Chapter 35: The Third Stage (5)

Before this.

'What happened? Why can't we enter the downtown area?' People were talking to each other, confused.

Han looked up from his phone and blankly stared at the black curtain before him. It suddenly appeared in the middle of the street, completely covering the entire inner area. No one could see what was going on inside. Cars could only honk their horns, and some drivers tried to drive through it, but they crashed into something solid. No one could get through.

The downtown area was shut down.

'What is that? The dungeon's gate?'

Han turned around to see what the people were talking about.

In front of black curtain appeared a dungeon's gate.

It was a really weird gate. It had so many eyes that no one could guess what it actually was. Someone tried to walk through it but was forcefully thrown back. A message box appeared.

[Only hunters between level 1 to level 10 are allowed inside.]

'What does it mean? How can hunters of that caliber be here?'

'Isn't there already a dungeon inside? What is this? A double dungeon?'

'Do those inside even know there's a double dungeon?!'

Gossip. Gossip.

People were still talking when Han walked closer to the dungeon's gate.

He pushed his hand into the black curtain and felt a sharp pain.

[Only hunters between level 1 to level 10 are allowed inside.]

Probably because I've never taken the hunter exam before, he thought. I don't have a rank.

Han walked back to where he was, listening to the car horns and complaints of the people in the area for a while before he walked into an empty alley.

It seemed the double dungeon covered the downtown area like a black dome. It would not let anything in except the hunters between level one to ten just as the message on the gate stated. But Han knew he could not wait any longer.

Raydel was in the hunter exam. It was a given that he, who had said that he would keep an eye on him, would want to really 'keep watch'.

The double dungeon made him even more impatient. He nervously inspected the black curtain, trying to find a way in. His eyes swiftly moved around as if he was reading something, yet there was nothing but an empty alley in front of him.

When his eyes stopped moving, Han stood still for a moment and summoned his sword.

He pressed his hand against the black curtain and thrust his sword inside. Then, he slowly pushed it downward, cutting open a long slit.

The black curtain twisted aggressively and transformed into a black rope that swiftly wrapped around his arm. It squeezed so tightly caused him pain, but Han paid it no attention, even as he started to bleed. He slowly crawled inside the curtain through the slit he had made. The slit closed up after he got in.

Han was bleeding from the wound.

Now that he was inside, he could hear car engines.

There must be many people trapped inside. He walked to the downtown center and saw a lot of people gathering there in front of a dungeon gate. Each of them was talking and on their phones. Some were walking away from the black curtain, confused as to why they could not get out.

Most importantly, there was a message box above their head.

[Just stay still and you'll survive. Don't run.]

For Han, that was a really uncommon message to appear in a dungeon. Normally, these messages were formal and never joked like this. He could not help but wondered what the boss of the double dungeon would be like. Would it be something like he had encountered in other dungeons?

Nevertheless, at that moment, he sensed a surge of power.

Suddenly, the dungeon gate at the downtown center disappeared, and in its place a group of people covered in blood appeared. They were also surrounded by nine horse-riding monsters.

The other people in the area looked up in confusion. They and the newcomers that had just appeared out of nowhere locked eyes for a moment. Then, the monsters started running around, killing people!

'...!'

There was blood wherever he looked. Amidst the chaos, Han searched for someone. He spotted the person and rushed through the crowd that was running away from the monsters. It took him several minutes to reach center of the downtown area.

That was when he realized what was happening.

His body froze as anger took over.

Christa, who was kicked in her chin, sat there, stunned. Blood filled up her nostrils as she backed away from Raydel. She coughed up some blood.

"What?" Christa was in a stupor, trying to wipe the blood out. She looked at the blood in confusion.

A shadow cast over her, so she looked up and saw Han looking down at her with no emotion behind his eyes.

When he kicked her again, she could barely protect herself!

"...!"

She was thrown back across the ground, her entire body aching. Christa struggled to get up before confusion caused her to burst out in words.

"Wait, Han, my love. Why are you acting like this?" She asked in a trembling voice. "It's me. Why are you doing this to me?"

Han's face still expressed no emotion. He replied in a deep voice.

"I don't even know you."

Christa was stunned for a moment.

"Han?"

"Shut up."

"But… but…"

Han summoned his sword. It glistened and reflected her face.

Christa looked down, and just realized that he stood between her and that boy named Raydel.

"Han…" she said, trembling. "You're not trying to protect him, right…?"

Han did not answer. He pushed his chin down, looking even more furious.

"Stop playing now. This isn't real, right? The prophecy didn't even talk about this," Christa whispered. "Mother didn't say anything about this…!"

She jumped just in time to dodge another attack from Han. Christa stumbled and fell down on her bottom. Her whole body was shaking, and her face was pale as if there was no blood left in her.

"Why are you protecting him?" she murmured. "You should be protecting me. He's trying to kill me!"

Han walked toward her, slowly.

"I'll kill you."

Christa's jaws dropped. She tried to swallow the blood from her nose but she choked on its taste.

"What? Kill? Kill me?"

He did not answer but kept walking. The tip of his sword grated against the ground, creating sparks.

"You'll kill me? But… but mother said you'll fall in love with me…"

Christa tried to crawl away from him. She suddenly remembered something. She looked at Raydel and saw that he was standing up. Even though he wore an expression of confusion, her imagination made it seem like he was smirking at her.

"Because of you…" She gritted her teeth, understanding everything now. "Because of you, the prophecies are all wrong! Who are you!?"

Christa suddenly stood up. As she was running past Han to get to Raydel, Han grabbed her by the collar and threw her onto the ground!

"...!"

Her entire body was in pain, but it was not as painful as her shattered heart. Despair pushed anger into every inch of her senses. Christa forgot any pain she was feeling and only glared at Raydel with resentment. She grabbed her dagger, sneaked a glance at Han, and slashed at his arm!

Clang!

Of course, Han could parry the attack. It was just a piece of cake for him. She had been watching him for a while now. He was so strong. How could the prophecy be wrong? How could it turn out like this? Why was he not like in the prophecy?

Christa glared at Raydel again.

You. It's all because of you!

Without you, the prophecy would have stayed the same.

"Argh!"

Christa screamed and held her arm. Han's slash left a gaping wound on that arm. When she looked into Han's eyes, she saw that he still did not express any emotion even as he hurt her.

Christa cried softly.

Is he really going to kill her?

Why? Why?!

As Christa cried in rancor, Han looked at her calmly.

For him, the sight of this crazy woman fighting against Raydel had brought back to life the kind of rage he had not felt for ages. The last time he was this outraged was probably when Raydel betrayed him in the dungeon, leaving him to die. At that time, he wanted to drag Raydel back and say something like 'If I die, you die.'

Han had forgotten about this anger for a long time and thought he would never feel it again.

But it came back, stronger than ever.

This woman brought it back.

And this time, he decided he would actually kill her.

In the blink of an eye, he stabbed her in the stomach!

The sword pierced through her back. She coughed up blood and bent down in pain. At the same time, something charged at Han, so he had to pull his sword out and dodge the attack from a monster.

[Nameless Hunter]

[Level: 70]

Level 70? Han thought. But isn't the dungeon for the exam supposed to be C-ranked?

Han glanced at the object in Christa's pocket. It was shining.

His eyes moved swiftly. He realized what it was right at that moment.

It was the stone for the S-ranked nameless boss that could mutate a dungeon in a second.

Moreover, it still had another ability — it could upgrade a dungeon's level without anyone knowing.

This woman must have been using this stone since the start of the test. He did not know what happened in the dungeon, but he could tell that the hunters probably struggled a lot. Every single one of them was covered in blood. They probably did not know they were fighting for their lives in an A-ranked dungeon. This did not even include the dead bodies lying everywhere. Han knew this was not just a normal attempt to ruin the exam.

There must be someone behind Christa.

Maybe he should pull her hair and ask for the truth.

But before Han get closer to her, the nameless hunter spurred its horse toward him. Behind it, Han noticed that Christa was holding the artifact in her hands and used some skill that healed all her wounds immediately.

His eyes widened. He understood now what the skill was.

The skill 'Odin' could heal health points of the user. It could be used only three times, and that was the first one.

That stone was the legendary artifact that stored the power of Odin inside.

Christa gritted her teeth, looked around, and then ran away.

Han was caught off guard. He tried to chase after her but had to raise his sword up to parry the blow from the nameless hunter!

Clang! Han tilted his head and thought, an A-ranked monster.

He blocked the sudden second attack and glanced behind to check on Raydel.

He was standing there, massaging his neck. It was obvious he was worried from the look on his face. Raydel seemed like he tried to come in and help him fight the monster but could not find an opening. So, he just stood there. Still, his worried face calmed Han's heart down.

However, as he looked at Raydel's cloak, Han thought.

It's all torn. I probably need to buy him a new one.

"Don't," Han told Raydel.

"But…"

Clang!

Raydel's words were drown out by the sound. Han started to slash at the monster.

Raydel could not just stand there and do nothing. He gritted his teeth. When he looked around, all he could see was chaos. People were fighting neck and neck with the monsters everywhere. He did not know where Shane and Sheryl were now, let alone the other hunters and the townspeople. In the area, there were only a few hunters fighting with the monsters.

Raydel looked at the Plague Doctor, concentrating on calling him back to help Han. Then, he realized that the Plague Doctor should help the other hunters instead. The only one who could do something now was him.

He held tightly onto his dagger and sprinted after Christa.

But another nameless hunter showed up and attack him. Raydel cursed at it. He was almost got kicked in the face with the horse spur. The horse monster roared as Raydel bent down to dodge the attack. He swung his dagger at it, but it leapt over him toward Han.

Now, there were two nameless hunters attacking Han.

"Han!" Raydel shouted.

Christa had disappeared completely. He had no idea where she was hiding. Han was fighting against two enemies. They also summoned the wolves and hounds. Instead of fearing the sun, they stood tall, baring their fangs aggressively.

"...!"

Raydel gritted his teeth and kicked one of the wolves!

It growled and tried to attack him again, forcing Raydel to retreat till he almost hit the signal pole. He kept looking at Han, worried. He was facing not only two nameless hunters but also the monsters. They all attacked him at the same time. All Han could do was protect himself with his arms as he bled from the wounds.

Raydel's worry hit its limit. But as Han kneeled down, he remembered what kind of skill Han had.

Han stabbed his sword right in the stomach of the wolf!

The monster howled in pain as Han threw its limp body away. When he went back to attack the nameless hunters, it was as if he could read all of their attacks. Han's eyes darted everywhere incredibly fast, as if he was reading something in front of him. He dodged countless blows before cutting off one the nameless hunters' arm!

The arm evaporated instantly. The nameless hunter stopped in shock before another slash hit its shoulder and pierced through its entire body, cutting it in two!

After the first nameless hunter fell down, Han looked at the other one.

He killed the wolves and hounds that jumped at him. Then, he dodged the attack from the nameless hunter and slashed its throat.

His sword cut its head off in a single blow, sending it flying. The body fell to the ground before disintegrating. The horse also disappeared.

The blood spraying out of the throat rained on Han, making him look even more terrifying. He looked at the air in front of him as if reading something, but it was just an empty area.

Raydel, who was panting, knew what Han was looking at.

The message boxes that only he could see were probably appearing in front of him.

[Successfully defeated the 'Nameless Hunter'.]

[Successfully defeated the 'Wolve Monster'.]

[Successfully defeated the 'Hound Monster'.]

[Received +61 exp.]

[Received +37 exp.]

[Received +22 exp.]

[Successfully recorded the weaknesses of the 'Nameless Hunter', 'Wolve Monster', and 'Hound Monster' in the library.]

[Your Sword skill has increased.]

[Your Monster Reading skill has increased.]

[Your Monster Radar skill has increased.]

[Monster Radar skill detected the 'Nameless Hunters' in the surrounding area.]

[Congratulations! You have reached level: 10.]

…

The reason the protagonist would become the strongest hunter was that he was the only one who possessed the 'System Skill'.