Prologue
[…Author, this is really becoming a problem.]
"I'm sorry."
[Is it perhaps that you don't like me as your editor? If that's the case, don't hesitate to let me know, and I can arrange for someone else.]
"No, no, that's not it."
[Then, is it the terms of the contract with our publishing company that you're dissatisfied with?]
"Oh, no, that's definitely not it either."
…Thud!
[But why hasn't the manuscript changed at all since last time? Of course, you don't have to accept all my feedback, but you did say you agreed with it and would incorporate it, so I've been waiting.]
"I thought I did..."
A deep sigh could be heard over the phone.
[I'm sorry to nag, but if you're going to write about Hunters, you need to study them properly and do your research. From the battle scenes to the scenarios, it seems like you don't understand Hunters at all.]
…Thud!
[And above all, having an A-rank monster die from a single punch, does that make any sense? No matter how much readers like overpowered characters in fantasy, if you start like this, you'll get criticized.]
"...I'm sorry."
Thud!
[Are you outside? Are you near a construction site by any chance?]
"Well, I'm outside because I have something urgent to attend to."
[Anyway, could you please try again? Would a week be enough time?]
"A, a week?"
[Is that difficult?]
"No, no, I can do it!"
[Please remember the feedback I gave you this time.]
"Yes..."
[As I always emphasize, 'realism' is crucial. Even if it's a fantasy genre, it's still 'modern fantasy!' You need to capture the 'realism' well. Understand? 'Realism'!]
"...I'll keep that in mind."
[Alright. Then send me the manuscript in a week, and I'll read it and get back to you. Take care. Goodbye.]
"Yes. Goodbye. Thank you."
As the call ended, the man, who had been hunched over like a guilty person, stretched widely.
Groan!
His face, looking up at the sky, appeared quite youthful.
The man, letting his arms hang down, sighed deeply.
"Ha, rejected again."
His face was full of gloom.
"Realism, huh. What was lacking?"
He scratched his head as if he couldn't understand no matter how much he thought about it.
But only for a moment.
"Anyway, with only a week left, I have to work myself to death starting today. Alright, then..."
Slapping his cheeks to shake off the gloom, the man rotated his shoulders as if warming up, surveying his surroundings.
Below him were numerous tall and short buildings. It turned out he was standing on the top of some tower.
And then,
Roar!
Rumble!
Boom! Boom!
In the distance, a gigantic monster was ravaging the city, destroying large buildings.
Numerous helicopters, tanks, and military forces were doing their utmost to resist, but it was clear at a glance that they were outmatched.
The man took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.
"Let's get this over with quickly."
In an instant.
Zap!
His eyes flashed.
Crackle! Crackle!
His black hair turned platinum blonde.
And then his eyes began to glow a vivid blue.
Zap!
'Thirty... three of them. Alright.'
Thud!
With a tremendous sound, he leaped into the air.
At a speed invisible to the naked eye, faster than a shadow could follow.
His body became a beam of light, or rather, lightning. In an instant, with the sound of air being torn, a bolt of lightning shot towards the monsters.
Crackle!
The lightning from the sky pierced through one monster's body.
Leaving behind a monster reduced to ashes without even a scream,
The lightning continued to strike other monsters,
Crackle!
Sizzle!
Once again, with the sound of air being torn, the lightning became a beam of light and shot towards the giant monster.
Bang!
Crackle!
The beam of light grazed the giant monster's body and soared into the sky.
And then,
Crackle, crackle, crackle!!
The light transformed into a massive bolt of lightning and struck the giant monster again.
Boom!!!!
The giant monster was reduced to a handful of ashes without even a scream, just like the other monsters.
The monsters, which didn't flinch even under the concentrated fire of dozens of divisions, fell so effortlessly.
The giant monster's form was nowhere to be found.
It was instant death.
Ssssss.
All the monster corpses disintegrated at the molecular level and completely vanished.
"It, it fell!"
"What... what just happened?"
"A flash of lightning... wait, lightning? No way!"
"Look over there, it's the Thunder Emperor! He's come to help!"
"Oh, thank God!"
Cheers erupted!
The faces of the people in the city, which had become a ruin as if swept by a great disaster, and the soldiers who had felt increasingly helpless in front of the unyielding monsters, were filled with joy.
And their gaze, as if promised, turned to the man looking down from the sky.
Cheers erupted!
Clap, clap, clap, clap, clap, clap!
Everyone expressed their gratitude and cheered with all their hearts.
This was Copenhagen, Denmark, a place where the fate of the city seemed to be ending just moments ago.
But,
Everything changed because of one person.
Everyone here knew.
Who that Asian man was.
He was an incredibly famous figure.
The man's name was Tae Ihyun.
In the era of the Great Gate.
Known by the alias 'Thunder Emperor,' one of only 12 Legendary Hunters worldwide and a celebrity.
Some evaluated that this man's existence was far more important than the president of a superpower.
But no one would know.
That this man, whom they revered as a hero and cheered for, was just a 'pitiful aspiring web novel writer' who had been harshly criticized by an editor not long ago.
Crackle! Crackle!
"Realism, realism... realism."
No one heard Tae Ihyun's small voice as he looked down at his fist.
"Hmm... what on earth is the problem?"
Episode 1. I'm Going to Be a Web Novel Writer!
It was a continuation of peaceful daily life.
The same yet different, different yet the same.
The world always flowed within the boundaries of what everyone knew as common sense.
Then one day, a Gate opened, and the world changed.
And hundreds of years passed.
Humanity still hadn't solved the mysteries of why the Gates appeared or the conditions for a Hunter's awakening.
At least over the hundreds of years, some disasters became predictable.
Or rather, it was more accurate to call it knowledge gained through experience.
- Chaos Gate -
A phenomenon where the strongest and worst Gate appears on Earth every 100 years, first appearing in 'Romania.'
At the time, there was no information about the 'Chaos Gate,' so the appearing 'Chaos Gate' was continuously left unattended.
However, it wasn't long before the Gate began to overflow, and the highest-grade monsters never seen before poured out of the Gate.
And in less than a day, Romania was on the brink of complete destruction.
Fortunately, the world began to focus its efforts on conquering the 'Chaos Gate,' and as a result, the Gate was closed.
But the damage to Romania, where the Chaos Gate had opened, was incalculable.
Since then, the world's top priority has been solely focused on conquering the 'Chaos Gate.'
If they couldn't conquer it, humanity's survival would be at risk, so it was only natural.
Thanks to this, humanity had to prepare for the 'Chaos Gate' periodically every 100 years.
Just like today.
Whoosh!
Rain was pouring down as if a hole had been punched in the sky.
On a normal day, people might have checked the weather forecast to see how long and how much it would rain. But today, no one paid attention to the falling rain.
It was as if the clocks of all humanity had stopped.
Why?
[…Once again, I must say, we have no information about the situation inside the Gate. All communications were cut off as soon as the Gate was entered.]
People all over the world stopped what they were doing and focused solely on the words of the anchor on TV.
As if there was nothing more important.
With an exceptionally dark expression, the anchor continued.
[How should we view the current situation, Doctor?]
[Well, the fact that communication was cut off is not a good sign. However.]
The man, invited as an expert, paused and thought for a long time.
He knew better than anyone how much meaning people placed on his every word.
After finishing his contemplation, he spoke again.
[…One thing we can be sure of is that all 12 members who went in for the conquest are still intact. That's because the life alert devices installed on each of them are sending signals.]
[But, Doctor, given that other machines malfunctioned, couldn't those devices also be broken?]
They both knew the intention wasn't to challenge his words.
But it was a question everyone had, so it was brought up.
And,
[Th-that... we can only pray it's not the case.]
Rayleigh Kim.
A meticulous, thorough character who never speaks without certainty, an atheist, and a giant in the field of Hunter studies.
The answer from the doctor's mouth was uncharacteristic.
But in this situation, how could he have any other thoughts?
The worst disaster humanity has repeatedly faced, the Chaos Gate.
And the magic measurement of this Chaos Gate recorded the highest ever.
In other words, this Chaos Gate was the worst difficulty ever seen.
So, if 'they' failed, humanity would be doomed.
Please, please, please, please!
Oh God!
Thus, all humanity could do was watch the Chaos Gate with the same hope.
*
There are only 12 Legendary Hunters in the world, and humanity calls them the 12 Apostles.
79 hours, 17 minutes, and 8 seconds after the strongest representatives of humanity entered the Chaos Gate.
……Boom!
The ground shook,
Woooooong!
The air trembled,
Bang!
A massive sound that seemed to tear the ears apart occurred.
Boom!
It was as if the enormous holes all over the ground, with nothing intact, were proof of the intense battle of unprecedented scale taking place.
Where on earth was this place?
Roar!
Thud!
The Beast of Destruction.
The master of the Chaos Gate and the being said to bring destruction to the world.
The beast, which seemed never to fall, finally collapsed with a loud roar.
But the twelve silhouettes facing the beast remained on alert.
And after some time passed.
When the beast showed no signs of moving, the tension of the silhouettes, which had been on edge, finally eased.
Ding!
[The Beast of Destruction has been vanquished. Earth has successfully conquered the Chaos Gate!]
They had ultimately succeeded in conquering this unprecedented, worst Gate.
Cheers erupted!!!!!
"Oh, oh! Thank God, thank you!"
As the system message appeared, everyone worldwide shed tears of joy.
And they cheered and celebrated.
For those who had saved them.
Thus, humanity once again escaped the brink of a great disaster that could have led to its destruction.
*
"Huff! Huff! Is it finally over?"
A blonde man spoke with an exhausted face.
Then those beside him began to speak one by one.
"That damn thing isn't getting up anymore, so it seems like it."
"Phew... I was really at my limit, but thank goodness. Thank goodness..."
"My weapons' barrels have all melted... They were masterpieces I poured my heart into for years. Haha..."
"It's alright. It's alright. You can make them again."
"Yeah. At least no one died."
"What a horrible thing to say..."
"Ugh! Why did I come here and go through this hellish ordeal!"
A girl wearing a large pointed hat scratched her head and complained, while a man with gray hair and fierce eyes chuckled.
"You think you're the only one who suffered? We're dying here too. If someone heard, they'd think you did it all by yourself."
"What? Did you say everything you wanted? Why are you picking a fight with me? Should I just freeze you alive?"
"Huh? Try it if you can. A mage with no mana left. Your guts are really showing, huh?"
"Oh, stop it, you two. I feel like I'm dying already. Just listening to you two fighting is tiring and painful."
When a woman with short hair intervened, they all fell silent.
A brief silence followed.
"...But now we can rest a bit, right?"
"What are you talking about?"
"There won't be another Gate like this for the next 100 years, right?"
"Well, I guess so."
"Great. Great. Phew. This kind of thing isn't something you can do often, even if you have ten lives. Now I need to recuperate on a Hawaiian beach for a few months."
"I'm planning to rest for a while too."
"I'm going to make a ton of money. The Prime Minister promised me a bunch of exclusive contracts after this. Hehehe!"
"Oh, you money demon. What are you going to do with all that money? You can't take it with you when you die."
"Oh, come on, don't you know the more money, the better?"
"Yes, yes. Whatever you say."
"Haha, you're all so young, so young."
Listening to their bickering, an elderly man chuckled.
"What about you, Mr. Litmanen?"
"Are you planning to retire?"
"Haha. It's not time for that yet, but I should start stepping back from the front lines. It's not a good look for an old man to be leading the charge."
"Thank goodness. I was worried you'd retire."
"Haha. It's not strange for me to retire at my age, is it?"
"Oh, you can still go for another ten years."
"Please don't curse me like that. It's elder abuse."
Hahaha!
Laughter erupted in an instant. It was a cheerful atmosphere that didn't match the devastated surroundings.
As they each sat down and made pleasant remarks, there was one boy who remained silent.
He was the youngest among the 12 gathered here.
Someone tapped the boy's arm and spoke.
"Hey, kid. Why are you so quiet all of a sudden?"
The boy mumbled as if talking to himself.
"...I should become one."
"Huh? What are you talking about?"
"I've decided. I'm going to be a web novel writer."
Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at the boy as if asking what he meant.
"What are you saying now...?"
"I'm quitting being a Hunter!"
It was a moment when everyone's eyes widened.
"What?!"
That day, one of the 12 Apostles, who had become heroes of humanity, suddenly disappeared.
Why?
Only rumors and speculations circulated, and no exact facts were revealed.
Two years passed since then.
"I'm sorry."
[Is it perhaps that you don't like me as your editor? If that's the case, don't hesitate to let me know, and I can arrange for someone else.]
"No, no, that's not it."
[Then, is it the terms of the contract with our publishing company that you're dissatisfied with?]
"Oh, no, that's definitely not it either."
…Thud!
[But why hasn't the manuscript changed at all since last time? Of course, you don't have to accept all my feedback, but you did say you agreed with it and would incorporate it, so I've been waiting.]
"I thought I did..."
A deep sigh could be heard over the phone.
[I'm sorry to nag, but if you're going to write about Hunters, you need to study them properly and do your research. From the battle scenes to the scenarios, it seems like you don't understand Hunters at all.]
…Thud!
[And above all, having an A-rank monster die from a single punch, does that make any sense? No matter how much readers like overpowered characters in fantasy, if you start like this, you'll get criticized.]
"...I'm sorry."
Thud!
[Are you outside? Are you near a construction site by any chance?]
"Well, I'm outside because I have something urgent to attend to."
[Anyway, could you please try again? Would a week be enough time?]
"A, a week?"
[Is that difficult?]
"No, no, I can do it!"
[Please remember the feedback I gave you this time.]
"Yes..."
[As I always emphasize, 'realism' is crucial. Even if it's a fantasy genre, it's still 'modern fantasy!' You need to capture the 'realism' well. Understand? 'Realism'!]
"...I'll keep that in mind."
[Alright. Then send me the manuscript in a week, and I'll read it and get back to you. Take care. Goodbye.]
"Yes. Goodbye. Thank you."
As the call ended, the man, who had been hunched over like a guilty person, stretched widely.
Groan!
His face, looking up at the sky, appeared quite youthful.
The man, letting his arms hang down, sighed deeply.
"Ha, rejected again."
His face was full of gloom.
"Realism, huh. What was lacking?"
He scratched his head as if he couldn't understand no matter how much he thought about it.
But only for a moment.
"Anyway, with only a week left, I have to work myself to death starting today. Alright, then..."
Slapping his cheeks to shake off the gloom, the man rotated his shoulders as if warming up, surveying his surroundings.
Below him were numerous tall and short buildings. It turned out he was standing on the top of some tower.
And then,
Roar!
Rumble!
Boom! Boom!
In the distance, a gigantic monster was ravaging the city, destroying large buildings.
Numerous helicopters, tanks, and military forces were doing their utmost to resist, but it was clear at a glance that they were outmatched.
The man took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.
"Let's get this over with quickly."
In an instant.
Zap!
His eyes flashed.
Crackle! Crackle!
His black hair turned platinum blonde.
And then his eyes began to glow a vivid blue.
Zap!
'Thirty... three of them. Alright.'
Thud!
With a tremendous sound, he leaped into the air.
At a speed invisible to the naked eye, faster than a shadow could follow.
His body became a beam of light, or rather, lightning. In an instant, with the sound of air being torn, a bolt of lightning shot towards the monsters.
Crackle!
The lightning from the sky pierced through one monster's body.
Leaving behind a monster reduced to ashes without even a scream,
The lightning continued to strike other monsters,
Crackle!
Sizzle!
Once again, with the sound of air being torn, the lightning became a beam of light and shot towards the giant monster.
Bang!
Crackle!
The beam of light grazed the giant monster's body and soared into the sky.
And then,
Crackle, crackle, crackle!!
The light transformed into a massive bolt of lightning and struck the giant monster again.
Boom!!!!
The giant monster was reduced to a handful of ashes without even a scream, just like the other monsters.
The monsters, which didn't flinch even under the concentrated fire of dozens of divisions, fell so effortlessly.
The giant monster's form was nowhere to be found.
It was instant death.
Ssssss.
All the monster corpses disintegrated at the molecular level and completely vanished.
"It, it fell!"
"What... what just happened?"
"A flash of lightning... wait, lightning? No way!"
"Look over there, it's the Thunder Emperor! He's come to help!"
"Oh, thank God!"
Cheers erupted!
The faces of the people in the city, which had become a ruin as if swept by a great disaster, and the soldiers who had felt increasingly helpless in front of the unyielding monsters, were filled with joy.
And their gaze, as if promised, turned to the man looking down from the sky.
Cheers erupted!
Clap, clap, clap, clap, clap, clap!
Everyone expressed their gratitude and cheered with all their hearts.
This was Copenhagen, Denmark, a place where the fate of the city seemed to be ending just moments ago.
But,
Everything changed because of one person.
Everyone here knew.
Who that Asian man was.
He was an incredibly famous figure.
The man's name was Tae Ihyun.
In the era of the Great Gate.
Known by the alias 'Thunder Emperor,' one of only 12 Legendary Hunters worldwide and a celebrity.
Some evaluated that this man's existence was far more important than the president of a superpower.
But no one would know.
That this man, whom they revered as a hero and cheered for, was just a 'pitiful aspiring web novel writer' who had been harshly criticized by an editor not long ago.
Crackle! Crackle!
"Realism, realism... realism."
No one heard Tae Ihyun's small voice as he looked down at his fist.
"Hmm... what on earth is the problem?"
Episode 1. I'm Going to Be a Web Novel Writer!
It was a continuation of peaceful daily life.
The same yet different, different yet the same.
The world always flowed within the boundaries of what everyone knew as common sense.
Then one day, a Gate opened, and the world changed.
And hundreds of years passed.
Humanity still hadn't solved the mysteries of why the Gates appeared or the conditions for a Hunter's awakening.
At least over the hundreds of years, some disasters became predictable.
Or rather, it was more accurate to call it knowledge gained through experience.
- Chaos Gate -
A phenomenon where the strongest and worst Gate appears on Earth every 100 years, first appearing in 'Romania.'
At the time, there was no information about the 'Chaos Gate,' so the appearing 'Chaos Gate' was continuously left unattended.
However, it wasn't long before the Gate began to overflow, and the highest-grade monsters never seen before poured out of the Gate.
And in less than a day, Romania was on the brink of complete destruction.
Fortunately, the world began to focus its efforts on conquering the 'Chaos Gate,' and as a result, the Gate was closed.
But the damage to Romania, where the Chaos Gate had opened, was incalculable.
Since then, the world's top priority has been solely focused on conquering the 'Chaos Gate.'
If they couldn't conquer it, humanity's survival would be at risk, so it was only natural.
Thanks to this, humanity had to prepare for the 'Chaos Gate' periodically every 100 years.
Just like today.
Whoosh!
Rain was pouring down as if a hole had been punched in the sky.
On a normal day, people might have checked the weather forecast to see how long and how much it would rain. But today, no one paid attention to the falling rain.
It was as if the clocks of all humanity had stopped.
Why?
[…Once again, I must say, we have no information about the situation inside the Gate. All communications were cut off as soon as the Gate was entered.]
People all over the world stopped what they were doing and focused solely on the words of the anchor on TV.
As if there was nothing more important.
With an exceptionally dark expression, the anchor continued.
[How should we view the current situation, Doctor?]
[Well, the fact that communication was cut off is not a good sign. However.]
The man, invited as an expert, paused and thought for a long time.
He knew better than anyone how much meaning people placed on his every word.
After finishing his contemplation, he spoke again.
[…One thing we can be sure of is that all 12 members who went in for the conquest are still intact. That's because the life alert devices installed on each of them are sending signals.]
[But, Doctor, given that other machines malfunctioned, couldn't those devices also be broken?]
They both knew the intention wasn't to challenge his words.
But it was a question everyone had, so it was brought up.
And,
[Th-that... we can only pray it's not the case.]
Rayleigh Kim.
A meticulous, thorough character who never speaks without certainty, an atheist, and a giant in the field of Hunter studies.
The answer from the doctor's mouth was uncharacteristic.
But in this situation, how could he have any other thoughts?
The worst disaster humanity has repeatedly faced, the Chaos Gate.
And the magic measurement of this Chaos Gate recorded the highest ever.
In other words, this Chaos Gate was the worst difficulty ever seen.
So, if 'they' failed, humanity would be doomed.
Please, please, please, please!
Oh God!
Thus, all humanity could do was watch the Chaos Gate with the same hope.
*
There are only 12 Legendary Hunters in the world, and humanity calls them the 12 Apostles.
79 hours, 17 minutes, and 8 seconds after the strongest representatives of humanity entered the Chaos Gate.
……Boom!
The ground shook,
Woooooong!
The air trembled,
Bang!
A massive sound that seemed to tear the ears apart occurred.
Boom!
It was as if the enormous holes all over the ground, with nothing intact, were proof of the intense battle of unprecedented scale taking place.
Where on earth was this place?
Roar!
Thud!
The Beast of Destruction.
The master of the Chaos Gate and the being said to bring destruction to the world.
The beast, which seemed never to fall, finally collapsed with a loud roar.
But the twelve silhouettes facing the beast remained on alert.
And after some time passed.
When the beast showed no signs of moving, the tension of the silhouettes, which had been on edge, finally eased.
Ding!
[The Beast of Destruction has been vanquished. Earth has successfully conquered the Chaos Gate!]
They had ultimately succeeded in conquering this unprecedented, worst Gate.
Cheers erupted!!!!!
"Oh, oh! Thank God, thank you!"
As the system message appeared, everyone worldwide shed tears of joy.
And they cheered and celebrated.
For those who had saved them.
Thus, humanity once again escaped the brink of a great disaster that could have led to its destruction.
*
"Huff! Huff! Is it finally over?"
A blonde man spoke with an exhausted face.
Then those beside him began to speak one by one.
"That damn thing isn't getting up anymore, so it seems like it."
"Phew... I was really at my limit, but thank goodness. Thank goodness..."
"My weapons' barrels have all melted... They were masterpieces I poured my heart into for years. Haha..."
"It's alright. It's alright. You can make them again."
"Yeah. At least no one died."
"What a horrible thing to say..."
"Ugh! Why did I come here and go through this hellish ordeal!"
A girl wearing a large pointed hat scratched her head and complained, while a man with gray hair and fierce eyes chuckled.
"You think you're the only one who suffered? We're dying here too. If someone heard, they'd think you did it all by yourself."
"What? Did you say everything you wanted? Why are you picking a fight with me? Should I just freeze you alive?"
"Huh? Try it if you can. A mage with no mana left. Your guts are really showing, huh?"
"Oh, stop it, you two. I feel like I'm dying already. Just listening to you two fighting is tiring and painful."
When a woman with short hair intervened, they all fell silent.
A brief silence followed.
"...But now we can rest a bit, right?"
"What are you talking about?"
"There won't be another Gate like this for the next 100 years, right?"
"Well, I guess so."
"Great. Great. Phew. This kind of thing isn't something you can do often, even if you have ten lives. Now I need to recuperate on a Hawaiian beach for a few months."
"I'm planning to rest for a while too."
"I'm going to make a ton of money. The Prime Minister promised me a bunch of exclusive contracts after this. Hehehe!"
"Oh, you money demon. What are you going to do with all that money? You can't take it with you when you die."
"Oh, come on, don't you know the more money, the better?"
"Yes, yes. Whatever you say."
"Haha, you're all so young, so young."
Listening to their bickering, an elderly man chuckled.
"What about you, Mr. Litmanen?"
"Are you planning to retire?"
"Haha. It's not time for that yet, but I should start stepping back from the front lines. It's not a good look for an old man to be leading the charge."
"Thank goodness. I was worried you'd retire."
"Haha. It's not strange for me to retire at my age, is it?"
"Oh, you can still go for another ten years."
"Please don't curse me like that. It's elder abuse."
Hahaha!
Laughter erupted in an instant. It was a cheerful atmosphere that didn't match the devastated surroundings.
As they each sat down and made pleasant remarks, there was one boy who remained silent.
He was the youngest among the 12 gathered here.
Someone tapped the boy's arm and spoke.
"Hey, kid. Why are you so quiet all of a sudden?"
The boy mumbled as if talking to himself.
"...I should become one."
"Huh? What are you talking about?"
"I've decided. I'm going to be a web novel writer."
Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at the boy as if asking what he meant.
"What are you saying now...?"
"I'm quitting being a Hunter!"
It was a moment when everyone's eyes widened.
"What?!"
That day, one of the 12 Apostles, who had become heroes of humanity, suddenly disappeared.
Why?
Only rumors and speculations circulated, and no exact facts were revealed.
Two years passed since then.
