"W-What?!"
Sung Jin-woo nearly dropped his piece of fried chicken. He stared at Min-jun, completely shell-shocked. "I... I can join the Hunters Guild?!"
Jin-woo might have just been aggressively questioning Min-jun's decision to sign away his freedom to a massive corporation without consulting anyone, but he had never, ever imagined that the corporate contract included a backdoor for him!
Deep down, Jin-woo's earlier complaints were born out of genuine fear. He was terrified that his brilliant but un-Awakened-until-today friend was being deceived by greedy executives. But the moment he learned that Choi Jong-In had instantly bought out their mother's hospital, a crushing weight settled on Jin-woo's chest. Min-jun had deliberately bound himself to the Hunters Guild just to save their family.
Did Min-jun practically sell his life to a corporate machine just for them?
"Really?! Oppa can join the Hunters Guild too?!" Jinah practically vibrated with excitement, her hands slamming down on the coffee table. If her brother and Min-jun were in the same Guild, they could protect each other! The terrifying anxiety of Jin-woo fighting alone would finally vanish.
"Yeah," Min-jun nodded smoothly, picking up a pastry. "As long as you say the word, Hyung, you can walk into headquarters tomorrow. You can take practically any administrative or logistics position you want—except for Guild Master and Vice Master, obviously. You'll get full corporate benefits, a massive salary, and total safety. What do you say?"
Internally, Min-jun had already run the calculations. Yes, offering Jin-woo this golden ticket might completely derail the original plot. It might prevent Jin-woo from ever encountering the Double Dungeon and unlocking the 'System'.
But honestly? When Min-jun remembered the sheer, agonizing torment, the brutal dismemberment, and the unimaginable trauma Jin-woo had to suffer just to gain that power, he felt it wasn't worth it. It was far better for Jin-woo to just take a cushy desk job at the Guild, earn a great salary, and live a normal life. Plus, working at the Hunters Guild meant Jin-woo would naturally get close to Cha Hae-In—his canon 'waifu'—without having to fight gods to do it.
"That's amazing! Oppa, you have to join!" Jinah urged, shaking Jin-woo's arm.
Sung Jin-woo stared at the table. His hands were trembling slightly. He opened his mouth, closed it, and finally took a deep, shuddering breath.
"I'm sorry. I won't join, Min-jun."
"Oppa!" Jinah cried out, instantly furious and heartbroken.
Joining Min-jun was the ultimate safety net. The Hunters Guild had infinite money, elite resources, and an army of Awakened workers. With three S-Rank Hunters holding the line, it was the safest place on the planet. Yes, Jin-woo was famously the "Weakest Hunter," but in modern society, raw power didn't matter if you had the right connections! Min-jun was handing him the keys to the castle.
Yet, Jin-woo had unexpectedly, stubbornly refused.
Min-jun paused, setting his pastry down. He looked at Jin-woo's tightly clenched jaw.
Is this his way of protecting his dignity? Min-jun analyzed silently.
Dignity, huh? Min-jun suppressed a sigh. He genuinely wondered how someone could prioritize their bruised ego when their daily life was locked in brutal, bloody survival mode. Wouldn't it logically be better for Jin-woo to swallow his pride and just live an easy, comfortable life?
But then again... this exact, irrational stubbornness was exactly why the universe had chosen Sung Jin-woo to be the protagonist.
"Jinah, it's okay. Give us a second," Min-jun said quietly, stopping the girl from shouting at her brother again. He shifted his gaze directly to Jin-woo.
"..."
Jin-woo felt like all the air had been sucked out of the room. He couldn't even bring himself to meet Min-jun's calm, calculating eyes.
"Are you absolutely sure about this, Hyung?" Min-jun asked, his tone completely void of judgment. "If you take a logistics job at the Guild, you'll have so much more free time to spend with Jinah. You can visit Auntie every single day without worrying about hospital bills."
"Even so..." Jin-woo gritted his teeth. He knew Min-jun only wanted the absolute best for him. And ironically, that was the exact reason he had to refuse. He refused to be a useless parasite clinging to his younger friend's coattails. "I need to walk my own path, Min-jun. Let me continue on my own."
"..."
Min-jun was a bit speechless, but he accepted it. This was just how the mechanics of a battle-shonen world worked. It was completely irrational. If a normal person was offered an easy, wealthy life, they would take it in a heartbeat. Why choose the path paved with broken glass?
It made Min-jun remember his previous life. He remembered the soul-crushing memories of constant corporate overwork—sleeping under his desk for days just to finish his tasks and cover for his useless, incompetent coworkers.
That grueling, thankless hard work was the exact reason he had died early, eventually earning this second chance at life.
In this second life, Min-jun had desperately wanted to take things easy. But the reality of this cyberpunk-esque, hyper-capitalist South Korean society was that the bottom rung lived in absolute hell.
There were days—after forcing himself to study for ten hours straight for his university exams, followed immediately by streaming to pay rent—where he honestly felt that dying a second time would have been easier. But just like his late grandmother, who had stubbornly refused to give up on him, he refused to break. Just like Jin-woo, he possessed his own core of unbreakable dignity.
However, Min-jun's ultimate purpose was no longer just 'survival'. Now that he possessed S-Rank power, a new, darker ambition was taking root.
He wanted revenge.
Not against a specific person, but against the entire rigged, shitty system that had brought him nothing but endless torment and exhaustion. He was going to exploit this world for everything it was worth!
Yet, looking at Jinah pouting on the couch and Jin-woo's stubborn, protective face, Min-jun had to admit... there were still wonderful, warm things in this world that made the grind bearable.
Min-jun rubbed the bridge of his nose and let out a soft sigh. "Alright. I respect your choice, Hyung. But remember, if you ever get tired, or if you decide you don't want to face the danger of the dungeons anymore... just tell me. My offer is permanently open."
"Thank you, Min-jun," Jin-woo exhaled, a massive wave of relief washing over him.
Yet, deep inside his heart, a desperate, burning desire for strength ignited. He hated being weak. The Weakest Hunter. If he had been the powerful one, would Min-jun have been forced to sell himself to the Hunters Guild? No. Jin-woo could have protected them. Min-jun could have just focused happily on his university studies and lived peacefully with Jinah.
Because Jin-woo was weak, Min-jun had to step onto the battlefield.
"There is one thing I need to ask, though," Jin-woo said, his expression hardening into that of a veteran Hunter. "Is your new Guild planning to send you into a dungeon soon?"
"Yes," Min-jun nodded, picking his pastry back up.
"When?"
"Not immediately. They want me to get completely accustomed to my new abilities and equipment first."
It wasn't a lie. Choi Jong-In had explicitly told him to take a few days to prepare for his debut raid. But frankly, Min-jun felt perfectly ready to step into a Gate right this second. With the Manager constantly mapping his optimal combat output, there was nothing to fear.
"Listen to me, Min-jun. You need to be incredibly careful," Jin-woo warned, his voice grim and serious. "Dungeons are not as easy or predictable as the media makes them out to be. Always stay on guard, and follow the exact orders of your Raid Leader."
Being an S-Rank might sound glorious on paper, but raw power didn't instantly make someone invincible. Yes, Min-jun had infinite potential, but if he acted arrogant or careless, a dungeon would happily swallow him whole. Jin-woo felt it was his duty as the older, experienced Hunter to drill that reality into his friend's head.
"..."
Min-jun just stared at him.
He was completely at a loss for words. Hearing Sung Jin-woo—a man whose canonical method of leveling up was literally engaging in suicidal, near-death combat on a daily basis—lecture him about dungeon safety was the pinnacle of irony.
"Yes, Hyung. I'll be careful," Min-jun replied entirely deadpan.
He knew Jin-woo cared, so he didn't point out the hypocrisy. Plus, he was way too lazy to argue, and his fried chicken was getting cold.
Regardless of the warnings, the countdown had officially started. The day of his very first dungeon raid was rapidly approaching. It was time for South Korea's newest S-Rank anomaly to make his official, explosive debut.