Ignorance is Bliss (2)
The purpose of gathering the Haetae Guild executives at the guild headquarters today was singular.
To clarify exactly what had happened at the Gangseo-gu Gate two days ago.
“……Maybe the initial measurement was wrong? How does a C-rank dungeon suddenly turn into an S-rank one?”
“Yeah. Not even A or B-rank, of all things.”
“Jumping three ranks at once? That doesn't make sense. What the hell happened……”
Two days ago, a new dungeon gate had appeared at the Gangseo-gu intersection, creating a massive sinkhole.
From its emergence location, the gate had been anything but ordinary—everything about it was shrouded in mystery.
And for good reason: the initial dungeon rank measurement had clearly pegged it as C-rank.
Yet the final confirmed rank after clearing was S-rank.
“If it was S-rank from the start, they couldn't have measured it wrong. S-rank gates have a different color from the get-go.”
“Did the Association send a blind guy or something?”
“……I'll take that as a joke.”
They'd initially suspected a measurement error by the Association.
But that didn't hold up either.
Even non-awakeners could identify an S-rank dungeon gate by its color alone.
Mistaking an S-rank for C-rank was practically impossible in reality.
The gate's color was different to begin with, and S-rank dungeon gates emitted mana waves in all directions.
“If it was S-rank from the beginning, Luther would've noticed something off.”
“……True. Luther hunters said it was definitely C-rank when they first entered.”
“But that means……”
“The rank jumped to S-rank midway through the raid.”
After a brief discussion, they reached one conclusion.
The dungeon had undoubtedly started as C-rank before suddenly transforming into an S-rank one.
“This is a huge problem. We might have to reassign dungeon management hunters from scratch.”
Every executive in the meeting room was a seasoned hunter.
They instantly grasped the implications of a dungeon rank suddenly escalating.
“And it wasn't temporary. It permanently became an S-rank dungeon.”
One Haetae Guild executive said this with a troubled expression.
Soon, info on the Gangseo-gu dungeon gate appeared on the meeting room screen.
“Monsters, mana stones—all straight out of an S-rank dungeon. The dungeon core Luther retrieved was S-rank too, of course.”
“……The finance team must be thrilled. Extra revenue and all.”
“Dude, is that the issue right now? What if other C-rank dungeons suddenly turn S-rank?”
A C-rank dungeon turning S-rank meant far higher-quality mana stones inside.
But naturally, the monsters became incomparably stronger too.
That was what worried the Haetae Guild executives most.
There was no guarantee this rank-escalation anomaly wouldn't happen again.
“If we don't figure out why, Korea—no, the whole world—could be doomed. We need answers before every dungeon turns S-rank.”
“Jeez, drama queen.”
“Gotta lose his mind before he chills out, huh?”
“……Enough.”
Haetae Guild leader Yoo Do-ah raised a hand to quiet the rising voices.
She hadn't called them here to bicker.
What mattered now was pinpointing the cause of the anomaly from two days ago.
“Kim A-rin. What's your take?”
Yoo Do-ah asked Kim A-rin for her opinion.
After all, she was the only executive with meaningful info on the Gangseo-gu Gate.
Well, strictly speaking, it wasn't info—she'd found the hunter who'd raided it.
Among those present, Kim A-rin knew this unregistered hunter Lee Ji-woo best.
That's why Yoo Do-ah asked her.
“………….”
“……Kim A-rin?”
But for some reason, silence.
She just shook her head quietly, as if she knew nothing.
When Kim A-rin finally spoke, it was slightly off-topic from the Gangseo-gu Gate.
“Unnie. About Ji-woo unnie…… …what do you think?”
“That kid from earlier?”
“Yeah.”
That's when Yoo Do-ah's heart started beating a little faster.
The child who'd entered the meeting room following Kim A-rin.
Anyone could see she wasn't an adult—maybe fourth grade at most.
And.
“Give me my money.”
The cutest creature she'd ever laid eyes on.
A girl so irresistibly huggable, with those squishy ears begging to be stroked, cheeks that looked oh-so-soft to pinch someday.
“……Di-didn't Ji-woo say she doesn't know why the dungeon rank rose either?”
“Yeah. Unnie doesn't know. She said all she did was retrieve the dungeon core.”
Strictly speaking, Lee Ji-woo had no info on the anomaly either.
She'd just suddenly awakened a transformation skill, soloed the boss monster, and retrieved the core—that was it.
Of course, that was impressive enough.
By the time Lee Ji-woo took down the boss, it was already an S-rank dungeon.
In other words, that little girl had soloed an S-rank dungeon boss.
“A fresh awakener taking down an S-rank boss alone…… Definitely not ordinary.”
“True. At 11, Yoo Do-ah was just chilling at home watching cartoons.”
“……Skip the irrelevant stuff.”
“Anyway, that girl's something else, huh? Boldly demanding money from our guild leader Yoo Do-ah. Fearless little thing~.”
The other executives mostly agreed.
She'd clearly awakened a powerful skill, so let's coax her gently.
Maybe nurture her into a key pillar for Haetae Guild down the line.
“She wants to join us anyway, right? No issue then~.”
“Man, she's scary for a kid. Mana spiking right after awakening like that.”
“……Everyone's on board?”
“Better we take her than let some other guild snag her.”
“But why keep calling her 'unnie'? She's way younger than you.”
“……Later. I'll explain later.”
Discussion on the unregistered hunter Lee Ji-woo that Kim A-rin brought wrapped up there.
Haetae Guild had no reason to turn away a powerful new awakener.
And Lee Ji-woo herself had already set her sights on Haetae.
“So, what do we do about that Ji-woo kid's affiliation?”
“……Protected Awakener.”
The system where guilds, not the government, care for freshly awakened hunters: Protected Awakener.
Newly awakened hunters could go berserk, so fellow awakeners guide them until they control their powers.
Especially crucial for powerful skills like S-rank ones.
These commonly called probationary hunters were Protected Awakeners under guild care.
“Huh? She already cleared an S-rank dungeon. Could throw her into raids right away.”
“……Imagine the headlines if we send an elementary kid into a dungeon. What do you think happens?”
“Sneak her in~.”
“Unless you all wanna go to jail, I oppose.”
“Yeah, not yet. I oppose too.”
“Even Yoo Do-ah……? What's going on. Am I the only one in favor?”
“Trash.”
“Child abuser.”
“Psycho.”
“Mind-blowing that you even thought of taking a kid into a dungeon.”
Under the barrage from the other executives, the lone advocate for deploying Lee Ji-woo surrendered.
That was when Guild Leader Yoo Do-ah announced the final decision.
“Alright, Ji-woo joins Haetae Guild. And for the Gangseo-gu Gate, we'll form our own investigation team.”
“Sh-shouldn't we ask Luther? It's their assigned dungeon, technically.”
“Idiot, Luther begged us for help. How's a mid-tier guild with an A-rank leader supposed to manage an S-rank?”
“I asked Yoo Do-ah, not you.”
Yoo Do-ah left the meeting room, leaving the growling executives behind.
She just needed a quick bathroom break.
Next, summon the Luther hunters and Lee Ji-woo back to relay Haetae Guild's official stance.
-Click.
“Jeez, what the hell even happened……”
Her mind was still a mess, but that's what being a major guild leader entailed.
Commanding everyone amid chaos instead of panicking.
At least it wasn't the absolute worst—Gangseo-gu Gate had stabilized, no dead or injured hunters.
“……Never thought I'd owe a kid like this.”
In the end, it was all thanks to Lee Ji-woo.
Without her retrieving the core, Seoul's heart would've faced an S-rank gate shock.
She'd held back earlier with everyone watching, but she desperately wanted to pet her.
The kid had pulled off what stumped adult hunters—and she was already adorable.
Yoo Do-ah was smitten.
“……Wanna touch those ears, but will she get mad? Or maybe bribe her with allowance.”
For now, she'd honor Lee Ji-woo's dungeon clear reward and guild join request.
That'd make her officially Haetae Guild under Yoo Do-ah, who could then teach her all sorts of things.
Like getting comfy with her skills as a hunter.
Special training to wield her new powers more strongly and fluidly.
Or show her gear from Haetae's warehouse.
“Transformation skill, so protective gear over swords? But how'd those tiny hands take down monsters?”
Either way, Lee Ji-woo was a fresh 'newbie hunter.'
As a veteran 'pro hunter,' Yoo Do-ah felt an overwhelming urge to spoil the cute little newbie.
The gamer term 'pocket money'—especially.
“Those cheeks though. Gotta find a way…… Hope I didn't rub her wrong? You idiot, fix your speech like I told you. Talking all stiff to a kid. Guild leader's gone all high and mighty……!”
Whether her debut was legendary or not, just looking at her was heart-melting.
Staring at that youthful face forced goofy grins Yoo Do-ah had to suppress with gritted teeth.
To maintain guild leader dignity, she'd used formal speech, but it tore her apart inside.
Separating work and personal life was harder than she'd imagined—lesson learned today.
“First, call her aside and apologize. …Wait, didn't even say thanks? What kind of trash adult am I?”
Guilt swelling, Yoo Do-ah tugged at her hair.
'Position makes the man'—she'd become authoritative and rigid without realizing.
Whatever. What happened happened.
From now on, softer speech. She exited the bathroom.
And spotted a squishy tail in the distance.
“……Huh?”
How long had she been at the bathroom? Lee Ji-woo was bolting away.
Did she hear my muttering?
Heart dropping, Yoo Do-ah chased—but.
“Stop. Unnie.”
Kim A-rin had already hidden Lee Ji-woo behind her, glaring like Yoo Do-ah was trash.
She'd overheard everything and snitched to Kim A-rin, apparently.
“W-wait. Hold on. It's a misunderstanding──!”
“……Don't come closer, unnie. Talk from there.”
“Urk!”
***
“Earlier, I, uh, y'know…… I like animals. Bunnies are cute, right?”
“I'm a person.”
“N-no, I mean……!”
The guild leader panicked at my sulky face.
Her ears were even a bit red, for some reason. But I'd made up my mind.
No matter her excuses, I'd scout other guilds to join.
Or if stuck with Haetae, bolt to another ASAP.
“Send my dungeon clear pay to Kim A-rin. I'll collect from her later.”
“W-wait. Hold on, Ji-woo-ya.”
“Later then.”
As the guild leader inched closer, I backed away too.
No way I'd let someone refusing my Manifestation skill grope my cheeks.
Even Hwaran touching them yesterday was super embarrassing.
What guy lets a woman fiddle with his cheeks? Even lovers wouldn't.
“Unnie, hear unnie out, Ji-woo-ya. She can explain everything.”
“The number you have dialed is no longer in service. Please check and try again……”
“Wh-what the…… …Urk!”
The guild leader reached out, resolved.
But I didn't defend.
We were talking, after all.
No matter her skills, my S-rank No-Attack During Talk would block it.
(A) Future Sight: Activated!
Entity: Yoo Do-ah reads the future most desired by Entity: Lee Ji-woo………
……Didn't see that coming.
“Ji-Ji-woo-ya, you…… wanna be famous! Super famous, posting on Nyoongle and stuff───!”
“Uwaaaahhh!”
I lunged to cover her mouth—she'd read my mind too easily.
She couldn't learn my nickname.
I'd secretly posted Kim A-rin pics on Hunter Gallery……!
Reality, please freeze.
-Flail flail.
-Flail flail.
Problem: guild leader was tall.
No matter how high I jumped, I couldn't reach her mouth.
“Ju-just trust unnie, Ji-woo-ya. Unnie's kinda famous? Insta followers in the millions, unnie can…!”
“Okay, okay! Stop. Stooop.”
“Spam…… you want spam too? Unnie'll buy you a whole box. No, ordering now!”
The guild leader went full throttle in real-time.
Kim A-rin watched, face-covered, head bowed in secondhand shame.
No, I'm the embarrassed one? Shut it already.
“And, and more…!”
-Twitch.
Her mouth paused.
Seizing the moment, I kicked off and jumped—using Fenrion's power too.
-Thud!
“Mmph, mmph!”
Su……success.
Finally sealed her mouth.
But why……
Her eyes stared past me into space, twitching.
“……What're you staring at, unnie? You brought me here, said it'd be fine.”
“Hah……huff.”
Then thud.
Her knees buckled; she collapsed.
Dunno what her Future Sight showed, but good for me.
-Whisper whisper.
“If you don't stay quiet, I'll tip off the news and net. Got it?”
“Y……yeah. G-got……it.”
I warned her: one more reality-freeze and no mercy.
She nodded slowly but stayed dazed on the floor.
Jeez, what the heck did she see?