"Si-hyun! Head straight to the Gate!"
"Got it!"
I used this time in the back seat to take off my clothes one by one and toss them aside.
Wearing only underwear, the vehicle's shaking made it hard to keep my balance. My head kept bumping around, but I had no time to care. I prioritized getting the Protective Suit from my backpack.
"Ouch!"
Banging my head again, I endured the pain and started putting on the Protective Suit.
Meanwhile, the vehicle was crossing the bridge to the Island.
I struggled to put on the full set of equipment in the bouncing vehicle.
Finally finding the Combat Boots and putting them on completed my gear.
The bridge was under police control.
"No entry during Gate Rupture!"
Facing the police blockade, Si-hyun showed his Hunter Certificate through the lowered window.
"We're Hunters. We need to buy time in this emergency."
"Ah! Really? At least until the residents finish evacuating... please help!"
"We'll do what we can."
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"Hey you bastards! Let them through! They're Hunters!"
After the barricade opened, we continued forward.
There was still some distance to the Gate by car. It was quite a large island after all.
The rough driving on uneven roads made me nauseous, but we eventually reached the village below the Gate.
There were elderly people armed to protect their homes.
Si-hyun jumped out of the vehicle nimbly.
"Why aren't you evacuating?"
"Bastard! This is our land, none of your business!"
I got out too.
"Persuasion seems difficult."
"Just hold them off, no other choice."
I took out my Spear while Si-hyun hurriedly put on his Gauntlets and Combat Boots.
We ignored the elders and ran toward the Gate.
Skeleton Soldiers were already moving downward. Some showed signs of previous battle damage.
The clattering sound of bones echoed.
"Si-hyun, you break through and scout ahead. I'll stop the enemies coming down."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'll fight at full strength from the start."
I activated the Spear's Light Blade Ability.
The feeling of drained Mana remained uncomfortable.
"Go!"
Si-hyun charged forward violently, sending Skeleton Soldiers flying in all directions.
I advanced slowly toward the skeletons.
Whether fortunate or not, no more skeletons came down afterward.
Thanks to Si-hyun's earlier sweep disrupting enemy formations, my Spear with activated Light Blade began crushing skeletons easily.
I swung my weapon excitedly, shattered bone fragments scattering everywhere.
While roughly clearing the area, I collected Magic Stones when several middle-aged men approached from behind.
"Stay back! We're Hunters. You'll get in the way!"
I heard them shouting something, but I ignored them and continued up the mountain.
Along the path were Skeleton Soldiers that Si-hyun had dealt with.
Regretfully, I collected the Magic Stones from each corpse.
Suddenly, new skeletons emerged from the dense forest beside the path.
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Fewer than expected. As I took a deep breath and adjusted my stance-
"Haa!"
This encounter lasted surprisingly long. Compared to Gray-skinned Orcs or Lizardmen, while Skeleton Soldiers had weaker attacks, their weapons and ability to keep fighting even with broken limbs made them more dangerous.
After dealing with about ten, no new enemies appeared.
Si-hyun further up the path seemed to be struggling, as no more skeletons came down.
After completely clearing the surrounding skeletons and collecting Magic Stones, I began climbing too.
The island's evacuation alarm still echoed, and the Gate with adjacent buildings gradually came into view.
In the bone-chilling graveyard piled high with skeletal remains, the Gate continued spewing forth Skeletons, which Si-hyun dispatched one by one at its entrance.
"Si-hyun?"
"You're here?"
The endless white bones numbered at least over a hundreds of them.
"Help collect the Magic Stones over there."
He spoke while shattering a freshly emerged Skeleton, tossing the debris behind him.
"Haha..."
I knew he was strong. But it was still awe-inspiring.
"Speak up if you get tired!"
While sifting through the bone piles, some Skeletons suddenly stirred to life.
After holding back the Monsters for thirty minutes, the Gate paused its outpouring.
I returned to Si-hyun with a bulging bag of Magic Stones, noticing his slight fatigue and sweat.
"Good work. All handled?"
"Should be."
The once empty ground was now carpeted with bone fragments.
Then several people emerged from the building.
They brought bottles of drinks.
"P-please have some drinks and rest."
Other civilians peered from behind the windows.
Their attire suggested Hunter Management Department officials.
They too seemed battle-worn, with bone shards scattered at the entrance.
The officials wore hopeful expressions.
"Ahaha..."
I forced an awkward smile. Si-hyun remained completely composed.
Just as I drank to steady my breathing, the Gate disgorged more Skeletons.
"Si-hyun, you rest first."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, I can handle that number of enemies."
Si-hyun watched me with concerned eyes.
"You've used a lot of Mana. Rest awhile."
"Sigh, I'll leave it to you then."
Huh? What's this? The moment Si-hyun said "I'll leave it to you," my body suddenly grew warm.
Was this the feeling of finally being acknowledged?
"Hehe."
I immediately channeled Mana to activate my Light Blade.
Approaching slowly with the glowing spear-blade, I methodically decapitated each Skeleton Soldier.
Dodging the weapon swings of one Skeleton, I sheared off another's head.
After twenty minutes of continuous combat, the emerging Skeleton Soldiers finally ceased.
"Hah... Hah..."
If I got hit, Si-hyun would probably step in. To perfectly evade attacks, I kept moving, rapidly draining my stamina and leaving me breathless.
"Should we switch now?"
"Ah, no. I... can last a bit longer."
Though panting heavily, I declined since my limbs weren't trembling yet.
Then the officials reported they'd summoned three nearby Hunters for support, and the military had deployed.
Though three E-class hunters probably wouldn't be much help...
They also confirmed that a perimeter lockdown was established, with residents evacuating in an orderly manner.
He droned on about protocol manuals, but I couldn't hear clearly while fighting.
I held the Gate alone for another twenty minutes.
The Skeleton Soldiers proved stronger than expected, leaving me thoroughly exhausted.
"Good work, Si-yeon."
"Mhm... Mhm."
I obediently handed over and began resting.
Lucky, perhaps? The Gate happened to produce slow-moving Skeleton Soldiers, the incident occurred on an island, and we arrived promptly, all factors minimizing collateral damage.
Taking turns with Si-hyun to buy time, we finally welcomed the summoned Hunters and supporting Awakened after about an hour.
"C-can we really help?"
They looked ragged, their best weapons being baseball bats or rebar.
"Please clear hidden Monsters below. All three stick together! Don't push yourselves, just mark locations if there are too many!"
Following Si-hyun's instructions, they quietly retreated to a distance.
To be honest, their eyes showed no fighting spirit.
They were clearly terrified. How could they guard the Gate in this state? We should be grateful if nothing went wrong.
Two hours had passed since the Gate Rupture, yet Skeleton Soldiers kept emerging.
"How long will they keep coming out?"
"Who knows? This is my first time seeing this too."
Si-hyun's tone turned rough.
Fortunately, the numbers appearing each time were manageable, allowing us to take turns dealing with them, a small mercy in this misfortune.
After holding out for another hour, the military finally arrived.
Though not large in number, we finally had reliable reinforcements.
"Salute! From the 95th Infantry Brigade."
"Uh..."
I didn't know how to respond while resting.
"Can you two continue eliminating monsters?"
I moved my body to check my condition. Yeah, should be fine.
Si-hyun suddenly stepped forward from behind me to face the soldiers.
"Please secure the rear. She needs rest."
"Yes! Thank you for your hard work!"
We entered the Hunter Management Department building where civil servants guided us to an area with soft sofas, offering food while expressing gratitude.
I first attended to the most urgent matter, using the restroom.
"Haa... I'm exhausted."
Intense gunfire echoed from outside the window.
Si-hyun looked toward the sound as if wanting to go out again.
"Going out?"
"Yeah, firearms don't seem very effective against Skeleton Soldiers."
I grabbed Si-hyun's wrist.
"Aren't you tired?"
He seemed inexplicably angry.
"A bit... but I want to crush them completely."
His expression was somewhat frightening, making me release my grip.
"Don't push yourself too hard."
He suddenly reached out and tapped my head lightly, then stroked my hair a few times. His previously angry expression unexpectedly softened.
For some reason, he kept rubbing my head for a while before finally leaving.
I touched my burning cheeks, my ears turning red with embarrassment.
I really couldn't understand this person. At least he should be mindful of others watching.
The civil servants had been giving us suggestive looks since earlier.
"Doesn't he feel any shame..."
One of them came to ask for identification, saying they needed to register proof of assistance.
I took both our Hunter Certificates from the backpack Si-hyun left behind and handed them over.
Worried about Si-hyun's condition, I looked out the window and saw him diligently smashing Skeleton Soldiers' skulls.
Six hours after the Gate Rupture, as the sun set, the monsters finally stopped emerging.
Soldiers set up tents and began perimeter searches as if the crisis wasn't over yet. The three Hunters who came to assist had somehow ended up squatting near the military camp.
I gently greeted Si-hyun as he returned drenched in sweat.
"You worked hard."
"Yeah."
His response lacked energy.
But whenever I stood near him, my heart would inexplicably race.
Si-hyun finally began proper rest. One hour later, as the sun completely set, sirens and announcements declared the situation resolved.
Though this was my first Gate Rupture experience, we handled it more smoothly than expected.
We later learned the quartermaster thanked us for establishing the response headquarters.
I felt tired of everything and just wanted to rest.
When I was about to book a motel for proper rest, both the quartermaster and senior civil servants offered to take us somewhere better.
Si-hyun rejected all their suggestions, and we checked into a suitable motel.
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