He discarded the phone on the bed and ran towards the bedroom window to take a look, and indeed, the deputy director was waiting for him outside the front of the house with his car parked right there. Once their gazes met, the deputy director nodded his greeting.
David Brennan stared back somewhat dumbfounded, his head tilting to the side, before turning around.
'What's going on?'
Sensing that something big must've happened, he picked his phone up, the video clip still waiting to be played on the device.
***
Looking at still kneeling Ant King
a satisfied smile formed on Jin's face
"Oh, my king…."
The shadow was still kneeling on the ground, his head deeply bowed.
'....'
Jin-Woo studied the shadow as he slowly spoke.
"Was it you?"
The shadow opened its mouth as if he was waiting for this moment.
"Please grant me… a name….."
'From my observation, it seems nothing has changed, despite him devouring hundreds of high-rank monsters. I had feared that absorbing so many memories might alter his personality, but that doesn't appear to be the case. However, I can't be entirely confident yet. I'll continue to wait, observe, and ask.'
***
The helicopter containing the Hunters headed straight back to the city of Seoul.
Tatatatatata-!
The Association President Goh Gun-Hui had been anxiously waiting for their arrival, so when the helicopter landed on the landing pad located on the Hunters Association, he quickly went over personally and opened the vehicle's door.
"Quickly give me an update on everyone's condition here?"
The gazes of the Hunters all shifted towards each other. Most of them didn't have any wounds, but they still hadn't recovered from the loss, as gazes of the Hunters all shifted towards where Min Byung-Gyu body was lying on top of a blanket laid out on the helicopter's floor covered by white cloth.
Looking at the body of the young man he couldn't help but sigh Min Byung-Gu, met with a grisly fate, just like many he felt great pain from deep in his heart.
Goh Gun-Hui ordered his subordinates to escort everyone to the hospital, ensuring they received much-needed rest and thorough medical examinations just in case.
Only then did he notice that Hunter Sung Jin-Woo wasn't in the helicopter. He shifted his gaze back to Mah Dong-Wook.
"By the way, where is Sung Jin-Woo Hunter-nim?"
Having heard that question from the side, Baek Yun-Ho quickly butted in to provide an answer.
"Hunter Sung Jin-Woo, he… chose to stay behind."
"What do you mean, stay behind?"
Goh Gun-Hui formed an expression of someone who couldn't understand. As far as he knew, this helicopter fitted with the magic energy engine flew non-stop from Jeju Island to get to this place.
It didn't make any pit stops in the middle of the trip, so exactly where did that man choose to stay behind? Goh Gun-Hui asked again.
"Where did he choose to stay behind?"
"He told me that he still had business to take care of on Jeju Island."
"….Are you saying that he didn't even get on the helicopter in the first place?"
While Goh Gun-Hui asked, sounding quite flustered, Baek Yun-Ho smiled sheepishly and nodded his head.
"Yes."
***
"What makes you capable of this?"
"I just…. can."
The ant's shadow kept answering Jin's questions, but regretfully, none of them were much of a help finding out about its personality.
'Grades….'
Unlike his other soldiers with grades of 'Elite Knight' or simply 'Knight', this guy came with a new grade called 'Commander'.
All my soldiers would be able to talk after reaching a certain grade.
'That means, my boys will all start talking as soon as they level up high enough….'
Jin-Woo thought for a little while, before throwing that one question to the ant's shadow, the one he always wanted to ask his soldiers before.
"I'm the one who killed you."
"…"
"Yet, you still wish to serve me?"
"I….."
A completely expected reply came from the ant's shadow.
"I did not perish, but… through the power of my liege… I have been rejuvenated."
The shadow then raised his head. And while meeting Jin's gaze, it continued on.
"And even before that, my liege honoured me with greater power and now Within every fibre of my being… elation… overflows. I shall follow my liege… for eternity."
Ba-dump!
Why did it happen? Was it because he felt the shadow's true feelings?
Jin-Woo's heart pounded powerfully right at that moment when the ant's shadow swore his eternal loyalty.
He placed his hand on his chest to somehow calm his wildly beating heart. It quickly regained its usual calmness.
It was then, the ant's shadow lowered his head again and pleaded with Jin once more.
"Oh, my king….. Please, grant me… a name…."
The talk had reverted back to the beginning.
This sure came across as a rather different experience to Jin, now that he was hearing the plea of the subject directly from itself, rather than from some prompts of the System.
A name, a name…..
From the get-go, he didn't pay all that much attention to the naming of his soldiers, but….
Perhaps because he struggled with naming things.
That's why he primarily kept the original soldiers names as they were in manhwa, while the new ones received names inspired by characters that came to mind when he saw them, making even their names less authentic.
Just like Pikachu… or Squirtle…
Additionally, it simplifies the process of recalling names, even if he has an impeccable memory. He couldn't forget anything even if he wanted to.
That was why…..
So Jin didn't need to ponder as a smirk formed on his face.
"….Beru."
"....."
"Your name will now be Beru."
After Jin granted him the new name, Beru lowered his already lowered head even further to the ground as if he was truly moved by the gesture.
"I am grateful… my liege."
The information floating above Beru's head had already been amended by then.
[Beru Lv.3]
Commander Grade
'It's done.'
Feeling genuinely pleased with his choice of the name, Jin turned towards the queen's corpse and corpses of other Ants.
***
The video clip finally finished playing on the phone.
"…."
The footage of a raid taking place in a small nation to the Far East left a pretty hefty mental shock to David Brennan, the director of America's Hunter Bureau.
"What do you think?"
The deputy director cautiously asked his boss. And the director was quick with his reply.
"Never mind what I think, aren't you here in these early hours because you already know what I'm about to say? Am I right?"
That was indeed true.
It was already an uncommon occurrence for the director of the mighty Hunter Bureau and his deputy to have a meeting at four in the morning, but then, their meeting place also happened to be the kitchen of the director's private residence, as well.
A heavy silence descended between two men sitting opposite the dining table.
Puff, puff….
The director replayed the video one more time as he sucked on his cigarette. He was still getting shocked by what he was watching. Especially when he got to the part where the Hunter summoned out black 'soldiers' to sweep away the swarm of ants, the director's entire body shuddered noticeably.
'....'
What could anyone say after viewing this crazy video?
And so, as he continued sucking on another cigarette in silence….
The director's wife came down from the upstairs bedroom in search of her missing husband, and called out his name after spotting the light in the kitchen.
"Dave? Is everything alright?"
When the director wordlessly gestured with his hand, the wife looked at him worriedly for a moment or two before going back to the bedroom.
Exactly three cigarettes later, the director quietly opened his mouth.
"What a waste of two huge talents to be confined in a small country like South Korea."
"I agree."
"What do we know about them?"
The deputy director readily brought out a file containing all the pertinent information related to Sung Jin-Woo and Esdeath. The director scanned the files and formed a satisfied smile.
"Very good."
It had been less than an hour since the raid came to an end on the island of Jeju in the country far, far east, yet the related data was already in his hands. Not only that, the file contained everything from that Hunter's type as well as their close associates and relatives, too.
Now, this was the power of the United States, the Hunter 'superpower' in the world.
On the other side of the table, the deputy was smiling inwardly to himself.
'We got lucky on these ones.'
Sure, the swiftness of the American intelligence network was one thing, but luck played a big part, as well. To be more precise, the 'Seong Il-Hwan' incident.
An existence that could either be a human or a monster in disguise exited from a dungeon and claimed that he was a Korean Hunter. The data compiled back then still remained in the database of the Hunter Bureau.
In the current situation where no other nation even knew what his name was – with the exception of South Korea, of course – the Americans were able to get two steps ahead of everyone else.
'God bless America.'
Indeed, if this wasn't the heavens helping them out, then what was?
However, it wouldn't do to get all worked up over a minor lucky coincidence like this one. No, it all depended on the abilities of the individuals involved when it came to turning a lucky coincidence into a genuine opportunity.
The deputy formed a pretty serious expression.
"His father went missing in a Gate, but he still hasn't received any proper compensation until now."
"H-mm…."
"And also, before he went through a Re-Awakening process, he risked death countless times to pay for his mother's hospital fees."
"….What an inconceivable tale that is."
How could they treat the wife and the son of a hero this badly, when he lost his life fighting against monsters all for the sake of his nation? Such a thing was completely unimaginable in the US.
"And well, this isn't confirmed information, but…"
The director lifted his gaze off from the files. The deputy took his time to build suspense and finally murmured out.
"Apparently, he hasn't signed up with any Guilds yet."
"…..!!"
Now that piece of news managed to perk up the director's ears even more. He closed the file with a sombre expression on his face.
"This is a different matter altogether from Hwang Dong-Su's case."
When that familiar name was mentioned, the glint in the deputy's eyes changed.
Then there was Esdeath. She had a difficult upbringing, being abandoned by her parents and raised in an orphanage in Osaka.
Love at first sight according to the files.
Gazing at her photo now, he couldn't help but acknowledge the man's impeccable taste in women. She appeared as if meticulously sculpted by the hands of a divine artisan, with every detail perfected through careful, deliberate craftsmanship.
"Taking away three rank S Hunters from a single country…. That'd be akin to declaring that we are turning our backs on that particular nation."
South Korea and America had been allied nations for a very long time. What the director was implying here was that the impact of this matter would mushroom into something rather substantial in the near future.
However, the deputy replied with a confident tone of voice.
"Even still….. Don't you think they are talents worth all that trouble?"
"…"
Hell ya.
The director couldn't deny that. So, he answered with a question, instead.
"Can you do it?"
The deputy answered with the exact same words he used back during Hwang Dong-Su's case.
"I'll do my best."
Because of those four words, the deputy was able to quickly climb the career ladder to get to where he was now. As for the man that the deputy director had locked his sights on…
The United States of America already boasted two of the most powerful Hunters in the world, the so-called 'Special Authority-ranks' in their roster, but even then, the director David Brennan wanted to naturalise the young youths as an American citizen.
The director placed his fourth cigarette of the morning in his lips and spoke in a grave tone of voice.
"Regardless of what conditions he puts forth, you will bring him over to this side."
***
Jin rode on the back of Kaisel to hunt down and kill every single ant monster his Shadow Soldiers missed the first time around.
Kiieeehhk!!
Yet another ant fell after getting struck by the skill, [Dagger Throw]. Jin didn't bother to step down from Kaisel and simply used the skill, Monarch Hand, to easily retrieve his daggers.
"I must be far from leveling up now."
'I won't be leveling up anytime soon, even if I kill every monster on Jeju Island.'
There weren't that many ants left to be found on the island. Jin would have really preferred that he'd get to level up by killing the remaining ants in this place.
Just cause, just a single level up would take him to level 151. For Jin, who loved to see numbers ending in the multiples of five, 200 was such a fantastic level that he simply had to get there as soon as possible.
Since he hadn't booked any Gates, once he leaves Jeju Island he wouldn't have any other avenues to earn experience points for a while. As long as he didn't get lucky and another key to an instant dungeon popped out of the random boxes, or a dungeon break occurred near where he lived, of course.
'Wait, it's not cool to think of a dungeon break as being lucky, is it.'
If a dungeon break occurred, then that meant one or more teams had failed in their raids. So, to him, it was far more preferable to get to level 151 in this place.
But sadly he couldn't
'….Uh?'
After discovering something on the ground, Jin ordered Kaisel to land.
Kiiahhk!
Kaisel flapped its wings and lightly landed on the ground. Jin climbed down from his back and scanned his surroundings.
'It was around here….'
He rummaged through the tall grasses, before discovering the corpses lying there hidden. A frown immediately formed on his face. He had discovered the bodies of the Japanese Hunters, lying here and there. There were several with their heads missing, but there was also one that got mangled beyond recognition, as well.
Jin took a closer look at the bodies.
'Pretty strong magic energy….' in compression of Korean Hunters.
Without a doubt, these people were strong. They didn't look like they would die in this place in such a manner. The fact that they did die so gruesomely could only mean that it was done by Beru.
Jin looked around the ground while feeling somewhat bitter after looking at bodies, before his steps came to a halt on a certain spot.
'This aura….'
Jin crouched down and took a closer look at the ground. The soil here was all muddy and sticky from a prodigious amount of blood having soaked the earth. A faint trace of magical energy emanated from the wet ground. He had encountered this magic energy emission once before.
'…..Goto Ryuji.'
Jin searched his vicinity again. Goto's magic energy could still be felt, but his remains were nowhere to be seen. Most likely, he had been completely devoured by Beru.
"Tsk, tsk."
Jin could only tut to himself at the ultimately meaningless death of Japan's strongest Hunter, before standing back up again. With excellent timing, the Shadow Soldiers he dispatched to the all corners of the island reported back to him that the remnants of the ant monsters had been completely exterminated.
'….In the end, I killed them all, huh.'
Every Korean citizen would 100 times out of 100 cry out in elation from that news, but Jin could only lick his lower lip in disappointment. Because, his level didn't go up in the end. And it won't be going up anytime soon after all.
Now that there were no more monsters remaining, he figured that the only thing left to do would be to go back inside the ant tunnel to kill the Ant who still haven't come out of their eggs.
His extended senses picked up the presence of monsters from nearby. Not only that, there were so many, too!
A smile quickly bloomed on Jin's face to replace the look of disappointment. He lightly jumped back up on Kaisel.
"Let's go!"
***
Just as expected….
Jin's expression brightened greatly as soon as he stepped inside the nursery area. There were countless eggs lining up the floor, pillars, and even the ceiling.
Seeing that there were wiggling movements from underneath the semi-transparent shells, these things were definitely monsters,.
'Not sure how much experience points I will get here, but…'
But then again, with this many monsters here, he was sure of making up for the lacking amount of experience points. Jin-Woo summoned out the Shadow Soldiers specialised in wide-range attacks.
"Gather around."
Tusk and ten Shadow Mages stood in line, according to their grades.
Jin handed over the Bead of Avarice over to Tusk as he borrowed the Bead of Avarice to one shoot the boss of 6th Labyrinth and studied each of the eleven soldiers in turn.
"You all understand what you need to do, right?"
The Shadow Mages all nodded their heads in unison. Jin pointed at the eggs.
"Begin."
Right away, Tusk grew to an incredible height and spat out the horrifying flames at the eggs. The other Shadow Mages finished chanting their magic and began chucking large balls of flames here and there as well.
Kuwaaahahhh-!
KWABOOM!!
Boom!!
Eggs had no means of resisting, and in no time at all, began to burn up and explode one by one.
Kiieehhhk!
Jin took a closer look at one of the dead ant larvae leaning against the corner of the broken egg. He discovered the corpse of an ant, near adulthood, just below the melted-down shell of the larva. As it turned out, every single one of them he saw sported a pair of wings, without exceptions.
'If these things reached maturity and crossed the ocean with that mutated ant in the lead, then….'
Even though the queen was successfully subjugated, both South Korea and Japan would have suffered tremendous losses.
BLAM!!
Boom!!
Jin noticed that his boys were breaking out in buckets of sweat, and summoned the Demon King's Longsword out from the Inventory.
'Should I have a go with this one?'
Every time he moved this cool-looking blue-coloured longsword, arcs of electricity crackled up from the blade itself. He had stored it inside the Inventory after defeating the Demon King Baran back in the Demon's Castle.
Swish-!
When Jin energetically swung the sword….
Bzzzzz-!!!
Lightning crackled boisterously all over the place and caused the blue-coloured storm to kick up.
'Ohhh!'
A wide smile formed on Jin's face.
Although he couldn't recreate the destructive might or the added 'Stun' effect as displayed by the Demon King, it was still more than enough to burn these ant eggs, that's for sure.
'Isn't it too wasteful to leave inside the Inventory?'
Because he was already far too familiar with the daggers, he would probably never use this sword again in the near future, but still, he felt that this weapon was too good to be left forgotten inside his Inventory.
And so…. just how long did he spend wrestling with these eggs?
After he was done. He immediately returned the Demon King's Longsword back inside the Inventory and headed straight to the ant queen's chamber, leaving the mop-up operation to his Shadow Soldiers.
***
'….So, the only things remaining here are the magic crystals.'
Jin took a look around him. Top grade magic crystals only seen within rank S Gates were rolling on the floor like common pebbles.
Since there was no one watching here, and he was the one who killed the majority of them, he could have swept them all up if he wanted to do so. However, Jin gave up on that idea.
He heard that these crystals would be used to compensate the victims, as well as to rebuild Jeju Island to its former glory. Jin wasn't exactly hurting for cash, he already had an unfathomable amount of money, so he wouldn't covet after other people's stuff.
'Still, I'm sure no one will mind me taking this one.'
Jin extracted the magic crystal from Beru's original body—a stunning pitch-black gem that gleamed like a precious gemstone. Carefully pocketing the crystal, he made sure not to overlook the bodies of any ants that had devoured his monsters, methodically storing them away as well.
Jin summoned Kaisel.
Kiiaaahjk!
Kaisel flapped its wings and finished getting ready to fly in an instant. Jin lightly jumped on his back and took one last look at the queen's chamber.
The place once filled with unbridled chaos was now enveloped in this eerie silence.
'....'
The Jeju Island expedition is now over.
Jin's gaze shifted away from the interior of the chamber and towards the exit.
"To home."