By Zephyria A little while ago, at a franchise cafe in Gwangjin-gu.
[As I reported yesterday, I’ve arrived in Gwangjin-gu. The Weakening Elixir had no effect, so he only wore the bracelet. He is currently undergoing ability measurement.]
Send? Yes.
Min-gi Seo, who sent the text to the Guild Master, pushed up his sunglasses and looked around.
He was at the cafe to keep the one-sided promise he made with Eui-jae. Perhaps because it was late afternoon on a weekday, the franchise cafe was deserted. It was a welcome sight, as the matter needed to be handled discreetly. Just then, his phone buzzed briefly.
Guild Master Lee Sa-young: O
For some reason, Lee Sa-young replied! Usually, he would read it and ignore it. Min-gi Seo was about to send an additional report without missing the opportunity when a clear voice called him.
“Seo Min-gi, who ordered through Smart Order! Your Grande-sized Americano and Grande-sized Green Tea Frappuccino with Java chips and an extra shot are ready.”
“Thank you.”
‘I’ll have to make the additional report after returning to the truck.’ Holding the coffees in both hands, he pushed the cafe’s glass door open with his shoulder and quickly moved. The measurement procedure doesn’t take long. So he had to get to the truck quickly, check the situation, and prepare for any unexpected events.
Min-gi Seo took a long sip of the Green Tea Frappuccino topped with whipped cream.
‘Did Cha Eui-jae get a D-rank without any problems?’ Unfortunately, even he thought the chances were extremely low. He only wore the bracelet when he should have drunk all of the Weakening Elixir. A determined look crossed Min-gi Seo’s face.
‘That’s why they sent me in preparation for this kind of situation.’
Hunter Name Very Small Miracle Mingi Seo, real name Seo Min-gi. Ranked 34th in Korea, a man who ranks higher than his superior, Lee Sa-young, in the annoyingly memorable Hunter Name voting.
‘Don’t worry, Guild Master.’
He,
‘I’ll manipulate it perfectly.’
Was a pro at stealth and infiltration.
The long shadow stretching behind him flickered.
There was a reason why Lee Sa-young specifically assigned the 34th-ranked Hunter in Korea to Cha Eui-jae. The measuring device, developed by leading researchers from around the world, had almost no margin of error. Even if he tried to trick the machine with the Weakening Curse, there was a limit to that.
‘Then the only way is to manipulate the results themselves and change them.’
Min-gi Seo was dispatched in anticipation of that worst-case scenario from the start.
Infiltrating the Awakened Management Bureau, which has strict security, would take a lot of effort, but the temporary registration center is a different story. In that environment, it was easy for Min-gi Seo to infiltrate and manipulate information. Of course, he absolutely couldn’t get caught, or he’d be meeting with Jung-bin as is.
‘Don’t worry, Cha Eui-jae… I can fix it even if you screw it up because I have a backup.’
Min-gi Seo, who had something to rely on, was very calm. However, when he returned to the parking lot, he witnessed a shocking sight that made him doubt his eyes. He even lowered his sunglasses to make sure, but it was still the same.
The container he was supposed to enter to manipulate the information was nowhere to be seen, and only a blue Rift was flickering…
‘…Why?’
It’s freezing.
Min-gi Seo’s hand trembled without him realizing it, and hot coffee spilled everywhere, but that wasn’t important now. Rift Management Bureau employees in fluorescent safety vests were running around busily, controlling the area around the Rift.
Familiar faces appeared there as well. For example, Hunter Yang Hye-jin, an A-rank Hunter affiliated with the Rift Management Bureau. She was wearing a yellow hard hat and a fluorescent vest, waving a safety baton around.
“Move it, move it!”
“A Class 5 Rift has occurred at the Gwangjin-gu Temporary Registration Center!”
“Contact to the Management Bureau is complete!”
“What about the disaster text?”
“It will be sent out soon.”
“It could be an absorption-type Rift, so make sure to control the surrounding area.”
“How many civilians were swept away…”
“Are there any Hunters nearby who can provide support?”
“Ah, Matthew is said to be nearby!”
“Lee Sa-young is also nearby…”
Yang Hye-jin, who was directing the Hunters with a serious expression, turned as still as a statue when she heard that name.
“There’s no way that bastard would come. Try requesting, but don’t expect much. Contact Matthew right away too!”
‘…Well, there’s no way a Rift would burst in the center. This isn’t some movie.’
He tried to ignore the urgent voices. He must be seeing things.
It seemed like the effects of the Weakening Elixir he experimented with yesterday hadn’t worn off. Well, I did drink a lot. I guess the Weakening Elixir even caused mental and physical weakness. Just as Min-gi Seo finished rationalizing, he opened the door of the truck.
Beeeeeep— The loud disaster alert text message alarm shattered his escapism. He put the coffee on the car seat and quickly took out his phone.
[Rift Management Bureau]
15:34 A Class 5 Rift has occurred at the Temporary Awakened Registration Center in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul. The surrounding area is being controlled, and access is prohibited.
No, no way.
Min-gi Seo despaired. Then, he created his own KnowledgeON Q&A in his head.
《KnowledgeON》
Q. [Question] Hello, Guild Master. The target was swept away by a Rift while I went to buy coffee. What should I do?
A. Die.
Min-gi Seo, whose legs had given way, plopped down in front of the car door in a mermaid position. After receiving special instructions from Lee Sa-young, he simulated all possible scenarios, but… he had never considered the insane situation of a Rift appearing at the measurement center!
Faced with a huge crisis, his brain began to spin rapidly. In a rather extreme direction.
‘Should I just jump into the Rift?’
Rift Management Bureau employees were setting up camp and controlling access. Reporters must be rushing over with excitement.
Of course, he could ignore everything and enter, but if he jumped in like this, tomorrow’s newspaper would have a huge headline: “Very Small Miracle Mingi Seo (Korea, 34th), Bravely Jumps into Rift… Rear View” and a YouTube video of him diving into the Rift would exceed one million views. He could imagine the comments on the video.
—The nickname is uniquely terrible
—But why is he getting hate? Isn’t it good if a Hunter enters the Rift on their own?
└Someone who entered the Jongno Dungeon in the morning is diving into a Rift in Gwangjin-gu in the afternoon, so they’re getting hate
└?? How can someone who entered the Dungeon enter the Rift again?
└I’m so curious about that^^
‘Absolutely not.’
Min-gi Seo shuddered at the mere thought. It was too harsh for him, who made a living with stealth. Besides, Very Small Miracle Mingi Seo was supposed to have entered the Jongno 3-ga Dungeon with Bae Won-woo this morning!
He never thought the alibi he prepared for the worst would backfire… Min-gi Seo was frustrated. This sunglasses, which had an impriting blocking effect, also had its limits, so he had to refrain from being exposed to the public and having his carefully crafted alibi shattered.
Damn it! Min-gi Seo grabbed his head. He shouldn’t have ordered the Green Tea Frappuccino with an extra shot, lots of whipped cream, half of the Java chips blended and half drizzled! He should have just had an iced Americano.
If he had come earlier, he could have jumped in before the Rift Management Bureau Hunters arrived. As he writhed endlessly in the pit of regret, his phone rang as if to tell him to stop.
[Guild Master Lee Sa-young]
Min-gi Seo, sensing his fate, stared into the void for a moment.
If he answers this… he’ll get his ass kicked. And if he doesn’t answer this… he imagined his future, where he would get kicked five times harder and be publicly shamed even at the meeting. Min-gi Seo respectfully pressed the call button with both hands.
“Yes, this is Very Small Miracle Mingi…”
—You answered?
“Yes?”
—Then that means you’re not inside the Rift.
Min-gi Seo swallowed hard. The low voice asked gently.
—What’s the situation?
After a moment of silence, Min-gi Seo replied.
“…First of all, the current situation is entirely my fault. I’m really sorry.”
—Oh, you’re sorry?
“…The, uh, the target seems to be in the Rift.”
—Seems?
“Yes. The temporary center container and part of the district office parking lot were swept away by the Rift. The Rift Management Bureau has taken its place and is controlling the entrance to the Rift. Since it’s a Rift that appeared at the registration center, the Awakened Management Bureau will be sending support soon.”
—Will be?
He couldn’t tell if he was picking on his words or empathizing with him. Lee Sa-young seemed to have mastered the art of killing people with words alone.
Min-gi Seo foresaw his increasingly bleak future and banged his head on the truck. Every time he banged his head, the precious car body was dented little by little.
“I’m sorry. Should I kill myself?”
—Enough.
Lee Sa-young cut him off nonchalantly.
—I’ll be there soon, so wait.
“Yes?”
Click. The words were cut off, and the call was cut off. Coming soon? The Guild Master? Here? Min-gi Seo rubbed his ears to make sure he hadn’t heard things. Still with a blank expression, he asked the silent phone.
“Yeeees?”