Chapter 5
Chapter 5
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: Another Gate
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BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The successive fiery explosions finally cracked the black stone.
“Die!”
As the scream-like cry erupted, a red dot began to condense within the crack of the black stone.
Fire Burst.
KABOOM!
The explosion, originating from within, finally shattered the core that powered the temple golem.
Grrrr...
A noise echoed throughout the entire cave.
The temple golem, which had stood like a building, collapsed.
The joy of finally succeeding was brief.
Whoosh!
A black sphere flew toward the mage who had unleashed the flames.
The mage, having exhausted all her power on the golem, could only respond by barely managing to create a shield.
Bang!
The shield shattered, and the mage, struck by the impact, tumbled across the floor.
“Gasp! Gasp!”
The red-haired mage, panting for breath, was Min Ha-na.
Min Ha-na barely managed to push her trembling body upright and surveyed her surroundings.
Her thirty companions who had entered with her were all gruesomely dead, their forms barely recognizable.
The appearance of the temple golem had been the deciding factor.
The gate had initially been rated B-rank because the golem had not awakened.
Just before the battle began, the dark priests had awakened the golem, leading to this disaster.
Shhhh...
A dark priest in a red robe glided through the air, approaching the lone Min Ha-na.
He was the leader of the thirty dark priests lined up behind him.
The Archbishop of the Black Temple.
Min Ha-na bit her lower lip.
“I'll take at least one more of you with me.”
A vortex of flames erupted around Min Ha-na, who looked as if she could barely stand.
By the time the Archbishop hastily retreated, the vortex had transformed into a whirlwind, and in an instant, the flames that formed it exploded in all directions.
The entire cave was engulfed in fragments of fire, and all the priests, except for the Archbishop, were annihilated on the spot.
Thud.
Having expended her last ounce of strength, Min Ha-na collapsed. The Archbishop then slammed the red staff he was holding into the ground.
As a heat haze shimmered from the red staff, the annihilated dark priests reappeared.
“You crazy bastards...”
As long as the Archbishop wasn't killed, the dark priests would endlessly resurrect.
It was a situation she had experienced several times already. She had aimed for the Archbishop, but her power had fallen short.
‘This is the end.’
The Archbishop and the dark priests raised their hands in unison.
They intended to cast their spells all at once, as if to celebrate their victory.
She wanted to retaliate, but she didn't even have the strength to lift her hand.
All Min Ha-na could do was stare down the scene without flinching.
And so, starting with the red sphere created by the Archbishop, all the priests fired their magic at Min Ha-na.
Death was inevitable.
In the end, at the last moment, Min Ha-na closed her eyes.
BOOM!
A loud noise rang out. A vibration shook her body.
But why?
Doesn't it hurt?
When she opened her eyes, a man stood before her, holding up a golden shield.
All the magic unleashed by the dark priests shattered into light before the golden shield.
“Who...”
“Run.”
A low, deep voice flowed from the demonic mask.
“I've dealt with the monsters at the entrance.”
The monsters that had killed all the reinforcements were summoned creatures called Dark Worms.
“Who are you...”
Before she could finish her sentence, a chain wrapped around her body.
The chain, binding her, extended and deposited her at the gate's entrance.
Min Ha-na struggled to clear her dazed mind.
‘Calm down. I need to call for reinforcements quickly.’
Min Ha-na managed to move her trembling legs and exit the gate.
Wang-sik slowly walked toward the Archbishop.
The dark priests' magic rained down on him, but he endured it with his body, not even raising his shield.
Sensing a threat, the Archbishop raised his red staff high, and a snake-shaped aura shot out and lunged at Wang-sik.
This time, Wang-sik didn't just stand there; he swung his shield.
Clang!
Having dispelled the red aura, Wang-sik charged at the Archbishop. He pushed forward, shield raised.
CRASH!
Sent flying by the shield, the Archbishop crashed through the cave wall and was embedded in it.
“That's a nice-looking staff you've got there.”
Wang-sik swung his shield once more.
Outside the gate, it was chaotic.
“Move!”
Despite the fierce woman's shout, the men blocking her path did not back down.
“Where do you think you're going in your condition! Reinforcements are on the way, you have to wait!”
Sa Il-jun desperately tried to stop the agitated Min Ha-na.
“There's someone in there fighting alone!”
“Please, calm down! There are a lot of people watching.”
A look of contempt flashed in Min Ha-na's eyes.
“Is that what's important right now? When there's someone in there fighting all by himself?”
“Keep your voice down. The reporters are already starting to ask questions...”
Finally, flames erupted from both of Min Ha-na's hands.
Fwoosh!
“Shut up and move.”
Realizing she was serious, Sa Il-jun stepped aside with a startled expression.
Having cleared her path with a threat, Min Ha-na staggered back toward the gate.
Just then, someone's shout was heard.
“G-Gate cleared!”
Everyone's eyes turned to the gate.
Just as he'd said, the gate, which had been emitting a red light, was gradually turning transparent.
“No way...”
As the stunned Min Ha-na came to a halt, a person emerged from the gate.
The one who walked out of the gate as leisurely as if on a stroll was Wang-sik, the man who had saved her.
Wang-sik approached Min Ha-na, who was standing alone in front of the gate. Then, he took something out of his subspace inventory.
Swoosh!
What appeared with a rustle of wind was a golden cape.
He draped the golden cape over Min Ha-na's shoulders.
“Your clothes are badly torn.”
Unlike inside the gate, Wang-sik used formal speech.
Just as he said, most of Min Ha-na's clothes were ripped, revealing the skin underneath.
After covering her with the golden cape, Wang-sik walked past her as if his business was done.
“W-Wait a moment!”
Min Ha-na urgently called out to stop him.
“That cape. It's something I value greatly. Please return it to the Hunter Management Bureau.”
“Hunter. You've worked hard. I'll take care of the cleanup.”
Lee Jeong-jin from the Hunter Management Bureau approached with a smile.
“I feel sorry for the Black River Guild. Having to negotiate with you, Team Leader.”
Hearing Wang-sik's words, Lee Jeong-jin gave his usual good-natured smile.
“I'll leave it to you then.”
Wang-sik left the scene without a second glance.
Hunter Management Bureau, Director's Office.
“Welcome. I just received the report. I hear you crushed the Black River Guild?”
“I was just protecting the safety of the citizens.”
“I'll make sure to handle the follow-up.”
“Isn't the Black River Guild deeply connected to the political world? You could be putting yourself in danger, Director.”
“It seems the congressmen on their payroll are already making moves. This time, I plan to properly screw them over, too.”
Kang Il-seop flashed a wicked smile.
“Be careful. That's not a field where I can save you.”
“Don't underestimate me. I'm Kang Il-seop!”
“Alright. I trust you.”
Wang-sik took an item from his inventory and placed it on the table.
It was the red staff the Archbishop had used.
“What's this?”
“Evidence. It belonged to the priest Archbishop, so use it when you need it. No one saw me bring it.”
It was a world rampant with fake and manipulated news. Such evidence was essential, especially when politicians were involved.
“It looks impressive.”
Kang Il-seop picked up the staff himself.
“Oho. The magic amplification alone makes it B-rank. And it has mana recovery and spell storage? This could even be rated A-rank.”
“It's just junk, though.”
“Other hunters would flip out if they heard you say that.”
“If you want it, take it and return to the field.”
“Haha. Should I really? Watching the agents these days, sometimes I get so frustrated I want to jump in myself.”
“Want to do the next operation together, just the two of us?”
“Unfortunately, I trust my agents. I'll make good use of the staff and return it.”
“Do that, then. And I won't be able to come by for a while.”
“You're going back?”
“Yes.”
“How many of the unconfirmed children are left?”
“71 left.”
“It's not easy to find them now, is it?”
“No. I think I've found all the ones who were easy to find.”
Kang Il-seop looked at Wang-sik with a sympathetic gaze.
“I can't tell you to stop, but your safety comes first. Don't forget that.”
“I won't.”
Wang-sik stood up from his seat.
Watching Wang-sik's back as he left the room, Kang Il-seop recalled a memory from two years ago.
—Please give the friends I bring back new identities and support them so they can live normal lives. In return, I'll help you, Director.
The Wang-sik who had said those words was only eighteen years old.
Returning home, Wang-sik entered his bedroom.
He lifted the bed, which was too large for one person to sleep in, revealing a staircase leading underground.
Underneath was a space so vast it was hard to believe it was beneath a log cabin; the glossy black walls alone were fifteen meters high.
The dark but mystical place contained no other structures.
However, there was another staircase leading down one more floor.
The second basement level.
Surrounded by the same black walls, it looked no different from the first basement level, but in the center of the room, a gate shimmering with blue light was open.
Gazing at the gate, Wang-sik opened a cabinet on one side of the room.
Inside were clothes and leather armor of a design not seen in modern times.
After changing his clothes, he opened another drawer to find neatly stacked gold bars.
Wang-sik took ten gold bars and put them in his inventory, then opened another drawer and checked a leather pouch.
The leather pouch contained coins made of silver and gold, engraved with unknown letters and images.
The last thing he took was a palm-sized piece of parchment.
It looked like an official document stamped with a large seal, but the characters filling it were of a type that didn't exist in the modern era.
“Well then, shall we go?”
His preparations complete, Wang-sik finally stepped into the gate.
Inside the gate, which took the form of a natural cave, it was quiet.
This was because there were no monsters.
After about ten minutes of walking through the long cave, a blue door, identical in form to the entrance, appeared on the other side.
The door, made of light, was a passage to another dimension.
Wang-sik passed through the door, raising his golden shield.
The stone chamber, filled with a pungent smell, contained only one structure: the blue gate Wang-sik had just exited.
“The mana has weakened considerably. I should replenish it.”
Wang-sik took a few items from his inventory and tossed them on the floor.
A bastard sword with a silver blade and armor engraved with a red shield.
Vwoom!
As if having found prey, a blue haze extended from the gate, connected with the items on the floor, and began to absorb their energy.
Confirming this, Wang-sik left the stone chamber and walked down a corridor.
“No intruders.”
The floor was littered with the old corpses of bizarre creatures.
There were corpses with the bodies of animals or monsters below a human head, a lion with bat wings, and a crocodile-man with a snake's tongue.
Most were amalgamations of various creatures' body parts, some with steel bones in otherwise normal-looking torsos, or with arms and legs replaced by weapons.
Wang-sik walked past the grotesque corpses without emotion. Then, he stopped in front of a rectangular recess in the wall.
Crunch.
He stepped on broken glass underfoot.
This was once a space where a water-filled tank had been.
The tank, built to look like a hanging picture, had naturally not housed ordinary fish.
“I wonder if I-ryeon is doing well.”
Wang-sik pushed the thought aside and started walking again.
It was an all-too-familiar space.
“I can't get used to this unpleasant feeling. Then again, I was trapped here for seven years.”
As if wanting to shake off the feeling, Wang-sik quickly exited the maze-like laboratory.