Clap clap clap!
Someone who had stepped over the shattered glass and entered the room suddenly raised both hands and began to clap.
!!
The flying monster immediately detected the intruder and extended its thorns toward him. However, that reaction was exactly what the newcomer had intended.
"As expected, it detects vibrations."
Those were the visitor's first words.
And the small monster that attacked him met a futile death only moments later.
Swish.
In the visitor's hand was a powerful magical artifact called [Hydra], and the thorn trees were simply incapable of withstanding its poison.
"Everyone, keep your heads down for now."
Wait, why does that voice sound so familiar...?
The female employee crouching beneath the desk, one hand clamped over her mouth to suppress the urge to vomit, suddenly felt a powerful sense of déjà vu.
They were living in the age of Dungeon Shock.
Ten years ago, idols, actors, and other people blessed with exceptional artistic talent had been the public's greatest stars. But now that all manner of monsters roamed the real world, the Awakened who fought against such dangers had taken their place at the center of public attention.
"Keep your heads down~ It'll be over soon."
The bank employee, who was an active member of the Hunter Love café, soon realized where that sense of déjà vu was coming from.
It was from an interview video she had often watched late at night whenever she couldn't sleep.
And in that video, she had heard someone speak in that distinctive voice over and over again.
"No way..."
It was then.
Tuk, tuk, tuk.
Something suddenly began tapping rhythmically against the desk she was hiding beneath.
"Aaaack!"
Startled by the sudden sensation, the bank employee let out a piercing scream.
Yet strangely enough, even after hearing such a loud cry, the monster showed no reaction whatsoever.
"Oh, I'm sorry."
At last, a familiar sight appeared beyond the chaotic rows of bank desks.
A man in a navy linen suit leaned casually against a partition and spoke.
"I didn't mean to scare you."
"Heuk!"
"Well, anyway. Hello. I noticed some cracks in the building when I came in..."
The young bank employee hiding beneath the desk saw his face and burst into tears of relief.
"There seems to be a significant risk of collapse. Everyone, come outside with me."
It was Kim Giryeo.
An S-rank Hunter of South Korea.
***
From that point onward, everything went smoothly.
I led all the survivors still trapped inside the building out onto the street.
The dark thorn trees were originally troublesome monsters capable of inflicting intense pain regardless of the target's defensive ability.
However, [Hydra], an epic-grade magical tool, was simply too dangerous for them.
"To think he can kill such terrifying monsters so easily!"
"They couldn't even put up a fight."
"That's why he's an S-rank Hunter!"
In reality, I was weaker than even the miserable C-rank thief who had attempted to rob the bank.
But as you can see, once rare equipment entered the equation, that difference in strength became surprisingly difficult to notice.
"Hmm."
Troublesome witnesses.
No.
In order to escort these precious citizens of South Korea to safety, I would first have to eliminate all the monsters blocking our way.
Sreung.
I skillfully wielded the sword in my hand and cut down the surrounding thorn trees.
The trees, which had been spreading their sharp, venomous thorns in every direction only moments earlier, suddenly withered as though they had never been alive and collapsed to the ground.
The real problem was the flying thorn trees overhead.
Dududududu...
No matter how plant-like they were, these B-rank entities couldn't be defeated with low-grade magical tools such as the Pyromancer's Necklace.
Under normal circumstances, I would have tried to lower their altitude with telekinesis or some similar spell.
But today, I had a particular reason to conserve my mana, so whenever one of those flying creatures appeared, dealing with it became rather troublesome.
!!
Still, as I continued hunting, I gradually noticed a flaw in its behavior.
The young tree's attack pattern was exceedingly simple.
The moment it detected an enemy, it would sway in place for a brief instant before launching its thorns along the same fixed trajectory.
Shot!
A moment later, the young tree's limb shot forward with a sharp whistle as it split the air.
Its target was the chest of one of the older, physically weaker civilians in the group.
But once again, the monster's attack ended in failure.
"Heuk!"
A body with defensive hardness comparable to that of an S-rank defensive Awakener.
And on top of that, I possessed enough control over my body to completely suppress pain-related signals.
What exactly was there for me to fear?
Tuk.
Since the firing angle was consistent, all I had to do was position my body at the right moment.
I thrust out my arm beside the elderly civilian and neutralized the tree's [Pain Infliction].
Then I immediately swung my sword, leaving a poison-laced wound across its black stem.
At this point, the rescue operation was going more smoothly than pulling weeds out of a yard.
"Th, thank you. Thank you for protecting us."
"Wow, you blocked that with your bare arm...?"
"The robber was foaming at the mouth just from brushing against those thorns, but this Hunter doesn't even seem bothered?"
Murmur.
The shock of seeing the corpses still hadn't faded completely, and several of the bank employees remained silent, their faces pale as though they might vomit at any moment.
However, after a few seconds, even those people gradually began to regain their composure.
Flash!
A brilliant light shone ahead, like a carbide lamp illuminating the depths of a mine.
It was one of the temporary lights installed by the South Korean government for nighttime rescue operations.
It also meant we had reached the opening in the dome that led outside.
"I, is that the entrance? But what's that blue thing attached to the exit?"
"It's a tunnel created with a barrier."
"A tunnel?"
"The monsters forming this dome have exceptionally high regenerative abilities. But the buildings and roads outside are already cracked, and with everything still in chaos because of the war, there isn't enough manpower to remove the dome immediately. So they installed this as a temporary measure."
"Aah."
"They've made sure the opening stays open until all of you get out, so it won't close."
"Aha."
"But honestly, there's no need to worry about it. Once Jung Haseong arrives, this whole thing will probably be resolved quickly."
The office workers, now standing right in front of the escape route, burst into relieved cheers.
It had all happened shortly before the end of their workday.
A group of robbers had suddenly stormed into the bank.
Then, as if that weren't enough, a dungeon filled with previously unknown monsters had erupted beneath them.
Realistically speaking, everyone there must have believed that today would be the day of their funeral.
"Haha, oh dear. I must really be getting old. The moment I get even a little breathing room, my tear ducts start acting up..."
They could go home.
Soon, one of the relieved bank employees was unable to hold herself back any longer, and tears welled in her eyes.
Then, as though triggered by a few words from a certain Hunter, those tears spread explosively through the group, infecting everyone around her.
"Yes? What did you say?"
A moment later, the Hunters of various ranks who had been waiting outside the barrier tunnel widened their eyes at my words.
"I'm going °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° back inside and taking down the boss alone. None of you should enter the dome."
"No, but the boss..."
"I cleared out some of the monsters around the entrance so I could bring the survivors out, but the center of the nest is still packed too densely with trees. To be frank, any Hunter who goes in there to fight won't have a reliable way of avoiding their attacks."
"Hmm."
"And after taking those attacks in place of the bank employees earlier, I realized just how severe the mental shock caused by these thorn trees actually is."
"Heuk!"
"Yes?"
"To put it simply, it hurts like hell."
It was an excuse I had thrown together on the spot.
But it was more than enough to justify entering the thorn forest alone.
What followed was a tiny shift in the dead man's facial muscles.
A faint furrow of the brow.
A subtle expression of concern.
"But for me, the discomfort caused by my Awakening injury is comparatively mild. If other Hunters are going to suffer that badly... I'd rather handle it myself and come back quickly."
Faintly...
To think he would willingly endure such pain for fellow workers he didn't even know, simply because they shared the common identity of being Hunters!
What a noble and righteous declaration!
"Hunter Kim! But why should you be the only one forced to suffer through all of this...?"
Sobbing.
The rescued bank employees, completely unaware of anyone's ulterior motives, began looking at me with admiration entirely of their own accord.
One employee in particular—the woman I had found hiding beneath a desk—reacted so strongly that an alarming amount of bodily fluid began pouring from her eyes.
"It's fine. Don't worry about me. Just concentrate on getting yourselves out of here. I'll deal with the boss quickly. And don't bother sending in any healers unless absolutely necessary. I'll be using my Awakening ability, and if anyone is nearby, they'll get hurt. They'll get hurt."
Ignoring their tears, I raised my voice.
Eventually, unable to overcome the S-rank Hunter's firm stance, the Association representative granted me full control over the Thornbush Forest.
"Hunter-nim!"
"Oh my god."
"Please be careful...!"
I then followed the path established by the barrier mages and entered the dome once more.
From behind me, where the people remained outside, I could still feel a faint warmth in the air.
But only a few seconds later, the Hunter who had been wearing such a touching expression abruptly let his facial muscles relax.
This was why studying properly was important.
After spending some time researching facial expressions, deceiving people had become so much easier.
"Whoo..."
Now that the obstacles were gone, it was about time to begin.
The only reason I could even attempt a trick like this was because of the dark ceiling above me.
The moment the thorn-tree dome disappeared, curious Earthlings equipped with drone cameras would come swarming in.
I had to hurry before Jung Haseong arrived—or before some stalker contractor showed up and the entire scene was cleaned.
"Hmm."
Still, it was fortunate that the Association backed off after nothing more than that simple lie.
If they'd insisted on assigning additional personnel, and somehow discovered what I was about to do next in order to throw off Searcher's pursuit...
Those delicate Earthlings might have lost their appetites for several days.
Thud!
As I walked, I used the mana I had been conserving to discreetly disable the CCTV cameras along the street.
It was time to put the finishing touches on the plan.
.
.
.
28 minutes later.
Jung Haseong, who had been inside a dungeon in Gangwon Province, finally responded to the Association's summons.
South Korea's highest-ranked Hunter arrived at the scene soon afterward using his personal flying magical tool, and once he burned down the dome, the incident was more or less brought to a close.
Fortunately, no further complications arose.
The boss monster inside, which had been expected to cause the greatest trouble, had already been dealt with by another S-rank Hunter.
"Looks like you got here before us again this time."
"Well, it just sort of happened."
In the distance, the blond-haired Hunter stood face-to-face with Jeong Haseong as the two spoke.
Someone watching them cautiously made their way through the crowd and approached the moment their conversation ended.
"Hello, Hunter-nim."
"Ah—hello."
The newcomer was Seonwoo Yeon.
Now apparently quite accustomed to Giryeo, Seonwoo Yeon briefly wore the bright expression of someone greeting an acquaintance before her face quickly returned to that of an exhausted office worker.
She soon asked him a question.
"Sorry to bother you, but could I ask you something quickly? By any chance, did you see someone who looked like this inside?"
What Seonwoo Yeon held directly in front of him was an enlarged ID photograph of an Awakener.
"Yeah, I saw him. He was the corpse inside the bank, right?"
"Yes, but here's the problem. The police just checked the building, and apparently this person's body isn't there."
"Yes?"
"The monsters that appeared here were plant-types, so it isn't as though they could have deliberately carried the corpse away somewhere. I have no idea where on earth it could have gone..."
Could the robber somehow have escaped alive?
Seonwoo Yeon voiced the concern that had suddenly occurred to her.
Giryeo answered casually.
"He definitely didn't escape. I'm certain that person was dead. I remember it clearly."
His expression remained no different from usual as he continued in a gentle tone.
"Oh, now that I think about it—the flying types among those thornbush monsters. I remember seeing them move around while their thorns were still lodged in people's bodies. Could one of them have moved the corpse that way?"
"Aha."
"If I'd known this was going to happen, I would've at least moved the bodies out of the bank myself. I mean, I suppose it's fortunate if it was only the robber who got dragged away, but... ah, I really didn't think this through..."
The blond S-rank Hunter pressed his fingers against his forehead before speaking again.
"By the way, you've already tried using the [Searcher] skill, right?"
"Yes. But even with that, we still haven't been able to find him."
"Then either the corpse has been damaged badly enough that it no longer registers as the same person, or there's something interfering with the Searcher skill users' sense of direction."
He soon shifted posture, clasping his hands behind his back.
Then he asked quietly.
"Hunter Seonwoo Yeon. I'm only asking just in case, but... does it feel to you as though there is more than one of that bank robber in this world right now?"
"No."
"Okay."
"But what kind of question is that?"
"It's nothing. I only wondered because I've seen something similar before. But judging from the circumstances, that doesn't seem to be the case. The body was probably carried away by one of the trees and then dropped from somewhere high up."
"Ah."
"Anyway, I'm leaving work now. Take care."
"Yes."