*'Don't let the enemy get hurt — take her down.'*
Once at the apex of his species, Beru knew exactly how to fulfill this command. It was simple.
*-Ingrain an overwhelming gap in ability until she loses her will to fight.*
*Pop!* In the instant he moved, Beru vanished from Cha Hae-In's sight — and the next moment, he was standing right in front of her face.
"…!"
Cha Hae-In was horrified by Beru's speed, yet on pure animal instinct, she swung her sword at him in that split second. Then came dozens of sword strikes in rapid succession. But Beru stood rooted in place, not moving a single step, and dodged every last attack. It was a display of precision with zero wasted movement. He was so fast that afterimages trailed behind him. An overwhelming gap, truly.
*'No way!'*
Every time an attack missed, Cha Hae-In's pupils trembled.
*'He can dodge all my attacks without even using his feet at this range?'*
Once more. She swung her blade at his neck, and the opponent simply leaned his upper body back slightly, brushing the strike aside with ease. No matter what angle or variation she brought to her attacks, he evaded them without effort.
*'How…!'*
Could a summoned creature — not even a real magical beast, just one borrowing the power of a dead one — really be this strong? And beyond that…
*'If Mr. Sung Jin-Woo can command a summoned creature like this with such ease, what on earth is he…'*
Sensing her resolve waver ever so slightly under a vague dread, Beru batted aside her oncoming sword with the back of his hand. Then he thrust his open maw right into her face. The stench of death hit her in a gust, and Cha Hae-In went rigid.
*'It's over.'*
The moment his massive jaws filled her entire field of vision, she couldn't help but let out a choked gasp.
"Ahh!"
But instead of clamping his jaws shut and crushing her skull, the summoned creature unleashed a horrific roar right in front of her face.
"KIEEEEEEEEK!"
The mana-infused roar sent Cha Hae-In flying backward.
"Kyah!"
Jin-Woo flinched. Watching someone get beaten one-sidedly was never going to be a pleasant pastime. But. She didn't seem to have any intention of giving up easily — she rose to her feet once more and gripped her sword again. Jin-Woo tilted his head.
*'What is she thinking?'*
The Cha Hae-In he knew was not the kind of low-tier Hunter who would refuse to accept a gap in ability even when it was right in front of her eyes.
*'And she certainly doesn't seem like someone reckless enough to keep charging in knowing the gap exists.'*
Then. Was she perhaps aiming for something right now?
*'This had better not be a bad call.'*
Connected to Beru through the link, Jin-Woo could feel just how much the creature was suppressing his killing intent. Cha Hae-In, meanwhile, was in an overwhelmingly disadvantageous position, yet her will hadn't broken. A foreboding feeling crept over him. Jin-Woo's gaze grew heavier as he watched the two of them.
*'…?'*
Beru couldn't understand Cha Hae-In's judgment. He had demonstrated the vast difference in their abilities over and over. So why would the enemy not stop challenging him? The king of ants — once at the very top of the food chain — was beginning to feel a growing sense of annoyance at the sheer gall of a human female who was nothing more than prey. It was his memories as a Ruler that fed the source of that rage.
*'How dare…'*
The instant Beru made up his mind, he closed the distance to Cha Hae-In in the blink of an eye. Then he brought his face level with hers, locking eyes. Any living creature with breath in its body could tell predator from prey just by meeting another's gaze. It was an instinctive warning. Beru's plan was to awaken that predatory instinct in his enemy and strip her of her will to fight — but it didn't have the effect he'd expected. Just as Jin-Woo had anticipated, Cha Hae-In still had one last card to play. The skill 'Sword Dance.' The skill she was most confident using. Her movements accelerated as though she were dancing, and her sword began tracing gorgeous arcs through the air. *Pop! Pop! Pop!* But. Beru, who moments ago had been deflecting every seamless, unbroken attack with the tip of a finger, finally twisted his face in displeasure.
*'Enough games.'*
Beru caught the incoming blade with his bare hand and crushed it on the spot. *Crack!* The sword snapped in half. But in what should have been a moment of despair, Cha Hae-In's eyes gleamed coldly.
*'There's only one chance!'*
She poured every last drop of mana she had into the sword. The skill 'Lightning Sword.' A technique so mana-intensive that she could only ever use it as a trump card — she unveiled it for the very first time. A brilliantly shining sword. Having let his guard down after breaking her blade, Beru was caught off guard as Cha Hae-In lunged into his embrace and drove the sword into him. Jin-Woo's eyes went wide.
*'No!'*
Of course, Jin-Woo wasn't worried about Beru. But despite his concern, the golden, glowing blade pierced through Beru's abdomen.
"KIEHK—!"
In that fleeting instant, Beru's mind raced.
*'This woman is an enemy.'*
My own death is not the issue. But once I go down, this woman's sword will turn toward my master. At that moment — the moment a crisis reached the subconscious of the Shadow soldiers, the instinct hardwired to activate at highest priority stirred and awakened.
*'Protect the master!'*
In that instant, his mind went white, resetting completely, and the command Jin-Woo had given him — *Don't let the enemy get hurt — take her down* — was wiped clean. Beru became a demon to protect Jin-Woo. A body swollen to enormous size, jaws wide enough to shear through a block of iron, claws that jutted out long and sharp as blades!
"Stop!"
The claws had finished extending, poised to tear apart his master's enemy. Beru moved all ten blade-like nails. *Swish!* Just before the ten blades covered Cha Hae-In's entire body — *Grab!* Jin-Woo arrived just in time.
"…I told you to stop."
Jin-Woo, gripping both of Beru's claws with his bare hands, had his eyes wide open. Beru, meeting his gaze, began to tremble all over. Leaping backward without even pulling the sword from his abdomen, Beru threw himself flat on the floor and begged for forgiveness.
"Your Majesty… Your Majesty, please have mercy…"
Jin-Woo knew what had been going through the creature's mind. The compulsion to protect his master had been ringing so loudly inside his head.
'…'
After glaring at Beru for a moment, Jin-Woo turned his head. *Thud.* Cha Hae-In, who had faced death only moments ago, didn't even have the strength to stand and simply collapsed onto the floor.
"Are you all right?"
When Jin-Woo approached, Cha Hae-In — who had tried to stand on her own but given up — lowered her eyes and nodded.
"Yes."
She was anything but all right. Jin-Woo helped her to her feet, then asked.
"Why push yourself like this? There's no need to go this far just to join our guild." "…"
It was supposed to be just a test. Not even a real one — a nominal guild-entrance test that was really just a pretense to turn her down. Yet she had used even a dangerous skill like that, obsessed with winning. Her competitive spirit alone couldn't explain all of it. So.
"Could it be…"
Jin-Woo asked carefully, so as not to hurt her feelings.
"Do you have feelings for me?" "What?"
Cha Hae-In wore a stunned expression, as if she'd been struck on the back of the head. Jin-Woo tilted his head.
*'That's not it either?'*
But. After collecting her thoughts, Cha Hae-In quickly corrected her answer.
"…Yes. I think so."
***
U.S. Hunter Management Bureau Headquarters. The Director's mood was foul upon learning that the recruitment of Hunter Sung Jin-Woo had failed. Rather than reading the report, he called the Deputy Director straight into the conference room. The Deputy Director came with Mrs. Selner.
"What in the world happened?"
The Director asked before he'd even sat down. This was the first time since the Bureau's founding that a recruitment proposal accompanied by Mrs. Selner had been declined. The Deputy Director stood with a grim expression and bowed his head.
"I have no excuse." "I didn't call you here to accept apologies."
When the Director pressed a button, the glass wall frosted over with privacy film and the entrance locked. The room was now completely soundproofed. To prevent information from leaking, any matter involving Mrs. Selner was never discussed over phone or email. That was why the Director still had no idea what had happened in Korea.
"Now tell me what happened."
The Deputy Director glanced briefly at Mrs. Selner. She gave a slow nod. Only then did the Deputy Director open his mouth.
"Mrs. Selner… 'observed' Hunter Sung Jin-Woo." "And?"
For the Director, who knew her abilities, the results of the woman's 'observation' were every bit as important as whether the 'recruitment' had succeeded or failed.
"Hunter Sung Jin-Woo…"
The Deputy Director moistened his lips, parched dry from nervousness, and continued.
"Is apparently one of the Kings." "What?!"
The Director shot to his feet. There were only three Hunters in the entire world that Mrs. Selner had ever called a 'King,' out of the countless powerful individuals she had encountered. And every single one of them was someone who could shake the world. The very pinnacle of Hunters! And now a man named Sung Jin-Woo had been added to that list. The Director turned to her.
"Then are you saying Hunter Sung Jin-Woo possesses power on the level of a Nation-Level Hunter?"
But she shook her head.
"Huh?"
A crease formed between the Director's brows. The Deputy Director understood how the Director felt. He had heard the same answer and reacted the same way. Mrs. Selner let out a sigh.
"I think an explanation is… in order."
And so she began.
"First, I'm sure you're both aware of what kind of ability I possess."
The Director and the Deputy Director nodded without needing to be asked. The Director spoke first.
"You said that all Awakened are beings connected to a power from beyond."
By peering into the eyes of an Awakened, Mrs. Selner could sense the channel linking them to that power beyond. However, she said, there were rare Awakened in whom the power flowing from the other side was so overwhelmingly intense that it appeared as a blinding torrent of light. Those were the individuals she called 'Kings.'
"Then what's different about Hunter Sung Jin-Woo?" "He had no channel."
Mrs. Selner's body trembled once more.
"The moment I looked into his eyes, the darkness inside him looked back at me. Oh, my God. He was darkness itself."
The Deputy Director objected.
"But he operates as a Hunter and helps many people. He didn't seem like an evil person to me…"
If Hunter Sung Jin-Woo had been truly malevolent, the two subordinates who had drawn their guns should have died on the spot for the story to make sense. But Hunter Sung Jin-Woo had brushed it off without a fuss. Mrs. Selner shook her head.
"I'm not discussing whether Hunter Sung Jin-Woo is good or evil, Deputy Director."
Her gaze was resolute.
"I'm telling you where his power comes from."
The Director, listening intently with his chin resting on his hand, spoke.
"There's no question he's a powerful Hunter, surely?"
Mrs. Selner nodded.
"Hunter Sung Jin-Woo does not borrow power from anywhere. His power doesn't come through a channel — it comes from within him. That means he isn't bound by the limitations of any channel. Which in turn…" "His power has no limits…"
The Deputy Director murmured involuntarily, then suddenly shivered with a chill. He couldn't even imagine how strong a power that erupted without restriction could be. Hearing the two of them, the Director sank into deep thought. Then, as though he had made up his mind, he nodded.
"Thank you for your trouble, ma'am."
After seeing Mrs. Selner out, the Director took the Deputy Director and descended into the Bureau's basement.
"Director, where are we going?" "Sublevel 9." "Isn't that the records vault?" "There's something else down there besides documents."
Watching the numbers drop on the elevator display, the Director continued.
"If we can't use Mrs. Selner's ability, we'll have to find another way to bring him in."
Young age. Tremendous power. If, as Mrs. Selner had said, Hunter Sung Jin-Woo truly possessed such immense power — whether it was the power of light or the power of darkness made no difference. The blade you took up to defend yourself could look like nothing more than an ordinary weapon under another's gaze. The Director wanted to wield the blade called Sung Jin-Woo. Arriving on the ninth floor, the Director unlocked the security door and moved deeper inside. Several employees passed by and greeted him, but the Director didn't so much as glance at them.
"Remember the very first S-rank Gate?" "Of course."
How could anyone forget the worst Dungeon Break in history, which devastated the western United States? The U.S. posted an enormous bounty and summoned the strongest Hunters from around the world, and they succeeded in slaying the boss-class magical beast that emerged from the S-rank Gate. But only five survived. A single beast had killed dozens of top-tier Hunters. Without their sacrifice, the nation itself might have ceased to exist. And so. The United States granted those five survivors status equal to that of a nation, and that became the origin of the term 'Nation-Level.' The Director spoke the name of the magical beast that had caused the worst disaster in history.
"Kamish the Dragon…"
Magic-type Hunters said the name 'Kamish' meant 'the undying flame,' didn't it? The Director entered the final vault, opened the safe, and inside, under the most stringent security, a single rune stone was revealed. The Deputy Director started in surprise.
"Could this be…?" "That 'could' is correct."
The Director placed his hand on the reinforced glass case covering the rune stone and smiled.
"It's a rune stone taken from Kamish's corpse."
After the Kamish raid ended, two Nation-Level Hunters settled in the United States. They were, so to speak, the gift that Kamish had brought. After that, the U.S. established the 'Hunter Management Bureau' and devoted all its efforts to strengthening Hunters, determined never to repeat such a catastrophe. Roughly eight years had passed since then. Because none of the surviving Nation-Level Hunters had been magic-types, Kamish's rune stone had been waiting in this cold basement of the Hunter Management Bureau for a worthy owner. The Director peered through the glass and smiled a meaningful smile.
"Kamish shall once more bestow a precious gift upon this beautiful nation."
= [END]]