Chapter 001. Awakening Dream
There are countless ways to divide people into two groups.
Men and women, rich and poor, ordinary people and celebrities, disabled and non-disabled.
But these days, the most common standard of classification is this:
Awakened and Unawakened.
Ten years ago—
When the “Gates,” cracks in the world, first opened, people began awakening mysterious abilities with an extremely low probability.
It didn’t take long for humanity to realize that murderous beasts were pouring out of these Gates all over the world—
And that those who had awakened special powers could fight them.
People who fought monsters on the frontlines were called Hunters.
Among them, those with extraordinary abilities frequently appeared on TV and YouTube, gaining worldwide fame and immense wealth.
So-called S-rank Hunters.
The rise of the elite Awakened.
They enjoyed immense rewards just by raiding high-level Gates a few times a year.
Nice houses, luxury cars, the admiration of the public.
Being popular with the opposite sex was a given. Some even commanded massive fan clubs or wielded near-absolute power by leveraging their abilities.
I stared at my laptop with a gloomy face.
“That’s all someone else’s story for me, though.”
I was an Unawakened Hunter.
Hunter ranks start from D-rank and go up to S-rank.
But even the lowest rank, D, was only available to those who had awakened.
People like me, the unawakened, could still technically become Hunters. But we were mockingly called E-rank Hunters or, more bluntly, just Porters.
We carried luggage, cleaned up after Awakened Hunters, extracted ether crystals from dead beasts, and hauled valuable resources back.
If a living beast showed up—our only role was to run for our lives.
At best, our “final resistance” meant firing a cheap pistol provided by the Association.
Every time I thought about this, I doubted whether choosing the Hunter’s path had been a mistake.
So why did I become one?
Because my family was killed by monsters.
In a word—revenge.
A reason that was all too common in this day and age.
Propping my chin up, I stared at the pretty face on my laptop screen.
B-rank Hunter, “Fireball” Jang Seulbi.
The only childhood friend I could say I had.
When we were kids, she was a short little runt who got teased a lot. But now, at the same age of 25, she was a full-fledged Hunter.
Online news reported that Seulbi had joined forces with A-rank Hunter “Shield” Min Kyungwook to raid a Gate in Suwon.
As her nickname “Fireball” suggested, Seulbi’s ability was fire manipulation.
Her attack pattern was like magic from a video game—forming fireballs and hurling them at enemies.
Since monsters were still biological beings, most were weak against fire.
Especially insect- and beast-type monsters.
In short, her power was one of the most specialized and top-tier combat abilities for Gate raids.
“…I’m jealous.”
Honestly, I felt inferior.
I knew envy was an ugly thing, but watching someone I’d known since childhood appear in the news filled me with self-loathing.
C-rank, no, even D-rank would be fine. If only I could awaken…
Rumor had it that unawakened people who frequently entered Gates had a higher chance of awakening due to exposure.
That was why I chose to be a porter and follow Hunters into Gates.
It wasn’t guaranteed, but I was grasping at straws.
It was the only effort I could make.
And at least staying busy kept the dark thoughts away.
Then I frowned.
“Ugh. More hate comments.”
Just like celebrities, famous Hunters attracted haters who constantly left nasty comments.
I knew reading them would only ruin my mood, but I scrolled down anyway.
― Is Jang Seulbi just Kyungwook’s goldfish poop? Always trailing after him lol.
― Guess there’s something between them. Otherwise why would an A-rank bother dragging a B-rank around?
― Damn, if only I were A-rank… So jealous of that Shield bastard. Please, let me awaken into a high-rank ability already.
I clenched my teeth.
Whatever complicated feelings I had toward Seulbi, seeing comments like that pissed me off.
You guys don’t know anything about her. She’s not like that.
I knew her better than anyone else.
Though she spoke bluntly and seemed curt, she was fundamentally kind and timid.
It was true she’d been hunting with Min Kyungwook more often lately. But that was only because they were in the same guild.
It had nothing to do with him being good-looking or popular enough to get stopped for autographs on the street.
My face flushed red as I hammered at the keyboard.
I knew reacting was a waste of time and ignoring was the best choice.
But I couldn’t hold it in.
Clack, clack-clack. Clack, clack!
Just as I was about to hit Enter after unleashing my fury—
Bzzz.
My phone buzzed.
[Jang Seulbi] Yo. What are you doing?
“……”
About to start a flame war with your haters.
Obviously I couldn’t say that.
After a pause, I deleted the angry comment and picked up my phone.
[Ji Woojun] Just chilling.
[Jang Seulbi] haha
[Jang Seulbi] Wanna do a job with me?
“…?”
A job? With her?
[Ji Woojun] I’m unawakened. I’d be useless.
[Jang Seulbi] Just answer if you’re free tomorrow. Hurry.
[Jang Seulbi] It’s not dangerous.
I sighed softly.
This had happened once before.
She knew I sometimes skipped meals to save money, so she dragged me to a cleared Gate to pick up leftover ether crystals, saying she’d get me some easy cash.
And I really had made money.
I’d found two expensive ether crystals—like they’d been waiting just for me.
That haul got me over 2 million won, enough to cover my overdue rent and even order some fried chicken.
…But still.
It was obvious Seulbi herself had gotten nothing that day.
She’d just stood guard and cracked jokes while I scavenged.
If she’d spent that time hunting, she could’ve made hundreds of thousands easily.
I didn’t want her wasting her time because of me.
But I also couldn’t afford to refuse.
“……”
After I stayed silent for about five minutes, more texts came in.
[Jang Seulbi] You’ll make more than last time.
[Jang Seulbi] Don’t want to?
[Jang Seulbi] Hey
[Jang Seulbi] Hey
[Jang Seulbi] Heeey
[Ji Woojun] Ugh what
[Jang Seulbi] Let’s do it together.
[Jang Seulbi] Tomorrow works or not?
I hesitated, then typed carefully.
[Ji Woojun] I just feel bad for you.
[Jang Seulbi] Ugh. You’re overthinking again.
[Jang Seulbi] I have to go anyway, that’s why I’m asking.
[Jang Seulbi] It’s a better opportunity than before.
[Jang Seulbi] Whatever.
[Jang Seulbi] I’ll pick you up at 9 a.m. tomorrow.
[Jang Seulbi] Wear comfy clothes and shoes. Got it?
Why does she go this far for me?
After thinking for a long while, I finally sent a short reply.
[Ji Woojun] Yeah.
[Jang Seulbi] (Sticker)
A cute sticker came back—someone giving a thumbs-up and saying “Good!”
The next morning.
I washed up thoroughly and waited outside my house for Seulbi’s car.
Of course, I brought the 9mm pistol issued by the Association for large beasts—nicknamed the “popgun.”
Right on the dot at 9, a sleek gray Range Rover SUV rolled up.
I’d once looked it up: a fully loaded model cost over 90 million won.
At 25, the only way to drive one was either being born rich—or being a Hunter.
Confirming Seulbi’s face behind the window, I climbed into the passenger seat.
As she shifted gears and pulled away, she grinned.
“Right on time, huh?”
“Of course. A B-rank Hunter came all the way here for me.”
Seulbi chuckled awkwardly, then glanced at me in the rearview mirror.
“Why do you look so tired?”
“Is it that obvious?”
“Yeah.”
I rubbed my slightly rough cheek.
“Didn’t sleep well. Had a weird dream.”
“What kind of dream?”
“…The world ending.”
Her expression shifted strangely.
“Wait… don’t tell me that was an Awakening Dream?”
Awakening Dream.
Also called a Transition Dream.
It was said that right before awakening, people experienced vivid, unforgettable dreams—like a prophetic dream before birth.
And one of the most common motifs was the apocalypse.
In the dream, the world would end. And in the midst of it, the dreamer would suddenly feel overwhelming omnipotence—slaughtering enemies in first-person view.
That was the typical storyline of an Awakening Dream.
But my dream had been different.
A world of steel, glass, concrete, and human corpses all shattered and piled into heaps of trash.
It was definitely an apocalypse.
But instead of omnipotence—what I felt was crushing defeat.
And sorrow.
I could still see it clearly.
The composed yet shadowed face of a woman cradling my head in her lap.
Her expression was blank, but a single cold tear fell from her eye onto my cheek.
And she had said something—
Something about the “seventh dream.”
I shook my head, trying to dispel the memory.
“No, it wasn’t that. Nothing happened when I woke up this morning.”
“Really?”
Usually, if you had an Awakening Dream, you awakened the next morning.
Some saw a status window. Some heard mysterious voices.
Some suddenly became able to see the flow of ether or mana permeating the world.
Even Seulbi herself had dozed off during class, dreamed, and then caused a big commotion by bursting into flames in the lecture hall the moment she woke up.
Nothing like that had happened to me.
Seulbi muttered under her breath.
“…It’d be nice if you awakened too.”
“Yeah. Tell me about it.”
No one wanted it more desperately than me.
With that, the conversation died down. We drove the rest of the way in silence.
An hour later.
We arrived at a forested hill behind an apartment complex in Pangyo.
“This is it?”
“Yep.”
Behind the bright yellow “Do Not Cross” tape was a gaping hole about five meters wide, shimmering with strange multicolored light.
A Gate.
No matter how many times I saw one, it still made my spine crawl.
Normally, Association staff or guild Hunters would guard the entrance to keep civilians out. But since this one had already been cleared, they must’ve withdrawn.
Even if someone was stationed there, I’d have been fine—because I was with B-rank Hunter Jang Seulbi.
“I thought we were going to Suwon?”
“That one’s too dangerous. B-rank difficulty. Not a chance. This one was cleared yesterday, but there should still be plenty of D-rank ether crystals left uncollected.”
By “crystals,” she meant ether crystals.
After the Cataclysm, the world gained new energy sources, the most important being ether.
Ether was the source of an Awakened person’s powers—and also the food of monsters from Gates.
Hunters grew stronger the more they hunted monsters, because they naturally absorbed the monsters’ ether.
Conversely, if a monster killed a powerful Hunter, it absorbed that Hunter’s ether and became far more dangerous.
Inside Gates, ether accumulated more densely, forming crystals. These were essential for Gate-related tech and also a means for the Awakened to grow stronger.
That’s why large, high-quality ether crystals sold for astronomical prices.
“There shouldn’t be any monsters. Let’s go.”
With that, she vaulted over the tape and, without hesitation, stepped into the Gate.
“Hey, wait up!”
Panicking, I hurried after her—
And plunged my face straight into the Gate.
