The Unicorn Appears

The gate types are largely divided into two categories. Gates that transport you to another location, and monster gates where beasts pour out. Even those can be split into two subtypes. One appears completely at random. The other is a fixed gate where coordinates are designated for travel.

Random gates currently only exist as monster gates. This was one of the main reasons why South Korea, despite its overwhelming firepower, got absolutely ravaged by monsters in the past. There's no attack more dangerous than an enemy you can't pinpoint launching a surprise strike. Especially when it happens near-infinitely.

But things are a little different now. Random gates emit a unique wavelength about twenty minutes before they appear. The government uses this characteristic. Government-affiliated ability users detect the wavelength, pinpoint the location, and relay the information. From that point on, humanity's counterattack against the monsters truly began.

On the other hand, using fixed gates to designate coordinates works a bit differently. It involves certain individuals using their mana to temporarily form a gate by setting coordinates. Naturally, such individuals are few in number. To differentiate themselves, instead of the old nickname "Eryeot Shaimase!" they proudly called themselves Gate Creation Ability Users.

Up to that point, it wasn't so bad. The government registered them and used them whenever needed. But as the saying goes, human greed knows no bounds. These Gate Creation Ability Users started going on strike without any warning at critical moments. Of course, it was purely selfish behavior for their own benefit.

At the time, a post went up on their anonymous community.

And they really did make one. They say the scariest Korean government is the one that works its ass off. They ground up engineers across the country to meticulously analyze the existing fixed gates. The result was the artificial gate that anyone could use. Unlike the original gates, anyone with mana could designate coordinates. The government had already grabbed the Gate Creation Ability Users by the throat.

Of course, it didn't end there. Artificial gates were distributed nationwide. By the time the rampaging government came to its senses, they had already spread more than Lotteria. The Gate Creation Ability Users gradually started losing their jobs. And for the finishing touch, a rushed bill was passed that prohibited their reckless use of abilities. They were forcibly hired as civil servants with worse treatment than Grade 9 employees. Refusal meant frozen bank accounts. If there was a risk of flight, they were detained. The entire process didn't even take a few months.

Why am I suddenly talking about all this? Because right now, a gate has formed in the middle of the dueling arena.

Midterms. That shitty word echoes everywhere. Even the Academy couldn't escape it. Unlike the other grades, first-years had to take both theory and practical exams. The ratio was about Theory 2 : Practical 8.

'They're cramming theory down our throats like crazy, but the score ratio is absolute dogshit.'

Still, there were two weeks left. That was plenty. After all, midterms are supposed to be prepared for the day before.

So today, as usual, I was doing practical training. Naturally, my opponent was Professor Pilyong.

"Kim! Dodge better, damn it!"

"Wow, Professor, your conscience must be about as thick as the hair on your head."

"You little shit!"

At that moment, something strange happened. The space in the exact center of the dueling arena began to ripple, and heat haze rose up. Soon after, a massive blue gate formed there.

Everyone who saw it did the exact same thing. They checked their phones to see if a disaster alert had arrived. But there was no disaster message.

'Someone came here by designating coordinates.'

There wasn't even an artificial gate here. So who the hell opened a gate with coordinates and came here? At a glance, it was either an auditor coming to fuck with the Academy or some high-ranking official dropping by out of boredom. But I questioned whether this place was even worth their time. After all, everyone here was either a bottom-tier or a slightly-less-bottom-tier student. Maybe they came to watch the low-tier circus?

'Well. Bottom-tier dogfights are pretty entertaining, I guess.'

Right on cue, a massive figure matching the gate's size slowly began walking out. Roughly four meters tall. Body length of eight meters. Snow-white fur, a silver mane and tail that shimmered, fierce blue eyes, and one thick, sharp horn covered in small scars.

Yes. It was a unicorn.

At the unicorn's appearance, no one in the dueling arena could open their mouths. Perhaps they were silenced by the subtle presence radiating from its body. Everyone simply stared quietly at the unicorn. I wasn't much different.

The only difference was—

'Fuck. Even a horse can regress, so why can't I?'

My gaze was fixed on the top of the unicorn's head. Specifically, on the number floating above it. The number that proved it could regress.

Regardless of my thoughts, the unicorn slowly tilted its head. It was acting like something was off. Then, a telepathic message came from the unicorn.

The moment it finished speaking, another unicorn hurriedly jumped out of the gate. It was slightly smaller, with a tail and mane closer to pure white than silver. But it was clearly a unicorn. Breathing heavily, it urgently sent a message to the first unicorn.

The Great Unicorn showed a mix of interest and puzzlement on its face. Curiosity about why it had failed, and interest in the fact that someone who had never made a mistake before had done so. The smaller unicorn spoke with a slightly gloomy expression.

With that, the conversation between the Great Unicorn and the smaller one ended. Maybe because I had been too focused on their conversation. Or maybe because of the sudden variable, I hadn't thought of it. The Great Unicorn finally noticed ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠that there were people around. As if to burn the current scene into its eyes before leaving, it slowly turned its head and began looking around.

Then, the number above the Great Unicorn's head went up by one.

'What did it see to regress?'

Suddenly, the Great Unicorn's demeanor changed completely. The calm and gentle attitude from before vanished. Its body began to tremble violently as it breathed heavily. Just as I was about to question the sudden change, the Great Unicorn disappeared in an instant.

"Kyaaaak!!!"

"Uwaaak!!!"

The moment it vanished, screams rang out. The screams came from the dueling arena a short distance from the gate. The Great Unicorn's horn had impaled the screamers—one male student and one female student. But as if this were nothing, the Great Unicorn casually shook them off its horn.

Only then did the others' gazes turn toward the Great Unicorn. It wasn't because they had followed its movement. It was only after hearing the screams that their eyes finally moved. While everyone's gazes filled with shock and terror, the Great Unicorn, eyes bloodshot, roared out a powerful telepathic message.

The gate began to ripple violently, far more intensely than before. Soon, smaller unicorns poured out in droves. The unicorn legion had arrived. Although they were smaller than the Great Unicorn, their reactions were the same. Like the Great Unicorn, they trembled all over and began breathing heavily.

Finally, the Great Unicorn shouted loudly.

All the unicorns scattered at once and began rampaging across the dueling arena. Their speed was relatively slow compared to the Great Unicorn's earlier movement, but it was still plenty fast for the spectators. The once peaceful dueling arena turned into hell in an instant.

A sudden disaster. The students couldn't even think of fighting back against it. The only choice they made was to run away pathetically. But many students had already been impaled on unicorn horns.

"Save me!!!!! Why the hell is this happening right after I lost my virginity the day before yesterday!!"

"Hey! Why are you blaming me!!! Honestly, you liked it too!!! Gah!!"

"I'm innocent!! I regenerated my hymen with physical regeneration!!! Kyaaaak!!"

"Fuck! I haven't even done it! What? I'm not a virgin anymore?... What the hell does that mean."

"One family, one destruction, TETCHAAAAAT!!!!"

"I only did it from behind!!! I haven't done it from the front yet!!! Kyaaaak!!!"

In the blink of an eye, blood began to splatter everywhere in the dueling arena. The dueling arena system would restore the wounds when it turned off, but that didn't mean the pain disappeared. It was only natural that students kept passing out from the agony.

I'd heard that every Christmas, people with puncture wounds gathered in front of motels. So those were the culprits.

Still, perhaps because he used to be a hunter, Professor Pilyong was hurriedly evacuating the students. In the midst of that, he confronted the approaching Great Unicorn.

"Research candidate! No, what are you doing to the students!"

In an instant, countless icebergs formed, restricting the Great Unicorn's path. At the same time, Pilyong launched sharp ice chunks he had created in the air.

"Gah!"

Just as the Great Unicorn said, it was a waste of time. The charging ice struck the Great Unicorn directly, but it didn't even leave a scratch. Instead, after taking all the attacks, the Great Unicorn charged fiercely and pierced Professor Pilyong's heart with its sharp horn. After Pilyong let out a short death cry, the Great Unicorn mechanically shook him off its horn.

It turned its gaze to find another prey and locked eyes with me. Then, glaring at me, it slowly began approaching.

'Fuck, I can't even see that thing. How the hell am I supposed to catch it?'

Among the government-registered creatures, unicorns were classified as Threat Level. Depending on the situation, they could become extremely aggressive. When fighting, they didn't fear injury and fought with all their strength until the flame of their life burned out completely. That aggression was a double-edged sword. Even if it meant self-destruction, they could take down a small nation in mutual destruction. That's how recklessly they fought.

Still, the reason they were only Threat Level was because they were intelligent beings you could communicate with. Their attacks were very linear and simple. And they were extremely friendly toward certain individuals, willing to give everything for them.

Of course, 'That thing is on a whole different level. It's not something I can handle.'

The Great Unicorn before me seemed to be an exception. It was clearly not just Threat Level. Before I knew it, it had arrived right in front of me. The Great Unicorn stopped moving and simply stared at me. The gaze was so burdensome that I glanced around.

Thankfully, thanks to Professor Pilyong's quick actions, quite a few students had evacuated far from the dueling arena. 'Did Hye-ji get away safely?'

The moment I wondered, I spotted Hye-ji in the distance, having evacuated. She was the farthest from the gate, and it seemed the unicorns weren't interested in that side anyway. Seeing her gave me a bit of relief.

Of course, it ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠didn't last long. Because dozens of unicorns had already surrounded me.

The overwhelming pressure made my hands, gripping my longsword and shotgun, start shaking. 'Today's lunch special is horse meat, you bastards.'

I suppressed the rising fear and steadied my mind. The moment the shaking in my hands lessened and I was about to charge—

The red number above the Great Unicorn's head went up by one. It immediately lowered its head and knelt. Not me—the Great Unicorn.

In this sudden situation, I was confused. 'What? What is this? What the hell?'

But the bizarre phenomenon didn't stop. All the other unicorns around me also began to kneel and bow their heads. A bunch of Galgori-pings floated through my mind.

At that moment—

"......Yes?"

The Great Unicorn sent me a telepathic message. In a gentle, soothing tone completely devoid of the rage and disgust from before.

"...What the fuck?"

The majestic telepathic roar of the unicorn legion echoed throughout the dueling arena. Everyone fell silent at the sight. The murmuring students. The other professors who had come to suppress the situation. Even the staff helping them. They all looked at me with puzzled eyes.

Don't look at me like that, you assholes. I'm the most confused one here.

At the absurd statement, I started stuttering.

"What... the hell... are you talking about."

"Fuck. Hold on a second."

Suddenly, I got a bad feeling. I felt like I shouldn't let it keep talking, so I quickly cut it off. But the Great Unicorn's telepathy didn't stop.

"I didn't become this because I wanted to! You fucking idiots!!!!!!!!"

The most infuriating thing is when an opponent you can't beat starts running their mouth. This was exactly that moment. Meanwhile, the students were all giving me pitiful looks. I wondered if Hye-ji would look at me that way too, but...

'...Why does she look happy? Hye-ji, this is a really sad story, fuck.'

The look in her eyes was a little different. Regardless, the unicorns' nonsense only grew worse.

"You guys are just foals, so why the hell is bullshit your passive skill!!!!!!!!"

Ignoring my shout, the Great Unicorn lowered its head as if inviting me to climb on. These crazy bastards. These truly fucking insane bastards. I wanted to quit everything and just go home.

Then I felt a chilling gaze. It was coming from Hye-ji.

'Stop staring... My heart feels like it's going to die.'

I was so angry that I kicked the Great Unicorn's head. Or rather, I tried to. But my foot suddenly slipped, and I ended up mounting the Great Unicorn's head.

'Mom, fuck, why does nothing ever go right.'

When I got on its head, the Great Unicorn lifted its head and slid me onto its back. As the Great Unicorn stood up, the other unicorns slowly rose as well.

Just then, the dueling arena system turned off, and the fallen students began to regain consciousness one by one. The first thing that ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠entered their vision was the unicorns that had slaughtered them. The students were horrified at first, but soon calmed down and began to look puzzled instead. That was because they saw me riding on the Great Unicorn's back.

To gather everyone's attention, the Great Unicorn let out a powerful telepathic roar.

"Please shut up!!!!!!!!!!"

Then the Great Unicorn glared at a nearby student with bloodshot eyes and said,

"The... The King of Unicorns..."

"Louder!!!!!"

"THE KING OF UNICORNS!!!!!"

"THE GOD OF VIRGINS!!!!!"

"THE GOD OF VIRGINS!!!!!"

This time, with me on its back, the Great Unicorn reared up on its hind legs. Its hooves hit the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠ground again, kicking up dust. Before the dust could settle, the Great Unicorn began circling the dueling arena. The unicorn legion followed behind it.

"""""THE KING OF UNICORNS!!!!!"""""

"""""THE GOD OF VIRGINS!!!!!!"""""

"Please stop, you crazy bastards."

I didn't even cry when Kang Hyuk beat the shit out of me, but this was the first time tears came out. These were tears of sadness and agony. But to the Great Unicorn, it seemed to have a slightly different meaning. Seeing me shed tears, the Great Unicorn raised its voice even more.

The merry-go-round lasted for five minutes. The cheers grew louder, and proportionally, the tears I shed increased. Mom, this is so fucked. Seriously.

Right after the hellish unicorn parade ended, the unicorns prepared to leave.

"I said get lost!!!!!!"

The unicorns never listened to a single word until the end. They left through the newly formed gate. As soon as the situation ended, the teachers and staff disappeared like ghosts. In the end, the only ones left were the students, including me, and Professor Pilyong.

Professor Pilyong scratched his head and spoke to me.

"Shinwoo, don't worry too much. Someday—"

"I'm taking the rest of the day off."

".....Alright. Go rest. I'll tell the other professors about your attendance."

The tear stains on my face wouldn't disappear. Instead, new tears simply flowed down the same paths. All the way to the dormitory, only tears kept flowing.

As a side note, not long after, a meeting between the Korean government and the unicorns was successfully arranged. It was quite surprising considering they had completely rejected all previous approaches. But the surprises didn't end there. The unicorns made an extremely unconventional contract while mentioning keywords like "King of Unicorns" and "God of Virgins."

The first clause of the contract was: "We will protect Korea, where the King of Unicorns resides, to the best of our ability."

The second clause was: "From December 24th to the 26th, no unicorns shall come to Korea."

After this news spread, the Academy awarded me a prize for contributing to Korea's peace. The name of the award I received was the "Virgin Peace Prize." I took the day off that day too. An Academy-scale mental breakdown hurts quite a bit. My heart, that is.

The day after the award ceremony. There really wasn't much time left until midterms. I was feeling the pressure of the exam too. The moment I stepped into the classroom, the students who spotted me began murmuring.

"Look over there. The King of Unicorns has arrived."

"He's a god! The God of Virgins!"

I already wanted to kill them. Then someone raised a question.

"But why is he still a virgin with that face?"

"Doesn't he only go for guys?"

"Ah, so that's why he made Hye-ji wear a skirt?"

"Even so, I heard he made Jung Ayeon wear a miniskirt maid outfit too."

For some reason, Hye-ji's expression had become quite unpleasant. It seemed one student who would meet their end at Hye-ji's hands later had already been decided.

While the students were throwing Galgori-pings at each other, someone offered a rather fresh opinion.

"Maybe it doesn't get hard?"

"That could be. Since he can't fuck, he naturally became a virgin by default."

"Then did he only do pet play with Jung Ayeon? Since he can't actually fuck anyway?"

"It doesn't get hard, but he trains the person he loves. Isn't this a pure love pet play story?"

"Anyone who said it doesn't get hard, see you in the dueling arena later."

I quietly burned the faces of the students I would beat to death later into my memory. Then a sudden surge of irritation hit me.

'These fuckers are going around doing everything and anything, huh?'

You guys can regress and still have sex? Life is so fucking unfair. I'm putting my hopes on Sex 2 coming out.

Hye-ji, who noticed my approach, waved at me and spoke gently.

"Hi, Shinwoo. Or should I call you God of Virgins?"

"Please don't you start too. Fuck, I really want to die."

"You became a hunter and already got a title. Congratulations."

"Fuck."

Hye-ji, who had been smiling brightly, suddenly made a face like she remembered something. Then a bit of anger appeared on her face.

"Shinwoo, but you didn't have any other thoughts, right?"

"About what?"

"I'm asking if you had any selfish desires."

For some reason, Hye-ji's gaze felt sharp. My heart was already hurting from being beaten with the virgin label. Hye-ji's gaze on top of that felt like it was carving out my heart in real time.

"...No, what are you even talking about."

"Do I really have to spell it out for you to understand?"

"I think I need you to say it for me to understand?"

"Forget it. I don't need it. Stop."

"This is driving me crazy, seriously."

Hye-ji arbitrarily ended the conversation. Then she took out her phone and started contacting someone. It looked like she was calling her father. She said that after last time, she had slowly started talking to her father again. Recently, they even talked once every three days. It was a huge improvement compared to when they had no conversations at all. It was a very different family atmosphere from ours.

Whenever my parents called, all I got was a roaming message saying they were overseas. Even if we somehow connected, they hung up immediately.

'Fuck, treat your son like a son for once.'

They were probably too busy trying to make another kid. While I was thinking about what to name my future sibling, Hye-ji spoke to me again.

"Shinwoo, the school newspaper just got updated with something about you."

"I've already reached enlightenment. No matter what comes out, it won't affect me."

"Really? Take a look then."

The phone Hye-ji handed me had the school newspaper open. The top article was titled "Applaud."

The content was simple. There was one photo of me riding on the Great Unicorn's back. And below it, a short caption.

'Enlightenment my ass. The rage punch is coming in really hard.'

I'm definitely going to fuck up this trash journalist after midterms. I mean it.