Chapter 60
Chapter 60
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 60
Chapter Title: 13. Needle in a Sack (2)
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One corner of the exam hall.
A man in his thirties, hat pulled low, was on the phone with someone.
"How's the atmosphere?"
[It's already broken the 40-minute mark, and everyone's looking flustered. We had press releases ready to tout Project B's passing in under 30 minutes, but this unexpected outcome has the reporters buzzing too.]
"Perfect."
The man's smile deepened.
His name was Gu Jun-ho.
He was the team leader at Daeyang Management.
In Korea's management industry, Heavenly Firmament dominated the top spot, but for the past five years, a close pursuer had been nipping at their heels: Daeyang. Backed by foreign capital, they'd poured massive investments from the start and, in just five years, were hailed as forming the twin peaks alongside Heavenly Firmament.
Of course, Daeyang had seeded those articles themselves.
Most people who read them scoffed that Daeyang couldn't hold a candle to Heavenly Firmament, but if even one in ten nodded in agreement, that spoke volumes about Daeyang's impressive rise.
'This project Heavenly Firmament's running is proof they can cultivate talent too. If we let it succeed unchecked, Daeyang will fall too far behind to catch up.'
Project A Team.
Their success was the problem.
When they were graded C-Rank, rumors swirled that Heavenly Firmament might be in over their heads.
That's why he'd intervened.
Gu Jun-ho had bought off an exam official.
With the government overseeing things, overt sabotage was impossible, but he could at least crank up the difficulty for Project B's test. And to avoid suspicion if only they failed at the higher level, he'd arranged for other parties to take the exam too, engineering more failures.
That alone might spark rumors.
But vague suspicions held no power.
Gu Jun-ho watched Heavenly Firmament's staff scrambling about, his lips twitching with genuine delight.
"Sorry, but this one's gonna be tough."
Jeong Hye-mi's confidence was well-founded.
Even with Daeyang's deliberate interference, Project B had somehow passed the test.
[Record: 55 minutes 19 seconds. You have passed the test.]
The judges' evaluation was still pending, but it beat the worst-case scenario of exceeding an hour.
"You okay?"
"Medics! Medics!"
Min Young-gi and the team.
They were a mess.
The main tanker especially had limbs torn in places, covered in blood. Min Young-gi sported disheveled hair and utter exhaustion. One mage couldn't even walk straight, limping badly. Heavenly Firmament's medics rushed in to treat them—no way did they look like test passers.
"This is such bullshit."
Min Young-gi grimaced.
The camera lenses, fun at first, now just pissed him off knowing they were capturing this.
Then someone approached.
"What happened?"
"...Team Leader."
It was Jeong Hye-mi.
She had no words.
She'd thrown full support behind Project B and dragged in the press, so they needed solid results. But they'd fallen short. Min Young-gi explained with a defeated look.
"I don't know either. Things were going fine at first, but then some unforeseen variable hit. Team Leader, in all the C-Rank group tests so far, has the ground ever collapsed targeting just the backline DPS? Our mages couldn't output firepower, and then a Green Spider swarm showed up—one that needed raw firepower to clear. That's when it went sideways. The tanker held the front long enough for us to rescue the mages and scrape by, but that variable was over the top."
"The ground collapsed?"
"Yes. I've never heard of it happening. All the prior parties failed too—doesn't that seem off?"
Jeong Hye-mi's expression grew grave.
It was suspicious.
Variables in promotion exams didn't usually corner you like this.
Geographic disadvantages were things like darkness blocking vision, or tough monsters testing teamwork. Patterns varied—stalactites dropping to check reactions—but a sinkhole targeting the backline? That was brutal. You'd accept it from B-Rank up, where difficulty spiked, but not in C-Rank. Those tests had safety limits since anyone could apply, unlike B-Rank which required proven C-Rank skill. No reckless ramps to avoid fatalities. If they'd tuned it this thoroughly, it stayed within C-Rank bounds but made it nearly impossible for average teams.
Outside the waiting room.
Reporters murmured.
They couldn't just accept this.
She went to confront an official.
And demanded answers.
"Don't you think this test was excessive? I've heard C-Rank tests never had variables like this."
"So? Just because it was that way before doesn't mean it has to be now."
The official's response.
Hostile.
As if he'd expected her, he didn't budge.
"That's why people question hunters' qualifications these days. Those pampered by managements, growing comfy—they lag behind true wild hunters risking their lives, even at the same rank. Listen, Team Leader, what do you think we do here? Ranks aren't just for wealth and fame. They're a warning: no skills matching the grade? Stay in your lane. Easy tests handing high ranks? That's how you end up dead for nothing."
"...I'm not arguing overreach. I'm saying the difficulty lacked fairness. Prior tests, the one before—all milder. But today, the moment Project B tested, every previous party got hit with this level?"
The official smirked.
This was whining.
A fight she couldn't win.
"We did up the difficulty this time. Not personal—our call based on judgment. And they passed, didn't they? Judges say individual evals were passable too. What's the big issue?"
He wasn't wrong.
They had planned to raise promotion exam difficulties going forward.
Not just groups—individuals too. Government stance: clarify rank distinctions.
They'd just implemented it now.
No holes in his logic.
'It's definite. Something's up.'
She'd come for show at first.
Couldn't abandon Project B, so planned articles framing their pass despite abnormal difficulty. Calculated protest. Didn't expect real gains, but his reaction fueled doubts.
Someone was pulling strings.
Why else hike difficulty now and act so antagonistic?
'My brother?'
No.
Their rivalry was fierce, but he wouldn't sabotage his sister.
Then.
'Daeyang?'
Lately.
Daeyang had been flooding with negative articles.
Suspicious, but still just suspicion.
Jeong Hye-mi said,
"...We'll withdraw for today, but we'll be watching. Any hint of irregularity in the process, and we won't stay quiet."
The test ended.
Result: pass.
But it left a bitter taste.
Jeong Hye-mi checked the flood of articles on her phone.
[Heavenly Firmament's Project B: Total Failure!?]
[What Went Wrong?]
[55:19. Essentially a Failure!]
[Heavenly Firmament's painstaking Project B passed group promotion but struggled mightily. Public doubts Heavenly Firmament's capabilities. A top management like them lavished benefits, yet 55:19 is basically failure. Per exam officials, recent hunters' declining quality is the issue...]
Malicious coverage.
Just 30 minutes post-test, and this deluge screamed orchestration. Daeyang was the prime suspect. Not just targeting Project B—any force gaining from tarnishing Heavenly Firmament had to be a rival firm.
Jeong Hye-mi's best counter: defensive articles.
[Project B Prevails Despite Extreme Difficulty!]
[This Test Was No C-Rank.]
[Government Sets Sieve for the 'Real' Deal—Only Project B Made It Through!]
It wouldn't shift the narrative much.
Success, not dismal failure, but the spotlight and validation she'd sought? Fizzled. Reporters had left. She wanted to head back like her staff, but scheduled events pinned her.
'Outcome's obvious.'
The fifth group was midway.
Soon, her brother Jeong Chan-woo. Any faint hope had died long ago.
Project B—full D-Ranks, prepped to the hilt—nearly failed.
No way his ragtag party passes. Just hoped no injuries. She'd love to stop his test outright, but contact was blocked to prevent cheating.
'A clean failure might be best for you.'
Then.
It'd give her leverage to convince him.
Quit the nonsense, accept her help, grow steadily at Heavenly Firmament.
Family was family.
Even in this foul mood, she stayed for him.
Right on cue.
[Record: 79 minutes 10 seconds. Test failed.]
As expected.
Fifth party timed out, no individual eval, eliminated.
Now the sixth.
The last scheduled test today.
Her brother's turn at last.