Returnee's S-Rank Management Guide

Chapter 215 : Korea Guardian Award (1)

Korea Guardian Award (1)

"Hunter Baek Hojun, this way, please!"

"Hunter Park Seol-ah! Please look this way, just once!!"

The hunters who shone this year entered under the spotlight.

Some had dressed up quite properly, while others entered wearing their hunter gear as they were.

It was a scene quite different from the awards ceremonies celebrities attended.

Unlike celebrities with neat appearances, most hunters had fierce impressions, so in a way, it was to be expected.

Especially for hunters like Baek Hojun, who had outstanding looks, there were times when the spotlight shone unusually brighter on them.

He not only had excellent skills but also handsome features—literally dragging around reporters like the Pied Piper.

"Is it Baek Hojun again?"

"Don't they know that it's not looks, but skill that matters for hunters?"

They said such things, but in reality, there was no one here whose skills surpassed Baek Hojun's.

That was because of what Shin Yu-baek, who had been known as the top swordsman in Korea, had said after the Odyssey incident.

"The pinnacle of Korea's swordsmen is not me, but Hunter Baek Hojun."

Perhaps he felt and realized much during Odyssey, for Shin Yu-baek assessed Baek Hojun as at least several steps above himself.

Thanks to that, Baek Hojun's popularity had reached its peak.

"There are a lot of promising rookies this time—seems like there'll be much to see."

"When did the level of Korea's hunter world develop so much...?"

As they took photos of each hunter entering, the reporters' faces filled with emotion.

It wasn't just the number of S-ranks; on average, the quality of hunters had greatly improved.

'But...'

The real ones had not yet arrived at this venue.

S-rank hunters representing Korea.

The hunters from the two management agencies that owned the most of them had yet to arrive.

"Grand Nova has arrived!"

At the shout of one reporter, all cameras that had pointed at the extravagant awards hall immediately swiveled toward the entrance.

As the Korean hunter industry had recently developed, the number of management agencies rising from below had been gradually increasing.

But Grand Nova's position remained unchanged.

A pillar that had always reliably supported the Korean hunter world.

S-rank hunters representing Grand Nova, along with A-rank hunters, arrived at the Korea Guardian Awards.

"How in the world..."

Usually, the hunters who participated in the awards ceremony were mostly those who were up for an award.

But Grand Nova led not only three S-rank hunters, but also dozens of A-rank hunters—enough to astonish everyone present.

'Basically, all the awards that hunters below S-rank could win—Grand Nova will sweep them up.'

With so many hunters in contention for the awards, it was obvious that Grand Nova would take at least half.

This led some hunters to show signs of disappointment.

"As expected, it's Grand Nova. Really, I'm speechless. Do you think any management agency in Korea can surpass Grand Nova's dominance?"

Hong Byung-woo, a reporter from Shindong Daily, said this while looking at his fellow reporter, Kim Ki-sung.

That's how overwhelming Grand Nova's showing was tonight.

"Why couldn't there be? There is one, actually."

"Come on, journalist Kim, there you go again. You can't be talking about Unique, right?"

"No, that's exactly it. Unique."

Hong Byung-woo snickered at Kim Ki-sung's words, but he couldn't outright deny them.

In reality, the pace at which Unique was growing was beyond insane.

"It's true, there's a lot of talk these days that Unique is above even the Big 3 management agencies. Though honestly, I still think it's not at Grand Nova's level yet..."

"Of course, if you look at the overall talent pool or recognition, it's hard to compare to Grand Nova yet, but I truly believe that Unique will surpass Grand Nova within a few years."

"Oh man, if other reporters hear you say that, there'll be trouble. Even if you're close, don't you think you're being a bit too forceful?"

Startled, Hong Byung-woo glanced nervously at those around them, but fortunately everyone was focused on the Grand Nova hunters, so nobody heard Ki-sung's words.

'... But maybe he's not completely wrong.'

His colleague Ki-sung was not the type to say nonsense out of sentiment.

He really believed Unique would soon surpass Grand Nova.

Just a year ago, anyone hearing Ki-sung say that would have laughed.

But now?

'Probably, most people would have to think it over.'

In their heads, they might think it's impossible.

But the prowess Unique had shown this past year simply couldn't be underestimated.

Maybe?—that thought kept swirling in their minds.

If it was Unique.

No, if it was Manager Park Jung-woo, who had achieved near-miraculous feats in the past year, maybe it really was possible.

'Has there ever been a single person with this much influence?'

Hong Byung-woo had been a reporter for years.

He had witnessed countless people rise to prominence and then fade away.

He had thought Park Jung-woo would be one of them at first.

Someone who, with a bit of luck, brought S-rank hunters to his management agency.

Someone who just happened to catch the wave and grow quickly thanks to luck.

But when it kept happening once, twice, three times—eventually becoming the norm—Hong Byung-woo had to acknowledge it.

That Park Jung-woo had created the Unique Management of today.

Tsk!

Just then, Kim Ki-sung, who had been quietly standing, took a photo of the entrance with his camera.

Only then did Hong Byung-woo realize the ones Ki-sung was waiting for had arrived.

Unique Management's hunters.

"Wow."

A gasp came from somewhere.

The Unique Management hunters participating this time were enough to draw all the reporters' attention in one place.

'What is with those looks...'

It went without saying—among hunters, those with exceptional looks were quite rare.

You didn't get any bonus points for being beautiful; only skill mattered.

Of course, if someone was attractive enough, they might get invited to TV shows, but even then, those people weren't treated as real hunters among their peers.

'But those are S-rankers...'

Hong Byung-woo took photos of each of the entering Unique hunters.

At the forefront was Unique's representative hunter, Shin Ah-yeon.

She wore a splendid white dress, not the emblematic attire she usually wore as a mage.

Behind her followed Lee Soo-ah, Hwang Yeon-ji, and Alencia.

Every one of them boasted extraordinary looks.

Almost enough to make one unconsciously lose themselves, just repeatedly pressing the shutter.

And then...

"Hm?"

Lowering his camera, which he'd been rapidly snapping, Hong Byung-woo squinted.

Someone who should not be here was following behind them.

"Manager Park Jung-woo?"

He overheard bewildered journalists as surprised as himself.

Park Jung-woo.

The manager said to be the heart of Unique.

No one could deny he was a manager with impressive abilities who had a massive impact on the industry, but this place was meant for hunters.

'That's him, manager Park Jung-woo?'

'Why is the manager here?'

Had he absentmindedly followed them in just because he was their manager? But it didn't seem that way.

If so, he wouldn't have dressed up so formally and entered with them.

"But the fact that he came inside..."

It meant he had been formally invited to this awards ceremony.

Otherwise, he would have been stopped at the entrance to begin with.

"Could it be, is the rumor Hunter Hugo said true?"

"You mean the theory that Manager Park Jung-woo is No Name?"

"Yes, if that's true, it wouldn't be strange at all for him to be up for an award."

No Name, who had first appeared when he broke the S-rank gate in Jeju Island this year.

It was, surprisingly, S-rank French hunter Hugo who first claimed to know his identity.

With a real, live statement from a foreign S-rank hunter, it was hard to dismiss the idea that Park Jung-woo was No Name.

However, as Manager Park Jung-woo had yet to publicly confirm this himself, it still remained speculation.

'If he's here to reveal that at the awards this time...'

Hong Byung-woo hastily snapped some shots of Park Jung-woo.

'Then the main character of this awards ceremony is already basically decided.'

The mysterious S-rank hunter, No Name.

If he really was Manager Park Jung-woo, as Ki-sung claimed, then Hong Byung-woo would have no choice but to acknowledge that Unique was a management agency on par with Grand Nova.

No, it would be fair to call them even greater.

If that were true, Unique would have four S-rank awakenees.

That equaled the total number of S-rank awakeners of most countries.

***

From the moment I walked in, I felt the buzz of reactions around me.

It continued all the way to the seats assigned to Unique.

"You sure are popular."

Ah-yeon said teasingly, having noticed it.

"Probably feels like seeing an animal in a zoo."

It had been over twenty years since the Korea Guardian Awards were established.

In that time, the number of non-hunters who'd attended could be counted on one hand—and not a single manager had ever attended.

There was barely a ten-year history for the hunter manager profession itself.

The younger hunters looked at me with curiosity, but the older ones seemed distinctly displeased.

"Hello, everyone."

Suddenly, the lights brightening the hall all went out, and in the center emerged the MC.

Countless cameras turned to capture him head-on, marking the official start of the Korea Guardian Awards.

"Looking at the future of Korean hunters gathered here tonight, I already feel my heart burning. When did the level of Korea's hunters become so high?"

The host was Hunter Yu Baek-ho, a veteran A-rank hunter.

He never reached S-rank, but after long service, he had made significant contributions to the industry.

"Just being able to stand beside the hunters who have shone this year is thrilling."

With his words, a giant screen lit up behind him, showing this year's award nominees.

First up was the Rookie of the Year award.

An award given to the hunter who showed the most outstanding performance among those who debuted this year.

It was an award you could receive only once in your life as a hunter.

If you didn't have a great first year after debuting, you couldn't win it.

And among the nominees for Rookie of the Year was one of our Unique hunters.

It was Yeon-ji.

"So shameless."

"..."

At Ah-yeon's muttering, Yeon-ji hung her head.

For once, she had nothing to say.

"But didn't Yeon-ji already win this once before?"

Soo-ah asked Yeon-ji in a low voice.

By 'before', she must have meant back in the "Ji Yeon-hwa" days.

"... I did."

"So you're getting Rookie of the Year twice? Even I've never done that."

"I tried to refuse, too. But if I do..."

At Ah-yeon's teasing remark, Yeon-ji just sighed.

Of course, Yeon-ji wanted to decline the Rookie of the Year award.

But she couldn't bring herself to—refusing might have given Unique a bad reputation, or made things look even stranger.

Yeon-ji had shattered the record that everyone thought Ah-yeon would hold forever—the youngest hunter in history.

Yeon-ji's flustered face was blown up on the big screen.

Ah-yeon saw it and gave her a thumbs-up.

"Behold! Hunter Shin Ah-yeon, who once held the record as the youngest S-rank hunter, now applauds a remarkable junior who surpassed her! This is another historic moment for Korea, isn't it!"

At the MC's announcement, applause burst forth from all around.

It was a generation shift for a once-in-a-lifetime genius, not just for Korea, but for the whole world.

Although the winner had not yet been announced, everyone already knew whose award it would be.

"... I really hate this."

Of course, despite those cheers, Yeon-ji smiled brightly and waved to the crowd in a depressed voice.

As I watched her, I was secretly impressed.

'She'd be good at acting.'

She probably didn't even need to use illusion magic like Ah-yeon did.

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=

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