Kael had just returned from buying groceries when the elevator doors opened on the sixth floor. He stepped inside, shifted the grocery bag in his hand, and pressed the button for the ground floor. He had forgotten to buy a few things during his last shopping trip, and since he planned to return to work soon, he wanted to make sure the apartment had enough food for the next few days.
The doors were about to close when a man hurried toward the elevator.
"Hold on, please!" the man called out.
Kael reached out and pressed the button to keep the doors open. The man stepped inside, breathing a little heavily, and gave him a grateful nod. He looked to be in his early thirties, with short hair, a faint scar running along his jaw, and a gym bag hanging over one shoulder.
"Thanks," the man said.
"No problem," Kael replied.
The man pressed the button for the ground floor before glancing at Kael’s groceries.
"Just moved in?" he asked.
"Not exactly. I’ve been here for a little while," Kael answered.
"Ah, I see. I don’t think I’ve seen you around before." The man adjusted the strap of his bag before introducing himself. "I’m Daniel. I live on the eighth floor."
"Kael. Sixth floor," Kael replied.
They exchanged a brief nod, and the elevator continued descending. For a few seconds, neither of them spoke. Then Daniel sighed and shook his head as though something had been bothering him.
"Did you hear about what happened near the eastern road yesterday?" Daniel asked.
Kael turned toward him. "No. What happened?"
"A monster got loose near one of the construction sites. Apparently, it came out of a small dungeon that had been marked for a routine cleanup," Daniel explained.
Kael’s attention sharpened. "A dungeon? Inside the district?"
"Not right in the middle of the residential area, but close enough to cause trouble." Daniel adjusted the strap of his bag again. "A couple of hunters were sent to deal with it. One of them got injured before they managed to bring the thing down."
"Was anyone else hurt?" Kael asked.
"From what I heard, a few workers were evacuated, but most people got out safely. The authorities haven’t released all the details yet," Daniel replied.
Kael thought about the streets he had walked with Sera and Noah a few days earlier. Crestview District had seemed peaceful, with people going to work, children playing in the park, and shops opening every morning as if nothing unusual could happen. However, the hunter world existed just beyond that ordinary life, and sometimes its problems reached places where people least expected them.
"Was the monster dangerous?" Kael asked.
Daniel gave him a serious look. "Any monster that can injure a trained hunter is dangerous enough. People hear about hunters killing monsters and assume it’s easy because they only see the results. They don’t see the injuries, the mistakes, or the people who never make it back."
The elevator passed the fourth floor, and Kael glanced at the scar on Daniel’s jaw.
"Are you a hunter?" Kael asked.
"No. I work in equipment maintenance for a company that supplies some of the local hunter teams." Daniel touched his jaw absentmindedly. "I’ve been around them long enough to know that the job isn’t as glamorous as it looks."
"Then why work with them?" Kael asked.
"Because the work pays, and someone has to keep their equipment running." Daniel shrugged. "But I wouldn’t trade places with them. Some hunters earn good money, especially the experienced ones. Others spend half their income repairing equipment or recovering from injuries."
The elevator reached the ground floor, and the doors opened. Daniel stepped out, but before walking away, he turned back toward Kael.
"If you’re thinking of becoming a hunter, do yourself a favor and learn what you’re getting into before you sign anything," Daniel advised.
Kael blinked in surprise. "What makes you think I’m interested?"
Daniel glanced at the grocery bag in Kael’s hand. "You’ve got that look."
"What look?" Kael asked.
"The look people get when they start thinking about something dangerous because they believe it’ll solve all their problems," Daniel explained.
Kael couldn’t help laughing. "That’s oddly specific."
"I’ve seen it before." Daniel gave him a friendly nod. "Anyway, good luck with whatever you’re planning."
He walked toward the building’s entrance, leaving Kael standing beside the elevator. Kael considered calling after him to ask more questions, but he decided against it and headed back upstairs instead.
Although the conversation had been brief, it stayed with him longer than he expected. He knew becoming a hunter carried risks, and he had read enough about the profession to understand that much. Still, reading about injuries and dungeon incidents on a screen was different from hearing about an actual incident from someone who worked around hunters.
The danger felt much closer now, and Kael knew it was something he needed to take seriously.
When Kael returned to the apartment, Sera was sitting at the dining table with her notebook open. Noah was resting in his crib nearby, and a half-finished sketch lay beside her phone.
"You’re back," Sera said when she noticed him.
"Yes. I picked up a few things we needed," Kael replied.
He carried the groceries into the kitchen and put them away. When he returned to the dining table, Sera had resumed working on her sketch.
"Did anything interesting happen downstairs?" she asked.
"I met a man in the elevator. He told me about a monster incident near the eastern road," Kael replied.
Sera stopped drawing. "What kind of incident?"
"Apparently, a monster escaped from a dungeon near a construction site. Hunters dealt with it, but one of them was injured," Kael explained.
"Was anyone killed?" Sera asked.
"Not according to what he heard. The workers were evacuated, and most people got out safely," Kael answered.
Sera set her pencil down. "That’s frightening, especially if the dungeon was close to somewhere people work."
"That’s what I thought," Kael agreed.
He didn’t want to make the incident sound worse than it was, but he also didn’t want to dismiss it. The fact that people had escaped safely didn’t mean the situation had been harmless.
Sera studied him for a moment before asking, "You’re thinking about the Hunter’s Association again, aren’t you?"
Kael looked at her in surprise. "How did you know?"
"Because you’ve been researching it every chance you get. You’ve looked at their website during breakfast, after lunch, and once when you were supposed to be helping me fold Noah’s clothes," Sera explained.
"I was checking the registration requirements," Kael replied.
"You were holding a tiny shirt in one hand and reading about hunter ranks with the other," Sera reminded him.
Kael rubbed the back of his neck. "That does sound like something I would do."
Sera smiled briefly, but her expression soon became more serious.
"Can I ask you something?" she said.
"Of course," Kael replied.
"What are you hoping to gain by joining the Association?" Sera asked.
Kael pulled out a chair and sat across from her. He had expected the question eventually, but now that it had come, he wanted to give her a proper answer.
"Several things," Kael began. "A chance to improve my abilities, a way to earn more money in the future, and access to training I can’t get on my own."
Sera looked at him thoughtfully. "Do you think you can become strong enough to work as a hunter?"
"I’m not sure yet," Kael admitted.
Sera seemed surprised by his honesty, so Kael continued explaining his position.
"I’m still at the beginning. I don’t know how far I can go, and I’m not going to pretend that a few basic exercises will make me ready to fight monsters. But I want to find out what I’m capable of."
He paused before adding, "I don’t want to spend the rest of my life worrying about money or wondering whether I could have done more for our family."
Sera listened without interrupting before asking another question.
"Is that the main reason?" she asked.
"It’s one of them," Kael replied.
"What about the danger?" Sera asked.
Kael glanced toward Noah’s crib. "That’s what I need to learn more about. I know hunting can be dangerous, but I don’t know enough about the actual work to decide what risks are acceptable."
Sera nodded slowly before responding. "I won’t tell you to give up on something just because it’s dangerous. I know what it’s like when someone else decides what you’re allowed to do."
Kael looked at her carefully. She rarely spoke about her family in detail, and he didn’t want to push her into explaining more than she intended.
"But I need you to understand that your decisions don’t affect only you anymore," Sera continued.
"I understand," Kael replied.
"Do you?" Sera asked. Her voice wasn’t harsh, but she held his gaze. "If you get injured, it affects all three of us. If you take on work that leaves you exhausted or puts you in danger every week, that affects us too. And if something happens to you, Noah won’t understand why his father isn’t coming home."
Kael fell silent. He had thought about becoming stronger so he could protect his family, but he hadn’t spent enough time considering what would happen if his pursuit of strength put him beyond their reach. He wanted to be someone Sera and Noah could depend on, which meant he couldn’t treat his own safety as an afterthought.
"I’m not planning to rush into a dungeon," Kael said after a moment. "I want to learn about the Association, understand their requirements, and find out what kind of training is available. I won’t take on a dangerous assignment just because it pays well."
Sera watched him for a few seconds before asking, "And if you discover that the work is more dangerous than you expected?"
"Then I’ll reconsider what I’m willing to do. I might have to start with something less risky and build up from there," Kael replied.
"Good," Sera said.
She picked up her pencil, but she didn’t immediately return to her sketch.
"I want you to have goals, Kael. I don’t want you to give up on everything because you have a family. But I also don’t want you to believe that being a good father means throwing yourself into danger to prove you’re strong enough," Sera explained.
Kael took her words seriously. "I’ll keep that in mind."
"Please do. And if you decide to register, talk to me about it before you make any commitments. I want to understand what you’re getting into, too," Sera said.
"That’s fair," Kael replied.
Sera finally returned to her sketch. Kael watched her draw for a moment before asking, "Would you want to come with me when I visit the Association?"
She looked up from her notebook. "To see what they offer?"
"Yes. We could both ask questions, and you could hear the information directly instead of relying on whatever I remember afterward," Kael explained.
Sera considered the suggestion before answering. "I’d like that, as long as we arrange it around Noah’s needs and my own plans."
"Of course," Kael assured her.
Sera smiled. "Then we’ll discuss it when you’re ready."
The conversation ended without either of them trying to force a decision. Kael hadn’t promised to abandon his ambition, and Sera hadn’t asked him to. They had simply agreed that his next steps needed to be based on facts rather than excitement.
For Kael, that was an important distinction.
That evening, after dinner, Kael sat at the dining table with his phone and opened the Hunter’s Association website again. This time, he didn’t search for information about ranks or the quickest path to becoming a licensed hunter. Instead, he looked for details about training requirements, safety procedures, support positions, and the kinds of work available to beginners.
He began making notes about the questions he still needed answered. How were new hunters evaluated? What happened if someone failed an assessment? Were there supervised training sessions? Could applicants begin with support work while improving their physical abilities?
He didn’t have all the answers, but he now had a better idea of what he needed to ask.
A notification appeared in front of him.
[Family Care Task Completed.]
[Task: Discuss a Major Personal Goal With Your Partner.]
[Evaluation: You shared your intentions, listened to your partner’s concerns, and considered how your choices could affect your family.]
[Reward: Family Bond +1.]
Kael read the message before dismissing it. The reward was small, but he didn’t mind. The conversation with Sera had been worth having even without the notification.
He looked toward the sofa, where Sera was sitting with Noah resting beside her. She had returned to her sketches, occasionally pausing to check on their son.
Kael felt a quiet sense of relief. He didn’t need Sera to agree with every decision he made. He needed her to be able to tell him when he was overlooking something important, just as he needed to listen when she spoke about her own plans.
Their future wasn’t going to be simple. He still had to return to work, continue training, and learn what it would actually take to become a hunter. Sera had her own goals to pursue, and they both had a child depending on them. There would be difficult decisions ahead, but at least they were beginning to face those decisions together.
Kael returned his attention to the Association’s website and continued reading. He wasn’t looking for a shortcut to power anymore. He wanted to find a way forward that he could live with and that his family could live with, too.