(Chapter 65)

Back at the airport.

Instead of a verbal reply, Sung Jin-Woo answered with his actions.

He separated his summons into three parties and had them operate on their own, while he too began moving by himself as well.

The number of creatures he summoned out was already astonishing enough, but even then, Matsumoto Shigeo was swallowing his worried gasps over something else entirely.

'Is he really trying to fight against all of the Giants?'

Every Hunter in the world had all said in one voice that such a feat was impossible.

'But, was he trying to do precisely that?'

He had no way of knowing.

The best he could do now was to wait while entrusting his, and everyone else's, fate to the heavens above.

He returned to the Hunter's Association HQ that he re-established in the Osaka's government offices after the fall of Tokyo, and he focused on gathering information on the unfolding situation.

Unexpectedly, the answer came back soon enough after he took his first step inside the office.

"Niigata City is now safe!"

"Giant in Sukagawa City has been killed!"

"The cities of Sagae and Sendai, they were been successfully taken back!"

Matsumoto Shigeo stops on his tracks after hearing the shocking news.

"What's happening? That places are too far from us!"

He can't accept such a fast hunting since it hadn't been all that long since Hunter Sung Jin-Woo had set off.

"The city of Nagoya, it's been successfully recovered!"

But only to hear the news about the nearest city to them, that made him taken aback.

"What!? Care to tell me what's happening here!? Who's killing the giants in upper Japan!?"

He is sure that Sung Jin-Woo is responsible for the closest city.

'So, who are they?...'

Even before the Japanese Association Chairman had a chance to calm his fluttering heart and to received an answer to his inquiries, messages began pouring in from all corners of the country.

"A Giant's corpse has been discovered in the city of Nakatsugawa!"

"The city of Shizuoka has been successfully reclaimed!"

"The cities of Takayama and Nagano both have been..."

And finally.

"T-the city of Kofu... Hunter Sung Jin-Woo, he has arrived in Kofu, sir."

He plopped down on his butt after hearing the news of all the Giants being killed off in Kofu, a city only one hundred thirty kilometers removed from Tokyo itself.

"Association Chairman!"

"Sir, Chairman Matsumoto!"

His trembling legs didn't want to listen to him at all.

It was truly an unbelievable speed of advancement.

The Association Chairman Matsumoto Shigeo saw the power of the Korean Hunter capable of changing the impossible into the possible and began shivering where he stood.

Then he heard the answer that has been interrupted to realize that there are others too.

"S-Sir! One of the JSDF teams reported that they saw three people clearing upper Japan! A-And they said that they are the members of the Ahjin Guild..."

"Ahjin Guild... Isn't that Hunter Sung Jin-Woo's Guild? Then..."

Matsumoto was confused, but only to be reminded by one person that scratching his head as he courageously said to him that made his eyes widen and facepalm for his idiocy.

"Sir, you forgot that there are a total of six members in the Guild..."

"... Wait! I only saw three when I meet them at the airport!"

"Sir, the rescued survivors saw one ice dragon under the order of a certain man that is flying and scouting in upper Japan with two other individuals. There's a young woman that can fly with wings and using her bow and arrows, and lastly a young man with golden armor and can shapeshift into a minotaur with... A dryad... Yes. a Dryad beside him..."

"..."

'... What they are doing right now... Isn't that what I planned to do to South Korea?'

He was planning to destroy Korea's Hunter system, and by utilizing the strengths of the Japanese Hunters, squeeze South Korea as he willed it.

But now, the situation had flipped on its head.

Japan and its collapsed Hunter system now found itself under the thumb of one single Guild, Ahjin Guild.

He dazedly sat in his chair, and issued a new order to the Association's staff members standing around and worrying about him.

"Can you all leave me for a while? I'd like to be alone for a minute or two."

Soon, his office became emptied.

His head slowly drooped real low.

A powerful sense of defeat the likes of which he had never tasted before in his life crashed into him like a tidal wave.

He had lost.

He had completely, utterly lost.

However, the emotions rushing in after the sense of defeat finally left him were a brief moment of self-reflection and remorse, and an infinite amount of gratitude.

On that day, he silently sobbed.

And also on that day, Sung Jin-Woo and his summons starting from Osaka and moving eastward, while Shyrveen, Han Sen, and Yang Manli are cleaning southward while killing every Giant they ran into.

Finally arrived on the doorsteps of the city of Tokyo.

Two more Giant-type monsters fell lifelessly to the ground.

[Level up!]

It had been so long since he got to level up so freely like this.

He could barely remember the last time it happened.

Sung Jin-Woo tightly clenched his fists, before sensing the magical presence of his guildmates.

Soon, three of them arrived and touches down near him that at the same time, all of his Shadow Soldiers teams arrived too.

"Here."

Shyrveen pulls out the corpses of ten giants from his inventory to their fronts.

Han Sen killed three, Yang Manli killed three too, and Shyrveen killed four with Apollyon killed one.

While Sung Jin-Woo alone had hunted down thirteen giants, and his level rose up by six during this time.

"Arise."

Soon, another ten giants were added into his giant shadow soldiers team.

"... Nice. I have 23 now."

But made the two people confused and Yang Manli ask.

"Where are the other 6, brother Jin?"

"Left behind by my shadows as they can't bring the corpses while fighting."

She nodded as she saw Sung Jin-Woo shrugging and they heard another voice not that far.

"Err, should we set up camp here tonight?"

Yoo Jin-Ho was asking a question while holding a tent he took out from the vehicle's trunk.

Sung Jin-Woo raised his head to see that the day was coming to an end, the dusk casting its shadow on the ground below.

That Shyrveen looked too and asked him, as he nodded in response.

"Looks like we should take a break, Jin-Woo?"

"Yup, Hyung-nim."

"Haa... Finally!..."

Han Sen lay down his body on his foldable camping bed after stabbing his katanas on the ground before complaining as he massages his shoulder.

"Those shits can be killed easily but their senses and movements are too absurd! I've been hit one time and was smacked on the ground you know?... That impact almost killed me if I didn't wear the armor... Haa..."

Yoo Soo-Hyun went to his side and suggested something.

"Want me to massage your shoulders, Hyung Sen?..."

"Oh! Is it okay for you?... Then thank you very much!"

Han Sen asked her for surety since he kinda feels he is rude for someone that he just got acquainted with but happily laid down on the bed on his chest as he thanked her after seeing her nodding to him.

If someone saw them, that person will think that all of the Ahjin Guild members were just like camping in some place while eating their meals as they chatting casually.

Next day.

Yoo Jin-Ho gulped but just barely managed to swallow his dry saliva and cautiously took a look to the lone Giant standing over yonder.

The size of this Giant-type monster was on another scale altogether compared to the others he saw during his trip to this place.

Simply by staring at the head of a Giant so, so, so far up in the sky, he couldn't tell whether he was looking at an actual monster or a high-rise building, instead.

"Wowsers…."

A gasp of shock leaked out from Han Sen's mouth.

"... Now, this should be another Abysmal Depth battle again!"

"That... Is for sure can be compared to Super, darling..."

There was just too great a difference between seeing it from a video clip and with their own two eyes like this.

Sung Jin-Woo smiled and placed his hand on top of Yoo Jin-Ho's head, as the latter found himself unable to shut his mouth at all.

"Hey, dude. Your jaw will fall off at this rate."

"H-Hyung-nim."

Yoo Jin-Ho finally regained his wits and embarrassedly scratched the back of his head with his cousin that shook her head as she hides behind the back of her Unnie, Yang Manli.

Sung Jin-Woo withdrew his hand from the kid's head and wordlessly glared at the boss-level Giant-type monster.

"How can a massive being like that even exist?"

That life-form was simply far too large.

"Oh, brother Jin! It's very unfortunate that you didn't saw how fucking big the Dreadcrown Leviathan... This giant can only be a baby if you put it standing behind that freaking snake... Whoa~"

Sung Jin-Woo raised at eyebrow to Han Sen that shivered after hearing his own exclamation.

He didn't doubt what Han Sen said but thought how horrible those creatures in the sanctuary before looking at Shyrveen that nodded at him, which made him gulp more saliva but grins after knowing that he will encounter something like that soon.

'Soon... Very soon... Just let these problems first to be resolved... And I'll gladly release my mind to do some fun in that place...'

Then he looked back at the giant that guarding the same gigantic Gate, and felt the horrible Magic Power oozing out from that thing even made him think about getting away from this place as soon as he could.

It was that unpleasant to behold.

There were two ways of getting rid of this unpleasantness he felt.

Either running as far away as possible from the source of this unpleasantness and forget about everything, or, root out the cause of the problem itself.

But this unpleasant feeling became a stimulus for him while thinking about the creature called Dreadcrown Leviathan that Han Sen mentioned.

He closed his eyes and quietly enjoyed the tireless beatings of his heart and before abruptly opening them back again.

"Get to a safe distance."

"Yes, Hyung-nim."

The two Yoos nodded and run away from their position and soon stop after estimated that they are safe from the soon fight that will break out in any minutes.

With their enhanced bodies of mana, they can see the four outstanding backs of their friends and guildmates.

But for Yoo Jin-Ho, he burned this sight to his mind as he clenches his fist.

'... I'll get stronger soon...'

"... Come forth."

Sung Jin-Woo on the left side summoned his soldier with twenty-three new gigantic members as the shadow realm extends, while Beru, Igrit, Tusk, Tank, and Iron are leading their own teams.

Shyrveen on the right side snaps his finger and soon the ice realm extended, as thirty pieces of gigantic ice golems resurface from the ice floor while leading by the Ice Treant, Esmund that appeared in their front then was followed by Ice Chinese Dragon, Apollyon that circles around them as he flies.

Han Sen summoned the (4 Stars) Armor and let Lexine cover his body again before unsheathing the katanas as he bends his knees, indicating that he is ready to fight.

And Yang Manli summoned her wings and flew towards the back to where the Yoos are watching, before summoning Elessar as Super Arrow with her (4 Stars) Bow on her left hand.

Yoo Jin-Ho and Soo-Hyun gasped after seeing the ghostly figure of Little Megalodon shoot out from Yang Manli's chest before taking the appearance of an arrow with a red and blue hues around it like some auras, before landing gently on her right palm.

Yoo Soo-Hyun was confused for the first time that she saw something out of the ordinary from other abilities of Hunters.

But Yoo Jin-Ho's eyes get widen after realizing and seeing in up close how the Beast Soul became weapon or some like items that have been told by Shyrveen to him from the past.

In the sky.

Few helicopters are flying around with their reporters but the pilots are trying their best not to be in the boss-level giant's range as they broadcasting this fight in the whole world to see what's happening here.

At that time too that the whole world saw how the ice and shadow soldiers appear from the ice and dark ground while the golden man and flying woman was captured by the cameras too.

"ADVANCE!"

And that's when they heard the loud and clear voices that giving the order for the army to forge ahead...