Chapter 2

Awakeners residing in the country were required to register their personal information with the Center.

Although registration came with several obligations, it also provided a number of benefits.

The obligation imposed on Awakeners was that they had to respond to a summons without fail whenever a disaster of crisis level or higher occurred.

In a way, it was only natural that they should be required to do so, but…

That “natural” obligation had driven me absolutely insane.

Whenever a disaster occurred, most Awakeners would find themselves tied up dealing with it, leaving them unable to respond to the successive crises that followed.

Especially the disaster that happened that day…

It had clearly been a mistake in the Center’s management. And it had also been my mistake.

The disaster that followed had struck the residential neighborhood where he lived.

Things had been a complete mess back then. “Stay calm and respond to the situation at hand.” Meanwhile, someone’s insides were practically burning with anxiety.

Strictly speaking, there had been no way for him to stop that disaster at the time.

But what if, by some slim chance, he had been able to go there?

Couldn’t he at least have evacuated his family?

Perhaps if he had abandoned his obligations and everything else and immediately gone home…

“…Tsk.”

Han Siwoo clicked his tongue and looked at the large building standing before him.

It was the heart of the Center in the country: the Korean Center Headquarters.

Still, I can’t simply choose not to register at all.

There were two ways to register as an Awakener with the Center.

One was full registration, and the other was simplified registration.

With full registration, an Awakener took on the aforementioned obligations but received all the benefits provided by the Center.

With simplified registration, on the other hand, there were no obligations, but the registrant received virtually no meaningful benefits either.

At most, they received a slight reduction in the taxes levied on monster-subjugation rewards.

It was a system designed for those who were reluctant to become affiliated with the Center.

Consequently, those who chose simplified registration were not compelled to mobilize during disasters.

Before my regression, I registered fully. But I don’t need those trivial benefits.

Han Siwoo nodded and stepped forward.

At the same time, the automatic doors opened, and the chaotic atmosphere inside the Center hit him in the face.

This place hasn’t changed at all, whether it’s now or before my regression. The expressions on people’s faces are quite different, though.

These were not the faces of people engaged in desperate battles against monsters and magical beasts.

Before his regression, the atmosphere had been openly gloomy and bleak. But the people he saw now had the air of ordinary workers going about their jobs.

Of course, that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.

This was a peaceful era, after all.

“I’d like to register as an Awakener.”

Those were the words Han Siwoo spoke as he approached the clerk at the reception desk.

Upon hearing him, the clerk put on a polite service smile and was about to explain the registration process.

But Han Siwoo quickly filled out his personal information on the form provided and handed it to her.

“I’ll go with simplified registration. And please activate the testing room. Number three is empty, right? I’ll use that one.”

“Ah, yes…”

After leaving those words behind, Han Siwoo headed toward the testing room.

The clerk stared blankly at his retreating figure and tilted her head.

He was obviously a newly awakened novice, yet his actions were far too familiar.

Click.

Once inside the testing room, Han Siwoo immediately activated the device.

The machine used to measure an Awakener’s abilities came to life with an unpleasant noise, and a screen appeared in front of him.

HanSiwoo—Lv.1Han Siwoo — Lv. 1

Class—NoneClass — None

Title—NoneTitle — None

Strength—7Strength — 7

Vitality—6Vitality — 6

MagicPower—1Magic Power — 1

AwakeningDate—20X2/08/26Awakening Date — 20X2/08/26

RegistrationDate—20X2/08/26Registration Date — 20X2/08/26

RegistrationType—SimplifiedRegistration Type — Simplified

RankAssessment—FRank Assessment — F

CongratulationsonregisteringasanAwakener.Congratulations on registering as an Awakener.

As expected, it doesn’t show anything about being a Transcendent.

There were occasional cases of unregistered Awakeners causing trouble.

The follow-up measures taken against them were generally swift and efficient. But even if Awakeners could recognize one another, how could ordinary people know whether someone was an Awakener or not?

As a result, devices that could verify whether someone was an Awakener had become widespread.

Han Siwoo had checked his information on such devices several times and had already confirmed that information regarding Transcendents could not be detected by them.

If the device had been able to detect it, I might not have registered at all.

It would be troublesome if information about Transcendents became known for no reason.

In any case, his assigned rank was F.

That was no different from before his regression.

After all, Han Siwoo’s current stats were not particularly outstanding for an Awakener.

Well, it doesn’t really matter anyway.

Han Siwoo left the testing room, received his verification booklet from the clerk, and slipped it into his pocket.

At last, he had officially become a state-recognized Awakener, albeit through simplified registration.

But there was no reason to be moved by such a trivial result.

I’d better get moving right away.

There was still some time before the first disaster he remembered.

However, he did not have an abundance of time, so he needed to hurry.

He had to become stronger than he was now in as short a time as possible.

That first disaster was deeply etched into his memories.

The key to that is the Temple of Transcendence. I can level up while progressing through it.

Before his regression, he had been unable to save his family through his own strength.

He had also lacked the power to stop the disaster.

But this time would be different.

There was something special about experiencing anything for the first time.

The first book you read. The first movie you watched.

When you reread a book or rewatch a movie, you may not feel the same level of emotion as before, but you can notice things you missed the first time.

That was the thought circling through Han Siwoo’s mind.

I was too flustered to understand what was happening back then, but now that I look at it…

Han Siwoo gave a short laugh and looked down at the crude trap installed near his feet.

This was the first goblin dungeon he had entered after awakening.

He remembered struggling desperately to clear it alongside a hastily assembled group of people whose faces he could no longer even recall.

Looking at it now, it’s pathetic.

Han Siwoo clicked his tongue and raised his foot.

Then, without the slightest hesitation, he kicked away the trap at his feet.

Clatter!

The alarm device, crudely pieced together from bones, began to ring noisily.

At the same time, the war cries of goblins erupted from deeper inside.

Han Siwoo’s senses picked up approximately twenty sounds.

“Ptui.”

After spitting into his palm, Han Siwoo tightly gripped his basic equipment, the longsword.

Then, the instant he heard footsteps turning the corner, he launched himself forward.

Slash!

The goblin at the front collapsed to the floor, caught completely off guard by the attack.

The goblins let out a collective scream when Han Siwoo burst into their midst.

Those wielding hand axes and spears quickly charged at him.

But none of their attacks managed to hit Han Siwoo.

Whoosh!

Han Siwoo narrowly dodged a goblin’s axe as it grazed past him, then swung his sword.

With a sharp slash, the goblin’s head flew into the air.

At the same time, Han Siwoo lightly twisted his body to avoid a spear thrust from behind.

Tap!

After evading the attack, he seized the spear and pulled it toward him with all his strength.

The goblin’s body was dragged along with it. Han Siwoo instantly cut the creature down, then planted his foot firmly against the ground and swung his sword vertically.

He cleaved one goblin in two in a single stroke, then his body spun violently.

Crack!

After smashing his fist into a goblin’s jaw, Han Siwoo pulled his sword back.

He settled into a middle guard stance and slowly exhaled the breath he had been holding.

Four goblins had lost their lives in an instant.

Han Siwoo looked at the remaining goblins, their faces filled with panic, and grinned.

A short while later.

Han Siwoo was keeping watch over his surroundings while regulating his breathing.

Dozens of goblin corpses lay scattered around his feet.

“Is this my limit for now?”

If other Awakeners saw this scene, they would probably foam at the mouth and point accusingly at him.

Ah! So this is what an experienced newbie looks like!

This was certainly not a sight one would expect from a level 1 Awakener.

Even Awakeners above level 10—the recommended level for the goblin dungeon—would have needed quite some time to defeat this many goblins.

Yet Han Siwoo had slaughtered dozens of goblins single-handedly in just over ten minutes.

In any case, he rummaged through the corpses scattered at his feet, then suddenly flinched and shook his head.

What am I doing, looking for something useful in a dungeon like this?

It was an occupational hazard that naturally came from spending several decades as an Awakener.

Dungeons where high-level monsters appeared in hordes dropped countless items and skills.

Still carrying that habit, he brushed off his hands and straightened his back.

Even so, clearing this place should earn me at least a little money.

HanSiwoo(Transcendent)—Lv.5Han Siwoo (Transcendent) — Lv. 5

Class—NoneClass — None

Title—NoneTitle — None

Strength—7(+9)Strength — 7 (+9)

Vitality—6(+6)Vitality — 6 (+6)

MagicPower—1(+6)Magic Power — 1 (+6)

RemainingPoints—8Remaining Points — 8

“That was incredibly fast. An ordinary person would have to run the Giant Rat dungeon for days to reach this level.”

For an ordinary Awakener, reaching level 5 took an average of four days.

Han Siwoo had achieved it in just a few dozen minutes.

I want to finish this quickly.

He wanted to experience the Temple of Transcendence as soon as possible. He also wanted to tell his family that he had awakened.

More than anything, he wanted to experience the bond between family members—a bond he had not fully appreciated before his regression.

Now that his level had increased, he decided to hurry a little more.

Youhavediscoveredthebossmonster,GoblinChieftain.You have discovered the boss monster, Goblin Chieftain.

There he is.

On his way here, Han Siwoo had wiped out several groups of goblins.

His current level was 8. If he defeated the boss he could see in the distance, he would probably reach level 10.

That was the level required to challenge the first floor of the Temple of Transcendence.

Step.

Han Siwoo appeared before the Goblin Chieftain without making any special preparations.

The Goblin Chieftain belatedly noticed his presence, sprang up from its crudely made chair, and swung its staff.

Then it let out a booming cry of warning toward the intruder.

“Kyaaaak!”

A roar that announced the boss monster’s territory.

It was a special privilege of boss monsters: if the combined stats of an opponent were lower than those of the boss, the opponent would inevitably be inflicted with a state of paralysis.

It was a status effect that most Awakeners could not avoid, since their stats were generally lower than those of boss monsters.

But Han Siwoo was different. His Transcendent stats made the effect completely useless against him.

Han Siwoo charged straight at the roaring creature and smashed the hilt of his sword into its head.

Crack!

“Kihaak!?”

While the creature staggered from the impact of the blow to its head—

Han Siwoo clenched his molars tightly.

His foot struck the ground with tremendous force.

Boom!

The power that burst from his foot as it struck the ground traveled through his waist, then his shoulder, and finally into his hand.

His sword swung in a wide arc, delivering a full-powered blow.

Slash!

The Goblin Chieftain was cleaved diagonally in two.

The sword still had enough momentum to slam into the ground, sending fragments of stone flying in every direction.

Thud.

The Goblin Chieftain fell to the floor in two pieces.

A boss monster’s defense was higher than that of ordinary monsters, but it meant nothing against Han Siwoo.

He had distributed quite a few of the points he had accumulated while reaching level 8, and he also possessed Transcendent stats.

As a result, his current Strength was 17, or 26 when his Transcendent stats were included.

That’s the kind of stat total normally possible only at level 10 if all your points were invested in Strength.

But fighting monsters was not a game.

Therefore, he also had to allocate points to Vitality and Magic Power for casting support spells.

Considering that, his Strength alone was equivalent to that of an Awakener around level 20.

That was precisely the level recommended by the Center for fighting a Goblin Chieftain alone.

And when my other Transcendent stats are taken into account, the gap will be even greater.

Han Siwoo shook the blood from his sword and placed it in his item window.

Then he sat down and stretched out his hand toward the Goblin Chieftain’s corpse.

Whoosh!

A pale, hazy smoke began to rise from the fallen Goblin Chieftain’s body.

Soon, one by one, distinct objects began to appear within the rising mist.

They were the items dropped by the boss monster.

I should only take the things that are actually useful.

The first thing Han Siwoo acquired was proof that he had defeated the boss monster.

If he submitted that proof to the Center, they would pay him an amount corresponding to the monster’s rank.

Of course, after deducting taxes.