The next day. Nearly every broadcast network and newspaper in the United States covered the arrivals of Hunters participating in the International Guild Conference. But one newspaper in the East ran an article with a rather unusual headline.
[Thomas Andre Collapses!]
There wasn't an American who didn't know the name Thomas Andre. But for a nation-level Hunter to collapse? Was he sick? People, one and all, reached for the newspaper and willingly paid the price for that simple yet attention-grabbing headline. And those who opened the paper out of curiosity stopped in their tracks, one after another. Despite the mildly bland title, the article's content was nothing short of shocking. Though the details remained unclear, a single Hunter had clashed with Thomas Andre and his entire Scavenger Guild. And the results were displayed in large photographs. Thomas Andre, bloodied and sprawled on the ground. Injured carried out on stretchers. Anyone who didn't know who they were might have mistaken the article for coverage of a terrorist attack—such was the severity of their condition. But weren't they all top-tier Hunters? Thomas in particular had survived the raid on Kamish, the worst disaster in history, as a nation-level Hunter. Readers of the article were overcome with astonishment. Their breathing quickened just as the editor-in-chief's had when he first saw the photographs. And the moment the identity of the one who had put Scavenger's Hunters in that state was revealed, everyone gasped in shocked disbelief.
"My God..." "Jesus!"
None other than Hunter Sung Jin-Woo—the man praised by media around the world for having recently averted the catastrophe in Japan. The image of Thomas lying flat on his back, contrasted with Jin-Woo turning away with an indifferent expression, delivered an even greater shock. Since the majority of the media's focus had been on the International Guild Conference, the article's impact was amplified all the more. In Korea, the story spread across social media before the breaking news even hit.
[LOLOLOL Thomas Andre got beat up by Sung Jin-Woo for real? Here's the article link] [Holy crap, it's true?! Thomas Andre supposedly dragged his entire guild along and got wiped out?] [Fake news lol. Seriously, does this even make sense? One guy took down a nation-level Hunter + a top-class guild solo?] └[Go read the article. It's real.] └[But why did they fight?] └[Nobody knows. The reason hasn't come out yet.] [LOL these Yankee boys always going on about nation-level, nation-level, and this is all they've got? Were these clowns actually trash all along?] [It's not that Thomas is nothing—it's that Sung Jin-Woo is incredible.] [As expected, Hunter Sung Jin-Woo is the pride of Korea.] └[Barkeep! Pour me another! Load me up with that national pride!]
While Korean comments were mostly filled with amazement, Japanese comments came in a steady stream of pride.
[Of course Thomas Andre is no match for Hunter Sung Jin-Woo.] [Maybe the reason America didn't help us was because they were afraid of their nation-level Hunters being exposed...] [I'm grateful that a Hunter like that came to help us.] [I've been wanting to send a gift of gratitude to Hunter Sung Jin-Woo for a while now. Where should I send it so he'll receive it?] [Send it here. The address is...] └[Why are you writing your own address?] └[wwwwwwwww this guy's lost it]
Jin-Woo was already Japan's hero. The fact that the man who had saved Japan from crisis had knocked out America's hero restored their bruised confidence. Not only in the United States where the incident occurred, but across every nation—whose attention had briefly subsided after the giant's defeat—focus once again zeroed in on Jin-Woo. Why? Why had Hunter Sung Jin-Woo beaten down Thomas Andre and his guild members? What had happened between them? With the media and public opinion running hot, everyone who had learned of the incident eagerly awaited the truth to come to light.
* * *
Jin-Woo opened his eyes in his hotel room and clicked his tongue at the sight of reporters swarming the building's entrance.
"Where did all these people come from?"
He wasn't unaware of why the reporters had found their way here. He was just a little surprised that news had spread this quickly. Still, he had no particular intention of hiding. Wasn't this a perfect opportunity to show the world what happened to anyone who crossed him? In the United States, shooting someone who aimed a gun at you wasn't illegal. With Hunters making the law stricter than ever these days, that held doubly true. Had he continued attacking Thomas after the man had lost consciousness, that might have been a problem—but he'd stopped throwing punches the instant his opponent lost the will to fight. The same went for Hwang Dong-Su. Anyone who knew what the man had done to Jin-Ho would have nothing but curses for him. Jin-Woo calmly waited for Agent Adam's contact. Sure enough, knock knock. When he opened the door, Adam stood there with two Hunters from the Hunter Bureau. Jin-Woo asked without a trace of tension.
"Are you here to arrest me?" "No, sir."
Adam shook his head and quickly continued.
"We expect a big commotion today, so I've come to escort you to the International Guild Conference venue. Also."
Adam suddenly straightened his clothes in front of Jin-Woo, then bowed deeply at the waist in a perfect right angle.
'...?'
Even under Jin-Woo's puzzled gaze, Adam kept his head lowered and spoke.
"I wanted to convey our gratitude."
Jin-Woo briefly retraced his memory but couldn't recall anything he'd done to warrant the Hunter Bureau's thanks. All he'd done yesterday was lose Kamish's shadow, wander around searching for the kidnapped Jin-Ho, and, by pure chance, run into Thomas and beat him unconscious.
'...'
Thinking back on yesterday's events brought his mood down. Surely they weren't thanking him for showing them the Shadow Extraction process. So what were they grateful for? Before Jin-Woo's confusion could grow further, Adam's mouth opened again at just the right moment.
"Had you not stopped there, the United States would have lost both of its nation-level Hunters."
Ah, that story. Jin-Woo nodded, recalling how Adam had screamed and pleaded with him the night before. If Adam hadn't shown up, and Thomas had kept up his foolish resistance to the end, the outcome would have been different. America had already lost one nation-level Hunter. They would have done anything in their power to prevent losing another. Jin-Woo could understand Adam's feelings in bowing before him. Adam continued.
"The U.S. Hunter Bureau will do everything in its power to ensure this incident does not cause any inconvenience to you, Hunter Sung."
Only after finishing those words did Adam raise his head. His eyes were tired. The Hunter Bureau had held meetings through the night to decide how to handle the matter. Naturally, Adam—assigned as Jin-Woo's personal liaison—couldn't be absent from those meetings. The conclusion was one:
-Do not provoke him.
The higher-ups had decided to accommodate Jin-Woo as much as possible. With Thomas Andre's defeat, Jin-Woo's standing within the Hunter Bureau had risen even further. From the Bureau's perspective, the last thing they wanted was for Scavenger's wrongdoing to sour their relationship with Jin-Woo. Besides—Thomas Andre wasn't dead, was he? Adam had been given a mandate to ensure all scheduled events proceeded as planned, and with that, he had come to find Jin-Woo. He held Jin-Woo's gaze for a moment, then swallowed hard. Gulping.
'This man took down the Scavenger Guild...'
The usual Hunter Sung Jin-Woo gave off the image of a strong man who respected common sense. But Adam had witnessed with his own eyes what his anger could unleash. And because that anger had been in defense of someone he cared about, Adam found himself genuinely envious of the person named Yoo Jin-Ho.
"Oh, look at the time."
Adam checked his watch, raised his head, and smiled.
"Shall we... be on our way?" "Let's go."
Guided by Adam, Jin-Woo stepped out of the hotel and punched through the wall of reporters to climb into Adam's car. Shutter-clicks erupted in a relentless barrage—click click click click click click click!—continuing until the two men's car disappeared from sight. On the way to the conference venue, Adam explained the current situation.
"We've secured the testimonies of Hunter Hwang Dong-Su's party. The Hunter Bureau will be releasing the full story of the incident shortly."
Adam repeatedly emphasized that nothing would be done to bother Hunter Sung Jin-Woo. It was welcome news for Jin-Woo. The reason he'd decided to come to America in the first place was that demon beast in his father's form. He'd wanted to gather information through the International Guild Conference. He'd even asked Hwang Dong-Su after the man had become a Shadow Soldier, but he didn't know much about Jin-Woo's father either. The beast had come out of the Dungeon on its own, and its mana signature was the same as that of demon beasts. And when he'd brought up the topic of a son, it had attacked in a rage. That was all.
'What on earth is its identity...'
It might not be his father. If it truly were his father, he would have come looking for his family first. The more Jin-Woo investigated, the deeper the mystery grew. And now there were a few more things he wanted to find out. A single line Kamish had left just before vanishing.
[Your Majesty. There were four humans who borrowed the power of the Rulers. Please be wary of them.]
There had been five Hunters who survived the Kamish raid. In other words, four of the five nation-level Hunters were likely borrowing the power of the Rulers.
'But... one of those nation-level Hunters was recently killed.'
Christopher Reed. What kind of opponent had forced such a powerful Hunter to fight while burning down his own home and forest? Could it be that those Monarchs the King of the Giants had spoken of had begun to move? Or was it connected to the sudden changes in the Dungeons? As various thoughts crossed his mind, the conference building came into view.
* * *
The moment Jin-Woo stepped inside, the lively conversations around him cut off abruptly. Eyes filled with a mix of curiosity and fear turned toward him from every direction. The Eastern Hunter who had beaten Thomas Andre—who had reigned like a king among Hunters—half to death. Murmurs rippled through the hall. Plenty of Hunters whispered about Jin-Woo, but not a single one approached him. The reason for Scavenger's destruction still hadn't been officially announced. What if the cause was that Thomas had held eye contact with him too long? Would even a greeting be enough to put a target on your back? Even though they were hunters of monsters, these Hunters couldn't bring themselves to meet Jin-Woo's eyes. After the lunch prepared by the Hunter Bureau ended, the Hunters gradually filled the seats on stage one by one. Presentations on various topics came and went. But nothing particularly caught his interest. Mostly status updates and situational reports.
'...It'd be less boring if Jin-Ho were here.'
Jin-Woo waited patiently until something relevant to his interests came up. After some time had passed, a topic emerged—not the information he'd been looking for, but something that piqued his attention.
"Everyone is aware that Gates have been appearing with increasing frequency lately, and powerful demon beasts have begun to emerge."
At first, it was a tired topic. Several professors had already touched on it earlier, and the assembled crowd wore bored expressions.
"But I doubt many of you know that an unusual movement has been detected high above in the sky."
The moment Professor Belger emphasized "the sky," the Hunters finally began to show interest. Jin-Woo among them, of course.
"The increasing concentration of mana dissolved in the atmosphere has already been widely reported through numerous presentations."
With the Hunters' interested eyes still on him, the professor continued, energized.
"I'd like to use a different term to describe that mana dissolved in the atmosphere. Until a more suitable term appears, how about we use the word 'magic energy'?"
At the professor's gesture, a map appeared on the screen behind him. A world map encompassing every continent, every nation. The professor used a laser pointer to indicate several locations on the map.
"But did you know that this magic energy is currently congregating above the skies of several nations?"
Murmurs of surprise rippled through the crowd. After briefly asking the Hunters to quiet down, the professor continued.
"There are exactly nine locations where magic energy is gathering. Here and now, I will announce the locations of all nine."
Professor Belger calmly read off the list of nine countries.
"...Alberta Province, Canada. And the location where the most magic energy is congregating is none other than Seoul, Republic of Korea."
The instant the professor's voice, translated through the earpiece in Jin-Woo's ear, reached him—for some reason, every Hunter seated in the hall turned their gaze toward Jin-Woo in unison.