The Returned Hunter Has Awakened to a Hidden Class - Chapter 138
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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138
Chapter 138
Valderion’s Gate (1)
90th Floor, [Valderion’s Gate].
If the Hell up until now had been closer to chaos and savagery, this place was order.
Military discipline stood firm, a prepared battlefield, a space with clear intent.
—-
[Underground 90th Floor Quest Generated!]
– Quest Name: Break through Hell’s impregnable fortress, Valderion’s Gate
– Difficulty: ★★★★★
– Reward: 「Vanguard’s Momentum A」, 「Gatekeeper’s Momentum A」
—-
Not simply a floor where strong monsters stood, but a staircase that ‘existed to block’.
Before Kim Jun lay only one path.
A massive straight bridge stretching long over an endless abyss.
There was no way to detour left or right.
Below was an abyss where black mist writhed and churned, while above, a red sky pressed down oppressively.
Whoooooosh-
Hell’s wind pierced through the bridge.
The massive stone structure seemed to sway.
“Shall we go.”
There was only one choice.
To walk forward.
And at the end of that bridge.
A massive city wall erected to block between mountains revealed itself.
It wasn’t a simple wall.
Complex magical patterns were carved layer upon layer on the defensive line built from carved hellish rock, and above it, demonic legions stood in formation.
Clank clank clank clank-
They were different from the monsters of previous floors that swarmed about chaotically.
Each legion maintained formation, had a command structure, and even the flow of magic was controlled.
Thirty legions.
A marquis of Hell and legion commander.
The forces commanded by Barbatos.
The black-armored demon standing atop the city wall slowly rose to his feet.
Red eyes turned toward Kim Jun walking across the bridge, then paused briefly at the shadow.
“…You’ve even subjugated Wrath.”
A low rumbling voice.
At those words, the magic of the entire legion subtly wavered.
They knew too.
What dwelt within Kim Jun’s shadow.
Satan.
Grand Demon of the Seven Sins.
The source of wrath.
Even so, Barbatos did not retreat.
Rather, the corners of his mouth slowly rose.
“This is the 90th floor.”
He lightly tapped the city wall with his foot.
Thud-
“The gateway to Hell’s highest floor. In the past, and now. To sit on the throne, you must pass through me.”
His gaze turned directly toward Kim Jun.
“Whether in the past, or now bound to the Tower.”
The legions behind raised their weapons in unison.
“I am Barbatos. Marquis of Hell. Master of thirty legions. My purpose does not change.”
Magical power ripples like waves atop the City Wall.
Kim Jun stopped around the middle of the bridge.
A straight passage stretching long over the Abyss.
A structure where one wrong step would send you falling.
A battlefield that allowed neither retreat nor detour.
Kim Jun looked up at the City Wall and spoke calmly.
“You’re not going to open the way for me?”
It wasn’t provocation or mockery.
Just a questioning tone.
After breaking Satan, no one had dared to face Kim Jun head-on.
Most either opened the way or bowed their heads.
But.
Barbatos was different.
He stared at Kim Jun for a moment.
After confirming even the aura of rage within the shadows, he slowly spread both arms.
“I’ll open it for you.”
Kim Jun’s eyes narrowed.
“Oh, really?”
At that moment.
Thud-!
The top of the City Wall shook subtly.
“Then and now, the toll remains the same.”
Once more.
Thud-!
The magical power of the 30 Legions reacted simultaneously.
The ground vibrated, and the Abyss beneath the bridge churned.
“The toll is my head!”
Kim Jun laughed briefly.
“Of course it is.”
Kuuuuung-!
Tremendous magical power erupted from Barbatos’s body.
Red light leaked through the gaps in his black armor, and behind him, the legion’s momentum surged like waves.
“Hell’s final Gate.”
His voice echoed through the City Wall and Abyss.
“Try to break through this Barbatos’s Gate!!”
The air above the bridge pressed down heavily.
There was no retreat.
“Come at me once.”
Only a frontal assault remained.
*
“Can you handle this vast number of troops alone?”
Barbatos’s voice echoed from atop the City Wall.
The next moment.
The legions arrayed on the City Wall simultaneously raised their bows.
Calling them bows was an understatement.
Longbows formed from magical power.
Red light condensing at their tips.
Creak…
The bowstrings were drawn.
“Fire.”
And.
The sky came crashing down.
Swoooooooosh-!!
These aren’t arrows.
It’s rain.
Thousands, tens of thousands of mana bullets pour down simultaneously.
So densely packed they obscure vision.
A torrential downpour completely covering the bridge.
Kim Jun raised his head.
He doesn’t dodge.
He doesn’t block either.
Just.
Whoooosh-
Flames erupt from his entire body.
「Yeonje」.
Red flames spread as if flowing down along his skin.
The moment the pouring mana rain touches his body.
Whoooooosh-!!
It melts.
It doesn’t bounce off.
It doesn’t explode either.
Just.
The moment it touches, it melts and disappears.
The mana evaporates.
The torrential rain that poured from the sky vanished like steam before it could even touch the bridge.
Atop the City Wall.
The legion’s agitation.
Barbatos’s eyes narrow.
“Prepare the ballistas! Prepare the cannons!”
Massive crossbows rotate.
Mana artillery adjusts their angles.
Hell’s siege weapons.
Thudududuk-!
Pababababaak-!
Consecutive firing.
Thick mana beams strike straight down toward the bridge.
Kwaaaaang-!!
An impact powerful enough to twist the entire bridge.
However.
A figure walking out from the smoke.
Kim Jun was still standing.
Flames scattered like afterglow, and only melted mana remnants remained beneath his feet.
“Finished?”
A calm single word.
And.
Kim Jun’s eyes flash red.
“「Diablo」.”
Dark waves sweep across the bridge.
Shadows stretch long.
Thud-
First, Andras.
The massive demon reveals himself and laughs.
“Kahahahahaha! There seems to be plenty of blood to wet my body!”
Swish-
Belphegor appears quietly.
He surveys the City Wall with languid eyes.
And then.
The shadows grow even deeper.
Satan reveals himself.
The aura of rage presses down on the air.
Following that.
“Kroooooo-!”
Nyong Nyong and Yongyong spread their wings in the air.
Golden and blue auras overlap.
Above the Bridge.
The Battlefield changes in an instant.
Kim Jun tilts his chin toward the City Wall.
“Do I still look disadvantaged?”
A moment of silence.
Barbatos’s eyes don’t waver.
“You still seem woefully inadequate to face my legion.”
As those words fall.
Kim Jun gestures to the two demons.
Satan and Belphegor activate their powers.
“Gate of Hell.”
“Gate of Hell.”
Sizzle-!
The air tears apart.
A massive crack opens up across the bridge.
A legion of demons pours out from within.
Belphegor’s Legion.
Satan’s legion.
A quantitatively large legion.
A qualitatively superior legion.
Rumble rumble rumble-!
It keeps pouring out endlessly.
The density of magical power changes.
The balance of the battlefield shifts in an instant.
Kim Jun asks again.
“Is this still not enough?”
On the castle walls.
Barbatos’s lips tighten ever so slightly.
His expression for the first time.
Slightly.
It gets wrinkled.
Kim Jun’s gaze turned toward the castle wall.
“You’re blocking my view.”
Raise your hand.
Whoooosh-
The power of the “Flame Emperor” condenses at his fingertips.
It’s not spreading flames.
It’s not extending fire either.
Just.
A straight line.
─────!
Kim Jun lightly traces through the air.
Zzzzzt—
A red line cuts through the city wall.
A moment of silence.
And then.
Kwaaaaang—!!
The massive city wall blocking between the mountains splits cleanly in half.
The mana barrier cannot withstand it.
Hell’s rock melts away.
The battle formation of the 30 Legions collapses.
As the city wall crumbles, the citadel and defensive facilities behind it are completely exposed.
The legion wavers.
However.
Barbatos immediately made his decision.
“All forces, converge on the bridge!”
He doesn’t cling to the collapsed city wall.
Retreat.
Redeployment.
The city wall is broken, but the bridge is the only chokepoint that can limit their forces.
Rather than being pushed back in open space, it’s better to pressure them with bottleneck combat on the narrow bridge.
Clank clank clank clank-!
The legion moves in unison.
The straight passage over the abyss.
They concentrate their forces there.
However.
It was already too late.
Belphegor’s legion was encroaching from the flanks.
Satan’s legion pushes forward from the front.
The forces of these two demons are of different quality.
They are not swayed by fear.
They do not retreat.
The 30 Legions try to maintain formation, but.
Crack-
A fissure opens.
On the bridge where they tried to drive them into a trap, they are instead surrounded.
The legion led by Hell’s marquis is overwhelmed by the legions of two Grand Demons.
Mana becomes distorted.
Screams and collision sounds overlap and echo.
And in the midst of that chaotic battle.
Kim Jun moved.
Kwang-!
A single leap.
In an instant, he crosses over the remains of the city wall.
Barbatos’s eyes waver.
Too late.
Kwa-aak!
Kim Jun’s hand grabbed Barbatos’s face.
The massive armor creaked.
“Krgh-!”
He tried to resist.
But couldn’t move.
His mana was suppressed.
Pressure was applied from the grip.
Kim Jun tilted his head.
“Shall we have a head-to-head fight?”
A calm remark.
And then.
Thump-
Not the ground, but the air resonated.
Kim Jun’s toes stepped on empty air and rose up.
At the same time.
Barbatos’s massive body was lifted into the air.
“This can’t be…!”
Kwadeuk-
Kim Jun’s palm completely covered Barbatos’s face.
Pushing him back.
In midair.
Struggling.
He tried to spread his wings but they wouldn’t unfold.
He tried to explode his mana but it wouldn’t even condense.
A single palm.
Had completely seized control of his core.
“Stop struggling.”
Kim Jun moved forward as if stepping on air.
The air burst beneath his feet.
Kuwoong-!
The two beings charged toward the back of the collapsed City Wall.
Barbatos’s body was pushed backward.
No.
He wasn’t being pushed back.
He was being dragged.
With his face pressed against the palm.
Flailing in midair.
His arms clawed at the empty air.
He tried to swing his axe but the trajectory went awry.
His mana scattered.
Kwaaaaang-!!
Breaking through the debris of the collapsed City Wall, he pushed straight toward the Citadel beyond.
“Shall we have a fight?”
Only then did Kim Jun release Barbatos.
Kuwoong-
The massive body fell from the air.
But he still couldn’t get his feet on the ground.
In midair.
With his face crushed against the palm.
Without being able to properly resist even once.
He was simply pushed back.
“…”
As if in shock.
Barbatos couldn’t continue speaking for a moment.
Marquis of Hell.
Commander of the 30 Legions.
The gatekeeper who guarded Hell’s final Gate.
That name, which had surely carried weight until just moments ago.
By a single palm.
Was crushed.
His red eyes wavered.
And.
Soon.
Thud-!
He strikes his axe into the ground.
Cracks spread out.
The wavering magical power condenses again.
“Even so.”
A low, thick voice.
“Even so. I have only one duty!”
Magical power surges explosively.
The debris of the collapsed City Wall rises up.
The entire Citadel trembles.
“The Gate leading to Hell’s highest floor-“
His eyes flash.
“I will protect it!”
Kuooooo-!!
Magical power erupts explosively upward.
He doesn’t acknowledge defeat.
He was merely pressed down.
He wasn’t broken.
Kim Jun chuckles softly.
“Right.”
He dusts off his hand.
“That’s what it takes to be a gatekeeper.”
The gazes of the two beings clash.
Beyond the collapsed City Wall.
Above the ruined Citadel.
The first to move was Barbatos.
Kwang-!
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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