1 A Conqueror

Seunghyuk sat still without a word as he slowly drew out his old phone from his pocket and dialled in some numbers.

"My dad would give me a huge scolding...I should prepare myself..." Seunghyuk talked to himself like he always did, he needed to be strong later on so as to be able to calmly listen to his father's heavy word blows.

He clicked the green button on his dimly litted phone screen, causing the phone to start vibrating as it sends out the call. Seunghyuk only waited anxiously with his phone placed beside his right ear, waiting for his father to pick up. The vibration of the phone stopped abruptly, and his father's voice rang through the phone," Happy birthday son! Why did you call today? Did you call specially to hear me wish you a Happy Birthday?"

Seunghyuk's feelings were conflicted and complicated. He was definitely happy to know that his father remembered his birthday even after being apart from him for almost a year, but when he heard his father's joking tone, his heart ached even more. He realised his father was in a good mood and that it was definitely not the best time to break a bad news.

"Son? Seunghyuk-ah? Why are you so quiet," Seunghyuk's father called out to him and Seunghyuk's eyes started to water again, this time utterly disappointed in himself as he cried out to his father," Dad! I'm sorry...I still couldn't awaken Conqueror powers..."

The atmosphere over the call when silent almost instantaneously, even the slight static sound from the old phone can be heard clearly. Seunghyuk crouched in the corner of his apartment and wiped the tears off his face with his long shirt sleeve.

"Son, don't cry...It's not your fault anyway..."

That was a reply that Seunghyuk never expected to hear. He was supposed to be hearing furious shouts and loud scoldings from him, but what is this?

"Seunghyuk-ah, don't blame yourself, okay? Come work with me in our shop stall tomorrow, okay?"

Seunghyuk muttered a hoarse 'okay' back to his father as a reply and simply hanged up. Strangely, without being scolded, he felt even worse, as if like he was receiving sympathy and pity from his own father, and that feeling did not feel good at all. It was like your father being your class teacher. However, it actually was normal to be powerless in Seunghyuk's family as none of his family members have ever awakened any sort of Conqueror powers, so he was silly to think that he would be the only special one.

"What was I thinking?" Seunghyuk laughed at himself as he stood up with difficulty due to his belongings littered all around his small apartment. He had made no attempt to clean up his apartment as water bills are expensive, mopping will not be necessary. That was an excuse that he made for himself. He made his way to the bathroom and pulled his shirt over his body, revealing a sickening, skinny-looking body under the oversized shirt.

"Funny how I have to shower every day looking at my pitiful self. I must be a skeleton in my past life." Seunghyuk muttered to himself as he prepared for shower, removing everything off his body but when he tried to pull out his family ring, it was unable to be pulled out.

The family ring was simple, nothing too eye-catching or valuable. The ring was made fully out of iron and steel, shaping it into a dragon. A weird-looking one, but it was still a clear sign that he was still remembered by his family even after leaving for almost a year.

"What..." Seunghyuk tried again and again but it just seemed like his family ring shrunk and grabbed onto his finger without the intention of letting it go. Seunghyuk glared at the ring with annoyance and the ring seemed to quietly stare back, not willing to budge.

"You know...I'm not in a very good mood today!" Seunghyuk pulled with all his might, channeling every single bit of strength his skinny hands could bring about, and with great effort and great pain tolerance, he pulled the ring out of his fingers successfully. Blood trickled down his ring finger, making it seem lile the ring was biting and munching on to his finger. It was painful but he ignored the pain, along with the blood on his fingers.

"Great, now I have blood on my family ring as well. My birthday's really going well," Seunghyuk took the blood-stained ring into the shower with him. The dragon on the ring looked like it came back from a blood massacre or a bloody war. He tried to wash the blood off the ring, but it seemed like the blood seeped into the metal of the ring and blended in. All of a sudden, a gray screen popped up right in front of his face without any warning, sending him flying backwards screaming," What in the world! What's this!"

The blood-stained ring in his hands started glowing with the faint shade of white. With every flicker, the glow became brighter, reaching a point where the light became blinding. It floated up into the air, leaving Seunghyuk in shock as he pressed both his eyes shut.

"Conqueror Choi Seunghyuk, your powers have been awakened."

"Who's speaking!" Seunghyuk exclaimed loudly, but when he took a closer and clearer look at the gray screen that popped up in front of his face, he was struck with the sudden lightning of realisation.

"System: Show Status, " Seunghyuk's brows knitted with concentration as he waited for the magic to happen, and as bad as his day was, the magic actually worked.

"Status Window shown. "

Seunghyuk looked right at the gray screen and he saw his own body statistics.

Conqueror's Level: 1

Strength: 1

Agility: 1

Defense: 1

MP: 1

At that point of time, he could not care less about how weak his body was, after all, he could just train himself and improve himself after. All that he did was break out a smile and let the pouring water from the shower mask his tears of joy.

"Hey ring, I don't know what you did, " Seunghyuk said airily with a soft tone, "but thank you for making me..."

A Conquerer.

Seunghyuk showered rapidly and rushed out of his bathroom, smiling to himself as he slid the family ring through his ring finger once again. Strangely, this time it went it without any pain or stress. Seunghyuk held his old phone in his hands and called his father once again.

"Dad, I need to tell you something," Seunghyuk spoke into the phone and paused for a good twenty seconds, until his father had to call out to him, then he replied," I don't think I'm coming to work with you at your stall tomorrow..."

"Huh? Son, Why?"

Seunghyuk placed the phone aside, his father still calling out to him on the phone line. He looked out of the same window, eyes falling on the same Obelisk, and he stretched out his hand, mimicking the action of catching the Obelisk.

"This time, I'm finally able to conquer you."