Chapter 48
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 48
Chapter Title: Grand Assembly
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Thud thud thud thud-.
The final transport chopper kicked up fierce winds as it touched down on the landing pad.
The shelter set up on the outskirts of the training grounds was packed with hunter troops and cadets alike.
As the propeller noise gradually died down, the last of the rescue team disembarked one by one.
Tae-hyun still couldn't steady himself properly and was leaning against Yoon Ah-young.
"Ah-young...!"
"Oppa!"
His classmates rushed over in a single bound, their faces etched with worry.
Mitsuda scooped Tae-hyun onto his back in one swift motion and headed straight for where Class C was gathered.
Everyone clustered around Tae-hyun.
"Tae-hyun, you okay?"
"What the hell happened...? A sudden attack out of nowhere."
"...Yeah. Who could've guessed the academy's barrier would get breached..."
"...H-Hang on a sec."
Olivia hurriedly grabbed a blanket from nearby and draped it over him.
Tae-hyun accepted the water Mitsuda handed him and gulped it down.
He wiped his mouth and let out a steady breath.
'...Looks like no one else is hurt...'
Fortunately, aside from Tae-hyun, there were no injuries.
Yoon Soo-ah's barrier had protected the cadets.
They were just a bit shaken, but otherwise fine overall.
'The black masks came straight for me...'
The black mask who had killed him in his previous life was now trying to claim him instead.
If incidents like today's kept happening, the potential casualties down the line were unimaginable.
But when they gained full control of the key's power? He didn't even want to think about it.
Tae-hyun pressed a hand to his forehead.
And trembled.
"...Oppa?"
"You good? Hey."
Mitsuda and Irina peered at his face with concern.
They were startled.
"...!"
Tae-hyun had his head bowed, his expression twisted in a scowl.
It was killing intent.
The look of someone dead set on murdering another.
Ah-young had seen that expression on Tae-hyun once before.
Back during the training when Yone got expelled.
The face he wore while massacring the kobolds.
'How dare they...!'
A fierce thirst for revenge blazed up from deep within him.
-All cadets are to return to the dormitories and await further instructions immediately. Repeating. All cadets are to return to the dormitories and await further instructions.
-In the event of any additional injuries, report to a superior officer right away. End of transmission.
The funeral for the fallen S-Rank Hunter Gerry Oldman was held with great pomp and circumstance.
In his hometown, a long procession of hunters and civilians came to pay their respects.
Some 300 hunter troops were deployed as well, to prevent any further terrorist acts.
The death of an S-Rank carried that much weight for all of humanity.
The line of mourners stretched on endlessly, but all that lingered in their hearts was fear.
'Even the strongest S-Rank is dead...'
'If another gate opens now, we're all finished.'
'...We're all gonna die in the end...'
The citizens' faces were uniformly grim.
Despair, terror, doubt—emotions born from the S-Rank's death had infected every surviving human.
This CDT incident held a different significance from previous terrorist attacks or invasions.
The reason? The academy—Hunter HQ's proudest defensive stronghold—had its barriers shattered by the enemy assault.
It was more than enough to reawaken humanity's sense of crisis.
HQ used the event to overhaul their defense systems.
And they redefined the nature of the enemy threat.
With the emergence of the new hostile force known as the black masks, alongside the S-Rank's death, Hunter HQ joined forces with the World Government to cast a wider net in their investigation.
But they knew next to nothing about the black mask organization.
Zero leads on their forces.
A dire lack of intel.
As all these factors intertwined, the leadership of each organization called an emergency grand assembly.
The Grand Assembly.
The presidents of the G7 nations.
The Hunter HQ Supreme Commander.
The Pope of the Church and the Captain of the Holy Knights.
The Guild Alliance Chairman.
And even the S-Rank Hunter Council Chair.
All the top figures representing humanity's core strength began gathering one after another.
There was one reason they had assembled.
To address the fact that 'S-Rank forces are not invincible.'
In other words, humanity's shield was not infinite.
And so, the leaders of these five organizations converged on the Republic of Korea, currently deemed the safest region on Earth.
Sejong City, Republic of Korea.
Deep underground, twentieth floor—the Grand Assembly Chamber.
Bam!
The table shook, and a teacup spilled over.
The French president shouted in fury.
"An S-Rank Hunter dead? Does that even make sense? Just what is Hunter HQ doing with all the government funding?"
The Korean president chimed in.
"...150 trillion won a year just to maintain the hunter forces. 150 trillion! That's the blood and sweat of our citizens."
"That's why I've told you time and again, President..."
The Chairman of the People's Republic of China lit a cigarette and continued.
"...I said we should integrate hunters into each nation's national defense and manage them directly. It'd make self-defense feasible and management a breeze... but nooo..."
The Hunter Supreme Commander, General Oh Seong, responded to the chairman's complaint.
Hunter Supreme Commander.
The overall commander of the hunter forces, outranking even S-Rank Hunters in the chain of command.
"...Chairman. That's not feasible. The hunter forces were created to equalize national power levels, weren't they? S-Rank Hunters possess more power than nuclear missiles—they absolutely cannot be owned by any single nation."
"Commander, then why did you lose that key asset? Isn't this all down to negligence in management?"
"Th-That's..."
The commander hung his head, at a loss for words.
Then, someone stood from the S-Rank Hunter seats.
"Fucking hell. What bullshit."
S-Rank Hunter Gainshtain Povgang.
Vice Chair of the council and officially ranked second.
He was one of only two S-Ranks present at the assembly, alongside Aphren.
Gainshtain scowled at the Chinese chairman.
"You talk a big game. What were you doing? Mr. US President. Mr. Chinese Chairman. What? While we're out there fighting for peace. Huh? What were you doing?"
"Wh-What? Such insolence...!"
Aphren cut him off.
"Gainshtain. Enough."
"No, Chair. You gonna let these bastards talk about turning us into their lackeys?"
"I said enough."
Gainshtain backed down only after Aphren shot him a glare.
"Tch..."
He slouched back into his seat and stared up at the ceiling.
As the mood sank, Aphren neatly folded her hands on the table.
She spoke in a measured tone.
"I won't deny it. Dispatching personnel without fully grasping the enemy's situation was entirely my failing. I offer my sincerest apologies."
"...If apologies fixed it, we wouldn't need this assembly."
"...You're right. This operation had no involvement from Hunter HQ—it was my unilateral decision as Chair. Hold me accountable for it all."
With that, Aphren rose from her seat and bowed deeply.
Clisey Aphren, the strongest being on Earth, had lowered her head.
The assembly chamber buzzed.
"Hey... why're you apologizing...?"
Even Gainshtain's words didn't make her lift her head.
"Mind your dignity, Chair."
Leo I.
Pope and Grand Master of the White Knights.
He continued calmly.
"The dispatch is certainly your responsibility to some degree, but there were no viable options without intel on the enemy. If blame must be assigned, it falls on the Supreme Commander for staying silent despite knowing of the op in advance."
"Then shouldn't you have informed the World Government first? Right, Commander?"
The commander pressed a hand to his forehead.
"...I didn't realize the situation was this grave. We'll prevent any recurrences going forward."
"Ah, more excuses. Is that what a Supreme Commander should say?"
The Chinese chairman's goal was clear.
Incorporate hunters into national defense ministries.
That was it.
He stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray and pressed on.
"The death of an S-Rank is a grave matter for the world. At this rate, we'll have no choice but to entrust defense to sovereign nations..."
"Oh, fuck off!!!"
Bam!
Gainshtain bellowed, unable to contain his rage.
"Entrust, entrust—wanna keep bullshitting? You bald-headed moron with no brains?"
"Wh-What? Bald-headed?"
"Gainshtain!"
Aphren shot to her feet with a sharp rebuke.
But Gainshtain stood his ground.
"...The world organizations are throwing 18- and 19-year-old kids into the meat grinder for their 'chosen' citizens, letting the disposable die. What a fucked-up world. While you're stretching out at home banging women, we're risking our lives in dungeons every damn day. You know that?!"
"Y-You... ungrateful...!"
The chairman's face flushed with anger, veins bulging.
"Gainshtain. Stop."
"N-No, I can't. Fuck. Why? You can't cut me anyway, right? Think there's another S-Rank to replace me? Quit wasting time on your pointless defense strategies and pull back the lines. You know how many civilians die because of the defenses you set up?"
"The defensive lines are for humanity's survival. Why dredge up settled matters now?"
The US president countered Gainshtain.
Gainshtain yelled back.
But Aphren beat him to it.
"Enough!"
At her thunderous command, Gainshtain stiffened and swallowed hard.
Aphren took a steadying breath and picked up her sword.
She gazed at everyone in the chamber.
She wasn't without her own grievances.
All the authority delegated came with responsibility.
This operation had forced her to act alone.
National militaries could never gun down hunters or monsters.
Only hunters could deal with those who killed hunters.
That was why the Hunter Supreme Commander had granted command authority to S-Ranks.
'...Hoo...'
She spoke.
"All responsibility lies with me, and I'll accept any punishment... But no one will ever command hunter operations. We are 'warriors' meant to slay monsters, not 'weapons' to sate personal greed. Right here, I declare war on the 'black masks' who murdered Gerry Oldman."
The secretary scribbled her words, then looked up.
Her red lips moved.
"I declare war on the black masks. And I will lead the vanguard."
No one spoke after Aphren's statement.
Save for Gainshtain, who grinned broadly.
'Hoo...'
He turned on the shower.
The bloodstains staining his body melted away like fatigue itself.
The black masks' emergence.
The world was thrown into massive turmoil.
With his current power, he couldn't kill them.
He'd only faced the weakest one's claw.
...Splash splash splash.
Blood swirled down the shower drain.
The gashes across his chest.
Wounds, for sure, yet they felt no pain.
He needed to grow stronger, faster.
Even if his body crumbled to dust, he had to endure endless training.
This level of pain wasn't pain at all—he had to become far stronger.
Creek-.
He stepped out of the bathroom after showering.
Towel around his waist, he headed to the living room to check the time.
But there was a woman sitting on the sofa.
"...You."
(To be continued in the next chapter)