The S-Classes That I Raised [EN]: Chapter 7

7. Hunter Association (1)

Before heading out to find Park Yerim, I went to the Hunter Association to register as an Awakened and buy a contract item.

The Korean Hunter Association.

It started as an Awakened registration center established by the government, and with the addition of the three major guilds, it became an association. Other hunter associations overseas were also created through similar processes. Currently, it is a national institution with 51% government stake, 30% stake from the three major guilds, and 19% stake from other guilds, but in five years, the guilds’ power will grow, and they will seize most of the shares.

To be precise, Haeyeon Guild took over.

‘The more I think about it, Yoohyun was out of his mind even before the regression.’

To think that the head of such a great guild would risk his life to save one useless brother. I can’t understand it.

Still, thanks to him, I saved my life, regressed, and even obtained two L-grade titles, so I have to put up with Yoohyun’s crazy짓 [crazy antics], I guess.

Because it was the weekend, the Awakened registration waiting room at the Hunter Association was quite crowded. Most of the Awakened were so-called Double Fs, with F-grade skills and stats, making it impossible to work as hunters, but they all came to register anyway. This was because the government provided subsidies to encourage Awakened registration. With a subsidy of one million won just for registering as an Awakened, everyone visited the association unless they were rolling in money.

I took a queue number from the machine and went to sit on a chair. Looking at the number, I figured it would take a while.

“Hey, isn’t that A-grade Hunter Kim Sunghan?”

“Oh? It’s him!”

The people sitting in the waiting room recognized Kim Sunghan, who had followed me, and began to whisper. An A-grade’s fame is lower than an S-grade’s, but Kim Sunghan was a hunter well-known for both his face and name. Half of it was due to Yoohyun’s influence, and the other half was thanks to his performance during the Dongdaegu Station A-grade Dungeon Break.

A Dungeon Break occurs when the number of monsters inside a dungeon increases excessively. It’s a perilous situation where monsters pour out of the dungeon, but it rarely happens these days due to good management. Cases of already known dungeons breaking are almost nonexistent, and it occasionally occurs when the discovery of new dungeons is delayed.

“But why is he standing there?”

“He came in with that person earlier.”

The people’s attention turned to me, sitting next to Kim Sunghan this time.

“He’s making an A-grade stand while he’s sitting.”

“Is he someone important? Looking at it, it seems like he’s standing guard. Did he come as an escort?”

“He’s holding a queue number, so it looks like he’s about to register as an Awakened. Could it be that Haeyeon Guild is debuting a new S-grade today?”

No, I’m scheduled to be an F-grade. I looked up at Kim Sunghan and said quietly.

“Please, have a seat.”

“I’m fine.”

“Can’t you just sit down?”

“Standing is better for responding to any unforeseen circumstances.”

What could possibly happen inside the Hunter Association, of all places? Moreover, there are only newbies here who came to register as Awakened.

‘Should I check if there are any promising rookies?’

I used the ‘Potential Talent Scan’ skill on the man who had been chattering away since earlier.

[Awakened – Shin Minho

Current Stat Grade F

Possible Awakening Stat Grade F~E

Optimized Initial Skills

Quick Feet (E) Acquisition Failed

Jump (E) Acquired

Throw (F) Acquired]

His awakening stats also dropped by one level, and he didn’t acquire all the optimized initial skills. Still, he has an E-grade skill, so he’ll qualify as a hunter.

‘Ugh.’

After checking two more F-grade talents, a brief pain pulsed through my head and disappeared. It was a signal that I had consumed half of my mana.

‘The Potential Talent Scan skill is limited to six uses.’

With a mana stat of 2, it’s only natural.

Vitality and mana were not displayed in the status window. It would be convenient if they were displayed as red and blue bars like in a game, but since they weren’t, I had to guess based on my body’s condition.

I could roughly tell vitality by looking at myself – whether I was fine, half-dead, or dying – but the problem was mana. There was no way to check the remaining amount of mana even five years later. However, a brief headache was felt when half of the possessed mana was consumed, and unconsciousness occurred when less than 10% remained.

Fortunately, passive skills like poison resistance usually don’t consume mana.

‘Optimized Awakening or checking on my pup will consume even more mana than the Potential Talent Scan.’

My pup is an L-grade, so it’ll consume an absurd amount of mana. It was fine for Yoohyun because it was used passively as the first title effect, but if I used it now, I might fail the skill and pass out.

‘I need to level up a bit.’

To do that, I have to go into a dungeon, but if Yoohyun finds out, he’ll jump up and down to stop me. Should I sneak in?

“Numbers 56 through 65, please come in.”

The people who had been waiting got up and followed the association employee inside. After another group went in, it was finally my turn.

Inside, there were desks with partitions lined up. An employee handed out a sheet of paper to each person. The paper, the Awakened Registration Application, had spaces for personal information as well as stats and skills. After filling this out and verifying that there were no falsehoods, the Awakened’s grade was determined.

I picked up a pen on the desk and began to fill in the blank spaces. I only wrote down my stats and basic skills and didn’t write down my titles. Stats are measured immediately, but skills and titles cannot be verified if hidden because there is no measurement technology. It’s not that there aren’t hunters with related skills, but they are rare, and fights were likely to break out if someone looked into another’s skill window without permission. It was a sensitive issue among hunters.

‘In the first place, there are people who exaggerate, but not many who understate.’

Unless it’s a special case like me, why would anyone need to receive a lower grade on purpose? The treatment changes drastically with just one grade difference. Moreover, there were many benefits for those C-grade or higher.

“Is that person the new S-grade?”

“The Haeyeon Guild’s new S-grade that A-grade Kim Sunghan escorted?”

No, no, you people. How long has it been for simple speculation to become an established fact? You over there, why are you making a call so urgently? Oh, the association person coming over looks like they have a high position. Surely they didn’t come because of me.

“Hello. I am Seok Kimyung, the head of the Awakened Registration Department at the Hunter Association.”

He bowed to me. Shit, no. Don’t greet me.

“If you don’t mind, may I briefly review the application you have filled out?”

“…Here.”

I was already starting to feel embarrassed, but I just handed over the application. Department Head Seok Kimyung frowned slightly upon seeing the single-digit stats and E-grade skills. Hey, I have five L-grade skills, okay?

“…Um. Then, good work.”

After checking the application, he immediately dropped the honorifics [formal language]. His polite attitude had completely disappeared. Disgusting, really. It’s something I experienced a lot before the regression, but it’s still disgusting.

“What, he wasn’t an S-grade?”

“Looking at that person’s attitude, he’s not.”

“But why did he pretend to be an S-grade?”

I didn’t do that, you bastards! You guys jumped to conclusions and what pretense!

‘It reminds me of those 기자놈 [reporters] who wrote novels about me and Yoohyun.’

Ugh… it makes my stomach ache just thinking about it. Those 기자놈 [reporters] contributed about 30% to my inferiority complex. Comparisons with my incompetent brother were always included in articles praising Yoohyun.

I submitted the application amidst the piercing gazes and headed to the lower-level ability measurement room.

“Do you have any items you are wearing or carrying?”

The measurement room employee asked in a businesslike tone.

“No.”

“Please step onto the measuring device.”

As instructed, I stepped onto the measuring device, which looked like a round disc. The measuring device, made using materials from dungeons, emitted a faint light, and soon the results appeared.

“Vitality 6, Strength 4, Agility 5, Mentality 4, Mana 2 measured.”

Accurate.

“Is it correct that you possess the E-grade Mentality Boost and E-grade Agility Boost skills?”

“Yes.”

“Please use the skill on the assistant.”

The assistant for skill verification stepped forward. I was worried that I might run out of mana, but fortunately, the unfortunate event of passing out while using the skill did not occur. I need to buy some mana potions.

After completing the stat verification, I went into the photo booth and took a picture. The photo information, which checked not only the size of the ID photo but also the full body from front to back, was immediately stored in the association database. Then, after waiting for a while, I approached the certification issuance desk upon hearing the call.

“Mr. Han Yoojin is an F-grade Awakened and meets the hunter qualification requirements. Hunter certification issuance and dungeon entry are possible after completing the basic program for new hunters. Would you like to apply for the program?”

“I will apply for completion with the Haeyeon Guild guarantee.”

New hunters who have already joined or are scheduled to join a guild could skip the basic program with the guild’s guarantee. This was because the in-guild rookie training was of much higher quality.

I handed the Haeyeon Guild guarantee to the employee. The employee, after verifying the guarantee, busily moved their fingers over the keyboard.

“Please provide the account number to receive the subsidy. Only accounts in your name are allowed.”

“Baekil Bank 995-04-109982.”

I got a million won of free money. Hooray for the association.

Since I received the guild guarantee, the hunter certification was issued immediately. The hunter certification was the same size as a resident registration card and contained a photo, serial number, grade, and name. After receiving the certification, I asked the employee.

“Is there a way to go directly to the Hunter Shopping Mall from here?”

It’s annoying to have a watcher following me if I go outside. There’s no need to follow me even inside the association.

“You can use the elevator at the end of the right hallway.”

“Thank you.”

As the employee said, I took the elevator and a side door leading directly to the shopping mall appeared. An ATM was located near the door.

‘Should I check how much Yoohyun gave me?’

I took out a card from my wallet and approached the ATM. A Hunter Shopping Mall exclusive gift card. When I said I needed money to buy a contract, he handed it over, saying he had put in a reasonable amount. It’s a bit embarrassing to receive an allowance from my younger brother, but hunter items are all so expensive that my poor wallet couldn’t handle it.

I can repay him by finding good hunters, right?

‘An A-grade contract costs four to five hundred million won, so I wonder if he put in about ten million won.’

If possible, I want to buy an S-grade one, but I don’t know how much that costs. It’ll be at least twice as expensive as an A-grade one. I also need mana potions, so should I buy an A-grade one for now?

I inserted the card into the machine and checked the balance, and soon the number appeared on the screen.

[Balance: 1,000,000,000 won]

…How many zeros is that?

‘Is Yoohyun crazy?’