I Became The Only Healer In The Academy [EN]: Chapter 189

189

Everyone stared blankly at the small girl who had suddenly appeared.

She looked human in every way.

But that wasn’t what surprised them.

It was the absence of something they should have felt from a monster.

The unique magical power signature of monsters was completely absent.

That meant one of two things.

Either the girl was human, not a monster, or she was a new type of monster unlike any they had ever encountered.

“You guys are the first to break all my dolls like this. Ah, or maybe not the first?”

The girl—no, the monster—kept muttering incomprehensible words.

She mumbled about how it was the first time her dolls had been so miserably defeated since *that* person, and she mumbled some numbers.

“That kid… no, we should take care of that monster, right?”

“Yes. That is a monster.”

“Is there a possibility that it’s not a monster…”

“No, this time the bastard’s right. Since it came out of the gate and shows hostility towards us, towards humans, it is a monster. It has to be a monster, and it can only be a monster.”

Padron finished speaking and immediately prepared for battle again.

In any case, now there was nothing else inside the gate except for that girl, and the exit still hadn’t appeared.

Even if, by some chance, that girl wasn’t a monster, engaging her was the only choice they had unless they wanted to live in this gate for the rest of their lives.

“What? Are you going to fight me?”

The girl looked surprised, shook her head, and said, “No, no. I can’t bring all my dolls here. I’ll just let you go today, so let’s do it next time. Okay?”

“What?”

Padron, who had already tasted the thrill of battle with the dolls, didn’t seem willing to accept it, but this time, he had no choice.

“If I lose, the gate will open.”

“Then I should kill you even more?”

“Hey, you have to listen to the end. Another gate will open, not the exit!”

“Another gate will open?”

Everyone looked puzzled at those words.

The gate had already undergone one mutation, so another gate opening here instead of the exit?

“That person is there too… and my friend is there… and who else was there? Anyway, there are many!”

The expression of smiling brightly looked just like a human child, but the murderous intent in her voice was something even the top hunters couldn’t ignore.

“Is that where this gate is made?”

“Yes! Ah! I told you too much! Go quickly. I want to play more, but I can’t now.”

The monster then stretched her finger into the air.

An exit appeared, leading out of the gate.

“Bye~”

The monster waved her hand innocently, as if telling them to hurry out.

“…”

Many questions remained, but they couldn’t easily step into that unknown place yet, so everyone left the gate with only regret.

As soon as they came out of the gate, the mutated gate immediately disappeared.

The monster inside the gate also vanished after the hunters left.

“Did they come out this quickly?”

“As expected!”

The reporters, as well as the association, seemed surprised by the abnormal subjugation speed, but the hunters who had directly experienced the inside couldn’t maintain a bright expression.

“Everyone, please go back today. After talking with the hunters, the association will make an announcement.”

Fortunately, the association president, quick to notice the somber mood, appropriately blocked the reporters.

“Hunters, you must be tired, but there will be a meeting regarding the subjugation of the Class 1 gate.”

“How much time is left?”

“Please take a rest, even if it’s just a little. It will start in 3 hours with other top hunters who have arrived representing each country.”

The schedule was quite tight, but the United States couldn’t delay it any longer.

When the first Class 1 gate appeared, they thought they would gain tremendous power by monopolizing the two Class 1 gates in the world, but as time went on, the continuous flooding of monsters and the appearance of mutated Class 2 gates, like the recent occurrences, revealed the limitations of simply focusing on power.

“Okay. I’ll go to the association then.”

“Thank you.”

Sunghyun moved with Leech.

With only 3 hours left, it was difficult to do anything else.

Exactly 3 hours passed, and Leech and Sunghyun, who had gone to the association, moved to the prepared location.

Top hunters representing each country, as well as the association president, had all arrived, and the meeting began not long after Leech and Sunghyun entered.

“Thank you all for being here. I will tell you the topic of today’s meeting: the subjugation of the Class 1 gate.”

Everyone already knew this, but they couldn’t suppress the murmurs.

Subjugating a Class 1 gate meant something significant.

A place where they had never even considered subjugating.

“As you all know, another Class 1 gate has appeared in the United States. These two Class 1 gates could have been managed by the United States’ own power, but the mutation of the Class 2 gate, which had only happened once in history, has occurred twice recently. One is in Korea, and one is here.”

Of course, the Class 2 gate might not mutate any further, but since the mutation that had only happened once in history happened twice in a matter of days, the anxiety was indescribable.

It was fortunate that the mutations occurred in Korea and the United States, but if it had occurred in a place without a top hunter, the damage would have been quite severe.

“So we want to subjugate one Class 1 gate. First, I would like to hear opinions on which gate to subjugate—whether to subjugate the existing Class 1 gate that we regularly subjugate, or the newly appeared Class 1 gate.”

In front of each seat was a small, button-like device.

It seemed they would vote on which Class 1 gate to subjugate with this.

“We have been regularly subjugating the existing Class 1 gate for a long time, so we have a rough understanding of the power and strength of the monsters and bosses inside. And everyone agrees that its strength is beyond imagination.”

Behind the association president, the figures of the giants appearing from the Class 1 gate could be seen.

“On the other hand, we don’t have much information about the newly appeared Class 1 gate, but monsters are flooding out regularly once a month. It is a good source for collecting crystals now, but if the mutation of the Class 2 gate starts to occur more frequently in the future, there may be a situation where we cannot stop the flooding.”

The expressions of all the hunters in the room were grim.

Only those who knew the details of what happened inside the gate were gathered here, but the association president did not know the full story.

“First of all, does anyone have any other opinions on whether it is right to subjugate a Class 1 gate at all?”

Several hunters raised their hands at the association president’s question.

“It could be a bad move. The crystals from the Class 1 gate are special. The supply of these crystals will decrease, which means that the number of things that can be made with crystals will also decrease, right? Ultimately, it can be seen as weakening the power of the hunter.”

“That’s a valid point…”

“Hey, if you’re going to talk such nonsense, get out.”

The voice heard from the very back was none other than Padron’s.

His furrowed brow represented his feelings.

“Since when have our hunters been borrowing the power of equipment? Did you also become a top hunter by borrowing the power of equipment?”

“…Padron, your words are too much.”

“Think about it. Even if we only deal with the monsters from the Class 1 gate that flood out regularly, it exceeds the existing supply level. Surely you don’t lack even this basic information, do you?”

“The more crystals we have, the better. Padron, you can exert overwhelming power even without the power of equipment. So, will Padron travel around the world and handle the mutated Class 2 gates alone?”

“What? You impudent bastard!!”

“Both of you, calm down. This is not a place for fighting.”

At Leech’s chilling voice, Padron also turned his head away, and the hunter who had expressed a different opinion also cleared his throat and became quiet.

Both of them made valid points, but Sunghyun could sense something slightly off.

To put it simply, the hunter who gave his opinion was suggesting that there should be support for places that cannot block the mutated Class 2 gate.

And he was implying that he was included in that group needing support.

“Both of you have said the right thing. But if the mutation of the Class 2 gate happens this often in the future, we won’t be able to block it without damage just because we have a lot of equipment.”

“Association President, you mean sacrificing the few for the sake of the many…”

An objection was about to be voiced, but the association president cut off the words and continued to answer.

“That’s right. Sacrificing the few for the sake of the many. And in the first place, even if we act according to the opinion you mentioned, can you guarantee that sacrifices will not occur? Now, gates cannot be used purely for the benefit of mankind. Considering the results of the 5th class gates disappearing and the monsters getting stronger, my conclusion is that humanity cannot keep up with the speed at which gates change in the future. Do you have any other objections?”

No more hunters expressed objections.

If they were to object in this situation, it would be like objecting to moving for the safety of mankind.

“It is up to the hunters here to choose which gate to choose, but what I want to say is that I want you to choose the place where you can subjugate with the least damage. Then let’s start the vote.”

But the result was already decided.

That angel who manages the inside of the newly appeared Class 1 gate.

If you kill that angel, the way to get out of the gate disappears.

That may be a lie, but if it is true, the hunters who support the whole world will be trapped, so they could not take on that huge risk.

“The vote ended faster than I thought…”

The association president seemed a little surprised by the voting results.

It was unanimous in favor of subjugating the existing place.

“The subjugation will be scheduled for 3 days later. If the Class 2 gate mutates in the middle, the schedule may change slightly, but there will be no major changes. And I was wondering if we should keep the same number of people who regularly participate in the subjugation—is that okay?”

Even if other hunters were added here, it might be a hindrance to those who had been working together in advance.

Of course, Sunghyun was an exception.

The answer to the question came back in silence, and the association president knew that this silence meant affirmation, so he nodded and said, “The remaining hunters will also arrive within 3 days. Today’s meeting is over.”

The meeting was quite quick because it was a meeting where the result was predetermined.

“Do you have any other plans, Hunter Kim?”

“No. I didn’t even know I would have 3 days off.”

“Then I have a favor to ask…”

You could tell from Leech’s expression what kind of favor he was going to ask.

Perhaps Sunghyun’s healing ability would be needed.

“Who is it?”

“Yes?”

“The sick person.”

“Ah…”

Leech, who was showing a very apologetic expression, met Sunghyun’s eyes, who showed a faint smile as if he was truly okay, and felt relieved and answered quietly.