"Did they buy it?"
The voice was almost a whisper, so quiet it was nearly ASMR. Even considering it was ventriloquism, it was very faint. Only someone like the S-grade guy right next to him could hear it. Lee Sa-young, who was sitting cross-legged next to Cha Eui-jae, answered just as quietly.
"Yes, well. I heard it happened while trying to save someone, so what can I say?"
"That's good."
"Well, there might be a fine to pay."
"...There's even a fine?"
"Hunters only listen when there's a punishment."
Well, Lee Sa-young was right. The only way to control powerful and capable hunters was through strong restraints and the law. On the surface, Lee Sa-young was at the center of this commotion, so he would be the one to be disciplined. Cha Eui-jae deliberately let out a groan.
"Hiding the fact that I'm registered is out the window now."
The best plan was to get through this without anyone discovering he was registered. But getting caught up in the sudden appearance of the rift had turned everything to dust. Cha Eui-jae muttered to himself.
"Is Seo Min-gi really capable of changing my grade?"
"If he couldn't do that... he wouldn't be worth the money."
Lee Sa-young's answer brought back the last image of Seo Min-gi in Eui-jae's mind.
Before the rift vanished, Seo Min-gi had been pacing nervously before jumping right into Cha Eui-jae's shadow. Before Cha Eui-jae could even ask what he was doing, Seo Min-gi's head popped out of the shadow to explain.
"I'm supposed to be in the Jongno 3-ga dungeon with the Vice-Guild Leader right now. If people see me, it'll be a disaster. I'll be mobbed. Getting cursed out might extend my lifespan by twenty years, don't you think?"
"Hey, I'm not supposed to be here either."
"It's okay, sir. You just awakened and came here for a bit. It'll be fine. By the way, what rank did you get?"
"It's a failure."
"I figured. The computer probably got caught up in this too. That makes things easier."
"Are you going to use that 'last resort' or whatever?"
"Exactly."
Seo Min-gi's head bobbed up and down.
"The computer being broken doesn't mean everything's okay. The records will still be online. They get transferred to the Awakened Management Bureau's data center as soon as they're measured. Since the rift happened at just the right time, no one would have thought to look at them. If we alter them quickly, it's solved."
"Is that alteration really a minor thing?"
"Don't worry too much. I'll make sure you're registered as a D-grade Awakened. Now, I must go!"
He boldly gave a thumbs up and slowly sank back into the shadow like a scene from a movie... Cha Eui-jae laughed at the memory.
'Is everyone in the Pado Guild a lunatic...'
Considering the Guild Leader Lee Sa-young was weird himself, it made sense. Cha Eui-jae couldn't tell how long he'd have to lie there. He planned to get up when the presence of Jung Bin and Yang Hye-jin disappeared, but more people kept arriving, indicating the situation had escalated. More ambulances arrived, their sirens blaring louder.
