F-Rank Gate

F-Rank Gate

‘Is this really the best I can do right now…?’

Facing the man who seemed quite at ease with people, wearing a friendly smile, Kim Jewan pondered.

This man had been loudly recruiting party members for an F-Rank gate for days, even welcoming beginners. It was the only party willing to accept Kim Jewan, inexperienced and currently F-Rank.

Kim Jewan preferred raid parties that met regularly to clear gates, but given his situation, he couldn’t be picky between cold and warm meals.

Snapping out of his thoughts, he looked at the man before him. It seemed like he’d been standing there for a long time, yet his smile never faded—almost to the point of worrying about a facial tic.

After watching for a moment, Jewan nodded slightly. The man’s face brightened instantly, his previously casual smile suddenly seeming insincere.

But as mentioned, Jewan had no other choice.

“Shall we go right now?”

Usually, gate raids allowed some preparation time, but perhaps because it was an F-Rank gate, they treated it lightly. If the party leader said so, it must be so.

Jewan nodded again and followed the man to the gate, which radiated the characteristic purple glow of an F-Rank gate.

Three other members stood near the gate, all at least D-Rank level. They checked Jewan’s Hunter license once and greeted him with friendly smiles and handshakes.

“Kim Jewan? Nice to meet you.”

After the formal greetings, Jewan stood in line with them before the gate. There was no briefing or discussion of abilities. It was just an F-Rank gate, seen as a modest money-making opportunity. That made sense.

“By the way, who’s that kid?”

Only then did the party leader notice Saelin. He asked with curiosity, seemingly unable to imagine a child who looked like a young elementary student was part of Jewan’s group.

Saelin had no special presence, and since everyone except Jewan was human, they kept a slight distance.

“Ah, she’s with me… What’s the problem? She’s also F-Rank. But we’ll only take the reward for one person.”

The man was slightly taken aback. The other party members’ gazes were sharp. But from his perspective, having caught the fish, he couldn’t let it go.

“Ah, I see. Yes, that’s fine.”

Ignoring the party’s sharp looks, he accepted Jewan’s proposal with a dazed voice. Jewan responded with a genuinely happy expression.

“Thank you.”

The party leader sneered inwardly. The first things to watch out for in the Hunter world were gates and other people. Naive beginners were easily fooled by sweet words.

Inexperienced and F-Rank, yet trusting others easily—perfect for this gate.

With everything going smoothly as planned, the party leader smiled wickedly and stood before the gate with Jewan and Saelin.

“No need to be nervous. It’s just an F-Rank gate after all.”

Worried they might hesitate or be scared, the leader reassured Jewan and Saelin. Fortunately, they seemed fully committed to entering, nodding as if trusting the leader completely.

Whirr…

The gate emitted a faint vibration and purple light, as if awaiting them.

After a brief check, the group entered the F-Rank gate. Immediately, a system window appeared, displaying the basic passage and clear conditions.

[Clear Condition]

[Destroy the Gate’s Core (0/1)]

Jewan’s system window showed no passage conditions, implying they had already been cleared. The clear condition appeared typical for an F-Rank gate.

Jewan’s eyebrows twitched slightly at the scenery, but before others noticed, his expression returned to neutral.

A misty forest under a dark night sky with a blue full moon hanging above. It felt like a werewolf might appear, but the monsters here were not werewolves.

-“Kyaaak!”

A giant beast with different moon-shaped markings on its forehead charged the party. Roughly tiger-sized with dark blue fur, it was a cat.

A moonlit cat, known as a Wolmyo, possessed power and size unlike ordinary animals. It was among the stronger monsters even in F-Rank.

However, to the party—mostly D-Rank except Jewan and Saelin—it posed no threat.

Thwack!

Each arrow and strike felled the Wolmyo. It was more massacre than hunt. Jewan and Saelin had no room to shine.

One wondered why they were even included in the party.

After clearing several packs of Wolmyo and searching for the core, a party member whispered to the leader, unheard by Jewan.

“What about that kid? Are we killing her too?”

The leader frowned, annoyed.

“The one helping with corpse disposal? We’ll leave her barely alive, and she’ll handle it herself. We’ll make some money too.”

Money made the party member smirk, though they grumbled about boredom.

“But how many more do we have to kill? I think we’ve already killed over ten.”

The party leader waved dismissively.

“Forget it. Just remember I promised to get paid more for recruiting you. We’ll be there soon.”

After the brief chat, they reached a huge cave. And then began the tedious acting they’d done countless times before.

The party leader sighed.

“Hmm… The gate’s core is probably inside here.”

They hadn’t searched the entire gate yet, but it was certain the core was somewhere in the forest. Yet their goal wasn’t clearing the gate—it was something inside this cave.

Naive beginners trusted the leader’s words as always.

The party agreed and proceeded into the cave.

Torches were sparsely placed, leaving much of the cave in darkness, but signs of human presence were clear.

The cavern was vast enough to fit twenty people side by side. Though clearly conquered by humans, it still evoked mystery and fear.

Except for Jewan and Saelin, everyone had been here before. They acted cautiously, pretending to be unfamiliar to avoid suspicion.

After some time, they reached a large chamber at the end of a long, wide corridor. The dome-shaped chamber was brightly lit by torches densely placed on the walls.

However, the center remained dark, housing a massive bronze tub.

At the tub’s center was a hole about the size of a finger, its depth unfathomable, like gazing into an abyss.

“This place…”

The party members, acting as if it was their first time, expressed awe and spread out cautiously.

Feeling awkward standing still, Jewan and Saelin began investigating. The tub was the first thing to catch their eyes.

Though it could be a trap, Jewan walked toward the tub without fear.

The tub was so clean it reflected his face like a mirror.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, a sword flew from behind Jewan, slicing through the air. But Jewan, seeing his reflection in the tub, drew Mukyeon from his soul space and easily blocked the blade.

Such a reaction was impossible without prior anticipation.

Seeing the party leader’s startled face reflected on the tub’s surface, Jewan calmly said,

“You think I wouldn’t have noticed?”