At last, the Yuseong twins I had finally found—
“Gasp!”
—woke up.
THUD.
Then collapsed again.
They repeated that several times.
There was one unusual thing, however.
“Gasp!”
It was not one of the Yuseong twins, but the Mercenary they had presumably hired.
THUD.
He, too, kept waking up and fainting again.
Had they not said he was a Hunter? Was it because he was only C-rank?
Because of that, I had no choice but to remain in the cave for a while.
“…Who are you…?”
Yoo So-ha finally managed to regain her senses after fainting and waking up about five times.
“Korea Hunter Association Special Division.”
“…Really?”
“Yes.”
Still frightened and not yet fully recovered from her panic, Yoo So-ha stared at me as though she found that hard to believe before eventually accepting it.
“If you were not, we would already be dead. You would not have waited for us like this either.”
With that rational conclusion, Yoo So-ha gradually calmed down.
“Gasp!”
Of course, Yoo Seong-ha fainted once or twice more.
As for the Mercenary, he kept fainting so often that I eventually stopped trying to wake him.
“You really are from the Special Division?”
After finally regaining his senses, Yoo Seong-ha asked as though he still could not believe it.
“…Then why….”
“Yoo Seong-ha, he is the person who saved us. You are not planning to be rude to him, are you?”
“Noona, put your spear down first… Ow!”
That was a relief.
Neither of them appeared seriously injured, and most of their mental panic seemed to have faded.
“We need to move.”
I spoke to the twins.
“We have stayed too long in a place whose location has already been exposed.”
I had remained here because I could not carry three people at once through an area that was not a Safe Zone.
But the Dark Elves already knew about this place.
“We need to leave quickly.”
“Understood.”
“I will carry the Mercenary.”
The twins were cooperative.
There were two ways to leave a Gate.
Either return through the entrance we had used to come in—
or kill the Boss Monster.
KIEEEEEE!
The cries of the Dark Elves were drawing closer.
“…Is this Boss Monster strong?”
I asked the twins.
“Pardon? Yes, of course. If it is the Boss Monster of an A-rank or higher Gate….”
That was troublesome.
The Dark Elves were clearly intelligent creatures.
I could sense quite a few of them near the Gate entrance, as though they intended to block it.
“…But we should be fine.”
“……?”
“We both awakened as Hunters.”
“You awakened as Hunters?”
I asked in genuine surprise.
When?
“We will have to undergo an examination to know for sure, but I think we are probably A-rank. So….”
Yoo So-ha spoke carefully.
“We will not get in your way.”
Get in my way?
“You can focus on hunting the Boss Monster. If we would only interfere, we can hide here in the cave instead.”
I see.
‘The Boss must really be that frightening.’
Even after awakening as Hunters, they were saying they would remain behind.
Contrary to the reckless way they had behaved by trying to become Hunters, the Yuseong twins were rather mature and intelligent children.
There must have been reasons of their own for causing this incident.
They really did seem worthy of being called the sprouts of the future.
That was a relief.
I was glad I could protect them.
Then I should rescue them as safely as possible.
“Then wait here.”
‘I will hunt the Boss.’
Dealing with the Dark Elves blocking the entrance would not be difficult, but even if these children had awakened at A-rank or higher, this was still their first real battle.
I had learned painfully in my previous world that a single small mistake could determine whether someone lived or died.
In that case, killing the Boss Monster and escaping that way should be the safest option.
The twins quickly accepted that and nodded.
“Please come back safely, Hunter.”
“…Hunter?”
I stared at Yoo So-ha for a moment, slightly startled, then began moving quickly.
I should hurry.
‘I need to awaken soon too, just like the twins.’
Awakening and becoming a real Hunter.
That had been my original reason for entering the Gate.
‘The Dark Elves suddenly died, so I never got the chance to awaken.’
But if it was the Boss Monster, perhaps even I would be able to feel the fear of death.
“…Is he gone?”
After laying the Mercenary down to one side, Yoo Seong-ha carefully asked.
Yoo So-ha, who had been watching the cave entrance, answered quietly.
“…Just now.”
“Haa, haa. I thought I was going to die.”
Yoo Seong-ha slumped to the ground and breathed heavily.
“…What the hell is that Monster? Is he really from the Special Division? No matter how I look at him, he seems more like a criminal….”
“Yoo Seong-ha! Watch what you say.”
“Huh?”
“He is the benefactor who saved us. Do not suspect him so casually.”
At Yoo So-ha's serious expression, Yoo Seong-ha wiped his sweat-soaked hands.
“Who said I was not grateful? I am just saying there are not that many Hunters in the Special Division known to be S-rank or higher.”
“…….”
“But from what I saw, that man is at least… S-rank.”
No.
That was not it.
‘Higher.’
The two of them had desperately longed to become Hunters.
Although Yuseong Group was prohibited from owning a Guild under the Hunter Act, the Yuseong name and its wealth had still given them chances to meet S-rank Hunters.
But neither of them had ever seen anyone radiate such a presence.
No—
such Killing Intent.
“And that Killing Intent.”
Yoo Seong-ha spoke tensely.
“It was that overwhelming even though he did not actually intend to kill us. Just how many people would someone have to kill to have something like that….”
“Yoo Seong-ha!”
Yoo So-ha scolded him again.
“I know. I also know the Killing Intent we felt from him was anything but ordinary. But he is from the Special Division. If someone that powerful is still unknown to the public, he must have taken on countless dangerous missions. Treating someone like that as a criminal just because of that is…….”
“Are you going to keep making me sound like some kind of lunatic? I am grateful too. I am just curious! More importantly….”
Yoo Seong-ha finally rose to his feet and stretched.
“He really is our benefactor. Saving our lives was already enough, but… he even caused us to awaken as Hunters.”
It was true.
Yoo So-ha and Yoo Seong-ha had tried desperately to awaken as Hunters.
But what finally caused them to awaken was neither the Anomalous Gate nor the Dark Elves.
It was Kim Si-hyeon.
The enormous Killing Intent radiating from Kim Si-hyeon had made them feel the fear and terror of ‘death’ for the first time in their lives.
And the moment they tried to resist it, they became aware of mana.
“We have to repay him.”
Yoo Seong-ha said.
“We do.”
Yoo So-ha answered.
“…Though I am scared to see him again.”
Yoo Seong-ha looked slightly frightened.
Finding the Dark Elf Boss was not difficult.
The Monsters of an A-rank Gate, the Dark Elves, were intelligent creatures.
KIEEEEEE!
I wounded several Dark Elves and let them escape.
Terrified yet relieved to still be alive, the Dark Elves began fleeing.
I followed the direction they ran.
Low-level intelligent creatures gripped by fear moved according to whatever method gave them the best chance of survival.
They would seek out someone stronger who could save them.
‘I can do this.’
Even if it was a Boss Monster, I felt confident.
After facing a few more Dark Elves, I realized they were manageable.
Of course, I did not let my guard down.
Complacency was always the most dangerous thing.
‘There is no doubt.’
Nothing in this Gate could threaten me.
I wondered whether I might fail to awaken at this rate, but even if I could not use mana—
“…I am strong.”
I had vaguely realized it before, but experiencing actual combat made it clear.
My body was no longer that of an ordinary human.
Even the twins, who had awakened as Hunters, had called themselves a ‘hindrance’ compared to me.
That was why I could decide to hunt the Boss Monster alone.
Before long, I reached a small forest where the Boss Monster was likely to be.
Dark Elves were guarding the entrance.
“…….”
‘I need to know what this changed body can do, and how far it can go.’
Understanding the limits of my body had been one of the most important parts of surviving in the ruined world.
My endurance.
My strength.
My concentration.
Every factor necessary for survival had to be tested.
‘Let us see.’
The twins had awakened at A-rank or higher, so they should be safe.
Even at a glance, ordinary Dark Elves did not seem like much of a threat to them.
In other words, I had enough time to test the limits of my body.
I moved quickly and severed the neck of one of the Dark Elves guarding the forest entrance in a single stroke.
‘Moving is even easier now.’
It felt as though I could move much faster if I wanted to.
KIEEEEEE!
The Dark Elves spotted me and charged.
I suppressed my Killing Intent as much as possible.
‘I cannot let what happened before happen again.’
The first time I faced the Dark Elves—
for some reason, they had instantly fainted and lost consciousness.
At first, I thought it had been an effect of the Gate.
But after what happened with the Yuseong twins, and after chasing the Dark Elves here, I had formed a theory.
‘It is because of my Killing Intent.’
Could that be an ability I possessed?
If the world had changed and my body had changed with it, perhaps I had developed a new ability as well.
‘I need to learn how to use it.’
But I still had no suitable target to test it on.
Ordinary Dark Elves fainted merely from feeling my Killing Intent.
If they all passed out before I could even test the limits of my body, that would be a problem.
So I kept my Killing Intent hidden as much as possible—
SWISH!
—and began fighting them.
How much time had passed?
Dark Elf corpses with their heads severed filled the area around me.
And then—
“…….”
At some point, a Dark Elf with an obviously different appearance emerged.
It stood at least a full head taller than the others.
Its bulging muscles and pitch-black eyes gave off an eerie sense of pressure.
The feeling reminded me of—
‘A Special Variant?’
It felt similar to the Special Variants I occasionally encountered among Zombies.
‘If that is the Dark Elf Boss….’
TATAT!
Perhaps it could teach me something.
How I was supposed to use this Killing Intent of mine.
CLANG!
My sword collided with the Dark Elf Boss's blade.
I could clearly feel strength far beyond that of the ordinary Dark Elves.
But why?
Unlike the Zombie Special Variants I had always needed to risk my life to hunt, I felt no sense of danger at all now.
CLANG! CLANG!
This was easy.
It felt as though I could use much more strength if I wanted to.
CLANG-CLANG-CLANG!
This did not feel even close to my limit.
No—
KRAANG!
I even began to wonder whether a limit existed at all.
When its sword was knocked away, the Dark Elf Boss hurriedly retreated and drew a dagger.
I stopped and checked the condition of my body.
“Hoo.”
Despite the fairly intense fight, my breathing had not become uneven at all.
The muscles that should have been trembling instead moved smoothly, as though I had only just woken from sleep.
I quietly stared at the Dark Elf.
“…….”
Unlike me, its breathing was ragged and its muscles trembled with tension.
I searched my memories.
When I had faced the Zombie at the Association—
and when the Dark Elves had fainted.
What state had I been in then?
‘I kill.’
The moment I thought that—
THUD.
The Dark Elf Boss suddenly dropped to one knee.
“……?”
I stared at it, confused.
“Ah…”
Instead of a cry, it began producing actual words.
The creature slowly raised its head.
A strange light began wavering in its eyes.
“G-g-great….”
“……!”
I could not help but be shocked.
The strange language it spoke—
I could understand it.
“Our savior… has finally come.”
“O great Void, O great Death.”
Muttering those words, the creature slowly raised its dagger.
There was not the slightest trace of hostility in the motion.
“Harvest death.”
SCRAPE. SCRRRAAPE!
The Dark Elf Boss—whatever it truly was—cut its own throat.
THUMP.
The next moment, the Dark Elf Boss's head rolled across the ground.
Bright purple light burst from its body and flew toward me.
I could not even dodge it.
No.
The thought of dodging never even occurred to me.
WHOOSH!
The light seeped into my body.