"Eh? Really? You did that Noona?"
Kai's eyes widened in genuine surprise, his voice echoing slightly in the enclosed space as he leaned forward in his creaking chair. The trio—himself, Zeke, and Yeon—had gathered after Kai's curious questioning about the newfound friendship between his companions had prompted a full recounting of recent events.
Yeon's cheeks held a faint flush of embarrassment as she recounted the past three days' adventures, her fingers unconsciously tucking a strand of dark hair behind her ear. The revelation of her newfound love for anime brought an almost childlike excitement to her usually composed demeanor, her eyes lighting up as she described the colorful worlds she'd discovered.
"Did you not notice Zeke drove his car?"
Jude interjected.
"Yeah, you finally took the car out for a spin. I didn't know you could drive—when did you get your driver's license?"
Kai's brow furrowed with genuine curiosity, his head tilting as he studied his friend's face for any telltale signs of deception.
"Eh? You need a driver's license?"
The room fell into a stunned silence so complete that the distant sounds of guild members training in the courtyard seemed to echo like thunder. Dust motes danced in the sunbeams, the only movement in the suddenly frozen tableau.
"…"
"Really, you let me get in your car when you did not have a driver's license?"
Yeon's voice carried an exasperated tone, The color drained from her face as she recalled every sharp turn and sudden stop with new context.
"Hey, not my fault. Why would anyone need a driver's license in a world where there are monsters popping up everywhere?"
Zeke shrugged with characteristic nonchalance, his broad shoulders moving in that casual way that suggested he found the entire concept of bureaucratic requirements absurd. His golden eyes held not even a flicker of remorse.
"Ah, makes sense."
Kai's voice brightened with understanding, and he looked around the room at the others as if seeking confirmation that they'd reached the same logical conclusion. The earnest expression on his face suggested he genuinely found Zeke's reasoning sound.
The collective look his friends gave him could have withered plants—a mixture of disbelief, concern, and resigned acceptance that spoke volumes about their familiarity with both Kai's and Zeke's unique approaches to common sense.
Shrug.
Kai's shoulders lifted in a gesture that mirrored Zeke's earlier motion. What else did they want him to say? Zeke had never followed conventional wisdom, and in a world where reality itself seemed to bend around supernatural threats, perhaps conventional rules deserved questioning.
After a few seconds of silence that stretched like taffy, the comfortable quiet shattered as the door burst open with enough force to rattle the hinges.
Zeldris burst through the doorway like a force of nature, his imposing frame filling the entrance as afternoon light created a dramatic silhouette behind him. His presence seemed to charge the very air with electricity.
"Yo."
He beamed with the confidence of someone accustomed to commanding attention, his white teeth flashing in a grin that somehow managed to be both friendly and predatory.
"Help, a strong black man is breaking and entering!"
Zeke shouted with theatrical panic, his voice pitching higher as he pointed an accusatory finger toward Zeldris while his eyes darted to his friends with exaggerated fear. The melodramatic performance would have been convincing if not for the mischievous glint dancing in his eyes.
Boom.
The lightning bolt that erupted from Zeke's fingertip crackled through the air with a sharp ozone scent, illuminating the room in stark blue-white light for a split second before striking Zeldris with a sound like thunder trapped in a bottle.
"What the hell! Wanna go?"
Zeldris's earlier beam transformed into a fierce scowl, his muscles tensing as he shook off the electrical attack like a dog shaking off water. The casual way he dismissed what should have been a devastating attack spoke to his considerable power.
"My bad, you're a black man—shoot first, ask questions later."
"That's racist!"
"Nuh-uh, we have people of different races here, we can't be racist."
"That… makes no sense."
"Really? Two Chinese, two white, and one me—that's variety, you know."
"We're not Chinese."
Kai's deadpan delivery cut through the increasingly absurd exchange like a blade.
"Sorry, Japanese."
"Seriously, Min—Seo Yeon Min—and you go with Japanese, really?"
Kai's exasperation bled through his voice as he gestured toward Yeon, whose Korean heritage should have been obvious from her name alone.
"Anyway, they are Asian."
As Kai opened his mouth to continue the correction, Zeke's hand shot up in a stopping gesture.
"If you don't speak, no one would think you're mute."
"If you speak, you're racist."
Then he pivoted toward Zeldris with fluid grace.
"So, what's up? Is this an anime trope—after a fight, we become best friends?"
"No." Zeldris spat the word with such vehemence that it seemed to physically recoil from his lips, as if the whole concept of friendship was not just beneath him but actively offensive to his sensibilities.
"I don't frolic with rats."
Zeke's left eye developed a subtle twitch, the only outward sign of the volcanic anger building beneath his casual exterior. His hands slowly clenched into fists at his sides.
"Nobody hold me back, I'm gonna smash his face in."
He made phantom movements as if invisible hands were restraining him, his body straining against imaginary bonds while his face contorted with mock rage that wasn't entirely mock.
"Nobody's holding you—go on, fight."
Yeon made shooing gestures with her hands, waving him toward Zeldris like she was encouraging a reluctant cat to leave her lap. Her tone carried the sort of casual dismissal usually reserved for minor inconveniences.
Zeke turned back to her with genuine surprise coloring his features, his mouth slightly agape.
"Really?"
"You're slimy."
"Hey, don't look at me."
Kai and the remaining trio members instinctively stepped backward, their chairs scraping against the wooden floor as they created distance. The sound echoed in the suddenly tense room as they left Yeon isolated in the metaphorical and literal spotlight.
"Kids, congratulations, you're going dungeon clearing."
Jae Min's authoritative voice reached them before his imposing figure appeared in the doorway, his words carrying the weight of absolute finality. When he entered fully, his face bore an expression of stern determination that brooked no argument—the look of a man accustomed to being obeyed without question.
"Your dad is scary."
The whispered observation came from Zeke, though somehow he had managed to relocate himself behind his friends without anyone noticing the movement. Even Yeon had unconsciously drifted closer to the protective cluster of the trio, her earlier bravado evaporating in the face of her father's commanding presence.
They all nodded in solemn agreement.
As Zeke raised his hands to voice what was surely going to be a protest, Jae Min's voice cut through his intentions like a sword through silk.
"You are included as well."
"I'm not a member of the guild."
"Welcome to the family."
Jae Min's deadpan delivery made the life-changing announcement sound as casual as commenting on the weather, though the slight upturn at the corner of his mouth suggested he found some amusement in Zeke's predicament.
"Heh, I knew it—welcome to the family, brother-in-law."
Kai's grin spread across his face like sunrise breaking over mountains, genuine joy radiating from his expression as he savored this moment of potential romantic development.
Smack!
The sound of Yeon's palm connecting with the back of Kai's head echoed through the room with satisfying precision.
"Dad meant the guild, not our family!"
"The guild is our family."
Jae Min's response came with that same deadpan tone, though careful observers could see his lips quivering with barely suppressed mirth—definitely holding back a smirk that threatened to crack his stern facade.
"Yes, Dad, and the family is our guild."
Kai beamed with renewed enthusiasm, though this time he had strategically repositioned himself well out of Yeon's striking range, having learned from recent painful experience.
"Nice slogan."
Zeke nodded approvingly, then scratched his head as a thought occurred to him. He turned to face Jae Min directly.
"Are we diving into the S-ranked dungeon?"
"Yes, the White Fang guild has reached a compromise with Avalon."
"We both send a team into the dungeon—whatever our teams find becomes property of our respective guilds."
"And White Fang's team consists of you guys."
"I gave you rats a fair chance to compete against me."
Zeldris's voice boomed through the room as he spoke, his chest puffing with evident pride. Every word dripped with the arrogant confidence of someone who had never encountered a challenge he couldn't overcome through sheer force of will and power.
"I only allowed myself teammates because I have yet to enter a dungeon myself—I simply need a guide."
"What's the number of his teammates?"
Zeke's question was directed at Jae Min, though his eyes never left Zeldris's face, studying the other man like a predator assessing potential prey.
"Avalon has three participants: S-rank tower climber Zeldris and two A-rank hunters to guide him."
"While our guild has you guys, however strong you are."
"So, we are the underdogs? Heh. Let's go now."
Zeke's expression transformed into something feral and predatory, his grin revealing teeth that seemed sharper than they had moments before. The anticipation of genuine challenge lit his eyes with inner fire.
Heh, underdogs? You underestimate your children and their friends, Guildmaster.
Zeke's internal laughter carried a note of dark amusement. He had examined the trio's statistics with the clinical precision of a strategist, and with himself and Yeon supporting them, the idea that they were disadvantaged seemed almost insulting. They weren't underdogs—they were a pack of wolves disguised as sheep.
{You don't think that the Guildmaster would know the strength of the children who have been in his care for a year?}
Zero's voice carried its usual tone of amused condescension.
'I see, political schemes—smart but annoying.'
…
Status Sheet
Name: Jude Wren
Age: 19
Race: Human
Rank: B Rank
…
STATS
Strength: C(320)
Agility: C(345)
Endurance: B(431)
Perception: B(445)
Magic Power: B(480)
…
INNATE ABILITY
Flame Weaponry (S Rank)
Allows you to emit fire that can shape into any variety of cold weaponry such as swords, axes, hammers, and even bows and crossbows. The flames mimic the properties of the weapon they form into, so they will be as sharp as a sword, as heavy as a hammer, etc.
…
SKILLS
Armed Combat Mastery (B Rank)
Unarmed Combat Mastery (C Rank)
…
TRAITS
Level Up (SS Rank)
Whenever you kill something, you absorb 10% of their stats and permanently add them to your own—such a simple ability with promises of so much power.
…
{Remark: Woah, Who's the MC Now?}
…
Status Sheet
Name: Kai Min
Age: 19
Race: Human
Rank: C Rank
…
STATS
Strength: D(160)
Agility: D(180)
Endurance: C(236)
Perception: C(208)
Magic Power: C(260)
…
INNATE ABILITY
Sky Fracture (A Rank)
Allows you to rain down weapons made of holy light from the sky, ranging from swords and glaives to skyscraper-sized lances depending on the amount of energy you expend.
…
SKILLS
Precision (C Rank)
Unarmed Combat Mastery (B Rank)
…
{Remark: Shaming the Min legacy}
…
Status Sheet
Name: Aaron Kessler
Age: 20
Race: Human
Rank: C Rank
…
STATS
Strength: C(230)
Agility: C(256)
Endurance: C(289)
Perception: D(196)
Magic Power: D(185)
…
INNATE ABILITY
Umbrakinesis (B Rank)
Allows you to weave shadow and darkness into physical form and exert control over it, like chains made of shadows, spikes erupting from a target's shadow, or lances of darkness.
…
SKILLS
Unarmed Combat (A Rank)
What else is there to tell you?
Boxing (B Rank)
…
{Remark: Floyd, is that you?}
…
{They ain't shit}
'You are a hater.'
{Guilty as charged}