At Jin-hyuk's words, Kim Gitae flinched.
"You will… face the entire guild alone?"
That was arrogance.And ignorance.
Guilds existed precisely to overcome the limits of solo players.
And the Fathers of Fighting guild?
The 2nd largest in Korea.A group filled with elites.
"If you came here for the test, your level must still be low…"
"It is low. Still level 1."
"This is ridiculous. And you think you can back up your words?"
The average level of his guild's upper ranks was 20+.And there were at least ten who were stronger than Kim Gitae himself.
But—
"If you try to judge someone based on level alone, you understand nothing about the Tower of Trials."
Jin-hyuk's voice was emotionless.
'He means it…?'
Kim Gitae swallowed.
This wasn't bluffing.This man was stating a fact.
Of course, defeating a guild with hundreds of members alone was impossible.
But…
'He's stronger than me.'
That much, Kim Gitae was sure of.
After a long silence, he spoke.
"…The terms of exchange."
"Hm?"
"What are the terms of the exchange?"
He had made up his mind.
"Simple. I tell you where to find the Mandragora Root.You hand over 10 exclusive dungeons owned by the Fathers of Fighting."
Exclusive dungeons.
Unlike common dungeons, these belonged strictly to each guild.Low risk, insanely high rewards.
Every guild coveted them like treasure.
And Jin-hyuk wanted 10.
That was nearly 30% of all dungeons the guild owned.
"The price is outrageous."
"This is the price of solving magic poisoning. Of course it's expensive."
Ten dungeons or an entire relationship with China?
What mattered more?
"…"
Kim Gitae's jaw tightened.
He calmed himself, thinking through the gains and losses.
Ten exclusive dungeons were expensive. Painfully so.But the Mandragora Root would solve a massive issue.
The bigger problem was…
This man.
'If he's this strong at level 1…'
What would he become as he leveled?
Terrifying.
Growth rate.Potential.Future threat.
But this was beyond his authority to decide alone.
"I will report to the guild executives. We'll discuss your terms and give you an answer."
"Wise decision."
Jin-hyuk smiled. Their conversation ended.
[Lv3 'Blackout Barrier' has been lifted.]
The black curtain vanished.
"H-He's out!"
"Ohhh!"
"What were they talking about?"
Reporters swarmed instantly.
"P-Put the camera down! Didn't you hear me!? Put it down!"
"If you don't want legal trouble under the revised Awakened Act, delete all footage immediately!"
The Black Crow and Fathers of Fighting guild members blocked the press.
'Convenient.'
Leaking anything would've been annoying.
He wanted this over with—
Kwaang!
"Kuaak!"
Something slammed into the floor.A man's nose bridge was flattened.
'Painful.'
Jin-hyuk glanced at the source—
A woman in sportswear.
"Move. If. You. Don't. Want. To. Die."
Nuclear Fist of Bukwang District.Yoo Yeon-hwa.
Behind her came Lee Taemin.
"Hyung! Are you okay!? If something happened in there, tell us! I'll smash all of them!"
"Mr. Kim Gitae, I'm disappointed. Why trap someone in a barrier? What are you doing?"
Both were furious.
At first, they were reluctant to provoke another guild…
But now?
No hesitation.They openly stood by Jin-hyuk's side.
'Both Yoo Yeon-hwa and Lee Taemin…'
Kim Gitae stiffened.
He assumed they were just acquaintances.But this wasn't casual friendliness.
This was loyalty.
If someone touched Jin-hyuk—
A full guild war would erupt.
"We just talked. Nothing happened."
"For real?"
"Right. He's more reasonable than I expected."
"If oppa says so…"
"We'll step back."
They released their gathered mana.The tense atmosphere eased.
Kim Gitae turned, then paused, looking at Yoo Yeon-hwa.
"Ah, almost forgot. How is Elder Yoo Cheon-young?"
"Grandfather is doing perfectly fine. Flying around as always."
"Hm. Then that's good."
He forced a smile and walked away.
Yoo Yeon-hwa bit her lip.
Meanwhile, Park Hajin became frantic.
"W-wait for me! Are you just letting them go like that?"
He was humiliated.He wanted revenge.
Why was everyone treating it like nothing happened?
He didn't understand.
He needed to crush Jin-hyuk now.Before that humiliation grew.
"Leave him," Kim Gitae said coldly. "Someone like you can't do anything."
"B-But—!"
"But?"
"…Nothing. I just want another chance…"
"Chance? You already got one. A chance to keep your head. The luck of surviving your recklessness."
"…"
"Complain again, and you'll regret it. Remember this—anyone partnering with us must be strong."
"I… understand."
Hajin clenched his teeth.
Another reason to someday kill Jin-hyuk.
At that moment—
Tring!
[Condition met][Skill 'Shallow Breath (D)' copied successfully][Saved in 'Memory of the World']
[Shallow Breath (Passive)]Acquisition Difficulty: DDescription: Allows control of breathing rate and sound. (Limit varies by skill level.)
His hostility had maxed out.
Being abandoned by the person he idolized had finished the job.
'Good. Time to put this to use.'
Jin-hyuk smiled as he examined his new skill.
After the chaos, the test resumed.
Many applicants backed out.
Seeing the earlier fight crushed their confidence—Some even left the building.
In the end, only those already waiting were tested.
[1. Park Hana — Measurement: 1755 — A-rank][2. Han Minhee — 989 — B-rank][3. Oh Jeon-hoon — 845 — B-rank][…]
'Oh?'
Jin-hyuk raised an eyebrow.
Even after everything, Park Hana still ranked first.By a huge margin.
'Did she eat miracle ginseng or something?'
Since testing was done individually, he couldn't check details.
After some time—
"Next person, please come in."
Jin-hyuk's turn.
Tremble.
He opened the door.
A large room with a massive magic stone at the center.An examiner stood beside it, tablet in hand.
"H-Hello."
The examiner trembled.
Understandable.
He'd seen Jin-hyuk destroy Park Hajin minutes earlier.
"What do I do?"
"A-Ah, yes. Just hit the magic stone in front of you. You may use Unique Abilities or items. The test measures the potential shown during the strike."
So—
"Hit the stone as hard as you can."
Simple.
Jin-hyuk stepped up and drew his dagger.
"A dagger? Without Unique Abilities?"
"Yes. This is enough."
"All right. Begin."
Woong—
Magic infused the dagger.The tip glowed crimson.
He struck—
Kaak!
A razor-fast slash carved across the magic stone's surface.
Then—
[589. Kang Jin-hyuk — 91 — F-rank]
"You did… well. The result is… F-rank."
The examiner looked stunned.
Jin-hyuk smiled.
Predictable.
Why?
There was a cliché in every novel:
The overpowered protagonist always got F-rank on the awakening test.
System errors.Faulty stones.Corrupted readings.
"I've always wondered…"
He stepped closer.
"Why does everyone just accept strange results without question?"
If they got their real rank, most protagonists would skyrocket from the start.
Access to dungeons.Access to resources.Access to information.
But instead—
They always started with a handicap.
Not today.
"Excuse me, examiner?"
"Y-yes?!"
The poor man was shaking.
"Is there any examiner here besides you?"
"No! Just me! How can I help you?"
"The magic stone is suspicious. Change it. And use a mid-grade stone."
"Magic stone? What about it?"
"So frustrating."
Jin-hyuk pointed at the faint slash mark on the stone.
"The magic stone didn't react to any ability. But an F-class like me left a wound? Does that make sense?"
People must have been using their eyes as decoration.
"You're still here?"
Jin-hyuk said sharply.
"I-I'll change it right away! One minute—no—thirty seconds!"
The examiner sprinted toward the warehouse.
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