The Hunter Association office was noisy with discussions among hunters and staff members gathered around tables and desks. As soon as Matthew and Lev walked in, the room fell silent.

Uno, leaning against the far end of the long table, froze halfway through a sip of coffee. His hand clenched around the cup as his eyes locked onto Lev. He had fully expected never to deal with him again for the day. Yet here Lev was, materializing like a bad sequel.

Smirks flickered across faces. Jokes hissed in low voices. Someone choked back a laugh.

Of course. The reason for the reaction was obvious. Lev’s accidental selfie from Uno’s phone had been making rounds in the group chat all week, courtesy of Oliver.

“…You’ve got to be kidding me.” Uno cursed inwardly.

Lev skirted behind Matthew, his eyes scanning the room with an air of curiosity.

Uno’s jaw clenched tight. He shot a look at Matthew. “What is he doing here?”

Matthew responded with a sly grin. “Ah, Uno, perfect timing. I’d like you to meet my new vice captain.”

The words dropped like a hammer.

A ripple of muffled laughter broke through the room. Someone actually choked on their drink.

Uno blinked, stunned. “…Vice captain? Him???”

Lev’s face remained unreadable. Not a twitch nor a hint of a smirk. No sign of emotion, just a calm sort of detachment, as though Uno’s outburst was merely a mildly entertaining spectacle rather than the affront it clearly was.

Uno’s disbelief boiled over. “You’re joking,” he repeated, setting down his coffee mug with more force than necessary. His gaze darted back and forth, first to Matthew, then to the figure standing silently behind him.

Uno’s eyes narrowed as he assessed Lev who didn’t look particularly skilled, like a breathing liability. In Uno’s opinion, if he had a say in it, he would have disqualified this guy from the first phase of the tests already. What could Matthew be thinking?

Besides, vice captains weren’t even supposed to be chosen until two weeks in. Matthew had done this just to mess with him.

“Nope.” Matthew’s grin widened. He scanned the room. “By the way, where are the other captains?”

One of the staff members responded, “They’re on the way.”

Matthew nodded, lips pressed together thoughtfully, as if the staff member’s response somehow made perfect sense in light of his and Lev’s early arrival.

He turned to Lev. “You’ll be spending a lot of time here, so get used to the place.”

“Okay,” Lev replied, calm and unfazed.

He stepped forward slightly and faced the room. Then, with quiet sincerity, he spoke. “Hello.”

It was exactly how Arthur had instructed him to greet humans with respect to blend in.

The others responded with enthusiastic “Hello”s, but Uno remained silent, only raising an eyebrow as he stared at Lev. His expression was tight with lingering irritation.

Uno finally shook his head and stormed out, brushing past them.

Matthew slung an arm casually around Lev’s shoulder. Lev frowned immediately, glancing at the offending limb on his disguised skin.

“Don’t mind him,” Matthew said with a grin. “He’s always like that. You’ll get used to it.”

Lev just blinked, silent. He didn’t care. He just wanted to get out of there.

———————————–

Examiners had the option to stay at the Hunter Association quarters or go home. Lev, of course, chose the latter without a second thought

Lev told Arthur about his observations from the first day at the Hunter Association. He also mentioned that Uno had attended, which was surprising because it was different from what was reported in the news.

“Ah. Yes. He recognized me.” Lev said flatly, as though he were commenting on the weather.

“Whaaaaaaaaaaat?!” Arthur nearly dropped dead on the spot. His eyes bulged. “Boss, that’s…. that’s catastrophic!”

Lev shrugged, picking apart the fried fish Arthur had cooked. His latest obsession. For a sea monster used to devouring prey raw, the discovery of cooked fish was practically life-changing. Not that it unseated his first love for ice cream. Nothing ever would.

“Hm. But for a different reason. I picked up a phone at the plaza before. I didn’t know it was his.”

Arthur blinked. His mouth opened, half a second from asking how in the world Uno’s phone ended up with Lev but his survival instincts screamed louder. “That doesn’t change the fact that he recognized you, boss! That’s bad news. He’ll keep an eye on you for sure!”

Lev stopped eating and raised a brow at Arthur. “You’re acting like that human can harm me.”

“Of course he can’t harm you, oh, mightiest Leviathan, devourer of worlds,” Arthur flailed, voice dripping with sarcasm. “But maybe, just maybe, try caution for once in your immortal life? Once we’re done with our plan here, then you can go on a rampage. Kill them. Eat them. Whatever. But until then could you please not act like the Hunter Association is your personal buffet?”

As if that wasn’t bad enough, Lev casually dropped another bomb that he was assigned as the vice captain in his team.

Lev reached for another piece of fish, unbothered. “This is good. Make more tomorrow.”

Arthur groaned into his hands. “We’re doomed.”

————————————-

On the second day at the Hunter Association, Team Emerald was greeted not by Matthew, but by a woman in a crisp white lab coat, oversized glasses, and red lipstick bold enough to scare lesser men.

“As you can see, Matthew is not here,” she announced, voice sharp enough to slice the chatter in the room. “He had to respond to an emergency in City A with his guild, Firebounty. But don’t worry, I’ll cover today’s lectures.”

She clicked her remote with the confidence of someone who had banished entire classrooms into silence.

“My name is Grish. You may call me Professor, Prof, or Professor Grish. Only hunters of the highest rank may call me by my first name.”

A murmur ran through the team.

“Whoa, she’s from Deadeye Guild,” one guy whispered to Lev, practically vibrating like a fanboy meeting his idol. “She’s so cool.”

Lev didn’t even blink. He wasn’t here to be impressed. He stared at the screen, waiting.

“Hunters are divided into seven categories: E, D, C, B, A, and S. S Rank is the highest tier, reserved for hunters whose power and achievements are recognized worldwide. However, there exists one rank beyond S, a rank created for a single individual who surpassed even that limit.”

Professor Grish clicked the remote. The screen shifted, revealing the face of the man everyone knew.

“Uno. The only hunter ever acknowledged as S+ Rank. His feats are unmatched.”

The room buzzed with awe. All eyes fixed on the screen, admiration and reverence thick in the air.

Lev’s eyes narrowed. Even in a photo, his gaze was cold and sharp, like someone who thought himself untouchable. Judging by the reactions in the room, his fame matched the arrogance.

“He has cleared dungeons others deemed impossible, and he alone has reached the top dungeon floor. Currently, he stands as the head of Deadeye Guild.”

Lev’s gaze turned icy at the mere mention of the top dungeon floor, a warning in his eyes. There was no way he’d allow someone else to trespass there again. 

Absolutely not.

The lecture shifted. “Currently, there are 120 guilds worldwide. Twenty belong to this country. The most famous are Deadeye, Blackfang, Firebounty, Wolfbane, and Señoritas Guild.”

The team leaned forward in excitement.

“If you want to be recruited by one of these guilds, you’ll need to prove yourselves in this Hunter Examination. Your captain, Matthew, is the head of Firebounty Guild.”

Click

“Now, the highlight of today: dungeons.” Her lipstick curled into a smile. “Portals appear randomly across the world. However, there are also times when we deliberately open them ourselves, in a process we call dungeon raiding.”

She strolled across the front of the room, pointer tapping the screen.

“Raiding requires government approval and oversight from the higher-ups. You’ll learn the full process once you officially become hunters. But for now, what matters most is what waits inside.”

Another click. The screen shifted to images of dungeon monsters, each stamped with a Threat Level.

According to her, threat levels were assigned according to the scale of destruction a monster could inflict. Levels A through C fell under the classification of Cataclysmic Threats.

The distinction between the letters lay in the extent of the ruin: C-levels could raze small settlements, B-levels could topple fortified cities, and A-levels could destabilize entire provinces. At the very peak sat Level S, known as a Global Cataclysm. Monsters of this tier carried the potential to alter the course of nations, collapse civilizations, and, if left to roam unchecked, threaten the survival of humanity itself.

Grish paused, letting the weight of her words hang in the air. Then her lips quirked.

“Your mission as future hunters? Train. Grow strong. Clear every dungeon floor. And when you finally reach the top…” She pointed at the final slide.

On the screen appeared the monstrous silhouette of an abomination. A serpent of impossible scale, maw wide, eyes glowing like storms. Its classification blazed in red beneath it.

[SSS-Class Dungeon Abomination: Leviathan]

Grish’s voice rang with solemn finality. “You need to kill that big guy.”

The whispers grew frantic. Fear. Excitement. Shock.

Lev stared at the screen, expression unreadable. That monstrous figure, the so-called abomination that sent shivers through the crowd…

…was him.