But at this point, with no clear solution for the current dungeon either... all that remains is a precarious tug-of-war to prevent an explosion. Wrath. Envy. And now, Gluttony. Counting them one by one, this troubleso feed box has only just revealed the third in line.
Like I thought in front of the Association, since the magic for dealing with the Gisimche is still incomplete, it's really not ideal for this body to intervene directly right now.
And according to what Earthlings say, those representative concepts of sin number as many as seven in total.
Three as of today. Four more to go.
At this pace, it seems there will be so leeway in terms of ti. After all, it's not as if all the slots have been filled and the workload is already piling up.
"Hmm."
With those thoughts in mind, I began to slowly wrap up the day's schedule.
"Huh?"
But it seed the prediction I'd just made was far too optimistic. It happened in the brief span of a few minutes as we were leaving the gym. Jung Haseong and I walked down the hall way to exit the rented space. Then, from behind us, the dark-eyed mammal who had been trailing a few steps back suddenly raised his voice.
"What?"
"No, that's..."
"Did you get another call on your phone?"
"That's not it."
Tsk.
I straightened up and stopped in my tracks, and the sound of my shoe soles hitting the ground was a brief noise before I turned around. What I saw was the #1 ranked person, glaring intently at his smartphone and deep in thought.
"England. Finland. And Russia."
"What?"
But then I wondered why he was suddenly bringing up all those place nas. A mont later, however, a rather convincing speculation ca out of his mouth.
"Hunter Kim. This could be just a minor miscalculation on my part."
"Got it, just go ahead and say it."
"I just looked up the coordinates of the 3rd [Sin Classification] on the internet."
"Mhm."
"And then I tried recalling together in my head the location of the first Wrath [Sin Classification] and this newly revealed region in Russia..."
"Why? What's so strange?"
"Why does it strangely feel like they're getting closer and closer to our side?"
At that mont, faint wrinkles ford on the forehead of the top-ranked awakened. It was because he had subconsciously frowned.
"Hunter, imagine there's a globe in front of us. If we plot the locations of the gates that have appeared so far on that globe, oddly the coordinates seem to fall almost along a single straight line."
"Oh my."
"Could it just be my imagination?"
"Haseong, sorry to say, but in this universe we live in, there really aren't that many phenona without a reason."
The idea that the origin points of gates modeled after sins are restricted to a single straight line. And this was no less than a thought that ca from Jeong Ha-seong himself. What's more, he was soone with a hunting career that could only be described as legendary.
"It's the intuition of a living dungeon encyclopedia who has cleared an astronomical number of gates."
I imdiately judged that the speculation carried considerable credibility.
"No matter how primitive this planet may be, I can't just dismiss the experience points of a hunter like that."
But setting aside our trust in the person themselves, once a hypothesis cos to mind, it should naturally be tested. So, as soon as the idea ca up, we turned our phones back on—either to use an app that could display the Earth in 3D or to download simple world map images—to check the locations of the gates.
And what was revealed through the entire process was this.
"Uh-huh..."
"Yeah. Just as you said, it really is a straight line."
I barely managed to tear my eyes away from the phone screen I was staring at.
"Moreover, the gates are appearing on a perfectly straight line, without even a 0.1cm or 1° margin of error."
The truth was finally revealed. The [Sin Classification], unfolding like a series of films, actually possessed goal-setting ability comparable to that of an adult.
"Oh my... damn it. I haven't morized Earth's geography yet, so I didn't even dare think about this part."
If the sa incident had occurred on Alphan, at least I would have noticed the direction faster than the nearby mammals. The real problem, however, is that there are still four types of dungeons left. Although the spacing between them isn't exactly the sa, precise location predictions are impossible, still, for all seven dungeons to appear, wouldn't these inevitably have to pass through the Korean Peninsula at least once?
"Damn it. At this rate, South Korea is 100% going to get caught up in the brainwashing gate scandal."
At this point, to be completely honest, I had been treating the [Sin Classification] as just another incident across the sea. If my current research happened to finish quickly, I could lend a hand. If not, so be it. I'd always taken it lightly like that. Now that this problem has entered my imdiate living area, I can no longer speak arrogantly about offering help.
"What I've been preparing with all my heart and soul is developing a new magic. There's a chance it might fail, so I planned to disappear at any mont if it didn't work out!"
But what can I do?
"But at this rate, the escape route is effectively blocked. Before things get out of hand, I shouldn't just ignore it from the start—I absolutely have to succeed."
At my age, I should have learned by now that life doesn't go the way you want. I pursed my lips at the bitter taste and, for no reason, blinked my eyes out of habit.
And after the whole truth was revealed. About two hours later.
"At this rate of information spread, it doesn't seem to be because of Jung Haseong's report. Could it be that other experts on Earth also noticed the anomaly in the location around the sa ti?"
By this ti, the characteristics of dungeon formation were being frequently discussed on the internet, and when the related information was shared, netizens responded with a variety of reactions.
[Translation] The news that the probability of the Sin Classification forming in Korea is 95%... and the situation in Japan... [jpg]
[GXG: Oh yeah, watching the chaos ww]
[JFCC: Koreans tend to have a very (perhaps excessively) strong 'hungry spirit', so if it's going to appear, a 'stingy' gate would be fitting.]
[tm3s: I feel sorry for Mr. Jung lives on the storm-prone Korean Peninsula. I'll take him in as an immigrant.]
But for now, I can't afford to let my guard down around these people. As soon as calculations suggested that Korea would fall within the dungeon disaster zone, even official information like this imdiately appeared on TV.
[ Follow-up report] anwhile, Japan has an 80% chance of becoming the seventh country affected by the Sin Gate. [jpg]
[GXG: (´- `)]
All the dangers had beco visible. By now, whether on the internet or within the Korean Hunter Association, there were countless people asking if anyone had any good ideas about this incident. Despite all that, urging the truth was that I had no plans to take action imdiately.
"A normal bait box won't do. It's actually crossing the line as a special gate. I need to take this opportunity to restore order..."
Going in and clearing the dungeon itself would be easy. But in my position, aiming for longer-term gains with prepared magic, I couldn't afford to act recklessly here and there.
"Damn it. Fine. It can't be helped. Let's give up what needs to be given up."
The fortunate thing, however, was that the dungeon's ergence itself had a real delay. To prepare for any possible disaster, all 5-class hunters stayed within South Korea. For the ti being, such a tense situation continued.
***
Tuk, tuk, tuk.
The sound of water dripping could be heard from sowhere.
"By the way, I've heard that if you do it like that, the pipes won't burst. Now that the temperature has stabilized for winter, can I shut off the water completely...?"
It had been several hours since I'd stayed up all night, forced as if commanded by so overbearing boss. For the past 60 hours, I hadn't had a mont of rest, endlessly repeating nothing but experints and research.
"Let step out of the basent for a bit and get so sunlight. I've finally beco like a normal Earthling."
But in the midst of such a tough day, I finally received so good news.
[●YTV News Live Broadcast Alert]
To be precise, it was a fact reported quickly by a certain broadcasting station.
[Sin Classification finally cleared for the first ti—the starting point of the celebration is the 'Stingy' concept gate in Kazakhstan]
To be honest, no matter how great a magician I am, I alone am not the protagonist of the world. Sotis, the incident progresses even without stepping in directly.
"Huh? Surprisingly, the fourth box, which appeared relatively recently, was the first to be cleared?"
However, the strategy for tackling the [Sin Classification] revealed along with this victory news is sowhat shocking. The news anchor conveyed the situation in concise terms, but the way the brainwashing-magic-laden bait box was handled was so unusual that one might worry it would violate violence broadcasting regulations.
.
.
First, let's make an assumption. A trap that provokes stinginess appeared in so Central Asian country on Earth. Moreover, the greed that this trap induces isn't limited to wealth. Let's set the background that it drives people into a state where they refuse to share anything they possess with others.
Because of this, the fourth [Sin Classification] that appeared in Kazakhstan boasted an unusually extre difficulty. Hunters who entered the otherworld tried in every way to conserve their stamina and mana, falling victim to the brainwashing. While the hunters' strength was weakened in this way, the enemies inside the gate, on the other hand, took care of their nestmates with more 'charitable' attitudes than anyone else.
"These stupid Gisimche kids... Just how did they understand Earth's battles well enough to create a uselessly overpowered monster?"
Ah, right. I haven't ntioned this until now, but according to the information shared by the Kazakh authorities, dungeon monsters like these display attack patterns that are completely opposite to the symbolic brainwashing. Take the Anger Gate in England as an example: while hunters rage and run wild, the monsters give off an excessively calm and composed impression.
"Normally, you can control a beast's aggression with loud noises or physical shocks. But at that Anger-Stimulus Gate, strangely enough, the usual thods didn't work at all."
No matter what you tried, there was no emotional fluctuation; the monsters responded to attacks strictly according to their own predetermined rules. Because of this unique trait, that particular bait box was much harder to break through than usual.
Do you know how Kazakhstan, which was a latecor, managed to tackle the [Sin Classification] so quickly on its own?
"Is this the raid strategy?"
An S-rank Asian revealed that the various brainwashing effects of the [Sin Classification] can be completely reset with intense pain... For reference, the wording here isn't exaggerating how strong it is.
"Every ti their will wavered inside the dungeon, they supposedly drove a knife into the back of their own hand to an countless people as reality. No, this mammal... I've never seen their faces before, but I suddenly feel a kinship with them as an Alphan."
Are they crazy? They're not so martial artist in training. What on earth is this primitive solution?
"This is human abuse. Even a village dog can recite poetry in three years—do you think I, a being of intellect, still haven't learned sothing so obvious?"
But surprisingly, the strategy just ntioned proved to be incredibly effective. Above all, the fact that only Kazakhstan's [Sin Classification] had been successfully tackled served as proof.
"Hmm."
But no matter how effective it proved to be, willingly driving a knife into your own hand is still a bit too extre to follow.
"I'm fine with it, but ordinary Earthlings just couldn't do that."
After looking up more articles on my phone, it seed that the person who successfully carried out Kazakhstan's strategy was a forr soldier, already notable for their indomitable will. But whether a forr soldier or even soone currently in the national military, that strategy shouldn't be recomnded lightly.
So every country found itself in deep thought. They had at least figured out a way to definitively close the gate, but was it truly right to solve the problem using such extre asures? Moreover, could such instructions even be carried out on those monstrous S-rank individuals in the first place...?
"If you're inside the [Sin Classification], the brainwashing keeps accumulating, so stabbing the back of your hand just once isn't going to solve the problem—that's another headache."
Various discussions continued. To be honest, neither they nor I had much ti left.
"The first-appearing Anger [Sin Classification] is soon hitting human limits."
The more humanity on Earth is exposed to a particular gate, the more intensely they beco agitated.
For reference, how was this trait discovered? About 10 hours ago in England, an A-rank team collectively ended up in a psychiatric detention facility. They were a group of psychics mainly responsible for managing the [Sin Classification], and they suddenly committed major property damage. And the trigger? Just a trivial argunt.
Through a certain incident, the psychics realized the extre persistence of the [Anger] state.
And as soon as they beca aware of their own abnormal emotional state, they caused another uproar. In other words, they scread that this might leave lasting aftereffects and imdiately rushed to the hospital.
"Uh... by the way, this is really just my personal thought, but those Brits would probably be imdiately healed by the magic chanism if stabbed with a knife. If I were to say sothing like that out loud, they'd instantly realize I'm an alien, wouldn't they?"
Moreover, due to the nature of dungeons appearing along specific paths, South Korea was only a short ti away from becoming directly involved.
"Hmm."
I was briefly glad to hear that the Earthlings had dealt with [Sin Classification] on their own.
But judging by the way things were going, it seed this matter would still need to pass through the hands of a great magician at least once.
"Alright. After this, the final one anyway."
I nodded and placed my phone back on the desk.
"And anyway, I've already completed all the magic I plan to use..."
A feed box that not only tornts humans endlessly but also requires you to injure yourself to tackle it. But now, the Gisimche's rampage is over. I, who am confident in pest control, have just developed the insecticide I'll be using for the ti being.
***
But what on earth is going on?
"Huh?"
Just a single day later. In fact, while soone was still in the basent, the fifth [Sin Classification] had already appeared on Earth. It was simply that one had been tackled quickly. This ant that Kazakhstan's gate and a certain gate in Mongolia were active at the sa ti.
However, due to the way dungeons erge, the upcoming sixth [Sin Classification] was inevitably going to be our problem. Rather than leaving the country at an awkward ti, it was better to patiently wait for our turn. With that reason, I had remained in South Korea until now. And about 24 hours later, just as predicted, the [Sin Classification] did indeed appear sowhere around the western part of the Korean Peninsula.
"What is it?"
However, even though I am an S-rank hunter representing South Korea, I still hadn't set foot in that gate yet.
I thought they had the concept of territorial waters here, too. But suddenly, every article is talking about unfamiliar things like continental shelf claims and whatever else.
It was because China suddenly voiced objections to the sixth [Sin Classification] raid strategy.
Author Thoughts
Hi, from now on, I will update this new 3 chapters/week. Thank you for all your support so for:)
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