I knew my place all too well.
Ever since I was a child, I was never someone who stood out. Just an ordinary kid. When people found out I didn’t have parents, I was just that pitiful, ordinary kid. Even if they played with me, I was the kind of kid who never bought anything. The kind who couldn’t even afford to give a single birthday present.
If none of this had ever happened, I would’ve just faded into the background as another average person A. No, even if just that one thing hadn’t happened during the ranking assessment, things would’ve turned out at least a little better than they are now.
Public opinion of me was always split to extremes.
[He’s supposed to be an “Unmeasurable Grade”… doesn’t that mean he’s insanely strong?]
[If he’s the one walking around with Baek Tae-beom on a leash, then yeah, he’s probably no joke.]
[I saw him once in passing, and he was terrifying. What’s scarier is that Baek Tae-beom was smiling beside him.]
[Just clearing the Tower of Hellnest is already an insane feat—his skills must be off the charts.]
Then again, there were also people saying—
[They said his skills were too weak to even be measured, that’s why he’s Unmeasurable. LOL sounds real.]
[He’s probably blackmailing Baek Tae-beom and using that to boss him around.]
[Looks like a support-type at best. A total scam listing. LOL.]
[Hansung is just parading him around for show.]
Whether they liked me or not, people were paying attention. And that meant that at least one out of ten people I passed on the street would recognize my face. If I were like Baek Tae-beom or Blue Star—someone who could ignore or feel at ease with the attention—it might have been different. But I had always found that fact deeply burdensome.
However, just this once, I couldn’t deny how useful it was.
There’s a difference between focusing on a complete stranger and focusing on someone who feels even vaguely familiar.
Countless eyes were on me. Raw, unfiltered emotions reached me. I spoke boldly.
“I know how to stop these rifts.”
Taking a deep breath, I continued.
“I have a skill similar to foreseeing the future. If we clear the dungeon that holds the key to resolving this crisis, the chaos currently unfolding will be suppressed. That’s why I need your help.”
I didn’t know how things were going in other areas, but at the very least, it was crucial to unite the people gathered here under a single cause.
“How do you know which dungeon it is?”
“As I said, it’s through my skill. I don’t know the exact location, but I can pinpoint the general area.”
‘Is he serious?’ I heard murmuring and whispers ripple through the crowd. Then someone stepped forward. He had an ordinary-looking face, but his demeanor gave away his experience—a seasoned Hunter.
“If what you’re saying is true, then prove it.”
Prove it? I frowned at the absurdity of the demand.
[CH. Private / One More Dazzling Than the Sun: Would you look at these assholes?]
“You’re Choi Ga-hyeon, the one with the Unmeasurable Grade, right? If what you said is true, prove that you really have that kind of skill.”
“We don’t have time for this!”
“We’re the ones wasting time here!”
The man snapped irritably.
“Why should we follow your word when we don’t even know if you’re strong or weak?”
Is that what matters right now? When I just said I have the key to ending this whole mess? I looked around in disbelief, but no one stopped the man. Everyone seemed to agree with him.
Was my worth nothing more than gossip fodder? There wasn’t a shred of trust in how they were treating me. Still, I couldn’t say I didn’t understand. From their perspective, I was some unknown guy of dubious origin who just happened to be seen around Baek Tae-beom. They might be curious about who I was, but that didn’t mean they had any faith in my abilities.
“If it were Baek Tae-beom saying this, maybe we could trust him! But how the hell are we supposed to believe some nobody whose power we don’t even know?”
“Does it really matter whether I’m strong or weak right now?”
“How do we know you’re not pulling some shady shit? Hansung and you guys, you’ve always been chummy with the Association, haven’t you?”
Now they were just spouting nonsense. “Chummy”? With what proof?
“You and your guilds probably plotted all this with the Association, didn’t you?”
“And what exactly would we gain from doing that?”
But he wouldn’t let up.
“Of course it’s suspicious when you’re trying to pull something shady like this.”
The cold was biting. A sharp wind grazed my cheek like a blade. I clenched my teeth.
“What would I have to show you for you to believe me?”
“Strength! Show us the power that proves you actually have that kind of strength!”
Right. Strength.
This wasn’t exactly what this skill was meant for—but I didn’t have a choice. I raised my hand and focused. Making sure not to hurt anyone if I could help it.
[Skill: Wild Hunt]
[You use the skill. Skill: Wild Hunt]
[Wild Hunt activates. The Constellation’s blessing is bestowed.]
***
Kang Eun-hee was a D-rank Hunter. A position so low that even calling her a proper Hunter felt like a stretch. And as she looked out over the chaos that had engulfed Seoul, only one thought crossed her mind.
‘Is this hell?’
Her guild members had all run off. She’d thought they were at least somewhat responsible, but the moment disaster struck, they vanished without a trace, abandoning people like it meant nothing. Kang Eun-hee was the only Hunter from her guild still remaining in Seoul.
Blaring horns, crowds of people desperately sprinting to get out of the city, emergency alerts urging citizens to stay indoors, explosive booms erupting as if fights were breaking out in the overheated tension.
Word had already spread that dungeons had opened in some districts. There were only so many skilled Hunters available to tackle them—and half of those had fled already. In any case, someone needed to rally the remaining Hunters, coordinate them. And yet, the Hunter Association, who should have been leading, was dead silent.
‘Damn it all…’
Kang Eun-hee cursed her own pathetic sense of duty. She should’ve run too. But she hadn’t. Nor could she step up and lead. All she could do was help evacuate civilians. If this went on, dozens—maybe hundreds—of dungeons would open across Seoul, and monsters would pour out of the uncleared ones, sparking a crisis that would rival the First Monster Calamity.
‘I miss my mom.’
She thought of her parents, who were probably worried sick about her right now. And that made her regret it even more. Guildmasters from the big-name guilds should be stepping up to take command and redirect public focus, but Seoul was just too much of a mess. The fractures were spreading too far and wide, making it nearly impossible to gather in one place.
But even if they did, what would they actually do? Cheer each other on while taking down dungeons one by one? That wasn’t going to cut it. What was needed right now was a clear goal, a plan of action. And none of them had the faintest clue what that might be.
Just then, a sudden gust of wind howled from one direction. Kang Eun-hee braced herself, grabbing onto the side of a nearby car to keep from being blown away.
‘What kind of lunatic—?’
A natural phenomenon like that couldn’t have occurred on its own. Someone had definitely used a skill. And the moment she turned her gaze in the direction of the wind, she saw him.
Baek Tae-beom.
‘Is that… Baek Tae-beom?’
No—it wasn’t just him. The man standing beside him…
‘Choi Ga-hyeon?’
Immediately, countless rumors and debates she’d seen about Choi Ga-hyeon flooded her mind. Most of them questioned whether he even qualified as a real Hunter, or speculated that he was receiving some kind of special treatment.
The one that had left the deepest impression on her was the ongoing mystery surrounding his Constellation.
‘Who exactly is Choi Ga-hyeon’s Constellation?’
Then, Choi Ga-hyeon opened his mouth.
“I know how to stop these fractures.”
‘What?’
Then say it, now! What are you waiting for? Kang Eun-hee’s face lit up with hope. No matter how you looked at it, this was the first glimmer of a way out of this hell. She wasn’t the only one who felt that way either—those around her, initially stunned, began to react positively as well.
But not everyone was like her.
A man suddenly stepped forward and demanded that Choi Ga-hyeon prove his strength.
The demand came out of nowhere, but Kang Eun-hee couldn’t deny a twinge of curiosity. Opinions on Choi Ga-hyeon had always been sharply divided. Was he truly so weak that his grade couldn’t even be measured? Or was he so overwhelmingly powerful that no instrument could assess him? Anyone—especially a Hunter—would be dying to know the answer.
Choi Ga-hyeon stopped Baek Tae-beom from stepping forward and instead raised one hand.
Then a wind far stronger than before blew across the area.
“……!”
Laughter, screams, and cries of terror were carried in the gale. As the wind passed her, Kang Eun-hee realized it wasn’t just a gust. It had form. It was shaped like humans—no, not just humans. It was wraiths, fae, demons, yokai. A nightmarish parade of hunters.
And what struck fear into Kang Eun-hee the most… was death.
‘I’m going to die.’
The thought gripped her. Her body froze in place, too rigid to move. Razor-sharp wind sliced past her ears, clawing at her like talons. She bent low, screaming as she tried to protect herself. All she could do was pray that this procession would pass her by without inflicting harm.
And when the world finally fell silent, she lifted her head.
She couldn’t help but be stunned. Everyone around her had reacted the same—they were hunched over or pressed to the ground in terror, trying to shield themselves from the spectral hunt. One by one, people slowly raised their heads and glanced around.
Kang Eun-hee thought for sure her heart had been shredded into pieces—but it hadn’t.
And in the middle of that chaos, one man stood tall.
Choi Ga-hyeon.
He opened his mouth and spoke slowly.
“My Constellation is Odin, the Magician Who Seeks Knowledge. I want to stop this disaster.”
Right now.
“I need your help.”
