"Whoa!"

"The Gate's shaking!"

"No way?"

"Wait, is the Gate line disappearing?!"

"Does that mean… the Gate has been cleared?"

When a Gate is cleared, the visible Gate line outside crumbles.

The people outside, who relied on the line to know the Gate’s status, could only stare in shock as it began to vanish.

It was understandable—the sudden appearance of an unanticipated Gate rarely resulted in a successful first-clear.

Seeing this, the Association staff hurriedly reported to Team Leader Jeong Chul-min.

"Team Leader! The Gate’s been cleared!"

"Uh... I can see that…."

Jeong Chul-min’s eyes grew as wide as saucers as he watched the situation unfold in real-time.

According to the firefighters, the person who entered the Gate was a healer. And he had gone in alone.

But he had cleared an unanticipated Gate?

Naturally, the crowd couldn’t help but murmur, all eyes fixed on the Gate.

And it wasn’t just Jeong Chul-min who knew this fact.

Before long, reporters who’d caught wind of the news began to gather swiftly, and once the Gate line completely collapsed, an exit portal formed.

And from within, a single silhouette gradually appeared.

It was Suho.

“He’s out!”

“What? He really came out alone?”

“No way, did that guy clear it solo?”

The sunlight was blinding.

As Suho stepped out of the portal, he squinted, surveying the crowd that had swarmed around him like bees.

‘Quite the turnout.’

However, no one could approach Suho just yet.

Around the portal, a boundary line formed by the system prevented anyone but the Gate clearer from crossing.

“Excuse me! Look over here!”

“Who are you?”

“I’m a scout from the Immortal Guild…!”

“I’m from the Hwarang Guild…!”

People clamored for his attention beyond the boundary, cameras flashing, voices raised, desperate to catch Suho’s eye.

But he didn’t spare them a glance. Instead, he scanned the crowd, searching for someone.

After a moment, he found them.

Approaching the man who’d been staring at him, Suho stopped at the boundary line and asked, “You’re Team Leader Jeong Chul-min from the Korean Hunter Association, right?”

Jeong Chul-min’s face displayed genuine surprise at being addressed.

“Pardon? Ah, yes. I am Jeong Chul-min, Team Leader of Gate Management at the Association… but do you know me?”

Taken aback, Jeong Chul-min hurried to introduce himself.

Seeing this, Suho quietly smiled, thinking to himself, ‘It’s good to see you again.’

Suho knew who Jeong Chul-min was.

In fact, they were more than just acquaintances—they were quite close.

After all, Jeong Chul-min would one day become the Association President, leading the Korean Hunter Association.

‘I’ve never met anyone as dedicated and self-sacrificing as Chul-min.’

If this really was the past he remembered, Suho had already decided he’d work with Jeong Chul-min this time, too.

After all, he planned to join the Association and become a Hunter civil servant again.

Suho spoke, “Let’s discuss the details back at the Association. I needed to stop by to get my Hunter license issued anyway.”

“Oh, right… wait, what?”

A Hunter license? So, he was a newly awakened player?

Jeong Chul-min blinked in disbelief.

***

Back at the Association, after verifying Suho’s identity, Jeong Chul-min was left speechless.

They say assumptions can get you in trouble, and it turned out that Suho was indeed an unregistered Hunter.

And not only that, he was a healer, commonly regarded as the weakest of the four job classes.

‘This is beyond absurd….’

So, he’d only recently awakened? And in that condition, as a healer, he had cleared an unanticipated Gate on his own?

It was getting more and more preposterous.

But everything was true, and Suho calmly proceeded with the aptitude tests for his Hunter license issuance.

When all the tests were complete, Jeong Chul-min reviewed the results and was once again stunned.

‘What… is this?’

Looking at Suho’s test results, Jeong Chul-min wore an expression of disbelief.

All of Suho’s test scores, including his occupational aptitude and innate job potential, came out as completely average.

‘Actually, his scores are a bit below average for a healer.’

Judging by the results alone, Suho should’ve pursued the path of a warrior or an archer instead of a healer.

But Suho was undoubtedly a healer.

He’d personally witnessed Suho using Healing Light and Cure.

‘How on earth am I supposed to explain this?’

Jeong Chul-min looked up from the test results and asked Suho, “If you don’t mind me asking, what did you do before?”

Suho paused to recollect and replied, “I was a university student.”

“Was? So, you’re no longer enrolled?”

“Yes, I dropped out.”

He remembered clearly.

The day he was swept into the Green-Red Gate was the same day he’d submitted his withdrawal forms to his school.

The reason he dropped out?

Nothing much.

Suho had been a physical education major, but he found the rigid hierarchy and oppressive atmosphere—what they called “discipline”—highly unreasonable.

So, despite having worked hard to get into the school, he left without hesitation.

Nodding, Jeong Chul-min asked, “Were you a medical or nursing student by any chance?”

“No, I was in physical education.”

“Physical education… then why did you choose to be a healer?”

From Jeong Chul-min’s perspective, it made no sense.

If Suho had been a med student, it might have made sense for him to pick the healer class, but a PE major? Shouldn’t he have chosen to be a warrior or an archer instead?

Suho shrugged nonchalantly and answered, “I hate being in pain, so I chose to be a healer.”

“…What?”

“I’m serious.”

The truth was, his decision to become a healer had partly been due to his trauma, so his answer wasn’t entirely off.

But at that moment, his response only left Jeong Chul-min even more dumbfounded.

After taking a breath to calm himself, Jeong Chul-min continued with his questions.

“So, you really did clear the Gate on your own?”

“Yes, you saw me exit the portal alone, didn’t you?”

“Well, yes… but would you mind sharing a bit about the clearing process?”

“When monsters appeared, I fought them. I killed everything that attacked me, and eventually, I cleared it. For reference, the monsters inside were hobgoblins.”

“H-hobgoblins?”

“Yes.”

With that, Suho took out the hobgoblin leader’s head he’d collected alongside the magic crystal and placed it on the desk.

Jeong Chul-min’s eyes widened in shock.

It was real.

“This… this is…!”

“It’s the head of the boss monster, the Hobgoblin Chief.”

Suho then set the magic crystal on the desk as well.

“And this is the magic crystal it had.”

“Whoa…”

The head and the crystal—there was no denying this irrefutable evidence.

While Jeong Chul-min struggled to process this, Suho spoke up first.

“I can guess why you’re surprised. Why a PE major chose to be a healer instead of a warrior or archer, and how a recently awakened civilian managed to solo-clear an unanticipated Gate, right?”

“Well… yes, I can’t deny it.”

“Everything I’ve told you is the truth. I killed the monsters I saw, chose a beginner’s sword because it looked familiar, and picked the healer class because I don’t like pain. And now that I’m getting my license, I plan to continue working as a Hunter.”

“Can I ask why you decided on that?”

“I hate Gates and monsters. If you check my records, you’ll see I lost my entire family during the Gate Shock Incident. Sure, I got a scholarship and military exemption, but what good is all that when my family is gone?”

“Is that why you went into the Gate alone?”

“Yes. It was a bit impulsive, but I saw it as a way to vent my feelings. I’d just submitted my dropout form to my school, which I’d left because of the oppressive hierarchy in the department. I had a lot of pent-up frustration.”

“Hm.”

Hearing Suho’s story, Jeong Chul-min nodded quietly.

Listening to Suho, he could sense how much anger he’d been holding back all this time.

Suho continued, “I also thought being in PE might help if I ever awakened. I’d never had formal training with weapons, but it seemed relevant. And now that I’ve become a player, I think dropping out was the right choice.”

Jeong Chul-min listened attentively.

Seeing his sincerity, Suho decided it was time to drop a hint that might pique his interest.

“That doesn’t mean I intend to live consumed by anger. Anger won’t bring my family back.”

The shift in tone made Jeong Chul-min raise his eyebrows slightly.

“So…?”

“I plan to work as a Hunter, but I want to focus on people’s safety. For example, with the Korean Hunter Association.”

Jeong Chul-min’s eyes widened as if lightning had struck.

This was entirely unexpected.

And with it came a growing curiosity about Suho.

“If you join the Association, that means working as a civil servant Hunter… are you okay with that? You might have looked it up already, but our pay isn’t… well, it’s significantly lower than that of Hunters

 in private guilds.”

“I know. But the Association holds exclusive rights to clear unanticipated Gates and has authority over player crimes. I want to work for the greater good, not for personal wealth.”

“Ah…!”

Jeong Chul-min couldn’t help but let out an exclamation of admiration.

Many claimed altruistic motives during interviews, but most were drawn by the stability and the option to earn without having to face Gates.

But Suho was different.

As he’d said, Hunters with the Association held priority for clearing unanticipated Gates, but most preferred to sell this right to private guilds.

Why?

Because it was dangerous.

“Most Hunters aren’t eager to risk themselves for a modest paycheck to clear a Gate,” he thought.

And that was why his heart pounded with excitement.

Trying to contain himself, he asked, “Then, if you were to work with the Association, where would you like to be stationed…?”

“I want to be in the field as much as possible. Ideally, in Gate-clearing operations.”

Ha.

Hearing this, Jeong Chul-min almost felt faint.