Chapter 28
Chapter 28
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 28
Chapter Title: Just as I Expected
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I had a feeling this would happen.
Hunter rank evaluations aren't like what you see in comics, where you place your hand on a crystal ball and—*fanfare*—it declares, "You are an incredibly powerful, National Power-level Hunter!"
Instead, they compile various measurement results. For the Summoner class, the rank typically depends on the combat power of their summons.
That's why a separate evaluation method exists exclusively for Summoners.
"So, Ophelia is the one who will be fighting?"
"Yes, that is correct. As of now, I am the unit most proficient in combat."
"I see."
"However, I am not the only one who needs to be evaluated."
"Huh? Then who else?"
Ophelia came up behind me, skillfully removed my coat, and folded it neatly on a nearby bench as she spoke.
We were at the Hunter Rank Evaluation Center located in Yongsan, inside the Integrated Combat Training Room. The sturdy walls were constantly protected by a flow of magic, and there were things that looked like cannons lined up in a row.
There were also moving, human-like mannequins that I had only seen in pictures, stacked neatly against one wall.
"In principle, Your Highness's combat ability must also be measured. Therefore, I will assist you with stretching after you change."
"M-me too?! But I already did a bunch of exercises today!"
"Oh? Eve, you exercised already?"
"Yes! I did... not Pinkfong, I mean, a really tough workout..!"
"Pfft, ah... really?"
Yoo Chae-rin nodded, trying to stifle her giggles at my words, but it was obvious she didn't believe me at all. If I had known I'd have to move around here too, I would've just rested at home. Why did they have to make me exercise at home and here...!
My arms and legs are already sore!
"Don't worry, Eve. We'll just do a light evaluation on an easy difficulty."
"R-really..?"
"Of course~ And you can rest after you stretch. Minium and Suri will go first, and then Ophelia and you can go after them."
Yoo Chae-rin nodded and operated the control panel near the entrance, opening the door to Test Room 1 and calling for Minium and Suri.
"Minium? Shall we head into Test Room 1?"
ㅡClank!
Upon hearing Yoo Chae-rin's words, Minium turned its head toward me. It was probably asking if it was okay to follow her instructions, right?
"G-go on, Minium. Do your best!"
ㅡClank!
Minium gave me a thumbs-up and a nod. It was much stronger now, having been partially built with titanium alloy and rare metals. I had also given it all the magic stones we collected from the Lizardman swamp.
We could watch Minium inside the test room through a super-reinforced glass window installed in the wall.
"Minium! Don't be nervous, just do your best!"
Minium could faintly hear my voice from beyond the test room. It nodded with a determined look and gripped the single sword in its hand. It was a rare metal sword prepared by Nova, probably with specs similar to, or slightly better than, the one Han Do-hee had given me.
"Then... let's begin."
The test room was finished with white metal on all sides. The neatly arranged square tiles began to open one by one with a whirring sound, revealing the muzzles of what looked like baseball pitching machines, which then started firing soft balls.
ㅡSwish!
The balls were slow at first, but soon they were flying at a considerable speed. White balls could be dodged, or if possible, blocked or cut with the sword.
As the difficulty ramped up, red balls that couldn't be blocked or cut started pouring out. Then came black balls made of solid steel, which delivered a heavy impact if blocked.
Next, blue balls that had to be caught appeared. Minium accurately used its free left hand, or its feet, to gently dribble the balls before sinking them into the designated collection bin, just like a basketball shot.
"W-woooow...!"
"Its visual acuity and reaction time to objects are outstanding. It's a shame its frame is a bit small... but that can be solved if it just gets bigger."
"Right?! Isn't Minium amazing!?"
"He is. You're amazing, Eve."
"A-ahem..."
Minium was my creation, like my own child. Hearing it praised made me feel good, too.
ㅡWhirrr
The lights in the test room went out one by one, and the door opened with a hiss. Minium emerged from the room, which was now littered with balls.
"Excellent. Overall, it's demonstrating the reaction speed of an A-rank bruiser. Unfortunately, its power output is lacking, so its destructive force seems to be around a C+ or B- rank."
"Hmm."
In other words, it was like a veteran fighter without a high-power attack skill. But there were many ways to increase its output, including magic stones, and the missing hair dryer probably played a part too.
"Shall we see Suri next?"
Suri entered a vast test room with a complex layout of what looked like train rails. Scarecrows, shaped like the upper torsos of humans, emerged from the walls and moved along the rails, and Suri's task was to fly and destroy them.
This test room was originally designed for long-range Hunters to practice hitting targets, but flying summons were also tested here.
"Beginning the test."
ㅡClatter!
As soon as the test started, dozens of targets emerged from the walls and began moving along the ever-changing paths of the rails. Stage 1 had 10 targets moving slowly. Stage 2 had 15 moving a bit faster, and so on, all the way up to Stage 10.
"Suri? Why aren't you moving?!"
"Is there a problem?"
Suri was merely flapping its wings slowly in a corner of the high-ceilinged test room, not making any move to attack. It waited for a while, until the paths of the targets aligned into a somewhat straight line.
ㅡWhoosh!
In an instant, Suri dove from the sky, striking a multitude of targets with its wide wings—*thwack, thwack, thwack*—as it passed.
"Indeed... Suri seems to possess high combat intelligence. It appears to be assessing attack efficiency and even the risk of exposing its presence to enemies."
"I-is that what it's doing!?"
"That is correct, Your Highness. Suri is an individual trained for royal hunting activities and therefore possesses high combat intelligence."
"Wow... I see..!"
Even as the test difficulty increased, requiring more impact to knock over the targets or making them move faster...
"Ah, it's moving."
Suri, which had been slowly calculating the battlefield, succeeded in knocking down all the targets within 30 seconds of launching its first attack.
"Normally, we start the timer right from the beginning, but it seems we'll have to evaluate Suri a bit differently."
I had never seen such an intelligent summon. Maybe Suri really was the strongest in the world.
"Well then, next is..."
ㅡBeep!
"Huh? What is it?"
The sad, short beast, Mecha-Doggo, had been watching Suri's battle intently from its perch on Minium's head. Now that it was Ophelia's turn next, it seemed to want a go, shaking its little butt excitedly.
"You want to try too, Mecha-Doggo? But you can't fight."
ㅡBeep!! Beep, beep!
"Hmm, you've got the spirit."
"Ahaha, then shall we let... Mecha-Doggo have a turn?"
"Is that okay?"
Yoo Chae-rin nodded, saying it wasn't a problem, but I knew it was. I'd heard that operating the test rooms was incredibly expensive, so they couldn't be used carelessly. I figured she was probably just being considerate of me.
"Alright! Go on in!"
ㅡBeep!
The sad beast with no arms, Mecha-Doggo, entered the test room as I opened the door, stuck out its rear, and growled. It's seen a thing or two, despite its short legs.
The test was the same version as Minium's. Dodge or block the incoming balls, and catch the blue ones to put them in a specific location.
"Well then... beginning?"
Just like with Minium, the softball cannon emerged from the wall, whirred, and lowered its muzzle toward Mecha-Doggo. A moment later, a white ball was fired.
ㅡCRASH!!
"M-Mecha-Doggo—!!!!!"
The softball, about the size of a child's dodgeball, struck Mecha-Doggo, sending its light body flying with a *boing*. Even though it was only stage one, the test was designed for the Awakened; there was no way a golem made from a mobile phone, weighing only a few hundred grams, could withstand it.
ㅡShake shake
ㅡNod nod
Suri and Minium shook their heads, offering their condolences to Mecha-Doggo. The test was immediately halted. When I went inside the test room, Mecha-Doggo was rolling around on the floor.
"Sob... Mecha-Doggo... I won't forget your sacrifice..."
In truth, it hadn't really made a sacrifice. It wasn't dead, either. But seeing Mecha-Doggo's desperate fighting spirit naturally brought forth a sense of mourning. It wanted to fight for me, even with a body like this.
...Or maybe it just wanted to play ball.
"Hey you! Was it fun?"
ㅡBeep!
It seems to have liked it, though. Its expression is bright. Even if it is just a text emoticon.
⌯⦁⩊⦁⌯ಣ
"What's this thing on the side? Is it a V-sign?"
ㅡBeep
"Cute."
ㅡPsssshh...
"Good work, Ms. Ophelia. Your performance was generally similar to Minium's."
No high-output attacks, but extremely high combat proficiency. In truth, the "high-output attacks" required by the test room were things like area-of-effect destructive power, focused on fighting giant monsters.
While Ophelia's actual attacks demonstrated incredible cutting power, later on, there would be plenty of monsters that were not only difficult to cut but could also regenerate quickly even if they were.
"I'm certain you'll receive an A-rank."
"Is that so."
"You were amazing, Ophelia..!"
Ophelia was so cool during the test. She went like, *swoosh swoosh*, and then *wham*, and smashed everything. I should've read more books; I don't have the words to describe it.
"Well then... it's finally Eve's turn. Are you ready?"
"W-what kind of test is it for me?"
"We'll be doing a combat evaluation, but let's start with a physical check-up."
"A physical check-up..!"
Any adult male in South Korea would immediately have negative thoughts. That wasn't me anymore, but it still didn't feel great.
"Alright, we'll go in order starting from here. Got it?"
"Ah, yes."
ㅡTap
A mechanical device lightly brushed past the top of my head. The number recorded on the side was a whopping...
"128.4cm. A little on the short side for a 10-year-old average, perhaps?"
"Gasp..."
"Weight is... 25.7kg, which, even considering your height, is slightly on the lean side."
"Hwaah."
"Your eyesight is good. 1.2 on the left and 1.5 on the right. Your hearing and reflexes are excellent as well."
"Yay."
After a few other simple tests, it was finally time for the combat evaluation.
"What's this."
In front of me was a scarecrow-like dummy with moving arms, holding a sword in its right hand and a shield in its left. Why was I doing a test like this?
"Now, Eve? If you take this lightly, you might have a very scary experience. It's surprisingly strong, you know?"
"Really..?"
"Yes, really. See this sword? It has a soft cover, so it won't hurt too much, but you still need to be careful. The shield will also move slowly to block, so let's try to dodge it and attack."
"O-okay!"
No matter what body I was in, there was no way I'd be hit by a sword swung slowly by a mere scarecrow, or have my attack blocked by a slow shield. I'll show you my EX-rank skill, Frenzied Slashing.
"Alright, I'll start the activation now, okay?"
"Yes!"
With the countdown, the scarecrow's eyes lit up. How dare it stand before a princess? It must be dying to lose its life.
"Hyaap!"
ㅡClatter!
"Ah... Team Leader Yoo, what's wrong with this?"
"Hmm, that's the result that comes up when it detects an unawakened person. Just input an F-rank value and print it out."
"Yes, got it."
ㅡWhirrr
The paper that came out of the printer was handed to Ophelia.
"Your Highness? The results are here."
"Ah, well..."
"I don't think I need to see it..."
What kind of result is there when I just fell over? I'm going home to cry.