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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Wjin
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On a rooftop in a bustling Seoul district, Baek Mu-jin sat alone, replaying the recent fight in his mind.
“Lee Seong-joon…”
Thump! Thump!
Just uttering the name made his heart race.
‘…That was an enjoyable fight, after a long time.’
Baek Mu-jin touched the shallow cut on his cheek with his thumb.
‘…I didn’t expect to be injured again.’
He could count on one hand the number of times he had been injured in battle in the past year. So, being injured was surprising in itself. But the most surprising thing was that the cut on his cheek was just the tip of the iceberg.
‘…I didn’t expect to use Dimensional Leap.’
Dimensional Leap, a skill obtained through a class change, granted by the system’s authority. As the name suggested, it allowed him to instantaneously leap through space.
Although it had limitations – a 1-kilometer range and a 24-hour cooldown – it was one of Baek Mu-jin’s trump cards due to its sheer power. Even though he’d been somewhat careless, the fact that he had used Dimensional Leap was truly astonishing.
‘Is this the third time I’ve used Dimensional Leap in Korea, after the Alliance Leader and Yoon Min-soo?’
Licking his lips, Baek Mu-jin recalled Lee Seong-joon’s final attack.
‘I can’t remember the last time I felt this sensation.’
Lee Seong-joon’s last move, the energy that had painted the world in a seductive red light, held truly destructive power. He hadn’t stopped the fight midway for nothing.
‘If I had seen that power, I wouldn’t have been able to control myself any longer.’
He would have surely killed Lee Seong-joon, unable to contain his excitement.
‘That absolutely mustn’t happen.’
Lee Seong-joon was a martial artist who had reached a far higher level. A question naturally arose in Baek Mu-jin’s mind.
‘If he could defeat an SS-rank in just two months, how much stronger will he be in a year?’
Although his growth wouldn’t be as explosive once he hit a wall, he would still achieve considerable growth.
‘…I’m looking forward to it.’
He dared to predict that Lee Seong-joon’s growth would bring unprecedented joy.
Thump-! Thump-!
Just imagining it made his heart race again.
‘It was a good decision to hold back.’
If he had killed him impulsively, unable to control his excitement, he wouldn’t have this anticipation and joy.
‘Please… grow strong enough to meet my expectations.’
Imagining Lee Seong-joon’s future, a sinister grin spread across Baek Mu-jin’s face.
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Leaving the school grounds and returning to his familiar neighborhood, Lee Seong-joon looked at the apartment building where he lived with his family.
Outwardly, it looked solid and flawless, but an eerie wind swirled through the gaps between the apartment buildings.
Looking at it with strange eyes, Lee Seong-joon’s expression hardened.
“Appearances can be deceiving…”
It had been a day of unexpected and unpleasant encounters. The emotion I felt amidst those events was clear.
‘I need more power.’
He needed unwavering strength, the kind that wouldn’t be shaken even by a typhoon. Naturally, it wasn’t a selfish desire for power. With cold eyes, Lee Seong-joon recalled the recent fight.
‘투마 (Fighting Demon) Baek Mu-jin, SS+-rank Hunter and Vice-Leader of the Returnee Alliance.’
Although he held the position of Vice-Leader, second-in-command, he was a skilled individual considered to be on par with the Alliance Leader in terms of combat power.
A dark shadow fell over Lee Seong-joon’s face as he recalled the information about Baek Mu-jin he had obtained from the Association.
‘I wouldn’t lose in a head-on fight…’
But simply winning wasn’t enough.
‘I need to be overwhelming.’
Back when he was hailed as the Blood Demon and Demon God, ruler of the Thousand Continents, Lee Seong-joon had no weaknesses. He had nothing to protect, so he had no fear of loss. He could simply take back anything he lost. But life on Earth was different.
Family. The reason Lee Seong-joon returned to Earth and something irreplaceable. To protect his family, he needed overwhelming power, untouchable by anyone. Fortunately, he didn’t need to worry about how.
‘…I already know the way.’
He had the experience and memories of the Demon God, a being feared even by the gods of the Celestial Realm. And he even had the Force system, an excellent growth aid. But that didn’t mean it would be easy. It would require bone-crushing effort and arduous patience.
‘But… I have to do it, even for my own happiness.’
Resolving himself, Lee Seong-joon opened the front door.
“I’m home.”
“Welcome back.”
“You’re later than usual.”
“Did something happen?”
As soon as he opened the door, the warm voices of his family greeting him strengthened his resolve.
‘I will do it, for a happy future with my family.’
He would enjoy the happiness he had finally grasped after decades of yearning. That was why he, the Demon God Lee Seong-joon, had given up everything and returned to Earth.
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In Godeok-dong, Gangdong-gu, Seoul, the staff of Gate Management Team 4 were checking the newly generated gates as usual. Ahn Jae-wook, stuck in a monotonous routine from morning till night, stopped in front of a gate.
“What’s wrong?”
The GEP-05, a device created by the renowned returnee Archmage Sandra Bullock of Germany, measured the amount of magic power emanating from a gate and determined its rank. But the numbers and letters on the GEP-05’s display were flickering erratically.
‘What the hell…?’
As a device made by Sandra Bullock, malfunctions were unheard of. Or rather, they shouldn’t happen. The rank of hunters entering a gate depended on the gate’s rank. High-ranking hunters entered high-ranking gates, while lower-ranking hunters tackled lower-ranking gates.
But what if the measurement was wrong and a low-ranking hunter entered a high-ranking gate?
They would surely meet a gruesome death. And the staff member who measured the gate’s rank would be fired. Since he couldn’t lose his hard-earned job, the staff member kept tapping and fiddling with the device.
“What’s going on?”
Since it was taking longer than usual, his senior, Ha Min-jae, asked.
“It seems like the device is malfunctioning.”
“What? Let me see. Give it here.”
Ha Min-jae’s eyes widened as he took the GEP-05 from Ahn Jae-wook.
“Th-This is…?!”
Ahn Jae-wook was puzzled by Ha Min-jae’s drastic reaction.
“Is there something wrong?”
“Wrong…? Jackpot! We hit the jackpot!”
As a new employee, it was natural for Ahn Jae-wook not to know about this gate. But Ha Min-jae, who had worked in the gate management team for over five years, couldn’t possibly not know. It was because when he first joined the Hunter Association, an incident in Japan had made it a hot topic, and he had received constant training on it.
‘There’s only one type of gate where the GEP-05 can’t measure the magic power level.’
A wide smile spread across Ha Min-jae’s face as he raised his voice.
“It’s a Treasure Gate! A Treasure Gate!”
It wasn’t just a fancy name. It was a gate where one could obtain incredible rewards, treasures – skills or artifacts of at least S-rank or higher.
In fact, Takeuchi Ryoma, a former SS-rank hunter, had obtained rewards from a Treasure Gate that gave him combat abilities comparable to SSS-rank hunters.
By clearing just one Treasure Gate, he gained power that transcended two ranks. And Takeuchi Ryoma wasn’t the only one who experienced such a dramatic change.
All hunters who had conquered Treasure Gates and received rewards obtained skills or artifacts that greatly enhanced their abilities, becoming world-renowned hunters.
“A-A Treasure Gate?!”
Ahn Jae-wook’s eyes widened as he finally understood the situation.
“Yes! You’ll probably get at least tens of millions of won as a discovery bonus. Good job! You did it!”
Ha Min-jae patted Ahn Jae-wook’s shoulder with a wide smile, took out his smartphone, and immediately reported the news to the Association headquarters.
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At the Hunter Association headquarters, in the conference room, all the key figures, including the director-level personnel, were summoned.
They were busy people with countless tasks due to their high positions, but no one complained about the sudden summons. On the contrary, their eyes shone with uncontainable excitement.
“A Treasure Gate…”
“It finally appeared in Korea.”
It was a natural reaction. In the past, a dispute over the ownership of a Treasure Gate in the UK had escalated into a war between guilds, resulting in countless casualties.
Because of this, the World Hunter Association and heads of state had established an international law stating that the initial ownership of a Treasure Gate belonged to the association of the country where it appeared.
This meant that the Treasure Gate that appeared in Gangdong-gu currently belonged to the Korean Hunter Association.
Since it was a gate coveted by every hunter, as power was directly linked to income, each guild was lobbying the Association’s key figures, the decision-makers.
To be precise, the lobbying had already begun. The directors, each affiliated with different guilds and factions, were engaged in a war of nerves even before the meeting started.
“It would be best to strengthen the weakest guild and maintain a balance of power, wouldn’t it?”
“If they fall behind, a new guild can take their place, so there’s no need to maintain a perfect balance.”
“I believe it’s better to firmly support the existing dominant guilds and maintain a solid relationship with them.”
They were engaged in a heated debate, avoiding direct references but trying their best to promote their affiliated guilds. It was at that moment…
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