Eventually, the ant king stood before Jin Woo.
“Are you the king of humans?”
“Huh? An insect that knows how to speak. Well, I’ll be.”
When Jin Woo replied with a less-than-impressed expression on his face, the ant king’s own expression crumpled unsightly.
The power the queen bestowed it with, and the power it gathered through the ‘Gluttony’ skill – the moment the ant king unleashed all of its magic energy, its body suddenly ballooned up greatly in size. Its height, which used to be around the same as Jin Woo’s, grew by at least 1.5 times taller.
The ant king then screeched out loudly right in front of Jin Woo’s nose.
Kiiiiiieeeeeehhhhhk-!!!
Jin Woo didn’t even blink once, instead, a smirk formed on his lips.
“Yup, now you’re acting properly like an insect.”
And then, he unleashed his own magical energy.
The ant monster made its move.
The ant king’s fist powerfully slammed into Jin Woo’s face.
SLAM!!
Jin Woo’s back nearly bent backward, but he stomped down and withstood the hit.
‘….!!’
The ant king had struck with all of its might behind that punch, so it couldn’t help but get taken by surprise.
“You can… withstand my power?”
The ant king struck out with a simple plan to kill this puny human in one hit, but instead of sending him flying away, the whole thing simply ended with his head turning slightly away.
Too bad, there was no time to remain surprised, because Jin Woo’s own fist flew in afterwards.
Swish-!!
SLAM!!
The ant king was smacked right in the middle of its face, and it flew away to crash into the wall on the far side of the cavern.
Kaboom!
As if a meteor had collided there, the wall caved in deeply. Although it was only for a short while, the impact force was powerful enough to shake the entire ant tunnel.
“What kind of an ant talks this much?”
____________
When the ‘live’ broadcast was suddenly cut off, and the static screen showing the message of the station encountering ‘technical difficulty’ appeared on their TV screens, countless viewers were left devastated and stunned by what they saw.
“The Hunters…. What’s happening to the Hunters??”
“What was up with that ant just now?!”
“What the hell! How can you cut the broadcast off right there?!”
The scenes of an ant monster suddenly appearing without warning, and then, it proceeds to systematically dismantle the Hunters one by one….
The viewers celebrating after the death of the ant queen felt like a bucket of cold water was poured down on them by that horrifying scene. Not too long afterward, the static screen with the ‘technical difficulty’ message went away and the emcee appeared there, instead.
– “Ah…. everyone, this news just came in.”
With a sorrowful voice, he relayed the death of Hunter Min Byung Gyu. He also added that the safety of the Hunters remaining in the ant tunnel couldn’t be guaranteed, either.
“God damn it!!”
“They got the ant queen, so why are they dying now?!”
“What about Japan?”
“Isn’t it supposed to be a united team or something? Where are the d*mn Japanese?!”
Some people raged on, some people worried about their safety, while some others grieved.
The news of the Hunters risking their lives and potentially meeting with a grisly fate spread out like an uncontrollable wildfire. Weirdly enough, the audience rating actually rose up higher than ever before, even though the raid broadcast had been cut off for a while now.
– “Ah!!”
The emcee’s expression brightened considerably after receiving an urgent message.
– “I just heard the news that an unknown Hunter has appeared on the scene right at this moment! We will immediately recommence with the broadcast right away.”
Those words were more than enough to inject much-needed vitality into the fatigued eyes of the viewers staying put in front of their TV screens.
Soon, the live feed was restored, and….
“What the heck?”
“This…!!”
The viewers were greeted by the black soldiers filling up their TV screens, and they all shot up from their seats.
They then saw those black soldiers fighting tooth-and-nail against the waves upon waves of ants flooding into the ant queen’s chamber. The camera moved around to take in the unfolding events, before locking onto a single young man.
He was too far away and it was hard to see what he looked like.
– “The armored soldiers are apparently the creatures summoned by that Hunter on your screen. Also, I just heard that most of the Hunters are alive and safe, as well!”
The viewers watching on with nervous tension all cried out in elation from that news. And then, they began cheering for that unidentified Hunter.
“Yes!! Go and smash them all!!”
“You’re doing great!! Push them back!!”
“Let’s go!!!”
And finally….
When that unidentified Hunter summoned an even greater number of soldiers to completely massacre the ants….
Woooooaahhhh!!!
People punched the sky with their fists and celebrated wildly.
Those who had lost their families and friends to the ants and sought revenge shed tears as the cathartic moment played out on their screens. As if he was waiting for the perfect timing, the emcee’s heightened voice came out from the speakers just in the nick of time.
– “Ah!! We finally identified the unknown Hunter!”
The eyes and ears of every single viewer out there were now turned towards their screens.
Just who was that man?
Just what was the identity of a man capable of rescuing S-rank Hunters from a place crawling with S-rank monsters?
– “He’s the tenth S-rank Hunter of South Korea, Sung Jin Woo!! He’s a Mage-type Hunter specializing in summoning magic!!”
And so, the viewers grew even more cheerful from the fact that a Hunter possessing such an incredible ability was not a Japanese, but a Korean like them.
Countless ants were soon taken care of in no time at all.
Just as the Hunters were getting ready to escape from the ant tunnel, yet another wave of ants appeared.
“Uh?! Uhhh??”
“Isn’t that…?”
The ant monster that appeared just before the broadcast got cut off the first time was now leisurely walking forward while pushing past the swarm of ants. Since there weren’t that many ants with wings to begin with, and the shape of its face was different from everything else, it wasn’t that hard to tell that monster apart.
The viewers were instantly thrown into confusion.
“What the hell? I thought that bastard was already dead?!”
“Why is that thing appearing again?!”
The winged ant monster stood before Hunter Sung Jin Woo.
Those viewers who understood a bit about the compatibility of different abilities grew deeply anxious when the two stood face to face.
“Aigoo! He’s going to get killed here!”
“Why would a Mage-type give up on the safety of distance like that??”
“It’s not too late, so run away!”
That monster was strong enough to blow away Hunter Park Jongryeo, a melee-type Hunter, with a single blow. They thought that it was beyond obvious how things would turn out now.
It was already distressing enough to see those two glare at each other in close proximity, but then, the damn ant monster suddenly grew larger and larger as well.
Every viewer watching their TV screens cried out in shock.
And then…
Those with weaker constitutions squeezed their eyes shut at that moment. They thought that the moment the monster’s punch found its target, the Hunter’s head would explode.
However, contrary to their expectations, the Hunter was fine.
‘Huh??’
‘A Mage withstood a punch strong enough to knock out the Tanker Ma Dong Wook in one hit?!’
The eyes of the viewers grew wider and wider.
And then….
SLAM!!
The ant monster got shoved deeply into the cave wall.
“…..”
“…….”
Most viewers required a little bit of time to process what just transpired.
But when the camera zoomed in on the ant king half-buried in the cave wall…..
Waaaahhhh!!!
Yet another round of loud cheering exploded out.
_____________
“Heok!!”
The cameraman’s jaw fell to the floor.
When Hunter Sung Jin Woo was struck by the ant’s fist, he flinched in surprise.
Even Park Jongryeo lost consciousness from that hit.
But then, Hunter Sung Jin Woo blew away the ant monster, instead. The very same monster, that toyed around with six S-rank Hunters as if it was nothing. No wonder he’d gasp out a “Heok!”
‘Were the S-rank Hunters that weak?’
No, of course not.
The Korean Hunters bravely fought and managed to defeat the S-rank boss, the ant queen.
So, the mutated ant monster that made an utter fool out of those Hunters was the weird one. And Hunter Sung Jin Woo, who blew away that weird mutated ant, was an even weirder one.
Gulp.
The cameraman suppressed his agitation and swallowed his dry saliva.
The reactions of other Hunters weren’t all that different, either.
While everyone was staring at Jin Woo with excited eyes, only Choi Jong-In began looking around his vicinity. And he could see mountains of ant corpses. He initially thought that those were the result of the Hunters working together while he was out cold. But now, having witnessed Jin Woo’s power, his thoughts had changed.
‘Can it… Could it be…. Mister Sung Jin Woo alone was responsible for….?’
After taking a rough count of the dead ants, Choi Jong-In’s eyes began trembling non-stop.
Kiiieeehhhhk!!
A beastly screech exploding out without warning caused his head to snap back.
The ant king extricated itself out of the wall and displayed its rage. The air within the ant queen’s chamber was quivering noticeably.
‘Ho-oh?’
Jin Woo stared at the ant king with a genuine surprise. The damage he dealt was far less than he thought.
‘Is it because… of the exoskeleton?’
The black, tough shell covering the entirety of that bastard – whatever that thing was, it had already exceeded being a normal organic matter.
In that case, he’d use brute force to shatter that shell. The thing that could break one’s armor wasn’t a sword or a spear. No, it was a hammer.
Jin Woo’s shoulder and arm muscles expanded, thick veins bulging visibly on his skin. The air grew thicker and heavier as it descended all around him.
The ant king stopped screeching and shifted its horrifyingly crumpled expression towards Jin Woo.
“You dare!!”
As the two of them walked closer, the distance between them shortened faster and faster. Soon, Jin Woo and the ant king stood right before each other again. And then, without a hint of hesitation or mercy, they began exchanging countless attacks, each thumping hit carrying all their might.
Slam!!
Kaboom!!
BOOM!!
The Hunters watching from the sideline were all stupefied into silence.
The shock wave from the collision of magic energy whenever Jin Woo and the ant king exchanged blows rocked the ant tunnel itself. It was so severe that these top-ranked Hunters, renowned for their mastery over wielding their magic energy, felt their innards tumble.
“Woo-wuoop…”
“Are you alright?”
“I, I’m fine.”
The cameraman was only an A-rank, but he still tried his best to suppress the contents of his stomach from rising up. He was even experiencing vertigo, too.
‘Woo-wook….’
Even then – even as his complexion paled greatly, he could still maintain his smile all because….
Slam! Slam!! Slam!!!
‘How can a lone Hunter do that against such a monster….?’
….Because, he saw a ray of hope.
Kwa-boooooom!!
Hunter Sung Jin Woo might be getting wounded from that exchange, but the outer shell of the ant king was definitely being broken as well.
The ant king quickly sensed the ‘changes’ taking place on the body that it felt so proud of.
Crack.
Crack….
Its outer skin, most likely tougher and hardier than any known metal on this planet, began developing cracks all over the place. On the other hand, the enemy was easily withstanding the ant king’s attacks.
‘It can’t be.’
An impossible hypothesis quickly entered the ant king’s head.
‘I… I’m losing out on physical strength?!’
Not only that but to a human less than half its size?
But, right at that moment….
CRACK.
It realized that the fresh wound on its waist from that powerful hit felt ‘wrong’. Even the sound coming from there was not too good to hear.
The exoskeleton lacked pain receptors, so the ant king had to divert its attention for the briefest of moments to confirm the status of its shell down there.
The result was rather shocking to behold.
‘….It’s cracked open!’
The small crack that was no more than just a nick had spread out everywhere and was growing larger and larger. It was the same thing as a warning sign, telling the creature that there wasn’t a lot of time left.
The ant king quickly turned its head around. However, even if it was only for a brief moment, Jin Woo wasn’t some amateur who’d miss this golden opportunity.
Ka-boom!!
The king’s face spun to its side.
‘…..??’
The ant king staggered unsteadily for a second or two from the ridiculous impact force that ignored the ant king’s forged steel-like shell on its face.
It managed to regain its balance before it took a step back, but by then, the follow-up punch was already closing in from below.
KWAHNG!!
The ant king’s chin shot upwards.
‘How dare a human, who’s inferior than a bug…!!’
While its head still pointed up at the ceiling, the ant king shot a glare full of murderous rage down below.
The power this human possessed – it was indeed great. However, unlike this human, who only had his physical strength to fall back on, the ant king possessed a variety of other powerful means at its disposal.
Such as….
The ant king’s head snapped back down, and at the same time, it fired a poison needle out of its mouth. A tip coated in deadly poison attached to the tongue-like tentacle shot out like a bullet.
It was an unavoidable attack aimed at the enemy’s face in this point-blank range.
Swish-!
The human deftly tilted his head out of the way to dodge the needle, but a smile still crept up on the face of the ant king as the result of its attack became clear. The needle still managed to scratch the human’s cheek and left a small wound there.
‘It’s done!’
That alone was more than enough.
Once, the ant king devoured a sea snail and somewhat coincidentally, absorbed a skill called ‘Paralysis Poison’.
One of the most fatal poisons secreted by the known lifeforms in this world had been transformed into an even more deadly substance within the ant king’s body after it became a concentrated mix that contained the magical energy of the host creature.
It was indeed the worst poison imaginable, evolved forcibly by the skill, ‘Gluttony’.
‘You’ve really given me so much trouble, you human bastard.’
Even the slightest scratch would result in complete paralysis in one’s nervous system within seconds; the victims would lose all sensations in their bodies and lose control of themselves.
The only thing remaining would be to systematically destroy the resistance-less enemy.
“….?”
As if the poison was doing its thing, the human formed a flustered expression.
“This is the power of the true king!”
The ant king smiled widely and smacked the human’s face.
However….
Kwahng!!
The human raised his left hand and blocked it.
‘…..??’
The question of how he was still able to move lasted only for a second.
Ka-booooom!!
The human’s right fist flew in from the other side and struck the ant king so hard that the monster was shoved down to the ground rather unceremoniously.
“Kiiiehk!!”
For the first time ever, a pained yelp shot out from the king’s mouth.
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