Chapter 297: Chapter 295

"...Yes, then I'll leave you to that."

Click

Suho put down his phone after finishing the call with Liu Zhigang.

Ding!

[The Apostle of Paradise has been defeated.]

Thanks to the system, he knew who the apostle of Itarim that Liu Zhigang happened to find and kill was. It was quite a shame that he missed out on the experience points because he died far away, but if it was by Liu Zhigang's hand, it was rather fortunate. If he absorbed the Apostle of Paradise, it would have significantly helped him, a national-level Hunter, recover his former strength. To find and defeat the apostles of Itarim scattered across the globe one by one, it was obviously more effective to have many people helping than to fight alone. Especially if those who were once national-level Hunters regained their former strength, they would be a tremendous force against the apostles.

"He was truly unlucky."

Suho chuckled after hanging up the phone. The Apostle of Paradise, who fled while vowing revenge, died without his involvement less than a day later.

"There is no paradise for you to escape to..."

[My liege, those words aren't used in this... Kieek? Now that I think about it, it seems right.]

Beru, who was advising Suho, tilted his head for a moment and then nodded in admiration. There was indeed a paradise where the Apostle of Paradise ran away to, but not anymore.

[As expected of someone who majored in art! You even enjoy using poetic expressions now, such literary talent...]

[Kieek Kieek...!]

Suho ignored Beru's incessant flattery, as always. Shaking off his lingering thoughts about the Apostle of Paradise, he turned his gaze to the pile of corpses he was sitting on. And the sight that unfolded there...

Was hell itself.

Fire and ice. The burning winter created by Suho and Sirka. The corpses of high elves, piled up like mountains before that overwhelming disaster, filled his vision as far as the eye could see. Their state was too gruesome to simply be called a mess. Some were charred black, scattering to ashes, while others were frozen blue and shattered. There were even countless corpses so dismembered that he couldn't tell what they originally looked like.

Thud—!

Just then, Greed's rough fist crushed the head of the last remaining high elf.

Ding!

[Number of enemies to defeat: 0]

[Number of enemies defeated: 2,918]

The quest was finally over. And at the same time, the winter of the high elves, who betrayed their tribe and hid from the war, also ended.

[You have completed Urgent Quest: 'Defeat the enemy!']

[Level Up!]

[Level Up!]

[...]

Ding!

[Quest reward has arrived.]

Before checking it, Suho first turned his gaze and looked at Sirka's condition.

"...Not yet?"

"..."

There was no answer. Sirka had closed her eyes and was trapped in a giant ice pillar since some time ago.

[King of the Snow Folk and the Monarch of Frost, explains that this is the result of trying to control too many spirits at once.] In short, it was because Sirka's vessel was insufficient to contain this much quantity of spirits. But Suho, having experienced this many times, immediately understood Sillad's explanation and asked,

"You're saying Sirka isn't ready to become a Monarch yet?"

Rumble—

As if responding to Suho's words, the ice pillar engulfing Sirka's body was emitting a terrible chill even now. But Sillad refuted Suho's question.

[King of the Snow Folk and the Monarch of Frost, says that the vessel is already sufficient, so now we just have to wait until she completely masters the power she dominated.]

"Wait? Until when?"

Sillad remained silent at Suho's query. In the end, he didn't know either.

"Well, okay."

Suho nodded and stretched, getting up from the pile of corpses.

"We can't wait here forever, so let's leave her and move on."

[That's an excellent idea. Let's place a guard here.]

"Let's do that."

As Beru said, Suho looked around to choose a shadow soldier to leave behind. And his eyes met Hasul's, who was looking at him with an awkward expression from afar.

"...Ah, right. There was her."

Suho had completely forgotten about Hasul's existence, engrossed in the battle. And she had been watching everything Suho did from beginning to end. That's why she couldn't say anything now. She couldn't do anything. She tried to help somehow at first, But that little shadow ant suddenly appeared and yelled at her to get lost because she was in the way, so she had retreated to this spot. And it didn't take her long to realize why she was an obstruction. At first, Hasul thought a large-scale war was about to break out. They were surrounded by a sudden army of thousands, she vaguely imagined Suho's summons breaking through the encirclement, fighting a defensive battle. And she would help from the side. But as the battle began, the reality that unfolded before Hasul's eyes was completely different from her imagination. It wasn't a war...

'Just... hunting.' Yes. What happened here was just hunting, nothing more, nothing less. No matter how many prey flocked before a hunter, what was the problem? Nothing changed in the end. Rather, Sung Suho simply 'hunted like a true Hunter' here, saying it was a good opportunity. And before that, Hasul... had nothing to do but watch. What could she even do in the first place? Even as an S-rank Hunter. Hasul just stared blankly, taking in that overwhelming battle, that marvelous sight, one by one. And she reaffirmed it once again.

'A Hunter is someone who hunts magical beasts.'

Thump.

Hasul tapped her chest with her fist as she recalled the words Association President Woo Jinchul once said to her. The name 'Hunter' had a special meaning to her. She became an S-rank Awakened very early on, but she learned that fact very late, And because she immediately crossed over to North Korea after awakening, she missed the chance to become a Hunter. Even if she had stayed, she probably wouldn't have been able to become a Hunter in South Korea because of her past sins. She would have just become a villain and been imprisoned. She heard that even the S-rank villain 'Hwang Dongsoo' was living in hiding somewhere, avoiding the Association's pursuit.

...Hasul was sure that her future wouldn't be much different from that villain Hwang Dongsoo. And surprisingly, that actually led to the happy ending. The happy ending Hasul couldn't have had if she had stayed in South Korea. Therefore, the name 'Hunter' was a lingering regret for the past that she missed despite being able to achieve, and a target of longing that she could only vaguely dream of. The more she learned about the lives of Hunters from the villains who came to North Korea one by one, the stronger that emotion became. And then she met Association President Woo Jinchul.

– You're lucky. If this were South Korea, we would have had to fight. The Association can't just leave an S-rank Hunter who committed murder alone among the citizens.

But this was North Korea. Not South. Perhaps for that reason, Association President Woo Jinchul didn't become hostile towards Hasul as soon as he saw her. Rather, he cautiously approached her like he was dealing with a herbivore and suggested they travel together. It goes without saying that Hasul never let her guard down against him. It was only natural to be suspicious when a stranger suddenly approached offering a favor. And why was he trying to recruit her without even knowing anything about her? She was a villain wandering North Korea, after all. But when she asked for the reason, Woo Jinchul adjusted his black sunglasses and grinned.

– Well, just because. I have good eyes. I've lived a tough life, so I'm quite good at reading people.

...'Just because.' What a ridiculous reason. Hasul felt absurd after hearing that empty answer with no persuasion. In her life, she escaped from an orphanage, and a rather harsh one at that, for her 'adults' were synonymous with disaster. Woo Jinchul, an adult who nonchalantly shrugged and said he had lived a tough life in front of her, He was an obvious target for suspicion. Moreover, wasn't the name Woo Jinchul an infamous one she had heard countless times from the villains she met in North Korea? But, as if understanding Hasul's wariness, he just chuckled, hiding his sharp, hawk-like eyes with sunglasses. And he made Hasul a different offer...

– Well, it's okay. It's good to be cautious in this world. Then how about this? It's strategically disadvantageous for two S-rank Hunters to move together in this vast land.

– ...?

– I'll give you this walkie-talkie. Let's just exchange greetings with this from time to time. Secretly.

– ...Secret friends?

– Cough! N-no! Not that suspicious expression! There are many other expressions that sound much better! How about a spy, or an agent!

– ...?

Wasn't 'spy' much more suspicious? Or was it? Woo Jinchul was flustered by Hasul's words. And seeing him surrounded by other Hunters who were laughing and teasing him, Hasul's wariness subsided a little.

– Th-that's right! How about this title? An unofficial Hunter!

– Hunter?

– Yes, please become a Hunter. Of course, you won't be able to work in South Korea due to circumstances, but the Association will spare no support for an S-rank Hunter...

She couldn't even hear the rest. The important part was the beginning. To become a 'Hunter.' And since those words came directly from the Association President himself, their weight felt even greater. Thus, Hasul became an unofficial Hunter of the Korean Association and, as Woo Jinchul suggested, wandered around North Korea alone as she pleased, contacting him from time to time. Actually, she was already wandering North Korea, so nothing really changed in her daily life. But it was different. Having a 'sense of belonging' in this desolate apocalypse gave her a much greater sense of relief than she expected. Especially for Hasul, who spent her adolescence in an orphanage after being abandoned by her parents. She escaped that hellish place on her own and gained true freedom, but ironically, the anxiety in her heart melted away as she felt a sense of belonging in a new place. And Woo Jinchul... Didn't ask Hasul to do anything, surprisingly. Unlike the other adults who approached and stayed by Hasul's side. Faithful to his initial promise, Woo Jinchul just exchanged greetings with her occasionally.

And now...

Gulp.

A 'real' Hunter appeared before Hasul. Sung Suho, the S-rank Hunter of Korea, who overwhelmingly showed her what a true Hunter was, what being a Hunter meant. After finishing all the hunting, he made eye contact with her and asked,

"Oh, yeah. You were here."

Just like Woo Jinchul back then.

"Was your name Gusul?"

"...Hasul."

"Yes, anyway."

Woo Jinchul never spoke her name like that. He always used polite language as if respecting her as an individual.

"So, Haneul. What are you going to do from now on?"

"...Hasul."

"Anyway, what will you do? If you stay here, please protect Sirka, and if you follow me, follow me." With that offer, Suho pointed towards the collapsed Alfheim and the scenery beyond and said to Hasul,

"The Apostle of Paradise just died. And that's what happened."

"..."

Hasul followed Suho's gaze. And an astonishing sight she hadn't seen before unfolded there. As the Apostle of Paradise died, the perception-impairing magic that hid his flowerpots disappeared.

North Korea, China, Russia... The numerous Elvenwoods that were growing on this vast apocalyptic land were revealed to the world. As a result, Everyone could now see those giant divine trees that were growing without anyone noticing.

"I'm going to cut down all those trees and go to where Association President Woo Jinchul is. Will you follow me? Or you can just tell me the location, that's fine too."