Chapter 8

Fated Hunter: The Seer of the Future 008

Chapter 8

"It's a Catoblepas!"

"Why, why is such a monster in the Green Zone?!"

In the middle of the room, a Catoblepas, resembling a combination of a bull and a rhinoceros, glared at the group.

The Catoblepas is a monstrous beast from Greek mythology, known for its rapid charges and attacks with the horn on its nose, and for turning enemies to stone with its breath when they get too close. It's a difficult monster to deal with.

Seeing the Catoblepas about to charge, the people retreated.

"Don't, don't push!"

"Back up! We need to get out of here!"

While they were elite hunters in the Red Zone, in the Green Zone, where they couldn't benefit from stat boosts, they were just ordinary humans.

Moreover, they had no equipment.

Fighting such a monster bare-handed would be suicidal.

As the people panicked, the Catoblepas snorted, as if about to charge.

However, for some reason, it didn't move forward. It took a few steps and then retreated, as if blocked by something.

Seeing this, one hunter shouted,

"Idiots! It can't move from there! There's an invisible barrier!"

Hearing this, the people looked at the Catoblepas with a mix of disbelief and doubt. Indeed, it seemed to be blocked by an invisible wall and couldn't move forward.

"We're safe!"

While the immediate threat of death was gone, a problem remained. It seemed that someone would have to defeat the monster to end this trial.

This time, the one to step forward was Han Soo-jung.

Clang!

Han Soo-jung drew her sword and stepped forward. Her demeanor suggested she could dispatch the monster in one go.

However...

"Huh?"

Strangely, Han Soo-jung couldn't advance beyond a certain point. She, too, seemed to be blocked by the invisible barrier.

"What's this? How are we supposed to clear this trial?"

As Han Soo-jung stood puzzled, Manager Kim cautiously stepped forward to verify if the barrier really existed.

"Hey? I can pass."

"What?"

As Manager Kim said, he could advance much further than where Han Soo-jung was blocked.

Seeing this, Han Soo-jung moved to where Manager Kim had gone but found she couldn't advance there either.

After a moment of thought, Han Soo-jung quietly muttered,

"Could it be... that someone who has passed once can't challenge it again?"

It was a plausible theory. Another person tried to advance a bit, but unlike Han Soo-jung, they weren't blocked.

"Then I can't do it..."

As Han Soo-jung said this and looked around, people began to avoid her gaze, staring at the ground.

They feared that if they made eye contact, they would have to fight the monster.

Just as everyone was holding their breath and watching the situation, a man stepped forward.

"Could I borrow your sword?"

He was one of the hunters, a man in his mid-30s with a long scar on his cheek and fierce eyes.

As he stepped forward, Han Soo-jung cautiously asked,

"Will you fight that monster?"

"Though I may be lacking, I have also trained in martial arts. If you lend me the sword, I will give it a try."

"Excuse me, but what level are you at...?"

"Though I may be lacking, I am at the peak level."

At his mention of the peak level, everyone around was stunned, unable to close their mouths.

At the peak level, a master can imbue weapons with energy, cutting through steel like tofu and becoming nearly immune to firearms by protecting their body with inner energy.

If he was truly a peak master, defeating such a terrifying monster wouldn't be impossible.

So Han Soo-jung, her eyes shining, said,

"If you can do that, I'll add 200 million to your reward."

"That sounds good."

Pleased by the mention of 200 million, the man took the sword from Han Soo-jung. He gripped it, swung it around, and smiled contentedly.

"Good sword."

It was perfectly balanced and felt natural even in ultrasonic mode. Indeed, it was an item from the Dimensional World.

The man, gripping the hilt tightly, regulated his breathing and advanced.

Thud! Thud!

As he approached, the Catoblepas snorted strongly and began to retreat slowly.

The Catoblepas seemed to know about the barrier and was trying to secure a place to fight.

While fighting a four-legged monster like this, an open space isn't ideal, but there was no other choice.

The man brought the sword to his chest and declared boldly,

"Come at me!"

"Roar!"

As if understanding his words, the Catoblepas began a terrifying charge.

Despite its thick skin, which made it look slow, its acceleration was so fast that it closed the distance in the blink of an eye.

However, the man didn't panic at all. He moved his feet skillfully to dodge the charge.

Using a common stepping technique among martial artists, he could confuse the opponent's vision and position himself at the opponent's side.

Swish!

Before anyone could see him swing the sword, the Catoblepas' side was torn open, and blood gushed out.

It was an impressive feat, but the man didn't seem satisfied.

"It was too shallow."

He had intended to pierce the bones with this attack, but the skin was thicker than expected, and he couldn't reach the internal organs.

However, the injured Catoblepas had a different reaction.

"Roar!"

An injured beast is more terrifying. The Catoblepas let out a strange sound and began to thrash around.

"Damn!"

The onlookers clenched their fists, cheering for the man.

If the peak master fell, no one would be able to overcome this trial.

However, the man seemed to have trouble dealing with the thrashing Catoblepas and couldn't launch any significant attacks.

Instead, he was pushed back by the rampaging Catoblepas.

"Danger!"

The Catoblepas, having closed the distance, suddenly leaped and charged at the man.

The event happened so quickly that the man couldn't react, and he couldn't use his stepping technique, just standing there.

People screamed, thinking the man was about to die. The Catoblepas' movements were so fast that it was hard to believe it was such a large creature.

However, the man facing the Catoblepas smiled confidently.

"Got you."

Boom!!!!

A massive impact sound, as if the world had flipped, echoed. Some people even bowed their heads, unable to bear the sight, but to their surprise, the man was unharmed.

In fact, the Catoblepas had collided not with the man but with the invisible barrier that had been there from the beginning.

The man had deliberately driven the Catoblepas into the barrier.

While the Catoblepas was dazed from the collision, the man quickly thrust his sword.

Thud!!

The ultrasonic blade pierced the Catoblepas' skull and neck, emerging from the back. With its brain shaken, there was no chance of survival.

Thud!

Indeed, the Catoblepas couldn't withstand the blow and collapsed.

"Phew~"

The man finally wiped the sweat from his forehead. Despite his thorough calculations, he couldn't help but tense up when the Catoblepas' horn was close to his face.

"We did it!"

Seeing the Catoblepas fall helplessly to the ground, the others finally cheered.

When the loud noise happened, everyone thought the man had been defeated.

"Good job."

Han Soo-jung approached the man with a smile, and he bowed, returning the sword to her.

"Thanks to the sword, I could win."

"No, you would have won even without the sword. Thanks to you, I got to see some excellent swordsmanship."

Thanks to the man's efforts, this trial was successfully overcome. When they opened the next door, a new trial appeared as expected.

The door read "Path of Wisdom."

"Is this the Path of Wisdom?"

This trial presented several passages before them. It seemed their goal was to choose one and pass through it.

"What kind of Path of Wisdom is this? Is it just a guess?"

One person, examining the door, said indifferently. The open passages had no markings.

But another person pointed to the ceiling.

"Look at that!"

Where he pointed, there were many dots. At first, they seemed meaningless, but upon closer inspection, they were familiar.

"What are those? Just... dust?"

"No, those are constellations!"

"What?"

"Idiot! Those dots represent constellations."

Indeed, upon closer inspection, specific constellations were drawn above each passage.

"That's Taurus... that's Libra... what's that?"

"Are these all constellations? Aren't there only 12?"

The man who shouted knew there were 12 constellations, divided by season.

But the passages before them were far more numerous, easily over 50.

"There are 12 in the zodiac, but depending on the division, there can be up to 88."

"Insane! There are that many constellations?!"

"Those who spend their whole lives looking at stars can create more if they want."

"But what does this have to do with constellations? What are we supposed to do with this?"

"Is there anyone who found the question? We need a question to know which constellation to follow to find the right passage."

Thanks to the person knowledgeable about constellations, they had a hint, but they still couldn't figure it out.

The passages and constellations were there, but no question was in sight.

"Is the problem about constellations?"

"Or are the constellations just decoration?"

"Idiot, would such complex dots be drawn here just for decoration?"

As everyone was confused, Han Soo-jung raised her hand and shouted,

"I'll give 200 million to the person who solves this problem."

200 million was the same amount the man who defeated the monster received. With such a large reward, people tried to use all their knowledge to solve the puzzle.

But no matter how hard they tried, they couldn't figure it out.

"What, just give us constellations and nothing else?"

"I don't even know what constellation this is!"

People had to unexpectedly look at constellations.

Song Jin-woo, seeing the 200 million at stake, also examined the constellations. He occasionally recognized some, but he didn't know how they related to this Path of Wisdom.

After a while, someone clapped and shouted,

"I got it!"

"What? You got it?"

"I think I found the answer."

He approached Han Soo-jung, excited as if he had a revelation.

Han Soo-jung greeted him with hopeful eyes.

"Did you think of something?"

"Yes! I'm sure of it."

"Can you explain?"

"Of course. So... we need to choose a passage and advance, right?"

"Yes."

"So, we need to find a path. Did you know that sailors have used stars to navigate from ancient times to the present, even without a compass?"

"So, you're saying we need to determine direction using constellations?"

"Not constellations, but a specific star. The North Star."

The North Star is a bright star visible to the naked eye, used for navigation at sea and in places like deserts where it's easy to lose direction.

"Since ancient times, the North Star has symbolized the right path. So, if we need to choose a passage, we should go where the North Star is."

"Is that so? But we only see constellations, not the North Star here."

"Of course, the North Star is included in the constellations. So... there! The North Star is in the Little Dipper."

The man pointed to a passage with confidence.

Han Soo-jung nodded.

"I see. Your explanation makes sense. In a place where direction is unknown, following the North Star is the right answer."

Praised by Han Soo-jung, the man's mouth stretched from ear to ear. The thought of 200 million made him excited.

But Han Soo-jung's next words made him freeze.

"Then... will you lead the way?"

"......What?"