Pushed Out from the Inside
The spring had come, as the forest was the first to announce it. The scent of wet soil and grass spread thickly through the air, and the roots and stones left exposed all winter were now hidden once more beneath fresh undergrowth. Visibility had shortened compared to before, but in exchange every small movement stood out more sharply to my senses. The forest had quietly turned the season over.
After finishing with the last fallen orc's corpse, I held the mana stone I'd taken from the core. I wiped away the remaining debris, checked its condition, then opened my subspace pouch and stored it along with the others. The motions had become second nature, and my thoughts drifted elsewhere just as naturally. The time I'd spent unable to enter any gate had stretched longer than expected. Four months. Not a single dungeon core absorbed. My body had clearly changed, yet there were no visible differences. Stats, rank, records—everything stayed the same. Maybe that was why the feeling that I was stuck somewhere kept surfacing.
"Jihoon!"
A bright voice rang out as the air gently rippled. Arin appeared first, Elly quietly taking position behind her. With both spirits present, the forest's atmosphere shifted in a subtle way. Elly watched me in silence for a moment. I told them exactly what had been on my mind—that after four months without absorbing any dungeon cores, it felt as though my growth had stopped. Then Elly spoke, her voice quiet but clear.
"It's not stagnation."
"Then what is it?"
When I turned toward her, Elly paused as if choosing her words.
"It's closer to maintenance. Compared to the power you've gained so far, the way you've been using it has been too narrow. Your strength grew too quickly for your body and senses to keep up."
I thought it over, then let out a small sigh.
"...Hearing it like that, it makes sense."
Arin gave a light laugh and added her own thought.
"Yeah. I agree. It didn't stop—you've just moved into the stage where you actually learn to use it properly."
Once we finished organizing everything, we left the break region. I opened the trunk of the parked Blue Dragon SUV, took out the subspace pouch, and loaded the sorted corpses and mana stones inside one by one. After making sure no bloodstains or smells remained, I closed the pouch. Only the equipment that would be awkward to sell right away went into the trunk. No point wasting subspace space on those.
I moved to the side of the vehicle and opened the fuel port. When I inserted a mana stone, the system reacted automatically. A low vibration came from the engine, and the fuel gauge slowly climbed.
"Jihoon must feel sick every time he watches B-grade mana stones get used as fuel."
"Yeah, the fuel costs really add up. They're B-grade stones, after all. If you want to keep driving this thing, you have to accept the mana stone consumption."
"...Still," Elly continued quietly, "being able to recover mana while resting during travel is a bigger advantage than it seems."
When she finished, the car eased forward and onto the road. Forest sounds faded, replaced by the steady hum of the engine.
"Heading straight to Seongwon Industries?"
"Yeah. We've got a lot of corpses piled up, and the mana stones need sorting too."
The car picked up speed toward the city outskirts. Now wasn't the time to charge ahead. This was the stage for organizing what I'd accumulated and learning to use what I already had. Once that was done, the next step would follow naturally.
We arrived at Seongwon Industries and went to the president's office, but President Lee Tae-shik wasn't there. When I heard he was at the warehouse, I changed direction. The warehouse door stood half open. Inside, President Lee Tae-shik stood at a workbench, slowly wiping its surface with a cloth.
"President, hello. You're busy."
"Ah, Hunter Byun Jihoon. Welcome."
After a brief greeting, I set down what I'd brought beside the workbench. The larger corpses had been minimized in volume, and I'd focused on mana stones and harvested parts. Nothing unnecessary had been kept—only what was needed.
President Lee Tae-shik examined the corpses in silence, checking cut surfaces, decay, and remaining mana in order. He opened the mana stone case and scanned each one. His inspection was quick and steady, with almost no hesitation.
"The condition is excellent. You're not bringing in random quantities anymore—just what's necessary and precise."
"Space is limited, and the travel distance is long. It worked out that way."
"That's much better."
After finishing his calculations, President Lee Tae-shik named his price. The settlement went cleanly. The moment I placed the money in my subspace pouch, my shoulders felt just a little lighter. Not quite relief—more like the certainty that I could prepare for what came next.
Then President Lee Tae-shik spoke again.
"May I mention one more thing?"
"Please do."
"Lately, the flow inside the break region has been shifting."
He stopped and folded the cloth on the workbench. A short silence followed. I turned the words over in my mind.
'Inside.'
President Lee Tae-shik continued.
"It's true the number of hunters has grown, and monster distributions have changed. But what concerns me more these days is the rise in accidents."
I kept my gaze steady and said nothing.
"The state of the corpses is clearly different from before. Cleanly hunted specimens are decreasing, while hastily torn or bitten remains are increasing."
He paused, choosing his next words.
"It looks less like losing a fight and more like being chased by something."
"Inside the region?"
"Yes."
President Lee Tae-shik nodded.
"All this time you've only handled the outskirts. The inside has been left practically untouched. Among hunters, people are saying it's nearing saturation."
He hesitated, then went on carefully.
"Because of that, it seems creatures that should only appear deep inside are being pushed outward. Some hunters claim they've seen A-grade monsters in B-grade zones."
After another brief silence, he added,
"Of course, nothing's confirmed... but the condition of the corpses is too consistently similar to dismiss as mere rumor."
When he finished, options were already lining up in my head. Avoid what could be avoided. Confirm what needed confirming. Keep the routine, but recalculate the risks.
"Understood."
I nodded once.
"I'll be careful."
President Lee Tae-shik didn't press further. Instead he ended the conversation the way he always did.
"Don't push yourself for no reason. These days, moving by the old standards is the fastest way to have an accident."
"Yes. Thank you. I'll keep that in mind."
As I left the warehouse, I felt a gaze follow me from behind. Whether it was suspicion or simple curiosity, I didn't bother to check. What mattered now was something else—the fact that a change I didn't know about had begun, and that it had started from inside the break region.
The moment I got in the car and reached for the ignition, my phone vibrated. Yoo Mira. Just seeing her name on the screen loosened something in my chest. It felt like a different kind of air had slipped into a day filled with blood and metal. I stared at the screen for a moment but didn't reply. At the same time, another thought followed. Lately, besides hunting, there were small daily matters I had to pay attention to. Whether that was good or not, I still wasn't sure—but at least I could no longer think and act completely alone.
I got out of the car and turned into a nearby alley where people's eyes wouldn't easily reach. To passersby it looked like empty space, but it was enough to call the spirits.
"Elly."
"What is it?"
"The timing's a bit awkward."
I thought for a moment, then continued.
"I have a favor. President Lee Tae-shik—could you keep an eye on him for a few days?"
"Watch him?"
Elly blinked.
"He's a business partner."
"That's exactly why."
"What's bothering you?"
I didn't answer right away. Instead I lined up the things that had been nagging at me.
"He handles everything from corpse disposal to mana stone purchases and item sorting. He never even asks about the source."
As I spoke, the thoughts connected on their own.
"One thing by itself isn't a problem, but when I put them all together, it started to bother me."
"Isn't earning a lot a good thing?"
"It is."
I shrugged.
"But when everything's too clean, sometimes the back end gets complicated."
After a short breath, I added,
"Not tailing—just observation. Without being noticed."
Elly crossed her arms and thought for a moment.
"How long?"
"Just a few days. If something feels off, tell me right away."
Elly finally nodded.
"All right. I can do that much."
"Thanks, Elly."
After entrusting the request to Elly, I returned to the car. I wanted to check the nearby Cheongpyeong break region myself. President Lee Tae-shik's words refused to leave my mind, so I decided to take another look.
When spring arrived, the entrance to the Cheongpyeong break region grew especially chaotic. Where people gathered, rumors followed, and where money moved, the atmosphere naturally loosened. Both sides of the road were lined with item buyers, sellers, restaurants, and taverns—every place people might congregate was already there.
I didn't head straight into the forest. After scanning the crowded area once, I stepped into a noticeable tavern, ordered a beer, and sat at a side table. I had no intention of striking up conversation. In places like this, simply listening was enough for stories to drift over on their own.
"Hey, I heard you went all the way inside this time?"
"I did. Almost died catching a troll, though."
"What's so bad about a troll?"
"The problem came after. An ogre suddenly showed up. It came running from far away, but this isn't even an ogre zone."
"...So?"
"So I ditched the troll and ran. Heard screams and fighting behind me—pretty sure the troll got eaten."
Laughter and exclamations erupted from the next table.
"Man, that was some bad luck."
"No, stories like that aren't rare these days."
From another direction, more voices joined in.
"We had something similar. Went to clear an orc village and found B-grade monsters already there. They were fighting, so I figured I'd die if I got involved and pulled out right away."
"B-grade monsters in an orc village?"
"That's why it's weird. That's why everyone's sticking to the outskirts now."
"Right. Better to stay safe than go inside and blow everything on medical bills."
Some laughed it off; others quietly took another sip of beer. I tilted my glass and let the stories wash over me. They sounded different, yet they all pointed to the same uneasy thread.
When I moved to another seat with my hat pulled low, a few passing glances lingered on me. No familiar faces, but eyes that checked me twice. Those kinds of looks had been increasing lately. A hunter who moved alone, kept entering the break region, and came back with corpses without major incidents. The fact that he returned alive without belonging to any guild or party seemed to have stuck in people's memories.
It wasn't quite fame, but it wasn't comfortable anonymity either. Staying out of sight felt easier. Drawing attention only led to unnecessary trouble.
I slipped through the crowd and entered the forest. City noise faded, replaced by trees and undergrowth. I naturally slowed down—this was a section where tracks would show easily. Raising my psychokinesis, I climbed into the trees. I moved along branches without touching the ground, floating across gaps when needed. I didn't head straight in. Starting from the lower-grade zones, I scanned in a zigzag pattern along the terrain, keeping my range wide rather than narrowing my focus.
During the movement, unusual signs caught my attention. There were far more monsters than usual, including multiple B-grade and higher entities scattered across several points. Gates appeared at intervals, each surrounded by monsters maintaining a fixed distance. The arrangement didn't look like coincidence.
When I pushed deeper and neared the boundary between A-grade and B-grade zones, I stopped.