Chapter 27

Meanwhile.

At the top floor of a luxurious skyscraper in downtown Seoul, a kind of banquet was taking place.

It was a lavish affair, hosted by someone of great means.

Elegant marble interiors, crimson carpets, and dazzling gold ornaments.

But the splendor wasn’t just in the surroundings.

The attendees were just as extravagant.

Children of the country’s top 10 conglomerates.
And young Rankers.

In the midst of it all—

“Phew.”

Ki Soyul let out a deep sigh from the corner.

‘This is boring.’

She had come at the request of her brother, Ki Parang.

But parties just weren’t her thing.

‘Even more boring than before.’

In the past, she could tolerate it.

There was a time when simply talking to Rankers she met here felt helpful for improving her skills.

But now—
It all felt meaningless.

Frankly, childish.

Why?

Because none of the Rankers enjoying themselves here—
Could ever defeat that ‘old man’ she had faced.

She was sure of it.
Compared to him, everyone here was like a baby.

‘Ugh, I just wanted to get this over with and leave.’

She was itching to move.
She wanted to meet Joo Donghoon again, see his training.
To steal insights from the old man’s teachings during those intense sessions.

That was the most realistic way to improve.

Still, she couldn’t skip the banquet.
She already had the reputation in her guild of doing nothing but lazing around.

She had to at least show her face at events like this.

For a guild as large as ‘Parang’ to run smoothly, maintaining connections was essential.

Of course, she had no intention of doing it actively.
Just showing up was enough.

‘Actual networking is my brother’s job.’

To her, even just being here was a major concession and courtesy.

“Remember that Ranker we got close to back in the U.S.? He’s been dying to see you again! Haha, Ms. Soyul, are you even listening to me?”

“Yes, I’m listening.”

She stifled a yawn.

The man rambling beside her was Shin Jong-oh.
A C-rank Hunter.

Not someone she could completely ignore.
He was the grandson of the chairman of Oseong Group, one of Korea’s top 10 conglomerates.

Even in a world dominated by Rankers—
Money still ruled.

As long as there were Rankers who moved for money, this was unavoidable.

“So, what do you think? Should I set up a meeting? I brought some limited-edition whiskey just for today…”

“……”

He kept nagging.

The temptation to ‘just use my power and assassinate him’ briefly crossed her mind, but she simply nodded halfheartedly.

Glancing at the wall clock with her eyes.

Then—

[07:00 PM]

As soon as the clock hit 7, she stood up with a jolt.

“Ki Soyul?”

Shin Jong-oh’s eyes widened.

She gave a curt reply.

“I’ll be heading out now. I had prior plans.”

Exactly six hours had passed.
It was time to return to Joo Donghoon.
She’d already gotten her brother’s permission in advance.

“A-Already? The banquet’s just getting started…”

“Thank you for today.”

A light bow.
She turned neatly and left the hall.

“……”

Grit.

Shin Jong-oh clenched his teeth as he watched her leave.

‘Stuck-up bitch. So what if she’s a Ranker?’

He balled his fists.
His hands trembled with rising rage.

‘How did it come to this?’

They hadn’t started off this way.

“……”

Shin Jong-oh recalled their first meeting.

About a year ago?
At a banquet like this.
He had fallen for her graceful appearance at first sight.

And decided—
He would make Ki Soyul his woman.

Others said her face was too cold and turned away, but to him, she was as beautifully clear as frozen glass.

Their social positions weren’t bad either.
He was a third-generation chaebol, she was a Ranker.
He thought they were a well-matched pair.

‘Even just a month ago…’

But at some point, she changed.

She used to at least respond politely, but now she sat blankly, lost in thought.

Why had she changed so much?

‘Could the rumors be true?’

There was talk that she’d been spending every day by someone’s side.
Did she have a man hidden away?

‘I guess I’ll have to go check for myself.’

Shin Jong-oh’s gaze turned ice cold.

—

“Phew, phew.”

My vision shifted.

A familiar training ground.

Thud!

I threw down my staff and sprawled out on the ground.

“Fuaaah, I seriously thought I was gonna die.”

Every muscle ached.
My body felt so heavy, I could fall asleep instantly if I closed my eyes.

I was exhausted both physically and mentally.

“The sun’s still up, huh.”

Lying down, I looked up.

The sky was painted golden with the evening glow.

‘Soyul said she’d be gone for about six hours…’

Since she wasn’t back, it hadn’t been that long yet.
Though it ‘felt’ like I’d been up for two whole nights.

‘Looks like she’ll be back soon.’

That short of a wait was fine.

By some insane coincidence,
I didn’t think the Shadow Severance would barge in right at this moment.

“Phew.”

I stared blankly forward.

The sky in front of me was filled with countless status windows.

Rewards I hadn’t checked yet.

‘Let’s take a look slowly.’

First, I checked the stat increases.

[Bone Five’s status is being adjusted.]
[Technique +2!]
[Strength +1!]
[Skill ‘Fireball’ (Lv.8) has leveled up!]
[Skill ‘Air Shield’ (Lv.8) has leveled up!]

[Bone Four’s status is being adjusted.]
[Strength +2!]
[Agility +1!]
[Health +1!]
[Skill ‘Basic Block’ (Lv.8) has leveled up!]
[Skill ‘Basic Taunt’ (Lv.6) has increased by 2 levels!]

……

……

……

From Bone Five to Bone One.
So many adjustment messages filled my vision it was hard to keep up.

‘Stats went up pretty evenly. Skills are mostly around level 8 or 9 now.’

I summarized it simply and moved on.

There were more interesting rewards waiting.

‘Especially Bone Two.’

Bone Two had become something special.

[Hidden Quest Cleared!]
[The tyrant of the Ancient Desert Empire, ‘Sun Spear,’ acknowledges you as his true master!]
[Bone 2 has inherited the Sun Spear’s memory and will.]
[Bone 2’s name has changed to ‘Sun Spear.’]
[All stats increased by 10!]

“So now you’re Sun Spear.”

[Name: Sun Spear]
[Energy: 100/100]
[Unique Trait: Awakened Skeleton]
[Class: Spearman]
[Rank: D]
[Strength: 35] [Agility: 35] [Health: 32] [Magic: 26] [Technique: 33]

[Skills]
– ‘Basic Thrust’ (Lv.9)
– ‘Solar Flurry’ (Lv.1)
– ‘Raging Desert’ (Lv.1)
– ‘Soulflare’ (Lv.1)

“Wow.”

I clicked my tongue.

Three new skills had been added.

They were the exact same attacks he’d used on me.

‘That blinding combo attack…’
”Solar Flurry!”

‘The one that covered the whole field like a sandstorm…’
”Raging Desert!”

‘And the one that burned his soul for a short burst of speed and attack power…’
”Soulflare!”

All of them were incredible.
I knew firsthand, having been on the receiving end.

“By the way…”

Is it still okay to call him Bone Two now?
I didn’t know names changed when they awakened…

‘Bone Two.’

It was a name I came up with on a whim.
But I’d grown fond of it.

Sun Spear felt… detached somehow.
But since his status screen now clearly said Sun Spear, calling him Bone Two felt weird.

“Hm…”

I thought for a moment.
Just a moment.

I’ve never been one to spend much time naming things.

“Alright, forget Sun Spear. I’ll call you Sunny.”

From now on, you’re Sunny.

It sounded way more affectionate.

[Hunter: Joo Donghoon]
[Title: X]
[Energy: 0/120]

I didn’t have any energy left to check in detail,
But since he inherited the Sun Spear’s memory, I believed he’d be an incredible asset going forward.

“Next up.”

That wasn’t the end of the rewards.

[You have cleared an ‘Unmeasurable’ difficulty stage.]
[You have achieved a great feat.]

Now it was time to check the achievement reward.

To be honest, I didn’t even know achievements existed until now.
Maybe only some Rankers know about them.

[Reward incoming!]
[Congratulations!]
[You have obtained the item ‘Golden Random Box’ (S-rank).]

“A random box?”

My eyes widened.

A random box was rare enough—
But ‘S-rank?’

An S-rank item.

That rank alone meant it was practically priceless.
Few in the world had them, even Rankers.

“Holy crap.”

Forget its performance—just the rank made it insanely valuable.

“Ahhh…”

I couldn’t help but get emotional.

I’d scraped by as a mercenary for three years,
Getting paid peanuts as an E-rank Hunter.

I couldn’t even remember the last time I got a proper item.

Back then, I drooled over C-rank items at shops and auctions.

But now—’S-rank.’

Tears welled up.

[Item: Golden Random Box]
[Rank: S]
[Type: Box]
[Description: Contains a sealed rare treasure.]
[Effect 1: Opens to reveal an S-rank item.]

Thump, thump, thump.

My heart pounded.

Not even when I took Sunny’s crazed spear head-on did it beat this hard.

‘Should I open it now?’

My hands trembled.

Thank god Soyul wasn’t here.
It’s not that I don’t trust her—
But if it’s an S-rank item, she might shout “totally justified” while assassinating me in my sleep.

S-rank items were worth killing over—even guilds clashed for them.

Tap.

I touched the floating box in the air, and a message popped up.

[Do you wish to open the ‘Golden Random Box’ (S-rank)?]

“…O-Open.”

I murmured with a trembling voice.
And prayed to the sky.

‘Please.’

Please let it be expensive.
Or at least something I can use.

‘Actually, anything is fine.’

If I sell it, jackpot.
If I use it, jackpot.

The former means no more money worries.
The latter means I get an item Rankers would kill for.

Vrrr!

The box’s wrapping began to unravel automatically.
Golden light leaked from the seams.

[Thump! Thump! Thump!]
[Opening ‘Golden Random Box’ (S-rank)!]
[Best of luck to you, Hunter!]

And then—

With a brilliant flash shooting into the sky,
The box opened completely.