DEB 98

“What exactly did the Bureau Director ask for?”  

It wasn’t until after they finished eating and were enjoying some apples for dessert that the topic finally came up again. 

Vina, who had momentarily forgotten about it, set down his fork with a slight look of realization.

“He asked us to investigate a gate.”

“For them to ask us, the gate must be pretty high-level, right?”  

“It’s classified as a top-tier gate. According to the Bureau’s hunters who did reconnaissance, it seems to be strongly connected to the Demon Realm.”

“That’s a funny thing to say. Aren’t most gates connected to the Demon Realm? It’s literally fragments of that world seeping into ours.”

“The hunters from the Bureau would know that. If they specifically mentioned it, then this gate must be different from the ones we’ve seen before.”

“Well, to know for sure, we’ll have to talk directly to the Bureau hunters who did the reconnaissance.”

“Will you allow it?”

Vina, who had been discussing the situation, deferred the final decision to Huiyun. 

Huiyun checked the calendar, confirming the date when the non-aggression pact with the demons was signed.

There were still over two weeks left.

Since the pact was in place, it was unlikely that any high-ranking demons would surface. 

To make sure, Huiyun called for Siho, who had been resting in his room. 

The silver fox softly cried as he came into the living room.

“Siho, do you have any bad feelings or anything?”

– Yipp.

The fox wagged his tail and shook is head. 

He then approached Huiyun, scratching his thigh as if asking to be held. 

Huiyun gently picked up the divine beast, making his decision.

“There’s no harm in checking it out. Let’s meet with the Bureau’s hunters and hear the full story before proceeding. Conveniently, this week was already scheduled for a group gate raid, so we’ll replace that with this mission.”

“I’ll contact the Bureau right away.”

“I’ll prepare communication dolls for our team since it’s been a while since we had an outing together.”

“I’ll also notify the temple, Yasha.”

With the plan decided, the disciples quickly moved to prepare. 

Those left in the living room were Huiyun, Huigang, Vita, Zenith, and Ash.

“Hmm?”

Noticing the remaining members, Huiyun glanced at Ash curiously. 

Huigang, Vita, and Zenith also turned their eyes toward him.

“Ash, aren’t you going to leave?”

“Huh? For what?”

“You’re leading the Ash Guild, aren’t you? Don’t you think you should at least give your guild members a heads-up?”

“Oh, no worries. No worries. That’s what I have an assistant guild leader for.”

“Are you sure that’s okay? Last I checked, your assistant guild leader was plotting to knock you off your pedestal.”

Vita voiced the same concern Huiyun had. 

Over the past week, Vita had visited the Ash Guild and witnessed what Huiyun had also seen—the assistant guild leader dragging Ash around by the ear.

Despite their worries, Ash just waved it off with a smile. 

Huiyun couldn’t help but feel a little sympathy for the poor assistant guild leader who ended up in the Ash Guild.

Though it was unfortunate, there was little Huiyun could do. 

The man had clearly been drawn to the guild by fate. 

The best Huiyun could hope for was that he would be compensated fairly for his work and live comfortably.

“The more time I spend here, the more I wonder if humanity’s future should really be in the hands of hunters like that,” Huigang muttered, watching the carefree Ash lounge about.

“…He’s still a responsible kid. Just trust him.”

– Ring… Ring…

“Uh, is that your assistant guild leader calling you? Maybe you should pick up.”

– Ring… Ring…

“What? No, no. That’s not a call.”  

– Tuut…Tuut… 

“…You said he’s responsible?”

Ash, please.

No matter how much Huiyun defended his disciple, it was in vain when the disciple didn’t even bother to prove him right. 

Watching Ash mute his phone and pretend nothing happened, Huiyun feigned ignorance and began preparing for the gate mission.

Thanks to Vina and Moot’s efficiency, they gathered information from the Bureau hunters and were ready to leave for the gate in less than a day.

“We’re heading out.”

“…Isn’t it a bit late to be going? Feels unsettling to go to the gate at this hour.”

Huigang expressed concern when Huiyun and the disciples left the house around 2 a.m. 

It was a dark, late hour, but Huiyun glanced at the six S-rank disciples standing behind him.

There were six S-ranks in total. 

Huigang caught on to what Huiyun was implying and sighed.

“Just because you have S-ranks with you doesn’t mean you’re invincible.”

“Don’t worry, Yasha’s brother! I will serve Yasha with the utmost dedication!”

“…That one’s way of speaking hasn’t changed, huh?”  

“No, I suppose it’s similar to how I can’t seem to change my own manner of speech.”

Despite always saying he would, Huiyun still used old-fashioned language when talking to his disciples, just as Verita stuck to the ancient way of speaking he had used for centuries. 

The difference was that while Huiyun at least made an effort, Verita had no intention of changing his way of speaking.

As Huiyun shook his head at the thought, Huigang leaned against the door, watching him leave with a slightly exasperated expression.

“…Well, at least I’m confident they won’t leave you behind.”

“Leave our master behind? What an insult!”

“Be careful. If you want something, send me a message. If you run into trouble and can’t use your phone, use one of those dolls to contact me.”

“Got it.”

The dolls Moot had made for Huigang had been upgraded to support light video communication. 

Although the upgrade had somehow added a pre-recorded message of “Please look after me kindly,” Huigang seemed satisfied with the dolls since they now supported video.

Since the recording was at least less embarrassing than the “I love you, Yasha” version, Huiyun handed over the doll to his brother and then looked down at the one Moot had given him, hanging at his waist, before embracing Huigang.

“Let me know if anything happens.”

“I will.”

With that, they said their farewells and began the journey. 

Since information about the Dimensional Threat Countermeasures Committee had already started spreading among local guilds, they decided to avoid taking a car and traveled on foot.

Having perfected stealth during past wars, they moved swiftly and silently, quickly leaving the area around the mansion.

“We still have about three hours to go from here.”

“Even at our pace?”

“Yes.”

When the disciples were determined to move quickly, they could travel as fast as a car. 

Even so, a three-hour journey meant they were heading quite a distance, so Huiyun prepared for a long walk. 

Suddenly, his body was lifted off the ground.

“…Hmm?”

“You’ll never make it if you walk. Just rest.”

Ash, who had picked him up and was moving at top speed, added that Huiyun’s body needed to be protected since it was still weak.

The sound of the wind rushing by was fierce. Huiyun relaxed in Ash’s arms as he adjusted his hair.

Well, this isn’t so bad.

Huiyun could move at the same pace as his disciples if he wanted, but it would take a toll on his body and wouldn’t last long. 

It was better to conserve his strength for any emergencies at the gate. 

After three hours of silent running, they arrived at the gate.

– Cough

“Yasha!”

“…Keep your voice down. The demonic energy caught me off guard for a moment, that’s all.”

As soon as his feet touched the ground, the demonic energy that had been lurking around the gate surged toward him like an attack. 

Startled, Huiyun steadied himself and scanned the surroundings.

Purple miasma tinged with a reddish hue was spreading from the gate, killing plants and turning the soil dry and brittle wherever it touched.

“Yasha, this is…”

“Yasha.”

Moot and Zenith both spoke at the same time. 

Given their respective powers over death and life, they had sensed the danger quicker than the others.

Huiyun let out a hollow laugh, now understanding why the Bureau Director had handed this gate over to the committee.

“This… is mana tainted by death.”

Mana tainted by death.

It was a force distinct from demonic energy.

Even though demons were malevolent beings, they were still living creatures. 

The demonic energy they carried, while evil and heavy, was part of their life force, similar to how dragons and humans used mana.

But this wasn’t just demonic energy. 

Mana tainted by death didn’t belong to any category. 

It was more like death itself.

Anything that came into contact with it was dragged toward death.

Humans couldn’t distinguish this from regular demonic energy, which was why the Bureau thought this gate was more closely linked to the demons than other gates. 

But for Huiyun, who knew the true nature of the tainted mana, it was different.

This gate wasn’t just connected to the Demon World. 

It was a forbidden zone, even for demons.

“It’s the Black Swamp.”

The Black Swamp, a place where those who lived on mana and wielded it were particularly vulnerable, had manifested as a gate. If left unchecked, it would cause serious problems. 

Just as Huiyun turned to inform his disciples—

The system’s notification appeared before his eyes.

[You have successfully deduced the identity of the gate. The system will now verify the information regarding the Black Swamp.]

[The gate’s rank has been updated.]

[? Rank Gate, ‘Black Swamp.’]

[The system has issued a quest.]

[Request for Assistance! Special System Quest]

The system requests that you investigate the forbidden area of the Demon World. Enter the gate, investigate the Black Swamp, and defeat the ancient wraith that resides below!

Objectives: Investigate the Black Swamp (0/1), Defeat the ancient wraith (0/1)  

Rewards: System cooperation for balance, Level up a chosen skill by 1

“…A quest?”

The blue quest window appeared before everyone’s eyes.

– Yipp!

Siho wagged his tail happily, letting out a light yip.