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Rather than offering a reply, Dokyeom simply tilted his head, his gaze meticulously tracing Taeseongyeon’s retreating form from head to toe. Unlike the other significant figures, the novel had never once described Taeseongyeon’s seal, leaving Dokyeom unable to pinpoint its exact location.
‘Where could it be?’ he wondered. ‘It’s definitely somewhere hidden from view.’
“And Mr. Han Dokyeom. Let’s try to cause trouble in moderation, keeping the Facility Manager’s position in mind. Just remember, if I quit, there’ll be no one to clean up your messes.”
“Why wouldn’t there be? Taeseongyeon is here.”
“If I have to step in, Mr. Han Dokyeom will find himself having to pay with his own body. If that’s alright with you, then by all means.”
“Oh, forget it. You’re just going to ask for something perverted again.”
“You know me well.”
The low voice carried an unfamiliar weight. Before Dokyeom could discern if it was a joke or serious, Taeseongyeon left the conference room, leaving only those words behind. Only after the sound of every retreating footstep outside the door had faded did Dokyeom finally rise and exit the room himself.
If the information ‘Orias’ had brought was accurate, Dokyeom had no choice but to seclude himself in the swimming pool until the call-up day to prepare. He wasn’t sure if it was something that could be done in a day or two, but he wouldn’t know until he tried.
“Ah… drinks.”
Before heading to Agon, Dokyeom changed direction, extracted a pile of beverages from a vending machine, cradled them in his arms, and made his way to the emergency exit. The sight of a staff member entering to clean the conference room witnessing this became the catalyst for Dokyeom’s latest antics to be delivered as new content to countless hunters.
‘That E-grade punk now shows up to work just to raid the company,’ was the general sentiment.
Yet, it seemed a grudging affection had developed, as opinions were now split roughly fifty-fifty. Some clucked their tongues in pity, wondering how destitute he must be to deplete the guild’s drinks, while others sighed in indignation, asking how someone receiving a salary could be so greedy for freebies. Regardless, Dokyeom spent his days diligently practicing diving in the swimming pool.
Thus passed two days.
At the end of those precarious days, like walking a tightrope, the emergency call-up order for the Red Gate finally descended. It was a dawn when a light drizzle briefly fell. All guild hunters from Seoul were mobilized and gathered before the barricades of the sealed Seolleung Station.
The abnormal gate readings had peaked at maximum decibels, creating an ominous atmosphere.
In that morning, filled with the looming shadow of war, everything finally began, piercing through the silence.
****
Whump-whump-whump-whump-whump—
“You’ve all heard the news that a massive energy signature is currently being detected beyond the Seolleung Station barricades! Yet, the form itself remains utterly invisible! To uncover the truth of this anomaly, our NB1 team is live on the scene. The already sealed-off area is teeming with armed hunters! Reports indicate that the measured gate levels are incomparably higher than during the Busan Station Gate Break!”
The fervor of the media, broadcast from countless helicopters circling overhead, was so intense it threatened to engulf the city. Gate-specializing reporters, risking their lives, flew in helicopters, spitting out words as they delivered their broadcasts.
They stood precariously, tethered by wires at their waists, clutching microphones, looking as if they might plummet at any moment. Yet, fueled by ambition, the reporters refused to let go of their microphones.
Everyone seemed busy, simply fighting to secure their own livelihoods. And it wasn’t just the field reporters.
Some hunters, desperate to rack up NewTube views, also risked their lives, leaping across building rooftops to conduct live broadcasts. It seemed their guts had sprung out of their bellies, as they merely grinned at warnings of danger.
“Subscribers, wanna make a deal with me? I’m betting on a super-huge snake-toad appearing. From what I see, if the Gate Break happens, one building will collapse every second. Whoa, whoa! The ground is really shaking here?! Oh, you don’t believe me? Alright, calm down and let’s check out the tiny hunters below! If you look closely, even the three major Guild Leaders are there.”
“Everyone, see below? Wow, they’re all armed and looking magnificent. Oh, right. This Gate Break’s readings are eight or nine times higher than the Busan Station Gate incident. What was it again? The higher the reading, the higher the chance of dangerous monsters appearing? The guys who were so proud after the Busan Station Gate incident are having a fit over this one, aren’t they? Oh, yeah. Get lost. Is that something to be proud of? Huh?! Wait a minute! I think the measurement management team is withdrawing?!”
While the NewTubers conducted their live broadcasts from atop tall buildings, the armed hunters mobilized for the disaster spent a frantic time preparing for the impending catastrophe.
“Gate readings are increasing exponentially! The decibel levels have exceeded the baseline, making further measurement impossible!”
The Gate Measurement Management team shouted, veins bulging in their necks. The grim situation made everyone swallow dryly.
The front lines of the formation were mostly filled by high-ranking hunters. The same was true for the Guild Leaders of the three major guilds, who were intently watching the faint tremors of the ground.
Dokyeom, of course, was positioned at the front alongside Agon.
As the ground tremors intensified, the measurement management team quickly dismantled their equipment and hastily retreated to the rear. Soon, the gate would open.
The problem was how to get that Taeseongyeon to the back.
Dokyeom gnawed at his lip, glaring at Taeseongyeon’s distinguished back of the head with an intensity that threatened to bore holes through it. Perhaps sensing his gaze, Taeseongyeon suddenly turned his head and looked at Dokyeom.
Dokyeom immediately pointed his finger backward, as if jabbing.
‘Back! Go back! Back!’
Taeseongyeon’s sly smile, with the corners of his eyes curved, seemed to be an indirect refusal.
Of course, if a Guild Leader were to retreat alone to save their own life, that would truly make them a scoundrel. The greatest scoundrel of all. Taeseongyeon’s actions had to be seen as a sense of responsibility stemming from his rank.
Dokyeom, taking Agon with him, moved casually, searching for a spot where he could keep an eye on Taeseongyeon. In the midst of the strange tension, he fleetingly felt someone’s gaze.
As he instinctively raised his head, his eyes met someone’s in the crowd. As if they had been watching Dokyeom all along, the person flinched like a thief caught in the act the moment their eyes met.
It was Ju Uiryeong.
Dokyeom offered Ju Uiryeong a slight smile. The other’s eyebrows twitched upward in apparent displeasure. Beside Ju Uiryeong, who seemed to have much to say, Geon Ita was also visible, intently watching the trembling ground.
Geon Ita was surprisingly calm, yet he exuded such a sharp aura that it made one hesitant to approach him. A tenacious focus was palpable.
And for good reason. Even the usually bored Geon Ita displayed an obsession with powers no less than Taeseongyeon’s. Geon Ita had already been informed by the higher powers that there was a power here, and he had appeared at this location to determine if it was the power he desired.
It wasn’t a sense of justice. At this time, Geon Ita was someone who prioritized his own desires above people, cities, or the well-being of the nation.
Dokyeom and Agon took up a position where the crowd was sparse. Agon had been on edge for a long time, intently watching the violently shaking ground.
Agon’s low growl was swallowed by the myriad of sounds: the noise spewing from the helicopters, the tense breaths of the hunters, and even the rumbling rising from deep within the earth.
It wasn’t long before the first signs began to appear.
When a shattering sound echoed from somewhere, something tore through the heavy air and pricked their skin. An immense shockwave constricted their breathing.
He keenly felt that this was different from the Eulwangri incident. A sudden gust of wind blew from somewhere, and the sky gradually darkened. Everyone looked around at the sky, which was manifesting strange phenomena.
Crash! Bang!!
A massive tremor rose from deep within the earth. Hunters, sensing the threat, slowly retreated. The barricaded ground began to sink and collapse little by little.
Snap—
“Th-the ground…”
The air pressed down on his entire body, making it hard to breathe. Dokyeom glanced alternately at Taeseongyeon and Ju Uiryeong, then pulled out a self-defense dagger from his inventory and gripped it. He slowly retreated.
Roughly five steps.
Grrrrumble—!
The collapsing ground suddenly caved in with a deafening roar. A cloud of dust enveloped the area, and coughs erupted from everywhere.
Before long, the dust covering the city dissipated with a fierce wind.
A multitude of hunters stared at the former location of the barricade, their faces etched with disbelief. All that remained was a gaping, pitch-black chasm, like the maw of a serpent.
It was a sinkhole. One that stretched like a dizzying, bottomless cliff.
Creak—Screech—
Inside the massive sinkhole that had swallowed an 8-lane road, bizarre noises echoed like a swarm of bats. Hunters immediately assumed battle stances. Crouching low, each hunter drew their weapon and watched the sinkhole with bated breath.
It was then, from the pitch-black sky that had summoned storm clouds, that the sound of a single raindrop hitting was heard.
Screech-screech!! Screech!!
Thousands, tens of thousands of monsters began to crawl out of the sinkhole like a swarm of bees.
“What?! Why are there so many?!”
“Don’t let them go to the rear!”
“Auxiliary hunters, fall back!”
Hunters from various guilds shouted, spitting words, and immediately charged at the monsters. The beasts hastily crawling out of the sinkhole were quadrupedal creatures with monkey faces and goat horns. Each was roughly the size of a lion, and their movements were as swift and agile as a tiger’s.
However, the grade of the monsters themselves was not particularly high. At most, they were B-class.
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