“W-what just happened?” one of the students said, staring in disbelief at the rippling entrance of the Fissure while trying to process what he had just seen.
Before anyone could fully grasp the danger of the Fissure Distortion, Korea’s top-ranked Hunters had gathered in one place.
There’s no way that just happened... right? Seong-Rok stood there, mouth agape, staring blankly into space.
Ten elite Hunters had charged into the Fissure at a single word from a young man. From what he recalled, that man was Yoon-Hee’s father, a low-ranking civil servant.
The students also murmured with a similar suspicion.
“Wasn’t that guy the one from before?”
“You know, the civil servant who helped us with the C-rank Fissure training at Dongguk University.”
“Oh... Now that you mention it, he does look like him.”
“Why is he here? And what was that just now?”
“What’s his connection to those S-rank Hunters? Could he be a hidden SS-rank Hunter or something?”
The students tried to solve their unanswered questions with guesses, attempting to make sense of it all.
“Nah... no way. We have to be mistaken.”
Unable to accept the reality before them, they reached their own conclusions.
From the entrance, the roar of trolls mixed with earth-shaking crashes. Dirt fell from the roots of a tree supporting the ceiling of the pit. It felt like the entire world would collapse as if a tectonic shift were happening.
An unknown sense of dread sent chills down the spines of Yoon-Hee and her friends.
“Are the trolls rampaging?” Jin-Soo muttered.
Gathering her courage, Yoon-Hee muttered as she stood up, “Should we go check outside...?”
If Jin-Soo’s guess was correct and the trolls were rampaging, it might be safer to stay hidden here for now. Still, it seemed like a good idea to get a sense of the situation outside.
At that moment, footsteps echoed, accompanied by the crunch of dirt beneath them. Jin-Soo tensed, drawing his blade, ready to leap out at a moment's notice if needed.
Then the footsteps stopped, and something emerged through a gap in the earth. Although the view was dark and unclear, one thing was certain: it was a shoe.
The tree that had been concealing them was uprooted, leaving them exposed. Then, a young man dressed in an incongruous suit for the Great Fissure appeared, dusting off his hands.
Yoon-Hee felt a surge of emotions that she had been holding back, emotions repressed by the fear of possibly dying. The mask of strength she had been wearing for her friends slipped off.
It was remarkable how just the sight of Do-Jun’s face could bring such relief.
“Ugh...” Tears flowed uncontrollably down her cheeks.
Without a word, Do-Jun lifted her from the pit, held her close, and gently patted her back, stroking her hair.
“You’re alright now,” Do-Jun murmured softly.
The low, comforting tone she had always known brought in more tears.
It was truly amazing. Just a moment ago, she had felt as if she were sinking into an abyss, overwhelmed by terror, but now warmth and a sense of peace had taken their place.
Her body trembled, revealing just how terrified she had been all along.
Do-Jun continued to pat her back, closing his eyes gently.
Cheol-Soo’s words from earlier in the morning came to his mind.
“You’re like a robot without emotions.”
Perhaps that was true.
Even though his daughter had nearly died, he didn’t feel any anger; only relief. He was just thankful for not being late. A sense of reassurance washed over him as he confirmed that Yoon-Hee was safe.
It had been a long time since he had felt anything .
“Come on, you two.” Do-Jun smiled and extended his hand, helping Hye-Jung and Jin-Soo up one at a time.
Jin-Soo looked at Yoon-Hee, who was sniffling while clinging to Do-Jun’s jacket. Seeing her , he realized just how scared she must have been despite pretending to be fine.
“Sir, but... how did you get here?” Jin-Soo asked cautiously.
This was a B-rank Great Fissure, and due to the mysterious presence of the Moon of Distortion, the danger level of the monsters inside had skyrocketed. For an ordinary person, entering here would be akin to suicide.
“That’s not important right now. We should get out of here right away,” Hye-Jung said.
Just then, a group of four drooling trolls emerged from the trees, lumbering toward them. Jin-Soo and Hye-Jung’s faces turned pale as they drew their blades. They couldn’t possibly handle four trolls at once. Every cell in their bodies screamed at them to flee.
A flash of light suddenly blazed down from high above, striking the four trolls. The trolls fell without a chance to even let out a roar, collapsing to the ground.
Soon, a figure landed atop the bodies of the fallen trolls.
Jin-Soo and Hye-Jung instantly recognized the figure. He was one of the three brightest stars in Korea, known as the Emperor: the Sword Emperor, Lee Kang-Hyun.
Clad in a matte black suit, he held the legendary sword, said to be crafted from the molar of an S-rank boss monster, the Basilisk. A fierce, blue aura radiated from the sword, almost bursting with power.
“T-the Sword Emperor!”
But it wasn’t just the Sword Emperor.
Nine shadows streaked across the sky. With each flash of light they cast, red-skinned trolls disintegrated where they stood.
“W-what the hell is happening...?”
This was now a battlefield of stars, a truly spine-tingling sight. Korea’s top-ranking Hunters were now sweeping through the Fissure. Behemoth, Icarus, Phoenix, Messiah—the four pillars supporting Korea, and their guild masters, along with their S-rank Hunters.
The trolls fell helplessly.
Compared to B-rank, or even A-rank, the difference in power was overwhelming.
Jin-Soo gulped involuntarily.
So this is... S-rank!
They were idols he had always admired from afar; figures he looked up to who now soared through the sky.
It seemed inconceivable that these S-rank Hunters, whom one could go a lifetime without seeing up close, would all gather for the sake of three cadets from Hunter Academy.
However, there was another reason that the students were not aware of.
“It seems your daughter is safe,” Kang-Hyun said with a sense of relief, looking at Yoon-Hee, who was clinging close to Do-Jun’s side.
For a moment, Jin-Soo’s eyes widened.
“Yes, thanks to you,” replied Do-Jun, turning his head slightly to look at him.
What did he just say?
What was going on? Did Yoon-Hee’s father know the Sword Emperor?
Kang-Hyun turned his gaze to the twisted, grotesque, moon-like creature writhing in the distance—the monster that had spawned upon entering the Great Fissure known as the Troll’s Valley.
It was likely this creature that was referred to as the Moon of Distortion.
“How shall we proceed?” Kang-Hyun was asking for a command.
Do-Jun said nothing and fixed his cold gaze on the Moon of Distortion. Kang-Hyun smirked, seeming to understand, and spoke into the small radio attached to his shoulder.
Kang-Hyun leaped toward the enemy.
Once they exited the Fissure, reporters who had caught wind of the S-rank Hunters’ arrival surged forward, eagerly snapping photos. Flash after flash captured these heroes who had safely returned the three Hunter Academy students.
Reporters from the three major broadcasting stations pushed forward with their microphones, eager for a word, pressing in close.
“Sword Emperor, could you say a few words?”
“How did you find out the students were trapped?”
“Were the enhanced trolls difficult to handle?”
“Was there a particular reason all the S-rank Hunters came together at once?”
The S-rank Hunters were inwardly annoyed; however, to the public, they were nothing short of heroes. Thus, they maintained their formal smiles and provided the standard interview responses.
They explained that, naturally, they had come to rescue future Hunters who had requested help through the emergency cam. They were fortunate that today happened to be their regular bi-annual meeting for S-rank Hunters, so when the emergency arose, they all headed out together with a shared sense of duty.
It wasn’t necessarily a lie.
The main reason was that one of the students in danger was Do-Jun’s daughter.
Meanwhile, as he watched Do-Jun quietly walk away from the National Cemetery, Seong-Rok gave an interview. “We’re truly grateful that the S-rank Hunters could come. Without them, our students would have faced significant danger...”
He knew the full story behind the incident but decided against sharing it with the reporters.
A short while later, the S-rank Hunters gathered back at the Hunter’s Bureau.
In the conference room with the big round table, Jun-Yeol chuckled to himself. An expression of indescribable joy was plastered across his face, and his mouth curved into a satisfied grin.
Watching him, Ae-Kyung gave him a disapproving look.
“What’s so funny?” she asked.
This was definitely a win for him.
Jun-Yeol recalled the first time he met Do-Jun, when he had nearly gotten himself killed for his insolence toward him. Since then, whenever he ran into Do-Jun, he couldn’t help but shrink back.
“I definitely scored some points with Supervisor Lee this time, didn’t I?” he said, grinning.
There was no better way to earn favor than saving his daughter from a life-threatening danger. No matter how cool-headed a person is, if their daughter’s life is on the line, what parent could stay calm?
The exhilarated Jun-Yeol continued his boast. “You saw! I was just cutting down the trolls, like...”
“Keep it down,” Kang-Hyun said with his eyes closed, arms crossed.
After a brief silence, he added, “I was the one who saved the day.”
Tonight, Yoon-Hee ate in silence, unlike her usual self. Now and then, she glanced at Do-Jun with a blank expression, only to quickly look away as if nothing had happened when their eyes met.
“What’s going on?” Do-Jun asked, noticing something was off.
There was definitely something unusual about her.
I feel like I’m always causing trouble for Father, Yoon-Hee thought and sighed inwardly.
The fact that Do-Jun had come to save her today had filled her with overwhelming gratitude, even bringing her to tears. Yet, she couldn’t shake the guilty feeling.
I need to get stronger.
She was the weakest in the household, but at the very least, she wanted to be able to protect herself.
She didn’t want to be a burden on Do-Jun anymore.
“Young Master, why are you staring at me?” Karsiel asked and tilted her head in confusion.
Yong-Yong was watching the TV, and his eyes widened at the news report.
⌜Today, several S-rank Hunters gathered in one place, at the Seoul National Cemetery. The students of Hunter Academy’s first-year Class B underwent a Fissure training session...⌟
“Huh? Master, you’re on TV,” he pointed out.
Yong-Yong scampered over to the TV, pointing his paw at a tiny figure on the screen—a man in a suit barely visible in the corner. Honestly, it was hard to recognize Do-Jun’s face unless one looked closely.
Byeol, who had been eating, got down from her high chair and toddled over to the TV.
She beamed with excitement and ran over to Do-Jun. “Daddy, you made it! You’re famous now!”
Do-Jun glanced at the tiny dot that was himself on the TV, then back at Byeol’s beaming face, genuinely delighted.
“I guess so,” he replied with a chuckle.