Upon entering the Dark Space, the smoke might already have dispersed, but there’s nothing we can do about it.
‘What can I do with that… Still, it could be considered a byproduct of the monster that defeated Yeon-su. There must be something, right?’
With some expectations, I took a moment to survey the current situation.
‘At least there are many capable people here. Fewer disputes and surprisingly tidy responses.’
Despite many Hunters having gathered, facing two major crises with multiple casualties, there wasn’t much chaos, perhaps because a big shot like Park Yong-hwan had stepped in as the central figure right from the start.
I decided to keep Park Yong-hwan in mind, who had no particular information.
The giant monster that had spat out the black creature remained silent for over an hour, during which the Hunters took the chance to have a light meal or rest, adjusting themselves.
Finally, a member of the initial Awakened Ones, known as a Transcendent, appeared.
A bent figure with translucent wings fluttering, lightly descending from the sky. Is that even a person?
‘That dragonfly-shaped wing… It must be him?! As expected. Did the management agency have some thought in summoning him?’
The fluttering translucent wings soon folded behind the Transcendent and, based on the magic power I sensed from him, it was hard to imagine he resembled a human.
‘… I’ve heard that restrictions can affect physical appearance, but seeing it in person is another thing.’
His face was completely covered by a mask, and he was shorter than a Kobold. I doubted whether he could even fight given his stature.
However, the presence he exuded upon landing surged explosively, leaving no room for such thoughts.
– … Incredible.
– Th-that person is…
– Insect Sorcerer Kim Seon-min!
As he arrived, Park Yong-hwan rushed over and greeted Kim Seon-min politely.
“Ah, hello! It’s an honor to meet you!”
“… Hmm. We don’t have time, so let’s skip the introductions. Is that the one?”
Transcendent Kim Seon-min immediately sought out his task upon arrival.
He was entirely captivated by the bizarre creature oscillating between black and teal, then uttered just one phrase.
“How beautiful. A perfect being.”
“… Huh?”
Park Yong-hwan stood there, unable to even approach Kim Seon-min, blankly responding.
“Thirty minutes.”
And then Kim Seon-min casually mentioned that thirty-minute timeframe.
Hearing that number, Park Yong-hwan nodded in satisfaction and fired a signal rocket to alert the Hunters of the full-scale attack.
“Sir can operate for thirty minutes! We’ll make our move within that time frame!”
With Park Yong-hwan’s shout, Insect Sorcerer Kim Seon-min began activating his skills.
‘As expected… That ability should be just right for dealing with a slumbering monster.’
Kim Seon-min possessed abilities true to his class name; he could control insects.
However, these weren’t exotic bugs from another world; most were the types commonly known on Earth.
Ants, bees, beetles, fruit flies, mosquitoes, cockroaches, fleas, and dragonflies, etc.
Countless bugs poured out from the gaps between his face and mask along with a thick liquid, charging en masse toward the giant creature.
‘The power of a single insect is weak, but when they start to gather, the story changes.’
Kim Seon-min’s ability, restricted to using magic power only on insects, was extraordinarily peculiar.
He used magic only to enhance the insects and connect them; he didn’t release magic directly.
Thus, even I, as a Sense Ability User, wouldn’t be able to pin down exactly whose “control” it was.
Consequently, it was a superb ability for stealthily manipulating the enemy, and in reality, it was widely rumored that he had roots in the underworld.
Scritch-scratch-scritch-
‘Interacting with all those insects and manipulating them freely… It’s truly unfathomable.’
Though not entirely accurate, I speculated that Kim Seon-min granted new strength to the insects, which would then repay the favor by fulfilling his desires.
It could potentially be a balanced relationship.
Scritch-scratch-
The insects began to gnaw at the monster’s body in earnest.
The black creature either didn’t perceive the swarm clinging tightly to its body or deemed them too insignificant to care about.
The lack of response was a good sign.
Scritch-scratch-scritch-
The tealy sphere was swiftly covered by the multicolored insects, encasing over half of the black sphere densely.
“Ugh…”
Yeon-hee frowned at the sight of the insects and eventually shut her eyes tight.
And like Yeon-hee, many Hunters were heard groaning in pain.
Silence—
Only the sound of insects gnawing at the monster could be heard.
So quiet that no other sounds remained.
Fearing that any noise might interfere with Kim Seon-min’s ability, the Hunters held their breaths as ten minutes more passed.
‘This is madness…’
Suddenly, a memory flickered in my mind of reading a book detailing the information on Transcendents when I was young.
The entry on Kim Seon-min wasn’t particularly eye-catching, but it noted that his ability was quiet yet powerful.
‘Not eye-catching? He’s devouring that giant so quickly!’
If he set his mind to target the Hunters, most would be helpless.
Before we knew it, the monster’s body had shrunk to 80% of its original size.
‘The fact that it doesn’t yet realize it’s being gnawed at is chilling. Is some sort of paralysis factor secreting too?’
I was hearing about his mysterious ability for the first time as well.
Kang Yeon-su and the top-tier hunters were diligently wrapping defenses around Kim Seon-min, sitting cross-legged, in anticipation of possible attacks.
‘This might end here…?’
The current situation was surprisingly positive.
As ten more minutes passed, and the monster’s body shrunk to 60%, it finally started to respond.
Kiiieee—
“What…! That’s the ability from earlier! Thousands of ports are opening up on its body!”
“Is that a power that activates after a certain timeframe?”
“Let’s prioritize protecting the Transcendent! The monster might not even realize it’s being attacked by insects!”
In reality, Insect Sorcerer Kim Seon-min sat still, gazing merely at the monster without any movement.
Beneath his chin, thick, light yellow liquid continuously gushed out alongside the insects, and anyone unfamiliar would likely freak out and take a step back.
However, the Hunters protecting him were more enchanted by the flow and structure of his magic than repulsed by his visible form, striving to absorb at least a piece for themselves.
“Thank you, senior… It’s a whole new world.”
Even Kang Yeon-su bowed his head in gratitude.
Kim Seon-min looked at Kang Yeon-su with a curious gaze and said,
“Handling mana is a mysterious, wondrous thing. It doesn’t necessarily have to connect linearly. Once you completely recognize it as yours, the effects are no different from being connected even when apart.”
Kim Seon-min, clearly a man of few words, dropped wisdom that made the top-tier hunters perk up their ears, nodding profusely.
And precisely as he stated, millions of insects moved in perfect unison, following his command.
‘To comprehend it fully as one’s own… Just the act of converting that unfamiliar power into magic requires a massive shift in understanding. How much comprehension and realization does one need to achieve that?’
The more I pondered, the more absurd it sounded.
However, even I felt some tingling after listening to him, as though I was on the brink of some revelation.
“Keep some distance behind me. Don’t try to do anything else, understood? For now, focus solely on the defense. I need to recover a bit too.”
“Yes, yes!”
With a dazed expression, Yeon-su and I began spacing ourselves out, still transfixed by Kim Seon-min, only moving back after hearing her words.
– Gather around the S-class to set up a magic defense!
Park Yong-hwan’s shout sounded somewhat frantic, likely because of the ominous magic being concentrated from the thousands of ports sprouting on the monster’s body.
“I still don’t get what’s going on… That fire is really flickering, isn’t it?”
After ‘Ran’s’ [Acceleration] was released, Ah-rin had been out of my space for quite some time.
However, perhaps due to the aftereffects of being in the space, she still couldn’t collect her thoughts.
‘So it wasn’t just the women I brought from the underground factory who were dazed because of drugs? That guy over there… The absence of a sound when he activates his skill is even scarier.’
Typically, when something like a projectile is fired, one would anticipate a shockwave.
Without any warning, thousands of magic projectiles erupted from the monster’s body in every direction.
───!!!
The Hunters, fully prepared, expanded their defenses, determined to block the monster’s assault.
Yeon-hee and I also readied our defenses, but the impact from the rebounding magic projectiles, thrown against Kang Yeon-su’s barrier, was so immense that collaboration felt challenging.
Boom boom boom—!!
“Ugh… When does this even end?!”
“Guh…”
Yeon-hee and Ah-rin struggled to keep their bearings under the relentless magical barrage, but amidst it all, Yeon-hee managed to remember to apply the mystical membrane onto the Sword Dragon.
Hours dragged on as the appalling ordeal continued, and sensing the monster’s attack abating, we leaned our heads over next to the Drake.
But there were hardly any Hunters left around us.
Instead, the multiple long lines stretching behind indicated that those who had been building barriers up front had been pushed back from the shock.
We were able to remain where we were thanks to Yeon-su protecting us from the monster.
[Bo-o-o-o…]
The exhausted creature’s momentum had significantly faded, sounding almost painful in tone.
[Bo-o-o…?!]
Suddenly, the thousands of ports on its body shifted to reveal eyes that fixated intensely on a single point.
Chill—
‘Ugh… to think its power has diminished this much.’
“Ha! Finally caught on, huh?”
In contrast to me, Transcendent Kim Seon-min casually absorbed the gaze of the monster with a wide grin.
Finally realizing Kim Seon-min was present, the creature’s teal body reddened, visibly furious.
Its body had now shrunk to less than half of its original size.
The Hunters no longer recklessly utilized skills to empower it, and the insects only grew bolder as they continued to devour the monster’s body.
“It’s a dead end. Heh-heh—”
Kim Seon-min articulated “Checkmate,” and the other Hunters released relieved sighs, feeling as if a weight had lifted from their chests.
‘Phew… So this is the power of a Transcendent. Stopping that ridiculous monster all by himself.’
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