"Thirteen years ago, a black gate appeared in London."
Oh Kang-hyuk, the president of the association, began his story calmly.
The Black Gate is a disaster that no raid has ever been able to capture due to its unreasonable difficulty.
Recalling the Shanghai disaster that tore a huge country into dozens of pieces, the European Union dispatched its own S-class raiders to take on the London Gate.
"There were only twenty-four S-class Hunters at the time, and that's not all. Thirty-two guilds from thirteen European countries sent an unprecedented combined raid force of 1,834, composed entirely of A- and B-class Hunters."
In effect, half of Europe's entire military might was assembled to attack London Gate.
This unprecedented raid was led by Cornwall Ong, Archmage of Clockwork Tower and founder of the Magic Tower.
"Did they fail?"
At that, President Oh shook his head.
"No, they succeeded. It was a two-month-long battle, but Cornwall Ong and the Mage Division of the Magic Tower alone were extremely skilled."
Cornwall and the Magic Tower wizards, who possessed the epic item Twelve Rings, attacked the London Gate with overwhelming firepower and eventually closed it.
[EU raiders take London Gate!]
[Queen Elizabeth awards Cornwall Ong with a dukedom]
[Black Gate captured for the first time, proving the power of humanity!]
The great storming of the Black Gate was an event so epic that it became a myth, a story that was told throughout Europe.
At the time, there was no equipment available to capture footage of the gate's defenses, but the stories that were passed down through oral tradition were staggering in scale.
The problem came after the capture of London Gate.
[Overkill]
Rank: Epic
Among the many loots obtained at London Gate, it was one of the most powerful items in the 30-year history since the Cataclysm.
What happened next was easy for Leon to guess.
"It must have been a toss-up who would get it."
"Yes, because then, and now… there are less than a dozen Epic Items in the world."
This first-of-its-kind Epic Item was proven by Cornwall Ong's performance at London Gate.
An Epic item can single-handedly change the course of a battle, it was a transcendent item worth its weight in gold. Every one of the 13 participating nations could only want it.
-London Gate is a gate that emerged in our country, England. We have a right to it.
-Don't be ridiculous. We who risked our own security to help Britain have a right to it.
-You already have twelve, don't you? We, France, sent the most Hunters.
-No one should be excluded from distribution just because they have an Epic item.
Thirty-two guilds, as well as presidents of governments, tried to secure this item.
Eventually, the item was put up for auction, with national budgets attached, and the winning bidder was the British government.
The winning bid was 1.4 trillion won.
It was an unprecedented price for an item and more than the price of an Aegis cruiser.
The Epic-level item Overkill was loaned to James Spencer, Guildmaster of the Gentlemen's League, one of the most powerful swordsmen of his time.
And the moment he picked it up──
"It was the beginning of a cataclysm. Little did he know that it was a demonic sword that would corrupt its wielder...."
James Spencer was transformed into a demon, a demon with an insatiable appetite for bloodshed.
"Eight hundred thousand citizens dead, London blown to smithereens and over six hundred Hunters dead."
"You said it was a sixth-generation demon. Did they finally succeed in destroying it?"
"Yes, they succeeded in defeating its host, Sir James, but…the demon escaped."
"Escaped?"
Overkill faded into the sky as James died.
"And two years later, it was found in Australia."
Since then, the Wandering Sword had repeated the process of slaughter and finding new hosts.
Australia.
Mexico.
Cambodia.
Spain.
"Finally, four years ago, in Korea a genius swordsman, Chun Ji-ho, who was supposed to be the next leader of the Divine Sword Guild."
"The Divine Sword Guild?"
"Yes. He is the son of Chun Jin-soo, the strongest hunter in Korea, and the father of Miss Chun So-yeon, whom Your Majesty knows."
Just like that, four years ago, the sixth generation of Demon Swordsmen appeared, and the Wandering Demon Sword has yet to be vanquished.
* * * *
"Hu…."
Yong-wan stopped at the door and tried to relax, but Ha Yuri looked at him with a slightly worried look.
"Are you okay?"
"No, I'm not okay."
"I know. That matter…"
"That and...."
"What's with all the crap at the Alliance meeting?"
"It's not like it's a big deal… I've just been sick."
A silent stare, as if he really thought that lame excuse would work. Yong-wan sighed heavily in exasperation.
"It's all because of that Lionheart King or Lion King or something."
The sacrifice of Georgic and his great soldiers… following the advice of the Lionheart King when they attacked the Dragon Palace Gate together… from that day forward, Yong-wan had gradually changed.
Six of the ten guilds, led by the Blue Star Guild, had joined the tax reform plan but time and time again, he had failed to attend the meetings of this huge coalition.
"It's a bit tricky to get out of it, but why don't we just merge into the TTG Guild?"
"Are you crazy? How much does this all cost....?"
"Well, you'll have to pay 90% if you go in there."
"What the hell are you guys thinking, paying 90%...."
Anyway, Leon's appearance shook the country in many ways. Above all, this faucet man has become a little more human.
"Well, I'll follow you. It's your decision."
"Of course."
With those words, Yong-wan took a deep breath and opened the door to find the patrons already seated around a round table.
"Hello, Mr. Yong-wan, long time no see, Ms. Yuri."
The first to greet them was a beautiful woman with long hair pinned up and dressed in pure white.
"Dr. Yoon, you look the same."
Yoon Soo-ah, the guild leader of Juwon Medical, a division of Juwon Hospital, one of Korea's leading general hospitals. She's an S-class healer, known for bringing people back from the dead.
"I've been trying to get Firebird to advertise our nutritional products, but you haven't accepted yet, have you?"
"Was there such a thing?"
Yong-wan glanced at Ha Yuri, and she shrugged.
"I rejected it because it didn't fit our guild's image."
"What was it?"
"An erectile dysfunction drug."
"...."
Yong-wan's sheepish gaze turned to Yoon Soo-ah but she smiled and made a flirtatious gesture with her hand.
"Dr. Yoon, aren't you a Chinese medicine doctor? Why do you keep practicing Western medicine?"
"That's for healing and this is for selling medicine. I'm licensed in both, and I have all the business licenses."
"You use acupuncture to heal people right? You also treat hair loss with acupuncture."
Yoon Soo-ah giggled at that.
"I can't sell acupuncture because I don't have enough customers."
"That's because you charge 100 million won for hair loss acupuncture."
"If it's not that much, my time is more valuable."
He's a well-heeled bastard himself, but this woman is even worse.
Yong-wan's gaze turns to the others at the table.
"Take a seat, Mr. Yong-wan. Miss Yuri."
It was a balding, squinty-eyed old man who invited them to sit down.
He was the Guild Leader of the Blue Star Guild and S-class Hunter Kang Jin-sung and aside from the off-standard Chun Jin-soo, he was the best swordsman in Korea.
"Long time no see, old man."
Lee Yong-wan greeted with a rare display of extreme decorum.
Chun Jin-soo, the light swordsman, Oh Kang-hyuk, the iron swordsman and Kang Jin-sung, the infinite swordsman.
These three are the first generation members of what is known in Korea as the Fundamental of Fundamentals and the first Hunters to awaken from the cataclysmic events 30 years ago.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that they were the legendary Hunters who protected the foundation of the country.
"You didn't show up for the last meeting. Why?"
Kang Jin-sung was referring to the alliance that most of the top ten guilds participated in.
They were supposed to discuss the 'tax exemption bill' for large guilds, but Lee Yong-wan, who came from Jeju Island Gate, had a change of heart and didn't attend.
"Haha…I'm a little unwell, so I can't help it."
"You?"
Kang Jin-sung's gaze sharpened. Damn, you old fool… You have magic in your gaze.
Yong-wan may have missed the meeting, but he has no intention of going against Kang Jin-sung. There are only two people in the country who can stand up to him.
"After clearing the Red Gate of Jeju Island and the Dragon Palace Gate, where the Demon Archduke appeared, he must be feeling the strain, senior."
Lightening the heavy mood was a huge man twice the size of Yong-wan and Kang Jin-sung.
"Thank you, senior Jong-soo, for your consideration."
Park Jong-soo of Mujin Guild was the best S-class tank in Korea. Unlike Golden Lion's Golden Chul, which is classified as a dps tank, he is a hunter who only specializes in defense.
'If it's just defense, he'll be comparable to Lord Georgic.'
Yong-wan sits down with Ha Yuri, who remains silent behind him and the hip, golden-haired young man across from him waves.
"Hello."
"Nice to see you."
He meant it.
In a place full of senior members, Yong-wan was the one person Golden Chul could feel comfortable with.
"Is everyone else here yet?"
Yong Wan and Ha Yuri's from Firebird,
Kang Jin-sung from Blue Star
Park Jong-soo from Mujin Guild.
Yoon Soo-ah from Juwon Medical.
Golden Chul from Golden Lion.
Half of the ten guilds had gathered, or to put it another way, only half had arrived.
Yoon Soo-ah answered the question.
"Kim Jin-chul, that drug-addled bastard, is probably sleeping somewhere. Is Hanbit Palace owner Park Yong-shin busy with the merger?"
"...."
Yong-wan was also shaken by the news of a six-kilometer comet. Of course, he immediately suspected Leon.
'He's the one who can do anything.'
He's an agent of the gods, after all.
"The head of the Divine Sword Guild please enter."
It was then that the tumultuous atmosphere of the round table changed.
An anachronistic old man with a white beard and long gray hair appeared, escorted by a staff member.
However, the old gray-haired man's fierce aura and intense gaze overwhelmed everyone in the room.
He is the Leader of the Divine Sword Guild and a first generation hunter representing Korea alongside Infinite Sword Kang Jin-sung.
Chun Jin-soo is the strongest S-class Hunter in Korea.
Having turned seventy this year, his appearance silenced the once tumultuous roundtable.
Chun Jin-soo casually took a seat at the head of the table, his fierce gaze fixed on the S-class Hunters at the table.
"Kang Hyuk-yi."
"...."
"...."
In the silence, Park Jong-soo, who had been watching, hurriedly replied.
"He'll be here soon, old man."
"You didn't even bother to give me a welcome feast, you just put a chain on my leg."
Oh Kang-hyuk and Chun Jin-soo are known to be old friends. As he lightly addressed the head of the Hunter Association, he glanced at Ha Yuri and clicked his tongue.
"Tsk tsk. What's with your clothes?"
Although Ha Yuri didn't reveal much, the bodysuit that clung to her body and revealed her figure was extremely uncomfortable.
"Shi, I'll fix it."
"Ms. Yuri, cover mine first."
Yong-wan quickly draped his coat over Ha Yuri's shoulders. Seeing that, Chen Jin-soo stroked his long beard like a monk.
"So, when are you two going to have a baby?"
"Phew…!"
"Ah, no, old man… we're not like that."
Yong-wan waves his hands in panic while Yuri glared at Yong-wan with an unpleasant gaze, but only for a moment.
"Hehe, whenever good men and good women get together, they should enjoy the male-female relationship. As for me. I had six children at that age!"
Light Swordsman Chun Jin-soo is one of the strongest Hunters in Korea, and one of the best in the World Hunter Rankings.
But even Hunters who admire him can't feel comfortable in his presence....
'He's an asshole.'
'Uncomfortable....'
Patriarch of one of Korea's most prestigious families, the Chun clan. In other words──Korea's representative asshole.
A living fossil but the strongest in Korea.
"So, the lame ducks have called for help. Which cities have been blown up?"
"Not yet, sir. I'm guessing it's going to pass over Osaka."
"He's my bastard, but at least he's acting like a patriot before he's going to get f*cked by me."
The Hunters were dumbfounded by Chen Jin-soo unrelenting words. In fact, it was common for neighboring countries to unite in such an international tribulation. If there was a problem-─
"But don't those bastards have a conscience? They said they didn't know me when Ulsan was in ruins."
When the sixth Demon Swordsman was born in Ulsan, South Korea, Japan refused to support it, using all sorts of excuses, and Ulsan was eventually destroyed.
"The…Japanese government said that since the demon of the time was… Mr. Chun Ji-ho, Korea was also responsible...."
"Fucking shit."
It was a colorful insult, but everyone agreed. Even when four S-class Hunters were killed in Ulsan by Demon Swordsman Chun Ji-ho, Japan didn't even bother to help them.
"Forget it. I'm going to kill him anyway, so you guys can deal with it."
"Don't jump to conclusions."
The door opened and three people appeared.
Oh Kang-hyuk, the president of the Association, Leon, the guild leader of the Ten Thousand Gods Guild, and Park Yong-shin, the owner of the Hanbit Palace.
"Huh?"
Lee Yong-wan suddenly realized something when Leon appeared.
'Isn't he also a jerk?'
Mr. Jerk and King Jerk were in the same room. The two of them, who had an absolute presence in this place, naturally exchanged glances and──
"Make way."
It started with Leon demanding to be seated.