Chapter 123

The hunters stood between the barricade, which was only a few steps behind them, and the lava mutants that had surged forward in front of their eyes. It was a moment when they thought they might have to retreat behind the barricade without being able to defend it.

"...It's retreating."

Along with the miraculously arrived lull, the lava that had surged up to their feet slowly returned in the direction of the sea. The red color that had covered the ground was withdrawn, leaving behind the charred black roads and building debris. The continuously falling rain cooled the lava between the building debris and hardened it black.

"Haa..."

Plop.

A hunter whose legs had given out sat down on the ground. Among those who had been overworked since the first day of the rift outbreak and had lost many colleagues, there were some who couldn't control their surging emotions and screamed.

"Aaaah!!! You bastard! If you were going to stop like this...!"

They had endured it.

They had finally blocked the mutants from entering the land behind them and the city for 42 hours.

However, no one could think of this as a victory.

Seo Min-ki also stared at the black mountain in a daze. In his gaze were mixed resentment, lamentation, emotion, anger, and more. It was a time like a nightmare that he had never even dreamed of in his life.

However, the dream had not completely shattered yet. The lava that had already been released was still undulating in the sea and the collapsed coastal village, although its momentum had been subdued. The black mountain also did not disappear from the sea in front of Busan.

"Then, now... what should we do?"

"Well, since the lull has come, we should take this opportunity to attack..."

The hunter who was answering the question had no choice but to close his mouth. The rift they had to attack was buried deep in the sea, under the black mountain. Moreover, the mountain had grown hundreds of times larger than before. By what means could they possibly break the rift wrapped in that thick mountain?

"What, in the end, we have to go into the boiling water."

"...If we break that mountain from the outside, um... would it be the same?"

"If we were going to do that, we should have gone when the dungeon first opened!"

"W-Why break it? Why break it? How did we endure this far?"

The reason Soram's pronunciation was slurred was that he was biting the end of the bandage he had and tying the wound on his arm. While the others were looking at the black mountain, he had finished the makeshift treatment that could hardly be called treatment. And he picked up the sword he had put down for a moment.

"Now we have to go in front of the rift and attack. A passage has been created where we can reach the rift without touching the seawater."

"Where is there such a thing...?"

Ah. A short exclamation came out of the mouth of the hunter whose words were blocked. His wide-open eyes were directed towards the pointed peak of the black mountain. From the crater where lava had been spewed out without rest, his gaze moved downward as if gauging the path through which it had been ejected.

Now, only gray smoke was being emitted from the peak that had poured out all the lava. That place would definitely be connected to the rift, and the thickly surrounded interior would not have allowed seawater to enter.

And Soram approached Min-ki.

"Let's go. Take me there."

"Huh?"

"I'll eliminate the rift. Just looking at it, it seems like only a flight ability user can pass through."

"...Jin Soram, ..."

Min-ki kept moving his lips but couldn't bring himself to say anything. As a member of the Busan Branch, he had to follow those words, which were currently the only and highly likely to succeed operation, but as Jin Soram's friend, he had to stop him.

"I'm sorry."

In the end, that was what came out. Soram didn't think it was something to be sorry about at all. Among the reasons he was jumping in there, there was no determination to protect the land of Busan. It was simply to not carry the burden on his heart any longer. So there was no need to be sorry at all.

Thump.

Footsteps approached behind Soram. Even without looking, he could identify who it was, and this moment was the direction Soram wanted to avoid the most in the 3rd Great Rift incident. However, he also knew that he could no longer run away.

He turned around with a lot of hesitation and contemplation.

As expected, Tae-un had come close to him. Close enough to reach out and stop him immediately if Soram tried to disappear on his own.

"Han Tae-un."

A smile that even he himself couldn't understand the meaning of was attached to the end of the trembling sigh.

"Are you coming with me?"

"Yes."

Tae-un's answer had no hesitation.

In fact, everyone here knew that the place could not become a "passage" in the true sense. Although there was no boiling seawater and lava, the inside where steam was being emitted would be extremely hot. The person advancing towards the rift would have to pass through a long path enveloped in heat.

"Aren't you scared?"

"I'm scared."

Ah, Tae-un quickly added while looking at Soram.

"But I'm still going."

"As if we're going somewhere nice..."

Sigh. Even as he sighed, Soram learned for the first time that resignation and a smile could come out at the same time. There was definitely anxiety, but he didn't want to run away through sleep or panic like before.

"No. I can't let all of you go."

The director approached the three of them. His expression was already hardened after hearing the young hunters' conspiracy.

"Director-nim."

"Soram, Tae-un, and Min-ki too. What are you saying without thinking? Rather than sending you who are badly injured, I'll go."

"..."

Upon hearing those words, Soram's lips wriggled slightly.

"As expected, you would say that... Seo Min-ki!"

Then he grabbed Min-ki's arm.

"Let's bolt! Quickly move over there!"

Min-ki blinked without understanding right away. Soram mischievously tapped his back.

"Hurry, hurry. Before Director-nim catches us, let's bolt!"

"What on earth are you saying...?"

"Soram, you."

"Before becoming a rotten brat, let's bolt!"

Min-ki finally grasped the meaning of the words. The director's words that he would rather go himself were undoubtedly sincere without a shred of falsehood. There was someone in the Busan Branch who would act exactly like the director when such a situation occurred, so he knew it well.

And also the pain of those who would be left behind when such a person was sent to their death.

"...Ha, damn it. Hold on tight."

Min-ki looked in the direction of the black mountain. Soram's hand was on Min-ki's arm, Tae-un's hand was on Soram's shoulder, and Ga-eul's hand hurriedly approached and rested on Min-ki's shoulder.

Swish, after a short sound, the four of them disappeared from that spot at the same time.

***

As soon as they arrived on the black land, steam and heat struck them. Just standing still made their breathing labored.

The size of the black island was about that of a small neighborhood hill. A height that would take exactly 30 minutes to climb up and down if running at full speed. Of course, the sea side was steep like a cliff, so running in either direction on that path was impossible.

Screech―

Steam rose from between the shoes and the ground with each step. The soles of the shoes provided to the hunters were made of a special material, but even that seemed like it wouldn't last very long and would melt away.

The hunter with the best ability to survive in this hot place would be the director. However, in the previous life, he had gone alone towards the rift and died along with an explosion. Knowing that, there was no way they could let the director come here.

"Phew. They said it's a mountain created by solidified lava, but look at the temperature."

Ga-eul wiped the sweat that had already formed on her forehead with her sleeve. The gazes of the remaining three people turned to Ga-eul, who had unexpectedly come along. Ga-eul confidently crossed her arms.

"Of course I have to come. I'm the most intact among the 1st-grades over there. You three are all in tatters right now."

"You're really cool anyway. Kim Ga-eul."

"I know that too."

"I'll definitely mention this loudly in a press interview. So that it comes up whenever someone searches your name..."

"Don't mess with me when I can't even hit you right now."

―Seo Min-ki, Jin Soram, Kim Ga-eul, Han Tae-un. What are you doing?

An urgent and hardened voice was heard through the in-ear communication devices inserted in the ears of the four people. The sound of battle was also mixed in. The distant figure of the director, who was urgently trying to approach them by cutting through the lava to follow the four people who had disappeared, was visible. As a strong hunter tried to cut through them and approach the rift, the lava mutants raised their bodies with their remaining instincts to block him.

"Director-nim."

―Soram, you. Bring the kids back right now!

"When we enter inside, the lava that has already come out will swarm to protect the rift. Please block that."

―It's too dangerous! What are you trying to do with those injured bodies? If you really want to go, together…

"No. No matter what you say, I won't listen right now."

―…

"Don't worry. We'll do well. Didn't I tell you before? I hope you live a long, long life, Director-nim."

The director sensed that he couldn't stop Soram's stubbornness, and that the kids would jump inside before he arrived.

Although he seemed to live thoughtlessly, he was always a child carrying heavy thoughts behind his back. Also, he was a hunter who had hidden his unparalleled skills, which perhaps only he, who had taught him, had noticed. He had long thought that Soram might be stronger than himself, who was currently called the number one.

However, even so, it didn't change the fact that for years, he still saw Soram as the young child who had been crying in his school uniform. Even though he knew he had to trust him now.

The director barely suppressed his lips that were about to say "no."

―Come back safely.

"Yes."

―I'll scold you a lot when you come back, Soram.

"I'll look forward to it."

Soram, who had touched the in-ear device, answered with a faint smile. There was nothing he wasn't looking forward to among the things that would happen if he returned.

He unilaterally ended the communication and pulled out the in-ear device, throwing it into the sea. Min-ki's small mutter, "I thought you said you wouldn't become a rotten brat..." followed.

"So, Jin Soram. What are you going to do now?"

"Since Ga-eul came along too, there's something I want to try, um..."

Soram looked around at the three people who had come with him.

In fact, among the hundreds of simulations he had run while staying in Busan, this situation did not exist. However, as much as he was familiar with the abilities of the three people in front of him, a plan that was better than doing it alone immediately came to mind. The problem was that it also put the lives of all of them at stake.

"What is it? Tell me quickly. Time is running out."

"...Then just listen for now."

Soram bit his lips once and began to explain.

"From the crater at the top over there to the rift where the lava is being spewed out, it's connected in a straight line, right? And since most of the lava from this mountain flowed towards Busan, the sea side is steep, and relatively thin because not much lava covered it. In other words, the distance between the surface of the mountain and the ejected path will be short."