Returned With Horns

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Of course, there wouldn't be a single person who wants to die in a place like this.

If you die inside a gate, it's almost impossible to find the body. The mana in gates basically decomposes organic corpses quickly. Because of this, even monster corpses could be seen disappearing within an hour or two after salvaging useful trophies.

That's why both the hunters and Oh Sungwon nodded. Their faces seemed to show some trust, perhaps because they had seen the Hermit Lurker being cut down in one stroke.

"By the way, the association sent someone proper. I guess it's thanks to the young master."

"Well, that's true. If it weren't for this young master, I wouldn't have had a reason to come out."

"Uh, I'm sorry?"

"There's nothing to be sorry about."

While saying that, Oh Sungwon's gaze kept flicking upwards. It seemed he was looking at my horns.

Honestly, it was just uncomfortable for me. The horns and red eyes, both were remnants of magical experiments. Moreover, as if one horn wasn't enough, they added another one, which made me even more annoyed.

One horn connecting to the astral world, and another connecting to reality. Two long horns protruding from my forehead. To be honest, they don't really bother me much in daily life. Of course, I can't sleep face down, but since I always sleep in a straight posture, it's not a problem.

No matter how I think about it, it's strange. Although I always say it's clothes that might be hanbok or kimono, and stubbornly insist that it's a hwandudaedo, my attire is thoroughly close to Japanese style. Why on earth are there Japanese-style clothes and swords in another world? Moreover, isn't the shape of these horns similar to the 'oni' that appear in Japanese subculture?

"...Those horns, um. May I touch them?"

"...Are you crazy?"

"Ah, is it not allowed?"

"Of course it's not allowed. You madman."

Even with that child's weak grip, it was that intense, so I didn't know what would happen to me if an adult man gripped them tightly. Should I call it pleasure that I felt that day? Anyway, that feeling was honestly much more intense than anything I had felt in my entire life. So I looked at Oh Sungwon with disgusted eyes, and he moved away quietly with a disappointed look.

"By the way, it's less eventful than I expected."

"...You idiot, don't you know that saying such things is taboo?"

"Hey, there are strange traces ahead!"

"I knew this would happen."

As soon as Oh Sungwon finished speaking, I let out a deep sigh at the voice of the reconnaissance team.

Well, what else would you expect from a young master? Thinking that, I quickly moved following the voice of the reconnaissance team. Arriving at their location in an instant, I examined the traces.

Traces of a fire and a few bones. It looked like a primitive tribe had eaten meat and left, but there was one difference. Powder.

Small patches of white powder were scattered around, as if lime powder had been sprinkled. Moreover, there weren't just one or two such traces. Hundreds of traces that couldn't exist in such a small space.

After confirming this, I slightly furrowed my brow.

"...These are traces of Corrupt Fairies."

"Is that so, as expected?"

"This is really fucked up. Not just Hermit Lurkers, but Corrupt Fairies too."

While Hermit Lurkers were classified as A-rank due to their secrecy and strength, Corrupt Fairies were classified as A-rank due to their cruelty and habit of moving in groups. In other words, the trace of one Corrupt Fairy meant that there were dozens or hundreds around.

In fact, if you look at each individual, Corrupt Fairies are close to C-rank monsters. But the moment they form a group, their danger exceeds that of most A-rank monsters.

It was because not only could they tear apart a human while smiling as if it were nothing, but when in a group, they could even take down golems.

Moreover, the scariest thing about Corrupt Fairies was that I wasn't sure if I could protect everyone. Of course, if I pushed myself, it might be possible to cut down all the Corrupt Fairies before they tore apart the hunters behind me, but the problem was that Corrupt Fairies weren't the only thing here.

"By the way, what kind of gate is this?"

"Huh?"

"It doesn't seem to be a world-type gate, but it's not a dungeon-type either."

The person who seemed to be the leader of the security hunters asked me a question. Even if you ask me, I don't know much about gates either.

"Could it be a fallen world?"

"There's no trace of civilization for it to be that. We're not even finding skeletons."

"Isn't it a generation-type gate?"

"Strong monsters above B-rank don't appear in generation-type gates."

"Is that so?"

At another hunter's question, the leader who had spoken decisively suddenly looked at me and slightly extended his hand.

"Ah, I'm Kang Chaehoon. I'm a B-rank hunter. I came in as the chief person in charge of security for the young master today, but... things turned out like this."

"Chae Seohyun. You're quick to introduce yourself, aren't you?"

"Hahaha... We were in a hurry, weren't we?"

Since it wasn't wrong that they were in a hurry, I nodded slightly. I didn't intend to blame them anyway. It's not like anything would change if I knew that guy's name.

"Anyway, I don't know either. I'm not very familiar with gates."

"I see. But I also think it's a generation-type. Strong monsters like this appear when a generation-type gate undergoes mutation."

"What's a generation-type gate?"

From earlier, they've been saying generation-type this, generation-type that, but honestly, I didn't really know what a generation-type gate was.

When I asked with an indifferent face, Kang Chaehoon's eyes lit up and he approached me. What's with this?

"A generation-type gate literally refers to a gate that has generated a new world. When there's no world that meets the conditions among countless worlds, it temporarily generates a world and makes it appear as a gate. That's why strong monsters can't appear in such generation-type gates. It's because enough magic power has been used just to generate the world."

"But you just said it was a generation-type."

"Because gate mutation occurred. There are various opinions on the principle of gate mutation, but... at least the fact that mana quantity suddenly increases is the same. It uses that increased mana to send out strong monsters."

Seeing Kang Chaehoon speaking with his eyes shining like an otaku who had found his specialty field, I quietly moved away from him. Well, knowledge is good, but I wanted to be apart for a moment.

"You're talking as if the gate generates monsters."

"Well, it might be similar. Most scholars think so."

Kang Chaehoon's nodding vigorously gave the impression that he thought so too.

After half-listening to his words, I quietly looked around. Everywhere was just a green plain. Except for the traces of Corrupt Fairies we saw earlier, it meant it was peace itself.

By that point, the hunters and Oh Sungwon were also moving forward, chattering noisily as if bored. Yet, they didn't let go of their tension, and except for Oh Sungwon, they all looked like experienced hunters.

Well, except for Oh Sungwon, they were only a bit flustered when the gate mutation occurred, but after that, they were exploring the gate quite familiarly.

"How many days do you think it will take?"

"Well, how big are these generation-type gates you mentioned?"

"They're smaller compared to general world-type or dungeon-type gates. Maybe we could explore this entire gate in about three days?"

"I wonder if three days will be enough."

Of course, we're not just wandering around aimlessly for three days. All gates have a 'core' which is the heart of the gate, and if you remove this core, the gate naturally closes.

These cores were also the most lucrative items for hunters.

It was because they could contain an enormous amount of mana, which had become important even on Earth now. Of course, obtaining such cores is not an easy task. Removing the core is the general method of closing a gate, but most gates are closed by fulfilling certain 'conditions'.

Since these conditions are often much easier than removing the core, most hunters choose to achieve the conditions rather than risking danger. Even the byproducts obtained from monsters were sufficiently profitable.

However, gates that have undergone mutation don't show these conditions. That's why they were also disasters for hunters. It meant they had to remove the core no matter what, and in world-type or dungeon-type gates, it could take years to find such cores.

"Those who return from such world-type or dungeon-type gates are usually called 'returnees'."

"...Captain. I'm sleepy."

Seeing the hunters half-asleep while listening to the story, Kang Chaehoon started to jump up and down furiously.

"This is all knowledge that will become your flesh and blood, you bastards. Won't you wake up? Huh?! Young master! Listen!"

"I already know all this... Ah, Chaehoon hyung."

"Yes?"

"That, what is it?"

Where Oh Sungwon pointed, there was an egg. Seeing that egg, I couldn't help but let out a sigh. It seemed others had similar thoughts as they blankly opened their mouths.

"We're really screwed."

A single sentence that flowed out of someone's mouth seemed to represent their situation.