Episode 10
[system] The Administrator of World Law lifts his chin proudly, saying, “Of course the system can’t translate the advantage of being my contractor into a simple rank.”
‘This is no time to be acting smug!’
“There are only two cases where a rank comes out as ‘unmeasurable,’”
Director Yoo muttered with a dry laugh.
“Either the person’s power is so vast it can’t be measured… or so weak it can’t be detected at all. Seems this child is the latter—barely counts as an awakened being.”
He openly dismissed me, throwing a sneer toward Uncle Shinjae.
“Looks like President Kim’s judgment has gone dull. What a waste of mana.”
‘Administrator!’ I cried inwardly, furious.
‘You said you could interfere with the measuring device! Please, make a normal rank appear!’
Without waiting for an answer, I shouted,
“I’ll do the ding! one more time!”
“Ayoon?”
I bent forward toward the device and slapped my little palm against it before anyone could stop me.
[Measurement initiated.]
Ding!
Name: Lee Ayoon
Awakening status: Y
Type: Specialized
[Determining Lee Ayoon’s specialized ability: ‘—-’]
[Calculating rank…]
“Hehehe.”
I looked up at Uncle Shinjae with a confident grin. Good. This time the rank will come out properly and flatten Director Yoo’s nose—
[Computation complete. Lee Ayoon’s rank is ‘SSS.’]
“Wha—!”
Everyone in the room gasped, speechless.
Even I froze, hand still on the device, mouth hanging open.
Then the Administrator whispered through an indirect message:
[system] “As you wished, I adjusted it a little so your rank would display properly,” your contractor says smugly.
‘Wait—what?!’
“D-Did I just see that right? Triple S?”
“Yes, sir! It’s definitely Triple S!”
“Triple S?! That’s unprecedented—not just nationally, but worldwide!”
Director Yoo’s face went pale.
[system] The Administrator of World Law shrugs, as if to say, “Don’t underestimate my contractor.”
‘No, seriously! You were supposed to make it normal!’
Frightened by all the people crowding around me, I darted into Uncle Shinjae’s arms.
“Oh dear. Ayoon, you’re scared, huh?”
He patted my back gently and raised a hand to calm the others.
“Hrmm.”
Director Yoo cleared his throat.
“I wasn’t going to say this today, but…”
He completely ignored how he’d just insulted me and went straight to business.
“With a Triple-S rank, it would be impossible to place her in a normal guild. It would be best for the child to join our Awakener Bureau and contribute to the nation’s development.”
‘If it’s under the government—!’
That means straight to the research lab!
I gripped Uncle Shinjae’s clothes tightly. He patted my back reassuringly and said softly,
“I’m afraid that won’t be possible, Director Yoo.”
“President Kim!”
“This child is under my personal care. I trust you understand what that means.”
“That’s…”
Director Yoo faltered. Uncle Shinjae gestured for the others to leave.
Director Yoo glanced at them and finally barked, “You’re all dismissed.”
Once the room was clear, Uncle Shinjae said calmly,
“This child is one of our kin. She belongs to my clan.”
‘Huh?’ I blinked in surprise.
Director Yoo’s expression shifted.
“Even so, that doesn’t change—”
“No. This was already agreed upon.”
Uncle Shinjae’s voice was firm, leaving no room for argument.
“You know the rule. Humans have no authority over the Long-lived Race.”
“……”
‘Oh, right. That’s true.’
Uncle Shinjae wasn’t just the guild master of Cheongcheon, but also the representative of Korea’s nonhuman races—the long-lived ones.
When monsters and dungeons first appeared, Cheongcheon had been the first to step up and protect the people.
Because of that, even now, the public trusted them more than government agencies.
In the end, Director Yoo sighed heavily. “Fine.”
But his voice carried a clear threat.
“I’ll still have to report this to the higher-ups. Their decision might not align with mine.”
A thinly veiled warning—but Uncle Shinjae only smiled.
“Then we’ll discuss it when that time comes.”
On the way home.
“This isn’t exactly a place for such talk, but…”
Uncle Shinjae calmly explained to Ms. Eun-ah what kind of beings his clan really was.
“S-so… does that mean everyone in Cheongcheon is like you?”
“Not at all,” he said gently.
In fact, most of the members were ordinary humans, which seemed to ease her mind a little.
After finishing his explanation, Uncle Shinjae asked again if she still wished to join Cheongcheon. She hesitated, then nodded.
“I’m not very familiar with the world of Awakeners, but… I know about Cheongcheon.”
And over the past few days, he’d proven himself trustworthy.
“I don’t think anyone but you could protect Ayoon from the government.”
“It couldn’t have been an easy choice. Thank you for trusting me.”
“No, President Kim. Please take good care of us.”
I quietly pondered.
‘So… does that mean Teacher and I will live separately now?’
Actually, I’d rather stay at Uncle Shinjae’s house for a while—at least until we both get stronger.
Especially after seeing Director Yoo’s sudden attitude change. If things didn’t go his way, he looked ready to kidnap me outright.
‘If they take me, I’ll end up in a lab.’
And then… lots of scary, painful injections.
“Hmm? Ayoon, are you cold?”
I’d shivered without realizing. By the time Teacher asked, the car was already pulling into the mansion’s garage.
Uncle Shinjae personally opened the back door and held out his hand.
‘What should I do?’
I obediently climbed into his arms while thinking hard.
‘How can I stay in this mansion longer?’
Just a little while—long enough for me and Teacher to grow stronger…
While I was lost in thought, Uncle Shinjae entered the house, accepting greetings from the staff.
“Welcome back, sir.”
“You’re a bit later than expected.”
Guild members of Cheongcheon gathered one by one. Uncle Shinjae nodded.
“Perfect timing. Some of you haven’t met yet. This is Ms. Choi Eun-ah, who’ll be taking the Healer position.”
“Hello.”
“And this is Ayoon.”
“……”
“Ayoon? Say hello.”
But I was too deep in thought. Instead of greeting, I looked up at Uncle Shinjae and said,
“Thamchon…”
“Hm? What is it, Ayoon?”
He looked down kindly.
“Wooey now baw-baw heh?”
(“Are we saying bye-bye now?”)
“What?”
He blinked. I pouted.
“Na boyookwon thala. An gamyon don-saengnim-dooli gaw-junghe.”
(“I live in the orphanage. If I don’t go back, the teachers will worry.”)
“Ayoon.”
Teacher Eun-ah stepped in.
“From now on, you’ll stay with me instead of the orphanage. As for your uncle…”
“Ahyooni thamchon jo-ah. Baw-baw-i hagi shilchiyo.”
(“Ayoon likes Uncle. Don’t want to say bye-bye.”)
I burrowed into his chest with a soft thump.
But strangely, he didn’t respond.
The room fell silent.
‘Did that not work?’
I swallowed hard and looked up into his eyes again, then spread all ten fingers wide.
“Ahyooni thamchon jibe-seo yeol bamm-man jamyeon andwaeyo?”
(“Can Ayoon sleep at Uncle’s house for just ten nights?”)
“……”
Still no answer.
‘Guess that’s too much…’
I folded one hand halfway.
“Five nights…?”
No reaction. My lips quivered, and I folded two more fingers.
“…Two nights?”
Tears threatened to form—when suddenly:
“Ah!”
Uncle Shinjae swept me up in a tight hug.
Startled, I blinked, and he soon pulled back just enough to smile broadly.
“My adorable Ayoon.”
His face was glowing with laughter.
“You wanted to stay at Uncle’s house?”
I quickly nodded.
“Yes!”
All around us came a collective sigh of relief.
“?”
Puzzled, I glanced over and saw Teacher Eun-ah giving me a big thumbs-up. I still had no idea what I’d done right.
Then Uncle Shinjae said warmly,
“Then how about a hundred nights?”
“Hundwed nights?”
I gasped. That was so many!
Without hesitation, I squealed happily, threw my arms around his neck, and declared loudly,
“Thamchon saranghae!” (“I love you, Uncle!”)
“Oh my, my.”
He laughed wide, bouncing me gently in his arms while I giggled and wriggled along to the rhythm.
