There was once a genius in South Korea who, after completing his training in his early twenties, received a ranking of 4th grade—a result achieved only once in the nation's history.
He chose the path of the hunter and became South Korea's top awakened being.
Without belonging to any guild, he stood alone and unmatched, collapsing countless portals—the one known as the Destroyer, Baek Mu-hak, is that very individual.
It was an unprecedented result in South Korea, and even from a global perspective, only a handful of people—barely enough to count on two hands—had ever shown initial results and growth potential like Baek Mu-hak.
Universal Eight.
That's the name given to those superhumans who reached the so-called limit of humanity: the mythical 13th grade.
And now, Soohyeok had just surpassed even Baek Mu-hak, a member of that Universal Eight.
Yet his expression remained calm.
There was hardly a flicker of emotion in his eyes.
Even the staff member—who had already been briefed about Soohyeok and prepared mentally—couldn't fully hide their shock. But they didn't forget their duties.
"Please wait just a moment. I'll send the final documents and issue your hunter license."
With an awkward smile, the employee quickly pressed a button beneath their desk.
"Understood."
Soohyeok replied while looking at his results, lost in thought.
'Hmm… it seems Earth's awakened beings are stronger than I expected.'
Soohyeok was well aware that his results were astonishing.
He knew about the Universal Eight, and their growth stories were well-known.
Currently, he had produced results that surpassed them.
But even so, all members of the Universal Eight were now 13th-grade awakeners.
'Does that mean they've reached or are close to the "Harmony Realm"?'
In terms of martial arts, Soohyeok was at the early stage of becoming a first-rate martial artist. The Hunter Association had rated him as 6th grade.
To the staff, this was a shocking result—but for Soohyeok, it was different.
His martial cultivation was still in its early stages. He couldn't yet project his internal energy outward in a visible form.
But that didn't mean Soohyeok was an ordinary first-rate martial artist.
In fact, even among first-rate martial artists, he had overwhelming skill.
Naturally, even within the same rank, strength varied.
A first-rate martial artist nearing the peak could easily take on three or four newly advanced first-rates alone.
Soohyeok didn't have enough internal energy or mastery of techniques to be called a peak-level first-rate. That's why he was still classified as early stage.
However, he possessed talents and capabilities others didn't.
Unblocked meridian paths, mind-body unification, and rare martial arts techniques—when all of this was taken into account, Soohyeok could defeat even near-peak first-rate martial artists. With a bit of luck, he could even take down peak masters—those referred to as true elites of the Hwan Continent.
Yet despite that, he received only a mid-tier result: 6th grade.
He couldn't help but conclude that Earth's awakened beings were stronger than expected.
But there was one thing Soohyeok didn't know.
The Association's initial evaluation of awakened beings was based on magical energy quality, physical development, efficiency, reflexes, and similar measurable traits. The ability to wield internal energy or advanced martial techniques couldn't be accurately assessed by Earth's technology or magical tools.
Unaware of this, Soohyeok's thoughts became more tangled.
'Let's see… didn't the Dimensional League define humanity's racial limit as mid-tier?'
Racial Potential.
With the emergence of interdimensional portals, countless races became aware of each other.
Naturally, not all races were equal.
Just as individuals within humanity differ in potential, the gap between races was even wider.
No matter how much one trained or encountered rare opportunities, there was a limit to how far one could grow.
That was Racial Potential.
And again, humanity was determined to be of mid-tier potential.
Elves were upper-mid tier, while Angels, who ruled the Heavenly Realm that led the Dimensional League, were high-tier.
'How powerful are Angels and Demons, really?'
A sense of vigilance naturally arose.
As the barriers between portals crumbled, Earth gained not only benefits but also immense threats.
That's why the Dimensional League was formed, and why Guardians and Hunters came forward.
In this context, Soohyeok found it troubling that humanity, despite being stronger than expected, was rated only mid-tier.
If they ever encountered Demons—the greatest enemy of the League—humans might be utterly powerless.
Earth was in danger.
And for Soohyeok, who had a family to protect, that was unacceptable.
'No… no. Racial Potential is just a standard made by Angels.'
Soohyeok thought of Shahar.
A mid-upper tier Elf.
She was undeniably powerful.
During his entire training period, he hadn't seen an awakened being stronger than her.
She didn't show it outwardly, but if the instructors had ever fought seriously one-on-one, Soohyeok couldn't imagine Shahar losing.
Soohyeok believed her cultivation level—based on the standards of the Hwan Continent—was at the Harmony Realm.
It was a realm reached by only a handful of the strongest martial artists in the Continent's history.
He didn't know exactly how powerful Shahar was among the Elves, but she certainly didn't seem weak.
He figured she must be one of the standouts.
What mattered most was that, in the history of the Hwan Continent, there were rare individuals who had surpassed even the Harmony Realm.
Unfortunately, Soohyeok had yet to reach that new realm.
But he was still considered the strongest—because he was at the very peak of the Harmony Realm, closest to the next level.
Just as there are wide gaps within the same rank, the difference in strength within the Harmony Realm was even more significant.
Back on the Hwan Continent, Soohyeok was confident he could handle ten early Harmony Realm experts on his own.
"On Earth, it might be possible to surpass that level."
Soohyeok was already growing stronger at a much faster pace than when he had been on the Hwan Continent.
It was only natural—he was growing based on memory and experience.
On top of that, there was the bonus called leveling up.
He could break through the wall and reach the next stage.
That, perhaps, was something even beyond the racial potential limit set by the Angel race.
"There's no need to be bound by something like racial limits."
Still, the fact that humanity was in such danger left a bitter taste in his mouth.
Now he had one more reason to gather even greater power.
***
"Your license has been issued.
You can register yourself through the bracelet and begin using it immediately."
During that time, the staff member who had been busily working turned to Soohyeok and spoke.
"Ah, let me check it."
Collecting his thoughts, Soohyeok placed the five fingers of his right hand on the silver bracelet.
The bracelet, made from a special alloy that included mithril obtained from the Dwarf race, emitted a pure white light that scanned each of Soohyeok's fingers.
Then, the spreading light briefly shone into his eyes before fading.
Beep—!
With a familiar electronic chime, a green hologram projected from the silver bracelet into the air.
It was a kind of ID—showing his name, age, awakening rank, and the official mark of the South Korean government.
The spectacle unfolded so quickly that Soohyeok let out a short sound of admiration.
"Oh… Is this magic?"
The rank bracelets distributed to awakened beings were a kind of magical artifact.
"Yes. I heard it was crafted by a Dwarf artisan and enchanted directly by an Elf."
Despite containing no mechanical components, the silver bracelet emitted a flow of qi, forming the shape of an ID certificate.
To Soohyeok, who was highly sensitive to the flow of qi, the phenomenon was particularly fascinating.
"Impressive."
Letting out another quiet word of praise, Soohyeok turned to the staff member and smiled.
"So… can I go now? Are we done?"
"Ah, just a moment. Actually…"
Soohyeok still had one more matter to attend to.
Although it wasn't something a low-level staff member could handle.
At that moment, a door at the edge of the evaluation room opened, and in walked a man in his early thirties, wearing dark sunglasses and dyed red hair.
"Hey, nice to meet you, Mr. Yang Soohyeok!"
The man opened his arms wide and walked toward Soohyeok as if to embrace him.
Startled by the sudden action, Soohyeok quickly stepped back with a frown.
"Who are you?"
"Ah, right, right. I forgot to introduce myself."
The man raised his left hand.
A bracelet with gold trim.
That alone indicated he was at least a 9th-grade awakened.
As he placed his hand on his bracelet, the same kind of ID hologram appeared that Soohyeok had just seen.
11th-grade Guardian.
Among all South Korean awakened, this man was in the top 1% in terms of power. But he held an even more prominent title.
Vice President of the Awakener Association — Oh Shinu.
"I'm that guy. Mind if we chat for a bit?"
Oh Shinu pulled down his sunglasses slightly and smiled with his eyes.
***
After entering the Vice President's office with Soohyeok, Oh Shinu gestured toward a worn-out looking sofa with a bright smile.
"Please, take a seat."
Soohyeok nodded silently and sat down.
Meanwhile, Oh Shinu hummed a tune as he picked up a remote from his desk and pressed the power button.
Doo-doo-doo-roo—doo-doo-roo—doo-doo—!
Soon, loud and upbeat music filled the spacious office.
Following the beat, Oh Shinu's humming became actual lyrics.
"I'm too hot, hot damn. Called the police and the fireman!"
It was a well-known song—"Uptown Funk" by Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars. Soohyeok, having lived on Earth for some time, was familiar with it and found his shoulders lightly bobbing to the rhythm.
Approaching an old gas heater with a bronze kettle resting on top, Oh Shinu formed a finger gun and shouted:
"Hot damn!"
A thin stream of flame shot from his fingertip, lighting the heater.
It was a strangely surreal but oddly fitting scene.
"The weather's been getting a little chilly lately, so I brought this in. I'm super sensitive to cold. Just sit back and wait—I'll whip up something amazing for you."
Still dancing slightly in front of the heater, Oh Shinu smiled again.
It was already October.
Not quite cold enough to need a heater, but if he was that sensitive to temperature, there was no arguing.
Soohyeok gave a silent nod, closed his eyes, and listened to the music while waiting for this "amazing" thing he was promised. The scent of the gas heater reminded him of his school days—he knew it wasn't good for the body, but it was nostalgic.
'He's got some odd tastes.'
An 11th-grade Guardian and the Vice President of the Awakener Association at such a young age.
That alone was impressive, but his eccentricity made him even more memorable.
Thankfully, Soohyeok's impression of him wasn't bad.