A year later, during the Chuseok holidays.
Incheon Airport bustled with people heading abroad. The rhythmic drk-drk of suitcase wheels echoed through the air.
A young man with light sky-blue hair tied loosely at the back and a leather jacket strolled confidently through the arrival gate. His tall frame made him stand out a head above the crowd.
And then, screams erupted. Camera flashes burst like fireworks, and fans holding pale-blue lightsticks shouted until their voices broke.
"Gyu-gyu, we love you!"
"God, you're so handsome, Gyu-gyu!"
"Ah~ thank you~ Say it pretty, yeah?"
"Oppa! Come to Korea more often!"
"What are you going to eat this time? rice cakes?"
"Mm~ I came to make rice cakes~"
Blowing a kiss to the crowd, Gyu-gyu wedged his phone between his ear and shoulder. The cheers grew even louder. His tousled blue hair fluttered with the movement.
"Yeah, I just landed. I'll be there soon. Ah, taxi? Nah, I don't need one. A certain someone said he'd come pick me up."
He glanced over his sunglasses at a man standing with his hands behind his back. Soft brown hair. A neat suit. Not much had changed in a year. Even though the man must have sensed him, he didn't turn around. Gyu-gyu sauntered closer, smirking.
"You know, when you come to pick someone up, you're supposed to greet them properly. Where's the excitement, like the fans?"
"Ah, you've arrived, Gyu-gyu-nim. It's been a while."
Only then did Jung Bin turn slightly, offering a polite bow. His smile was faint, eyes glancing toward the crowd.
"Well, there seem to be plenty of people here to welcome you already. I don't think my greeting is necessary."
"Harsh~ No warmth at all, even though we're supposed to be making rice cakes together."
Jung Bin didn't answer. Instead, he motioned toward the path cleared by the Awakened Management Bureau agents.
"Shall we go?"
"First time I've ever been arrested straight off a plane."
"I'd avoid phrasing it that way. Sounds misleading. It's just a pickup."
Outside the gate waited a small, dented compact car. Gyu-gyu let out a laugh.
"Wow, I didn't think cars like that still existed."
But something felt off.
There wasn't a single other car on the road. A chill ran down his spine.
"...Don't tell me that's the official escort car?"
"That's exactly right. Please, get in."
Still smiling, Jung Bin opened the passenger door.
One of the Bureau agents took Gyu-gyu's suitcase and loaded it in the back. Sighing deeply, Gyu-gyu climbed into the seat, buckled his belt, and muttered,
"Did the Bureau go bankrupt or something?"
"Haha, not quite. We've just scaled down. Fewer resources means we have to be frugal."
"There's frugal, and then there's this. Looks like something you dragged out of a junkyard."
Grumbling, Gyu-gyu switched on the radio. He half-expected it to be broken, it was that old but miraculously, it worked. A talk show voice came through the static.
—We're discussing the aftermath of the system's disappearance. Society has changed greatly since then. There are, of course, no new Awakeners, and those who were once Awakened are slowly losing their abilities...
"Wow, what a thrilling channel. You're hardcore, you know that?"
"It's informative. I find it useful."
"The Pado Guild's research suggests that the later an Awakener was awakened, the sooner their powers fade. If someone awakened a year ago and another five years ago, the more recent one will lose their abilities first."
"Perhaps the body remembers what it's used the longest?"
"Exactly. And the higher the rank, the slower the decay. In other words, J will likely be the last person in the world to lose his power."
Gyu-gyu raised an eyebrow.
"You think that's credible?"
"Yes. The Pado Guild conducted extensive studies on those who've already lost their powers. It's generally accepted as accurate."
"Hmm..."
Leaning his head against the window, Gyu-gyu smirked.
"You've gotten weaker too, haven't you?"
Jung Bin replied with the same calm smile.
"Yes. Every day, I can feel it fading both physically and spiritually."
A textbook answer. Boring as ever. Gyu-gyu closed his eyes, chuckling softly.
A year ago, the day the White Hole, which had lingered above the sky since the Day of the Rift, finally vanished.
The instant it disappeared, so did the monsters that had terrorized humanity. Not just the monsters; dungeons, rifts, and gates all blinked out of existence. Hunters desperately called up their system windows, shouting commands, but there was no response.
Machines powered by mana stones stopped working. Weapons forged from monster materials became nothing more than hollow shells. Buildings that had switched their power systems to mana had to resort to backup generators for the first time in years.
The world was stunned.
The day after the White Hole vanished, Ham Seok-jeong, Director of the Awakened Management Bureau, held an emergency press conference broadcast not just in Korea, but worldwide.
Beside her sat Lee Sa-young, wearing his usual unimpressed expression.
Ham Seok-jeong grasped the microphone.
"Citizens, as you've seen, the White Hole in the sky has disappeared. Thanks to the shining efforts of our hunters, the apocalypse that threatened our world has been averted. Along with it, the system that once guided humanity against the monsters has also vanished. We no longer need to live in fear of rifts, dungeons, or monsters."
Murmurs rippled through the crowd, but she continued.
"With the system gone, the abilities of Awakeners will also gradually fade. In time, the very profession of Hunter will cease to exist. There will be no new Awakeners, and no more monsters to fight. We will return to the life we had before the Day of the Rift..."
With his eyes still closed, Gyu-gyu asked quietly,
"That Director Ham... or I guess she's just Ms. Ham now. How's she doing?"
After the announcement, Ham Seok-jeong stepped down from her position.
Her successor, chosen unanimously, was none other than Jung Bin, though he hadn't wanted the job.
The badge hanging from his neck swayed with the car's motion:
Awakened Management Bureau Director – Jung Bin
Jung Bin shrugged, smiling faintly.
"I haven't heard from her since she resigned. I imagine J-nim would know more than I do."
"Heh. Maybe she ran off to some mountain temple or something."
Gyu-gyu laughed dryly. The radio droned on.
—And one of the most pressing issues today is Awakener crime. Many, having lost their means of livelihood, have turned to gangs and organized crime.
"Still that many, huh?"
"More than ever. That's our main workload these days. The remaining guilds are cooperating with arrests."
Jung Bin eased up on the accelerator, glancing sideways.
"What's it like overseas?"
"Don't even ask. Street gangs everywhere. Every dog and cat thinks they're mafia now. Korea's honestly the safest place left."
"It'll probably stay that way for the next decade. At least, according to the Pado Guild's research."
Hunters had lost their only source of income overnight. No more monster extermination pay, no dungeon loot, no mana stone trade. Those with pre-Awakening careers returned to them. The rest... drifted.
The radio crackled.
—We've received a report of an Awakener assault near Gwangmok intersection. A D-rank Awakener, awakened three years ago, fled after extorting money from a civilian.
Gyu-gyu snorted.
"If it's all disappearing anyway, why drag it out? Just vanish already."
"Abilities are part of the body's memory. Those don't fade so easily."
"Didn't ask for a lecture. Just making conversation."
"Ah. So it was for comfort, then?"
"Hah, look at you. Got funnier since last time."
—HB Guild's Hunter Honeybee is pursuing the suspect. We'll mark the case as resolved shortly.
"Still working hard, huh, Honeybee? Didn't she want to go back to fencing?"
"She can't yet. Her powers haven't faded enough for an official return."
"Shame. Oh, wait, one sec, need to send a text."
"What are you planning to say?"
"What else? Gotta tell them not to start making rice cakes without me."
A black motorcycle roared down the street, cutting through traffic. Honeybee leaned forward, expertly maneuvering the bike as she chased a fleeing thief. Her phone buzzed. Anyone else would've gotten fined for checking it mid-chase, but she didn't care.
The message read:
[You're not gonna arrive after me, right? ^^~]
Sender: Gyu-gyu
"That little bastard..."
Grinding her teeth, she twisted the throttle.
"Hey! You thieving son of a— stop right there before I ram you off the road!"
The square shopping bag hanging from her wrist flapped wildly in the wind. Behind her trailed the scent of gasoline and pine needles.
Jung Bin's radio crackled again.
—Hunter Honeybee is speeding excessively. Should we stop her and issue a ticket?"
"Pfft, hahaha!"
Gyu-gyu burst into laughter, clutching his stomach. Sighing softly, Jung Bin replied with his usual composure,
"Ticket her after she catches the thief."
"Ahahaha!"
"Done laughing? Then check the message on my phone for me."
"Alright, alright~"
Still chuckling, Gyu-gyu deftly unlocked Jung Bin's phone, he still remembered the password.
"Ah, still the same code, huh?"
He crossed his legs, reading the text before snickering.
"It's the Shield Guy. Says Honeybee went out to get pine needles and still hasn't come back. Pfft! Asking where you and Honeybee are."
"..."
"Hahaha! So what should I reply?"
"Tell them... we'll arrive in about forty minutes. And use my tone, not yours."
"Got it~"
Tapping quickly, Gyu-gyu sent the reply. Outside the window, road signs flickered by. The little rattling compact car drove steadily toward Seoul.