My team and I were led to an interrogation room – one that looked just like those rooms where detectives question suspects in movies.

“Sora, are you alright?”

“Do you need to lie down?”

My teammates immediately started fussing over me with genuine concern. 

These kids really are kind. 

I know from experience that when an one dies of cancer, adults don’t even give a simple ‘Rest in peace.’ 

Yet these kids, who’d only met me today, were showing real care.

“Maybe we can push some chairs together to make a bed?”

“If you’re cold, you can use my jacket as a blanket…”

“And my scarf can be your pillow!”

As they huddled around, competing to take care of me, the door suddenly opened and a man walked in.

“Are you the students from Team 2?”

He had shoulder-length blonde hair, emerald-green eyes, a slight build, and an aristocratic air about him. 

Wow, he looked exactly like his illustration. 

There he was – my seventh favorite character!

“I’m Ha Sunwoo, Vice Guild Master of the Phoenix Guild. Please, have a seat.”

“Oh!”

“Hello!”

“Hello, sir!”

My teammates were flustered by the sudden appearance of such a high-ranking figure. 

Ha Sunwoo was a prodigy who’d become Vice Guild Master of the Phoenix Guild at just 23. 

In other words, a genius.

While the <Doomed Academy> featured many geniuses, Ha Sunwoo was special. 

He was a rare – an information-type ability user. 

Though the [Awakened Privacy Protection Act] prevented disclosure of his powers, as a reader, I knew them well. 

His primary ability was Lie Detection. 

He also possessed abilities similar to psychometry – seeing past scenes by touching objects – along with hypnotic abilities and language tracking skills. 

He was practically a one-man intelligence agency, like combining the CIA, CSI, FBI, and MI6 into a single person. 

Ha Sunwoo hadn’t just saved the Phoenix Guild from bankruptcy – he’d transformed it into one of the Big Four guilds. 

Yet even someone this powerful couldn’t escape his brutal fate in <Doomed Academy.>

Midway through the novel, Ha Sunwoo uncovers a series of suspicious incidents and eventually discovers the dark organization behind everything. 

And what happens when a side character starts digging into the villain’s secrets in a ruthless novel? 

They get killed. 

The villains cast an illusion making him appear as a monster, and in a cruel twist of fate, he’s killed by the person he loves most. 

But here he was, alive and well, standing right in front of me.

“Could you tell me what happened today?”

“…”

“…”

No one spoke. 

Every face in the room was pale. 

Today’s events had been traumatic enough to leave lasting scars.

“I’m so glad none of you were hurt,” Ha Sunwoo said with a gentle smile. 

His expression radiated comfort.

Just then, I felt something cold on the back of my neck. 

I glanced around, but none of my teammates seemed to notice. 

The strange sensation quickly faded, replaced by a warm feeling of ease.

‘He must have used one of his abilities,’ I thought.

Now that I recalled, Ha Sunwoo had a rapport-building skill. 

He must have used it, because suddenly he felt like an old friend to everyone in the room. 

Under the influence of his ability, my teammates began speaking freely.

“The ground started shaking, like an earthquake…”

“We couldn’t hear the goblins anymore…”

They recounted everything: the trembling ground, the malfunctioning spinning goblin mechanism, the broken goblin sounds, Ham Sobong’s combat, Sora and Juwan outside the magic circle, my injuries, Juwan’s awakening, and my awakening. 

They covered all the details, so I didn’t need to add anything.

“Thank you for sharing, even though it must have been difficult. This has been very helpful.”

“Oh, it’s nothing!”

“Just doing what we should!”

Ha Sunwoo looked each of them in the eye, offering another warm, gracious smile.

“Until an official announcement is made, please don’t discuss this with anyone outside. Speculation could cause unnecessary panic.”

“O-Of course!”

“We promise!”

“We won’t tell anyone!”

I nodded vigorously too, but then felt another strange sensation around my chest, like invisible handcuffs clicking into place.

‘Another ability?’

This had to be his language-tracking skill. 

He’d be alerted the moment any of us mentioned anything about the incident.

“Thank you. You can leave the rest to us and go home to rest.”

An order to go home! 

Finally, this endless day was coming to a close. 

Feeling like I was getting off early, I hummed a tune in my head as I stood up, only to be stopped by Ha Sunwoo’s cool voice.

“Yeon Sora, correct? Would you mind staying behind?”

Me? 

I looked up in surprise, and Ha Sunwoo gave me a kind smile.

“We have some paperwork to complete. The Phoenix Guild holds disposal rights for any creatures killed within the test grounds.”

Ah, right—I had killed a goblin, hadn’t I? 

In this world, monster corpses were valuable resources. 

Every drop of blood, every bone, every hair could be used.

“It’s just a standard contract signature; it won’t take long. The rest of you can wait outside.”

“We’ll be right outside! Don’t take too long!”

My teammates filed out. 

Juwan kept looking back at me, but Hyojun grabbed him by the collar and pulled him away.

# 

“Your kills were easy to identify, as you were the only one using fire magic at the scene. Quite an impressive display, I might add.”

“Thank you.”

“Just to be clear, payment only applies to monsters from the outbreak. The test goblins are guild property. Understood?”

“Yes.”

“Here.”

My eyes nearly bulged when I saw the contract Ha Sunwoo handed me. 

Just how many zeros were in that number?

“Five hundred thousand coins per goblin. If we find any mana stones during dissection, you’ll receive additional compensation…”

I had eliminated 310 goblins, totaling 150 million coins. 

I almost yelled “robbery!” when I saw the 45% fee, but even after deductions, I’d still get 85.23 million coins.

“Sign here, and I’ll process the transfer.”

“Yes, sir!”

I signed quickly, and Ha Sunwoo’s gaze fell to my wrist.

“You don’t have a device yet?”

A device is a hunter’s specialized smartwatch. 

Naturally, I didn’t have one since I’d just awakened today.

“One moment, please.”

Ha Sunwoo made a call, and soon several people in black suits entered carrying various items. 

A gold box caught my eye. 

When Ha Sunwoo opened it, he revealed a watch that screamed luxury. 

He held it out to me.

“This is a new device from our guild’s subsidiary, scheduled for next quarter’s release. Consider it a gift.”

“For me?”

“It might be excessive for a student, but on the guild’s behalf…”

“Thank you.”

I eagerly accepted the gift, not adding anything else. 

I noticed Ha Sunwoo hesitate slightly.

“Haha. Take it, don’t feel burdened.”

Should I have pretended to refuse? 

No way – what if he actually took it back? 

Besides, refusing gifts is rude.

“First time using a device?”

“Yes.”

“Need help registering? Going through the Hunter Association can be tedious.”

“Yes, please.”

The registration was just as complicated as I’d heard. 

DNA sample via mouth swab, all ten fingerprints scanned, retina scan – the works.

“All set. Try it on.”

Once everything was complete, I strapped the watch to my wrist.

Vrrrrr!

A soft hum emanated as the band automatically adjusted to fit perfectly. 

It felt weightless, like a natural extension of my skin.

“The band is kraken leather, the glass is unicorn horn – extremely durable. It runs HunterMap OS 11.0 with 0.03-second response time. Ten square meters of inventory space. You’re currently the only owner in South Korea.”

Ha Sunwoo listed the specs with an oddly serious expression. 

Why did he look so stern?

‘Could it be…’

I moved to touch my face, only to find myself wearing a smug grin. 

I probably looked like I was thinking, ‘Is this all you can offer, mortal?’

‘Well… this is awkward.’

I tried forcing a more modest expression, but given how excited I was, I wasn’t sure it worked. 

Rare item get! Lucky me! Not even Junhwi had this!

“Since it’s your first time, say ‘Activate Device.’ Voice commands work best during user recognition.”

“Activate Device.”

Following his instructions, a translucent window appeared before me. 

It resembled a system window but with different colors and fonts. 

System windows are blue; this one was yellow.

[User Information]

Name: Sora Yeon (Lvl. 1)

Age: 17  

[User Menu]

▷ Hunter Communications  

▷ Hunter Finance  

▷ Hunter Market  

▷ Inventory  

Amazing! Just as I was about to close my gaping mouth, another window popped up.

[(Phoenix Guild) requests to transfer funds. Accept? Y/N]

“We handle payments immediately. Just hit accept.”

Same-day payment! 

No wonder the Phoenix Guild rose to the top. 

I tapped ‘Accept,’ and a notification instantly appeared.

[(Phoenix Guild) deposited 85,230,000 coins. Account balance: 85,230,000 coins.]

No matter how I looked at it, seeing that many zeros felt unreal.

“All payments are in coins. You can use them in the Hunter Market or exchange them for cash at exchange offices. Rates vary daily based on monster values.”

Coins are virtual currency. 

Hunters use them primarily for market transactions, and since they’re instantly convertible to cash, they’re essentially real money.

“Any additional earnings from mana stones will be transferred when available.”

“Thank you!”

The day’s events flashed through my mind like a wild movie reel: being thrown into mortal danger upon awakening, nearly losing my arm to a goblin, seeing Juwan’s injured face, awakening from pure rage, frantically saving my teammates, getting oddly questioned despite saving everyone, enduring goblin stench, and finally being interrogated by my favorite character.

‘Maybe being a “transmigrator” isn’t so bad?’

I had to admit, transmigrator privileges had their perks. 

First day: success! 

Well done, Seojoo-young! 

Or rather, well done, Yeon Sora!

“I’m glad you’re pleased.”

“Yes, thank you!”

Ha Sunwoo is such a great guy! 

He absolutely deserved his place in my top seven! 

While I was mentally singing his praises, he flashed that signature healing smile of his.

“Anything else you’d like to know?”

“No, I think I’m all set.”

“Then, if you don’t mind, I have one question.”

I nodded, feeling light as air. 

But suddenly, the atmosphere shifted. 

Ha Sunwoo maintained his smile, but the mood turned serious. 

His calm voice cut through the silence.

“I heard you suddenly left the magic circle. Could you tell me why?”