“Gyah!!! Hot!”

Jo Seunghyun tumbled across the floor from the Magma Golem’s swipe. The ground beneath him *CRUNCHED* and froze solid on contact.

“Hah… hah…”

Jo Seunghyun panted, gripping his sword’s hilt.

Cold crept from the hilt up the blade.

Frigid mist bloomed around Jo Seunghyun.

“Again!”

He pushed off the ground with all his might and charged at the Golem.

*GRRRRIND—*

The Magma Golem swung its massive arm, dragging its colossal body.

*FWOOSH—*

The air warped from the tremendous heat, aimed straight at Jo Seunghyun.

*CLANG!!*

The moment the Golem’s arm and Jo Seunghyun’s blade collided —

*HSSSSSS—*

A massive cloud of steam filled the air around them.

*CLANG! HSSSSSS—*

*CLANG! HSSSS—*

Jo Seunghyun and the Magma Golem clashed over thirty times.

An endless string of collisions.

The match seemed decided in an instant. The Magma Golem’s heat began to die down.

‘I’ve won!’

Jo Seunghyun was certain of victory.

His Trait, Freezing Crystallization.

The moment he used it, the cold was so intense it felt like gambling with his life.

But not now. The enemy before him kept the temperature just right.

And so, the instant he took the test, Seunghyun had thought:

‘This is a total freebie.’

The notoriously difficult instructor’s exam, this easy?

Without hesitation, Seunghyun slipped through the gaps in the golem’s fading heat.

The ferocious flames were gone, and the golem’s neck was fully exposed.

‘It’s over!’

Seunghyun’s eyes gleamed with certainty as he swung his sword with all his might.

*Whoosh* — The blade carved a vicious arc, and in the instant it tapped the golem’s solid neck—

*Squelch!*

A vile sensation shot up through his fingertips.

“Huh?!”

The golem’s body, which he’d thought was rock-hard, was as soft as jelly.

Unsurprisingly, the blade didn’t cut through its flesh. The elasticity sent it bouncing back with a *thud!*

The moment his all-or-nothing strike rebounded, Seunghyun’s stance shattered.

The golem didn’t miss the opening.

*Whoosh* — *Whoosh* —

It drove a fist blazing with intense heat into Seunghyun’s body.

*Fssssshh-*

In that instant, thick steam billowed, and with a deafening *BOOM CRASH-* Seunghyun’s body plowed across the hard ground before crashing to a halt.

“Haaaah… haaah…”

Seunghyun barely lifted his upper body to look at the golem.

*Whoosh-*

The heat he thought had died down on the golem’s body was now blazing even more fiercely.

‘Guess it’s never easy.’

But Seunghyun didn’t give up.

Instead, he curled his lips into a grin, and with a *crackle*, he poured his Trait into every fiber of his being before charging at the golem once more.

As Seunghyun’s test dragged on like that—

*Whistle-* *Clang!*

“The hell… How are we supposed to catch this thing?!”

“No, just give us monsters instead!”

Seunghyun wasn’t the only one taking the test.

A man cursed while pounding a massive stone; a woman swore as she slashed at water.

Everyone was racking their brains, but the one facing the toughest test of them all was none other than Kang Seongbin.

‘Damn it…’

Gripping his massive greatsword, Seongbin barely dragged himself upright.

*Drip, drip-*

Thick blood trickled from Seongbin’s body, staining the ground.

A deep wound from shoulder to hip, gaping open. His top armor had long since lost its luster and was practically useless.

A dizzying faintness washed over him, blurring his vision.

“Haaah… haaah…”

Unlike Seongbin, who looked half-dead,

“Come on, put some effort into it.”

Biske, who had reduced Seongbin to this state, wasn’t even breathing hard.

He stroked his whiskers at leisure, a smirk curling at the corners of his mouth.

‘Goddamn it!’

Kang Seongbin ground his teeth as he stared at Biske.

A body barely over a meter tall. Built like a raccoon, but stronger than most A-rank boss monsters.

‘This trial is absolute bullshit.’

Kang Seongbin wiped the blood off his cheek, recalling the trial Biske had given him.

-Satisfy me without using your Trait.

That was the content of Biske’s trial for Kang Seongbin.

A simple test—no need to win, just earn recognition.

But the moment he accepted the trial, Seongbin’s brow had furrowed.

And the reason was the trial’s very nature.

Every instructor’s test for a Player had something in common.

-Weakness.

Namely, they targeted the examinee’s weakness.

For a Player lacking Mana, a trial demanding heavy Mana consumption.

For one short on Vitality, a physical test.

That was why Kang Seongbin felt foul.

What Biske demanded was a restriction on his Trait.

In other words, that meant everything except his Trait was his weakness.

‘Fuck!’

Kang Seongbin grit his teeth and gripped his massive greatsword tight.

He’d held a sword since before kindergarten. He’d staked everything, worked himself to the bone to surpass his father.

And now everything except his Trait was a weakness?

‘Bullshit.’

The more he thought, the more rage flooded in.

“Hoooh…”

But getting worked up would do no good.

He’d learned from that bastard that if it came down to raw instinct alone, it was the worst possible path.

Kang Seongbin steadied his breathing, spread his legs wide, and gripped his greatsword.

Thud— Kang Seongbin threw himself at Biske with all his might.

‘I’ve got the upper hand in strength!’

He’d built a strategy on all the data he’d gathered so far.

His first attempt was a brawl leveraging his Strength.

But with one step from Biske, Seongbin was sent tumbling across the floor.

‘Too fast. I’ll tie up his legs first.’

His second attempt was a clearing method that restricted the instructor’s mobility.

Swish—

It still ended in failure.

‘Block his vision.’

Swish—

‘Drop the weapon and rush him.’

Swish—

Hundreds of attempts.

He’d tried every trick he could think of, but sadly, not a single one had even grazed Biske’s fur.

“Haaah… haaah…”

Ding-

[HP is below 10%.]

(Warning! Beware of death!!!)

Kang Seongbin winced at the accumulated wounds. Tremors started in his hands and spread down to his legs.

Even with his physical recovery ability, the continuous damage weighed heavily on his mind.

But stopping never crossed Seongbin’s mind.

“Uwaah!!!”

He simply threw himself in with all he had.

Once again, hundreds, thousands of exchanges followed.

Kang Seongbin grit his teeth and swung the greatsword in a horizontal arc.

He couldn’t even count which attempt this was.

There was only one thought in his head.

‘I’ll win!’

I’ll win! I’ll win no matter what!

He had done everything his mind could conceive. All that remained was the body in motion.

Kang Seongbin swung the greatsword again—the same blade he had swung thousands upon thousands of times.

But something was different.

Maybe it was because he had emptied his thoughts.

Time seemed to slow, as if frozen. He felt the hand gripping the hilt and the sword become one.

Felt that sensation, and swung the greatsword without hesitation.

At that moment, a System chime rang in his ears.

Ding—

[The rank of Intermediate Swordsmanship has increased by one level!!!]

[You have learned Advanced Swordsmanship!!!]

The instant the welcome notification ended,

—Shiiing. Thwack.—

The greatsword had already cut through space.

An arc so fast even he hadn’t perceived it.

Kang Seongbin felt that he had cut something.

“Hahh… hahh…”

He gasped for breath and looked at the enemy before him.

‘…’

Kang Seongbin frowned at the sight.

He was certain he had cut something, yet nothing had been cut.

Biske was still leisurely stroking his whiskers beside the greatsword.

‘Damn it.’

A doubt rose in his mind.

‘Was it really… all just a crutch?’

Had he only made it this far because of his Trait? The suspicion crept in.

Just as defeat was about to wash over Kang Seongbin’s heart once more,

“Pass.”

***

Thud.

A single whisker fell to the ground at Biske’s feet.

Biske looked at the whisker and curled his lips into a grin.

‘Not bad.’

A brat who hadn’t even finished a Scenario had managed to wound him.

Biske found Kang Seongbin interesting.

But Kang Seongbin didn’t understand.

‘Pass…?’

His final attack hadn’t even touched Biske’s body.

And yet, out of nowhere, ‘pass.’ He wanted to challenge him again.

He was sure that if he challenged him again, he could wipe that smug look off Biske’s face.

But since the instructor had declared him pass, there was no reason to keep making a foolish challenge.

‘Damn it…’

It felt terrible, but Kang Seongbin put his sword into his Inventory.

All that remained was whether that damned raccoon would give him a proper Job.

Still grimacing from the pain lingering in his body, Kang Seongbin waited for the Job-change Quest.

And sure enough.

Biske, looking satisfied, lifted the corners of his mouth with a sly grin as he looked up at Kang Seongbin.

“That was fun. If a punk like you has shown up, it means this place doesn’t have much time left, I suppose.”

He spat out a cryptic remark, then snapped his fingers with a crack!

It was the moment the Job he had so desperately wanted would be granted.

Ding—

[Please select a Job-change Quest.]

(Caution! Selection cannot be undone.)

-[The Lonely Journey.] – Normal

-[The Arduous Journey.] – Hidden – [The Impossible Journey.] – Special

-[Abandon Job Change.]

Kang Seongbin studied the options, a chilling smile curling across his face.

‘Interesting.’

The trial itself had been dogshit, but the jobs on offer? Satisfying.

The Hidden job he’d wanted—the one he’d been chasing—was right there.

But Seongbin’s gaze fixed on something else.

‘Special…’

Ten-plus years at the academy, and he’d never once seen Special listed as a quest option.

And that told him everything.

The System window that had appeared the moment he entered this field.

[Tower of Job Change Update.]

This—right now—was connected to it.

Seongbin pulled the update notes from memory.

[Update Content]

– 180 new jobs added.

– 10 new Hidden jobs added.

– 2 new Legend jobs added.

New jobs. That news alone would have the outside world buzzing.

But there was a core to this update.

‘Legend jobs.’

The tier above Hidden—the highest classification ever known.

‘It’s connected.’

Seongbin was certain of it now.

The ‘Special’ quest before him? It was tied to the Legend jobs.

Thump—thump—

His heart—a muscle that rarely bothered to race—hammered against his ribs.

Decision made. Without a second’s hesitation, Seongbin made his choice.

Ding-

[Player Kang Seongbin has made a selection.]

[An impossible journey awaits you.]

The instant the choice was locked.

Whoosh-

Kang Seongbin’s form dissolved from the field.

Biske watched the empty space where the player had stood, and smiled, intrigued.

‘Of all things, he had to pick that one.’

Amused by Seongbin’s gamble, Biske stroked his furry hand across his whiskers.

***

“Pass.”

“Hell yes!!!! Thank you!”

“Pass.”

“Hell yeah! Come on! Give me a Hidden job! Ah, shit… Well, not bad.”

As the hours crawled by, player after player winked out of the melee-job field.

About six hours in.

Only Jo Seunghyun and Mimic remained.

“Hah—aah.”

Biske sat down on the ground and yawned wide, wiping a stray tear from his eye as he stared straight ahead.

Whoosh—

A Magma Golem, radiating blistering heat.

“Aaaagh!!!”

Seunghyun charged with a guttural yell.

The moment he and the Golem collided.

Fsssssssh—

A fresh wave of steam flooded the arena.

“Gaaahk!!!”

Seunghyun went tumbling across the ground, just like every other time.

How many identical beatdowns had this guy taken?

‘His tenacity’s fucking impressive.’

Biske watched Seunghyun, then glanced at the window floating before his own eyes.

[Measuring…]

Still measuring, after over six hours. This batch really did have some interesting characters.

Biske settled in to wait for Seunghyun’s trial to finish, when—

“Hah—aah.”

Mimic rubbed her eyes, rubbing at them again.

‘Where am I…?’

Mimic rubbed her eyes, squinting as she looked around.

A massive circular dome. The bustling noise around her had faded into silence.

But that was the moment.

Whoosh—intense flames crashed against a sharp, cold chill, and—

Hiss—

A thick wave of steam swept over Mimic’s entire body.

“Woah!”

Mimic tumbled across the floor from the blast of steam.

Was it from the sudden shock?

“Ah!”

Mimic realized why she was in this state.

She’d been diligently practicing her Trait as Master had ordered—and then fallen asleep.

‘How did I do it?’

Unaware that she’d passed out from overexerting her Mana, Mimic tried the skill again.

She plopped down on the spot and spread her palms.

That thing Master kept talking about—Mana.

At first, she couldn’t understand what it meant, but not anymore.

Hum—

A brilliant sphere of light rose above Mimic’s small hand.

It was a skill she’d learned from a F-rank Catalog she’d bought from Jo Seunghyun.

[Light Sphere]

Rank: F

Type: Active

MP Cost: 5

Action: Spread your palm.

Effect: Creates a sphere of light that illuminates the surroundings.

As befits an F-rank skill, it was a useless piece of junk that did nothing but emit light.

But to Mimic, it was special.

‘So this is it.’

The intense light sphere reflected in Mimic’s transparent pupils—and she could see it.

Fizz—

The flow of Mana circulating around the sphere. That same flow coursed not just through the sphere, but through her entire body.

And because of that, Mimic suddenly understood everything Ha Gangwoo had explained.

Whoosh—

The light sphere in Mimic’s hand transformed into a blazing orb of fire.

Ding-

[You generate Corrupted Flame.]

It was Mimic’s Trait—Corrupted Flame.

Mimic looked at the sphere and bared her teeth in a grin.

“This is fun!”

She wanted to run and tell Ha Gangwoo about her success right away.

Because the reward he’d promised for succeeding was pretty big.

But there was one last mission Ha Gangwoo had left her.

“-Once you succeed with the Trait…”

Just as Mimic recalled the final mission Ha Gangwoo had given her—

“Aren’t you taking the test?”

Biske approached Mimic and spoke to her.

Mimic tilted her head, looking at Biske.

‘Test?’

A formula ran through Mimic’s mind.

Take a test from Mungmung → Test: Fight something.

Fight → Sparring.

Sparring → Fun.

Finishing the formula, Mimic curled her lips into a grin and leaped to her feet.

“Yeah! I wanna!”

Biske looked at Mimic and felt a sudden doubt.

‘…’

In the twenty years he’d been here, he’d never seen a child before.

But even if she was a brat, since she’d come to this place, she had to be a Player.

Yet she showed no interest in the test or even in getting a job. No matter how he thought about it, it was strange.

‘Maybe it’s because she’s a kid.’

Biske forced himself to accept it, and activated the job-change system toward Mimic.

Ding—

[Beginning assessment of the target’s aptitude…]

[Searching for an appropriate mission.]

The system started without fail. Phrases he’d seen thousands, tens of thousands of times reflected in his pupils.

But then—

Ding—

A system window rose before Biske. He swallowed dryly as he looked at it.

‘What the hell is this…’

[No suitable mission found.]

[Aptitude assessment of the target complete.]

In nearly two hundred years of living trapped within the System, this was the first time he’d seen such a phenomenon.

‘Can’t be found?’

The system he’d just activated had the function of finding a player’s weakness.

It finds a player’s weakness, grants a mission that touches that weakness. And then the System analyzes the player.

The analysis result splits into three categories.

—Give Up.

—Pass.

—Growth.

For Kang Seongbin’s case, a Top-Grade job through Growth. Most players get Give Up and a Low-Grade job.

Weaknesses aren’t things you can overcome so easily, after all.

‘…’

But this case was a first.

No suitable mission found. That could only mean one thing.

Broke into a cold sweat without realizing it, and looked toward Mimic.

The little girl, having no idea what had just happened to her, grinned, baring her teeth, and raised her short dagger.

Biske met that gaze and lowered himself to her level.

The reason the System couldn’t find a mission. The reason it gave a Pass. That was simply—

‘No weakness.’

That brat had no weaknesses.

So Biske slowly opened his mouth toward Mimic.

“You pass.”

Right at that moment—

Ding—

Four options rose before Mimic.