While Kuro had left through the Gate, there was a group of people at a specific table who had seen what happened. They were drinking their beverages and discussing amongst themselves. They were teenagers around the same age as Kuro, wearing new formal clothes.
"Well, that was entertaining," replied one student.
"Does something like this happen every week?" asked another student.
"There's always that type of person who blames others for no reason," replied a female student.
"But a mutant hunter... that's new," replied another student.
"Not really. In the town I live in, there were a few of them, but they didn't work as hunters, rather as personal guards," answered a student crossing his arms.
"Really?" asked another student.
"By the way, when are we going in? I'm getting bored!" spoke another student with a tired expression.
"Remember, we are the first to arrive here because the teacher has a spatial teleportation skill," answered a female student.
"Ah, right...." replied the student in an apologetic tone.
"By the way, do you notice that those hunters here seem a bit fierce?" asked a female student.
"You're not the first to notice that. It seems they are hunters from the Organization. Seeing the black emblem on them means they are his best and most trusted men here," replied a student carrying a spear on his back.
"Wow, just for us? I knew the academy had influence, but not to this extent," spoke another student fascinated.
"Not for us. There have been some minor incidents here before, leading them to ensure no problems happen this time," replied a female student with grey hair.
"Oh, for our safety then?" asked another student.
"Certainly. Causing trouble with the academy under the Organization's patronage won't end well," replied the female student.
"But in your opinion, what's your estimate of that wolf hunter's strength?" asked a student.
"Wolf? He looked more like a cat to me than a wolf," replied a girl.
"Look at his tail. He's a wolf mutant," replied the spear student.
"A werewolf?" asked another female student.
"Ahahaha, definitely," answered a student sarcastically.
"But jokes aside, in your opinion, how strong do you think he is compared to us?" asked a student.
"Hmm... If we compare him to ourselves before and after attending the academy, he would be... average or mediocre at best."
"Meaning he's weak."
"But let's not forget the first lesson we learned: don't judge a hunter by his appearance alone. He might be of a higher rank than us."
"That's true, but I don't think his rank is high. If it were, he wouldn't be waiting here."
...
When Kuro passed through the Gate, he saw a scene he didn't expect to see.
The inside of the Gate wasn't very different from the outside. There was a vast white dome, and there were four passageways with checkpoints, guarded by soldiers.
These soldiers were sorting people into two groups: Hunters and Normals. Each group was in a different line before they passed through.
A soldier approached me as I was walking and stood in front of me. He was taller than me, lowering his head slightly, and looked at me coldly.
"Identify yourself. Normal or Hunter?" asked the soldier in a cold, emotionless tone, like a machine.
"Hunter, but unlicensed," replied Kuro.
"Unlicensed?" asked the soldier in a cold tone.
"Yes," Kuro answered indifferently.
The soldier stared at Kuro for a few seconds, as if there was a staring contest between them.
"Go to the Hunter line."
"Oh, okay."
Kuro walked and stood in the Hunter line. He looked at the hunters and thought.
"Strange, I thought he would ask me more about whether I'm a hunter or not," Kuro thought.
"If I think about it, everything seems quiet here. I don't hear any noise at all. Is it because there's a sound barrier or something?"
When his turn came, he stepped forward and stood on a circular platform. As soon as he stood on it, it lit up with a green light. He passed through here, went through the passage, followed the hunters who had passed before him, and reached the outside. And it was indescribable in words.
What Kuro saw was what seemed like a living military base. There were many wooden and metal houses, and there were soldiers patrolling the area while carrying strangely huge rifles. But that wasn't all....
There were tanks, long-range howitzers, fighter jets, and more around this place. But it wasn't just soldiers here; there were also shops selling various kinds of sharp and strange weapons. There were even people selling metal rods with jewels on their ends; those things were magic staffs.
While the atmosphere was serious and imposing at first glance, it was quickly broken by the tourists. They were taking pictures and selfies, and some of them were talking loudly in a restaurant as if they ignored the fact that all these weapons were around them, as if this was an everyday thing. Kuro felt completely alienated by what was happening here. He had heard it was a safe place, not a military base.
"What the hell is this? Is this the Land of Despair, or a military-tourist picnic ground...."
"Welcome, are you new here?" asked a woman who seemed like a secretary from her clothes, holding a tablet computer in her hand.
"Yeah, but I have a question. What is all this? Isn't this a Gate, not a military base?"
"Yes, that's true from your perspective. But you are now in the Safe Zone, if you've heard of it. An area not approached by monsters. H.E.R.O.E.S managed to build it over the years since the catastrophe began. It has become an important military base."
"I see, but why does the place seem a bit..."
"Like a mix between a tourist ground and a military one?" asked the secretary.
"Uh, yes?" Kuro asked suspiciously.
"Because the Land of Despair is one of the few Gates that doesn't experience Gate Breaks, making it a good tourist spot to directly inform people about the monsters living inside the Gate."
"Oh.... That explains a lot of things," Kuro spoke.
"Yes, is there a problem?"
"No.... Nothing... Ahem, can you direct me to the nearest hunting area?"
"Are you a hunter?" asked the secretary.
"Yes," Kuro replied.
"Interesting. I thought you were a new tourist when I saw you," replied the secretary.
"Yeah, that's what some people think. So, is there one?" Kuro asked.
"There is one, but are you going just like that?"
"Yeah, I mean, all I have to do is take monster crystals. There's no complexity to the matter," Kuro replied, shrugging his shoulders.
"You might not know this, but monster parts are valuable, in addition to the plants and things here also. And the trip takes longer than usual, even for you."
"How long exactly?" Kuro asked, raising one eyebrow.
"For an ordinary person, walking would take almost a full day to get there from here."
"A full day? Does it really take that long?"
"Yes, you need at least some preparations."
"Alright, I don't need any preparations. I can go whenever I want," Kuro replied in an indifferent tone.
"You can get them almost for free, but since you refused, I don't see any reason__"
"Okay, tell me more," Kuro spoke, giving a thumbs-up as a sign of agreement.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Somewhere mysterious.....
In a certain dark room with no lights, there was a group of mysterious individuals whose expressions couldn't be seen.
"So, what happened?" asked the group's leader.
"The plan failed. A resounding failure," replied a mysterious person.
"What is the reason?" asked the leader.
"Due to the intervention of this," replied another person on the right, and a screen displayed.
An image of a mysterious black werewolf was displayed, pouncing on the Red Knight. There were headlines on the image like [Mysterious Hunter Appears], [Monster Attacks People], [Monster Hiding in Town], [Monster Savior].
"I see.... So, what about the hunter who did this deed?" asked the leader.
"Unknown. The military hasn't released any statement about this hunter. We tried to dig deeper, but our men were discovered, and it became almost impossible to know the military's special movements," replied another person.
"We suspect the hunter and the monster are the same person, since the events were related to our operations. He likely knew our steps and stopped them before they happened," replied another person further from the table.
"What about Elbero? Did you silence him?" he asked threateningly.
"My apologies, the A.E.G.I.S was ahead of us. It's a matter of time before they learn of our existence," the person spoke in an apologetic tone.
"Unforeseen variables, as usual....." he replied in a cold tone.
"Execute Plan CD428W66," he spoke in a serious tone.
"But executing it without consideration is an unwise move, especially since the Mayor has activated the police more than now, and the Organization has sent their best hunters here," one of them argued.
"And that's precisely why it's the best possible time to execute it. They won't expect it," he spoke.
"Since it's now the best chance to kill the future of H.E.R.O.E.S."
"Understood. Also, there's something else," asked another person.
"What is it?" he asked.
"He..... has moved again."
"What? Are you sure?" asked the Leader, his hand trembling slightly.
"Yes, it might be hard to believe, but we discovered by chance that he resides in New Hades," answered one of them.
"This could be a great opportunity for us," the Leader spoke, stroking his chin.
"We might be able to kill two birds with one stone, if we succeed."
"Good. Now, gentlemen, let us begin our move. The time has come for the world to know who we really are."
They all looked at the Leader as he smiled a threatening smile while narrowing his eyes. That was the beginning.