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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Vine
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‘Huh?’
Park Soo-eun looked at the coffee.
‘Am I normally this sensitive to caffeine?’
The sleepiness that had been driving him crazy was gone, as if it had been a lie.
In fact, it was thanks to Gang-so’s intervention.
While making the coffee, he had infused it with an energy that was good for recovery.
He had used his energy very subtly, so Park Soo-eun didn’t notice it at all.
Moreover, Gang-so’s energy was different in nature from the aura used by awakened individuals, making it even harder to detect.
After finishing his coffee, Park Soo-eun said,
“For breakfast today, we will experience cafeteria dining together.”
While heading to the cafeteria on the B1 floor, Park Soo-eun explained about cafeteria dining to Gang-so.
“Each person takes as much food as they want on their own tray, then sits down at an empty seat to eat, and then cleans up afterward.”
When they arrived at the cafeteria, Gang-so was a little dazed by the scene inside.
The sight of hundreds of people eating together and lining up to get food on their trays reminded him of something he had seen before.
‘Wow… If it weren’t for the mountain of food and the smiling people, I would have mistaken this for a wartime ration station.’
Park Soo-eun clicked his tongue as he looked at the menu.
“I asked them to put some effort into today’s breakfast menu, but it’s soybean paste soup, stir-fried sausage, and seasoned spinach. Sigh, let’s get in line.”
Gang-so stood in line and followed Park Soo-eun’s lead, picking up a tray, spoon, and chopsticks, and putting food on his tray.
Sitting at the table, Park Soo-eun looked at Gang-so’s tray and smiled.
“Usually, when people experience cafeteria dining for the first time, they pile up their trays with food, whether they’re isolated or not… Do you normally eat little?”
There was only a small amount of food on Gang-so’s tray.
“I do eat a lot. But there was a sign at the entrance of the cafeteria saying that we could take more if we were still hungry, so we should take a reasonable amount of food. So I thought there was no need to take a lot of food from the beginning. And you get punished if you waste food.”
Park Soo-eun nodded.
“I agree with that. So how is it? This thing called cafeteria dining?”
“I’m not sure, but it’s definitely an efficient method. Especially when many people have to eat in a limited space within a limited time.”
“You noticed that? Actually, I think there’s nothing that shows our current society better than this thing called cafeteria dining.”
“Freedom and responsibility within control and order?”
“…!”
Park Soo-eun was surprised.
He had thought Gang-so was unusual because he sometimes said sharp things during the training, but he didn’t expect him to hit the nail on the head like this.
He was starting to get scared. He forced a smile and asked,
“Wh-Why do you think so?”
“I just thought so.”
Gang-so also smiled.
“What is this?”
He tilted his head, looking at the sausage that took up the center of his tray.
“It’s called sausage. Actually, there are many types of sausages, but those are called link sausages.”
They looked similar to the salted meat Gang-so had seen before when he went to a high mountain area.
However, they tasted much better.
The moment he bit into the sausage with his teeth, the thin casing burst with a pop, and the rich taste of pork enveloped his tongue.
It wasn’t salty, but rather had a sweet taste.
The stir-fried vegetables served alongside balanced out the strong flavor of the sausage.
“Oh! This is delicious!”
“It’s a national side dish that can be used in many variations.”
“I need to get more of this.”
Gang-so went back to get more sausage three more times.
After breakfast, the second day’s morning class began.
“According to the documents, you should receive training until the afternoon because you’re an awakened individual, but since you’re F-rank, you’ll only receive theoretical training, excluding practical training.”
“Then when will the training end?”
“It will end before dinner today. I’ve already contacted your guarantor and informed him about this, so you don’t have to worry. Then let’s start the class.”
Through the awakened theory training, Gang-so was able to learn a lot of detailed information.
Although he had a rough idea from Yoo Soon-tae’s explanation, the aftermath of what he had done was bigger than he had thought.
Gang-so had a question.
He heard that among awakened individuals, those who have the qualification to hunt monsters are called hunters.
So, although he was an awakened individual, he wasn’t a hunter, but he had hunted monsters.
“If… an awakened individual who is not a hunter kills a monster, are there any disadvantages?”
“Disadvantages?”
At Gang-so’s question, Park Soo-eun grinned.
“From the outset, the only beings who can kill monsters are awakened individuals, so there’s no way there would be any disadvantages. The only disadvantage would be… dying.”
“Then why do you talk about qualifications?”
“Well… the ability to kill monsters itself is a qualification. Not just any awakened individual can kill monsters. You need the ability to do so. If someone without the ability tries to show off in front of a monster just because they’re awakened, they’ll end up ruining their life. And knowing that, awakened individuals join the Hunter Academy.”
“I see.”
Then Gang-so had nothing to worry about.
“I’ll explain this now since we’ll cover it later anyway.”
Park Soo-eun continued his explanation.
“Awakened individuals who want to become hunters must enroll in the Hunter Academy, which is jointly operated by the Awakened Association and the government, complete three years of training, and receive a diploma. Only then will they have the ability, that is, the qualification, to kill monsters.”
“I see.”
“But, heh heh heh.”
Gang-so flinched at Park Soo-eun’s sudden, self-deprecating laughter.
“It’s called three years, but you won’t know how grueling the training is unless you experience it. Even before a month has passed, three out of ten people voluntarily drop out. Moreover, if you don’t pass the promotion exams for each year, you’re held back.”
“Th-Then… what happens if you’re held back?”
“Well, you either stay in the academy until you pass or drop out.”
However, Park Soo-eun was unaware.
That whatever training he had experienced was nothing compared to the training Gang-so had received when he was abducted by the assassin organization.
“I don’t think they do it to torment the awakened individuals. Maybe they created that system to protect them because the number of awakened individuals is small?”
“…!”
Park Soo-eun flinched.
Because Gang-so had accurately seen through it.
‘What is this person? He’s scary…’
Whether he knew Park Soo-eun’s thoughts or not, Gang-so was lost in his own thoughts.
‘This world seems to be more balanced than I thought.’
But it was only a very slight balance.
In Gang-so’s eyes, it was still a precarious and fragile world.
In fact, there was one thing Park Soo-eun hadn’t explained.
That there was a way to obtain a hunter’s license even without graduating from the Hunter Academy.
That was the Special Hunter License.
If someone had S-rank or higher abilities or had made a significant contribution, the Awakened Association would issue a Special Hunter License.
Currently, there were only two hunters in Korea with a Special Hunter License.
Before long, the last session was approaching.
“Thank you for your hard work so far. Lastly, we will tour the training room in this Awakened Association and conclude.”
The Awakened Training Room was located deep underground, so they took the elevator down.
‘The elevator is a truly ingenious device. I can move up and down freely without having to use levitation or sword flight myself! Is this a world where machinery and science are advanced?’
While Gang-so was lost in thought for a moment, the elevator stopped at the B6 floor with a ding-dong sound.
The door opened, and Park Soo-eun said to Gang-so,
“This is the training room. This B6 training room is open to anyone with an awakened license, but the B7 floor below is for staff only.”
Gang-so looked around the training room.
People were diligently moving their bodies using various unfamiliar equipment.
It was quite large in scale.
“Most of the people who train here are unaffiliated awakened individuals. Awakened individuals belonging to a hunter guild, that is, hunters, usually train at their guild’s facilities.”
Gang-so looked around the facilities while listening to Park Soo-eun’s explanation. But Gang-so was looking at the people, not the equipment.
‘Oh? That person can reach a higher level. But the man next to him is a lost cause. Tsk tsk, why is that woman training like that? At that rate, when will she get stronger?’
Gang-so was also F-rank, but he had an awakened license.
That meant he was qualified to enter this place.
“If you plan to visit and train here, I will explain the procedures to you.”
“That won’t be necessary.”
Gang-so shook his head.
“I won’t be training here. I have work to do.”
“If it’s not rude, may I ask what kind of work you have to do?”
“It’s nothing special. I’ve decided to help out at my friend’s restaurant.”
At Gang-so’s answer, Park Soo-eun smiled.
“That’s a good decision. Honestly, even if you get a hunter’s license with an F-rank, you’ll just get hurt fighting monsters. It’s a waste of time.”
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After completing all the training, Gang-so came out to the lobby of the Silver Tower around 3 PM, and someone called out to him.
“Gang-so, over here!”
It was Yoo Soon-tae.
Gang-so approached him and said,
“Thank you for coming to pick me up.”
“Don’t mention it… It’s the least I can do as your guarantor. Anyway, how about your ID?”
“Here it is.”
Gang-so held out a palm-sized, flat, rectangular ID card made of plastic.
It had Gang-so’s photo, his name and personal information, and at the bottom, his awakened rank, F, was engraved.
Seeing that, Yoo Soon-tae said,
“It’s F-rank, huh?”
“I couldn’t control my internal energy in time. So I couldn’t get a normal person’s rank.”
Yoo Soon-tae said,
“I think it’s actually better this way. Honestly, your actions are a bit strange for an ordinary person. Who carries six sacks of onions at once!”
“…Is that strange?”
“Normally, people would stagger or not be able to lift them at all! So from now on, if anyone finds it odd, just tell them you’re an F-rank awakened individual. Then most people will understand and let it go.”
“I understand.”
“Anyway, congratulations.”
“Thank you.”
And so, Gang-so became a citizen of the Republic of Korea.
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Park Soo-eun stood in front of the desk of the head of Support Division 2 to report on his work.
“I just returned after completing the isolated person training.”
“Good work. Any special remarks?”
“He certainly… had a sharp eye.”
“You said that yesterday too. What makes you think that?”
Park Soo-eun explained what had happened at the cafeteria earlier that day.
“Tsk tsk, that’s a shame. If he had been at least a C-rank awakened individual, he would have been quite helpful.”
The real reason why Support Division 2 was in charge of training isolated persons was to scout talented individuals for the association first.
“But is that guy really F-rank? Earlier, an Enforcement Division 1 employee said he felt a chill when that guy poked a sausage with a chopstick and almost instinctively used his energy to defend himself. He asked me what kind of guy he was.”
“Huh?”
The division head continued.
“You know, right? Unlike Enforcement Division 2, the guys in Division 1 only deal with big shots, so they don’t react to much. But he said he felt a chill?”
“But, sir, that person’s awakening has already ended. There’s a chance of reawakening, but an F-rank won’t amount to much even if they reawaken.”
“I know. That’s why I’m disappointed, isn’t it? Anyway, what does that guy plan to do from now on?”
“He said he’s going to help out at a friend’s restaurant.”
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