Episode 3: License Exam (1)

Within a crowded street, a young man wearing a white hoodie could be seen in a daze, sluggishly making his way through the crowd. There, he rubbed his eyes, letting out a loud yawn the next moment.

"Man. To think it's already the end of the month..." Jace helplessly muttered. "Just where did all the time go?"

It had been three days since he had made his decision to continue his work as a hunter. However, with all that said and done, laziness had taken the better of him. Rather than training or trying out his new skills, Jace played Rankers War for three days straight.

"Sigh... The License Exam is in an hour or so. Am I even prepared for it?" Scratching his head, Jace took out his phone to check the time, noting that it was currently [7:29 AM]. "Hmm... The written and physical exams should pose no problems. But, when it comes to the practical exam..."

In order for a hunter to be officially seen as one, they must first go through the Hunter's License Examination which takes place twice a month. The exam's purpose was to gauge the capabilities of the awakener, to see whether or not they're deemed fit to clear dungeons.

As such, the exam is split into three segments: The written exam, the physical test, and practical combat, which would all happen in succession. After the exams, if the hunter passes, they would receive their license as well as a hunter rank based on their performance.

"...It probably won't be a problem too? it's just a battle simulation, so I can take it easy and just shoot out a bullet or two," he nodded his head. "That should be enough to pass."

In the case of Jace, though he already had a license, it was under the alias of "Ace". As such, much like a newly awakened hunter, Jace needed to take the exam if he wished to have his license under his name.

After all, "Ace" was no more. Jace will be returning as himself. As "Jace Young".

...

After a few minutes of walking through the streets of Aurelis, Jace arrived at the Hunter's Association, where he was immediately greeted by the sight of a large white building before him. Surrounding the area was a bunch of hunters and civilians alike, all idling around the outskirts of the building.

"Here we are." Stopping at his footsteps, a sigh escaped from his mouth. "The Hunter's Association..."

Arriving at his destination, his tired mood tuned into that of annoyance as it reminded him of the root cause behind the mess he was caught in. If not for accepting the emergency request from the Hunter's Association, he wouldn't have been in this fiasco.

If it were up to Jace, he would've preferred to stay miles away from the association out of spite. But unfortunately, the License Exam was taking place here. So, he was left helpless in his anger.

"Their mismanagement of dungeons sure is something..." He grumbled, now making his way forward. "How could they not have a single available hunter to tackle that dungeon? Ugh... They had the audacity to ask me when I just got back from an S-Ranked Gate too..."

Back when he was "Ace", Jace was the most available hunter in Aurelis when it came to taking on last-minute arrangements. He wasn't affiliated with anyone and was free to do whatever he pleased. And so, for the most part of his career, he hopped around various parties to aid in clearing S-Ranked Gates, with Soren and the Hunter Association being the most he had worked together with.

Of course, that didn't mean that he would up and accept every single request that came at him. But, for the case of that fateful dungeon run, there wasn't much say in it as the situation could've gotten out of hand if not for Jace's intervention.

"Sigh... Whatever. The past is in the past. If possible, I should really file a complaint to the association's head one day." But alas, he was now a mere civilian, no longer having the power of Ace. "Hah. I should just head in and register for the exam."

With everything out of the way, it was time to register for the exam. However, as he approached the building, Jace quickly took notice of the abnormal amount of people idling by at the entrance of the headquarters.

"Hmm...? That's weird." He raised his brow in confusion. "This is way too many people in general..."

Although it was common for there to be many young and aspiring hunters looking to take part in the exam, it wasn't to the point that there would be a crowd of people flooding into the association. Though there were plenty of awakeners in the world, they were in the minority of the population.

"Strange... The amount of people here seems like it could fill up an entire stadium or something," Jace muttered to himself, beginning to push his way through the crowd. "Is there an up-and-coming hotshot hunter taking the exam today?"

Though he didn't care about the identity of the hunter, he might as well check it out since he was going into the building anyways. As such, squeezing through the sea of people, Jace reached the front of the crowd. There, he saw the sight of a blonde-haired man standing tall on the staircases leading up to the Hunter Association's Building.

"Today is a momentous occasion!" The man raised his fist high up into the air. "I, Landon Von Davies, shall come back as an S-Ranked Hunter, becoming the 10th in the country!"

"Woo! Landon is debuting as a hunter! As an S-Ranker no less!" The crowd cheered. "You'll make the Von Davies family proud!"

"Haha, it's no big deal!" Landon smirked. "It is only right that I will bring glory to the Von Davies family! You all have front-row seats to see me in action! So you guys best be watching the matches today!"

"Of course, we will, Landon!" The crowd continued to cheer. "We will be sure to support you!"

"...?" Listening in on Landon's loud speech, Jace frowned. "This is not some hotshot hunter... It's just some guy inflating his ego..." Unamused at the sight, he began walking past the crowd, soon climbing the stairs.

"Very good, very good!" Landon nodded his head, satisfied by the crowd's cheers. "Now, I shall take my leave and prepare myself for the..." As Landon was about to move up the stairs, he abruptly bumped into Jace who was minding his own business. "...a-argh! Huh? Hey, are you alright?!"

"...!" Startled by the sudden bump from Landon whose strength nearly pushed him off the stairs, Jace turned to look at him, slightly annoyed. "Noisy."

"...huh?" As Landon was left there speechless by Jace's reply, the young man, without another word, entered the building before he could even call out to him. "...huh???"

...

"Ugh... That was something..." Massaging his right arm as he entered the building, Jace began glancing around the area, in search of the registration counter. "I nearly fell down the stairs from just a casual bump..."

After a few scans around the area, his eyes finally stopped in place, spotting the counter he was looking for on the right side of the lobby. Without wasting any time, he immediately made his way towards it.

"Hi, is this where I can register for the license exam?" Upon reading the counter, Jace greeted the attendant behind it, soon inquiring politely.

"Oh, yes. This is where you can register!" The attendant smiled, giving out a piece of paper from her desk to Jace. "Could you please provide your ID and fill in this form? After that, you may head to the waiting area on the second floor."

"Of course." He nodded his head in reply, soon grabbing onto the paper and filling it out. After a few minutes, he was done. "Alright, that should be it." As Jace was about to return the form to the attendant, a sudden voice rang into his ears from the side.

"Hey, you! Wait a minute!" The voice cried out. "Don't just up and ignore me like that!"