Chapter 29
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: Approaching Darkness (2)
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New York, USA.
Amid the dense cluster of skyscrapers in New York stood a colossal building that seemed to pierce the heavens.
Its walls, forged from advanced alloys, could withstand any missile strike or the mightiest earthquake.
The headquarters of the Global Hunter Alliance.
The IHC—International Hunter Center—building.
At its pinnacle lay the top floor.
There, a conference room furnished with antique chairs and tables awaited.
"What's this? Just three of us today? Man, you guys must be real busy."
S-Rank Gary Oldman.
A golden pistol and a silver one hung at his waist.
He was renowned for his trigger speed that outpaced light itself.
Gary leaned against the doorframe, surveying the room with a cigar clenched between his teeth.
Flutter—.
Inside sat two women, still radiating timeless beauty.
S-Rank Clisey Aphren.
The hunter who wielded a massive cross-shaped sword, bearing the title of humanity's strongest.
Gary flashed a sleazy grin.
"Still as beautiful as ever~, Aphren."
"…"
She didn't even glance up, simply turning the page of her book.
And the other woman.
S-Rank Yoon Soo-ah.
The eldest daughter of the Yoon Family and its current head.
They said there was no magic she couldn't wield—the greatest mage on Earth.
"Soo-ah, you're here too? Good evening~"
"…"
Yoon Soo-ah ignored him as well, sipping her black tea.
Gary scowled and puffed out a cloud of cigar smoke.
"Damn it. Not a shred of camaraderie among us."
He grumbled as he shuffled over and took his seat.
Now, three S-Rank hunters occupied the conference room.
Their combined power could annihilate an entire nation.
Each chair bore the name of an S-Rank etched in English letters.
Only the owner could sit in their assigned seat.
The room had 17 empty seats.
Including the central chairman's seat, that made 18.
S-Rank strategy meetings had abysmal attendance.
Everyone had excuses, but they were always the same.
Too lazy.
In the middle of a game.
Drinking.
On a date.
No one could drag them there by force.
No law could bind them either.
A clock in the corner chimed.
The bell signaling the top of the hour.
"…Then let's begin the meeting."
Aphren closed her book and spoke.
She knew no one else would show, no matter how long they waited.
"Yes."
"Hey, pass me a beer here."
Aphren rose from her assigned seat and moved to the chairman's position.
Her expression turned deadly serious as she continued.
"…Yesterday, an A-Rank and a B-Rank hunter were brutally murdered at Seoul's Namsan Tower. I'm sure you're all aware."
"…Yes. But hunters get killed all the time. Why call a meeting over this?"
"Gahhh—! Nothing beats IHC beer. Huh? Wait, they don't serve drinks here?"
Aphren projected a hologram displaying the corpses.
Yoon Soo-ah frowned.
"…Gruesome."
"…Yes. The knife wounds all over Jackson's body show he was tortured even after death. And Lina's was found torn into three equal pieces."
Aphren swiped to the next image.
Each slide laid bare the horrific crime scene.
Jackson's body resembled a beehive.
Lina's was worse.
Her entrails spilled out, too horrific to behold.
"This incident seems deeply tied to the organization targeting only the 'Kang' family. HQ views it as a grave matter."
"…Any reason they're singling out the Kangs?"
"No way to know yet. But… we have to find out. Their motives."
"…Ugh. I'm getting wasted."
Aphren pulled out a single feather.
A black one.
"This feather is the only evidence left at the scene. I've already asked Mr. Love to analyze it."
"Do you think this warrants our involvement, Aphren?"
Yoon Soo-ah gazed at her.
Aphren brushed her black hair behind her ear.
She replied.
"…Of course. The difference from the previous incident is that an A-Rank hunter died without putting up any real fight. We need to eradicate them completely."
"…"
Yoon Soo-ah crossed her arms.
If S-Ranks mobilized, it escalated beyond national borders to an international crisis.
Aphren's words meant amplifying the issue.
Yoon Soo-ah pondered.
Aphren had never been wrong, not once.
Younger than her, yet superior.
Noble, prudent, professional, and grave.
Screech—.
Yoon Soo-ah stood.
"Alright. I'll look into it."
"…I'll assign you a partner."
Aphren said, eyeing Yoon Soo-ah.
"No need. They'd just get in the way."
"Hey! I'll do it! I don't know the details, but…!"
Gary, already three beers deep, shot to his feet confidently.
Yoon Soo-ah didn't even meet his eyes.
"It's fine. You're busy too, Oldman. So I'll handle this alone…"
"No, no! I'm good. Got nothing going on lately."
"Really, I'll go solo. Head back if you're drunk, Oldman."
"Huh? I'm fine. Wanna hit round two?"
As Yoon Soo-ah stubbornly refused, Aphren intervened.
"Soo-ah, I think you need an escort. We don't know the enemy's strength yet. If you're uncomfortable with Oldman, I'll pair with him instead."
"…"
Yoon Soo-ah let out a short sigh.
She knew better.
Aphren couldn't leave her post lightly.
Her mere movement could upend the heavens and earth.
For instance, earlier this year, a Level 7 monster invasion struck the Pacific.
Aphren handled it solo.
Victory, naturally.
She massacred them mercilessly.
Her slashes reshaped the ocean floor in an instant, spawning a tsunami.
It took days and countless hunters to halt its path toward the Japanese islands.
But that was secondary. The primary issue: the European Union, where she garrisoned, wouldn't permit it.
From their view, it meant losing Europe's great shield.
Yoon Soo-ah sighed briefly.
"…Sigh. No, it's fine. I'll investigate with Oldman."
"Okay!!! Been ages since I hunted with Soo-ah."
Yoon Soo-ah brushed back her hair, clearly irked by his attention.
After the Anyang Station incident, I took ample rest at the hotel.
When I woke in the morning, my body felt lighter than before.
This was why people got mana massages.
Worth every penny of 50 million won.
'Money really is the best… at least in society.'
I stashed my mask in my bag and checked out.
Outside, more hunters than usual patrolled the streets tensely.
Hunter response vehicles lined the roads by the dozens, while combat helicopters buzzed overhead.
'…What's going on?'
Something must've happened at dawn.
Even the reserve defense unit was out—unusual for daytime.
I pulled my cap low and headed to the warp zone.
-Famous A-Rank and B-Rank hunters murdered… Hard to believe it was a fellow hunter.
This, while I slept.
I licked my dry lips.
'Damn…'
And right at Namsan, no less.
Not far from the hotel I'd holed up in.
My hands trembled.
'No… Don't blame yourself… I can't save the whole world…'
I clenched my fists tight.
I couldn't save everyone.
I wasn't a god.
So… no self-recrimination.
"Haa…"
But I couldn't hide the heaviness in my chest.
A twinge of guilt for failing to save them lingered.
"…Who died? Why the long face?"
I cracked an eye. Irina Delebayne rode in the same capsule as me.
I closed my eyes again and muttered.
"What're you doing here."
"…This is our family-exclusive capsule, you know? Unbelievable. Don't commoners have memories either?"
Oh, right. Yeah.
I fished her card from my wallet and handed it over.
She tilted her head, puzzled.
"…Used the card well."
"Huh? Keep it and use it yourself. You barely spent any… Guess I need to learn a bit about plebeian spending habits. I just can't wrap my head around it."
"…I see."
How much did she blow daily to not blink at 50 million won?
"Hee hee hee~"
Irina Delebayne looked oddly cheerful.
She was reading a paper newspaper.
"Heh heh… Hee hee hee…"
"…?"
She giggled for a while, then her cheeks flushed red.
'Did she finally snap?'
"Heh heh… Eek! So freaking good!"
"…You nuts?"
At my question, she straightened up indignantly.
"…Excuse me? Mind your own business, you cheapskate pleb."
Then she grinned again.
I grabbed a copy of the same paper.
Front page: massive coverage on the 'White Mask'.
'…Crazy. If my identity got out, it'd be disaster.'
I quietly set the paper down.
Pretended to sleep, feigning total disinterest.
A new week began.
There was one class I never skipped or slacked in.
Mana Studies. All about mana flow and forms.
Most cadets found it the dullest, yawning nonstop.
But I took meticulous notes, no distractions.
I knew it all already, but I checked for anything missed.
"Mana is the second blood flowing through your body. Everyone knows how gates appeared worldwide after the primordial one, blanketing Earth in mana, right?"
The First Gate.
The day humanity first discovered a gate.
A Chilean fisherman spotted it.
The captain and crew, out tuna fishing as usual, ran into something bizarre.
The tuna suddenly fled.
Not in their natural patterns, but scattering every which way.
Baffled, the captain and crew stared out at sea from the deck.
Then, a massive whirlpool on the surface.
From its depths emerged an aquatic monstrosity.
Humanity's first high-rank monster sighting.
The 'Leviathan'.
Gates soon opened worldwide, monsters slaughtering people.
Then came twenty heroes, sparking humanity's counterattack.
The First Gate brought misfortune—and fortune.
Suddenly, people could fly, breathe underwater, move faster than cars.
That was 'mana'.
The second blood.
"Mana's core composition remains unknown. But it's given humanity so much. It even floats in the air you breathe. That's why you recover mana naturally after using it."
The Yoon Family's Mana Manual accelerated recovery even more.
Gates brimmed with it compared to the real world.
"Mana spawns cyclically inside gates. Weird, huh? Dungeons birth both deadly monsters and this vital mana."
Giving poison and antidote.
I leaned back, lost in thought.
Was mana humanity's curse? Or cure?
I'd pick the latter.
Without it, mankind would've gone extinct long ago.
Earth overrun by monsters.
"…That concludes today's lesson. You all memorized the healing mana formulas I taught last time?"
"…Yes."
Lackluster replies.
Mana types were myriad, formulas complex.
Some like math equations to memorize and solve.
I had them all down.
Ding—.
The bell signaled class end.
Today's schedule done.
I stretched vigorously.
Just days ago, my ribs were shattered, near death. Korean medical mana was miraculous.
"Hey, you see that YouTube vid?"
"Yeah, White Mask? Fucking badass. Shit."
"His swordplay's pure art. But wanna hear the real bombshell?"
"What? Not some bullshit theory?"
"Nah, legit. I know this reporter dude. He says… White Mask's a student here!"
"What?!!"
…I stayed seated, ears perked.
"Who…?"
"Couldn't pin it down. But rumor is it's Hong Ga-yeon."
"Class Prez from B-Class? Whoa, that kinda tracks."
Good. Twist the tale like that.
I shouldered my bag and stood.
Rumors distorted truth inevitably.
Especially real stories turned to gossip.
Gossips spread fast—handy.
"Bro, whatcha doing tonight?"
"Me? Personal training. Why."
"Sparring this week, right? Thought our class could practice among ourselves. You in?"
Sparring?
Oh yeah, heard something about matches before dungeon training.
Slacking in class meant missing details.
I clapped Mitsuda's shoulder.
"Sorry, gotta skip. Got something important."
"Aww? What could be that important?"
"Important stuff. Anyway, sorry. Next time for sure."
"Promise, bro?"
"Yeah, yeah."
Mitsuda.
He submitted utterly to the strong.
Didn't mistreat underlings, though.
Just… used them.
And yes, I had important plans today.
Sparring with classmates offered training, but I had a far superior partner.
Home, I barricaded my door.
No interruptions.
From the drawer, I pulled the book from Ah-young.
-Yoon Family Mid-Grade Mana Manual.
I could shatter rocks now. Time for the next level.
To grow stronger.
I opened the Yoon Family Mid-Grade Mana Manual.
Instantly, my body got sucked into the spacetime dimension it generated.
"Cough! Cough…!"
Howling sandstorm.
Vast rocky mountain range.
And a gigantic boulder.
Atop it lounged a legendary woman, scratching her belly.
She watched her skill-spawned clones battle, treating it like a game.
Giggling, Yoon Ji-yeon sensed me and turned.
"Oh, you're here? You're late."
I chuckled.
"Yeah, got held up."
To save as many as possible, I needed immense power.
Immense power demanded endless training.
Thus began the Mid-Grade Mana Manual.
(To be continued next time)