Supernova's Arrival

Minister Ahn nearly jumped out of his skin when he checked the sender. It was the mysterious 10-star hunter who had thrown the entire world into an uproar. He never imagined receiving a direct message from that person.

Minister Ahn couldn't bring himself to reply right away. His thoughts were in turmoil. Who was Supernova? What were his intentions? With zero information to go on, he had no idea what to say.

"Humanitarian concern." Minister Ahn repeated the words with a bitter smile. These days, hunters acted like the new nobility, and fewer and fewer of them truly fought for humanity.

"……!" Minister Ahn was stunned by Supernova's bold declaration. For one hunter to enter another's nest required immense courage and trust. Hunters wielded absolute influence inside their own nests, so visiting someone else's demanded extreme caution. A single misstep could inflict severe mental damage, and in the worst cases, even affect reality itself.

Minister Ahn accepted the proposal immediately. If Supernova was willing to come to him first, there was no reason to refuse.

Right after setting the meeting, he thought, "Hoo." The idea of going to the minister's nest made him tense. Minister Ahn was one of the first-generation hunters who had awakened, a powerhouse who had reached 7 stars. Stepping into that kind of hunter's nest wasn't exactly pleasant.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

'I need to stay sharp. One wrong move and the minister could turn the tables on me. In the worst case, my identity might get exposed.'

He steadied himself. Minister Ahn was no pushover, regardless of his hunter rank. Even before awakening as a hunter, he had been a brigadier general, and as the current Defense Strategy Minister, he was responsible for the nation's hunter defense. There was nothing soft about him.

'If Hunter Link judged my rank as 10 stars, it should be enough to hold my own against Minister Ahn. Still, I have to watch what I say.'

Nationality, gender, age—anything that could give away clues about himself was off-limits.

'This is the best I can do anyway. If Minister Ahn won't move, then I'll have to get out on my own.'

He had no intention of staying at the Special Ability Training Facility and dying, not when he knew a large-scale gate event was coming. From his perspective, he was already doing everything he could. The fact that he hadn't left the facility yet meant he was shouldering considerable risk.

Minister Ahn logged into Hunter Link and waited for Supernova inside his nest. The nest resembled his real office, except it was decorated as a military commander's office rather than the Defense Strategy Minister's. The nameplate on the desk read "Commander of the Special Forces Brigade" instead of his current title. It was probably because Minister Ahn considered his time as brigade commander—before the gate incidents began—happier than his current position.

"If you're really a 10-star hunter, you'll come. If not, you won't show up."

As he muttered to himself, his eyes drifted to the clock on the wall. 11:59. One minute until the appointed time.

'If I can confirm he's truly a 10-star hunter, I'll have enough reason to act.'

Just as the thought crossed his mind—

Thud. Thud.

Footsteps echoed from afar.

"……!"

Minister Ahn was startled. The nest was only styled like a brigade commander's office; there was no actual space beyond the door. Yet the footsteps were so clear that—

Creaaak.

With a spine-chilling creak of the hinges, the door opened.

"Guh!"

The moment Supernova stepped inside, Minister Ahn couldn't withstand the overwhelming pressure and collapsed, clutching his chest.

'H-How is this possible?!'

He couldn't believe what was happening. How could someone exert this much pressure just by visiting another hunter's nest—especially one belonging to a 7-star hunter like himself?

"Your name… was Ahn Guk-seon, wasn't it?"

The voice spoke. Blood trickled from Minister Ahn's ears.

Even though the tone was low, the sound waves were incredibly powerful.

'No doubt about ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it… he's 10 stars.'

Minister Ahn tried to stand, but his body wouldn't obey.

"Grrgh!"

The pressure radiating from Supernova was so intense that he couldn't even lift his head to see the man's face. Of course, Supernova had his hood pulled low, so seeing his face was impossible anyway.

"Do you believe in my existence now?"

"I… believe you. Gah."

"Good."

A satisfied voice came from Supernova. But Minister Ahn couldn't tell what language he was using. Communication inside Hunter Link happened through consciousness, not words or text.

"Then I suppose you understand my goodwill toward you insects as well."

"Insects…?"

"Do you really think worms like you hold any value to me? In my eyes, a few Koreans are worth less than flies."

"T-That's…"

Minister Ahn couldn't argue. At this point, a 10-star hunter was an existence beyond all standards. Their strength was impossible to measure.

"Then why warn us in advance? According to you, we're nothing."

"I told you. Humanitarian concern."

"You expect me to believe that?"

"Heh."

Supernova laughed.

"Weren't you the one fighting for humanity?"

"……!"

"My only goal is to win this war. At the very least, those damned things that shattered our daily lives must pay the price. No matter who they are."

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"Is that true?"

"Whether you believe it or not is your choice. I'm only providing information. I have no intention of forcing you. How you interpret what I've given you is up to you."

"That's not wrong, but… if you have some other motive…"

"Again, believing me or not is your freedom. Don't look to me for reasons to judge. I'm only giving you a chance. Well then, I'll be going."

With the sound of footsteps, Supernova left the nest. Minister Ahn let him go without stopping him. Simply sharing the same space with Supernova made it hard to breathe.

"Supernova… He really is a monster. Whew."

After logging out and returning to his office, Minister Ahn stuck out his tongue as if exhausted.

"A chance, huh. In the end, whether it's an opportunity or a trap… I'll just have to wait and see."

Minister Ahn lit a cigarette while repeating Supernova's words.

"Hoo."

The moment he logged out of Hunter Link, he let out the breath he'd been holding. Exerting his presence inside Minister Ahn's nest had drained a tremendous amount of mental energy. His entire body was drenched in sweat, as if he'd just had a nightmare. Still, he'd achieved his goal, so this was good enough. As he'd said earlier, the choice was Minister Ahn's to make.

"Ugh."

His clothes and even the sheets were soaked with sweat. After taking a shower and changing, he stepped out—

WEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Suddenly, sirens blared throughout the facility.

The meaning was clear.

'It's done.'

A faint smile appeared on his lips. Minister Ahn had clearly made his decision. It couldn't have been an easy one. Since the minister couldn't decide something like this alone, there would definitely be political consequences. He'd handed his opponents a perfect target, which would put his position in jeopardy. Even so, the fact that he'd made the call meant that, at the very least, Minister Ahn prioritized people's lives over his own safety.

'That's probably why he didn't survive long in the end.'

The bitter memory of Minister Ahn's final moments surfaced, and he let out a wry laugh. Yeah, a hero's end was always miserable…

He packed his things and headed for the parade ground.

"What the hell is going on?"

"Is it because of that 10-star hunter called Supernova?"

Voices buzzed with speculation.

"Eun-seong, what's happening?"

Jeong Ho-bin approached and asked.

"I don't know either."

WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

The sirens wailed again.

He couldn't believe his ears.

"……So it was today."

He felt hollow. The large-scale gate incident at the Special Ability Training Facility had happened on the very first day of this batch's enrollment.