“I know this man. He’s an S-rank Hunter who recently returned to Korea after living abroad.”
“What? He’s an S-rank Hunter?”
The Hunter, who had assumed he might be A-rank at most, looked genuinely shocked by Gwak Yoonsang’s statement. Understandably so—how could someone not recognize an S-rank Hunter until now?
Rather than offering a detailed explanation, Gwak Yoonsang simply pressed his finger to his lips and gave a playful wink. The implication of state secrecy was enough to stop him from asking further.
“Understood, sunbae. Then I’ll leave you both to it. See you later.”
He bowed and stepped away, clearly convinced that Tae Woon and Kim Sibaek were about to join the operation against the Giantvine.
“Good to see you again, Section Chief.”
“The Director sent me here personally after hearing a report that Guildmaster Tae and an unidentified Hunter were on-site. I’m officially assigned to support the two of you.”
“But earlier—what did you mean by ‘abroad’?”
“Well, now that Hunter Kim has been officially announced as S-rank, wouldn’t it be best to say he’d been overseas up until now? Gives him kind of a… secret National Intelligence Service agent vibe?”
Though Tae Woon wasn’t entirely clear on the nuances of Korea’s internal affairs, the explanation sounded plausible. After a moment’s thought, he nodded.
“It might be a bit over the top, but it’s not bad. There are unnamed Awakened tied to the NIS, after all.”
“The NIS Director has approved the cover story. He believes you persuaded Hunter Kim Sibaek, who had been in hiding overseas, to come back.”
They could fill in the finer details later. As the conversation wrapped up, Gwak Yoonsang cleared his throat and looked respectfully toward Kim Sibaek.
“You’re not officially registered as a Hunter in Korea yet, but… may we ask for your help in subjugating the monster?”
Kim Sibaek smiled faintly.
“It’s actually something I was hoping to request from you.”
“Thank you!”
Despite it being just one Hunter joining the team, Gwak Yoonsang looked genuinely relieved. While Kim Sibaek’s skills were certainly impressive, what truly reassured Gwak Yoonsang was having someone capable of keeping Tae Woon in check—though Kim Sibaek remained unaware of that unspoken reason.
“So, I’d like to ask you something. You’ve probably already guessed, but the Giantvine has absorbed manastones. Normally it’s a B-rank monster, but now it’s estimated to be in the upper tier of A-rank.”
“It must’ve absorbed more than expected.”
“By the way… back where you came from, was there no reliable method to subjugate a Giantvine?”
“Hmm…”
Kim Sibaek quietly sifted through old memories.
“There was a time I took down a Gett—what you’d call a Giantvine here in Korea—that had grown significantly stronger after absorbing a manastone.”
It happened during a trek across a vast desert.
At the time, Kim Sibaek held dual roles in the Cult of Death and Beauty—as both Apostle and Paladin. Traveling with him were Gloiuken, a holy knight in training destined to become the next Paladin, and her younger half-brother, Naslueik.
They were crossing the desert on foot to meet Gloiuken and Naslueik’s mother, Suapsech. Despite having access to more efficient transportation, they chose to walk for one simple reason: the Cult was broke.
They weren’t exactly flush with funds now either, but back then, the Cult’s finances were stretched thin—barely enough to scrape by. Since walking through the desert wouldn’t kill them, Kim Sibaek and Gloiuken saw it as a good chance to save money and undergo spiritual training. The problem was Naslueik, who insisted on tagging along and threw a tantrum to do so.
A perpetually out-of-shape mage and a half-mermaid to boot, Naslueik struggled in the dry, inland climate. Eventually, the two had to take turns carrying him on their backs. Walking through sand with a manageable weight on their backs turned out to be great lower-body training.
That day, Kim Sibaek was carrying Naslueik. While Naslueik panted and drooped like a limp noodle on his back, Gloiuken returned from scouting ahead—bursting with energy—and made her report.
“Apostle, we’re screwed.”
The moment those words left her mouth, Naslueik slapped her lips with a loud smack. Gloiuken was so tall that Kim Sibaek had to crane his neck to see her face, and Naslueik had to stretch his arm as high as possible to reach.
“Sister! How could you utter such crude language in the presence of the Apostle? Naslueik is deeply disappointed in you!”
“Oh! My sincerest apologies, Your Holiness!”
“No, really. It’s fine. Gloiuken’s an adult—she’s allowed to swear sometimes…”
“I cannot allow Your Holiness’s sacred ears to be defiled by foul language!”
Naslueik flailed indignantly, railing on her behalf until he was threatened with being dropped into the sand—and only then did he settle down.
“Wasn’t there supposed to be an oasis village up ahead?”
“The Gett has completely taken over the village. It’s still actively growing.”
Gloiuken’s expression turned serious as she projected a 3D map from her terminal into the air. She was their designated navigator, in charge of maps and route planning.
“Turns out the map we had was outdated. The oasis dried up and the village was abandoned long ago.”
“Should’ve spent a little extra on the updated version…”
“With no one living there to cleanse the demonic energy, the Gett likely took root and began to grow.”
“It’s outside city limits—can’t be helped. Let’s check it out first.”
Wanting to assess the situation with his own eyes, Kim Sibaek followed Gloiuken toward the dried-up oasis village. Before long, the concentration of demonic energy grew so thick it stung faintly against his skin. When the Gett finally came into view, even Kim Sibaek—seasoned and battle-hardened—was momentarily speechless.
“Its roots have torn through the entire village and are still crawling out into the desert. I’ve never seen a Gett grow this much. It’s just shy of qualifying as a named monster.”
Unlike Earth, Mak Slechth had the technology to produce synthetic manastones. It seemed the villagers had abandoned the oasis in a rush, leaving behind these cheaper, weaker substitutes. The Gett had absorbed every trace of demonic energy from them.
Unfortunately, there were no stronger monsters nearby to keep it in check. Most had likely been captured and devoured, feeding its growth. The fruit hanging from its vines, swollen past the point of ripeness, looked ready to burst—yet remained bloated and intact, as if hoarding its power.
Gloiuken swatted away a root snaking toward them with her foot and asked,
“Your Holiness, how shall we proceed?”
Her tone left no room for retreat. After a brief moment of thought, Kim Sibaek let out a soft chuckle.
It was a hell of a fight back then… but looking back on it now, it’s a fond memory.
Recalling the past made him ache with longing for Gloiuken and Naslueik. He comforted himself with the thought that he’d see them again once the current quest was done, and gently shook off the nostalgia.
Gwak Yoonsang, meanwhile, had clearly been expecting something flashy—perhaps another overwhelming display like during the Eid Portal incident, where Kim Sibaek had obliterated a monster in an instant. But that was not the plan this time.
“When the Giantvine’s fruit ripens and bursts, it releases monsters, right?”
“Yes, exactly! It spreads spores and regurgitates the monsters it has devoured—it’s one of the most troublesome kinds. China once ignored one, and nearly lost all of Zhejiang Province.”
“But because the fruit grows so rapidly, it also sucks up every trace of nearby demonic energy—almost like it’s purifying the area.”
“Well, that’s true, but—”
[Even from the divine realm, Death and Beauty puffs up her chest with pride and declares: ‘My Apostle and my Paladin were truly magnificent back then.’]
Seeing the confusion on Gwak Yoonsang’s face, Kim Sibaek added a little awkwardly,
“I waited until the fruit was fully ripe and burst—then wiped out all the monsters at once.”
“…I’m sorry, what?”
“The place was already abandoned, so I figured it was a good opportunity to do some large-scale demonic energy purification.”
“……”
Gwak Yoonsang stood slack-jawed. So basically… it was like saying, ‘My house caught fire, so I let it burn down completely and rebuilt it from scratch.’ Who even comes up with ideas like that?
Then again, such a plan was only possible because of who they were—Kim Sibaek, who hadn’t yet needed to conserve divine power; Gloiuken, already a legendary warrior before becoming a Paladin; and Naslueik, a rising genius in magic.
While Gwak Yoonsang stood stunned, someone let out a light laugh.
It was Tae Woon.
