Testing the Test (1)
After taking care of a combined lunch and dinner, I gathered my family and the whole group in one place. Since it was my mother’s first time meeting the others, we started with simple introductions. Once the awkward greetings were out of the way, I dove straight into the main topic.
“This whole building belongs to my parents. From the second floor up, they’re all studio apartments. For now, you’ll live there.”
It hadn’t been discussed beforehand, so both my parents and the kids wore identical question-mark expressions. Easier to ask for forgiveness than permission, I explained the full situation to my mother: everyone I’d brought had no family, lived in terrible conditions, and as official hunters they would absolutely pay their rent on time.
“If they pay the rent properly, they’re more than welcome.”
“You two aren’t seriously going to claim that basement room was comfortable, are you?”
The siblings shook their heads so hard I thought they might fall off. There was no need to persuade Lee Min-ji.
“Why aren’t you asking me?”
“Okay. Then Min-ji won’t be living with us.”
“That’s not what I meant!”
In the end, the three I’d brought moved into the studio apartments managed by my parents.
“Mom, could you show the kids to the empty rooms first? The rest of you can look around the house and relax. I’ll come get you in a bit.”
Everyone nodded in agreement, but Kim Gyeo-ul wore a troubled expression.
“Gyeo-ul, don’t worry about it getting cold. Just crank up the boiler.”
“It’s not that… I’m nervous about being alone…”
“Then share a room with your brother. Even though they’re studios, they’re thirty square meters each, so it won’t be uncomfortable. Anyone else have a problem? Besides Min-ji.”
“Ah, seriously! Why do you keep ignoring me?!”
“So, any problems?”
“…None.”
My mother led the kids upstairs to the second floor. My father gave my shoulder a couple of pats.
“Kid. I can tell there’s a situation without you spelling it out, but you haven’t forgotten our family motto, have you?”
“Let each of us live well on our own. I remember. But it looks like I can’t do that anymore.”
“Did you cause trouble?”
“Not yet.”
“How big are you planning to make it?”
“In a year, there won’t be a single person who doesn’t know my name.”
“In this country?”
“In the world.”
My father stared into my eyes for a long moment, then clicked his tongue.
“You haven’t even been drinking, but your eyes look completely insane.”
“Will you help me?”
“Aigoo, I thought I’d finally get some rest in my old age, but my own son is working his father to the bone.”
“If you won’t do it, I’ll find someone else.”
“Who said I wouldn’t? Still, I have to ask one thing.”
The usual lazy, indifferent look in my father’s eyes sharpened into something keen.
“Are you prepared not to regret this?”
In the past I would have answered “Yes” without hesitation. But after living through my previous life, I knew how arrogant that was.
“No matter how hard I try, I’ll probably still have regrets.”
“……”
“But I’m going to do it anyway.”
“Mu-jin. Chae Mu-jin.”
“Yes.”
“If you’ve chosen the path you must walk, you need to know where it ends. Do you understand where you’re headed?”
His words made me reconsider it all. I would found a hunter management agency and raise S-ranks. With the power I gained, I would defeat the Keter-class monster. Would the curtain fall on a fairy-tale ending where everyone lived happily ever after?
“I don’t know. I don’t know whether people will call me a hero or point at me as a monster. But you already know—our Chae family—”
“Can’t do anything forced even if it kills us, and won’t do what we want even if it kills us.”
“That’s how it is.”
“Good! But if you’re going to do it, do it right. Your mother and I will handle the cleanup.”
Right then my mother’s voice rang out.
“What the hell is this nonsense?”
“When did you get back?”
“From the moment you started talking about the family motto or whatever.”
“You never left at all, did you?”
“Why would I? Just tell them the room numbers and the kids will go on their own.”
I scratched the back of my head, suddenly embarrassed.
“Well… since Mom heard everything, you understand, right?”
“Understand? You brainless punk! We’ll be in danger, and so will your brother and sister! Whatever crazy thing you’re planning, stop it right now!”
My mother slipping into her Busan dialect was a clear sign of how furious she was. Still—
“Haha, I can’t do that.”
“Do you want to be disowned?”
“Oh, is that an option? Would that make things a little safer?”
“Do I look like I’m joking?”
“I’m not joking either.”
Maybe her old nickname, the Haeundae Bloodbath, wasn’t just for show—her glare carried real killing intent. Suddenly I wondered what my own eyes looked like right now. Worried? Confident?
“…You’re really going to see this through to the end?”
“Yes.”
“Even if it means your father and I die, you still won’t stop?”
“Even if I end up crying and taking revenge, I won’t stop.”
“Then that’s that.”
Thud. She set something down on the table. A credit card.
“You know the password, right?”
“You never told me. How would I know?”
“One-one-two-five.”
“That’s my birthday?”
“Don’t get ahead of yourself. It’s just my favorite day.”
“I’ll take it as that, then.”
But instead of taking the card, I slid it back.
“Why?”
“I do need money, but I’ll need both of you to be the ones spending it.”
“Rotten brat. You’ve decided to work us to death.”
“So what I wanted to ask was…”
In front of my parents, I laid out my plan. I was going to establish a hunter management agency. I’d already recruited Kim Yeo-ul and Lee Min-ji. I’d expected them to have trouble understanding—after all, they were older and not hunters themselves—but they grasped it with surprising ease.
“So you want us to set up the office and hire all the necessary staff?”
“Yes. If you need a name to throw around during the process, use Cheon Mu-jong. That should open any door.”
“The Association President’s name?”
“You know who he is?”
“He’s on TV all the time.”
Was he? I don’t watch television, so I wouldn’t know.
“Nothing else you’re curious about? Like why I’m starting a hunter management agency in the first place?”
“It’ll probably just make me more tired if I know, so I won’t ask.”
“You’ll find out soon enough anyway.”
It was exactly the kind of response I’d expect from my parents.
“I’ll head up now. Drink in moderation.”
I left them behind and stepped into the back hallway. My fists clenched on their own. I had dragged my entire family into my fate. It wasn’t simply because I lacked money or manpower. I was convinced this was the safer path. Even if it might become a choice I would regret, I had already prepared myself for that regret.
I caught my reflection in the window. My face was dead serious.
“Loosen up, Mu-jin. You look better when you smile.”
After giving myself that little pep talk, I headed up to the second floor where the others were waiting.
The 201 room the siblings had moved into already felt lively.
“Let’s buy a bunk bed.”
“Oppa, can I sleep on the top bunk?”
“Won’t the top bunk be hot?”
“Why?”
“It’s closer to the sun.”
“Ah! Oppa, you’re so smart!”
I unintentionally overheard them and cleared my throat.
“Ahem. Kids, do you like the place?”
The moment they sensed my presence, their voices dropped by half.
“Yes…!”
“It’s really nice.”
Their eyes sparkled. They already looked excited about how they would decorate the thirty-square-meter studio.
“Let’s move to the next room. I have things to discuss with Min-ji too.”
I led the siblings to 202 right next door. Lee Min-ji was lying on her back staring at the ceiling. Even after hearing us enter, she only gave a lazy wave.
“You’re here.”
“Trying to sleep?”
“No. I was just looking at the wavy pattern on the ceiling.”
“Sit up. We’re starting the briefing.”
With a powerful swing of her hips she sat up, eyes shining with anticipation.
“Before that, Kim Yeo-ul. You became an official hunter to cure your little sister. Now that she’s completely healed, do you want to return to being an ordinary person? Or do you want to live as a hunter?”
If he hesitated here, my training plan would become more complicated. But Kim Yeo-ul answered without a second’s delay.
“I want to live as a hunter.”
“Why?”
“To protect myself and my sister, I need strength. I want power that no one can ever harm us with.”
People who live at the very bottom of society all dream of becoming rich and strong. They also know those dreams can never come true. But Kim Yeo-ul no longer saw that longing as a mere dream. For the future he could create, for the future he could seize with his own hands, he was willing to do anything.
Satisfied, I turned to Lee Min-ji.
“Lee Min-ji. That heart that wants to kill Bahamut—is it still the same?”
“No. I’m getting stronger every day, every hour, every minute, every second.”
“I understand how both of you feel. But words alone can’t accomplish anything. If you don’t prove it with actions and results, effort is meaningless.”
“If it’ll make me stronger, I can jump into lava. So just tell me already. What do I need to do?”
“…Wouldn’t you die if you fell into lava?”
Kim Yeo-ul offered the cautious opinion, earning a look of pure pity from Lee Min-ji.
I snapped my fingers to regain their attention.
“Tomorrow you’ll receive a call from the Hunter Association. You’ll have to attend a seven-night, eight-day basic training camp. I’ll test your resolve through your performance there.”
During the official hunter exam I had never spoken at length when giving advice or instructions. I kept it short and to the point. It was easier to remember and more intuitive that way. But now that I was giving proper guidance, details kept piling up, and before I knew it I had been talking for far longer than planned.
“……”
At first they listened with full concentration, but after thirty minutes their eyes began to glaze over. By the time I finished, they were glancing around restlessly.
“Tell me everything I said from beginning to end. Min-ji first.”
“After the entrance ceremony they’ll tell us to choose an instructor, but instead of choosing we should wait and then…”
She remembered the first part well enough, but everything after the middle had vanished from her memory. On the other hand, I discovered Kim Yeo-ul’s unexpected talent here—his memory. He recited every single word I had said without missing a syllable. The only flaw was that he had simply memorized it without understanding any of it.
“You can forget everything else, but remember this one thing. Find the drunk instructor. After that, even if it’s just to survive, my words will come back to you.”
“Rest well today and tomorrow. The other hunters might be going there to play, but the two of you are not.”
The long consultation finally ended. They had only been listening, yet both Kim Yeo-ul and Lee Min-ji looked mentally exhausted.
“And I have something to tell only Gyeo-ul, so you two step outside.”
After sending Yeo-ul and Min-ji out, I looked into Kim Gyeo-ul’s eyes.
“Everything I’m about to say is a secret between you and me alone. Even if it’s your brother, even if it’s our family, you must not tell them. Can you promise?”
“…Yes!”
“Pinky promise. And seal it.”
It might have looked like a childish promise, but Kim Gyeo-ul was completely serious. So was I. What I was about to do would cause an uproar if certain people found out.
“The way to control Eternal Winter is to learn an internal energy cultivation method.”
“Internal energy… cultivation method?”
Having no prior knowledge of hunters, Kim Gyeo-ul naturally knew nothing about internal energy or cultivation methods—how difficult they were to learn, or how precious. But I knew. I knew the principles of the most valuable cultivation method in all of Korea.
“Starting today, you will learn Clear Mirror, Still Water.”
The single-transmission S-rank cultivation method—its illegal sharing had just begun. Of course, if Cheon I-hwa or the Great First Sword ever found out they would lose their minds, but—
If Gyeo-ul can properly control her power, even those two won’t be able to do anything about it.
Everywhere, at any time, it was easier to ask for forgiveness than permission.