Returnee's S-Rank Management Guide

In Earnest (2)

I could feel the gazes of the Hunters filled with anticipation directed at me.

Their ranks were mostly between C-rank and D-rank.

In the Hunter society, that was neither too low nor particularly high.

Most people who had just shed their rookie status and started their careers as Hunters fell into those ranks.

'It's the B-rank Hunters who are truly treated as higher-rank Hunters.'

But most Hunters were unable to cross the wall of B-rank easily.

If one lacked talent, that wall of B-rank could only be reached after passing their mid-thirties, if at all.

From A-rank onwards, it entered the realm of talent, so for ordinary Hunters, B-rank was the highest most would consider achievable.

Even if the aging process of Awakeners was significantly slowed, reaching B-rank around age thirty meant it was difficult to aim for anything beyond that.

To overcome that, you had to raise your level and lower your physical age, but doing so required advancing to at least S-rank.

In reality, it was a realm unattainable without talent.

"This time, let me formally greet the twenty Hunters who have just become members of Unique. I am Park Jung-woo, Unique's manager."

As I said this and bowed, I saw a few Hunters clapping.

Apparently, most of them already knew who I was.

'Super Hunter K certainly has a big influence.'

Lately, I felt that more and more people recognized me when I walked down the street.

At a convenience store I briefly dropped by, one of the clerks even asked for my autograph.

Of course, I was neither a celebrity nor a Hunter, so this kind of fame was quite burdensome for me.

'It's safe to assume that almost everyone already knows I'm a returnee.'

Thinking about what Yeon-ji had told me, Upstream already knew, as did the other Big 3 management agencies, and probably even Grand Nova.

Previously, they would have reached out to me right away, but now it wasn't so easy.

That's because I had Shin Ah-yeon by my side, and now even Lee Soo-ah, so it would be hard for them to approach recklessly.

"From now on, you will go through Unique's group training program, and within two months, you'll obtain a rank one step higher than your current one."

The fact that I was a returnee was bound to be revealed one way or another someday.

Becoming a manager only accelerated the timing of that revelation.

So, since things had come to this, I needed to build an even bigger fence to make my life easier.

That meant Shin Ah-yeon and Lee Soo-ah, and Unique would also have to serve as a solid background for me.

That was also why I was trying to help Unique grow even more this time.

"W-what, raise our rank by one within a month?"

Unsurprisingly, most of the Hunters looked flustered at my words.

It was only natural, since it usually took several years to move up even a single rank.

"Yes, and not just you—you'll participate in this group training along with the existing Hunters in our Unique. For you, they'll be your seniors, so please get along."

At my words, their faces turned quizzical.

'If we're talking about the Hunters left in Unique now, there probably aren't even a few C-ranks, are there?'

They looked as if they wanted to say exactly that.

In fact, currently, there were no B-rank Hunters in Unique, only a handful of C-ranks, and most were either D-rank or Awakeners who hadn't even received a Hunter rank.

"Hwang Yeon-ji, come in."

I raised my voice loud enough for everyone to hear.

At that, the door to the practice room opened, and a small girl entered.

A girl with white hair and dark skin.

She looked to be just in her early to mid-teens, so it was only natural that most of the Awakeners were puzzled by her sudden entrance.

"Yeon-ji is a Hunter affiliated with Unique who hasn't even been issued a Hunter rank yet. She is also someone who has benefited greatly from our Unique's special group training program."

With that, I gestured for her to clear a spot in the center.

"Is there anyone who would like to spar lightly with Yeon-ji?"

"Huh? With that kid?"

"She may look like that, but she's Unique's rising star. You'd be in for a surprise if you underestimated her."

At my words, the Hunters glanced at each other.

Perhaps because I personally called her a rising prospect, they were half in doubt.

"Then I'll give it a try."

At that, a man raised his hand.

'His name is Yun Seung-hyuk, a mid-tier C-rank, I think.'

Not a bad opponent.

I nodded and signaled to Yeon-ji with my chin.

"This is seriously annoying..."

She grumbled, but without a word of protest, Yeon-ji walked to the center of the practice room.

Thanks to the other Hunters giving them ample space, it was plenty big enough for a spar.

Standing opposite Yeon-ji was Yun Seung-hyuk, staring this way.

"What format will the spar take?"

"We'll start with bare-handed sparring. Hunter Seung-hyuk, you're a warrior type, right? It shouldn't be a problem?"

"Oh, yes. That's fine for me, but..."

Seung-hyuk looked over at Yeon-ji as if he was more concerned about her.

Yeon-ji, of course, just yawned, wearing a bored expression.

"She's fine with it. Then, shall we begin if you're ready?"

"Uh, yeah. Sure."

Seung-hyuk assumed a light stance toward Yeon-ji, but then dropped his hands, seemingly thinking better of it.

Most of the other Hunters seemed to guess there was something to this, but when it came to Seung-hyuk, they probably thought he was no match for her.

An obvious assumption.

At C-rank, you could call yourself a 'pro Hunter' almost anywhere.

"The spar's started, right?"

"Uh, y-yeah, I guess?"

Seung-hyuk responded without much tension to Yeon-ji's question.

No matter how talented she was, there was a wall a C-rank Hunter shouldn't be able to overcome when facing a child who looked no older than her early teens and had only just Awakener.

Of course, that's only if that young Awakener really is just a child.

"Huh?"

Yeon-ji was suddenly right in front of Seung-hyuk's nose before anyone could react.

The moment he thought she was simply kicking off lightly, she was already in close.

Seung-hyuk looked down at Yeon-ji, flustered.

"Ugh?!"

Startled, Seung-hyuk instinctively swung his fist at Yeon-ji.

Yeon-ji easily brushed it aside with her left hand, and lightly jabbed with her right.

Literally, just a light jab.

But Yeon-ji's transformed body had far surpassed the strength of an ordinary Awakener with just that.

Thwack!!

"Guh?!"

Just like in a comic, Seung-hyuk was sent flying from Yeon-ji's punch.

Fortunately, other Awakeners caught him before he hit the ground, but even they had dazed expressions, clearly unable to believe what had just happened.

If Yun Seung-hyuk had no skill, it'd be one thing, but he was solidly a mid-level C-rank, so the shock was even greater.

I nodded as if this were all natural and spoke.

"This is the result of our Unique's special group training program. If you just follow me, all of you can achieve at least this much."

I saw motivation gradually filling the eyes of the Hunters who had been left dumbfounded.

Seeing someone as young as Yeon-ji show such skill, they were all thinking, 'Could I, too...?'

That was exactly what I was aiming for.

"R-really?"

"Of course. Like I said, the goal here is to help everyone present raise their rank by at least one within two months."

I declared confidently, and at last, the Hunters nodded their heads as if convinced.

"If we can really raise our rank by even just one in two months..."

"But no matter how you think about it, it seems impossible."

"But isn't there something to it after all, seeing that kid? And come to think of it, Lee Soo-ah's skills improved drastically all at once, too, didn't they?"

"Does Unique have some kind of secret?"

As the Hunters began to chatter excitedly, I smiled in satisfaction, and Yeon-ji, having come to stand beside me, spoke with an exasperated look.

"Con artist."

"Hey, now."

After all, a bit of good-natured hype is always necessary.

***

I may have exaggerated a bit, but if they applied themselves with enough motivation, it was true that they could each go up a rank in two months.

I had, after all, selected only those with true potential.

Those with the talent to advance, or those just on the verge of a breakthrough.

People who hadn't gotten their chance or had been stymied by bad luck or wrong choices, unable to fulfill their talent and thus stuck at a wall.

If they all went up one rank in two months, rumors about Unique would spread like wildfire.

'But as I thought, are there no prospective S-ranks?'

Since I had found Lee Soo-ah by chance, I felt a pang of disappointment.

But talent capable of reaching S-rank wouldn't just be lying around on the street.

Still, out of these twenty, there were two who could reach A-rank within three years.

That was more than enough for me.

'Oh, and Yeon-ji needs to take the Hunter exam, too.'

Since Ji Yeon-hwa could no longer work, it was necessary to register 'Yeon-ji' as a Hunter from scratch.

'The timing's the issue, though...'

Yeon-ji was, to me, the most useful asset.

Judging by ability, Shin Ah-yeon or Lee Soo-ah might be somewhat stronger.

But unlike those two, who'd become very famous, Yeon-ji was still unknown to the world.

Also, unlike the other two whom I could fully control, Yeon-ji couldn't yet unleash her full strength.

She had also never reached S-rank herself as Ji Yeon-hwa.

Being close to S-rank and actually reaching it were different matters entirely.

If you just looked at raw output, maybe she wasn't lacking, but that was just brute power; in fundamental terms, something was still missing.

As things stood, even if Yeon-ji fought an S-rank opponent, she might be able to run away but not win.

'First, she has to become a perfect S-rank on her own.'

It may have been genuinely difficult for Ji Yeon-hwa to reach true S-rank before.

Rather than talent, her physical specs at that time simply weren't that good.

But now that problem had been solved. If she could break past her own wall, S-rank would certainly be within reach.

However, she herself refused to acknowledge it.

While she covered it up with strong confidence and pride, Yeon-ji actually didn't think she was worthy of S-rank.

Unless that problem was solved, Yeon-ji couldn't become S-rank.

"I'll just have to think about it slowly for now."

Since she had willingly handed over her 'leash' to me, Yeon-ji was the most convenient and easily handled weapon I had.

If I registered her as a Hunter, it would become a big issue and likely put many restrictions in place.

That said, giving up on the explosive publicity Yeon-ji could create was also a loss.

So, I decided to think about it a bit more for now.

Whether she registered as a Hunter or not, neither choice was bad.

"What's got you thinking so hard?"

While I was lost in thought, Shin Ah-yeon approached and spoke to me.

Currently, I was out on a bustling street with Shin Ah-yeon for a movie shoot.

Today's scene was a chase sequence in the streets of Gangnam, so there were a lot of ordinary spectators around, making it quite a commotion.

"What are you doing here? Did you finish shooting your scenes already?"

"Oh, me? I wrapped up in no time. Anyway, there wasn't much for me to do today."

I could see actor Yeon Kyung-ho, playing main character Kim Do-yung, working hard in the scene a little ways away.

"The filming is progressing really fast, isn't it?"

"Yeah. That's what I've heard. They said if this keeps up, the movie might be ready for release within a few months."

"That really is fast."

Since Shin Ah-yeon was covering all sorts of special effects, I guess post-production time for the CG was cut down significantly. Still, planning for release in just a few months seemed excessively quick.

'So it's true that Tae-yeong Group is paying special attention to this film.'

Apparently, since most of the movies Tae-yeong Group invested in recently flopped, they were really banking on this one. They were spending huge amounts without hesitation, and the shoot was progressing incredibly smoothly.

'No need to worry about promotions, then.'

Whether it was due to Cha Jae-seok's persuasion or Shin Ah-yeon's increased importance—the latter's role had grown a lot.

Initially, she was just a supporting character, but now it was almost comparable to a lead.

Thanks to that, she even had a poster shoot that hadn't been planned. So she'd be useful for promotions, too.

As the first S-rank Hunter ever to appear in a film, Tae-yeong Group must have high hopes for her.

'It's all good, but...'

Still, one thing bothered me.

It was that hostile, childish gaze I had felt momentarily before.

Since then, I hadn't felt that presence again, so I had no idea who it belonged to, and that unsettled me.

"Um, Shin Ah-yeon-ssi? Would it be all right if we talked for a moment?"

At that moment, someone called out to Shin Ah-yeon.

Turning my gaze, I saw a beautiful actress smiling at us.

She was Jung Sun-hee, playing Cha Min-ah—the main heroine in 'World of Superhumans'.

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
Who's willing to bet that Jung Sun-hee's a demon?
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