Chapter 47 – Declaration of War Against Villains (1)

“The elite hunters are on their way back.”

“Good. That’s a relief.”

The appearance of a colossal monster had thrown the nation into an uproar.

Of all times, the monster had to emerge just as Gates were opening up simultaneously across the country.

It was announced as an unavoidable, unstoppable disaster, but the Director knew that wasn’t the whole truth.

‘That group.’

The ones known as Villains.

They had finally reached the point of summoning creatures from another world.

Humanity was already under threat from Gates and dungeons.

The situation could have resulted in far greater damage. But thanks to the timely appearance of a hero, the agency was able to reclaim its tarnished honor.

The Director was watching a video.

A young man who kept catching his eye.

Lee Hyunbin, the Awakened Supporter who possessed the largest inventory in the country.

The agency had tried to scout him, but he had insisted on a freelance contract instead.

Thanks to that, he held the authority of a Guarder and received various tax benefits.

He could also request discretionary entry into most Gates or dungeons.

Until now, there hadn’t been any particular reason to hire him.

He was just a card they had bet on for the future. The Director had never expected him to grow so magnificently.

‘A team leader in the Hanul Guild…’

The more he looked, the more interesting the young man became.

Even veteran hunters were powerless before the giant beast. They could only stand frozen.

But this young man charged forward without a hint of fear.

To borrow a phrase from today’s youth, it was a scene of an absolute rampage.

Modern boss raids relied on formation tactics.

The standard procedure was to secure an advantageous position and gradually chip away at the large boss’s health, sometimes even receiving support from military bombardments.

The young man’s exceptional combat skills were one thing, but the sword he wielded was also peculiar. A greatsword with a massive blade, the likes of which had never been seen before.

There had been no reports of Hanul possessing such technology.

‘Ranked 21st in the industry.’

Hanul’s performance had been improving little by little, but for a guild backed by a major corporation, their ranking was remarkably low.

‘Looks like a major shake-up is coming.’

The Hanul Guild showed the potential to grow into a much stronger force than anticipated.

They had recently recruited the S-rank Seo Hyun-ji, as well as two of this year’s most promising rookies.

Not only that, but Lee Hyunbin… this young man might just become the world’s first of his kind.

An S-rank Supporter.

A-rank Supporters existed, but S-rank Supporters did not. Anywhere in the world.

And from what he had seen in the video, Lee Hyunbin had displayed combat abilities that could only be described as S-rank.

* * *

When Gates first appeared and Hunters emerged, there was no such thing as a ranking system.

The only term used to refer to a Hunter was simply an Awakened.

In truth, Gates had existed in one form or another for a long time. They only became clearly tangible eleven years ago, during the worldwide Gate Advent incident.

Hunter ranks were also once divided simply into professional and amateur.

The system was later subdivided to align with international standards, creating the rank system.

Korea also followed these international regulations.

Most D-rank and below were Supporters. While strong Supporters existed, there were no A-rank or higher Supporters anywhere in the world.

Right now, I was at the Hunter Agency’s research lab.

“Hunter Lee Hyunbin. Please place your hand on the measurement crystal here.”

“Oh, I’ve seen this thing a ton of times.”

So this was it, the thing I’d only ever heard about.

I knew my own strength well. According to this place’s standards, I was off the charts.

“Huh? Wh-what?”

The researcher’s voice was filled with panic.

A moment later, the crystal sphere shattered with a pop.

“Oh, this can’t be right.”

Seeing the flustered researcher was strangely satisfying.

People outside must have realized something was wrong, as they came rushing in.

It was a predictable cliché.

Now the door would open, and I’d be met with a flood of researchers wanting to shake my hand…

“Hey, intern! Are you crazy? I told you that one was broken and scheduled for disposal, didn’t I?”

“I-I’m sorry!”

“Hunter Lee Hyunbin. My apologies. Are you hurt?”

“Ah, no…”

“In this day and age, what can you really do with a crystal sphere like this? Such an old-fashioned method. Would you come this way, please? I’ll assist you with the body scan.”

Tsk.

“Hunter Lee Hyunbin, the body scan is complete. We will inform you as soon as the results are out. Please wait for a moment.”

While waiting, I turned on the TV in the waiting room.

A familiar scene.

It was footage of me fighting the Earth Dragon.

*Click. Click.*

It was the same on every channel I turned to.

The Republic of Korea was abuzz, preoccupied with its newly born hero.

“They must really have nothing else to broadcast.”

An SBC reporter, driven by a possessive desire disguised as the public’s right to know, had live-streamed my fight with the Earth Dragon.

Thanks to that, I had become incredibly famous.

A hero, just like Superman.

For the elite hunters who had just returned from handling the unprecedented incident of multiple high-level Gates, it might feel a bit hollow.

They had also risked their lives to close all the Gates, only to come back and find some unknown hunter had suddenly risen to become Korea’s hero.

Although I had stored everyone at the scene in my inventory, once I passed out, they all reappeared outside. Anyone could see what happened.

That I was the one who had severed the Earth Dragon’s head.

Because of that, all the nation’s attention was focused on me.

*Click.*

I turned off the TV and checked the news on my phone.

– Hanul Guild’s Hunter Lee Hyunbin Currently Undergoing Detailed Assessment at the Agency’s Research Lab

– Hanul Guild’s Lee Hyunbin: Will He Become the First S-Rank Supporter?

– The Hero Who Saved Hundreds of Thousands of Lives: Who is Lee Hyunbin?

Honestly, I did want to become famous.

But I hadn’t wished for the entire country to be turned upside down like this.

“Hmm.”

Was this impact even greater than when the third S-rank hunter, the Holy Knight Seol Ji-hoon, debuted?

The news wasn’t just about me.

Hanul had to go through hell to collect the massive Earth Dragon’s corpse, and rival guilds were reportedly desperate to buy its scales.

It made sense. Dragon scales were incredibly valuable.

They were items imbued with magical power that modern civilization couldn’t replicate.

My phone had been blowing up all day.

I had over 999 unread messages on my messenger app; I couldn’t possibly read them all.

The only saving grace was that I hadn’t delayed in applying for personal information protection.

If I had been even a little late, my house would be swarming with reporters.

I can handle it. I can.

But it would affect Katrinne, who was still attending school. The thought of that forced me to be more restrained.

After all, she had to return to her original world someday.

Just then, I saw some unfortunate news.

– Numerous Dead and Injured Due to Government’s Complacency on Safety. A Clueless Administration That Fails to Act Even After Disaster Strikes.

The government was being heavily criticized for not having S-rank hunters on standby to handle the recent Gate incident.

For the families of those who lost their lives in this incident to receive compensation, they had to prove the victims were killed by the Earth Dragon.

In a normal injury case, proving it would be easy enough.

But how in the world were they supposed to prove anything when the Earth Dragon had devoured them without leaving a trace?

Especially when all the CCTVs had been destroyed.

The hunters who participated in the raid were also facing problems.

A hunter who lost an arm or became a paraplegic could no longer work as a hunter.

Yet, there was no proper compensation from the state.

That was because hunters were affiliated with guilds, which operated as private military companies.

And from the guild’s perspective, once they paid severance and compensation, their obligation was over.

It was a bitter reality, but welfare for hunters was practically nonexistent.

“Hunter Lee Hyunbin. We’ll proceed with the next measurement.”

“Okay.”

After finishing a full scan with a machine linked to the system, I was led to a VR virtual combat machine.

It was a place where you entered a virtual, stage-based game to experience combat as if it were real.

Since the tactile feedback was different from reality, combat efficiency was significantly lower until one adapted.

For that reason, the measurement values weren’t considered highly reliable.

The difficulty ranged from floor 1 to 99.

“All A-rank and higher hunters go through this measurement, so please relax. If you feel nauseous or wish to stop the test, just raise both your hands. Ah, even if you’re missing an arm, just raise the one you have, and we’ll be able to see it, so don’t worry and just raise it.”

I wasn’t sure if that last part was necessary.

Like in a typical VR game, I put on a headset, had sensors attached all over my body, and stepped into the VR game world.

I was standing alone on a stage that looked like something out of a fighting tournament.

For the initial weapon choice, you could pick whatever you wanted.

I chose a mace. Honestly, no matter the enemy, there was no better weapon than a mace. No risk of the blade getting damaged, and it was durable.

The enemy on Stage 1 was a goblin. It was as easy as I expected.

I casually walked up to the goblin and gave it a light kick.

Yep, stage cleared.

The next stage had three goblins. It seemed weak monsters would keep appearing since it was still a low stage.

Easy, too easy.

* * *

“Lead Researcher Ahn, come take a look at this!”

“What is it?”

“Look at this person’s reaction time. Wow, it’s the best I’ve ever seen!”

At the chief researcher’s words, Lead Researcher Ahn looked at the monitor.

At first, she didn’t think much of it, but a moment later, she adjusted her glasses and said.

“Who is this person?”

“Right?”

It was no wonder the two of them were surprised.

The VR system was incredibly simple.

A stage appeared, and a monster based on system parameters spawned.

Due to technical limitations, the rendered environment lacked realism, and the sense of impact was poor.

That was why the VR system was not recognized as an official ranking system. Only Korea had poured taxes into it, earning ridicule for creating a piece of junk.

Most people entering VR for the first time took a while just to get their bearings.

But the person currently being tested was different.

He cleared the stage within seconds of starting.

The next stage was the same.

‘What, was he a professional VR gamer or something?’

As she watched with interest, the man on the screen tilted his head, clenched his fist, and swung it a few times in the air. Then, as if he understood something, he nodded.

The next stage began.

It was already Stage 10.

Five orcs, each wielding a weapon, began to charge at him from all sides.

The difficulty spiked dramatically at this point. Even other S-ranks usually chose to take some hits while taking them down one by one.

But the person being tested now was different.

*Thwack! Crack!*

*Pow, pow!*

*Swoosh, thud!*

“…No way.”

The two researchers said in unison.

The man finished off the enemies with single blows without taking a single hit. The time it took him to reach Stage 10 was a mere three minutes.

Lead Researcher Ahn thought the man was getting faster. No, he actually was. It was as if he was only just now getting accustomed to it.

“Seo Hyun-ji’s record was Stage 3, and the Holy Knight Seol Ji-hoon went up to Stage 20.”

The man had already just cleared Stage 20. He had taken one effective hit, but it was still a record-breaking score.

Lead Researcher Ahn looked up the man’s file.

“Is this him?”

“Yes, he’s the porter who took down the dragon recently.”

“Incredible.”

Ahn smiled, and the chief researcher looked as excited as if it were his own achievement.

They watched to see how far he would go, but unfortunately, it ended at Stage 25.

The reason was absurd.

“Good work, Hunter Lee Hyunbin.”

“That was more fun than I expected.”

Seeing the man’s gentle and warm smile, Lead Researcher Ahn felt a crack forming in her vow of singlehood.

“If you had fun, please come again. I’ll ask the engineers to fix the bug.”

A bug.

Apparently, he had cleared the stages so quickly that an unforeseen bug had appeared.

Of course, if it hadn’t been for Lee Hyunbin, they never would have found it.

“I’ll come again next time.”

“You know what’ll happen if you say that and don’t show up, right? It looks like you could easily break the record today.”

A voice cut through their lighthearted, laughter-filled conversation.

“Hunter Lee Hyunbin. The Director is looking for you.”

“Ah, yes.”

Lee Hyunbin followed the secretary who had come down personally, exchanging brief farewells with the researchers before leaving.

The remaining researchers swirled the coffee in their mouths and smiled fondly.

“He’s nice.”

“I know, right? I always thought all hunters were aggressive.”