Chapter 109: Their! Arrival! (1)
When the Black Wizards emerged from their long exile underground, they had already discovered how to tap into the mana of the Demon Realm, using it to summon demons into their own world. Though these were not the same Black Wizards of old, their use of this forbidden power earned them the same title once again.
With demons now walking among them, the Black Wizards set their long-devised plan in motion. A wave of monsters swept across the continent, plunging the land into chaos.
They didn't stop there. In the northwest, a kingdom fell. From its ashes, the Black Wizards established their own nation—the Black Kingdom. Naturally, neighboring countries responded, sending their armies to crush the threat before it could spread.
However, they soon faced two critical problems.
First, the demons had already been summoned here. Second, the monster rampage carefully orchestrated for years had been in full swing. As the armies marched, they were overwhelmed by monsters attacking from every side, and most were wiped out before even reaching the Black Kingdom.
Five years later, the Black Kingdom had grown, expanding until it controlled half the continent. Regret spread across the land as people realized that everything might have been different if the Black Wizards' plan had failed.
By manipulating monsters to see those with Demon Realm mana as allies and all others as enemies, the Black Wizards ensured their survival. With their small numbers, they could have been easily crushed by the armies of their neighbors. But the plan succeeded, and in doing so, they gained hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of monsters as allies.
***
Through the office window, a tall, sturdy wall stood on the horizon, and beyond it, black smoke curled into the sky.
"There are only five days left," a beautiful woman muttered in a low voice as she slowly turned away from the sight. She turned to a handsome man wearing leather armor with a longsword at his waist and asked, "What of the villages that have yet to arrive?"
"There are five villages in total that still haven't arrived," the handsome man reported. "However, their delay is solely due to distance, and they have sent word that they will arrive within three days."
"I see." The beautiful woman nodded at the news.
Still locked in an ongoing conflict with the monsters, the high elves had suddenly received an oracle: humans from another dimension would soon arrive to revive the World Tree, and the elves would need to assist in protecting its revival.
"And what about the monsters?" the beautiful silver-haired High Elf named Serena asked the elven warrior as she walked out of her office.
"They seem no different from usual," the elven warrior replied.
"As expected," Serena muttered.
The elven warrior frowned and voiced his concern. "However, the moment the World Tree begins to sprout, the monsters will surely swarm us. The Black Wizards will also come for us, and in the worst-case scenario..."
Serena nodded in thanks to the gate guards as they opened the castle gates, allowing her and her companion to exit the keep. The two were immediately met with shouting.
"Medical unit! Move to the foot of the fifth wall now! The wounded from the sixth wall's defense unit have just arrived! Take those who have already received preliminary treatment to the tents, and get the seriously injured onto stretchers first!"
Beneath the tents, elven healers were busy treating their wounded comrades. Serena, standing quietly in front of the gates, watched the scene before resuming her steps.
"Wall Three is requesting support!"
"Tell them we're sending Wall Thirteen's defense unit!"
"The special forces have arrived!"
"Tell the special forces to stand by for a few minutes! Inform all siege units on the walls that the special forces will arrive in five minutes, so half of them should be ready to come down! We will open the gates and let the monsters enter the fortress to thin their numbers!"
Elves skilled in strategy and tactics were gathered outside the nearby barracks, adjusting the army's plans based on the information from the front lines.
As Serena and her escort continued forward, they passed through the inner walls surrounding the lord's keep.
"Quickly now! Quickly!"
"If we're late, it's our comrades who will be hurt!"
"We've received a request for an arrow resupply!"
"Tell them that the resupply will be there in three minutes!"
Various pretty boys and girls were rushing around the battlefield; these were young elven children with no real fighting experience. Fortunately, they weren't being sent to the front lines to face monsters, but instead served in the supply unit, supporting their older comrades from the rear.
"Hm?" Serena suddenly noticed something.
In the distance, a group of young elves stood idle, waiting for orders from their superiors instead of moving about like the others. It seemed there had been a snarl higher up in the command chain.
Serena turned to her companion. "Warrior Euas."
"Yes m'am." The elven warrior stood at attention.
"Please handle that," Serena instructed. "I'll go on ahead by myself."
"Yes m'am." Euas nodded and ran off toward the group of waiting children.
Serena adjusted her course slightly to avoid the disruption, and after skirting around the commotion, she continued walking toward the northern gate. As she drew closer to the wall, the cries of elves battling monsters on the front line rang in her ears.
"There's not much more left!"
Serena approached the elven warriors gathered at the foot of the wall and said, "I will join this battle and annihilate the remaining monsters."
"Lady Serena," the elven warriors voiced their concern.
"It's alright," Serena reassured them. "I've recovered by around thirty percent."
Serena was a powerful Elementalist, contracted with fire Elementals, earth Elementals, and water Elementals, all of whom were high-ranking. No matter how desperate the fight, as long as she entered the fray, the elves' victory was certain.
She launched herself onto the wall, the warriors following close behind.
Below, monsters surged like a living tide, clawing at the stone. Serena summoned all of her Elementals, sweeping them away even as pain tore through her body.
***
It was just a minute past midnight on February 15 when the faint blue light of a hologram illuminated the lobby of the DG Guild Headquarters.
[To all Hunters who cleared the Gate, The Dying Forest.]
[At 08:30 on February 15, 2041, a Gate will open before Hunter Kim Ji-Hee. Hunters must join forces to clear the Gate by repelling the Black Wizards and their monsters, and planting the Seed of the World Tree.]
"How fortunate," Kim Ki-Rok muttered, lifting his head after reading the World System message.
Representatives from the Association and various guilds participating in the Gate clear were all watching him.
The World System had previously revealed the date of the Gate's appearance, but not the exact time. As such, they had scheduled their expedition assembly for 16:00 on February 14, setting the first-floor lobby as the meeting point.
"Tomorrow—no, today now. The Gate will appear in front of Ji-Hee at 8:30 in the morning," Kim Ki-Rok informed them. "So we can disband for now and meet up again later."
"Guildmaster Kim Ki-Rok, where should we gather, and by what time?" asked Team Leader Ji Cheol-Hyun from the Association's Gate Hunter Team.
"We'll need time for one final check, so maybe by 6... No, let's make it a full three hours ahead. Be at our underground training ground by 5:30," Kim Ki-Rok replied. Then, with a grin, he looked over the group, who were tilting their heads in confusion. "You really do make quite the splendid sight."
The brightly dressed Hunters all silently grumbled. You're the one who told us to dress like this!
This scene was the result of a project proposed by Kim Ki-Rok and approved by the representatives of each guild—the Hero and Saint Project. With the cooperation of the Guildmasters and strong support from the government, all the Hunters participating in this Gate clear were outfitted in elaborate armor, styled to resemble Heroes.
Some wore pure white armor, with capes and scabbards, while others chose a more imposing look in red armor and helmets. There was also blue, gold, silver, and even some... unsavory colors.
"Guildmaster Kim Ki-Rok," Jang Baek-San of the Baekdusan Guild suddenly spoke up.
"Yes, Representative Jang Baek-San?" Kim Ki-Rok turned to him.
"Are you the one who chose that suit of armor for your Hero image, Guildmaster?"
Kim Ki-Rok nodded. "That's right."
"But it's pink?"
His armor was a very vibrant shade of pink.
"If you're a man, you should wear pink," Kim Ki-Rok stated confidently.
Since when was that a thing?
Kim Ki-Rok finally explained, "It was one of the A-Class enchanted pieces of equipment our DG Guild had collected."
"Is that so?" Jang Baek-San still looked doubtful.
"That's right. Strangely, no one ever wanted it. I told everyone they could claim it first and arrange payment later, but no one ever came for it."
The pink armor was so bright, it stood out even in the middle of the night.
Jang Baek-San looked down and asked, "Is your scabbard also enchanted with special effects?"
Kim Ki-Rok shook his head. "Not at all. I just chose a pink scabbard to match the armor."
"So you just happened to have a pink scabbard lying around?"
"No... I painted it."
Wearing pink armor and a matching scabbard at his waist, Kim Ki-Rok spun around so everyone could get a good look. Then, he drew his sword.
"He must be crazy..." Baek Min-Hyuk of the Golden Lion Guild muttered, his words more of a curse than an observation. His reaction was understandable, since the sword Kim Ki-Rok pulled out was also bright pink.
"Did you paint that as well?" Jang Baek-San had to ask.
Kim Ki-Rok shook his head and denied it.
"You mean that the sword blade is naturally that color?"
"Yep. Even though it looks like this, it's an A-Class magic sword. Oh, and we found it in the same Gate as the armor."
Kim Ki-Rok had revealed both the armor and the sword recovered from inside a Gate were not Hunter rewards, but equipment someone from another dimension had once used. So what kind of madman had wielded them?
Though people said Gate dimensions were infinite in variety, could there really have been a lunatic to rival this Crazy Bastard?
Kim Ki-Rok proudly explained, "Since our Ji-Hee can talk to spirits, she can get spectral monsters like ghosts to search for any abandoned magic items or enchanted equipment. Hahahaha!"
"Guildmaster Kim Ki-Rok, do you mind if we appraise your sword?" Baek Min-Hyuk asked, curious whether that pink longsword was really an A-Class enchanted weapon.
"Of course I don't mind."
"Appraise."
The other guild representatives, equally intrigued, fixed their eyes on the pink longsword and activated Appraisal.
[Mark's Longsword (A) +1]
Description: A longsword forged by the blacksmith Mark using the rare metal, Red Iron
Effect 1: Vitality +3, Strength +5
Effect 2: Absorbs 0.5% of the target's mana with each blow
Effect 3: When infused with mana, slicing power increases by 30%
Effect 4: Mana consumption for skills in the Mana Sword series (including aura-based variants) is reduced by 30%
[Mark's Light Armor (A) +1]
Description: A suit of light armor forged by the blacksmith Mark using the rare metal, Red Iron
Effect 1: Vitality +7, Willpower +5
Effect 2: Can activate the Mana Shield ability
Effect 3: Reduces all magic and skill damage by 30%
Effect 4: Reduces damage from Mana Sword series skills (including aura-based variants) by 20%
"I must be going crazy, really..." Baek Min-Hyuk couldn't help but curse again.
Even the Golden Lion Guild would struggle to find another A-Class enchanted weapon with four effects.
"What's the Mana Shield ability?" someone asked, eyeing the fourth effect on Mark's Light Armor.
"Allow me to demonstrate," Kim Ki-Rok offered readily. "Mana Shield."
With a soft pop, a shield formed from pink mana appeared in front of him.
"Red Iron is a type of metal that absorbs mana. So, if you cut an enemy with a weapon forged from it, you can steal some of their mana. Armor made from Red Iron naturally absorbs and stores mana from the air," Kim Ki-Rok explained proudly. "The blacksmith, Mark, then inscribed magic circles onto the finished armor, enhancing it so the armor could form a mana shield using the reserves it gathered."
It was amazing. Too amazing.
The Hunters, who had finally managed to tear their eyes away from the Appraisal holograms, now looked at Kim Ki-Rok and his gear in a new light.
The only issue was the color. It was still a vivid, unmistakable pink. If it had just been a lighter shade, maybe something like peach, they might have been willing to set aside their sense of aesthetics for such powerful gear.
However, Mark's Light Armor and Longsword were both a deep, glaring pink.
Kim Ki-Rok let out a sigh. "For a while, I actually considered dyeing my hair pink, just to really match the whole look."
Was this Crazy Bastard really that crazy?
"But my guild members stopped me," Kim Ki-Rok added, sounding almost regretful.
That, of course, was the only sane reaction.
None of the Hunters dared voice their thoughts out loud. They simply pressed their lips together in silence.
Kim Ki-Rok, unfazed, moved on. "Now then, we can all disperse. Just make sure to be at the underground training center by 5:30 a.m."