Chapter 94

The Hunter of the Other World Who Is Being Misunderstood

Two days had already passed since the abnormal mutation incident.

“Hehe.”

In the meantime, the bright-red magic stone had been sold without issue, and Neo Sisters had even sent me a separate reward.

Once I added that to the compensation from the [Dimensional Treasure Vault] incident and all my other earnings, my current balance came to...

【Deposit/Withdrawal Account: KRW 318,230,054】

I gazed proudly at the figure printed in my bankbook.

A staggering 318 million won!

Considering that I once trembled over the cost of a single bowl of soup, wasn’t this tremendous progress?

‘I’ve already passed three hundred million won, and winter hasn’t even arrived yet.’

Of course, I still had a long way to go.

My grand objective was to purchase a dragon’s lungs. Until I achieved that, I would have to save every coin I could.

“Hmm...”

It seemed I would be staying in this shabby one-room apartment for quite some time.

Still, it was not such a bad place to live. There was no demanding superior forcing me to work overtime, I could eat regular meals, and Earth had no shortage of fascinating diversions.

‘Come to think of it, should I watch Y-Tube?’

I switched on my phone and opened a familiar application.

The video platform offered an enormous variety of content, but I mostly used it to watch the news.

‘It’s difficult for an alien like me to distinguish reliable information from lies...’

News was a useful part of Earth’s culture. It was relatively trustworthy, and presenting information through video made it much more engaging to watch.

‘Which channel should I choose today?’

I scrolled across the screen, looking for something interesting.

‘Hm?’

Something seemed strange.

Normally, each broadcaster covered different stories, yet today, no matter which channel I selected, I was greeted by almost the same image.

[[●LIVE] Eight O’Clock News — Hanshin Guild Crisis Worsens: What Is Happening at the Scene?]

[“It Felt Like a Nightmare...” — Interview with a Victim]

[Shopping District Thrown into Chaos — How Extensive Is the Damage?]

I selected the livestream and focused on the report.

[We now go live to a reporter at the scene. Reporter Kim ○○?]

[Yes. I’m currently on a street in Seogyo-dong, where the so-called “Hanshin Incident” took place. As you can see, civilian access to the area has been restricted...]

Despite all the commotion surrounding the broadcast, the scene looked much tidier than I had expected.

The first thing visible on the screen was a neatly paved sidewalk.

Clusters of gray buildings stood pressed together on either side of the street.

And wedged between them was...

An enormous barrier?

‘Hm?’

I frowned and peered more closely at the screen.

No matter how many times I looked, the sight remained unchanged. A vast barrier had swallowed the entire street.

[The creature visible in the distance is the boss monster responsible for the incident. It has been identified as the “Flame Baron.”]

The reporter continued in a clear voice.

The Flame Baron had originally inhabited a privately owned gate belonging to a particular guild. However, the guild had apparently committed a serious management failure.

[Meanwhile, criticism continues to mount against the Hanshin Guild, whose negligence caused this disaster.]

The boss monster had escaped because of a mistake made by the successful bidder responsible for the gate.

It was an exceptionally rare man-made disaster.

‘What a peculiar accident...’

I thought about it briefly, then stood to fetch some water from the refrigerator.

‘Huh?’

The moment I opened the door, however, I froze.

[△△ Meat Restaurant]

That red sign on the news broadcast...

Hadn’t I seen it somewhere before?

‘That’s the restaurant opposite the ATM where I used to withdraw money every day!’

In other words, the incident unfolding on the news was taking place remarkably close to my apartment.

How had I failed to notice sooner?

Curious, I stared at the familiar neighborhood on the screen until the broadcast cut to another shot.

Whirrrrrr...

The city was now being filmed from a helicopter.

[What is the current situation?]

[Hunters mobilized under the emergency summons are engaged in a fierce operation to subdue the Flame Baron. However, no meaningful progress has been made so far.]

The Flame Baron did indeed seem to be a troublesome creature.

It concealed itself inside a solid barrier and continually harassed the Hunters outside with long-range attacks.

Its primary weapon was mental interference.

In other words, whenever anyone approached the barrier, the monster used mind-control magic to force allies to attack one another.

And the range and potency of that brainwashing appeared to be considerable.

[Mental attacks generally have little effect on Awakened individuals, don’t they? Why, then, is there so much confusion this time?]

[According to officials from the Hunter Association, the Flame Baron possesses an unusual trait. The longer it remains active, the stronger it becomes.]

[The monster continues to grow stronger?]

[That is correct. Its brainwashing has now begun affecting even intermediate-level Awakened individuals. The barrier’s durability also appears to have increased.]

As a result, the range of Hunters who could safely be deployed had grown increasingly narrow.

“Hmm.”

Even as I watched the announcer’s grave expression, I merely shrugged.

Why?

Because I felt no particular sense of danger.

‘No matter how close it is, it hasn’t reached my apartment yet...’

I quenched my thirst with the water I had taken from the refrigerator.

‘They’ll resolve it eventually.’

The announcer kept making a fuss about the strength of the brainwashing, but there were still several Hunters confronting the Baron’s barrier.

They could equip themselves with items that resisted mental attacks or simply summon more A-Class Hunters.

The Awakened people of this world had plenty of options available to them.

“It’ll be fine.”

Convinced that the Earthlings would handle the situation, I prepared lunch.

I heated a packet of curry and some rice.

“It’ll be fine... right?”

For some reason, however, the news was still in an uproar even after I finished eating.

“...This is fine, isn’t it?”

By the time three hours had passed, I could no longer sit still.

[(Breaking News) Flame Baron’s Sphere of Influence Expands — Residents Urged to Evacuate]

Damn it!

I had never imagined that Earthlings could be this incompetent!

‘They still haven’t managed to break through that barrier?’

Unable to tolerate the broadcast any longer, I sprang to my feet.

While the Hunters remained stalled outside the barrier, the Flame Baron was steadily expanding its territory.

‘No!’

At this rate, even Kim Kiryeo’s apartment could be caught in the disaster.

And so I made my decision.

I would go to the scene and teach the Hunters how to deal with the barrier.

“Honestly, these primitive creatures...!”

It was troublesome, but what other choice did I have?

[●LIVE News: Real-Time Chat]

[What are those Hunter punks even doing?]

[Are they seriously just firing missiles at it??]

[People who’ve never done anything dangerous are sitting comfortably at home and complaining... Tsk. If you’re that frustrated, go solve it yourselves. Stop blaming the Hunters for everything.]

As the saying went, if you were truly frustrated, you had to take matters into your own hands.

***

When I arrived at the scene shortly afterward, gaining entry proved easier than expected.

In this world, appraisers possessed considerable authority.

‘All it took was one call to the association to obtain permission...’

I crossed the police line and surveyed the area.

Then I spotted a familiar face.

“Seonwoo Yeon-ssi!”

“Huh?”

The B-Class Hunter had been reorganizing the restricted zone. At the sound of my voice, she raised her head in surprise.

“Hunter Kim Kiryeo?”

Her expression made it obvious that she was wondering what I was doing there.

“I came because I was frustrated. That’s all.”

“Excuse me?”

“I’m asking how long you intend to struggle against a mere barrier.”

I approached Seonwoo Yeon and explained why I had come.

As an appraiser, I intended to help them analyse the barrier.

“I see!”

At once, color rose to Seonwoo Yeon’s face.

It was hardly surprising.

The services of a high-ranking appraiser were expensive and difficult to secure. How could she not be pleased when one voluntarily offered assistance?

“I’ll take you to the barrier.”

Seonwoo Yeon readily led the way, giving me a brief overview of the situation as we walked.

“So even an attack powerful enough to come from an A-Class Hunter can’t break it?”

“That’s right. I have no idea where it’s obtaining so much mana.”

“Hmm.”

“And the number of Hunters assembled here is somewhat limited... At first, the association invoked its emergency authority to gather everyone available, but...”

“Are there really only two A-Class Hunters?”

“We can’t keep abusing our emergency summons indefinitely. The request for reinforcements has been held up by the higher authorities.”

Rather than comment on that, I asked another question.

“What about the guild leader of the Magic Tower?”

Jung Haseong and Kang Changho could be excluded for personal reasons, but someone like her should have been able to respond independently.

Seonwoo Yeon’s expression immediately stiffened.

“Hunter Esther? Unfortunately, she entered a gate earlier today.”

“Oh dear.”

“The Magic Tower estimates that it will take her at least half a day to clear it.”

Apparently, several unfortunate circumstances had converged to prevent the Flame Baron from being subdued.

‘Whew.’

In that case, troublesome though it might be, I had no choice but to step in.

My objective was simple: understand the structure of the barrier and identify its weakness.

“All right. This is the outer edge of the barrier.”

When we finally reached it, the scene before me looked quite different from what I had seen on television.

Inside the translucent spherical barrier, the ground was covered in flowers.

Pale blossoms, blue flowers, and vivid splashes of color filled every inch of space, leaving nowhere to place a foot.

“I-it’s much larger in person than I expected...”

At the center of the field stood a solidly built creature whose shape was reminiscent of a Shilla T’ou.

‘Is that truly a living creature?’

The Flame Baron had finally revealed itself.

Its body gleamed white like glazed porcelain, making the monster appear even more unnatural and alien.

‘Hmm.’

And so, here was my assessment of the boss.

‘I should stop looking at it. It’s terrifying.’

I quickly turned my attention back to the Baron’s barrier.

It was a shimmering curtain of densely clustered mana particles.

At first glance, it did not seem particularly different from any ordinary barrier...

“Hmm?”

Thud!

At that moment, an unidentified sound suddenly echoed from somewhere nearby.

“What was that?”