A Bad Premonition
2:10 PM. In front of the control line for the D-rank Forest of Beasts gate on the outskirts of Seoul.
"Oppa!! Daesung oppa!!"
Seo Ayoung's bubbly voice pierced my ears as I scanned the area. As I approached, she planted her hands on her hips with a pouty face.
"We had a 2 o'clock appointment! You're late!"
"Sorry, traffic was a nightmare."
"It's okay, I forgive you. Today is the official launch day for our party, after all!"
Was she always this type? Some people light up their surroundings with explosive, energetic vibes. Seo Ayoung was one of them.
"Just trust me. I'll show you something today!"
I smirked and said, "Gonna break another sword?"
"No, I'm not! I think I've actually surpassed E-rank by now?"
That was a bit surprising.
"Really?"
"Yeah! So I'm feeling pretty confident about this D-rank gate too!!"
Hunting D-rank monsters as an E-rank hunter isn't easy. But with D-rank Taesoo hyung here, and since this gate had a lot of lone monsters, it was manageable even for an E-rank party.
Just then, Seo Ayoung's gaze lingered on Taesoo hyung's sword sheath behind me.
"Whoa. Taesoo ajusshi, that sword looks amazing!"
"Oh, this? Haha. It's a C-rank weapon, you know. Daesung fixed it up for me."
"Really? Wow, with a C-rank weapon, we have zero worries for this gate! Oh, and ajusshi! Just talk casually to me!"
"Uh… should I?"
"Yes! Think of me as your niece. We're family now!"
Taesoo hyung scratched the back of his head awkwardly at Seo Ayoung's friendly words. His face said, 'I'm not that old…', but to a woman in her early twenties, a guy in his mid-thirties might as well be an ajusshi. No helping it.
"Alright, gear check done? Let's head in. Today's goal: 10 scorpion leopards!"
"Ten of them?"
"Goals have to be high!"
With Seo Ayoung's declaration, the three of us stepped boldly into the swirling blue portal.
Exactly two hours after Daesung's party entered the gate.
A sleek black luxury sedan pulled up in front of the Forest of Beasts control line.
The door opened, and out stepped a woman with a tall, slender figure, sharp eyes, and striking silver hair. She was Baek Hayeon, the powerhouse rated closest to S-rank among A-ranks and master of the Roijir Guild.
"Whew, traffic was brutal. They've probably already gone in."
Baek Hayeon removed her sunglasses and approached the association staffer.
"Excuse me, thanks for your hard work. Did Seo Ayoung's party from our Roijir Guild enter recently?"
"Oh? Guild Master Baek Hayeon? Hello! One moment, let me check the log. Yes, Hunter Seo Ayoung's party entered exactly two hours ago."
Baek Hayeon nodded at the staffer's words.
Two hours ago. Considering the rank, they should still be near the entrance.
She checked her wristwatch and headed toward the portal. She wanted to go in and meet him herself, but that wasn't possible. High-rank hunters were strictly barred from low-rank gates.
"Guess I have to wait…"
Just as Baek Hayeon gazed longingly at the gate, a hunter trying to enter was blasted back by a massive spark.
Crackle-crackle-crack!
"Ow!! What the hell!?"
It was like slamming into an invisible, unbreakable glass wall—the portal had rejected the hunter's entry.
"Huh…?"
As Baek Hayeon let out a puzzled sound, the portal's ripples began to churn unnaturally.
The association staffers noticed first and turned pale, shouting in panic.
"What the—!?"
"G-Gate mutation!! Oh god, it's a gate mutation!! Contact HQ now!!"
At the staffer's scream, the milling hunters and control agents fell into chaos.
Gate mutation. It was a disaster where the gate's internal ecosystem or mana density suddenly went haywire, exceeding the designated rank.
But Baek Hayeon furrowed her brow, unable to comprehend.
"What the hell? Why!?"
Gate mutations didn't happen randomly. They usually occurred when an overwhelmingly powerful entity far beyond the gate's limit entered, stimulating the core and triggering a defensive spike in difficulty.
That's why high-rank hunters were restricted from low-rank gates.
The gate supervisor yelled frantically.
"Check today's entrant list—everyone!! Who the hell was it!!"
Moments later, a staffer checking the list spoke up.
"N-Nothing!! All entrants up to now are confirmed D-rank or below!!"
"What bullshit is that?! Then why the mutation!!"
"N-No way… terrorism!?"
It happened sometimes. Criminal awakeners sneaking in by faking their ranks. But the government treated those as serious gate terror incidents and hunted them down relentlessly, so it was rare nowadays.
"The c-color…!!"
As Baek Hayeon muttered in shock, the sky-blue portal light began to shift.
Red, orange, yellow, green, blue—finally settling into a deep purple.
"Holy shit!!"
"P-Purple?!"
Gasps erupted from the watching hunters.
When a gate mutated, the portal color changed, indicating the difficulty spike. Red meant just more monsters at the original rank. Orange and yellow: +1 rank. Green and blue: +2 ranks.
Indigo and purple: at least +3 ranks.
"It was originally D-rank… plus 3…"
"A-A-rank…!! A D-rank gate mutated to A-rank?!?"
"Everyone inside… they're dead. All of them!!"
An association agent collapsed, clutching his head.
Baek Hayeon felt cold sweat trickle down her back. Her insides burned black.
"Damn it all…!"
This wasn't just a few dead hunters. A mutated A-rank gate would spawn an A-rank boss. If the hunters inside couldn't kill it and wiped, the gate would burst in days, flooding the Seoul outskirts with A-rank monsters and turning it into a bloodbath.
And trapped in that A-rank gate were Kwon Daesung, the repairman who might fix her issues, and Seo Ara's little sister, Seo Ayoung.
"Not a report—declare an emergency and request rescue now!!"
Like the seasoned guild master she was, Baek Hayeon raised her voice, following disaster protocols. But her clenched fist trembled faintly.
Damn… if it breaks, can I even handle an A-rank boss in my current state?
When she'd heard Seo Ara had perfectly repaired the Frost Queen's Sword, Baek Hayeon had cheered inwardly. Her own signature artifact was badly damaged, keeping her from her full power for months.
Damn it…!
Baek Hayeon glared at the deeply purple-rippling portal, biting her lip hard.
Our party's hunt was going smoothly.
Whoosh!
With a wind-ripping sound, the black iron spear I threw flew through the underbrush and nailed a scorpion-tailed leopard right between the eyes.
The beast didn't even scream properly—its brain exploded, and it crumpled on the spot.
Seo Ayoung clapped and cheered.
"Daesung oppa, nice!! That spear throw is insanely strong!? You're really F-rank, oppa!?"
I casually extended my hand, using the Dragon Word 'Suh' to retrieve the iron spear, and grinned.
"Kuhuhu, this is my real power, Ayoung-ah. Just trust oppa."
The first time in a gate, I couldn't control the Dragon Heart mana, so every spear toss made the monster's upper body explode like a bomb. Ruined corpses meant no lootable items.
But after practicing on a few, I'd mastered fine mana control—piercing only the head perfectly, leaving the hide pristine.
"Man, how much is this all worth? Top-grade hides without a single scratch! Hunting really is the best."
Money's good when you have it.
After I killed the monster, Taesoo hyung followed, humming as he squatted to work. Slice, slice— His butchering dagger traced artistic paths along the dead scorpion leopard's hide.
Not a drop of blood spilled. Bones, meat, and valuables—hide, teeth, claws, mana stone—separated perfectly.
"Hyung, you're insane. When did you learn butchering?"
"Heh, I've been hauling junk in gates for over ten years. Back then, you had to dismantle this stuff in under a minute. I may not know much, but this? Pro level."
"One minute? Even exaggerating…"
Taesoo hyung boasted as he wiped the bloody mana stone with a cloth and pocketed it.
"It's true, you punk."
Seo Ayoung laughed at our bickering.
"You guys are so reliable. Daesung oppa and Taesoo ajusshi are the best!!"
Despite her looks, Seo Ayoung was a defensive hunter—a sturdy tank who could block dozens of D-rank attacks.
She tanked up front, I finished with spear throws, and Taesoo hyung butchered without wasting a won. Perfect party play. A D-rank doing cleanup? Hilarious, but efficient.
What can you do? We'd already passed our goal of 10—number 11 now.
"Hehe, I want it like this every day!!"
Seo Ayoung hummed happily, and we wandered the forest like picnickers, despite our low ranks. Too easy for a D-rank.
Makes sense why it's popular.
But as we delved deep into the woods, Seo Ayoung rubbed her arms and tilted her head.
"Oppa… isn't it suddenly getting colder?"
"Huh?"
I stopped and looked around. She was right.
Just moments ago, it was a hot, humid subtropical jungle. Now, white frost coated the trees, and snowflakes began drifting from the sky. My breath froze white.
"What? Wasn't this a hot, humid jungle? Why's it snowing all of a sudden?"
"Right? Something's off…?"
Something was wrong. A bad feeling.