Chapter 499. How to Open a Suitcase (4)

The Hunter of the Other World Who Is Being Misunderstood

No, but more importantly, this irritating magic power... don't tell me...

Why is Hunter Kang in Seoul...?

It's been quite a while since that man entered the country.

Still, since they had confirmed the Red Gate's safe time window, there was no problem.

'We can just talk outside. Why is everyone coming toward the temporary headquarters again?'

And the aftermath of dealing with those Earthlings flocking in would likely be resolved soon enough.

"H-Hunter Kim Giryeo!"

"Yeah."

“H-Hunter Kim Giryeo!”

“Yeah.”

“Is the bedding comfortable? Will you be all right sleeping like this?”

“It’s fine.”

After all, this body belonged to an Archmage.

The S-rank Hunters, who had been discussing the appearance of Kang Chang-ho, briefly entered the temporary shelter. But I remained composed despite the visit from these acquaintances. I intended to overcome this crisis of having to pretend to have a [Nightmare] in my own way.

‘As expected. It’s better to do it that way.’

In that case, for the first step, I’ll have to show them that I’m sleeping. I pressed a button ‘psychologically’ installed within my dark inner self. This was a process unique to Alphaurins that lowered the stage of consciousness.

‘It’s a relief that I was in a state where I could sleep, since I haven’t been able to perfectly remodel my body yet.’

And before long, the shell borrowed by this Archmage was submerged in slumber.

'It's a relief that I was in a state where I could sleep, since I haven't been able to perfectly remodel my body yet.'

And before long, the shell borrowed by this Archmage was submerged in slumber.

***

An hour and thirty minutes later.

Snap.

"Gasp!"

The man lying down abruptly lifted the skin above his eyeballs. Then, as not to startle the Earthlings too much, he blinked sluggishly as if still drowsy before sitting up at just the right moment.

"Giryeo-ssi, are you okay? What about the nightmare?"

However, the alien who rose from his seat didn't make a big fuss, contrary to expectations.

"Maybe if you're as strong as Giryeo, status effects don't even apply? Just because the difference in magic power is so overwhelming?"

“Maybe if you’re as strong as Giryeo, status effects don’t even apply? Just because the difference in magic power is so overwhelming?”

He simply answered Esther, who had come to check the situation.

No. I experienced the [Nightmare] normally.

He hadn’t deflected the enemy’s attack either. He then explained that since his personality was originally like this, his reaction remained resolute even after falling into a trap. In some ways, the situation he just described seemed even more impressive.

Swish.

The high-ranking Awakened gathered at the scene were praising the specific individual, saying, “As expected of Hunter Kim Giryeo.” Around that time. On the skybridge of the 4th floor of a nearby building, a figure with a crooked nose showed a different reaction.

‘That’s the face of someone who just had a nightmare?’

It was obvious that Jeong Haseong and Seo Esther had been watching Kim Giryeo out of concern—. But this one, to put it bluntly, had been observing with the mindset of, “All right, let’s see how human you can really sleep.”

Even Jeong Haseong, whose mind had been forcibly tempered by witnessing all manner of horrors in another world. And the countless other veteran hunters—who were writhing on the ground from nightmares conjured by the new monster.

'He's perfectly fine.'

His facial muscles were as cold as ice. The S-rank Awakened who had just risen in the camp responded with an almost unprecedented level of detachment. So Kang Changho briefly wondered whether that psychic was lying...

'But honestly, if he were trying to hide something, it’d be hard to act that openly eccentric.'

The logic didn't quite fit.

'He could've simply said his magic power was so great that the status effect bounced off. That would've ended it.'

Whether this had been Kim Giryeo’s intention or not, Kang Changho found himself confused by the other’s transparent reaction and unable to properly press him. And while everyone was passing the time like this—

—Bzzzzz.

whether this had been Kim Giryeo's intention or not, Kang Changho found himself confused by the other's transparent reaction and unable to properly press him. And while everyone was passing the time like this—

—Bzzzzz.

Just as Kim Giryeo woke up, the next wave conveniently began.

‘Has the Red Gate been activated again?’

From here on, what the Hunters had to do was simple. Kill the monsters using swords, long poles, or specially designed weapons with a touch of orientalism, fitting their titles.

Bang!

Of course, since touching the monsters would lead to suffering from terrible dreams, Kang Chang-ho had no choice but to participate in the work using these means.

“What was that thing that person just threw?”

“Glass shards.”

“Ah, the shards of windows from the buildings the monsters smashed while passing by....”

Glass shards.

Ah, the shards of windows from the buildings the monsters smashed while passing by....

Stoning. It was a method that was primitive to the extreme, but since humans happen to be a species with good throwing abilities, wasn't there no harm in utilizing it?

'They even went as far as creating a game called baseball to play with each other.'

At this point, the subject of thought shifts back to Kim Giryeo. The blonde man focused on his own work without even bothering to look toward Kang Changho.

'Hmm.'

Come to think of it, I had occasionally wondered how a body-enhancement sorcerer had managed to clear [Sin Classification] without a scratch.

'Did he use methods like that back then, too?'

Seeing him resort to something as inferior as stone-throwing, Kang Changho's past words—that he possessed no proper long-range attack skill—were starting to make sense. Thinking so, Kim Giryeo dismissed interest in the other's actions and activated a powerful water-attribute spell that had nearly become a sacrifice to the skill [Improvement].

Whooosh.

Water rushes in. I manipulated this resource made of mana here and there to kill off the monsters rapidly.

'The civil servants did rather well.'

For the record, the reason the Hunters could respond so quickly was thanks to those weaklings.

"Everyone, just hang on a little longer! A-rank hunters are on their way to our sector!"

"Seo Esther-nim is heading toward Gate 13!"

"Hold the line!"

They waited in groups in advance at every Red Gate coordinate identified by the Hunter Association. During the times the monsters emerged, they used earthen walls and gusts of wind to trap the enemies.

Kyaaaah!

It was a perfect demonstration that humans are a species that adapts. The sudden emergence of multiple Red Gates had briefly thrown humanity into confusion—but it wasn't beyond their capacity to handle. Before long, the situation stabilized.

'Low-rank Hunters set up defensive walls, while high-rank Hunters rotate through each point to eliminate monster swarms.... Is this the best for now?'

However, the peace was truly brief.

'Damn it! I was wondering why there were streaks of magic around the Gate.'

Just as they thought they had barely endured the third wave triggered by the crimson passage—A massive anomaly erupted in the heart of the city.

'They're really using Earth's golden energy for all sorts of nonsense.'

Sssssk.

But was this truly a crisis at all?

Swish.

A short while later. Kim Giryeo, the S-rank Hunter, rushed to the coordinates he heard over the radio. And currently, he has thrust his hand deep into some Blue Gate standing before his eyes. He soon revealed the information to his party.

“It seems to be an S-rank dungeon.”

“What did you say?”

It was truly unfortunate news. This was the destination of the monster legion phenomenon that had turned downtown Seoul into a mess. What arrived in front of them was certainly a danger factor. Furthermore, no matter how he looked at it, it didn’t feel like a lower S-rank difficulty.

“What on earth is this height...?”

Above all, isn’t the entrance too large? Honestly, while it wasn’t an absolute rule, Gates generally had smaller passage

"What on earth is this height...?"

Above all, isn't the entrance too large? Honestly, while it wasn't an absolute rule, Gates generally had smaller passages the more insignificant their interiors were.

"It's nearly as tall as the government building next to it."

Seeing a magical passage so large it looked like a giant would use it, he was momentarily speechless. But while every one else was intimidated, the Archmage on the spot showed a rare, enthusiastic attitude.

"Since it's S-rank, we can't irresponsibly send another advanced team. As someone with appraisal abilities, I'd like to take a look inside."

"Pardon?"

"Hunter Kim Giryeo. Are you serious?"

The blonde figure acted as if he would enter the Gate immediately. He was quite healthy for a man who had just had a nightmare. Or, perhaps because he had an unpleasant experience, he felt like doing some monster eradication to relieve stress.

'Come to think of it, what kind of dream did Giryeo have?'

ve stress.

'Come to think of it, what kind of dream did Giryeo have?'

As modern people, the S-rank Hunters gathered there soon went through a smooth discussion. And after a short while, the consensus was as follows.

For now, we should at least analyze the Gate.

Whether it was the [Summoned Attack] mechanisms of various monsters that explode after a certain period. Or the time limit imposed on the [Labyrinth of the 13th Month] itself. Thinking about it, the dungeons of this world were overwhelmingly often impatient in nature. For that reason, the hunters on the spot said with one voice that the sooner the situation was settled, the better, while Kim Giryeo fell into personal thought for a moment.

'They seemed to be quickly collecting the dungeons existing above ground, only to suddenly trigger an immense number of Red Gates....'

First of all, this was not natural to anyone's eyes. At least in Al-Pauri, the type of box that had already appeared never changed. Therefore, interpreting the current anomaly, there is a high probability that those who created the Gates possess a "will."

Wooooong.

"Hmm."

Woooooong.

"Hmm."

Blue if there is a space inside. Red if monsters escape immediately. Seeing how the colors were clearly defined in this way, [Dungeon Shock] clearly had its own rules. Order. Will. They are a species equipped with all of this, yet they had committed something incomprehensible like the current situation.

'After attacking the city extensively with the convenient method of Red Gates, why suddenly present another cavern?'

Whirl.

Thinking various thoughts, the Archmage gestured to the S-rank Hunter who was standing further away.

"Oh, right. If Hunter Kim Giryeo calls, I obviously have to come."

"...."

"We promised to be friendly from now on. So if you have something to ask, say it comfortably."

"I never agreed to that...."

Then a brief question was posed.

"By the way, the reason I called you is for nothing else; I got curious about something."

"What is it?"

"When Gates produce anomalies, how do you usually interpret them?"

Swish.

For the record, after such a sentence came out, Kang Changho glanced around at his surroundings. Moreover, not only the guild leader of the Korea Mage Tower but also Jeong Haseong glared and made a strange expression, so this likely wasn't an act of guarding against a curse out of the blue.

'They're reluctant to discuss Gates in public.'

Just as the alien arrived at that conclusion— Kang Changho, still staring blankly at Seo Esther who was watching him without expression, began to speak.

"When a being with absolute power does something that seems out of place, the estimated reasons are simple."

Although his gaze was directed at the woman, the words he uttered were meant as an answer to the Archmage.

"Either amusement—or a test."

"Hmm."

"In any case, your thoughts probably don't stray far beyond that range either... do they?"

Author's Thoughts

Hi, from now on, I will update this novel 3 chapters/week. Thank you for all your support so far:)