The time the Gate should have been cleared was 9 AM.
Since an S-class hunter was deployed, it was a force that could have finished even faster, but for some reason, the time was passing 9 AM towards 10 AM, and no news of clearance was heard. Doyoon bit his nails repeatedly in anxiety.
At that moment, someone rushed into the Superhuman Management Team office with busy footsteps in the hallway, panting as if to break down the door.
It was the civil servant selected by the Deputy Director who was supposed to be receiving real-time reports on the gate situation.
“B-big trouble. An anomaly has occurred at the Gate…”
Doyoon jumped up from his seat and asked in a cold tone to the person who delivered the news, right in front of his face.
“Speak precisely. What kind of anomaly.”
“Th-that is. The measured value was clearly A-class, but at the last minute, an S-class monster suddenly appeared… Guide Lee Jua is in danger…”
The civil servant hesitated and continued.
Choi Doyoon’s anger boiled from within at his frustrating appearance.
“But why are you here? Aren’t you the person who should be giving countermeasures to the hunters quickly according to the anomaly right now?”
“W-watch your mouth, Manager Choi Doyoon. I, I have more seniority than you.”
“You son of a…”
‘To think I have to listen to such crap…’
He wanted to punch the face of that relaxed person right away, but there was a priority.
Choi Doyoon glared at him and ran until he was out of breath, arriving at the briefing room.
He knew Baek Gyeong’s ability better than anyone.
He had worried together about how to further pull out his potential, and he had even suggested alternatives on how to sharply utilize water-attribute skills, which are evaluated as having low attack power.
So, he would be able to solve the crisis. He had to believe that.
Beyond the large screen in the briefing room, the terrible situation inside the Gate was being broadcast in real-time.
A corner of the dungeon was piled high with ‘ores’ of A-class monsters, as if they had defeated a crowd of A-class monsters.
The internal exploration report clearly said there were about 10 A-class monsters, but there seemed to be well over hundreds of piles of ore.
Two A-class hunters were unconscious with serious injuries, and next to two A-class hunters who had already died, four guides were also lying unconscious with fatal wounds.
And Doyoon saw the S-class hunter facing the S-class monster in the most miserable state at the forefront.
Doyoon hurriedly took the headset that was the communication channel from Team Leader Park.
Team Leader Park calmly explained the situation.
“Hundreds of subspecies emerged from the insect-type fire-attribute A-class monster, ripping its stomach open. Guide Lee Jua is seriously injured and unconscious. The S-class monster that appeared is mental-type. There is no data in the database for the type that shows illusions. Hunter Baek Gyeong lost one arm while protecting Guide Lee Jua. About 90% of the monster is subdued. However, Hunter Baek Gyeong is at overload stage 10; if he outputs his ability without guiding, he will rampage immediately.”
It was a clean briefing. I nodded at the team leader.
Hunter Baek Gyeong’s rough breathing was conveyed through the headphones.
Continuing, the sound of him muttering something was heard over the crackling radio waves.
“…don’t, don’t go. At this rate, there is only death. Who is the one to save me from death… Absolute power… was useless. Until now, what have I…”
‘He said it was mental-type?’
The mental-type monster was a special case that had never been reported in the world until now.
And it happened that the person he could call a ‘friend’ was inside that special case.
While Baek Gyeong was wavering at the sight of his dedicated guide’s death, the mental-type monster did not miss that gap and dug in.
A manual to lower the overload stage of a hunter at overload stage 10, even slightly.
First, that was it.
“Gyeong-ah.”
I called the hunter’s name in a low voice.
The unintelligible muttering continued.
“Let’s breathe slowly. Deep breaths.”
The muttering began to decrease gradually.
Every time Choi Doyoon pointed out the timing for breathing in and out, the muttering over the headphones subsided, and instead, rough breathing began to be heard.
Choi Doyoon breathed a sigh of relief.
There was still enough reason left to listen and judge.
He would be able to endure the ability output once.
“Team leader, please have the S-class guides on standby.”
“I’ve already put them on standby.”
Still, it was reassuring to have someone he could trust.
Because Baek Gyeong could only be brought back to reality once the monster was extinguished, Doyoon had to prepare the last one.
The indefinite monster, which looked like black slime, was struggling for the last time with mental attacks, having lost most of its biological responses.
One ability.
I just thought of the most efficient way to use the ability to be able to use it once.
“Hunter Baek Gyeong, let’s imagine a wave. A huge wave pushing from outside the coastline to the sandy beach.”
“O…”
Resisting the mental-type monster’s attack, Baek Gyeong, who appeared on the screen, gritted his teeth.
He was doing his best to concentrate only on Choi Doyoon’s voice, excluding all the strange languages that humans couldn’t understand that were ringing like noise in his head.
Gyeong stretched his hands forward as if to use his ability.
‘Yes, good job.’
Doyoon’s voice replied.
“Now, let’s think about freezing that wave. Frozen so huge that it could pierce a house-sized rock. We don’t need to freeze it from the deep sea, but from the surface of the water to the very top of the giant tsunami. Freezing it in the form of a spear. It’s the ability Hunter Baek Gyeong uses best.”
Baek Gyeong’s head nodded slowly.
As he moved his hand, small water droplets appeared, and they began to swirl.
When the droplets grew larger and larger, the vortex stopped all at once.
And it became a very long shape, and began to freeze from the tip…
‘Snap’
It became an ice spear and pierced the indefinite monster, which was accelerating its mental attack, head-on.
‘Done!!’
The S-class monster scattered into pitch-black ash, and only a blue ore remained.
And all the humans existing in that space immediately returned to reality.
Unlike his relieved heart, his head was working very coldly.
Doyoon rushed out of the briefing room and left an urgent message.
“Are the two S-class guides on standby? Please start contact guiding immediately. Overload stage 10.”
But the reality he faced was hell.
Overload stage 10, the eyes of the S-class hunter on the verge of rampaging were already stained black.
He was just desperately looking for someone, reaching out with his one remaining arm.
“Jua… Jua.”
The eyes that had lost their blue light and were stained black were fixed entirely on his dedicated guide lying unconscious with serious injuries.
S-class Guide Lee Jua was bleeding from her whole body.
Fatal internal injuries from mental-type attacks.
The doctor who was checking her condition shook his head.
It was a signal that life signs could not be confirmed.
“Manager Choi!! Guiding is not working at all…”
Another S-class guide who had tried to hold his hand as soon as Baek Gyeong returned and attempted guiding with her lips reported with tears in her eyes.
Guiding refusal.
