Chapter 144 - Chapter 144 (1/2)

Because of the nature of the incident itself, a massive crowd of people had rushed towards the school's perimeters.

"My son goes to this school!!"

"Get out of the way!"

"I need to confirm what happened with my own eyes!!"

"Aigo, aigo!!"

If it weren't for the desperate crowd control efforts by the police and the Association's employees, the scene of the incident would've descended into pure pandemonium from the maddened crowd.

The reporters had also rushed here as soon as word got out and were now busy snapping away with their cameras.

"Uh? It's Seong Jin-Woo!"

"Take his pictures!!"

Jin-Woo evaded their gazes and wordlessly walked over to someone that seemed to be a staff member of the Hunter's Association. This staff member immediately froze up in nervousness after seeing Jin-Woo's face. That was how scary the Hunter's complexion looked at that moment.

"S-Seong Jin-Woo Hunter-nim...."

"Where's my sister?"

"Miss Seong Jin-Ah and other students have been transferred to the Seoul Il-Sin hospital."

"....."

Jin-Woo nodded his head, his expression still remaining grave, and turned around to walk away. The staff member unconsciously swallowed dry saliva while watching his back get further away.

Gulp.

The first thing those arriving here did was to confirm the status of the student named Seong Jin-Ah, as per the instruction from the Association. Thankfully, she was unhurt. With the exception of abrasions suffered around her neck and wrists, there were no other injuries on her.

Hunter Seong Jin-Woo was the one who had rescued her, so he should know that fact better than anyone, yet....

'Even then, for him to be that p*ssed off....'

It was a good thing that he arrived on time, otherwise, how would he have reacted if something happened to his sister? The staff member shuddered from the terrifying dizziness he suddenly felt just then.

It indeed was a huge relief.

Contrary to the relief of the staff member, though, Jin-Woo was feeling quite gloomy at the moment as he pulled out his phone.

'I'm sure Mom's about to get the news.'

Too many students lost their lives at the hands of the monsters. Rather obviously, his mother would feel like her world was about to crumble after receiving the news.

'Before that happens, I need to tell her that Jin-Ah's okay.'

He thought as such and was about to tap the "Call" icon, but then, he heard an unexpected voice coming from behind him and stopped.

"I've already sent some of the Association's agents over to speak to your mother, Seong Hunter-nim. They should be on their way to the hospital as we speak."

Jin-Woo looked behind him.

"Mister Association President."

Goh Gun-Hui stood there, his complexion as dark as Jin-Woo's.

Even though the President himself was not at fault here, as the person representing South Korea's Hunter's Association, he was feeling the burden of responsibility for failing to prevent this tragedy. Jin-Woo could only express his gratitude for Goh Gun-Hui looking out for his family even under the current circumstances.

That prompted Goh Gun-Hui to shake his head.

"No, it's us that should be thanking you."

Seventeen students survived.

It was only because of Jin-Woo's arrival that those students among the trapped in the school building were able to get out of there alive.

"We are constantly in your debt, Hunter-nim."

Jin-Woo could only smile bitterly at that.

He could have saved a lot more students if he were able to use the Shadow Exchange and get here right away. Such regret seeped clearly into his expression.

Goh Gun-Hui could faintly sense what Jin-Woo was feeling right now from his expression. But the older man shook his head.

'Now isn't the time to wallow in our emotions.'

Indeed, didn't he have something important to say to this young man? Goh Gun-Hui raised his head.

"Will you be heading to the hospital now?"

Jin-Woo thought back to the Gate in Gwang-An-ri, but quickly stopped worrying about it.

His MP remained the same as before. Meaning, Beru and his ants were conquering the dungeon without encountering any problem at the moment.

'Well.... It's not just any soldier but Beru, so it'll be fine.'

There was no need to worry about the progress of the raid right now.

"Yes, I am."

"Please, let me give you a ride there."

"No, I'll be fine."

"Please, allow me. There is something else I wish to talk to you about on the way, as well."

Jin-Woo initially declined thinking that the offer was made out of courtesy, but he nodded his head after seeing the earnest attitude of the Association President.

"Alright, I will."

Jin-Woo followed Goh Gun-Hui's guidance and they both climbed into the back seat of the waiting car.

Even though it was a full-size saloon, the back seat felt cramped after Goh Gun-Hui's huge frame and Jin-Woo's wide shoulders climbed aboard. Woo Jin-Cheol was sitting in the driver's seat, and nodded his greeting through the rear-view mirror.

Jin-Woo also nodded slightly as his greeting.

The car slowly set forward and only then did the Association President stop hesitating and speak up.

"...In a way, you could say that today's tragedy has been foretold in advance."

His expression was hard.

On the other hand, Jin-Woo was feeling confused.

'Does that mean the Association didn't do anything about an incident they could have prevented in advance?'

Before his confusion had the chance to transform into anger, the Association President pulled out his phone and showed Jin-Woo its display. It showed a graphical chart.

"This shows the increase in the Gate activity around the city of Seoul for the last six months."

The dots drew a gentle curvature but when it got nearer to present, it suddenly spiked up steeply.

"And this side shows the stats from around the world."

If the Association President didn't make that clear, Jin-Woo might have mistaken them for two of the exact same thing. That was how similar-looking the inclines in those two graphs were.

"The numbers of Gates appearing has spiked up noticeably throughout the world."

Goh Gun-Hui's complexion got darker and darker.

"However, that isn't the only strange thing."

He returned the phone back into his inner jacket pocket and carried on.

"People wanting to confirm their Awakened rankings are practically lining up in a long queue outside the Association every day now."

The number of Gates where monsters come out was increasing, and at the same time, the number of Hunters who were supposed to block the Gates was also increasing? As if to maintain a balance?

Seeing Jin-Woo's interested expression, the Association President spoke in a complicated tone of voice.

"We think that....."

Goh Gun-Hui ended his lengthy explanation while implying that it was only his personal hypothesis.

"....Something is changing."

Jin-Woo nodded his head.

This was indeed interesting information. Anyone could tell something big was afoot from that data. Unfortunately, that didn't mean Jin-Woo could do anything about them right now. It was the same story for Goh Gun-Hui, as well.

Also, a simple phone call would have sufficed if it was about sharing of information and a hypothesis. Jin-Woo thought that Association President wouldn't have taken time out of his packed schedule to simply have this conversation.

"In that case, what you wish to talk to me about was.....?"

As if he was waiting for that, Goh Gun-Hui picked up a briefcase resting by the footwell and pulled out various documents from there.

"Japan, the States, China, Russia, France, Britain, Germany, and even from the Middle East...."

All the nations with some international clout were brought up abruptly.

"These are all the official documents sent in from those nations that wish to make contact with you, Seong Jin-Woo Hunter-nim. I'm fairly certain that some of them even have made unofficial contacts with you already."

Jin-Woo briefly recalled the incident involving the American Hunter Bureau's people, but decided not to mention it.

"In all honesty, we at the Hunter's Association simply don't have any rights to stop these people. No, we can only protect your personal information according to your request."

Jin-Woo silently listened to the older man's story.

"I know that everything depends on your decision, Seong Jin-Woo Hunter-nim, but.... But, I fear that our country will not be able to adapt to the incoming changes if you decide to leave us."

Rather than a concrete answer, Jin-Woo shifted his gaze out of the car's window. As he fell deeper into a myriad of distracting thoughts, one of the biggest hospitals in the country entered his view.

It was the very hospital where Jin-Ah had been admitted to.