In the deep hours of night, when everyone was asleep, Jin-Woo once again visited Japan's Sea of Trees, which had remained a restricted zone ever since the giants' Dungeon break. This time, he wasn't there to level up or gaze at the stars. But perhaps because of last night's memories? When Jin-Woo happened to look up at the night sky, Cha Hae-In's face naturally came to mind. When he had stopped by home to reassure his family and then hurried back to the hotel, she had been understanding about his sudden disappearance right before dinner. She, more than anyone else, knew exactly how things would have turned out had Jin-Woo not gone to Seoul. Her expression — one she had tried so hard to hide her worry behind — lingered strangely in his memory.
'...Let's begin.'
Jin-Woo looked around. As always, the forest greeted him with silence — not a single living creature to be found. There was something he needed to do here. Jin-Woo found a suitable clearing, stepped forward, and summoned a few soldiers.
'Come forth.'
Jin-Woo's shadow stretched wide across the ground, and shadow soldiers rose to their feet all at once. These were the soldiers who had newly joined the legion. Jin-Woo's feelings as he watched them were heavy. For the first time — just yesterday, for the first time — Jin-Woo had broken the rule he had always upheld. Every one of these newly turned soldiers had been an ordinary human being just the day before. Victims sacrificed to the Monarchs. Hundreds of soldiers — a mix of ordinary people who had died unjustly and the Hunters who had tried to save them — stood before their master. His conviction — never to raise innocent souls as soldiers — had been broken. And so, Jin-Woo wanted to ask for their cooperation here today.
'Lend me your strength just until this war is over.'
To protect your families, your lovers, your friends, and your land.
'When the fighting is done, I will return every one of you to eternal rest.'
They were the dead, compelled into absolute loyalty by the Shadow Monarch's power, yet each one's consciousness remained intact. Jin-Woo's sincerity and will were conveyed to every single one of them. Behind the darkness-veiled visors of their helmets, hatred and fury burned toward the monsters that had made them this way. They realized — that they had been given the chance to exact revenge on those bastards with their own hands. The one who had gifted them that chance was the Shadow Monarch standing before them. We fight alongside our lord! We will not let the monsters ravage our land and our families! A will began to take root within them. The stronger the Shadow Monarch became, the more the shadow soldiers' abilities improved. Unlike the days when they borrowed the Shadow Monarch's power through the System, the shadow soldiers born from Jin-Woo — who had inherited true authority — were already a formidable force in their own right. Jin-Woo made his request.
'Help me.'
The shadow soldiers answered their lord's call immediately. A terrible roar, like the death cries of a thousand throats, erupted from the shadow soldiers as they raised their hands toward the sky. Uwaaaaaaa-! The wave of roaring began at the front and rippled steadily backward until every last shadow soldier was bellowing toward the sky. Aaaaa-! Their grief-laden roar shook the earth. The army of the dead had completed its preparation. A sharp, fierce gleam blazed in Jin-Woo's eyes as he watched them. He would. He would make the Monarchs pay. The soldiers' roar, brimming with hatred, continued for a long while after.
* * *
One day before the Dungeon break of the super-large Gate. It had been two days since the System disappeared, and Jin-Woo was gradually adjusting to daily life without a Daily Quest. With the System, which had restrained his power, gone, many things had become easier — but some things had become less convenient. One of those things was the Shop. Jin-Woo took a single healing potion he had been storing in his inventory out into the room and stared at it intently.
'...'
Originally, everything sold by the Shop had been created through the Shadow Monarch's power — a form of magic that created something from mana. So in theory, he, who had inherited the Shadow Monarch's power, should be able to create the same items if he put his mind to it. Jin-Woo quietly closed his eyes and visualized a healing potion in his mind. He could feel mana beginning to stir.
'Concentrate, concentrate...'
But the mana that had been swirling rapidly failed to coalesce and quickly scattered into the air. It was a failure. Jin-Woo let out a sigh and opened his eyes. It seemed creating something with magic was still beyond his reach.
'I'll need more practice.'
Just then. His phone, sitting on the desk, buzzed with a vibrating hum.
—Sung Hunter, sir. This is Woo Jin-Cheol. "Yes, sir. President Woo."
Jin-Woo sat on the edge of the bed and answered the call. Whether from the string of major incidents one after another leaving him no rest day or night, Association President Woo Jin-Cheol's voice sounded a bit hoarse.
—Sir, Hunter... if it's not too much trouble, could you perhaps stop by the Association today?
The estimated time for the Dungeon break was truly right around the corner. From the Association's perspective, they wanted to seek various advice from Jin-Woo, who could be considered the core fighting force of this raid. Since Jin-Woo had no particular schedule of his own, he agreed readily.
"Then I'll see you at the Association."
Click. As Jin-Woo hung up and began getting ready to leave, Igrit spoke to him.
[My lord.] 'Huh?'
To Jin-Woo, who still found Igrit's voice a bit unfamiliar, he answered in his characteristically deep and courteous tone.
[In truth, I have something to tell you, my lord.]
* * *
The next day, broadcasters around the world interrupted their regular programming to carry live footage of Seoul. Some networks showed the scene as it was in news format, while others invited experts to weigh in on the situation. Among them, "Hunter Channel," one of America's top networks, had assembled a panel of experts. The broadcast began. Looking at the Hunters packed tightly across the scene on the live feed, one of the experts spoke in a voice tinged with emotion.
"Do you have any idea how long it's been since Hunters of so many nationalities gathered in one place?"
The host replied with a laugh.
"Well... guilds from different countries have united for raids before, so maybe it hasn't been that long, relatively speaking?"
The expert shook his head.
"Eight years. It's been a full eight years — almost nine now."
Eight years. At the word, everyone watching instantly recalled the name of the colossal beast that had once painted that era in terror. The host was no exception.
"Eight years... You're not saying this is the first time since the 'Kamish' raid, are you?"
"Yes. Exactly so. This is the first time since the Kamish hunt that Hunters from more than five nations have banded together."
Back then. The world's top-tier Hunters who had stepped forward to help America were annihilated, with only five surviving to become "nation-level" Hunters. It was a devastating loss for each of the nations that had lost their best Hunters.
"After that, no country dared to interfere in another's problems."
And rightfully so. No one wanted to see their country's Hunters die for someone else's cause. While guilds of different nationalities occasionally joined hands for mutual benefit, this many people banding together on such a massive scale to help another country was exceedingly rare.
"So you're saying Hunter Sung Jin-Woo of Korea brought back together the Hunters that the dragon Kamish had torn apart?"
"That's right."
Whether from the long story or fatigue, the expert took a moment to catch his breath before continuing.
"It began when Hunter Sung Jin-Woo resolved Japan's Dungeon break."
Before that, Japan had been the first to step up and offer help with the Jeju Island problem, but the known result was a crushing defeat. Had the story ended there, it would only have added credibility to the argument that countries should stay out of one another's business. But then. When Jin-Woo stepped forward to eliminate the giants that had appeared in Japan, everything flipped 180 degrees. Despite the long historical grudge lingering between the two nations and the conspiracy Japan had recently hatched, had a Korean Hunter not rolled up his sleeves for Japan's sake?
"The gratitude and emotion the Japanese people felt toward him was probably beyond what words could express."
Japan had been freed from its crisis thanks to Jin-Woo's help. The unwritten rule — never to interfere in another nation's crisis in order to protect your own Hunters — was broken for the first time. It instilled in Hunters the confidence that they "could do it." And then, just a few days ago.
"I imagine everyone watching Hunter Thomas Andre fall felt the same thing."
What Hunter could stand against those monsters? "Hunter Sung Jin-Woo showed them the answer himself." But the next question was far more difficult. If Hunter Sung Jin-Woo were to fall, who could stop the catastrophe? The host offered a faint smile but couldn't answer, so the expert spoke.
"No one. There is no one. That's what it comes down to — Hunter Sung Jin-Woo is the last line. If he falls, it's all over."
In that moment. The many countries that had been treating the super-large Gate over Seoul as Korea's problem alone also realized the truth. If Korea couldn't stop it, North Korea would be next, then China or Russia, and ultimately the entire world. The super-large Gate had now become a common enemy for the entire world. It was the achievement of a single Hunter from Asia. But just as the expert was about to explain that for this achievement to truly shine, the disaster first had to be dealt with safely —
"Ah, right now!"
The host, who had been listening intently to the expert, received an urgent signal from the director and sprang to his feet. The experts' gazes all turned to the screen at once. On the live feed, the super-large Gate was splitting wide open its colossal maw.
"Good Lord..."
The sight, beyond anything they could have imagined, left everyone in the studio speechless.
* * *
The air was trembling. Tens of thousands of Hunters surrounding the base of the Gate held their breath as they awaited the Dungeon break. The sight of countless Hunters waiting for that single moment was spectacular. Close-combat-style Hunters waited quietly for their moment, while those capable of ranged attacks readied preemptive strikes. Mana-laden arrows and magical incantations were aimed at the sky. A taut tension hung in the air. And every time the Hunters' gazes, fixed on the Gate, drifted downward, they all landed on one place — the back of Jin-Woo. Standing at the very front line, Jin-Woo stared upward with a grave expression. The Dungeon break was drawing closer with every passing second. He could feel it. Thump, thump, thump. The black heart that had taken the place of his shattered human heart pounded fiercely, announcing its current state. Of course, the other Hunters' hearts were pounding just as hard — it was because of the tension pressing down on the surroundings. But the emotion Jin-Woo was feeling right now was entirely different. Jin-Woo struggled to keep his composure as he waited for the final moment approaching. Cha Hae-In, standing beside him, read his expression and spoke lightly.
"This is the first time I've ever seen you this nervous, Jin-Woo." "Is that so?"
Cha Hae-In offered a faint smile at Jin-Woo, who grinned as though it were nothing, then shifted her gaze to the Gate and drew her sword. She, too, felt that the moment of battle was near.
'Soon...'
But she was mistaken about one thing. Jin-Woo placed his hand over his heart and gently closed his eyes. This heartbeat. The emotion surging in his chest right now was not tension or fear. It was excitement.
"Oh, it's coming!" "The Gate is opening!"
At last. The Gate began to open. The barrier that had been sealing this world and the Gate vanished, and "something" within poured out endlessly. Before long, the sky was blotted out entirely by silhouettes. The Hunters were struck dumb at the sight — there had to be well over a hundred thousand of them.
"How... that many monsters, all at once?" "There's too — too many!"
Desperate groans and screams erupted from all around. Those countless "somethings" seemed to be affected by a gravity-reduction spell, descending toward the ground ever so slowly.
"Attack! Attack them!" "Everyone, attack!"
Let's thin their numbers before they reach the ground. The Hunters seized the opportunity and sprang into action. Prepared magic crackled at fingertips, and bowstrings aimed at the sky were drawn taut. The tankers pulled their shields up to their chins, bracing for close-quarters combat with the incoming horde. But just then. Right before the Hunters' concentrated barrage could be unleashed, Jin-Woo shouted.
[Don't move!]
Jin-Woo's will, charged with mana, was transmitted clearly even to Hunters who didn't understand Korean, and it made every single one of them stop in their tracks.
'Why?' 'Why is he stopping the attack?'
Tens of thousands of Hunters' bewildered gazes poured toward him, but Jin-Woo only repeated the same words.
[Nobody move!]
Watching from afar, Woo Jin-Cheol wiped the sweat from his forehead. If they didn't attack now, those things would reach the ground in full force. If the fighting broke out in that state, the Hunters at the front could be caught in the crossfire from those behind. In a situation where they were already outnumbered, having to worry about friendly fire as well would be catastrophic. A subordinate Hunter approached Woo Jin-Cheol with a look of anxiety.
"Mr. President..."
The moment for a decision had arrived. His reason screamed to give the attack order, but Woo Jin-Cheol ultimately chose to trust Jin-Woo's words.
"Cease fire!" "Cease fire!"
With even Woo Jin-Cheol, who was commanding the Hunters, ordering a cease-fire, the Hunters could do nothing but lower their weapons and stare blankly.
'What on earth are they thinking?' 'They're going to fight them head-on on the ground without any ranged strikes? Against that many monsters?'
As confusion and fear swept across the battlefield. At length. They reached the ground. The Hunters were on the verge of losing their minds at the sheer number of black monsters filling their field of vision. One of them stepped forward from among the assembled horde. Jin-Woo walked toward it. What on earth was about to happen? The Hunters watched Jin-Woo without daring to breathe.
'...' '...'
When Jin-Woo came to a stop, the monster did as well. And then — the moment the monster gazing at Jin-Woo dropped to one knee, every soldier behind it did the same, all at once. Snap. The sight of over a hundred thousand soldiers bowing their heads in perfect unison was nothing short of overwhelming majesty. A brief silence gave way. The monster kneeling at the very front raised its head and spoke.
[Grand Marshal Bellion, of the Shadow Army, greets you, my Monarch.]