Gyeonggi Province, South Korea – Icheon Outskirts Gate.
Date: March 27, 2030.
The sky outside the Gate rippled like broken glass at the end of sunset. It thrummed slowly in the air far overhead over the shattered asphalt of the abandoned factory lot. There were tons of people behind barricades. Some held phones, others stood stiff, pale with worry. A Gate, even one of C-rank, was not to be taken lightly.
There waited twelve hunters at the edge of the vortex. The air was cold, and their breath misted while waiting, both comfortably, well-armed, and warily. They were all rookie members of the Red Ace Guild except the leader, who was a veteran.
The Red Ace Guild was among the top 10 guild in South Korea, in fact they where in the number eight position on South Korea's highest ranked guilds' leaderboard. Each bore the crimson armband stitched with their emblem: a rising tide of blood beneath a silver crescent moon.
"Status check," barked Yu Ji-hwan, their leader.
He was a veteran B-rank hunter in his mid-thirties with piercing eyes that did not blink much. He had a tall yet muscular build covered in battle gear with mana-threaded fabric reinforcement. A longsword was strapped to his back, the scabbard worn from use. He looked over the team with a sweeping gaze.
"Weapons ready. Comms clear. Vitals stable," replied Min Seul-gi, a C-rank support mage and healer. She wore white robes inscribed with protective runes that glowed faintly in the dim light.
"Shield units?" Ji-hwan continued.
"Good to go," grunted Kang Do-yun, a D-rank tank with a boulder-sized shield strapped to his back. He adjusted his stance, armor clanking softly.
The rest of the team nodded or murmured in agreement.
There were 7 D-ranks, 4 C-ranks, and him— a B-rank. A typical C-rank dungeon team—adequate, if not over-prepared. The Red Ace Guild prided itself on an absolute Victory.
"Then let's move."
****
The world was warped as they passed through the portal.
A blast of icy air struck them in the face. When their eyes opened, they stood in the middle of a huge cave excavated out of ice and rock. The terrain of the dungeon opened before them like an icy, barren wasteland. The walls sparkled with mana-crystals, softly glowing blue, and bathing the area in otherworldly light
"Damn," muttered Park Hye-jin, a green-haired C-rank archer. She wrapped her scarf tightly around her. "It's colder than normal for an average C-rank gate."
"This is most certainly Ice-type," Seul-gi puffed, her breath misting. "Mana density is off the charts."
Ji-hwan raised a hand and pointed forward. "Formation Alpha. Two flanks, one rear guard. Hye-jin, you're up front. Do not break ranks unless I say so."
They began their advance.
Monsters appeared suddenly—Ice Wolves, whose fur was now pale blue, eyes glowing white. They numbered five, and their unnatural strides traversed the slippery ground.
"Incoming!" shouted Do-yun.
The vanguard moved swiftly. Do-yun raised his shield, bracing against the first wolf's attack. Steel clashed. Seul-gi raised her staff and started casting out incantations. A blast of fire burst forth from her hand, a fireball which reduced one of the wolves to ashes. Hye-jin released her arrow with exacting precision, impaling another in flight.
Ji-hwan's sword slid quietly out of his scabbard. He dove low and fast, beheading two wolves with one stroke. The third screamed and took off running to get away.
"Do not let it escape!" he ordered.
D-Rank Jung Woo-shik ran over and sliced it down the side, groan as it drops to the group.
"Team, status?" Ji-hwan barked.
"Minor scratches," said Seul-gi.
"All good," Do-yun grinned. "Haven't even warmed up."
"Save the bravado for later," Ji-hwan muttered, scanning the path ahead. The wolves had come from deeper within—a sign that the boss room might not be far.
****
They continued on. The terrain shifted subtly. The ground cracked beneath their boots. Strange ice pillars stuck out from the earth, some spiked, others smooth as glass. The walls narrowed, funnelling them into a long corridor.
2 hours into the raid, and finally the group decided to take a short break before heading towards the boss.
While resting on a naturally made stone slab, Woo-shik, one of the younger D-rankers, said quietly, "Leader. do you think these gates will ever stop appearing?"
Min Seul-gi sat next to him, drinking tea from her thermos. "Not until we know where they're coming from."
"Ten years ago," Hye-jin went on, softly, "the gates started to open. Tokyo first and foremost, then Seoul, then New York, one city following another."
"The military attempted," Do-yun described. "Tanks, drones, artillery. Nothing was effective. Horrors tore through entire battalions like it was food."
Ji-hwan spoke, his tone cold. "Thirty percent of the world population in year one. Entire nations wiped out. Cities brought to ashes."
"But then something within the humans changed," Seul-gi explained. "Power emerged within us. No one understood how or why. Humanity simply started getting unexplanably stronger, some assumes it's the gods help, other assume it's thanks to the gate monster fragments, but the truth is still unknown. And now that we have the strength, we started fighting back."
"We're hunters now," Woo-shik whispered. "Fighting to stop the end of the world."
"Right," Ji-hwan stood up, "Break time is over. We're leaving."
****
The path grew darker. Crystals dimmed. The walls glowed less. Soon, they stood before an enormous chamber entrance.
The boss room.
It loomed like the mouth of a monster—a wide stone arch frozen over, carved with ancient runes no one could understand. The air leaking from inside was frigid, more biting than before.
Hye-jin lowered her bow. "That doesn't look C-rank."
"It doesn't," Ji-hwan agreed. "Eyes open. Shields front."
The twelve hunters lined up slowly, standing just before the threshold. Inside the chamber, shadows stirred. A pale blue light flickered. The temperature dropped by several degrees.
No sounds.
Just silence.
Breathless, frozen silence.
Ji-hwan exhaled and gripped his sword.
"Everyone... stay close. What's inside might be stronger than your average C-rank boss monster ."
To be continued...