Chapter 97: World on the Brink

“Could you explain in a bit more detail?”

“Hmm……”  

The Statue, after a moment of hesitation, suddenly pointed outside and said,  “Do you know the identity of those monsters?”

“No, I don’t.”

“Those monsters all came flowing out from the Tower.”

“The Tower? You mean this Tower here?”

“That’s right. When the Tower reaches saturation, the monsters created within overflow outwards.”

I suddenly heard something incredible.  

No wonder no matter how many I defeated, more kept appearing.  

The reason was finally revealed here.  

But what followed was even more shocking.  

“The problem is, the monsters here are just a tiny fraction of the total.”

“There are already this many?”

“That’s right. So what do you think happened to the other monsters?”

I thought for a moment.  

Then the word the Statue had mentioned earlier—’anomaly’—came to mind.  

The overflowing monsters in Zone5, the Tower, and the anomaly happening in the Present World—all of these combined sparked a hypothesis.  

“Could it be… a Gate?”

“You think quickly. Just as expected from someone who passed our challenge.”

A Gate.  

Its true nature was revealed.  

Although the details were still unknown, according to the Statue, monsters overflowing from the Tower were crossing over to Earth through the Gates.  

“So, this anomaly…”

“Recently, vibrations were felt from the Tower. Probably, a small crack has formed somewhere.”

“I felt it myself, so I’m sure. When the Blue Spear touches the ground, the tremors of the earth become even clearer.”

“Judging by the scale, I thought the Present World where you, Seo Jun, live might have been affected as well.”

I had accidentally learned the secret of the Gates.  

Scientists who claimed to be top experts hadn’t been able to uncover this secret despite their research.  

Yet I, a gamer who spent most time at home, learned it so easily.  

Perhaps I am the only person on Earth who knows this secret.  

“That’s right. Recently, a Gate Burning happened.”

“Oh, that’s what you call that incident? Back in our time, it was called ‘Ragnarok.’ Although, no, it’s not quite the Age of Destruction yet.”

“Age of Destruction?”

“As time passes, more Gates will open, and monsters will grow stronger. If the number of monsters bursting out surpasses what we can endure… that moment will be ‘Ragnarok.'”

“That’s what we call the Age of Destruction.”

The two Statues kindly continued their explanation.  

At that moment, hearing the word ‘Age of Destruction’ sent chills down my spine, and I instinctively asked, “Then your world also ended in destruction?”

“That’s right.”

“Then… when will the Age of Destruction come to the world I live in?”

It was an important question.  

The Age of Destruction—  

The destruction of the world.  

When exactly would it come to Earth?  

I hoped, at least, it wouldn’t arrive during the rest of my life where I wanted to live comfortably.  

“Not much time is left, I’m afraid.”

“How long exactly?”

“It depends on the timing, but just like our bodies, the Tower is also old and rusted. Converting that to human years… not more than 20. Actually, probably less than 10 years.”

I heard shocking news.  

Within 10 years, the Age of Destruction will arrive on Earth too.  

“This particular Age of Destruction is special. The Tower, which had been containing the remnants of destruction, is collapsing. This means not only Seo Jun’s Present World, but all worlds and dimensions connected to the Tower are facing ruin.”

“The Tower will collapse? But I heard it has been guarded for a very long time?”

“That’s true. The Tower was built at the dawn of time to seal away the remnants of destruction. Afterwards, countless people attempted to conquer the Tower to overcome destruction, but…”

“All failed.”

“Therefore, we have endlessly guarded this place.”

“Until now, we thought the fall of the Tower meant our end.”

“That was true… until you, Seo Jun, appeared.”

The gazes of the two Statues suddenly grew heavy.  

I felt I understood exactly what they meant.  

“By any chance, is the method to overcome destruction…”

“We mentioned it before, didn’t we?”

“There’s only one way. Conquer the Tower.”

Conquer the Tower.  

That was the qualification I received through the Challenge when I first met the Statues.  

Naturally, I never climbed that mysterious Tower, and until now, I had not paid any attention to it at all.  

Yet now, I had just heard the shocking news that if the Tower was not climbed, the world would fall into destruction.  

“Can’t someone else conquer it instead of me?”

“Soon, an ‘opportunity’ will be granted to Seo Jun’s Present World as well.”

“An opportunity?”

“That means the Tower will also appear in the Present World. So those people will be able to enter the Tower freely?”

“No, they too must pass the Challenge.”

“Their rank and blessings will be lower compared to ours.”

“Still, they will have the chance to climb the Tower.”

It was a small relief.  

Even if it’s not me, there are others who can climb the Tower and solve the Age of Destruction.  

However, from what the two Statues said, I could sense an ominous feeling.  

“But until now, has anyone ever succeeded in overcoming destruction like that?”

“No.”

“Which is why we still claim the position of the Tower’s guardians.”

“Those who climb the Tower through what is effectively their ‘last chance’ are simply clutching at straws while drowning.”

“From our perspective, there is only one who can conquer the Tower.”

“…Who is it?”

“That’s you.”

“Seo Jun.”

Their heavy gazes regarded me as if I were the final hope.  

“Haah…” I sighed deeply and left the mine.  

***

“Why do you have no appetite today?”

“No appetite?”

“Want some more?”

“Yeah!”

“Good, eat a lot, Blaze.”

The usually delicious spicy delivery food tasted bland today.  

My mind was filled with the words and gazes of the two Statues.  

“How am I supposed to climb the Tower?”

Tower climbing.  

If that’s the case, they should have awakened me as a strong warrior or mage.  

Something like a descendant of Ares or Athena instead of Hephaestus.  

Then climbing the Tower would be much easier, wouldn’t it?  

‘…Or maybe not.’  

Come to think of it, that’s probably not true.  

If I had awakened with such powers, I might have never even left the house and still be stuck at level 1.  

At best, I awakened as a descendant of Hermes, using stealth just to quietly go to the convenience store.  

No matter how I think about it, being a blacksmith suits me best.  

“Ah, can’t I just send my assistants to climb the Tower?”

Suddenly, this thought crossed my mind.  

My assistants were already handling the mine on their own, weren’t they?  

I thought I’d check again the next time I went back.  

“Not long has passed, but why are there so many messages?”

After calming my mind, I saw my inbox overflowing.  

Most were from Nam Bora, so I called her immediately.  

She must have been waiting for my call, because she answered in less than three seconds.  

– “Vulcanus sir!”  

“Is something wrong again?”

– “Since this morning, a guest has arrived at the Guild.”

“A guest?”

– “From the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The same person who came last time, Diplomat Jeon Goeun, the Hunter Affairs Officer.”

“Why? Wasn’t the contract and payment already completed?”

– “Well……”

“I’ll go then. Is it okay to come now?”

– “Yes. They said they don’t mind waiting and are still in the reception room.”

“I’m on my way.”

– “Thank you.”

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I don’t understand why they keep showing up unannounced like last time.  

‘…Ah, I have refused most visits anyway.’  

Well, even so.  

How can a government agency just barge in without an appointment like this?  

Isn’t this a kind of abuse of power?  

Nam Bora probably had no choice.  

No matter how confident she was, she couldn’t just turn away government officials.  

I reluctantly possessed the body of Guild Master 1.  

At the same time, Nam Bora arrived and opened the door to greet me.  

“You don’t have to come all the way upstairs now. I remember where the reception room is.”

“That’s not the issue. Just like when you brought the Sword Saint before, it’s not fitting for Vulcanus sir to go alone.”

“Oh, it’s not that big of a deal.”

“It’s almost disappointing.”

I wanted to call Park Sang-hyun, the team leader, too, but he was busy with the Gate conquest, so I couldn’t.  

“Hmm, does that mean the Chairman and the Sword Saint came this time as well?”

“No. This time, the Hunter Affairs Officer came alone.”

“I thought they’d come with backup no matter what. Surprising.”

“They seem to have regained some composure. Their attitude was much more polite than last time.”

“Still don’t know why they came, right?”

“They said they want to speak directly with Vulcanus sir and have been tight-lipped in the reception room.”

“It’s been since morning? That’s quite a while.”

“Yes.”

If they’d been waiting since morning, that meant at least half a day.  

When I finally arrived at the reception room, I wondered why she had come back.  

She must have sensed me entering because Jeon Goeun stood up and looked my way.  

“Thank you for coming, Vulcanus Hunter.” She bowed politely as she greeted me.  

I suddenly remembered our first meeting.  

Back then, she was stiff… no, so stiff she almost looked arrogant, holding her head high.  

Now, that atmosphere was completely gone.  

She seemed much more at ease, and there was respect in her gaze.  

“I am Vulcanus.”

Since I couldn’t read her intentions yet, I gave a formal greeting and took a seat.  

Before I could even start the conversation, she spoke first.  

“First, I want to apologize.”

“Apologize?”

“I won’t make any lame excuses. I sincerely apologize for everything: leaking your information to Japan, trying to use you for diplomatic purposes, and all the other matters.”

She bowed her head again.  

I expected her to start with excuses, but she offered a clean apology.  

Since it seemed like she wouldn’t straighten up unless I responded, I nodded to accept her apology.  

Although I accepted it, I still didn’t know her true intentions, so I didn’t turn my heart over yet.  

I had to listen to her first, then judge.  

“I know an apology with words alone is insufficient. You may have already received them, but as a token of my apology, I sent two S-grade materials Japan provided as support. I hope you find them satisfactory.”

“Oh, so that’s what it was about?”

“It was a hurried decision, and I wanted to apologize in person, so it was a bit late. I’m sorry.”

“No, the materials… I liked them.”

The items were materials received as rewards for producing gear for Japanese Hunters.  

The Kuro-Oni’s Horn and Yuki-onna’s Ice Crystal.  

Now I understood why the contract didn’t specify those excessive rewards in detail.  

I hadn’t expected them to be an apology gift.  

“So you came to apologize?”

“I wanted to, but unfortunately, I had business to attend to.”

“Then, please get to the point quickly. We’re both busy.”

Jeon Goeun nodded and pulled out a document.  

“It’s a support request from India.”

“India?”

“Yes. Due to the Second Gate Burning, all regions of India except Mumbai and Delhi have fallen to the monsters.”

My goodness!  

All regions except two cities have been taken over by monsters?  

That vast country, India?  

India is huge and has an overwhelming population, so it was thought unlikely to be easily overrun.  

But it seemed the situation there was far worse than anyone expected.  

“India is preparing to launch a recapture operation in Bengaluru and the surrounding areas.”

“Why is this being brought to me…?”

“They requested Vulcanus sir’s help to produce equipment needed for the operation.”

“Could this be another political diplomatic issue?”

“No. I stake my position on this. It seems they recognized your existence after seeing Japan’s Gate Burning.”

That made sense.  

Even though neither the Korean government nor the Hunter Association announced our support to Japan, word had already spread worldwide.  

The items marked with Vulcanus’s Mark used by Japanese Hunters had been very powerful.  

Thinking back, I wondered if I should have left out the Mark, but this might be a boost to my reputation as well.  

“So, this time, you want me to make items for India… “

“Yes.” 

Jeon Goeun started stacking the documents she had placed under the table onto the desk.  

“Thud!”   

Just a glance showed there were easily more than ten stacks covering the table.  

“Requests for item production are coming from all over the world directed at Vulcanus sir.”