Chapter 25
To start with the conclusion—Saebyeok succeeded in persuading Han Sejin.
With a lot of excuses here and there, she argued that it was only temporary, just for a little while. That they couldn’t exactly throw a child out onto the street. That she had earned plenty of money from hunting and would be moving soon anyway, so they just had to endure it for a few days.
When someone has too much to hide, their explanations get longer.
In the middle of all that, Sejin discovered that Kang Suho wasn’t awakened, and he immediately grew suspicious—why was she founding a guild with a man who hadn’t even awakened?
She couldn’t give him a clear answer, so she had to endure his suspicious gaze for quite some time, but in the end, he accepted it.
But once the first hurdle was cleared, another problem immediately appeared.
“P—Park Woojun?!”
An unexpected guest had arrived.
“Why are you suddenly here? Sejin, did you call him?”
“Noona, why do you always suspect me first? You’re the one who always causes the messes. It wasn’t me!”
Sitting on the sofa, fiddling with his phone, Sejin shouted back with a voice full of injustice and complaints.
“Woojun hyung! Noona’s caused trouble again!”
“When has Han Saebyeok not caused trouble?”
Taking Sejin’s words lightly, Park Woojun shoved his large frame through the front door.
“I felt bad about canceling our pork belly dinner. And since I happened to have some time free…”
He held up the bag in his hand toward Saebyeok.
“You haven’t had dinner yet, right?”
As he stepped inside, removing his shoes, he froze when he spotted a child’s face peeking out from behind Saebyeok.
“Who’s this? Never seen this kid before.”
He knew better than anyone that Saebyeok didn’t have a niece or young cousin, so of course he was surprised.
But Woojun had always dreamed of being a firefighter since childhood. Faced with a little kid, he instinctively disarmed, breaking into a warm smile.
“Hi there, kiddo. How old are you?”
He waved his hand in a friendly gesture, but the child ducked back behind Saebyeok again.
“Seriously, who is this kid?”
“Uh… well…”
Just then, Woojun finished taking off his shoes and stepped further inside, only to scowl when a tall figure appeared from the living room.
Kang Suho, who had been following behind Sihoo, stopped awkwardly in his tracks, his face stiffening.
“…And who might this person be?”
“The association’s strike team leader…?”
“See? I told you, hyung. Noona caused trouble.”
“Saebyeok noona…”
With different emotions erupting from everyone at once, Saebyeok pressed her hand to her forehead.
“Ha…”
Her head was beginning to throb.
“WHAT?! Awakened?!”
Saebyeok sat him at the dining table and calmly explained everything one piece at a time.
Meanwhile, Sejin and Suho began preparing the pork belly Woojun had brought.
But the moment her awakening came up, Woojun shot to his feet, his full attention caught.
“For real?!”
“Yeah.”
Sometimes a single action explained more than ten words. Saebyeok pulled out the hairpin from her bun and cast a small Lightning spell.
Sparks of white-yellow electricity crackled from the tip before vanishing.
“Whoa! A combat type! A magic type, no less!”
Woojun couldn’t hide his excitement.
“Wow! Han Saebyeok, you’re a hunter like me! Wow! Wooooow!”
He ran his hand through his hair, slapped a hand over his mouth, threw his arms up in celebration, unable to express his joy enough, spinning around in restless delight.
“Han Saebyeok, you remember our promise, right? That if you awakened, you’d join the association? You haven’t forgotten, have you?”
“What are you talking about? We never made such a promise.”
“We did! Two years ago, we bet on a triangle kimbap at the convenience store!”
“I don’t remember that.”
“If you join another guild, that’s betrayal!”
Woojun banged the table, declaring it absolutely unacceptable.
“Hey, you’ll break it! This isn’t a hunter’s reinforced table—it won’t survive your fists!”
“I’ll buy you a new one, just come to the association!”
Saebyeok kept trying to calm him down, but in his excitement, he was unstoppable.
“You don’t even know my rank yet—why are you being so pushy?”
“Rank doesn’t matter! What matters is that we’d be working in the same place!”
Woojun waved his big hands.
“And you know our association’s situation better than anyone.”
“Of course I do. You’ve been whining about it to me every day.”
Manpower shortage was the association’s chronic disease.
While guilds had two or three strike teams each, the association had only one. And even then, Woojun was the only A-rank.
Non-combat staff were also lacking, so overtime was constant.
“I’m not exaggerating—we’re desperate, even for a C-rank.”
It was an unavoidable reality.
Any awakened person who tested B-rank or higher would immediately be scouted by guilds.
Especially the big ones, offering huge signing bonuses, billion-won salaries, endless perks, and fame.
That’s why people said awakening was the fast track to flipping your life around.
Who in their right mind would give up all that to join the underfunded, overworked association—other than someone like Park Woojun?
Since childhood, he hadn’t cared for money or fame—he only wanted to help people. Before awakening, his dream had been to become a firefighter.
That was the kind of person who could stay loyal to the association despite its harsh conditions.
I was like that in my past life too…
Saebyeok once dreamed of becoming a police officer before her parents died.
She’d never fully let go of that dream. Just a few months ago, she’d quit all her part-time jobs to prepare for the police exam.
But then she had suddenly awakened, and in her previous life, she had ended up turning toward the association.
‘If you become a cop, that’d be fun too. The police and the association cooperate a lot.’
‘Yeah, but you hunters still hold most of the authority. Haa, I wish I could awaken too.’
‘Hey, Han Saebyeok. If you ever awaken, forget the police—come to the association instead.’
‘You complain about overwork every single day, and now you want to drag me into that hell?’
‘It’s exhausting, but rewarding. And let’s be real, police work isn’t exactly cushy either. It’s all about duty.’
‘That’s true.’
‘It’s the same kind of helping people. What other job lets you save citizens on the front lines like the association strike team?’
‘…Fair point.’
‘So come to the association. Let’s protect people together until our feet catch fire from running so much.’
‘You always did know how to make things sound nice. Pfft, fine. Instead of firefighter and cop, let’s try hunter and hunter. If I ever awaken.’
‘Deal! Let’s bet this triangle kimbap on it!’
They had eaten instant noodles and kimbap at the convenience store, imagining such futures. Back then, they had no idea what kind of harsh reality awaited, and they’d smiled so brightly.
It had only been two years ago, but now it felt like a distant past.
Yet the memory was still fresh, as if it happened yesterday.
Back then, she had replayed those little moments countless times, left alone in the world…
Having known that loneliness and pain so deeply, Saebyeok could no longer choose the association.
If I join the association, I’ll be bound by too many restrictions.
She felt sorry for Woojun, but in this life, she couldn’t keep that promise.
“S-rank title.”
So she revealed the truth that would shut his mouth instantly.
“What? Did I hear you right? Did you say S-rank?”
Woojun’s face twisted strangely. Sejin, flipping pork belly on the grill, chimed in.
“Hard to believe, right? I can’t believe it either. S-rank? That’s not something you call the neighbor’s dog.”
“What’s the title name?”
Unlike Sejin, who shook his head in disbelief, Woojun asked the key question.
As someone who had awakened over three years ago and worked long in the association, he had the sharpness of a seasoned veteran.
“‘Spear of Dawn.’”
“Never heard of that one.”
As an association hunter, Woojun naturally encountered many titles.
There were hundreds, thousands of them in the world—no one could know them all.
But the fact that it wasn’t instantly recognizable meant it was a high-tier one.
The higher the rank, the more unique and varied the titles became. Especially A-rank and S-rank—they were truly one of a kind.
“Well, I guess trying to enforce a promise made over kimbap is a little… yeah.”
Rubbing his forehead awkwardly, Woojun finally admitted it.
This time, it was Sejin’s turn to make a strange face.
“Wait, hyung—you believe her?”
“Believe what?”
“That she’s S-rank! There are only four in all of Korea! Does this make sense?!”
“No reason there can’t be a fifth—and that’s Han Saebyeok.”
“Do you even know what S-rank means?! They’re so valuable that just traveling abroad causes diplomatic issues! A national asset-level power!”
Sejin just couldn’t believe how Woojun accepted her words without question.
S-rank meant national strength, prestige—it was practically a symbol of the country itself!
“Sejin, have you ever seen your sister make a meaningless joke?”
“Uh…?”
Woojun met Saebyeok’s eyes head-on. His gaze carried not a shred of doubt.
“If Han Saebyeok says she’s S-rank, then she is S-rank.”
It was an unwavering conviction.
