Those Who Covet (2)
Silence fell.
No one here had expected that Soo-ah would choose Unique.
'Was her reaction during the rehearsal real?'
During the rehearsal, Soo-ah had raised her hand alone, indicating she preferred Unique.
At the time, it seemed reasonable since she was in a situation where no management was really an option for her.
But wasn't now different?
Including the Big 3 management agencies, a total of 16 had made offers, yet she picked Unique.
"This makes no sense!!"
"Chief Manager Yu, keep your voice down."
"But Director Park, does this make any sense?"
JM was among the managements that had made an offer.
Chief Manager Yu Dong-suk and Director Park Byung-hyun, who had participated as JM's representatives, clenched their teeth as they watched Lee Soo-ah stepping down from the stage.
"Of all things, Unique..."
Director Park had heard the story from Chief Manager Yu, so he knew what had happened during the Dungeon Exploration team.
The manager in Unique had immediately seen through the true nature of the bracelet Chief Manager Yu had tried to use.
Not only had they interfered in bringing Shin Ah-yeon, now even Lee Soo-ah?
'I really don't like it.'
Chief Manager Yu glared at the seat where Unique was sitting, grinding his teeth.
It wouldn't have been so bad if one of the big three had snatched her away.
But Unique?
To lose to a management that had gone up against Grand Nova and been completely destroyed—how humiliating.
"Is she really coming to us?!"
On the other hand, Choi Sung-hwan, Unique's President, now wore a bright expression, as if his previously gloomy mood had been a lie.
In fact, he even pinched his cheeks in disbelief at the current situation.
"Hunter Lee Soo-ah, you're really going to be with us, right?"
"Y-yes. Please take good care of me."
"Amazing..."
Stepping off the stage, Soo-ah came over to Unique's side and sat in the empty seat.
There was always a spot at the back of each management's area for the Hunter they recruited from Super Hunter K.
For the first time, Unique's seat—which had always been empty—was finally filled.
"Jung-woo, what did you really do?"
Sung-hwan asked Jung-woo excitedly.
Park Jung-woo glanced at Soo-ah for a moment before slowly turning his gaze away.
"I just offered the condition she wanted most."
"A condition? What is it?"
"That's a secret. It's a personal matter for the Hunter."
When Jung-woo answered like that, Sung-hwan looked puzzled but soon nodded.
After all, Soo-ah's choice of Unique was more important than the details.
'I definitely drew all eyes.'
After confirming the reactions in the surroundings, Jung-woo looked toward PD Do.
He was looking at Soo-ah with a hint of annoyance.
He probably didn't expect the person he'd cast as a 'villain' would perform like this.
'How will he handle this?'
Even for Jung-woo, it was hard to predict PD Do's moves.
With animosity toward Jung-woo, and the plot of framing Soo-ah as a villain in early episodes now in doubt, he might overtly harass them.
However, that was a hurdle strength could overcome.
If this were just a typical audition show, some manipulation might happen, but this was a 'Hunter' audition program.
In the end, only the strongest Hunter could survive.
"It looks like the first mission is over. Of the 50 Hunters, only 21 have passed. For those who don't receive a management offer in the second mission, you'll all be eliminated, so keep that in mind."
After Soo-ah, the recruitment evaluations continued until the 50th place Hunter.
Of the 50 Hunters who made it to the finals, only 21 had received offers from a management.
Each management had two chances to make an offer per mission.
But very few used up both opportunities.
Raising a single Hunter cost a lot, so picking one without thought would just waste money. Because of that, most managements only selected one Hunter after the first mission.
There were even some managements that hadn't picked any Hunters yet.
They must have wanted to wait and see a little longer.
"With this, the first mission is over. The second mission will begin one week from now, and in the meantime, those picked by a management can receive help from their respective management team. Those not selected, please improve your skills using Super Hunter K's internal facilities. Then, see you all in a week!"
With Baek Hojun's closing comments, the Hunters followed the staff to wrap-up interviews. As for the management agencies, they were assigned staff who would be present for filming at each management's office as Super Hunter K continued.
"Well, I'll have to go for the interview now... So, um..."
Soo-ah glanced up at Jung-woo as she said this.
Her expression was like that of a timid fox, and Jung-woo couldn't help but chuckle.
"Yes, yes. As soon as your interviews are over, just come to Unique's office. Should I send you the location?"
"Ah, no! I can just use Naver Maps, so it's fine."
Saying that, Soo-ah bowed deeply to Jung-woo and disappeared after the staff.
Seeing how many eyes followed her with every move, Jung-woo found it amusing.
Who'd have guessed that Soo-ah, treated like the ugly duckling just this morning, would suddenly become a swan.
'And this is just the beginning.'
Right now, Soo-ah had only just started utilizing her second mana hall.
If she mastered magic power fission and managed to open the third mana hall...
"I'm already looking forward to the finals."
The emergence of a new 'S-rank' would make for a dazzling stage like no other.
***
"Ah, that was so satisfying!"
When they returned to Unique, the Super Hunter K staff was already setting up cameras inside the building.
The other Hunter trainees at Unique watched in fascination and seemed a bit giddy.
Since filming would take place at their company, there was a good chance they'd appear on camera too.
"What's satisfying?"
"Ji Yeon-hwa."
As they watched the staff, Shin Ah-yeon approached Jung-woo, her face like a well-fed cat.
"Did you see Ji Yeon-hwa's face when she heard Soo-ah would become our Hunter? It was priceless, really."
She really must have suffered a lot from Ji Yeon-hwa.
"You agreed to appear in the movie because of Ji Yeon-hwa, right?"
"... Well, yeah. Guess it was obvious?"
"You've always complained about it."
"Hey, I actually live quite diligently, you know?"
True. In fact, recently, she really had been busy.
Circle magic was one thing, but now that she was cast in a movie, she was also taking acting lessons.
Even so, she never gave up her game time, which was impressive in itself.
"This fatigue recovery magic is seriously awesome! I can't believe it's only at the 5th-circle level. It's a revolution, I tell you."
"... Do you really need to use magic to recover from fatigue just for gaming?"
"That's what magic's for! Plus, life needs its pleasures, doesn't it?"
Faced with Shin Ah-yeon's matter-of-fact reply, Jung-woo was left speechless.
Besides, she was already on the verge of reaching 6th-circle, so there was nothing to criticize.
'If the mages from the other world saw this, they'd probably lose their minds...'
In the other world, where magic civilization had truly developed, being at the 6th-circle meant being treated as an honored guest in any kingdom.
In smaller kingdoms, you could even become a royal court mage at that level.
'From the 7th-circle, it gets much harder, but still, it's amazing.'
Reaching the 7th-circle meant Ah-yeon would have regained all the power she'd had as an S-rank Great Mage.
The eighth would be beyond that, and the ninth would be the realm of gods, so I didn't even consider that.
The 6th-circle was something she had originally achieved, and her talent covered any gaps, but from the 7th-circle on, luck and a kind of enlightenment became necessary.
"By the way, there are a few game shows PD Oh said you'd appear on."
"Game shows are fine. They're over quickly and are fun, but..."
"But?"
"There's one headache."
Unusually, Ah-yeon frowned.
"Is it Ji Yeon-hwa related?"
"No, well, sort of similar."
After a moment's hesitation, Ah-yeon spoke.
"I've been contacted by 'Odin's Eye'."
"... That guild in Europe?"
"Yes, and also Europe's largest mage organization."
Whereas in Korea the Hunter guilds had evolved into management agencies, in Europe, many Hunters had become business entities themselves.
Of course, some still existed like management agencies or kept the traditional guild format, but 'Odin's Eye' was a massive corporation in itself.
In terms of sheer size, it was likely bigger than Korea's Grand Nova.
Odin's Eye functioned as an international mercenary organization distributing mages; it was, in effect, the most authoritative group in the magic world.
"Why contact you?"
"You know, they noticed the uniqueness of the magic I used in that Dungeon Exploration."
In modern magic, offensive magic was dominant.
Magic that altered terrain or manipulated various other phenomena was still being studied.
So when Shin Ah-yeon suddenly showed up using magic that was a step ahead of their research, controversy was inevitable.
"So, what did they say?"
"They told me to visit the Odin's Eye once? They even made a recruitment offer, but I ignored it."
"Wow."
Was that a summons? No matter how big they were, it was unbelievably arrogant.
"Are you going?"
"Why should I? If they're desperate, they can come here. But..."
"If that happens, it might get troublesome, hence the headache."
"Yes, yes. Just like before, they're such~~ a pain to deal with."
Ah-yeon's cat-like eyes narrowed in irritation as she grumbled.
To cheer her up, Jung-woo jokingly flicked her forehead with his finger.
"Don't worry about them. By the time anything happens, Soo-ah will be here too, so you'll have plenty of backup. If something comes up, I'll cover it. That's what managers are for, right?"
"..."
"What?"
"Ah."
For some reason, Ah-yeon covered her forehead with both hands and then suddenly widened her eyes in surprise.
"A-ah, no. But what exactly did you do to that girl, Soo-ah?"
"Why are you suddenly changing the subject?"
"Geez, why did you have to surprise me by touching my forehead?"
"What's wrong with your forehead?"
"Forget it, seriously!"
With that, Ah-yeon pouted and turned away.
She then vigorously rubbed her forehead with her right hand.
'Did she hate that that much?'
Come to think of it, there was a saying that girls didn't like having their heads touched.
Maybe it would be better to avoid doing that in the future.
***
"You can pretend we're not here! We'll just keep filming, so feel free to talk naturally."
At a filming staff's words, Jung-woo nodded.
"Ah, hello."
Soo-ah, who had just arrived at Unique after her interview, greeted them awkwardly.
A few of Unique's Hunters came over to welcome her.
"Hello!"
"I heard you were amazing in the first mission! The director told us all about it!"
Our director, such a chatterbox, must have already spread the news.
Especially the C-rank Hunters, who had been in the same class as Soo-ah, were the most impressed.
Given her reputation, her sudden achievement must have seemed extraordinary.
"Were you hiding your abilities in other dungeons?"
"How did you suddenly get so strong?"
"Uh, it's not like I was hiding anything, it's just..."
Overwhelmed by their attention, Soo-ah flusteredly stepped back, and watching this, Jung-woo raised a hand to stop them.
"Alright, everyone, we've all got schedules. Director Song was looking for you. Is it really okay to hang around here?"
"Eek?! Ah, no!"
As the Hunters hurriedly dispersed, Soo-ah let out a sigh of relief.
"The director must have really exaggerated it. Don't worry too much."
"... I'm not worried."
Soo-ah said this while glancing at the cameras set up all around.
Then she pressed down slightly on the hood she was wearing.
'She must be self-conscious about her burn marks, now that the cameras are closer.'
Soo-ah's face was dotted with burn scars from her magic power differentiation.
She usually kept her hood on to hide those marks.
'If she could open the third mana hall...'
If she achieved that, she'd no longer have to hide her face.
"Um, what exactly happened? Honestly, I can't understand it even though I did it myself..."
"You can't understand?"
"Back then, it felt like flames shot out from my arm, and the power was different from usual."
"Oh, that?"
Soo-ah seemed slightly flushed, recalling the time she defeated the golem.
It must have been that much of a shock.
"Soo-ah, you've always been able to do that."
"What?"
"You just didn't know how."
Her magic channels and reserves were never small.
Her body had also been well trained, so she must have constantly tried to overcome the magic power differentiation for a long time.
This result was simply the fruit of guiding her onto the right path, and her own efforts naturally paid off.
"By the way, did you memorize the book?"
"Ah, yes."
"Then first..."
Soo-ah gazed at Jung-woo, a bit dazed, as he grinned.
"Why don't you spar with our mentor?"