Chapter 94 - The Interviewer (1)

Seo Ji-han! What are you doing?

Sleeping? Why no reply! You didn’t forget we’re meeting at the Association tomorrow, right?

After returning from Abyss, the person who made my phone ring the most was Heo Jeong-ah.

She began to treat me as if the seven-year gap was nothing.

Perhaps because a bit of camaraderie had formed, I didn’t feel much resistance either and didn’t push her away.

I readily agreed to meet at the Association.

Tomorrow was the day of the Hunter License exam at the Association.

I thought it wouldn’t be a bad idea to observe the exam and see if there were any talented individuals.

Are you truly Johan Raven…

“I told you I am.”

Bastian would ask me the same question a dozen times a day.

Each time, I would recite the same repertoire.

How tragic! That my friend has become such trash.

The level of reaction was getting progressively higher.

It had even reached the point of calling me trash.

“You should be glad you met me now. It was even worse a few months ago.”

Unbelievable! To think you were even more trash than now!

“But why has your way of speaking changed so much. You used to be childishly cheerful.”

I became like this after being hit by the dragon’s breath that day!

It felt like the Holy Sword’s mental world had aged by a few hundred years.

It didn’t matter as long as there were no issues with its performance, but it wasn’t easy to adapt to its changed way of speaking.

“It was a harmful dragon in many ways. Wasn’t it?”

I agree!

“Once I regain my strength, I plan to go and take care of it, so just wait a little.”

A little?

“……Well, I guess it won’t be a little. As you said, I’m trash right now.”

I have one more question.

“What is it.”

Recovering your strength is one thing, but by what means will you meet it? Do you have a method in mind?

I would be able to find a way somehow.

Because this place called Earth was connected to the mysterious world of Abyss.

The red dragon Devrias.

I just believed that we were destined to meet again someday.

And at that moment.

[Dekarion’s Map has been activated.]

A change finally occurred on the map that had only existed as a blank sheet.

[A portal will be created in 9 days.]

[Number of possible entrants: Maximum 3 people]

***

The Association exam hall.

Just a few months ago, I was an examinee in this place, but now I was sitting in my seat as a unit leader with observer status.

Next to me was Heo Jeong-ah. She said she occasionally visited the exam hall like this to scout for useful talent.

“Chamryongdan, was it?”

“Yeah.”

“It seemed a bit small in scale, why don’t you recruit more people? It doesn’t seem like you’re short on funds.”

“Because it’s not easy to find people who meet my standards.”

For that reason, she was still operating Chamryongdan as a small elite unit.

“You seem incredibly picky. Are there any examinees you’ve got your eye on today?”

“Not yet.”

All of them fell short of my standards.

These were amateurs who had not yet passed the exam. Considering that, I didn’t expect anything grand.

What I wanted was for them to operate their mana stably and wield their swords with common-sense intentions.

That alone would suffice, but they were all failing to do that simple thing.

“Look at monitor 4. Isn’t he pretty good?”

Heo Jeong-ah was staring at the screen with an interested gaze.

Number 4 was an examinee I had also briefly taken an interest in.

But not anymore.

That guy also fell far short of my standards.

“It’s an illusion you feel because his swordsmanship is flashy.”

“What?”

“Isn’t it obvious that his mana flow is all over the place?”

“Are you kidding? There’s no way you can feel that through a monitor!”

“Can’t you tell just by looking? Well, I guess you might not be able to.”

“What are you talking about! You braggart.”

There was no need to feel the Qi.

By looking at the breathing shown in each and every movement, and how one operates between forms, one can tell how they handle their mana.

Moreover, the ‘Mana Eyes’ that only I possessed.

It was re-verifying my thoughts.

“Number 9 looks better, if anything.”

He wasn’t at a level that met my standards, but he was a type who was faithful to the basics, so I wanted to give him a higher score.

“Are you just being a contrarian because I picked number 4?”

“What a childish idea.”

“Then Seo Ji-han, want to make a bet? On which one, 4 or 9, gets a higher score.”

Heo Jeong-ah immediately flew into a rage and provoked me.

“I was bored anyway, a bet might make it less dull.”

“You seem confident, so how about we bet a flick on the forehead?”

“Is a flick on the forehead all you’re betting?”

“Seo Ji-han, what great thing are you planning to bet!”

“If I lose the bet, I will help you once, in any situation.”

“Alright! Then I’m in!”

Heo Jeong-ah readily accepted my proposal.

‘This worked out well.’

With this, I had secured a reason to take her to the portal that would open in nine days.

I thought that this trip to Abyss was a visit to a world not unrelated to the past of 40 years ago, and it was necessary for a related person from the Taeseong Sword Family to accompany me.

“Seo Ji-han, you’re going to regret this big time.”

“Just watch the screen carefully.”

The mission the examinees were currently performing was to pass through a forest in virtual reality and wipe out a Kobold colony.

Between 4 and 9, the one who was leading was number 4, whom Heo Jeong-ah had chosen.

His performance was outstanding even when compared to other examinees.

“See! I was right!”

Heo Jeong-ah looked triumphant. But this was just an illusion brought about by an overly fast pace.

Since it was still the early stage, his unstable mana operation wasn’t prominent, but as time passed, problems would gradually emerge.

Though for me to win the bet, number 9 would have to try a bit harder.

Even after a few more minutes had passed, Heo Jeong-ah was still confident of her victory.

“Seo Ji-han! Do you admit you’re a contrarian now?”

“I wonder.”

I heard there was a saying that counting your chickens before they hatch leads to failure.

And now was the perfect moment to apply that saying.

Examinee number 4 was finally hit by a combined attack from a group of Kobolds for the first time.

Heo Jeong-ah’s face as she looked at the screen was one of disbelief.

“What’s with that guy! He’s getting hit like that?”

“There will be some point deductions for this part.”

“Well, his clear speed is so superior, it won’t be fatal.”

“You can’t see the big picture because you’re so biased.”

“What do you mean biased towards such scrubs. What on earth is the big picture you’re seeing?”

Number 9’s pace was more solid than I had expected.

Although there were no flashy movements, his mana operation, which was almost unshaken compared to the beginning, was impressive.

“The picture of him catching up comfortably in the latter half.”

“What! Turns out the one full of bias is you, Seo Ji-han!”

“We’ll see about that.”

“Hmph!”

At that moment, number 4 once again allowed a combined attack from the Kobolds, showing an unstable performance.

“Haa! What’s with that guy! Why is he suddenly like that.”

If this continued, number 9 would catch up sooner than I expected.

It was fun to watch Heo Jeong-ah’s expression gradually crumble in real time.

It didn’t take long for her face to completely sour.

“Straighten your face. So what if you lose a bet.”

“Be quiet! It’s not over yet!”

As soon as she finished speaking, number 4 made another mistake.

It wouldn't affect his passing, but there would be a fatal point deduction for him to take first place in the group.

In fact, since his breathing was unstable, it wouldn’t have been strange if he had collapsed at any moment.

“It’s over.”

“Damn it!”

“You haven’t forgotten the terms of the bet, have you? I don’t know when I’ll call you, so always be on standby.”

“I’m pissed.”

“Shim Gyu-seong of number 9. I should put him on the recruitment list for now.”

I thought that if I polished and shaped him a bit, he would become quite useful.

“How on earth did you know? Don’t tell me, did you investigate the examinees beforehand?”

“I’m not that free.”

“You were certain almost from the very beginning! How is that possible?”

“Eyes.”

“Eyes?”

“You can see if you look carefully. Though you’re still far from being able to do that.”

“What are you talking about!”

A dumbfounded reaction.

Her thoughts would change after a few more bets.

***

Heo Jeong-ah continuously shook her head.

“I’m starting to get goosebumps now!”

After seeing only the very early stages of the examinees’ attempts, I had picked the first place of that group, and my prediction was never wrong, not even once.

“I told you. My eyes are pretty good.”

“It’s not that your eyes are good, don’t you have divine powers? In my opinion, you’d be a perfect scout. Just quit being a unit leader and switch to that profession.”

“I’ll think about it in 50 years.”

By then, I would have achieved everything, including revenge on the red dragon, so I thought it would be nice to live like a Taoist hermit, discovering promising talents.

“What? I was just joking, what’s with this reaction.”

“If that’s a joke, your sense of humor is seriously lacking.”

“……So mean!”

Anyway, the second exam was now all over.

The third exam still remained, but I thought it would be a waste of time to watch that too.

I was just about to get up from my seat.

The door opened, and a man rushed in, out of breath.

Looking at the name tag he was wearing, he was an Association official.

“Unit Leader Heo Jeong-ah! You’re still here!”

The man gasped for breath and wore a look of relief.

“What’s the matter?”

“It’s embarrassing to say, but a problem has occurred in the exam process! That’s why I came to urgently ask for your help, Unit Leader Heo Jeong-ah……”

“So what is the problem.”

“Well, actually, one of the interviewers scheduled to conduct the third exam today suddenly had something come up, I think. We’ve lost contact with him, and he still hasn’t arrived……”

“I don’t know who it is, but what a pathetic person. Does this make any sense right now?”

“Our Association is also in a difficult situation as this was so sudden.”

“So you’ve come to ask me to be an interviewer.”

“That’s right.”

The third exam was a method where one interviewer faced about 10 examinees at the same time in swordsmanship and graded them.

It wasn't a role anyone could take on.

No matter how big the wall between pros and amateurs was, there were occasionally exceptional examinees, and there were variables when one person had to face many.

For that reason, I heard that the interviewers were composed of team leader-level or higher individuals from large guilds, or unit leader-level figures who ran the sword units of prestigious sword families.

“I know it’s sudden, but I urgently request your help, Unit Leader Heo Jeong-ah. We need to start the third exam soon, and if one group can’t start on time……”

The man was sweating profusely.

Someone of Heo Jeong-ah’s caliber would be more than enough for that role.

She was at least a notch better in terms of skill than the interviewer I met in the third exam during my time as an examinee.

“That’s a bit difficult.”

But contrary to my expectation, Heo Jeong-ah coldly refused the man’s request.

“……”

The man from the Association just bowed his head deeply, a soulless expression on his face.

“My refusal is not for any other reason. It’s because among today’s examinees, there is someone our family is sponsoring, so I hope you won’t feel bad.”

“Unit Leader! If you just tell us who it is, we will assign them to a different group to avoid you. That way, there will be no problem with the regulations, so if you could just take on the role of interviewer……”

“If you act this way, I can’t help but doubt the fairness of the Association. Even if I avoid that examinee, there are plenty of ways to indirectly influence them. I doubt you’re unaware of that.”

“We trust that you are not someone who would do that, Unit Leader Heo Jeong-ah, which is why……”

“No. As I said again, it’s difficult. Because I feel like I won’t be able to judge fairly.”

At Heo Jeong-ah’s confirmation kill, the man replied helplessly, as if he had given up.

“Understood. I apologize. Unit Leader.”

“But you don’t have to look like you’ve lost the world. It’s not like I’m the only one who can be an interviewer.”

“Pardon?”

Heo Jeong-ah grinned and looked at me.