F-Rank Secretly Becomes Stronger - Chapter 13

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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13

“How is it? It may be small compared to other major guilds, but we have everything worth having.”

“Yes, it’s nice.”

Mir Guild, which he visited for mana measurement.

It was essential research since he needed to roughly know how much mana he had absorbed for artifact upgrades to move more systematically in his future plans.

Mir Guild had been watching his performance closely and granted permission to use their mana measuring device, so Jung Juhyeok came straight to the guild building for measurement.

“From the training ground facilities to the cafeteria, our facilities are pretty good among mid-tier companies.”

“Yes, it’s nice.”

When they asked if he wanted to tour the facilities before using the mana measuring device, he had nothing else to do so he accepted, but Yena just kept bragging about the company.

Of course, as she said, it didn’t reach the level of the major guilds he had visited during academy field trips, but it wasn’t bad enough to be called lacking anywhere.

‘Not that I’m interested since I won’t be using them anyway.’

The training facilities looked pretty good, so he felt slightly tempted.

Still, just a level that caught his eye a bit.

If he could afford to join a guild just because a few facilities were nice, he would have already joined one long ago.

“Aren’t your responses too halfhearted? I thought showing you the facilities might change your mind a little…”

“You wouldn’t need to feel hurt since I would have had the same reaction to any other guild.”

“…That’s really comforting.”

Yena let out a deep sigh.

She had worked hard today trying to break down his iron-wall attitude even a little, but it wasn’t easy to charm someone who ignored even major guilds without a glance.

“I’ve heard enough bragging about the guild, so can I use the mana measuring device right away?”

“Let’s do that. It doesn’t look like you’d get more interested even if you heard more anyway.”

Feeling like she had done all she could, she guided him to the mana measurement room.

They took the elevator up to the highest 7th floor of the building, and as soon as the doors opened, huge rooms stretched out in one direction.

“The entire floor is the mana measurement room.”

“Since mana measuring devices are such finicky equipment, we can’t put offices for other purposes here.”

Sometimes there were guilds that built mana measurement rooms smaller than the recommended specifications because they thought the space was wasteful, but most of those were small-medium guilds.

Among them, it was a scene you’d only see in corrupt guilds that existed in a worldview that didn’t make sense by human standards.

“If you don’t properly meet the specifications, there’s a possibility of errors, so we definitely have to exclude that. You have to be careful of places that don’t properly equip things like this because they’re usually not in their right mind.”

“I’ve only seen it on the news occasionally, but I guess there are actually many of them.”

“There are many, right? There are countless cases where novice hunters with low ranks and no experience like Jung Juhyeok have no choice but to enter and just suffer terribly before coming out.”

In the case of rookie hunters who receive E to F rank assignments due to low grades after academy graduation, the places they can usually get jobs are limited.

Most of them find it difficult even for mid-tier companies and have to go to small-medium ones to get hired – that’s the reality for hunters in South Korea.

Since joining parties with low ranks without any guild or support is practically impossible, most reluctantly join small-medium guilds.

Society is full of people desperately trying to exploit such hunters.

Perhaps Jung Juhyeok would have been in the same situation if it weren’t for the Training Room.

“Though it’s not something Jung Juhyeok needs to worry about since offers are already coming in from various guilds.”

Yena hummed softly as she opened the door to the mana measurement room.

Inside, there was a large circular mana measuring device, and across from it, a control room could be seen through reinforced glass windows.

“I set everything up before Jung Juhyeok arrived, so you can go right in.”

“Understood.”

As he entered the mana measurement room, she closed the door and moved to the control room.

She spoke through the microphone placed in front of the desk.

“You’ve used a mana measuring device before, so you roughly know, right? Just fit your hand exactly to the hand-shaped drawing in front.”

He checked the mana measuring device after hearing her words.

As she said, it was something he had already touched once a year during his academy days, so he familiarly brought his hand to it.

But suddenly, an unexpected message appeared.

[If you consume this magic stone, you can immediately upgrade the Training Room!]

[Consume the magic stone to absorb mana.]

“…”

The content he had seen when he extracted the magic stone from the Mutant Orc.

Consume the magic stone to absorb mana.

He had seen the latter message before, but the message that appeared before it was something he was seeing for the first time in his life.

‘Immediate upgrade is possible?’

The upgrade that would have taken 2 years of hardship even when calculated at D-rank.

But he couldn’t help but be flustered by the message saying he could fill it all in just one go.

Juhyeok looked at the magic stone that powered the mana measuring device.

‘The ones used in mana measuring devices are usually A-grade magic stones or higher.’

If what he heard during field trips at the Academy was correct, that was an A-grade magic stone.

It contained mana on a completely different level from D-grade magic stones.

‘If it’s A-grade, can I upgrade immediately?’

His mind raced with this new criterion.

If he just reached out his left hand and absorbed it into his body right now, he could upgrade immediately without needing to struggle for 2 years.

“I’m measuring right now, so please wait a moment.”

As the mana measuring device started moving, Yena was busily moving around inside the control room.

If he took out and ate the magic stone now, she probably wouldn’t even think that he had devoured the magic stone.

Juhyeok turned his head.

The measuring device humming as it operated, the magic stone inside it.

Yena, too busy moving around to look in his direction.

The Training Room that could be upgraded with just one bite.

‘…’

Sweat trickled down.

Was this how Eve felt when she was tempted by the serpent before the Forbidden Fruit?

It felt like a gift from heaven for all his insane efforts up until now.

Anguish.

Just as Juhyeok was agonizing while fidgeting with his left hand in front of the expensive magic stone.

Seeing Yena’s profile as she moved busily beside him, he recalled yesterday.

[The grace of saving me, Jaehwan, and Suhwa isn’t light enough to end with just a few favors.]

“….”

Juhyeok relaxed the strength in his left hand.

Not long after, the noise from the mana measuring device stopped and Yena spoke.

“…Measurement complete.”

“How did the results turn out?”

“Well… could you come to this room first so we can talk?”

A somewhat reluctant reaction.

When Juhyeok moved from the measurement room to the control room, Yena was quietly staring at the monitor with a slightly dark expression.

“….”

“What’s with that serious expression?”

“Hah….”

A smaller sigh than the one she had playfully let out earlier.

However, deeper emotions could be glimpsed within it.

“Don’t be disappointed when you hear this, Juhyeok.”

She pulled her chair back slightly to show him the monitor.

Inside, he could see a graph drawing the same curve.

“There’s absolutely no difference from the mana you last measured at the Academy.”

Her voice had become quite calm.

She couldn’t even make proper eye contact as she spoke with a pitying tone.

“That would mean it’s not a reawakening.”

“….”

His mana hadn’t increased at all.

That meant the mana from the magic stones he had consumed wasn’t being measured at all.

‘I thought my internal mana would have increased for sure.’

Since it was an artifact residing in his body, he thought that when it was stored inside, his internal mana would definitely change as well.

But when he checked the mana amount shown through the monitor, there was no change at all.

‘I have no idea what the principle behind it is… but either way, it’s good news for me.’

If his internal mana had increased, he would surely have drawn suspicious looks from Hunters with detection skills as he continued to increase his mana.

If he got caught by a high-grade sensing skill, the artifact might be discovered.

So the fact that his mana amount hadn’t increased was good news.

While quietly nodding his head and feeling happy inside, Yena asked with a worried expression.

“Don’t be too disheartened. The fact that you defeated a Mutant Orc even with low mana is proof that your skills are excellent enough to win through Jung Juhyeok’s effort alone.”

“I had a feeling this would happen anyway, so it’s fine.”

Jung Juhyeok accepted the results as if it were nothing.

Perhaps that attitude made him seem even more pitiful.

Yena grabbed Jung Juhyeok’s hand and comforted him.

“Even if it’s not a Reawakening, our guild’s intention to recruit you hasn’t changed.”

“….”

The hand that suddenly grabbed his.

The warm warmth he felt within it and himself reflected in those brown eyes.

Jung Juhyeok had an intuition at that moment.

“I understand.”

At least he wouldn’t have a single regret about not touching the Magic Stone today.

*

“Son, how was the guild?”

“A guild is a guild, what else.”

The Hospital Room he visited after finishing the Mana Measurement.

When he entered to visit his Mother who was about to have surgery soon, she greeted him with a bright smile while wearing a Patient Gown.

“I searched for Mir Guild on the internet and it’s a really good place. The Guild Master is also a very famous person.”

“Is that so? I wouldn’t know since I didn’t look it up.”

“This kid… how can you not look up such things? It might become your workplace later, so you need to examine it thoroughly.”

Mother became completely hooked on the guild after meeting Yena.

Since she had nothing to do at the Hospital except look at her Cell Phone and TV, she searched for all kinds of guild-related News and shared them via message once every hour.

“You saw what I sent earlier, right? You need to find out everything for sure because you could end up with unpaid wages and accidents if you join some weird Small-Medium Guild.”

The words “It doesn’t matter since I’m not joining anyway…” came up to his throat, but if he said that, the nagging time would only get longer with talk about safety and whatnot, so he just showed a small smile.

Mother seemed to take my reaction as a sign of agreement and started chattering away while showing News on her Cell Phone.

“Look, look, there are quite a few guilds trying to suck the life out of Kids with low grades like you.”

“That’s true.”

“Sigh… guilds like this really deserve divine punishment. How can they be such people who only fill their own bellies by exploiting desperate Kids?”

Corrupt Guilds that deserve divine punishment.

While slowly listening to Mother’s words with one ear and letting them flow out the other, his mind suddenly became alert at that keyword.

“Do you also think guys like that should be punished?”

“Of course. Even if they’re Hunters and Adults, does it make sense to do that to naive Kids? I don’t know what Ghosts are doing, not taking away such Bad Guys.”

“…That’s right. You’re right.”

Jung Juhyeok nods his head while simultaneously stroking his left arm.

Then he sincerely agreed with Mother’s words and answered.

“Unlike someone, they’re guys who deserve to be punished.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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