Ground Zero (4)

The Punisher possessed its own tenacity.

It strove to endure and mount a counterattack.

It clenched its teeth, endeavored to ignore the pain, and twisted its body with all its might to strike back at Kang-hoo.

The effort was superhuman.

Any other monster would have spewed blood and perished by this point.

However, its resolve to safeguard the Mad Solarkium at all costs endowed the Punisher with extraordinary vigor.

Thud!

Regrettably, the Punisher’s combat spirit was undone by a mere flick of Kang-hoo’s finger.

Blood Flower had been unleashed.

Like a paper doll in a gale, the Punisher’s body convulsed incessantly before tumbling forward.

The Blood Flower, erupting amidst the spurting blood, dealt intolerable damage in a single strike.

No amount of willpower could help the Punisher withstand the assault that exceeded its physical thresholds.

“Sigh.”

Kang-hoo let out a heated breath.

Without Blood Flower, the creature’s tenacious resistance would have made it a difficult foe to vanquish.

The battle had been quite unnerving.

For the first time in a great while, his confidence in victory was shaky, at best 90%, or even less.

Nonetheless, with the Punisher’s demise, there was no one left to defend the Mad Solarkium.

Kang-hoo used leaps to ascend the cliff, occasionally clutching rocks for rest and to conserve time.

He had to pause between successive leaps to prevent exhaustion.

Thanks to his augmented strength, supporting his body weight with just one or two arms was not challenging.

This was an unthinkable task during his escape from the Cheongmyeong Detention Center.

But now, with his significantly enhanced strength stat, it was as effortless as performing push-ups.

Upon reaching the midpoint of the cliff, Kang-hoo found himself directly before the Mad Solarkium.

It appeared so distinct from the regular Solarkium that one might question if they were related.

While the regular Solarkium bore semblance to aloe, the Mad Solarkium resembled a tulip more closely.

Without prior knowledge, one would find it impossible to recognize them as related.

Swoosh!

With just a slight effort, the Mad Solarkium was easily plucked.

“Finally.”

Kang-hoo wore a satisfied expression.

For 30 minutes, this little flower would render him complete. It would liberate him from all constraints and worries.

Of course, after 30 minutes, there would be a backlash proportionate to the strain experienced during the period of tranquility.

But the fact that it allowed for 30 minutes of undisturbed focus on battle was significant.

Especially since his congenital mana hypersensitivity made mana supply a constant concern.

In other words, with Mad Solarkium, he effectively had unlimited mana for 30 minutes. It was equivalent to having unlimited skills.

“A single flower worth 100 million won… more valuable than gold.”

He couldn’t help but chuckle.

Of course, he had no intention of selling it.

Moreover, not many hunters actively sought Mad Solarkium.

Drugs and other substances were much more effective for pain relief and awakening compared to Mad Solarkium.

Furthermore, in terms of cost-effectiveness, drugs were much more affordable than the million-won Mad Solarkium.

Anyway, he had acquired the first Mad Solarkium. There were still five more flowers to gather.

He needed to move quickly.

“Huh?”

Then, after a slight delay, something sprang out from the body of the deceased Punisher.

It was a green magic stone worth 100 million won.

The profit from magic stones seemed quite substantial.

Normally, encountering magic stones was rare, but the characteristic of Ground Zero, with its strong negative energy, appeared to play a part.

It meant that he was in a less explored area, untouched by other hunters.

Both dungeons and such external spaces offered better rewards when they were less conquered.

It was a verified statistic.

“……”

However, one thing had been bothering him for a while.

The fact that there was an eye watching him.

Interestingly, the owner of the gaze moved freely among the trees.

Moreover, they made no sound as they quietly changed positions.

Had Kang-hoo not possessed night vision, he would not have noticed he was being watched.

Kang-hoo did not react because the observer maintained a safe distance.

The presence seemed more curious than hostile, as if merely observing.

‘Well, they’ll make their move when the time comes.’

Without giving it much thought, Kang-hoo started moving to the next point.

If necessary, they would reveal themselves first, and if they wished to fight, they would close the distance.

Then he would respond accordingly. There was no need to overthink it.

Late at night, the dense darkness of Ground Zero was filled only with silence and stillness.

Occasional screams of monsters or hunters could be heard, but no one paid attention to these sounds.

People simply thought indifferently that a monster or hunter must have died and moved on.

Usually, such events only transpired when other hunters were present; most of the time, they were oblivious to what was happening.

Thus, ‘she,’ who had been watching Kang-hoo from a distance, could focus solely on him.

Her name was Jung Yuri.

With a level of 250, she was a hunter who had been surviving in Ground Zero for quite some time.

She had no difficulty living in the wild.

In fact, she felt much safer here than in a crime-ridden city where danger was unpredictable.

Additionally, disliking sunlight, she found the dense foliage and trees of Ground Zero to her liking.

Following Kang-hoo discreetly was not particularly challenging for her.

With her ability to transform, she could change her body from human form to that of black smoke.

This allowed her to move through the air with ease, unburdened by gravity.

If needed, she could even utilize her spatial manipulation ability to create shortcuts.

‘Doesn’t he ever get tired? He seems flawless even against the tricky Punisher.’

Kang-hoo busily moved to obtain the Mad Solarkium, constantly fighting Punishers.

Having watched all these battles, Jung Yuri marveled at Kang-hoo’s abilities.

Punishers posed a challenge for anyone since they adjusted to an opponent’s skill and level.

Therefore, conquering a Punisher required ingenious strategies to exploit weaknesses.

No matter how skilled a hunter was, there was a limit to the skills they could apply.

Yet, Kang-hoo kept introducing variables into the situation.

She had counted over ten different skills just by watching.

To possess that many, one’s level had to be at least 200.

At that level, hunters receive basic skills at levels 1, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 100, and 200, totaling eight.

Adding about three more skills specific to one’s job resulted in around eleven.

Jung Yuri herself had a total of ten skills, so she presumed he must be around her level.

‘His transition between offense and defense is seamless.’

What Jung Yuri noted most was the absence of superfluous movements in Kang-hoo’s actions.

This made his attacks and defenses fluid, and most importantly, there was no waste in his movements and paths.

He was the most adept hunter she had recently seen in Ground Zero.

‘He doesn’t seem to be a runaway.’

Jung Yuri was certain.

He wasn’t a criminal who had committed crimes and hidden here but an external hunter who had come with a purpose.

That piqued her curiosity even more.

As if he had an internal map, how did he manage to find only the spots with Mad Solarkium?

“……”

Jung Yuri once again concealed herself in the darkness, maintaining a distance as she followed Kang-hoo.

There was still plenty of time before dawn.

Thirty minutes later.

“Now I’m starting to sweat a bit.”

After defeating the Punisher and obtaining the sixth Mad Solarkium, Kang-hoo finally sat down on a rock to rest for the first time.

This was as far as Kang-hoo’s knowledge of the Mad Solarkium locations extended.

Beyond this point lay uncharted territory.

He knew he could find more if he searched, but it would not be easy since it involved scouring Ground Zero in its entirety.

As he looked at the six Mad Solarkium flowers, he felt as though he owned the world.

Three hours had passed. Considering that one battle took about 30 minutes, these flowers could ease six battles without much trouble.

They would prove strategically useful in the future, especially for creating variables.

“Level 42.”

His level had steadily increased.

Having dealt with six Punishers and a few minor monsters, the experience points he gained were certainly significant.

If he hadn’t come alone or at a time when the Yin energy was strong, he would have barely reached level 41.

Kang-hoo was reminded of the advantages of solo play and the importance of timing.

Swoosh.

Kang-hoo glanced up at the top of a towering tree.

Someone had been watching him for a long time.

Either they would show themselves in the middle of his observation, or he thought they might lose interest and leave, but the owner of the gaze continued to watch him steadily.

“Should I play a little trick?”

Immediately, Kang-hoo deployed illusions and Shadow Step, sending his clones scattering in all directions.

This caused the observer’s gaze to become confused, unable to focus on a single spot, and start wandering aimlessly.

It must have been even more disconcerting since they were watching from the darkness.

Images, each an exact replica of Kang-hoo, scattered in every direction.

Meanwhile.

Thud! Thud!

He forcefully stabbed his dagger into the tree, rapidly climbing to the top.

Using leaps and acceleration, he reached the top of the 40-meter tree in just a few seconds.

“Hey.”

“Ah!”

“Why so surprised? Did you think I didn’t know about you?”

“Th-that’s not it! But how did you know?”

“From the beginning. I just didn’t respond because you didn’t seem hostile. But you’ve been watching too long, haven’t you?”

“An assassin, I get it, but climbing up a tree like this?”

“Curiosity killed the cat.”

Kang-hoo sat down beside her.

From this high up in the tree, it should have felt dizzyingly high.

But both Kang-hoo and Jung Yu-ri sat comfortably without worry.

At that moment, Kang-hoo’s eyes sparkled as he carefully observed her face.

A face and name came to mind, matching the description from the original work.

Distinct facial features with clear lines.

A stylishly done updo and heterochromic eyes of completely different colors.

From the side, her nose looked sharp enough to cut paper, and she had rather full lips.

And the strong scent of acacia emanating from her body. There was a character in the original work that matched all this.

Jung Yu-ri—A female hunter living in Ground Zero, a character who detested the Jeonghwa Guild to an extreme.

She harbored a deeper grudge than An Yeong-ho, having been betrayed by a hunter from the Jeonghwa Guild.

Her story was long.

To put it simply, she strived to kill Chae Gwanhyeong, a key figure in the Jeonghwa Guild in the future. Her entanglement with him was so deep that her resentment seemed unending.

“Destiny intertwines in such ways.”

Kang-hoo nodded to the strange progression of fate and destiny, accepting the coincidence.

That’s how human encounters are. They’re not always inevitable.

Meeting important people in unexpected places, such coincidences happen.

For Kang-hoo, who had decided to strategize against the Jeonghwa Guild, Jung Yu-ri was a significant figure.