As soon as Gu Sang-min arrived, he immediately began to showcase his skills, and finally, the faces of the emergency response team started to show some signs of relief.
The ability of Gu Sang-min to restore an arm crushed under rubble to new condition prompted a chorus of astonished gasps from the hunters.
However, some people openly displayed their discomfort.
– “No matter how many times I see it, I can’t get used to that ability.”
– “For sure… that feels a bit off.”
‘……’
Healing is a well-known ability that even ordinary people find approachable, but those who witnessed the complete regeneration of injuries mostly reacted like this.
The process of a wounded body being reborn as new inevitably brings about an instinctual repulsion, and while Gu Sang-min seemed fine on the surface, he was deeply affected by the reactions of the crowd.
Moreover, there were countless people who coveted Gu Sang-min’s abilities, and he remembered that his reason for joining the White Knight Guild was Jo Gi-man’s promise to minimize such contacts.
‘Many people wanted to repeatedly cut body parts and regenerate, seeking a way to achieve eternal youth…’
It was a thought typically entertained by those with abundant wealth but little time left, yet it was undoubtedly a disgusting idea.
The next arrivals from the White Knight Guild were Park Jin-gon, an A-rank hunter and a master of spear techniques, and Seok Ryu-hwa, an S-rank sorceress who often found herself at odds with him.
– “Why the hell do you keep following me?”
– “Haha, did this aunt have a rough lunch? Should I really have come back because of you?”
– “Damn it. If it weren’t for the Vice Guild Leader… Hah.”
– “What if it weren’t? You wanna throw down?”
‘Those two are still the same. It brings back memories.’
Watching the two who always scratched and bit at each other was tiresome, but now, seeing it again was somewhat heartwarming.
The funny thing is, they always fought with words and had never actually clashed in real combat.
‘If they did fight, Park Jin-gon would likely have the upper hand… but who knows in reality.’
Park Jin-gon was a strong contender expected to pass the S-rank hunter promotion test that occurred once a year, and he had an advantage over Seok Ryu-hwa, who had ascended to S-rank the previous year, meaning he could act so boldly.
In any case, as soon as they arrived on the scene, they entered a meeting with other top-tier powerhouses who had already gathered. I lightly broke through a powerful barrier someone had set up and eavesdropped on the meeting.
– “Nice to meet you. I’m Park Yong-hwan. I visited up top a month ago.”
The first to speak was Park Yong-hwan, known as the “Unyielding Knight,” who had actively worked to manage the accident scene. “Up top” usually refers to North Korea.
“I was here to assess the growth rate and damage caused by the Great Beast ‘Devouring Creeper.'”
In response to his comment, Seok Ryu-hwa replied with a hint of displeasure.
“I haven’t heard any such news. Did you not inform the Big Three Guilds about this?”
“Due to a coincidence in the collaboration between the association and the management bureau, it was an unofficial schedule… and of course, I didn’t get permission from North Korea, so it was quite a thrilling journey.”
Dressed entirely in red, Seok Ryu-hwa curled her lips, constantly interrupting Park Yong-hwan’s presentation.
Though her behavior showed little politeness, Park Yong-hwan seemed to know Seok Ryu-hwa’s temperament well and casually continued.
“I can’t discuss the growth of the Great Beast or North Korea’s current response due to a pact, but the aura of that monster is still vividly etched in my body—if I were to compare this slime creature to that beast… I’d say it’s overly ambitious to claim it reached the level of a Great Beast. Of course, it’s much stronger than that ‘Spike Hippopotamus’ that the ‘Sword Master’ took down recently.”
Three journalists present quickly typed up his comments, and the head of the Special Investigations Unit from the Hunter Management Bureau, Myung Se-hyeop, echoed his thoughts.
“While its growth has clearly slowed, that monstrous being with immense magic power won’t remain in that state for long. Shouldn’t we act swiftly if it’s not in the Great Beast category?”
Many hunters nodded in agreement, but Park Yong-hwan shook his head.
“I recall the worst disaster that struck China in the past. The ‘Necrosquall’ was also in a dormant state at first. Back then, its initial rating wasn’t that high either. We must be cautious not to make such a mistake again.”
“No, aside from the Necrosquall, weren’t there no similar cases? Plus, it’s clearly a lower grade than that creature, so let’s just brush it off.”
Park Jin-gon, known for his rough disposition, made this suggestion, but many agreed with him.
Yet, no one stepped forward to take initiative.
“If Joong-gil were here…”
When someone muttered this, Park Jin-gon shouted in exasperation.
“Ah, that guy Joong-gil, seriously. How long are you going to rely on him? Is he going to live forever?”
“Hey, speak more politely. How can you call him that?”
“No, I’m just astounded by how all of you are cowering like scared dogs. What is everyone so afraid of? Let’s just take it on!”
“Cough-”
“Umm…”
Of course, Park Jin-gon wasn’t oblivious to the great beast’s overwhelming presence. He couldn’t be unaware that his argument was a bit extreme.
‘I really need to wrap this up and get back to training the kids! The guild rivalry’s schedule got moved up, and I can’t believe I’m losing time on this crap.’
Despite an unimaginable monster settling in the city, his mind was solely focused on the approaching guild competition.
He had been particularly anxious lately.
To reclaim the prime dungeon managed by Seok Ryu-hwa, his designated hunter needed to make it into the top four of the guild competition, yet he was falling further behind ‘Hwa-ryeon,’ Seok Ryu-hwa’s prized disciple.
‘Damn it! All the money spent is going to waste! Should I really consider getting rid of that? If I get caught, it might impact me too…’
As frustration boiled internally, Park Jin-gon was even entertaining thoughts he shouldn’t be having.
Anxiety heightened to the point where he desperately wanted to escape and drill his disciples further, but he had no choice due to Jo Gi-man’s remote orders.
‘Damn it, Jo Gi-man. Always barking orders. What kind of miraculous herb did you find? You come back stronger every time, it’s become unbearable to even be glad to see you.’
In any case, he was instructed to thoroughly report any peculiarities that arose during this hunt, so he planned to comply faithfully.
Thus, the only thing he could do now was quickly eliminate that silly-looking slime monster and return.
– “No, I’m telling you that it can’t be done.”
– “The damage recovery is already wrapped up—”
– “Are you seriously calling that ‘wrapped up’? If anything goes wrong, the repercussions won’t just stop at Seoul—”
– “Hundreds of top-level hunters are throwing their skills at it. It can’t possibly fail—”
– “But you can’t think so simply; look at the monsters that recently appeared in bulk in Thailand…”
A heated discussion ensued, and Kang Yeon-su remained silent, lost in thought as she observed the group.
‘It’s the first time a Great Beast-level monster has appeared so quickly. It took less than ten minutes to take form. This doesn’t make sense… there’s definitely something unusual going on.’
However, one hour later, the conclusion reached was just as I had predicted: to wait until the initial Awakened Ones arrived.
‘This isn’t bad. Hitting that thing now feels a bit risky.’
I nodded, watching Kang Yeon-su emerge from the temporary situation control tent.
She wore a somewhat dazed expression, now completely focused on the massive monster that had grown so enormous it blocked her entire field of vision.
‘…… But surprisingly, she held her ground.’
Given her usual temperament, she would likely want to challenge the monster immediately, but perhaps her beast-like intuition sensed something was amiss?
Since the meeting, she had been cautious.
Yeon-su approached us calmly.
“Yeon-hee.”
“Hello.”
“I’m really sorry about the contract. Damn guy. I can’t believe he did that. I’ll be sure to have a serious talk with him when he gets back.”
“Oh, no. You don’t have to go that far…”
“This is my issue too. What kind of world do we live in that someone would act so recklessly as to damage a guild’s reputation? I’m just flabbergasted.”
Kang Yeon-su vented her outrage over Yeon-hee’s scam.
Yet to me, it felt like she had caught an excellent lead to confront Jo Gi-man.
‘She’s going to save these up and unleash them later.’
In any case, we had to wait for the initial Awakened Ones, whom the management bureau had earnestly requested to gather.
Time ticked on to the third hour.
At the point where no organisms other than the Awakened Ones remained in the area.
“Hey—this doesn’t seem like a place for C-rank hunters. Can we please send them home quickly?”
While Kang Yeon-su was speaking with Yeon-hee, Seok Ryu-hwa approached her, stating that we should exit the scene.
“Uh… that…”
It was only then that Yeon-hee and Ah-rin realized that the hunters remaining on-site were all top-tier hunters far above their own level.
Every hunter at a lower rank had tactfully retreated in anticipation of the impending large-scale battle.
‘I was just trying to find a way to hang in there.’
It was indeed a risky position. Jo Gi-man could arrive at any moment, and the abilities of that monster were completely unpredictable.
However, it wasn’t possible to just watch such a big event on a phone. Moreover, delaying contact with Jo Gi-man was concerning.
‘It might be good to show something at this point.’
As I entertained that thought, I looked at Kang Yeon-su with pleading eyes. She met my gaze briefly before addressing Seok Ryu-hwa.
“Huh? These guys are mine, right? You can’t be trying to contain the opponent’s team this early, can you?”
Kang Yeon-su pulled Yeon-hee and Ah-rin closer while Seok Ryu-hwa’s eyebrows subtly twitched.
“… Everyone knows that Lee Yeon-hee is a hunter under the Vice Guild Leader’s line. That doesn’t have anything to do with the current situation.”
“You can’t send them. If it feels dangerous, I can protect them, so don’t worry about it.”
“If you keep this up, Hwa-ryeon will come as well?”
“Go ahead. Why haven’t you called her? I’d like to see her face. What the hell are you hiding our guild’s next ace for?”
‘Hwa-ryeon as the next ace… at this point, I guess it’s true.’
Among the known powerful beings related to fire attributes, there were some strong entities, one of whom was Hwa-ryeon, who had made a contract with Rivisenax.
“You haven’t been coming to the training center, so we can’t see your face… It’s an open area, and everyone comes to see, but it’s been ages since the Guild Leader and Vice Guild Leader showed up.”
“Oh, is that so? Hahaha—”
“………”
While the conversation ended without much conclusion, Kang Yeon-su firmly rejected Seok Ryu-hwa’s opinion, which had been quite blunt.
Though she held an important responsibility for managing the guild’s finances and members, she didn’t spoil her guild members at all.
Especially those sitting in key positions like Seok Ryu-hwa and Park Jin-gon were even less so. Despite their constant squabbling, they were more faithful to Jo Gi-man’s commands.
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