Chapter 4
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 4
Chapter Title: A Good Man for Hunters
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Gates are divided into seven colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, navy, and purple.
That's why they're called Rainbow Gates.
The purple ones, known as Purple Gates, are presumed to be the easiest, while the red Red Gates are thought to be the hardest.
The reason it's just a presumption is that humanity has only conquered up to the navy Navy Gates so far.
In other words, the Blue Gate right in front of me is uncharted territory.
S-Rank Hunters are still playing around in Navy Gates, and they expect me to step into this one?
This is the perfect gate to test Master's class and skills. You'll understand what I mean once you go inside.
'You mean there's some kind of safety net?'
If it's dangerous, I'll pull you right out. But you won't even need that, so don't worry and head on in.
I was anxious, but since the gate itself had chosen me, it wouldn't kill me off easily. With that in mind, I decided to go in.
Truth be told, my curiosity to properly see what the gate had in store outweighed any anxiety.
Curiosity killed the cat for good reason.
'I won't get contaminated just by touching this, right?'
It's a tutorial. It'll disappear once you go in and out, so no worries.
Gates contaminate the surrounding soil until a hunter enters, defeats the boss, and clears it.
If you fail once, it won't reopen for at least two days, and the contaminated area keeps spreading in the meantime.
The longer the gate clearance takes, the more the nearby land gets ruined.
That's one reason the government strictly controls guild access to gates.
Opening a gate is compared to opening a can, hence the expression "cracking a gate."
It's because leaving it open too long is like letting the contents rot, just like in a can.
I'm about to crack my first Blue Gate.
An endless expanse of grassland.
That was my first impression upon entering the gate.
It really was modeled after some specific environment on Earth.
The terrain is randomly generated, so it doesn't mean much. Next time you come in, it could be mountains or a river.
It's not too complex, so it seems fitting for a tutorial.
I'd expected something insane from a Blue Gate, but surprisingly, it was pretty ordinary.
A monster's coming. Test your skills against it, Master.
The only skill I can use right now is 'Infinite Yin Energy.'
I can take on monsters with this?
A moment later, the monster revealed itself.
"Grrrrowl..."
It had a pig-like face with sharp fangs protruding from its mouth.
Its skin was green, its build about the size of a gorilla, and its arms were disproportionately long.
"An orc? But... that head..."
The Hunter Administration Department teaches everything known about hunters and gates.
That naturally includes the types and traits of monsters found in gates.
The monster in front of me resembled the orcs that often appear in Navy Gates.
Except for the three heads.
'It looks like an orc, but with three heads. A mutant?'
That's a Cerberork.
'Cerberork?'
Yeah. It's a hybrid between the hellhound Cerberus and an orc. Guess a Cerberus took a liking to one.
'Bestiality?'
Monsters mate with each other too. They don't have human-like romantic feelings, but they do have urges. Especially higher species like Cerberus—they have insane libidos and don't discriminate.
'So it's a rare monster? A hybrid of a higher species, right?'
Monsters give birth to thousands at a time, so they're not rare at all. Cerberorks are just mob monsters in this gate.
She said they're constantly popping out somewhere even now.
Gates are a kingdom of sex, huh.
Mob or not, the Cerberork was bigger than your average mid-sized car.
It wielded a club, and getting hit by that would shatter bones for sure.
'How am I supposed to take down something like that barehanded? You should at least give me a weapon.'
The King of Yin Energy needs no weapons. Hold out your palm and focus.
I did as she said, spreading my palm and concentrating.
Flames seemed to flicker up, gathering into a ball.
It was about the size of a baseball.
'What'd it make?'
It's Yin Energy condensed together. This is your third unique skill: Materialized Yin Energy. Think of it as the ability to materialize Yin Energy into any shape you want.
'How do I use it?'
It's a ball, so throw it. You were a baseball player, right?
Oh.
She knows what I'm good at.
I quit due to a knee injury, but up until high school, I was a promising player.
No way I'd miss that thing from this distance.
When I gripped the ball, it felt warm, like body temperature.
Probably because it came from my own body.
'Brings back old memories.'
I naturally shifted into a windup stance.
Raising both arms above my head to center myself, I hurled the ball at the Cerberork with all my strength.
"Hyaah—!!"
The feeling was great.
The ball shot forward in an instant, sinking right into the Cerberork's body.
Huh?
And that was it.
"Oink?"
The thing seemed confused too, tilting all three heads.
What the hell?
'That didn't do a thing. What is this...'
BOOM!!
Before I could finish, the Cerberork's body exploded.
All that remained where it had stood were two ankles, left behind starkly.
'It... exploded.'
It's a bit weak since it's your first time. It should normally vanish without a trace. Keep practicing, and it'll return to full power, so don't worry.
'Did I... make a bomb?'
All monsters in gates love Yin Energy. That's one reason they charge at hunters.
My Yin Energy was of such absurd purity that monsters couldn't handle it.
They sucked it in because it felt good, but couldn't properly absorb it, so it backflowed.
Once the backflow started, their bodies couldn't take it and exploded like that.
It's a skill only someone overflowing with Yin Energy like you can use. Even if the gate sucks hard, you always have excess.
Even S-Rank Hunters struggle to last over 30 minutes when the gate drains their Yin Energy, but mine never runs out no matter how much it takes.
That means I can turn the excess into weapons.
Once you're used to it, you can take on higher species or even gate bosses. Right now, all you can make is balls, but depending on your partner, you can create some insane stuff.
Materializing Yin Energy into attack weapons? I'd never heard of anything like it.
I'd heard Han Chaewon materializes aura using her blood as a catalyst, but I don't even need that.
If a handheld ball has that much destructive power, just imagine what I could make later.
It might even change the paradigm of gate clearances.
【SYSTEM】 Acquired 3 points.
Defeating the Cerberork gave me points.
I get levels, ranks, experience, and stats, but what are points for?
Available Points: 13pt
'What are points for?'
The Hunter Administration Department is basically a training ground for Hunter Agency officials, so we learn everything there is to know about gates and hunters.
But available points? Never covered in any class.
You need those to buy items from point merchants. No merchants in tutorial gates, so I'll explain when you meet one later.
So, currency for buying items.
Now you know how to deal with monsters, right? Since we've started, let's farm some points before we go.
I walked a bit and a Cerberork came charging with a roar.
I made a Yin Energy ball and threw it— this time it exploded without delay.
Two more swung their clubs as they rushed from over there.
I pulled out Yin Energy balls in both hands and chucked them at the things.
I took down every Cerberork that showed up like that, and the points piled up fast.
Available Points: 42pt
Thirteen Cerberorks netted me 42 points.
Seems like 2-3 points per monster.
You're adapting faster than I thought. How does it feel with the Yin Energy constantly being sucked?
Sensitive hunters say it feels like getting licked and hate it, but I felt nothing.
Probably because I have so much Yin Energy that I can't even feel it being drained.
Handy skill in gates all around.
'Feels like nothing. But how long do I have to keep killing these?'
No boss here, so you don't need to clear it. You've got plenty of Cerberorks now—let's head out.
I started walking back toward the entrance I'd come in through.
Do you know any hunters? Preferably a high-rank one.
She asked that as soon as I got out.
'Why a hunter?'
As a semi-awakened, you can share your Yin Energy. Besides sexual hormones, it has tons of beneficial components for hunters, so it'd be good to test it directly.
Taking in a lot of my Yin Energy helps raise levels and ranks.
One of the unique skills, Ascending Yin Energy, has that effect.
In short, I'm a good man for hunters.
'Beneficial components, huh...'
Now I was curious what exactly that meant.
Curiosity really does kill the cat.