By Zephyria 
[Death and Beauty tilts its head, wondering if my apostle possesses no magical power.]
“…….”
That was correct. He possessed divine power, but not magical power.
While he was fiercely debating whether to let the other enjoy a moment of happiness or quickly wake him up to reality, a ding-dong sounded, signaling that the waiting number had changed.
“Hyung is going to tear Korea apart today.”
“I-I’ll be right back.”
Unable to confess the truth in the end, Kim Si-baek stood up, breaking into a cold sweat. Biyendwe, who had been left behind, watched his reaction before flying up to perch on his shoulder, but Tae-un seemed oblivious, his face brimming with anticipation.
Kim Si-baek subtly avoided his gaze and walked toward the magical power measurement area.
Tae-un’s appearance had caused a chaotic stir in the hunter registration department, but contrary to his notoriety—or rather, his fame—he was remarkably well-behaved. It was simply that his visual and auditory presence evoked a sense of dread akin to cosmic horror.
Naturally, attention shifted to the young man accompanying him. Since he was someone Tae-un had personally brought to measure his magical power, he couldn’t be an ordinary person.
One employee even excitedly tipped off a journalist they knew, suggesting that a new S-class might emerge. On internet tabloids, posts like ‘The reason Tae-un of the Seven Guild appeared at the hunter registration department?!’ were already beginning to spread.
Since humans cannot feel magical power, a machine created through magic is used for measurement, much like when detecting magical energy. Because it takes time to scan the entire body and analyze the magical power, there was a queue, but the center employees grabbed Kim Si-baek’s result sheet first. Then, suspecting a machine malfunction, they checked, and checked, and checked again.
The result was…
“You… you are a non-Awakened.”
Beside Kim Si-baek, who was avoiding eye contact, Tae-un—who had been wearing a bright, radiant smile—tilted his head slightly, his expression still smiling.
“Hmm? I think I just heard a strange word. Say that again.”
The employee, who had been chosen by lottery to handle them, felt a poignant regret that they should have written their will before coming to work, and stammered out the words.
“Ma-ma-ma, magical power is… non-existent… a, a civilian…”
“…….”
Tae-un froze, his smiling expression remaining exactly as it was, as if time had stopped. After a deathly silence, the ominous scar on his left cheek seemed to twitch, and the darkness flowing from the coat draped over his shoulders instantly swallowed the hunter registration department.
✽ ✽ ✽
‘I really thought I was going to die back there.’
The employee of the hunter registration department repeatedly clutched her chest. Looking in the restroom mirror, her complexion was still so pale and blue that she looked like a zombie that had just crawled out of a grave. She couldn’t believe her head was still attached to her neck after witnessing Tae-un’s ability firsthand.
Since Tae-un had never revealed exactly what his ability was, there were countless speculations. Some guessed it was darkness, others guessed it was shadows. Regardless of the guess, the conclusion was the same: he was so strong that his limits were unimaginable.
In particular, the skill to ‘swallow’ magical beasts was an ability possessed by Tae-un alone among all the Awakened in the world. Magical beasts swallowed by his power vanished from the world without leaving a single trace. There was once a rampant theory on YouTube that the ‘mad dog’ was actually Cerberus, the watchdog of hell, and that whatever he swallowed was certainly falling into hell.
That theory vanished after Tae-un gave a blunt response—”What kind of bullshit is that?”—during an interview on a mainstream broadcast. For the record, because it was a live broadcast, it wasn’t muted and was transmitted exactly as said.
The impression of witnessing that swallowing ability right before her eyes was…
‘…I think Cerberus is correct.’
Her knees were still shaking and her legs were trembling. She wasn’t the only one; everyone in the hunter registration department at the time must have felt the same.
〈Un-ah.〉
However, the darkness that was about to drag the entire hunter registration department into the pits of hell vanished like a shadow melting in the spring sunshine at a single, low and clear word from the side.
〈What are you doing in a place with so many people? Didn’t you say you don’t know what happens if someone is eaten by the darkness?〉
At the firm voice, which sounded like a parent scolding a child, Tae-un’s frozen expression melted into a pout.
〈Would I actually try to kill people? I was just… so surprised by the unexpected result…〉
〈I believe you’re not a bad boy who would harm people.〉
〈Hyuuung…〉
〈Still, other people might be scared or misunderstand, so don’t do this in the future. Understand?〉
〈Yes…〉
Seeing the pitiful and miserable sight of a completely defeated Tae-un, the employee felt like she was having a heart attack, though for a different reason than before. And the person who melted her terrified heart was that very young man.
The young man who had made Tae-un withdraw his power bowed politely.
〈I’m sorry for startling you.〉
Apologizing not only to the employee but also to the others who were frozen in shock, the young man patted Tae-un’s back and left the hunter registration department.
Behind him, the employee clearly witnessed it. A holy halo shining from the young man who had turned that mad dog into a docile puppy with a single word.
‘His name was Kim Si-baek, right? He’s a saint, a saint. Saint Kim Si-baek…’
Heaven had sent down a mad dog that was no different from a natural disaster, and had fairly sent down his leash as well.
Anyway, she had to leave the restroom before she was misunderstood as slacking off. She splashed water on her face to wake herself up.
‘What I experienced today is definitely a valid reason for sick leave. If they don’t give it to me, I’ll lie down right in front of the manager. I’ll even get a hospital consultation record.’
She was just fueling her motivation for sick leave when…
Crack.
A strange sound, like something splitting or tearing, was heard. As she turned around in confusion, the last thing she witnessed was a thick tentacle erupting through the floor.
[Quest 02]
[Complete Hunter Registration (0/1)]
[Time Remaining: 09 hours 18 minutes]
He had thought it would be easy since he was told hunter registration happens immediately once one is confirmed as an Awakened, but looking at it now, it was a quest with a tight time limit. Since he was the one who had declined Director Noh’s goodwill, he felt bad, but solving the quest was urgent.
At his cautious request asking if registration would be possible within the day, Director Noh answered readily without even asking for the reason.
The registration itself will be completed before the end of the workday.
It felt reassuring to have someone providing full support. Afterward, he entered a cafe across from the Management Center and waited for Director Noh’s confirmation call.
Having experienced the cafe’s vibration bell for the second time, he was less surprised. Tae-un, who had been lying face-down on the table making groaning sounds, sat up disheveled.
“……I’ll go get the coffee.”
“Stay there. I’ll be right back.”
He forced Tae-un to stay seated and brought back the coffee on a tray. Even while drinking the sweet coffee that felt like it would melt his tongue, Tae-un’s face remained grim.
[Death and Beauty wonders if the reaction is too excessive.]
Kim Si-baek also wondered.
“I know you’re disappointed that the plan you set up fell through, but the Director could have solved the problem anyway, right?”
“That’s true, but…”
Tae-un’s face, as he fiddled with the coffee cup, was clouded with worry. Seeing this, Biyendwe blinked his eyes wide, as Kim Si-baek often said, because for the first time, he looked like a young child.
“……I didn’t want filth to splash on Hyung because of me again.”
Ah.
Kim Si-baek silently bit his lower lip. Only then did he understand the sensitive reaction. In a sense, it was a problem no different from Tae-un’s trauma.
The child who became an adult no longer fears adult men. However, the fall of the other caused by himself remained as a scabbed scar, and given the chance, it still dropped vivid droplets of blood.
Wondering how to answer so the child wouldn’t be hurt, Kim Si-baek decided to tell the truth as it was.
“The situation is different from back then. Even if rumors spread, it won’t leave a scratch on me. And once I prove my abilities, they’ll disappear quickly anyway.”
“…….”
“I’m right, aren’t I?”
The noble smile, born from an unwavering confidence in himself, was beautiful and straight. Tae-un couldn’t even face him and dropped his head. While he would never escape the ancient filth that filled that semi-basement room when he was five, the other had become a shining person who would not be defiled by any disgrace.
〈I told you it wasn’t your fault. How many times have I told you not to keep it in your heart? Even if I went back to being 19, I would go back into that semi-basement room and meet you. I’ve never regretted it once.〉
Tae-un, however, regrets it over and over.
He should never have met him thirty years ago. And because he is a human as terrible as his profound regret, he composes his expression and smiles smoothly.
Because he had imagined, practiced, and refined it countless times while waiting for his return, Tae-un’s voice, expression, gestures, and movements were composed.
So that Kim Si-baek could be sufficiently fooled.
“What you just said was totally cool.”
“Good grief.”
Kim Si-baek, failing to notice the strange vibe, ruffled his hair.
“I think the second quest will be completed with this…”
It was before Kim Si-baek, leaning back in his chair, could finish his sentence.