Saving My Favorite in a Doomed World

The measurement room was located at the very end of the left corridor on the third floor. It was a newly constructed room in a corner because S-class or A-class attack-type heroes sometimes caused large explosions or noise.

 

The room had a dimly lit lamp that barely illuminated faces, and in the center stood an imposing machine for measuring grades. The staff member pointed to the platform right in front of the machine.

 

“Please stand on this.”

 

The forced smile on his face began to sting. The staff gripped the stack of documents tightly in his hand.

 

‘What the hell was that just now?’

 

As soon as the measurement room door opened, the corners of his mouth quickly returned to their original position as if nothing had happened. He was sure that the hero did something, but there was no evidence.

 

‘Just because he told me to smile…?’

 

But no ability to control people through words had been discovered so far. …And there was no way someone with such an ability would be an E-rank.

 

“As you may know from previous measurements, the laser from this machine measures overall stamina and mana. Typically, the heroes’ strength is similar to the energy that flows from the gates. For convenience, we call this energy mana, and your rank is based on this mana.”

 

“Huh, that’s interesting.”

 

At the staff member’s explanation, Hwashin was inwardly convinced.

 

His rank would not change in the future.

 

In the first place, Elric’s word command through karma wasn’t a power given by someone or borrowed. Moreover, he didn’t need to separately use the mana in his body. That was why he  could use magic more easily than other mages.

 

In fact, there was even debate among mages about whether what he used could be defined as magic.

 

– No, there’s no basis. There’s no basis for it. What kind of magic is it where something just appears out of nowhere with a snap! Magic should consist of formulas, magic circles, and beautiful arrangements of calculations!

 

– Hey, if this isn’t magic, then what is it? If that guy Elric told you to dance right now, you’d start dancing immediately.

 

– That’s hypnosis! Hypnosis!

 

– So are you saying hypnosis isn’t magic? There are families who have lived for generations as hypnotists! Are you picking a fight with us?

 

…Ugh. It was noisy just imagining it.

 

So, here karma came up again.

 

What exactly was this karma?

 

In short, karma was the actions accumulated or to be accumulated by a living being, and the corresponding consequences. Every action gave birth to a corresponding result, a karmic consequence.

 

Simply put, if you do good deeds, good things happen, and if you do bad deeds, bad things happen. The flow of karma was related to the energy of these good and bad deeds.

 

Elric’s ‘word command’ was magic that could manipulate such karma. At a young age, Elric realized that he could see the flow of karma and manipulate it.

 

Literally, he could manipulate others’ actions and twist their fate.

 

Then, what was the most effective way to manipulate others’ fate, their karma?

 

It was to pre-determine their outcomes.

 

Instead of smiling because they were happy, he designated the outcome for them to smile.

 

Instead of exploding because there was a problem with the body, he designated the outcome for them to explode.

 

Skipping all the processes related to thoughts, words, and actions, and designating only the outcome.

 

This ability to manipulate karma through word magic made Elric the most powerful mage.

 

Of course, there were limitations to word magic. If word magic were omnipotent, Elric wouldn’t have let the dragon die.

 

“The measurement is complete.”

 

“Yes, you can step down. Wait over there.”

 

While Hwashin was thinking about the range of karma’s use, the grade measurement was finished. He hopped off the machine platform and sat on the sofa in the corner, waiting for the results. It seemed the measurement results were disclosed after the data was stored in the device.

 

As Hwashin was sprawled on the chair like seaweed, the staff who checked his grade mumbled softly.

 

….Huh.

 

“…Unbelievable.”

 

Hwashin, who had been observing the staff member’s expression, began to wonder what result had come out. Could it be that karma was also read as the same energy as mana? Well, that possibility did exist.

 

He was still not sure exactly how it was measured here. If it measured the mana surrounding him, it might be possible.

 

‘Was the previous measurement wrong then?’

 

The staff member hurriedly flipped through the documents he was holding. He seemed to be checking Yoo Hwashin’s past records.

 

‘No. He’s had at least two examinations.’

 

Eventually, as if resigned to the new result, he approached Hwashin with a pale face.

 

“Mr. Yoo Hwashin, um…”

 

Hwashin’s eyebrow rose. The staff handed him the measurement result before speaking.

 

The comprehensive ability score for basic physical strength was D. This was the same as the previous record. So did this body originally lack mana ability? Well, even if his basic physical strength was high, it would be meaningless in actual combat if he had no combat ability. Then as for mana—

 

“….My mana is F?”

 

“It’s dropped one grade from the E-rank measurement last time. Additionally, the skill you originally had is no longer visible.”

 

Unlike the man looking at him pitifully with drooping eyebrows, Hwashin took the two sheets of paper offered with a bright expression.

 

“Can I take this record?”

 

“…Yes, well. I have the original, and the ones I showed you are copies.”

 

The staff who had been watching this whole situation was now worried about Yoo Hwashin, whom he had thought was just an annoying guy.

 

What on earth did this man believe in that made him apply to the SH unit? Was it really just the staff’s imagination when he felt the corners of his mouth rose up earlier?

 

Suddenly, something flashed in his mind.

 

[ The number of young heroes committing suicide due to their rank has increased by 20% compared to the previous year… ]

 

If this man had come to the SH division’s exam site to commit suicide out of despair over his lowered rank.

 

A lower-ranked hero’s suicide at an exam site filled with upper-ranked heroes would certainly be a hot topic.

 

The staff member bit his lip hard.

 

If that was the case, he must have lied about being E-rank earlier on purpose. This person couldn’t bring himself to say his rank was F. With a grave determination, the staff tightly gripped the remaining documents in his hand.

 

The staff member slightly lifted the glasses frame on his nose and spoke with a solemn expression.

 

“…Mr. Yoo Hwasin, I’m not the type to say this to someone I’ve just met, but.”

 

“…?”

 

“If you’re thinking of committing suicide at the SH unit selection test, I wouldn’t recommend it. Of course, it would cause a stir, but that’s all it would amount to in the end.”

 

“….Pardon?”

 

“Don’t be too pessimistic about your lowered rank. There are many valuable things in the world besides ranks.”

 

What was this guy doing?

 

Hwashin found it amusing that the man was trying to calmly persuade him based on his own misunderstanding. A person in his early to mid-30s was worrying about him, who was over 200 years old.

 

‘Suicide out of despair over rank, huh.’

 

Indeed. Rank was the most important measure in hero activities. Even though they were public servants, the amount of money earned clearly differed as the ranks increased. The polarization was set to become even worse with the formation of the SH Division. But who could argue against giving huge salaries to the people who fought monsters?

 

It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that without them, an entire country could perish.

 

Hwashin folded the paper he was holding into a fan shape. He gently tapped the trembling staff’s hand with the makeshift fan and continued speaking.

 

“Are you worried about me right now?”

 

“More like considering the reality—”

 

“I’m fine, so please make sure to register my application that I left at the counter earlier.”

 

Hwashin stood up, took the documents with him, and opened the door to the measurement room. The bright hallway light spilled into the dark room. Due to the backlight, the staff couldn’t read Hwashin’s expression.

 

“If you don’t want me to die, come and watch me later.”

 

“Mr. Yoo Hwashin, about the registration—”

 

“Yes, please make sure to do it. See you then.”

 

With a somewhat frivolous tone, Hwashin ended the conversation and left.

 

The staff, left alone, stared blankly at his departing figure.

 

Applying to the SH unit as an F-rank.

 

Beyond worrying, it was just absurd now.

 

“I’m going crazy, really.”

 

…Yeah. He had no idea. He absolutely had no idea what the guy was up to.

 

***

 

The Civil Affairs office was buzzing with activity.

 

People gathered around Hwashin, who was humming a tune leisurely.

 

“Hm? What’s this, aren’t I a total celebrity today?”

 

The staff members looked down at Yoo Hwasin, who was smiling brightly. They surrounded Hwasin and whispered a few words secretively among themselves. Of course, he could hear it all. It would be strange not to hear at this distance.

 

Finally, one senior staff member who seemed to represent the group asked in a worried tone.

 

“Hwashin, were you really applying for the SH unit? No, I thought it was just a joke.”

 

“Do you know that the SH unit application list is up on the website, and you’re the only F-rank?”

 

“Just check the website! You’re the only F-rank, Hwashin!”

 

“Really? Wow, if everyone saw me, I wouldn’t know what to do. I’d become a total celebrity. It would be embarrassing.”

 

Yoo Hwasin, with a flower-like expression, twisted his body as if embarrassed.

 

“No, Hwashin, this is really not the time for that. Cancel your application quickly.”

 

“What? What are you saying? I’ve been waiting for that day so eagerly.”

 

“No, do you know how many they’re recruiting? Even if they recruit a lot, with F-rank….”

 

Of course, Hwashin already knew how many would be recruited.

 

Seven people.

 

A total of seven people would be selected by the government to be members of the SH unit.

 

Though all seven were part of the same unit, the SH Unit was composed of three divisions, each with different roles.

 

The first division was responsible for killing monsters and rescuing civilians from domestic gates. The second division entered the gates and investigated them. The third division focused on overseas operations and cooperation.

 

Of course, in the original story, all three divisions were composed of S-rank or A-rank heroes.

 

The protagonist Cha Jaeha and his colleagues would enter the first division. Amidst faces full of concern, Hwashin toyed with his newly received shiny employee ID card and rocked his chair back and forth.

 

[Gate Safety Management Department, Gate Civil Affair Division, Yoo Hwashin, F-rank]

 

“Hummm.”

 

The time to meet Cha Jaeha and the (future) colleagues of SH1 Unit was drawing near.