CHAPTER 68
068 - Whining
The plane, which had been flying erratically as if caught in severe turbulence, finally managed to reach the airspace above Gimpo Airport.
It was a stroke of luck that the attack had occurred close to the airport. Had it happened over the middle of the ocean, they would have been forced to make an emergency landing on the sea.
"We are landing! Everyone, please fasten your seatbelts and follow the instructions!"
This was not a normal landing. Severe shaking was expected, so following the flight attendant's instructions, all passengers sat down and braced for impact.
Like turtles, everyone lowered their heads, pressing them against their thighs. After confirming that all passengers were ready, the crew members also took their seats and assumed the same position.
KUUUNG!
The plane touched down on the runway. The pilot tried to land as normally as possible, but the loss of balance was unavoidable.
KUGUGUGUGUNG!
As it entered the runway and began to decelerate, one of the wheels malfunctioned. The overloaded wheel buckled under the imbalanced weight.
Naturally, the plane shook violently and veered off the runway. Fortunately, Gimpo Airport's runway was equipped with a system for such accidents.
It was an engineered materials arresting system, constructed with intentionally fragile materials like foam concrete or other lightweight substances designed to slow the aircraft.
The plane plowed forward, shattering the structures like they were dried reeds. But its speed was definitely decreasing, and thanks to the dispersed impact, the inside of the plane remained safe.
Finally, the plane came to a halt.
Slowly raising their heads, the passengers saw the wooden vines that had been gently enveloping them.
It was a precaution from Chartia, who had manifested the trees to protect the passengers in a worst-case scenario.
The vines quietly receded, retracting into Chartia’s hands.
Only then did the passengers realize it. The fact that they had survived.
"WAAAAAAAH!"
"We're alive! We're alive!"
"Thank you! Thank you so much!"
They wept, hugging family, friends, or lovers, and repeatedly expressed their gratitude to Jinwoo and Chartia, who had saved them.
"Sob! Hic!"
Even the flight attendants, who had tried so hard to remain calm in the sky, couldn't hold back their tears at this moment. They, too, had simply been suppressing their fear.
—Hurry! Move it!
—Get the ambulances on standby! Prioritize the rescue of the passengers!
Outside, the emergency vehicles Ma Doo-sik had on standby swarmed toward the plane to begin the rescue.
Contrary to the worries of those outside, there were no fatalities or serious injuries among the passengers. The worst injury was a bruise on someone's shin from hitting an armrest during the chaos.
Guided by the rescue team and flight crew, the passengers began to exit the plane one by one. Chartia and Jinwoo watched from the very back.
“You worked hard, Chartia.”
“You too, Jinwoo.”
They exchanged looks of deep relief. It was a disaster that neither of them could have handled alone.
Chartia by herself would have struggled to remove the enemy clinging to the plane, and Jinwoo by himself could not have reinforced the riddled fuselage even after dispatching the foe.
After all the passengers had disembarked, only the two of them remained.
The pilot, who had stayed until the very end, approached them. He removed his hat and offered them a handshake.
“Thank you. Thanks to you both, I was able to continue my 30-year accident-free record.”
He spoke in a playful tone, but his eyes were filled with sincerity. As they shook hands, Jinwoo said it had taken ten years off his life, and Chartia translated for him.

There was much to sort out. All the passengers needed to be transported to hospitals, and repairing the broken plane and damaged equipment would be a major headache.
But that wasn't Jinwoo's or Chartia's job. As the two of them stepped off the plane with relieved hearts, they were met with a storm of attention and cheers.
The surviving passengers, the assembled rescue workers, and reporters who had rushed to the scene. Among them, a bear-like man could be seen running breathlessly toward them. It was Ma Doo-sik.
"Hunter Kang Jinwoo! Hunter Chartia!"
Despite his large frame, his steps were remarkably light and swift. The mark of an S-class Hunter, perhaps. He reached them in a single dash and, upon seeing Jinwoo and Chartia…
"Keuheuk!"
He threw his arms around them both. Jinwoo was tall, but no match for Ma Doo-sik, making it look as though they were being hugged by a bear.
"What are you doing!"
"This is a bit much."
Chartia shoved him away, and Jinwoo stumbled back with her. Feeling the stark difference in their emotional states, Ma Doo-sik scratched his head, embarrassed.
"You both did such an incredible thing and returned safely, I just couldn't help myself…"
Jinwoo and Chartia had been just as overjoyed a little while ago, but their emotions had since calmed down. There was no one left to share in Ma Doo-sik's overwhelming excitement.
Clearing his throat and scratching the back of his neck, Ma Doo-sik spoke to them.
"Could I possibly hear about the incident? We need to report the details to the public and to New York."
"Of course."
In a meeting with Ma Doo-sik and other officials, Jinwoo explained what had happened. There wasn't much to tell.
An Erosion suddenly appeared and latched onto the top of the plane. It then stabbed and shook the aircraft, trying to make it crash. The two of them had stopped it and eliminated the threat.
The story was quickly summarized and passed on to the reporters, who began writing their official articles, following up on their breaking news alerts. As they were all veteran journalists, the articles started going live immediately.
—Plane Attacked by Erosion, Fortunately No Casualties.
—New York-Bound Flight Averts Crash. Lands Safely Thanks to Two Hunters' Heroics.
—Seoul's Hunter Kang Jinwoo Overcomes Disaster Once Again.
It had only been a month since Jinwoo had dealt with Ireland. Before the heat from that incident had even cooled, another disaster struck, and he had resolved it.
While it wasn't as sensational as the Ireland incident, it was still a major event where over 100 people could have died. The impact was significant enough.
Jinwoo, along with Chartia and Ma Doo-sik, was busy with the aftermath. He answered their questions and those of the reporters, and somehow ended up giving an interview.
"What are your plans? If you'd like to return home, I can have you driven." Ma Doo-sik offered after the most urgent matters were settled. Ma Doo-sik himself couldn't leave due to the remaining cleanup, but he could have his secretary escort Jinwoo and Chartia.
"Yes. I'm heading back. It's been a while, so I need to go home and rest."
"Me too."
Both Jinwoo and Chartia spoke in exhausted tones. Jinwoo, especially, wanted to rest as soon as possible after the relentless series of events. He couldn't even remember the last time he had rested with a peaceful mind.
"Understood. Chief Kang, please escort them."
"This way, please."
With all the troublesome matters finally over, Jinwoo was able to return to his long-missed home.

After a refreshing shower, Jinwoo buried himself in his bed. He wasn't physically exhausted, but sleep came easily.
He finally woke up after sleeping for a full day. With bleary eyes, he drank some coffee and checked his smartphone. As expected, the news feed was plastered with articles about yesterday's incident.
Most were reports on the accident, while some featured interviews with him or Chartia. Others had invited experts or fellow hunters to share their opinions.
Nothing in the articles or comments particularly caught Jinwoo's eye. As he casually scrolled through, one headline stood out.
-Inside Situation During the Accident, Revealed.
It was a video filmed and uploaded by one of the passengers. The footage was shaky and out of focus, but Chartia's heroic efforts were clearly visible.
The video ended with Jinwoo thrusting his sword toward the plane's ceiling.

ㄴ An S-class is an S-class. She took control of the plane's interior in an instant.
ㄴ It's terrifying to think what would have happened if Chartia hadn't naturalized in Korea, if she were still a New York Hunter and hadn't been on that plane.
The video itself mainly featured Chartia's actions, so most of the discussion was about her.
But among them, one comment had an unusually high number of replies. It was a top comment with three or four times more replies than any other.
ㄴ What's with Kang Jinwoo's sword slash? They said he cut the Erosion with that, but it doesn't look like he cut the plane's ceiling at all?
Below it were countless replies. At first, many suggested it was just because the video was shaky, but the tone changed further down.
They had realized that Kang Jinwoo's sword had passed through the plane's ceiling to cut only the enemy outside.
ㄴ This is practically magic.
ㄴ Is Kang Jinwoo secretly a mage, not a swordsman?
ㄴ No way. Didn't you see the video of him cutting Ireland's heart? A mage can't use a sword like that. Even in this video, his movements are insanely clean.
Hunters who used swords were once again in an uproar. Following the video of him cutting Ireland's heart, a second video showcasing Kang Jinwoo's swordsmanship had been released.
Many had gained small enlightenments just by analyzing the previous video. For another one of that caliber to appear…
The article and video had already spread overseas, with the most enthusiastic response coming from Hong Kong, where swordsmen were the majority.
ㄴ I knew it! That video of him cutting Ireland's heart wasn't a fluke.
ㄴ This will shut up anyone who doubted Kang Jinwoo's swordsmanship. Once can be a coincidence, but twice is inevitable.
ㄴ Now I understand how Kang Jinwoo brought down the Sky God's Temple while Lin Shenlin was guarding it. Not even Lin Shenlin could pull off a feat like that!
Swordsmen of all nationalities were abuzz. Kang Jinwoo's name had already become widely known through the Ireland and 3rd Floor incidents, but now it spread even further within the community of sword-wielding Hunters.
At that moment, Jinwoo, having casually checked the articles, was lying in bed, tapping his foot.
‘This new ability I got.’
The ability he gained after cutting down the Erosion outside the plane. He was thinking about it.
[A Fragment of a Past Life emerges. That sword shall pierce the enemy like a thorn.]
He had already tried testing it out in the yard, but he wasn't very impressed.
It was because it wasn't much different from the ability to shoot out Sword Ki that he'd gained from defeating the Black Knight.
‘For a new ability, it’s not very useful.’
Using the Black Knight's ability as a thrust was essentially the same as this new one. Though it was called a new ability, it wasn't really new at all.
‘It’s not the first time an ability hasn’t been particularly useful, though.’
Jinwoo had acquired many abilities over time, but not all of them were useful in the right place at the right time. The Rock Sword, for example. It was an ability that gathered nearby rocks to turn his sword into a blunt weapon, but he rarely had a reason to use it.
In fact, at his current level, most mediocre abilities were of little use. A single, proper sword slash was more powerful than some clumsy ability, and he could handle most situations with just the Black Knight's power or Kanok's lightning.
‘These days, absorbing the flames has a more tangible effect.’
In the past, when he was still weak, getting one decent ability was more important than growing his own flame.
But things were different now. Rather than awakening new abilities, the path to greater strength lay in absorbing flames to grow his soul or elevating his body and mind through enlightenment.
"Alright."
He decided what to do next. There was still some time before the next Gate opened, and he had no intention of rushing into one this time.
Having spent a long time on the 3rd Floor, he planned to take a proper rest on Earth. However, resting didn't mean he would be idle.
‘Time to solidify my foundations.’
He planned to head outside the city and search for the remaining Erosion cores or the newly appearing minions. In other words, he was going to hunt for Black Flames.

He didn't leave right away. Since it had been a while since he was home, he planned to rest completely this time.
However, he didn't forget to prepare for his trip outside. The most crucial part of that was…
"I need to get a license."
The task was to get a license for a car or motorcycle.
He immediately looked up a driving school, registered, and learned the written and practical skills. The test was still to come, but it was as good as passed.
With his senses and physical abilities already surpassing human limits, he wouldn't have any trouble with something like driving.
The next issue was buying a bike or a car… Thanks to the compensation money from New York, he could afford a high-speed sports car, but that didn't seem right.
Outside the city, well-paved roads were rare, and most of the terrain was rough. A sports car with low ground clearance would be far too restrictive.
‘Come to think of it, Chartia used to carry a car or motorcycle in her inventory.’
Now that she no longer entered Gates, Chartia instead explored the areas outside cities around the world, planting and tending to trees and vegetation. She was a seasoned veteran when it came to off-roading.
It seemed there was a lot of advice he could get from her, like what kind of vehicle to get and what to watch out for outside the city. Jinwoo took out his smartphone and made a call.
Before the phone could ring twice, Chartia answered.
—Jinwoo?
"Yes, Chartia. Did you rest well?"
—Of course. How have you been, Jinwoo?
"I've been studying for the first time in a while to get my license."
—Oh my, a license?
When Chartia asked curiously, Jinwoo explained his plan to go outside the city. Hearing this, Chartia's voice became noticeably more excited.
—Me! I want to go with you!
"You too, Chartia?"
—Isn't everything better with two people instead of one? Besides, it can be dangerous outside the city.
Even if it wasn't as dangerous as a Gate, the world outside the cities was still a place where monsters roamed. Furthermore, since Jinwoo planned to seek out Erosion cores and minions, it would be even more dangerous.
Having an S-class Hunter like her along would be a great reassurance for Jinwoo.
"...Alright. Let's go together."
—Yay!!
The voice was so loud it momentarily hurt his ears, and Jinwoo pulled the smartphone slightly away. Once her excitement subsided, he got to the main reason for his call.
"I'm thinking of buying a vehicle and a bike for off-roading. Could I get some recommendations?"
—Can't you just ride in mine?
"I could this time, but there might be times I go alone later."
—You can just call me later too…
"Pardon?"
—Ah, no, I understand. Then should we meet up to talk about cars? How about this weekend?
"Sounds good."
They set a date and ended the call. The license test was next week, and the meeting was this weekend, so he had free time until then.
He had already finished his meal, so Jinwoo grabbed some popcorn and a coke and sat on the sofa. Since he had decided to rest, he was going to rest with all his might.
"Wonder if there's anything fun to watch."
He turned on the TV and opened Netflix. Back when he was working in the field, watching Netflix was his only pleasure.
After dragging his tired body home and somehow managing to wash up, his daily routine was to put on a decent movie and fall asleep while watching it.
Most outdoor hobbies cost money, so watching YouTube or Netflix at home was the cheapest hobby he could afford.
‘I haven't been able to watch much since becoming a Hunter.’
After awakening and entering Gates, he rarely watched anything. He spent that time swinging his sword one more time or looking up information about the Gates.
Of course, it wasn't that he watched nothing at all; he'd occasionally watch a movie, but it was hard to keep up with long-running drama series.
‘Oh, Season 2 of this is out. I stopped watching this one after a few episodes, but it's already finished.’
As he browsed, he found sequels to series he had enjoyed and new shows that looked interesting.
If all else failed, he could just rewatch a classic masterpiece. A timeless masterpiece never gets old, no matter how many times you watch it.
After binge-watching one movie and an entire season of a drama in one sitting, Jinwoo refilled his popcorn and coke. As he was looking for what to watch next…
‘Ah, this.’
Something looked incredibly familiar. It was a children's animation he had never seen before, yet it felt familiar.
It was the original animated series of the show that the God of the Moonlight Forest had loved the most among the offerings he had presented on the 3rd Floor. It wasn't just love; she had been obsessed with it.
‘I should go to the department store sometime. I need to buy any dolls or toys from this series I can find.’
He could easily pump up his contribution points just by buying some toys. How great was that? With a smirk, Jinwoo was about to switch the screen when he felt something in his chest.
Wondering what it was, he looked down and saw that the blessing of the Moonlight Forest, which resembled a glass bead, still remained from the 3rd Floor.
[The God of the Moonlight Forest whines.]
[Don't skip it…]
He was surprised, first, that the blessing remained even after he had left the Gate, and second, that she was pestering him to watch it.