The Blood Demon's Arrival
The 'Tower of the Wind' district.
Caaaaak—
A piercing scream tore through the air as the colossal Harpy's body dissolved into swirling gusts of wind.
"Huh, huh... Is this really an A+ level boss?"
"With an S-rank Ancient Species holding the line, this creature shouldn't have been an easy target even for A-rank hunters."
"If not for the Guild Master, we would've been wiped out."
The remaining members of the who had barely defeated the boss 'Sulphurus' finally let out a collective sigh of relief.
"Hmm."
S-rank hunter and Master Jeong Hyeon-woo clenched and unclenched his fist, nodding firmly.
Speed always catches up to speed.
Fitting the district's name, the boss Sulphurus had charged at the hunters with blinding speed accompanied by fierce winds. Yet before Jeong Hyeon-woo’s 'Hermes's Footstep', it dropped to its knees.
The guild executives added their voices one after another.
"The Guild Master rarely sees real battle, so I never realized how terrifyingly fast he is."
"His bearing doesn't match his speed?"
"Hahaha, I've heard that a thousand times."
Light laughter spread through the guild members.
Of course it did. Jeong Hyeon-woo, one of the fastest S-rank hunters known, stood well over 190 centimeters and tipped the scales past 100 kilograms.
For a body like that to wield a speed-focused ability called 'Hermes's Footstep' was truly ironic.
"Fortunately, this was the type of gate with abundant intel, so we didn't get trapped until after two days. ...As expected, this S-rank gate appears to be a collection of A-rank and higher gates."
"What's with the pattern on the wall? It looks a lot like a clock, doesn't it? Five flames or something."
Thud.
Jeong Hyeon-woo clapped his hands, drawing everyone's attention.
"We can take a breather here. It looks like the magic circle on the floor is a portal that will transport us to the next district."
"The other guilds seem to be moving quickly too. If we keep advancing, we might link up with them."
Everyone gathered here began preparing for overnight rest, one after another.
"Still, I don't feel like getting too close to them."
"Just our luck that they showed up at the same time."
The members glanced toward a slightly distant area and clicked their tongues.
There, three major lords of the were preparing to camp separately from their troops.
"Master's order was to stay put, but..."
"They just can't stand still, can they?"
"Tch. We can't take this kind of treatment from our own guild anymore."
"So where did Master Lee Myeong-won disappear to at this crucial moment?"
"He probably doesn't even know Jo Yong-hyeop."
The three major lords of .
They weren't direct disciples of Lee Myeong-won. Since they had been A-rank hunters even before joining the guild, they enjoyed a relatively free hand in his presence.
Their decision to act against their master's will had everything to do with the public eye.
had already lost prestige. If they failed to participate in an S-rank gate assault, they would have no face left in the hunter world. That was why they had come to lend a hand to and try to restore some of their lost glory.
As the hunters were settling in for a brief rest, a deep hum echoed from the center.
"W-what's that!"
"What is this!?"
The central magic circle erupted in brilliant light and began to swallow the hunters whole.
Jeong Hyeon-woo shot to his feet.
"Portal activation!? That can't be...! Everyone, gather your mana and protect your bodies!"
The portal connecting to the next district had been forcibly activated.
And its range was expanding rapidly.
The gate was moving, as if alive.
As if something were pulling them in.
Whoosh!
In an instant, the hunters enveloped in the magic circle's bright light were sucked away into some unknown place.
"Kyaaah."
Before vision returned, the first thing that assaulted the hunters' noses was the smell of blood.
A scent of half-raw meat, as if gnawed by a wild beast.
Once the light vanished, the scene revealed a vast cavern.
At its center stood a colossal circular altar whose size defied description.
"Could it be... the central point of the gate?"
Jeong Hyeon-woo's mind, the first to realize the situation, spun at lightning speed.
This was the central point of this S-rank gate.
If so, the creature waiting here was not on the same level as the Sulphurus boss they had just passed.
At the very least, an Ancient Species.
Even as an S-rank hunter, he could not handle it alone. Extinction was certain unless they waited for the other guilds' hunters.
Having grasped the situation, Jeong Hyeon-woo immediately issued orders to the hunters.
"Even if it's an Ancient Species, it must still be the main existence bound by the gate's laws. If we don't attack first..."
"...Master! At the center!"
But the gate, which had begun moving with will, did not wait for them.
Uwooong!
From the darkness beneath the altar, a crimson sphere burst forth in a brilliant flash, announcing its presence.
Boom! The sphere shattered like a bursting balloon, spilling thick blood.
Inside it emerged a humanoid figure wrapped in a red aura.
"......"
A piercing gaze locked onto the hunters.
Surrounded by ominous crimson mist, the face was unmistakably familiar to some.
"Y-you...!"
"Lee Myeong-won...!"
Why was the missing Lee Myeong-won here?
While Jeong Hyeon-woo stood frozen in confusion, unable to react.
"Master!"
"Are you alright!? This is one of the major lords!"
"What is this aura around us? First, protect the Master!"
The major lords of were the first to approach their guild master, whose appearance looked nothing like a living person and seemed perilously close to death.
Seeing this, Jeong Hyeon-woo shouted in alarm.
"Wait! Major Lords of , the current Master Lee Myeong-won is clearly not himself! I understand your intentions, but..."
Before Jeong Hyeon-woo's words could finish, the situation erupted.
Shuaaak! Thud.
"Huh...?"
"What the...!"
The major lords' bodies, enveloped in red aura, were sucked straight into Lee Myeong-won.
From their mouths, which floated in the air, came strangled screams that sounded as if their lungs were being squeezed.
"Kyaaah!"
"Uwaaaah!"
Mana surged wildly and was forcibly drained. The bodies of the major lords convulsed as they were pulled toward Lee Myeong-won's form.
Their frames shriveled like dried husks in an instant.
Thud. Thud.
The sound of once-living beings collapsing to the ground coincided with a wretched wail emanating from the figure now resembling Lee Myeong-won.
[Hahaha, so the servants of the Blood Cult, were you? It was unfortunate for Lee Myeong-won. I suppose it takes a bit longer to read memories after all.]
"Insane!"
Jeong Hyeon-woo broke out in cold sweat.
This was not Lee Myeong-won.
Something wearing his skin was inside this gate.
[Listen well. You shall all serve as sacrifices for this seat. By absorbing your strength, I shall save this land.]
Whoosh!
A crimson aura exploded outward from the center of Lee Myeong-won, spreading in all directions.
The ominous mana that blanketed the altar like a spider web immediately restricted the hunters' movement range to an extreme degree.
Lee Myeong-won's figure dissolved and vanished from sight, as if melting into the blood.
"Kuh... Master! What is this!"
"Don't panic! Treat it as a minimum Ancient Species boss and respond calmly...!"
Even as Jeong Hyeon-woo struggled to regain his composure amid the chaos, his desperate efforts were in vain.
The damage kept mounting.
"Kyah!"
"Uwaaaah!"
Screams erupted from every direction.
The crimson spider webs stirred to life.
The corpses of the hunters, their mana completely drained while entangled in them, collapsed in heaps.
"Hah!"
Spapapap!
Jeong Hyeon-woo's body, having gathered the maximum amount of mana, blurred as he moved rapidly in all directions.
The spider webs attempting to bind the hunters whipped through the air, severing anything that came close.
In the midst of this, he finally caught sight of the figure moving across the webs—Lee Myeong-won himself.
Kwakwakwakwak!
From Jeong Hyeon-woo's hand, blades of wind spirit erupted.
Spapapap!
The blades, slicing through the webs, slashed toward Lee Myeong-won's form with lethal intent.
And then.
"......!"
Lee Myeong-won's appearance vanished from view.
Even the fastest S-rank hunter in existence had lost sight of his opponent.
The moment a cold sensation brushed along Jeong Hyeon-woo's spine.
Thud.
A hand from behind seized his neck.
***
Kukukung.
The 'Iron Blood Furnace' district.
The colossal body of the boss 'Magnoslash', shaped like a metallic giant, was shattered into pieces.
The Magnoslash encountered here was a reinforced version far stronger than the boss of an A+ rank gate, but it lasted less than thirty minutes under the combined assault of two S-rank hunters.
"Hoo, Hunter Kim Jin-seong. You truly are remarkable."
"I was the one who was surprised. You became S-rank not too long ago, yet your abilities are on par with mine."
Kim Jin-seong's admiration was justified.
While Kim Jin-seong had been an S-rank hunter for decades, Kim Do-yoon was still relatively new to the rank. Nevertheless, he displayed abilities that did not fall short of his senior's.
Kim Na-yeon, who had rushed over in a flurry of footsteps with frantic energy, still wore an uneasy expression.
"Let's hurry and cross to the next district!"
"Y-yes. It's already been over a day."
"Wiji Yeon-ssi is somewhere in another district."
"The bag we separated with probably still contains supplies... but..."
and had united, but Wiji Yeon was still unaccounted for. She was most likely still roaming alone. The fact that a child was wandering alone in such a dangerous place demanded swift action from all hunters.
They immediately activated the magic circle and decided to move to the next district.
Uwooong!
"...Huh?"
Kim Jin-seong sensed something strange in the light of the newly activated portal.
Including the union with , this was the third portal use.
Yet this time the sensation felt different.
As if someone were calling them.
Before he could ponder the strangeness, the already operating portal hurled the party members toward an unknown location.
Whoosh!
"...Where is this?"
A sinister crimson altar.
And the sound of someone collapsing with a thud.
[Oh, it's Hunter Kim Jin-seong. The one who left a strong impression on the master of the body I am using. You have come with the second batch of sacrifices.]
The hunters who arrived at the altar for the second time.
In front of them stood 'Blood Demon'.
With gleaming white teeth, he grinned widely.
[This emotion... is it 'inferiority'?]