Chapter 1 – Genius or Ordinary Person

“Wow, this session is truly abundant with promising candidates.”

“They say those three handled the last sudden rift incident too. No wonder.”

At the end of the murmuring examiners’ gazes were three individuals showcasing outstanding performances.

‘Pigeon Park’, a hunting ground famous for being where prospective Awakened take their exams.

Though people on the internet belittle it as just ‘Chickgeon’, the mutated pigeons, as large as mid-sized trucks, were deceptively nimble despite their dull appearance, making them tricky opponents.

It was commonplace for rookies who underestimated them as mere 1-Star Monsters to let their guard down and get taken out easily, earning the place the nickname ‘Newbie Slasher’ among Awakened.

Thus, ordinary examinees, who had only contracted with Spirits and not yet Awakened themselves, tended to show cautious movements.

However, the three promising candidates under the examiners’ watch were slaughtering the pigeons relentlessly, freely using their Awakening Skills.

《Three-Feet Sworn to Heaven》.

Zzziiing—

Park Seongcheol, who had contracted with the 6-Star Spirit of the general lineage, ‘Admiral Yi Sunsin’.

He summoned the Spirit Treasure, the Three-Foot Sword, said to be granted only by Spirits of 5-Stars and above, and spread his Aura.

Pabababat!

Moving at superhuman speed, before the pigeons that entered the domain of his Aura could even react, he was already slashing through their thick necks.

《Hidden Blade》.

Sswaek! Sswaek!

Jin Yuseong, who had revealed he contracted with an unnamed 5-Star Spirit of the assassin lineage.

He was repeatedly summoning and throwing daggers made of shadow, severing the pigeons’ lifelines.

《Lamp of Prolonged Life》.

Yu Sehee, who had contracted with the 5-Star healer lineage Spirit, Florence Nightingale.

She summoned a lamp emitting a gentle light that delayed death.

Whoosh— Kwajik!

Then, she swung the lamp like a blunt weapon, crushing the pigeons’ heads.

“Is that a healer?”

“The contracted Spirit is Nightingale, right? Think about Nightingale’s epithet.”

“‘Lady with the Lamp’?”

“Not that one. ‘Lady with the Hammer’.”

“Ah.”

The examiner in charge of Yu Sehee was stunned by the sight of a healer performing physical attacks, but at his colleague’s explanation, he too accepted the spectacle before his eyes. If it’s Nightingale, that makes sense.

But there was one strange point.

“These promising candidates are certainly impressive… but why do they look like that?”

“Right. Is there something they’re dissatisfied with?”

Despite being not only guaranteed to pass but also set for a historically high score, the three promising candidates wore expressions of something lacking.

‘Clearly, I could use my Second Awakening Skill back then! Why can’t I now?’

‘Is the problem really his absence?’

‘…It would be better to be with him from now on.’

It was because they had experienced a higher realm when they were with that man, Lee Hanseong, than they were now.

* * *

Meanwhile, the man the promising candidates were inwardly seeking was putting on a fairly good performance, though not quite at their level.

Though reliant on ambush tactics, he was hunting the pigeons one by one, steadily. If he drew aggro from multiple, he would calmly use a skill to shed the aggro, then resume Concealment and ambush.

He had no flashy Awakening Skills, but even with just that, the examiner in charge of Lee Hanseong couldn’t hide his surprise.

‘That guy only contracted last month?’

Each General Skill he possessed was at the maximum Proficiency level.

Moreover, he was showing power that transcended their Grade by synergistically activating similar-type skills simultaneously.

Since one needed Insight Type skills to become an examiner, the examiner who grasped the details clicked his tongue in amazement.

‘Insane. For General Skills to have that level of effect, he must have maxed out his Synchronization Rate. Is he in his right mind?’

It wasn’t that other Contractors were fools for maintaining their Synchronization Rate at an appropriate level.

Skills were something automatically engraved once the initial Synchronization with the Spirit was complete. Since a skill’s Proficiency was determined by the Synchronization Rate, a low rate meant the disadvantage of having to build up Proficiency, but most Contractors deliberately didn’t raise their Synchronization Rate too high.

Because blindly raising the Synchronization Rate could lead to Possession by the Spirit’s memories, causing confusion in one’s self-Identity.

Wasn’t the law that Spirit Contracts were only permitted for Adults created for this very reason?

Yet, no matter how he looked, Lee Hanseong showed no signs of such confusion.

It was as if he had taken only the advantages of a high Synchronization Rate, leaving out the disadvantages.

‘So this is what they mean by a 12-Star Vessel. At this level, he’ll pass comfortably.’

For an examiner who had heard about Lee Hanseong’s downfall, this was interesting.

Once, this man was a genius the entire nation had exalted.

After the supreme Twelve Constellations appeared in this world.

In a world where everyone was born with a Vessel of the Stars, Lee Hanseong was one of only three 12-Star Great Vessels.

Since the other two Great Vessels had already contracted with 12-Star Spirits and were soaring to success, becoming representative Awakened of the two factions dividing the world east and west, it was only natural that expectations were heaped upon Lee Hanseong, the same Great Vessel.

But on the Coming-of-Age Ceremony day, when the contract with the Spirit to inhabit the Vessel takes place.

He contracted not with the 12-Star Spirit everyone expected, but only with a 1-Star Spirit.

If it had been even a 2-Star, there would have been hope. Because from 2-Stars, Awakening Skills containing a Constellation’s Blessing are granted.

If he had only had an Awakening Skill, Lee Hanseong wouldn’t have fallen this far.

Awakening Skills were considered essential to becoming an Awakened, as they possessed power three or four levels above General Skills.

Thus, the current reality was that 1-Star Contractors without Awakening Skills were treated as ordinary.

But if he passed this time, Lee Hanseong would become the first among 1-Star Contractors to obtain an Awakened License.

‘He’ll have the Awakened License. I hope he succeeds in Awakening too, Lee Hanseong.’

Just as the examiner, feeling like he had become the Epicenter Throne blessing a first, was about to decide Lee Hanseong’s pass.

Kugugugugu!

Suddenly, the flow of energy inside Pigeon Park began to fluctuate.

A calm voice echoed in the examiners’ In-Ears.

-It’s a Promotion phenomenon.

Because the promising candidates hunted too quickly, the Power of the Stars left in the dead pigeons’ corpses was converging on a single entity.

If it absorbed all that power, a 2-Star Pigeon would be born.

It was an emergency.

-Shall we evacuate the examinees and call the Response Team?

-No, wait a moment.

The Chief Examiner let out a thoughtful hum, then continued.

-Proceed as is.

The examiners buzzed at the exceptional situation.

-But the examinees could be in danger?

-If there weren’t promising candidates who handled a Three-Star, that would be the case.

-So you intend to include up to a 2-Star Monster as part of the evaluation.

-If the examinees’ level is different, shouldn’t the exam match that?

In a sense, it was a crazy statement, but at the Chief Examiner’s words that he would take responsibility, the others also nodded.

-We’ll evacuate the ordinary examinees and have the Response Team stand by.

-Good.

Since what the Chief Examiner wanted to see was the promising candidates’ skills anyway, Lee Hanseong’s examiner moved to evacuate the examinees under his charge, but.

Taat!

Suddenly, Lee Hanseong began running towards the spot where the 2-Star Pigeon was about to be born.

-Madman! Why is that kid suddenly doing that?!

Perhaps using some skill, his running speed was such that even the examiner, a Two-Star Awakener, couldn’t catch up.

“Lee Hanseong, stop! It’s dangerous over there!”

He shouted a warning, but Lee Hanseong pretended not to hear and kept running.

-Gugugugu!

Thus, Lee Hanseong arrived at the spot where the 2-Star Pigeon was born faster than anyone.

“You! What on earth are you thinking…?”

The examiner who belatedly caught up tried to stop Lee Hanseong, but was left speechless by the ensuing spectacle.

《Monster Taming》.

Slap.

A whip of Starlight originating from Lee Hanseong struck the 2-Star Pigeon.

-Gugugugu.

The pigeon’s attitude, which had been eyeing Lee Hanseong as prey, changed drastically, showing friendliness.

“Don’t tell me… an Awakening Skill?”

It was a sight that couldn’t exist without an Awakening Skill.

‘So the rumor that Lee Hanseong also Awakened along with the promising candidates during the last Sudden Rift Incident was true.’

Swish— Thud.

Lightly bouncing, Lee Hanseong mounted the pigeon’s back.

“Sorry, this might hurt a bit.”

He hugged the pigeon’s neck, muttered something, then.

Swoosh— He raised his hand to just below the pigeon’s nape. It was the position touching the Clavicular Air Sac, where the Power of the Stars gathered in avian-type Awakened Monsters.

Uuuung—

-Gururuk…!

The 2-Star Pigeon let out an uncomfortable cry as if choking, but the examiner’s attention was drawn elsewhere.

Using his <Peek> skill, his eyes saw the Power of the Stars concentrated in the pigeon’s Clavicular Air Sac flowing into Lee Hanseong’s inner being.

‘What on earth is that…?’

The examiner couldn’t believe the situation he grasped.

The power flowing from the pigeon into Lee Hanseong mingled with one of the Spirits he had contracted with, amplifying the brightness of that star.

A brightness at the 2-Star level, surpassing that of a 1-Star Spirit.

‘Don’t tell me Lee Hanseong has figured out a way to promote a Spirit?’

To gain certainty, the examiner activated an Awakening Skill.

《Snooping》.

An Awakening Skill that peeks at the System Message the target sees.

[The Constellation of ■■ blocks the unauthorized access attempt!]

But what appeared before his eyes was not Lee Hanseong’s System Message.

It was a message that an unnamed Constellation had blocked the Snooping.

A shiver ran down the examiner’s spine. It was notorious that meddling in matters involving Constellations never ended well.

Zzizzizizi-!

Sure enough, noise suddenly began to interfere with the examiner’s mind.

‘…Huh? What was I trying to see?’

His memory of the spectacle he had just witnessed was erased.

As the examiner was confused by the blank in his memory.

Lee Hanseong was reading the System Message the examiner couldn’t peek at.

[Conditions met. The 1-Star Spirit ‘Pheidippides’ is promoted to 2-Star.]

[New General Skills <Lung Capacity Enhancement>, <???> are added.]

[The Vocation Awakening Skill 《Shrinking Earth》 changes to a General Awakening Skill.]

[The Sun Constellation and other stars bless the Spirit’s promotion.]

It was a message filled with secrets unknown at this time, such as Spirit Promotion and Vocation Awakening Skills.

* * *

“Ah, what. We’re late.”

“Oh! Lee Hanseong. So you were here!”

“The 2-Star Monster? Did you handle it first? I don’t see a corpse though.”

The promising candidates who arrived belatedly found Lee Hanseong and made happy expressions.

Though they were talking about the 2-Star Pigeon, their interest was solely focused on Lee Hanseong.

“Well, something like that. But did you guys score a lot of points?”

“Of course. Who do you think I am? The Contractor of Chungmugong. What about you? You passed, right?”

“As for me, passing is pretty much confirmed.”

“Then, as we talked about last time, how about forming a party together from now on?”

As Park Seongcheol extended the party proposal, Jin Yuseong cut in before he could finish.

“Hey, Hanseong promised to party with me?”

“The optimal party size is two to five anyway. You can join too.”

“That party. Let me in too.”

Following Jin Yuseong, even Yu Sehee.

All the promising candidates of this session wanted to be with Lee Hanseong.

“What about your guilds? If you join a guild, you party with their people, right?”

“Hanseong-ah. What’s the reason we’re going to guilds?”

When Lee Hanseong mentioned the problem inherent in their party proposal, Park Seongcheol asked back.

“There are many reasons. Because the support system, both financially and technically, is well-established.”

“Right. Ultimately, it’s for growth. But I think I can grow faster being with you than when I join a guild.”

“Is that so?”

“Anyway, the most important thing, the patronage of a Constellation, can be received even without necessarily joining a guild, right? These guys probably think the same?”

As Park Seongcheol sought agreement from Jin Yuseong and Yu Sehee beside him, the two nodded.

“Agreed.”

“Seongcheol is right.”

At the three promising candidates’ reaction, Lee Hanseong asked again.

“Really, you won’t join guilds? Because of me?”

“Well, if I could join the same guild as you, that would be best… but then I don’t think these guys would stay still.”

“Of course. If you try to monopolize Hanseong alone, it’s you die, I die.”

Normally, Awakened who contract with Spirits join the guild that serves the Constellation associated with the highest-ranking Spirit they contracted with.

Park Seongcheol, who contracted with Chungmugong blessed by the Sun Constellation, would join the Sun Guild.

Jin Yuseong, who contracted with an assassin Spirit blessed by the Heaven-Slaying Star Constellation, would join the Heavenly Slaughter Guild.

Yu Sehee, who contracted with Nightingale blessed by the Brilliance Constellation, would join the Shining Guild, and so on.

However, the Spirits Lee Hanseong contracted were all 1-Star, and they all had received blessings from different Constellations, so there was no particular guild making him an offer.

If he had to choose, since Pheidippides, who was promoted to 2-Star this time, was a Spirit aligned with the Sun Constellation, he could join the Sun Guild, but.

Lee Hanseong had no such intention.

‘Don’t worry. Where would I go, leaving you, Lord of the Throne?’

[The Nameless Constellation is reassured by your words.]

He had already chosen a Constellation other than the Twelve Constellations.

In the first place, the very situation where the promising candidates clung to Lee Hanseong so much was thanks to his Constellation.

If his Constellation hadn’t sent him back through Regression from the future, the present him wouldn’t exist.