18
Having moved from the measurement room to the VIP passage, Baek Woo-jin rubbed his hand, feeling the lingering sensation of the sword, and made an ambiguous expression.
He had swung a sword for a little over a month, and thanks to that, the awkwardness he felt in various aspects when he first gripped one had disappeared. The way he held it and his swinging posture had started to take on the appearance of someone who had actually wielded a sword before.
'For some reason, it doesn't draw me in.'
He had chosen the sword because it required the lowest proficiency, but the more he used it, the less it appealed to him. It wasn't that he disliked the sword itself, but it wasn't like it constantly drew his hands either... He supposed he was using it reluctantly simply because it was the easiest to handle.
'Should I make some time to try out other weapons?'
He couldn't keep borrowing weapons from the Dungeon Management Office forever. To enter higher-rank dungeons, he had to properly equip gear matching his rank, if not for the sake of others, then at least for his own safety.
And the highest priority for Baek Woo-jin in that regard was a weapon.
Considering it was by no means a cheap price, it was only natural for him to have a lot of thoughts as a buyer.
While he was resting and thinking about his future plans, Manager Kwak Du-seok opened the door and stepped out. Having neatly adjusted his attire in that brief span of time, he stopped in front of Baek Woo-jin, who was leaning comfortably against the wall, and slightly bowed his head.
"I was terribly rude earlier."
"……."
It was true that standing and blocking the door wasn't exactly a good look, but if asked whether it warranted bowing his head like this, he would shake his head. Especially so if the man seemed to be around the same age as his father.
"I accept your apology."
"Haha, thank you."
Raising his head, Kwak Du-seok pulled a business card from his inner pocket and held it out.
"I am Manager Kwak Du-seok."
"I'm Baek Woo-jin."
Not having a business card of his own, Baek Woo-jin lightly exchanged greetings by grasping Kwak Du-seok's extended hand.
"But what brings someone of your rank as a Manager here?"
"Do you perhaps have a moment to spare?"
"As long as it doesn't go too late, I don't mind."
"Then, although it may be a bit sudden, could you spare me a little time? Ah, it's absolutely nothing bad, so please don't worry about that."
Knowing exactly why he was being asked to meet privately, Baek Woo-jin had anticipated this situation as well, so he lightly nodded in agreement to Kwak Du-seok's proposal.
"Miss Mi-hee? Please send over the inspection form."
"Understood."
"This way, please."
Baek Woo-jin exchanged a brief glance with the female receptionist and followed Kwak Du-seok to a new location.
Walking a bit further inside, they came across two elevators; the two men boarded one of them and ascended.
"Is it usually this quiet?"
"The frequency of dungeon outbreaks has increased recently. Even the administrative staff are being called out to the field."
Baek Woo-jin didn't comment.
If the frequency of dungeon outbreaks had increased to the point where even administrative personnel were being deployed to the field, one might normally ask if it wasn't a serious crisis, but having regressed, he knew that this society would remain perfectly functional for the next ten years.
"Please have a seat wherever you're comfortable. It's just stick coffee, but would you care for a cup?"
"I like stick coffee too."
"Haha, it seems we have similar tastes in coffee."
Sitting on a highly comfortable sofa, he waited briefly before Kwak Du-seok placed a steaming paper cup in front of him and took a seat across from him.
"First, I should show you the results."
After clicking a button on the sofa's armrest a few times, a hologram shot up from the table.
Name: Baek Woo-jin
Age: 20 Gender: Male
Strength: 19(E) Stamina: 19(E)
Agility: 19(E) Mana: 39(D)
"These are the inspection results for Hunter Baek Woo-jin measured today."
Checking the three-dimensionally projected results, Baek Woo-jin was surprised for an entirely different reason than Kwak Du-seok. When he had first checked his stats, everything aside from his mana had been 10.
Yet, in just a little over a month, not just one, but all his stats—excluding his mana, which had already reached the rank limit—had not only increased, but reached their maximum limit.
All he had done during that month was enter E-rank dungeons and hunt monsters whose byproducts weren't even worth anything, entirely by himself.
'Come to think of it, it makes sense that they went up.'
He had been slaughtering alone the number of monsters that others would hunt in a party, meaning he had monopolized the experience points that were supposed to be shared. Looking at it that way, the increase in his stats didn't seem so strange.
"Hunter Baek Woo-jin?"
"Yes. Please go ahead."
"I see you registered as an Awakener on January 1st of this year."
"That day happens to be my birthday. So that's how it turned out."
"Haha. Most people dream of their Awakening on their birthday."
Kwak Du-seok lightly moistened his throat with the stick coffee he had brewed.
"Hunter Baek Woo-jin. Do you know what the highest officially recorded starting point is?"
"Isabel Avento. I believe all her stats, excluding mana, were at 30."
Having once dreamed of reaching that position without knowing his place, almost all information regarding official records was stored in his head.
"Yes, that is correct. However."
Kwak Du-seok pointed at Baek Woo-jin's mana stat and spoke.
"Today, you have broken that record, Hunter Baek Woo-jin."
Baek Woo-jin didn't reply. He merely moistened his throat with the stick coffee the other man had provided, just as Kwak Du-seok had done moments ago, and met the older man's eyes, which were fixed on him with an undisguisable intensity.
"I'm not very good at beating around the bush."
"Neither am I."
"Haha, your palate as well. We seem to have quite a lot in common."
"It certainly seems so."
Answering calmly, Baek Woo-jin set down the paper cup he was holding.
"To get straight to the point, I would like to have you under our wing, Hunter Baek Woo-jin."
"I have no interest in becoming a civil servant."
"I understand. The moment this information is made public, not only domestic groups, but foreign ones as well, will covertly reach out to you, Hunter Baek Woo-jin."
"I heard the treatment in the US is quite good."
"Ahem, for the record, I am also a public servant."
One could tell from his reaction, but not just Korea, every country in the world immediately deports foreign scouts the moment they are discovered. While quite a few unseemly incidents occur in the process, since the offending party quietly lets it slide as if they knew nothing, it has never escalated into a major scandal.
After all, while everyone who matters knows, openly declaring in an official setting that they attempted to poach another country's talent is an entirely different matter.
"Hunter Baek Woo-jin. It is an undeniable fact that the financial compensation we offer certainly cannot compare to that of the major guilds. However, there are special benefits that only the government can provide."
"Special benefits, I see."
"Yes. First of all, you will be exempt from taxes."
Not a tax reduction, but no need to pay taxes whatsoever?
For just a very brief moment, he was tempted.
"Furthermore, you will become the number one priority for access to all public facilities and medical benefits. For your reference, the zero priority is reserved solely for the President. Even the First Lady is number two."
The fact that my mother, Mrs. Jang, could receive better treatment than the First Lady was somewhat appealing, but it wouldn't matter as long as he prevented such a situation from arising in the first place.
"Additionally, we can have custom equipment crafted solely for you, Hunter Baek Woo-jin. This would not be a loan, but provided free of charge, and it will be newly crafted each time your rank increases."
This was a condition that other major guilds could easily offer as well.
"Upon your promotion to B-rank, we will provide an annual subsidy of 500 million won for the purchase of elixirs..."
Kwak Du-seok proceeded to explain every single minor benefit the government could offer.
"I've heard you well."
"Haha."
Baek Woo-jin's nonchalant response made it clear what choice he had already made, prompting a bitter smile from Kwak Du-seok.
"It seems an answer is unnecessary."
"I understand. In this day and age, no matter the perk, most things can be solved with money."
"Most of them, yes."
Leaning forward from his comfortable position against the sofa, Baek Woo-jin spoke to the bitterly smiling Kwak Du-seok.
"I have no intention of affiliating myself with anyone."
"Everyone says that at first."
"I'm serious. That's why I have a proposal for you."
"Haha, let's hear it."
Seeing Kwak Du-seok mirror his posture and lean in to show he was listening, Baek Woo-jin carefully began to speak.
"First, I would like you to erase my Awakener registration date."
"That is illegal."
"Only if done without permission. Since the government is the one doing it, what does it matter if it's illegal?"
"Haha, let's hear the rest."
"I don't particularly want to draw attention to myself."
"Hmm."
Kwak Du-seok, who had been listening with an expression that suggested he wasn't expecting much, stroked his chin, his eyes now revealing a hint of intrigue.
"Please support my dungeon runs so I can grow. Unpopular dungeons with no byproduct value will suffice."
"That is not difficult."
"Lastly, please make me a civil servant ID."
"May I ask why?"
"I'm keeping the fact that I work as a Hunter a secret from my parents. I even told them I came down here to look for a job."
"If that's the reason, then..."
In reality, everything Baek Woo-jin was asking for could be resolved entirely within Kwak Du-seok's authority, without the need for approval from higher-ups.
"That is all I ask for."
"Then what do we gain from this?"
"When I reach B-rank, I will accept two requests from you. Naturally, I will expect appropriate compensation."
"……."
He wasn't offering to complete requests for free; he would be receiving a fair price.
In that case, what difference was there from entrusting the request to any other Hunter?
Kwak Du-seok, who had been stroking his chin in prolonged silence, widened his eyes slightly.
"Haha."
The look in Kwak Du-seok's eyes as he watched Baek Woo-jin changed.
"Will you accept any request?"
"As long as it's a request of the same rank."
In other words, if they didn't assign him a request at B-rank, they could assign him an A-rank request once Baek Woo-jin reached A-rank. The kind of requests that even major guilds wouldn't easily take on.
'Of course, breaking through the wall to A-rank is a prerequisite.'
Even if he failed, they wouldn't lose anything in practice. But what if he succeeded?
"I'd like to put this in writing, if you don't mind?"
"Of course."
That day, a level-8 administrative civil servant was added to the government network.