Chapter 27: Family Gathering and MiTube Theories

Despite his busy schedule, Shin Ji-ho visited his family home for the first time in a while to attend a family gathering.

Most family members attended the gathering, which occurred once every one or two months, without fail. Although they often kept in touch due to their close bonds, everyone was so busy that it was difficult to see each other’s faces without setting a specific date.

As soon as he stepped inside, Shin Ji-ho’s mother welcomed him with open arms.

“Mom!”

“My Ji-ho, are you here?”

He ran to her and hugged her tightly, just as he had as a child. His mother’s expression brightened considerably, and Shin Ji-ho, too, found comfort in her familiar embrace.

“My son has suffered so much, hasn’t he?”

“Oh, I was fine…”

Seeing his mother’s brightest expression in the past year, Shin Ji-ho deliberately smiled even more brightly.

It must have been his parents who were most heartbroken, watching their youngest son—whom they loved dearly—suffer needlessly and face public scorn. Likewise, they were probably the happiest people at this moment.

Shin Ji-ho squeezed his mother’s hand and entered the living room. On the central sofa, his father’s hips subtly shifted.

His father was typically more concerned with maintaining appearances than his mother. When Shin Ji-ho rushed over and hugged him first, his father, though acting a little awkward, skillfully returned the embrace tightly.

“Dad, how have you been?”

“Yes, I’ve always been well. You’ve been through a lot, haven’t you?”

“I’m fine.”

Shin Jung-ho, Ji-ho’s father, possessed a subtly affectionate nature but struggled to express himself well.

Consequently, he often maintained an impassive expression regardless of the situation. Today, however, he couldn’t hide his smile, his lips twitching continuously at the corners.

To lift his parents’ spirits, Shin Ji-ho sat on the sofa and recounted every detail of what had happened. He only shared good news, which delighted his parents immensely.

Though he initially refused the pocket money his parents tried to give him, Shin Ji-ho eventually accepted it, having no other choice. After greeting his older brother and sister-in-law, he headed up to the second-floor living room to relax.

“Oh, Uncle!”

He had planned to stretch out and rest on the sofa he often used before moving out, but Shin Jae-woon was already seated there.

Shin Jae-woon was the son of his eldest brother, making him Shin Ji-ho’s nephew.

However, with only a six-year age difference, he felt more like a younger cousin. In fact, they often played together with a similar dynamic.

A few years ago, during Jae-woon’s turbulent adolescence, he had even tried to treat Shin Ji-ho as an equal.

Jae-woon was severely scolded by his older brother and sister-in-law for this. Even his father, who doted on his grandson, admonished Jae-woon for the first time, stating that while closeness was good, undermining household discipline was not.

From Jae-woon’s perspective, being scolded because of Shin Ji-ho seemed to have angered and hurt his pride, causing him to act distant for a while…

When Shin Ji-ho collapsed and later regained consciousness, one of the most surprising things was Jae-woon’s transformation.

During Shin Ji-ho’s unconsciousness, Jae-woon had grown from a middle schooler to a high schooler, transforming from a boy smaller than Shin Ji-ho into something closer to a young man. The first time he saw him, Shin Ji-ho thought he was a stranger. Only when Jae-woon burst into tears upon seeing his face did he realize, ‘Ah, it’s my nephew after all…’

In any case, thanks to his growth and newfound maturity, Jae-woon’s rebellious attitude had returned to a more respectful path. He consistently called Shin Ji-ho ‘Uncle’ and, despite occasionally saying childish things, treated him as an elder.

More than anything, perhaps due to worrying that Shin Ji-ho, whom he had been close to since childhood, might die, Jae-woon had become much more affectionate than before.

It was Jae-woon and his friends who informed the newly awakened, disoriented Shin Ji-ho about the changed world.

Joo Yi-won, on the other hand, had been far too busy to pay much attention. While he did visit often, he would only stay for a short while, exchanging jokes before leaving.

As soon as Jae-woon saw Shin Ji-ho, he latched onto him and began to chatter enthusiastically.

Nowadays, the field that most interested Shin Jae-woon, like the majority of people, was Awakened Ones and Hunters.

If you asked today’s youth about their future aspirations, most desired careers related to Awakened Ones. Of course, awakening wasn’t something one could simply choose, so these were merely dream-like ambitions. Nevertheless, everyone harbored the dream of awakening with a ‘someday’ mindset.

“Uncle, Uncle.”

“Yes?”

“I’ve watched all your new videos on MiTube recently! I hit like, and I told all my friends to like them too. I even asked my teachers to like them, so probably about a hundred people did!”

“Ah, I see. Thanks.”

“This time, I didn’t even have to report anything; it was all clean! Those cyber-bullies who always slandered you are all quiet now.”

“Oh, right…”

While grateful, Shin Ji-ho was reminded of things he’d rather not recall. He didn’t even pay attention to MiTube videos in the first place. He also wasn’t sure what difference a hundred likes would make.

The fact that those who regularly slandered him with rumors had begun to lie low was, at least, evidence of a shift in public opinion, which was pleasing.

Yet, all the nonsense that had been spouted when he was being criticized automatically came to mind, leaving him in a less-than-pleasant mood.

Unaware of Shin Ji-ho’s discomfort, Jae-woon approached him and showed him his smartphone screen.

“Uncle, have you seen this?”

“What is it?”

The MiTube app’s playback screen was visible. Below it, a truly provocative title caught his eye.

[A Person Emerged From a Gate?? Shocking Video Exclusively Revealed]

“…”

On Shin Ji-ho’s face, which had been trying its best to indulge his nephew’s words after a long time, a look of exasperation finally flickered.

“Hey, don’t watch stuff like this. Go study hard. Doesn’t your dad know you’re doing this?”

“Ah, Uncle. Don’t be such a boomer.”

“When you’re watching this kind of bullshit, how can I *not* sound like a boomer?”

“No, just watch it first. It was caught on CCTV, and it clearly shows a person coming out of a Gate!”

“It’s probably just a Hunter entering or exiting a dungeon.”

“This is a Rift! Do you think I can’t tell the difference?”

‘Of course, you might not be able to tell, you’re not even a Hunter.’ Instead of retorting, Shin Ji-ho simply nodded.

“Alright, then let me see.”

Jae-woon proudly held out his smartphone to Shin Ji-ho.

On the small screen, a low-quality video played. It claimed to be CCTV footage, but it appeared to be an already unclear recording that had been further magnified.

The video’s background showed a deserted park in the dead of night. The overgrown bushes suggested it was poorly maintained. The desolate park looked eerie, making it a perfect setting for a ghost story.

Around the 15-second mark, a portion of the CCTV screen distorted as if the video itself had been crumpled. Shin Ji-ho tilted his head, focusing more intently on the footage.

Conventional video recording devices couldn’t accurately capture phenomena like Rifts or Gates. They were typically distorted by mana wavelengths, but the warping in this video seemed remarkably precise, almost too real to be a mere fabrication.

The video briefly fast-forwarded. Unlike other Rifts, the one in the footage remained quietly in place, with no monsters pouring out.

Then, after about ten minutes of the displayed screen time, something slowly walked out from beside the distorted part of the screen.

It was clearly a human-like figure, with a head, a torso, and what appeared to be bipedal legs. Judging by its size compared to nearby objects, it seemed to have the physique of an average adult male.

The screen froze.

The MiTuber began to babble, claiming the figure in the maximally brightened photo was a human who had emerged from a Rift.

However, the dense darkness and overgrown bushes obstructed the view, making it impossible to discern any precise features. Only a pitch-black silhouette of a head, a straight body, and legs could be identified.

Shin Ji-ho scoffed. The video reeked so strongly of manipulation that his brief moment of focused attention felt ridiculous.

This was clearly a manipulated video, only plausible in its vague form. It was no different from the fake ghost photos that circulated before the Gate Crisis erupted.

There were quite a few types of monsters that walked bipedally, like humans.

Yet, there had never been a single monster that looked exactly like a human. They always possessed an alien quality, clearly appearing as beings from another world.

In contrast, this was truly a human silhouette. No distinct differences that clearly separated it from a human were visible, nor was it captured at the exact moment of emerging from the Rift. The probability of it simply being a passing person was high.

Moreover, if this were real, would it only be buzzing on MiTube?

Once a Rift had appeared, it could be confirmed with 100% certainty. If mana traces leading from the Rift were found and it was discovered that a monster had left the area, an alert would have immediately been issued to all guilds.

Only three years had passed since unknown entities, never before experienced by humanity, began to pour forth. It was a situation rife with cults proclaiming that Rifts were divine judgment and that humanity was doomed.

This, too, was nothing more than a common conspiracy theory.

‘I thought no one believed such things, but to find it so close…’

Shin Ji-ho clicked his tongue and handed the smartphone, still playing the video, back to Jae-woon.

“Don’t watch this kind of stuff, Jae-woon. Let’s study.”

“Ugh…”

Perhaps frustrated that Shin Ji-ho didn’t believe him, Jae-woon scowled intensely. Instead of nagging further, Shin Ji-ho tried to soothe him.

“Their predictions haven’t been accurate lately, so they’re just stirring up fear. Don’t fall for it.”

“But Hush said something was suspicious too.”

“Who’s Hush?”

“Look.”

Jae-woon moved his fingers a few times and showed him another MiTuber.

On the screen was a man in his early twenties with light blue dyed hair. Judging by the changed color of all his body hair, he seemed to be wearing a dye item.

“He’s handsome, right? He’s a MiTuber, but he’s also a Hunter.”

Seeing Jae-woon proudly talking about someone who wasn’t even himself made Shin Ji-ho feel even more uneasy. ‘This kid, I wonder if he’ll get scammed later…’

“There are many scammers among Hunters too.”

“Hush isn’t like that!”

“…”

It was amusing to see him immediately flare up and retort. MiTube was overflowing with false information, yet he believed it all so readily…

‘If you believed all the information on MiTube, then Shin Ji-ho was a disrespectful delinquent and absolute trash.’

As Shin Ji-ho pondered whether to tell his brother to educate his child properly, Jae-woon complained with an aggrieved look.

“It’s true, Hush is part of the Haneul Guild.”

“Haneul?”

Haneul was the name of a guild established by Cheongong, a major domestic corporation. It was one of only four S-rank guilds in the country, and among them, Haneul was the largest in scale.

A Hunter belonging to the Haneul Guild might not be a scammer, but that wasn’t the issue at hand.

As might be expected, the relationship between Haneul and Cheongram was far from good.

While Cheongram was overwhelmingly superior when comparing only the guilds, the gap between Cheongong, its parent company, and Cheongram was immense. This led to a fairly balanced power struggle, yet the very person who had lived comfortably off the money earned by Cheongram was now…

Ultimately, Shin Ji-ho smacked Jae-woon’s head.

“Ow!”

“Hey, there are other things to like! Why would you like the Haneul Guild?”

“I don’t really like Haneul either, just Hush!”

“Good grief.”

Shaking his head in disbelief, Shin Ji-ho glared at Jae-woon, then fixed his gaze on the man on the screen. His hairstyle was so different from before that Shin Ji-ho hadn’t recognized him at first, but hearing he was from the Haneul Guild made it clear who he was.

Hush, or Heo Su-hyuk, was an Awakened One more famous as a MiTuber than as a Hunter, which was his primary profession.

Quite a few Awakened Ones gained fame by utilizing their unique abilities, and Hush was one of them.

Shin Ji-ho had heard he was originally an idol trainee. His handsome looks and overflowing talent made him popular.

Compared to other MiTubers who often operated at lower ranks, Heo Su-hyuk was a B-rank support-type, meaning his abilities were exceptional. Being part of the large Haneul Guild only boosted his rise to fame.

Thanks to this, the Haneul Guild made good use of Hush’s presence, and he frequently appeared in advertisements, giving him considerable recognition among domestic Hunters.

Of course, the most famous Hunter was still Joo Yi-won.

Despite his wealth, Joo Yi-won still filmed many advertisements, occasionally appeared on broadcasts, and gave interviews.

While Awakened MiTubers and celebrities like Hush sometimes faced criticism for not focusing on protecting Earth, Joo Yi-won never did. Since his awakening as a Hunter, he had consistently held the number one spot in dungeon clear rates, leaving no room to accuse him of neglecting his main profession.

“Uncle, are you thinking about Brother Yi-won?”

Shin Ji-ho was startled by the sudden remark.

“What? How did you know?”

“I can tell from your expression… Seriously, you and Brother are something else.”

Jae-woon shook his head, uttering words Shin Ji-ho didn’t understand, then sat on the opposite sofa.

Instead of asking what he meant, Shin Ji-ho answered each of Jae-woon’s questions, as his nephew still had many curiosities about Hunters.

After about thirty minutes of chatter, Jae-woon, who had been looking out the window, suddenly stood up.

“Brother’s here.”

“Joo Yi-won?”

Shin Ji-hye and Joo Yi-won were walking side by side across the garden. Had they left the guild together?