Chapter 240 – Fenrir Raid (1)

“What the hell, who’s that guy…?”

A few of the European hunters questioned the sudden appearance of the man from the East.

“The Korea Monster.”

Audrey answered, clearing up their confusion.

The Korea Monster, Lee Hyunbin.

The man declared the worst Villain in his own country had, for reasons unknown, joined this fierce, bloody battle.

The situation was overwhelmingly disadvantageous.

A betrayal had occurred between the strongest man in humanity and the allied forces.

And to top it all off, the 6-star boss monster was in pristine condition.

The arrival of a single hunter from the East shouldn’t change anything. But the atmosphere had shifted.

The ogre, which had been drooling in its gluttonous frenzy even as countless shells rained down upon it, was now taking fearful steps backward. A top-tier monster, a man-eating ogre, was afraid.

“What’s going to happen?”

“What do you think is going to happen?”

Audrey replied instantly to her comrades who still hadn’t grasped the situation.

“The tables are about to turn.”

“…?”

A faint smile touched Audrey’s doll-like, expressionless face.

Her reaction, so out of place in this situation, left the others looking around warily, unable to understand.

But it was to be expected.

It was a natural reaction for those who didn’t know just how strong he was.

“Why are you just standing there? I thought you were going to kill me.”

The man from the East. Hyunbin walked leisurely forward.

A corner of Ian Kruger’s mouth lifted as he shouldered his greatsword and walked toward Hyunbin.

“The Korea Monster.”

Ian felt the magical energy emanating from Hyunbin.

He was strong.

When the disaster of the Gates had befallen this land, countless Awakened had appeared.

Some were called geniuses, others incompetents.

Depending on their talent and effort, they were assigned various ranks from F-Rank to S-Rank.

But among them, none were the real deal.

They were nothing but fakes in a small pond, mistaking their slightly larger size for true strength.

‘He’s just strong.’

Ian felt a sense of disappointment looking at Hyunbin.

The Hero known as the Demon King Slayer.

He was a being on the same level as the monsters on the opposite side.

Lee Hyunbin had been quite the famous Hero in another dimension.

That was why all the Demon Kings felt threatened by him.

He had expected something more.

After all, even the lesser Demon Kings had been terrified of him.

He had expected someone more overwhelming.

After all, even a fully grown Quasar had feared him.

“Calling you Hero would be more fitting than Korea Monster, wouldn’t it?”

In truth, Ian had known about the hero named Lee Hyunbin for a very, very long time.

From a young age, Ian Kruger had possessed a powerful physique.

He had been special since he was a child.

Unlike his oafish younger brother, Ralph Kruger, who was just big and dumb, Ian had never lost a fight to anyone.

It didn’t matter who the opponent was, or how many there were.

He heard there were many strong people among martial artists, so he started training in martial arts.

Boxing, mixed martial arts, and so on. He thought he could engage in life-or-death duels in the ring, a place known as the zone of the strong.

Though only a teenager, he defeated powerful fighters in the ring.

It was disappointing.

He thought he no longer had any rivals.

Then, by a stroke of chance, he was dragged into another world.

A hero summoned to another world.

When he became the protagonist of that ridiculous story, he felt a thrill.

A world ruled by swords, spears, and magic.

A world entangled in a spiral of life and death felt fascinating to him.

After all, there was no line between life and death in the ring.

He became a Hero.

He learned swordsmanship and the art of killing.

Thanks to the benefits of the Hero system, he grew strong in an instant.

One day, a man known as the kingdom’s greatest knight came to see Ian.

He was not pleased with the existence of Hero Ian.

He believed he could save the kingdom in crisis even without a so-called Hero.

The knight challenged Ian to a duel, intending to humiliate him.

The official reason was to help with the Hero’s training.

Delighted at the prospect of a real fight after so long, Ian accepted the practice match.

—Th-This can’t be…!

Ian killed the kingdom’s strongest knight. He had been reasonably strong, but he was still no match for him.

If anything, Ian felt it was boring.

Because he had killed their captain, the knights became hostile toward Ian.

It didn’t matter. The weak die sooner or later anyway. It was just a matter of time.

—The previous Hero wasn’t like this.

At some point, people began to compare him to the previous Hero.

—The first Hero was someone who cared for those around him.

It got on his nerves.

—The first Hero was, in a word, the best. Not to be compared to the likes of you.

So Ian killed anyone who said such things in front of him.

He didn’t care if his reputation worsened.

They were the ones who forcibly summoned him for help, so it was their fault for comparing him to his predecessor.

He didn’t know how much of a hypocrite the former Hero was.

If he wanted a woman, he took her. If he felt the urge, he killed.

Wasn’t it a wonderful world where killing one person made you a murderer, but killing many made you a hero?

—Just as I thought.

He could hear the people sneering.

He had not been chosen by the Holy Sword.

The Holy Sword Laevatein had rejected the second Hero, and he became the object of everyone’s ridicule.

He could kill the Demon King with his own power, even without that shiny sword.

But Ian quickly grew tired of it all.

The first Hero.

It felt like he was facing an invisible enemy.

In that situation, the one who approached him was a very unexpected figure.

—A Hero?

Demon King Gamigin.

The very Demon King he was supposed to defeat had come to him in person.

With no guards whatsoever.

I’ll die.

Ian knew it instinctively.

This was not an opponent he could win against.

Because he himself was so strong, he could sense the different dimension of power more clearly than anyone.

It was the first time. The first time he had felt such a humiliating difference in power.

On the other hand, he was also glad that there was someone stronger than him.

—Do you not wish to know what it means to become truly strong?

Demon King Gamigin made him an offer.

Ian took her hand.

And he was chosen as a Demon King candidate, moving to become a ruler of dimensions.

Home, after a long time.

Ian acted immediately.

The age of Gates would soon begin. A world where bloodshed and death were not wasted, where the strong came first.

He soon made a name for himself as a hero in the dawning age of Gates.

Even without that damned Holy Sword, even without that childish salvation, people and money flocked to him.

Then, one day, Ian Kruger received news that Demon King Gamigin was dead.

The first Hero.

That name came up again.

That son of a bitch was in the same world as him.

If he was as great as they said, it was only natural for him to make a name for himself in the age of Gates.

But the bastard had awakened as a 3rd generation hunter.

It didn’t make sense.

He had heard the man returned before he did.

Perhaps it was a time paradox that occurred when crossing dimensions.

None of that mattered.

He could kill that so-called great first Hero.

To become a Demon King candidate, no, to become the truly strongest, he had extracted the power of countless heroes and saints.

Thanks to that, the tattoos on his body were so dark that they completely covered his skin.

“The first Hero. I’ve always wanted to kill you.”

“When you think about what’s about to happen to you, you’ll wish you’d never seen me.”

As expected, the first Hero was composed.

It was the composure that only the strong could possess. But today, that composure would be shattered.

The fact that they were standing on equal footing meant they possessed similar strength.

However, Ian had the Soul Talisman that amplified his power.

“How about we use our fists.”

“Fists?”

“Yeah, I don’t want to kill you too easily.”

“Right, you wouldn’t want to die too easily.”

Ian plunged his greatsword into the ground.

Seeing this, Hyunbin also planted his two-handed sword into the ground.

As the two men walked toward each other, everyone fell silent.

It was a ridiculous situation.

Just moments ago, a bloody battle had been raging, but now, everyone had become a spectator.

“Well, shall we begin? The execution of the first He—”

As Ian spoke, his head snapped to the side.

“We started, right?”

Hearing the characteristic taunt in his ear, Ian bared his teeth and smiled.

“We did.”

*Smack!*

Ian’s fist slammed into Hyunbin’s face.

*Thwack!*

Hyunbin’s fist sent Ian’s head snapping back, only for him to receive an uppercut in return.

A brutish brawl began between the two hunters.

Watching the scene, Danny’s face hardened.

The Hyunbin he knew was an incredible powerhouse. Danny himself was no match for him.

‘But even Hyunbin is no match for Ian.’

He had pinned all his hopes on Hyunbin. But perhaps that had been too much to ask.

Behind Ian stood Fenrir, the 6-star boss monster, a beast of unprecedented power.

Even if they were lucky enough to defeat Ian, another monster was waiting right behind him.

“Don’t worry, Dan.”

Henri, who had somehow appeared beside Danny, grinned slyly.

“This is a game Hyunbin likes to play.”

“A game?”

Danny was puzzled by Henri’s words.

Right now, for every punch Hyunbin landed, he took one in return.

He couldn’t understand how this could be considered a game.

At that moment, Danny took another look at the situation.

It wasn’t the same. It was different.

“Ugh.”

Ian Kruger’s lips were split, and his face was swollen.

The force of the blows was so immense that it was piercing his HP shield.

‘What is this bastard?’

The more they exchanged blows, the more of his own blood splattered on the ground. But Hyunbin’s face was perfectly clean.

Without a single scratch.

“What’s wrong?”

Hyunbin was smiling, his guard still up.

“In your movies, the bad guy and the hero always trade punches one by one. I thought you wanted to fight American style?”

Only then did Ian realize he was being toyed with.

Hyunbin had been waiting for him to attack again.

Trading blows one by one.

That was what Hyunbin called his American-style fighting.

“You son of a bitch!”

Ian Kruger threw a hook at Hyunbin.

This time, he felt no impact.

*Crack!*

Ian staggered as a low kick slammed into his leg.

“Don’t like the American style? Then we’ll do it my style.”

A one-sided assault began.

Every time Hyunbin’s fist shot out and retracted, a spray of Ian’s blood hung in the air.

Low kick. Jab. Low kick. Jab.

Under Hyunbin’s repeated attacks, Ian’s chin kept snapping up.

“My God…”

Watching Ian Kruger get beaten, the faces of the allied hunters twitched. They unknowingly clenched their fists.

An overwhelmingly disadvantageous situation. A hopeless situation. But now, a glimmer of hope was visible.

That Ian Kruger.

That traitor, called the strongest in humanity.

Was being beaten to a pulp by a hunter from the East who had appeared out of nowhere.

Everyone watching felt a sense of catharsis, as if a long-held frustration was finally being released.

“Fuck you!”

Ian Kruger spat out a curse, his face swollen and bloody. He gripped the greatsword he had planted in the ground.

“Using that now, are we?”

Hyunbin casually gripped his two-handed sword.

“Choose.”

A layer of magical energy coated the two-handed sword in Hyunbin’s grasp.

“Arm, leg. Which do you prefer?”

Ian Kruger, the man who played with people’s lives.

A thug who mimicked the strong, trampling and violating the lives of others for his own power.

“Where should I start cutting?”

He had no intention of giving such a man an easy death.

Sensing the unusual intensity in Hyunbin’s aura, Ian unknowingly smirked.

“Interesting.”

Ian Kruger unleashed the talismans embedded in his body.