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HELIO SCANS
[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
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Chapter 13
Rift Break and the Monster Wave.
No matter the type of new Rift, if the first person to enter does not return within 30 Earth days, this phenomenon inevitably occurs.
It had already been 28 days since Mr. Seo entered the newly formed Rift, which had opened up in the yard of a house in a residential area of Mapo.
When a Monster Wave begins, the Rift’s entrance—normally just a narrow fissure—expands dramatically. At minimum, it becomes 10 times larger; at worst, up to 100 times.
Once that happens, monsters begin pouring out in a torrent.
No matter how many Heroes are stationed in advance, and no matter how solid the defensive lines, the surrounding area is always reduced to a battlefield of utter ruin.
To prepare for the incoming Wave, the Hero Association and the government had designated a 1-kilometer radius around the Rift as a ’Devastation Zone’—a buffer to absorb the worst of the damage. Every available resource had already been mobilized.
The only reason they could afford to establish such a wide devastation zone—especially in Seoul, a city of such critical strategic value—was thanks to decades of hard-earned experience facing dozens of Monster Waves in the past.
But what if especially dangerous monsters were to pour out beyond the Rift?
There’d be no way to stop the destruction from spreading.
Because of this, the Hero Association and the government were locked in a state of extreme tension, doing everything in their power to eliminate variables and prevent a worst-case scenario.
Two days remained.
And not a single soul believed Mr. Seo—the man who had entered the Rift—would be coming back alive.
Only the evacuated residents of Mapo still clung to hope.
They didn’t expect him to survive out of concern for him, but because they desperately wanted their homes to be spared. They prayed Seo would return alive for that reason alone.
The Association and government, meanwhile, had already accepted the Monster Wave as inevitable.
Preparations were fully underway for the massive battle expected in two days.
The 1-kilometer radius around the Rift had been evacuated so thoroughly, not even an ant could be found.
Then came the night of Day 29, with just one day left on the countdown.
Step. Step.
From the fissure of the Rift, Dojun emerged.
“So I’ve managed to avoid all that trouble after all?”
The moment he sensed the stillness around him—realized that not a single living thing existed within the 1-kilometer radius—he immediately understood what had happened.
Grateful for the timing, Dojun moved silently, careful not to draw any attention.
To distract the surrounding Heroes and create a diversion, he deliberately set fire to a nearby junkyard not far from the house.
Whoosh!
The flames—powered by the Eternal Embers he had absorbed—ignited effortlessly and devoured the junkyard in an instant.
The sudden blaze threw the area into disarray.
And in that moment of chaos, Dojun slipped out of Mapo City without anyone noticing.
＊ ＊ ＊
[Breaking News!]
「A newly-formed Rift in Mapo has unexpectedly vanished early this morning. This occurred precisely 29 days after local resident Mr. Seo entered the Rift, and the Hero Association—previously certain that a Monster Wave was imminent—is now conducting a thorough investigation into the sudden disappearance of the Rift and the surrounding area. Meanwhile, a mysterious fire broke out at a junkyard roughly 300 meters away from the Rift shortly before its collapse. The blaze was so intense that even the Hero Association struggled to extinguish it... [abridged] ... Some speculate that Mr. Seo may have returned from the Rift after all. However, the Hero Association considers it far more likely that he perished within and disappeared along with the Rift.」
Dojun watched the breaking news on a massive digital billboard set atop a building.
“Thank God! Seriously, what a relief!”
“A guy dies and you're calling it a relief?”
“He had it coming! They tell people to stay the hell away from new Rifts, and this moron goes in anyway and causes a whole damn mess! What if that Rift hadn’t vanished? Mapo would’ve turned into a warzone! Hell, not just Mapo—Seoul would've been chaos!”
“I heard he went in to save his little sister.”
“Yeah, and I’m the Crown Prince of Denmark. You really buy that? If that guy went in to save his sister, I’ll eat my own shoes!”
Dojun ignored the chatter around him and kept walking.
Most citizens of Seoul were just relieved the Rift had disappeared.
A few felt sorry for Dojun's presumed death, but far more were eager to condemn and ridicule him.
He didn’t care about the insults. All that mattered to him was that the Rift had vanished.
The strange feeling he had as he exited the Rift had proven right: he would never see the World Tree again. A bittersweet relief tugged at him—sadness, but also peace.
Without pause, Dojun headed straight for Yeongdeungpo.
It was because of his grandmother and Eunyeong.
’Maybe it’s better this way. Disappearing like this... might actually be for the best.’
His promise with the soul of the late Seo Dojun—and the emotional ripple left behind by that man’s memories—still lingered inside him.
But even so, he couldn’t just leave the two of them behind.
He had decided to change tactics.
That’s why he was now on his way to HCS Capital.
The plan? Put Hwang Chang-seop—not himself—at the forefront, so that Eunyeong and their grandmother could live in peace without ever being tied to Dojun’s shadow.
As he entered the building, he approached two men who were unmistakably Hwang Chang-seop’s underlings.
“Well, now that bastard’s dead, the old hag and the brat are screwed too.”
Before Dojun could even open his mouth, one of them was already talking.
“Obviously. The boss isn’t some pushover. He’s gonna bleed them for ten times what he gave that bastard.”
“The old lady, whatever. But that kid’s life is gonna be hell from here on out.”
“Honestly? Once she grows up a little, I bet the boss already has plans to use her one way or another.”
“Fuck, she’s still way too young. Makes my skin crawl thinking about it.”
Dojun stood there silently, listening. Then, in the exact same cold, spine-chilling tone he had once used on Bulkena, the beast that attacked the World Tree, he finally spoke.
“Where’s your boss?”
A voice so heavy it made knees tremble just hearing it.
The two men felt their blood run cold.
Every hair on their bodies stood on end.
One of them even pissed himself a little—paralyzed by sheer, primal fear.
“Wh-Who…?”
One man slowly turned to look at him.
And then his eyes widened in pure horror.
Because Seo Dojun, who was supposed to have disappeared along with the Rift, was standing there, very much alive.
＊ ＊ ＊
Hwang Chang-seop was in an exceptionally good mood on his way to work.
Seo Dojun—just hearing the name used to make his blood boil. Now, knowing that man had vanished into a dimensional rift was deeply satisfying.
“Anything important on the schedule today?”
The driver immediately responded.
“You’ve got a lunch meeting with President Baek.”
“That’s today? Anything else?”
“No, sir. Nothing else scheduled.”
“Good. Then call Madam Kang—tell her I’ll be coming by tonight. If any new girls came in, have them dolled up and ready.”
Feeling lighthearted, Hwang arrived at the company building, already looking forward to a night of drinking and pleasure.
As the car stopped in front of the building, one of the waiting employees rushed over and opened the door.
“You’ve arrived, sir!”
Hwang tapped the man’s shoulder lightly, as if to say, ‘What are you so tense about?’ Then casually headed into the building.
Even the staffer holding the elevator for him looked stiff and anxious, bowing a full ninety degrees the moment Hwang walked in.
“What’s with all the energy today? Hahaha!”
Normally, Hwang would’ve sensed something was off. But with the irritating Dojun now “dead,” he dismissed it without a second thought.
Ding!
The elevator stopped on the third floor.
Hwang strode confidently into his office—and the smile plastered on his face evaporated like mist.
Sitting in his chair... was Dojun.
He couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
“Y-You… How—How are you—”
“Crawl. From there. Like the dog you are.”
That voice—ice-cold and radiating murderous intent—hit Hwang like a blade flaying his skin. His knees hit the ground before he realized it.
“Bark. You don’t even deserve to be treated like a human. Bark like a dog.”
Under any other circumstances, he would have resisted—even with a knife to his throat.
But Dojun’s flat, emotionless eyes didn’t match the murderous aura pouring off of him.
Hwang knew instinctively—resisting meant death.
“…Woof.”
“Bark louder.”
“WOOF! WOOF! WOOF!”
The sounds of him barking like a dog echoed through the office walls.
Outside, employees gulped dryly, not daring to move.
The entire HCS Capital office had fallen into a state of paralyzing terror.
＊ ＊ ＊
“P-Please spare me. I know I’ve sinned. I deserve whatever’s coming!"
Hwang Chang-seop dropped to his knees and clung to the hem of Dojun’s pants, groveling like his life depended on it—because it did.
He begged for mercy, swearing lifelong loyalty in return for a single chance to live. But Dojun’s heart, long since frozen over, didn’t so much as flinch.
“Who’s number two around here?”
At Dojun’s question, all the HCS Capital executives gathered in the President’s office turned simultaneously to look at Manager Kim.
Officially, he was just a team manager. But everyone knew Kim Eon-gu was Hwang Chang-seop’s right-hand man—effectively the second-in-command at HCS Capital.
“From now on, you’re the President.”
At Dojun’s words, Manager Kim hesitated and glanced at Hwang Chang-seop.
Hwang glared daggers at him, his eyes bulging with rage. Kim didn’t respond right away—and that alone earned him a swift kick from Dojun.
“Urgh!”
Hwang collapsed, clutching his chest in agony.
Dojun didn’t even spare him a glance. He looked straight at Manager Kim and said coldly—
“Taking out the guy on top? You could’ve done that any time. I’m giving you the green light. Stop crawling under a bastard like this. Take over. Be the boss. What, too hard for you?”
Manager Kim answered with a trembling voice.
“I don’t know where you’ve seen how things work… but it’s not that simple. The current President has deep connections. If I suddenly take his seat, people will start asking questions. Instead of this, please… I’m begging you, just spare the President.”
He dropped to his knees and bowed his head.
Seeing that, the other executives quickly followed suit, all of them dropping to their knees like dominos.
“In the movies, they grind guys like this into cement, stuff them in oil drums and toss them in the ocean, or crush them in scrap yards. You guys can’t do anything like that?”
“……”
“……”
Manager Kim and the executives broke into a cold sweat. That kind of thing only happened in gangster flicks.
“Or should I take him to a Gate and feed him to the monsters?”
Dojun’s tone made it clear—he valued human life less than a bug. And Manager Kim could feel it in his bones: this man was brutally cold and capable of anything.
“P-Please, just let me live! I’ll do anything! I’ll be your damn lapdog if I have to! I swear I’ll be loyal till I die!”
Even Hwang Chang-seop, terrified that Dojun might really kill him, didn’t care anymore who was watching. He got on all fours, sobbing, sniveling, and begging like an animal.
“I’ve dealt with your type plenty of times. You crawl on your belly and kiss up like your guts belong to me—then the second you smell an opening, you stab me in the back.”
“I—I swear I’d never do that! Please believe me! I mean it!”
“You already DID try to stab me once, didn’t you? And now you’re asking me to trust you again?”
“J-Just one more chance! Please! I swear, I’ll never pull anything that stupid again!”
Oddly enough, it wasn’t the pathetic Hwang at his feet that irritated Dojun most—it was Manager Kim and the other executives. The way they still couldn’t bring themselves to cut Hwang loose made his stomach turn.
If they’d just decided to dump him cleanly, this would’ve been easier for everyone.
Clicking his tongue internally, Dojun reluctantly decided to give Hwang one last chance.
But the price was steep.
“AAAAAARGH!”
Dojun sliced clean through Hwang’s left wrist—then immediately burned the severed hand and surrounding tissue with mana, making reattachment impossible.
No hesitation. No mercy. Just a clean, cruel cut.
Seeing it—watching Dojun calmly dismember and cauterize Hwang without blinking—carved pure terror into the hearts of Manager Kim and the others.
“This is your last chance.”
He didn’t follow it up with threats. And that silence was even more terrifying.
Hwang, now missing a hand, was just grateful to be alive.
Overwhelmed with relief, he promised himself he’d never even STEP in Dojun’s shadow again.
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HELIO SCANS
[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
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