394. Shinga Guild (3)

To clear a gate.

It was a rule reached after considerable and lengthy deliberation.

In the past, before the theory of gates was established, there was a time when hunters actively sought complete eradication.

However, monster regeneration within a gate took a considerable amount of time.

Now, knowing that monsters basically have a strong reproductive capacity, it has become an unspoken rule in the hunter industry to clear a gate while leaving about 30% of the monsters behind with a time difference.

This way, hunters’ income is guaranteed consistently, and they can bring out more magic stones in the next round.

In society, magic stones were now an indispensable resource.

However, the Shinga Guild was different.

────────────────

[Seriously, aren’t those Shinga Guild b*tches crossing the line too much?]

I get that they’re newly founded and full of enthusiasm.

But, seriously, they’re stirring up all the C and D-grade gates, wiping them out completely;;

Damn, our party went into a gate this time and there were only newly regenerated b*stards.

They just monopolize the gate, turn it into a wasteland, and leave. I feel so much Shinhate······.

────────────────

– Fr real, it’s messed up. These guys just decimate the gates like locusts.

– Shin-custs lololol

– Seriously, we all know they’re strong, right? Does that mean they can just smash everything just because they’re strong?ㅋㅋㅋ

– Hey, shouldn’t the association say something about this?

– The Hunter Association has gone mad;; They are sucking the Shinga Guild like crazy. Another top guild after Utopiaㅇㅈㄹㅋㅋ

ㄴ Jin Yuha raised them all, so what are you talking about;;

ㄴ That’s right. The Hunter Association congratulated the founding of the Shinga Guild and totally suck up to everything they do ······

ㄴ There’s no way Shin Sehee doesn’t have compromising videos of the association executives.

– What about Maze?

ㄴ Well, even though what Shin Sehee is doing is messed up, it doesn’t violate any rules······. I guess there’s nothing he can say;;

ㄴ That doesn’t violate any rules? Still pissed, can’t he just destroy them once?

ㄴ Maze is like a nuclear weapon, an asymmetrical force, you can’t just use it carelessly for something like this······.

ㄴ Yeah, if he moves just because he doesn’t like something, the entire hunter ecosystem will be destroyed······.

Even Lina, who they believed in, seemed to be stepping back from this incident, and the hunters became even more furious.

Existing hunters strongly protested,

but Shin Sehee just scoffed at all their opinions, ignored their words, and continued to devastate the surrounding gates relentlessly.

And so, from the moment of its founding, the Shinga Guild became a common enemy among hunters.

────────────────

[Ah, damn it,,, back then,,, when Teacher Jin,,, was around,,, things like this,,, didn’t happen,,, ya know……..!!!!!]

,,,,Teacher Jin Yuha,,, when are you coming out…??????!!!!!

I hope she comes out soon,,, and keeps that b*tch,,, in line!!!!!

That’s why they say you shouldn’t take in black-haired beasts~~~

When Teacher Jin Yuha,,, comes out,,,

“This b*stard,” just one word and he’ll tuck his tail between his legs, hahaha!

Ugh!!!! Kaaack!!!! Ptooey!!!!!!

────────────────

– Heol, elder ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– Looking at it now, that Shin Sehee, that b*tch was totally scheming. You could tell she figured entering the gate with Jin Yuha and Utopia would take ages. And then bam, she stabs him in the back. So shady.

– And then what does she do? She gathers up all the Utopia trash and creates the Shinga Guild, then just razes the gate, seriously ㅋㅋㅋ It’s so lame it’s unbelievable.

– Ugh, I hope Jin Yuha comes out soon and gives Shin Sehee a good lesson.

– My income’s been crap lately, so my husband and son are giving me the cold shoulder at home ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ They ask if I came home empty-handed again······

– Yuha······. Please smash Sehee’s head in······. That b*tch has lost it…ㅠㅠㅠㅠ

– Maybe Jin Yuha was wrong to leave that kind of woman unchecked and just enter the gate?

ㄴ STFU

ㄴ Bullshit, don’t try to muddy the waters now.

ㄴ Jin Yuha got betrayed by the axe he trusted, what are you even saying ㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴ Here come the Jin simps, showed up right on time ㅋㅋㅋ

– Ugh······. I’m actually dying, this is no joke. When is our GOAT coming back?

ㄴ Apparently Jin Yuha is smashing the heads of three demonkin right now······. They said the scenery looks like Jukai Forest? Something like thatㅠㅠㅠ

ㄴ Why does this have to happen nowㅠㅠㅠㅠ

The anticipation for Jin Yuha’s return was growing just as much.

If only Jin Yuha would come out of the gate, the Shinga Guild’s tyranny would finally stop.

And Jin Yuha was passing through the Carmella Forest where he first met Lee Yuri, the combat gate training with Im Gaeul, the tutorial boss, the Thorny Wastes, the mind of the mid-term evaluation with Sophia, the demonkin he dealt with alongside Baek Seolhee, the Blue Crab Wave at the swimsuit festival,

The Jukai Forest where he met Ichikawa,

Facing the Apostle of the Nightmare.

* * *

I stared down at the three dead Apostles of the Nightmare, their eyes rolled back.

“Hmm······. This is easier than I thought?”

Even after tripling the monster spawn rate and without a single bit of help from the other party members, the demonkin were just dying so easily.

Even considering that this Illusion Barrier trial was meant to prevent the party members from dying in the Demon Realm Gate, something feels off.

“······Tsk, I wonder if this will even train them?”

No.

Come to think of it, it might still be helpful.

Up until the Apostles of the Nightmare I just faced, they were all pushovers, but,

Well.

Taking on demonkin in a 3 on 1 fight will probably be a bit harder, right?

“Still, I think I’ll be done sooner than I expected. Gotta finish up quick and go help Shin Sehee.”

Guheoheok─

Thwack!

I plunged my sword into the necks of the fallen Apostles of the Nightmare, who had let out strange screams, and then threw myself straight into the next gate.

*

Hoo─

Hooo…

Unlike Jin Yuha’s concern that it would be too easy.

The Utopia party members were realizing that this trial was proving anything but.

Kang Do-hee, whose combat prowess alone solidified her as the undisputed number two within Utopia.

With few rivals besides Jin Yuha, Baek Seol-hee, and Lina,

She was acutely aware of just how much she’d been relying on the party.

Tank, supporter, sub-dealer, specialist, and healer.

Without all that support, she was vulnerable to a fault.

Whether due to ingrained habits or simply placing that much trust in her companions,

She failed to block attacks that she should have.

Unconsciously, she’d throw herself into danger, expecting the healer to mend any wounds.

And, accustomed to the supporter’s acceleration during party operations, she’d unwittingly cranked up her speed, overextending herself.

And Jin Yuha.

The Linker, issuing timely instructions in place of her own thought, carving out paths in dangerous situations.

With him absent from her side.

She was constantly getting surrounded by even the most insignificant monsters.

*Cheonsang cheonha.* (Heaven above, earth below.)

*Yua dokjon.* (I alone am honored.)

An untamed wolf.

A fighting dog. Kang Do-hee.

Before entering the Academy, she had entered Gates alone, battling hordes of monsters.

Never relying on the help of others.

But after joining Utopia.

She had changed.

No longer feeling awkward receiving commands, moving as a single component.

‘So, I’ve grown weaker, haven’t I.’

*Pfft.*

The thought of how she would have raged at such a feeble notion in the past brought a chuckle.

‘Not at all.’

If not for Jin Yuha as a goal.

If not for the experience of being directed by him, she wouldn’t have grown this strong.

She would have simply continued making reckless challenges on her own, ending prematurely.

The reason she didn’t see the current situation as so bad was that she could now objectively see her former self.

‘If the me before meeting Jin Yuha had come here… I would have died long ago.’

Hooo…

Kang Do-hee let out a long breath, staring at the three Succubus Apostles before her.

‘…Breaking through without skills ends here.’

Jin Yuha would probably have breezed through even this, but this was her limit.

From now on, she would utilize her skills to the fullest to break through.

And gradually reduce the proportion of skills used as she challenged it again.

Here, the flow of time was twisted, and even if one died or was wounded, they could try again and again.

If she could just complete this trial, she would become stronger.

She refused to be a hindrance to Jin Yuha any longer.

‘Alright. Let’s do this.’

Fwooosh—

A fiery aura blazed around her body.

She condensed the energy into her fists and feet.

[ Fire Dragon Fist ]

Thwack—

She kicked off the ground, a trail of hot flames following her like a comet’s tail.

* * *

And at the same moment.

There was a party member who had already met her first death.

None other than Im Gaeul.

While everyone else cleared up to the Dream Demon’s Apostle without much difficulty, she was torn apart by the Blue Crab wave.

She faced the first enemies once more.

A swarm of goblins. She scratched her head.

“Ah… can I even do this?”