Hunter Han Sungyeun (4)

No regrets.

From the start, I thought this was the most appropriate level.

But Hwang Manho seemed to express some disapproval.

"Sir, are you really going to take the level 10 exam?"

It was as if he wanted to ask how someone like me would pass an exam like that.

Well, I guess I didn't really have a retort…

"It's fine."

I had no intention of changing my mind.

I picked this because I had determined that it was the correct level for me.

Plus, I wanted to double-check exactly how effective the rewards from the 'Tower of Trials' were.

"Alright, I'll set it to level 10, please enter the chamber."

Kim Inhoo's tone didn't change, as if he was indifferent to anything that was happening.

Almost as if he was a machine.

Maybe he just didn't care since there weren't any sponsors.

'Superficial, aren't we.'

I mean, there were so many controversies associated with sponsors.

This was basically nothing compared to that.

Step step.

I silently marched toward the glass doors.

A pearly white stone chamber, an announcement started as the door shut behind me.

Wrrrr.

「 Starting Han Sungyeun candidate's hunter exam. 」

「 The following exam is the highest level, level 10, and placement will be at least D-rank upon passing. 」

「 Please choose any weapon to use on your right-hand side. 」

「 In three minutes, please prepare to face the monster that will form inside the black circle. 」

'Starting with a D-rank? Not bad.'

You could consider it the best starting placement for hunters because it normally took quite a while to get to that point.

Of course, that meant the exam would be that much harder.

But I was more excited than nervous.

I wondered what they were building up so much anticipation for.

'It won't be something as ridiculous as the doppelganger.'

I could barely bring myself to smile after remembering it's near-C-rank combat abilities.

The 1v1 on the third floor left quite an impression on me.

But I think I'd be able to beat the doppelganger pretty easily in my current state.

'At least if it's a one-on-one environment.'

I'd probably have some trouble if there were around 4 of them.

They did have a lot of features like physical damage resistance and shapeshifting.

On the other hand, I'd be able to handle almost any monster as long as it was around that level.

The hunter association probably wouldn't be able to emulate anything too difficult though.

'Now, I just have to pick a weapon.'

I examined the wall of weapons to the right.

And ended up picking the most comfortable two.

「 Pure Silver Guild's Mass-produced Steel Sword 」

「 Grade: F 」

「 A sword manufactured by pouring decent quality steel into a mold. 」

「 It is well balanced and does not dull easily. 」

First, I picked the item that said 'mass-produced.'

There wasn't anything much better than this and it was also the closest to my obsidian dagger.

It was almost insulting to compare the dagger sitting in my room to this trash but—

'Well, the length of the blade is similar at least.'

Then I picked up one of the shields close by.

It was a rectangular steel shield that was weaker than my wooden shield.

「 Pure Silver Guild's Mass-produced Steel Shield 」

「 Grade: F 」

「 A shield manufactured by pouring decent quality steel into a mold. 」

「 It is quite heavy but has no other pros and cons. 」

Even the Crude Dwarf Shield was better than this.

I didn't want to use them even if it was just for the test.

Especially because there were at least E-rank items the last time I took the test.

'Is this what happens if you pick the 10th level?'

There wasn't any information on it because I'd never met anyone who had taken a level 10 test.

The mechanical voice broke my train of thought.

「 The exam will begin in 30 seconds. 」

「 Please finish your preparation. 」

3 minutes had passed by in no time.

I guess it didn't matter.

I was confident that I could take on any monster, wherever they came from.

'That's where they're coming from.'

I let out a smirk looking at the small black circle in the center of the room.

Normally, I'd have been so nervous that I'd barely be able to breathe.

That's how I felt on the lowest level exam, but I didn't feel a thing now.

'I guess this is growth.'

「 The exam is beginning. 」

「 Please hunt the flame bird. 」

I squinted at the bright burst of flame that appeared in the center of the room.

It was a monster I'd seen in the hunter handbook.

"The flame bird, a D-rank monster. '

Its difficulty varied wildly depending on how you fought it.

As the name suggested, the bird had almost no resistance to water and all types of magic attacks.

The problem is that it's impossible to beat with just physical attacks.

It's like telling a child to kill a goblin after giving him a stick.

This seemed irrationally difficult but…

'…I guess level 10 exams are just like this.'

It made sense if they started you off as a D-rank hunter.

The flame enveloped bird let out a chilling shriek.

"Kwaaaaak…!"

「 Due to the skill 'Predator's Roar,' your movements are now 25% slower. 」

My body stiffened like my joints had rusted.

It wasn't as restricting as the one that challenger used in the 4th trial.

This skill was a couple of levels below that.

'A more direct attack would have been better.'

Then I'd be able to diminish its effects with physical attack resistance.

I could ignore it if I tried, but it was still annoying.

It was like I was walking through a swamp.

I paused for a second to think of a way to deal with this flying beast.

According to the handbook, close-range combatants are supposed to beat it using mana resistance but…

That wasn't possible for me because I didn't have any skills associated with it.

"I did want to test out my new skill, this is great'

Crack!

I pushed down on the white stone and circulated mana all over my body.

This skill could put a lot of strain on my body.

"Instant Acceleration."

「 Activating the skill 'Instant Acceleration.' 」

As the words left my mouth, I felt my entire body lighten like a feather.

The effect was more holistic, and stronger than what you could get from the assassin's cloak.

Then—

Kwaaaaang!

Stone particles flew from where I had stood as I flew off into the air.

About 10m up in the air, the perfect distance to land a blow on the dusty bird…

I swung the sword in my hand and—

'It's over.'

Sleeet!

The bird was split cleanly in two.

The announcements didn't miss a beat.

「 The exam is over. 」

「 Congratulations. 」

「 Candidate Han Sungyeun's final evaluation is C. 」

I spent 7 years trying to pass this exam.

And the end couldn't have been more anticlimactic.

***

A man watching through the glass wall was furious.

Kwaang!

"…No, fuck, what the fuck!"

The man smashing the wall to express his anger was Hwang Manho.

He couldn't begin to even understand what had just happened in front of his eyes.

The man who had only been a trainee somehow killed a D-rank flame bird.

In the instant that it was summoned as well.

Was that possible?

'No, it's not possible.'

Han Sungyeun was the worst player he'd ever seen.

Not to mention that he had nothing remotely related to mana resistance.

The trash player who couldn't even unlock his innate ability.

That was Han Sungyeun.

'Fuck, how did this even…'

There was no earthly explanation for what just happened.

Hwang Manho directed his anger towards the man standing next to him.

"…Can you explain what just happened here?"

"…I'm speechless, is this really a player who hasn't even debuted?"

"Don't play dumb with me. I told you to fail him in 10 seconds, not pass him."

"Are you accusing me of something?"

Kim Inhoo loosened his tie at Hwang Manho's accusation.

"We did what we could. As you said, this was designed to be impossible for Han Sungyeun."

They were planning to give him a monster one rank above whatever he initially picked.

That's what Hwang Manho requested and they accepted.

He was a valuable pipeline that provided a lot of new hunters, so they had no choice but to accept.

But the situation had changed.

"First, he picked the highest possible level, so the initial plan wasn't plausible. Then he obliterated that exam on his own. How is that my problem?"

"…"

"And we even sent out the monster that he was most unsuited to fight."

"But— The bastard is…"

"As the announcement said, he'll receive a C-rank hunter license."

"I mean, can't you lower it a bit?"

"How do you even lower this? He beat the exam in 10 seconds. If he'd gotten a D-rank evaluation, we would have refuted it."

"Damn it."

He had to swallow his anger because they were right.

'He's going to start off as a C-rank hunter…'

Hwang Manho retired as a C-rank hunter back in the day.

He'd quit because his talents never took him further, and hard work had never been his strong suit.

That's why Han Sungyeun bothered him so much.

It was like looking at all the work he'd never done.

And that's why he'd always left him alone without teaching him properly.

'Fucking shit…!'

He was officially a hunter now.

And a very promising one at that.

Han Sungyeun would probably only get bigger and bigger.

It was then—

"You don't look so well. Did something happen?"

The glass doors opened and Hwang Manho turned his head.

The source of Hwang Manho's scowl.

"Han Sungyeun…"

He smiled as he looked down on the disgraced manager.

____