Chapter 95: Verification of Doom (1)

Doom.

The moment the word left Sa-hyeok’s mouth, the expressions of the four men hardened simultaneously.

Truthfully, the weight of the word ‘doom’ wasn’t originally that heavy.

That is, until the Gate incident.

But with the appearance of Gates, the eruption of dungeons, and the emergence of monsters, doom had become a possibility.

It was inevitable to become somewhat serious in the face of the word ‘doom’.

Jeong-kwon spoke.

“……Doom, you say? Explain in detail.”

“Yes.”

Sa-hyeok took out his laptop and displayed the data.

And he began to explain step by step.

About the history of the Ukvaron Empire inscribed on the walls of the golem dungeon.

He spoke about how they, just like our world, experienced attacks from Gates, dungeons, and monsters, and used it as an opportunity for development, but ultimately perished.

He also explained the hypothesis that the events that occurred in Ukvaron were mixed and reconstructed to create the dungeons in our world.

In light of this Ukvaron example, he concluded that doom would eventually befall our world as well.

And even the speculation that Antenon seemed to be behind all of this.

So, in summary, it was this:

Doom is predetermined.

Dungeons and Gates are ‘created’ by someone.

And it’s highly likely that Antenon is the culprit.

After listening to Sa-hyeok’s explanation, Jang-hoon spoke.

“……So, if we continue like this, we’ll follow in Ukvaron’s footsteps and head straight to destruction, is that it?”

“Yes.”

A heavy silence fell over the office.

It couldn’t be helped.

The conclusion drawn from logically gathering various clues was the destruction of the world.

It would be stranger not to be depressed.

However, not everyone reacted that way.

“Puh-huh-huh.”

A short burst of laughter.

A sound completely out of place in this situation.

And the person letting out that laughter was none other than……

“Jang-hoon-hyeong?”

“Sung Jang-hoon……?”

The eldest among Sa-hyeok’s seniors, Sung Jang-hoon.

Jeong-kwon asked Jang-hoon.

“Why are you laughing……?”

“Because it’s funny.”

“Sa-hyeok’s words don’t sound like nonsense.”

“It’s not Sa-hyeok’s words that are funny. It’s myself that’s funny.”

“What?”

“What Sa-hyeok just said, I heard it a long time ago.”

“……?!”

The office was once again filled with bewilderment and silence.

Sam-gu asked.

“You mean you already knew about the principle of dungeon creation and…… the fact that the world is going to end, Hyeong-nim?!”

“To be precise, I only knew that the world was going to end soon. I’d also heard that there was another world that experienced the Gate incident and perished before us. I learned that the name of that world was Ukvaron today.”

“……When did you find out?”

“Two years ago.”

“Then why didn’t you say anything to us?!”

“Because I didn’t believe it.”

“But you should have at least hinted at it back then!”

“D*mn it, would you readily accept what a cult leader says? Huh?!”

“……Cult leader?”

Jang-hoon sank into the backrest with a long sigh.

Then he looked around at the others and opened his mouth again.

“I apologize. I got a bit excited.”

“No, it’s okay. This isn’t a light topic either. So, a cult leader? What’s that about……?”

“You all remember, right? Right after the Gate incident, all sorts of hidden cult groups across the country sprung up?”

“Of course, I remember. It was a real mess back then.”

Sa-hyeok also remembered.

The time when all sorts of secretly operating cult groups rose up at once.

Those cult groups all shouted the same things.

‘The end is near!’

‘Prepare for the final judgment!’

‘Those who wish to be saved, come here!’

And so on.

Various cult groups that had been preaching about the end of the world long before the Gate incident shouted with vigor.

Look at those monsters!

Look at those black doors spewing out monsters!

As we’ve been saying for a long time, hasn’t the end come to this world!

Before the Gate incident, it would have been dismissed as mere cries of lunatics.

But when monsters actually started popping out and people were dying in droves, their nonsense gained terrifying persuasive power.

People really started to believe in the end of the world.

An era of chaos arrived, with various cult groups proliferating, and their influence expanded rapidly.

Countless people offered money and goods to the cult leaders, begging for salvation, and the leaders greedily filled their desires.

But this chaotic period didn’t last long.

Hunters appeared, guilds were established, and humanity’s counterattack began.

In Korea’s case, there were five Hunters at the forefront of that counterattack.

Kwonma Gwak Ja-ryong (current Master of Kwonmu-mun).

The First Sword Demon Choi Hee-du (former Master of Geomgye).

Spear Saint Jang Jae-han (current Master of Changhwan Guild).

Thunder Emperor Jeon So-dam (current Master of Orang Guild).

And Cheon Hun as well.

Thanks to their valiant efforts, the situation in Korea quickly stabilized.

The catastrophe that was once impossible to deal with became a manageable disaster.

As a result, the influence of the cults preaching about the end quickly dwindled.

The moment it became possible to overcome, the end was no longer the end.

Thus, the short golden age of the cult groups came to an end.

Of course, they left behind the financial and psychological scars inflicted on many people in the process.

For the record, Sa-hyeok wasn’t swept up in that frenzy at all.

To Sa-hyeok, who wanted to k*ll every single monster as quickly as possible and end this situation, the doctrine of accepting the coming end and cunningly escaping through the door of salvation together didn’t resonate at all.

Jang-hoon continued.

“……Anyway, our family couldn’t escape that frenzy either. In fact, it was because of such religious issues that my brother and I parted ways.”

Sa-hyeok thought.

‘Jang-hoon-hyeong had an older brother.’

He had vaguely heard that Jang-hoon’s parents died early in the Gate incident.

But this was the first time he’d heard about his older brother.

‘His older brother fell into a cult, and because of that, they ended up parting ways.’

Sa-hyeok asked Jang-hoon.

“Then, did you hear about the doom-related story…… through your brother?”

“Yes. He said almost the exact same things you did.”

“But you didn’t believe it because your brother was already a member of a cult?”

“Yes. But there was an even bigger reason.”

“What is it?”

“I had already embarked on the path of a Hunter at that time.”

“Ah……!”

“I had witnessed firsthand how we were overcoming the disaster called Gates, and so I thought all that talk about the end and doom was nonsense. But……”

Jang-hoon turned his gaze towards Sa-hyeok’s laptop screen.

The texts engraved on the inner walls of the golem dungeon, and their interpretations.

The word ‘doom’ clearly stood out there.

Jang-hoon said.

“……My b*stard brother was right.”

“Jang-hoon-hyeong.”

“Why?”

“When did your brother tell you that?”

“About a year ago? A year and a half ago? Around that time.”

“That means he grasped the truth at least a year before me.”

“That’s right.”

“And there’s evidence of that in the religious group your brother belongs to.”

“Probably……?”

“Let’s go visit them.”

“No.”

Jang-hoon flatly refused Sa-hyeok’s suggestion.

Sa-hyeok began to persuade him.

“The situation is urgent, Hyeong-nim. Doom, I said, doom. We have to look for any clues we can find, right?”

“I know, I know. But that…… d*mn it, you should have seen my brother. That b*stard……”

“……What’s he like?”

“He’s…… not human, not human.”

“……?!”

Jang-hoon took a deep breath.

He quickly organized his complicated thoughts.

And he came to a decision.

“Alright, let’s go.”

“Thank you.”

“But, on one condition.”

Jang-hoon turned his head towards Jeong-kwon and said.

“Master, only Sa-hyeok and I will go for this.”

“May I ask why?”

“My brothe…… no, my brother avoids contact with high-ranking officials as much as possible. If you go, Master, he might not open his mouth.”

“Then why did you exclude Sam-gu and Jeong-su?”

“He’s not someone who enjoys meeting a lot of people. It’s better to go with only those directly involved. Sa-hyeok should talk about the doom-related stuff, and I should go to arrange the meeting.”

“If that’s your judgment, then it must be right. When are you planning to go?”

“We should go now. Hey, get up, Sa-hyeok.”

“Ah?!”

Sa-hyeok awkwardly got up from his seat.

“Then we’ll be back, Master.”

“We’ll be back.”

Leaving the office, Jang-hoon said to Sa-hyeok.

“Pack your weapons and come down to the basement parking lot. Don’t wear armor, it’s too conspicuous.”

“……Do we need weapons?”

“We’re going to meet cultists, we need to be prepared. There will definitely be Hunters there.”

“But where are we going, Hyeong-nim? Which region?”

“Gyeongnam Hamyang area.”

“Hamyang……”

After walking a few steps, Sa-hyeok suddenly stopped.

“Wait a minute, are we going to Seongan Madang?!”

“Huh? You know it well?”

“Isn’t that a cult?!”

“No, it is.”

Seongan Madang.

One of the large settlements that emerged after the Gate incident.

A settlement was a term referring to a village where people fortified themselves to protect themselves, organized Hunters into a militia, and fought against monsters.

Most settlements naturally disbanded after the situation stabilized, but a very small number still continued to exist.

Seongan Madang was the largest of these settlements.

Currently, it was famous for cultivating collective farms and producing high-quality agricultural products.

There had never been any particular problems revealed there.

In fact, the Hunters there fought so well in the early days of the settlement’s formation that they had a very good image in the surrounding area.

But such a place is a cult……?

Vroom-

30 minutes later.

Sa-hyeok and Jang-hoon got into the car.

As Jang-hoon started the engine, Sa-hyeok asked.

“But I just looked through past news articles and couldn’t find any particular problems? And settlements have nothing to do with cults, right?”

“It’s a case where an ordinary settlement turned into a cult.”

“How do you know that, Hyeong?”

“It’s not so much knowing as it is being certain.”

“Hmm…… well, alright. Then what kind of person is your brother?”

“A genius.”

“He must have been very smart?”

“He passed middle and high school through GED and got a doctorate in linguistics at the age of 23, so……”

“Such a smart person can also fall into a cult.”

“……?”

Jang-hoon looked at Sa-hyeok with an expression that said, “What are you talking about?”

“Why?”

“He…… uh, he didn’t fall into it.”

“Then?”

“He’s the leader.”

“Ah?!”

Sa-hyeok felt his head spin.

“He built the settlement, deceived people, and even created the religion.”

“Ah……!”

Until now, he thought Jang-hoon’s brother had been lured into a cult.

But to think he was the leader.

Anyway, the car drove and drove.

Except for stopping at a rest stop to buy coffee, the car didn’t stop.

And around 4 a.m.

The car carrying Sa-hyeok and Jang-hoon entered deep into a mountain valley.

Arriving at a place where even the moonlight couldn’t reach, relying only on the headlights in the dark early morning, Seongan Madang.

It was surrounded by a tall metal fence.

Jang-hoon got out of the car and pressed the button on the intercom next to the main gate.

A sleepy voice came from the intercom.

“Who is this?”

“We’re here to see Village Head Sung In-su.”

“Do you have an appointment?”

“I’m Village Head Sung In-su’s younger brother. If you say Sung Jang-hoon, he’ll understand.”

A few seconds later, the gate opened.

“Park your car in the parking lot next to the main gate and walk in.”

Sa-hyeok and Jang-hoon followed the instructions, parked the car, and started walking along the path.

A dark forest path with no one around.

Unlike the calm Jang-hoon, Sa-hyeok looked around with a dubious expression.

“Why are you looking around so much? It’s just a forest here.”

“Of course it’s a forest. But…… something’s different.”

“What is?”

“The state of some of the trees is a bit……”

At that moment.

“You’ve come, my brother.”

From the end of the path, a man’s voice could be heard.