03
“...What exactly did you just do?”
“I encouraged this one’s growth. It’ll grow very well.”
“......”
He said something so absurd with such confidence that it almost made her wonder if it was true.
And even if it were true....
“With this...it is impossible to prove your ability right away.”
“Hmm...... I suppose that could be true. What should I do...?”
As though he fully understood, Ki Ja-hyeon was pondering when he snapped his fingers.
“Do you happen to have an animal? A dog or a cat raised in here, perhaps?”
“......”
This was an age when living creatures were precious. In a situation where most people made do with the protein blocks distributed every month for their meals, would pets be common?
However, this was a public department operated by the state.
Thanks(?) to the synthetic drugs that had recently spread even to Area 4, there was one detection dog that had been dispatched there.
Pant, pant, pant, pant.
A police officer who had been called out while sleeping, and one shepherd that had come with him.
The shepherd, in particular, was simply staring blankly at Ki Ja-hyeon with clear eyes.
Ki Ja-hyeon stared blankly at the dog as well and said,
“You’re handsome. What’s your name?”
At those words, the expression of the police officer who had come with the detection dog turned strange.
‘Is he crazy...?’
However, Lee Yeong-ju, who had called him, had a serious expression.
So he decided to maintain a serious expression as well.
Woof, woof! (Ho-sik! Ho-sik!)
“Is his name Ho-sik?”
“Ooh...that’s right. It is Ho-sik!”
“Heh heh heh....”
Ki Ja-hyeon laughed with confidence.
His shoulders, which had somehow shrunk, straightened, and his spirit came back to life.
Ki Ja-hyeon held out his hand to Ho-sik.
“Paw!”
Woof! Woof? (This? Why?)
Ho-sik offering his paw was only the beginning. The other paw. Turn around. Sit. Even lie down.
“Had this dog been trained to do those things?”
“Ah...yes.”
“Urgh....”
“But this is strange. Without a treat, he usually doesn’t do them that promptly.”
At the police officer’s words, her eyes narrowed.
‘It’s ambiguous.’
It was difficult to prove his ability with just this.
“Bang!”
Woof? Woof-woof? (Huh? What’s that?)
“Hmm, you might not know that. What it means is....”
After that, Ki Ja-hyeon began explaining the training for bang.
“When I point my finger and say bang, you just fall over.”
Woof! (That’s annoying, though?)
“Erm....”
Ki Ja-hyeon was left speechless at this point.
Then he approached the police officer and casually whispered in his ear,
“Do you have any treats?”
“......”
The police officer looked at Ki Ja-hyeon as though he were looking at a madman.
He wanted to ask if Ki Ja-hyeon was in his right mind, but,
‘This man is extremely serious...!’
He was overwhelmed by the force of it.
In the end, the police officer answered that he did, and Ki Ja-hyeon’s face became very bright.
Then he went up to Ho-sik and whispered the same way.
“But what if I give you a treat?”
Woof. Woof! (Treat. Treat!)
Ho-sik had a strong sense of pride, so it had taken several days just to make him sit once. He knew how to do it, but chose not to. Because of that, the police officer, who had felt secretly disappointed that Ho-sik was being so cooperative even without treats, let out a small laugh without realizing it.
“As if he’d learn from that....”
However,
“Bang!”
Flop~
“...It worked?”
Why did it work...?
.
.
.
After sending Ki Ja-hyeon away, Lee Yeong-ju dry-washed her face with her palm.
“Good grief... I confirmed it for now, but....”
First of all, the Trait had been confirmed through unique points.
Just as a Shield Fighter’s skin became tougher, and just as a Gladiator’s strength became greater, Ki Ja-hyeon, as a druid, had proved that he could communicate with animals and plants to some extent.
The problem was this.
“What Grade should I classify him as...?”
Lee Yeong-ju thought carefully.
From what she could see, this Trait definitely had the possibility of becoming stronger in the future.
Putting plants aside, the fact that he could communicate with animals had all kinds of uses depending on how it was applied.
What mattered was that this was the lowest point for the Awakened named Ki Ja-hyeon.
If his Awakened Grade went up and various related skills appeared, would he not be able to handle huge and powerful animals such as lions, hippos, and elephants?
Even if it was useless in rifts or dungeons, it was certainly an ability that would have demand inside hunting grounds where ordinary firearms worked.
“Though it isn’t quite on the level of the Beast Master....”
The Beast Master had started as A- Grade from the beginning.
Both in hunting grounds outside the shelter and inside dungeons, which were other dimensions, his ability was overwhelming.
Naturally, being given A Grade did not mean he could go hunting, but instead, the government attached A Grade Awakened to him and gave him what was commonly called a “bus ride.”
Raising someone above F- Grade was also an expression of the government’s intention to raise that person with utmost care.
Of course, Druid Ki Ja-hyeon did not seem to be on that level.
But his future potential seemed sufficient.
“He might be around C- Grade.”
Lee Yeong-ju submitted her report to her superiors that way.
And the next day, Ki Ja-hyeon’s final Grade was decided.
***
[Your Awakened Grade is F-.]
“Tsk....”
Looking at the message reflected on his smartphone, Ki Ja-hyeon scratched his head.
Well, he had expected it.
After all, there was no visible sign that he had encouraged the plant, and teaching Ho-sik “bang” did not intuitively help in combat either.
There were plenty of Traits that were not combat-specialized.
And except for a few, the government tended to be cold toward such Traits.
Still, F- Grade?
“What a thing. Druid is so good...but I have no way to explain it....”
Well, what could he do?
To Ki Ja-hyeon, the fact that an Awakening certificate had been issued under the name Druid was itself a happy thing. This alone had flung open a chance for him, a resident of Area 4 rental housing, to rise in status!
It would have been better if he had been treated well, but there was nothing he could do even if he was not.
Now that he had Awakened, there were plenty of ways to earn money!
“It’d be no good if things became annoying instead!”
In the case of the Beast Master, he knew the state had supported him with everything it had. They had let him live in Area 2, helped him in all sorts of ways so his Grade could rise quickly....
But thanks to that, he was now living as a loyal civil servant under the state.
“Not that that’s a bad thing....”
This was a post-apocalyptic world so harsh that it went beyond suffocating and made one choke.
In fact, most people would crave that kind of stable life like mad.
It simply did not suit Ki Ja-hyeon.
His nature had been like that from the beginning.
Even in his previous life, although he had freely handled all attributes, if one had to choose his main attribute, it would have been wind.
He liked being free. He liked what was natural. If he had to be trapped in a luxurious, enormous prison while enjoying massive benefits, he would rather move as he pleased and set out on a journey to find small happiness.
In fact, Ki Ja-hyeon’s heart was pounding fiercely now.
After all,
he was an Awakened now!
“Now a tomorrow different from yesterday will be waiting for me!”
Bzzzz.
Just then, his smartwatch vibrated.
– Jeongbyeong Office
“Yes, this is Ki Ja-hyeon.”
[Yes, Mr. Ja-hyeon! You got home safely yesterday, right? You have no idea how reassuring it is to have our office ace, Mr. Ja-hyeon, around...!]
“From the sound of it, something happened. Please just tell me quickly.”
[Ahaha... Then should I? I called to ask if you can run a job today. It’s not our company’s work. It’s a company run by a boss I know, and it seems they had a sudden vacancy...?]
“I just came back from working yesterday, you know?”
Odd-jobbing was physically and mentally exhausting. Most odd-jobbers rested for two days after working one. Ki Ja-hyeon, too, had recently been handling a tight schedule, so he had planned to rest properly for about two days.
[I know it’s hard...but the only hill I can lean on is you, Mr. Ja-hyeon. Could I ask you for a favor? I’ll pay you double the daily rate!]
“Goodness? Are you thinking of buying my rest with money?”
[Triple!]
“That’s too much money to refuse, isn’t it?”
[It kind of is, right?]
He had Awakened.
He no longer needed to work as an odd-jobber.
But Ki Ja-hyeon intended to take the job.
Without natural mana, there was not much a druid could do.
At most, compared to before his Awakening, he could teach a dog sit, stand, and bang a little better.
‘Nothing changes yet.’
Otherwise, he would be a half-baked druid.
For now, it was wise in many ways to continue the odd-job work he had been doing while gathering natural mana.
“But how did the vacancy happen?”
[You’re going, right? You’re sure, right?]
“I said I understand, so tell me. Unless it’s something serious, I won’t back out.”
[...They said the odd-jobber over there got hurt.]
“Oh dear. Is it nothing serious? Did he get hurt during the hunt or something?”
It was common for odd-jobbers to be injured during hunts because aggro bounced to them or because the cleanup was not certain.
At those words, In Jeong-byeong waved his hands wildly, even though Ki Ja-hyeon could not see him.
[Hey! No way! If it were something like that, I wouldn’t even have brought it up... Mr. Ja-hyeon, you’re our company’s ace. Would I send you to that kind of party? I’m sending you precisely because it’s you! To tell you the truth, there isn’t really any talent I can send besides you, Mr. Ja-hyeon... That place is an E Grade hunting ground.]
“E Grade? I’ve never been to one.”
[Please, I’m begging you. Ah! When I said triple, I meant triple the E Grade rate, so don’t misunderstand!]
Hunters hunted, and naturally, it was dangerous.
But it was just as dangerous for odd-jobbers, who went around hunting grounds without having Awakened, as it was for hunters.
That was why odd-jobbers preferred lower grades and liked familiar hunting grounds.
Ki Ja-hyeon had the ability to go through E Grade, but he tended to go through F+ Grade instead.
It was familiar, and it was enough to maintain his current life.
E Grade hunting grounds paid far more, but they were that much more dangerous as well.
At least, Ki Ja-hyeon had heard so and had been careful.
[In a way, it’s an opportunity, isn’t it? You know... The treatment itself is different for odd-jobbers who can run E Grade and those who can’t! Please think of it positively. Ah, I’m telling you, I’ll pay triple!]
Of course, since he would soon become a hunter, it was not much of an opportunity, but....
‘It wouldn’t be bad to grant one favor as a retirement gift.’
***
“I look forward to working with you. My name is Ki Ja-hyeon.”
“You’re early. We thought we’d arrive earlier!”
The E Grade party members he met like that were openhearted and good-natured people.
‘I’d heard rumors, but the atmosphere really is different from E Grade onward.’
And for good reason. Even just returning an odd-jobber’s greeting was a rare thing in an F Grade party.
‘Is this what it means to be on a different level?’
In this world, areas were not the only things divided by grade.
Everything was divided by grade.
Hunters were no exception.
For example, if one compared F- Grade hunters to residential areas, they were the outskirts among Area 5.
They were the weakest among the Awakened.
Rather, because of that, they had the strongest sense of privilege and the strongest inferiority complex, so they often took that inferiority out on odd-jobbers, who were lower than themselves.
F Grade odd-jobbers and F Grade Awakened were equally steeped in inferiority.
Only around F+ Grade did they begin treating odd-jobbers as people.
That was because they were in a position where they might rise to E Grade.
From E Grade onward, freelancing was practically difficult, and one had to join a small-to-mid-sized guild no matter what. Unless one’s skill was outstanding, the part they looked at most was character.
Reliable odd-jobbers—meaning odd-jobbers around F+ Grade—could post stories on the community, and when that day came, rumors would spread, making people unwilling to work with that hunter. Because of that, hunters who had a tomorrow were not cruel to odd-jobbers either. And they were even less cruel to F+ Grade odd-jobbers like Ki Ja-hyeon.
‘Still, they weren’t usually this friendly.’
Even the F+ party he had gone with last time had been like that.
They had parted with smiles in the end, but it had not been that way from the beginning.
At the start of the hunt, they had treated Ki Ja-hyeon like a robot vacuum that did menial work for them.
That was why Ki Ja-hyeon was surprised.
From the beginning, these people were treating him like a “partner” they were working with.
‘To think it’s this different just because the grade went up by one.’
Because of that, Ki Ja-hyeon cheerfully took out the sanitary pack inside his clothes.
Inside were plump, bright red cherry tomatoes, each one round and full.
The eyes of the female hunter who seemed to be the ranged damage dealer went round.
“W-Wow...! Aren’t these cherry tomatoes?”
“Fresh vegetables... Where did you get these?”
“Even in Area 4, it’s hard to taste something this fresh!”
“I grew them myself. Please enjoy them!”
“Wow...thank you. They’re so delicious! I really like natural foods...!”
One of the female hunters put a cherry tomato in each cheek and smiled while chewing. The others also ate the cherry tomatoes, sinking into smiles.
In a world overrun by textureless rations that were easy to make and fast food made of cultivated meat, eating something natural like this was a rare experience even for hunters.
Ki Ja-hyeon also smiled gently and bowed his head once more.
“I sincerely hope this hunt ends without any accidents.”
“Goodness, that’s what we should be saying! Since we’ve had our little bite, shall we set off?”
Everyone climbed into the pickup truck Ki Ja-hyeon drove.
And so,
vroooooom.
The pickup truck glided smoothly down the unpaved road.