Chapter 50
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 50
Chapter Title: Toward Pyongyang (1)
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Shanghai.
Kim Hyun and Chae Seol-ah arrived in front of the Shanghai Gate. Against the backdrop of Shanghai's glittering skyline, a massive red rift tore open across the sky.
"It's huge."
Kim Hyun murmured as she gazed up at the gate.
Similar to the Beijing Gate, but on a slightly larger scale.
"[Hunter Kim Hyun!]"
A man who seemed to be the Chinese official in charge hurried over.
"[Thank you for coming to the Shanghai Gate!]"
"No problem."
Kim Hyun gave a casual wave after listening to the translation.
The official pressed on with a tense expression.
"[This is a standard-type gate. Preliminary scouting confirmed a large number of wyverns.]"
"Got it. I'll head in."
Kim Hyun turned to Chae Seol-ah.
"Ready?"
"Yes!"
Chae Seol-ah nodded, her face taut with tension.
Magic power was already gathering in her hands.
"Good. Let's go."
The two stepped into the gate.
The world brightened before their eyes.
Kim Hyun scanned her surroundings.
Clouds drifted into view.
'Clouds?'
Kim Hyun frowned as she took in the area.
Wyverns, they said. So it's up in the sky, huh.
The gate's interior connected to a colossal temple floating high above the clouds. Marble pillars stretched skyward on all sides, framing glimpses of the blue heavens between them.
"Wow..."
Chae Seol-ah let out a gasp as she looked around.
"I've never seen a place like this before."
"Pretty nice view, right?"
Kim Hyun surveyed the surroundings.
The temple was enormous. Easily big enough to fit a soccer field.
At that moment.
Keeeeeek!
A piercing cry echoed from above.
Kim Hyun tilted her head back.
Dozens of wyverns were swooping down from the sky.
Enormous flying dragons, each at least ten meters long.
"Hmm. Decent numbers."
Kim Hyun counted them off on her fingers. In the meantime, the wyverns spotted Kim Hyun and Chae Seol-ah and dove straight at them.
Keeeeeek! Kyaaaak!
"Seol-ah, get ready."
"...Yes!"
Chae Seol-ah tensed up and drew on her magic power.
Blue mana swirled around her.
'It's different from before.'
Chae Seol-ah's eyes widened.
The flow of her mana felt entirely different. Somehow, it brimmed with power beyond comparison to her old self.
It was the toll of staring down an Outer God.
The Outer God's presence had further unshackled her Akashic Manual, spurring Chae Seol-ah's own growth.
"Alright, let's get started."
With that, Kim Hyun stomped the ground.
Boom!
In an instant, dozens of black spikes shot skyward.
Pabababak!
The wyverns scattered to evade the spikes. Kim Hyun used them to split the flock into smaller groups.
Once she'd carved them up like that, she turned to Chae Seol-ah.
"Start with the closest ones."
"Yes!"
Chae Seol-ah thrust both hands forward.
A massive fireball launched from her palms.
Kwaaaang!
It slammed dead-on into a diving wyvern.
Keeeik!
The wyvern screamed as it burst into flames.
Chae Seol-ah didn't let up.
Ice spears materialized next, piercing the wings of six wyverns at once.
The wyverns crashed to the ground, shrieking.
'I can do this!'
Chae Seol-ah felt certain.
Her magic could take down monsters from an S-Rank gate.
Something she couldn't have dreamed of before.
'It's all thanks to Kim Hyun...'
But there was no time for sentiment.
Chae Seol-ah swallowed hard and cast a new spell at the fallen wyverns.
Pabababak!
Lightning whips lashed out, coiling around the wyverns and electrocuting them.
Keeeik! Kyaaaak!
The wyverns charred black amid their screams.
Kim Hyun watched with a satisfied smile.
'She's come a long way.'
Chae Seol-ah's skills had clearly improved.
Her judgment and reactions were sharper, but above all, her raw firepower had changed. The mana in her spells packed more punch, and her casting speed was leagues ahead.
'The price of facing an Outer God head-on. Worth it.'
Kim Hyun grinned in approval.
"You're doing great."
"Th-thank you!"
Chae Seol-ah replied mid-cast.
A massive flame storm engulfed a cluster of wyverns.
Keeeeeek!
They plummeted, wreathed in fire.
About ten minutes passed like that.
"Hoo..."
Chae Seol-ah panted heavily.
Wyvern corpses littered the area.
Even with Kim Hyun controlling their numbers, Chae Seol-ah had soloed every regular monster in an S-Rank gate.
"Good work."
Kim Hyun patted her shoulder.
"Thank you..."
Chae Seol-ah managed a weary smile.
Then.
Grrrrumble!
The entire temple began to shake.
"So, boss time already?"
Kim Hyun muttered, glancing upward.
Right then.
Bam!
Something enormous burst through the temple ceiling.
It was a dragon.
A colossal red dragon, easily over thirty meters long.
Grrrrrooooar!
The dragon bellowed.
Its roar alone shook the temple.
"Ah, so loud."
Kim Hyun looked up at it.
Red light gleamed from the dragon's eyes.
Kim Hyun immediately sensed an Outer God's aura leaking from its body.
'Well, now.'
What's this one?
Her eyes narrowed coldly.
At that moment, the dragon opened its maw.
A torrent of flames erupted forth, infused with dark crimson energy—an unholy breath laced with Outer God power.
"Starting with an AoE, huh."
Kim Hyun extended a hand toward the oncoming fire.
A hemispherical barrier sprang up around her. The black flames crashed against it but couldn't even scratch the surface before sliding off.
"This guy's nothing special either."
Kim Hyun scoffed.
Even with Outer God power, it was just average to her.
"Alright, my turn."
She slammed her foot down.
Hundreds of slashes rained down on the dragon's body.
Pabababak!
The cuts pierced its scales and tore into flesh.
Graaaar!
The dragon writhed in agony, then beat its wings to flee.
At the same time, dozens of magic circles bloomed behind it. Black meteors began plummeting from within.
"Annoying."
Kim Hyun scowled and swung her hand.
Pababak!
All the meteors shattered midair.
Even as that happened, the dragon's body was being shredded by the slashes. But whether due to its thick hide or sheer bulk, the cuts weren't carving it up cleanly.
"Annoying."
Kim Hyun clicked her tongue, drew back her right arm, and clenched her fist.
Then.
She swung.
Bam!
A hole punched straight through the dragon's midsection.
With a gaping wound, it crashed to the temple floor. It twitched a few times, then went still.
"Done."
Kim Hyun dusted off her hands and approached.
"Is it over?"
"Yeah. Come here for a sec."
"Okay."
Chae Seol-ah edged closer cautiously.
Kim Hyun peered into the dragon's punctured belly.
Red light emanated from inside.
"This..."
She reached in and pulled something out.
A crystal orb resembling a bloodshot eye.
A grotesque thing radiating eerie energy.
'Knew it'd be here too.'
Kim Hyun nodded flatly.
As expected, just like in Beijing, Shanghai's gate hid an Outer God abomination.
"What is that?"
Chae Seol-ah asked.
Kim Hyun pondered briefly before giving a simple explanation.
"An artifact linked to beings from beyond our world. Found one in the Beijing Gate too... Hm?"
She frowned.
'Don't tell me every S-Rank gate has one of these embedded?'
That'd be a problem.
Kim Hyun tsked and crushed the orb in her grip.
Pashak!
It shattered to pieces.
"I'll explain the details later. Let's head out."
"Okay."
Outside the gate.
As Kim Hyun and Chae Seol-ah emerged, the waiting Chinese personnel all turned to stare.
"[Th-they're out!]"
"[Time?]"
"[13 minutes!]"
"[10 minutes?!]"
The Chinese team gasped in shock.
Of course, it had taken longer than Beijing, but 13 minutes was still absurd.
Especially when the average clear time was measured in days.
"[As expected...]"
"[A monster...]"
The Chinese stared at Kim Hyun in awe.
Ignoring the looks, Kim Hyun turned to Chae Seol-ah.
"How was it?"
"Hm? What do you mean?"
"Manageable?"
"Yeah, I think so."
Chae Seol-ah smiled.
But exhaustion was plain on her face.
"Let's head to the hotel first. They booked one for us, right?"
"Yes."
The two climbed into the waiting car.
As it pulled away, Kim Hyun gazed out the window.
'If the Outer Gods planted these abominations in every S-Rank gate...'
That meant a ton of them were scattered across the world.
15 years had passed since gates first appeared, after all.
How many had leaked out by now?
Her eyes grew icy.
'Collecting them all...'
Feasible or not, it'd be a hassle.
'In that case...'
Only one option: Seal off the dimensional barrier to keep the Outer Gods from reaching Earth.
And for that, she'd need materials to weave the barrier.
'Using these abominations comes to mind first.'
That meant gathering as many as possible.
'Gotta hit gates harder from here on out.'
Kim Hyun closed her eyes quietly.
For starters...
'Might as well wipe out that thing up north.'