At this very moment, with the world on the brink of extinction, what on earth was he looking for? No—more importantly, was the man standing before him really the Hunter Sung Jin-Woo? The Director shook his head violently, thinking he might be hallucinating from the alcohol. But the more he shook it, the clearer Jin-Woo's image became, and he realized the person standing in front of him was no fake. The drunken haze evaporated in an instant, and his voice rose.
"What... what are you looking for?" "A rune stone."
Jin-Woo conveyed his intentions clearly to the Director.
"Hand over the rune stone left behind by Kamish to me." "...!"
Surprise lasted only a moment. The Director shook his head almost reflexively.
"As the Hunter knows, Kamish's rune stone belongs to the Hunter's Association..."
His words caught in his throat. That damned occupational reflex. What did it matter what the Hunter's Association had to say? Forget the Hunter's Association—the United States was practically falling apart, and what did some rune stone matter compared to that?
'I must not be sober yet.'
The Director slapped both of his cheeks hard, producing a sharp smack. His cheeks burned, and only then did his head start to clear. The fog in his eyes lifted, and his focus returned to normal. The Director reached the conclusion that Jin-Woo's reason for wanting the rune stone was far more important to the Hunter's Association—no, to the United States—than the stone's intrinsic value. After a brief moment of deliberation, he asked carefully so as not to offend Jin-Woo.
"I can give you the rune stone. But why do you need it?"
Without the slightest hesitation, Jin-Woo answered immediately.
"As a tool for a counterattack."
* * *
Earlier that day, Jin-Woo had examined the skill engraved on the rune stone through the System's eyes. The power of a dragon was certainly contained within it. The reason he had shown little interest in the rune stone until now was because that skill's drawback was painfully obvious. It was power he had no use for.
'But... the situation is different now.'
The Director and Jin-Woo descended to the ninth basement floor of the Hunter's Association and stood before the reinforced glass case where the rune stone was stored. This time, Jin-Woo read the skill inside the rune stone not with the System, but with his own eyes and senses. Just as he remembered. A skill of terrifying power. But in a situation like this, that terrifying power would more than offset the drawback. Thump—his heart raced. The Director, who had been staring intently at the rune stone, spoke.
"You said those Rulers are the ones sending the monsters here, didn't you?" "Yes." "Then what are all these rune stones inside the monsters' bodies?" "A gift from them, meant to help humans hunt monsters more efficiently."
What the Rulers wanted was for intense battles between humans and monsters to take root mana across this land. Human sacrifices were merely a side effect, not their ultimate purpose. When a monster died, a stone planted in its body—the rune stone—would automatically seal away that monster's abilities. It was the Rulers' accommodation to assist humans in hunting monsters. Kamish's power, stored in precisely that way. Jin-Woo had obtained the dragon's ability that would serve as the key to his counterattack. The Director, who had been watching Jin-Woo clutch the rune stone with anxious eyes, swallowed hard.
"With just that... you can really stop the monsters?" "I'll have to try."
Even at this very moment, the legions led by the Dragon Emperor were demolishing everything in their path, advancing and advancing without end. Thanks to the Rulers fortifying the world with mana, the legions' advance was being held to this pace—but only for a while. Soon, all the land would be engulfed in flame. He couldn't simply stand by and watch the world crumble, could he? The power of the Shadow Monarch, which they had feared so much—power they had wanted to crush by striking from behind at any cost—was now in the hands of a mere mortal. And he was about to show them how it could be used.
"I'll do everything in my power."
The resolve blazing in Jin-Woo's eyes struck the Director's chest like a hammer. Before this man, who fully understood the enemies' strength yet refused to flee from battle, the Director realized how pathetic he had been, thinking of nothing but escape.
'He wants to go to where his daughter is? What an idiot...'
A wave of shame washed over him. And no matter what the outcome might be, he wanted to watch this fight to the very end.
"I know I have no right to ask, but... I'm begging you. Please, stop them—stop those monsters."
Tears streamed from the eyes of the bowing Director. Perhaps what he had truly wanted to avoid wasn't death at the hands of monsters after all. As the head of the American Hunter's Association, who should have been leading the fight against the monsters at the very front lines, he simply hadn't had the courage to watch his people being ravaged. A straw. A single thread. If even the slightest hope remained, he wanted to seize it, no matter what form it took. That burning emotion poured out as tears. Jin-Woo silently placed a hand on the Director's shoulder.
"..."
To the Director, that single touch felt more reassuring than a hundred words. He wiped his tears away belatedly.
"I've made a fool of myself. I'm sorry, Hunter."
Jin-Woo waited a moment for him to compose himself, then spoke.
"And one more thing. There's someone I'd like to find."
* * *
Jin-Woo followed the Director to an apartment near the Hunter's Association headquarters.
"You were guarding someone this close?" "The Hunter's Association's belief is that those we must protect should be kept within arm's reach."
The destination wasn't on a high floor, so the Director chose the stairs. When his back began to break into a light sweat, the Director stopped in front of a door on the fourth floor and turned to face Jin-Woo.
"This is it."
Jin-Woo nodded. Knock knock. Whatever arrangement had been made, the Director knocked lightly twice on the door instead of pressing the buzzer. After a brief silence, an agent inside confirmed the Director's face and opened the door.
"...Director?"
The agent, who had grimaced slightly at the piercing smell of alcohol, caught sight of Jin-Woo standing beside the Director and jumped.
"...!"
At least he hadn't drawn his gun like the first time they met—that was something. The agent, who had instinctively reached for his hip upon seeing an unfamiliar visitor, looked flustered as memories of that encounter flooded back.
"Hunter Sung Jin-Woo...?"
Without even a moment to consider why the world's strongest Hunter would visit this place, the Director ushered the visitor inside. Another agent waiting within greeted the Director.
"The wife?" "She's inside. Huh!"
Just like the agent who had opened the door, he too was startled upon seeing Jin-Woo.
"Director, this person is...?" "The Hunter wished to meet the wife, so I brought him here. Would you let the wife know that Hunter Sung Jin-Woo has arrived?" "...Understood."
Just then.
"I didn't think anyone would come looking for me at a time like this."
As if she had been waiting, the door opened and the wife stepped out. Mrs. Norma Selner. Once a psychic, she now worked as an "Upgrader," pushing Hunters' powers beyond their limits. Jin-Woo stepped forward and bowed respectfully to the elderly woman.
"Come in."
The wife ushered Jin-Woo inside. The Director, standing behind, moved to follow, but she gently stopped him.
"Hunter Sung probably wants to have a quiet conversation. Isn't that right?"
Turning to ask, she received a nod from Jin-Woo. That was exactly right. While the Director cleared his throat and straightened his clothes, the door closed. After shutting it completely, the wife slowly turned toward Jin-Woo, who was waiting in one corner of the room. But the moment his entire form entered her field of vision, she couldn't hold back the gasp that burst from her lips.
"Good heavens!"
He looked nothing like the last time she had seen him.
"You're... you're not the person I knew."
The wife's eyes trembled. Before, a deep darkness had resided in the depths of his being—now he had become absolute darkness itself. In her eyes, the power of death swirling around Jin-Woo was vividly visible. But Jin-Woo shook his head from side to side, denying it.
"I am the same person you knew. It's just that the darkness you saw back then has now become one with me." "Oh..."
What word in this world could possibly capture such a wondrous sight? The power of a god dwelling within a human. The wife gazed at the tip of the overwhelming force emanating from Jin-Woo, uttering nothing but exclamations. After keeping her mouth open for a long while, she finally composed herself.
"I don't have... any power that could help you, Hunter."
No—what being in this world could possibly lend aid to this man? He had already transcended humanity by an immeasurable degree. But Jin-Woo thought differently. He approached the frightened wife gently and asked.
"You said you can see the future, didn't you?" "To some extent..." "Then would you take a look at mine?"
Before entering the battle in earnest, Jin-Woo wanted to see the end of this fight through her eyes. No matter what answer he received, he felt it would put his mind at ease. Mrs. Selner, who had been hesitating, slowly nodded. She extended both hands, took one of Jin-Woo's hands in each of hers, and closed her eyes. Peering into the abyss of darkness required tremendous courage on her part as well. But beyond that—no, courage incomparably greater than that—she could not refuse the request of a warrior preparing to face an enemy of such magnitude. Time flowed like a blink. When Mrs. Selner opened her eyes, tears she could not contain were streaming down her cheeks.
"Are you... really going to carry all of that on your own?" "..."
Jin-Woo didn't answer.
"How can this be... how can such a cruel burden be placed on a single person... You're willing to sacrifice one to protect everything?"
Jin-Woo's face brightened.
"Then I'm glad to hear it can at least reach that far." "What do you mean, glad? No one will remember! It will be a lonely battle fought by you alone!"
Jin-Woo gently released her hands, which had been trying to hold him back. He had already steeled himself for that much when he decided to fight. He took a step back from the wife and bowed respectfully once more.
"I'm sorry for barging in and making such an unreasonable request." "Hunter Sung Jin-Woo!"
Before the wife's desperate cry had even finished, Jin-Woo vanished into the shadow at his feet. The agents, startled by her voice, rushed inside, but Jin-Woo had already disappeared without a trace.
* * *
'...'
Just as he had once done when searching for Yoo Jin-Ho, Jin-Woo ascended to the top of the tallest building in the city and expanded his perception to its fullest. Far away, at the edge of the northern lands, he could feel countless numbers of troops marching south. Above that region, virtually no traces of other living beings remained. All of them had been devoured by the residents of the Chaos Realm. Min Pyung-Koo, Ko Geon-Hee, Adam White, and his father. The faces of the many who had been sacrificed in those battles flickered through Jin-Woo's mind. Rage. A fury that had been creeping up slowly from the very depths of his chest began to dye his black heart darker still. Jin-Woo closed his eyes and searched for the Dragon Emperor's presence among that enormous legion. Within the mass of power that whirled like a tornado, swallowing everything around it, finding its core wasn't particularly difficult.
'...Found him.'
Jin-Woo saw the Dragon Emperor. In that instant, the Dragon Emperor saw Jin-Woo. The sharp perception that had swept over him—there was no one else who could produce that sensation. The Dragon Emperor froze in place and glared in Jin-Woo's direction. The malicious serpent's eyes refused to look away from the darkness for a long time. He knew a true enemy threatened him from there.
'...' '...'
The Shadow Monarch and the Monarch of Destruction faced each other across the divide of space, their gazes locking. The Monarch of Destruction bared his teeth first.
[I am here!]
A horrific roar, like hundreds or thousands of lightning bolts striking simultaneously, shook the sky across the entire planet.
[Tens of millions of your kind have already perished. How long do you intend to keep hiding like that?]
A chilling gleam blazed in Jin-Woo's eyes.
'I'll be coming for you soon.'
And when that time came—swallowing the words he wanted to say, Jin-Woo silently vanished into the shadow.