Chapter 16: Episode 16 – F-Rank and the Fractured Mind

Chapter 16: Episode 16 – F-Rank and the Fractured Mind Episode 16 – F-Rank and the Fractured Mind The plaza outside the Hunter Association brimmed like a pot left to boil, bubbling over with bodies and dreams. The air crackled, heavy with ambition and sweat. Neon signs blinked in chaotic rhythm above the wide-glass structure, screaming promises in bold, hopeful colors. "Be brave! Be brilliant! Be a Hunter!" The slogan looped from a speaker high above, distorted slightly by static. Beneath it, a line coiled around the block like a great metallic serpent—hungry, tense, and restless. Young. Old. Tall. Lame. Covered in scars. Dressed in school uniforms. Wrapped in cloaks. A man with no arms stood humming to himself with a saber floating beside him, suspended by a gentle blue field. A girl two rows ahead flapped wings made of translucent fire, the feathers shedding embers as she waited her turn. Her eyes were hollow. Her hands wouldn’t stop shaking. Everyone had something they wanted to bury behind the badge. A badge meant money. Power. A future. Or, maybe, just... meaning. Recruiters loitered beyond the railings like crows on a wire. Hungry eyes. Greasy smiles. Suits stretched too tight over muscles or too loose over secrets. They smoked cigarettes that glowed faint blue. Some whispered into walkie-talkies. Others passed out flyers with holographic edges. And amid them, a man adjusted his blazer collar, checking a slim black card tucked into his pocket. His ID read: Han Jin-woo WN Agency – External Acquisition Specialist Not a Hunter himself. Not a fighter. But he had the scent of business stitched into every step. He walked with ease between the ambitious and the forgotten. Behind his glasses shimmered numbers, scanning data. Age. Rank. Aptitude. Flaws. He stopped when his eyes met someone. There, just outside the rank booth—Kim Do-hyun (김도현). Quiet. Still. And smiling? Yes, actually smiling, even with a big bold red F printed across the new ID band clasped to his wrist like a hospital tag. F-Rank. Officially the bottom. The air inside the testing complex still hummed strangely behind him. Too quiet. Too sterile. Do-hyun glanced back once, catching the edge of a janitor slowly pushing a mop across white tile. The hall behind him had no windows, no plants, no paintings. Just smooth white walls and flickering letters that spelled out in digital red: EXIT: Failed Hunters No one used that door. No one even looked at it. But it smelled... too clean. Bleach and regret. Do-hyun tightened his grip on his plastic welcome pack. A pamphlet. A small booklet of beginner quests. A single-use mana stone. And a standard issue Glock. The same one he had used in the shooting test. It felt awkward in his hands, still cold. "That test was too easy," he muttered. "Just shoot a few targets. Answer some basic questions. Get a band and a badge. That’s it?" He blinked, lips pulling in thought. "This is a job where you risk your life every single day. There’s no insurance. No resurrection. Just monsters that eat your soul. So why does it feel like they want everyone to pass?" He looked again at his bracelet. The band pulsed gently. F-Rank. But licensed. Legally recognized. Officially awakened. The system had acknowledged him. Still, it all felt... fishy. Like the government wasn’t just testing ability. It was recruiting something. Anything. Like they needed cannon fodder. Like the basement of this place was less about training and more about filtering bodies. Was that the real reason? The words of the Jumper—Yoo Seung-jin (유승진)—flashed in his memory. "You think this city’s safe? You think the portals have stopped?" Do-hyun stepped aside to let another candidate exit. This one was C-Rank. A guild runner shouted his name and pulled him aside with a huge grin. A second recruiter offered him a duffel bag. Inside? A contract and three thousand dollars. The recruiters had begun to swarm like flies over a bleeding animal. "Hunter packages! Dungeon keys! We front the fees, you keep the loot!" "You want scrolls? Gear? Spirit contracts? We got it!" "Join us and we’ll feed you mana stew every morning! Breakfast of Champions!" "Don’t die poor! Die with benefits!" Some booths had fire dancers tossing flames over grilled meat. One had a bard singing to a demon choir while they handed out business cards that hovered in the air. And yet, through the whirlwind of offers and desperation... Nobody called his name. Nobody extended a hand. Nobody even gave a second glance to the kid with the F-Rank band. Kim Do-hyun (김도현) stood invisible, just a silhouette painted between more colorful dreams. He didn’t flinch. Didn’t smile wider. He simply observed. Until a familiar voice strolled into his space like a breeze that didn’t belong. "Congrats on passing," came the voice, slick and polished. Do-hyun turned and saw the same man from earlier. Han Jin-woo. The guy who had watched from the shadows before the test. The one with the agency tag and the smooth words. He handed Do-hyun a black card with silver trim. "WN Agency," he said, "from CEO Kang Jo-mo. It’s not a job offer. Just... support." Do-hyun tilted his head. "Support?" Han smiled. "Awakening is hard. Even harder for those starting alone. If you ever need access to dungeon slots, stat boosters, skill scrolls, or... certain off-the-book services, we provide. For a small percentage fee." Do-hyun studied the card. No phone number. Just a QR code and a private app ID. Han gave a small bow. "We don’t look at rank," he said. "We look at growth." And with that, the man faded into the recruiter mist. No pressure. No lies. Just a door left slightly ajar. Do-hyun tucked the card into his jacket. But then. The air changed. Like cold oil had been poured through the crowd. A crack. Not wood. Not metal. A sound like something inside a soul snapping in half. A scream tore through the courtyard. A boy—no, a man—his badge still new and gleaming. His face twisted. His eyes wide, lips trembling, mumbling words in reverse. "Don’t... I didn’t mean... the shadows... they talk..." He dropped to his knees. Then stood again. But not as himself. His aura flared—sickly, like burnt hair. The energy twisted around him, dark red and crawling. His badge blinked: F. He charged. Not at anyone in particular. Just... away. As if trying to escape his own skin. But the guards moved fast. Two in gray suits stepped forward from behind a fountain. Mana seals fired like lightning. One shot. Two. A net of light tangled around his torso. He screamed again—guttural, deep, broken. Foam bubbled from his mouth. His knees hit the ground again. Then stillness. Twitching. Barely breathing. A few in the crowd had backed away. Others whispered. "Poor bastard snapped." "He thought he was S-Rank..." "He couldn’t handle the system." "One in every hundred lose their mind." "Sometimes the dreams are louder than the monsters." A girl stood at the edge of it all. Hood up. Eyes sharp. Notebook open. She scribbled something down in a language that wasn’t Korean, maybe not even human. Then she looked once at Kim Do-hyun (김도현). Eyes like steel. Then she vanished. Do-hyun turned slightly, watching where she had stood. But the space was empty now. No sound. No trace. Then— A soft chime. In his vision. Only he could see it. [Awaken System Notification] [Clone Ability has reached Level 2] [