The S-Class Gate of Chogye Basin

"In Chogye Basin? Hmm…"

"That's right. Our guild may have grown a great deal lately, but we're still short on experience in a lot of ways… What do you make of it, Hunter Kim Jin-seong?"

Shingyo Guild had been the one to discover the abnormal signs, but consulting Kim Jin-seong was only natural. As the master of Suryong Guild—longstanding guardians of Korea against the threat of gates and monsters—he was bound to have some idea of what this meant.

That said, this was a curiously fascinating thing.

Whoosh, whoosh.

"Heh heh."

I waved my hand through the image of Kim Jin-seong floating above the desk, snickering. Watching his face warp and stretch under my fingers was extremely funny.

Kim Jin-seong offered an awkward smile from that distorted face.

"Haha… Heavenly Demon, what exactly are you doing right now?"

"Your face is hilarious at the moment, Kim Jin-seong."

"It's a video hologram. An ordinary call would usually be enough, but this is the technology we mainly use for multi-person conferences over long distances."

"Yeon-ah, we're in a meeting. Sit still."

Mid-wave, an arm slipped under my armpits, and Kim Na-yeon deposited me neatly onto the sofa.

"Tch."

I propped my chin in my hands and stared sullenly at Kim Jin-seong's projection.

Smiles rose on the adults' faces.

"I'm glad to see the Heavenly Demon looking well."

"You said you'd come visit. When can I see you?"

"…I may be seeing you sooner than expected."

Hands busy with something off-screen, gaze angled to one side, Kim Jin-seong's expression hardened.

"The clustered appearance of high-grade gates. It's never been reported in Korea, but if you expand the search worldwide, there's one case in the last hundred years."

"What is it?"

"It's a precursor to the appearance of an S-class Gate."

"…!"

This time even Kim Na-yeon and Kim Do-yoon's faces went stiff.

Kim Jin-seong continued.

"Just as the gap in ability between A-class and S-class ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠hunters is vast, the difficulty gap between A-class and S-class gates is just as stark. …When the Ancient Species first appeared, every gate that opened across the world's skies was rated S-class, which is why the grades between them came to be labeled A+ and so on, but…"

"Generally speaking, a gate's rank is set so that a single party of hunters of that same rank can clear it. So an A-class gate is something a party of A-class hunters can handle. That sort of thing."

"Right. Which means clearing an A+ gate without casualties requires at least one S-class hunter. I already know that. …So then an S-class gate—"

Listening to the exchange between Kim Do-yoon and Kim Na-yeon, Kim Jin-seong nodded.

"Exactly. By that same ranking standard, clearing an S-class gate requires at least one full party of S-class hunters. In other words, you'd need every master of Korea's Five Great Guilds gathered in one place before it was even worth attempting. And every S-class gate that has appeared so far has been an Unstable Gate."

"An Unstable Gate…!"

The color drained from Kim Na-yeon's face.

"There's a risk of a Gate Break. If it isn't cleared within a set period, something terrifying enough to rival an Ancient Species will come pouring out. …And it won't be just one."

A document floated up to the left of Kim Jin-seong's face.

"Every gate that spawned an Ancient Species during the Great Calamity a hundred years ago was S-class. The Ancient Species that nested in Korea all came out of a single gate as well."

"Th-there's more than one or two of those things inside an S-class gate…? Can a single party of S-class hunters really clear it?"

"It's possible. There's a successful clear of an S-class gate that appeared in the United States sixty years ago. I'll send you the materials."

With a soft ding, a table of data appeared on the right.

"Ah…!"

"So if a Break happens because we don't clear it in time, all the A+-class bosses come out as full Ancient Species as well."

"Mana is sucked into the gate at high speed along with the rising currents. Most likely, after a set time has passed since the gate's appearance—or once certain conditions are met—every boss inside is strengthened to Ancient Species–class."

"Th-thank goodness we caught the precursor early. We need to contact the masters of the Five Great Guilds at once—"

As Kim Do-yoon hastily fumbled with his smartphone, Kim Jin-seong smiled as if to put him at ease.

"Don't worry. Ever since the last Ancient Species incident, a hotline has been installed among the Five Great Guilds. The moment I recognized the signs, I sent a direct message. Replies should be coming in shortly, but… hmm."

Kim Jin-seong's face hardened again.

"What is it?"

"…Jeokpung. Master unavailable. No response from the master. The Bukhae Guild's master is also unavailable, though that side reports he's simply out of town on business and can join immediately in an emergency."

Kim Na-yeon's expression turned uneasy.

"Lee Myeong-won? He's been quiet lately, so we took our eyes off him…"

A sharp aura flared in Kim Do-yoon's eyes.

"…And the reason for the Jeokpung master's absence?"

"Gate clear."

"…"

Silence settled over the room.

"…Hmm?"

I tilted my head and looked around at the adults.

Talking among themselves one moment, then sinking into grim silence among themselves the next.

This looked like a place where I needed to straighten the conversation out myself.

Thump.

I lightly struck the table with a bit of internal energy, and every gaze in the room snapped to me.

"Anyway, the Heavenly Demon Cult and the Five Great Guilds just need to join forces and clear the S-class gate. Do we really need that man Lee Myeong-won's strength as well?"

"Well… you're not wrong, but Lee Myeong-won is…"

Kim Na-yeon trailed off and looked at Kim Do-yoon. He nodded and spoke.

"It's an S-class gate clear, so every S-class hunter in Korea has to gather. And Lee Myeong-won is a shady bastard. We can't leave him free to act on his own."

"If you're short on fighting strength, I'll go."

"Absolutely not!"

"Why?"

At Kim Na-yeon's sharp refusal, I frowned and pressed her.

She avoided my eyes as she answered.

"I-it's dangerous."

"What's so special about that? We've cleared A-class gates together already. And even if something like an Ancient Species shows up, I can handle it just fine."

"This time it isn't that simple."

"Hunter Kim Do-yoon is right."

"Hmm… Let's hear it, then."

If both Kim Do-yoon and Kim Jin-seong were weighing in like this, there had to be a reason.

"First of all, S-class gates are so rare that there are a lot of unknown dangers—but the biggest problem is that the gate is one-way. You can't get out until you clear it."

"So we just finish it fast and leave. When we cleared A-class gates, it only took a few hours."

"This is an S-class gate. The number and strength of the monsters will be on a completely different level, and the interior could be laid out like a complex maze. There's no way it finishes in a day or two."

I listened to the adults with a dissatisfied look on my face.

"Well… I understand, but somehow you all talk an awful lot."

"Anyway, camping overnight is mandatory. Can you eat combat rations? They're focused entirely on reducing bulk and packing in calories, so they taste absolutely terrible."

Food that tasted terrible? That was a serious problem.

I broke into a sweat and asked,

"Are energy bars not enough?"

"Nope."

"Th-that is… inconvenient."

In my past life, Wiji Yeon could get through a day on a single Fasting Pill—but the young body of this life needed proper, high-quality food. If someone handed me something like a Fasting Pill now and told me to last a day on it, I truly did not think I could manage.

Kim Na-yeon gently stroked my hair.

"So, okay? You'll stay ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠home quietly this time, Heavenly Demon?"

"No."

"Hey, Wiji Yeon!"

Kim Na-yeon screeched. I answered flatly.

"Na-yeon unni can simply shoulder a food pack for This Seat. Or else we'll take Hunter Park Dong-hwan and Hunter Yang Tae-seon as well, and leave it to them. If I exhaust myself after using my strength, Na-yeon unni can just carry me on her back."

"Haha—of course, if the Heavenly Demon joined us, the clear would go much faster, but… every high-ranking hunter from the Five Great Guilds will be gathering for this raid. You're still a child, Heavenly Demon. To people who don't know the circumstances, it will look as if we're throwing a little girl into certain death. Our position could become extremely awkward."

Even Kim Jin-seong laid out reason after reason, but it was nowhere near enough to persuade me.

"No! I'm going!"

I flopped back on the sofa and flailed my limbs, throwing a full tantrum.

High above Chogye Basin, a vast hole had opened in the sky.

Whoooooosh!

From the black void that hung as if to swallow the entire sky, fierce rising currents pulled grass and broken branches upward into its maw.

And beneath that enormous black hole, in the wide center of Chogye Basin, only two people stood.

One was a gray-haired man in a suit. The other was a white-haired woman in a flowing formal dress.

"It's opened."

"You checked the hotline message, I assume? The others noticed faster than expected. They've already finished their preparations and are gathering here."

"So they predicted the appearance of an S-class gate from past cases. As expected of Kim Jin-seong."

"What will you do?"

"It's an unexpected ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠variable, but all I have to do is move a little faster."

Tap.

Lee Myeong-won lightly launched his body upward and entrusted himself to the rising current.

In an instant his form shrank to a speck, vanishing into the enormous black hole.

The one left on the ground watching him—the white-haired woman—gave a soft little laugh.

"…At last. The Blood Demon's descent draws near."