(4)
11:48 PM, Awakened Management Bureau Field Response Team 1 Office. The spacious office was brightly lit despite the late hour.
"Team Leader, would you like a snack?"
"Ah, yes. Just bring me an energy bar, please."
Diligent public servant Jung Bin had volunteered for duty tonight. It wasn't that there was overtime work or urgent tasks, but it was a customary practice at this time of the year.
—We're almost there. In just 12 minutes, we'll be able to see the new rankings! I'm really curious about how the system has calculated the rankings.
Today was the day all hunters eagerly awaited— the ranking update day. With one hand in his pocket and a paper cup in the other, Jung Bin bit down a couple of times on the edge of the cup.
Once a year, the system assigns rankings to all the awakened based on their abilities and achievements. New hunters and veteran hunters alike awaited the ranking update day. The new ranking served as proof of their abilities and influenced their chances of joining new guilds or getting new advertisements.
However, there were often cases where hunters who didn't get their desired rankings caused disturbances, so the Awakened Management Bureau was on high alert during this period. The two anchors on the screen pointed at the data.
—While the exact calculation method of the system's ranking is not disclosed, it is understood that it considers not only the hunter's grade but also their activities throughout the year.
—That's why an A-grade awakened can be ranked higher than an S-grade. There have been many hunters who emerged like comets and showed remarkable activities over the past year. This year's rankings could see significant changes.
—Nevertheless, experts predict that there will be no major changes within the top 20. Let's look at the expected rankings.
1. Lee Sa-young (S)
2. Matthew – Mok Tae-oh (S)
3. Jung Bin (S)
4. Gyu-gyu – Ban Gyu-min (S)
5. Honeybee – Yoo Chae-hyun (A)
6. Doctor – Nam Woo-jin (A)
7. I Am An Artisan – Hong Ye-seong (S)
8. Ham Seok-jeong (A)
9. Song Jo-heon (S)
10. Shield Guy – Bae Won-woo (A)
.
.
.
—Oh, the expected rankings are... the same as the current rankings. They predict no changes at all?
—Yes, that's right. It has been like this for the past two years as well.
'Familiar faces.'
"Team Leader, here you go."
"Ah, thank you."
Jung Bin and the team members started eating their energy bars while standing in front of the monitor. After checking the expected rankings, the team member asked,
"Do you think the rankings will stay the same, Team Leader?"
"Hmm... Yes."
For the past two years, the top 10 rankings hadn't changed. The higher-ranked hunters were more active, meaning their innate abilities had a greater impact, so as the panelists said, there would likely be no change in rankings this year.
