Free Web Novel
└ “Which conglomerate?”
└ “Resurrection legend—if it’s real he’s got it all.”
└ “Maybe Maru? I think I saw an article that the son died in an accident recently.”
└ “You mean the one that got deleted? I saw that too.”
└ “That was fake news.”
└ “Either way, elemental awakening is insanely enviable.”
└ “Who is it?”
└ “I know lol our class’s piggy bank.”
└ “The kid’s kind of gloomy, I guess.”
At that moment, the resurrection guy. Roy knew the world was in an uproar over his story. At first, over-the-top posts were climbing fast, but once the conglomerate’s legal team showed its teeth, one by one they went quiet, and now the chatter had vanished completely. Still, it seemed everyone who needed to know already did.
It had almost been a month since the Awakener Management Department sent him the examination guide.
I can’t put this off any longer. Your exam, my outing.
Honestly, Roy found looking in the mirror far harder than any nasty rumors about his past. His unkempt bangs that obscured his eyes, and a fashion sense that made you doubt his nationality—his closet was full of nothing but trash. What shocked him most was his glasses: a luxury-brand limited edition, only ten pairs in the world, yet he would never have chosen them himself.
The one bit of luck was that his idol comeback diet had transformed his appearance beyond recognition. After being holed up in his room post-discharge, Roy was finally ready to face the world.
“Are you sure you’ll be okay on your own?”
“Yes. I want to go alone. There are too many watching eyes.”
Unsurprisingly, his parents weren’t thrilled with Roy’s decision.
“Still, wouldn’t it be better if we went with you? You’re so fragile—you might collapse again...”
“No. I’m really fine.”
Fragile, heh. In his parents’ eyes, Roy still seemed delicate, although he had a long way to go before reaching his goals. Understandable—they were bigger figures than he imagined. He’d jotted “son of a chaebol” as a joke, but he never truly expected it to be real. Maru Group was South Korea’s leading food conglomerate with over seventy subsidiaries—a chaebol among chaebols. Its chairman was a walking headline; whatever he ate, wore, or drove became a viral sensation.
To be escorted by someone like that—Roy politely declined on his own behalf.
“Then I’ll be off.”
Roy bowed and slipped out of the house like an escapee.
He arrived at the Awakener Management Department building. The plaza in front swarmed with reporters and guild scouts. Seeing that, Roy felt even more certain he’d made the right choice coming alone.
The Department handled all matters related to Awakeners, functioning as a government guild headquarters. Before coming here, Roy had stopped by a salon to tidy his hair and bought contact lenses, reclaiming a cuteness befitting his age. His middle school graduation photos had circulated online once, but no one recognized him.
Roy ignored the front entrance and hurried around to the rear gate. Had he not stumbled on the “Awakeners’ Tips & Tricks for the Awakening Exam!” video, he might have blundered straight into disaster.
“Hello.”
Roy approached the back gate with a signature belly-bow—a habit from childhood that had shattered countless Starlight hearts. Even at twenty-one, its impact was immense; at his younger age, it was unstoppable. The stern-faced guard’s expression instantly melted.
“How can I help you?”
“Hello. I’m here for the awakening exam but can’t find the entrance.”
“Do you have a guardian with you?”
“No. The teacher said this would be enough.”
Roy produced the crumpled doctor’s note from his pocket.
“Go inside and head down to Basement 1.”
“Thank you.”
Roy bowed again and slipped through the gate. Fortunately, signs to the exam rooms were clear, so he didn’t get lost. Inside, however, was as busy as the outside. Roy paused at the entrance, hesitating, until an attendant approached.
“You’re here for the awakening exam?”
“Yes.”
At that, all the waiting candidates turned to stare at Roy—eyeing him as if sizing up the resurrection guy.
“Hicc”
Roy hiccupped before he knew it, clapping a hand over his mouth. He offered the doctor’s note as calmly as he could.
“This is the note? Please fill out the questionnaire over there first, then I’ll call your number.”
The attendant’s motherly smile and patient guidance charmed Roy. He bowed and dashed to an empty seat, his heart pounding at the thought of being discovered. Thankfully, people quickly lost interest—no one recognized his new look. He’d even wrapped a scarf around his neck just in case, which might have drawn more attention instead.
Soon, his number was called.
“Number 36~”
“Yes.”
“Follow the yellow line straight in.”
Perhaps because he looked younger, the attendant was overly kind. Roy followed the floor stickers to a door; inside was a single machine resembling a CT scanner.
“Please remove your shoes, lie down, and close your eyes.”
Roy complied, and the machine began scanning him.
“All done. You may sit up.”
The exam finished in under three minutes—Roy felt foolish for not coming sooner.
“You’ll be auto-registered in Awakening24. Results take two to three minutes. Please wait here.”
The attendant pointed to a chair opposite the exam room and retreated inside. Through the transparent glass, Roy saw the staff’s mechanical movements—they looked utterly bored, as if ready to leave at any moment.
Making money isn’t easy for them either.
As Roy privately sympathized, the attendant’s face suddenly registered shock. In her hand was the paper she’d promised would take three minutes.
“!!!!!”
“......?”
Their eyes met through the glass. As she jabbed a finger at him, Roy saw the status window appear again before his eyes.
━━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━━
Lee Roi (S)
Age: 16
Attribute: Elemental / Fire
Skills: God’s Lighting, ???
━━━━━━━━━━━━━
God’s Lighting...?
Roy stared at the ceiling in bewilderment when the door burst open and the attendant rushed toward him, exam paper in hand.
“Mr. Lee Roi!”
“Yes?”
“Uh, uh, uh...!”
“Uh?”
The attendant, unable to speak, fidgeted. Roy frowned at her. Then she thrust the exam results at him—white paper bearing the same info from the status window.
“Oh. You saw this too? What is it?”
“You saw it? When?”
“I can see it right now.” freeweɓnovēl.coɱ
“Right?”
Talking to someone had never been this difficult. Their conversation had been off since moments ago.
“How should I... call this? A status window?”
Roy ventured, and the attendant’s face fell.
“Right?”
Ah. Maybe that was classified. Realizing he’d said too much, Roy backtracked.
“No, sorry. I misspoke.”
Debuting at eighteen and growing up amid endless scrutiny had honed his instincts.
Damn. It’s only visible to me.
He’d found comfort in believing others saw it too—but now it seemed he was the only crazy one. As Roy bit his lip in anxiety, the attendant suddenly grabbed his hand.
“It’s an honor to meet you! An Elemental-class S-rank! And fire attribute at that!”
Since Prophet Maha’s final prophecy, awakened ones were venerated as heroes. And an S-rank! The first since Healer Baek Eun-seong ten years ago. Only the fifth in South Korea’s history! Yet Roy looked utterly clueless about its significance.
“...Is that good?”
“Good? This isn’t just good!”
The attendant shouted excitedly. He must have thought this frail kid knew nothing of the world. And without a guardian present, this was a rare chance to impress the Minister. His eyes glittered with ambition as he eyed Roy—young enough to manipulate easily.
“Instead of here, shall we move someplace more private? You could meet the Minister while you’re here.”
“The Minister?”
Roy’s eyes widened. The head of the Awakener Management Department—the highest person here—was not someone you met casually. Feeling something was off, Roy braced himself, and the attendant turned to him.
“Why?”
“I don’t want to go. I don’t want to.”
His instincts screamed not to follow.
“It’s nothing sinister. Just an explanation,” the attendant said, but Roy inched back like a frightened kitten. His trembling stance made the attendant’s heart clench—what was he thinking, dragging this small child into something? Overcome with guilt, he knelt to meet Roy’s eye level.
“I’m sorry. I got carried away. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“...Okay.”
“Then shall we just issue your Awakener License? When you leave, use the back gate instead of the front.”
Suddenly, the attendant was caring for Roy like a parent.
“Could you call your parents, by any chance?”
“Why...?”
Roy’s bright eyes blinked up at him like an angelic kitten.
Shit! So cute!
Boom! The attendant struck the wall with his fist, trembling.
The terrified ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) act Roy had perfected broke down as fear of the real person before him took hold.
