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An unusual scene was playing out; the roads had become a confused mess as the citizens tried to evacuate from Seoul, while the Hunters were trying to enter the city in order to protect it.

People living in the districts directly below the super-massive Gate, the ones predicted to bear the brunt of the damage, heeded the warnings issued by the Hunter's Association and the government, or even their own logical reasoning, and escaped from the city in droves.

Jin-Woo watched the TV news, busy covering the evacuation efforts and spoke to his mom.

"Mom, don't you think it'll be for the best if you and Jin-Ah go somewhere else?"

"Our area isn't even one of the evacuation zones, you know."

Mom had no thoughts of leaving Seoul at all, it seemed.

Jin-Woo's home, the old apartment, was located far, far away from the centre of Seoul. If monsters invaded this place, then that meant the defensive line of the Hunters had crumbled, and that would also signify Jin-Woo's failure to defend the frontline, too.

Mom believed that the flames of danger would never reach here.

Jin-Woo also grinned but didn't say anything else.

Unlike him and his mom sitting around a low coffee table located in front of the couch, Jin-Ah was sitting on the couch itself with her knees drawn up. She glanced at her older brother and asked him.

"Don't you have to go, too?"

She was talking about the nationwide Hunter summons. However, Jin-Woo was a Seoul resident, to begin with. He wasn't really included in that summons.

"The Hunters on TV are from other regions and they are trying to report to the Association that they have arrived in Seoul."

"Ohh."

Jin-Ah nodded her head while receiving a plate of sliced apples from her mom.

In reality, Jin-Woo had been feeling frustrated by the fact that he had no choice but to dazedly spend his time at home under the current circumstances.

He wanted to raise his level, but there were no monsters to fight. He wanted to enter the instant dungeon, but he hadn't seen a single special key as his reward ever since the architect of the System died.

His family certainly enjoyed him spending more time at home, but Jin-Woo really wanted to strengthen himself even further in order to prepare for any and all eventualities.

'Should I not do the daily quests and enter the penalty zone or something?'

It sounded like a good idea, but at the same time, not really.

First of all, he had no clue what might come out from that Gate in front of his eyes, yet he was thinking of entering the penalty zone where unknown monsters were lying in wait?

'Even if the odds are low....'

If there was one in ten thousand, no, one in ten million chance that something could happen to him during the penalty quest, then he wouldn't be able to deal with what might happen on this side.

He had no reason to take on two different types of risks right now. And so, that idea was dismissed.

In the end, he'd have to look for another way to test out the 'Kamish's Wrath' shortswords somehow.

What should he do?

As Jin-Woo pondered his options, a certain scene fleeted in and out of the TV screen. It was of the Hunter's Association HQ building, as shot from a flying helicopter.