SSS-Rank Awakening: My Talent Multiplies Everything

Chapter 131: Ferris Newman.

Kael stepped up to the counter before speaking in a calm tone.

"I came for a Hunter rank reassessment."

The woman behind the counter didn’t even look up from the monitor in front of her. Her fingers continued dancing across the keyboard with practiced efficiency as she spoke in the same professional tone she had used countless times before.

"Name."

"Kael Voss."

"Hunter ID."

Kael recited the series of numbers from memory.

The woman nodded faintly before entering the information into the system. The keyboard clicked rhythmically beneath her fingertips as the Association database searched through millions of registered Hunters.

A second later...

Kael’s profile appeared on the monitor.

The receptionist’s eyes swept over the information out of habit. Name. Age. Registered Rank. Previous records.

Everything was perfectly normal.

She moved the cursor toward the reassessment registration option, intending to assign Kael to one of the simulation rooms.

Then...

Her hand suddenly stopped.

"...This..."

The word escaped her lips almost unconsciously.

Her pupils shrank.

Her eyes became glued to a single line displayed near the very top of Kael’s profile.

For a brief moment, her mind completely went blank.

The color slowly drained from her face as she stared at the screen in disbelief before instinctively raising her head to look at the young man standing quietly before her.

There wasn’t any visible aura around him.

Nothing extraordinary about his appearance.

If anything, he looked like an ordinary young Hunter.

Yet...

The line displayed on her monitor couldn’t possibly be wrong.

The Association’s central database was incapable of making mistakes.

Kael noticed the abrupt change in her expression almost immediately.

"Is there a problem?"

"H-Huh?"

The woman subconsciously answered before realizing she’d lost her composure. She hurriedly took a small breath, forcing the shock from her face as years of professional training finally kicked in.

"N-No... there’s no problem."

She offered an awkward smile before quickly continuing.

"I’ll arrange for someone to accompany you..."

She hadn’t even finished speaking before Kael gently shook his head.

"There’s no need."

"I can handle it from here."

He wasn’t being arrogant.

There simply wasn’t a need for someone to escort him.

His future self had undergone more than a few reassessment examinations over the years, so the process was already familiar to him.

The receptionist’s job ended the moment she registered him into the system.

After that, all he needed to do was head toward the designated examination room, enter one of the Association’s virtual simulation pods, and complete the required combat evaluations. Once he passed, the results would automatically be uploaded into the Association’s database, after which he could simply update his Hunter identification to reflect his new rank.

It was a straightforward process.

There wasn’t much anyone needed to explain.

The receptionist opened her mouth.

"Umm..."

But no words came out.

She genuinely didn’t know what to say.

Her gaze unconsciously drifted back toward the monitor.

More specifically...

Toward the classification displayed beneath Kael’s personal information.

VIP Clearance.

The two simple words felt absurdly out of place.

To outsiders, the classification might sound like nothing more than preferential treatment.

It wasn’t.

Within the Hunter Association, that designation carried an entirely different meaning.

It wasn’t a symbol of superiority.

Nor was it a rank.

Instead, it served as an internal directive.

Any Hunter whose profile carried that classification was to have their arrival immediately reported to the highest-ranking official within whichever Association branch they visited.

Regardless of location.

Regardless of time.

It meant only one thing.

This person was important.

Important enough that their appearance alone warranted notifying the branch’s leadership.

Not even every S-Rank Hunter possessed that classification.

Only a select few.

Which was exactly why the receptionist felt so helpless.

Kael had politely declined an escort.

She certainly couldn’t force someone carrying that level of clearance to accept one.

After hesitating for several seconds, she finally nodded.

"...Very well."

"You may proceed."

Kael returned the nod before turning around and walking deeper into the Association building.

The receptionist silently watched his figure disappear down the corridor before her eyes slowly returned to the monitor.

Her expression stiffened once again.

"...F+-Rank..."

She quietly read the current rank displayed on his profile before looking back toward the glowing VIP classification.

The combination simply didn’t make sense.

An F+ Hunter...

Receiving treatment that even many S-Rank Hunters could only dream of?

The more she thought about it, the more confused she became.

Eventually, she let out a small sigh.

Forget it.

She was only a receptionist.

There was no point trying to understand matters far beyond her position.

Some questions were simply above her pay grade.

Without another thought, she picked up the phone sitting beside her keyboard before dialing an internal number.

The call connected almost instantly.

...

A few moments later...

Ding.

The elevator doors at the center of the lobby slid open.

A middle-aged man dressed in a perfectly tailored black suit stepped out with quick, purposeful strides. Although he wasn’t releasing any aura, there was still an unmistakable sense of authority surrounding him that naturally drew attention wherever he went.

The bustling lobby noticeably quieted.

Several Hunters waiting in line immediately recognized him.

"Director Ferris?"

"What is the branch director doing down here?"

Whispers quickly spread throughout the hall.

Ferris Newman.

An A-Rank Hunter.

Director of the Third District Hunter Association Branch.

Normally, someone of his position rarely appeared in the public lobby unless something significant had happened.

Ignoring the curious gazes around him, Ferris walked directly toward the front desk.

"Where is he?"

There wasn’t even a greeting.

The receptionist immediately pointed toward the examination wing.

"He already went to take his reassessment test."

Ferris frowned.

"He already went?"

Without another word, he immediately started walking in that direction before suddenly stopping halfway.

His brows slowly knitted together.

"...Test?"

He turned back toward the receptionist.

"What kind of reassessment test?"

The receptionist blinked.

"Hunter rank reassessment, Director."

Ferris’s expression became even stranger.

"A reassessment..."

He muttered the words under his breath before a thought suddenly surfaced in his mind.

Do we even have facilities capable of examining someone with that level of clearance?

His thoughts naturally wandered in a particular direction.

Someone carrying a VIP classification...

Surely they had to be an S-Rank Hunter.

Or perhaps...

Even higher.

Very few people knew this, but the Hunter Association recognized a realm beyond S-Rank.

SS-Rank.

Individuals standing at that level were so rare that even most branch directors had never personally met one.

Ferris himself knew very little about them.

Only fragments gathered throughout his years within the Association.

He knew they were sometimes referred to as Pioneers.

He knew they stood at the forefront of humanity.

And he knew that people of that caliber weren’t measured by the same standards as ordinary Hunters.

If someone with VIP clearance had come here specifically for a reassessment...

Could it be...

Were they attempting to advance into that realm?