Chapter 17: Master of Telekinesis

“…Honestly, I’m not sure if this is the right thing to do…”

Yoon Seulah was in a car, heading toward the newly appeared black Gate.

“You’re doing very well.”

And, naturally, Hyunseung Lee was sitting next to her.

“Are you sure this is really okay…?”

“I told you, it’s fine. Should I show you one more time?”

She had explained over and over that, while she was a Gate Returnee, she definitely wasn’t suffering from any kind of mental illness, and finally managed to prove it—so now they could come together.

And the way she proved it was…

“Gate! Gate! Gate! Gate! Gate!”

She kept talking about Gates, over and over again, on her own.

That was how she showed her mind was perfectly intact.

Of course, the way she proved it actually made her seem even more insane, but after repeating it several times, Yoon Seulah accepted it.

That Hyunseung Lee was different from other Gate Returnees.

“Please stop doing that… Anyway, I’m only bringing you because you said you know a lot about black Gates. Don’t do anything weird, okay?”

“Don’t worry.”

Hyunseung answered confidently, as if to say that was the one thing she didn’t have to worry about.

If things went as he expected, there wouldn’t even be a chance to do anything weird.

Other Rankers who had been summoned, just like him, would be near the Abyss Gate.

The monsters on the first floor of the Abyss wouldn’t last a second, even if Hyunseung Lee did nothing at all.

There wouldn’t be a moment for that cursed energy to spread.

‘And if I see that bastard who looks like Sirbert, I’ll have a word with him.’

Now that he was back in Korea, that guy would be nearby too.

If he heard an Abyss Gate had appeared, he’d definitely come running.

‘No matter what the reason, purposely not attacking the Abyss is insane.’

No sane person would make that decision.

With no solution for the cursed energy, even a small amount leaking out would be disastrous.

You’d have to be crazy to make a call like that.

“But really, how did you know a black Gate would appear? There’s never been anything like this before…”

“Uh… just a hunch? Instinct, I guess?”

He brushed it off with a vague answer.

She still looked unconvinced, but there was nothing else he could do.

A world related to Ventiel.

Abyss Gates and so on. To explain everything would be a long and unbelievable story, and there was no real reason he had to explain it anyway.

“Let’s just go. Nothing much will happen.”

“Is that another hunch?”

“Yeah, something like that.”

Though Yoon Seulah didn’t understand at all, she obediently drove toward the black Gate.

Just as Hyunseung said, a black variant Gate had appeared, and as the team leader of Korea’s top Guild, she had an obligation to be there.

After driving a bit further, they saw a military unit blocking the road with barricades.

Unlike the other cars turning back, Yoon Seulah drove right up to the barricade.

“Due to the Gate’s appearance, you can’t go any further—oh? Yoon Seulah?”

The soldier, reciting his lines mechanically, recognized Yoon Seulah and saluted in surprise.

“Your ID… Yes. Verified. Is the person next to you also a member of the Taeryong Guild?”

“He’s with me.”

“Yes, please wait a moment.”

As the soldiers hurried to move the barricade, Yoon Seulah asked, “We’re still pretty far from the Gate site, so why are you blocking things off already?”

“We’re just following orders… Ah, I heard it was a command from the Taeryong Guild Master.”

“…Nam Tae-min?”

For someone like Nam Tae-min, setting up a control zone was nothing.

But since he never did anything without a reason, Yoon Seulah was surprised.

‘Did Nam Tae-min also think this Gate was dangerous?’

No, something about this felt off.

“You can go through now. Good luck!”

Passing through the control zone and going deeper inside, the sense of unease only grew.

“There’s… no one here.”

It was like a ghost town, not a single person in sight.

“Even for a control zone, it shouldn’t be this empty.”

With a normal Gate, they wouldn’t block off such a wide area.

They’d keep the zone as small as possible to avoid disrupting daily life, and public officials or other Awakened would come and go as needed.

‘But here?’

They’d blocked off such a huge area, yet there wasn’t a single person around.

This was on the level of an emergency evacuation order.

And the one who gave that order was none other than Nam Tae-min…

“They don’t usually lock things down like this, right?”

“Yeah. They say it was an order from our Guild Master, Nam Tae-min… but I have no idea why.”

Even if it was a variant Gate, it was only different in color—no other unusual features had been found yet.

Yoon Seulah found that strange, and Hyunseung Lee was thinking the same thing.

“Nam Tae-min. Nam Tae-min…”

It was a name he’d never heard before.

When everyone was talking about the First Awakened, the Savior, and all that, he’d been in the world of Ventiel.

But—

‘Something’s weird.’

He felt a strange sense of déjà vu.

This was supposedly the first time an Abyss Gate had appeared, but the orders from Nam Tae-min were as if he understood the Abyss Gate’s danger perfectly.

He’d completely evacuated ordinary people with no immunity to Abyss energy, and blocked off a wide area to prevent the energy from spreading.

Then, as soon as Abyss Monsters emerged, he’d have them all killed on the spot.

That was how you’d stop even a little of the energy from leaking, and Nam Tae-min’s response was flawless.

‘…Is it just a coincidence?’

For now, that was the only way to think of it.

There was no way Nam Tae-min could know about Abyss Gates.

Lost in their own thoughts, they finally arrived near the Abyss Gate.

As the two got out of the car, a few people with the same insignia on their chests gathered around.

“You’ve arrived, Team Leader.”

Their faces didn’t look good—they were all Taeryong Guild members.

“It really is… a black Gate.”

As Yoon Seulah looked up at the ominously swirling black Gate, she heard something unexpected.

“Sorry you just got here, but… you’ll need to leave.”

“…What?”

“It’s the Guild Master’s order. Just in case, all remaining Guild members should withdraw outside the control zone.”

That explained the strange looks on everyone’s faces.

And soon, Yoon Seulah’s face matched theirs.

“Just in case… we need to leave? Not stay, just in case?”

“Yes. We asked several times because we didn’t understand either, but he said the same thing.”

“…Where is Nam Tae-min right now?”

“He’s right in front of the Gate.”

Yoon Seulah headed straight for the Gate.

Behind her, a Guild member called out, “We kept trying to talk to him, but it was no use… We’ll wait outside the zone, as ordered.”

One by one, the Taeryong Guild members got in their cars and left.

Their faces were full of confusion to the very end.

In contrast, as Hyunseung Lee walked forward, a sense of certainty grew on his face.

‘Just in case, he wants everyone to leave…!’

Any normal person would have called in more people to be extra careful.

But in front of Abyss energy, gathering more people would only be a disaster.

Hyunseung Lee was sure now.

‘Nam Tae-min. He knows about the Abyss Gate.’

That wasn’t the only strange thing.

‘Not a single Ranker showed up.’

Maybe they were blocked by the soldiers.

But Rankers were Rankers for a reason.

They could easily sneak past ordinary people’s eyes, yet not a single one had made it in.

…Something was off.

As he thought this and approached the Gate, Yoon Seulah’s voice rang out.

“Do you really think that makes sense? You’re going to stop a Gate Break by yourself!”

The Abyss Gate was as tall as a five-story apartment building.

Yoon Seulah stood beneath it, shouting.

And the man facing her—

‘That’s Nam Tae-min.’

He was tall, with neatly combed hair and sharp eyes, giving off a cold, commanding aura.

Definitely someone Hyunseung Lee had never seen before.

“Sigh… This is why I told you not to report to me, Seulah.”

“What are you—never mind. Stop being stupid and call the Guild members back! You said a Gate Break could happen at any moment!”

From Yoon Seulah’s perspective, it made no sense.

A Gate Break could happen any second, and monsters would pour out, yet he was telling her to leave.

“You… There’s a limit to how much you can look down on people.”

No wonder she was angry.

Who was it that first recognized Nam Tae-min’s potential and reached out to him?

Yoon Seulah herself.

She supported him financially, helped him form a Guild with the First Awakened, and introduced him to powerful people.

Without her, no matter how strong Nam Tae-min was, he wouldn’t have gained fame and power so easily.

But after Yoon Seulah Awakened and joined the Taeryong Guild, what did Nam Tae-min do?

He gave her a meaningless Team Leader title and never let her do anything significant.

Yet his attitude toward her never changed, which was beyond frustrating for Yoon Seulah.

…Just like now.

“Everyone says you’re strong, but have you gone crazy? What if you fail to stop the Gate Break alone?”

“I told you, that won’t happen.”

“You’re seriously narcissistic. Get a grip.”

“Sigh… Seulah.”

As he started to say something, Nam Tae-min’s gaze shifted behind Yoon Seulah.

He spotted Hyunseung Lee standing there.

“You… Did you bring a civilian…?”

And at that moment—

Sssshhh—

A sound like the wind blowing.

But both Nam Tae-min and Yoon Seulah, who had experienced the Great Cataclysm, knew exactly what it meant.

“The Gate Break…!”

The Gate shattered, and the hundreds of monsters inside began to pour out—a disaster had begun.

Kieeeek!

Kieek!

Monsters began flooding out from the swirling black Gate.

From the very start, they looked different from other monsters.

Tough-looking black skin, sharp claws and teeth.

There were all kinds: flying monsters, bipedal monsters wielding weapons, and even massive ones in the back.

There were too many of them, and too many types.

There was no way they could handle this with just the people here.

That’s what Yoon Seulah thought, and she tried to make the best decision she could.

“I’ll draw their attention from the other side—!”

At least, until Nam Tae-min reached out toward the Gate.

“Tsk… Just first-floor trash.”

He muttered something incomprehensible and thrust out his hand.

And then—

Boom—

***

Dozens of monsters exploded at once.

Yoon Seulah froze mid-stride.

Dozens of monsters, radiating a powerful aura, were crushed as if something had squashed them flat, instantly turning into pools of blood.

Of course, the Gate continued to spit out monsters.

Dozens at a time.

But the moment they poked their heads out, that was the moment they died.

Kieek…?

Kieeeeeek!

Every one of them exploded the instant they appeared.

It was like a bloody fireworks show, monsters bursting apart as soon as they stepped out.

The man turning what should have been a disaster into nothing more than puddles of blood—there was no doubt it was Nam Tae-min.

“What… is this…”

Yoon Seulah muttered, dumbfounded.

She’d heard he was strong, over and over.

She’d even seen it herself.

But she was sure—she’d never seen anything like this.

‘So all this time… he was hiding his power…?’

What kind of ridiculous sight was this?

Even without showing his full power, he was considered Korea’s best.

‘But this overwhelming display… What was it?’

It was as if he was warning the monsters.

This is my domain—don’t even think of crossing over.

Nam Tae-min wasn’t being arrogant.

He was just stating the obvious.

If the other Awakened had stayed, they would only have gotten in the way.

‘The difference… is this big…’

When Yoon Seulah Awakened, the media couldn’t stop talking about her.

She had great abilities and a high level.

She thought Nam Tae-min was just holding her back out of wariness.

She thought, given some time, she could catch up to him.

But—

‘What a ridiculous delusion that was…’

A flying monster as big as half the Gate shrieked and flew over.

But it was only an instant before its scream turned into a death cry.

Its body was snapped in half before it was even halfway through the Gate, and when the rest of its corpse fell through, it crashed to the ground, already dead.

Monsters died as if an invisible, absolute hand was in the air.

The moment they crossed the Gate, they were torn in half, compressed, or had their necks snapped.

Blood poured down like rain and monster corpses piled up, but Nam Tae-min stood tall, not a single drop of blood staining his spotless clothes.

So Yoon Seulah despaired.

He was too far away.

She was overwhelmed by the sheer unreality of the scene.

No matter what she did, she could never create such a sight.

He slaughtered hundreds, but it was over in a flash, and even the black color of the Gate began to fade.

The number of monsters coming out dwindled, and though they seemed stronger, it meant nothing to Nam Tae-min.

Kueeeeeek!

With the final scream of a giant monster, the Gate lost its light completely and began to crumble.

|‘…He really did it.’

He really stopped a Gate Break alone.

And he did it so easily, against monsters far stronger than any that had come out before.

Without getting a single drop of blood on himself.

“Hah…”

Just watching had drained all her strength, and Yoon Seulah was about to collapse on the spot—

“Hey, you bastard.”

A curse she never expected made her eyes go wide as she looked around.

At first, she didn’t think much of it.

‘Wow. He fights so cleanly.’

***

Abyss Monsters pouring out of the Abyss Gate.

They all looked vicious, but in the end, they were just first-floor low-rank monsters.

Seeing them get hunted down one after another made Hyunseung Lee itch to try dropping a bolt of lightning with Brain Emperor, just for fun… Those were the kinds of thoughts he was having.

[Hidden Trait: Violence is Not Allowed! (Patience: 12 / 1000)]

‘…Oh. Even holding back like this raises my Patience.’

He marveled at this new discovery.

But as time passed, the déjà vu he’d been feeling only grew stronger.

‘That Nam Tae-min guy… I’m sure I’ve heard of him somewhere…’

A mysterious man who knew too much about Abyss Gates.

Powerful enough to be considered an upper-tier Ranker.

And Nam Tae-min’s skill, which he’d definitely heard of before.

– You were right, he really is a Possessor.

A sudden flashback to the day Jason gave him information.

– That professor from the Imperial Academy.

His mind raced through the past as his eyes focused on Nam Tae-min.

– The Imperial Family awarded that professor a title and a medal, apparently.

That title was…

Master of Telekinesis.

A master of telekinetic power, able to control everything within his domain.

– Sirbert von Ernhem.