North Korea's Demonic Zone had already been completely overrun by monsters.
Naturally, the farther north one traveled, the more monsters appeared, and the more frequently stronger ones showed up.
The fact that a Basilisk had appeared after Hae-jin had traveled only a short distance from the lodge said everything.
That was why the camper van played such an important role.
It allowed him to venture deeper into the Demonic Zone safely without spending more than ten hours dangerously constructing another shack.
VROOOOM--!
Hae-jin drove the camper van past the shack and continued farther north.
He had been driving slowly for about thirty minutes when the scenery around him became noticeably different.
“This really is a Demonic Zone.... It's eerie.”
The area had been completely untouched by human hands, so weeds grew thickly everywhere he looked.
In some places, they had grown as high as his waist, making it difficult to see what lay ahead.
The roads, which had been abandoned for a long time, were in even worse condition.
The asphalt was cracked in countless places, and many of the guardrails had been destroyed.
Even the atmosphere was completely different from the area around the lodge, which had at least received the bare minimum of maintenance.
“Whimper! Whimper!”
This time, Hae-jin had brought Guard along.
Guard had been poking its head out of the passenger-side window and busily sniffing the air when it suddenly began whining.
“There are monsters nearby?”
“Woof!”
“Okay, good job, Guard. Thanks.”
It was one of the signals Hae-jin had taught Guard during its training.
Hae-jin parked the camper van in the middle of the ruined road, then carefully stepped outside.
He looked around cautiously.
“Hmm... I don't see anything, at least.”
First, he immediately activated his Skill.
An invincible zone formed around him.
Since the camper van was not a proper house, the radius was not particularly large.
It extended roughly two meters from the vehicle.
“WOOF! WOOF WOOF!”
“Guard, over there? There's something to the north?”
Guard hopped around while assuming a vigilant stance.
Hae-jin still could not see any monsters, so he narrowed his eyes.
RUSTLE-RUSTLE-
WHOOSH!
The nearby weeds suddenly shook, and a pitch-black shape burst out.
It moved at such incredible speed that it was difficult for the human eye to follow.
“W-What?!”
Hae-jin barely had time to react before it was right in front of him.
Of course—
THUD!
-SCREE! SCREEEE!!
Just like every other monster before it, the creature merely slammed its head into the invisible wall.
'A Rattla? I'd heard they were dangerous, but it's much faster than I imagined.'
Hae-jin knew the name of the monster that had attacked him.
Rattla.
It was a rat-shaped monster with enormous front teeth.
Thanks to its astonishing movement speed, like the burst Hae-jin had just witnessed, it was notorious for ambushing Hunters without warning.
The word rat might make it sound relatively harmless.
But a Rattla was about the size of a large dog.
In fact, it was slightly larger than Guard.
Its razor-sharp front teeth were also about the size of a fist, and Hae-jin had heard that one clean bite did not merely leave a wound—it could tear off an arm or a leg.
THUD- THUD- THUD-!
The Rattla continued ramming its head against the barrier while glaring at him.
Without wasting any time, Hae-jin brought out the gun and Long Spear he had prepared.
But today, he had one additional piece of equipment.
Among all those cold metal weapons sat an electronic device that looked completely out of place.
A livestream action camera.
It was an all-in-one camera he had bought cheaply secondhand.
“Good. Shall we get started?”
Why had he suddenly brought a camera into the middle of all this?
What exactly was he planning to do?
The answer was simple.
BEEP-!
Hae-jin switched on the camera and connected it to the streaming app he had already set up on his phone.
An internet livestream immediately began.
That was right.
Hae-jin's latest plan was livestreaming.
'I've heard this is incredibly popular these days.'
After the Gates opened and North Korea became a Demonic Zone, public attention had naturally become completely focused on monsters and Hunters.
For ordinary people, monster hunting was the ultimate spectacle and an endless source of excitement.
As a result, the livestreaming market centered around Hunters had grown enormously.
Hae-jin intended to make his own entry into that vast, still-growing market.
'I have to hunt anyway, right? If I livestream at the same time, I can make money twice from the same hunt. Heh! What an incredible idea. Lee Hae-jin, just how much of a genius are you?'
It was admittedly a little self-indulgent, but he was confident he could attract attention.
After all, he had unique content that only he could produce.
[Live]
[Camping in a Demonic Zone Right Next to North Korea – Now This Is Real Healing]
Camping in the middle of a battlefield where one's life could be lost at any moment.
Who else in the world could do something this insane?
Hae-jin immediately started the broadcast.
Since he intended to hunt monsters during it, he naturally restricted the stream to viewers aged nineteen and above.
'As for viewers... they'll trickle in eventually.'
-SCREEEEEE!
Hae-jin turned the camera toward the Rattla.
The creature continued thrashing wildly without showing any sign of tiring.
Then, wearing the most relaxed expression imaginable, Hae-jin opened the camper van's storage compartment.
What emerged was none other than a grill and a bundle of firewood.
They were the same ones he had used at the lodge.
“Ah, I'm hungry. Shall we start preparing dinner?”
With a mischievous smile, Hae-jin placed the grill directly in front of the Rattla.
WHOOSH-!
SIZZLE!
He skillfully lit the fire and began grilling the meat he had prepared.
Today's menu was Korean Beef outside skirt and short plate.
“I never get tired of Korean Beef, even if I eat it every day. Eating outside in such a peaceful(?) place....”
“SCREEEEE! SCREE!!”
“...really puts the mind at ease. This is what healing is all about. Hehehe!”
The appetizing sound of meat sizzling filled the air.
Of course, it was almost completely drowned out by the Rattla's frenzied screeching.
Then, at last, the first viewer entered the stream.
The historic first message posted in Hae-jin's chat was—
[Yeombani - ??????????]
[Yeombani - Are you insane????? What is this???????]
The chat box filled with question marks.
It was exactly the reaction Hae-jin had been hoping for.
With his face appropriately concealed behind a mask, he delivered the line he had prepared.
“Ah, Yeombani, welcome. What do you mean, what is this? As you can see, I'm camping. That thing over there is a monster.”
[Yeombani - Isn't that a Rattla? I heard those only appear deep inside Demonic Zones??]
“Excellent! You know your monsters. That's right. I'm practically in the heart of a Demonic Zone right now. Another hour north from here and you'd reach North Korea.”
[Yeombani - That's exactly my point... How are you camping there, you lunatic?]
[TangerineJellyBoy - Just joined. What am I looking at? Is this AI?]
“AI? No, this is a genuine live broadcast. Would you like a closer look at the meat? Doesn't it look incredible?”
[Kkokkopia - This man is actually camping in a Demonic Zone.]
[Yeombani - The streamer is seriously thinking about food right now? Also, what is wrong with that Rattla?!]
[StagInTheForest - What kind of stream is this? Hahaha. Livestreaming really is overcrowded now. People are grilling meat in front of monsters.]
Perhaps it was because Hae-jin often watched livestreams at home whenever he was bored.
Despite this being his first broadcast, he managed to host it fairly naturally.
More importantly, the content itself was so unusual that it immediately drew attention.
After about twenty minutes, fifty-two viewers were already watching.
[TangerineJellyBoy - This has to be staged, right? How does it make sense for a Rattla to keep smashing its head against some invisible wall?]
[Kkokkopia - AI has become frighteningly convincing these days.]
[IllBeGoodFromNowOn - But it looks way too real to be staged.]
“Hmm, this is a problem. None of you believe me. I keep telling you this isn't staged or AI. It's a real livestream. Fine, then. All right! I'll prove it to you right now.”
The meat had also finished cooking at exactly the right time.
Hae-jin removed the thick pieces of beef, which had developed a beautiful Maillard crust, from the grill and wrapped them carefully in foil.
They needed five minutes to rest.
While he waited, Hae-jin picked up the rifle he had placed beside him.
CLICK-!
He loaded it expertly.
Then he aimed the muzzle at the Rattla and grinned toward the camera.
“Bang.”
RATATATATATAT--!
The rifle unleashed a satisfying burst of automatic fire.
Pale gunpowder smoke drifted into the air.
When it cleared, the Rattla that had been thrashing moments earlier had become nothing more than a lump of meat.
As the creature died completely, silence settled over the area.
The chat box also fell silent, as though it had been struck by the bullets too.
“I've spread the smell of meat everywhere, and now I've made plenty of noise with a gun. More monsters will probably start gathering soon. So what should I do then, everyone?”
Having thoroughly silenced the doubters, Hae-jin leisurely returned to the grill.
Then, as he sliced into his perfectly cooked steak, he continued.
“I should finish relaxing, of course. Isn't the marbling on this Korean Beef beautiful? Would anyone like a bite?”
At that moment—
[Yeombani - ??????????????? WHAT???????]
[Johmnyang - What is this? What is this? What is this? What is this? What is this?]
[LightstickShuttle - It wasn't AI? All of this is real?]
[Chago881 - I'm clipping this and posting it to the streaming forum right now.]
[Reniril - I've never watched a hunting stream before. Are they all like this?]
[Yeombani - Of course they're not all like this. This streamer is the strange one. I have no idea how he's doing any of this.]
The chat suddenly exploded with activity.
['TangerineJellyBoy' donated 100,000 won!]
* Sorry I doubted you, streamer. I've never seen anything like this in my life. I subscribed and followed immediately. Do you take paid challenges too?
Hae-jin cheered inwardly before replying.
“Paid challenges? Of course I do. But my challenges start at a minimum of two hundred thousand won. Would that be all right with you, TangerineJellyBoy?”
[TangerineJellyBoy - For content like this, 200,000 won is worth it.]
“Oh, thank you very much! You have my loyalty! Hahahaha!”
He had begun livestreaming with only half-hearted confidence that it would work.
Then a thought suddenly occurred to him.
If he handled this properly, it might become far more profitable than hunting itself.
Much more profitable than he had ever expected.