By the way, would it be okay to call this newly appeared otherworldy nest a "gate," like hunters habitually used to?
"This ti, that shouldn't be the case."
Kim Giryeo continued his analysis while staring at the screen.
First of all, fortunately, the thing that can at least be called a "dungeon" has no doors dividing the space. There are no tall walls either. If one were to look for a similar concept, it seems close to a troubleso "Red Gate". But still, it's so lting utterly alien that erged from the Pacific—sothing that could never be described as red.
And now that the topic of the Red Gate has co up, it reminded him of sothing.
"No wonder there have been so many cases of creating open-type passages."
Could the recent frequent Red Gate rushes have been them testing the waters?
Murmur, murmur.
It was around the ti the atmosphere in the restaurant that hunters frequented had beco completely noisy. Kim Giryeo sensed the change in the air and paused his chopsticks.
"Well, I an... it's nice that, thanks to the developnt of civilization, we can receive news instantly, but still..."
A brief mont of discomfort crossed his mind.
"Seeing worries like this even at the dining table... honestly, it feels a bit off. I don't think it'll sit well with my stomach."
"So, even you have those kinds of ordinary worries, Hyung-nim."
But that behavior didn't last long. It was only because he wasn't entirely rational with a al in front of him. This was by no ans sothing to bla the reporter for.
'Just a few days after returning from Türkiye, and it's already this chaotic again.'
The mont Kim Giryeo discovered the special dungeon that appeared in a certain region of Earth, he broke out in a slight sweat. Looking closely at the article, that mysterious dungeon—much like a Red Gate—suddenly manifested within a beam of light... And it was said to have slowly revealed its form to the outside.
"Since when do dungeons even move?"
"Looking at the route, it completely overlaps with our side of the country?"
"No, before worrying about our country, with a route like that, it would pass through Japan first."
"Wow... is it even possible for soone to go handle sothing like that...?"
For context, the reason the others in the restaurant were tense was that they "didn't know the exact details of the dungeon." When a form of nest that had never appeared before on Earth erged, humans trembled in their own anxieties. However, the alien creature dining with Ahn Yoonseung was worried for a completely different reason. On the contrary, he knew far too much, and because of that, he could only fret in ways that were always different from the humans.
'So even I, the Archmage, had forgotten about this problem. Well, there simply hadn't been any precedent... but now that I think about it, it could have appeared at any ti!'
Who will ultimately take jurisdiction over the dungeon that has just appeared?
'Suddenly getting stressed makes selfish thoughts naturally co to mind.'
Japan? Although it was periodically approaching the Korean Peninsula, the initial location of its ergence was so far away that the probability is probably high. But, as I thought earlier, there's no guarantee anywhere that Kim Giryeo's piece of origin wouldn't get involved in this matter.
'At the very least, I hope a hunter like Jeong Ha-seong doesn't have to board at that island.'
Island, island... right. An island... Here's so additional information: its shape, if it had been just a little smaller, would probably have been called a reef—that's the true nature of this special phenonon.
What mattered was not its structure, but its location.
'But whether or not a hunter goes there, the probability of this turning into a major incident is 100%.'
That dungeon had appeared sowhat high up.
What should they do about this?
Beep.
A mont later, soone with the remote control changed the TV channel in the restaurant.
Imdiately, a more detailed news report ca up. If the dungeon continued on its current path, it would infringe on the airspace of so country, and even now, monsters from the dungeon were spilling out one by one into the outside world.
'If the beasts get provoked, a panicked Japan will rush to take control of it.'
However, if things proceeded as he was thinking, it would truly be the worst-case scenario. According to the information the Archmage possessed, no human on Earth should ever touch that extraordinary phenonon.
'I was planning to take a break on the 24th this year too! I wanted to enjoy the Earthly tradition called Christmas!'
So, in the end, there was only one way. Even though frustration was welling up inside him, Kim Giryeo forced himself to contain his emotions. After thinking back and forth about whether there was any way to contact Japan imdiately, he finally pulled out Puri's cellphone.
'Let's try sending a warning to Iori.'
Whatever the thod, he had to make it clear that the extraordinary phenonon must not be tackled. If it were, everyone living along the coast would be in danger.
Tuk, tuk, tuk.
Kim Giryeo moved his hand and checked his cellphone. For reference, the device still contained unfinished text ssages from before.
[ssage from 1 month ago]
[Recipient: Iori (Japan)]
[Hello, Hunter Kim Giryeo from Korea! I'm truly sorry for not replying sooner.
I've only just seen your ssage.
From today onward, I'll make sure to respond imdiately at any ti!
By the way, regarding your ssage from yesterday, may I ask what the situation was that prompted it?]
[Kim Giryeo ()]
[Ah, that... it's nothing.
I heard you were ambushed by hunter ants...
I just wanted to check if you're okay...
I sent the ssage as a courtesy, nothing else.
I'm S-rank myself—there's no way I'd contact another S-rank just to beg for money.]
[Iori (Japan)]
[Ahaha, I guess so.]
.
.
.
anwhile, December 23rd. In East Asian countries at the sa ti.
"Wow, it's cold."
It was almost Christmas in Japan as well. A visit to the shopping districts revealed event displays dyed in red and green everywhere. However, until November, tensions between the non-awakened and the awakened had been intense. There was clearly a special reason why the streets of Tokyo had regained a sense of peace.
"Iori!"
More precisely, it was due to an incident caused by a single awakened individual. Explaining it thoroughly would take a while, but for now: it stemd from the widespread prejudice against superpowered on this land. It wasn't just that the general public was nurous—many of them belonged to the upper class, what could be called "old money."
The newly awakened mutants were mostly in their twenties and thirties, and even if they earned money, they rarely held any real power. As a result, political figures who felt their dominance threatened stirred up fear through biased reporting. In this way, they tried to sway public opinion and maintain control. These were the kinds of conflicts that had occurred in Japan up until now.
"Iori, is it really okay for you to be out like this?"
However, when the famous hunter Iori was attacked with a weapon by an extremist activist, the political efforts were rendered aningless, and public opinion completely flipped from that point onward.
Awakened had supported the bill expanding item possession rights, thinking they needed to protect themselves because they were dangerous. But when an ordinary person hard an awakened individual, debates arose about whether that had actually been the right course of action.
Amid all this, the representative hunter—essentially the face of the nation... in short, rumors even circulated that Morita might beco the first S-rank to die from overwork, given how intensely he began focusing on his duties. The rare tis he appeared in interviews, his face looked as gaunt as a skeleton.
Even when ordinary people committed outrageous acts and criticized him to his face, he treated them with utmost civility. Seeing this, the elderly population in Japan helplessly gave their sympathy votes to the national representative hunter. The public had turned their support.
And it wasn't just that public opinion shifted—when high-ranking officials refused to stop inciting conflicts among the citizens, foreign scrutiny also began to weigh in from that point onward.
[U.S. President expresses 'regret' over awakened-discriminatory remarks by a mber of Japan's Nara Party]
With criticism like this erging, there was nothing to be done. So many events had unfolded that, all things considered, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say the situation ended in a victory for the awakened.
"Is it really okay for you to be out on the streets already? You haven't been discharged for long."
"I wanted to see the illuminations."
It was then. A young man, who to anyone seed like the trigger for swaying public opinion, spoke up.
"By the way, you still didn't know?"
He was Iori, an S-rank hunter from Japan, and the listener was likewise an S-rank awakened companion.
"I was a fake patient."
"Huh?"
"Of course, I did get slightly hurt to toe the show, but all that stuff about undergoing major surgery was a complete lie."
"W, what?"
But what was this shocking revelation now? A woman with dium-length hair, all of it an unusual color due to trichromatic disorder—a condition unique to the awakened—was stunned. Still, Iori continued the conversation, regardless of how blue the other person was turning.
"Anyway, we secured the civil rights of the awakened, so that's what matters, right?"
In fact, this S-rank hunter had been roughly aware of the dostic situation even before the incident at the Tokyo Expo. He had long prepared a stage to sway the public and executed his plan when the right opportunity arose. That's when, as an awakened, he could now move freely through the streets of Tokyo.
"Th, then... does Guild Master Ito also know about this?"
"No. That guy did sothing obnoxious in the past, so I deliberately didn't tell him."
"Then..."
"You an you genuinely overworked yourself to keep the citizens safe. Still, do you feel a little sorry for the guild you belong to?"
"This brat."
"You should've gone independent sooner."
But, for soone who sacrificed himself for all superhumans, what followed was a rather flippant remark.
"And you—stop staring at like that."
"What did I do?"
"I've made this decision based on completely rational calculations."
The young man with the light green scarf continued the conversation. Honestly, it might have been better not to hear the sentence at all.
"Well, I am pretty good-looking, after all."
The listener half-closed their eyes, like soone who had just applied eye drops.
"I've got more fan café mbers than Ito, so with this level of popularity there's nothing I can't do. Honestly, I was convinced from the start that the staged terror operation would be 100% successful."
This modern society has even seen the ergence of awakened humans who can shoot fire. And yet, why does a shallow past culture like lookism still remain in fashion?
"It's really a relief that Hunter Iori... beca a hunter."
"Why?"
"If you'd gone into the entertainnt industry, you'd definitely have ended up in a tabloid scandal over an affair or sothing within five years. Seriously, how can soone's way of thinking be so shaless and shady?"
"Still, it's better than the old elite who hate mutants—at least I'm more open."
The awakened with blue hair didn't speak so curtly after that. Though sowhat shaken, it was true that they had, in the end, benefited from soone else's reckless actions.
Sparkle, sparkle.
On the streets stood reindeer made of iron and trees lavishly decorated with lights. When their conversation ca to a while, but for now: it stemd from the widespread prejudice against superpowered on this land. It wasn't just that the general public was nurous—many of them belonged to the upper class, what could be called "old money."
"Hmm?"
But a few minutes later—just as they finally stepped into a crowded street, suddenly, a strange dungeon appeared out of nowhere...
'Christmas Eve is right around the corner, so what the heck is that?'
Before he could even grumble about it, another piece of information ca on through his cellphone.
"Heuk!"
"What? What's going on here?"
"A ssage from Hunter Kiryeo from Korea just now!"
"Really? Damn it, why only you?"
It was a man nad Kim Giryeo who had sent the ssage. S-rank hunter Iori imdiately turned on the translation function of his phone without hesitation. But by the ti the translated text appeared on the screen...
"Huh."
Iori's face turned deathly pale. Even though he was the man who had deceived the majority of the nation with a bold performance, in matters like this, he simply couldn't summon his characteristic courage.
"Kim Giryeo says we mustn't clear the dungeon."
Fear then flashed across the young man's face.
"The... the dungeon... He said not to even think about touching that dungeon that was just on the news."
"What? That's all the ssage said? Then that's a good thing, isn't it?"
"What do you an, good?"
"The fact that he sent that ssage ans he wants to handle the dungeon himself. It looked like a hassle anyway, so this works out great. I'm totally in favor. In favor."
"It's not about being in favor, you idiot!"
At that mont, a colleague nearby made a thoughtless remark... But it didn't take long before that sa person, who had been speaking so casually, shrank back in fear.
"You! Did you already forget what happened at the Black Dragon Gate?"
"Huh?"
"I'm talking about when Kim saved our country's hunters. That was the reason, wasn't it?"
For reference, a certain blonde superhuman with sambagean eyes had once brushed off an attempted murder inside a dungeon under the pretext of "maintaining gate managent talent." Of course, that was just a fabricated excuse on the surface. In reality, the past, weaker Kim Giryeo had relied on his eloquence to get by. However, the Japanese president had no idea they had been deceived. Moreover, after he regained his strength, even that truth no longer mattered.
"Oh? Ah, that's right. I rember he clearly told us to just clean up the dungeon properly, yet he went easy on us..."
"Suddenly telling us not to do so is important task."
The proverb, "when the cunning rabbit is dead, the running dog is cooked," was understood even in their region. In other words, they also knew the fate of a hunting dog that could no longer hunt.
The two Japanese individuals soon froze in place with similar expressions.
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