Chapter 4
⎯⎯⎯ “Job Selection” ⎯⎯⎯
Martial Artist
Paladin
Hunter
Curse Caster
Dark Mage
Berserker
Fighter
Elementalist
Shaman
.
.
.
Interpreter
Soul Conjurer
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The list was truly long. With 25 jobs listed, it made sense—practically every occupation in the world.
Sihoon immediately collapsed.
Forced Awakening Pills were painful. Although he neutralized them with his trait, he had to pretend to be in pain.
“Argh!”
He faked agony while organizing his thoughts.
He scanned the list of jobs. The currently strongest, like Fighter and Hunter, were there.
There were also fading ones like Elementalist, and future stars like Martial Artist and Shaman, expected to rise in ten years.
Sihoon knew the rise and fall of each job—what would explode in popularity, what would fail—up to twenty years ahead.
It was like holding a genealogy and jumping into the coin market.
Without a second thought, he chose “that job.” The one that would skyrocket in twenty years.
Moreover, this job made it possible.
In theory, he could start embezzling “that” from Cheonyul today.
“See the word ‘Interpreter’? Grab that. Simple.”
Seowoo-sik patted him on the back. Sweet.
“There’s no Interpreter!”
“…What?”
Seowoo-sik’s expression stiffened.
“There’s no Interpreter in the choices! There’s only one option!”
The interview was temporarily paused.
Inside a military truck disguised as a civilian vehicle, secret agents sighed. Their surveillance radar was aimed at Cheonyul’s interview site.
“Lieutenant Tanaka! Did you breach the security system?”
“…Colonel Amuro. The operation failed again this year. The heirs finished the second interview and returned to headquarters.”
“Damn it!”
Colonel Amuro stomped his foot.
Cheonyul’s interviews were globally significant events. Every year, massive operations surrounded them.
Cheonyul only selected exceptional individuals.
Every interview period, the world tried to figure out their selection criteria. It was as if Cheonyul could see the future.
They only chose geniuses who would grow relentlessly!
What were Cheonyul’s scoring standards? Many countries tried to find out.
This truck was part of a secret operations unit under Amuro, from the Japanese Self-Defense Forces. Not only Japan, but also the UK, the US, China, Germany… all monitored the interview worldwide.
It was practically a surveillance Olympics. Yet Cheonyul’s security was so tight that not even satellites could peek in.
“What about Agent Yaki who participated in the interview? Contact him!”
“He’s… dizzy.”
“…?”
Yaki, the special agent who took part in the interview, had inhaled Forgetting Gas and was babbling incoherently.
“These infallible bastards!”
“Colonel Amuro, I theorized… maybe Cheonyul isn’t just a black company?”
“…What nonsense is that?”
“They disregard the rights of failed applicants and even erase memories. A company like this would obviously treat employees harshly.”
“So?”
“They might only hire morally corrupt people capable of surviving brutal corporate life!”
“Lieutenant Tanaka!”
“Yes, sir!”
“That can’t be. That’s not a black company—it’s a dark company!”
“Indeed.”
Even in Japan, the birthplace of black companies, they wouldn’t recruit talent this way.
Colonel Amuro clicked his tongue. Soon, he would secretly meet with intelligence units from the US and UK—but they’d likely fail too.
Monitoring Cheonyul in Seoul was impossible. The entire city belonged to Cheonyul.
Cheonyul’s 140 subsidiaries had infrastructure everywhere—underground, aboveground, even in the sky.
Cheonyul’s power flowed through the city.
The twelve heirs were like warlords ruling Seoul.
“Damn it. A bunch of twenty-somethings ruling over everyone. Something’s seriously wrong with this country.”
“Well, the heirs are skilled.”
“Exactly. That’s the problem—they earned it themselves.”
If it were only the chairman’s influence, Amuro could accept it. But the heirs carried a strange dignity.
Honestly, it was a little intimidating.
“Damn. We won’t even know if ‘that item’ was used again.”
“Who could they even use it on?”
“Maybe they already did?”
“No, they wouldn’t waste it. Cheonyul has only one precious treasure left.”
“True.”
Amuro sighed. The annual report would be bleak.
The surveillance failed. The item’s effect remained unknown.
They’d be scolded thoroughly.
…Ugh. He hated this city. Every year he came back depressed.
The City of Light, Seoul. As Cheonyul’s capital, the heirs gave nothing away, and nothing was impossible for them.
“Honestly… I’m jealous.”
On the headquarters’ rooftop, the twelve heirs overlooked Seoul. The interview had been temporarily suspended due to an accident.
The City of Light stretched beneath them, their territory down to every corner.
Today, they were all steeped in defeat.
“Damn it! How is this even possible?”
Seochan-il, impatient as ever, kicked aside the rooftop safety net, melting it in flames.
The heirs glared at him. That beast, Seochan-il.
“Changing to Soul Conjurer! What an idiot!”
Seochan-il’s hair flickered like flames. Sihoon’s job had become Soul Conjurer.
No, he had become a Soul Conjurer.
There was no other choice—automatic selection. The interview paused at that moment.
“Only one option? Can we believe that? He might be deceiving us!”
“Are you an idiot? Soul Conjurer is the weakest in all fields. Calling it trash is generous. It couldn’t be intentional.”
“Such talent wasted, but we have to filter it out.”
Soul Conjurers manipulate monster souls. Weaker than necromancers, less firepower than elementalist, less versatile than mystic.
Almost a sin to exist.
If it were any other applicant, they’d be instantly eliminated. But Sihoon’s skills were exceptional—the highest interpretation skills ever displayed.
“And his personality is top-notch. He eliminated competitors, beat up colleagues.”
“A hard-working servant through and through.”
“His grandfather said, ‘A slave who flaunts his golden chains is the best slave.’”
“He loves money too! A money-lover will never betray Cheonyul!”
Sihoon was truly a perfect servant!
How much profit could he bring Cheonyul?
But the filth remained. The disgusting filth called Soul Conjurer.
“Everyone.”
Seowoo-sik slowly spoke. Cleaning up chaos was always his job.
“Use it.”
“…!”
The heirs’ eyes lit up. Use the item? Were they serious?
“We’ve been saving it so desperately! Better than saving it for a promising recruit…”
“Another person? Who?”
“Well…”
They were all speechless. Cheonyul held secret treasures. They had been waiting for the right moment.
“Bronze-tier Kim Siru? Or Platinum-tier Gwisang? Saving it won’t help. We’ll use the Golden Ticket today.”
Awakened players enter the tutorial.
The tutorial proves talent.
Rewards follow, and the Golden Ticket amplifies them—by five times!
“Hey, Seowoo-sik. Golden Ticket… now you can’t even buy it? No auction items?”
A ticket guaranteeing a premium start! A stat gap from level one!
This small difference grows exponentially, like interest. You always win same-level competition.
No wonder the Golden Ticket was scarce. The heirs always used it for growth. And they saved the last one—for a perfect servant to appear.
“Will anyone surpass Sihoon?”
Just an Interpreter. But the Interpreter. Its value was infinite. The ancestor of the heirs had recognized this, building Cheonyul’s empire.
“No objections.”
The Golden Ticket reward defied logic.
It even allowed Job Re-selection.
Erase Soul Conjurer, engrave Interpreter.
A last chance to turn trash into a gem.
Oooh.
Sihoon was moved as he received the ticket.
⎯⎯⎯ “Item: Golden Ticket” ⎯⎯⎯
“Not everyone needs to be equal. I promise you a golden reward.”
—The Golden Transcendent
A privilege created by some existence.
The virtue of inequality.
Tutorial rewards were multiplied fivefold.
Rank: SS
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“This precious item…!”
He fussed but felt calm. It had been planned.
‘You guys… holding a ticket. What if you don’t use it on me?’
Like giving an extra rice cake to a disliked person. Becoming a Soul Conjurer brought even more reward.
The heirs’ shocking choice left the executives flustered. They hadn’t received a Golden Ticket when they joined.
The mere Soul Conjurer—no, the Interpreter—would consume the Golden Ticket. Cheonyul Bio’s chairman even showed murderous intent.
Sihoon shrugged it off.
“Ha. Hobbies are the best.”
It was his first legendary embezzlement.
The heirs were ruthless, but stored precious treasures like this. There would be fun in taking them one by one.
At that moment, light burst from Sihoon’s eyes.
The secret of the Golden Ticket revealed itself.
⎯⎯⎯ “Secret Unveiled!” ⎯⎯⎯
The Golden Ticket holder can enter the second tutorial.
The key is hidden in the pyramid.
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Ah! The second tutorial!
It truly existed!
It was a hidden event, and he had struggled to discover its conditions. (Ultimately failed.)
‘Damn! I got scolded so much for failing to find the second tutorial conditions!’
Anger outweighed joy. Once again, Sihoon was pitiful.
Meanwhile, tutorial training began. Combat instructors mercilessly scolded the rookies.
“Do you call that fighting, tutorial-ready?”
“Just quit, you fool!”
“You got in despite being so clumsy? Did you pull strings?”
The atmosphere was harsh.
The rookies wilted. Sniffling, sobbing. Too cruel.
Sihoon rented the Sword, Shield, and Elixir set. Starting items were practically billionaire-class.
“You, covering your face… must be from the owner’s family. No one has enjoyed such benefits before.”
The instructors jeered.
“So what? Should I just fail the tutorial?”
“W-wait! You succeed, we survive! Please complete it successfully. I beg you.”
It was the first rookie with a Golden Ticket, so they treated Sihoon like a sacred treasure. Even shoulder massages.
“Ah~ that feels good~ yes, right there.”
“Hah.”
“Hah? Want me to tweak your shoulder? Fail the tutorial?”
“Ah, no.”
Damn! The Golden Ticket only mattered if the tutorial succeeded. Failing would get everyone in trouble.
In this company, it would mean certain death.
“Well, I’ll try my best.”
“Please! Only the best items are at stake! You must change your job! Go, go!”
Sihoon also wanted a job change—or more precisely, a Job Upgrade.
“I can be Soul Conjurer as much as I want!”
The instructors encouraged him, though they seemed ready to cry.
How could a Soul Conjurer clear the tutorial?
Soul Conjurers were undervalued because methods for controlling monster souls weren’t fully developed.
In reality, they had the strongest growth potential, and adding a Job Upgrade could unbalance the game.
That was Sihoon’s goal: maximize the Golden Ticket reward.
Soon, the capsules arrived.
Rookies entered one by one.
Earthlings use capsules to access the Stream. Safe, painless, like a game.
Rules gradually get serious. Later, capsule functions disappear, and the real Stream game begins. Most Earthlings couldn’t handle the pressure.
Sihoon entered the capsule. Worth over five billion, an exceptionally expensive model, treated with special care by the instructors.
“Please, succeed. I beg you.”
The capsule glowed gold, and Sihoon arrived at the tutorial.
⎯⎯⎯ “Tutorial Start!” ⎯⎯⎯
Survive for 30 minutes.
If you last 30 minutes, the boss appears.
Additional: Golden Ticket used.
⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯
On a wide field, goblins approached.
“Status window.”
Sihoon’s eyes widened.
Three new traits had been added.
