strongest?

I had heard it right after taking Sir Isra in, but the thought flickered past that it might not be pure fantasy after all.

Promotion always came with two skills of the matching rank as rewards. I read through the descriptions slowly.

"Huh."

Is something amiss?

"No. It's just too good."

That breath had not been a sigh of frustration—it was pure awe.

What jumped out first was the growth-type option.

— Proficiency rises three times slower than ordinary skills.

— Upon reaching 100% proficiency, the skill's rank increases.

— However, a skill cannot grow beyond the user's rank.

— Past a certain rank, additional enlightenment may also be required.

A penalty of slow proficiency growth, in exchange for continuous advancement. Limited, of course, to the hunter's own rank. The last clause meant nothing to me yet, so I skipped it.

Come to think of it, all of thy skills have been growth-type.

Corpse Crafting ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and Corpse Processing. Both were growth-type, but they had been stuck behind the wall of rank.

At last. The two growth-type skills that had not budged even after hitting 100% proficiency had finally strengthened—more undead I could craft, more materials I could work.

"Hoo."

I let out a long breath and tamped down the heat rising in my chest. There was still one more step left.

I checked Spirit Eye first.

S-rank?!

"Uuuuuuuaaaaaagh—"

Sir. Hast thou abandoned being human?

I pretended not to hear. This once, I had decided to savor the joy in full. Only after a long stretch of noises that might have been shrieks or pure delight did my heart settle.

"Hoo."

What didst thou receive, to be so astonished?

"An S-rank skill."

Nothing so remarkable.

"Sir. You know you're being incredibly annoying, right?"

A skill book with an S-rank skill recorded in it was Epic grade. Epic-grade items started at ten billion won, minimum. I had heard the rumors that additional rewards from the promotion exam were something special. Experiencing it ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠myself was beyond anything I had imagined.

Pray tell me what this great ability may be.

"Spirit Eye. Says it can read corpse data and the flow of mana."

Nothing I could feel right away. I only vaguely figured that S-rank meant it had to be good.

Oh—ohhhh!!! Magnificent!

"Why are you the one getting worked up?"

It seems an ability that will mesh exceedingly well with Heavenly Martial Body.

This is an eye. What does it have to do with Heavenly Martial Body?

To advance into higher realms, one's energy and body must become as one.

The unity of essence, energy, and spirit. If I fused mana and muscle movement through Heavenly Martial Body and Spirit Eye together…

Thy training efficiency shall rise all the higher.

"Ah. Is that so."

Impressive, sure. Whether it was worth all that overreaction, I still wasn't sure.

Dost thou think it aids only in sword training? Reading the timing of mana discharge lets one read an opponent's intent.

Add eyes that read mana to Heavenly Martial Body's senses, and it apparently bordered on foresight.

"Yes, yes. Truly magnificent."

Sir. Dost thou not believe my words?

"Foresight might be overselling it a bit."

Hmph. The day shall come soon enough when thou understandest what I say.

Fine. Let's say Sir was right. Spirit Eye being S-rank was already incredible—but for me, Death Domain was plenty useful too.

"Congratulations. You're finally free of carrier duty."

That this should be cause for celebration…

"If you don't like it, go back to being treated like luggage."

I gave the carrier a couple of light kicks with my foot.

Splendid! It pleases me greatly indeed!

Sir Isra's head bobbed vigorously up and down. When I deployed Death Domain, my shadow stretched out with a soft surge.

Do I simply step in here?

Sir Isra set a foot into the elongated darkness, and her body sank cleanly away.

I had taken Sir Isra into the shadow, and she weighed nothing at all. Maximum capacity was ten bodies. I could stash hunted monsters whole, or tuck pre-made undead into the shadow and pull them out whenever I needed them.

Rather cozy in here.

"You can talk?"

I even share thy field of vision.

Well now. Sir could sightsee the outside world to her heart's content.

"Take a good look at how another world works."

Hahaha! How I look forward to it!

The promotion exam was over. I headed back the way I had entered and put my weight against the door.

Creeeak—

A shaft of light spilled through, and beyond it lay the scenery of Yeouido. The moment my foot crossed the open doorway—

"Find Hunter Park Minho!"

"Who the hell is he?"

"We have to find him first!"

People were rushing around in a frenzy. What was this atmosphere?

The tenth of every month was the noisiest day in the hunter industry. Promotion exams held at Seungcheon Tower. Results went public through information terminals posted all over the tower.

"How many A-ranks and above this time, you think?"

"Mir Guild's Lee Seonga is in it—at least one S-rank is locked in."

Even within the same job category, the performance of the skills awarded varied slightly depending on exam results. From A-rank up, examinees also received additional skills—rare abilities that never dropped from ordinary skill books. That was why guild headhunters flocked to Seungcheon Tower on the tenth of every month.

"Didn't Lee Seonga get an A+ last time?"

"That's why she's retaking it."

"Mir's been pushing this rookie hard. Guess there's a reason."

Even after passing the promotion exam, a hunter who wanted to could decline the rank-up and challenge the next session instead. Every so often, people gave up a whole month chasing a bigger reward. Lee Seonga was one of those cases.

"Top five guilds in the country, huh. They really are on another level."

"We need to snag someone decent ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠ourselves."

"We're just guests at Mir's banquet."

Guild staff from all over grumbled, but none of them took their eyes off the terminals. They did not even glance at C-rank and above. A hunter who only started standing out at that point? Being unaffiliated would have been the stranger thing. What they watched was the D-rank promotion exam—angling for even one promising hunter with a future. The headhunters had fire in their eyes.

And then—

"Huh?"

One guild staffer made a blank, stupid sound.

Starting with the staffer who had first gone huh—

"S-rank?"

"Insane."

"It's not Lee Seonga. It's some other hunter!"

In under ten seconds, the entire area around Seungcheon Tower erupted. Everyone had assumed this recruitment war would be nothing more than planting a spoon on Mir Guild's feast table. They were wrong. The real jewel was somewhere else entirely.

The guild staffers went wild. Low rank? Irrelevant. Better, even.

"Why wouldn't you buy a scratch-off ticket that pays out huge?"

"Park Minho, was it?"

"We have to sign him for our guild. No matter what."

What his class was. What trick had earned him an S-rank on the exam. All of that was secondary. Seungcheon Tower had a footprint wider than the 63 Building, and with multiple entry routes, there was no telling where the hunter who had cleared at S-rank would emerge.

"Let's sweep the place."

"The cake doesn't come to people who stand still."

If they closed a contract with Minho the moment he walked out of the exam? Forget the performance bonus—promotion was guaranteed. Never mind how much their guild would grow; that went without saying. One way or another, they had to find Minho and get his seal on a guild membership form.

"Heh heh. Our rookie sure is causing a stir."

The Mir Guild people stood at ease with their hands behind their backs, watching the other guilds thrash about. It had not crossed their minds by so much as a hair that anyone other than Lee Seonga might receive an S-rank.

We've been setting this stage for a week.

Everything arranged so Hunter Lee Seonga would stand out the most.

They had called in every reporter with ties to Mir Guild and packed them into Seungcheon Tower. Lee Seonga's class was an irregular: Creator. Ninety-nine percent of hunters received one of four jobs—Warrior, Archer, Mage, or Supporter. The remaining one percent were called irregulars, and among those, Creator was both exceedingly rare and extremely powerful. One of the Twelve Stars spoken of as the strongest in the world—Marie—was a Creator, and the army she forged from jewels was famed as a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠one-person legion that surpassed even necromancers.

"Everyone, let's make sure Ms. Lee Seonga looks her best."

"Uh, Team Lead? The mood out there's a little weird."

One Mir Guild employee carefully parted his lips.

"It looks like someone else got the S-rank on the exam."

"What?"

"Someone named Park Minho, apparently."

The Mir Guild supervisor's face went brick red.

"Why are you only telling me something this important now?!"

"W-what should we do?"

"What do you mean, what—hold the reporters off for a bit and wait until our rookie comes ou—"

The Mir Guild staffer was scrambling to issue orders when—

"It's not Lee Seonga."

"Park Minho?"

"Find him. Now."

"Start by searching the major guilds."

The waiting reporters caught the scent of a scoop and started digging.