The Sweet and Savage Desk Clerk

Kang Taesan felt as though he had discovered a flickering ember of hope. He scoured the job boards on the community forums, examining various postings.

Kang Taesan was stunned. "Three million won a day...?" He continued to look through other listings.

"Ten million won?" He looked at a few more, but after seeing the ten-million-won offer, nothing else caught his eye. Kang Taesan submitted an application to the Jackal Guild. A moment later, a message arrived in response.

Kang Taesan confirmed the address and headed straight to the Jackal Guild. The office was located in a redevelopment zone on the outskirts of Seoul. It was an area being demolished for apartment complexes, leaving almost no houses or shops behind. The building housing the Jackal Guild was one of the few structures still standing intact.

"Welcome." As he opened the office door, a desk clerk greeted him with a blank expression. Unlike the dilapidated exterior of the building, the interior was well-appointed, with a sleek, modern aesthetic that reminded him of a high-end dermatology clinic in Gangnam.

"What brings you here today?"

"I'm here because you're looking for Pumassi members."

"Please, have a seat."

Kang Taesan sat across from the clerk. "Have you received your rank evaluation?"

"No, I haven't."

"Do you happen to have a criminal record?"

"Yes, one prior conviction."

"What was the nature of the crime?"

"Attempted rape."

Despite the uncomfortable answer, the clerk remained unfazed, as if she were accustomed to such applicants. She continued typing with a blank face. "Then we'll proceed with a simple test."

"A test?"

"Even if you're an Awakened, you're no help if you're too weak."

"Ah, I see..."

"After the test, you'll have a consultation with the Guild Master."

"Understood."

"Then please follow me."

The clerk led him to a room in the back. It was a bleak, windowless space that looked like a storage warehouse. "Please wait here for a moment."

"Yes."

About a minute later, the clerk returned, holding something in both hands. 'Don't tell me that's...' In her hands were a taser and an air gun. Before Kang Taesan could even process the situation, she calmly aimed the taser at him.

"Now, let's begin the test."

"W-wait a second!"

"Zzzzt!" With a sharp, cracking sound, the taser's electrodes embedded themselves into Kang Taesan's thigh. Blue sparks flew, and a massive surge of electricity coursed through him.

"Ughhh!"

A searing pain shot through his body. But the pain lasted only for a split second.

When Kang Taesan remained standing perfectly fine after the hit, the clerk tilted her head in confusion. "Is it defective? Why are you perfectly fine?"

"It's not defective! You can see the sparks still flying off my thigh!"

"But you don't seem to have taken any damage at all."

"That's... because I'm an Awakened."

"Then we'll have to test you with something else."

"Something else?"

Without hesitation, the clerk aimed the air gun at him this time. "W-what are you doing now?"

"Don't worry. It's not a real bullet; it's a rubber round."

"You crazy..."

"Here comes the shot."

"This isn't right!"

Despite his desperate cry, the clerk pulled the trigger immediately. "Bang!" The rubber bullet hit Kang Taesan square in the forehead.

"Ugh!"

As Kang Taesan collapsed to the floor, the clerk said blankly, "Get up."

When Kang Taesan stood back up as if nothing had happened, the clerk remarked, seemingly surprised, "You're in better shape than I thought."

"Are you insane? Even a rubber bullet can kill you if it hits the wrong spot!"

"Anyway, you've passed."

"Passed?"

"We're currently looking for a Tanker. With that kind of durability, you'll earn your keep."

"I... see."

"Now, you'll have your consultation with the Guild Master. Follow me."

Kang Taesan was guided to a door marked 'Representative's Office.' "Go on in."

*Knock knock*

"Come in."

Kang Taesan opened the door and entered. Inside the spacious office, three men and one woman were sitting on a sofa. Their gazes converged on him simultaneously. Then, a beautiful woman with a short bob cut stood up with a playful smile.

"For an attempted rapist, his face is pretty handsome, isn't it?"

She circled him, inspecting him from head to toe. "If it were me, I might have pretended I couldn't win and just let it happen. How did you end up failing?"

When Kang Taesan remained silent with a stiff expression, she burst into laughter. "Hahaha, are you trying to act tough just because you're a man?"

"Yu Eunju, go back to your seat." A man sitting in the center stopped her with a heavy voice.

"Why? It's fun."

"This is an interview. Go find a sex partner at a club."

"Tch, the boss is so inflexible."

The woman called Yu Eunju pouted and sat back down. "Apologies for the rude introduction. Please, sit."

As Kang Taesan sat on the empty sofa, the Guild Master, Park Hyeonggwang, continued. "Let me introduce myself properly. I am Park Hyeonggwang, the Guild Master of the Jackal Guild."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Kang Taesan."

"Everyone, introduce yourselves."

At Park Hyeonggwang's signal, the woman with the bob cut spoke first. "My name is Yu Eunju. I'm unregistered, and my class is Magic Gunner."

"Magic Gunner?"

Yu Eunju lightly lifted the long rifle resting beside her. It was a very long rifle that looked like an antique musket. "This is a Magic Gun."

"The design is quite classic."

"You have an eye for things, don't you? This Magic Gun is bolt-action. It's a style not often used in this day and age."

"It looks cool."

"What good is looking cool? Magic Gunner is a class that doesn't make money. All the earnings go straight into buying magic bullets."

Then, a large man sitting next to Yu Eunju spoke bluntly. "My name is Choi Giuk. I'm unregistered, and my class is Pyromancer."

"A pyromancer... do you mean a mage?"

At Kang Taesan's question, the man lightly waved the red wand in his hand. "Should I turn you into a roast to help you confirm it?"

"Ah, no, that's quite alright."

As the atmosphere turned hostile, a man with flashy purple-dyed hair chimed in. "My name is Go Yeongpyo. My class is Guide."

"Guide? Do you mean like a travel guide?"

"Exactly. A Guide is a class specialized in dungeon exploration and route detection. My combat power is weak, but without me, you'd get lost in a dungeon and become a corpse. Especially newbies like you."

Finally, the Guild Master, Park Hyeonggwang, spoke. "I am a C-rank Bowman. My main weapon is a crossbow."

Hearing that, Kang Taesan thought to himself, 'So he's the only officially registered hunter here.'

"By the way, Kang Taesan, what is your class?"

At Park Hyeonggwang's question, Kang Taesan hesitated for a moment before answering honestly. "My class is... 'Designer's Error'."

"What did you say your class was?"

"Designer's Error."

At Kang Taesan's answer, the pyromancer Choi Giuk frowned and flared up. "Hey, this is an interview! Stop joking and answer seriously."

"The class name that appears on my system window really is 'Designer's Error'."

Then Go Yeongpyo snorted and shouted, "Who does this bastard think he's fooling? In the history of the Awakened, where is there a class like that?"

"Enough."

As the atmosphere in the office grew tense, Park Hyeonggwang settled the room with a heavy voice. "If you don't want to reveal your class, that's fine. We won't force you."

"It's not that I don't want to reveal it, it really is..."

"Sometimes there are people with unique epithets like Kang Taesan. Let's end the discussion about classes here."

Kang Taesan felt frustrated, but the atmosphere was such that no one would believe him anyway. Even to Kang Taesan himself, the name 'Designer's Error' sounded as absurd as if the system were playing a prank.

"Whatever your class may be, there won't be any problem with you taking on the role of a front-line Tanker in this party, right?"

"Yes, that's fine."

"Good. Then let's meet in front of the 'Butterfly Park' Gate tomorrow morning."

"That soon?"

"Yes, Pumassi is ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠all about timing. See you tomorrow."

With Park Hyeonggwang's final words, the interview concluded, and everyone began to leave the office one by one. Kang Taesan also stood up to head for the door, but Park Hyeonggwang stopped him. "Wait a moment, Kang Taesan."

"Yes?"

"Do you happen to have any armor or weapons?"

"No, this is my first dungeon expedition, so I have nothing."

"Then take this for now."

Park Hyeonggwang gestured into the air, and a strange hole in space, emitting a blue light, appeared near his chest. 'That is...' It was the same scene he had seen when hunters pulled weapons from their sub-spaces. Park Hyeonggwang pulled a heavy steel shield from the blue light and handed it to Kang Taesan.

"This is a basic piece of armor called the 'Watcher's Shield'."

"You're just giving me something this valuable?"

"Yes. It doesn't have any special functions and its defense isn't very high, but it'll be more helpful than going in empty-handed."

"I'm not sure if I should just accept this."

"Think of it as a welcome gift for joining the Jackal Guild."

"...Thank you."

"You can put the shield into your own inventory."

"Inventory?"

"Since you've acquired your first bound equipment, the inventory function of your Awakened interface should be activated."

As Park Hyeonggwang said, the translucent interface window in Kang Taesan's vision now had an 'Inventory' tab activated that hadn't been there before. When he brought the provided shield close to the holographic window, a blue hole identical to Park Hyeonggwang's appeared on Kang Taesan's chest. As he pushed the shield into the light, it vanished like smoke, and a system message appeared.

The vanished shield was now ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠settled as an icon in one of the slots in his inventory window. When he double-clicked the shield in the inventory, it reappeared in the real world through a blue hole. Kang Taesan muttered in wonder as he experienced the inventory usage for himself. "This is truly amazing..."

"Then don't be late tomorrow."

"Yes, see you tomorrow."

Kang Taesan exited the guild building. "Screech!" At that moment, a white SUV came to a sudden stop right in front of him. In the backseat, he could see the long-barreled magic gun that Yu Eunju had been holding. The driver's side window rolled down, and the Magic Gunner Yu Eunju poked her head out.

"Get in. I'll take you home."

"No, that's quite alright."

"Are you trying to act tough just because you're a man? If I tell you to get in, just get in."

Kang Taesan wasn't particularly keen on it, but he didn't want to create ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠unnecessary friction with a party member before his first expedition, so he reluctantly climbed into the passenger seat. Once Kang Taesan was buckled in, Yu Eunju slammed on the accelerator without even asking for his destination. After driving for ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a while, Kang Taesan, who had been looking out the window, opened his eyes wide. The place where Yu Eunju had stopped the car wasn't his home, but a motel parking lot.