“How much do you know about the Hunter Management Office?”

Baek Seol-hee asked me as she walked ahead.

“I know as much as others do,”

I replied. Well, in truth, I know much more extensively and deeply, but I should answer like this for now.

“I see. Then the conversation should be quick.”

The Velvet Hunter Academy and the Hunter Management Office. These two institutions were undoubtedly the pillars supporting Korea in the Gate era.

They grabbed the collar of Korea, which was on the verge of collapse due to monster invasions, and pulled it back, restoring daily life.

If the Velvet Hunter Academy focused on training the military power of awakened individuals, the Hunter Management Office was responsible for regulating various aspects related to awakened individuals, such as Demons, guilds, laws, and public opinion.

“But that’s already old news….”

Anything left stagnant tends to rot over time, and the Academy and the Hunter Management Office were no exceptions.

Of course, the Academy, with Director Lina’s strong authority, hadn’t fallen to corruption to the same extent, but the Hunter Management Office had lost much of its former status due to its complex entanglement with various vested interests.

It was a place where good and bad people were mixed up, some like sly cats eyeing the Velvet Academy, while others were decent folks.

‘Even among the officials of the Hunter Management Office, there are some Demon folks mixed in.’

It was truly ironic that the institution responsible for identifying Demons housed Demons itself, but well…

‘They should still be in hiding.’

Baek Seol-hee kindly explained things I already knew.

“But there’s no need to be tense. The director we’re meeting now and my colleague are both reasonable people.”

The Hunter Management Office originally occupied the site where Seoul City Hall was located in the real world, situated in Jung-gu, Seoul.

“The rest we’ll discuss inside.”

Baek Seol-hee said as she stood in front of a building resembling a surging wave.

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.

.

“Yes, Baek Seol-hee, Jin Yuha’s identity has been confirmed. Here’s your access card.”

A man responsible for security handed us access cards worn around the neck.

We wore the access cards around our necks and headed straight to the director’s office.

Knock knock knock—

“Come in.”

Creak—

As we opened the door and entered, a woman with long blue hair was working on pile of documents on her desk.

“This person is the director of the management office.”

A woman exuding a cold, elegant aura with long blue hair.

It was my first time seeing her face.

Former director Kim Jiwon.

As indicated by the term “former,” she was a character who only had her name mentioned in the game and never appeared. She was a person who was soon demoted shortly after the tutorial ended.

It’ll be soon.

“Well, in the game, she’s described as incompetent and trash, so I didn’t have much expectation, but surely the instructor said she’s a reasonable person…”

“Baek Seol-hee.”

“Yes.”

Kim Jiwon called out to the instructor in a firm voice.

Baek Seol-hee nodded briefly in response.

“Thank you for coming in person. Feel free to relax before you leave.”

“I understand.”

Then her gaze turned toward me.

“And, are you Jin Yuha…?”

“Oh, yes. Nice to meet you.”

I hastily greeted her while staring blankly.

“…Jin Yuha, I apologize for last time.”

“Pardon?”

Suddenly, Kim Jiwon bowed her head slightly and apologized to me.

“I made an unreasonable mistake of mistaking a regular student for a Demon. And I appreciate you stepping forward to expose the demon. What you did wasn’t a small matter. You kept Velvet Academy from faltering. Be proud.”

Though her expression remained cold, there was a hint of apology and gratitude in her eyes.

“However, there won’t be any separate compensation for that, as I’ve already informed the master.”

Expressing apologies and gratitude sincerely while also considering the benefits, she drew a clear line.

“Huh… There are only unruly fellows here, no one who listens properly.”

She sighed as she leaned back in her chair.

‘Is this person really that trashy character…? Seems like quite a respectable person?’

I was a bit perplexed by her appearance, which didn’t match the knowledge from the game.

That’s when it happened.

“Wow! You really came! Seol-hee! You granted my request!?”

A lively voice interjected from behind.

“…Yeah, those kinds of guys.”

Kim Jiwon glanced irritably towards the door.

Turning my head to follow her gaze, there was a girl with reddish-brown hair and crimson and blue odd eyes peeking in.

‘Could it be her who the instructor said we would meet today…?’

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.

.

“Wow! In person! You really brought him!”

Ji So-yeon, the head of the talent management team, approached the boy Baek Seol-hee had brought without warning.

In fact, Ji So-yeon had asked Baek Seol-hee, but she didn’t really expect anything.

‘I even expect her to ignore my request, but to bring him on the same day?’

Ji So-yeon blinked her odd eyes and stared at the boy’s face.

“Wow… Your face is quite something, huh? It’s not just the photo effect!”

Glossy black hair, tall stature with broad shoulders. His jet-black pupils were a deep, mesmerizing color.

A face that was incomparable to what she had seen in photos.

Honestly, with a face like that, he could make a living without being a hunter.

And that thought slipped out of her mouth.

“He’s my disciple.”

Then, Baek Seol-hee’s voice came from beside her. Ji So-yeon couldn’t quite understand her words, causing her body to momentarily freeze.

She quickly thought, ‘Ah, I must have misheard,’ and shook her ears.

Then she put on a gentle expression again and asked, “Hm, what did you just say? I didn’t catch it properly!”

“I said he’s my disciple.”

“…Y-your disciple?”

It wasn’t a mishearing!

She couldn’t help but look shocked. Even the Hunter Management Department Director, Kim Jiwon, stiffened.

“…You?”

“Just to satisfy my curiosity about his appearance, I called him, and then suddenly heard crazy nonsense.”

“He’s my direct disciple.”

“Even… direct…!?”

Baek Seol-hee, who always maintained a neutral expression, had a somewhat smug expression, looking pleased with herself.

It was like a master proudly boasting about their disciple to a friend.

‘Wait, is she really… bragging to me?’

Seeing her colleague in such an unexpected light, Ji So-yeon was dumbfounded.

She had always believed that Baek Seol-hee, despite being a slaughterer who only knew her sword and mechanically exterminated Demons, would never take on a disciple, even if she were affiliated with Velvet Academy.

Her colleague, Baek Seol-hee, might be a good person at heart, but to be honest, she was a bit… no, quite… lacking in social skills.

“…So, the slaughterer…?”

The air froze instantly at my unintentional slip of the tongue.

Though I tried to backtrack, it was too late.

Baek Seol-hee glared at me as if she could kill me.

‘I messed up…’

Frantically, I tried to steer the conversation away to save myself.

“M-M-My words just slipped out! Yeah, that’s it! Seol-hee! You brought him to me to ask for that, right?”

“Y-Yes! Instructor Baek Seol-hee. If you’ve brought a disciple, isn’t it important to assess their potential?”

Kim Jiwon also quickly chimed in from the side to help smooth things over.

Upon her intervention, Baek Seol-hee, who seemed about to pounce at any moment, closed her mouth.

“…Get it done quickly.”

‘She’s tolerating this…?’

Even gesturing to go along with my opinion. It was beyond belief!

By now, my curiosity about the boy Baek Seol-hee brought had skyrocketed like crazy.

What kind of person could make Baek Seol-hee act like this?

‘Maybe he’s truly stronger than Shin Se-hee or Kang Do-hee? He might even have greater potential than those two…’

Ji So-yeon swallowed hard.

She possessed the ability to see the inherent limits of awakeners.

She referred to it as ‘Aura’.

It was an ability to roughly gauge a person’s potential and offer advice on their future growth direction accordingly.

With this ability alone, she had risen to the position of head of the talent management team, earning considerable trust.

Baek Seol-hee bringing in Jin Yuha was precisely to assess that potential.

‘I remember Kang Do-hee I saw before was a 5-star, and Shin Se-hee was a 4-star…? They were both outstanding, but what about him?’

Ji So-yeon closed her eyes and summoned her mana.

Opening them again, the image of the boy was reflected in her crimson and blue odd eyes.

“Uh…?”

Ji So-yeon couldn’t help but sound bewildered.

“…This can’t be real.”

How far could he grow? She had tried to see his limits, but…

“Oh, no way…”

“What?”

“…What are you, exactly!?”

What she faced was horror.