Chapter 50
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 50
Chapter Title: Guild, Afterworld (1)
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“Boss!”
“What’s going on?”
Kang Sa-hu looked puzzled at the people rushing over.
Bae Deok-ho nodded at his question.
“Good news and bad news!”
“Let’s hear the good news first.”
It didn’t really matter which came first, so Kang Sa-hu answered without hesitation.
Bae Deok-ho, who had been about to tease him with ‘Which one do you want first?’, looked a bit disappointed at the quick choice.
“The good news is that our guild has been officially established.”
“Already?”
Kang Sa-hu, who knew that even average guild registrations took over a month with reviews and background checks, asked in surprise. Bae Deok-ho grinned.
“Normally, there’s a long review process and identity verification. But as soon as you said you were forming a guild, it sailed through smoothly.”
“I see. So, what’s the bad news?”
At his question, Lee Yu-rim answered in Bae Deok-ho’s place, her expression darkening slightly.
“There’s a prophecy that another C-rank gate has appeared in Korea. And the government has officially requested guilds to participate in the gate hunt.”
A C-rank gate wasn’t common by any means, but on a global scale, it wasn’t rare either.
There were countries that had suffered massive casualties failing to stop a C-rank gate, only barely containing the gate break’s aftermath.
And conversely, there were nations still locked in urban warfare because they lacked the power to stop a gate break even after it happened.
Even superpower nations like China and Russia had failed to contain a C-rank gate break—Kang Sa-hu had heard this directly from NIS Team Leader Lim Chang-ju—so he understood the gravity.
And moreover...
“In our country’s case...”
Kim Ho-myeong started to mention the ‘C-rank Gate Rank Change Incident in Korea’ that had become a massive global issue, but he trailed off, remembering everyone present was directly involved.
Even so, everyone understood what he meant without him finishing.
“They fast-tracked our guild registration because of the C-rank gate.”
“Yeah, they’re still reeling from the shock. Only a handful of hunters are running themselves ragged, so they can’t expect voluntary participation in a C-rank hunt.”
At Bae Deok-ho’s pessimistic prediction, Kang Ji-ye hesitantly chimed in.
“B-but... it was an accident, right? Since it happened once, maybe this time...”
But even she let her optimistic words fade.
It was too slim a hope, filled more with wishful thinking than reality.
Kang Sa-hu fell deep into thought.
‘What if another gate rank change happens?’
If such a freak event occurred again, no one could expect hunters to keep hunting afterward. He frowned at the conclusion.
And not just that.
‘If it happens without us there, can the other hunters clear it?’
The hypothetical he posed to himself answered instantly, making it feel ridiculous.
Wipeout.
Only one answer came to mind. After a moment of silence, Kang Sa-hu spoke.
“Kim Ho-myeong.”
“Yes, Guild Master.”
“...?”
Bae Deok-ho looked baffled at how Kim Ho-myeong seamlessly switched from ‘Boss’ to ‘Guild Master’ now that the guild was official.
But Kim Ho-myeong stared back at Kang Sa-hu with his usual serious expression, no trace of playfulness.
“You said you’re the youngest of the Geumho Group, right?”
“Yes.”
“Then, have you ever worked at Geumho Group?”
Considering Kim Ho-myeong was only 23, it seemed impossible.
Surprisingly, he nodded.
“Yes. I graduated early from overseas university, came back right away, and worked briefly at an affiliate company.”
“So you must know some high-ranking government officials too.”
“Yes, that’s true, but...”
Unable to grasp Kang Sa-hu’s intent, Kim Ho-myeong trailed off.
Kang Sa-hu turned to look at his comrades—now guild members.
“Now that we’re officially a guild and I’m the Guild Master, it’s time to think about how to lead it and what decisions I should make as Guild Master.”
The conversation had shifted from ‘hunt the C-rank or not’ to guild matters, but no one objected, all listening intently.
Not forcing it, but meeting their naturally trusting eyes, Kang Sa-hu spoke.
“We’ll participate in the C-rank gate hunt.”
“...Mm.”
Everyone’s expressions turned grave at the declaration.
As they nodded, Kang Sa-hu turned back to Kim Ho-myeong.
“But not without compensation.”
“...Huh?”
Everyone looked back at him at the addendum.
Kang Sa-hu issued his first order as Guild Master.
“As a condition for Afterworld Guild participating in the C-rank gate, secure promises for ownership of natural resources from gates we hunt in the future, along with hunting rewards and any other rights we’ll need to operate the guild.”
“...!”
Kim Ho-myeong’s eyes widened at the unexpected directive—even he hadn’t anticipated it.
“...Yes! Of course, Guild Master!”
Soon, he flashed a confident smile unlike his usual self and answered energetically.
The end of the human world is upon us!!
The human world my ass—it's Korea.
Why start shit?
People still reeling from the ‘C-rank Gate Rank Change Incident’ erupted like wildfire at news of another C-rank gate.
And that blaze grew proportionally as three weeks passed after the gate fully formed without gathering enough hunters to even attempt a raid.
Doom! The world is ending!
Following the prophecy of a C-rank gate, immigration to countries with large numbers of high-rank hunters is surging.
Few coped with fear through personal beliefs, but their passionate actions naturally drew eyes.
And among them, the capable ones stood out more.
Another D-rank hunter got nabbed committing a crime.
Saw it. Awakener crimes are on another scale. The psycho flipped ten police cars chasing him.
Fuck, use that power for hunting instead of crime, you lunatic. End times.
But it really is the end times.
Thankfully, records from mandatory ‘Awakener Rank Measurements’ when awakeners first appeared helped catch criminal awakeners, but the damage was immense.
A world filled with nothing but despair.
Despair gripped awakeners and non-awakeners alike.
“What do they know...”
In a room lit blindingly bright, a man wrapped in a blanket like armor stared at his monitor and chugged straight from a bottle of harsh liquor.
“Kuhk.”
He’d downed two bottles of booze strong enough to melt his stomach lining in one shot, rubbing his alcohol-hazed eyes.
“Huuu... We’re all gonna die.”
Once an S-rank hunter who drew all eyes and expectations, vowing to build the ‘Strongest Guild’ named after his goal.
Now, the Strongest Guild’s master, Choi Kyung-min—taken hostage by trolls when the C-rank gate turned B-rank—darted his eyes anxiously side to side.
“Fucking hell. Hunting a joke? What, awakened so go hunt? Assholes.”
He too had once thought that way, elevated as the pinnacle S-rank awakener.
He was chosen among the chosen, with an overwhelming rank.
Lower ranks were mere entertainment, stepping stones for his success.
But that confident Strongest Guild leader was gone.
Trapped in a ‘mere B-rank’ gate with trolls, imprisoned, trampled, crushed by fear, and torn apart.
“Impossible. No way to beat that.”
Locked in a cramped cell with other hunters, face smashed to the ground.
Remembering the gaze from the throne looking down, his body shuddered like in spasms.
“Uh, ugh! Eeeeek!”
Just recalling Kataku’s eyes burned off his drunken haze, chills returning as he fumbled trembling hands for more booze.
Wanting drink but too scared to lift his head, groping the desk blindly under the blanket, his hand touched his phone.
[Continuing with breaking news on the C-rank gate.]
“Ugh, fuck!”
His body shook harder at ‘C-rank gate’.
He reached hastily to turn off the phone, but his worsening tremors couldn’t grasp it nearby.
[Moments ago, EX-rank hunter Kang Sa-hu’s guild ‘Afterworld’ has officially confirmed participation in the gate hunt.]
“...What?”
At ‘participating in gate hunt’, he lifted his head despite shaking.
Terror of darkness imprinted, the forcibly plastered blinding LEDs filled his vision with harsh light.
[It appears negotiations between the government and Afterworld have concluded unofficially. Behind it, Geumho Group’s Vice President Kim Se-young played a major role.]
Staring at the overly bright ceiling, his body began sinking ever so slightly as the news video played.
[Following Afterworld’s declaration, Dragon Guild, Daehan Guild, and Strongest Guild have also expressed intent to join the hunt.]
Strongest Guild.
Hearing the name of the guild he’d built with his own hands.
Suddenly, tears welled in his eyes.
“I... I...”
He was paralyzed by fear here.
Yet his guild members were overcoming that terror, stepping back into the jaws of death.
[Please pray for the safe return of these heroic souls risking their lives.]
The video ended there.
“I... I... I...”
Shame, fear, and self-loathing overwhelmed Choi Kyung-min, breaking into sobs.
“...We didn’t look too obvious, did we?”
Daehan Guild’s master, Wi Dae-un, quietly asked Dragon Guild’s master, Maeng Yu-na.
She shrugged at the question.
“But it’s the truth. You were there too, Guild Master. What happened in that B-rank gate.”
Wi Dae-un flushed, realizing their hesitation until Kang Sa-hu joined was plain as day.
“Embarrassing.”
“Honestly, without him, I wouldn’t have had the courage to enter another C-rank either.”
Maeng Yu-na looked away from the nose-scratching Wi Dae-un toward Kang Sa-hu chatting with Han Si-yeon.
No matter an A-rank hunter, life was precious; they felt fear too.
Having nearly died once, entering a C-rank again required facing trauma head-on.
And the one who gave them that courage was solely one person.
‘Hunter Kang Sa-hu.’
When victory seemed impossible, drowning in the sea of death’s terror.
The only one calmly assessing, commanding, navigating the storm to safety.
And delivering overwhelming force unseen before, leading them to salvation’s victory.
Maeng Yu-na, staring blankly, snapped to as she realized Kang Sa-hu and his guild approached. She straightened the government-issued armor.
“Long time no see.”
“Y-yes! H-hello.”
“Long time no see, Hunter Kang Sa-hu. Or should I say Guild Master now?”
After greetings all around, Kang Sa-hu walked toward the gate.
Negotiations had taken time; less than 10 hours remained until gate break.
With his back to the gate, Kang Sa-hu turned to his guild members.
“Alright, let’s go.”
EX-rank hunter Kang Sa-hu’s new guild.
Afterworld’s first official gate hunt began with a C-rank gate.