๐๐ก๐๐ฉ๐ญ๐๐ซ ๐๐: ๐-๐๐๐ง๐ค ๐๐๐ญ๐ ๐
In the dead of night, the forest consumes all shapes and forms.
The moon and stars that once adorned the darkness are lost to the embrace of towering trees.
Only the hushed footsteps of wildlife stir the forest path.
Past the witching hour.
Rustle, rustle.
A clamor that would rouse the slumbering stillness echoes from the forest’s edge.
They cut through the darkness, their steps quickening toward their destination.
Before them looms an ominous S-Rank Gate, its maw pulsating grotesquely.
“It’s. . .unnerving,”
Do Kyung-hoo mutters, his gaze fixed upon the Gate, his body clad in full combat gear.
A veteran hunter of nearly two decades, even he has never encountered a Gate as unsettling as this.
Is this what fear feels like? he wonders.
‘๐ ๐จ๐ช๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ค๐จ๐ ๐’๐ข ๐ฃ๐ค๐ฉ ๐๐จ ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช๐ฃ๐ ๐๐จ ๐ ๐ช๐จ๐๐ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐๐.’
He chuckles at the thought, a wry smile playing on his lips.
His eyes scan his surroundings.
Numerous Hunters tend to their weapons, awaiting the moment they will charge into the unknown.
How many of them will return home?
“You seem nervous.”
“. . .Hunter Kang Yeo-hwa.”
Do Kyung-hoo turns his head, his body still, at the sound of approaching footsteps.
The familiar azure locks he has known for years now belong to a formidable S-Rank Hunter, her eyes burning with determination.
“To think we’d be entrusting the fate of our nation to a greenhorn like you. How can we not worry?”
“As the number two Hunter in all of South Korea, what do you have to worry about?”
“Heh. The number two will freeze to death.”
Do Kyung-hoo unsheathes the sword at his waist, inspecting its edge.
There’s nothing quite as reassuring as a weapon that has been with him through countless battles.
In the direst of situations, it has always been the blade in his hand, not his comrades, that has saved him.
“It’s good to see you’re still in fighting shape. Well then, I’ll be going.”
“Wait, Kang Yeo-hwa.”
“Yes?”
Do Kyung-hoo asked her without taking his eyes off the blade.
“I hear rumors that he has returned. Is it true?”
“Where did you hear that?”
“Heh, from up there.”
Do Kyung-hoo points a finger toward the sky.
Choi Dae-soo.
“Yes, he has returned.”
“. . . . . .I see.”
Kang Yeo-hwa tries to read the expression on his face.
But the darkness of the forest obscures his features, shielding whatever emotions lie beneath the surface.
“I heard he won’t be participating in this Gate raid?”
“Well. . .he’s not in the country right now. He’s at the HSIU headquarters.”
“Is that so. It’s a shame to lose such a powerful asset.”
Do Kyung-hoo sheathes his sword, his words hanging in the air.
“Let’s get ready to move.”
As he rises and takes a step toward the Gate, the other Hunters cease their movements, their gazes fixed upon him.
There is little light, but Do Kyung-hoo’s stature and presence as a leader are undeniable.
“To all of you gathered here today, I extend my deepest gratitude. The Republic of Korea faces a crisis unlike any other, an S-Rank Gate.”
His voice, resonant and unwavering, carries through the forest.
Every Hunter stands at attention, their focus solely on him.
“We have no aid from our allies, no support from our neighboring countries.”
Do Kyung-hoo continues, his words measured and deliberate, his eyes sweeping across the crowd.
โMany Hunters will be injured or lose their lives. Someoneโs sibling, someoneโs parent, someoneโs child, someoneโs lover or spouse!โ
“. . . . . .”
“Today, you will fulfill your calling and be forever etched in the annals of history.”
A gust of wind rustles the leaves of the trees.
Silence hangs in the air, each person lost in their own thoughts.
“But, even so.”
Do Kyung-hoo’s gaze falls upon each and every face.
“As we always have, the Republic of Korea will prevail. The blood we shed today will be the nourishment for that ‘always.'”
His fervent words reach into the hearts of the people, peeling back the layers of darkness one by one.
“Guild Leaders!! Are you ready!!”
At Do Kyung-hoo’s roar, the Guild Leaders respond in unison.
“[Frosthorn Guild] Lee Ye-ji and 32 others ready.”
“[Imperial Guild] Min Si-joon and 47 others ready.”
“[White Lion Guild] Choi Sung-il and 44 others ready.”
“[Blue Moon Guild] Kang Yeo-hwa and 50 others ready.”
“[Gold River Guild] Ryu Ji-hwan and 25 others ready.”
“[Limitless Guild] Gi Il-yeon and 57 others ready.”
“ใKorean Hunter Associationใ Kim Eun-ju and 20 others ready.”
“ใHSIU Korea Branchใ Hwang Jeong-gu and 18 others ready.”
Do Kyung-hoo nods.
“[Brawler Guild] Do Kyung-hoo and 29 others ready.”
A total of 331 Hunters.
Never before in the history of the Republic of Korea have so many Hunters gathered for a single subjugation.
It is also the first time that every Guild Leader of the [Heptagram] has assembled.
‘๐๐ค๐ฌ๐๐ซ๐๐ง. . .’
This number pales in comparison to the forces deployed by the United States, Russia, Japan, and China in their respective S-Rank Gate operations.
Japan, with the smallest force, had over 600 Hunters, while the United States had deployed over 2,000.
‘๐ฝ๐ช๐ฉ ๐ ๐๐ช๐ฃ๐ฉ๐๐ง ๐๐๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ก๐ ๐๐จ ๐ฃ๐ค๐ฉ ๐ ๐ฃ๐ช๐ข๐๐๐ง๐จ ๐๐๐ข๐.’
Among them are two of South Korea’s three S+ Hunters and six of its ten S-Rank Hunters.
‘๐ ๐๐๐ก๐๐๐ซ๐ ๐ฌ๐ ๐๐๐ซ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐จ๐ฉ๐ง๐๐ฃ๐๐ฉ๐ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐ง๐๐ซ๐๐ก ๐๐ฃ๐ฎ ๐ค๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ค๐ฉ๐๐๐ง ๐๐๐ซ๐๐ก๐ค๐ฅ๐๐ ๐ฃ๐๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ๐จ.’
Do Kyung-hoo extinguishes the flicker of doubt that had begun to grow in his heart.
This is not a battle for victory.
It is a battle to slay their enemies.
โLetโs go!! Letโs show them hell!!โ
๐ท๐ท๐ท๐ท๐ท๐ท
๐๐ฌ๐ฆ๐s๐ญ๐ค๐ณ๐๐s.ฤฬ๐จ๐
Edward had prepared the open space and three magic stones at Siwoo’s request.
There was no open space nearby, so he had hurriedly rented a place, cordoned off the area, and restricted access in order to prepare.
Edward looked at him with anxious eyes.
“Are you sure this will work? Wouldn’t it be better to go to the airport while we still have time?”
“Ah, well, it’ll be fine.”
“Have you ever tried this before?”
“Um. . .once?”
“. . . . . .”
Edward was speechless at his nonchalant reply.
He couldn’t help but wonder if this was really the best course of action in such a time-sensitive situation.
“Are you sure you can pull this off? Maybe we should find a professional Hunter.”
“Where are you going to find a professional Hunter who can do this? They’re all out in the field. And it’ll be faster if I do it now than if I try to find them.”
Siwoo picked up a piece of chalk and began drawing a large circle on the floor of the open space.
Siwoo drew a circle that was easily over 10m in diameter, then added several smaller circles within it.
“Do you really plan on drawing all of this?”
“I have to. Teleportation magic isn’t something you can just cast with a single skill.”
[Teleportation], as the name suggests, is a magic that allows one to move from point A to point B, and it is a technique that is legally prohibited in most countries.
If it were possible, it would likely be used for dangerous activities such as espionage, sabotage, or terrorism, which is why it has been outlawed.
Therefore, what Siwoo was attempting to do was a clear violation of the law.
Of course, if he were caught, Edward’s influence would be enough to hush it up.
“How long do you think it will take?”
“Well. . .it shouldn’t take more than 6 or 7 hours. By the way, did you know that’s still faster than flying?”
Edwin, who had been about to suggest that they just take a plane, hurriedly closed his mouth.
He was quick to catch on.
ใ๐๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐ง๐๐ซ๐ซ๐จ๐ฐ-๐๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ค๐ข๐ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฎ๐ฉ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฌ๐จ๐ฆ๐๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐ง๐ ๐ ๐๐ ๐๐ข๐ง. ๐๐ก๐จ ๐ข๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ข๐ซ ๐ซ๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ญ ๐ฆ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฐ๐จ๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ฆ๐จ๐ซ๐ข๐ณ๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐๐ฐ ๐ฌ๐จ๐ฆ๐๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฅ๐ข๐ค๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ญ? ๐’๐ ๐ซ๐๐ญ๐ก๐๐ซ ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐ก๐๐ฏ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ ๐จ๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ง๐ฌ ๐๐๐ซ๐ซ๐ฒ ๐ฆ๐. ๐๐ง ๐๐ฑ๐๐ก๐๐ง๐ ๐, ๐’๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐๐ฎ๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ฆ ๐ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ง๐ค!ใ
“Are you crazy?”
ใ๐๐จ๐ฎโ๐ซ๐ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ ๐ฌ๐จ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ ๐๐จ๐งโ๐ญ ๐ค๐ง๐จ๐ฐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ญ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ฅ๐๐จ๐ก๐จ๐ฅ. ๐๐ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ ๐ฅ๐ข๐ฏ๐ ๐ฅ๐จ๐ง๐ ๐๐ง๐จ๐ฎ๐ ๐ก, ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ซ๐ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐๐จ๐ฆ๐ ๐ ๐๐๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ก๐๐ง ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ ๐๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ฅ๐๐จ๐ก๐จ๐ฅ ๐๐ฌ ๐ฌ๐ฐ๐๐๐ญ ๐๐ฌ ๐ก๐จ๐ง๐๐ฒ, ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐ฅ๐ข๐ค๐ ๐ฆ๐.ใ
โStop it, please.โ
Siwoo clicked his tongue at Pre.
He decided that from now on, he would never drink with those guys again.
‘๐๐๐๐จ ๐๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐ฎ ๐ ๐๐๐ฃ’๐ฉ ๐๐ซ๐๐ฃ ๐๐ง๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฌ๐๐ฉ๐๐ง ๐๐ฃ ๐๐ง๐ค๐ฃ๐ฉ ๐ค๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐จ.’
Siwoo grumbled to himself as he continued to draw the large diagram.
What he was currently drawing was the magic circle for [Teleportation].
He had to draw at least a thousand circles, shapes, symbols, and characters, and there could be no breaks in the sequence when checking its formula.
Among Hunters who use magic circles to cast skills, those who can memorize such circuits are extremely rare.
In particular, it is difficult to draw such a complex formula even when looking at a book, but Siwoo was reconstructing it solely from his own experience, without any reference materials.
โWhy the hell are you memorizing something like this?โ
โIf you had been messing around in another world for a hundred years, youโd be able to do all sorts of things.โ
“I still wouldn’t do something like this, you magic otaku. No wonder you don’t have a girlfriend.”
ใ๐๐ก๐๐ญ’๐ฌ ๐ซ๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ญ, ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ ๐ฆ๐๐ ๐ข๐ ๐จ๐ญ๐๐ค๐ฎ. ๐๐จ๐ฎ’๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐๐ข๐ ๐๐ฅ๐จ๐ง๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐ก๐๐ฅ๐จ๐ซ. ๐๐๐๐ฏ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฐ๐จ๐ฆ๐๐ง ๐๐ฅ๐จ๐ง๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐จ๐ฉ ๐ฆ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ .ใ
“. . .Both of you, shut up before I lose my mind.”
Siwoo sighed and continued to draw the magic circle diligently.
He filled in the formula on the empty spaces, kneeling on the floor without taking a single break.
Edward was secretly impressed by his determination.
He may have teased him playfully, but Siwoo was nothing short of a prodigious genius.
In all his years of meeting countless Hunters, greeting dignitaries, and leading organizations, Edward had never seen anyone with Siwoo’s abilities.
Enormous magical power, vast knowledge, and combat skills that rivaled even Choi Dae-soo’s.
โHe used to be somewhat human in the past, but now heโs become an insurmountable monster.โ
He watched Siwoo, who had been drawing the magic circle for three hours now, and couldn’t help but gasp.
The length and shape of the strokes through which the magic power would flow, their fusion with other strokes.
He had to calculate all of these things in his head and draw them without a single error.
Siwoo’s hand moved without hesitation, and as he had said, he gradually filled in the circle, as if he would complete it in just 6 hours.
๐ท๐ท๐ท๐ท๐ท๐ท
แดแบฬ๐๐ฃs๐ฉ๐ฐแนฬ๐ฆ๐s.๐๐ ๐
Inside the S-rank Gate, the Hunters scanned their surroundings with tense expressions.
The area was a desolate wasteland, like a desert, and a forest could be seen about 3km ahead.
“We’re lucky that the monsters haven’t attacked us yet.”
“Maybe there aren’t as many monsters as we thought.”
Kang Yeo-hwa replied to Do Kyung-hoo’s words.
Occasionally, there were unfortunate cases where Hunters were attacked by monsters lying in wait as soon as they entered a Gate.
“First, let’s split into teams A, B, and C as planned. We’ll move in the same direction, but keep a slight distance between us, so please hurry.”
At Kim Eun-ju’s words, the people moved to their respective teams.
Choi Sung-il, Hwang Jeong-gu, and Do Kyung-hoo, who would take the lead as Team A.
Gi Il-yeon, Min Si-joon, and Lee Ye-ji, who would support the front and rear as Team B.
And finally, Ryu Ji-hwan, Kang Yeo-hwa, and Kim Eun-ju, who would take up the rear as Team C.
“Alright, let’s have Team A move out first. Keep about 100m between you.”
As Do Kyung-hoo spoke, the people from Teams B and C nodded.
The hundred or so Hunters belonging to each team kept their eyes on the leaders of their respective teams, their tension palpable.
Before coming here, everyone had looked through the data on S-Rank Gates and entered.
However, it would have been better if they hadn’t seen the data at all.
In the end, the nine previous S-Rank Gates had all been disasters with different names, each bearing its own unique horrors.
“Do you think we’ll really just be providing support? We won’t actually be fighting, right?”
One of the Hunters whispered to a colleague beside him.
“This is my first S-Rank, so how would I know! I’m sure we’ll be fine with Hunter Do Kyung-hoo or Hunter Gi Il-yeon there. . . .”
“Why?”
“Well, it’s. . .um. . .that.”
The trembling finger pointed to a single, enormous eyeball that was staring at them, blinking slowly.