The World's Most Dangerous Safety Zone
The moment I made to head outside, Herisia spoke up as if something had just occurred to her.
"Um, Leos? Thinking about it, you've shown overwhelming results when it comes to gates, right? Hasn't the Empire tried to call you back or anything?"
I hadn't bothered telling Herisia that the Empire's Shadow Corps even existed, or that they had come for me and been wiped out to the last man. I saw no need to go into depth, so I kept the answer short.
"They came looking. And I killed them. The blood you saw in the bunker was theirs—the trackers the Empire sent."
Bendict, who had been listening from the side, rushed over in a flurry of excitement.
"Hyung-nim! Is that true?! You actually gave those damn Imperial bastards a taste of their own medicine!"
"Don't make a scene. I only killed a fraction of them."
"Hehe, that's our Hyung-nim for you! To even think of killing Imperial dogs... When they refused to properly punish that swindler who ruined my father, I wanted to slaughter the lot of them too, but I couldn't. Hyung-nim really is different!"
While Bendict snickered, Herisia looked at me with worried eyes.
"But... if the Empire is hunting you, shouldn't we stay quiet? Of course, since you killed the first ones who came after you, we've got some time, but after the advance pursuit squad, the follow-up force will come again..."
"Normally, yes. That's why I kept a low profile in the bunker for a while. But it doesn't matter anymore. A few hours ago, the Red Gates started a chain reaction."
"A chain reaction?"
"Simply put, the surrounding area has been turning into hell for the past few hours. The radius where Red Gates have spread is a full two hundred kilometers. Until now, monsters hadn't poured out of them, but starting from the first chain reaction discovered a few hours ago, monsters are going to flood out of every Red Gate inside that radius. As soon as within the hour, if we're unlucky."
"...Th-that many? Shouldn't we run?"
"Run where? With Red Gates opening in a chain reaction, we're sitting right in the center of the Red Gate vortex. The entire two-hundred-kilometer radius is going to be packed with monsters. Escape isn't an option."
"What about just hiding, then? I know you're strong, Leos, but unlike before, you don't even have a team now... You're alone, and that worries me..."
"Among the mutant monsters is a type called a Debringer that can detect humans anywhere within its radius. It has the ability to sense the human species itself. If one of those locks onto us, it won't matter if we're in a cave or a bunker—we'll take concentrated attacks. They have a habit of drawing other monsters to them, so if we ignore one, the area around the bunker will literally become a monster hell. Then we'd be completely sealed inside, waiting until the food runs out and we starve to death. With thousands of monsters camping outside the bunker."
"Then maybe don't clear a full kilometer of Red Gates—just a little bit...? What if the Empire finds out and starts tracking you again..."
"One kilometer is the minimum. Accounting for the detection range of a human-sensing monster like a Debringer, we need at least that much space so that even if one pops out of a Red Gate and starts walking around, it can't reach us."
Even while I talked, I checked my weapons. A few hours might seem short to some people, but for me it was leisurely enough that I wasn't particularly rushed—yet I still considered it important to cut the time down as much as possible.
Rationally speaking, I could have just ignored whatever they said, walked out, and smashed the gates. But if I left without giving them any information at all, I had a feeling these two would start thinking unnecessary thoughts and follow me outside or cause some other problem. So I passed along a few solid pieces of intel I already knew.
"..."
Herisia stood up from her seat as if she had no choice.
"Then I'll help too. We don't have much time, right?"
"Hyung-nim! If it was this urgent, you should've told me! I'll help as well!"
I had expected this. If I had simply left them alone and gone, they might have fretted among themselves and come outside anyway. Feeling a measure of relief, I spoke to them.
"No need. Even back when I worked at the Gate Management Headquarters, Red Gates—especially mutant monsters—were entirely my responsibility. Having you two around would only get in the way. Stay inside and wait."
It might have sounded a little harsh, but it was the truth. In a situation where lives hung by the second, I had no leeway to explain the habits and traits of Red Gate mutants one by one while trying to protect them. Strength or training didn't matter. If you didn't know their habits and traits, anyone could fall to them.
"...Then I'll stay inside and make artifacts that might be useful... But... you have to come back safe. If it looks dangerous, just run."
"Hyung-nim! If it seems like you're in danger, shout! Even if I might be a hindrance right now, if it becomes an emergency, you might need me instead, right? I'll come out even if it costs me my life!"
"Fine."
With that, Leos headed outside.
Left behind in the cave, Bendict wore a worried expression and asked Herisia,
"Hyung-nim looked kind of impatient. Did something else happen? Even if monsters start pouring out, with Hyung-nim's skill he could just kill everything he sees and run... No reason to push himself like that..."
"It's because of us."
Herisia squatted in the corner, arms wrapped around her knees, and muttered,
"If Leos were alone, even if a human-detecting monster like a Debringer showed up, he'd just kill it right away and run around just fine. But we've become dead weight hanging off him... The main reason he's pushing himself like that is probably so we don't end up in danger..."
"..."
Bendict listened, thought hard for a moment, then quietly mocked himself.
"So that was it. No wonder he had so many useless things to worry about. One of us is a clueless worm who doesn't know how the world works, and the other is an idiot who only knows how to handle artifacts."
"What? An idiot who only knows how to handle artifacts? That's rich coming from a muscle pig like you!"
When Herisia bristled, Bendict laughed heartily and replied,
"There we go—back to normal. Don't sit there looking so gloomy. You know how incredible Hyung-nim is. He'll be back soon. And if he takes too long, we can just go help him, right?"
"Well... that's true. Leos's abilities are so outstanding... But I can't help worrying."
"You like him?"
"Wh-what?!"
Herisia flailed wildly at Bendict's massive arm, but he ignored the blows and kept teasing her.
"Hmm, of course—our Hyung-nim is good-looking, highly capable, and even his personality is full of consideration... Wait, is his personality actually bad? Anyway, he's popular!"
Herisia huffed with a bright-red face until a massive sound drew her gaze toward the cave entrance. The Red Gate chain reaction. Monsters began pouring from the Red Gates that filled the sky.
The sight was as if hell itself were opening.
"Please be safe... I'm so worried..."
Fifty minutes. That was how long it took Leos to completely clear every Red Gate within a one-kilometer radius.
Took longer than I expected.
Leos roughly wiped the mutant blood covering his body with a cloth, then placed his hand on a Red Gate.
Legendary Gatekeeper [EX]
You can seal the mana of a gate you have cleared once.
Would you like to use this trait?
"Use it."
The mana of this gate has been completely sealed.
Monsters will no longer respawn no matter how much time passes.
With that, he had sealed every one of the fifteen Red Gates within one kilometer. Each took a little over a minute, but with travel distance and the time required for sealing, it had dragged on longer than expected.
Still plenty of time, though.
It had taken longer than he'd thought, but the chain reaction was still ongoing. Gate chain reactions started at the edges and worked their way sequentially toward the center.
In other words, monsters were pouring from the Red Gates starting from the outskirts of the area where Leos currently stood.
Maybe being in the center worked out for the best? If I'd been caught in an awkward spot, I wouldn't have had any time to prepare.
Thinking as positively as he could, Leos walked back toward the cave. Midway there—
Wheeeeeeeeng!
He spotted something flying overhead and immediately concealed himself.
An Imperial aerial detection artifact.
They probably launched that thing to find me. The Empire might even realize this area is my territory now.
But as he watched monsters raining down from the sky, he thought,
So what if they know I'm here? What exactly do they think they can do about it?
In about another hour, no human would be able to reach this place from the outside.
This was the most dangerous place in the world—and, ironically, the safest zone inside the entire Peren Empire.
All they could do was watch. He was curious how the Empire would react. What schemes they were cooking up right now.
Not that it'll mean a damn thing.
Whoosh!
Leos snatched a rock from the ground, hurled it, and shattered the floating artifact midair before walking back into the cave.