The Serenity Restaurant was quiet. It was a heavy, suffocating kind of quiet.
Rei wiped the counter in slow, rhythmic circles. The smell of frying grease was gone, replaced by the sharp, chemical sting of lemon disinfectant.
It was 11:00 PM. The customers were gone. The TV was off.
"So," Yuna said.
She didn't look up from the table she was scrubbing. Her voice was too casual.
"Mirage class." She stopped scrubbing. "What does it do?"
Rei didn't flinch. He had practiced this conversation in his head all the way home on the bus.
"Illusions," Rei said, wringing out his rag. "Party tricks, mostly. Making lights appear. Maybe confusing a monster for a second so the real hunters can kill it."
He forced a self-deprecating chuckle. "It's basically a glorified support class. I probably won't even be allowed in high-ranking gates."
Yuna turned slowly.
She walked over to the counter. She looked at him.
Her eyes weren't angry. They were searching. It was the same look she used to give him when he was twelve and tried to hide a bruised eye from a school fight.
"You're lying again," she whispered.
Rei froze. "What?"
"Your eyes," Yuna said. She reached out, her fingers hovering near his face but not touching. "You get this... look. Cold. Calculated. Like you're planning a war."
She leaned in.
"What are you hiding, Rei?"
For a second, the truth sat on his tongue. I'm hiding a system that calls me an anomaly. I'm hiding a power that hides itself. I'm hiding the fact that I'm going to turn this world upside down.
He swallowed the truth. It tasted like ash.
"Nothing," Rei said softly. "It really is just illusions, Mom. I won't be fighting on the front lines. So... you'll get your wish. I won't become a hunter."
The tension in Yuna's shoulders broke. She let out a long, shaky breath.
She reached up and cupped his face. Her hands were rough from years of work, but warm.
"Rei. I don't care what class you got. I don't care if you're weak."
She looked straight into his soul.
"I care that you come home every night. Promise me."
Rei felt a crack in his armor. He placed his hand over hers.
"I promise," he said. "I'll always come home."
Yuna stared at him for a second longer, then kissed his forehead. "Good. Now go to bed. You look like you've been fighting ghosts."
Not yet, Rei thought as he walked to the stairs. But soon.
Rei's room was small. A single bed, a desk that wobbled, and a window that looked out over the neon sprawl of Seoul.
He sat on the edge of the mattress and pulled out his phone.
He needed to know how the world saw him. Perception was a weapon, and right now, he needed to know where the barrel was pointing.
He opened the 'HunterNet' app.
[TRENDING NOW]
#1. Jin Haewon - A-Rank Hidden Class! Future of Titanfall? (5.2M Views)#2. Hanseong Academy Awakening Results - FULL LIST (2.1M Views)
Rei tapped the second link. He scrolled past the endless list of 'Warrior' and 'Mage' classes until he found the bottom of the barrel.
Student #456: Kaizen ReiClass: Mirage (Hidden)Rank: Unknown
The comments were brutal.
[SniperKing99]:LMAO. Hidden Class? More like Hidden Trash. Imagine getting a unique class and it's for magic tricks.
[GateKeeper]:Rank Unknown usually means the mana signature is too weak to register. Kid is basically a civilian with a flashlight.
[Simp4Haewon]:Who cares? Did you see Jin Haewon's aura? She's a goddess!
Rei smirked.
"Good," he whispered to the empty room. "Let them laugh. Being underestimated is the best camouflage."
He tossed the phone onto the pillow and looked at the empty air.
"System."
Ding.
The blue interface snapped into existence. It hovered silently, casting a pale light on the peeling wallpaper.
[SKILL LIST]
[Mirror World - Genesis]Rank: Unique (???)Type: Domain / ActiveMana Cost: 0 (Passive)
[Effect]:1. Create a personal parallel dimension.2. Export slain creatures into this dimension.3. Summon creatures as "Illusions."
Rei narrowed his eyes. He tapped the details tab.
[CRITICAL MECHANIC]:Summoned Illusions retain 100% of the original entity's combat stats.Illusions possess physical mass.Illusions feel pain (Warning: Excessive damage desynchronizes the illusion).YOU take NO damage when an illusion is destroyed.
Rei read it twice.
"One hundred percent," he murmured.
Most summoner classes had a penalty. You summoned a skeleton, it had 50% of its original strength. You summoned a spirit, it couldn't hit physical objects.
But this?
If he killed a goblin, he got a goblin. If he killed a dragon... he became a dragon rider.
"And I take no damage."
He leaned back, staring at the ceiling.
It wasn't just summoning. It was a meat shield generator. It was a private army.
And the best part? The world thought he was making holograms.
BZZZZT.
His phone vibrated violently against the pillow.
INCOMING VIDEO CALL: KANG MINHO
Rei sighed and picked it up.
Minho's face filled the screen. He looked like he was hyperventilating.
"REIIII!" Minho screamed. "Did you see the announcement?!"
"No," Rei said, rubbing his temple. "What?"
"The field trip! Next week!" Minho grabbed his hair. "We're going to Goblin Cave F-37! That's the gate where five students died last year! They call it the 'Rookie Grinder'!"
Rei's eyes sharpened. F-37. A standard farming gate. Why did students die?
"Great," Rei deadpanned. "At least we'll have company."
"THAT'S NOT FUNNY!" Minho wailed. "I'm serious, man! I'm a healer! I have ZERO combat skills! My only attack skill is 'Light Slap' and it does 2 damage! I'm gonna die!"
"Then don't go."
"It's mandatory! Absence equals expulsion! My scholarship!" Minho looked like he was about to cry. "Rei, we have to partner up. Please. I'll carry your bags. I'll do your homework."
Rei looked at his friend. Minho was a coward, loud, and annoying. But he was also the only person at school who talked to Rei without looking down on him.
And a healer... a healer was useful.
"Calm down," Rei said. "I'll keep you alive."
Minho sniffled. "Really? But... you're an illusion class. What can you even do?"
Rei smiled. It wasn't a nice smile.
"You'll see," Rei said. "Just stay behind me and do your job."
"Thank you, man! I owe you big time!" Minho wiped his nose.
"You owe me dinner," Rei corrected.
"Deal! Your mom's restaurant?"
"Where else?"
Rei hung up.
He stood up and walked to the window. The city lights of Seoul stretched out like a galaxy of artificial stars. Far in the distance, he could see the faint blue shimmer of the stabilization barrier protecting the Inner World.
"Seven days," Rei whispered. "One monster. That's all I need to start."
A sudden chill crawled up his spine.
It wasn't the wind. The window was closed. It was the distinct, primal sensation of being hunted.
Rei stiffened. He slowly moved his eyes, scanning the skyline.
There.
Across the street, on the rooftop of an old apartment complex about a hundred meters away.
A silhouette.
It was standing perfectly still on the ledge. The figure was blurred, as if the light bent around it. But the eyes...
Two points of crimson light were fixed directly on Rei's window.
What the hell is that?
[SYSTEM WARNING]
A blood-red notification box slammed into his vision.
[WARNING: HIGH-LEVEL ENTITY DETECTED][RANK: UNKNOWN][THREAT LEVEL: CRITICAL][RECOMMENDATION: HIDE]
Rei stopped breathing.
He didn't move. If he moved, he confirmed he saw it.
The figure on the roof tilted its head. It seemed to smile, though Rei couldn't see a mouth.
Then, it dissolved.
It didn't walk away. It didn't jump. It turned into black mist and vanished into the night air.
Rei gasped, stumbling back from the window. He yanked the curtains shut.
His heart was hammering against his ribs like a sledgehammer.
Rank Unknown? Threat Level Critical?
He was a Level 1 student. He hadn't even killed a slime yet. Why was something like that watching him?
Ding.
[HIDDEN QUEST TRIGGERED]
[Quest: The Watcher][Objective: Survive first contact][Reward: ???][Failure: ???]
[Progress: 1/???]
Rei stared at the glowing text hovering in the dark room.
"First Blood quest in seven days," he muttered, his voice tight. "And now something's hunting me in my own home."
He looked at his trembling hands. He clenched them into fists until the shaking stopped.
"Fine," Rei hissed into the darkness. "Let it watch."
"I'll give it a show it won't forget."