The Struggles of the #1 Rank - Chapter 2
“That’s right.”
He answered with an expressionless face.
The reason Tae-jun had accepted Seo Jae-hyung’s request regarding the team assignment was ultimately to find out whether Joo-ah was the Hunter who had formed a contract with a Constellation.
It was an utterly selfish and self-centered way of satisfying his curiosity.
Joo-ah frowned as she spoke.
“That’s not me. I’ve heard that if you form a contract with a Constellation, your rank changes right away. But mine is still the same.”
“That’s precisely why I arranged your team assignment separately.”
If she had formed a contract with a Constellation, she wouldn’t still be stuck at E-rank.
According to what was known so far, the lowest-ranked Hunter among those who had contracted with a Constellation was A-rank. That alone should have been proof that Joo-ah, an E-rank Hunter, had not formed such a contract.
“To be honest, I’m not convinced that you’re a Contractor either, Miss Seo Joo-ah. Moreover, after checking your system window myself today, I’m even less convinced.”
He clicked his tongue with a pitiful expression before his face quickly turned serious.
“But we can’t rule out any possibility.”
Joo-ah furrowed her brows and stared at Tae-jun.
It was a reckless approach.
He was practically sacrificing a Hunter just to satisfy his own curiosity.
“If I end up in danger just because you, Chairman Yoo Tae-jun, want to satisfy your curiosity, how will you take responsibility?”
She wasn’t exaggerating.
At her current level, if she were summoned to an upper floor of the Tower, she could die at any moment.
He let out a small laugh.
“Why should I take responsibility?”
Tae-jun twisted his lips into a cold smile.
“I only arranged your team assignment at Congressman Seo Jae-hyung’s request. If you end up dying, it will be solely because your abilities weren’t good enough.”
Resting his chin on his hand, he continued leisurely.
“So go ahead and pray. Pray that you’re a Hunter chosen by a Constellation.”
It was complete nonsense.
Forming a contract with a Constellation wasn’t something that could happen simply because someone wanted it badly enough.
“That should be enough to explain why you were matched with a higher-ranked group, don’t you think?”
Tae-jun stood up and smiled at her.
“I wasn’t originally planning to explain all this to you, but I liked how bold you were earlier, so I decided to tell you. So please, don’t disappoint my expectations, Miss Seo Joo-ah.”
Despite his words, his expression showed absolutely no sign of expectation.
His face practically said that he already knew how things would turn out.
In the end, Joo-ah left the Association Chairman’s office without resolving the issue with her team assignment.
“…What a pain.”
After stepping outside, Joo-ah stopped for a moment and stared at the firmly closed office door.
“He’s annoyingly perceptive, as always.”
She muttered under her breath before turning around and walking down the hallway. Her dark brown hair, neatly tied into a single ponytail, swayed behind her.
A cheerful notification chime suddenly rang in front of her, and a blue status window appeared.
【………Checking for violations!………】
【This process may take some time to complete.】
【Verification complete!】
【No violations detected.】
Joo-ah stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for the first floor, frowning.
“Look at that. He’s checking immediately because he thinks I might have snitched to Yoo Tae-jun. He doesn’t trust me at all, so why did he even form a contract with me?”
In response to her muttering, different text appeared in the status window.
【The Anonymous Constellation urgently explains that it’s not that they don’t trust their big sister, but that they don’t trust Yoo Tae-jun, whose heart is as black as ink.】
“Oh, really? So that’s why you check for violations every single time I meet someone.”
【The Anonymous Constellation expresses disappointment, explaining that this time they waited until the sixth person after letting five people pass before checking.】
“I don’t care whether you’re disappointed or not. Try checking one more time, and I’ll expose everything for real.”
【The Anonymous Constellation sends ㅠㅠ.】
Joo-ah leaned against the elevator wall and quietly watched the floor numbers descend.
She didn’t know where the rumor Tae-jun had heard originated, but most of it was accurate.
A Contractor who had graduated from the Special Awakener Academy this year and possessed the light attribute.
There was no doubt that the rumor was about Joo-ah.
She was one of the few Hunters in the country who had formed a contract with a Constellation.
The day the peaceful Republic of Korea ceased to be peaceful began when a strange light appeared in the sky.
As time passed, monsters poured out of that once-pure white light, which had turned black. It was something no one could ever have imagined.
Fortunately, along with the dungeon breaks that unleashed monsters, people began awakening with extraordinary powers.
In South Korea, they were called Hunters.
The Special Awakener Association was established to manage them, and together with the government, it focused on developing their abilities.
The six Towers appeared much later.
Gates, which had originally served as entrances to individual dungeons, had now become the Towers themselves. The floors containing the final bosses had effectively become the dungeons.
Three years ago, a Gate to the 999th floor opened for the first time in the sixth Tower, which had the highest number of floors among all the Towers in the country.
She had been part of the elite unit when the Special Awakener Association summoned her. She and her teammates rushed to the Tower, only to suffer a crushing defeat in their battle against the boss.
【Name: Kwon Eun-young (Elite Unit)
Level: SSS-rank
Ranking: No. 1 in South Korea / No. 28 internationally】
It was the day when all her dazzling stats became meaningless in an instant.
Nothing mattered in the face of death. No matter how impressive one’s rank was, a stronger opponent could appear at any time and in any place, and death would always be possible.
That was the life of a Hunter.
However, there was someone who regretted her death even more than she did.
【The Anonymous Constellation enthusiastically cheers you on.】
The Constellation, who regretted her death, appeared before her and formed a contract without her consent.
And it was only through the Constellation’s help that she was able to survive.
After the battle on the 999th floor, the first place Eun-young opened her eyes was the intensive care unit of a hospital.
“Miss Seo Joo-ah.”
“Miss Seo Joo-ah.”
The name kept repeating.
She couldn’t understand why they kept calling her by the unfamiliar name Seo Joo-ah.
…
She wanted to say something in response, but the ventilator covering her mouth prevented her from speaking.
Through her blurry vision, she saw someone looking at Eun-young and shouting.
“My lady, Thank God! I’ve already contacted the congressman, so he’ll be here soon”
With the help of the caregiver, who kept saying things Eun-young couldn’t understand, she was transferred from the intensive care unit to a regular hospital room.
What on earth is going on…?
Standing before a mirror for the first time, Eun-young saw a stranger.
A slender figure.
Dark brown hair.
Golden eyes.
Only then did she understand why everyone had been calling her by an unfamiliar name.
【The Anonymous Constellation tells big sister that they’re going to explain the contract conditions and urges her to remember every detail carefully.】
Not long afterward, a Constellation suddenly appeared and revealed that her body had been switched with that of Hunter Seo Joo-ah, an E-rank Hunter.
“Contract conditions? Why should I follow them? It’s not as if I ever said I wanted to make a contract with you.”
【The Anonymous Constellation shouts that big sister would have been dead long ago without them and tells her to face reality.】
In the first place, it had been the Constellation who caused Eun-young to switch bodies with Seo Joo-ah.
Eun-young’s body had been so badly damaged that she needed to borrow another person’s body temporarily to recover.
However, she couldn’t simply switch bodies with someone who was perfectly healthy. For a soul exchange to occur, the other person had to still be barely alive.
That person had been Seo Joo-ah.
Eun-young didn’t know the circumstances behind it, but Joo-ah had been hospitalized following a suicide attempt.
There were numerous painful marks on Joo-ah’s wrists, and during her final attempt, she had fallen into a coma, much like Eun-young.
However, the Constellation’s power had switched their souls. Fortunately, Joo-ah’s body seemed to suit Eun-young well enough that she was able to awaken before three years had passed.
【The Anonymous Constellation reminds big sister that the contract condition is to keep her true identity secret from everyone until she regains her original power.】
“Why can’t I reveal my identity? Is there a reason?”
【The Anonymous Constellation says she’ll naturally find out the reason later.】
“Then am I not allowed to tell anyone about your identity either?”
【The Anonymous Constellation adds that keeping it a secret would make it easier to deceive other people.】
Eun-young furrowed her brows as though she didn’t understand, but the condition wasn’t particularly difficult, so she readily nodded.
There was no reason for her to refuse a contract with a Constellation, something she had previously known only through legends.
【The Anonymous Constellation excitedly exclaims that they’ve finally formed a contract with their big sister, their eyes sparkling.】
The contract was completed without much difficulty.
The Constellation explained that Eun-young could fully recover her original power even while inhabiting Seo Joo-ah’s body.
As a side note, when Tae-jun had been the Association Chairman, he had supervised Eun-young’s training back when she was the No. 1-ranked Hunter. He had relentlessly selected only the most difficult training exercises to match his nasty personality.
Because of that, Eun-young shuddered in disgust whenever she even caught sight of a single strand of Tae-jun’s hair.
When the elevator doors opened, Joo-ah pushed herself away from the wall and stepped out.
The training center was located not far from the Special Awakener Association. When she opened the entrance door and walked inside, she found a spacious hallway filled with Hunters coming and going.
Joo-ah headed up the stairs along a familiar route toward the special-class room.
Technically, as an E-rank Hunter, she should have been training in the general rooms. However, since she had been assigned to a higher-ranked group, she had to go up to the fourth floor.
Joo-ah quietly stared at the door labeled Special-Class Room B before entering.
“Oh? Look who finally decided to show up. The latecomer is here.”
As soon as she entered the special-class room, a woman sitting on the sofa greeted her.
【Name: Choi Yeon-joo
Level: A-rank
Ranking: No. 22 in South Korea / No. 154 internationally
Attribute: Water
Special Skill: Ice Bomb
Special Notes: Freely manipulates water and ice magic, making her effective against multiple monsters.】
The man lying with his head resting on Yeon-joo’s lap rolled his eyes toward Joo-ah.
The corners of his eyes curved playfully.
“Hey.”
“……”
“E-rank.”
【Name: Yoo Chan-hee
Level: SS-rank
Ranking: No. 7 in South Korea / No. 58 internationally
Attribute: Mental
Special Skill: Controller
Special Notes: Can freely control the abilities of opponents. The exact extent of this ability has not been fully determined.】
The last remaining team member was sitting on the sofa with his eyes closed, taking a nap.
【Name: Shin Jae-rim
Level: S-rank
Ranking: No. 12 in South Korea / No. 108 internationally
Attribute: None
Special Skill: The Wishes of Companions
Special Notes: Reorganized his team three years ago following an unexpected accident.】
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