Murim Login - Chapter 404
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I will re-publish the earlier chapters to fix those issues with the translation. I apologize in advance if it did not meet your standard. Please comment the chapters you find that is lacking in quality so I can fix them ASAP. Thanks for understanding!
Current re-published chapters (270 - 305)
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*Hoo.*
In the pitch-black night, a young man, having just returned, threw off his equipment and collapsed into a seat. He was panting heavily when a middle-aged man approached and offered him a drink.
“You look worn out. Here, have this.”
Both of them were hunters, drafted from Shanxi Province, and had grown somewhat familiar during the journey. The young man, recognizing the familiar face and the canned drink in his hand, muttered in a tired voice.
“Is this from the supplies? It looks like a drink I’ve never seen before.”
“It came with the international aid packages. It’s not from our country.”
“Hm, do you have any soda?”
“If you don’t want it, just give it back.”
Without hesitation, the young man quickly grabbed the retreating hand of the middle-aged man and said seriously, “Sir, did I ever mention that my favorite thing in the world is supplied drinks?”
“No.”
“Well, now you know.”
“That’s the spirit.”
“Thanks for the drink.”
*Click.*
After cracking open the can and taking a sip, the young man’s expression subtly shifted. But before he could say anything, the middle-aged man asked him a question.
“Just finished the search of Area 3?”
“…Yeah.”
“Must’ve been tough.”
The young man simply shrugged in response. His bare upper body, after taking off his gear, was still covered in cold sweat, and green monster blood stained his cheek.
“Is that monster blood? Was there a fight?”
“No. I was walking past a building when a dead gargoyle fell from the roof. I think it was stuck up there.”
“That must’ve been chaotic.”
“Do you even need to ask? The first- and second-year rookies puked and even peed themselves the moment they were covered in blood.”
“And you?”
“I’ve been a hunter for seven years now. Didn’t even blink.”
The older man’s gaze slowly drifted down to a certain area of the young man’s pants, where there was a small, suspicious stain. He gave a slight nod.
“Hm, I see.”
“…It’s just sweat.”
“I didn’t say anything. But looking at you makes my eyes water.”
“…To be honest, I may have been a bit scared. Is it obvious?”
“Yeah.”
“Damn it.”
As the young man cursed under his breath and gulped down his drink, the middle-aged man, watching him silently, suddenly asked, “Did you find any survivors?”
“…!”
“Same on your side, huh?”
The young man’s expression hardened at the question, and the older man sighed.
He had already participated in a previous search. It had been nothing short of a nightmare.
Everywhere he looked, there were bodies torn apart by monsters, and the stench was so overpowering it felt like his head was splitting.
Both of them would likely never forget what they saw today for the rest of their lives.
“I can’t even imagine how intense that battle must’ve been.”
“You don’t need to imagine it. Whatever you’re thinking, it was worse.”
The 4,000 hunters who had followed Wei Fenghu, the Minister of National Defense, were divided into squads to search the small city. And all of their equipment returned with the same result:
No survivors.
Except for the 3,000 People’s Liberation Army soldiers who had fled in fear during the initial stages of the battle, everyone was dead. How many of the scattered deserters had survived was still unknown.
“At this point, you can’t even call it a casualty report. It’s more like a death count.”
“Watch your words. We don’t know for sure yet.”
“Sorry, I spoke out of line.”
“Good. And…”
Cutting off the young man’s careless remark, the middle-aged man continued.
“A death count is appropriate. There are survivors.”
“…Oh.”
The young man suddenly remembered something he had momentarily forgotten: the existence of three people who had survived this hellish battlefield.
“One of them was the **Regiment Commander of the Public Security Forces Hunter Division**, right? That young guy.”
“Yeah. And that young hunter from Korea survived too.”
“And then…”
Although the first two individuals had accomplished heroic feats, compared to the last survivor, they were mere flickers of light in the face of the sun.
The middle-aged man spoke in place of the young man, who swallowed nervously.
“Yes, him. No, that person.”
There was an unmistakable reverence in his voice. Despite being much younger, calling him “that person” felt entirely natural, because the deeds he had accomplished were nothing short of extraordinary.
“Do you believe it? That a single hunter can be that strong?”
The middle-aged man was a seasoned veteran hunter himself. So he could somewhat understand how monstrous S-rank hunters were.
But the feats Jin Tae-Kyung had displayed were almost beyond belief, even for a hunter—no, even for a human.
“He wiped out a monster legion of tens of thousands. There were two **Death Knights**, and the **Death Knight Lord**, who is said to be as strong as, or even stronger than, an S-rank hunter.”
The middle-aged man’s voice grew more excited as he spoke quickly.
“And how many hunters did we have on our side? Only about a thousand. There were *People’s Liberation Army* soldiers too, but even they…”
“When the frontlines collapsed, almost half of them fled. The rest fought bravely but were slaughtered by the monsters. I know all about it.”
“And when Jin Tae-Kyung arrived, how many hunters do you think were left? A thousand? I’d bet my life that not even half of them were still standing!”
If he had witnessed the situation when Jin Tae-Kyung arrived, he might have suffered a heart attack from sheer shock.
Even with all the awe he felt, he couldn’t have imagined that Jin Tae-Kyung had fought the monster legion alone.
“He led a few hundred exhausted and injured hunters and annihilated a monster legion more than ten times their number! Can you believe that?”
However, the young man’s expression remained unimpressed.
“No, I don’t think I can.”
“Right, but he did it!”
“Uh, sir, sorry to rain on your parade, but haven’t we yet to confirm the full facts?”
“What?”
“I mean, I agree that Jin Tae-Kyung—”
“**Hunter Jin**!”
Startled by the middle-aged man’s sharp reprimand, the young man cleared his throat awkwardly.
“Ahem. Right. I agree that Hunter Jin is incredibly powerful, but isn’t it possible some exaggeration crept in?”
“Exaggeration? After seeing the battlefield? If not Hunter Jin, who else could have…”
“Come on, don’t get so worked up. Let’s be more rational about this. If everything you’re saying is true, that would mean Hunter Jin is stronger than **Pai Chen** or **Wu Haixing**.”
“I don’t want to rank them, but based on the merits of this monster wave, Hunter Jin is on top. So?”
“Pai Chen is a hero who earned countless merits during the Great Change, and Wu Haixing, despite his incidents, is China’s true genius. You’re saying Jin Tae-Kyung is stronger than both of them? That’s a stretch.”
The middle-aged man stared at the young man with an expression filled with both exasperation and pity.
“The only one stretching here is you.”
“Excuse me?”
“Is that all you have to say? Praising your country’s heroes while trying to diminish the one who saved the people?”
The young man’s face twisted in anger.
“Since we’re being honest, the number of people Jin Tae-Kyung saved today is two. No, wait—one of them wasn’t even Chinese; it was a Korean. So really, just one. He was only fighting to save his own countryman. Do you think he used a top-grade potion?”
The middle-aged man sighed in disbelief. “It’s a disgrace to belittle the man who saved lives. What do you think Hunter Jin would say if he heard you…”
And at that moment, a voice cut through the conversation.
“Well, my guess is that he’d call you a worthless bastard not even worth helping.”
“…!”
“…!”
Both men flinched in shock and turned their heads to see who had spoken.
There, standing before them, was a man whose face they had grown familiar with through IV broadcasts and the media.
“…Hic.”
The younger man began to hiccup as he looked up at the tall figure towering over him.
“J-J-J-Jin!!”
The middle-aged man stammered as if his words were buffering, unable to string a coherent sentence together.
Jin Tae-Kyung gave them both a friendly smile as he opened his mouth to speak.
“Now, young man, if you don’t want to stop being a good Chinese citizen, you’d better stop hiccuping. And sir, please stop shaking like there’s an earthquake. Unless your plan is to defeat the Arch-Lich by causing a massive quake.”
“Hic.”
“Are you… really you?”
Jin Tae-Kyung nodded slightly.
“I was going to just walk past, but your conversation caught my attention.”
“…That’s… uh…”
The young man, the source of the “annoying noise,” stopped hiccupping and began trembling like a leaf as Jin Tae-Ky
ung turned his gaze toward him.
“How old are you?”
“I-I’m twenty-nine.”
“Then you’re older than me. I’ll speak casually.”
“…What?”
“No objections, I hope?”
“No, none at all.”
He had no right to object, not even if Jin Tae-Kyung decided to curse him out.
The thought that the very Jin Tae-Kyung he had seen from afar had heard everything he said made the young man’s limbs go numb, his vision turning white.
“I-I’m sorry.”
“There’s no need to apologize. Everyone talks behind people’s backs. I understand.”
“Th-thank you.”
As the young man’s heart melted at Jin Tae-Kyung’s warm smile, Jin suddenly added,
“There’s no need to thank me either. Talking behind someone’s back is fun, but getting caught is when you’re screwed.”
“…!”
“Now, there’s someone standing behind me, right? Can you see him?”
The young man slowly, very slowly, shifted his gaze.
Sure enough, about ten meters away stood an older man with the face of a demon, glaring at him with murderous intent.
“He’s an A-rank hunter from the **Central Military Commission**. He seemed very interested in your comments, and he kept bowing to me. Why don’t you run over and offer him some ointment for his back?”
“Yes, sir!”
With a scream that resembled an answer, the young man dashed away, only to let out a real scream when a mana-charged punch landed on him.
Chuckling at the scene, Jin Tae-Kyung turned to leave but paused for a moment.
“Oh, and by the way, there’s something you’ve got wrong.”
“M-me?”
The middle-aged man, who had been somewhat dazed, snapped back to attention.
“I’m sorry, but what is it?”
“I didn’t do it alone.”
“…What?”
“Everyone fought like their lives depended on it. By the time I arrived, the battle was nearly over. Please make sure people know that.”
“Is that… really true?”
“Of course. By the way, do you have a family?”
“Y-yes. Three daughters and five sons…”
“Wow, a patriot. You’ll be able to form a soccer team in a few years.”
After pondering something for a moment, Jin Tae-Kyung suddenly asked,
“You’re not part of the combat unit, right?”
“…You can tell right away.”
The middle-aged man lowered his head in embarrassment.
“As you can see, I’m an E-rank hunter, so I was excluded from the battle. I’ll probably be assigned to casualty reporting.”
“In that case, could I ask you for a favor?”
“It would be an honor, Hunter Jin.”
“Please add one name to the list of the dead. You won’t find a body, so I’m asking this as a special request.”
“What’s the person’s name?”
“Lei Fei. His name is Lei Fei.”
That was the last thing Jin Tae-Kyung said.
The middle-aged man stood still, watching Jin Tae-Kyung’s figure grow distant. Finally, he let out the breath he had been holding.
The look on Jin Tae-Kyung’s face at the end would likely remain etched in his memory for a long time.
What kind of expression was that…?
It was one of absolute resolve, a determination to see things through no matter what.
The middle-aged man, who had been filled with admiration for Jin Tae-Kyung, took a sip from the can the young man had left behind to quench his thirst. However, his face scrunched up at the indescribable taste.
“Ugh! Gross!”
Was this a **Korean drink**? It tasted terrible.
* * *
“You’re here, Hunter Jin.”
The person waiting for me wasn’t just **Wei Fenghu**.
In the conference room, five monitors displayed the faces of five S-rank hunters. In a calm voice, I spoke.
“Let’s end this war.”
It was time to deal with the root cause of all this.
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