Quests (Beginner)
Avoid death (0/5) Reward: Bonus box
Find a temporary shelter (1/1) Reward: 10 points
Gain popularity (0/1000) Reward: 50 points
That's one quest down. Now.. it is time for the other two.
I stood in the middle of a cold garage, staring at the empty space before me. It wasn't much, but it would work. Shelter from the weather, no kidnappers that could easily get me, and best of all, no rent to pay. If I don't end up getting caught, this could even become my permanent residence.
After that day, I'd spent a whole week searching for a place to stay. However, it seemed luck wasn't exactly on my side. Every place I had deemed safe were occupied, either by piles of garbage or swarms of bugs, or sometimes even corpses of animals. I'm not too sure how they ended up there though.
"This place does seem quite dark though.." I muttered.
During the times I spent looking, there were many cases where I'd nearly starve to death and had to start looking for leftovers from nearby restaurants. Not ideal, I know. Funny thing is, it didn't count as near-death experience…
I sighed, looking up at the ceiling. Should I just give up? I quickly slapped myself in the cheek. No, Haesung, get it together! Your dream life is just around the corner!
Why am I lying to myself?…
"I need to quickly outline a plan of I want to live. First and foremost, I need to buy a TV or at least a phone…but where on earth could I get that money?" I muttered under my breath, I tapped my feet against the floor, a habit I got from when I was a kid. It always helped me to think, though It's not like I was particularly skilled at it. Was there a skill for that?.. Probably not.
Thats when I remembered something. wait…didn't I take a {three-horned wolf}'s horn before leaving the gate?
I dug into the sub-space and pulled out the horn, holding it triumphantly.
"Ha..ha ha!" I laughed, clutching it like some treasure. "Oh my, Haesung! Aren't you so smart?" I said to myself, eyes sparkling with joy. I quickly reminded myself that it wasn't time to joke around and coughed.
Okay, shall we go sell this?
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I held the phone in my hand carefully like it was some forgotten relic. Finally! After so long, I managed to get myself the brand new phone designed for hunters! With this phone, I wouldn't even need to worry about WIFI or feel as if I was living under a rock! Since the boss had been A-rank, it was sold at quite a hefty price, allowing me to buy the newest phone instantly. Haha, Luck hasn't abandoned me after all!
I scrolled through the HunterNews, reading articles that I've missed over the past few weeks. Most of them were not that important, with some being about a dangerous awakened breaking out of prison or a low-level gate breaking out in a rural area.
"Oh, what's this?" My thumb landed on an article page. I tapped on it.
A-rank gate throws Seoul into turmoil.
A red gate had appeared in Seoul, leaving many citizens distressed. The association has sent out many hunters to clear the gate, but none have successfully managed to clear it. And most have not returned. The public is now furious, protests broke out and some were even seen attempting to attack the association officers.
According to appraisers, it was said that the gate was not as it seemed.
"This gate is definitely cursed. There's no way a group of A-rank hunters can't even clear their own rank."
Because of this statement, this made the public even more wary. 'Where are the S-rankers and why aren't they doing anything?' Some had say, whilst others were condemning the association for not doing anything.
A survivor had said, "I started seeing my mother! But that can't be, she died 5 years ago!"
Another had said, "I suddenly found myself back when I was younger…that day I was the happiest of my life."
These reports had concerned many people. It was said that the gate had lured hunters into illusions of precious memories, all while monsters drained their life-force.
'Gate of cursed lands' That was the name given by the Asscoaition.
↳BiggestTeddy- "Damn, where are the S-rankers anyways?"
↳HfcYv123- "I'm scared, mommy! I'm currently in Seoul, if this gate breaks out, I'm doomed! Someone clear it ASAP!!"
…
My goodness! That seems dangerous, like really dangerous. I shuddered, It was a good thing I don't live in Seoul… I would've trembled in fear if I lived there! Still…an A-rank gate…I have to say, I am quite curious. Should I go check it out?
After all, I do have an A-rank weapon. If i brought a mental potion, I should be fine..right? Even if it's only temporary..
"Down to 13 points..what a scam…" I sighed, closing the tab.
And so, I walked out of my 'home'.
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Seoul indeed looked pretty during the night. I exhaled, taking in the view of the area. 'I should've come here more often.. I was way too busy back then to travel to Seoul..' I walked along the road, following the direction of the map on my phone.
"Hey, sir! Would you like a free sample?" The man walked to me, carrying a tray of desserts.
"Huh? Sure, thank you." I took one, politely bowing before walking away. What great timing, I was feeling hungry from walking so much. I took a bite. "Wow.. It's so good.."
Feeling satisfied, I continued walking. Finally, I had arrived at the destination. A parking lot, instead of cars however, it was full of hunters, each gathering up around the red gate that buzzed with ominous energy.
"Who wanna partner up?!" someone shouted.
"We need a healer! Is anyone a healer here?"
"We're a team of B-ranks, there is only one spot left!"
I pushed past the crowd of hunters, edging my way to the front.
"Oi, watch where you're going!" someone barked.
"Sorry!" I threw out a quick apology and slipped to the empty space available. From here, I could see the gate more clearly, its unstable energy rushing out.
In my original timeline, this gate had never appeared, so I had no clue what it was or how it had appeared. Well, I do have a hunch, but let's not jump into conclusions..
A tap on my shoulder broke my thoughts. I turned to see a guy with short, brown hair, wearing a polished silver chest plate. 'This guy looks like he walked straight out from a fantasy game..'
"Hi, how could I help?" I turned around to face him, folding my hands together in a friendly manner.
The guy looked nervous, glancing back towards the group behind him. Were they his teammates? One of them nodded, and the guy turned back to me.
He coughed into his palm. "Uh, I'm sorry to be a bother but you're here to challenge the Gate, right?"
Hm? Did he think I was here to clear the gate? Of course not! Before I could say anything, he grabbed my hands and looked at me pleadingly.
"I'm super sorry if this sounds rude, but please… come with us as a porter!"
"A porter?.."
"Yes!" He said quickly, as if this was the only chance in history. "Our team plans to grab resources but none of us are good with mining.."
Did I hear that correctly? Did he think I was good at escorting mana stones too? Well, sure I was, but that was back then. This body has never tried ripping stones out of monster's chest yet.
"What made you think I'll be good at it?.." I asked curiously, pulling my hand back from his grip.
The man paled, scratching his neck with his hand, "You just…caught my eye, that's all."
I raised an brow, this guy…does he think I'm stupid? Im not even wearing clothes that make me stand out..how could I catch his eye?
"Be honest, otherwise I'm not interested."
"…"
The man hesitated, and then sighed, "Well…you don't look that strong so I assumed you were a porter.."
…
Wow, so even people could tell I was F-rank?..
I nodded slowly, feeling an imaginary tear slide down my cheek, "Okay, I guess…I guess i'll come."
Shit, why did I say that? True I brought a mental potion with me but I wasn't too sure if I had wanted to participate. Am I asking for a death wish?..
Then again…one of my quests is tied to this, so if I don't die, I'd be able to compete it.
Hopefully.
"When are we going?" I asked, walking alongside of the man. We reached the area where the other teammates was. A small camp set up, campfire and tents, the usual cozy deal.
What's this? Are they on a camping trip? I stood there dumbfounded.
"We'll be here tonight. Another group has already entered the gate so we'd have to wait for a bit."
"Oh, is that so?"
The presumed leader walked up to me. "Anyways, we haven't introduced ourselves yet. My name's Kyungsoo Kang, 38 years old and i'm the leader of the group." He smiled, extending a hand out.
I shook his hand, "I'm Haesung Choi."
The leader nodded, glancing over to the other three. A petite woman with brown hair walked over. "Hey, I'm Min-ji Lee! Is nice to meet you, we're sorry about having you to be a porter.." She coughed awkwardly, finding interest on the floor instead.
"It's alright. You don't have to be sorry." I smiled, rubbing my neck.
The two other guys came over, one had black hair while the other had dyed red hair with black roots. The black-haired guy gave a curt nod at me, "Taeyang Han." Then he walked away.
Rude.
"Sorry about that! He's not quite familiar with these greetings.." The red-haired guy chucked, "Please don't take it too seriously, we'll have a talk with him after this. My names Sungjae Woon by the way. It's nice to meet you!" He grinned and clapped me on my back.
I froze, doing my best to look neutral despite the pain. "Truly, a hunters strength is poweful…" I gritted out.
The guy flicked and apologized.
"It's fine.." It clearly wasn't.
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After that conversation, we had sat down around the campfire and talked about random things, such as hobbies and likes. A few hours had passed and no sign of the hunters who went inside were seen. Rumours spread that they have died or missing.
'It's too late to turn back, isn't it?'
"Haesung?" A voice called to him.
I blinked, looking to where the voice was coming from. "Minji-noona?"
"What are you staring at? It's time to go." She said, crossing her arms. During these few hours, we bonded fairly well, having similar interests and hobbies.
"Yes, okay." I quickly got up and followed after the others. People stared at me the closer I got to the gate. I even heard whispers talking about our team.
"They're going to die…No one walked out of the gate without being traumatised.."
"They're doomed.."
'I'm going to die? Me?' I scoffed internally, patting my sub-space ring. 'If I've got this, there's no way I'll die!' A smile tugged on my lips.
"Alright, everyone, are we ready to go in?" Kyungsoo Kang asked, looking back towards us. "If you're scared, you can back out now. There won't be another chance."
None of us moved, we were all staying.
Truth be told, I wanted to bolt but doing that in front of everyone? I'll die from embarrassment! I looked at the gate before me, it was different from the other gate I've been to. While the other one was quite calm, this one had a chaotic energy inside.
'Yep, I'm going to die.'
I exhaled, calming myself down. And with false resolve, I walked inside.