Chapter 87: Chaos (10)
Chapter 87: Chaos (10)
Kang Yujin had a comfortable flight back home on her private jet.
She arrived in Korea around 10:00 PM. She briefly considered calling Han Shin to let him know she had landed, but ultimately decided against it.
She could see him anytime through Grace, and she felt that the best way to be of immediate help to him was to first grasp the nature of the abnormal phenomena currently unfolding.
Instead of heading straight home after landing, she went to the safe house she used to change into her gear as Wolyeong.
As soon as she entered the safe house—which was much larger than the home she shared with Han Shin—she hurriedly changed clothes and disguised herself as Wolyeong.
While doing so, it occurred to her that both the house she had prepared in Kathmandu, Nepal, and this safe house were significantly larger than the place where she lived with Han Shin.
‘Now that Grace is here, maybe I should look for a new house...?’
Despite having earned a fortune, she had lived in a modest home with Han Shin to hide her activities as an Awakener. Compared to the money she raked in as Wolyeong, their lifestyle had been humble.
Her original plan had been to earn enough to retire, disappear, and then find a nice place to live with Han Shin. But the situation had changed completely.
It was no longer just a home for the two of them; she had to consider the other women as well.
‘I’ll have to talk to Shin-i about it when he visits later.’
Standing before a full-length mirror, Kang Yujin checked her reflection, adjusting her black robe and veil to ensure her disguise was perfect.
Once satisfied that she looked exactly like Wolyeong, she contacted the Association to arrange a meeting.
Despite the late hour, the Association was overjoyed to hear from her and agreed to meet immediately.
The current situation was far from favorable.
Passing through the brilliant city lights that pierced the dark night, Kang Yujin, in the guise of Wolyeong, arrived at her destination...
It was the Association building in Sejong City, the place she always visited.
The moment she arrived, one of the Association staff members dedicated to her was already waiting outside to escort her with the utmost respect.
However, Kang Yujin found it strange that Park Min-woo, the Korean Branch Manager of the Awakener Association, was nowhere to be seen.
Usually, whenever she visited, he would personally come out to greet her and provide briefings.
"Is the Branch Manager busy?"
When Kang Yujin asked in a calm voice, the staff member leading her to the VIP room on the first floor—the room always reserved for her—bowed his head slightly in apology.
"Yes. The current situation is quite dire, so he is currently in a meeting with the leaders of the large clans. He truly wanted to be here to greet you. Please accept our apologies."
"It’s fine. I’ve been away on an overseas commission, so I’m not fully caught up on the situation in Korea. Please give me a briefing."
The staff member breathed a sigh of relief at Wolyeong’s indifferent response.
Having been her dedicated handler for two years, he had expected her to be understanding, but he could never afford to be complacent.
His entire job revolved around assisting Wolyeong, facilitating her commissions, and ensuring her comfort. Even a minor mistake was unacceptable, especially given how much the Association relied on her.
Park Min-woo had emphasized this repeatedly, and the staff member himself had witnessed Wolyeong’s terrifying power firsthand. Despite working closely with her for two years, he could never truly feel at ease around her.
While Wolyeong was always respectful on the surface, she maintained a clear, firm distance. Since they hadn't built a personal rapport, he constantly reminded himself to remain cautious.
Entering the familiar room, Kang Yujin sat in a plush chair, received the documents from the staff member, and listened to an explanation of recent events.
As soon as the crisis began, the large clans and the Association had held an emergency meeting. They decided to halt standard dungeon raids and instead form specialized parties of high-rank Awakeners to prioritize the new portals.
However, they realized within hours that this was not a fundamental solution.
It had become meaningless to measure the mana of a Dungeon Core emitting from a portal to determine its rank.
Consequently, they had to send high-rank parties into every single new portal just to identify the monsters inside. This was incredibly inefficient, and there weren't enough high-rank parties to cover the sheer number of appearing portals.
Not every portal contained powerful monsters.
The problem was that there was no way to know without going inside.
Initially, based on early reports, the large clans assumed the monsters would be, at most, one rank higher than the portal's indicated level...
But within hours, reports proved otherwise, and the mood turned grim.
The large clans had tried to be efficient by assigning Awakeners who could easily clear a certain rank to portals one rank higher.
However, just as Han Shin’s group had experienced, E-Rank portals were found to contain C-Rank or B-Rank monsters.
In the worst-case scenarios, A-Rank monsters appeared, resulting in casualties.
The large clans, who had initially viewed this as an opportunity for growth, quickly realized that the current situation was a nightmare.
And so, only a few hours later...
Despite it being late at night, the clan leaders had gathered once again.
Everyone had responded to Park Min-woo’s summons without complaint. Unlike their earlier opportunistic mindset, they were now discussing countermeasures with grave expressions.
Kang Yujin had suspected things were bad during her flight, but hearing the reality of it made her brow furrow slightly.
It wasn't that she was particularly worried about the other Awakeners; it was because of Han Shin.
She now knew that these portals weren't a natural phenomenon, but the work of the Evil God.
The fact that the world was failing to respond effectively was a very bad sign, especially since Han Shin, as Tiamat’s Proxy, had to fight the forces of the Evil God.
From Grace’s explanation, she knew that every time a dungeon failed to be cleared, the dimensional barrier protecting Nippur—where the Evil Gods were imprisoned—would weaken, potentially allowing them to cross over.
Even though Han Shin was growing rapidly, he still needed more time.
For Kang Yujin, Han Shin was her top priority.
Therefore, she decided to clear as many dungeons as she could within her power to stem the tide.
"Give me the list of dungeons that are proving difficult to clear."
When Wolyeong spoke, the staff member’s face brightened, and he immediately handed over the data.
Fortunately, there were no A-Rank dungeons left since Lee Jeong-jin had stepped up to clear them, but there were quite a few B-Rank and C-Rank dungeons.
Since they had only recently formed, there was still some time, but it was better to clear them now, as no one knew how the situation would evolve.
Kang Yujin checked the distribution of dungeons marked as red dots across Korea.
‘There are more than I thought... If it’s like this just in Korea...’
The sheer number of problematic dungeons that had accumulated in such a short time felt ominous.
If a small country like Korea was this overwhelmed, what about the rest of the world?
There was a limit to what she could do alone.
"Is it like this in other countries as well?"
The staff member immediately understood the intent behind her question. It was an expected inquiry.
"No. Currently, this is only happening in Korea, the UK, and Japan."
"Are you certain it's only those three? What about regions that already had poor conditions?"
Kang Yujin double-checked; she needed to be certain for Han Shin’s sake.
"Based on the data collected so far, yes. we are maintaining close contact and investigating further, so we will inform you as soon as new information arrives."
Though not yet certain, Kang Yujin felt a sense of relief that the situation wasn't so catastrophic that it was beyond all control.
‘Still, it’s not confirmed, so I can’t afford to be complacent.’
She turned her head to check the clock.
By the time the briefing was over, it was already slightly past midnight.
If the situation weren't so dire, she might have waited until dawn, but given the circumstances, she decided to move immediately.
"Fine. Then for now... I’ll start with the southern region."
"Ah... You’re heading out right away? Thank you!"
The staff member hadn't even made a direct request yet, and since it was past midnight, he would have been fine if she started tomorrow or the day after. Seeing Wolyeong move so decisively because of the gravity of the situation moved him.
His voice was filled with genuine joy as he responded.
"I won't have time to excavate artifacts, so I’ll focus on clearing them as quickly as possible."
"Yes, given the circumstances, that is only natural."
As Wolyeong stood up, the staff member immediately began calculating the most efficient route.
Wolyeong always preferred speed and efficiency, and having worked with her for two years, he was highly skilled at planning her movements.
"It would be fastest to move by helicopter. Would that be acceptable?"
"Yes, that’s fine."
Kang Yujin agreed immediately. A helicopter would be best for rapid deployment between sites. It didn't matter to her what she rode, as long as it was fast.
To ensure her swift and safe transit, the staff member coordinated with the government to secure helipads along her route, arranged for guides at every portal, and prepared vehicles for ground transport.
Because it was so late, some people were bound to be annoyed, but those who understood the severity of the crisis were grateful to Wolyeong and prepared everything with urgency.
Thanks to their efforts, Kang Yujin was able to clear dungeons at a blistering pace without any inconvenience, even in the dead of night.
Crunch! Snap!
The moment she encountered a Basilisk exhaling its Petrifying Breath, she crushed its entire body using psychokinetic pressure.
Pop!
She instantly burst the eye of a Cyclops before it could fire its powerful energy beam.
The Association staff member, who had followed Wolyeong for two years, was stunned. She was tearing through powerful monsters so quickly it didn't even look like she was trying, and she showed no signs of fatigue.
‘She hasn't been showing her full power all this time...’
He had already considered her an incredibly powerful S-Rank Psychokinetic, but seeing her display even greater capabilities left him in awe.
For her part, she hadn't taken any commissions since Han Shin had recovered, so this was her first time using her strength in a dungeon in a while.
And she could feel it—she had become stronger.
Because of the urgency, Kang Yujin wasn't holding back; she was drawing out her power to slaughter the monsters instantly, and managing that power felt much more effortless than before.
‘Could it be because of Shin-i...?’
She couldn't be certain, but the thought that Han Shin was the reason for her change immediately crossed her mind. He was, after all, the biggest change in her life.
Kang Yujin cleared the dungeons so fast that she spent more time traveling than fighting. Before the sun had even risen, she had cleared all twenty problematic portals in the southern region.
In the meantime, Park Min-woo, whose meeting had finally ended, rushed to find her and express his gratitude.
He was deeply moved that Wolyeong had moved so quickly in the middle of the night, and his already strong trust in her grew even deeper.