The Demon King Descends—Almost

Kugugug—

The twisted gate writhed, as if it were breathing.

"What... what even is this..."

Someone's murmur slipped out. The boss was dead. Everyone had assumed the dungeon was finished, that everything was over. And yet now—

The energy seeping out from inside the gate was thicker than before. Heavier.

"The mana density... it keeps climbing!"

Jin Seo-yoon's voice cracked out sharp and shrill.

Baek Kang-hyun drew his sword. Sreung— The ring of steel marked the moment his eyes sank fully into combat mode.

"Everyone, battle positions."

At that single command, the atmosphere around the hunters flipped in an instant. The panic that had gripped them moments ago evaporated, and each of them re-gripped their weapons.

"...Mr. Ji-hoon."

Jin Seo-yoon called out low. "Is this really the gate we think it is?"

Ji-hoon didn't answer. He simply watched—blink, blink—the red flickering of a status window he'd seen once before, now appearing in the sky above the gate. So he narrowed his eyes, quietly, and stared at it for the briefest of moments.

Then—

"...You've got to be kidding me."

He exhaled a small breath. "...Everyone, run. Now."

"What? What did you just—"

"EVERYONE, GET BACK!"

In that instant—

Saaaah—

A new fissure tore open in the empty air. No—could you even call that a fissure? It was less a crack than...

"[Boss, don't tell me this is...]"

"[We had these back at Hell Farm. This energy... it's definitely that!]"

It wasn't a crack at all—a hologram had appeared, shaped exactly like a door. Kiiiing— With a groan of old metal, the door swung open. And from within, something slid into view.

"Why... is it... here...?"

Black mist. No—something that possessed a form.

"All ranks A and below, fall back! Form ranks, and keep supports in the rear!"

At Baek Kang-hyun's command, the hunters moved like a well-oiled machine. And the black mist stretched thin, curling into a circle, before it began to take shape.

A human silhouette. Or rather—wait, what was that?

"Is that... a person?"

Someone muttered. The shape was human, but the aura—the horns jutting from its head—was something entirely beyond human.

Then—

"[I sensed a tremendous gathering of mana...]"

A voice echoed through the air.

"[So I paid a short visit, and yet I see nothing at all.]"

"..."

Only then did Ji-hoon's eyes narrow.

"...Abel."

The black mist stopped moving. And then—

"[But it feels familiar. How very familiar indeed...]"

"What the...?"

It was Abel's energy. The Demon King's aura he had felt countless times at Hell Farm. And the appearance was unmistakably Abel's too—though smaller than the real Abel had been.

"[It is the Demon King. And yet, it is not the Demon King.]"

At Poppi's words, Ddubu pressed herself right up against Abel's mist. "[Master, the mana concentration is weak. It's probably overflowed here because the mana got dense when I molted.]"

It seemed to have no hostile intent, so that was a relief. If nothing else.

Then—

"U-Uuuuh, AAAAAGH!"

A hunter in the rear—so terrified he'd wet himself—swung his weapon in blind panic.

"F-F-F-Fireball (C)!"

A C-rank Fireball shot toward the mist shaped like Abel.

"Branch Chief!"

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Spit—BOOM!

Thankfully, Baek Kang-hyun detonated the Fireball before it could land. But the intruder had clearly already noticed.

"[So there are rats scurrying about, I see.]"

'Damn it...!'

Saaaaaah—

The Demon King's mana flooded outward. Everyone except the two S-Rank hunters, Baek Kang-hyun and Jin Seo-yoon, trembled from head to toe.

"Ddubu. I need that thing of yours."

"[Reunited after all this time, and that's the first thing you ask for?]"

"It's an emergency! You want to watch me die of heartbreak?"

"[Tch. This maiden shall repay this debt, upon her honor.]"

Wait, shouldn't I be the one repaying it?

While Ji-hoon was still puzzling over that, a fragment of Jormungandr's scale—pure white, gleaming like platinum—dropped with a soft tuk in front of him.

"[This is a special gift for you, dear brother. You understand, don't you? Spe.cial. Just. For. You.]"

"I get it. Thanks, Ddubu."

"[Th-Wh-Wh-Wha—th-thanks?! I-I wasn't hoping you'd say that or anything!]"

Leaving Ddubu to her spectacularly flustered reaction, Ji-hoon gathered Ddubu's scale, Poppi's feather, and Choco's iron-quill fur in front of him. And then—

"Choco! Do it!"

"[You for real, boss? You might be in danger too.]"

"I'll be fine. Do it!"

Left alone, this thing would only grow worse!

"[Do it, Choco! I shall protect our boss!]"

"[Uuugh, fine, screw it!]"

KWAAANG!

Choco's paw swelled huge in an instant and crushed the materials before him in a single blow. A mana storm erupted in the same heartbeat.

KWAKWAKWAKWA—!

Poppi's feathers ballooned to enormous size and wove a shield around Ji-hoon.

"Urrrrgh...!"

Perhaps because the energies of three S-Rank boss monsters had detonated all at once, the power that burst forth was far beyond anything he'd anticipated.

"AAAAGH! What is this!"

"S-Somebody save me!"

"Grab onto something, everyone!"

Screams rose from the hunters. In the haze of silhouettes, he could just make out Baek Kang-hyun and Jin Seo-yoon pulling them to safety.

KWAJIK!

The ground split apart, and kiiiiing— the air itself warped.

"Come on! I'm begging you!"

At this rate, he couldn't contain it. Please—please, just connect!

In that moment—

"[First, I shall hunt these rats... hm?]"

Sniff, sniff—

"[This smell... could it be... my own kin?]"

It connected!

The face within the black mist worked its nose continuously. Sniff sniff sniff—

"[So this is where you are, my friend.]"

"'Friend' my ass. And what's with the way you're talking?"

Calling him a friend, after forcing him into a slave contract. Playing the dignified lord, no less. Ji-hoon thrust his middle finger boldly at Abel's mist.

It seemed he couldn't see, so he might as well flip the bird freely!

As expected, the mist could sense energy but couldn't actually see. Abel's fogged hand clenched and unclenched—though rather than truly gripping anything, the mist simply rose and vanished into empty air.

"[I am short on mana at present. Is this the limit, I wonder.]"

The black mist shaped like Abel withdrew, as if in regret.

"[Next time, seek me out in a place richer with mana. Then our meeting shall be a finer one.]"

A smile bloomed on Abel's face within the black mist.

"[I shall look forward to the day I meet my friend again.]"

And then Abel's mist turned its head.

"[Until then—]"

A very short phrase.

"[Do not die.]"

"...What?"

"[I alone...]"

Saaah—

Just then, the mist scattered, as if severed mid-sentence. It seemed to want to say something more—but perhaps this gate truly was short on mana, or perhaps manifesting like this was some kind of loophole trick from the start. Who could say?

"D-Did it... go back...?"

In any case, no demon-king-descends-upon-the-world scenario occurred.

Thud—

Only now did everyone manage to heave out a breath. Hah! Hooah, hooah!

"Wh-What... what WAS that...!"

Baek Kang-hyun and Jin Seo-yoon stared hard at the direction the black mist had vanished. An alien strength. And yet a strength that was still incomplete. If that thing had properly descended—

'...Every S-Rank hunter on the planet would have to converge on this spot.'

This was a matter of grave significance. The appearance of a monster that surpassed even an S-Rank boss. Worse, one that seemed to possess actual intelligence.

'If so...'

An unimaginable calamity might well unfold. But then—

"Everyone! Get ready to evacuate!"

Ji-hoon shouted urgently.

"Ddubu!"

"[Hmph! Since it is my dear brother's request, I shall graciously permit you to tread upon my back. Base humans, climb aboard!]"

The enormous body of Jormungandr stretched out long and low. The hunters were all only half-convinced, but—

"I guarantee your safety! Everyone, get on!"

With Baek Kang-hyun's word, trust bloomed, and the hunters climbed onto Ddubu's body one by one.

"The gate—it's collapsing!"

"No—it's not collapsing!"

Kugugugu—Crack crack—

An earthquake rumbled, and the forest split apart. Paths that hadn't existed appeared; paths that had existed vanished.

"...It's returning to how it was."

An anomalous gate. The entrances had been different, but everyone had met within the same one. And with the boss dead and every last drop of mana inside exhausted, this gate that had once been D-Rank was now, having spent all its strength, reverting to its original form.

"Let's go, Ddubu! Faster!"

"[You really haven't changed at all—still ordering me about as you please!]"

"Sorry, sorry! Here, eat this first!"

He tossed Ddubu a pouch of portable ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠mana snacks. Ddubu caught it and dumped the whole thing into her mouth.

"[Speeding up!]"

Kugugung KWAKWAKWA—

Even loaded down with every single person, Ddubu shot forward at a blistering pace. In the blink of an eye they reached the exit, and they escaped the gate in order.

And five minutes later, word came in that the vanished gate entrance had reappeared.

"Hooah!"

Kim Ji-eun, sliding down from Ddubu's back, gulped down her spirit water like a woman dying of thirst. The other team members too, panting hard, drained the water Kim Ji-eun passed around.

"I... I thought I was going to die..."

"What even was any of that..."

The gate splitting apart again had been astonishing enough in itself, but the experience of racing across the back of a colossal white serpent, Jormungandr—

"Haha... hahaha... that was the single most thrilling moment of my hunter career."

For the hunters of A-Rank and below on Team C—even Kim Jin-woo had never experienced speed like that. It was like riding a sports car standing on the hood, no seatbelt, full throttle.

"Good work out there, Ddubu."

"[Oh, I certainly did, dear brother. I worked quite hard. Didn't I take down a boss for you?]"

"That was just a snake backing into a mouse and catching it by accident."

"[Whatever you say.]"

Ddubu turned her head away with a wounded little huff. Ji-hoon watched her, the corner of his mouth curling up just slightly.

"Everyone, you've worked hard."

Yoon Do-ha welcomed the hunters back warmly. Baek Kang-hyun and Jin Seo-yoon gave a detailed account of what had happened inside the gate. Just as their own private debrief was about to begin—

"Ahem! May I have everyone's attention, please!"

Baek Kang-hyun called out to them all.

"The Administration Bureau regards this incident with the utmost gravity, and as such, we will be granting a special compensation to every single person here!"

Special compensation? The crowd began to murmur.

"Hunter Market credit—100 million won each! Straight from the Bureau!"

One h-h-hundred MILLION?! UWAAAAAH!

Even a B-Rank hunter couldn't easily earn 100 million won in a single day—let alone anything below that.

"Thank you!"

"I'm buying that gear I've had my eye on!"

"Holy crap, is it really okay for us to just take this?"

The crowd erupted in cheers. Amid them, Baek Kang-hyun leaned in and whispered to Ji-hoon.

"We'll be taking care of you separately, Mr. Ji-hoon. So please don't feel left out."

"What? No, a hundred million is plenty generous..."

"Oh, come on. Always so modest."

With that, he glanced over at Ddubu, deep in conversation with Poppi and Choco, and murmured half to himself:

"Truly... a pack of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠irregulars."

"Sorry? What was that?"

"Nothing at all. Thanks to you all, we've wrapped this up without a single casualty."

Baek Kang-hyun offered a brief bow on behalf of the Administration Bureau, thanking everyone for their service. That day, the hunters each walked away with a fresh tale of heroism about helping clear a mutated gate—

"I'm the one who got that white snake all relaxed and happy, let me tell you!"

"If it weren't for my skill, the boss never would've gotten her nice deep muscle massage!"

"And Baek Kang-hyun couldn't have tamed the boss without us either!"

—along with a rumor that they'd jumped through every imaginable hoop just to butter up an S-Rank boss monster.

And Ji-hoon?

"Cheers!"

He was passing around drinks, celebrating a successful gate clear.

The same hour.

"So it succeeded?"

In a secluded alley near the Administration Bureau headquarters, a man holding a camera slipped into the shadows.

"...It failed."

"Why?"

Tap, tap. The man with the camera switched between video footage and photographs, showing them one after another. The man in the hood furrowed his brow as he watched the footage.

"This is what we got."

"Hooo..."

A real boss and a sub-boss? Such a thing even exists?

"And the one credited with the clear? Baek Kang-hyun again?"

"Correct."

The additional footage showed Baek Kang-hyun blocking one of Ddubu's attacks—and later, escaping the gate atop Ddubu's head along with the others.

"You managed to film all that. Impressive."

"Just lucky. My payment—"

"Here."

The man who received the envelope from the hooded man grinned slyly.

"I'll be in touch again."

The man vanished in an instant. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠The hooded man, staring at the spot where he'd disappeared—

"Corruption thresholds... mana surges... detonation..."

Heh—

"How entertaining. Just as entertaining as the dimension I used to live in."

Shhh—

The man's figure melted away like mist.