Chapter 8
“Who’s that?”
“Isn’t he from that Gate terror incident a few days ago? I think I saw his face on the news.”
“Oh, yeah, that’s him.”
‘Crap.’
Feeling their eyes on me, I turned my head.
Drones from broadcasting stations were already flying above us to stream the test. I’d be on camera eventually anyway, but it was best not to draw attention too soon.
‘But still… have they already formed their teams?’
There were 120 test takers in this first exam area. And already, most of the people around were grouped in twos or threes. It wasn’t all that surprising.
In this world, most people awakened between the ages of 10 and 14, but they could only officially apply for the Hunter Exam starting at 17.
So, underage Awakened who couldn’t yet apply often became influencers, leveraging their abilities to build connections.
Being an Awakened here was something to be admired.
‘Guess it’s the same as in my past life—people are way too nosy.’
To put it simply, they were like idol trainees. And since most of them already knew each other through various circles, it was only natural that someone like me or Kwon Seo-woo—who awakened just a few weeks ago and knew no one—would stand out…
“Sis, do we need to form a team too? Looks like everyone already knows someone.”
Exactly like this!
I pretended to think for a second before speaking.
“No. I think it’s better for just the two of us to stick together.”
“Huh? Why?”
“Those people are sticking together because they’re familiar with each other. But we don’t know anyone here.”
Kwon Seo-woo nodded.
“And just randomly teaming up with strangers based on vibes feels off. We don’t even know the test format yet—let’s decide later.”
The contents of the Hunter Exam changed every time.
Held twice a year in June and December, the exam took place in one of five replicated urban zones where captured monsters were released for combat.
For three days and two nights, participants had to secure food and shelter, conserve stamina, and fight monsters.
So beyond combat skills, survival ability under extreme conditions was also critical. It simulated a dungeon entrapment scenario.
‘The passing score is 50 points. There are 120 participants and around 300 monsters. Points vary by monster grade—roughly 5 to 20 points each…’
With good luck, you could pass by taking down just three or four monsters.
The issue? There weren’t enough monsters for everyone to pass.
Three hundred monsters sounded like a lot, but that count included weak F-grade monsters even novice Hunters could defeat.
Difficulty came from the fact that monster distribution—by grade—was random and undisclosed until the test started.
“I get it. So teaming up with strangers might actually slow us down and make things awkward! You’re right!”
“No, what I meant was that our strategy should change depending on the monster distribution… but sure, let’s go with that.”
I gave a vague nod and checked the number on the tag stuck to my back. Kwon Seo-woo was 119, I was 120. We must’ve signed up right before the deadline—last numbers.
Truthfully, I had another reason for not forming a team.
‘…There they are!’
After all, Kwon Seo-woo’s teammates for this exam were already predetermined!
I spotted a familiar purple hood peeking out from an alley and widened my eyes. No doubt about it—that was the person I knew from the original story.
Training had been so intense I hadn’t had time to think, but now that I was here at the exam venue, the reality of being pulled into the original plot really hit me.
<Thank you for waiting. Participants of the 204th Hunter Exam, please listen carefully.>
An announcement blared from speakers installed around the venue.
<The exam duration is 24 hours. The central Observation Tower will display remaining time and the number of monsters left in real time. Those who earn 50 points or more within the time limit will pass. Everyone else will fail.>
Lights flickered on at the top of the towering building in the middle of the urban testing zone.
The tower—where staff members monitored everything—had walls of transparent glass, allowing them to see everything outside while remaining invisible from the outside. A perfect privacy measure for the elites.
<Now revealing the monster distribution for the 204th Hunter Exam.>
[Remaining Monsters: 300
B-grade (20 pts) – 5 monsters
C-grade (15 pts) – 30 monsters
D-grade (10 pts) – 78 monsters
E-grade (7 pts) – 100 monsters
F-grade (5 pts) – 87 monsters]
The Observation Tower screen switched. After a brief silence, murmurs spread through the crowd.
“Only five B-grades?”
“There are 100 E-grades… Wait, how many total points is that?”
The tense atmosphere quickly turned sour. The test-takers’ faces, once serious with focus, now twisted in frustration.
Meanwhile, I quickly reviewed the distribution.
‘Just like in the original—most are clustered between D and F grades.’
“Kwon Seo-woo, calculate!”
“Uh… 2,465 points total? With 50 points to pass, that’s enough for 49 people.”
“Realistically, only around 40 will pass. Some will overshoot trying to show off.”
The Hunter Exam was like a national college entrance exam—difficulty varied wildly each time. And the Seoul test Kwon Seo-woo was taking? Of course, it was high-difficulty.
‘This is just one of those standard “protagonist hardship” setups!’
Kwon Seo-woo overcame it in the original story, so I had to believe I could too. And honestly, I was confident.
This time, the real competition ratio was 3:1—extremely high compared to past exams.
<Countdown begins.>
At least for now.
<…1. Exam begins.>
“Let’s go.”
“Uh—okay!”
As the signal sounded, I kicked off the ground and sprinted across the empty cityscape. A mission window appeared before my eyes.
【Mission Registered!】
【Objective: Score 50 points within the time limit (Current Score: 0/50)】
【Reward: 100G, One random trait of C-grade or higher】
And just like that, the exam began.
[HOT] !! Let’s watch the live stream of the 204th Hunter Exam together (Test Zone 1) !! (+731)
[Comments]
— 49 people passing? Are they nuts
— Busan’s full of B-grades. Looks like next year’s Seoul test will be flooded with repeat-takers lol. Not funny, actually depressing
— So many famous names this time, but never seen 119 and 120 before
⤷ They joined last-minute after that department store incident
⤷ So they’ve been Awakened less than a month? Probably safe to count them out lol
— For real lol
— Park Oh-soo really lives up to his lazy name. He looks so sluggish
— Show us the observation tower cam!! I want to see the top ranker’s face TT
— Who’s the strongest contender this year? I don’t use SNS, so I don’t recognize anyone
⤷ Maybe Sindorim’s little brother? Did he even enter this year?
⤷ He bombed last year and ghosted everyone since. Who knows
⤷ Nah, he’s still been taking the exams. Just never passed, lol
— What was that?
— Whoa??
— Oh
— Someone’s already fighting
In truth, just as Kwon Seo-woo said, this exam favored those with numbers on their side.
It was virtually impossible for a lone Hunter trainee to take down a B- or C-grade monster. High scores were only attainable through group hunts.
Which meant solo participants were almost guaranteed to fail. Even if you went after F- and D-grade monsters, competition was fierce. Few could reach the 50-point threshold alone. Unless…
“Are you kidding me? There are only five B-grades and you guys want to hog them all?”
“I told you—we’ll give you all the C-grades after we take the B-grades!”
“Do you know how long it takes to bring down a B-grade?! There’s no guarantee any C-grades will even be left! You think we’re the only ones after them?”
…unless things didn’t go normally.
‘Already fighting, huh.’
Forming a team helped take down B-grades for high points.
But with only five B-grades—and over half the monsters being E- and F-grades—the usefulness of teams plummeted.
“I’m out.”
“Hey!”
With fewer B-grades, teams became inefficient. Internal conflicts started, and soon, solo play became more appealing.
“Good luck with your dream team, idiots. I’m going solo.”
Just like that.
They were shouting so loudly we could hear the whole thing even from this far-off corner.
Honestly, if they wanted to break up and fight amongst themselves, that only helped us.
Meanwhile…
“…Kwon Seo-woo! It’s heading your way! Get it!”
We had already broken off into an unoccupied area, darting through the tall grass.
