Probation (5)
The reason for summoning Lee Junyoung was simple.
[Citizen Lee Junyoung's trust level has risen significantly.]
[Citizen Lee Junyoung's loyalty has risen significantly.]
He had already caught my eye for awakening an A-rank ability, and just today alone, his name had popped up in several system notifications.
And then-
[Citizen Lee Junyoung's trust level has reached 100.]
[You have obtained 'Clairvoyance'.]
His trust level had suddenly maxed out, and I gained the ability of Clairvoyance.
"This is the first time something like this has happened…"
It wasn't unusual for the trust and loyalty of citizens who joined early to increase quickly.
Just becoming aware of my name and my abilities was often enough for their trust and loyalty to rise.
But this was the first time I'd seen the word "significantly" used as a modifier.
"I've seen 'greatly increased' before, but never 'significantly."
Notifications about great increases usually only appeared for people I'd met face-to-face.
But I had never met Lee Junyoung before.
And this was also the first time someone's trust had hit 100 before their loyalty.
"Even among my retainers, there are few whose trust levels have reached 100…"
From my perspective, this was definitely something to celebrate.
What mattered most was that there was now one more person who met the requirements to use Descent.
In fact, the increase in usable Descent activations was more meaningful than simply being able to use the awakened ability of someone with 100 trust.
"I have to accept him as a retainer, no question about it."
That's why I decided to invite him here.
I sent him a telepathic message just as he was exiting the Goblin Dungeon.
[I'd like to speak to you face to face, if that's alright?]
"Y-yes, of course!"
The moment he gave his permission-
"Dongdaemun, open."
I opened the Dongdaemun (Eastern Gate) before him.
Ziiing-
I opened the gate not in the living room, but at the front entrance, since Lee Junyoung wasn't yet a retainer.
Only those who qualified as retainers could enter my house.
Without retainer status, the only accessible area was the entryway where the shoe rack was so I opened the Dongdaemun there.
Beyond the door, connected to my entryway, I saw Lee Junyoung standing.
I extended my hand toward him and greeted him.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Kim Jaehyun."
Rather than shaking my hand, Lee Junyoung responded with a stiff expression—like a newly enlisted private in the military.
And since he was holding his gun in a standard front-ready posture, it made him seem even more like a private.
"I'm Lee Junyoung. It's an honor to meet you, sir!"
I asked while still holding out my hand.
"Not a fan of handshakes?"
"N-no, it's not that! It's just… my hands are dirty with goblin blood…"
But contrary to his words, Lee Junyoung's hands were clean.
"Huh?"
Apparently, he didn't realize that the blood scattered during the dungeon had vanished along with the goblin corpses during the loot distribution phase.
Looking down at his outfit, he muttered to himself.
"I'm… clean…?"
"When you defeat goblins, their corpses disappear. The blood they shed disappears with them."
Hearing this, Lee Junyoung looked like something had just clicked.
"Ah, so that's why. This was my first time in close combat, so I wasn't sure… Ah!"
As he was muttering to himself, he suddenly noticed my still-extended hand and quickly reached out to grasp it.
"Thank you for your help earlier. I nearly got taken out by the goblins, but thanks to the power you gave me at just the right time, I made it out alive."
66
…Sorry?"
At first, I had no idea what he was talking about.
After all, I hadn't given him any power.
But I quickly figured out what had happened.
"So that's why his trust level spiked."
For some reason, Lee Junyoung had come to place absolute faith in me at a critical moment.
That surge in faith caused his trust level to shoot up, and the power of trust kicked in-boosting all his stats by the amount equal to his trust level.
Given that he awakened an A-rank ability and was at level 30, the stat increase must have felt massive.
"He must've mistaken that power boost for something I gave him… and that's how his trust hit 100."
"Well, it wasn't an entirely wrong belief."
"After all, the power of trust also came from my skill, so technically, it was power I gave them."
"Thank you so much!"
I casually checked the citizen's status window and saw that loyalty had reached 98.
Seeing that, I asked lightly:
"Would you consider becoming my vassal?"
I hadn't even explained the benefits, rights, or duties that came with being a vassal yet.
Lee Jun-young answered enthusiastically.
"I'll do it!"
And at that moment-
[Citizen Lee Jun-young's loyalty increases.]
[Citizen Lee Jun-young's loyalty has reached 100.]
[Citizen Lee Jun-young has been registered as a vassal.]
[Vassal capacity limit has increased.]
His loyalty hit 100, and he was automatically registered as a vassal.
Wooooong!
A bright light radiated from Lee Jun-young, signaling that he had officially become a vassal.
66
'… You're really full of surprises today."
"?"
Now that he was a vassal, there was no need to keep talking with him out here at the entrance.
"Come on in."
"Yes, sir!"
"Would you like coffee or tea? I also have water."
"Coffee, please!"
While the water in the coffee pot was boiling, I decided to hand him a small gift.
"You mentioned your team had twelve members, right?"
Lee Jun-young looked slightly surprised as he replied.
"That's correct."
"Here's a gift."
Twelve smartphones appeared on the island countertop.
They were brand new, just purchased from the shop.
"Data facilities haven't been restored yet, so you won't be able to browse the internet or watch YouTube, but once activated, you'll be able to make simple calls or send texts."
"Really?"
Still, they were smartphones, so the camera and video functions worked perfectly fine.
"In addition, I'll gift you two of the apartments here."
"!!!"
The apartment complex I currently lived in was the most coveted housing among citizens.
That was because everything had developed around this apartment complex-due to my presence here.
Thanks to that, this place was considered the most expensive and desirable housing.
Of course, no actual transactions had taken place.
All property rights were under my direct control.
Most of the current residents had been living here from the start.
Whether it was a sale, lease, or rent, only those who had originally lived here were recognized.
Because of that, about half of the units were still empty, and I had been gifting them to those who had proven themselves or had outstanding abilities.
Call it dirty or unfair, but it couldn't be helped.
"You won't need to purchase rights for electricity, water, or gas from the shop either."
"Th-thank you."
"There's no need to thank me."
There was a good reason I offered this level of treatment.
"Do you remember the incident in Jamsil?"
"…I remember."
"Vassals are always the first to be deployed in dangerous situations like that. That means there are a lot of risks involved."
The privileges and rights they received were a trade-off for that danger.
"You could lose your life."
I looked straight into Lee Jun-young's wavering eyes and asked:
"Do you still want to be my vassal?"
If he said no, I was ready to let him go.
His loyalty had hit 100, so my vassal registration limit had already expanded.
It would be a shame to lose that perfect trust, but I couldn't force someone to risk their life.
At that moment-
Bubble bubble
The coffee pot clicked off as the water came to a full boil.
I made two cups of coffee and handed one to Lee Jun-young.
Taking the cup, he began speaking quietly.
"Life in Seoul was hell. Truly, it was a constant struggle where it wouldn't have been surprising to die at any moment. Back then, the idea of eating three meals a day like now was unimaginable."
His eyes lit up as he continued.
"I like it now. If my comrades and I can continue living like this, I'd be willing to risk my life for it."
"You've got a good eye."
I smiled pleasantly and held out my hand to him.
"Looking forward to working with you."
"I'll do my best!"
***
After accepting Kim Jaehyun's proposal and officially becoming his retainer, Lee Junyoung was able to return to his original location through the Dongdaemun gate, which remained open until he finished his coffee.
Kim Taehyun asked with worried eyes.
"Junyoung! What happened?"
Lee Junyoung smiled and pointed to the box in his arms as he spoke.
"Guess what this is?"
"What is it?"
"A smartphone."
"…? A smartphone, all of a sudden?"
"I just found out today, but apparently you can make calls and send texts here."
"What? How?"
"I don't know either. They said you have to activate it at the Central…"
"That's amazing."
The fact that communication was possible at all was already incredible.
"Damn, if I had known that, I would've kept my phone."
There weren't many people who would carry around a smartphone brick after living on the streets for so long.
now just a useless
"Huh? Really? I still have mine."
"Oh, me too!"
"You too, unnie?"
Seo Ji-hyun and Lee Seo-young were among those rare exceptions.
"I kept it for the photos. Good thing I did – I'm going to try turning it on when I get home."
"Do you have a charger?"
"I'll just buy one at a store."
At that moment, Kim Taehyun pulled out a phone box and said,
"There should be a charger in here."
"Mine's an iPhone, so USB-C won't work."
"Then I guess this won't be much use."
"No! Don't say that!"
As Lee Junyoung watched his companions chatting brightly, the dungeon administrators who had been silently observing finally spoke.
"If you've finished the raid, we'll help with returning the firearms."
"Oh, yes."
Just as they were about to return all the guns and head home-
"Huh?"
He spotted some familiar faces approaching.
"Mr. An Gitae?"
They were the ones who had once joined the JHS cult after being persuaded by Lee Youngjun.
After joining, an incident occurred almost immediately, and they remained a source of guilt for Lee Youngjun.
"Hello, Junyoung. You made it out safe."
"…I'm glad to see you're safe too, Gitae."
Junyoung quickly apologized.
"I'm sorry for what happened the other day. I didn't know what that place really was…"
"It's okay. I know you wouldn't have gone along with it if you had known. Actually, I should thank you. Thanks to you, I made it this far."
Relieved by his words, Lee Junyoung replied,
"Thank you for saying that. Still, I feel bad about what happened, so please take this."
An Gitae looked puzzled as Junyoung handed him a phone.
"A smartphone?"
It was a completely new item, still wrapped in its plastic seal.
"Yes. If you go to the Central and activate it, you can make calls and send texts."
"…You can really make calls and texts?"
"Yes. Amazing, right?"
"…Yeah. Thanks for the info this is really helpful."
"But….. are just the three of you raiding together?"
An Gitae answered with a sheepish smile.
"Well, since we have firearms. And all three of us used to be in the special forces…"
"That's impressive. Well, see you next time."
"Yes, until next time."
***
An Gitae slipped into Jeonpo Station under the cover of darkness.
Moving like a shadow, he quickly ran toward Exit 3.
That spot connected directly to Konkuk University Station in Seoul.
After checking behind him, he dove in without hesitation, heading somewhere.
And behind him—
Shhhk-
Moon Byungho, who had gone invisible, was silently tailing him.
[T/L: Read extra chapters on my ko-fi page "Pokemon1920" : https://ko-fi.com/pokemon1920 ]