I immediately declined the position of Association President.
It was absurd to even consider; if I appeared as president in my current state, the association would surely collapse.
Besides, I much preferred pleasure without responsibility.
Upon returning home, Dari subtly observed me.
[ (˶︲.︲ก)﹆ ]
‘Don’t tell me…’
Peeking out from where they had supposedly hidden it in a corner of my blanket, a large mana stone shell was visible.
‘I had trusted them! I had put my faith in you, Dari…!’
“Sigh, it’s my fault. What sin could you possibly have committed?”
It was my fault for leaving Dari alone in my haste, unable to even provide them with a mana stone since there were no other goblins.
Moreover, I, who owed my life to Dari, had no right to be upset.
“I’ll buy you some mana stones later.”
I’m rich now! Three hundred million won gets deposited into my account every month!
While mana stones worth tens of millions of won might be difficult, I could easily afford to buy them mana stones in the million-won range every single day!
Though purchasing them might not be easy, I figured it could be managed to some extent through the Association.
My official start date was next week.
It wasn’t even a typical ‘going to work’ situation; they had created an entire private floor just for me! I could either live there or stay home and be picked up whenever needed.
It was an incredibly luxurious arrangement.
The nation’s taxes… how sweet they tasted.
It was like honey, doubly concentrated, dripping freely.
Hmm— but the Cheonhwa Guild would probably be quite disappointed.
Being publicly affiliated with the Association meant standing on the opposite side of the guilds.
Unlike guilds, which were entirely profit-driven, the current Association’s policy focused on efficiency-driven stability and order.
Jin Taesan had explained that since the Association was newly established, there would likely be many clashes with guilds in the beginning.
However, I couldn’t help but side with the Association, having experienced a low-level gate near my home—before I awakened—being cleared incredibly late due to a dispute between two guilds over its border.
‘Ah, it’s bothering me.’
Currently, the S-rank gate was reportedly being exclusively cleared by the Cheonhwa Guild alone.
Cheon Yiryeong had requested support, but most responses had been lukewarm at best.
The biggest burden was that the other two S-rank hunters, who were on par with Cheon Yiryeong, had refused to help.
It had been two days since Cheonhwa entered.
Under normal circumstances, they should have emerged by now, but no one had yet come out to deliver news.
They must still be fighting.
‘…Or perhaps they were dead.’
Shaking off the negative thoughts, I lay back down on the bed and embraced Dari.
Their fur, surprisingly warm for a water spirit, felt soft to the touch.
After idly kneading Dari’s belly for a while—
“Ugh! This won’t do. I’ll just go check on the situation.”
Since I had at least become somewhat acquainted with them, it seemed I couldn’t help but feel a little concerned.
I would just go, assess the situation, and if it looked truly dire, I would ask the Association to act quickly.
Having absorbed Dari back into myself, I hurried to the vicinity of the S-rank gate and activated Camouflage in a secluded alleyway, hidden from prying eyes.
A blue veil enveloped my body.
Cautiously stepping out, I noticed the nearby onlookers were indeed unable to see me, their gazes fixed solely beyond the barricade.
‘Performance confirmed.’
However, since maintaining it for long was difficult, I quickly crossed the barricade and slipped back into the alleyways.
Beyond the designated quarantine area, guarded by low-level hunters, the alleyways were a no-man’s-land.
I proceeded cautiously towards the center, ensuring I made no loud noises.
Soon, a vortex of crimson space came into view.
Humanity’s greatest challenge, the Gate, revealed itself.
And in the tent beside that Gate,
“Hahaha! I hear the gates in the Gangseo area are quite substantial these days, aren’t they? I’m quite envious of the Abyss Guild.”
“Oh, come on, is that really something to say when you’re from Abyss? You cleared two A-rank gates just last month.”
“Over here, we only have B-rank gates, you’re being too much. If you’re busy, please call our Goddess Guild.”
These A-rank hunters, chatting and laughing, were leisurely sipping coffee and gossiping.
“By the way, should we tell the kids to come yet?”
“Hmm, wouldn’t it be better to go in tomorrow?”
“We should at least send a reconnaissance team. If they still have some strength left, our casualties will be fewer.”
“That’s true. If worst comes to worst… we might even have to consider relocating the entire base.”
‘These rotten bastards.’
‘I’ll remember all of you.’
At the S-rank gate, boasting the highest current danger level, what were they doing, happily idling? They were still just testing the waters.
While someone had risked their life to enter, these A-rank hunters, who supposedly protected this land and gorged themselves on taxpayer money, were only concerned with their own profits and planning to flee if things went south.
“We can’t delay any longer! How much longer are we going to just sit here?!”
At that moment, a man with a sword at his hip shouted loudly in front of them.
“Oh, our rookie here is full of vigor— but it’s not like we *want* to be doing this… We’re still lacking equipment and preparations, you know?”
“You haven’t done anything for two days, so what preparations could you possibly be talking about?”
“Haa, I know you’re full of zeal now that you’ve become an A-rank, but you need to properly grasp the situation, Mr. Choi Kang-in. Follow guild guidelines. We’ll contact you soon.”
“…If you continue like this, we’ll go in first ourselves.”
“This is why rookies are… It’ll be troublesome if you keep acting like that, you know? Do you want to be assigned only minor gates later? If you do this, you won’t even be able to join other guilds.”
“Do as you please. I’m going in.”
After glaring once at the scoffing hunters who remained seated, Choi Kang-in turned and joined those gathered in front of the gate.
‘They’re all A-ranks.’
Three reasonably well-known hunters, either affiliated with guilds or operating independently, stood with Choi Kang-in.
Maintaining Camouflage, I approached them.
“What did they say?”
As Choi Kang-in shook his head heavily, Song Siwoo, a wind-ability hunter, continued, saying he had expected as much.
“Indeed, I told you it would be a wasted trip. Those folks are the type to just bolt if things go wrong. They’ll just test the waters, and once the ‘broth’ boils down, they’ll complain it’s too salty, take a bite, and spit it out.”
‘What a refreshing dose of reality.’
‘Wait, a swordsman who’s just become an A-rank hunter… could Choi Kang-in be One-Second Swordsaint??’
Now that I thought about it, he had mentioned going to support a gate.
Even though a sense of internal familiarity had grown from our brief chat on Top Gallery (TL Note: A Korean online forum), I couldn’t bring myself to acknowledge him.
“Then let’s go. Since support is clearly out of the question… we’ll either help each other or rescue them and try to escape.”
“I’m ready.”
“Let’s move.”
The four hunters immediately prepared to enter.
Watching them, I sent a message to Jin Taesan’s number, which I had just registered.
And then,
[ S-rank Gate subjugation. (Reward: Creation Limit +1, Skill) ]
As if it had been waiting, the quest window pushed me forward.
Subjugation? Quest, is it really right to push a newbie like me, who just passed the 5th floor, to go into an S-rank gate?
The rewards, though… damn good. To the point of a threat: ‘You still won’t go in?’
While the quests had always presented achievable goals, this one was a target beyond imagination.
It seemed the Cheonhwa Guild inside the gate was still fighting, and if I were to enter, now was the only chance.
Ultimately, I followed the four entering the gate, leaping in while maintaining Camouflage.
A crimson sky, and a parched earth cracked like a drought-stricken rice paddy.
Black smoke billowed from the fissures.
As the stinging air instantly filled my lungs, my focus wavered with a cough, and Camouflage dissipated.
“Cough—!”
“What?”
“Who’s there!”
“Huh? A kid… Get out of here quickly! Before you’re corrupted by the demonic energy!”
The four, who had swiftly turned at my cough, gripped their weapons and cried out sharply.
Choi Kang-in, startled upon seeing me, pointed towards the gate that led outside.
‘…Since I’ve come all this way.’
“Please take me inside. I might be able to help.”
Using Overpaint, I swept my hand across my chest once, and the stinging sensation in my lungs finally subsided.
The black aura mixed in the air.
‘So this was demonic energy.’
As a dazzling white light scattered the surrounding black smoke, the eyes of those who saw it widened.
“…A Saintess?”
“When on earth did you follow us in?”
“The rumored healer? Really? Wow, you’re so small!”
Song Siwoo, who had been hovering slightly off the ground, his hands wreathed in wind, reacting with an exaggerated fuss—
He floated.
A stream of wind he extended gently enveloped my body, lifting me.
“Hunter Song, what are you doing?”
“Why, I’m trying to escort them inside. Doesn’t it seem like it would be too difficult for them to follow on foot?”
“No, you shouldn’t bring a Saintess into such a dangerous battlefield! Who knows what could happen!”
“I’ll be fine.”
“They said they’re fine. And isn’t now precisely when we need a healer? Who knows what state Cheonhwa is in inside. I’d say it’s actually perfect timing.”
Choi Kang-in couldn’t find any words to refute Song Siwoo, and the other hunters also expressed their agreement.
Thus began the sprint—
And I, carried along like a mere package, felt immensely comfortable.
‘Wind, huh… Should I try to master this first?’
Since these delicate legs would often complain of pain after just a short walk, this wind ability, which provided automatic transportation, began to tempt me.
‘Should I just create a wind spirit…? But would the mana stones be able to handle it? If another mana stone glutton like Dari appeared, that might be a problem.’
Thanks to the comfortable transportation, I easily made my way further inside, lost in thought, when—
CRASH! BANG— Block it—
A chaotic scene unfolded, filled with a cacophony of loud explosions and shouts.
“…What is that?”
Even Song Siwoo, who had maintained a relaxed demeanor, stared at the monster with a grim expression.
Though it vaguely resembled a gorilla, its entire body was covered in scales, and a creature as large as a typical four-story building was rampaging.
****
Lee Jaehoon, parrying the monster’s arm as it charged like a truck, clicked his tongue when he saw his left arm was shredded by the jagged thorns sprouting haphazardly from its scaled surface.
‘At this rate, it’s just a meaningless dog’s death.’
As the meaningless war of attrition dragged on, Guild Master Cheon Yiryeong gathered all her mana and unleashed Hellfire, but it only managed to inflict a large wound on the creature’s chest.
Simultaneously, she was grazed by the wildly flailing arm, her entire body torn by thorns, leading to massive blood loss and a subsequent loss of consciousness.
The entire problem stemmed from the horns that sprouted like deer antlers from its shoulders, their ends spreading out wide and intricate like a spiderweb, forming a kind of protective barrier.
All long-range magic and abilities were blocked by these horns, their power halved.
The weakened magic couldn’t even scratch the creature’s scales.
Close-combat hunters, too, were unable to target critical areas like its head or chest due to the horns, and after attacking only its hands and legs, they were incapacitated by the thorns.
Even emergency first aid with medical adhesive and bandages had reached its limit.
They had tried their best to disengage from the battlefield, but the monster, surprisingly swift for its size, wouldn’t allow even that.
“Cough… I’ll buy you time… take the guild members and retreat…”
Cheon Yiryeong, barely regaining consciousness, spat out a mouthful of blood and spoke with difficulty.
“…Don’t talk nonsense. It’s right for the Guild Master, who can land effective blows, to escape.”
Cheon Yiryeong was the only one who could manage a significant attack past those horns.
The priority was to get her out and inform the other S-ranks of the danger, bringing them both back.
“Saintess…?”
Perhaps she had lost too much blood, for as I looked down at Cheon Yiryeong, she began to utter genuine nonsense.
Like a ray of sunlight piercing through the clouds—
A cascade of pristine silver hair came into view.
“…Lady Iroha?”
