TDWAD 21

Chapter 21

Brrrrr!

A vibration ran across the smooth ebony desk.

“Damn it…”

Kairon’s expression instantly crumpled as he glanced at his smartphone.

[‘CrazyHercules’]

A survival report after disappearing for a week.

He was praying fervently for this person to disappear from the earth — and yet here was a message.

“Disappear my ass. I knew this was just a cruel tease from the start.”

The vibration abruptly stopped, then began ringing again.

‘Is there anything I can smash?’

Kairon, searching for a water bottle, suddenly froze.

[‘Siren’]

“…!?”

He hurriedly pressed the phone to his ear.

“What, you’re alive?”

• If I were dead, wouldn’t I be silent?

It was a man.

Had he picked up Siren’s phone?

Even though it was nothing special, his heart pounded.

‘Why am I so uneasy? Wait, this voice…’

Kairon’s lips trembled.

“Could it be… CrazyH… no, Hercules?”

• How long are you going to keep calling me by that cheesy username?

“Ugh!?”

• Why are you ignoring my calls? Are you gutsy or what?

“Ah, no, I’ve been busy and all. Haha~ finally catching my breath.”

• In five seconds?

“Hahaha.”

• Well, measure your guts when you’re free. Anyway, let’s get to the point — how much funds does the New Humanity Association have ready to pull right now?

Suddenly talking about money?

Kairon quickly calculated and gave the standard answer.

“The economy’s a wreck. Where would we have money? We’re barely surviving ourselves.”

• Don’t play smart; give me a number.

“Like 1 or 2 billion?”

• Bullshit. The public funds alone are probably ten times that.

A woman’s voice cut in from the other end.

“Se… Siren?”

• It’s me, you bastard. Are you seriously accepting Hyun Doyoon as a member? No conscience, no loyalty!

“Wahaha.”

Kairon wiped sweat from his forehead.

“There were circumstances. But why are you two together?”

• Don’t change the subject. You’ve probably cleaned up all your shares in Hydra, and others besides me have died one after another. You didn’t touch the blind money, did you?

“Why are you siding with Hercules…? Aren’t your words and actions contradictory?”

• Kairon.

Hyun Doyoon’s voice came through.

• I was going to eat alone, but you’re being given a chance. We’re a team now.

“Sounds like there’s something there. I’m curious.”

• Information fee is half the profit.

“What?”

A rising anger nearly choked Kairon.

“You’re nothing but thieves without swords…”

• Don’t worry. If there’s a loss, I’ll cover it in full.

“That’s ridiculous. If we’re told to wash our mouths and slit our throats, what can we do? Damn bloody bond!”

• Exactly. What can you do? If you know, just do as you’re told.

“…”

Kairon’s face twisted.

“…Fine. This better be solid, huh?”

• This is info no minister or president knows but me.

A smirk escaped from between his lips.

“Oh, really? Let’s hear it then.”

• ‘Miraerotem’.

“The top railway stock? The one about to shutter because of the tunnel incident?”

• You know your stuff. Buy it all.

“…Are you sane?”

• Yeah, put in every last penny.

“If it’s going to fail, fail alone. A savior, my ass! Let New Humanity Association go bankrupt!”

• Do they send news with bonfires over there or what?

“…?”

• Turn on the TV.

Kairon grabbed the remote.

Ding!

As the TV turned on, the screen filled with a brightly lit press conference hall.

Huge captions caught his eye.

• [Breaking News] All missing persons from ‘Tunnel Vanishing’ safely returned!

• Hyun Doyoon (Player), who led the safe return, to hold a press conference shortly.

“What… what is this…?”

• Feeling it, huh? Hope they make a wise decision.

“…I am Hyun Doyoon, an awakened one of the Republic of Korea. A survivor and solver of the ‘Tunnel Vanishing’ incident in Busan.”

Feeling the gaze of the reporters filling the room, Doyoon spoke.

“Today’s announcement is not merely a report of survival from the disappearance incident.”

His voice was low, calm, yet resonant.

“I wish to share important information with the public regarding a new threat called ‘Aberrations’.”

The hall stirred.

“Many of you probably sensed something was off about this incident.”

Doyoon raised his head, carefully choosing words.

“That feeling was not wrong. Aberrations are fundamentally different from gates or monsters, and clear distinction is necessary for proper handling.”

Whispers spread among the reporters.

‘…So that’s why they gathered?’

‘Trying to grasp at straws maybe.’

Both were supernatural phenomena, but the difference was clear.

Monsters were mysterious in appearance but expected to be defeated when players of proper rank intervened.

In short, logical and controllable.

But the ‘Tunnel Vanishing’?

No one had offered a solution or even a proper interpretation for the past week.

“The most striking feature is that they transcend laws, common sense, and material limits. Strange, cruel, unsolvable mysteries by conventional means. That is what aberrations are.”

Click-clack-click-clack.

Fingers busily typed on keyboards.

“Player? May I ask a question?”

“Yes, go ahead.”

“To sum up, this disaster differs from the gate incident. How did you safely clear such an unfamiliar threat?”

“First, a correction. It’s not a ‘clear’ but a ‘conquest’.”

Doyoon’s expression hardened.

“We only broke through the aberration, but did not eliminate its root cause, the Black Ghost… The Tunnel Vanishing is not over.”

Each broadcaster displayed subtitles for every word he said.

• ‘Train kidnapping phenomenon’ will continue.

“Argh!”

Kairon, nervously watching, tore at his hair.

“Why say that now!? The stock will crash!”

• Aberrations differ from monsters. Trying to solve by force is inefficient.

• Hyun Doyoon encountered the AA-rank champion, ‘Poison Eyed Ghost’ in the tunnel.

• With support from player ‘Han Yeonha’, achieved world’s first ‘Champion Kill’ and ‘AA-rank defeat’.

Kim Sumin sighed.

Her gaze dropped to the smartphone pressed to her chest.

• Minister: Seoul’s delay is a bit long. How’s the real-time feed there?

• Kim Sumin: Not bad. Natural and coherent.

Only now did Kim Sumin send a relaxed reply.

• Minister: You’ve studied the script well?

• Kim Sumin: Yes, I know the points.

• Kim Sumin: We will cooperate closely with the Ministry of the Interior and Safety to actively address the aberration phenomena. Minister Juseonah has promised full support. I will definitely mention that.

• Minister: Emphasis is good. But one thing I don’t get.

• Kim Sumin: Yes, Minister.

• Minister: What benefit does Hyun Doyoon gain by exposing himself to the public, the whole world?

• Kim Sumin: I guess… building recognition?

• Minister: Recognition, sure, but he’s not an entertainer or politician. What’s the point of raising his profile?

“…Thank you for the player’s hard work. So the champion’s first reward wasn’t non-existent. I have a question.”

“Ah, wait a moment.”

Doyoon tilted the microphone.

“There’s something I want to clarify about the term ‘player’.”

The sudden remark silenced the reporters.

“When you hear ‘player’, ‘status window’, ‘rewards’, and ‘achievements’, what comes to mind?”

“Hmm… games?”

“Yes, but this is not a game. It’s an unprecedented disaster involving the survival of 7 billion people.”

“Uh, that’s the system…”

“The system wants to treat this lightly, like a game.”

Doyoon took a breath.

“We must not be swayed by that intent and forget reality. We must face the harsh truth before us.”

“I sympathize with the sentiment, but can’t this be solved by calling them ‘Awakened’?”

“‘Awakened by the system’. Is that enough? I want it to include both the essence of present-day humans and the responsibility as a countermeasure. Therefore—”

Doyoon stared straight at the camera.

“To the citizens of this country and the world watching this broadcast, I propose a new title to replace ‘player’.”

The hall instantly fell silent.

“On the way here, I saw a comment criticizing some awakened ones for only participating in cost-effective gates.”

Doyoon’s voice rang clearly.

“Putting safety second, but frontline for growth and rewards. I partly understand that.”

“…?”

“But dozens of awakened lost their lives in the recently suppressed gate.”

Doyoon bowed his head briefly in a moment of remembrance.

“Sometimes, self-interest takes precedence. Sometimes, fear causes retreat. But those who bleed, fall, and sacrifice to protect our homes from monsters — that will be them.”

His eyes slowly scanned the reporters.

“Are you such complex, autonomous humans, or merely hunting dogs obeying the system’s orders?”

No answer came back.

There were no players in the press seats.

But the burning eyes seemed to already have answered.

“I want to say this: Pawns on the game board cannot become winners. We must break free from the ‘player’ framework the system gave us…”

Doyoon paused; the room held its breath.

“And become ‘Hunters’ who pursue, capture, and cut the enemy’s throat with their own will.”

Click-click-click!

Camera flashes exploded nonstop the moment he finished.

Kim Sumin fixed her eyes on the smartphone screen, swallowing.

Goosebumps ran over her skin. A shiver passed through her.

That one phrase, that firm voice.

The newly given title settled deep in her heart as if it had always existed.

• Hyun Doyoon proposes the title ‘Hunter’ instead of ‘Player’: “Not pawns on a game board, but hunters”

• Kim Sumin: Did you see that? Wow… wow, this is really something.

• Minister: Sumin, was that your script?

• Kim Sumin: No way. How could I?

• Minister: Ugh, I should have written that!

‘…It’ll definitely settle as Hunter in a few years anyway. Better to confirm it early on to avoid confusion.’

A satisfied smile touched Doyoon’s lips.

“Back to the questions, who asked earlier?”

“Ah, me…!”

A dazed reporter hurriedly collected himself.

“You said the root cause wasn’t removed, so is it difficult to resume railway operations before clearing the Black Ghost?”

“There’s an important fact we discovered in the tunnel. Aberrations have rules and patterns.”

“But you said earlier they defy laws and common sense…”

“That’s right. It’s a demon that makes trains vanish into an infinite maze. But hidden rules existed there too.”

Doyoon revealed some of the Black Ghost’s patterns to aid understanding.

It appeared unable to enter the train.

It acted impatiently, as if on a timer.

“If we observe repeated patterns and decipher the rules — for example, if the Black Ghost’s appearances follow regularity —”

“Ah…?”

“Then we can predict aberrations. Perhaps even plan safe train schedules.”

New captions appeared on the broadcast screen.

• Possibility of resuming railway operation!

[- Miraerotem +30.00%]

Kairon clenched both fists and raised them.

“Let’s gooooooo!”

Questions still poured in at the press conference.

A blue-eyed foreign reporter raised his hand holding a pen.

“I’m Jonathan Wells of Daily New York. Interesting announcement, but one question.”

He was known for his disparaging articles about Korea’s gate response.

Still sharp today.

“Korea was first to conquer an aberration, but not clear it, and the Black Ghost will keep appearing. Is that correct?”

Doyoon nodded.

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Then is it really appropriate to say you ‘conquered’ it?”

Jonathan Wells sneered.

“If you didn’t clear it, isn’t it just running away?”

“…?”

The atmosphere froze instantly.

Some reporters glared hostilely behind him.

‘Great timing.’

Doyoon fought back a rising smile.

“The system stamped it as the world’s first conquest.”

“Do you have evidence to support that? Not just claims, but proof the world can accept?”

“That’s a sharp question. Let me show you that evidence.”

“Hmph, how could you?”

Jonathan Wells scoffed.

Doyoon raised both backs of his hands toward him.

“Allow me to introduce.”

“…!?”

At that moment, his lips curled in a triumphant smile.

Click

Black shine.

A subtle purple aura.

“This is the conquest reward, the ‘Black Ghost’s Gauntlet’.”

A metal gauntlet covered with strange symbols appeared, fitting snugly on Doyoon’s hand and forearm.

“Is that convincing enough, Mr. Wells?”

“Th-the purple aura…”

Jonathan Wells was left speechless.

At the same time,

“A hero’s equipment!”

Reporters and cameramen jumped up, thrusting their smartphones and cameras forward.

‘…We absolutely have to capture this. Missing this shot would be the end!’