Chapter 18 (1/2)
Status: Very Unstable (4)
Optimus Guild. I had seen them a lot through video footage in my past life. During the ethics study session in the regular training sessions for hunters in the future, data on the incident was included. The purpose was to keep everyone’s minds on what kind of ramifications could occur when the ethics to be followed as a hunter were violated. I had enough of it after seeing it every year, but the expressions of hunters who saw it were dark and gloomy every time.
The number of victims due to the disaster in Gyeongwon was even greater than the chaos caused by the Cataclysm. In Korean society, every other person was associated with a disaster victim, and the hunters were no different. It caused that many casualties. The documentary, used as educational material, calmly recorded the victims’ stories.
‘I don’t know how to live from now on.’
The video began with an interview with a father crying about losing his entire family. The scene changed, and the survivors’ interviews followed with how their ordinary lives were ruined — explaining what happened in that nightmarish day. There were those who sacrificed themselves to protect their loved ones, the scene where even those who the heroes wanted to protect were gruesomely murdered, students who hadn’t yet deleted the number of their dead friends stored on their cell phones, children waiting for their parents who couldn’t return, and people who had been saved but were forced to live with mental traumas that couldn’t be cured, even with magic.
Next was the story of why this had happened. The target that all hunters poured out their fierce anger at every education session. The cause of the situation. Their leader, their Guild Master, was in front of me.
“What kind of bastard are you?!”
They didn’t even think of ambushing me as they confidently surrounded me from the front. They had made a mistake in only relying on their numbers. I quietly glanced around as I thought. What could make them so prideful? With what rights could they vomit such anger? I then asked, pretending not to know.
“You guys must have been secretly farming here?”
“Yeah, you fucking bastard, what do you think this is for you to crawl in? You got a death-wish?!”
His personality leaked through his speech.
“Well, this is a dungeon on the verge of collapse.”
“What collapse?! This is our area, hell!”
His eyes flashed with murder. At the same time, I sensed a strange sense of superiority in that attitude. He was underestimating me. He pointed his finger at me, his neck veins all bulged up.
“You, what kind of bastard are you, huh? I’m asking you, bastard!”
The intention of that question was this: he spouted threats, but he wondered if there was support behind me that he wouldn’t be able to handle. If there was such a background, it was expected that it would be revealed here right away, just like Secretary Kim did to threaten the men who had attacked us before. When I didn’t answer, his face became more distorted, but at the same time, I could read a sense of relief from their eyes as well.
“A punk with no name and nothing to give puts his dirty toes on another’s sacred table? Fuck you!”
As I didn’t immediately protest, he must’ve made up his mind. He had seen the dagger in my hand and had decided on picking a fight.
“Looking at how you cleared it, you must be an explorer-type. Are you very confident? Huh? Do you believe that you could mess around and still be able to live just by trusting in your skills? Huh?”
It was clear what they were misunderstanding. A dagger was a favorite weapon for hunters who had mastered exploration and stealth skills, as it worked well with those skills.
“Won’t you answer?!”
He again pretended to be agitated and started shouting once more. The screaming resonated in the air. He stared at me and began snorting steam. Perhaps him pretending to be angry was actually making him pissed. On the other hand, while Gye Yong-hwan was swearing in the front, the guy standing behind quietly concentrated on gathering their mana. He was aiming at me with a sword in hand, but this was all just a front. It was clear that the ‘runestone’ hidden in his arms was sucking up mana. Looking at the pattern, he was preparing a magical skill that would strike at me from a distance.
Weeing!
In the first place, this was a dungeon. No matter what background I had, they would think that it was okay if they just finished me here. Moreover, they would be judging that this was a dungeon that was unknown to anyone and that only these guys knew. I could read their obvious thoughts. And so, I spoke to Gye Yong-hwan.
“Status, very unstable.”
He showed the whites of his eyes as he responded.
“What is that, you crazy bastard?”
I calmly explained.
“Didn’t you see the dungeon status when you entered the gate? Don’t you know what this means? If you leave it alone, it means that it may collapse at any moment. A dungeon with only forty days before its evolution. What the hell were you thinking? To leave this unattended? Do you know how many large cities are nearby? You endanger all their lives.”
“How do you know if it will collapse or not. Fuck, are you a shaman?”
“What if it collapses? What will you do about it? Who knows what class this dungeon evolve to? If your mistake results in that many casualties…!”
“Then how is it my fault? You dumb bastard!”
“···”
I looked at him wordlessly.
“If the gate collapsed, is it my fault that the gate was opened in the first place? You let shit out of your mouth about a thing that doesn’t even make sense, idiot.”
He sarcastically continued.
“The idiots are the government bastards who didn’t discover this gate. Why is that my fault to take advantage of it? What if the gate collapses, you ask? What can I do? We’re all fucked. Isn’t that how it’s supposed to be? Why do you ask me what to do when the world has changed like this?! If that happens, it’s just shit luck, luck! Is it my fault that the luck of the people in this neighborhood is bad?”
He laughed and swore sincerely as if it weren’t his fault. There were such people. They were endlessly tolerant of themselves and pretended that it wasn’t their problem, no matter what damage others suffered as a result. I watched the spell being completed by the hunter standing next to Gye Yong-hwan.
Perhaps that was the most powerful spell he could use right now. In short, they were trying to finish me off. If I were a common hunter, I would die in an instant if I were hit directly. However, I was confident about this. They were trying to kill me here. Perhaps a signal must’ve been exchanged between them. Or perhaps they came up with a plan in advance. Thanks to this, my choice had also been made simpler. I spoke once more.
“Now I’m talking about it. Fortunately, the situations I assumed won’t happen, so don’t worry.”
“What?”
Suspicion ran through Gye Yong-hwan’s eyes.
“This dungeon, I’m going to close it.”
“…You puny bitch!”
The moment his face flushed red, I moved.
Dash!
[Acceleration!]
Gye Yong-hwan tried to say something, but instead, a wispy scream came out from his lips. As I passed him, I cut the neck of the wizard who had been aiming at me with a sharp dagger.
Shaaa!
“H-how?!”
It was the moment just before the skill was completed and the magic circle formed.
“Fuck!”
His expression was distorted. The sorcerer, whose artery had been sliced through, was shocked at the sight of blood spewing from his neck, and then his eyes rolled back. He fell over, nose-first, in the puddle of blood he created. The group stiffened at the sudden carnage. However, in the next moment, the remaining three immediately ran towards me, breaking formation.
“Hit him! Kill him! Break him!”
Their swords and axes carved violent trajectories as threatening mana sliced the air, emanating blue light.
“Ah, fuck! Get it right!”
However, everyone missed it. In the process of preparing for an attack, the movement of their mana was obvious. Which way they would run, what skills they were preparing, and who would come first. I ran through that void.
“This son of a…!”
Swing!
Gye Yong-hwan swung his sword downward. It took a lot of power, but its path was painfully obvious. I pretended to counter it, then immediately let it go and deflected it away.
Ting!
The sound of metal clanging rumbled in my ears. I overtook Gye Yong-hwan and moved to his side. Twisting my body to the side, I stuck a dagger in the heart of the man running in with an ax.
Crush!
I murmured inwardly, pulling my dagger out of his chest. Thanks to the artifact, the mana shield activated by his skill could be penetrated without a problem. Only two were left — Gye Yong-hwan and his subordinate. They rushed to either side of me.