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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: The S-Class Community
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‘This is a landmine. And not just any landmine. It’s a hydrogen bomb.’
If they grilled me on how I came to know this crucial information, what would I say? That would be suicide.
‘I’ll pretend I don’t know. I saw nothing.’
Waaaay later, when this becomes common knowledge, I’ll casually chime in then.
“If the Administrator isn’t a Constellation, then there’s no risk of being flagged during the contract verification. Ah, what a relief.”
That was the most important thing right now.
【The System Administrator's laughter seeps into the system.】
“Huh?”
Wait, what’s that message? I think I saw something similar right before I made the contract.
“Administrator, are you laughing so hard it’s affecting the system?”
Dammit, I had a feeling. This was clearly no ordinary matter. Revealing this would undoubtedly jeopardize my goal of living as a nameless, low-ranking civil servant.
I’ll keep my mouth shut. Yep. I really saw nothing.
【The System Administrator interferes with the sole contractor's system.】
【Forcibly opening the system window.】
Just as I was about to ignore it and go to sleep, the word “interferes” made Seora’s eyes fly open. Several system windows popped up on their own, without her doing anything.
So he’s an Administrator who can even control my system.
Seora stared at the screen in confusion, wondering what on earth he had done, and then her eyes widened.
“This is…”
The system’s community, shop, and a bank for exchanging coins usable in the shop had appeared.
But everything was different from usual. Even the screens reserved for higher ranks, which she could never have seen as an F-Class, were all open.
Come to think of it, she remembered a message popping up when she became an S-Class, saying all systems were now open.
The higher your rank, the more systems you can use. That’s why people said this world was the perfect meritocracy.
“Wow, this was all just a fantasy when I was at the bottom.”
Sleep suddenly vanished. With a look of interest, Seora began to flick through the system screens.
I’m curious what the high-rank shop sells, but I have no money right now, so I’ll skip it. Same for the bank.
So, Seora first opened the community for the highest ranks—specifically, the one for S-Class Awakened.
【Exclusive Community for S-Class Awakened of Korea (Total Members: 11)】
【‘Anonymous’ has entered.】
【Blessing ‘Silver Veil’ is active. Due to the blessing's effect, other Awakened will not be notified of the entry of ‘Anonymous’.】
To think the blessing worked in the community, too. It was quite useful. Thanks to it, Seora could lurk to her heart’s content without anyone bothering her.
“Let’s see. What do S-Classes talk about?”
First, she looked at the title of the latest post.
【Title: Please let me leave the guild.】
“…”
Did I read that wrong?
“Most S-Classes are guild masters or vice masters…”
And not just any guilds, but the leaders of the largest guilds in the country.
And now one of them is on the community forum, begging to be let out of their guild?
“Is it just this person who’s crazy?”
Not particularly wanting to see who the author was, she moved on to the next post.
【Title: Gonna share the story of the awesome item I found in a Grade 3 dungeon today.】
“…”
Seora’s silence was a little longer this time.
Of course, S-Classes were still people, so it wasn’t like she was expecting something extraordinary, but…
Still, this was a bit much.
“No. There must be some decent people here.”
Right! There has to be at least one person who’s, you know, S-Class-like! Cool, stylish, and different from the rest!
Seora pleaded inwardly as she read the next post.
【Title: Heard a Cheongrang guild member caused trouble today? Director Do was super pissed, so Su-eon-jji’s gotta go grovel >
“…”
It wasn’t a particularly impressive topic either, but she could guess when it had been posted.
“Director Do must be referring to our Siljangnim. As expected, the S-Classes know his original rank.”
But something else was more concerning.
Su-eon must be referring to Han Su-eon, the Cheongrang Guild Master.
I see. So the famously cold Cheongrang Guild Master is called ‘Su-eon-jji’ here…
Seora made a mental note of the nickname. Since that Park Jinyong, who had thrown her into the dungeon, was from the Cheongrang Guild, it was only natural she wouldn’t look kindly upon his guild master.
Someday, I’ll definitely call the Cheongrang Guild Master ‘Su-eon-jji’ to his face.
Seora made a firm resolution and opened the post in question. This one, she wanted to read.
【Director Do, are you reading this? If you are, please call me when you deal with Su-eon-jji. I really want to see him grovel.
Sigh, you should’ve trained your guild members better! How could they even think of touching one of Director Do’s subordinates?
This won’t do. Su-eon-jji, come visit our guild later. I’ll teach you the proper way to educate a Hunter ^^!!】
To think that man, rumored to be so cool and aloof, would be groveling. The thought alone was thrilling; she really wanted to see it with her own eyes.
“Huh? But doesn’t this mean the Siljangnim is stronger than Guild Master Han Su-eon…?”
After all, you had to be stronger than your opponent to make them bow their head.
Did that mean Do Junyeong was much stronger than Han Su-eon, the so-called Monarch of Magic?
Indeed, the sight of him in the park had been terrifying.
Feeling a sudden sense of security, Seora smiled contentedly and turned her attention to the comments.
【Comments】
|SuhoryeongGuildBest|: What! What happened! Su-eon-jji is groveling! Take me with you!
└|Noeul-ssi|: Yup, I’ll let you know.
└|SuhoryeongGuildBest|: Awesome!
|Yeonhui|: The park where the gate burst was destroyed. Director Do must have been very angry.
|WishesToLeaveYeongwon|: Please let me leave the guild.
└|SuhoryeongGuildBest|: Hey, your guild master was looking for you earlier. So I found your location and told him. ㅇㅇ
└|WishesToLeaveYeongwon|: Aaaargh!
“…So the S-Class community is no different.”
No, it seemed even crazier than a regular community forum.
Seora scanned the nicknames with cold eyes, her expectations completely shattered.
Hah. They all act so dignified in public, but this is what they do behind the scenes…? It was all a sham.
【Author: Noeul-ssi】
And the author of this mischievous post seemed to be the guild master of the Noeul Guild, proudly ranked third in the country.
“They said the Noeul and Cheongrang guild masters don’t get along. I guess it was true.”
Moreover, judging by the nickname, the one crying about leaving their guild seemed to be the vice master of the Yeongwon Guild, which gloriously held the number one spot in the country.
Ah, how tragic. I used to like the Yeongwon Guild…
A huge shock, much like when she first saw the Administrator use an emoticon, washed over her, and she felt incredibly depressed.
“…I’ll look at the rest later.”
Forget browsing the shop; she was too tired to look at anything else. Seora closed all the windows and flopped onto the bed.
After seeing the community, only one thought remained.
I must never let the S-Classes find out my identity. If they did, all sorts of S-Classes might raise a fuss and flood the community with posts about it.
Seora’s face paled. What a horrifying thought. No, absolutely not.
“From today on, I am a power-hiding civil servant.”
No, wait a minute. Now that I’m an S-Class, do I really need to continue living as a civil servant?
Being a civil servant was perfect for getting by as an F-Class Awakened, but it was meaningless now that she was an S-Class.
“But there’s one problem with quitting right away…”
There was one person at the Association who would grill her about the situation if she said she was quitting.
Seora briefly thought of him and shook her head vigorously.
She had no intention of revealing her S-Class awakening to him either. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust him. It was because he would surely be reminded of someone very precious, whom he had eventually lost.
“I should stay quiet for now, until a suitable reason comes up.”
To live as a power-hiding civil servant for a while, unnoticed by anyone, even other S-Classes.
From now on, that was her one and only goal.
Seora clenched her fists in firm resolve.
【System: (΄◞ิ౪◟ิ‵ )】
The Administrator seemed to mock her resolution, but she pulled the covers over her head, determinedly ignoring it.
* * *
The call came very late at night.
Seora, who had dozed off, shot awake the moment her phone, which was by her pillow, rang once. Realizing this, she was startled.
“I see. So this is the sense of an S-Class…”
To wake up after just one ring. Thinking it was quite strange, she looked at the screen and froze.
It was an international call.
Anyone else would have groaned, thinking it was another scam call, but not her.
Seora answered without hesitation.
—Are you hurt anywhere?
Just as she expected. The urgent voice, getting straight to the point, was very familiar.
“Did the news already reach you? I’m fine, so don’t worry, Oppa.”
It was her brother’s voice, which she hadn’t heard in months.
—You’re really okay?
“Well, something happened, but it’s not a big problem. It was a dungeon in the middle of a territorial dispute, so I was lucky.”
He was also an Awakened, so no further explanation was needed. As expected, he didn’t ask any more questions, and she heard a sigh of relief.
—That’s a relief. A real relief. Where are you now?
“The hospital. I’m not hurt, but the Siljangnim said I should stay for a day because of the mental shock. So you don’t have to come to Korea, Oppa.”
—…
At the silence, Seora chuckled as if she understood.
It was obvious. He must have been planning to come to Korea immediately after hearing what happened to her. He worried too much.
“I’m really fine, so you don’t have to worry.”
—What about that bastard who threw you into the dungeon?
“The Siljangnim beat him up for me. It was a fine sight, seeing him all beaten to a bloody pulp.”
Although she had only seen the aftermath, just seeing him turned into a complete wreck was satisfying enough.
Of course, it would have been better if she had done it with her own hands, but she would have to save that for later.
“What about you, Oppa? Are you doing okay? It hasn't been long since you cleared that Grade 2 dungeon in India. You’re not injured, are you?”
—Is this any time to be worrying about my injuries? Of course, I’m not seriously hurt either. I’m fine.
“Ah, that’s good. Now I can relax a little.”
—You really… Never mind. I disturbed you when you should be sleeping. I’m sorry. You must have been through a lot, so get some rest, Seora. Don’t think about anything.
“Okay.”
He seemed to be holding back a lecture, likely because of the situation.
As Seora let out a soft laugh, he sighed again. Fortunately, he didn’t say anything more, just gave a few more words of caution before hanging up.
“This means Oppa won’t be coming to Korea. What a relief.”
Her brother, Jaeheon, a fairly high-ranking Hunter, was active overseas, unlike Seora.
He belonged to a stateless guild that operated all over the world. Thanks to that, he was quite famous in Korea, so if he were to enter the country, it would surely cause a huge stir with interviews and what not.
If she was unlucky, their family relationship would be exposed. Now that she was an S-Class, she wanted to avoid that at all costs.
A long and quiet life, without catching the eye of other S-Classes!
That was her one and only goal.
But perhaps her resolve was too strong.
It seemed even S-Classes weren’t immune to nightmares, as Seora was plagued all night by a terrible dream in which her identity was revealed and she became the center of everyone’s attention.
