Chapter 12
Chapter 12
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: First Hunt in the Boundless Realm
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If not for the refreshing energy of the breeze pushing at their backs and the now pleasantly cool, relaxed autumn weather, Baek Yi-yeon and Jin Chang-hyeok might have collapsed right then and there upon spotting their nearing destination—the old 'Mapo Subway Station entrance.'
In other words, it was thanks to those various strokes of good fortune that the two stayed on their feet.
Their bodies felt somewhat fatigued, but their expressions were far more resolute as they stood firm.
'Shar really has some serious talent.'
Su-hyeok inwardly marveled at Shar's resourcefulness.
Complacency before battle was sure to invite disaster.
But excessive tension could turn into poison just as easily.
A body rigid with stiffness wouldn't respond as swiftly as the mind demanded.
Right now, the two of them were perfectly balanced in between.
Tension from the situation, mixed with the ease born of exhaustion.
They had been forcibly placed in the ideal state for combat.
Thinking that Shar had calculated all of this made Su-hyeok want to applaud her talent as an instructor.
"We're heading in right away."
Shar scanned her pupil at the sturdy iron door now sealing the Mapo Station entrance, after confirming that all three were ready.
Beep-!
A mechanical chime rang out, and the heavy iron door slid open to either side.
"Let's go."
The entrance leading underground wasn't all that dark.
Thanks to that, the group made it down to the tunnel once used by subway trains without much trouble.
Two Awakeners stood guard at the entrance, snapping to a salute and stepping aside the moment they confirmed Shar's face and ID.
In the center of those tracks.
Not far off, a fairly large pale red portal shimmered and rippled like waves.
"That's a Rank 1 portal..."
The pale red light symbolized the lowest rank, Rank 1 portals.
Its large size meant the inner world was vast.
Just as Shar had explained.
"There's no sentient life beyond that portal. That's why it's been named the Boundless Realm here on Earth."
"It's not just this one, of course. You've probably already learned this, but there are many worlds called Boundless Realms—abandoned ones with no one around to even give them proper names."
Shar spoke plainly of the somewhat bitter truth they'd already heard in theory class, then stepped forward and continued.
"Do you remember what kind of monsters live in the Mapo Station Boundless Realm?"
"Naro."
Su-hyeok answered.
It was on the first page of the monster manual, and the simple name made it easy to remember.
"Characteristics?"
"Canine-type monsters, about 3 meters long—pretty short. But their legs are decently long, so they have good jumping power and strong jaw strength. Fortunately, their running speed is slow. They live in packs but don't cluster too tightly."
"As few as three, as many as five."
As Su-hyeok wrapped up his explanation, the four of them naturally drew closer to the portal.
Slurp. The portal's energy stretched out like a tongue, swallowing them all at once.
The surrounding landscape flipped in an instant.
A red wasteland.
The world was barren, without even a single weed in sight, and the temperature was low.
It felt like being tossed into midwinter all of a sudden, and the three of them instinctively huddled for a moment.
"Correct. Do you remember details about this world?"
Her gaze shifted past Su-hyeok to Baek Yi-yeon and Jin Chang-hyeok.
The two seemed fairly steady as they slowly walked toward and entered the portal.
"Excluding what you explained, Instructor... the temperature in the Mapo Station Boundless Realm is around minus 2 degrees Celsius. There's no edible food at all, no drinkable water either."
"Also... it's one of the portals deliberately maintained by the government for byproduct collection—only available from the portal itself—and for trainee education."
Jin Chang-hyeok answered.
"Feels good to have studied hard, doesn't it?"
Shar gave him a slight smile, then turned her eyes toward the distance.
"Looks like we have visitors welcoming us. No point standing around getting bored—let's go meet them."
The question in her words was answered soon enough.
It hadn't been long since they'd started walking when five Naro came bounding over from beyond the wasteland, like a horizon at sea.
Shar stroked her chin.
"Hm..."
Five of them—that was the largest pack size for Naro.
Were they suitable for these three trainees' first battle?
Her eyes flicked briefly to Yang Su-hyeok.
'A chance to see the source of that confidence firsthand.'
Decision made.
She crossed her arms and took a step back.
"Group 8, prepare for combat."
"Prepare for combat."
The three shouted in unison, moving as one.
Shar watched them with a pleased gaze, smacking her lips as she spoke.
"Don't be scared. Objectively speaking, even an ordinary Earthling could hunt Naro. Get what I mean?"
"Yes!"
At that moment, Su-hyeok suddenly realized that none of the three had drawn a weapon upon entering the battlefield.
The Awakener Association supplied everyone with weapons of their choice before practical training.
For reference, modern firearms were excluded from those supplies.
Anything 3rd Rank or higher beyond portals was immune to guns, gunpowder, explosives—even chemical weapons. Interestingly, they took massive damage from traditional weapons like swords, spears, or arrows. The problem was that for regular humans, landing those on 3rd Rank or higher monsters wasn't easy.
Thus, Awakener training focused on growing strong enough to hunt those 3rd Rank+ monsters. If guns or explosives worked, humanity could have fought other worlds far more easily.
In the end, reliance on guns was left to non-Awakeners and soldiers.
In Su-hyeok's case, he'd even refused the traditional weapons available to Awakeners.
He didn't need them.
'I do have Mad Ghost Chaotic Staff... but for me, using my body directly feels more natural.'
Su-hyeok preferred fists and kicks over wielding the eighteen classical weapons—he was a martial artist who favored direct, body-to-body combat techniques.
With his internal energy and martial arts proficiency still catching up, sticking to what was familiar was just more comfortable.
What about Jin Chang-hyeok and Baek Yi-yeon?
The Naro were drawing closer.
Now their size and ferocious features were clearly visible to all three.
Around then, a strange energy stirred from Jin Chang-hyeok's body as he hunched forward like a beast.
The moment Su-hyeok looked over in surprise, thick blades sprang out one from each gap between the knuckles of his fists. That explained why he hadn't taken a supplied weapon.
'...He's a Wolverine?'
Su-hyeok let out an involuntary chuckle, reminded of a mutant superhero from the movies.
Baek Yi-yeon, meanwhile, clasped her hands in prayer and her eyes gleamed.
'Magic or healing type, probably.'
Trainees weren't allowed to reveal their abilities to each other.
They took theory classes, but Awakeners were ultimately beings meant for real combat.
More useful, superior abilities drew attention and admiration. To prevent comparisons, wariness, or superiority complexes among trainees once abilities were known, Shar had made the call.
Thanks to that, even Su-hyeok was seeing Jin Chang-hyeok and Baek Yi-yeon's powers for the first time in this battle.
All in all, not a bad combination.
Meant the instructors had put some thought into grouping the trainees.
"Grrr..."
As his thoughts raced, even the Naro's growls reached his ears.
They were close now.
Any second.
"Have fun."
For some reason, Shar's voice sounded a bit excited, like the starting gun at a track meet.
Thud-!
Su-hyeok and Jin Chang-hyeok kicked off the ground simultaneously and charged.
Su-hyeok was faster.
His internal energy raced through his meridians, drawing out power. His bones hardened.
His muscles toughened, grew denser, turning menacing.
He transcended the basic limits of his flesh in an instant.
That was the power of internal energy.
Right in front of him.
A Naro leaped at the rapidly approaching Su-hyeok, jaws wide.
'Slow.'
And straight-line predictable.
The lack of intelligence made it so.
Such an attack posed no threat to Su-hyeok, no matter how strong or fast.
A simple sidestep dodged the savage fangs.
At the same time, the mysteries of Iron Palm Strike infused his thrusting palm.
'Explosive Palm.'
The moment his palm met the Naro's temple, the internal energy within the Iron Palm Strike's technique spread like splitting streams.
Crack-!
Su-hyeok clearly saw the Naro's short fur split like drought-cracked earth.
Immediately after, a boom echoed in his ears.
It wasn't that loud.
Of course not.
Iron Palm Strike's Explosive Palm used projected energy to burst foes from the inside, not the surface.
The Naro that clashed with his palm flew into the air without even a scream, soon plummeting as a lifeless corpse.
At the same moment, a second Naro lunged at Su-hyeok's thigh.
'Retreating Wind Kick, Wind Submersion.'
Su-hyeok's body reacted swiftly—he'd already sensed its movement even before felling the first.
Whoosh-!
His leg, raised vertically high, sliced through the air with a whistle before slamming straight down onto the open-mouthed Naro's crown.
Bang-!
This time, the explosive boom rang out for all to hear.
The Naro's head turned to mush as it cratered into the ground, its corpse twitching before going limp.
Shar watched the battle unfold in a trance, her mouth falling slightly open.
'A trainee? No way!'
Those movements were refined enough for deployment into 3rd Rank+ portals right now.
Yet utterly ruthless, hesitating not a second to shatter and kill.
Shar could swear that even among Elfheim's rookies—with their superior racial traits—no one moved like Su-hyeok.
Trainees weren't even in the same league.
The finale came with the third Naro, cowering in fear of Su-hyeok.
He flowed toward it like water, landing light punches across its body before brushing past.
One might think that was it—but the stationary Naro shuddered with a groan, blood spurting from wounds all over as it collapsed.
He'd unleashed projected energy dozens of times in that instant, just like with the first kill.
Fast. Not just simple speed—his energy projection flowed as naturally as his own hands and feet. Possible only thanks to his prior mastery of martial arts and the opened Ren and Du meridians.
To Shar, it was a massive shock.