Rift Exploration Club
After all the regular classes ended, the academy students began their after-school activities with energy. It was usually a fun time to chat with friends and share various interests. However, the small auditorium in the education building felt strangely chaotic.
The last one to arrive was me. When the sound of the door opening echoed, the students already seated turned around almost simultaneously. All eyes focused on me.
Lens spoke up.
"What the hell…"
Most of them were faces I already knew, all first-years. An awkward atmosphere hung in the air. It felt like I'd walked into a space where I didn't belong.
"Ahem."
I quietly took the seat right next to the door. I'd expected this kind of reaction to some degree. The ten students besides me were all from Emperor Hall, the cream of the crop selected from the top 0.1% of elites. In the past, I wouldn't have even been able to meet their eyes. That was the kind of pressure exerted by those born at the very top of the pyramid. Every single one of them had the overwhelming gaze of a victor—eyes that had never once looked up at someone from below.
But without the slightest hint of shrinking back, I began to carefully observe each of their faces. First, Lee Dae-han, blessed with transcendent talent, and his close friend Cha Hyun-seung were seated at the very front. Then there was Seo Geon-woo, who possessed comparable talent and family background, sitting with his legs crossed and glaring at me with clear displeasure. His lackeys, Jo Min-hyuk and Park Dong-soo, were clinging to his sides like their fathers, fawning over him. Class president Ahn Kyung-tae was meticulously maintaining his signature mana staff.
Among the female members, Principal's daughter Kim Jeong-a was staring at me blankly. In contrast, Yu Hae-rin, the daughter of the Storm Guild, sat proudly facing forward without so much as glancing my way. Two flashy female students chewing gum while glaring at me completed the scene. They looked ready to stare me down until I looked away first.
That was when Seo Geon-woo's voice rang out.
"Ha Yeonjun, this doesn't seem like a place you should be. Why'd you come?"
He sat with a cocky posture, throwing a sneer my way.
It was a simple question, but his tone was clearly provocative. I deliberately played dumb.
"Who knows? I don't really know myself."
"You don't know?"
At that, Jo Min-hyuk, sitting beside him, stepped in on behalf of his young master.
"Then did you come to watch? Curious about what future pro hunters are doing?"
"Of course. After all, the best he can hope for is being a guard."
Park Dong-soo chimed in with his arms crossed, and the three men burst into laughter at once.
"Kekeke— aren't you being too harsh?"
Meanwhile, snippets of conversation from the female students on the other side drifted over.
"Oh my, who's that? He's kinda cute."
"I heard he's Ha Yeonjun from Class 1?"
"Ooh, really? Then I've claimed him!"
What? Who claimed who? When I turned my head, a girl with a lion-like hairstyle winked at me while sucking on a lollipop.
At that moment, Park Dong-soo made a flustered expression at the lion-haired girl's remark.
"Y-Yubin…!"
Seo Geon-woo looked at him with disdain before turning his gaze back to me.
"Anyway, Ha Yeonjun, do you even know where this is?"
"More or less?"
"More or less? Why's your answer like that?"
Right then, the sliding door of the small auditorium opened with a rattle. A sturdy man wearing black sunglasses appeared. Including me, all the students could roughly guess who he was—a pro hunter. The man who stepped onto the podium soon opened his mouth.
"Nice to meet you. I'm 9th-grade hunter Kim Du-sik."
He had a tall, handsome appearance mixed with a hint of clumsiness. His introduction was short and simple, but it was enough.
"Hello!"
Applause from the students followed immediately. Hunter Kim continued.
"I believe you all know why we've gathered here. But to say it again, we plan to enter a rift from now on."
"Rifts are dangerous places. We can't just bring anyone along recklessly. That's why, after discussing with the academy, we carefully selected ten first-year students with sufficient qualifications. Through this…"
At that moment, Park Dong-soo raised his hand and interrupted.
"I have a question!"
"What is it?"
"There aren't exactly 'ten' people gathered here, are there? Is it correct that Ha Yeonjun sitting over there isn't part of the plan?"
Mocking laughter from Seo Geon-woo's group immediately echoed through the auditorium. Hunter Kim removed his sunglasses and answered.
"I forgot to mention this. Student Ha Yeonjun was specially recommended and added as the eleventh member at the last minute."
"What? Who recommended him?"
"Professor Seong Ji-eun."
Then Hunter Kim Du-sik began walking closer while looking me in the eye.
"However, I have no intention of granting combat authority to Student Ha Yeonjun. Instead, I planned to bring him along as a porter."
"Puhaha! A porter?"
"Yes. To be honest, we're not entirely confident either. So, what do you think, Student Ha Yeonjun?"
Hunter Kim stood before me as he spoke, clearly wanting a clear answer.
"If you don't want to be a porter, you're free to leave right now."
I swallowed dryly. An incredible opportunity to enter a rift before even becoming a hunter had come my way. Opportunities like this didn't come often. Besides… there were things I wanted to test inside the rift too.
"I'm in."
I nodded and continued.
"Being a porter is fine."
At that moment, I felt the students' gazes. Even Yu Hae-rin, who had been ignoring me, was looking at me with a surprised expression.
"Good. Then I'll begin a brief presentation on how we'll proceed from here."
As he returned to the podium, it felt like all the students' eyes were focused on me. Having attention drawn to me wasn't ideal, but… well.
That was when Hunter Kim spoke again.
"There's a suitable rift nearby. The ownership belongs to the Hwasan Guild, and it's located halfway up Gyeryong Mountain. It's been rated as D-class…"
Forty years ago, after the 'Tearing Incident' that nearly led the world to destruction, holes that served as entrances to the lairs of demons began appearing all over the world. In Korea, they were called rifts. And the ones who entered these rifts to subjugate the monsters were the hunters—those among the awakened who had received specialized training and been carefully selected.
Before long, Hunter Kim concluded his explanation.
"That wraps up the explanation. Let's depart right away."
"What? Right now?"
The students asked again at the sudden schedule. I was also taken aback, but Hunter Kim remained calm, simply checking his wristwatch.
"I'll give you ten minutes to prepare. That should be enough, right?"
"W-Well…!"
I'd thought today would only involve a simple orientation… The students let out exclamations.
*
We boarded the bus that had been rented in advance and finally arrived at the entrance of Gyeryong Mountain. The students got off one by one. The practical weapons they normally couldn't carry gleamed sharply in their hands. Their armaments were varied. Some wore light clothing, while others were fully equipped in heavy armor. And I…
"Hup!"
I stepped onto the ground with a massive load on my back. My current appearance probably looked like a traveling merchant from the modern era. Why was there so much luggage…? Besides the essential potions and emergency rations, there were exploration tools like flashlights and mining tools like pickaxes—quite a variety.
In reality, the porter role usually fell to 'guards.' It was the only hunter-type job available to academy students whose grades didn't measure up. It was the fate of those who wanted to become hunters but couldn't.
"Hey, porter! I'm counting on you!"
At that moment, lackey Park Dong-soo patted my shoulder with a smug grin. I found myself glaring at him without realizing it.
"……"
He visibly flinched.
"W-What…!"
Damn it! I couldn't even hit him… All I could do was grit my teeth and move past the situation. I gave him a light smile.
"Yeah, I'm counting on you too."
Only then did Park Dong-soo regain his grin. He laughed awkwardly while wiping the sweat from his forehead.
That was when Hunter Kim Du-sik's voice rang out.
"Alright! Can everyone see that?"
The students turned their heads in the direction Hunter Kim was pointing. I did the same. What came into view was something shimmering like a mirage on the mountainside.
"That's a rift."
A source teeming with all kinds of monsters. A mysterious subspace that had to be eliminated as top priority the moment it was discovered. Humanity had yet to conquer rifts. Therefore, the best method for now was to experience them firsthand. I stared at the shimmering rift and clenched my fist tightly.