Chapter 4. Hero Hunt (1)
Chapter 4. Hero Hunt (1)
1
'There's no way I can beat the Flame Emperor through ordinary means.'
My heart was pounding. I tried to stay calm, but it wasn't easy. And why would it be? Just moments ago, I had been burned to death, starting from my head.
The pain of my flesh and bone being seared alive... it was truly horrifying.
"God damn it, that son of a bitch."
I glared at the newspaper scraps plastered on the wall.
The history of the Flame Emperor. From his days as an unknown rookie to reaching rank 1 in the world, countless interviews and articles were plastered all over it.
Of course, photos of the Flame Emperor were up there too. He was so infuriating I wanted to rip them down right then and there.
"Tch. But this bastard regresses 24 hours when he dies too."
Meaning I couldn't kill him no matter what.
That was the real problem.
'It's basically a goddamn invincibility cheat code, isn't it?'
The gap in skill between the Flame Emperor and me was already as vast as the sun and a firefly. He was rank 1 in the world. I was unranked. The only thing I had going for me was jealousy so intense even the Tower would acknowledge it as legendary... but being jealous didn't make me any stronger.
Even if coincidence piled on coincidence and miracle piled on miracle, killing the Flame Emperor would be nearly impossible for me.
'And even if I did manage to kill him, that's a problem too.'
What would happen if I killed the Flame Emperor?
He would simply regress 24 hours. And that would be the end of it. The Flame Emperor would then try to kill me by any means necessary, and the moment he realized he couldn't, he would try to imprison me forever.
Like building a prison in his basement and throwing me in there.
With the Flame Emperor's strength and skill, subduing me would be trivial. And I would spend the rest of my life locked in that prison.
Kim Gong-ja's life bad ending number two. A spectacular imprisonment ending.
"Fuck......."
Killing him was a problem, and not killing him was also a problem.
How the hell was I supposed to get revenge on this psychopath?
'What do I do? What method can I use to screw over the rank 1?'
One day.
For over 24 hours, I stayed holed up in my studio apartment, thinking.
I stared hard at the newspaper articles on the wall as I agonized. All the information on the Flame Emperor was there. Maybe I'd get a hint from looking at them.
「Flame Emperor solo clears Floor 39!」
「Floor 38 cleared solo! Another legend of the Flame Emperor!」
「Hunter Yoo Soo-ha. Ascends to world rank 1. First Korean ever.」
.
.
.
「The throne of rank 1, left empty by the Sword Saint's disappearance. Who will be the next to claim it? Foreign experts agree: "The strongest candidate is Korea's Yoo Soo-ha."」
「Impregnable Floor 10 breached. Who is the mysterious hero?」
「Sword Saint, day 22 of disappearance. Is the worst chaos in the hunter industry upon us?」
"......."
That was the moment.
"Huh?"
A shiver ran through my head.
"Wait. ...Look at this?"
I murmured as I touched the newspaper scrap. It was an interview some magazine had conducted with the Flame Emperor. Originally an article posted online, but I had printed it out and stuck it on the wall myself.
+
Q. How old were you when you first awakened, Mr. Yoo Soo-ha?
A. The summer I turned 21. So it's already been 11 years.
Q. The fact that you remember even the season so precisely shows you have a great memory.
A. I've never thought of myself as having a particularly good memory. It's just that the day I awakened happened to be my birthday. June 7th, 11 years ago. That's why I remember.
Q. You awakened on your birthday. What happened that day?
A. I was on the 1st floor of the Tower. I have no intention of saying more than that. It's private.
+
In some ways, it was an ordinary interview.
But... to me, it was an incredibly precious hint.
"Whoa, shit. Wait. Really? This could actually work?"
There was a way. A way to kill the rank 1 hunter in the world.
It was by no means easy, and anyone who heard about it would call me insane. But at the same time, I had thought of the only way to eliminate the Flame Emperor. It was something even I, an F-rank hunter, a mere nobody, could do.
'I can really get my revenge!'
That was when it happened.
"Fire!"
It was noisy outside the window. Wondering what was going on, I opened the glass window. Crimson smoke was rising from the other side of the neighborhood. Residents had come out into the alley and were making a racket.
"Oh my. What do we do about that, oh my!"
"Stop standing around here and let's go put out the fire!"
"Let's go!"
The residents rushed over in a crowd.
The place where I lived was different from the "outside world." People who had set foot in the Tower to become hunters. A city formed by such residents gathered together—the 1st floor of the Tower.
This city had many names. Some called it Babylon, others called it the Abyss. Some hunters simply called it the "1st Floor City," while others, with a touch of old-world flair, called it Ascending City (登天都市).
Probably because people of all races from every country in the world had gathered here.
Most of the people living here were hunters. For better or worse, they had experienced life-threatening danger. When crisis struck, they knew how to move faster than people from the outside world.
I quickly came down from my studio apartment and joined the residents' firefighting line.
'Crazy.'
I checked the time on my smartphone. It had already been 24 hours since I died to the Flame Emperor and regressed. It lined up exactly with the time the Flame Emperor had killed the Saintess.
In other words.......
'That bastard! That bastard set this fire! To destroy the evidence!'
Flame Emperor Yoo Soo-ha.
That guy was a real devil of a bastard.
2
The Vigilante Corps had already arrived at the scene. Hunters from the major guilds were also arriving one after another. Normally they growled and bared their claws at each other, but now, with the fire demon raging, they were all working together.
"Water ability users, don't use your skills alone!"
"That's right, time it all at once! That's right!"
"The Black Dragon Guild will take temporary command here! Please follow the Black Dragon's orders for a moment, everyone!"
Hunters who were normally hard to see outside of newspapers. Even two or three of the top rankers showed their faces. While helping the other residents, I secretly stole glances at the rankers.
"W-we've finished cordoning off the perimeter. The issue is whether there are survivors inside... I think we need to send in a rescue team quickly."
Rank 5. The guild master of the doctors and pharmacists, Alchemy Ministry Head (鍊金省主).
"It's fine. This used to be a slum. No one has lived here for five years, so entry has been prohibited. If anything, we're fortunate that a fire broke out in a place like this."
Rank 10. The Vigilante Corps Captain in charge of the city's security, Paladin.
Indeed, these were hunters famous for helping others. Even among the top rankers, they were the type who didn't play lone wolf. They had arrived faster than anyone and were commanding the scene.
'Normally, the Saintess should be among them too, but.......'
But the Saintess was nowhere to be seen.
Of course not. She had been murdered by the most insufferable lone wolf of all the lone wolves.
The only people in the world who knew this fact were the Flame Emperor and me. A truth that even the top rankers didn't know yet... no, perhaps a truth they would never know.
The Alchemy Ministry Head looked around.
"That's strange. Why hasn't Miss Saintess arrived yet...?"
"She mentioned she had something going on tonight. I don't know the details, but it's probably a date."
The rank 10 hunter, Paladin, smirked.
"Lately, she's been spending a lot more time with the Flame Emperor."
"...That man, the Flame Emperor, I don't like him."
The Alchemy Ministry Head hunched her shoulders.
"He's a bit... unsettling, I suppose. Though I know it's not polite to talk behind someone's back in a place like this. Still, I think Miss Saintess should meet someone better."
"Your standards are too high. If she needs a man better than rank 1, then who exactly is she supposed to meet? That's why you still don't have a partner."
"I-I can get a partner whenever I want... I just haven't felt like it yet......."
Speak of the devil and he shall appear.
"It's the Flame Emperor!"
The people helping with the firefighting stopped all at once. Even the top rankers turned their heads. There, slouching around in a hoodie and sweatpants, was the Flame Emperor—no, that bastard. The bastard wore an expression of extreme annoyance.
"Hey, shit. Who the hell went playing with fire without my permission?"
Crazy psychopath bastard.
"Welcome, Flame Emperor."
"Yeah. Welcome, big bro."
"As you can see, arson has occurred in the old slum district. Could you lend us a hand?"
Paladin spoke politely. But the Flame Emperor was indifferent.
"And what do I get out of helping?"
"You get the satisfaction of having helped many people for free."
"Ah, cut the bullshit. Tell me what you're going to give me."
"Tomorrow, articles with headlines like [Flame Emperor Extinguishes Fire, Performs Great Deed] will run on the front pages of media outlets and broadcasters worldwide. It will give the world a fresh shock while also improving your image."
"Pfft."
The Flame Emperor shoved his hands in his pants pockets and sneered.
"Have I ever given a shit about what those trash journalists think?"
He was a genuine, out-of-his-mind lunatic.
The residents were already pulling out their phones to film the Flame Emperor. His expression and words were probably being broadcast to the world in real time. The internet was likely heating up, split between those defending the Flame Emperor and those cursing him.
What would the people defending the Flame Emperor say?
-Of course. You have to protect your own interests like a knife's edge.
-If you help people for free, you're just a pushover.
-Even after becoming a hero, he's still so honest. It's refreshing to see.
My head spun.
'No one knows.'
It was terrifying enough to make my spine run cold.
'That's not honesty. That bastard... he's just insane. He's not right in the head.'
Even with flames flickering right nearby, my heart was cold. This blaze, this arson, this disaster—the Flame Emperor himself had caused all of it. And yet he came back with a straight face and asked, "What are you going to give me?"
At last, I was certain.
'That bastard has to be eliminated!'
A monster.
It wasn't just for my revenge. For humanity, for the honor of hunters, that monster deserved to be exterminated. A monster is a monster. Hunting monsters is our duty and mission as hunters, isn't it!
'By any means necessary... I have to kill him.'
A monster lived in this Tower, flickering with flames. Yes, that was true. But it was inadequate to simply say it "existed." Far, far inadequate.
Because that monster was my prey.
'Even if it costs me my life.'
I moved my feet.
Step.
Past the heroes deliberating over post-disaster measures. Past the ordinary people struggling to contain the fire. Toward the endlessly rising flames. Toward the blaze erupting like hell itself, I walked.
"Huh? Wait. Where are you going?"
I walked.
"Hey, mister! You can't get that close!"
I walked.
"Oh my! That person must be crazy!"
"Somebody stop him!"
"Shit, he's insane, what the hell!"
And then I ran.
People were in an uproar behind me. Some stamped their feet. Others stopped their firefighting and shouted. I ignored them all. Ignored them and kept running.
'It's hot.'
That place was no different from hell. Whoosh! Flames flickered everywhere like red tongues.
'It hurts!'
With every step forward, my flesh melted. My pupils, the membranes of my eyeballs, were seared dry.
But.
'It's better than what that bastard would do to me!'
This was the only way to kill the Flame Emperor.
How long did I run? It felt like a long time, but also like only a minute had passed. Smoke clogged my throat and I coughed, and around the time the coughing stopped, I heard a voice.
[You have died.]
Yes.
[Regressing 24 hours into the past.]
That was my second death.
3
Seeing me run into the flames, people made a fuss, asking if I was crazy.
Naturally, I wasn't crazy. Quite the opposite. I understood the current situation very calmly.
"...I'm back."
My hell. My 3.5-pyeong single room.
Interview articles were plastered on the wall, and a live broadcast was playing on the television. A live broadcast I was now hearing for the third time.
-Breaking news. The Black Dragon Guild, attempting to conquer Floor 40.......
I had returned to yesterday again.
'Good. The skill works properly.'
Unlike last time, I didn't pay attention to the television. There was no need. The fact that the skill to regress 24 hours worked properly—that was all I needed to confirm.
With just this, I could kill the Flame Emperor.
[Your current hunter rank is F-rank.]
[No penalty from the skill occurs.]
"As expected."
I murmured.
'Regressor's Clockwork Watch... They said the higher your hunter rank, the stronger the penalty.'
Conversely, if your hunter rank was at rock bottom, no particular penalty was applied.
For an F-rank like me, there wasn't even a penalty yet.
'Now's my chance.'
Right now, while I was still stuck at F-rank.
The one and only golden opportunity to hunt the Flame Emperor.
'This is my last chance.'
I took a knife out of my backpack.
An old knife. A dagger I had kept ever since I started working as a hunter. Even if it could no longer be used to hunt monsters... it was still sharp enough to kill a person.
'How do I kill the Flame Emperor?'
I kept agonizing over it.
'Cooperate with the Saintess, who hasn't been killed yet? Reveal my ability to the Black Dragon Guild, prove it, and then scheme to have the Flame Emperor locked up forever? Or secretly film the Flame Emperor killing the Saintess and leak it to the media?'
Any of those methods would have been fine.
But fine was all they were. None of them could send the Flame Emperor to his grave with 100% certainty.
'Because I don't have the track record to make the Saintess trust me.'
I had no track record.
'Because I don't have the power to avoid being used and discarded by the guild.'
I had no power.
'Because I'm not confident I can successfully film the Flame Emperor in secret.'
I had no confidence either.
'But.......'
Even so, I had something.
'If I die, I go back 24 hours.'
A skill.
The Regressor's Clockwork Watch, copied from the Flame Emperor.
'Right. I have a skill. Don't worry, Kim Gong-ja. You can do this.'
Gulp. I looked at the wall one last time. The contents of Flame Emperor Yoo Soo-ha's interview with the magazine reporter were written there, word for word.
+
Q. How old were you when you first awakened, Mr. Yoo Soo-ha?
A. The summer I turned 21. So it's already been 11 years.
Q. The fact that you remember even the season so precisely shows you have a great memory.
A. I've never thought of myself as having a particularly good memory. It's just that the day I awakened happened to be my birthday. June 7th, 11 years ago. That's why I remember.
+
'11 years.'
June 7th, 11 years ago. Summer.
Counting backward from today.
'4050 days.'
Yes.
'I just have to die 4050 times.'
That was the only way to kill the Flame Emperor.
'Yoo Soo-ha. If you're a monster that can't be killed...'
I raised the knife high.
'Then I'll kill you before you become a monster!'
And I stabbed myself in the throat.
To return to the past.
To return to June 7th, 11 years ago. To that summer when Flame Emperor Yoo Soo-ha had not yet awakened his skill. When he did not yet possess the ability to regress 24 hours upon death.
To return to the past when the Flame Emperor could still be killed!
"Ugh...!"
It was hot. It hurt. My heart pounded like crazy. Every nerve in my body screamed. I couldn't see anything anymore, couldn't feel anything anymore.
But I heard a voice.
[You have died.]
[Regressing 24 hours into the past.]
I went back one day.
The me from one day ago was lying in bed. The television was off too. But the newspaper scraps plastered on the wall were still there. Regressing just one more day wasn't enough to erase the history of the Flame Emperor, the legend of that lunatic.
I glared at Yoo Soo-ha's photo.
'It doesn't matter.'
If one day isn't enough, then a week. If a week isn't enough, then a month. If a month isn't enough, then a year. And if even a year isn't enough.
"Alright."
I took out the dagger again.
"Now it's 4049 days."
And I stabbed myself.