INHO 02

End and Beginning (2)

‘So, the Hunter Association does have some capable people.’

I couldn’t help but be impressed when I arrived at the gate. I’d been trying to conserve my strength, but I ran into an unexpected obstacle, so I had no choice but to go full speed at the end. I was slightly out of breath.

Good thing I’d thought to pull my cap low. At this point in time, I wasn’t even registered as an Awakened yet — if anyone recognized my face, I’d be dragged off as an unregistered hunter for sure.

“Whew. Let’s go.”

Fortunately, the area right in front of the gate had already been cleared, so no one was around. No sane civilian would willingly step into that ominous black hole, anyway.

I exhaled slowly, crossed the “restricted access” line, and took a step forward.

As I entered the swirling black vortex hanging in midair, darkness clung to me as if trying to swallow me whole. I stayed calm and waited — my vision went completely black, and then a new scene appeared.

Dry wind. Whirling sand.

A desert — far removed from any familiar scenery.

‘The smell of blood.’

As soon as the air shifted, a thick metallic stench hit me, carried on the hot wind. Looked like there were already casualties.

Once inside, the heavy pressure was unmistakable. This gate was at least S-rank. I remembered this one — a rare case where the difficulty level had increased over time.

That’s why the initial response had failed.

The monsters that emerged early on had only been C-rank grunts, and since the gate’s size was smaller than average, they’d let their guard down. They’d sent in a party with an A-rank hunter to clear it — but by the time they realized things were escalating, it was too late.

‘Min Hajun died trying to close an S-rank gate all by himself.’

I’d lost count of how many times I’d thought about that.

‘If Hajun had survived… could we have done something differently?’

Even when I fought alongside my exhausted teammates to take down monsters, even when I watched them die right before my eyes—

‘If it had been Min Hajun instead of me — a mere B-rank…’

I forcibly cut off that line of thought.

‘That’s already gone. This time, I can change it.’

This chance I’d been given — I had to seize it.

I kicked off the ground, sprinting toward the direction of the blood scent. The sand made footing unstable, but I was lucky I’d learned how to move efficiently while minimizing mana use in my previous life. With my stats currently lower than before, that kind of technique was coming in handy.

“Ugh!”

Just as the smell of blood thickened and distant noise reached my ears, I spotted them — about a dozen people, most of them injured and barely standing.

And in front of them stood a single man, as if shielding them.

His blue eyes glowed sharply, but blood ran down his forehead, staining his disheveled white hair. Anyone could see the situation was dire. He was exhausted, too.

‘So much for getting here “early.”’

Even though I’d rushed in as soon as I heard the news, I was still a bit late.

He was facing off against a massive black dragon. Judging by the party behind him, they’d probably entered thinking this was a B-rank gate. They couldn’t retreat or dodge — just standing their ground was impressive.

Suddenly, the dragon dropped altitude and flapped its wings violently, stirring up a huge sandstorm. In response, Min Hajun immediately deployed a wide barrier, extending it far enough to protect the others behind him.

So this was the man ranked number one. The way he handled his skills — and his instant judgment — was awe-inspiring.

He wasn’t someone who should’ve died here. His luck had just been terrible.

An SS-rank gate had opened elsewhere at the same time, pulling away the top-ranked hunters. Everyone had assumed this gate was only B-rank, so by the time they realized the truth, backup was too late.

‘…And he’s not even in peak condition right now.’

As the sandstorm settled, Hajun came into view again. He stood tall, gripping a long ice spear, his posture still firm — but a closer look revealed beads of sweat sliding down his sharp jawline.

For someone using ice-type skills, that much sweat meant his body was under serious strain.

I watched quietly for a moment, moving with caution. The tenser the fight, the more deliberate you had to be.

But just as I crouched and crept closer, Hajun’s gaze flicked my way — and our eyes met. His pupils wavered slightly.

He must have been scanning the surroundings for options, only to spot an unfamiliar figure.

I lifted a finger to my lips, gesturing for silence. Hajun gave a barely perceptible nod.

Confirming that, I slipped further around the dragon’s flank, suppressing even my breathing. The beast was too focused on Hajun to notice me.

The closer I got to its rear, the easier it became to move — out of the wind’s reach now. I gathered mana in my legs and leapt high, summoning a dagger into my hand midair.

Clang!

I drove it down hard into the leathery joint of its wing. The impact rang like metal striking metal, stinging my palm — but I managed to wedge the blade in, even if only shallowly.

‘A normal dagger wouldn’t have even scratched it.’

I silently thanked the system for at least giving me this weapon — but I had no time to dwell.

The dragon thrashed violently, enraged by the surprise attack. I clung on tight, muscles screaming, refusing to let go.

Pain shot through my arms and my skull pounded, but the effort paid off — the tough hide finally tore under my weight and the dagger’s edge.

I focused more mana, widening the gash.

“Kieeeek!”

The dragon shrieked and lost its balance. It flailed, struggling to shake me off — perfect timing. I kicked away, rolled across the ground, and shouted:

“Now!”

Hajun responded instantly, conjuring a massive ice spike that impaled the beast clean through. Blue blood sprayed everywhere.

It was over in seconds.

The dragon convulsed a few times, then went limp.

‘Is it… over?’

I immediately regretted thinking that. Great, just jinxed it.

“Are you all right? Any injuries?”

Hajun ran straight to me once he confirmed the monster was dead.

I took his offered hand and got up, wiping blue blood from my face with my sleeve.

‘He looks better than I expected. So this wasn’t what killed him before?’

“As you can see, it’s not my blood.”

I showed him my sleeve and brushed sand off my crumpled clothes — itchy stuff, that sand.

“I can tell, but you fell pretty hard just now.”

True, my shoulder hurt a little from the fall, but the sand cushioned most of it.

“I’m fine. You, on the other hand, look worse.”

It felt awkward saying that to someone covered in blood. Clearly, he was the one who needed a healer.

‘At least the wounds don’t look fatal…’

There was frost covering some of his injuries — an efficient form of self-staunching. Still, sweat poured down his face.

“I’m fine. Take these people and evacuate first,” he said, pointing to the others.

I sighed inwardly.

‘The one who needs to evacuate most is you.’

But someone like him — the type who’d tell others to go first — would never retreat on his own. That’s why he’d died here last time.

“Pardon me for this.”

I suddenly grabbed his hand. There was no time to explain what I was about to do.

There were still other hunters nearby. For now, the dragon’s corpse and Hajun’s stance were blocking me from their view, but better safe than sorry.

‘I fought behind the monster too, so they probably didn’t get a good look at me.’

I had no intention of revealing my identity just yet. That’s why I’d entered secretly to begin with.

“…?!”

He flinched, startled by the sudden touch, but didn’t pull away. Good.

‘Purification.’

Mana surged out of me. Unlike Body Enhancement, where I could control the output, Purification consumed as much mana as the target’s contamination required — like using more detergent for a tougher stain.

“Ugh…”

Yeah, no surprise — purging poison from an S-rank hunter wasn’t easy. It was probably the most mana I’d used since returning.

And since my current rank was low, efficiency was terrible. Still, I couldn’t stop now.

I bit my lip and forced more mana through. The metallic taste of blood spread in my mouth as my energy flowed into him through our joined hands.

It always felt invasive, probing through another person’s body like this — and I bet it was even worse for the one on the receiving end.

But Hajun didn’t resist. His brows knit slightly, but he let me continue.

‘Good. That discipline might just save your life today.’

I focused all my senses. The world faded away until even the wind disappeared. Finally, I found it — a clotted mass deep within his body.

That was how I perceived toxins — like a sticky lump lodged inside. Once found, I carefully unraveled it, cleansing it like untangling a knot. It sounded simple, but both finding and purifying required delicate mana control.

Hajun’s expression shifted as he felt what I was doing — confusion, then shock. He must not have realized he’d been poisoned at all.

The reason Min Hajun, the top-ranked, strongest hunter, had died here in the past…

There had been many contributing factors, but the most fundamental cause — the one no one knew — was poison-induced deterioration.

‘When I first heard it, I couldn’t believe it.’

How could something so absurd have been true?