By Zephyria Things You Shouldn’t Do at a Funeral
11:48 PM, Awakened Management Bureau Field Response Team 1 office. The spacious office was brightly lit despite the late hour.
“Team Leader, would you like a snack?”
“Ah, yes. Just bring me an energy bar.”
The diligent civil servant Jung-bin volunteered for duty today. It wasn’t that he had any overtime or urgent work, but it was something he usually did around this time.
—Well, there’s really not much time left. In 12 minutes, we’ll be able to check the new rankings! I’m really curious how the System ranked them.
Today was the ranking renewal day that all Hunters eagerly awaited. Jung-bin had one hand in his pocket and held an empty paper cup in the other, chewing on it a couple of times with his front teeth.
Once a year, the System comprehensively assesses the abilities and activities of the Awakened and assigns a ranking to each of them. Both the Hunters who debuted this year and those who were already active were waiting for the ranking to be updated.
The new ranking was proof of their ability, and whether they could join a new Guild or receive a new advertisement depended on that ranking.
However, there were quite a few cases where Hunters who didn’t receive the desired ranking caused a disturbance, so the Awakened Management Bureau entered an emergency response system during this period. The two announcers on the screen pointed to the data and said.
—The System’s ranking calculation method has not been clearly revealed, but we understand that it calculates not only the grade but also the Hunter’s activities for the year.
—That’s why an A-grade Awakened can be ranked higher than an S-grade Awakened. There have been so many Hunters who have emerged like comets and shown remarkable performances over the past year. The ranking changes this year may be quite large.
—Nevertheless, experts predicted that there would be no major changes in the top ranks, that is, the top 20. Let’s take a look at the expected rankings.
Lee Sa-young (S)
Matthew ― Mok Taeo (S)
Jung-bin (S)
Gyu-Gyu ― Ban Gyu-min (S)
Honeybee ― Yoo Chae-hyun (A)
Doctor ― Nam Woo-jin (A)
The Artisan ― Hong Ye-seong (S)
Ham Seok-jeong (A)
Song Jo-heon (S)
Shield Guy ― Bae Won-woo (A)
:
:
—Oh, the expected ranking… is not different from the current ranking. Is the prediction that there will be no changes at all?
—Yes, that’s right. That’s been the case for the past two years.
‘I know all the faces.’
“Team Leader, please have this.”
“Ah, thank you.”
Jung-bin and his team member stood side by side in front of the monitor and began to eat the energy bar. The team member who checked the expected ranking asked.
“Team Leader, do you think it will remain the same as the expected ranking?”
“Um… yes.”
The ranking up to 10th place hadn’t changed in the last two years. The higher-ranked Hunters are more active, so their innate abilities have a greater impact. So, as the panelists said, the ranking wouldn’t change this year either.
The generational change would begin in earnest from the mid-ranks. Everyone thought so, and Jung-bin agreed with that opinion.
“If Honeybee gets an S-Class Weapon, it might be different, but for now, I think the ranking will stay the same this year.”
It was when he finished folding the empty wrapper into a small note after satisfying his hunger.
Bang, a firecracker exploded in the air. Jung-bin was startled and looked up at the pure white window that had appeared.
[Ranking Change!]
[Would you like to check it now?]
A sound he hadn’t heard in nearly two years. It was the notification sound that only rang when there was a change in the ranking. Soon after, Jung-bin’s face slightly cracked after checking the ranking.
4th place. He was 2nd when J was around, and after J’s death, he briefly rose to 1st place, but with the appearance of Lee Sa-young, he became 2nd again. The modifier ‘eternal second’ was subtly bothering him, but with the appearance of another S-grade, Matthew, didn’t he even drop down another step?
But now, 4th place, one more step down. There were only two possible scenarios for the ranking to change.
A new 1st and 2nd place were born,
Or the existing 1st and 2nd place died.
Either way, it was a matter that would cause a great ripple. And soon, Jung-bin… faced a third situation he had never expected.
[Region: Republic of Korea
J
Lee Sa-young
▼1
Matthew
▼1
Jung-bin
▼1
Gyu-Gyu
▼1
Honeybee
▼1
Doctor
▼1
The Artisan
▼1
Ham Seok-jeong
▼1
Song Jo-heon
▼1
Shield Guy
▼1
]
The ranking dropped by one from the expected ranking, and the one who took first place…
That name everyone knew, J.
Eight years had passed since that day, but his name could still be heard everywhere. In the Incheon Rift special documentary, in the history books dealing with the Day of the Rift, and even in the childish internet posts arguing about who was the strongest in the world.
He died in the Rift eight years ago. That’s what was known. No one saw the body, but the Rift closed, and his name disappeared from the Hunter rankings. Moreover, since a Rift that has been closed once does not reopen, everyone did not doubt his death.
But now, J suddenly appeared in the ranking.
What this means is…
—Huh? No, what is this!
—Wait a minute. The 1st place is….
—Has the 1st place changed?
—It’s J?
J is alive.
And he’s probably still in the Incheon Rift.
‘In the worst case… the Incheon Rift may have reappeared.’
The smile disappeared from Jung-bin’s face. The team member stuttered as if he had checked the ranking.
“T, Team Leader.”
Jung-bin grabbed the suit jacket hanging on the chair and strode towards the door. The team member hurriedly followed him.
“No, Team Leader! What is this… Am I seeing this right?”
“How many people can move immediately?”
“Uh, excluding the people waiting on the field… about ten people in total.”
“Leave only the minimum personnel and everyone goes to Incheon. Tell all the field standby personnel to move as well.”
“Incheon?”
“Yes. To the Incheon Rift.”
“Understood!”
“Director Ham Seok-jeong will issue media response guidelines. Tell those who remain to respond according to the guidelines….”
The pager rang as soon as Jung-bin’s instructions were finished. He slightly blurred the end of his words, checked with a nod to see if they understood, and pressed the receive button.
[Director Ham Seok-jeong]
The gentle voice of a middle-aged woman flowed out through the speaker.
—Team Leader Jung.
“Yes, Director.”
—Thank you for your hard work until late. Did you see the ranking?
“Yes, I did. I’m planning to leave for Incheon right away.”
—Okay. I think you know what to do.
“Yes. After confirming whether the West Sea Rift has reappeared, we will search the surrounding area, keeping in mind the possibility of survival of J and other Hunters.”
—If J is not in the West Sea. And if the Rift hasn’t reopened….
A brief silence flowed. Ham Seok-jeong, Director of the Awakened Management Bureau, said firmly.
—You must find him.
“Yes.”
—No matter what method you use.
Incheon, in front of the memorial monument.
Jung-bin hurried his steps, straightening his disheveled hair from jumping out of the helicopter. The goal was the cape where the memorial monument was located.
There was already a guest in front of the memorial monument standing tall in a place with a good view of the sea. Thanks to his height, which was much taller than others, it was not difficult to recognize who he was even from a distance. Jung-bin took a moment to catch his breath and approached the black figure.
“Lee Sa-young.”
“…….”
Lee Sa-young, with his hands in his pockets, was staring intently at the top of the memorial monument. At first glance, he looked peaceful, but Jung-bin sensed it.
‘He’s completely lost it.’
The ominous energy, whether it was not contained or not done, was noticeably fluctuating. So much so that a weak human would lose consciousness without being able to withstand it. Jung-bin sent a hand signal to the team members behind him. It meant to prevent anyone from approaching.
The team members scattered in an orderly manner. Not only reporters, but even ordinary Hunters should not be allowed to approach Lee Sa-young in this state. A sharp pressure that seemed to tear a person apart at any moment pressed down on the air. Jung-bin stood three steps behind and watched Lee Sa-young.
Lee Sa-young, who had been silent, opened his mouth.
“Rift?”
He must mean if he came to check the Rift. Jung-bin replied without letting his guard down.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“It’s not open.”
“…….”
Lee Sa-young pointed to the calm sea with a gesture as if to show off. The waves were gently breaking under the moonlight. His gaze was still fixed on one letter written at the very top of the memorial monument.
Originally, the Incheon Rift was under the joint jurisdiction of the Rift Management Bureau and the Awakened Management Bureau. The scale of the Rift and the scars it left were too great to hand over the management rights to an individual Guild, so no Guild bothered to bid for it. After the incident in the West Sea, no one wanted to keep a bomb that could explode at any time.
However, Lee Sa-young, who suddenly appeared one day, demanded ownership of the Incheon Rift from the government in exchange for sharing the research results of the Wave Guild’s research institute.
Since it was already a headache, the government didn’t even pretend to hesitate and handed over the bomb to the Wave Guild.
Since that day, Jung-bin had been harboring a small question.
‘Why did Lee Sa-young take ownership of the Incheon Rift?’
And now. Why is Lee Sa-young here? Because he’s worried about an anomaly in the Guild-owned Rift? Because of the anger of being robbed of first place by J?
“If you’ve confirmed it, go back and manage your Hunters.”
“…….”
It was a clear order to leave. Lee Sa-young’s gaze was directed at the empty air slightly away from the memorial monument. He was probably looking at the same thing as Jung-bin.
+82 [CH.1] «J has entered.»
J appeared in the channel.
Could he be near here? Now that he had confirmed the safety of the Rift, it was time to carry out the second mission. The moment he slightly moved his fingertips to give instructions,
“Stop before I break your fingers.”
A languid voice muttered.
“Tell Ham Seok-jeong.”
“…….”
“The ownership of the Incheon Rift belongs to the Wave Guild.”
“…….”
Lee Sa-young slowly turned his body and faced Jung-bin. Ah, Jung-bin suddenly realized.
“Everything that comes out of the Rift….”
Lee Sa-young is,
“It’s mine.”
For this day….