Chapter Three: The Hunters
After Akira finished half of his meal, he lifted his gaze toward Alice and asked in a low voice:
"How exactly are you going to help me?"
Alice smiled, her red eyes flickering briefly.
"Finally… you're starting to care."
Akira replied seriously:
"Yes. I care now, because I know nothing in this world is free. And I don't trust you."
Alice looked at him for a long moment. Despite her gentle demeanor and beauty, Akira remained wary, guarded.
She thought silently: That's fine… in the end, he'll need me.
She spoke aloud:
"First, I need to check your status."
"My status?"
"Yes… the writing that only Hunters or Awakened ones can see."
Akira was stunned. He knew exactly what she meant. He tried to deny it, but the image of the symbols he had seen yesterday resurfaced vividly in his mind.
"You mean… I've become an Awakened?"
"Yes. But we'll talk about that later… your behavior is starting to attract attention."
She glanced around and added:
"The guards are watching you. Your muttering, your glances, the way your expressions keep changing. Don't be an idiot."
Akira didn't respond. He closed the food container, stood up without a word, and left the warehouse in silence, as if nothing had happened.
Akira walked through the slums, Alice floating beside him.
"Akira, what do you usually do?"
"Nothing… mostly I collect scrap and sell it at the Exchange Center."
"You mean you go out into the wastelands?"
"Yes."
"Then let's head there."
Akira turned toward the main road leading to the city's exit.
The city was called Orion. It was surrounded by an inner wall enclosing the Sami District—the upper zone—
and an outer wall separating the middle district from the wastelands.
Beyond the wall, buildings spread out from the city gates, where companies and people without the power or influence to live inside the walls had settled—or those who chose to live outside out of curiosity.
Akira was heading toward the ruined zone where he collected scrap and transported it to the Exchange Center.
The ruins were called Domage.
They were the closest ruined area to the city.
Akira wasn't talkative, so he remained silent.
Alice, still unfamiliar with his mood, chose silence as well.
When they reached a safe area, Alice spoke:
"It's safe here. Can you show me your status now?"
"Just say 'Status,' and a transparent window will appear in front of you."
Akira said, "Status."
[Status Window]
Name: Akira
Age: 15
Level: [Unclassified (Level 0)]
Experience Points: [9/100]
Body Type: Elemental Body
Stats:
Health: [10/10]
Mana: [200]
Strength: [4]
Speed: [3]
Intelligence: [8]
Defense: [4]
Affinity: [Darkness]
Skills: [None]
Items: [None]
Unique: [Exchange Contract]
Titles: [Survivor of Death]
The status screen appeared before Akira. He didn't fully understand it, yet a strange joy welled up inside him—as if he were taking his first step toward something he had always dreamed of without realizing it.
Alice spoke calmly:
"When you think of someone you want to see your status… it will appear to them directly."
Akira tried it. Sure enough, the screen appeared before Alice.
The moment she saw it, her expression shifted—from curiosity, to shock, then to faint amusement. A quiet laugh escaped her lips.
"Alright, listen carefully," she said, looking at him. "I'll explain every field, from beginning to end."
She pointed to the top of the screen.
"The first two fields are your name and age. That's obvious."
Then she continued, indicating the next section:
"The third field is your level. Right now, you're at the starting line… an unclassified existence at level zero."
Her tone grew more serious as she explained:
"In this world, levels are divided into ranks. Each rank contains multiple levels."
She continued:
"Unclassified: Levels 1 to 10
First Rank: Levels 1 to 20
Second Rank: Levels 1 to 50
Third Rank: Levels 1 to 100
Fourth Rank: Levels 1 to 250
Fifth Rank: Levels 1 to 500
As for the Sixth Rank… it's unknown."