130
130 ― Must Catch Him
"It's ordinary soil."
At Shartia's single remark, the team members looked at each other. The brief silence that had felt long disappeared, and they began to cheer. Ordinary meant it was the answer that they—no, everyone in the entire world—wanted more than anything.
"I heard it was true, but it really is! The Black Land really has disappeared!"
"As expected, it was hard to believe until I saw it with my own eyes. Hong Kong might have pulled some tricks..."
"If it's guaranteed by Hunter Shartia, it's trustworthy. Of course, detailed analysis will be necessary..."
Handling the soil and examining the earth, they actively conversed. There were no large-scale facilities on site at the moment, but they had brought several analysis kits. Testing with them and sharing results, they developed plans for the future.
"Plants grow properly, too. Normally."
Shartia spoke to Jin-woo, who was nearby. There was a slight tremor in her words, and to Jin-woo, it seemed like words close to emotion.
She had traveled around the world looking for land where plants could grow, and when she found it, she planted seeds and trees and cultivated them. However, on Earth, covered with Black Land, such land had become hard to find.
Near cities where people gathered, it was still okay, but the more remote the wilderness where footsteps had ceased, the more it was covered by Black Land. Hunters were limited, and just dealing with erosion appearing near cities was already reaching the limit.
No one voluntarily resolved Erosions appearing on uninhabited lands, and there were no clients willing to pay to commission such work. Therefore, everyone said and spread the word that Earth was doomed to perish, that humanity would be extinct in just a few generations. As a fact, with few who contradicted it.
"Still, now there's hope. This place is the beginning."
"I see."
Shartia was burning with motivation and said she would devote herself to this work. In fact, her power was perfect for this task, and she could extract more information than any analysis kit.
What plants grew well, how they grew, and what they would become when fully grown. Each of those processes revealed the nature of the land and the nutrients it contained.
However.
"There's one thing that bothers me..."
"You mean this boundary line?"
"Yes."
Even as she analyzed enthusiastically, there seemed to be something troubling her. Jin-woo knew what it was too.
The boundary line between the white land and the Black Land. It was drawn as if someone had cut it with a knife, so it didn't look natural at all.
"I hope it's just needless worry, but... Could it be that it wasn't naturally recovered but someone's ability?"
"You've heard about the 3rd floor, right?"
"Yes."
"The Castle of Light there had this kind of feeling."
Jin-woo talked about how he suspected the God of Light. The incident of being trapped in the 3rd floor by Rondar was something many Hunters had experienced anyway, so it was well known.
Since quite a few Hunters were staying at the Castle of Light right now, there was nothing to hide.
"The Castle of Light was like this? Did you sense a similar energy?"
However, Shartia didn't understand at once. Naturally. The known story of the Castle of Light and this White Land here didn't overlap much.
The reason Jin-woo sensed the God of Light's presence in this matter was because he knew the deity's tendencies from when they met.
"The God of Light is more wicked than known. Rather than bestowing blessings on everyone, he gives special treatment only to a very few to make them compete with each other. The ecology of this White Land felt like that."
"Ah..."
Shartia fell into thought.
There was no way to know the truth of Jin-woo's words. But she trusted him. There was no reason for him to lie in the first place.
"If that's the case, does this power belong to the God of Light?"
"I'm not certain either. I'm just thinking it's a possibility."
"Could there be among recently Awakened Hunters someone who Awakened a power similar to the God of Light? And that person created this White Land..."
"It's not impossible."
If the God of Light really was the culprit, how would he have interfered with Earth?
Direct descent would be impossible. If that were possible, Earth would already have been Jeraxon's playground.
Even that mad Jeraxon needed various things to interfere outside the Spirit Realm. A scabbard, minions, or sending Erosions.
The Awakener, related to the God of Light that Shartia mentioned, wasn't entirely impossible either. Though the timing felt too coincidental.
"If such an Awakener exists, we must secure them somehow. Everyone will want to monopolize this kind of power."
Shartia spoke in a lowered voice. She herself had no intention of monopolizing power, but she didn't know about others. Even Ma Du-sik, if he obtained such an Awakener, might secretly hide them and force them to use their power only for Seoul.
Still, it would be much better than it falling into another city's hands. At least if Seoul could secure them, Shartia's influence would work to some extent. In that sense, she sharpened her resolve.
"Well, we don't know if such a person really exists though."
"That's true, hehe."
When Jin-woo shrugged his shoulders, Shartia relaxed her expression and chuckled. There was no need to worry about hypotheticals already. For now, analyzing this land was her mission.
***
Jin-woo went out with other Hunters to deal with monsters. This was because monsters had started rushing in while Shartia and the researchers' investigation wasn't finished yet.
The Hunters who followed were Hunters belonging to the Management Bureau, whose usual job was to deal with Erosions appearing near the city.
As Erosions stopped appearing and they had been on standby at the Management Bureau, they were selected for this investigation team.
"Take a look over here!"
"Yes!"
Since they were originally coordinated, there were no problems on this land either. The process of supporting each other and dealing with monsters without gaps.
Though they couldn't dispatch them as easily as Shartia, everyone here was also A-rank. They had sufficient ability to handle monsters of this level.
Nevertheless, Jin-woo noticed and cut down the dangerous ones first. Jin-woo wasn't on the same team as them, but there was no problem blending in. Jin-woo's sword didn't interfere with them at all, and their attacks didn't land on Jin-woo either.
Naturally, unconsciously, Jin-woo's movements as he eliminated danger factors were quiet, but there was no one weak enough here to not notice it.
"Ah, thank you. That was dangerous."
"It's fine. But look ahead!"
Though it was their first time working together, they were still like one team. Jin-woo blinked at the refreshing matter.
'Come to think of it.'
It had been a really long time since he had moved in a group like this. Until now, he had acted alone or moved in pairs. His partner had just changed from Kalesian to Shartia, but moving on this scale was the first time in a long while.
'Is this the first time since Tokyo?'
It was the first time since acting with Ayaka's guild in Tokyo. Though he had been with many people during Ireland, too, he had actually acted with just Kurenai.
'Rather than alone... It's a bit uncomfortable.'
Naturally, there were more things to pay attention to than when alone. Though they were all A-rank Hunters classified as strong in the world, compared to Jin-woo, they were inferior.
It would be better for him to move separately, but since it was a national-level mission, he couldn't act on his own whim. Let's suggest it to the investigation team leader later.
"#$%$#?"
While busily cleaning up monsters, they encountered a group. Hong Kong's, probably Muryeon Guild's Hunters. Because a familiar face was visible among them.
"!$@#$!%"
"Kang Jin-woo, we meet again in a place like this. Master Zhang Lüye is also pleased."
At their center were Zhang Lüye, whom he met yesterday, and the subordinate who also served as interpreter. The subordinate greeted him with a somewhat pleased face, and Zhang Lüye was still looking at Jin-woo's sword with sharp eyes.
The sword that had just cut down and was stained with demon beast blood.
"Is this what you meant when you said you looked forward to seeing my sword?"
"Hm? What are you talking about?"
"Tsk."
Though Jin-woo clicked his tongue conspicuously, they didn't budge.
"Surely you're not thinking of following us?"
"We have no intention of interfering with your work. However, it would be good if you'd let us observe from afar."
He couldn't prevent even that. Jin-woo and his party passed the Muryeon Hunters and continued their work.
The Muryeon Hunters also drew their swords to dispatch monsters. They too needed to clear away the monsters rushing in like the sea in order to move here.
Even in the midst of that, Jin-woo felt an obvious gaze. Without even looking, it was Zhang Lüye's gaze.
Maintaining an appropriate distance, yet without interfering with each other, the battle continued.
The two groups didn't get any closer than that, but Muryeon didn't seem to have any intention of returning to the city either. They seemed more interested in Jin-woo's sword than the recovered land.
***
The research continued for a while. Going back and forth to the city, conducting analysis on site, and through various methods Jin-woo didn't know, they extracted results.
Since it wasn't a mission that would end in a day or two, Jin-woo also accompanied them steadily, and since Jin-woo moved, Muryeon moved too.
Battles with monsters occurred daily, but otherwise, days passed without major incidents.
That changed when they began exploring a certain forest.
"Lin Shenlin?"
Lin Shenlin was discovered in the forest. The S-rank Hunter from Hong Kong that Hunters from Hong Kong, including Muryeon, had been searching for. Whether the Qi Deviation was real or not, he was caught unable to properly control his body.
"@#$@#%"
"!#$%@#@#$"
The Muryeon members were the first to move. Zhang Lüye gave orders with bulging veins in his neck, and Muryeon's Hunters all drew their swords and launched their bodies.
Lin Shenlin, who turned around and fled, was strangely fast even while staggering. To the extent that even Zhang Lüye's full-power pursuit couldn't quite catch up.
And from Lin Shenlin's back as he fled, Jin-woo gained certainty.
'Black flames. And the light cluster that was beside him.'
There were two pieces of evidence. Lin Shenlin's flames, which were dyed black unlike when seen in the 3rd floor, and the light cluster that resembled a spirit but wasn't a spirit, were hovering around him.
Whatever process there had been, that guy had become the God of Light's apostle.
'Did he lose all of God of Sky's blessings and get taken in by the God of Light?'
According to Zhang Lüye's words, that guy had been suppressing Qi Deviation with Jeraxon's power. Presumably, after the blessing was taken away, the pain returned. The God of Light must have exploited that opening.
If so, that means.
'I must catch him. Before Muryeon or Hunters from other cities do!'
There was a high possibility that this white land was the God of Light's power spread through Lin Shenlin as a medium. So he had to catch that guy first before he was taken. As Shartia had requested.