TOP 21

chapter 21

Assault (1)

Hyunwoong Clan Guild Headquarters.

The place had descended into utter chaos.

Clang! Clash!

“Kill them all!”

“Hold the line! Don’t let them break through!”

“Arghhh!”

“Junsu! Damn it, no!”

The sound of blades crashing and screams filled the air everywhere.

And then—the finishing touch.

KWAANG──!!

“They’re insane! They even brought a mage!?”

“The wall’s down! Go! Wipe out those Hyunwoong bastards!”

“Uwaaaaahhhh──!!”

A mage.

A high-class combatant among hunters.
Unlike physical-type hunters, who could get stronger simply by recklessly diving into dungeons after awakening, becoming a mage required rigorous training in controlling mana and learning magical theory at the Magic Tower.

And somehow, Ironclad Clan had brought along not just any mage, but one who seemed quite powerful.

The results spoke for themselves.

Thanks to the mage’s firepower, the attackers were now pouring in through a breached flank instead of the heavily fortified main entrance.

Without a mage, it would have been impossible.

“Push through! Push through!”

“Today, we end the Hyunwoong Clan!”

The Ironclad hunters charged toward the gaping hole in the headquarters’ outer wall.

And then—

“Argh!”

“Guhhh!”

Wham! Bam!

Crash!

They were sent flying back.

Behind them stood a bearded man wielding a long spear—

Guildmaster of the Hyunwoong Clan and a 4-star hunter, Ji Hyunwoong.

“How dare you bastards storm in here!”

His booming voice, laced with mana, was enough to overwhelm their spirits.

“Th-that’s Ji Hyunwoong!”

“Damn it…!”

The Ironclad hunters faltered, backing away.

Taking down a 4-star hunter required at least several 3-star hunters working together.
The 1- and 2-stars who had rushed forward first didn’t stand a chance.

But then—

“Fireball.”

BOOM──!

A fireball the size of a human head exploded against Ji Hyunwoong.

He deflected it with his spear shaft, but he couldn’t completely avoid the shockwave.

“Cough! Damn mage…”

“Why don’t you surrender now? It’s the only way to lessen your losses.”

Through the crowd, a middle-aged woman appeared.

She wore mage’s robes and carried a short wooden wand.

“Why are you helping the Ironclad Clan? You gain nothing from getting involved in this.”

“Well… first of all, because he’s family.”

She shrugged helplessly.

“And I do owe my younger brother for paying the astronomical tuition fees of the Magic Tower.”

“Ha…”

Ji Hyunwoong let out a bitter sigh.

Family.

If it were anything else, maybe persuasion would’ve worked. But family—there was no swaying her.

‘Then I’ll have to take the mage down first if we’re to have any hope…’

But before he could move, a man stepped out past her.

A slicked-back man in sunglasses—hardly fitting for a battlefield.

“Thanks, sis. Nice job.”

“Oh? Look at you, talking like that to me now. You’ve grown, huh?”

“I’ve always been taller than you.”

“Hah!”

After bantering casually with the mage, he turned his gaze toward Ji Hyunwoong.

“Oi, Ji Hyunwoong. Surrender.”

“…Ma Gwangchul.”

The man was none other than Ironclad Clan’s guildmaster—Ma Gwangchul.

With an air of arrogance, he began his threats.

“You know you can’t win. Why waste your life?”

“….”

Ji Hyunwoong gritted his teeth in silence.

‘The gap in power is too wide.’

Even just the mage was a problem. Her overwhelming long-range firepower under protection made the situation dire.

And from the blow he took earlier, her ability was at least—

‘4-star, minimum.’

On par with him. Possibly stronger.

And then there was Ma Gwangchul, also a 4-star hunter, and one who had reached that rank long before Ji Hyunwoong.

‘This is hopeless.’

They were outnumbered and outmatched in every way.

Only one 4-star on their side versus two on the enemy’s.
Not enough 3-star team leaders either.
And their total headcount barely reached forty, against Ironclad’s hundred.

It was a disaster—made worse because they had been ambushed, unable to rally all their members.

‘Our only hope is… Deputy Kim Yujin.’

Kim Yujin—
The young 4-star hunter who had recently signed a temporary contract with him, sharing the goal of crushing Ironclad.

He was strong. Perhaps even stronger than Ji Hyunwoong himself.
Ji Hyunwoong still remembered the raw power Yujin had displayed during the dungeon break.

All he had to do was hold out until Yujin arrived.

Tightening his grip on his spear, Ji Hyunwoong burned with determination.

“Go to hell.”

“…I don’t get it. You seriously think you can win?” Ma Gwangchul tilted his head.

“That’s your opinion.”

“Don’t tell me you’re just throwing your men into the meat grinder? We don’t want needless bloodshed either. Just surrender.”

“….”

Instead of answering, Ji Hyunwoong raised his spear threateningly.

He could not surrender.

‘This region must not fall into Ironclad’s hands.’

Areas under their influence were notorious hellholes.

Drugs, murder, rape, and crime ran rampant. Civilians who weren’t part of Ironclad were treated like slaves.
Even safety from gate outbreaks wasn’t guaranteed.

It was a common tragedy in these times—government forces barely managed Seoul, leaving local guilds to handle the provinces, for better or worse.

But Ji Hyunwoong… he hated it.

Even if it seemed idealistic, he wanted to build a better society.

Which meant—he could never surrender.

“Me surrendering here would be your best-case scenario, wouldn’t it?”

“Of course—”

“Because only then could you cover this up.”

“….”

Gwangchul’s face twisted slightly.

‘Just as I thought.’

They had started this war with no justification.

The authorities might ignore local guild conflicts, but not the annihilation of one.
Losing an entire guild meant leaving gates in that region without response teams.

In other words—

“If we’re wiped out here, you won’t walk away clean either.”

Mutual destruction.

This was one of those times where the “if I die, you die too” strategy actually worked.

“…”

Ma Gwangchul had no retort.

Finally, he muttered through clenched teeth:

“Son of a bitch. You catch on too fast.”

From the start, putting his mage sister forward had been to force a clean surrender, not drag out a bloody battle.
They had hoped to absorb Hyunwoong Clan quickly before anyone noticed.

But since that failed—

“Fine. Then we’ll just kill you all and deal with the aftermath. Problem?”

“Try it.”

“Management only cares if the gates are contained. They don’t give a damn what else we do.”

Retreat was never in his plans.

It was by pushing further than anyone else that Ma Gwangchul had risen to where he stood.

“Sis. Kill him.”

“Eh. No thanks.”

“…What?”

“You didn’t say anything about me fighting a 4-star hunter.”

“…Damn it, sis.”

Losing face, Ma Gwangchul cursed under his breath.

He took off his sunglasses and stowed them in his subspace, drawing his twin daggers instead.

If the mage wouldn’t fight, he’d have to handle Ji Hyunwoong himself.

Ji Hyunwoong swallowed hard.

‘It’s lucky the mage isn’t joining—for now. But if things turn bad, she’ll jump in anyway. This doesn’t mean we’re safe.’

He silently prayed for Yujin’s arrival.

‘Please… get here soon.’

“Die, spearman!”

“You first, twin-blade bastard!”

Their weapons clashed with a thunderous crash.

Clang! KAAANG──!

“Total mess.”

That was the first thing I said as I arrived at the scene as fast as possible.

The situation was clearly dire.

Hyunwoong’s hunters were barely holding the entrance.
The building’s outer walls were half-destroyed, as if bombarded.

And through a gaping hole, Ji Hyunwoong was locked in desperate battle—

Against none other than Ma Gwangchul, guildmaster of the Ironclad Clan.

“They really went all in, huh.”

Worse still, Ironclad had spare troops—dozens waiting behind the front lines.

Thanks only to the defensive structure of the HQ, Hyunwoong had managed to hold for now. But it was only a matter of time before they broke.

I quickly scanned the battlefield.

“That side’s fine.”

Ji Hyunwoong was holding his own against Gwangchul.

So where I needed to be was—

“Arghhh!”

“Hold! Don’t let them through!”

Our 3rd Team, who I had earlier dismissed, were desperately holding their ground.

“Overtime, huh? I can’t allow that.”

Without hesitation, I sprinted toward the front where my team was fighting for their lives.

The battle was growing more frantic by the second.

“I-I can’t hold much longer…!”

“Endure! If you fall, we all die! Hold—”

“Guaahhh!”

“Maknae!!!”

I saw our youngest stabbed through the shield by an enemy blade.

“Now’s the chance! Push them!”

“Yaaaahhh!”

Ironclad hunters surged in for the kill.

“Not so fast.”

I leapt high, mana surging through my legs, and dropped into their midst.

KWAANG──!

The ground shook as I landed.

“Wh-what!?”

“Shit! He’s dead!?”

The hunter I landed on was crushed, his skull shattered.

“Deputy Leader!”

“You came to save us!”

“Good work, everyone. You too, maknae.”

They had fought bravely with insufficient numbers.

I hadn’t known them long, but I’d grown attached. Relief washed over me knowing they were alive.

‘And honestly, I need them alive if I’m going to crush Ironclad cleanly…’

But it wasn’t just that.
There was a genuine sense of camaraderie now—something I had never felt during my time in Ironclad.

“What the hell is he!?”

“It’s him! The porter bastard!”

Ironclad hunters shouted in alarm.

“Man, so much attention. I don’t know what to do with myself.”

I smirked, turning toward them.

“Wait, that’s the guy who wrecked Team Leader Yong…?”

“Idiot. You believe that rumor? Total nonsense!”

“Kill him! He’s alone!”

“Everyone, charge!”

“Uwoooooohhh!”

The battle reignited with fury.

“Deputy Leader, it’s dangerous!”

“Get inside the defenses!”

The Hyunwoong hunters shouted anxiously.

It made sense—I was standing outside the defensive perimeter, facing Ironclad alone.

The logical move was to fall back into safety.

But—

“No need to worry.”

I was confident.

Utterly certain I didn’t need such caution.

As three hunters rushed me from different angles, I calmly raised my blade.

“It’s time to test the results of my training.”

I swung the Frostblade lightly.

“Dieee!”

Slash──!

The head of the foremost Ironclad hunter separated cleanly from his body.

✅ End of Chapter 21 (Part 1).