Chapter 1 – Episode 1
Finally today.
The long-awaited third test result comes out.
I headed for the National Magic Inspector with heavy steps as if I was carrying a lump of lead.
I lifted my head and looked up, and the terribly blue sky came into my eyes.
Stuffy mind.
This clear, clear sky only made it feel more ominous.
“Are you Kang Jeong-hyuk?”
“Yes. I am Kang Jeong-hyeok.”
“Would you like to follow me?”
I went into the room following a man I didn’t know if he was a nurse or just an errand boy.
I was so nervous that I couldn’t see anything.
It feels like the sound of my heart is ringing in my ears.
Inside the room, a middle-aged man wearing something like a doctor’s coat was waiting.
He wouldn’t be a doctor, but he would be a doctor or professor.
After bowing lightly, a middle-aged man sat down on a chair facing him.
Despite seeing my nervous expression, the man glanced at me and ignored it.
I just moved my eyes straight to the monitor.
What words will come out of that man’s mouth?
My life changed drastically because of that statement.
Can my life change?
It felt like someone had grabbed my heart.
“Have you had a thorough examination?”
“Yes.”
“It’s the third…”
The middle-aged man muffled his words, then let out a deep sigh.
That alone made me realize what my test results were.
How much do you notice when I roll?
Shouldn’t it be too…
The test I received was a test to find out the magical response within the body.
Because I wanted to become the Awakener of my dreams.
Most people get this test for the first time when they complete their compulsory secondary education and are tested for admission to the Awoken Academy.
I was like that too, and the results of that time will be known to anyone who sees me now.
This is already the third time I have been tested, including the qualification test.
Korea… No, even in the world, there is not a single person who does not want to become an Awakener.
Because they are chosen by God.
Because they are such beings that easily surpass ordinary human beings.
However, only less than 1% of people in the world can become that chosen being.
That is the current reality and my reality.
This so-called magical response test can be obtained free of charge in Korea only once.
Because it is a world where the number and quality of the Awoken become the strength of that nation.
As soon as they graduate from middle school, they will be tested, and those who show talent will be directly managed by the state.
That criterion is really ambiguous.
If the so-called mana exceeds the standard set by the country, it will be called ‘mana manifester’, and that is the condition for admission to the Awakened Academy.
Those who are chosen will receive special treatment from then on.
The special treatment is that they receive various support from the state and become eligible to become students of the Awakened Academy.
To be looked upon with envy by others.
Sponsors are starting to come in from various companies, etc…
Fuck…
Damn it, I’m just the 99% who weren’t chosen.
A person who is not up to standard.
That is Kang Jeong-hyeok, who I am.
“Are you listening, Kang Jeong-hyuk?”
“Ah, yes. After all, you’re saying that the standard is not good enough this time, right?”
“No.”
“Yes? Then, did you pass the standard?”
“No.”
I did, but still.
“Then what is it?”
It’s not his fault though.
I get annoyed without even realizing it.
Maybe this old man understood my feelings, but he didn’t put much fuss in my tone.
“Kang Jeong-hyeok is a bit of a special case.”
“A special case?”
“Yes. I couldn’t find any mana.”
I was really annoyed.
No, it went beyond that.
What did that mean?
It is already common knowledge in the world that you cannot become an Awakener if you do not meet the standard of 0 or 100.
“I couldn’t find any mana in Kang Jeong-hyeok’s body. I’ve never heard of such a case.”
“Is that so strange? Isn’t it a joke anyway?”
Ajae’s detailed explanation was as follows.
Even if there is not enough mana to become a mana manifester, all humans are born with a minimum amount of mana.
Among the tens of millions of data examined so far, it was the first case like me.
“What is that? It doesn’t sound good… Or is it, like, an illness? A fatal illness?”
“It’s not like that. Seeing that you’re alive and well, you seem to have no problems with your health. No abnormalities were found in the detailed examination. But…”
Just that it’s unique.
That was it.
Why do you make people nervous?
A sigh came out of my mouth.
“How about it, Mr. Kang Jeong-hyeok? This is a special case that has not been reported to the academic world. Would you like to participate in my research?”
“What are you saying, asking me to become a living experiment subject?”
“Oh, no. Just give me a little blood every once in a while. I’ll give you plenty.”
I flatly refused and left the prosecutor’s office.
They live in poverty, but not enough to survive by selling blood.
I also have a job.
It’s not that I’m fanning a house that’s on fire.
I came out of the huge building and sat down on the stairs.
Out of embarrassment, I loosened my tie and unbuttoned my shirt.
In the meantime, one of the buttons spontaneously bounced off on its own.
‘Haha, fuck. Really…’
Nothing happens.
I threw my tie down the stairs.
To hear this damn answer, I took bloody money and screwed it.
Even when I was 20, I ate only ramen and died.
Search for the money you barely saved by working.
I’d buy a lottery ticket with that money…
Anger rises to the top of your head.
“Fuck, no mana at all?”
Damn it
I don’t have any mana in this day and age where mana is even weakly detected even in stones rolling on the road?
He grabbed her hair and groaned.
The thought of quitting cigarettes comes to mind.
Ah… What else does the sky say…
New sky.
It is the name of her live-in girlfriend.
From the time she said she was going to be tested, Sky was against it.
“What kind of test are you doing again? I heard you took it when you were 20. Please give it up, oppa. The cost for the test isn’t even a dime or two, oppa, are you crazy? If you’re going to get tested, don’t even think about taking it again!”
Both she and I are non-Awoken.
Life was always tight and both were busy working.
It was to the extent that it was difficult to see each other once or twice a week if the time was not right for each other.
Even if it’s hard right now, let’s be patient.
Although it is difficult now, I often talked about working hard so that I could live comfortably and happily later.
Under those circumstances, it’s understandable that you’re upset when I tell you that I’m going to spend several months’ worth of money on a test like this…
I fully understand her heart.
But when people get excited, unexpected stories pop up.
I shouted loudly, saying, “He won’t ask for your money from Haneul.”
Since then, we haven’t spoken a word to each other for two weeks.
Even though they live under one roof.
And today has come.
I came out dressed neatly to hear the test results, but Haneul came out after sleeping and said.
“Brother, good luck.”
That word was a bit odd.
Was it because it hadn’t been a while?
The words he uttered seemed to be reconciliation, but they felt strangely cold.
I felt an unknown distance.
So I hoped for better results.
No, I really wanted to become a mana manifester…
Even among those who did not become a mana manifester in the first test, there were cases where the result was reversed through the retest.
Current magic response tests are not 100% perfect.
An eminent foreign scholar said that the mana level in the body of a growing human may also grow together.
Because of this, people who were tested during their growth period said that they should be retested at the age of 20 or 21.
That dog … I was bored to make money.
Obvious.
It must be a guy who has a foot in the side of the machine to be tested.
What should I do now?
Even if I hated people who were distant for no reason, the money left my pocket.
My head is complicated.
I don’t have the confidence to go back home and see the face of the sky.
There’s no one to call for a drink on a day like this…
Ha…
From tomorrow, I have to live again, leaving behind others.
That’s also the fear of monsters, not ordinary people.
Even though he paid monthly rent, he had nowhere to go, so he trudged toward the company.
The sky I looked up at was still a filthy blue.
**
“Kang Jeong-hyeok, weren’t you taking a break after paying your rent today?”
“I finished my errands in the morning and came out.”
“What are you doing? The team members that Jung-hyeok has to manage from now on won’t come out today?”
“Yes. The first meeting is tomorrow. I have some papers to arrange in advance.”
Company name Cool Support. (COOL SUPPORTING COMPANY)
It is a small company that manages the Awoken.
Of course, that’s just the main job.
Almost everything that makes money related to dungeons is being done.
I’ve only been hired for 6 months.
It’s a snot-sized company, but if there is one advantage, this is it.
After only six months, a newcomer was able to lead a team.
Well, it’s not that grand.
Aka Chick Team.
It is the role of bringing new awakeners to an F-class dungeon that has already been successfully captured and supporting them so that they can grow.
The problem is…
Class F dungeon.
It was a dungeon that had already been cleared, but the characteristic of this job was that it was not easy going.
It is said that not all awakened people are the same.
So-called talented people who stand out in the Awakened Academy.
Such talented Awakeners sign sponsorship contracts with various companies even before graduating from the academy, and are taken by the companies immediately after graduation.
Coming to a small company like ours is literally the bottom of the Awoken Academy alumni.
It is said that he is a scumbag who has never received sponsorship.
How proud they are of the title of Awakener despite being trashy.
Looking at their behavior when I was an assistant in the previous F-team part, I sometimes cursed at them up to my throat.
But never show it outwardly.
If you get on their nerves, you’re in big trouble.
Just by brushing against the lightly swinging arms of the awakened ones, my delicate bones would shatter.
I sat down at my desk in the office and turned on my work computer.
On the monitor, I could see the profiles of four newly awakened people who had just joined our company.
Three girls. One man
I checked their files and started taking notes of what I had to do.
It could never be underestimated from the beginning.
Even if I didn’t become an Awoken!
“By the way, this beauty and this face. They are all beautiful. Are all awakened people like this?”
Looking back at their photos and training videos, I burst into admiration.
While their skills are poor, their looks were of a high standard.
“It must be thanks to God’s grace. Mana and even appearance! Big~ What about financial power? Oh, I envy you. I envy you.”
As if he had inadvertently overheard what I had said, the senior started talking about it.
Come to think of it, I’ve never seen an ugly Awoken.
Of course, most of the styles were not my taste, but all of them were beautiful.
It seemed that not only these newcomers, but all the Awakeners who had been watching were like that.
Even if you take it for granted that your body will continue to take combat lessons, the balance between skin and features is good.
Is this mana power?
Fuck me then
I can’t fall for it anywhere just by looking at your face.
Even with zero mana…
I just got into a temper.
Guys who have what I crave.
Please, I desperately hoped that these bitches’ personalities would fall within the normal range.
*
I didn’t notice the time passing while watching the video.
I didn’t even know that time had passed since the seniors didn’t come home from work.
On the phone, Haneul’s ‘Why is it so late? I have something to say.’, But I couldn’t come up with an appropriate answer.
“I’m going to get angry… But what can I say?”
Maybe she already noticed.
That it’s an empty dream.
Who would have taken this test three times in the first place?
On the way back, I stopped at a bakery and bought a strawberry cake.
This is Haneul’s favorite cake.
I haven’t had a proper conversation for 2 weeks, but I need to solve it well with this.
Ah, it’s been a while since I’ve used my waist.
I headed home, trying to end the sad day as positively as possible.
