Chapter 80
Chapter 80. Let’s Meet Again
A draconic silhouette, which Minjun could only surmise belonged to Bellium, manifested right before his eyes.
The moment Minjun took in the apparition, his lungs seemed to freeze mid-breath.
“Mr. Minjun…?”
Noticing that Minjun remained motionless, fixating silently on Bellium’s remains, Adil called out to him with hesitant worry.
Minjun failed to acknowledge Adil’s concerned voice.
To put it accurately, he was entirely incapable of offering any reply.
In that singular moment, Minjun was completely severed from reality.
After spending several seconds gazing at Bellium’s phantom in a trance, Minjun parted his lips with utmost care.
“Are you… Lord Bellium?”
The instant that inquiry slipped past his teeth, the glow surrounding him expanded rapidly, swelling until it consumed him entirely.
Minjun vanished into the blinding radiance.
Upon opening his eyelids, the initial view that met Minjun was an expanse blanketed in pale, dense smoke resembling heavy fog.
‘Where… could this be?’
It certainly bore no resemblance to Earth, nor did it look like Pangaea.
He attempted to cry out and demand whether anyone else was present, yet not a single sound escaped his throat.
His limbs similarly refused to obey his commands.
The sensation mirrored that of a paralyzed patient, stripped of all motor control except the ability to flutter his eyelashes.
‘What on earth is taking place right now?’
As the haze steadily thinned, Minjun observed a multitude of dragons hovering in the distance, clustered so tightly together that they blotted out the firmament.
The sheer spectacle of dozens of mighty dragons cloaking the entire sky robbed him of all speech.
That profound marvel, however, lingered only briefly.
‘What exactly is Bellium trying to display to me?’
The brilliant luminescence, Bellium himself, and Bellium’s lingering will.
Piecing these fragments together, Minjun grew entirely convinced that Bellium had orchestrated this visionary display specifically for his eyes.
Under that assumption, the spectacle unfolding before him was likely an echo plucked from antiquity.
Why had Bellium decided to unveil this particular recollection to Minjun?
And for what purpose had such an immense congregation of dragons massed until the celestial dome was obscured?
A narrow gap formed between the tightly packed drakes in the air, through which Minjun’s line of sight suddenly zoomed inward.
As the vantage expanded and focused, he discerned inhabitants belonging to numerous disparate species gazing up toward the heavens in utter dread.
Those souls were most likely the denizens of Elysium.
Observing the diverse blend of races alongside civilians seeking refuge within an underground shelter, Minjun deduced that he was peering at Elysium as it existed tens of millennia in the past.
‘Hold on… a second.’
He had previously learned that Elysium frequently repelled foreign incursions across its timeline owing to the delicate circumstances behind its founding.
Even so, had a siege featuring this sheer quantity of dragons ever truly occurred, someone surely would have brought it to Minjun’s attention before now.
Even granting that normal citizens might remain ignorant, Adil was a scholar of history who certainly would have referenced an incident of this magnitude, if only in passing.
‘For what reason?’
Why would an entire legion of dragons undertake an assault on Elysium?
They surely would not mobilize in such overwhelming force simply to execute a lone mortal who had crossed a dragon.
Reflecting on how they had arrived en masse, their genuine target had to be Bellium in the flesh.
Perhaps Bellium had established a refuge for the forsaken because he, too, had been cast out by draconic peers for some unspoken cause.
Or perhaps this calamity revolved around Bellium’s offspring.
Adil had previously explained that a prominent theory regarding the city’s genesis concerned an offspring whose historical footprint had vanished entirely from future records.
What if that very child had committed an unspeakable transgression, prompting the dragons to descend to enforce retribution?
Minjun held no definitive truth regarding past reality, but the moment the speculation crystallized, it felt remarkably sound.
While his mind was still busy constructing possibilities, his perspective abruptly swung in another direction.
A male figure materialized, frantically herding civilians directly into the Sanctuary.
With panic overtaking the populace, this man barked out commands while weaving Dragon Tongue to expedite their retreat.
So many cries overlapped in cacophony that the racket bordered on agony, yet Minjun failed to comprehend a single syllable of the dialogue.
Even so, an innate intuition told him precisely who this person was.
‘Bellium.’
The man possessed the exterior of a mortal, but weighing the context of his surroundings, this was almost certainly Bellium under the guise of polymorph magic.
Having made certain that every resident had retreated within, the man pivoted toward the skies dominated by the dragons and screamed up at them with all the breath in his lungs.
Once more, Minjun could not decipher the words.
‘If that truly is Bellium…’
Observing how fiercely he confronted his fellow dragons, an undeniable rift was dividing them.
Right in the midst of this furious confrontation, Bellium abruptly spun about, anxiously directing words toward someone who clearly was not of dragonkin.
Just as Minjun’s sight began shifting to identify the recipient, static suddenly splintered and corrupted the entire view.
‘Why now?’
Minjun yearned with every fiber of his being to witness the aftermath.
Even without understanding their dialect, their facial features, their frantic grimaces, and the raw sorrow coloring their tones enabled him to roughly piece the context together.
Bellium’s projection had swelled far louder than before, strongly suggesting that the individual he addressed was his own child.
Gut feeling warned Minjun that a monumental revelation awaited him if only the subsequent seconds played out.
Yet that fervent wish went unanswered.
Deprived of speech and movement, Minjun was powerless to intervene.
The crackling distortion never cleared away.
The backdrop grew nebulous once more before the entire world plunged into sheer obscurity.
After a brief stretch of time, the recognizable radiance steadily rekindled.
Yet on this occasion, the setting differed.
Unlike the earlier instance where the illumination relayed an era from Elysium’s bygone days, nothing existed now except pure luminosity within a pitch-black expanse.
Moreover, Minjun discovered he could maneuver his physical form freely once more, no longer bound by unseen chains.
The moment his mobility returned, he strode toward the glow as if lured by an irresistible pull.
Gradually, the radiance coalesced into a humanoid outline.
When the transformation settled, a physical person stood before him.
He possessed a tall stature, locks of ash-gray hair, and striking azure pupils that appeared as though fragments of starlight had been woven directly into them.
It was undeniably the very same man Minjun had just witnessed in the memory.
Under the circumstances, this had to be Bellium’s living visage from centuries past.
Minjun swallowed a dry breath and paced forward.
The expression Bellium directed toward Minjun proved impossible to cleanly decipher.
It appeared to blend joy, fury, sorrow, and delight into a singular gaze.
That indecipherable countenance only fueled Minjun’s burning questions.
So many inquiries piled up that his thoughts briefly scrambled.
Did the figure standing across from him truly embody Bellium himself?
Had he been the entity responsible for summoning Minjun all the way to Elysium?
If that were the case, for what underlying motive?
What truly constituted this radiance, and why had it repeatedly extended its assistance to Minjun?
Furthermore, why had the gemstone recognized as Bellium’s Tear fused seamlessly into Minjun’s flesh?
Had that outcome also unfolded according to Bellium’s design?
Yet the moment Minjun gathered himself to voice his opening query, Bellium spoke first.
<I’m sorry.>
With that sole apology, the man began unraveling back into raw light, as if everything Minjun had observed had been nothing more than a mirage.
They had not managed to trade even a solitary coherent dialogue.
Desperate, Minjun thrust a hand toward the dissolving Bellium.
“Lord Bellium! Hold on! Why on earth did you call me here—!”
Before Minjun could complete his shout, Bellium converted entirely into radiance and dissolved, leaving not the slightest remnant behind.
Overcome by hollow disbelief, Minjun sank onto the floor.
“I really thought we’d finally have a proper conversation…”
Was everything truly bound to conclude without a single answer?
Minjun gazed emptily at the residual traces of Bellium that had reverted into plain illumination.
‘Where do I go from here…?’
He had firmly expected that encountering each other face-to-face would at least permit an exchange of dialogue.
While Minjun rested there in deep dejection, the illumination that had once taken Bellium’s form steadily drifted near, wrapping tenderly around his flesh.
Under typical circumstances, the event might have concluded with the dragon energy within his core momentarily swelling.
Yet this time, a completely different phenomenon transpired.
Coupled with the rush of power, a status message materialized directly in Minjun’s sightline.
A considerable amount of time had passed since he last laid eyes on one, and its revelation proved shocking enough to erase his lingering sorrow.
[Part of your existing skill has been unlocked by ???.]
[??? (EX)
Skill Description:
-
Stealth: When activated, completely conceals the user’s presence. However, while this skill is active, the user cannot affect another person in any way.
The skill may be deactivated before its duration ends. (Duration: 30 minutes, Cooldown: 10 minutes)
-
???: (Unlocks upon achieving ???)]
A fraction of the enigmatic ability that had lingered within Minjun since his initial awakening had finally opened up.
Its designation remained concealed, and the ability itself was far from fully accessible.
Even so, the sudden development proved staggering enough to leave him shaken.
Why had this mysterious skill partially revealed itself at this precise juncture?
And what fundamental thread tied this ability to the luminescence and Bellium?
Minjun’s thoughts were already a tangled web, and this completely unforeseen progression only muddied the waters further.
Yet he lacked the luxury of time to ponder it deeply.
Shortly after the notification presented itself, the surrounding radiance dwindled.
Right after, a passage leading into another reality opened wide.
Minjun grasped by sheer instinct that this was the planar rift guiding him back home to Earth.
Without pausing for a second thought, he charged directly into the breach.
Following Minjun’s exit, only absolute pitch-black stillness occupied the bizarre dimension.
<Let’s again. meet>
Only the delicate reverberation of Bellium’s vestigial intention echoed softly, far too faint to ever reach Minjun’s ears.
The millisecond Minjun crossed through the dimensional portal, an overwhelming flood of luminescence showered his body.
Dazzled by the glare, his eyes shut involuntarily.
Upon opening them again to inspect his surroundings, a familiar panorama greeted his senses.
Scores of Hunters and Hunter Association delegates stared in sheer bewilderment as he stepped out from the Gate.
Turning his head slightly, he caught sight of Jeju Island’s azure waters and the spatial rift he had just traversed.
“At last…”
Against all odds, he had touched down safely on Earth.
He had been plagued by the dread that he might never find a way back, that he would never again gaze upon the faces of those dear to him.
Mercifully, providence had not discarded him after all.
Before he could even bask in the relief of his homecoming, a barrage of voices crashed upon him.
“Mr. Minjun!”
“Are you unhurt? Did you sustain any injuries?”
“What exactly went on inside there?”
Inquiries flew at him from every possible angle.
Minjun understood their desperate curiosity, but right now he lacked the mental bandwidth to satisfy each query individually.
As he looked blankly toward the gathered assembly, a woman who seemed perceptive of his state yelled out to the crowd.
“Everyone, quiet down for a second! I realize you’re dying to know, but the man only just returned. Why are you all pressing him so aggressively?”
Having calmed the surrounding onlookers, the woman retrieved a water bottle from a nearby operations tent and presented it to him.
“Ah, much obliged.”
Minjun gulped the contents down in one single breath.
The woman collected the empty plastic and spoke in a softened tone.
“I still have no idea what unfolded in there, but catch your breath first. You can fill us in once you’re steady.”
Owing to her empathy, Minjun gained a brief window to compose his racing thoughts.
In doing so, he remembered a vital piece of information he desperately needed to clarify.
“Could you inform me how much time has elapsed since I stepped inside the Gate?”
Gates were effectively shards of foreign dimensions, and because temporal currents varied across different realities, the passage of hours on Earth and inside a Gate frequently fell out of alignment.
For instance, three hours might elapse within an anomaly while only a single hour ticked away on Earth, or the opposite might unfold.
Even so, there had never been a documented precedent where the temporal ratio skewed to an extreme degree.
Never had an operative ventured into a Gate for sixty minutes only to emerge and discover that a calendar year had passed on Earth.
Yet this particular Gate had already trampled upon every accepted law of common sense.
Perhaps an absurdity of that magnitude was entirely feasible here as well.
Minjun swallowed nervously, awaiting the woman’s proclamation.
What if vastly more time had drifted away on Earth than he dared to imagine?
Sia, his kin, and Rokan would have endured all that endless time in agony over his absence.
The woman’s upcoming response, however, shattered all his expectations entirely.
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