Chapter 22

The entrance was monotonous, without applause or music. All the Rift Phenomenon Management Headquarters staff in their seats stood up. The hunters, dressed in black suits as if coordinated, stood up and clasped their hands behind their backs, creating a rather impressive scene for the cameras.

Since the establishment of the Rift Phenomenon Management Headquarters, the director had changed twice, and both were ordinary people, not hunters. The political circles wanted hunters to work to the bone, but they didn't want their influence to spread too much. This was a major reason why hunters had an image similar to celebrities, far from power.

After Director Kim Won-cheol greeted the reporters' cameras, the hunters and staff sat down again.

"Now, we will have a special speech from the director."

The director opened his mouth in front of the microphone, holding a script with the speech written on it in one hand.

"Dear respected citizens. It has already been 8 years since the 2nd Great Rift incident, and I greet you on this peaceful spring day, protected by the blood and sweat of countless people."

The content was similar every year. It always included words like they would always strive for a safe and peaceful daily life, and the Rift Phenomenon Management Headquarters would always be at the forefront of rift safety in the Republic of Korea.

The reporters checked the viewers' reactions on their laptops spread out next to them while filming.

Press conferences of government agencies were mostly extremely dull. The number of listeners was at most in the three digits, and the few who actively left comments were only those immersed in politics. However, the live video of the Rift Phenomenon Management Headquarters' regular press conference had an explosive response every year. The number of viewers on the internet live channel had already surpassed 200,000.

This number would increase even more when the well-known hunters took the stage a little later. During the boring speech now, most of the reactions in the chat window were like "Skip quickly" and "Enough, bring Jin Soram."

Soram, who was watching that drowsy speech at the scene, turned his head and whispered,

"When is Han Tae-un ssi scheduled to go on stage?"

"Next. After the director and deputy director's Q&A, I'll go up."

"Gasp. This... power-hungry lackey."

"Yes. So don't be cheeky."

"..."

Soram's words were mercilessly blocked, and it made Ga-eul and Min-ki have a conversation saying, "I really like Chief Han Tae-un," and "Me too."

"Now, we will have the press conference. Director of Field Operation Bureau Park Jae-seon and Deputy Director Kwon Jung-oh from the Seoul Headquarters."

As if signaling the start of the Q&A session, the two people who could be called the commanders-in-chief of the hunters were called up first. As the two of them sat down, the heated atmosphere in the chat window cooled down a bit. The reporters also had no choice but to pick polite questions for these two.

Director Park Jae-seon was a 1st generation hunter who awakened very early, so his image as a hero of the 1st and 2nd Great Rifts was too strong. No force dared to carelessly touch Park Jae-seon, mindful of the public sentiment.

Deputy Director Kwon Jung-oh had also been active with him at that time, and his background was none other than a former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. In reality, when hunters who knew nothing faced legal disputes or tried to get involved politically, he had taken on the role of stepping up and cutting them off.

Therefore, in his first life, Jin Soram, who was a lackey of his father, a member of the National Assembly, was almost despised by him, but... now there was no such foolish guy, so the Rift Phenomenon Management Headquarters could somewhat distance itself from factional fights.

The two of them calmly answered the various questions that were asked. Min Yu-ra approached and called Tae-un at the timing of the end of the Q&A session.

"Now, when the director calls you, stand up and go up."

"Yes."

The Q&A session was wrapped up, and Director Park Jae-seon glanced this way and grabbed the microphone.

"Lastly, I would like to share some good news from the Seoul Headquarters with the citizens. Chief Hunter Han Tae-un."

Tae-un stood up from his seat and walked towards the stage. His long legs quickly narrowed the distance to the stage. The reporters also noticed his identity and kept pressing the shutters.

"With Chief Han going up, it feels like a film festival here."

With his distinct features and the body that complemented the neatly worn suit, plus the added baptism of flashes, it could be seen that way. It would be a more perfect picture if Tae-un smiled and waved his hand there, but that wouldn't happen. However, it was easy to predict what the real-time reactions that Min Yu-ra was currently checking would be like.

"The 32nd 1st-grade awakener in the Republic of Korea, Han Tae-un."

Tae-un stood next to the table. Flashes lingered and disappeared repeatedly on his expressionless face. The moderator, who gave him a moment, soon organized the hall and said,

"We will not take questions about Chief Hunter Han Tae-un in this regular press conference. We look forward to receiving questions after he has sufficiently demonstrated his abilities as a hunter."

Ga-eul lowered her head towards Soram and whispered,

"Did Chief Han refuse the interview?"

"No. I think the PR department cut it off because he doesn't have the angles."

"Ah, I see. Honestly, he doesn't seem like he would do well in an interview with a sense of it."

Instead, Tae-un was to come down after leaving a short greeting. However, just introducing him officially would make the majority of the citizens cheer.

The total number of domestic 1st-grade awakeners in history was 31, and excluding those who retired due to death or injury-induced ability decline, there were only 23 active 1st-grades. The addition of a new, young 1st-grade was inevitably good news in many ways.

The person in question looked at the microphone he received awkwardly for a moment and said,

"I'm Han Tae-un. I will do my best for the rift safety of the Republic of Korea."

It was a very typical greeting for him.

"Next, Busan Branch Director Shin Gi-hyeon and Chief Hunter Seo Min-ki."

As soon as Tae-un stepped down from the stage, the next people were called. Min-ki and Tae-un passed by each other as if changing places. Soram waved his hands at the returning Tae-un.

"Han Tae-un ssi did well."

"I only said one thing."

"If you're handsome, even that makes you look good."

"...I'm not sure about that, but as Jin Soram ssi said, I must have seemed like an AI."

Applause was heard, and the two turned their heads towards the stage. The two people from the Busan branch began taking questions. Director Shin definitely showed his experience. There were quite a few reporters who threw a question thinking it would be unexpected, but ended up getting entangled and forgetting their original question.

"I have a question for Director Shin Gi-hyeon. What measures are being taken to prevent recurrence after the 1st-grade rift that appeared in Songjeong last month?"

"I will answer that part instead."

Min-ki raised his hand and then grasped the microphone.

"Currently, the 1st and 2nd-grade hunters in the Busan branch are patrolling in shifts, focusing on areas with high floating populations, according to a schedule. This system is planned to be maintained until the end of the summer vacation period, and if by any chance the same thing happens again, we will extend that period. Please be assured that a hunter will definitely visit all crowded places at least once every two hours."

His small voice was sufficiently covered by the microphone. Although his speech was a bit slow, it could be seen as gentle. Above all, there was no trembling like before. The reporters moved on to the next question, and Soram tilted his head and whispered to Tae-un,

"That's all memorized. Min-ki only takes the questions that are among the memorized ones."

Seo Min-ki's introverted personality couldn't be fixed even after standing in front of the camera dozens of times. He was probably trembling under the cloth covering the stage table.

However, next to him, Director Shin Gi-hyeon covered all the difficult questions, and even the moderator's microphone was temporarily taken by someone from the Busan branch. The two of them were a defensive shield that completely blocked any unexpected situations from reaching Min-ki.

"It must be tough for him."

"Well, there are pros and cons in their own way. His situation is a bit different from mine and Ga-eul's at the headquarters. Still, it's been 8 years, so it's pitiful that he's still trembling."

Han Tae-un stared intently at Soram even after the next question began. This gaze was familiar to Soram as well. Tae-un sometimes looked at Soram with these incomprehensible eyes and then turned his head. In the first, second, and third lives.

"...What are you thinking?"

So Soram hid his narrowed eyes with a smile and asked.

"You three seem to be very close."

"Ah... We had no choice but to be in that environment. None of us had the opportunity to make friends outside since we were eighteen."

"Is that so?"

"Being the same age was also the biggest factor."

"..."

Tae-un stared at Soram a little longer and then turned his head back to the stage. The interview with the two people from the Busan branch was already in its final stages. Listening to their voices, something suddenly occurred to Soram.

"Ah, right. Han Tae-un ssi, don't you use a dialect? Min-ki uses a dialect in Busan but not in Seoul. His way of speaking is completely different from now... Oh, it's over."

Applause poured out for the two of them greeting. Because of that, the voice of the person sitting next to him was also distorted. Perhaps to avoid the noise, Tae-un lowered his head to Soram's ear. Soram also turned his head that way. He opened his mouth close by.

"I use it a lot."

The monotonous voice gained inflection, and the final consonants were pronounced differently from what he was used to. The dialect he heard for the first time from Han Tae-un's mouth was stronger than Seo Min-ki's, and it surprisingly suited him very well. As Soram blinked and looked at him, Tae-un slightly raised his lips.

"Wow."

It dawned on him again that he really knew nothing about Han Tae-un properly.

"It's interesting."

"It gets worse when I go to Guncheon."

Before he knew it, he had returned to his stiff way of speaking. But his expression seemed to have softened instead.

At that moment, Min-ki returned to his seat with a look of relief mixed with exhaustion on his face. Before they could exchange greetings for his hard work, the moderator called the next person on the microphone.

"Seoul Headquarters Chief Hunter Kim Ga-eul, Chief Hunter Jin Soram."

"Hey, Jin Soram, let's go."

"Yeah. I'll be there too."

"Yes."

Ga-eul and Soram stood up from their seats. Their expressions, briefly seen as they stood up, revealed their personalities. Ga-eul bit and released her lips as if nervous, while Soram had a bored and sleepy face. That was only visible to the other two people sitting at the same table.