I Am a Legend (1)
“Last ti we t, you helped us trendously with the crack near the Association. I still had a lot to say to you, so I ca to see you in person.”
The president of the Association, Kim Min-jae, was smiling at with a distant expression. The cadets walking past in the hallway looked at us curiously.
Even the most famous hunters never spoke with the president of the Association.
The Association held great power in our awakened society. The president was very impressive in person. He was certainly very aware of his power.
“Wow…”
Kim Hyun-Tae’s voice was a mix of admiration and amazent. He was one of the top-ranking mbers of the Academy.
“I see. Still, the president of the Association coming to see , a cadet…”
“Haha, shouldn’t I express my gratitude to my most faithful servants?” he replied with a big smile. “But let’s talk sowhere else, sowhere where no one can listen in on our conversation.”
* * *
“He’s an ordinary Academy cadet.”
“A pupil?”
In response to the question, the man handed over the materials prepared in advance.
“Yes. They were two cadets from the Hwayeon Choin Academy, a hunter from the Chinese Association, and a child.”
“I’ll need more details than that. You say they entered an extrely dangerous rift on their own and succeeded in hunting down ten monsters, and on top of that they were unhard?” that story sounded ridiculous. Such a hostile environnt could have easily wiped out many teams of experienced hunters. Now, this guy cos in and tells that a couple of students had walked in and out like it was nothing?
“What else can I say…?”
The man looked completely dumbfounded.
“The two academy cadets are the most talked-about prospects among the guilds and scouts.”
“Well.”
“The girl is so talented that the scouts say she already has the abilities of a third-class hunter.”
He looked at the docunts. The na ‘Yoo Ji-Yeon’ was written on it.
“The boy is a cadet nad Jeong Si-woo, but his abilities are astonishing. He has great analytic skill, coveted by the Oracles.”
“… Oracle?”
“Yes. But that’s not all. According to the scouts’ evaluation, he could easily join their ranks as a second-class hunter. He is estimated to be A-class.”
“This na. Han Yeon-soo. Is that the Han Yeon-soo that I know?”
She was the most unpredictable woman he had ever t.
“Yes.”
“How did they even endure the heat? Do you an to tell that academy cadets know how to use the ‘Mana Skin’?”
“There was a Chinese man with them.”
“…?”
“He was originally an ordinary hunter, but then he went missing. You must have heard of him, the hunter who disappeared after finding the Red Marble?”
“Ah. I have heard that story.”
“That’s him, his na is Zhang Wei. He used to have basic regenerative skill, but since his reappearance, his skills have increased tenfold.”
He turned the page over. There was a skinny man’s face on the next page.
“That’s the guy. He has beco a big na after his contribution to the Association’s Great Crack incident. The cadet nad Jeong Si-woo brought him sowhere, and suddenly he reawakened.”
“Hahaha.”
“I’m not joking. It’s real. Analysts believe that he has taken over Zhang Wei’s body, granting him new abilities.”
“So, what…? Thanks to the ability of this healer they were able to stroll around in a place where you will destroy your lungs by simply breathing in? Does this guy have infinite mana?”
“… According to the data received, yes.”
Surprisingly, he was right. The data seed to support that claim.
“What about him? Surely this child that still seems to go to elentary school can’t be of any help?”
“… He’s turned out to be a normal third-class awakener.”
“A third-class awakener? A child? Jesus. Ha ha ha ha!”
The man laughed at the absurdity.
He rembered the four kids casually walking out of the Rift while waiting with his soldiers for the Fla Empress’ return. He rembered them casually strolling by.
What a presence. He truly was a great prospect. The fact that they all survived in there proved that they were not ordinary cadets. However, he couldn’t believe that they were that extraordinary. They probably were lucky.
“Where are the analysts? I want to talk to them.”
* * *
The association president and I went to a counseling room. I’ve been here for a while, but I’m still a teenager on the outside. Kim Min-jae sat down opposite , looking at with a serious expression. On the surface, it looked like he wanted to have an honest conversation.
“You were a great help. All the hunters of the Association praised your efforts.”
“Of course. I had to help. Those who have a hunter license are obligated to comply with the Association’s call, unless otherwise engaged.”
“Hahaha. There are so many people who can’t even comply with that simple rule. Besides, what you did for us went beyond the normal call of duty. I sincerely wanted to thank you.”
“Ah… Yes.”
He continued praising and thanking for my help. He almost had believing that he was only here to thank . However, I knew him better than to believe that.
“I wanted to ask you one more thing…” his eyes flashed for a brief mont. It looked like he was finally getting to the point.
“The Awakened person you brought with you to the Great Rift…How did you get to know Zhang Wei?”
“Why are you asking that?”
“I was just curious where you found such an amazing healer.”
I knew it. This was the real reason why he had co here. In his previous life, Kim Min-jae never even got the opportunity to talk to Zhang Wei. At the ti, he was one of the most famous people in the world. Not only did the Chinese support him enthusiastically, but the western world also called him the ‘ssiah’.
But now? He still had his outstanding abilities, but no one knew who he was. He was easy prey.
“We t by accident. We don’t have a special relationship, he just offered to help.”
“No special relationship. Hahaha”
Kim Min-jae then tried to spin the conversation in his favor. Of course, he couldn’t trick .
He was used to leading the conversation, so that flustered him a bit.
The conversation went on for quite a while.
“Zhang Wei works with you, but he’s not tied to you in any way, he is a freelancer? So, if he gets another job offer, he can work elsewhere?”
“Yes.”
“Great. Next ti, I should go directly to him.”
Kim Min-jae stood up. I raised my eyebrows.
‘Where do you think you’re going, you bastard?’
When I was about to say sothing, a bell sounded in his pocket.
“Yes, this is Kim Min-jae?”
He imdiately answered his phone without excusing himself.
“Oh, a new mine? Yes. There was a Great Rift on the island. Where the Fla Empress fought? We bought it, so you can use it.”
“…?”
“The resources are abundant, but the environnt is bad? Okay, begin harvesting resources, using the hunters who can endure the heat inside. If I manage to recruit Zhang Wei, then he’ll help you survive in there. es… Please give my best regards to the Fla Empress.”
‘What is this bullshit?’
Listening to him made angry. I didn’t need to hear anything else.
Mine, Fla Empress, Great Rift on the island…I knew exactly what was going on here.
‘He is mining the Rift for resources.’
A Rift that has been cleared of monsters was an excellent source of mana stones and all kinds of other items. The resources in the Rift regenerated over ti, so if you owned a rift, you essentially had an infinite resource for mana stones, which were in high demand.
However, no one had ever used a Great Rift as a mine.
‘Did the Fla Empress really sell the Great Rift to the Association?’
I called her because I assud she would be destroying everything in the Rift, and then close it. She didn’t need money, so why would she sell it to the Association?
‘Is she trying to raise as much capital as she can because she finally had a lead for the murder of her husband?’
‘That’s it!’
Damn, I hadn’t considered that in my calculations. She was still the sa person, but I should have considered what she would do when she had new information about her husband’s death.
Now Kim Min-jae had control over the Rift, and would be exploiting it for profit. I had made a huge mistake.
“No way. Are you using the Great Rift as a mine?”
“Yes. What’s wrong?”
When I saw his shaless expression, I got even angrier.
“Mining is only done in stable Rifts, never in a level 2 Rift. Did you even consider the risks involved? It’s insanity!”
“Haha. Our analysts thoroughly investigated the matter and deed it safe. No matter how good you think you are, do you really think you can provide with a better analysis than my entire team? The Rift is on a remote island, 80% of the monsters were killed by the Fla Empress. The Great Rift is no more dangerous than an ordinary mining Rift.”
“It’s not the monsters that make the Greater Rifts so dangerous. It’s the high concentration of mana. If a Great Rift is left open, it will spawn even more Rifts.”
“Haha. Mana concentration? What are you talking about? I’ve never heard such a ridiculous thing.”
I approached Kim Min-jae, who was standing there, smiling like an idiot. I spat my next words in his face. I couldn’t stand this idiot.
“The higher the mana concentration, the more frequent and the stronger the Rifts are. The Rifts stimulate the occurrence of other Rifts, and they even change their surrounding environnts over ti. If left unattended for long enough, they can change the entire world. Animals will begin to mutate into horrible monsters, and the sky slowly turns red. The end of the world.”
“Hahahahaha…what have you been smoking? Or is this so kind of hidden cara show?”
“Bring to your fancy analysts. I will prove it,” our eyes t. In the past, Kim Min-Jae had still been alive when I died. I rembered him well. He was very strong. He still is in this reality. I could see it in his eyes. He had imnse power. But he was a coward. He wouldn’t co to anyone’s aid, and he was deathly afraid of the unknown.
“…”
He started trembling.
“Well…”
At that mont, his phone rang again.
“Yes, this is Kim Min-jae.”
I activated the ‘Great Heart’.
My hearing was enhanced so that I could listen in on his conversation.
“Mr. President, all of the hunters at the Great Rift have gone missing. A very strange mana wave was reported close to the Rift. A new Great Rift has erged! It is located right next to the first Rift.
Argghhhhhh!”
Damn it.
I ran out of the office. I couldn’t sense any Rifts forming in the city, so the Black Beads must still be buried in the sand next to the other Rift.
There were still five days left until the third wave was scheduled to appear. However, with the second Rift still open, the concentrated mana stimulated the Beads, and…
The new Rift must be the third wave. I took my phone out of my pocket and made a call.
“Yes, Si-woo! what…”
“Get Hyun-woo and as many hunters as you can find, and et at the main gates as quick as you can!”
“Okay, okay.”
‘I don’t know for sure if it’s the third wave, but if it was, it had to be stopped imdiately. I still had nightmares…’
Maybe this was the beginning…
“Why is it so dark outside?”
“Is rain coming? The sky is pitch black…”
The light had disappeared, and the night ca.
“I feel so weak…Sleepy…”
“Why are you coughing…Are you alright?”
Several people complained about drowsiness or couldn’t stop coughing. One of the cadets suddenly collapsed while walking down the hall.
“… What.”
Kim Min-jae’s face was ashen.
“Si-woo!”
Han Yeon-soo, who had appeared with Sung Hyun-woo in a doorway, called my na. I ran to her in a hurry.
Every second counted. I took Sung Hyun-woo’s hand so he could read my mind. Soon he found the coordinates and teleported us there.
The scenery changed. We were back on the island.
“Uh….save …”
An enormous, pitch-black Rift was in front of us. It was easily 30 ters wide.
I could see a huge black bone Dragon fly overhead. Hunters cried out in fear around us as they were attacked by skeletons and eaten alive by ghouls.
“…”
Han Yeon-soo seed to be at a loss for words at this horrific sight. Instead of panicking, I summoned a sword.
It was in the form of one of the greatest weapons that I had ever seen.
It might not have the weapon’s full power, but it was a very good imitation.
[Inscription 79 of the Blue Forge.]
[Engraving No. 86 of the Blue Forge.]
.
.
.
I will make up for the rest of my abilities.
I gripped the sword, which was emanating a dim blue light, even tighter.
“Link.”
A ray of light ca from the sky. I looked like a warrior chosen by God.
I took a step forward and smashed the first skeleton’s head.
I was no longer a simple hunter. I was a warrior. I didn’t only fight for my survival; I fought for everyone’s. Warriors were a strange group, with a cult-like following.
I trailed a streak of multi-colored light behind , as I tore through the enemy’s lines with the grace of a ballet dancer.
“Ah…”
Everyone was focused on .
Only
[Warrior]
[Rating: D ]
[The story of a hero who had beco the only hope for people in an era when fantasy had beco a reality, begins to stir in your soul.]
I pressed on.
I took small cuts here and there, but I didn’t care. I now had so much power; I healed the wounds instantly.
I drew closer to the gigantic black Rift.
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