Chapter 25

The damage was minimal compared to the incident that occurred before my return.

Still, 20 precious young lives had been lost.

The media had been headlining the incident every day since.

Most of the media reports were about punishment for those responsible, demands for the prevention of recurrence, and compensation for the victims and their bereaved families.

This Gate incident was called 'Mother's Tears' just like it had been before my return.

The difference from the past was that the article's title was written by my ex-girlfriend So Yujin, and it became the name of the Gate.

"In the end, I couldn't prevent it."

[It must be heartbreaking, but it's already in the past. How are you feeling now?]

"Better than before. It feels like my energy center grew bigger."

In fact, the value in my status window had risen to 100.

In terms of other Hunters, I could be considered to have reached an SS-Rank. However, such a level didn't exist.

[It can happen after experiencing an intense battle where you exhaust your inner power and empty your energy center. However, it isn’t expected. You could've easily fallen to your inner demon.]

"I see."

[You were lucky.]

"So it means if I use the title 'Two Hearts' while hunting, I can grow my energy center, right?"

[There's a possibility that’ll work.]

Knock, knock.

That was Yoo So-eun. She was very busy with this incident, but she still rushed over when she received my call.

"I'm here, Mr. Byeong-gi. Ah, are you alone?"

"I am."

"I thought someone else was here. I heard a voice."

"You must have heard wrong."

"How strange."

It was strange she would ask the same thing Seol-ah had. Had they planned this?

"You must have been talking to yourself again. That's why Mother is worried."

It’s true she was worried, but...

"Who is ‘Mother’?"

"Oh, you don't have to be so serious."

"Anyway, how did it go?"

"Are you asking how I'm doing? Even if you don't ask, I'm swamped thinking about how you beat Major Kim Min-joon."

"I wasn't asking about that."

"Hmph, I shouldn't have taken the time to talk to you then."

"Well, let's just get this paperwork done."

"Seriously... Anyway, the Gate will be managed by the Bureau as you requested. We're also keeping the mana stones collected there."

"As I said, the Stone Golem's weak spot is its core. If you just target that, there won't be much of a problem in hunting them. And you should avoid the Giant Golem at all costs."

"Really... How do you know all these details?"

"It's a trade secret. Anyway, the broken core of the Stone Golem is useful in crafting weapons, so please collect as many as possible."

"Hmph! You turned all the Stone Golems you fought into dust, so we've only got a few broken cores. What we get from now on will be owned by the Bureau... I'll explain to you more about that later."

"Alright then, So-eun, please take care of it. How about the sales of advanced potions?"

"The issue we're facing is that there aren't enough. We don't even have enough to distribute to our crew. However, thanks to the potions, the number of Gates cleared has increased compared to the previous month."

"I'll have to work harder to make them."

"And we've decided to sell the potions using the name BnS Vitality Potions."

"What is BnS? It sounds like the name of a game console."

"Then, what's with the guild name ‘Byeong & Seol?’ It sounds stupid."

"What's wrong with it?"

"Your choice of names, for starters... I changed the name to the English initials. Seol-ah said you seemed to be obsessed with your names, but Lee Seong-jin and her both agreed."

"It's up to them, so I don't care."

"That's great. This month's sales of BnS potions will be paid on the 25th of next month."

"I think I need to hire an accountant."

"Should I do two jobs?"

"If you can it's fine by me."

"You don't have to answer that fast! How is the Gate Detector coming along?"

"We have to wait a little longer."

"There's no problem, is there? There’s been a lot of interest from upper management about it.”

"More than that, I think it's time for more hunters with advanced potion-producing skills to show up."

"The Bureau is trying to find them in any way we can. Why? Are you worried about it?”

"I have exclusive sales rights. Why should I worry about it?"

"That's right."

"Advanced potion production Skill Books have a high drop rate. The problem is the recipe scroll. Perhaps the other guilds are hunting Gates to find them."

"That's probably true. Fortunately, there are no hunters who’ve died while hunting as of recently."

"If a guild with a recipe scroll recruits a hunter with advanced potion production skills, just sign a contract with them as well."

"Oh, why?"

"The more potions in circulation, the higher the survival rate grows."

"What about your exclusive selling rights?"

"In exchange for handing over some rights, I'll have to get a few percent of the profit."

"Well... You're already making a profit on a certain portion of the sales."

"Let’s say I will hold exclusive sales rights for one year and then let it go completely."

"You've changed your mind? At first, I thought you'd take that profit for the rest of your life... is it because of the recent incident?"

"There's no point if they get immediately killed by a monster like the Stone Golem."

"But you still want more people to hunt safely with that potion, don't you? That's why you're relinquishing your exclusive rights, right?"

"Think of it however you like."

"You are so cool… indeed."

"Don't talk nonsense, please."

"But I don't know if those at the top will understand. The profits they're making now are huge..."

"Didn't I say I would share with them how to make a Gate Detector?"

"I'm not so sure about it with this delay."

"Would I lie to you?"

"What do you think of me? Tell me the truth."

"Why is our talk going that way?"

[That's right. What does she see in you? What do you see in her?]

"Forget it. Just take care of that detector as soon as possible."

"We will proceed with it when our work related to the production of advanced potions is done. The public will support establishing a Gate warning system by installing detectors. That is also what your bosses want."

"Maybe so."

"I'm telling you this on the condition that I will release my exclusive rights. If your bosses accept this condition, they can claim the credit that they’re ensuring the lives of more hunters. If you use that claim well, you can proceed without difficulty."

"Wow, you thought that far ahead. That’s impressive."

"I have to run my own business well so I won't lose any money. I'll send you the terms of the contract later. Talk to the Director and set a date."

"Alright."

“...”

“…”

[…]

There was an awkward silence.

"Oh, by the way, there’s something I was going to tell you earlier. The people in charge of this case..."

"The Management Bureau said they would take care of it, so I don’t care about it."

"Sigh! Okay! In any case, the Management Bureau will be transformed directly by the President."

This was the way things had progressed as before my return.

"But there are parties strongly opposed. Saying things like, is it possible for the special forces to operate like the President's personal unit...?"

"I'm not interested in politics."

"You keep interrupting me."

[That's his specialty!]

“…”

“…”

[…]

"Mr. Byeong-gi?"

"Aren't you leaving?"

"Are we done talking?"

"Yes."

[Ha?]

"Really? I see. I'll call you later!"

Slam!

So-eun stood up with a sulky look, shut the door, and left.

"What's wrong with her?"

[You don't know?]

“…”

[I don't know why you're being so cold to So-eun. Even if you're not dating, you can be nice to each other, right?

"It's just... a vain hope."

[Is this a new way of torture? You don't still have any lingering feelings for So Yujin, do you?

"Ha! Not even the slightest! That's enough. I have a headache now because of this weapon-crafting Skill Book."

[I heard 'the broken core of the Stone Golem' can be used to make weapons.]

"Before I explain it... the Skill Book I tried to get this time is different from what I'm used to."

[Did you say you got extra compensation because of the system error?]

"I checked the Skill Book and found out that the broken core was incredibly important."

[Why do you keep beating around the bush? So, you're saying that what you got this time isn’t a weapon-crafting Skill Book?]

"It's something even better. This Skill Book also has a title."

[Don't all books have titles?]

"The most recent Skill Book I got was called 'Crafting Advanced Potions,' right?"

[Yeah.]

"But this isn’t something that's in any of my memories. It's a Skill Book, but the title is ‘I can make things like a Dwarf just by reading this!’”

[Are you talking about Dwarves?]

"Yes!"

[The Dwarves who excel at making everything?]

"Yes!"

[So, you're talking about the race of Dwarves from the World of Immortals...]

"Well, I've never seen Dwarves before. But I know what they're good at."

[That's why you need the broken core?]

"That's right. We can process the monster parts with the broken core."

[How?]

"Listen to me first. The way a normal Skill Book operates is that you learn how to do it immediately, and when your level rises, the skills affected also rise.”

[I don't know. You did it before, though.]

"But this Skill Book is different from that. Everything related to the Dwarves' production techniques is described inside."

[So you must learn it by reading it the old-fashioned way?]

"No, I used the Skill Book, and everything was recorded in my head. Even now, when I think about the weapons I want, I know how to make them."

[That's a relief. I was worried there would be less time for training.]

"And as soon as I learned it, I got a bonus in my status window."

[What is it?]

"It's called Dexterity. I also received bonus points for reading the Skill Book."

[This Skill Book sounds like a vast improvement, regardless of your level.]

"I suppose so. And I received the ‘Dwarves Production Set’ as an appendix when the contents of the Skill Book changed."

[Why?]

“Well, typically, system alerts only list the necessary information in a robotic tone."

[That's what they do, indeed.]

"But this explanation wasn’t just kind, it was also friendly. Take a look."

When I took out the Dwarves Production Set from the inventory and checked the information, the following content appeared:

[Dwarves' Production Set]

-It is a reward for the increased difficulty caused by the Gate Manager's brutality. A gift set filled with the System Administrator's apologies and gratitude for clearing the Gate at an increased difficulty.

[Dwarves' Hammer]

[Grade: Legendary]

[Option: Dexterity skills increased permanently by 10%.]

[Endurance: Indestructible]

-It's a Dwarves' Hammer. It seems you can make anything with this.

[Dwarves' Tongs]

[Grade: Legendary]

[Option: Dexterity skills increased permanently by 10%.]

[Endurance: Indestructible]

-These are Dwarves' Tongs. With them, you can pick up hot things without burning your hands. Weapons will not slip from your hands.

[Dwarves' Anvil]

[Grade: Legendary]

[Option: Dexterity skills increased permanently by 10%.]

[Endurance: Indestructible]

-It's a sturdy anvil that won't break, no matter how hard you hit it. Anything on top of this can be fixed, but it hasn’t been experimented on by humans.

[Set Effect: Dexterity skills +10]

[Those are new explanations.]

"The explanation is great, but the reward is good by itself. Legendary equipment was hard to find, even in the Third Cataclysm. But what I'm really interested in are the Gate and System Administrators."

[I also felt it. It seems this Gate Manager was involved in that incident, it wasn’t a system error. But this system administrator and the Gate Manager seem different...]

"I thought the same thing too."

[Seeing this mentions Dwarves, I’m more confident the phenomenon affecting your world is related to the World of Immortals. I'm afraid the administrators are probably divine beings.]

"If they're divine, they must be Gods from the World of Immortals."

[The Jade Emperor is old-fashioned. He doesn't like this kind of thing, but I bet it's not entirely unrelated, though.]

-Knock knock.

I felt Lee Seong-jin's presence this time. I called him in to discuss more about the guild’s establishment.

"Come on in."

"Why did you call me? I thought you were taking a break... but are you alone? Has So-eun already left?"

"Yes.”

"I thought she was still here. I heard a voice."

"You must have heard wrong."

"It's strange."

"Why does everyone say that when they visit? Have you all practiced this script in advance?

"What do you mean?"

"It’s nothing."

"Why did you call me?"

***

Hunter Management Bureau

"This is the case file you requested."

Sergeant Seol Myeonggeun held the documents out to Yoo So-eun.

Her eyes stopped at one part as she slowly read through the papers.

"There are quite a few Gates with Poison Spiders."

"Yes. Several other guilds have obtained Advanced Crafting Skill Books through them."

"As expected, it is as Byeong-gi predicted."

"What? Byeong-gi said he knew about it?"

"Well, for now..."

Yoo So-eun had recently heard of hunters going missing at the Gates where Poison Spiders appeared. That's why she had asked him for the files.

"There are cases where an entire guild has gone missing. Is there anything about the Heaven's Way Guild that recently vanished?"

"There has been a major illegal guild sweep, but the whereabouts of the Heaven's Way Guild are still unknown, so further investigation is necessary.”

The Heaven's Way Guild and the missing hunters were thoughts that Yoo So-eun couldn’t erase, she felt that the two incidents were somehow related.

However, it was hard to find a tangible connection.

"Is there another organization involved that we don't know about?"'

Yoo So-eun fell into deep thought.

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