Chapter 229: The Third Hypothesis (1)

The room was still after Kang Seok-Hyun's question. "Off the record" was a familiar phrase understood by all the reporters, but it was rarely spoken in the moments that mattered. It wasn't just about discretion; it was a request for something not to be repeated, not to be published.

The other reporters looked at Kang Seok-Hyun, but he kept his eyes on Kim Ki-Rok, waiting for an answer.

"I could just tell you outright, you know," Kim Ki-Rok said.

"If this crisis were within our expectations, you could have just said so, Guildmaster. Since you didn't, it felt like you wanted us to take your words off the record."

"Ooooh!" Kim Ki-Rok exclaimed, giving a thumbs-up before glancing at Lee Bo-Ram and the rookie reporters. "Are you all curious, too?"

"About the third hypothesis?" one of the reporters asked.

"Yes. It's also the worst one I have," he said grimly.

The three reporters exchanged quick glances, then followed Kang Seok-Hyun's lead, closing their laptops and turning off the recording apps on their phones.

"I want to hear it," Lee Bo-Ram said.

"Even you newcomers?" Kim Ki-Rok asked, looking at the two rookie reporters.

"Yes," they both nodded.

It was only a hypothesis, but coming from Kim Ki-Rok, it weighed heavily. The reporters felt that knowing in advance might help them prepare for whatever was ahead.

"Alright, then..."

Kim Ki-Rok reached into the subspace pocket at his waist and pulled out a long, thorn-adorned whip, holding it out for the reporters to see.

"A whip?" Lee Bo-Ram asked.

"No, it's a tail," Kang Seok-Hyun corrected.

"A tail?" she repeated, still uncertain.

Ignoring her, Kang Seok-Hyun quietly studied the black, thorny object before looking back up and asking, "Is this from a monster?"

"It is. This came from an A-Class Gate called Darkness-veiled Maze. It's an underground labyrinth-type."

Everyone stared down at the tail as Kim Ki-Rok continued with a bright smile, "When I used Appraisal, it identified this as the tail of the Werewolf that brings death."

Remembering the unique skill Kim Ki-Rok possessed, Kang Seok-Hyun asked, "What about your Discernment Skill?"

"It says, 'Tail of a Hell Beast, the Werewolf.'"

Hell?

The word made the reporters pause.

"Is it a demon?" Baek Tae-Soo muttered, recalling the demons of the Yuashiel Dimension.

Kim Ki-Rok shook his head. "No. This monster is from Hell, not the Demon Realm."

"So Hell and the Demon Realm are different?" someone asked.

"Yes. With help from the Tower of Wizards, we've confirmed the mana in this tail isn't from the Demon Realm."

The reporters swallowed hard, uncertainty rising. For a moment, they felt the urge to leave. Only Lee Bo-Ram pushed forward.

"Then," she asked, curiosity shining through, "did the Gate's name change when you used Discernment?"

None of the others had thought to ask that. Even Kang Seok-Hyun and the rookie reporters looked to Kim Ki-Rok, who wore a faint smile.

"It did," he confirmed.

"So, what was the

real

name of the Gate?" Lee Bo-Ram pressed.

"Hell Cavern Fallen in the Dimensional Sea," Kim Ki-Rok replied. "For reference, only one monster appeared in that Gate."

"What?" Baek Tae-Soo blurted.

Kim Ki-Rok swung the tail side to side with a bitter smile. "Just one monster appeared in that A-Class Gate. There were no entry restrictions, either."

Lee Bo-Ram, stunned into silence, could only listen as Kang Seok-Hyun spoke up in a grave tone. "The Hell beast Werewolf is an S-Class monster."

"It's stronger than that," Kim Ki-Rok corrected.

"Stronger?"

"Yes. I use Discernment over Appraisal because it gives me more detailed information. As soon as I identified the Gate's real name, I entered, retrieved a stone filled with ominous mana nearby, and escaped."

"And then you went straight to the Yuashiel Dimension using the Permanent Gate," Lee Bo-Ram realized.

"That's right. I visited the Temple Alliance to test whether the energy was vulnerable to sacred power," Kim Ki-Rok said.

"And was it?" someone asked.

He shook his head. "No."

Kang Seok-Hyun's jaw dropped for a second, but he quickly collected himself. "So, what is this mana vulnerable to?"

"Mana."

"Pure mana?"

"Specifically, the mana wielded by Hunters who awakened through the Earth system."

Mana that ignored sacred power yet was vulnerable to ordinary Hunter mana?

Kang Seok-Hyun thought, getting goosebumps.

"We confirmed with the help of a mana user from the Yuashiel Dimension that the ominous mana is indeed susceptible to Hunter's mana," Kim Ki-Rok added.

"Why is this hypothesis off the record? With evidence to back it up, it seems quite credible."

"There are two reasons for this," he said, raising two fingers. "The first reason is that it has not appeared since then."

"By it, you mean the Hell beast...?" one of the reporters asked.

"No. I mean monsters or Gates with the word 'Hell' in their names," Kim Ki-Rok corrected.

"So, monsters or Gates with the word 'Hell' in their names have only appeared once?" the reporter asked.

Kim Ki-Rok nodded. "That's right."

"What is the second reason?"

Kim Ki-Rok shrugged as he answered. "The name of the first and only Gate to appear with the word 'Hell' was called 'Hell Cavern Fallen in the Dimensional Sea.'"

"Dimensional Sea?"

Realizing they had missed this because they had focused only on the word "Hell," one of the reporters asked, "What is the Dimensional Sea?"

"Once, after clearing an S-Class Gate, I asked for an answer to a question as a reward instead. When the administrator of that dimension allowed it, I asked them what the Dimensional Sea was."

"What is it?"

"They said it was a dimensional space phenomenon that happened once every few hundred or thousand years in a world rich with supernatural energy. The space shifts dimensions, but since its destination is unclear, it ends up in a gap between dimensions. The administrator said it was a prison that, once you fell in, you could never escape unless someone from outside who could enter the Dimensional Sea helped you."

Kang Seok-Hyun organized his thoughts. "In other words, a Gate related to Hell, with Earth as its destination, never appeared?"

"Correct."

"But Guildmaster, you said this Hell-related Gate, which has never appeared even once, is a threat to Earth. And you said the reason you believe this to be true is that their mana is vulnerable to the mana of the Hunters."

Kim Ki-Rok nodded.

"Hoo..." Kang Seok-Hyun, completely buried in the sofa, looked up at the ceiling. "I see now why you wouldn't want to explain... no, make this public, despite having clear evidence."

Though the monsters of this Gate were vulnerable to the mana of their Hunters, it had yet to appear on Earth.

After mulling it over, Lee Chae-Eun shook her head and raised her hand.

"Yes, Reporter Lee Chae-Eun. Do you have a question?"

"Yes. If such a Gate appears, may I make this information public?"

Kim Ki-Rok nodded. "Yes. If a Gate related to Hell appears, please come straight to the DG Guild. I will provide you with all the information I know."

"Understo—ah, I have one more question."

"Please go ahead."

"Do the government and Association... know about this hypothesis?"

"They are aware. The Hell beast, Werewolf, had two tails."

One of the tails had been provided to the joint research conducted by the Association and the government.

"Are only the Hunters Association and the government aware?"

"Yes. The guilds aren't aware of this yet. As I just said, this is the worst-case hypothesis, but also the least likely one. So, I haven't even informed the S-Class Hunters to prevent information leak."

"But you've informed us," she said.

"Lee Bo-Ram and Kang Seok-Hyun are the most trusted reporters in the Hunter department, and you guys, Lee Chae-Eun and Baek Tae-Soo, are their direct juniors," Kim Ki-Rok explained.

As the new reporters were direct juniors of Reporter Lee Bo-Ram and Reporter Kang Seok-Hyun, it was certain that they would also flourish into one of the most trusted reporters covering Hunters.

Kim Ki-Rok smiled at the two new reporters, who awkwardly returned it.

"The public might ignore warnings from the government or the Hunters Association. Because Hunters have become strong enough to clear S-Class Gates before they go out of control, people no longer view Gates and monsters as a real threat. If this goes on, people would take the warnings lightly, even right before a Gate appears."

"But you're saying trusted reporters are different from these other sources," one of them clarified.

"Yes. Of course, you would have to accumulate that kind of trust over a very long time through accurate and attention-grabbing articles."

Seeing the reporters stiffen under the great pressure, Kim Ki-Rok thumped his chest with a clenched fist. "Don't worry."

"Sorry?"

"I will provide the stories," Kim Ki-Rok said confidently.

After a moment of stunned silence, one muttered, "What?"

"Just focus on building trust by posting accurate articles as quickly as possible, so that people would know and trust your names just by hearing them, like Reporter Lee Bo-Ram and Reporter Kang Seok-Hyun."

***

More people than expected ignored official warnings, since Gates were already a part of their daily lives. On the other hand, many of those same people relied on online articles and unverified rumors, spreading shaky claims as facts.

"Well, if you call it karma, then it is karma..." Kim Ki-Rok muttered to himself.

Back in the days, the government had not announced to the public the signs of the Gate Breaks that everyone now knew. They claimed they couldn't have predicted the effects of leaking mana or expanding Gates, but the consequences of staying silent were severe. Because they hadn't warned the public when these strange phenomena first appeared, many people were injured or killed. The government's silence cost them the public's trust.

Of course, things changed after that. The authorities began issuing alerts through multiple channels, trying to rebuild credibility. But by then, many people put more faith in private organizations and guilds than in the government.

In the past, hack journalists also briefly existed within the realm of Hunters. However, the Hunter world actively prevented the writing and publishing of their articles that were based on rumors and unconfirmed information, using all the influence they had. They did not hesitate to use brute strength.

Those journalists protested, calling it media oppression. However, the Hunters paid no attention to it, since their world was a place where a single piece of false information could take the lives of countless people.

Snapping out of his thoughts, Kim Ki-Rok opened a can of beer and leaned against the terrace railing of the office that the High Elf had prepared.

"Let's see, let us seeeee..."

For a moment, he blankly stared at the moon floating in the sky, then unconsciously let out a small laugh.

"There sure are a damn lot of things to do."

With no time to rest, Kim Ki-Rok gulped down his beer and immediately returned to his seat, diving into work despite the late hour.