hotmtlnovel Chapter 119:
Chapter 119:
Chapter 119:
[Silent Graveyard].
This is an E-rank gate located in Gampo. And this gate had its own unique role.
It would store the waste generated in the area inside. Once the trash accumulated to a certain level, hunters called by public institutions were scheduled to enter and kill the boss.
So what would happen as a result? In fact, this was a new waste disposal method that took advantage of the fact that cleared gates disappeared from Earth. Unlike burning or burying, it doesn’t cause any environmental pollution, which is why it’s widely used by most countries.
Even if it’s not a port city, many regions are indeed using gates to dispose of their waste. This process also brings incidental benefits to humanity. The E-rank gate called ‘Silent Graveyard’, as mentioned earlier, is already known among hunters for its low profitability.
“No items dropped, no useful skins or anything. Ugh, honestly, doesn’t it just end up being a loss to visit places like this?”
“Right. It just adds to the cost of potions.”
It was only natural for unprofitable hunting grounds to be avoided. Therefore, the government, eager to make use of these troublesome, unpopular gates, gladly adopted this waste disposal method.
But today, an accident occurred at that waste disposal gate.
Moreover, this wasn’t an incident that happened overnight. The situation had been brewing for a full four days.
“Let’s see, the graveyard disposal site is starting to fill up.”
One day ago, a certain government official from the Association called in a Hunter team to close the gate that had been filled with waste. Naturally, since the Silent Graveyard was an E-rank gate, they hired E-rank Awakener as cleaners.
“Alright, everyone. From now on, we’ll head inside, clean up the monsters that have piled up, and quickly take care of the boss. Got it?”
“Yes.”
“Yes!”
But guess what? The E-rank team that went in to clean up didn’t return by sunset. So the official in charge, who found this unusual, checked inside the gate. It was only at this point that they belatedly realized the source of the problem.
“W, what’s this? What are those little birds? This gate was supposed to only have slimes living here...”
A rapid change in the internal ecosystem. That’s right, the so-called phenomenon of abnormal mutation had even reached this garbage dump. This place was no longer an E-rank gate.
‘Crazy!’
That’s why there was a regulation to measure the gate’s difficulty again before allowing cleaners to enter. The association staff had been negligent in oversight, thinking that nothing significant could happen at such an E-rank gate. And today, the price of that negligence has finally been paid. And it came in the form of the deaths of five E-rank hunters.
‘What should we do?’
Of course, there is some responsibility on the hunters who didn’t cross-check on their own, but... the primary cause at the moment is these people who violated safety regulations.
The person in charge was horrified to see the accident in front of them. The subsequent response was even more of a spectacle
“What? The Silent Graveyard has undergone a strange mutation?”
“Y, yes!”
“What’s the new rank?”
“Uh, well, it’s a D-rank! There were some small birds flying around inside, and when analyzed, it came out as D-rank!”
The Hunter Association branch he belonged to immediately dispatched D-class hunters after hearing only the report from the lowest level. This hasty decision soon resulted in another loss.
The strange mutations observed these days tend to be radical and unpredictable.
– Grrrrk.
– Chirp, chirp chirp...
Therefore, situations where high-rank monsters are mixed within the depths of a gate like this must be carefully considered.
– Gaaaaaaah!
The two additional D-class cleaners who entered were caught in an unavoidable situation due to the association’s lax handling of the matter. When they actually entered the dungeon, contrary to what the association said, they found that the place was swarming with enemies whose magical power reached C-rank.
However, by the time they noticed this, the two hunters had already suffered fatal injuries.
Moreover, the people of this planet, as always, tend to sacrifice some degree of safety under the pretext of saving a budget.
“Heuk!”
Public institutions push the garbage dump to the limit in order to reduce the cost of hiring cleaners. In simple terms, these E-rank gates are left unattended for a full 6 days until the monsters inside are saturated. However, this gate has already failed to be conquered twice during such an important time...
“Kyaaak!”
Eventually, the result was that the [Silent Graveyard] caused a dungeon break.
And one hour later...
“What on earth is going on?”
The once quiet port was thrown into chaos as the commotion spread. The red cocoon surrounding the pine forest was so conspicuous that it was easily noticeable.
“Everyone, stay away! It’s a dungeon break.”
Soon, onlookers gathered. The dispatched staff quickly set up a no-entry line and stopped the residents. Now, all they had to do was wait for high-rank hunters to deal with this monstrous nest.
“Oh my!”
“Don’t push me!”
At that moment, the old man who had been sitting down suddenly shouted while pointing at the woman in the hunter’s arms.
“S, Sooyeon-ah!”
Could that sky-blue hair be the granddaughter he mentioned earlier?
There was no time to ask questions. The old man had already run toward his family.
“Yes, that’s her! It’s Sooyeon, our granddaughter.”
By the time the elderly Earthling was sobbing uncontrollably, a surprised association staff member asked.
“No, who are you, and why are you coming out of here...”
It seems like this person doesn’t usually watch the news.
“Huh? N, no way, Hunter Kim Kiryeo?”
Fortunately, not everyone reacted the same way. The other staff members standing nearby soon recognized the person’s face.
Even when Kiryeo’s name was called, he didn’t respond for a while. In the brief silence, someone spoke loudly.
“Thank you, sir!”
It was the old man’s cry.
“Thank you so much for bringing our child. Sob.”
Crying and repeatedly bowing his head, the old man received the body of his family member from the hunter in front of him. At that moment, it seemed that Kim Kiryeo was reluctantly letting go of the body, unable to resist the old man’s earnestness... but that was probably just a feeling.
“Excuse me, Hunter, but if you don’t mind me asking, why are you coming out from inside there?”
Now it was time to explain the situation. The staff, having not been informed in advance, were quite surprised by the appearance of an S-rank. After a brief moment of contemplation, Kim Kiryeo delivered a few dry statements.
“I’m sorry. Earlier, I happened to overhear an association staff member saying that there was a dead hunter inside this cocoon.”
It was essentially a confession...
“I went inside briefly to retrieve that hunter.”
“That’s all?”
“Yes.”
However, a confession is considered a significant mitigating factor under Korean law. Moreover, there are a few more excuses that can be used in this situation.
“...But anyway, the body was returned to the bereaved family, so it’s all good in the end, right?”
“Yes?”
“Well, this time...I’m asking for leniency because I didn’t harm anyone. Of course, I’m also reflecting on my actions. I will never do this again.”
Confession.
Emphasize that the crime was attempted.
A heartfelt apology.
Soon after, Kiryeo made a desperate attempt for leniency. However, there was one thing he overlooked.
‘Hmm?’
That is the subject. Why did all the previous statements somehow lack this crucial element?
‘What has this person been asking me to see since a while ago?’
The association staff paused for a moment after hearing Kiryeo’s words. They soon arrived at a similar conclusion.
‘Oh, is he apologizing for entering the restricted area without permission?’
Logically, that was the only thing an S-rank hunter would have to apologize for.
“Phew, it’s fine! It’s okay.”
The association staff immediately waved their hands and said,
“You seem to be mistaken right now. This no-entry line was put in place to prevent civilians from crossing without knowing, and it doesn’t apply to hunters in the first place.”
“....”
“T, that means you can enter the dungeon without our permission. And you’re an S-class Hunter.”
How unexpected this explanation must have sounded to Kiryeo?
“?”
A few seconds later, the man with the Sambaegan eyes realizes that their conversation doesn’t align.
“Yes.”
However, from his perspective, this is advantageous, so he decided to go along with it for now.