I flipped through my smartphone screen absentmindedly on the living room sofa.
The grace period before the Osaka Gate Break had somehow drawn to just three days away.
The news articles on the screen were all busy broadcasting Japan's miserable downfall.
[Nikkei Index Suffers Worst Crash in History. Economic System Effectively Paralyzed.]
[Kansai International Airport Paralyzed by Private Jets of Wealthy Fleeing Overseas. Ordinary Citizens Rioting on Evacuation Routes...]
A desperate hellscape across the sea.
But to me, it was just a distant country's affairs passing by with a few scrolls.
I was skimming through articles when Ha-eun, who'd been drinking juice from the fridge, approached me.
"Oppa. Take a look at this."
Ha-eun suddenly thrust her smartphone in front of my face.
It was the real-time best posts board of a major community site.
The post title alone was ominous.
[Title: Is it true those Japanese bastards are whining for our Big Bro to come save them?]
[Content: They pulled troll shit they can't handle and now they're pushing another country's hero into a death trap? Our Big Bro is finally getting some rest, so leave him alone for real. If those government bastards get blinded by money and put Big Bro on a plane, I'm storming the Blue House.]
The comments below were uniformly vicious.
ㅇㅇ: Big Bro, absolutely don't go!! Whether Japan sinks or not, we don't give a damn!!
Magical Girl Squad: If even one hair on our Little Sister gets hurt, we'll sink the Japanese archipelago ourselves first.
Patriot Bowl: Association President! Confiscate Big Bro's passport immediately!!
The entire nation was united in adamantly opposing my dispatch to Japan.
A blind yet tearful shield, refusing to watch the National Savior be sacrificed for another country's power struggle.
"The people are pretty smart."
I chuckled and pushed Ha-eun's smartphone away.
Ha-eun nodded with the juice pack still in her mouth.
"Of course. Oppa went through all that hardship protecting our country. But hasn't the government kept contacting you? I saw earlier that Director Choi guy or whatever looked like he was shitting bricks."
"I threatened them all that I'm not going. They'll back off on their own."
I answered indifferently and was just lying back down on the sofa when—
—Ding-dong.
The penthouse doorbell rang loudly.
Mom's face stiffened as she checked the intercom screen.
I sat up on the sofa and looked at the screen.
Two burly bodyguards in black suits.
And standing between them, a middle-aged man with his hair slicked back with oil.
A high-ranking official incomparable to the likes of Director Choi—the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
"I'll go."
I moved Mom aside and walked to the entrance.
When I unlocked the door and opened it, the Minister forced a friendly smile and bowed his head.
"I apologize for visiting unannounced on a holiday, Hunter Kang. The matter is so urgent..."
"I clearly conveyed that our business was finished."
I spoke coldly, blocking the doorway halfway.
The Minister hurriedly pulled out a tablet he'd been holding under his arm, unable to hide his flustered expression.
"Hunter Kang! Please reconsider just once more! Japan just sent us a final negotiation proposal that's impossible to refuse!"
The Minister turned on the screen and thrust it right in front of my face.
"If we dispatch S-Rank forces for this operation, they've sent an official document offering to lease Tsushima Island to South Korea for a full 100 years! Plus, they'll transfer the enormous amount of U.S. Treasury bonds Japan holds for free..."
The Minister's voice trembled with excitement.
National territory and astronomical bonds.
Beyond simple mercenary fees, a miraculous deal that could elevate South Korea's national power by several levels in one leap.
The Minister looked up at me desperately with bloodshot eyes.
"This transcends personal gain—it's great patriotism that will remain in South Korea's history! With just one act of dedication from Hunter Kang, our homeland..."
"Shut up."
I cut off the Minister's elaborate emotional appeal in one stroke.
I narrowed my eyes and glared at him.
"Do you people see me as some Jesus Christ bearing this country's burdens? Whether you get Tsushima or tear off all of Japan, that's you politicians' business. I clearly said I have no intention of risking my life cleaning up another country's shit."
"H-Hunter Kang! Please think rationally..."
The Minister desperately tried to step inside the doorway.
These weren't people who'd understand through words anymore.
—Fwaaash—.
A wave of blue mana swept through the entrance.
The Minister and two bodyguards floated up from the floor with gasps of "Huk!"
It was as if an invisible giant hand had grabbed them by the scruff.
I shoved them outside the entrance as they flailed their limbs in midair.
"Uh, uhhh?!"
Three burly adult men slid and crashed right up to the elevator door.
The tablet fell from the Minister's hand as he tumbled to the floor.
"Don't litter at someone else's doorstep."
I kicked the tablet on the floor with my toe, sending it flying toward the elevator.
The Minister crawled away in terror, frantically mashing the elevator button.
I watched that pathetic sight and roughly slammed the door shut.
—Bang!
The entrance fell silent.
I took off my shoes and returned to the living room, where my family's gazes all fixed on me at once.
The living room air had sunk heavy as waterlogged cotton.
Dad, Mom, even Ha-eun who'd been teasing around—all had become mute as if they'd eaten honey, only watching my mood.
A situation where even the Minister had come and caused a scene.
My family was clearly anxious that because of the heavy title of National Savior, I'd ultimately be unable to resist the nation's pressure and be dragged to that dangerous death trap.
I scratched my head and let out a long sigh.
"Haah."
Mom's shoulders flinched at my sigh.
I deliberately spoke in a lighter voice, tossing it out casually.
"I'm not going, not going. Don't worry. I won't go even if a knife comes to my throat."
I could see my family's rigid expressions soften ever so slightly.
"But those guys coming by killed my appetite. Mom, you don't feel like cooking dinner today, right? Let's just go out. Get some meat."
I clapped my hands forcefully to change the atmosphere.
"Hurry and get dressed. I'm buying."
Unable to resist my urging, my parents and Ha-eun began gathering their coats.
* * * * *
We arrived at our regular galbitang restaurant near home.
When we opened the restaurant door, the owner's eyes widened and she rushed out in her socks.
"Oh my! Our hero is here! This way, this way!"
The owner guided our family to the spacious room in the very back.
Before we could even order, four extra-large bowls of galbitang with giant beef ribs piled like mountains over the earthenware pots were laid on the table.
"Ma'am. There's too much meat."
"Hey, eat it all! I saw on the news lately those Japanese bastards are being total jerks—how worried you must be, hero! Eat hearty and stay strong! And absolutely don't go to dangerous places like that! We citizens will all block it for you!"
It was the offline version of the public opinion I'd seen on the internet.
The owner clenched her fist, shouted "Fighting!" and disappeared into the kitchen.
I chuckled at the mountain of meat.
We heartily devoured the meat with my family and emptied even the broth.
Patting my stomach, we left the restaurant and walked the path toward the penthouse.
Cool night air brushed my cheeks, and streetlight glow stretched my family's shadows long.
Dad, walking beside me, suddenly reached out his large hand and patted my small shoulder.
"Tae-ho."
"Yeah?"
Dad looked up at the night sky with a warm smile.
"Dad doesn't need our son to be some grand hero or anything. Just don't get hurt, don't get sick. I just hope you live an ordinary life with our family, eating galbitang for dinner like this forever. That's the best."
The sincere feelings of Dad, who usually just fawned over me.
A parent's heart wishing for not the National Savior, but just an ordinary son by their side.
A corner of my chest felt strangely ticklish.
"What's with the sudden creepy talk? Even if I wanted to live ordinarily, my body's in this state."
I fiddled with my silver hair and grumbled curtly. Dad laughed heartily and wrapped his arm around my shoulder, while my sister playfully clung to my back from behind, saying "I'll buy you galbitang too!"
It was the usual noisy walk.
Watching my family's backs as we opened the door, entered home, and scattered to our rooms, I flopped onto my bed as if shaking off that strangely ticklish feeling.
* * * * *
And three days passed.
The world's attention focused on Osaka, Japan, across the sea.
The internet and TV were broadcasting 24/7 the giant hole torn in the heart of downtown Osaka.
Only a few seconds remained until the Gate Break.
I sat at the head of my bed watching the live situation on my laptop screen.
Osaka on the screen was silent as a ghost town.
The faces of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces and Hunters surrounding the Gate in layers were thick with the fear of those facing death.
Finally, the clock pointed to zero.
The entire world held its breath.
Now the rim of that hole should crack and crumble, with hundreds and thousands of monsters pouring out to turn the city into a sea of blood.
That was the inevitable result we'd experienced for three years.
But even after zero seconds passed, the expected explosion didn't occur.
The screen was eerily quiet.
"......?"
I brought my face close to the laptop screen.
Far from exploding, not even the slightest crack appeared on the Gate's rim.
Rather, the blue mana waves filling the Gate were calm and stable like a tranquil lake surface.
The Japanese forces surrounding the scene also seemed confused, only watching each other while gripping their weapons.
In that strange silence, chills ran down my spine.
The hypothesis I'd discussed with the old Association President flashed through my mind.
Instinct sent a warning.
That wasn't a dungeon entrance that would explode like a time bomb.
It wasn't transforming into a new form either.
From the moment it first opened, it had been that form all along.
A giant, solid dimensional door permanently connecting the Elven ecosystem beyond with the city on this side.
"Crazy."
I got up from the bed.
To dismiss it as another country's business across the sea—the fundamental nature of the situation had completely changed.
