D-Rank

In Korea, there was no law requiring the Awakened to register.

Imposing obligations on them, I'd heard, only invited backlash — and in the worst cases, they might simply pack up and emigrate. Registration came with enough benefits, though, that most Awakened signed up anyway. I was no exception.

"Welcome. What brings you in today?"

"I've awakened. This is where I register, right?"

"Ah, yes! I'll show you to the ability demonstration room!"

I followed the staff member into a small chamber.

"You can demonstrate your ability here. Is it an offensive type, by any chance?"

"No. Support-class."

"Alright — whenever you're ready!"

I pulled out the cup I'd stashed in my Inventory.

"I can put objects in and take them out like this. I haven't tested the details yet."

"Oh… c-could you wait just a moment?"

She fumbled her phone out, looking thoroughly flustered.

"Yes, Team Leader. Um, I think a subspace-class Awakened just came in. How should we measure… Ah, yes! Understood!"

She hung up and turned back to me, her voice careful.

"Um, it looks like we'll need additional personnel because of how the measurement works. Could you wait a little longer?"

"Yes, of course."

A short wait later, a man opened the door and stepped inside.

"A pleasure to meet you. I'm Yoon Seongho, Awakened Support Team Leader at Hunter ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Management Bureau headquarters."

"Ah, yes. Hello."

"I was told you're a subspace-class Awakened."

"That's right."

"Given the special nature of the case, determining your rank requires a somewhat involved procedure. I hope you'll bear with us."

"Of course. What do I need to do?"

"If you'd come this way."

He led me into a storage room cluttered with all manner of miscellaneous objects, then handed me one of the items sitting nearby.

"Please place the things in here into that subspace of yours. As many as you can — until you reach your limit."

"Ah, so you measure capacity instead of output?"

"Yes. That's the protocol for subspace-class Awakened."

I nodded, picked up a gray ball from the pile, and slipped it into my Inventory. I still had the sense I could fit quite a bit more.

I wonder how this is going to grade out.

Come to think of it — could I see my own status window? I was an Awakened now, after all.

The moment the thought formed, a status window materialized in front of my eyes as if it had been waiting.

"……?"

What the hell was this.

…Why is everything a question mark?

No improvement points. No current rank. Wasn't this failing at the entire point of having a status window?

A flicker of dissatisfaction rose in me, but it wasn't as if I had anyone to complain to.

"I just keep putting them in, right?"

"Yes. Until you can't fit any more. And if everything in this room goes in, we can simply move to the warehouse next door, so please don't worry about running out."

"Ah, I see."

Come to think of it — were the items in here expensive?

The thought crossed my mind, but Yoon Seongho must have read it on my face, because he smiled mildly.

"From the Bureau's perspective, of course, these are miscellaneous odds and ends we wouldn't miss — but we'd still appreciate it if you returned them all, if possible."

"Don't worry. I will."

As it turned out, I never needed the next room. Around the time I'd packed in roughly half of what was there, I felt it on instinct: nothing more would go in.

My body had grown distinctly heavier, and a wave of exhaustion so profound it made my legs buckle even while standing still washed through me.

…Right. Overloading this thing is a bad idea.

I frowned.

"That's it. Nothing ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠more will go in."

"Ah, yes. Then just a moment…"

Yoon Seongho lifted his phone and studied the screen with care.

"…According to the assessment criteria, you are D-Rank. Can you enter the subspace yourself, or store other living organisms inside?"

"No. I don't think so."

"I see."

He nodded and typed something into his phone.

"Then we'll issue you a D-Rank license. You should be able to receive it shortly."

"Alright."

"And you can just dump the items from your subspace however you like."

"…Is that alright?"

"Of course."

Well, if he said so. I emptied everything out of the Inventory, and a strangely light feeling spread through my body.

"That said, quite a few guilds are looking for subspace-class Awakened. It's an ability with virtually endless applications."

"Is that so?"

"Yes. I hope you'll have good news. And if you'd like, a contract with the Bureau is also an option."

I offered an awkward smile and shook my head.

"I'm sorry. I already have a guild in mind."

"Ahaha, is that so?"

Yoon Seongho gave a rueful little laugh, looking genuinely disappointed.

"Well, it can't be helped. I wish you the best of luck, Awakened Lee Yeonwoo. If you'll wait outside, we'll have your license issued."

"Yes, thank you."

And so I sat in the waiting room, killing time until the license came through.

My phone suddenly started ringing.

"Hm?"

Choi Jian or Han Yerim, I figured — but the screen showed a number I didn't recognize. If it had looked like a landline or a spam line, I would have hung up on the spot. It was a mobile number, though, so I figured I should at least pick up.

"Hello?"

"…Yes, it is."

An unfamiliar male voice. He knows I'm a guild master?

It was probably one of the guilds I'd emailed last time.

Sure enough.

"Ah."

So it was because of the email, after all.

"…Cheonhwa Guild?"

The guild that had actually called back was no ordinary one.

Cheonhwa Guild. I'd sent that email on a whim — and even as I'd hit send, I hadn't expected a reply in a hundred years. And now they were on the phone.

They actually called?

The surprise lasted only a moment. A cold sweat sprang up along my back.

…I'm not selling the guild anymore, though?

"Goddammit!"

Kim Junbeom bellowed, snatching up whatever he could get his hands on and hurling it across the room. In front of him, a man stood with his head bowed in silence, eyes squeezed shut.

"Hey, you stupid son of a bitch! How the hell do you run things that you send a piece of shit like that out on a job, huh?!"

"…I'm sorry."

"Sorry my fucking ass!!!"

Kim Junbeom was panting, looking like a man who had no idea how to keep the rage boiling in his chest from spilling over. And he didn't. If he couldn't vent this fury somehow, he was fairly certain he would kill the incompetent bastard standing in front of him — the guild member who'd been stupid enough to get pinched doing drugs downtown, in broad daylight, included.

"Hah. Go find a way to clean this up. If we don't get past this, I'm going to prison — and so is every last member of this guild."

"Y-yes, sir!"

"And Han Yerim. Find that bitch too, and fast."

If a guild had a high-ranking Awakened, even criminal activity could be overlooked to a degree. The Bureau had a tendency to avoid souring relations with high-rankers. But Shinyeom without Han Yerim — a guild with four B-Ranks at best, the rest a sea of C-Ranks and D-Ranks — stood no chance of receiving the Bureau's goodwill.

Which meant that if they were going to bury this, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠they needed Han Yerim. No question.

Of course, there was the small problem of how to find her in the middle of Seoul. But what choice did he have? If they didn't get her back, the guild was going to come apart at the seams.

"Goddammit…"

Kim Junbeom pulled a capsule from his pocket with a trembling hand and swallowed it. His eyes unfocused a moment later, the strength draining from his body as he slumped into his chair.

"Hah."

And then, as if the heavens themselves had decided to lend a hand—

"W-we found her!"

"…What?"

Kim Junbeom's reply came out thick and languid, the drug already settling in.

"Han Yerim, sir. We found her!"

Pleasant news, arriving the instant the high hit. Kim Junbeom's mouth stretched into a grin that nearly reached his ears.

"Bring her in. Now."

"Th-that's…"

The guild member who had come running to report hesitated, his voice turning awkward.

"She, uh. She already found a new guild. She said she won't be coming back…"

"…Did I just hear that wrong because I'm too high right now?"

He felt the high evaporate in an instant. Kim Junbeom's face twisted.

"Say that again. What did you just say?"

"…She already found a new guild, so."

"Does that make any goddamn sense?!"

Kim Junbeom roared.

"Tell her to get her ass over here right now! That kind of bullshit—!"

"B-but…!"

Han Yerim was an A-Rank Awakened. Forcing her to come was obviously impossible, and after she'd already refused once, talking her around was a lost cause. Worse — if the guild she'd joined turned out to be a major operation, or even a mid-tier one, Shinyeom was in no position to throw a tantrum and demand her back.

Kim Junbeom knew that. He knew it perfectly well.

"Fuck, if you don't bring her in, we're all screwed! Don't talk back — just bring her here now!"

"Y-yes, sir…!"