Chapter 317.

“Hello, we are at the opening of the Gate of Glory . ”

Reporters from all over the world gathered in Hamgyeong Province . Although they were prohibited from going near the gate, they could film and report from afar .

“On estime que la porte… . ”

“Zarban and Leonardo have been selected for the final 200… . . ”

“ここにはまた、世界の有名人が集めています… . ”

Various languages could be heard in the North Hamgyeong Province Plaza . Noticing the countless cameras, Yoo Yeonha busily went around meeting celebrities that were present .

“You’re here too, Soohyuk-ssi?”

After meeting several corporate leaders, Yoo Yeonha found Park Soohyuk, the CEO of SH Agency, now renowned as the world’s greatest .

“Haha, yes, I was lucky enough to receive an invitation . ”

“It might get dangerous when the gate opens . ”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine, especially with Essence of the Strait’s guild members protecting us . ”

Hearing Park Soohyuk’s subtle praise, Yoo Yeonha smiled . As he said, many Essence of the Strait guild members, including Kim Youngjin, Yi Jin-Ah, Leonel, Yohei, Shen Yuan, Ah Hae-In, and even Heynckes, none of whom were even among the 200 chosen to enter the gate, were present at the scene .

“Still, stay alert . At least make sure you’re wearing protective gear . ”

“Oh, protective gear?”

Park Soohyuk smiled in response and tapped on his smartwatch . Immediately, reinforced magic power rose up from the watch and shrouded him .

“Hm~”

Yoo Yeonha watched the scene and nodded her head in satisfaction . Park Soohyuk’s smartwatch had a detailed magic enchantment courtesy of [Dimensional Entropy] . Developed by Essential Dynamics, it was the commercial version of Protect Watch .

Reinforced magic power produced by the Protect Watch rivaled that of an intermediate-rank grade-1 Hero . It was no different than a portable suit of armor . Unsurprisingly, its cost of production and lack of material made it worth well over 100 million won .

“It’s scary how far Essence of the Strait’s technology has gone . I can’t begin to see the end of it . ”

Park Soohyuk shook his head in raw amazement .

“Huhu, the new technological revolution is only just beginning . ”

Dimensional Entropy, a resource containing infinite potential . Just thinking about it put a smile on Yoo Yeonha’s face .

Wooong—!

At that moment, a huge surge of magic power erupted, and the area turned boisterous .

“I-It looks like the gate is opening!”

“What a brilliant flash of mana!”

The earth shook, and the screams of reporters and spectators intertwined . Yoo Yeonha and Park Soohyuk quickly clad themselves in reinforced magic power, while Jin Sechan, Kim Youngjin, and other core members of Essence of the Strait ran to Yoo Yeonha .

“Chief Officer!”

They came to lead Yoo Yeonha to a safer place .

But, at that moment…

KWANG—!

Several streams of magic power shot up through the ground . Like tentacles, the streams of magic power coiled around Yoo Yeonha’s body and dragged her underneath before the Heroes could do anything .

“S-Shoot!”

Kim Youngjin and Jin Sechan immediately threw themselves into the crack in the ground .

**

… My head hurt, and my body felt feeble . It felt like my body was floating on water, exhausted and lacking in energy . I couldn’t see anything nor feel the flow of time .

Strangely, my consciousness slowly turned clearer . Who I am, why I’m here, what I needed to do from here… . My understanding of the situation was returning .

“Haa…”

At that moment, the sound of someone’s breath flowed into my ears . I couldn’t tell whether it was mine or someone else’s . I simply focused on the sound and tried to regain my dulled senses .

“…Huu . ”

I heard another breath . It was easy from then . I could tell now that the breath was indeed mine . I repeatedly took long breaths and moved parts of my body . Soon, my eyes opened .

“…?”

My vision returned, and the first thing I saw was an old drawer . It was worn-down and moldy, with bugs crawling over it .

I frowned and twisted my body towards the ceiling .

Kiik—

The bed I was lying on made a creaking noise . The ceiling was even moldier than the drawer .

“…Am I in a prison cell?”

With a bewildered murmur, I got up . Immediately, a huge wave of dizziness swept through me, and my body fell back on the bed .

Crack—

The shabby bed broke down .

“Argh… . ”

It seemed I had no choice but to rest a bit more . I pressed my temple for the next five minutes and then got up once more .

“Auu . ”

I was still dizzy, but I could move properly . First, I checked the interior of the room . A bed, a drawer, and a closet with two uniforms . Other than those, a mish-mash of items on the drawer were the only noteworthy objects .

“Hm . ”

I examined the writing utensils on the drawer . A notepad, a pen, a bag, a half-eaten bento box, and an identification card .

The identification card was obviously the most eye-catching item .

[Lorenzio Secret Service, F-rank Sharpshooter – Kim Hajin]

[ID Number – 02937102]

“F-rank Sharpshooter… Kim Hajin?”

I frowned . I knew nothing about how the Demon Realm Gate worked . Naturally, I had no clue what situation I was in .

I examined the identification card more closely, but there wasn’t anything else of note . Next, I opened the drawer . A crossbow and an arrow were stored inside it .

“Sharpshooter, huh . ”

‘I guess I am one . ’ I laughed inwardly and opened the second layer . It only had casual clothes and nothing else . It was the same for the third layer .

“…What situation am I in?”

‘There isn’t even a hint?’ Just as I was thinking that, a series of messages popped up in front of me .

[This is the world where Baal was first born . ]

[You are participating as a supporter of this world, and your goal is the annihilation of Baal . ]

[Your variable stats have been suppressed from the effects of dimensional travel, but do not worry . It will be fixed over time, or you can hasten it through training . ]

[A total of 200 people from Earth have entered the Demon Realm Gate . ]

“… . ”

I studied the messages then checked my stats .

===

[Strength 4 (+1)]

[Stamina 4 (+1)]

[Speed 4 (+1)]

[Perception 4 (+1)]

[Vitality 4 (+1)]

[Magic Power 4 (+1)]

*Status Effect: 「Rejective Force」 is temporarily reducing your variable stats .

□Gift

▷「Master Sharpshooter」 [High-rank] [Composite-attribute] [Evolving] [Grade-1]

▷「Young Dwarf’s Dexterity」 [High-rank] [Illusion-attribute] [Evolving] [Grade-2]

▷「Random Consolidation System」 [Intermediate-rank] [Spirit-attribute] [4-Stage Consolidation]

▷「Constraints and Amplifications」 [Intermediate-rank]

□Physique (2/3)

▷「Magic Dysfunction 」 [High-rank] [Illusion-attribute] [Evolving] [Grade-2]

▷「Random Consolidation System」 [Intermediate-rank] [Spirit-attribute] [4-Stage Consolidation]

*Status Effect: 「Rejective Force」 is temporarily reducing the power of all Gifts and Physiques .

===

I wasn’t sure what rejective force was exactly, but I checked Stigma’s magic power first .

Guoo… . Thankfully, I still had all five streaks of Stigma . However, the weapons I stored inside the Stigma were gone . Both the Desert Eagle and Aether .

“Wait, hey, where are my weapons?”

I asked, but no reply returned . I became worried . I couldn’t do anything without my gear .

It was then .

—It’s time for food~! Come out, everyone~!

Someone’s shouting voice rang out from outside the door . It was so loud that even the room was shaking .

I flinched, then looked out the window . The navy sky clearly indicated it was twilight . They’re eating at this time of the day?

—Food~!

Other voices rang out . I opened the door to check what was going on . A hallway stretched out beyond the door, and I could see other people busily running towards one direction . I seemed to be in a dorm of some sort .

“I’m coming~”

I changed into the uniform hanging in the worn-down closet and chased after them . Five minutes later, we arrived at a cafeteria, similar to the one I saw when I was in the Korean army in the original world .

I followed what the others were doing . After receiving my portion of food, I sat down at a random table .

“…Ah, you idiot, no, you retard!”

But at that moment, a man who seemed to be a leader or instructor of some sort pointed at me and shouted . Everyone in the cafeteria turned to me, and I stood up straight in a fluster . I was reacting the same way I did when I messed up in the army .

“Are you a D-rank?! Why are you sitting at the D-rank table?!”

“…Sorry!”

I could guess what I did wrong . I was F-rank according to my identification card .

I shot up with an apology .

“Sit down at the correct place next time, you brainless fool!”

“Yes! My apologies!”

“Screw off now . ”

I glanced at the instructor before looking at the table I was just at . Indeed, the letter ‘D’ was clearly inscribed on it .

Distancing myself from the table, I began to look for the table with the F-label .

“Ah . ”

In the corner of the cafeteria, I found a table that was on the brink of collapsing .

I scurried towards it and sat down next to someone I didn’t know . Soon afterward, a man with disheveled hair came and sat down as well .

“… . ”

I looked at the man sitting in front of me . More precisely, I looked at the uniform he was wearing . On his chest was a sword-shaped nameplate, and his uniform was light-green colored just like the one I had .

Next, I turned to the D-rank table I was just at . The people sitting there had uniforms that were slightly greener .

“Mm~”

It seemed the color of the uniform was a good indicator of one’s rank . I nodded my head and talked to the guy sitting next to me .

“Excuse me . ”

“…?”

The man looked at me curiously . I thought about what to ask before giving up . It didn’t seem like such a good idea to ask where we were or what we were doing here .

“…No, nothing . Do you want to eat my share as well?”

“Huh…? Uh, sure . ”

**

—One, two! One, two! One, two!

After the early breakfast came a morning training session . I used Stigma’s magic power to make it seem like my right arm was rotting so I could skip it and go collect information about this world .

“…An army . ”

To the right of the military training ground was a large castle . According to 「Observation and Reading」, it was [Duke Lorenzio’s Castle] . It was likely the military command of this place .

I turned my gaze to the left of the military training ground, where the dorm I woke up in was located . Several college building-like structures were standing there . The entire place seemed to be called [Lorenzio Knight Training Institution] .

Compared to it, the military training ground and the dorm were places where trash was stored .

“Hm . ”

I slowly walked towards the left . After about 500 steps from the training ground, I arrived at a large building . The word ‘library’ was written across it . Luckily, I arrived at the perfect place to help me learn about this world .

I walked in without hesitation . Perhaps because of the morning training, no one was inside .

“Let’s see . History, history, history… . ”

I went to the history section of the library and picked out several books to read . The information I obtained from 30 minutes of reading was the following:

I was in a dukedom ruled by the Lorenzio clan, and the dukedom was part of the Arunheim Kingdom . Duke Lorenzio was a commander, and the Lorenzio Knight Training Institution trained not only knights but also foot soldiers . I was unsurprisingly a common soldier . Even among them, I was at the lowest F-rank, being nothing more than a meat shield .

“…Did I possess this guy’s body?”

I frowned and complained inwardly about being a common soldier . Still, I was happy I got to learn a little more about the world behind the Demon Realm Gate .

I got up from the seat and stood in front of a library mirror . I still looked like myself – Kim Hajin .

“Hm… Ah . ”

Then, I suddenly remembered something and nodded my head .

It wasn’t that I took over someone’s body . In novel terminology, I had transmigrated, meaning that I was inserted into this world .

I took out the notepad I brought from my room and jotted down my current goals .

Recover my strength and find other Heroes from Earth . Find Bell . He will be the key to Baal’s descent . Find my weapon . In addition to the Desert Eagle and Aether, Misteltein Bullet was critical for annihilating Baal . Annihilation of Baal .

Just as I finished writing my goals…

“Oi!”

Someone shouted and grabbed me by the neck .

“Ak!”

“You retard, who do you think you are? This isn’t a place you can enter!”

Startled, I turned around . A red-haired knight was glaring at me, with his hand still on my neck .

“Huh? Sorry, I, aaak—!”

I couldn’t resist at all . The difference in our strength was too big, and the knight simply dragged me away .

“H-Hold on a minute!”

“This is the first time I’ve seen a soldier sneak into the library . ”

“W-Wait, I didn’t sneak in, I just wanted to read some books…”

“That’s what sneaking in is . ”

“But—”

“Shut it . ”

With those two words, my breath stopped . His grip around my neck became stronger, and I couldn’t eke out another word .

“Kak… . ”

Just like that, I blacked out .

**

“…An F-rank soldier sneaked into the library?”

Knight Commander Airun furrowed her brows at the unexpected report . She had the highest position in the Lorenzio Knight Training Institution and was a sworn sister of Duke Lorenzio’s daughter .

“Yes, we threw him into a cell for now . ”

“…What would a foot soldier even read there? I’m sure he just got lost . ”

The male knight shook his head at Airun’s question .

“That’s what I thought when I first received the report, but we found a stack of books he was reading . ”

“…Interesting . ”

A foot soldier reading books in a library . Airun nodded her head, though she snickered at the strange idea .

“If he was only reading, it isn’t too big of a crime . ”

“But he is an F-rank soldier from a commoner background . He isn’t even allowed to walk up the stairs to the West Wing… . ”

“Draven?”

Airun interrupted the knight and stared at him with her clear, ocean-like eyes . Draven closed his mouth and dropped his head .

“…Don’t be so tough . If a soldier acts out of line, you should first figure out what motivated him to act in such a way . The punishment comes afterward . ”

Draven didn’t respond . Seeing Draven so obedient, Airun smiled . Although Draven had a good character and was a skilled knight, he was too concerned with social hierarchy . Airun saw this as a shame since she believed it was the only flaw preventing him from being a good leader .

“Alright, keep him imprisoned for a week . I won’t allow any more than that . ”

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