Returnee's S-Rank Management Guide

Fragments of the Past (6)

【For now, the monsters emerging from the gate are being suppressed stably, and the number of casualties is estimated at around 500. Among them, it is reported that there are no civilian casualties yet.】

An unprecedented multiple-gate incident.

This many gates appearing at once was the first occurrence since the incident in Africa long ago.

Fortunately, while the gates that opened in Africa at that time included high-rank gates, luckily, the ones that appeared on Jeju Island were not of such high grade and thus did not lead to significant damage.

There was massive property damage, but the fact that there were no human casualties was a relief beyond measure.

"Hunter Baek Hojun-nim, what do you think about the current situation?"

After communication was restored in Jeju Island, broadcasting stations urgently scheduled special programs to deliver real-time updates on the situation.

And on KDC, S-rank hunter Baek Hojun appeared as a guest, explaining just how dangerous the present circumstances were and how well the hunters responded.

"I think it was a great stroke of luck that Hunter Shin Ah-yeon was in Jeju Island."

"That probably played the biggest role. But how did Hunter Shin Ah-yeon end up being in Jeju Island?"

At the anchor's surprised question, Baek Hojun shook his head.

"I'm not sure, to be honest. Maybe she was there on vacation or something?"

In fact, he already knew from the association why Shin Ah-yeon was in Jeju Island.

Still, it was awkward to mention that in this situation, and he thought nothing good would come from him randomly talking about 'Shin Ah-yeon participating in a movie'.

"Hunter Baek Hojun-nim, you and Hunter Shin Ah-yeon are said to be quite close, aren't you?"

"Close... I'm not sure that's the right way to put it."

"Really? But you participated in the Demonic Zone raid together, and you seemed pretty friendly on Super Hunter K as well."

"Ha ha..."

Of course, it wasn't as though they weren't acquainted at all.

But if asked if they were close, that was not quite the case.

Whenever Baek Hojun tried to speak with Shin Ah-yeon in a friendly manner, she would somehow give off a subtle air of avoidance.

"Now that I think about it, wasn't Hunter Shin Ah-yeon's manager..."

Suddenly recalling who Shin Ah-yeon's manager was, the anchor trailed off.

With the mood in the studio growing somber, Baek Hojun found it hard to maintain his expression.

'Am I supposed to worry about that guy?'

The first thing KDC's field reporter Han Sang-woo recorded in Jeju was the sight of Jung-woo falling off a cliff.

After that, he monitored the situation from a nearby helicopter, but it was unclear what happened to Jung-woo.

'Someone like him wouldn't get hurt just from falling off a cliff.'

Of course, there were swarms of monsters down there as well, but that, too, was no real problem.

After all, Baek Hojun had, if only for a moment, seen Park Jung-woo's strength with his own eyes.

It had been when Ji Yeon-hwa lost control and was buried in a landslide.

"Well, it seems the conversation has wrapped up, so I'll be heading out."

"Ah, yes. But when you say you're heading out...?"

At that time, Baek Hojun had barely managed to create a space amidst the landslide, but escaping was not easy. Much of his strength had already been depleted while holding off Ji Yeon-hwa and the collapsing mountain.

"How about waiting until at least Hunter Shin Ah-yeon wakes up?"

"If we do that, we might not make it until the mission ends."

Is that Super Hunter K mission really so important, even in this situation?

Swallowing down his disbelief, Baek Hojun shook his head.

"That seems difficult. Unless we had another proper weapon—unfortunately, the one I had was broken holding off the landslide."

Not expecting such a situation, he had made the mistake of not bringing his personal weapon.

If he'd had his usual sword, it wouldn't have been nearly as hard to stop Ji Yeon-hwa, and he could have held out during the landslide much more safely.

"Eh? I'll take care of it anyway."

"Pardon?"

"Hunter Baek Hojun-nim, you can just stand back and watch."

Watching Jung-woo lightly loosen up his hands, Baek Hojun was intrigued.

'Come to think of it, he had that tone earlier as well.'

He spoke with absolute confidence about their ability to get out.

Baek Hojun wondered whether it was because, like Shin Ah-yeon or himself, an S-rank hunter was present, but it felt a bit different.

"Please, just don't tell anyone what you see. Otherwise, they'll probably ask me to become a hunter."

"... Excuse me?"

"*Ahem,* it was supposed to be a joke."

Needlessly awkward, Jung-woo turned his back to Baek Hojun and began calming his breath.

With that, Baek Hojun could sense the ambient magic power growing restless.

'What's this?'

For reasons unknown, the surrounding magic power began to shift, slowly being drawn toward Jung-woo.

Impossible.

Jung-woo was not an awakener, and non-awakeners had no mana hall, so he should not have been able to retain magic power that entered his body.

And yet—

'It's increasing—the magic power keeps growing.'

A gigantic amount of magic power, enough to make an ordinary awakener's body burst, filled Jung-woo's body.

"Whew."

Astonishingly, Jung-woo handled that vast magic power skillfully.

Being an S-rank hunter, Baek Hojun could make out the details.

The magic power Jung-woo absorbed was not condensed in the mana hall near his lower abdomen, but in his heart.

Soon, the magic power concentrated in his heart swelled all at once and then surged into Jung-woo's arm.

Then—

Light burst forth in the dark cavern.

"Hunter Baek Hojun-nim?"

"Ah, yes."

Coming out of his memories about that time they had escaped the cave, Baek Hojun snapped back at the anchor's call.

"We've just gotten word from reporter Han Sang-woo. Would it be alright to connect?"

"Of course."

Most of the gates were already closed; the chances of greater incidents were slim.

So Baek Hojun nodded without concern.

"Yes, reporter Han Sang-woo. How is the situation in Jeju?"

【Currently, I'm flying over Ae-wol in Jeju. Please have a look that way.】

Saying so, Han Sang-woo gestured toward the sea in the distance.

Monsters could be seen roaming the beach, but the direction Han Sang-woo was pointing was far above that.

【We are observing a strange phenomenon over the coast near Ae-wol! It looks similar to precursor signs of a gate opening, but there are several differences. Although it's hard to see clearly through the sunlight, you can make out a faint glow with a closer look!】

In the direction indicated by Han Sang-woo, a round, multi-colored gleam was clearly visible.

It looked similar to a gate about to open, but there were differences.

While normal gates radiate an undulating blue glow, the glow above the coast contained many colors intermingled.

Moreover, the glow, which was faint at first, was gradually intensifying.

Suddenly!!

Seeing that, Baek Hojun's eyes went wide and he suddenly stood up.

"W-what's wrong, all of a sudden?"

"I have to head to Jeju Island at once."

"Excuse me?"

The anchor looked back and forth between Baek Hojun and the camera in confusion.

This broadcast wasn't pre-recorded.

It was being aired live in real time.

If someone like Baek Hojun reacted this way, surely that video sent by Han Sang-woo was no ordinary matter.

"Do you know what that glow is?"

"At the very least, it's an S-rank gate."

"... What? An S-rank gate?"

Hojun nodded grimly at the anchor's dazed muttering.

"Yes, an S-rank gate. With Hunter Shin Ah-yeon being the only hunter dispatched to Jeju, something far more serious could happen. That one gate is more dangerous than all the others combined so far."

"Oh my god."

Even a multiple-gate outbreak is a disaster on a national scale.

But now Hojun was warning of something even worse.

【W-wait, are you saying that's an S-rank gate?】

"Reporter Han Sang-woo, please stop filming and get somewhere safe. If an S-rank gate opens, you could be caught up in it just by being nearby."

With that, Hojun hurried to leave the studio, heading for Jeju.

There was likely no commercial flight available, so he would have to take a private plane or a boat.

But one thing was clear—if an S-rank hunter like him didn't go, Jeju would become a land of death.

"Hunter Baek Hojun-nim!"

"Sorry, anchor Han Dojun. I don't think I can continue the broadcast."

"Th-that's not it! They say there's a strange person on the shore right now!"

"What?"

At the anchor's urgent shout toward him, Hojun turned his gaze to the screen.

Just as the anchor said, a man was seen walking on the beach.

He wore a black hoodie and jeans.

His face was obscured by both the deeply pulled hood and a mask, making identification difficult.

Besides, at such a distance, it was impossible for the camera to capture his face clearly.

"Watch out!"

The shore had not yet been cleared of monsters, and several could be seen moving about.

Yet someone was walking there without concern, naturally attracting the monsters' attention.

"Graaaaagh!"

Among them, a massive werewolf let out a wild roar and charged at the hooded man—only to collapse instantly.

"Huh?"

The anchor had no clue what just happened.

But Hojun saw it clearly.

The man's slack arm moved, smashing the head of the onrushing werewolf to bits.

"Wh-who is that? Is he a hunter? Reporter Han, is he in your database?"

【That's... I don't know. The hunters near Ae-wol are guarding the air-raid shelter, and as far as I know, none were dispatched to the shore.】

Does that mean he's not a hunter?

Or is he operating solo without reporting to the association?

【I'll try checking with the association right away—】

Fwooooosh!!

Just then, radiant light began to spread along the shore.

"That's—!"

Hojun clenched his teeth with a grimace.

The previously faint gleam over the sea began to blaze with dazzling brilliance.

The light was so intense it couldn't possibly be a gate. The anchor was speechless.

"Reporter Han! You must get away! Once the gate opens, you won't be able to fly your helicopter!"

But Hojun's warning wasn't properly delivered.

As the S-rank gate began to open, radio waves became disrupted.

The video, too, crackled, failing to transmit properly.

In this critical, life-and-death situation, the only person standing unperturbed was the man on the shore.

'What is this?'

Everyone was so fixated on the gate that no one noticed the man's actions.

Only Hojun, eyes narrowing, saw the man's strange behavior.

Slowly clenching his fist, steadying his breath.

Planting his feet wide, facing the gate.

For some reason, the man's motions seemed deeply familiar to Hojun.

As if he had seen it somewhere before.

'Somewhere... I've seen this before?'

Looking closely, the fist the man clenched was tinged black.

And, standing on the sand, a vast wave of energy spread from him, drawing a pattern across the beach.

A black fist.

Waves radiating in rings.

All of them, phenomena he had seen somewhere before.

There was only one person Hojun knew who could cause such a sight.

'... Manager Park Jung-woo?'

As that thought came to Hojun—

The man's fist shot forward.

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
The third time Jung-woo used his strength, and whenever he uses it, only a few people saw him use it, actually, the 2nd and 3rd time, only Hojun saw him.
【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】