The Hunter’s Gonna Lay Low

As I trudged to the entrance of the makeshift centre, I shoved my hands into my pockets.

‘What is this.’

I took out something hard in my hand and checked it. And after making eye contact with the gentle Buddha again, I briefly recalled why I had stuffed this into my pocket, not a glove box. With a small sigh, the fan was put into the road pocket.

As I approached the entrance, I was greeted by an employee standing in front of a container.

“Hello, sir. What brings you here?”

“I’m going to register as an awakener.”

“Please take a number here and wait a moment.”

To my surprise, Min-ki was right about the lack of people; the only people in the makeshift centre were the medical staff and government officials.

I took a number ticket from the machine and sat in a plastic chair, checking the digital clock on the wall. It’s 3:02 p.m. The inspection itself shouldn’t take long, so if I moved quickly, I shouldn’t have any problems with my evening business.

I’ll take it to the haejang-guk… When I closed my eyes and waited for a while, my number was called.

“Number 93.”

I walked to the window and handed out my number ticket. The employee put the number tag in a plastic basket and asked.

“What brings you here?”

“I’m here to register as an awakener.”

“Congratulations on your awakening. How long have you been an awakened?”

It’s been 11 years. However, I had no choice but to lie because I would have been caught if I spoke honestly.

“It’s been three days.”

“Give me your ID card and give me your cell phone number.”

I gave my ID and cell phone number. When the employee entered the number, some documents were printed from the printer next to it. An employee who had completed identification handed over documents and resident registration cards and guided them in a businesslike manner.

“You only need to fill in the part marked with a highlighter here. Please write your name, resident registration number, cell phone number, and address. Please call out your system window and fill out the description box. You don’t have to write down all the skills, but you have to write down one skill to show when you measure your skills.”

“Yes.”

“There’s a ballpoint pen over there. Please fill it out and give it to me again.”

Eui-jae, who got up from the window for a while and settled in a corner, struggled with a ballpoint pen. You can write down the address of the hangover soup restaurant… I was able to write down my personal information without difficulty. It was rather easy because thoroughly managing the personal information of the awakeners was never done when J was active.

After getting up from the counter and taking a seat in the corner, I grabbed the ballpoint pen and pondered. For the address, I can write the haejang-guk… Personal information was not difficult to write down. Keeping track of the awakened’s personal details was something that hadn’t been done at all during J’s time, so this part was rather easy.

The problem was next. I called in he system window that I hadn’t deliberately checked for some time.

[Checking Cha Ui-ijae’s information]
[A lot of information. Supports summary functionality.]
[Will you read the summary?]
[When summarizing, traits and skills are displayed in order of increasing proficiency, up to a maximum of three]
[Enable summary]
[Error!]
[An item exists that makes ■■ impossible due to ■■]

When several of the system’s information windows overlapped, I frowned slightly and then opened it again. Just because I hadn’t lived through it didn’t mean eight years hadn’t happened, so it would be like collecting eleven years of data.

After waiting a little longer, the summarized information appeared in the white window.

[Cha Ui-jae
Hunter Name: J
Age: 2■
Gender: Male
Rating: A (currently under a weakening curse)
Traits: Basilisk’s Poison (S+), Muscle Strengthening (S+), Poker Face (B)
Unique traits: Adept’s Hands (S+), All-seeing (S+), ■■■■■■(?)
Title: ■■■ ■■■
Skill: Tracker’s Eye (S+), Heart Penetration (S), Soundless Steps (S)]

I quickly skimmed the information, then stared blankly at the air. Okay, so.

‘What the hell am I supposed to write….’

Skill is like a lifeline for hunters, so even if you had a low rank, a good skill was enough to make you a hunter.

As society stabilized and hunter’s position increased, the Hunter Association, an interest group of hunters, argued that disclosing all skills owned by individuals violates the Privacy Act. The Awakening Management Bureau responded by saying it was nonsense, but after a long fight, the bureau took a step back. The criteria have been changed so that all skills are not registered when registering awakeners.

As a result, the skills section of the Awakened Registration Form has been reduced to a single space, replaced by a space for you to list a skill that represents you, your signature skill.

This single skill becomes the Hunter’s signature. Well, it didn’t matter to the intention of hiding one’s power and identity anyway. But he had to demonstrate it, so he couldn’t make something up that wasn’t there. His eyes scanned the list.

[Tracker’s Eye (S+)]

The ability to track and locate others was not a common skill. If it became known that I possessed it, I would be twice as troublesome as I am now. Other.

[Heart Penetration (S)]

I can definitely penetrate the heart when I use it. It was also J’s signature skill. If I write this while J is alive, I will be caught by the bureau. Excludes.

[Soundless Steps (S)]

It allows for complete concealment when used, which is unlikely for a lower-ranked hunter to have. Exclude.

Other relatively low-grade skills were also full of ambiguities. At this point, all I could do was use my imagination and tell a decent lie. Problem is, my imagination is terrible.

‘…What’s something that’s not noticeable and easy to deceive?’

What I’m good at is beating people up and holding on dear life. but he can’t beat people up because that’s his signature skill…. I had been agonizing for a long time, finally wrote down a skill.

Strong (D)

It strengthens the body and makes it strong.

‘First of all, I’ll get hit. And I insist that it’s a strong one using skills.’

All I have is a strong body and a mill. At this point, I switch to the tank class.

Choi Seok-yoon, a C-rank hunter from the Awakening Management Bureau. He was assigned to the temporary Awakening Registration Centre in Gwangjin-gu because he was new.

It’s a temporary center, and he’ll be moving to the main building soon, so it was nice to have less work, but… he was bored because he had nothing to do. Recently, he even watched a season of dramas during working hours. If there was nothing special today, he would have been able to see another season to the end.

Ding dong.

Choi Seok-yoon, who stopped the video screen with the play button for a while and yawned until his mouth was torn apart, was surprised by the notification sound he had heard for the first time in a long time and checked the monitor. It seemed that someone was finally coming to measure their ability. He trimmed his throat and raised his voice.

“Uh, come on in.”

It was a tall young man in a gray hood who opened the door and came in. Without hesitation, the young man approached Choi Seok-yoon and presented the document. Rather, it was such a cool move that Choi Seok-yoon was embarrassed. He was embarrassed for a moment and checked the document.

‘Name, Cha Ui-jae. Age, 28. Skill is… Is it strong? What’s the name of the skill.’

Choi Seok-yoon couldn’t help but laugh. Well, there are quite a few people who have goal-shooting skills if you look around Hunter Net a little bit. He asked, scratching his temples with a ballpoint pen.

“From the skill description, it looks like it’s a tank-type skill that increases defense, is that right?”

“I think so, but I don’t really… I don’t know.”

The young man trailed off. His voice sounded unconfident, a far cry from the bold move he had made when he first entered the room. Choi Seok-yoon glanced at the young man, then back at the papers.

‘The date of the awakening… Three days ago? That’s possible.’

If it was a self-reinforced buff, it would be hard to feel it even if you used it alone. It’s not an attack skill. Choi Seok-yoon shook his head and stood up.

“Wait a minute.”

He took the dummy out of the corner and switched it on. The dummy, which looked like a woodcarving doll, creaked and stood upright. Choi Seok-yoon placed a wooden sword in the dummy’s hand and gestured to Ui-jae.

“You just need to use your skill and take the attack. The blow will be delivered with the average attack power of a D-ranked Awakened, are you okay with that?”

“Yes.”

“If you get hit and it hurts too much, please! You have to tell me. I’ll give you a recovery potion.”

“Yes.”

The voice of the young man was still a little timid, but this was very calm, considering that he was about to be beaten by a dummy doll. Choi Seok-yoon was deeply impressed.

‘Your composure is amazing…. Since you’re the tank, a small or medium-sized guild might take you right away.’

And Cha Ui-jae…

‘I used my skill so I didn’t get hit too badly, but I was in pain anyway, so I played a sick person.’

I was preparing for a Hollywood action.

“Did you use your skills?”

“Yes.”

“Then let’s go.”

When Choi Seok-yoon pressed the button, the doll raised its wooden sword high and rushed toward me. It was terribly slow in my eyes, but it should not be avoided. I rolled my eyes along the slowly descending trajectory of the wooden sword. At this rate, it’s going to be a shoulder. As soon as the wooden sword struck my left shoulder, as I had expected,

‘Oh, wait.’

ppagak!!

I had a hunch when I heard an unusual sound. Something went wrong. I had expected a heavier blow, not this light one. My anxious gaze flickered to the air.

Sure enough, the wooden sword that should be stuck on his shoulder…

‘Fuck.’

It was flying in the air, split in half.