"Class is over. About the excursion you are going for, tell your parents about it when you get home."
A female teacher said to the students who were busy preparing to go home.
"Everyone hears me, right?"
A teenage male student casually rose his hand to ask question.
"What's your question, Jinhu?"the teacher asked him, packing her notes as well.
The student firstly glimpsed sarcastically at the back, then said, "You asked us to tell our parents about the excursion. But how will Lee Seung go about it? He doesn't have anyone waiting for him at home."
All the other class members burst into laughter except one who's lacing his shoe.
"Kang Jinhu! I have warned you several times to stop picking on Lee Seung," the teacher scolded him. "Meet me in my office in five minutes."
The female teacher then exited the class.
Kang Jinhu stepped over to the male student who was still lacing his shoe, and kicked him off his chair.
Rattle..
The male student didn't even protest against being kicked to the floor. He knew he was powerless among his mates and he had learnt to survive just by keeping silent about it.
Jinhu dragged him up by his collars and glared at him. He groaned, "You son of a bitch, I am getting penalty points because of you. It's high time all the teachers knew you amount to nothing and stop respecting you for your brilliance."
"Kang Jinhu!"the female teacher's voice strictly called.
Another male student wearing spectacles lightly pulled Jinhu's hand off the other one, and said, "The teacher is watching, Jinhu. Let go of him for now."
He finally let go of him and stormed towards the door, where the teacher was standing.
"Wait for me in my office," the teacher said, as Jinhu walked past her. She said loudly, "You should go home now, Lee Seung. It's closing time already."
Lee Seung, the student being choked by Jinhu, took his backpack and walked towards the door while keeping his face down. That's how he does everyday because most of his classmates ever sees him without picking on him.
Despite being the top student, he was often picked on due to his lifestyle. As an orphan living alone and working part-time, he was markedly different from his peers. Although the students at his school were not from wealthy families, they still created social hierarchies. While not everyone despised him, most were indifferent, and since he rarely interacted with others, he was like an air in the school. His academic excellence did nothing to improve his social standing.
Among those who targeted him, Kang Jinhu was the most relentless.
Soon as he got out of the classroom, the teacher walked him down the hallway.
As they walked side by side down the hallway, the teacher wrapped her arms at the front and asked him.
"Lee Seung. Can I ask you a quick question?"
With his sparkling brown eyes, Lee Seung glanced at her. He put his answer on hold for a moment because it had been long he stood so close with someone to the extent of conversing.
"Yes, Miss Kim."
"Will you attend the excursion?"
"I... don't think so,"he replied. "Why do you ask?"
"The excursion is the last for you final year students and it's important, but it's okay if you can't make it there. I personally know how hard you strive alone," she said. She rubbed his thin muscle caressingly, "It must have been hard on you."
Lee Seung smiled slightly, and slightly bowed at her. He was the shy type who hated having a long conversation with someone.
"Bye. Get home safe."
* * *
Lee Seung dug his hand into his pocket and brought out the key on reaching his apartment.
The apartment was an isolated two-storey building lent to him to live in by a generous old man that lived in the neighborhood.
Lee Seung stayed upstairs because it was a little manageable than the other one.
He entered the apartment and dropped his bag on the white sofa by the door. The interior was a cozy type, consisting of a bed and table holding a monitor and headset.
Lee Seung sat infront of the monitor and turned it on, then opened his browser.
"What's that website address again?" He stared at the wall and raised his eyebrows when he remembered.
He inputted the address and entered the website.
"To become an awakened, make sure you've reached a minimum age of sixteen years. Then visit the government provided centre in Seoul. No fee is required for the process so don't pay any amount to anybody," he carefully examined the page.
It was his dream to get awakened but then, what had kept him on his toes was the minimum age requirement. Finally, he just clocked sixteen and he knew more than anyone not to hesitate anymore.
He was most happy at the fact that the process was free.
Becoming an awakened means possessing extraordinary abilities and becoming a superhuman. It comes with different opportunities like becoming a hunter, working as bodyguard for high-ups, or directly working for the government.
For Lee Seung, he wanted to become an awakened for the purpose of working as a bodyguard.
He mumbled while offloading his textbooks and putting in a fold of cloth and lots of goodies.
"I have to feed myself and get a new house because the government has sent an evacuation warning. I have two weeks to get a new apartment before this gets demolished. I'll need money for rent, so I have to be fast about becoming awakened."
He changed his cloth and back his bag.
Lee Seung exited the house and locked the door, then walked down the street.
An old man wearing an apron and spectacles called him from a shop named FAST BITE.
"Lee Seung!"
He entered the shop and greeted, "Hello, Mr. Song."
"Aigoo, where are you going by this time? I believe you just got back from school."
"I have something to do around this area. The journey will take me a few hours though."
"Go get yourself some cookies. It's no good to go around on an empty stomach."
Lee Seung went to the racks to get some doughnuts. Just at the moment, six customers patronised Mr. Song.
"Welcome, feel free to buy yourself anything," Mr. Song said in an hospitable manner.
"See you, Mr. Song."
"Take care."
Few minutes later, Lee Seung got out of a taxi which arrived at a big company.
It was a skyscraper awakening company provided by the government of South Korea, with the perspective of producing more metahumans to counter the threats.
"So hundreds of people are also interested in either of the three purposes," Lee Seung said on seeing many people Infront of the company.
He pulled his backpack and walked forward. However, there was something about those people he saw — they were offering something like a business card to people coming out of the company.
'Oh, the ones coming out of the company are the awakened and the other guys are different Hunter Guild managers. But how do they know for sure everyone that comes out is awakened? Is it even possible to see someone who can't get awakened? Probably no.'
Lee Seung ventured into the company and he saw very many varieties of people.
"I don't even know where to go," he mumbled and on turning to his right, a black-coated lady approached him and asked if he wanted to go through the test.
He simply replied and was taken upstairs, where he entered a room.
The room contained a big machine about five metres tall, having platform that resembled that of a measuring scale.
"Please drop your backpack in that open tube and stand on this platform," a man, wearing a lab coat, and sitting near the machine told him.
Lee Seung did as he was told to do. The man then went to the front of the machine and pressed some sets of buttons.
Beep....beep.....beep....
"I will be in touch very soon," the man said and in the next second, Lee Seung found himself teleported to a different place.
It seemed just like the real world, even much more beautiful than it. He didn't understand one thing he was asked to do as the place was so vast and the landscape was beautiful.
'I am getting tested in a Dreamworld? Is this really awakening or a joke?'
At first, he thought it wasn't right, but in the end, he saw a dagger appear in his hand out of nowhere.
Then, looking closely, a letter was attached to it. The letter says, 'This test will be thirty seconds long and it's a precision test.'
"I am beginning to feel terrified, being given a dagger means real battle. I should get out of here quickly because I don't like dangerous situations."
Suddenly, the cloud lifted and darkness prevailed on the land. Lee Seung's heart grew more tensed as he couldn't see anything anymore.
The place got so dark that even as he was opening his eyes, it seemed as if they were closed.
"Ahh, seriously!" He shouted, his voice echoing.
What he just saw were purple eyeballs and he believed it was because of the darkness, the creature was a monster.
He readied his dagger. At a point, he noticed a gleam of light behind him and he attempted stabbing whatsoever was there.
However, nothing was there. In fact, if he hadn't stopped his hand quickly, he might have stabbed his thigh.
Looking forward, the purple eyes were still there.
'I was fooled! The gleam of light was a distraction!'
The darkness lifted and he got to see the beautiful landscape again.
Instantly, another letter was sent. This time, not in a paper but as smoky letters in the thin air.
Lee Seung glimpsed at it, reading slowly, "The second test is on energy level measurement. Place your thumb on the stone before you."
A straight stand erupted from the ground, with a flat platform and a big oval was stone positioned on the platform. ,
Lee Seung hastily placed his hand on it. During his leisure time, he usually browse the Hunter page and heard that a normal human being's energy level is four and for hunters, it's between four and twenty.
The F-class hunters were the one on the same level with normal human beings. Some people used to say they weren't worthy of being called Hunter.
"Start reading my energy level now," Seung said delightedly. He believed at least, he would get four out of twenty.
The letter showed in the air: 'Energy level reading done.'
Just at the moment, strands of blue fumes cobwebbed him. Lee Seung realised his legs lifted from the ground and he felt lighter.
He grinned, "I am fl-"
Before he knew it, he was back in the testing room. The examiner asked him to go to the other room to check his results.
Getting there, he told the lady about his purpose of coming to her.
"Oh, hum, you are Mister Lee Seung. Born on March 2008, and currently a high school student. Please fill this form," the lady said and focused on her monitor. She didn't even give him a look while talking.
Seung took the form and filled it, then returned it to her.
"I have become an Awakened, right?"
"Let's see, have you been awakened or not? This is your result."