Antlion Pit (1)

After finishing his conversation with the President, Minwoo visited the Auction House. It was somewhere Han Baekgil could easily approach him.

He waited a little, and sure enough, the man appeared inside the Auction House and began striding toward him.

“Good to see you, Mr. Kim Minwoo.”

Han Baekgil offered his hand with a radiant smile, as though genuinely delighted to see him.

'A clone.'

With so much to hide, the bastard had approached him through a clone again.

“There should still be some time left before the month's up.”

“I said a month, but surely you've had more than enough time to decide by now.”

Han Baekgil's tone was firm. Apparently, he was desperate to hear an answer.

“I decline.”

“... Why?”

“Because it's suspicious.”

“...”

Han Baekgil fell silent at the decisive answer. But only briefly. Staring straight at Minwoo, he spoke.

“That's quite a shame.”

“If that's all, I'll be going.”

Minwoo turned and left the Auction House. He had refused so unequivocally that there was no room for persuasion. They would start making their move soon.

'I'd better get things ready.'

So they could all enter the gate together, nice and friendly.

* * *

At a gathering of Shadow's members, Han Baekgil sat at the head of the table, his face twisting into a scowl.

“He refused.”

“Why?”

“Said we were suspicious. I don't think he ever intended to accept.”

“Ha! Cheeky bastard. After dragging it out all this time, too.”

No one was particularly shocked by his refusal. To be honest, they were a suspicious organization.

They themselves had been skeptical at first. What the hell was this nonsense about duplicating experience? And they had to offer sacrifices and carry out missions, too?

Anyone with a brain would naturally find it unsettling.

They had joined as founding members anyway because their desire to grow stronger was that intense. Besides, none of them had been particularly well-off when they first received the offer. They had been desperate enough to clutch at straws.

Kim Minwoo, on the other hand, was an entirely different breed from everyone they had recruited so far. Wealth, fame, power, and ability—he had them all. Objectively speaking, refusing was the sensible response.

That was why they were taking it more calmly than might be expected. Even when making the offer, they had honestly wondered whether he would ever actually join.

“... We'll have to eliminate him, won't we?”

Everyone fell silent at the question. Then, one by one, they nodded.

He wasn't merely a wild card. He was a typhoon. They had to stop him before he ripped out their pillars.

The question was how.

“Doing it outside a gate would be difficult. We'll probably have to get him inside one... but will he give us an opening?”

That was precisely the problem.

Kim Minwoo had long since become a superstar. The moment he entered a gate, countless people would trail after him. For starters, those pesky reporters would swarm him like a pack of dogs.

“Exactly. The government might even bring in a gate scanner and run it.”

That was the best way to stop assassins. Each unit was so expensive that usually only the United States provided that sort of service.

Still, it wouldn't be strange for them to do the same for an awakener of Kim Minwoo's caliber. Government agents might even flock around him as escorts.

Han Baekgil spoke calmly.

“I've already requested help from our overseas branches. China and Japan have agreed. They'll each send at least one S-ranker.”

“That's good news, at least.”

“Ultimately, it comes down to two possibilities. Either he enters a gate, or he doesn't.”

“Right.”

“If he doesn't, we eliminate him outside. Even if we have to throw the trainees at him.”

Trainees. New recruits who carried out missions without having received their formal baptism yet. The Korean branch had a fair number of those budding members.

Eliminating Kim Minwoo outside a gate would create all manner of difficulties. From killing him and clearing an escape route to evading the tightening investigative net, they would have to be prepared for considerable losses themselves.

The trainees would be sacrificed for that purpose.

“Of course, the trainees alone may not be enough. In that case, some of us will have to be sacrificed as well.”

“...”

Everyone fell silent.

“Do you agree?”

“... Fine.”

“Agreed.”

“We can't afford to go easy. I understand.”

Han Baekgil nodded and continued.

“If he enters a gate, we follow him in. Once he's dead, everyone is responsible for getting out alive.”

“Fine. But what if they run a scanner, too? The place will be crawling with awakeners...”

“... Then we'll have to force our way through.”

Han Baekgil's eyes turned chilling.

“... He's too dangerous. Even if more than half of us die, we have to kill him now. We can't give him any more time.”

“... Whew.”

Someone let out a tense breath.

Getting into the gate wasn't a problem. Dealing with the guards at the entrance would be easy for Shadow.

The real problem came after they got out. How were they supposed to handle the pack that would swarm them?

Would it really end with only half of them dead? They would be lucky if even one or two survived.

Yet they couldn't casually object, either. Would the scanner only be used once?

If the government tried it once, it could try a second or third time. They might even run it every time he entered a gate from now on. If they let that risk deter them from killing him, he would eventually grow strong enough to devour them.

Something about him was fundamentally different—so different that they couldn't keep up even with twice the leveling speed. Less than three months after awakening, he had already toyed with an awakener as powerful as Jo Piluk. That said it all.

“The best outcome would be for him to disguise himself like last time.”

“True. That would keep the public quiet, too.”

What if he disguised himself just as he had when clearing Ulpaulu Forest? If they could spot him in advance, that would be the ideal scenario.

A disguise meant avoiding attention. That, in turn, would let them follow him and intrude without any worries.

“But would he? He already knows some shady fellow is hanging around him.”

Everyone's eyes subtly shifted toward Han Baekgil.

“... I haven't actually shown him my abilities. He probably just thinks I'm some cult recruiter.”

“Then maybe it's not completely impossible. Look at how he behaved right after awakening. He didn't want anyone's attention, did he?”

The fastest F-rank clear?

This was the man who had destroyed Lee Seoyun at a low level. Never mind F-rank gates—he must have been capable of clearing E- and D-rank gates, too.

Yet he had started with F-rank gates. As if that weren't enough, he had even used a false identity to visit Ulpaulu Forest.

He had probably concealed himself because of his low level, but it wasn't as though Kim Minwoo's level was high now, either.

The possibility of him using a false identity again wasn't zero. The odds were simply very low.

“For now, I'll have people watch his mansion.”

Everyone nodded at Han Baekgil's words.

If the Japanese and Chinese branches sent S-rank personnel, they would have the seven members numbered One through Seven, plus Han Baekgil and the two reinforcements.

Ten S-rank awakeners in total.

And that wasn't all. The trainees weren't weak, either. Their ranks ranged from B to A.

The skill Kim Minwoo had shown in defeating Jo Piluk was certainly impressive, but...

'With this much force, there's no way we can fail.'

They were all certain of it. That was how overwhelming a force they were committing.

Still, it was wiser than sitting idle until a stray spark burned down their entire thatched house.

“I'll open the treasury. Everyone, get ready.”

Everyone nodded.

Not everyone gathered here was an assassin, but that didn't matter. The treasury held plenty of stealth-related items. At the very least, they would easily evade the eyes of the gate guards.

He had rejected their outstretched hand. Now it was time to hunt him.

* * *

Minwoo had a disguise applied.

The Demon's Castle. He intended to visit quietly.

'That way, they can barge in without worrying.'

He thought back to Shadow's members. Since this was Stage Six, their lineup might have changed—or it might not have.

Still...

'They should all be above level 500, at the very least.'

If the experience-duplication event Han Baekgil had mentioned was real, their core members would be fairly high-level.

'At least eight S-rankers.'

Han Baekgil and Numbers One through Seven. If the lineup remained the same, that made eight. A few other assorted bastards would probably join them.

Did that mean he couldn't kill them?

'Not really.'

Not all S-rank awakeners were equal. In his eyes, Shadow's members were empty shells with high levels and nothing else. He was already thoroughly accustomed to killing their kind.

Of course, that didn't mean there were no unknowns. The being Shadow served might have given them something else strange besides experience duplication.

'I'll have to account for that much.'

That was another reason he had chosen the Demon's Castle. The moment its hidden piece was unlocked, the map would change in an entertaining way. Shadow would probably scream with joy, too.

'And if they don't come, well...'

He could just hunt monsters. If they did come, he could offer them as sacrifices, unlock the hidden piece, and have some fun with them. Neither option had any downside for Kim Minwoo.

'How many Achievement Points will I get...?'

Numbers One through Seven held higher positions than Lee Seoyun, but that was only true for now. These empty-shell S-rankers would soon fall behind the competition. They likely wouldn't even qualify as supporting characters.

Han Baekgil, however, was different. His significance as a villain could put him on par with the main cast.

He was the real prize.

If Minwoo killed Han Baekgil and the Achievement Vending Machine kicked in, too?

'That should be worth 500 points, right?'

Five hundred points meant an S-rank bound skill book. He had already experienced the incredible high of using Land of Death. Just one more skill like that would set his mind wonderfully at ease.

'Or I could buy something else.'

There was no downside to earning points.

He summoned Cedric and Merhen.

“We're going to a gate. We'll probably spend more time hunting the bastards following us than monsters.”

“... Like that assassin last time?”

“Yeah.”

“Understood.”

Merhen nodded as well. He had already checked what magic she could use.

Preparations were complete.

He left the house, got into a suitable car, and set off. Before long, he reached Incheon, where the gate was located.

Soldiers and awakeners stood guard at the checkpoint. There was barely a line.

Clearing a B-rank gate required a party of awakeners of the same rank, and their numbers dropped sharply at that level.

He presented a forged A-rank ID, obtained by asking the President. There might not be many A-rankers, but the public didn't know every single awakener.

While people knew nearly every S-ranker by sight, among A-rankers, they generally only recognized the names of the famous ones. Perhaps that was why neither the soldiers nor the awakeners seemed particularly puzzled by the unfamiliar name.

“A-rank awakener Han Jinuk. You're cleared. May you live long.”

“Thank you. Keep up the good work.”

He walked leisurely forward and entered the gate.

[You have entered the B-rank gate, Demon's Castle!]

Inside the pitch-black castle, he waited a moment after entering.

Messages began appearing in rapid succession.

[Warning!]

[There is currently 1 intruder inside the gate...]

[Warning!]

Warning messages sounded incessantly. The final one read:

[Warning! There are currently 19 intruders inside the gate!]

“Quite the crowd.”