IGEBR 11

Chapter 11

 1.2 Billion Won an Hour

Jeong-ho entered the Chaos Gate as well.

[You have entered the Chaos Gate.]

[A curse weighs down upon you!]

Entering a Chaos Gate meant suffering a curse. Searching HunterOn revealed that the possible curses were fairly predictable.

Additional monsters, monster empowerments, elite monsters, item seals, skill seals, and stat debuffs—it was said there were roughly six main categories.

‘As long as it’s not a skill seal, I can manage.’

It wasn’t as if his stats had any lower to drop anyway. As for monsters, he could just earn a modest amount of contribution points and keep his distance. But if his skills were sealed, it would be over for him—especially Fire Bolt.

[Curse! Constant Mana Contamination: 90%!]

Jeong-ho already lived with a constant 99% mana contamination. Since it had dropped by 9%, wasn’t this practically a blessing? Jeong-ho looked around the Chaos Gate.

“Kee-hee-heet!”

“Kee-hyat! Kee-hyat!”

Goblins were scurrying and leaping around noisily in the distance. Why are there only goblins here? He recalled a post he had briefly skimmed on HunterOn.

– Baek Mi-na (Rank A): The stronger the Chaos Gate’s curse, the easier the monsters inside are. Since it balances out in the end, don’t stress too much over the curse.

A constant 90% mana contamination meant the curse was utterly absurd. That was why the appearing monsters were nothing more than mere goblins.

‘Still, those goblins usually only start appearing in earnest from the 11th floor of the Tower of Trials.’

Goblins first appeared on the 2nd floor, but back then, their equipment and level were pitiful. The goblins inside this Chaos Gate were the elite goblins that showed up from the 11th floor onward.

Jeong-ho had only just cleared the 10th floor. Even though they were appropriate-level monsters for him now, and he had killed them before in the Hero’s Diary…

‘I’ll figure it out as I go. Water Shield. Fire Bolt.’

[Enveloping you in a protective shield of water.]

[Mind Split has been activated!]

[Launching an arrow made of fire.]

Kwahang!

Orange flame arrows tracked down the goblins like agile birds, striking them dead on. A single volley of Fire Bolts cleared an entire sector.

[Warning! Mana Contamination: 99%!]

[Warning! Mana Contamination: 99%!]

[Warning! Mana Contamination: 99%!]

Naturally, his mana contamination surged right back up, but it could never reach 100%. Of course, the pain was severe enough to make Jeong-ho feel half-dead.

‘Youth is meant to be painful.’

He endured it. There were plenty of times in life where he had to endure pain without any reward, but Chaos Gates paid out. Enduring the pain was well worth it.

Stumbling along, whenever a goblin popped up:

“Kee-hyaaaak!”

“Fire Bolt.”

Kwang!

Tottering forward again, whenever another goblin appeared:

“Kee-hee-heet!”

“Fire Bolt.”

Kwang!

Lurching forward step by step… Just how big is this gate anyway? Just as he was starting to lose his patience—

“Stay calm!”

He heard a human voice in the distance. Had another team entered the Chaos Gate in the meantime? Jeong-ho quickly hid himself and peeked out.

An Asian man wearing a black robe was staggering on his feet. Several people lay collapsed around him, while those who were still relatively fine were escorting the injured out.

“…Assessing the situation comes first! The stronger the curse…”

‘Is that guy Li Wei?’

Judging by the tonal inflection, he seemed to be speaking Chinese. The only Chinese hunter Jeong-ho knew was Li Wei. He couldn’t understand what was being said, though.

“…I will demonstrate it myself…!”

Li Wei glared fiercely, his eyes flashing with a bizarre light, but the glow quickly flickered out like a broken lightbulb.

“Kee-hyaat!”

At the same moment, a goblin lunged toward Li Wei. Jeong-ho instinctively reached out his hand.

“Fire Bolt.”

Kwahang!

A small sun rained down fire from the ceiling of the Chaos Gate. The goblins around Li Wei were instantly wiped out.

‘To be honest, I don’t really want to help Li Wei, but… it might not even be him.’

Does speaking Chinese automatically make someone Li Wei? If that were the case, there’d be over a billion Li Weis in China. Besides, wouldn’t it be nice if neighboring countries helped each other out?

‘I’m also bothered by the Hero’s Diary.’

Perhaps because he had seen that scene where the man was unilaterally slaughtered by goblins, he couldn’t just walk away. Absolutely not because he was trying to raise his stats or anything.

‘The boss should be showing up soon. Is that it?’

Jeong-ho passed by the group of hunters assumed to be Li Wei’s team. Soon, he arrived at an area

 noticeably larger and wider than the other sectors. The boss monster was a Hobgoblin.

“Kee-heet. Kee-hee-heet!”

Hobgoblins were said to be large, strong, and highly intelligent. Could it endure Fire Bolt?

Kwang!!

[Small Chaos Gate Cleared!]

[Contribution: ??? (100%)]

It couldn’t. Heaven truly was fair—tall, handsome goblins couldn’t withstand Fire Bolt either.

‘My mind must be going crazy from the mana contamination too. I keep having weird thoughts.’

For something called a Chaos Gate, it had been surprisingly easy. Surely it won’t withhold rewards just because it was easy, right? As Jeong-ho worried slightly, a status window popped up before his eyes.

[Gate Clear Reward: 12 Intermediate Mana Crystals]

[1st Place Contribution Exclusive Rare Reward: Bow of the Setting Cherry Blossom (Epic) x1]

‘Just this?’

His inflated expectations instantly deflated. No Legendary items dropped, and there were only 12 mana crystals…

‘Wait a minute. Mana crystals drop from gates? And they’re intermediate level? Isn’t one

 intermediate mana crystal worth 50 million won?’

Intermediate mana crystals were worth a thousand times more than lower-tier ones. If 12 intermediate mana crystals were worth 50 million won each, that was… 600 million won?!

‘Being a hunter is a job that pays 600 million won an hour?!’

Even Jeong-ho was flabbergasted. Putting the Epic item aside, the mana crystal reward alone was at this level. And that wasn’t all.

[Blessing of Abundance Activated!]

[Acquired Additional Reward: 12 Intermediate Mana Crystals]

He had won the random 2x hourly wage jackpot. His pay had suddenly become 1.2 billion won an hour. Just how much was 1.2 billion won? Could it buy a whole apartment in Seoul?

‘Let’s stay calm. Money isn’t mine until I sell the items. I haven’t even checked the item yet.’

Jeong-ho gathered the intermediate mana crystals into his inventory one by one and checked the Epic item.

– Bow of the Setting Cherry Blossom (Epic): A bow that shoots mana instead of

 arrows. It never misses, and striking the same target 5 times results in instant death.

A 100% hit rate, plus instant death after 5 hits? Completely ignoring health and defense? This wasn’t just Epic rank—it was practically Legendary.

Just because items shared the same rank didn’t mean they were equal. The Bow of the Setting Cherry Blossom was top-tier Epic, practically a pseudo-Legendary.

‘Wow. So this is why everyone goes crazy over Chaos Gates.’

His inventory was stacked, his heart was full, and his mood was refreshed. But that feeling was short-lived.

‘How am I going to liquidate all this?’

24 intermediate mana crystals and a top-tier Epic item. If he listed them on the Hunter Auction House, the police—no, the entire world—might come hunting him down.

On the other hand, if he stepped forward and revealed himself as the EX-Rank, would Li Wei just sit idly by? What about everyone else?

‘Isn’t there a way to sell these without revealing my identity?’

I guess I’ll have to go back to the Tower of Heroes and ask Mr. Dae-young again.

Hunter Management Bureaus all over the world were in total chaos.

A Chaos Gate appearing for the first time in four months was news in itself, but it had been cleared in just three minutes. Naturally assuming it was Li Wei, everyone had been on edge, when:

[Chaos Gate Cleared!]

[Contribution: ??? (100%)]

The name was ???. The contribution was 100%. Unless someone was an idiot, they couldn’t help but think of Korea’s EX-Rank.

“No, it’s not that. We are currently investigating as well. We don’t know. We apologize.”

Section Chief Oh Seung-woo had barely hung up the phone before it started ringing again. The telephones at the Korean Hunter Management Bureau rang without a moment’s rest. Unable to watch any longer, Chief Oh issued an order.

“Pull out all the phone lines! Post an official statement on the website. How are we supposed to work with all this noise?”

Only then did peace return to the bureau. But that peace was short-lived.

Vrrr— Vrrr—

This time, Chief Oh’s personal cell phone began to vibrate.

“Yes, Assemblyman. This is Section Chief Oh.”

– Chief Oh! It’s me. Ha-ha. I heard the EX-Rank cleared the Chaos Gate?

“It appears so. We are still looking into it.”

– Can’t you slip the details just to me? I’m asking out of goodwill. I could offer him some pocket money, take him around to gain some life experience…

“My apologies. We are still looking into the matter.”

The moment he hung up, it vibrated again.

“Yes. No, it isn’t. We are looking into it. Apologies. Yes, sorry. We are investigating. This is Section Chief Oh.”

In the end, Chief Oh turned off his phone altogether.

“Phew. That’s better.”

“Chief, I brewed some coffee for you.”

Officer Kim Min-jae kept grinning from ear to ear. He couldn’t help it—he was a massive fan of the EX-Rank whose name and face were still unknown.

“See! What did I tell you? An EX-Rank clearing a Chaos Gate! I told you it was possible.”

“Now’s not the time to be celebrating. The real problem starts now. Just imagine if the items from the Chaos Gate end up on the auction house. The whole world will catch the scent and swarm us.”

Section Chief Oh took a sip of his coffee. The coffee was far too sweet—it tasted like two extra sugar cubes had been dropped in.

“If you’re worried about that, we can just tell him not to use the auction house.”

“That would mean a single individual monopolizing the gates. We can’t do that. We can’t place the entire burden on one person’s shoulders. Remember what happened when Korea’s No. 1 S-Rank hunter, Shin Geun-woo, went missing?”

“EX-Rank is higher than S-Rank, though. Would someone like that really go missing?”

“Hunters are still human in the end. If someone sneaks up and goes slash, there’s nothing they can do.”

Section Chief Oh drank his coffee. The coffee that had tasted sweet moments ago now tasted bitter.

The Dark Dragon Guild was as quiet as a tomb. The Guild Master, Li Wei, sat dazed like a corpse before muttering:

“The EX-Rank is real… and he was Korean.”

He repeated those cryptic words over and over. By this point, even his guild members were genuinely frightened and began talking among themselves in concern.

“The Master has become a shell of himself.”

“Master Li is human too. It’s normal for him to stumble for a moment.”

“How is he human? He’s a god! A god must never waver!”

Chang Yao, the assassin of the Dark Dragon Guild, flew into a rage.

“That damned EX-Rank ruined our Master! If I kill him, Master will snap back to normal.”

“Chang! Calm down. You’re acting without Master’s permission again…”

“I’m not a coward like the rest of you. Ryu Je! Open the portal!”

Ryu Je flatly refused, but Chang Yao placed his hand on Ryu Je’s neck. Pazzik! Purple sparks crackled from Chang Yao’s hand.

“Ryu. You know humans move on electricity too, right? Open the portal while I’m asking nicely. Before I force it open.”

Chang Yao was also the strongest assassin in the Dark Dragon Guild.

“A-All right. But…”

“But what? All we need to do is succeed. I’ll clear away every obstacle standing in Master Li’s way. I’ve already gotten rid of Shin Geun-woo, after all.”

Chang Yao stepped into the space opened by Ryu Je. Paat! Suddenly, Chang Yao materialized right in the middle of a street in Seoul.

‘Even an EX-Rank is human. As long as he’s alive, he leaves traces behind.’

The Dark Dragon Guild was the strongest in China, and Li Wei was the world’s top perception-type hunter. Since their information network was second to none, they already possessed clues.

‘The C-Rank gate where the Statue of Bloody Tears appeared. The one who used Inferno back then was the EX-Rank.’

The witness was Kwon Min-ki. Since Kwon Min-ki was around Rank A, finding him was easy. Chang Yao brushed past Kwon Min-ki’s sleeve as if by accident.

‘Psychometry.’

[Skill Used: Psychometry]

[Reads memories left behind on people and objects.]

It was the very skill that had made Chang Yao the Dark Dragon Guild’s top assassin. Just grazing a target’s clothes allowed him to know their every single move—and even more.

Chang Yao read Kwon Min-ki’s memories. The EX-Rank’s face was indistinct, but there was more than enough information. Height, body build, and the clothes he wore were all he needed.

Tracing the brand of the clothes would reveal where they were bought, which would reveal the movement route, and if he combined all that with Psychometry…?

‘Found you.’

Reading the memories left behind on a particular bus, Chang Yao got off at the stop where the man presumed to be the EX-Rank had disembarked.

‘The air here is filthy.’

It was a rather rundown villa neighborhood. Having tracked him this far, the rest was a breeze with Psychometry, since memories were left even on the pavement.

‘Over there.’

Chang Yao located the house where Jeong-ho lived. Inside, there was a rustling sound, followed by the sound of something bubbling rapidly. Judging by the smell, was he boiling ramen?

‘That will be your last meal. Farewell, EX-Rank.’

Pazzik!

Jeong-ho’s house suffered a sudden blackout. He wasn’t particularly surprised or angry.

“It’s been flickering all day, and it finally blew out.”

However—pazzik! This time, the door lock slid open with a soft beep.

‘W-What? A burglar?!’

Jeong-ho calmly hid in the bathroom. As he hid, he was about to call the police, when—

Click. Keeeik.

The front door creaked open, and Chang Yao stepped inside. The intruder first glanced at the ramen pot, then placed his bare hand on it.

“…Kee-hee. Hiding in the bathroom, are we? How should I cook you? Slip and die in an accident? Electrocution?”

Jeong-ho couldn’t understand a single word of Chinese. The guy clearly wasn’t a normal burglar, but what was he supposed to do?

‘High-rank, high-level hunters are supposed to be superhumans.’

Meanwhile, most of Jeong-ho’s stats were Rank F, with a few reaching Rank D at best. He was only slightly above an ordinary person. Trying to fight with stats like that was out of the question.

“It doesn’t matter if you aren’t the EX-Rank. What if I write ‘EX’ next to your corpse? If I kill about a dozen people like that, the real EX-Rank will have no choice but to show up.”

‘First, let’s block his vision. Deep Cloud.’

Puhwaat! Billowing dark clouds poured out through the bathroom door, filling the entire house in an instant.

Tat! Chang Yao reflexively leaped backward. But realizing it was just cloud cover, he let out a chuckle.

“The EX-Rank isn’t much after all. Did you hold back your power out of fear of collateral damage? Someone who fears sacrifice has no right to be a hero!”

Chang Yao read Jeong-ho’s location using Psychometry. Leaping straight into the cloud, he extended his hand, and purple sparks began to crackle—

Pazzik—! Pazik-pazik-pazik!!

The damp, thick cloud flashed brightly with purple light. Slowly, the cloud dispersed.

There lay Chang Yao, electrocuted and collapsed on the floor. Meanwhile, Jeong-ho was completely unharmed inside his Water Shield.

‘It’s a good thing I read science books when I was a kid.’

Water conducts electricity well. However, if there is too much water, the current disperses quickly and fails to transmit.

The Water Shield was more than enough to block Chang Yao’s lightning attack. Instead, Chang Yao

 had ended up blowing himself up by unleashing electricity inside a drenched cloud.

‘Who on earth is this guy? His accent sounded like a Chinese hunter… The ramen I boiled for Mr. Dae-young must be completely cold now.’

“Police! Is everyone all right?”

The police arrived right on cue. Securing the scene, they flipped over the unconscious Chang Yao—

“It’s Chang Yao! Why is an internationally wanted criminal—an assassin from the Dark Dragon Guild—here?!”

“Headquarters, this is a hunter crime! We need support from the Management Bureau immediately!”

Only then did Jeong-ho grasp the situation.

‘He was an assassin sent by Li Wei? He seemed pretty weak, though.’

Or was it because he himself had gotten strong? Eating elixirs, learning skills, training in the Desert

 of the Mind, boosting stats through the Hero’s Diary… He really had been living diligently.

‘Let’s just assume it’s because I’m strong. It’d be too pitiful for him otherwise.’