-Author Note-
Sorry for uploading late. My health has been declining lately, so I needed to rest more. I hope you're all doing well, as the story is just getting started.
---
He attended the parent conference alone, being an orphan with no parents to bring, so he ended up meeting with a teacher first to discuss his future.
"Future, huh?"
Ken didn't think much about it. He simply did his best every day, clearing gates and honing his abilities as a mage.
"I-it's been a while. How have you been, Ken?"
Beside him was Daniel. Since he hadn't brought his parents either, he was the same as Ken.
"I'm fine, thanks."
"I see." Daniel smiled meekly. "You seem really busy. I mean, you've changed a lot."
"Oh… yeah, kind of."
"To be honest, I'm really jealous of you. You can stand up for yourself and keep moving forward."
With a face like that, anyone would think he was just being humble, but Ken knew he meant it sincerely.
"Just do it."
"Pardon?"
"Just do your best."
Ken said and stood up. Saying something like that might have sounded hypocritical, but he was doing his best too. The system didn't spoon-feed him everything as he had to work on his study alone.
'And now, I feel like I'm staring at a wall right in front of me. All of these spell level lists are useless.'
No matter what he did, he couldn't move forward. Seeing the long lists of spells and level-ups every time he used them had misled him.
It was wrong to think that simply using a spell repeatedly would improve his mastery or upgrade it.
Once again, he realized that his system didn't work the same way as Jin-woo's.
'Even the notifications saying you've mastered a spell are useless.'
Every time he managed to cast a new spell, he got a notification saying he had already mastered it, but it all felt like a lie. Maybe the system was only telling him, "Oh, cute, you learned how to walk," when that was just the tip of the iceberg.
Knowing that, he hated the idea of being someone with nothing but "potential." He always disliked characters like that in the anime he watched those with talent who didn't use it properly.
Ken stopped and gazed out the window where the school track field lay in view.
'What am I even doing here?'
School life? Ordinary life? A quest to collect all the girls? He would rather die as maidenless runt than do that kind of quest.
He realized that once he stepped onto this path, those things were already irrelevant. He had to accept that he would never be ordinary person anyway. Hence, there's no such thing as work life balance.
He felt this was just a waste of time. Even today that he didn't have a gate scheduled to clear. He felt he could at least use this time to study magic because the path of a mage meant endless possibilities, and bottomless discovery.
"Hi, Ken! I found my brother here!"
As if he had been waiting for that voice, Ken's eyes shifted sharply to the side, widening.
"Gosh, you scared me! What's wrong with you?"
His stare was so intense that Jin-ah even flinched.
---
When Jin-ah greeted her friend, her brother, Sung Jin-woo, couldn't help but narrow his eyes sharply. He had never known that she had a male friend she was close with. Of course, he could tell immediately, since she greeted the boy the moment Jin-woo entered the school.
'So this is my sister's type.'
A tall, athletic guy who likely worked out, someone who didn't care about his messy hair, and a face that looked serious about studying.
Jin-woo scoffed inwardly, 'I don't like this guy. Why? I just feel like I don't like him.'
[Ding!]
[Divine energy detected.]
[Warning: Shadow soldiers are attracted to his divine energy and seek salvation from him. Kill the divine being.]
[Refusing this quest may result in purification by the enemy.]
'He is what? Why does the system have to go this far?'
That was too extreme. However, why wasn't the penalty a death sentence?
Jin-woo frowned. If the shadow soldiers weren't loyal to his commands, he could feel them stirring within his shadow, ready to leap at the boy in front of him.
On the other hand, he could feel something was off. Something about this kid made him nervous and uneasy. The system even told him that this boy is a divine being?
"Ken, this is my brother. And this is Ken, my friend."
At Jin-ah's quick introduction, Jin-woo snapped out of his thoughts.
"I'm Takakura Ken. Nice to meet you."
He reached out his right hand for a handshake, and Jin-woo calmly took it.
"Sung Jin-woo. As her brother, I'm grateful you've been looking after my sister."
"There's nothing to worry about."
They released their hands, and somehow both felt even more irritated.
Ken wanted to check his hand immediately, but for now, the man who seemed to be the reason he was reincarnated here was staring straight at him.
'Tarnished. Aren't I?'
A faint light suddenly covered his hand. He had just washed his hand using holy magic not because of COVID, of course.
Ken simply cleaned his hand because the urge was too strong. Even though he liked Solo Leveling, he didn't like the idea of Jin-woo defeating Frieren. This man had the nerve to register himself as a mage. Surely, it wasn't his fault, at least he could change his class but he didn't. He took it lightly and tainted the name of mage, meaning, Frieren lost to a guy with an identity crisis.
'Right, he should be classified as a gyatt farmer whatever rather than a mage.'
Ken's pity intensified, further fueled by a certain goddess. Aqua, who naturally despised undead beings such as Jin-woo, hence it only made things worse.
'This strong urge to kill him and turn him into my soldier… is it because I hate him for being close to Jin-ah? Never mind that, his aura feels weak, however it might be wrong. Is it just that my senses are stronger now, and I can tell he's actually strong.'
Although he admitted he was a protective brother, Jin-woo could tell that this boy was strong enough to protect his sister. Even so, Sung Jin-woo felt oddly offended for no real reason.
'For now, keep an eye on him.'
At that moment, his shadow expanded, though no one noticed except Ken, who frowned as he sensed something slip into his shadow.
'Bro, ew....'
As rude as it sounded, Ken reaction was genuine.
"Uh… could you guys say something instead of having a staring contest?" Jin-ah asked, clueless.
"Once again, nice to meet you," Ken said.
"Yeah, me too," Jin-woo replied, and they shook hands again.
Then it was Jin-woo's turn to meet the homeroom teacher, and he went inside the room.
"Once oppa is done, let's go back to your place."
"What? No."
Jin-woo stopped and turned around, eyes wide in disbelief at what he had just heard.
---
Long after that, when the parent conference was finally over and the sun was already about to set, Ken and Jin-ah walked toward the school gate with their bags.
"Jin-ah."
"What? Are you going to confess your love?"
Ken almost lost his composure but kept calm. "I'm going to drop out of school."
"Oh, finally you said it. Honestly, I already had that feeling, since Song-yi is planning to drop out too. You know, I tried to tell her that an E-rank won't get her anywhere except into serious danger. After that, she didn't reply to my texts and skipped classes."
"I see."
Now he remembered this was supposed to be the next plot point.
"Don't forget me when you become a famous hunter."
"You're not going to stop me?"
She raised an eyebrow, "What am I, your girlfriend? You're starting to make me think you're actually hitting on me. Though… that wouldn't be so bad. Wanna go out?"
"That was random. What I mean is, being a hunter is dangerous. Why aren't you trying to convince me to take a different path like they did with Song-yi?"
"Actually, I think you're smart enough to understand the risks. So I just assumed that you're strong."
"And where did you get that conclusion from?"
Jin-ah smirked. "You could say it's just a hunch."
Ken couldn't help but chuckle, and Jin-ah suddenly realized something.
"Wait, I know I was joking, but… did I just get rejected? Anyway, you should try to convince Song-yi somehow! Like charm her with your new looks, or OH! How about making her your fiance, hehe? She might give up being a hunter."
"Stop deluding."
"I swear, Ken, you're either pretending to not be interested in girls or you're just gay."
"And I swear that I love pretty girls with amazing body."
"Uwa… don't say it so bluntly, you're creeping me out. Hahh... I want to drink soju with my friends once I enter med school. Until then, please don't die too fast." She smiled.
Ken smirked slightly. "Nah, I won't die that easily."
That afternoon, a girl holding her syllabus and a boy who had decided on his path waved from opposite sides of the pedestrian crossing. They both understood it was only a temporary farewell as they headed in different directions, each chasing their dreams.
Meanwhile, a certain man watching from the rooftop couldn't help but smile.
'Approve.'
He realized that his earlier prejudice was wrong. Jin-woo could finally feel at ease, knowing his sister had found a good friend.
---
The red sunset was visible through the wide windows of Incheon Airport. A muscular man in a tight t-shirt, with a shaved head and black sunglasses, dragged his suitcase behind him. Hwang Dongsoo let out a mocking chuckle as he looked at his homeland.
"What a shit hole country. I'm glad I moved to America."
An S-rank hunter who had left his country for a better offer in the United States, he was far from the only one. Now, he was a member of the world's best guild, the Scavenger Guild.
"Welcome home, Hunter Hwang."
"Oh? To think the Surveillance Chief, Woo Jin-chul himself, would greet me. And you're still working for the old man. What a joke."
"It is only standard procedure. Putting that aside, you're here for those two hunters, correct, Hunter Hwang?"
Hwang Dongsoo chuckled. "What happens inside a dungeon stays inside a dungeon. I suggest that instead of working so hard over a mere D-rank and E-rank hunter, you find something better to do. And who's going to stop me? You?"
Woo Jin-chul sighed. "No. I'm only here to guide you while you are in South Korea."
"Smart answer. Anyway, I'd like to meet him to deliver an offer from my boss. Actually, why don't I take you to America as well?"
Woo Jin-chul frowned. "You want to meet him?"
Hwang Dongsoo grin wider, "Correct. Do you know where he's been? I mean, the Guardian."