In the history of South Korea, North Korea had always been a close yet uncomfortable name.

This was true during the era of division and rivalry, and it remained true even now, as the world underwent upheaval following the Millennium Shock.

No, in some ways, North Korea was now an even more painful name to the public.

Before one could even debate reunification or perfect division, the entire nation of North Korea had perished, becoming a tangible threat.

It happened not long after the emergence of gates.

It was an era when even global superpowers crumbled, unable to manage the Gate Shocks occurring within their borders.

Several nations with weaker national power failed to prepare, and their entire civilizations collapsed under the Gate Shock.

Beyond that, the situation deteriorated to a point where post-disaster cleanup was impossible: Erosion.

The mana of the gates contaminated the real-world terrain, terraforming it.

North Korea was such a nation.

A country whose only ally, China, had splintered into sixteen pieces, causing all contingency plans to fall apart.

Consequently, due to the myriad Gate Shocks, the land itself transformed into something resembling the interior of a Third gate, becoming uninhabitable for humans.

Because it was divided from South Korea by the DMZ, the damage reported was no more than the occasional invasion by magical beasts.

However, there was an undeniable anxiety among the citizens stemming from the fact that an Erosion Zone loomed right above their country.

Thus, there was a time when the reclamation of North Korean territory was planned.

It was an expedition led by a hero.

[Management Bureau Director Chun Jun-ho decides to head to North Korea.]

[The first destination is Pyongyang, known as the official first exploration and research schedule of the Erosion Zone…]

The hero Chun Jun-ho headed to North Korea.

It was later revealed that behind the scenes, there was a horrifically malicious political power struggle aimed at bringing him down, but that was not known at the time.

Everyone had high expectations for Chun Jun-ho’s endeavor.

However, reality could not always be a fairy tale, and he went missing.

Although Hunter Chun Jun-ho was not officially expelled, his future whereabouts had not been reported even now, 15 years later.

It was essentially a state tantamount to death.

The North Korean Erosion Zone was such a place.

It was a place that drove the man called the strongest and the best in South Korea to his eternal rest.

And right now, Jung-woo was talking about challenging such a place again.

Park Tae-woon spoke.

“Hunter Shin Jung-woo, you at least know this isn’t something to joke about, right?”

His voice was gruff.

It wasn’t simply because he was spouting nonsense; rather, this demeanor stemmed from the very implications that the keyword ‘North Korean Reclamation’ carried.

“Reclaiming North Korea. It sounds nice. It’s a long-cherished desire everyone has yearned for. But, let me ask you. Do you really think that’s realistic?”

The other hunters also gazed at Jung-woo, seemingly in agreement.

To that, Jung-woo replied.

“If reclamation is possible, even setting aside other development projects, there are North Korea’s natural resources, long exposed to mana, and the gate profits that would come from occupying the area after it’s cleaned up. Before that, there are the magic stones and magical beast materials to be obtained during the reclamation process. Everything promises immense profits.”

“Is there anyone who doesn’t know that? I’m looking at the realistic possibility.”

At the very least, Jung-woo’s words only sounded to the hunters like he was presenting unrealistic rewards to avoid giving them anything immediately.

Ha Kwon-seung explicitly revealed such a sentiment.

“If reclaiming North Korea were possible, we would have attempted it first. Hunter Shin Jung-woo, if you think the reason the Korean hunter community still hasn’t dared to encroach on North Korea is simply due to power struggles, you are greatly mistaken.”

Jin Hae-seo kept her mouth tightly shut.

At least Baek Geun-ho showed a positive sign, but in the end, that was just his personal reaction.

“It’s been 32 years since the Millennium Shock. Do you know what it means for a land to be eroded by a gate’s environment all this time?”

Ha Kwon-seung was a hunter who had lived and remained active from the first generation until now.

He could state that history more succinctly than anyone else.

“The S-Rank gate you dealt with. That is the foundation of the entire territory. Even the DMZ, which corresponds to the outermost perimeter, has an upper A-Rank gate density.”

Mana erosion level, density, environmental saturation.

Everything about it is horrific.

Normally, when considering the environment of an Erosion Zone, the outskirts are where species weeded out by competition reside, and yet, that’s where the difficulty begins.

What did that mean?

The purification of erosion is the elimination of the shock gate.

In other words, the mainland is definitively littered with S-Rank gates to the point where you’d trip over them, and in such a place, one would have to push through S-Rank magical beasts spread out across a national scale.

It meant they had to subjugate the S-Rank ‘champions’ at the center.

“I trust you are not unaware of what S-Rank champions are.”

“A national destruction scenario.”

“They are called gods. Unlike normal magical beasts, they possess intellect. They understand society and form groups.”

And it didn’t end there.

“…They are beings that understand desire.”

Ha Kwon-seung’s expression distorted.

Because he had encountered an S-Rank champion in person exactly once, he felt the weight of this matter all the more vividly.

“I trust you are not unaware of the Tokyo Incident.”

Japan’s capital was relocated to Osaka.

For no other reason than the fact that a single S-Rank champion appeared in Tokyo, the entire city was destroyed.

The S-Rank champion Izanami.

It was a living, breathing disaster that spoke an alien language, refused negotiation with humans, and swept up everything in sight, reshaping it to its own will.

As it was a time when internal order was beginning to stabilize globally, Japan sought aid from S-Rank hunters of neighboring countries and formed a subjugation squad.

Ha Kwon-seung knew this because he was one of the individuals who had participated in it.

“And there isn’t just one of them; there are several. The current North Korean land is a society of magical beasts.”

He was right.

North Korea was already their territory.

It was not difficult to gauge the horrific events unfolding within that hellish landscape.

Voices speaking of impossibility.

An atmosphere of agreement.

Things they knew because they were hunters.

In the midst of all that, after silently listening to everything.

Only then did Jung-woo speak.

“Yes, so we have to subjugate them. Because it’s dangerous.”

“How did you just listen to my…”

“S-Rank champions. We just have to catch them.”

Ha Kwon-seung’s words halted abruptly.

The others were the same.

“It seems like we can catch them. Am I the only one who thinks so?”

Jung-woo was smiling softly.

There was not a trace of doubt in his tone.

It was only a belief that it would naturally come to pass, and surprisingly.

“I believe that the hunters of our country aren’t limited to just that.”

For some reason, it didn’t sound like arrogance.

Jung-woo stepped down from the podium and approached the round table.

As he did so, he continued speaking.

“There are five active S-ranks, including myself. Is there any point in counting the A-ranks below that? With that level of manpower, the progress of hunter-related weaponry projects is also on par with, if not exceeding, that of other developed nations.”

He reviewed their forces step by step.

Then, he said.

“And, I’m here.”

A confidence that stated the obvious as if it were a matter of fact.

Yet, no one could laugh at him.

Because he was a person in a position where he could more than back up such words.

South Korea’s first born S-Rank.

That title alone elevated the credibility of the North Korean reclamation.

But it didn’t stop there.

The specialization of his abilities crossed their minds.

Geun-ho let out an “Ah!”

“Domain! That’s right! He has a Domain!”

“Ah…!”

“That! Isn’t that the Domain that lowers gate difficulty!”

The Domain, one of Jung-woo’s skills, that transforms magical beasts into dolls.

It might have looked comical, but it had been verified several times that it was a reality-manipulation ability that even S-Rank magical beasts couldn’t avoid, as well as a debuff skill that lowered the beasts’ capabilities.

If that were to intervene in the North Korean reclamation process?

The difficulty of reclamation would drop by at least half a rank.

“With that, isn’t it actually doable?”

At Geun-ho’s words, spoken with a wide smile, Jung-woo replied with a smile.

Only then did the atmosphere shift.

An event with realistic feasibility.

From the moment they judged it as such, calculators began rolling in their heads.

The value of North Korea’s magical resources.

The profits that could be obtained from the gates in the reclaimed land.

“…If it’s the Third gates in North Korean land.”

“They would be a bit more free from density-related regulations. Since it’s a land where people don’t live.”

The gate business was ultimately a business that considered risk and return.

When judging that, in this situation where the density standard was significantly lowered for the safety of Seoul, North Korea was a golden land that could realize a more profitable model than that.

If so, if only they could seize North Korea.

“How about it?”

Jung-woo’s question became a statement that no longer needed an answer.

Even Ha Kwon-seung, who had been pessimistic to the end, changed his demeanor.

“If all of South Korea’s S-ranks are mobilized in the champion subjugation process… what about the distribution of those materials?”

The question he posed, assuming the subjugation of an S-Rank champion—which he had faced directly—showed what the result of his realistic calculations was.

The atmosphere had reversed.

Jung-woo said.

“I intend to decide on that from now on. I would appreciate it if everyone could look at the documents at their seats.”

The guild leaders picked up the documents.

Immediately after, Jung-woo’s voice echoed through the space.

“From now on, I will begin the explanation of the hunter system reform plan prepared by the Countermeasure Bureau.”

The story began to get on track.

The meeting held in the main conference room of the Management Bureau headquarters continued until after sunset.

Reporters were waiting, eagerly anticipating the end of the meeting, with cameras set up in front of the building.

The public was no different.

Online, the consensus was that the future of the Korean hunter world would be overturned depending on the results of today’s meeting.

The reorganization of the power structure meant the reorganization of the citizen safety system.

How could they not be interested in a matter directly tied to their right to life?

Thus, the attention of the entire nation.

And beyond that, the attention of foreign media, which had been watching this situation internationally, was focused on this single building.

It was then.

“Uh, ah!!! They’re coming out!!!”

“Everyone! The hunters who just finished the meeting are coming out of the building right now!!!”

“They look bright! The issues confirmed internally seem to be satisfactory to each other!”

Reporters began to spout their lines in a flurry.

With people raising their voices with flushed faces from excitement popping up everywhere, it became an atmosphere no different from a marketplace.

In the middle of it all, the hunters, with Jung-woo at the forefront, walked out and stood in front of the cameras.

Questions poured in.

“Has a plan to fill the void of the Management Bureau been finalized?!”

“Opinions are divided on how guild hunters will handle Third gates from now on! Please say a few words!”

“Please tell us the plan for recruiting public office hunters!”

It was amidst such a barrage of words.

Jung-woo took a step forward and stood before the public.

And he said.

“All major agendas have been discussed. During the long meeting, we closely examined the problems of the past and prepared several measures to prevent the recurrence of incidents like this terrorist situation.”

“What kind of measures!!!”

Immediately after, a shocking statement burst forth.

“We are abolishing the public office hunter system.”

Thump, silence fell.

Because there were countless imaginable futures stemming from that radical remark, their thoughts momentarily stopped.

The eyes of the reporters present grew as if they would tear apart.

However, before they could even finish preparing to accept it, words were added, as if it wasn’t over.

“We have faced the ills caused by the dominance of a specific institution. Regarding this, our Countermeasure Bureau feels a deep sense of responsibility, and having felt the need for a mutual surveillance system to eliminate the root cause of this structure, we will now proclaim the launch of a new organization to restore order to the hunter society.”

Jung-woo hardened his expression.

He continued in a markedly solemn manner.

“The Hunter Association. We will establish an organization that elects council members based solely on performance and external contributions, determining the direction of the entire hunter society. The Countermeasure Bureau will be incorporated as an internal general and auditing body to constantly monitor for ills. We promise complete isolation from politics and movement solely for the purpose of national defense, and as our first pledge…”

The collapse of the existing hunter system alone was shocking enough.

Going a step further, words that would send the entire nation into an uproar escaped his lips.

“…After the establishment of the Association, we proclaim that we will once again challenge the reclamation of North Korea as our first public interest goal.”

Reclaiming North Korea.

The moment that word burst forth.

Chwajwajwajwak—!

The world was bathed in white from the camera flashes.