CHAPTER 71 He'll???

Hero of Justice? A world where no one is hurt?" Don't be absurd. "Humanity" is the name for an animal that cannot find joy in life without sacrifice. The pretty lie that is "equality" is nonsense spouted by weaklings who cannot look upon the darkness. Nothing but an excuse to cover up life's ugliness.

Gilgamesh

...

"What the!"

"W-what the hell? Spatial magic?"

Park Heejin was also shocked and raised her head. Ignoring their gasps, I calmly spoke,

"Everyone, pick one up and put it on."

And with that, I reached for the nearest fur coat when I felt a tug on my sleeves.

'...?'

I turned my head to face Han Songyi. The girl gathered courage and spoke with difficulty,

"Ah-ahjussi, what are you? The arrow from earlier... And now this weird magic..."

I furrowed my brows. If I let this continue, it would only be a headache going forward.

'Okay, let's nip this in the bud right now.'

I sternly spoke, "I brought you here, so I'll be responsible for your protection. But."

My voice lowered, "You can't ask me any questions."

I raised my head and stared at Park Heejin and the other Hunters.

"That goes for all of you as well. Do not ask or request anything of me."

I continued, "If you don't like it, you are more than free to leave. I won't stop you."

Truthfully, the two other male Hunters had followed the B-rank Hunter Park Heejin up until now. But looking back and forth between the warm gear and me, they vigorously nodded.

'Good.' 'Now I don't need to care about pesky kids always asking me questions."

It was in that moment that the other Hunters screamed,

"I-it's a bear!"

"Ice bear!"

Having smelled humans, an ice bear was slowly walking towards them. To the beast, they were enemies who had intruded on its territory. The ice bear was not looking at them nicely.

Grrrrrl-

The ice bear bared its teeth and growled; its fangs were as clear as ice. The beast stood up, towering over the Hunters. It almost covered their entire vision.

"Ah..."

Although it looked like a polar bear, the beast was thrice as big, and adorning its chest was the signature magic core of magic beasts.

Roooaaar!

A powerful roar echoed in the area! Hearing its roar, all the Hunters, save for me, froze up. Park Heejin frowned,

'What do you mean all we have to worry about are ice bears!'

Was that something that could be said while looking at the beast before them?! She had fallen for my so-called logic. Looking at the ice bear in person, she was now sure,

'We shouldn't have entered this forest!'

Sensing danger, Park Heejin stepped in front of the party and shouted,

"I'll grab its attention, everyone else-ahh!"

A powerful force grabbed the hood of her coat and pulled her back. It was all she could do to maintain her balance while being dragged backward. After collecting herself, she looked up and saw me in front of her.

"What the hell!"

I pointed a finger at her,

"I'm going to say this once. All the magic beasts going forward are mine."

I could not share valuable experience points after all. To me, these cute little bears were just the appetizer before the main course of Ice Slayers.

"Huh?"

Park Heejin could not hide her confusion.

'Did he seriously just pull me back to face the thing alone?'

The two C-rank Mage-class Hunters also stopped their casting and stared with a dumbfounded expression.

"No matter how strong you are, those are high-level Dungeon's magic beasts!"

I ignored the fiery protest coming from the woman behind me and slowly walked towards the ice bear.

'Hmm, if I used a dagger...'

The spilt blood would mess up my clothes, "Of which I am severely lacking. I had summoned the two daggers out of habit but quickly returned them to the inventory. Instead, I clenched my fists.

'I know I said I would just watch, but the situation's different now. I'm sure they'll understand.'

I met the gaze of the ice bear.

Roooaar!

The ice bear swung an arm the size of a tree trunk with lightning speed.

Woosh-!

But its attack struck nothing but air.

'It's fast for its size.'

Having jumped above the bear's head, I realized why it had such a dangerous reputation.

'Still...'

The level-ups and drain up I underwent were not for nothing. Before the ice bear could raise its head, I used all of my strength to punch its forehead.

Boom!!!

BAM!!!

The bear's head not only crashed but his whole body obliterated into small pieces that were sent flying everywhere. The bear's magic core was fully cracked; it now looked so fragile that grabbing it could break it into pieces.

"Aa shit! I really have to restart my body control training. I realized that I was still lacking control of my strength. Now the beast has no use as it can't be sold, nor can I use a life drain on it, and it can't become a shadow. It's a good thing that I told them to back down before it all became bloody," I thought as I looked at the bloody scene in front of me.

Blood, meat, and bones splattered everywhere. It was a good thing that I was in the air when this happened.

"What?"

"Who... who the hell are you?"

I turned to face the shaking voice and looked at four members of my party at a loss for words. I scratched my temple.

'I thought I made myself clear.'

Well, they probably forgot after seeing such a shocking scene. I firmly stated my conditions again.

"Once again, no questions. If you don't like it, you can go-"

I pointed towards the direction Kim Cheol's.

"-to them."

My words snapped Park Heejin to attention.

"I just saw you obliterate a whole ice bear in one hit. And you even cracked its magic core, which until now I thought was impossible. I am NOT leaving your side."

Her heart was beating fast. She had instinctively chosen me over Kim Cheol but now realized just how correct her decision was. She made a determination after a quick calculation. In order to leave this place alive, she would have to follow me. Before I could change my mind, she quickly spoke,

"Jinwoo-ssi, please be our leader. I'll follow whatever you have to say."

'I also said I won't be accepting any requests...'

After a brief moment, I just nodded. When I thought about it, this would probably be the best. Park Heejin turned around to the rest of the party. Since Han Songyi was brought here by me, she probably didn't need to ask the girl. And the other two Hunters...

"You two also agree, right?"

Suddenly having the attention focused on them, the two Hunters looked back and forth between what remained of the ice bear's fully cracked core and me, then vigorously nodded.

...

*POV Switch*

Meanwhile, outside of the Red Gate.

Hyun Gicheol wiped away the sweat on his brow and checked the time. Baek Yoonho asked,

"How long has it been?"

"About three hours."

"Three hours... That means three days have passed inside."

Baek Yoonho's voice was heavy. Of the four gathered here, only Baek Yoonho had actually experienced the Red Gate before. The man was one of "The S-rankers who represented South Korea. Even to a man like him, a Red Gate was not something to be taken lightly. With a calm heart, he recalled the memory of the time,

'The true terror of Red Gates is the fact that the inside connects to an entirely different world.'

This was a rare sight: an S-rank Hunter was about to tell his experiences with a Red Gate. Ahn Sangmin, Joo Sungchan, and Hyun Gicheol all perked up in attention.

'Inside the Gate, you could end up in a desert world with temperatures exceeding 140 degrees Fahrenheit. Or perhaps it'll be a jungle world infested with venomous snakes and poisonous insects. Maybe even a tundra world where the tips of your fingers will freeze.'

Gulp.

The three listeners gulped as one.

'The problem is that until you've entered the Gate, you won't know that it's a Red Gate. This means that there is no way of preparing ahead of time.'

Today was the same. An ordinary Gate had turned red after the Hunters had entered.

'Whether burning under the blazing sun, hounded by poisonous insects day and night, or frozen in the cold... The weak will be the first to die.'

'My god...'

Hyun Gicheol let out a small moan in disbelief.

'And in that harsh environment, you have to face magic beasts.'

Just hearing the circumstances relayed the dark situation the Hunters were in. But that was not all.

'And let's say you somehow managed to get used to the environment. The problem after that is finding sustenance.'

At the minimum, a few weeks, at the longest, a few months. You had to find your own food at that time. It was not an easy task.

'In the harsh environment made worse by hunger, the only thing you can rely on is the magic power compass.'

It was a tool to point toward strong sources of magic power. Defeating the boss was the only way to leave a Red Gate, outside of letting it undergo a Dungeon Break.

'Imagine looking at that tiny compass and enduring days, weeks, or months. Do you think you could keep your sanity?'

The three men shook their heads. If ordinary non-Hunters like them were thrown into such a place, forget the magic beasts, the environment would kill them in a day.

'You said three days had passed, right?'

'Yes.'

At Hyun Gicheol's confirmation, Baek Yoonho made a tragic face.

'If it's been that long, all the Hunters below B-rank are dead.'

Kim Cheol was an A-ranker. But no matter how skilled an A-ranker was, it was impossible to protect his entire party in a situation like this. At the very least, you'd need an S-ranker with them. And so,

'All we can do is pray that the high-rankers come back alive.'

It was a conclusion born from experience.

In Baek Yoonho's head, the C-rank Hunters and below were as good as dead.

.....

Back in the Red Gate.

The C-rank Hunters and below were enjoying a feast around a campfire.

On top of the fire, a large piece of meat was being cooked.

"You know this bear meat, it's a little tough, but it's not bad."

"Would you like some more?"

"Oh, thank you."

Yoon Gijoong held out a plate, and Go Myunghwan cut up some more ice bear meat and placed it on the plate. These were the two C-rankers of Jinwoo's party. Park Heejin and Han Songyi also ate their fill of the bear meat.

"Unni, could you pass the pepper?"

"You want the salt as well?"

"No, just the pepper, please."

Somehow, they all had gotten used to the Dungeon. Alongside the campfire, they even had tents and blankets for sleeping. They didn't exactly have much discomfort. No... In a bizarre way, they were almost feeling cozy, like they were on vacation. Go Myunghwan looked around and spoke,

"You know, doesn't it feel like the ice bears have been attacking us less and less lately?"

Park Heejin replied to him,

"Well, it's because the Raid Leader took care of them."

"You know, I don't know what grudge that man has against ice bears, but whenever I see him looking at one, it's terrifying. Honestly, I hope that the Raid Leader never looks at me that way."

In no time, Jinwoo's title among his teammates had turned into "Raid Leader." Feeling his absence, Park Heejin looked around and asked,

"Where did our dear Raid Leader disappear off to, anyways?"

Yoon Gijoong raised his head that was focused on his plate and replied,

"He said he was going to patrol the area."

What? Park Heejin was incredulous.

"To go around a high-level Dungeon on his own... Is he not scared even a little bit?"

Yoon Gijoong smiled widely,

"I think he'll be alright, don't you think?"

Go Myunghwan added,

"Seriously. The man killed a high-level magic beast with his bare hands with minimal effort."

The man continued,

"You know... now that I mention it... Just how high does your rank have to be to obliterate a magic beast like that with a single hit?"

A silence fell on the group. Of course, they were all curious. But they did not want to break the cardinal rule of their group, even when Jinwoo was absent.

"...Let's just keep eating."

At Park Heejin's words, everyone nodded.

...

*Jin-Woo POV*

I was combing the forest and walking through a bush.

'It was around here somewhere...'

I felt the presence of multiple ice bears from somewhere here. I had been tracking their den since last night. I had started this after realizing that the attacking bears were all coming from the same direction. Walking all over the area, my eyes sparkled.

'Found them!'

Across the thicket, I saw dozens of caves. In each cave, I felt more than one presence. Well, I didn't need to use the Sense stat. Just before me, many ice bears were entering and leaving the caves. At a rough count, there were about 50 of them. It was truly a den of bears.

The corners of my mouth rose. I had purposely come alone.

This would be the prime opportunity.

They had been waiting.

This would be their inaugural battle.

'Come forth.'

Responding to my thoughts, soldiers clad in black armor, different kinds of beasts, soundlessly appeared from my shadow and stood behind me.

"You know this is your first battle, right?"

As people had first impressions between each other, your first battle will determine my impression of you. Is what I meant. After all, they were much stronger.

"…"

"..."

The Shadow Soldiers stood shoulder to shoulder.

Good.

I smiled widely.

Sniff sniff.

The ice bears caught a whiff of me and slowly started coming out of their caves.

'Looks like they're also ready.'

I pointed a hand toward the ice bears.

"Go."

At my command, every soldier that wasn't named slid across the land toward the enemy.

I stopped the named ones as they would eradicate them even if I don't have most of them here, as they are in a deal with the Yoo family.

Plus, I wanted to check how none of the named ones would fight, so I also stopped those who were very close to ranking up and being named.

Annihilation is not what I wanted to see.

The Shadow quickly closed the gap, especially the beast-type shadows as they had superior speed with four legs.

However, the ferocious movements of the ice bears were far faster due to the snow.

Boom!

Crack!

A single swipe of the bear's claw obliterated a Shadow Soldier. If it was a human in that pitch-black armor and not a shadow, it would've been a gruesome sight.

'Hmm...'

I furrowed my brows.

'As I thought, was it too much?'

Whether it was strength or size, it unfortunately looked like it was too much for Shadow Knights to face the ice bears.

The body of the Shadow Soldier that was destroyed by an ice bear turned to black smoke before it fully hit the ground.

Shooooo-

The black smoke gathered at some distance away, then reformed into its original shape.

My face lit up.

Undead.

Realizing its attack had no effect, the ice bear panicked and roared.

Roooaaaar!

While the Shadow Infantry kept the ice bears busy, the Shadow Mages with Goblin Shamans had finished their casting.

Flaaaare-!

Bang!

Kaboom!

The fireballs released from the mages' hands exploded here and there. While the Shadow Infantry caught by the explosion regenerated immediately, the ice bears caught on fire and thrashed about.

"Kuwaaaah!"

"Kuwuuh!"

The Shadow Infantry continued their attacks, swinging and stabbing their swords at the burning bears.

Slash!

Stab!

At first, the ice bears looked like they had the advantage, but they were slowly being pushed back by the combined attack of the infantry and the mages.

On the other hand, beast-type shadows were dominating their fight with their superior ranks, bodies, and skills.

Bloodthirsty Bats would send air slashes towards the eyes of the bears, blinding them, then they would dive towards the bears at full speed, even though the impact would cause their bodies to disperse into black smoke. But they would reanimate again. On the other hand, Ice Bears' bones would shatter, immobilizing them long enough for the bats to send multiple air slashes in one place, digging deeper and deeper cuts to kill them.

Sabre-tooth tigers would just kill them with their strength, tearing off their flesh with their mouths. Lynx were so fast that Ice Bears couldn't even react to the cuts that were emerging on their bodies.

Printer Ape, Long Arm Ape, and Grimhand would beat the ice bears with their strength alone as if they didn't give a damn.

What Casaka lacks in strength, he fills with his huge body as he would coil around the Ice Bears' bodies, killing them by suffocation, slowly squeezing the life out one ragged breath at a time. And because of its hard scales, Ice Bears' claws would leave nothing but a few scratches that got remedied as soon as they appeared.

As I looked, I saw the Spider Queen shoot webs from her mouth, immobilizing them, and then She shoots her acid breath, which slowly melts them, causing great misery.

One thing I noticed was that even her sticky web and her acid were black, just like her whole body.

Giant Rats did what they did best. Together, these five would attack one and start to eat it, which looked gruesome as they were eating him alive.

And for the huge wolves, the Ice Bears were just prey as they hunted together.

It was already a massacre, at least from the shadow beasts' side, just because of their different size, shape, and skills.

And I was sure it could all be over in seconds if I sent the named ones, especially with Gold and Gorr. I'm sure they both could hunt ice bears just as easily.

'Whoa...'

I watched the battle with great interest.

.....

So world travel has started to the Akame Ga Kill.

I am currently writing it.

Now to confirm the plot points Esdeath is part of the Harem and other are Shadows.

Now if can suggest me some good shadows both humans and danger beasts it would be great help.

Thanks