Like every other country, the South Korean Hunter Administration convened an emergency meeting as soon as the new Ruins were announced.
The senior officials gathered to discuss what strategy they should adopt for clearing this month’s new Ruins.
Realistically, the most important issue was naturally the Legendary-grade Ruins.
Commissioner Yoo Jeong-tae looked around at the officials and asked.
“What does everyone think? Do you think we can clear a Legendary-grade Ruin this time?”
Most of the officials nodded and responded positively to the Commissioner’s question.
“With Hunter Kim Yu-min wearing that armor and our Elite Hunters equipped with those excellent swords again, I believe it should be entirely possible.”
“As long as we can secure one before the other countries do, clearing a Legendary-grade Ruin should not be especially difficult.”
“Let us summon the Hunters from the major Companies as quickly as possible and formulate an operation.”
South Korea had been fortunate that the Legendary-grade Ruins cleared by Jeon Jae-woo had yielded armor and swords.
Most Ruins produced various resources such as Magic Stones.
Of course, resources were by no means undesirable, but putting them to immediate use in actual combat required extensive processing and preparation, which took considerable time.
In that respect, South Korea had benefited enormously from the items Jeon Jae-woo had brought back.
“Good. Then let us select Ruins that match our strengths. And above all, we need to move before China or Japan.”
“Yes!”
If everything went well, South Korea might even be able to clear two Legendary-grade Ruins using its own strength this time.
That would mark the first step toward South Korea becoming a major Awakened power.
‘Although, with Hunter Jeon Jae-woo alone, we are practically already an Awakened superpower…’
The problem was that Jeon Jae-woo had no intention of placing himself under the Hunter Administration’s control.
Still, they could proceed with the Legendary-grade Ruin clears according to plan.
Yoo Jeong-tae moved on to the next agenda item.
“More importantly, what is Hunter Jeon Jae-woo doing right now?”
“He does not appear to be making any particular moves at the moment.”
In truth, even the Hunter Administration did not know what Jeon Jae-woo was doing.
When they first discovered that he was the person who had cleared the Legendary-grade Ruin, the Hunter Administration had naturally attempted to station personnel around his residence.
The intention was both to protect the Legendary-grade Ruin clearer and to prevent foreign powers from attempting to recruit him.
However, some unknown force seemed to be blocking the area around Jeon Jae-woo, and in the end, the Hunter Administration agents had been unable to approach and were forced to give up.
In any case, several hours had already passed since the new Ruins appeared.
Since there had not yet been any reports of a successful clear, it seemed Jeon Jae-woo was remaining quiet this time.
One of the officials offered an opinion.
“If Hunter Jeon Jae-woo cooperates with us, would clearing the Ancient-grade Ruin not be entirely possible?”
It was an obvious point.
This was someone who could clear a Legendary-grade Ruin in only five minutes.
If he cooperated, South Korea might be able to establish a historic record by clearing an Ancient-grade Ruin for the first time in the country’s history.
“Yes. I will visit Hunter Jeon Jae-woo soon and ask for his opinion.”
Just then—
The meeting room door flew open, and an employee delivered shocking(?) news.
“Commissioner! We just received word that the Ancient-grade Ruin has been cleared! The clearer’s name is Jeon Jae-woo, and his nationality is South Korean!!”
“…???”
Everyone in the meeting room stared with their mouths hanging open.
Commissioner Yoo Jeong-tae experienced a sense of déjà vu remarkably similar to when he first heard that a Legendary-grade Ruin had been cleared.
***
They had finished clearing the Ancient-grade Ruin ‘The Sun That Never Sets.’
[Ruins Currently Cleared – Altar of the Apostle of Death, Old Golden Palace, Grave of Swords, The Sun That Never Sets]
[Number of Ruins Available to Clear (8)]
He had only cleared four Ruins, yet the lineup already looked remarkably impressive.
Two Legendary-grade Ruins, one Ancient-grade Ruin, and one Common-grade Ruin.
Come to think of it, he almost felt as though clearing Old Golden Palace had been a waste.
With a Common-grade Ruin sitting among Legendary- and Ancient-grade Ruins, it somehow lowered the prestige of the entire list.
Now that the clear was over, another thought occurred to him.
‘Ah. I never meant to go this far from the beginning.’
He had only intended to take a quick look at the newly appeared Ancient-grade Ruin.
He did want to clear one eventually, so he had thought of this as merely getting a taste of what an Ancient-grade Ruin was like.
But while he stood there blankly watching Myeolgeop fight, the Golem had somehow finished clearing the entire thing on its own.
‘I promised to contact the Hunter Administration before clearing any Legendary-grade or higher Ruins from now on.’
Still, Myeolgeop had already been flying around fighting, so abandoning the clear halfway through and leaving would have felt like a waste.
He had simply stayed there, and once again, he had become the person who cleared the highest-grade Ruin immediately after the new Ruins were announced.
By now, the news had surely spread across the entire world, and the reaction would be enormous.
“Ah, my head hurts.”
He would think about the Hunter Administration later.
For now, he should check the reward from the Ancient-grade Ruin.
The rewards from Legendary-grade Ruins alone had been astonishing enough to make his eyes widen.
What kind of reward could an Ancient-grade Ruin possibly offer?
Incidentally, although the World Tree had been struck by bombardment powerful enough to obliterate several mountain peaks, it still retained the shape of a tree.
Even after the clear was complete, it showed signs of restoring its body again.
Jeon Jae-woo stared wide-eyed at the World Tree as its body writhed and regenerated.
“D-Do not tell me that thing is still alive?”
The Elder Lich chuckled.
“Maker. The World Tree is nature itself, like the sea, the land, and the air that exist alongside a planet. Unless the planet itself is shattered, it is impossible to completely destroy a World Tree.”
Who designed the power balance of this Ruin so absurdly?
How were Hunters supposed to clear an Ancient-grade Ruin under those conditions?
Still, the notification window had already declared the clear complete, and the ominous aura that had covered the World Tree was gone.
Once the clear ended, the World Tree shrank considerably, becoming merely an unusually large tree compared to its previous colossal size.
The World Tree extended its branches and leaves toward Jeon Jae-woo’s group.
It seemed almost as though it were creating shade to protect Jeon Jae-woo from the harsh sunlight.
Unlike before, he could sense goodwill from the tree.
“The World Tree is expressing its gratitude to the Maker.”
“…? I did not hear it say anything.”
Then plump fruits began growing from the World Tree’s branches.
Jeon Jae-woo’s eyes lit up when he saw them.
‘Could those be…?’
The Elder Lich also stared at the fruits with apparent interest.
“It seems those are the rewards for clearing this Ancient-grade Ruin.”
Jeon Jae-woo attempted to climb the World Tree and pick the fruits himself, but he lacked the skill to climb such a tree and soon gave up.
“Myeolgeop. Please.”
Instead, Myeolgeop picked several fruits and placed them before Jeon Jae-woo.
Each one radiated a brilliant, almost mystical glow.
When he examined them individually—
[World Tree Fruit: Makes the consumer’s physical age approximately 30 years younger. The degree of effectiveness may vary depending on the individual.]
[World Tree Fruit: Cures all types of disease and provides protection against all types of disease.]
[World Tree Fruit: Alters the consumer’s body into a constitution that can more easily accept and manipulate Mana. Extreme pain may occur during the transformation process, so caution is advised when consuming it.]
Jeon Jae-woo sucked in a sharp breath.
Every single fruit possessed an extraordinary effect.
In a martial arts novel, would these not be Spiritual Elixirs capable of feats such as Body Reforging or Rejuvenation?
‘The moment I put these up for sale, the reaction is going to be insane.’
A youthful body in particular was a reward that virtually any powerful person in the world would desire.
And judging by the number of fruits currently hanging from the World Tree, there seemed to be well over a hundred.
As expected of rewards from an Ancient-grade Ruin, they were extraordinary.
Meanwhile, Myeolgeop seemed concerned about the Ancient-grade Ruin’s rewards and offered some advice.
[Creator. I recommend that you refrain from selling the fruits that restore physical youth to outsiders. Unlike the other fruits, the moment those are released into the outside world, they are likely to create considerable turmoil.]
Jeon Jae-woo agreed with Myeolgeop.
If an elixir capable of extending a person’s lifespan appeared in the world, it would undoubtedly cause all manner of trouble.
“But Myeolgeop, are you all right?”
Only then did Jeon Jae-woo remember to worry about Myeolgeop’s condition after its brutal battle with the World Tree.
It had absorbed and discharged immense quantities of Mana throughout the fight.
Was its body truly unharmed?
Contrary to his concerns, however, Myeolgeop did not appear to have any serious problems.
[One of my Traits is Self-Repair, which possesses autonomous restoration capabilities, so there is no need for concern. Whenever strain sustained during battle causes damage, I repair it immediately.]
“……”
Since it had been an Ancient-grade Ruin, the clear had taken considerably longer, but Jeon Jae-woo never felt that Myeolgeop had actually been losing to the World Tree.
Because of the nature of its opponent, Myeolgeop had been unable to destroy it completely, but in terms of the battle itself, Myeolgeop had overwhelmingly dominated the World Tree.
Just how far did the abilities of Myeolgeop, which possessed two Transcendent-grade Traits, extend?
“Still, just in case, let us avoid any intense battles for a while. No more Legendary-grade Ruins this month either.”
[I will obey your command, Creator.]
Satisfied with having cleared an Ancient-grade Ruin, Jeon Jae-woo finally left.
And the moment he returned and opened his phone—
┗Hunter Jeon Jae-woo? This is Yoo Jeong-tae. Where are you right now?
┗Hunter Jeon Jae-woo? Are you all right? If you have been injured, please tell me.
┗Hunter Jeon Jae-woo? Please, just send me one reply.
His phone was flooded with messages and missed calls from Commissioner Yoo Jeong-tae.
‘…I am afraid to answer him.’
When he turned on the television, breaking news about the Ancient-grade Ruin was already airing.
[Yes. We have just received word that, for the first time in South Korean history, an Ancient-grade Ruin has successfully been cleared. It is believed that the Hunter named Jeon Jae-woo, who cleared the Legendary-grade Ruins last month, has now cleared an Ancient-grade Ruin entirely on his own. The Hunter Administration has reportedly declined to comment…]
┗Someone pinch my cheek. I need to know whether I am dreaming.
┗No… Is that actually possible? I could somehow accept someone clearing Legendary-grade Ruins alone, but an Ancient-grade Ruin by himself?
┗At this point, he really might be the strongest Hunter in the entire world.
┗It is not that strange. He cleared a Legendary-grade Ruin alone in five minutes. The Ancient-grade one just took longer. Of course he could probably clear it by himself.
┗If he ends up clearing a Mythic-grade Ruin by himself too, that would genuinely be legendary.
┗The comment above is going too far.
Jeon Jae-woo sighed at the chaos that had erupted in an instant, then called Commissioner Yoo Jeong-tae.
Yoo Jeong-tae answered within a single second and immediately shouted.
[Hunter! You are safe?!]
The first thing the Commissioner did upon answering was worry about Jeon Jae-woo’s safety.
“Yes. I am fine.”
[Did… did you perhaps clear the Ancient-grade Ruin yourself?]
“Yes. I did.”
[……]
Yoo Jeong-tae fell silent for a moment.
Well, the shock was understandable.
Had Jeon Jae-woo inadvertently staged a demonstration of force proving that no government institution could control him?
For the moment, Yoo Jeong-tae seemed to let out a sigh of relief on the other end of the call.
[Hunter. If it would not be an imposition, may I come and see you right now?]
“Ah. Then I will come to the Hunter Administration.”
[No. I will come to you. Hunter, please remain safely at home.]
Commissioner Yoo Jeong-tae sounded as though he intended to come all the way to Jeon Jae-woo’s home whether he was invited or not.