Ch 208: The truth behind the dungeons.

Akeno led her little group out of the subway station. Behind her were Jinah, Jeanne, and Alter, dressed in her office wear.

The Chairman of the Korean Hunters Association had agreed to organize a meeting, and they were on their way to attend.

Song-Yi and Jinah's mother were staying home.

Normally, a mere A-rank Hunter could never hope to borrow the Chairman's time. But using a video call to show the S-rank core had gotten their full attention. As far as the Association knew, only one existed, and it was in the United States' possession.

"Did you notice, Akeno?" asked Jinah.

"That people are recognizing me?"

"Yeah."

"I don't like it much, but it's worth it." sighed Akeno. She returned to the hospital for one hour every day to heal patients suffering from Eternal Slumber that were brought from all over the world.

"You won't see me disagree." chuckled Jinah.

"They don't dare come close because it's the four of us. Whenever I move alone, I keep being asked for autographs, and some bold ones even ask me out."

"Hard to blame them for this." said Alter. "You're beautiful, and money clearly isn't going to be an issue for you. You're a target for any male gold digger.

"Yes. Maybe I should torture someone in public to get them to back off." chuckled Akeno.

"You would have a different crowd coming after you, though." laughed Jinah.

"Huh… I already have a man, and he hasn't given me any reason to look at others. And it seems we have people waiting for us."

They had just walked in view of the entrance of the Korean Hunters Association and could see several people waiting. She recognized the other system users. Lee Joohee, Meilin, Song Chi-Yul, Kim Sangshik and Park Beom-Shik.

Besides Chi-Yul was an attractive young woman with neck-length blonde hair, who tugged at her memory.

"Hey, isn't she Cha Hae-In? And Choi Jong-In!" exclaimed Jinah with wide eyes.

Akeno nodded, also recognizing Baek Yoonho, the leader of her own guild. He had chatted with her a few times previously.

But there were two other people she didn't know. One was dressed in a suit, with black eyes and light brown hair that seemed almost blond, slicked back aside from a single strand falling between his eyes. The other one was large and muscular, with black hair in a buzz cut. His eyes were hidden behind sunglasses, and he wore a red shirt with short sleeves and black pants.

The large man was towering over the one in a suit, apparently arguing about something, while Baek Yoonho and Choi Jong-In were standing between those two and the group of System users, as if to protect them.

Then Chi-Yul noticed them coming closer, the others followed his gaze, and suddenly, Akeno and her group had their undivided attention.

"Akeno, this is…" started Jinah, feeling uneasy.

"Probably. Don't worry, we're there, and the other S-rank members won't just let him attack you." said Akeno. She could feel the naked hostility coming from the large man, who she assumed was Hwang Dongsoo.

They walked closer, with Jeanne and Alter placing themselves on Akeno's sides, ready to protect Jinah behind them.

When they walked closer, the large man pushed aside the one wearing the suit and walked toward them with a cruel smile.

"Stop right now, Hwang Dongsoo!" exclaimed Baek Yoonho, moving to the side, ready to take action. Choi Jong-In and Cha Hae-In also moved closer.

"You Sung Jinah?" asked Hwang Dongsoo, ignoring them and staring past Akeno at Jinah, looking like he was about to explode.

"…I am." said Jinah, steeling herself.

"And you're the brother of that miserable piece of shit, Hwang Dungsoo, I assume?" asked Akeno, deliberately inserting a diss in his name. "Jinah is under my protection, so if you know what is good for you, you will buzz off."

The taunt, puerile as it was, had the desired effect, and Hwang Dongsoo looked down at her.

"Stay out of this, slut, or you'll regret it."

"Oh, and what will the big man do, I wonder." snorted Akeno, activating Augment. "Maybe try to rape me like his rapist-wannabe of a brother? Do you even have what it takes? I bet you have a small one down there. Will I even feel anything?"

Baek Yoonho opened his mouth to try to defuse the situation, shocked that Akeno seemed to be deliberately provoking him, but it was already too late.

Hwang Dongsoo swung at her in a rage, intending to slap Akeno, but she duked under the blow and delivered a punch to his right ribs, strong enough to make him stumble back.

Hwang Dongsoo's eyes widened in surprise, but his anger only increased, and his aura grew as he used body reinforcement to increase his strength.

Before Baek Yoonho could intervene, Hwang Dongsoo leaped at Akeno, his arms wide open as if to grab her, but instead of evading, she stepped forward, struck the inside of his left arm with a punch to the elbow joint, struck his lower jaw with her other hand to break his momentum, and with a flurry of fists and palm strikes breaking the speed of sound, proceeded to pummel the crap out of Hwang Dongsoo's torso.

Baek Yoonho and the other S-ranks froze in sheer disbelief as they witnessed the fight, no, the beat down.

Whenever Hwang Dongsoo tried to grab or punch her, she either depowered the strike by hitting the inside of his arms, deflected the blow using a hard light construct, or evaded.

Hwang Dongsoo wasn't a S-rank for nothing. He was strong and though, and Akeno's fists hurt whenever she hit him. But she couldn't afford to stop.

"You fucking bitch!" screamed Hwang Dongsoo, getting frustrated. He eventually managed to grab Akeno's arm, and smiled in anticipation of the payback he was about to deliver.

That was when Akeno delivered a mighty kick to his crotch, sending him flying several meters upward.

He screamed in pain, and just as he was about to crash on the ground, Akeno delivered an equally mighty roundhouse kick to his head, sending him dozens of meters away.

He crashed on an empty part of the street, creating a crater, and before he could stand, as he crouched forward, one hand still holding his crotch, Akeno used Shunpo to appear right in front of him, seized his head with both hands, and rammed her right knee to his face, breaking his nose, cheekbone, and a few teeth.

With another scream, Hwang Dongsoo collapsed, fear and hatred mixed in his eyes as he spat blood and teeth fragments.

Akeno stepped back, and brushed the dust from her black turtleneck as she observed her handiwork. Hwang Dongsoo seemed unable to stand again. Ugly bruises were already forming on the insides of his arms and all over his torso, and Akeno was pretty sure she had broken at least nine of his ribs. His nose, some of his teeth, and a cheekbone were broken. To top it off, his balls might be damaged beyond recovery.

"If you ever try to touch Jinah or Song-Yi, we will have another go. And this time, I will use my weapons. It will be your last mistake." promised Akeno.

With a last look at this wreck of a man, Akeno turned away and walked back to the baffled S-rankers.

"I apologize for this sorry spectacle." shrugged Akeno. "And for damaging the street, I suppose… I guess I know what my first wage will be used for."

"You…" started Baek Yoonho, before his body shook from a nervous laugh. "I was worried, but it seems I didn't need to."

Akeno nodded and looked at Cho Jong-In.

"A pleasure to meet you again. Since this happened, are we allowed to join in the Jeju island raid? Alter and Jeanne as about as strong as I am."

"…Ah, yes. Your participation will be appreciated. I think that the Association will want to retest you as well." nodded Jong-In.

"I guess it can't be helped." shrugged Akeno, next turning to Cha Hae-In. "I am Akeno Himejima. It is nice to meet you."

"Likewise." smiled the blonde Hunter. "I am Cha Hae-In. What was that ability you used earlier? I didn't recognize it."

Akeno considered her for a second, wondering what method she would use to scam… err, recruit her, then decided to borrow a page from Noah's playbook, dangling the promise of power, for a price. "It is a kind of active body reinforcement that increases my strength, speed and resilience. Its creator simply named it 'Augment'… And it is something that can be taught to others, if they are willing to pay the price for it."

Her words had the desired effect, and she could see the sudden desire in the eyes of the S-rankers.

"What kind of price?" asked Cha Hae-In.

"I'll say more about it during the meeting. Thank you all for coming, by the way. I have important information to divulge."

"That is what the Chairman said, yes." nodded Cho Jong-In. "Do you really know why Dungeons have started to appear ten years ago?"

"Yes." nodded Akeno. "I have complete trust in my source. Unfortunately, I do not have concrete evidence to show you at this time, so whether you will choose to believe me or not will be up to you."

"Ahem." coughed the man in a suit. "It's a pleasure to meet you. I am Woo Jinchul, a A-rank Hunter from the Association. I suggest we go to the meeting room before continuing this conversation."

"Nice to meet you. Yes, you are correct." nodded Akeno, and the group, joined by the other system users, entered the building.

Woo Jinchul made a quick call as they reached one of the top floors, and they gathered in a large meeting room.

Before they sat down, the Chairman of the Association entered. Go Gunhee was a large, muscular man with gray hair, pale green eyes, and numerous scars on his body. He was dressed in a black suit.

After the introductions and greetings were done, they sat down on the long table, with Akeno invited to take the middle of one side, and Go Gunhee facing her.

"Well, miss Himejima. This is your show, so you have the mike." smiled Go Gunhee.

"Thank you, Chairman. If you all do not mind, I will first tell you everything I know about the dungeons and the reasons for their existence, and then answer your questions." nodded Akeno, taking a deep breath.

"Our story starts a long, long time ago. There was a war going on, on another planet. An unending war opposing eight great beings known as the Rulers, against another eight known as the Monarchs."

"Both sides possessed vast armies, with the Rulers commanding humanoid troops looking similar to modern-day depictions of angels, and the Monarchs commanding monstruous beasts, demons, and sentient non-human species like high-orcs. Typically, what you would find in the dungeons, and there is a reason for it."

"The war went on and on, and both the Rulers and the Monarchs grew tired of it. But too much blood had been shed, and simply stopping of their own accord wasn't an option. The strongest of the Rulers, one named Ashborn, requested an audience with the Supreme Being who had created them all, and pleaded for Him to intervene and stop the war."

As she talked, Akeno used hardened light to create a miniature replica of the Lord they had encountered in the dungeon, and some of those who had seen the real thing winced as they remembered.

"But the Supreme Being didn't answer his pleading, and did not take any action."

"That was then that the eight Rulers understood. To the Supreme Being, the war was just a show. A gladiator's spectacle to watch for his entertainment. All their suffering, all the comrades they had lost along the way, meant nothing to him."

"The Eight Rulers quietly discussed among themselves, expressing their doubts and discontent. Ashborn, who was still loyal to their creator even after learning about this, refused to rebel against him and returned to the front line. Taking advantage of his absence, the other seven Rulers killed the Supreme Being."

"Upon returning and learning about the Supreme Being's death, and with one of the Monarchs captured by the Rulers, Ashborn joined the Monarchs' side to stop a decisive victory for those he viewed as traitors, becoming known as the Monarch of Shadows, because he could resurrect the dead as shadow soldiers under his command. He fought against the seven Rulers, but when he was about to kill one of them, he finally decided to forgive them."

"Sometime later, Ashborn, being feared due to his vast power that only one of the Monarchs, Antares, the King of Dragons, could rival, was betrayed by two other Monarchs."

"The seven Rulers retired from the War, leaving the world that had been a battlefield for so long, and choosing to live quietly in another inhabited world. Which happens to be Earth."

"They chose human hosts to hide themselves in a sort of semi-hibernating state, not interfering with the hosts' free will, but their very presence conferring the hosts great potential."

"The eight Monarchs somehow learned that the Rulers have hidden themselves on Earth, and that by using humans as vessels, they are in a somewhat weakened state, vulnerable to attack. The Monarchs intend to use the opportunity to kill the Rulers once and for all. Which is why, in the not-too-distant future, they will invade Earth, bringing their armies or monsters with them. And Humanity, being weak and unprepared, with firearms being ineffective against monsters, would not survive it."

"The Rulers learned about this and decided to take some countermeasures. They gathered some of their war prisoners, implanted inside their bodies control devices that would give them a strong compulsion to kill humans on sight, and locked them into temporary pocket dimensions, setting up gates linking those dimensions to appear on Earth, where humanity would quickly find them. The Dungeons. Their goal was double."

"Use the energy constantly leaking from the gates to fortify Earth and cause humans to Awaken, and provide the newly awakened humans with opponents to hone themselves, before the Monarchs' invasion would start."

Akeno took from her inventory a handful of cores she had gathered from monsters and dropped them on the table.

"Those are control devices the Rulers have put into their war prisoners… Long story short, the dungeons are training grounds to give humanity a fighting chance against the upcoming monster invasion."

For a long moment, no one spoke, as most of the people present were struggling with the idea.

"…assuming you tell the truth, how do you know all this?" asked Go Gunhee, his face not showing what he thought about her story.

"Because there are gods, like the Supreme Being, and then there are Gods, capital G." shrugged Akeno. "The Supreme Being was only Supreme at a local level, so to speak. The Multiverse is a big, big place, and Jeanne, Alter and I work for a deity that is on a more global level. She has sent us to this world to help humanity and kill the Monarchs."

"We are essentially troubleshooters. We come in, deal with the issues, then leave to go to another world in trouble, rinse and repeat until we choose to retire. And we are well compensated for the job, with many perks. The Augment ability I showed earlier, as well as the hardened light objects, or my ability to heal anything short of death? Speaking any language, complete immunity to curses and poisons, and more? Those are all part of the welcome package we troubleshooters receive when we sign up."

"And we are actively recruiting, as there is no such thing as too many troubleshooters." grinned Akeno. "Jinah here can attest."

"…Yeah." said Jinah, her face reddening as she suddenly became the center of attention. "I can use things like Augment and stuff. That's how I defeated those murderous C-rankers in the dungeon, despite being technically an E-rank. When this crisis is over, I will follow Akeno and the others to another world and do what I can to help."

"But what about your mother?" blurted out Lee Joohee.

"She will come with us, but won't be a troubleshooter herself. She will live in what will be my permanent home after I retire."

"Oh…"

"There is one thing I do not understand." said Choi Jong-In. "Why are C or D-rank hunters participating in this meeting? I have nothing against them, but surely there is a reason for their presence? Or are they going to become troubleshooters as well?"

"Some of them, very likely. But there is another reason." nodded Akeno. "Who wants to tell them what really happened in that double dungeon?"

"I will, if you do not mind." smiled Chi-Yul, looking at Hae-In, and she nodded slowly, understanding that it was somehow related to his earlier promise.

Chi-Yul started relating, from his point of view, everything that had happened that day, stressing the horror of the Lord, the three commands they were supposed to obey, the Lord's defeat, and the system they had received. How the daily quests and killing monsters made them stronger, Sung Jinwoo's disappearance after he didn't do the daily quest, and them quietly working on becoming stronger.

When he was done, Akeno preempted the most obvious question.

"I received information from my Goddess regarding the System. Yes, she talks to me, although this is a rare occurrence. The System's creator, a powerful mage calling himself the Architect, is working for the Monarchs. Their goal with the System is to provide Ashborn with a vessel strong enough to withstand his power."

Chi-Yul, Joohee and the others paled as they realized the danger they were in.

"The Monarchs believe that Ashborn will join their side in the upcoming conflict. I'm not so certain. My Goddess told me that the Rulers should not interfere with this by trying to murder the System users, lest they invite the very thing they would try to avoid."

Akeno was staring straight at Go Gunhee, as she knew that one of the Rulers was hidden in his body, and very likely listening. but she didn't want to put him on the spot, so she didn't say anything about it.

"So, this whole mess with the dungeons, all those lives lost since they appeared ten years ago, and all those who will die before it ends, all because a handful of people decided to involve us?" asked Baek Yoonho with a bitter face.

"Yes. It's not fair, but that's how it is. At least, we have been sent to even the odds a bit." shrugged Akeno.

Baek nodded reluctantly.

"You said the Rulers put control devices inside the monsters to make them more aggressive. Why?" asked Baek Yoonho.

"I do not know. My personal theory is that, maybe, the Rulers were wary of the possibility that humanity would join the Monarchs' side."

"…We appreciate you giving us this information, miss Himejima." nodded Go Gunhee with a thoughtful expression. "But you didn't organize this meeting for only this reason, am I wrong?"

"No, you aren't... Those among us who received the System are focusing on growing in power, as fast as we can.  I do not have a precise estimate of how strong the Monarchs are, but I was told that normal S-rank Hunters just aren't going to be enough, even working in teams against a single Monarch. Heck, the Ant King in Jeju Island is going to decimate your ranks if we're not present, and that thing definitely isn't on a Monarch's level."

"The Ant King?" asked Choi Jong-In, alarmed. The previous raid had been bad enough with normal ants, guardian ants, and the Queen, and had caused him traumas. Hearing that they might have to face a completely new category of enemy worried him a lot. It felt a lot more real and immediate a threat that Akeno's Monarchs.

"A black, mostly humanoid, two to three meters tall ant with fiendish speed and human level intellect. Fast enough that all the Korean S-ranks together would be unable to assist each other for attack or defense, and smart enough to ignore taunts and go after the healers and mages first. Oh, and it has wings, too."

"But returning to the Monarchs, to have a chance to face one of them one on one would require either a system user who had enough time to grow, or an existing S-ranker enhanced with the abilities of us troubleshooters. And bonus points for System users who are also troubleshooters, like Jinah, Jeanne, Alter and me. So, I am asking for priority access to high rank dungeons, possibly not just in Korea, but worldwide. And I am asking for experienced Hunters who would volunteer to become troubleshooters."

"Surely there would be a number of S-rank, A-rank or even B-rank individuals who would be willing to risk their lives for a few years, saving a lot of people in multiple worlds, and be rewarded with a greatly extended lifespan, among other benefits. It doesn't have to be limited to Korean citizens, either."

"I wouldn't say no to a longer life." said Kim Sangshik. "Where do I sign to get your abilities. I can bring my daughter and my wife with me, right?"

Akeno winced a little. "I wouldn't necessarily say no, but I simplified things a little too much. To become a troubleshooter like us, following a process is required, whose details are confidential. And because of compatibility reasons, the process is much faster with women than with men. In Jinah's case, it took less than a week. For a man, I would expect at least six to eight weeks. And I believe we only have a few months, at most, before the Monarchs start appearing on Earth, so…"

"I… see." nodded Kim Sangshik, disappointed. He wasn't the only one.

"I'll volunteer." said Cha Hae-in, without much enthusiasm.

When everyone looked at her, she explained. "The number of female S-rank individuals can be counted on the fingers of one hand. To be accurate, there's me in Korea, three in Japan, and this is it. If what Miss Himejima says is true, all four of us need to seize this opportunity. not doing so would be betraying our companions and the civilians who need us."

"That's very decisive and noble of you." smiled Akeno.

"But before I accept your offer, I want to see some proof."

"…How about we wait until the Jeju island raid, then? If you see the Ant King, you will be more inclined to believe me?" suggested Akeno.

"Yes." nodded Hae-In.

"The abilities you would receive aren't the kind that grows with time or training, so waiting until after the raid won't be an issue, as long as you get them before the Monarchs come."

"I will give you free access to any dungeon, regardless of your Hunter rank." decided Go Gunhee. "But would you agree to being retested? It would help me, when I'll have to justify it to the public."

"I do not mind. Thank you for your help, Chairman." smiled Akeno, and the system users also agreed to be tested again.

"I will also spread the word to the other Associations, about the dungeons and the upcoming war. I will also introduce you as someone who can bestow her abilities to other women, but I won't mention the part about immortality and gods and other worlds. They wouldn't believe a word of it."

Go Gunhee himself wasn't certain he believed it. It all seemed too fantastic. And yet, she was the one who could heal people no one else could heal, who defeated a S-rank Hunter with her bare hands despite being a Healer, made those cores appear out of thin air, and possessed a S-rank core, whose aura couldn't be faked.

Either Akeno Himejima was telling the truth, or she was the greatest scam artist of all times.