Chapter 45: The S-Rank Dream

S-rank Hunter!

It was the ultimate goal every Hunter aspired to, and there were only three in all of South Korea.

It was a rare rank—equal to, or even greater than, a massive, powerful battleship or a mobile military base in terms of combat prowess.

Naturally, Choi Kangjoong’s childhood dream had also been to become an S-rank Hunter.

Since ninety percent of elementary school kids wrote “S-rank Hunter” in the dream column, it was the norm.

That percentage declined with age.

By the time you reached the first year of middle school, it was fifty percent. By the third year, it dropped below ten.

That was because, by then, people had been divided into Awakened and Non-Awakened.

And if you didn’t Awaken by your mid-teens, your chances of becoming S-rank became slim.

It was important to start anything as early as possible.

Choi Yunseo was one of those who Awakened as soon as she turned fourteen.

She was so talented that the entire family was stunned and overjoyed at the same time.

Right after that, she attended a Hunter training school and was admitted to the Hunter Academy, which replaced high school, without any trouble.

In other words, she walked the full Elite Hunter Course.

Watching her from the side, Choi Kangjoong congratulated her, but he was also jealous.

He wondered why he hadn’t Awakened, why he was stuck suffering because of things like the Gate crisis.

Choi Yunseo was well aware of his negative feelings.

Even so, she comforted him, saying there were plenty of Hunters who suffered from PTSD.

Moved, Choi Kangjoong had once vowed that he would repay her someday.

But as time went by, he never managed to leave his room, and those memories began to fade.

All that was left was an older brother’s instinct that he only felt satisfied if he could tease his little sister.

“Yunseo said she wanted to be the youngest S-rank ever, right? But if I register as S-rank now and Yunseo doesn’t make it in two years, she’ll never be the youngest S-rank, will she?”

Choi Kangjoong’s eyes sparkled brighter than ever.

“There’s no way I can put up with that. Why didn’t I think of this before?”

Choi Kangjoong asked the Hunter Association to register him as S-rank as soon as possible.

The Hunter Association said it would take at least a week just to make the S-rank Hunter Certificate, so he’d have to wait.

“That won’t do. I have to do it as soon as possible.”

Choi Kangjoong asked them to at least register his S-rank right away.

The Hunter Association replied that as long as he came in person and got verified, it could be done—so they agreed on two days later.

“Guess I’ll go become an S-rank Hunter.”

Choi Kangjoong set an alarm on his phone and logged onto DimensionNet.

On the community main screen, which he hadn’t visited in a long time, there were photos and videos of Outer Mind front and center.

The forums were filled with talk about Outer Mind.

-Destroyed 300 dimensional lines single-handedly? Is that even possible?

-He did it, that’s why the 6th Dimension Fortress is still standing.

-This is on the level of Nation-State Power.

-Forget S-rank, this is SS-rank.

-Seriously, S-rank isn’t enough.

-They need to create a new rank.

-So what class is Outer Mind?

-Summoner.

-But he uses Aura Blade too.

-He does magic as well.

-So it’s three classes mixed? Totally broken.

-Elves do that too.

-Different race, though.

-Elves have always been able to use mana by connecting to the Sea of Dimensions.

-They’ve been using the Dimension System way longer than we have.

Thanks to the Dimension System, Elves became even stronger, and a new path opened for humans to harness powers they’d never known.

-Iselin is so cool, coming to help even though she could’ve lost.

-Now that’s a true alliance.

-If I had an Elf like her for a boss, I’d be loyal forever.

-I’d be fine being her footstool.

-What about Dark Elves? Aren’t they a race corrupted by dark energy?

-Apparently not.

-She’s a Dark Elf Princess too, I heard.

-Do Dark Elves have princesses?

-They say she left a long time ago and just returned.

-I thought all Dark Elves were pirates.

-That decadent vibe is amazing. I probably couldn’t even look her in the eye.

-If I saw her at night, I’d probably drop to my knees, LOL.

-She looks more like a Queen than a princess, LOL.

There was plenty of talk about Iselin and Dielka.

Dielka was also stunning, and it was clear that if she stayed active, she’d become as famous as Iselin.

Someone had already posted a poll asking who was prettier, Iselin or Dielka, and the results were neck and neck.

“Who should I vote for?”

After much deliberation, Choi Kangjoong ended up not voting for either and closed DimensionNet.

Two days later, Choi Kangjoong turned off his phone alarm.

“What should I wear?”

Since it wasn’t exactly a secret that he was Outer Mind, he decided not to wear any armor.

“My clothes might get torn, so I probably shouldn’t wear anything new.”

Choi Kangjoong picked out a pair of pants that were shiny from all the wear on the seat and a hoodie covered in stains.

He put on a mask as well.

Being praised was nice, but he didn’t want to draw as much attention as last time.

“Let’s go.”

He used Stealth Blink to travel to the subway station.

Even though it was Blink, it was so stealthy that as long as you didn’t use it right in front of someone, you wouldn’t get caught.

There were still a lot of people in front of the Hunter Association.

Today was even busier than usual.

It was the day of the Hunter Rank Exam.

“Come to think of it, it was like this when Yunseo did it too.”

Choi Kangjoong was flooded with old memories.

The whole family had arrived together by car, sent Choi Yunseo inside, and waited in the plaza of the Hunter Association.

Yunseo, who’d confidently said she’d do well, was promoted to C-rank that very day.

“They said to come to the exam hall, right.”

Choi Kangjoong entered the Hunter Association.

Thanks to Stealth Blink, he arrived early, but there were still a lot of people in the exam hall.

Some cheered after successfully leveling up, while others were dejected after failing.

Sitting in such a noisy, passionate space didn’t bother him at all now.

Seeing with his own eyes all the types of people he’d only ever seen online was even fun.

Tap, tap, tap, tap.

Two people approached and stopped in front of Choi Kangjoong.

It was Joo Eun-jong and Team Leader Son Myung-gyu.

Team Leader Son Myung-gyu was on edge, anxious about whatever trouble Joo Eun-jong might cause.

Choi Kangjoong was curious how Joo Eun-jong would react to him, since he wasn’t wearing his chitin armor.

“Man, your clothes are—wait, not that, what brings you here?”

Joo Eun-jong, who would usually talk down to someone regardless of being ten or even twenty years older, suddenly switched to formal speech.

Just looking into Choi Kangjoong’s eyes, visible between the hood and mask, gave him chills and an instinctive sense that he absolutely should not speak informally.

“What rank are you here for? D-rank? E-rank?”

“S-rank.”

“Ah! You’re here to see Outer-nim too, huh? But your clothes are so worn out. I can’t stand to see it. Team Leader Son, go get some comfortable clothes from my car.”

“I’ll be right back.”

Team Leader Son Myung-gyu hurried off in his dress shoes.

“Are you a fan of Outer-nim?”

“No.”

“Then why… actually, never mind, do what you want.”

Joo Eun-jong felt like if he picked a fight, his life would be in danger.

“Did you see the 6th Dimension Fortress battle?”

“I saw it.”

“It was awesome, right?”

“It really was.”

“I’m going to apply for the Dimension Fortress too. But did you know you need to be at least B-rank to apply?”

“There are C-ranks there too, though.”

“That’s only for guild members sent on dispatch, like those from Dawn Guild. If I’d known, I would’ve joined Dawn Guild instead of Carrier Guild. Ugh.”

As Joo Eun-jong chattered away, five men and women approached, sneering as they each took a shot at him.

“Eun-jong, nice to see you.”

“Didn’t expect to see you here, Eun-jong.”

“First time seeing you since you dropped out of Hunter Academy, huh?”

“It’s been ages.”

“How have you been?”

Joo Eun-jong, ever the troublemaker, responded with an even more perfect smirk.

“Wow. You guys look even uglier when you’re all together.”

“Eun-jong, how can you say that to your fellow classmates?”

A big, square-jawed man spoke.

His name was Lee Geun-yong, a Hunter Academy classmate of Joo Eun-jong.

“You came to take the Rank Exam today too, right? Did you do well?”

“Of course I did.”

“No way someone like Eun-jong would fail the C-rank Exam. He was working so hard in the C-rank test area.”

One of the men teased.

Joo Eun-jong was annoyed but had nothing to say.

It was true.

“Get lost, all of you.”

“What’s with the attitude, you little C-rank punk?”

Lee Geun-yong pulled out his B-rank Hunter Certificate and waved it in Joo Eun-jong’s face.

Joo Eun-jong’s face twisted.

Though they had once been equals at Hunter Academy, the ones he used to look down on were now far ahead.

“Who’s that bum next to you? Your friend?”

“No way would Eun-jong be friends with someone like that.”

“Right. No way the great C-rank Hunter Joo Eun-jong would do that.”

“Maybe he’s flunky number ten.”

“Eun-jong must be bored, he was chatting away with that flunky.”

Joo Eun-jong’s classmates laughed.

‘What’s with this? Why are they picking a fight with me, too?’

Choi Kangjoong had guessed that Joo Eun-jong’s troublemaking had left him on bad terms with his classmates.

But picking on someone just for standing next to him?

That was low, even for thugs.

Joo Eun-jong shot to his feet.

“Are you guys insane? Just because you’re B-rank, you think you can mess with anyone?”

“You shouldn’t talk, you troublemaking brat.”

“If you don’t like it, be born the child of an S-rank Hunter!”

Choi Kangjoong just watched quietly.

He wasn’t flustered or anything.

He was just considering what to do.

‘Should I drop them into the Soil Pit? Smash them in an Apocalid field? Burn them with Flame Emitter?’

Choi Kangjoong’s train of thought was interrupted by someone calling for Outer Mind.

Before he knew it, the exam hall had emptied, and President Kim Gwang-shin himself was out searching for him.

As Choi Kangjoong stood up, Joo Eun-jong tried to stop him.

“Even if you’re angry, hold it in. I’ll handle it. Fighting with B-ranks will only hurt you.”

Joo Eun-jong stepped between Choi Kangjoong and the five men and women.

He planned to protect an innocent bystander and, if necessary, use his father’s influence for revenge.

“Huh…?”

“What the…?”

“Whoa….”

The five men and women either gasped or covered their mouths.

Where mocking laughter had been, now there was only fear.

Thud.

Lee Geun-yong dropped to his knees.

A wet patch spread in his crotch, and the smell of urine filled the air.

“What the…?”

Joo Eun-jong turned around.

Outer Mind, who hadn’t been there just a moment ago, was now standing there.

“Heuuurgh!”

Joo Eun-jong recoiled in shock.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

“We’re sorry! Please forgive us!”

“I-I didn’t say anything!”

Amid the commotion, President Kim Gwang-shin rushed over.

He was a retired veteran of countless battles—the kind of legendary Hunter that Joo Eun-jong’s classmates couldn’t even meet his eyes.

“What’s going on here?”

Choi Kangjoong didn’t even have to answer President Kim Gwang-shin’s question.

Joo Eun-jong jumped in, using his troublemaker talents to explain the situation.

With a heap of MSG added to the tale, President Kim Gwang-shin’s fury boiled over.

“You crazy punks! You think you’re something special?!”

“S-sorry…! We didn’t know….”

“You act like that even when you ‘don’t know’? You’d be thugs to regular folks too, wouldn’t you?”

“N-no…! We just ran into an old classmate and got carried away….”

Smack!

President Kim Gwang-shin slapped the man who kept making excuses.

“You clueless idiot. If you don’t want to die, get on your knees and beg.”

The five men and women hurriedly dropped to their knees and begged for forgiveness.

President Kim Gwang-shin bowed as well.

“I’m sorry. This should have been a good day, but because of our poor education, we upset you, Outer-nim.”

Choi Kangjoong could feel that President Kim Gwang-shin was doing his best to smooth things over and spare even those kids.

Seeing such a famous Hunter act this way, his anger quickly melted away.

There was no need to melt anyone in the Soil Pit.

“Get them out of here.”

“You all, get out—now!”

Legs wobbling, the five men and women crawled out of the exam hall.

“Thank you. This will never happen again.”

President Kim Gwang-shin bowed once more and then led the way into the exam hall.