25 years ago, a cataclysm occurred on Earth, and humanity faced a great threat.
As monsters flooded in, ushering in a dark era, Awakened individuals appeared like hope.
Just as the world began to find stability with their existence.
The government found a way to effectively nurture these Awakened.
The Hunter Academy.
While it was a high-minded pursuit of training awakened Hunters, their true intention was to attract investment, as losing Hunters who had just awakened would incur a massive national loss.
Regardless of the actual objective, the Academy received significant support.
Who would oppose the nurturing of specialized Hunters who would protect their lives?
The political sphere, across party lines, found common ground, and it didn’t take long for the Hunter Academy to be established and admit its first students.
And I graduated as the ‘Golden Cavalry’ of the 14th graduating class of the Hunter Academy.
[Hunter Academy 14th Graduating Class, Kanghyeon Lee]
Of course, I was last.
But a graduate is still a graduate.
* * *
If I graduated last from the Academy’s Golden Cavalry, then naturally a first-place individual also existed.
“Today, we have a very special guest. Are you all curious who it is?”
As they say, speak of the devil, and he appears. Just then, the top graduate appeared on the TV screen.
“It’s none other than the Paladin Suho, who protects our country just like his name suggests!”
As the host said this, eliciting a reaction from the audience, the audience members clapped and a wave of laughter ensued.
“Haha, it’s an honor to be welcomed like this.”
The guy, who looked like a pretty boy, said with a smile, and the applause grew louder. With light brown hair and handsome features. Furthermore, with talent, who wouldn’t like him?
Suho.
A-Rank Hunter.
The eldest son of the Guild Leader of Korea’s No. 1 Divine Guild.
Top graduate of the Hunter Academy’s 14th class.
Even looking at these specs alone, it’s astounding, and indeed, the world was unfair. Not only did he possess all of that, but he had also visited the El Dorado Continent. Unlike me, who was chased out for being incompetent, Suho had joined the continent’s sole church, the White Church, and was formally Knighted. It was a well-known story that he was granted the Holy Sword during that process. Ah, of course, even though the Holy Sword was a commercial model, it had a tremendous impact on his achievement of becoming an A-Rank Hunter.
It was only natural that he was called a Paladin after returning to Earth. Moreover, he was even given the title of a promising individual who would lead our country in the future.
“Lord Suho recently achieved the great feat of single-handedly subjugating a C-Rank Dungeon…”
The host was reminding Suho of his achievements one by one. I had no intention of belittling his achievements. Dungeons were places with many variables. With various monsters appearing based on elemental strengths, clearing a dungeon alone was quite a difficult task. In fact, it was close to impossible unless the rank difference was insignificant. To think he cleared a C-Rank Dungeon solo. It’s an achievement worthy of applause even for a kindergartener.
Though that is true.
“Ah! Speaking of which, wasn’t Lord Suho rumored to be an angel during his academy days? They say he used to guide his juniors who had trouble adapting, how about that…”
“Haha, an angel? Not at all. I was only doing what I had to do.”
As Suho modestly demurred, the host joked that humility could be excessive, and naturally steered the audience to laugh.
What bullshit. But in my eyes, Suho seemed pathetic. What? He was rumored to be an angel during his academy days? He helped his juniors adapt? What Suho from what Earth world is this? I can state with certainty that it is nothing like it. The reason I am so sure is because of the circumstances. If the Suho on screen truly had such a virtuous, angelic personality, I wouldn’t have been beaten up for the entirety of my four years at the academy. He was a privileged individual steeped in elitism. The kind who saw and trampled on the incompetent like insects. By that standard, I was an insect. A Hunter without a Status Window. Being Awakened but without a Status Window was a sin. I put in tremendous effort to avoid being kicked out of the academy. Thinking I had nowhere else to go if I was kicked out from here too, I reduced my sleeping time to keep up with classes. If I had just appeared as a diligent student, it might have been different, but it didn’t seem that way to Suho. His gaze was like looking at an insect. That guy always looked for any trivial excuse to target me. Thus, I endured treatment below that of a human until graduation.
“Then, could you perhaps send a video message to a friend who received your help? Wouldn’t that friend be happy if they were watching the broadcast somewhere?”
No, not at all. Instead of happiness, I felt nausea rising. As the host spoke, Suho’s lips curled slightly. Then, he looked directly at the screen.
“Yes. My friend, you’re doing well, aren’t you? It’s already been 4 years since we graduated from the academy. When are we meeting up to…”
I turned off the TV before he could finish. There was no need to listen to his horse shit. He’s so good at pretending to be nice. To reiterate, Suho was the school bully at the academy, stepping on the weak. Suho, who led the violence within the academy, saying such things on broadcast? It made my blood boil.
“He’s really got some nerve.”
What a shameless bastard. Since he has no conscience, he can spout whatever he wants on broadcast. I had a strong urge to immediately write a post exposing Suho on the internet. If I had lost control of my reason, I would have already written and uploaded it. However, my reason stopped my actions. Whether it’s a regular school or a Hunter Academy, the Awakened are the predators at the top. There might be countless people like me who suffered from them. Yet, they remain silent, not because they are fools. Among the Awakened, Rankers can make ordinary people fall over with a mere snap of their fingers. In such a world, what would happen if I exposed what I suffered? Perhaps, if I were lucky, it would end in immediate death, but the world was not that kind. If I were to post about Suho right now? The public might take notice for a while. But that would only be for a moment. The interest would slowly fade, and Suho’s Divine Guild would start to move discreetly. Wouldn’t I then be dragged somewhere and tortured until I begged for death? The world was too harsh for a single topic to burn for long. Most importantly, Hunters were the ones who protected people from monsters, and if they were ostracized, the outcome was obvious. Their own lives would be at risk. Everyone knew that. So, they buried their past in their hearts, and people like Suho lived on with a glorified image that became the past.
“Hoo…”
A sigh escaped me. I resented my own inability to do anything even in this situation. Even though my Status Window appeared late, it was nowhere near Suho’s level. Just a few days ago, after taking a mana test, I encountered my peer, Jinsoo Kang. Even that guy was in the lower-middle ranks during our academy days, and now he had become someone I couldn’t approach. Though he only spoke to me without taking further action, being a civil servant working at the Awakened Center, it made me feel my powerlessness once again.
“Still, it’s just the beginning.”
The only comfort was that I finally had a Status Window. Without it, the chance of closing the gap would have been 0%, but now that it had increased by even 0.1%, it wasn’t entirely impossible. Though it was a distant prospect, I still had the potential to grow stronger. Therefore, I had to prepare now. It was unrealistic for me, an F-Rank Hunter, to hunt monsters immediately. For now, I had to work as a porter and earn money. The money I earned would be converted into equipment, and that equipment would aim for the lives of monsters. The fallen monsters would give me experience. That’s how I would advance, little by little, very little by little. I will gain power. When the time comes that I surpass them, I will become the predator that devours you.
* * *
Celia was busily moving around the Dungeon.
“Yes, please make this a more spacious, round open field.”
A few days ago, she had successfully completed a contract with a Merchant Guild, and the interior of the Dungeon was under construction. Celia’s top priority was expanding the Dungeon’s size. In her opinion, a Dungeon had to be large first. That way, it would take time for intruders to reach the center, and it would be easier to defend them before then. For the expansion construction, she hired artisans from the Merchant Guild. The labor force consisted of Skeletons, Orcs, Golems, and the like. The only beings worthy of the title of artisans were the two overseeing Dwarves.
‘Indeed, handing over the Paladin was the right decision.’
The Priest and Paladin who dared to invade the Master’s Dungeon. The Priest was offered as a Sacrifice, and the Paladin was left trapped in a dream. The Paladin was a somewhat awkward existence. It was impossible to release him, yet difficult to utilize him. Then, an idea struck her: sell the Paladin when trading with the Merchant Guild. Celia had heard that humans weren’t a major commodity for merchant guilds, as humans were abundant throughout the continent. However, humans belonging to religious orders like Paladins were different. They were considered valuable goods. Furthermore, the Paladin she prepared was in perfect, intact condition. Well, it was understandable since she had subdued him by manipulating his dreams. As expected, the Merchant Guild expressed their intention to purchase the Paladin at the highest price. Celia, in turn, proposed a counter-offer. Include Dwarves as artisans needed for the construction. The Merchant Guild is a profit-seeking entity. They would not have readily dispatched high-level personnel like Dwarves to a Dungeon for the first time. However, Celia used the Paladin as bait to draw out the Dwarves for the Dungeon construction. The presence of Dwarves definitely made a significant difference. Thanks to them, the time required was greatly reduced, and she could feel the quality improving in real-time.
“Hehehe, I hope Master will be pleased to see this.”
She smiled thinking about the newly transformed Dungeon. Celia’s loyalty was solely directed towards her Master. Therefore, she believed her Master’s joy was her own joy.
“Speaking of which, it’s almost time.”
In a few days, the Dungeon’s concealment effect will end. The ongoing Dungeon construction is also scheduled to finish around the same time. On the day all preparations are complete, Celia will officially begin her activities. Her expression heated up with the anticipation of offering abundant sacrifices to her Master.
“I will create the day when everyone looks up to the great Master with reverence.”
