In the Name of God - Chapter 24.2
“The vice clan leader of Horizon is at a lower promotion exam site? Why?”
The previously calm murmuring spread like waves.
Listening to the noise, Park Jung-geon sprang to his feet as if struck by lightning the moment he recognized the name.
At the entrance to the spectator seats.
A man emerged, parting the crowd as he walked.
An overwhelming presence.
The sound of people inhaling sharply erupted here and there.
Though he drew everyone’s attention at once, he himself walked in calmly, as if none of it interested him.
The heavy pressure that seeped out with every step.
The cold gaze that swept over the surroundings as if scanning them.
Like pressure that could burst at any moment, his very existence dominated not only the spectator seats but the exam hall itself.
Park Jung-geon stared at the man in a daze, and only after confirming that he quietly took a seat in the stands did he finally regain his senses.
“It really is Seong Do-wan!”
The vice clan leader of Horizon, one of Korea’s four major clans.
A top-class combatant in Korea, openly rumored to already be approaching Grade 2 in sheer ability.
Why would such a monster appear at a lower promotion exam site that only had Grade 8 and 9 candidates?
“Talent scouting? From a massive clan like Horizon? And not even at an upper exam site, but a lower one?”
The more he thought about it, the less his mind could keep up, leaving him feeling dizzy. The woman sitting beside him looked much the same, and the other people whispering around them did not seem any different.
Still flustered, Park Jung-geon suddenly realized that Seong Do-wan’s gaze was fixed on a single spot. Known within Black Tail as having exceptionally sharp eyesight, second to none, Park Jung-geon had little trouble figuring out who Seong Do-wan was looking at.
“…What is that corpse?”
Park Jung-geon muttered without thinking.
Where Seong Do-wan’s gaze landed stood a pale young man wearing a coat with white fur lining the hood.
After looking the pale youth over, Park Jung-geon frowned deeply.
Even with the coat hiding his body, it was obvious at a glance how thin he was. His skin was pale to the point of looking bloodless. He seemed so fragile that if the black-coated swordsman standing beside him poked him lightly, he might collapse on the spot.
‘If you are sick, you should be going to a hospital, not an exam site…’
Muttering to himself, Park Jung-geon checked Seong Do-wan’s gaze again.
Sure enough, it was still fixed firmly on that young man.
“He looks half-starved, but does he have some kind of amazing skill?”
Judging by the fact that he was carrying a gun, he seemed to be aiming for a promotion through the combat track.
He had heard that F-rank or F-minus dungeons were so low in difficulty that they took in anyone, whether useless or inexperienced. If someone muddled through those parties and filled the ten required runs, they could technically apply for the combat exam, but…
“At a promotion exam site, you cannot just ride along.”
The combat promotion exam, made up of individual and team battles, required candidates to fully demonstrate their abilities in front of numerous evaluators and spectators. If someone tried to coast along during the team battle, even if they passed smoothly, they would be excluded from promotion.
In the end, even that weak-looking young man would have to rely purely on his own ability and produce results to be promoted.
With the announcement that the individual matches would begin soon, Park Jung-geon noticed the number tag pinned to the youth’s chest. The man in the black coat beside him was kindly fastening it for him.
The color of both their number tags was red, indicating Grade 9.
Since most examinees wore blue tags, the two red ones stood out all the more.
‘Grade 9, on top of that.’
The more he looked, the more Park Jung-geon wondered if he had misread Seong Do-wan’s line of sight.
But when he followed Seong Do-wan’s gaze again, it still did not leave the white-coated youth. Now, as the young man headed toward the individual match waiting area, Seong Do-wan’s head even tilted slightly to follow him.
‘Hm… the odds are low, but maybe he is the hidden powerhouse type? Like, a former Grade 9 who turns out to be insanely talented. That kind of thing.’
The corner of Park Jung-geon’s mouth curled upward.
‘If that is really the case, I should probably buy the clan leader a fortune-telling mat.’
As if the earlier boredom had never existed, Park Jung-geon’s eyes gradually began to gleam with interest.
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