Part 1 Chapter 2 (9)

7:00 PM, just below the summit of Gwanaksan Mountain.

“Hwaaap!”

Lee Seung-hyung’s fist collided with the monster’s fist. Despite wearing the Brown Bear’s coat, the giant monster, much larger than him, immediately grabbed Lee Seung-hyung’s wrist with its other hand as soon as their fists met.

“Keuk?!”

The giant monster’s grip began to tighten around Lee Seung-hyung’s wrist. Lee Seung-hyung quickly cut off the mana flowing through his arm and pulled his body back.

Hwarureuk!

The Brown Bear’s wrist, from which his arm had escaped, was crushed by the monster. The monster looked at the flames clinging to its hand, then rubbed its fingers together like handling a matchstick, extinguishing the fire.

Kyahahahang!

The monster, stomping and charging as if to devour him, lunged at Lee Seung-hyung, its tongue hanging out. Its power, stemming from its sheer size, was stronger than Lee Seung-hyung’s, and its mana reserves even surpassed his.

All that remained was speed.

“Heup!”

Before the monster’s two hands could reach him, Lee Seung-hyung instead dove underneath it. Sliding through its open legs as it leaped, Lee Seung-hyung swung the Brown Bear’s claws widely.

Kyaaaak!

The monster, whose ankle was half torn off, shrieked and fell. Like a decades-old giant tree felled by an axe, the monster rolled on the ground as it fell, its eyes shining brightly as it searched for Lee Seung-hyung.

“Heup!”

Lee Seung-hyung climbed onto the monster’s chest. The monster raised its hands over its chest, trying not to lose its prey.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

The Brown Bear, burning behind Lee Seung-hyung, swung its two arms widely, striking the monster’s shoulders.

The monster, momentarily losing strength, ground its teeth and tried to put power back into its arms, but the Brown Bear’s descending punches continued until the monster’s arms hung limp.

Kyaaaak!

The monster lifted its head, trying to swallow Lee Seung-hyung. The Brown Bear’s two arms still held the monster, unmoving.

“Heup!”

Lee Seung-hyung took a breath and wrapped mana around his clenched fist. The Fire Fist, which flared up on Lee Seung-hyung’s fist independently of the Brown Bear’s, shattered the monster’s teeth that were closing in and incinerated its head.

Gyaaaak…

The monster died with a final shriek. Lee Seung-hyung reattached the Brown Bear’s arms to his own and ran towards the summit.

“Hoo, hoo!”

As he ran up the rocky path in one breath, the dimensional gate floating above the summit of Gwanaksan Mountain began to come into view.

“Thank goodness, haa.”

Lee Seung-hyung, who had reached a high point overlooking all of Seoul, took a deep breath and tapped his smartwatch. The signal wasn’t strong due to the dimensional gate’s influence, but it was enough to convey his situation.

Peok!

Lee Seung-hyung, who had crushed monsters that had just popped out of the dimensional gate with a single punch, shouted into his smartwatch.

“Brown Bear Lee Seung-hyung, arrived at the dimensional gate! Destroying it!”

The flames clinging to Lee Seung-hyung’s back grew in size, taking on the form of a giant bear. The fiery bear, burning crimson, twisted its waist as if ready to smash the dimensional gate’s core at any moment.

Chijijik, Jijik. A signal was transmitted to Lee Seung-hyung’s smartwatch.

– No! Agent Lee Seung-hyung, don’t destroy it!

“Minister-nim?”

The voice from the watch even sounded urgent. How was this person responding on the Association’s channel right now?

– Hang up! Lee Seung-hyung, destroy the dimensional gate right now!

“Young-ho hyung-nim?!”

Another voice was heard. It was Yoo Young-ho, Lee Seung-hyung’s senior and the head of the Tactical Planning Department.

– That’s why we discovered the dimensional gate early, isn’t it?! Let us also get some cores from the monsters coming out of the dimensional gate!

– There’s no time for that!

Lee Seung-hyung! What are you spacing out for?! Close it now!

– Yoo Young-ho! Even if we hunt monsters for just one hour, the number of cores we get exceeds two thousand! Are you going to give up that goldmine just because a few people might be in danger?!

– You crazy bastard! People have already died! If you’re not sending Gwanggeom, then shut up!

– What? You, you this….

Jijijik. The dimensional gate’s mana grew stronger, cutting off the signal. Lee Seung-hyung quickly processed the situation in his head.

Association side – Yoo Young-ho wants the dimensional gate closed immediately.

Government side – The Minister-nim wants to hunt the monsters coming out of the dimensional gate and close it at an appropriate time.

“…Hoo.”

If Lee Seung-hyung had had a little more leeway, he might have supported the government’s opinion. His paternal family, which could be considered his background, holds significant influence in the current government.

However, Lee Seung-hyung had no more hesitation in fulfilling his duty as a Hero.

“I’m coming down soon, Gaeul-ssi.”

The Brown Bear’s fist surged towards the dimensional gate’s core.

* * *

Amidst the Otherworld wind flowing from beyond the gate, the presence of ‘that’ which should not exist was felt.

Blue flames.

The enemy of highest priority that must be eliminated first and foremost. A Spirit.

Jjireureureu.

The monster threw itself towards the dimensional gate.

* * *

At the same time, Hero Association Headquarters.

“Dimensional gate reaction lost! Monster reactions are starting to disappear!”

At the operator’s report, Yoo Young-ho clenched his fists tightly. There was an undeniable sense of unease, but in the end, Lee Seung-hyung had succeeded in destroying the dimensional gate, fulfilling his duty and mission as a Hero.

[Yoo Young-ho! Do you know what you’ve just done?!]

From one side of the screen, a speaker icon flashed, and an angry voice was heard. Below the screen, which read ‘SOUND ONLY’, was the text: Republic of Korea Government Monster Countermeasures Department.

“I know. I blocked the dimensional gate. Is there a problem with that?”

Young-ho, having calmed down, replied in a composed voice. That only further provoked the other party.

[Problem? Prooooblem?!]

“Yes. It was none other than the President-nim who said that the dimensional gate must be closed by any means necessary, wasn’t it?”

Young-ho referred to what the President had said during a TV debate when he was a candidate. He quoted exactly what the then-candidate President had said during a debate on the topic of ‘efficiency of dimensional gate opening and closing’.

“While I don’t know about other things, I do acknowledge the President-nim’s words on that matter-“

[Are you saying that, knowing Lee Seung-hyung is the President-nim’s nephew, right now?!]

Young-ho clicked his tongue inwardly.

[What? Sending him alone to block the dimensional gate? I told you to close the dimensional gate, did I tell you to send Lee Seung-hyung alone?! If even a single fingertip of Lee Seung-hyung gets hurt! All of you are getting fired, fired!]

“I apologize, Minister-nim. The signal isn’t coming through well due to the dimensional gate’s interference. Jijik.”

[You fresh-faced bastard, are you playing games with a Minister right now-]

Young-ho infused mana into his hand and crushed his smartphone. The operator, who had merely handed over his smartphone when a call came in, swallowed tears as he thought about the remaining installment months, then hastily connected the signal as it flashed urgently.

“This is Headquarters! Agent Lee Seung-hyung?!”

Lee Seung-hyung’s face appeared on the Headquarters’ screen. For someone who had closed a dimensional gate, he looked quite anxious and fidgety.

Yoo Young-ho instinctively realized that something big had happened.

“What’s wrong?!”

[Th-this is Brown Bear! I closed the dimensional gate! But….]

“But what?!”

Yoo Young-ho shouted irritably. Lee Seung-hyung stammered and turned his smartwatch screen towards the sky.

[A new dimensional gate has appeared in the sky! And something, something keeps coming through from it! It’s not a monster, it’s like sharp hooks-]

Jjaejaejaeng!

Lee Seung-hyung’s signal was cut off with the sound of something breaking. A momentary silence descended upon the Headquarters’ situation room.

“…….”

Yoo Young-ho crushed a coffee can with trembling hands. The video of the Dodgers Gate incident, which he had replayed hundreds of times. It was clearly no illusion that that video was coming to mind now.

“Check monster reactions! Right now!”

“Yes, yes!”

The operator, flustered but quick, scanned the mana distribution near the dimensional gate again. A system that estimates monster grades by analyzing mana scattered in the atmosphere.

The operator gasped at the values on his monitor and looked back at Yoo Young-ho.

“Estimated S-rank over…! It’s a ‘Demonic Species’!”

Yoo Young-ho’s vision blurred.

* * *

Lee Seung-hyung couldn’t believe the reality of the scene unfolding before his eyes.

‘Why?’

He had succeeded in closing the dimensional gate. The punch, unleashed by drawing out the Brown Bear’s supernatural ability to its maximum, had cleanly destroyed the dimensional gate’s core.

But suddenly, right above that dimensional gate, a precursor to a new dimensional gate appeared in the sky.

Kkadedeuk, Kkagagagak!

Violet-light claws, emerging from the cracks in the void, were forcibly tearing open the rift. One claw was as large as his entire body, so Lee Seung-hyung enlarged the Brown Bear behind him even further and struck the rift.

But that punch collided with the monster’s claw, causing Lee Seung-hyung to be thrown back instead.

“Euaaak!”

Lee Seung-hyung, who had rolled against a rock and hit a tree, coughed up blood. The internal injuries from being overwhelmed by the immense mana were far greater than mere bruises.

“N-no!”

Lee Seung-hyung instinctively sensed that this ominous monster was a greater catastrophe than any he had ever seen. It was a conviction as a Hero who had dedicated all his passion to saving the world, as a human who felt the instinct for survival more keenly than anyone, and as one who wielded the supernatural ability of ‘flames’.

Kwajik!

The claw gripped the world’s rift tightly and tore it open. The monster pushed its head through.

“A bird?”

A bird’s head, imbued with violet flames, popped out from beyond the dimension. The monstrous bird looked around, then pushed its head further forward.

Jjijijik!

The rift tore wide open. The monstrous bird’s body suddenly burst out of the rift in one go and landed on the summit of Gwanaksan Mountain.

Kuung!

The dimensional gate, torn and ragged from the monstrous bird’s emergence, quietly disappeared, as if its role had been fulfilled, filling in the rift.

■■■■■■.

It stood with its two legs rooted in the rock and spread its wings. The violet flames burning fiercely between its feathers spread to the surrounding trees, creating a massive inferno.

Hwarureureuk!

Gwanaksan Mountain, now dark with the setting sun, began to burn fiercely with violet flames. Lee Seung-hyung was speechless at the catastrophe unfolding before his eyes.

‘It’s because of me.’

He could have closed it faster. But because he kept hesitating, there was a delay, and he couldn’t close the dimensional gate properly. As a result, that monster set foot on Earth, in Seoul.

■■■■?

Lee Seung-hyung’s eyes met the monstrous bird’s. It was a brief eye contact, less than a second, but under its overwhelming mana and presence, Lee Seung-hyung’s Brown Bear flickered out like a weak match flame.

■■■■■■.

The monstrous bird soared high into the sky, as if it couldn’t be bothered to even lay a hand on such a lowly existence. Lee Seung-hyung could only watch, terrified, as the monstrous bird ascended into the heavens.