Gate Defense Department on the site of Shenyang City Hall.

The sun had set and it was getting dark, but the lights on all the floors of the defense department were on.

Gate Defense works on a 24 hours system, day and night, with a shift always working to prepare for when and where a situation might arise.

Since the safety of the citizens was at stake, the atmosphere was always tense.

As such, defending against the Gate was a great mission.

“East B-1 barrier.”

“East B-2 barrier.”

Reports were coming in every 30 minutes from the monitoring room.

Agents seated in front of more than 300 monitors reported the presence and absence of abnormalities, which was very important for security.

It could be said that it was manually performed by not just the department in Shenyang, but all the defense departments around the world.

“East F-1 barrier.”

“Hm.”

At the report which followed, a middle-aged woman with short hair in a grey military uniform standing in the center of the room nodded.

Her name was Wei So-yong.

She's the lieutenant of the Defense department and in charge of tonight.

Wei So-yong, who was receiving the report, looked at the D-Day displayed on the large monitor.

‘We have three days, no four days left? Sigh.’

She sighed.

Although she was a soldier, she wasn't a military person by nature.

What she was concerned about was that the Gate would open on the 4th day.

‘Please don’t let that happen when I’m on duty.’

The Gate had opened twice while she was in command of the watch.

The first time, she was fortunate enough to prevent it, and the second time the southwest wall was pierced and the factory site was devastated.

400 casualties.

That was Wei So-yong’s worst memory.

‘The factories were built on such a site…’

Originally, it was illegal to build anything let alone a factory within 3 km of the wall, but permission was granted only through the connections of the son-in-law of the mayor of Shenyang at that time.

Thanks to that incident, the mayor was taken down.

‘I was lucky then but…’

If the barrier was broken this time, she wouldn’t be able to make any excuses.

As a traumatized woman, she longed for the Gate to not open when she was on duty.

“Southern G-25 barrier.”

“Good. Keep working hard. I’ll be back in 30 minutes.”

She turned her back ready to head to her office after getting the last report.

Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!

An alarm sounded from the main detector in the room.

“Commander!”

Wei So-yong’s expression distorted at the shout of the second lieutenant who was in front of the detector.

She wasn’t unaware of the beep.

‘Gate!’

Woong!

The people in the room began to talk.

This was much faster than the notice from the Gate Investigation Team.

Wheeing! Wheeing! Wheeing!

The sirens started up automatically 5 seconds after the main detector’s beeping sound.

Gate Warning.

A siren heard throughout Shenyang city.

Wei So-yong turned around and asked.

“Lieutenant Jin, where?”

“The coordinates are… 41°46'48.4"N 123°01'17.5"E. this is Gate 26! GE wave activation progressed 38 percent!”

The coordinates were on the western side of the city.

“Shit!”

Gate 26 came faster than expected.

Moreover, if the Gate Energy wave activation was 38% the gate was almost half open.

So, when she took office, she desperately hoped that this wouldn’t happen, but her hopes were shattered.

But there was no time for that.

“Type?”

Tatatat!

At her cry, the people inside the monitor room on the western wall speeded up.

Each of them weren’t just in charge of CCTV cameras inside the wall, but outside the wall too.

At that moment, a soldier cried.

“Lo-Look at this!”

Tatak!

He pressed keys and then connected it to the main monitor.

The coordinates indicated at the top of the screen were close to the gate.

Drrr!

The camera was shaky.

It seemed like it was shaking because of the speed of the wave.

Everyone looked at it with tense eyes.

Dududud!

And then, the screen switched to night vision mode, and caught something running.

The soldier zoomed in on it.

A strange being which didn’t exist on earth was caught on the screen.

“An individual type!”

It was the size of a hippo and had six horns and long sharp fangs. And then they saw the monster run fast like a cougar.

‘Individual type.’

Wei So-yong was a little relieved.

There were three types of hazards that came out of the gates.

Individual type, disaster type, and special type.

Out of the three types, individual is the easiest, but it’s still dangerous.

For example, the one which broke through the last barrier was an individual type.

“And the risk?”

“Please wait a moment.”

Tatata!

The soldier typed on his keyboard and reached for something.

Shortly after, the search data appeared on a large screen.

[Hazard level: Horn Jackal: C Class]

Number of Gate appearances: 12 times in European Gates and 7 times in Asia Gates.

Berlin Gate 15, 2049.05.20. 19:23 (First)

Munich Gate 29, 2051.07.15. 20:02

Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, Gate 43, 2058.02.19. 19:40

“C-C Class?”

Woong!

Once again the monitoring room was a mess.

Dangerous objects are divided into a total of six classes, E, D, C, B, A, and S. The higher, the riskier.

The reason why the soldiers in the monitor room were shocked was simple.

Although all types are hazards, the level of risk increased significantly from C class and on.

‘C class is…’

Wei So-yong bit her lip.

It was the first time since she was promoted to the Shenyang city defense department that this class had come up.

The last gate was a class D and dangerous, and anything higher could mean that it was a crisis.

One of the soldiers in the room was perplexed.

“The National Guards are moving towards the Western Wall. I will send them the type information.”

At that, she nodded her head.

The situation had just come up, but the situation was clear.

She was the one who would be held responsible for this.

“Issue summoning orders to the Gate Keepers belonging to Shenyang city, and send a request to defend against the gate to the Murim Association.”

“Roger!”

At the same time.

There were buses running west across downtown Shenyang.

On both sides of the bus was written ‘Gate Keepers’ of the Shenyang defense department, which literally meant that the bus was carrying Gate Keepers.

The buses had left three minutes after the warning was issued.

It took much longer for the defense department to issue the summons than it did for them to leave.

Inside the first bus.

A young man in his early 30s with mostly white hair and a little bit of hair dyed yellow was in the front seat. He chewed gum as he shook his head at the text which appeared on the screen of his phone.

[Gate Keepers should immediately divide into three teams at D-8, D-13 and E-3 barriers to the west and assemble.

Hazard level: Horn Jackal: C class]

“Slow. Slow. They should have sent it right away as soon as the alarm went off.”

“Why don’t you stop messing around and put on the hazmat suit?”

A middle-aged man with a beard scolded him for messing around and not putting the protective suit on.

“Ehhh. Captain. You know that I don’t need that. I don’t fancy it either.”

“Yang Tae-pyung! Are you going to get your senses back only after you get infected with the toxic substance outside the wall?”

Yang Tae-pyung, the man with white and yellow hair, grumbled as he narrowed his eyes, but he got up and opened the luggage compartment.

“I'm a B class Keeper and when did you ever see me get infected…”

“Are you going to keep complaining?”

“Yes. Yes.”

The reason Tae-pyung, who is proud and selfish, showed such a weak appearance was because the bearded man was the Captain of the Gate Keepers.

Do Jung-rak.

Age 42.

And he's the only A class Keeper in Shenyang city with special abilities.

His special ability was turning his skin into steel, and he possessed enough strength to lift and throw a bus.

Do Jung-rak asked while touching his ear piece.

“Did you all get the message from the National Defense Department?”

At that question, the voices of two of the three platoon leaders, two males and one female, who were B class Keepers and on buses 1, 2, and 3 were heard.

-Click! Yes!

-We received it.

“Bus 1 will go to D-13, Bus 2 will head to D-8, To And and Bus 3 will go to E-3 wall.”

-Yes. We understand, leader.

There was no answer from the B class Keeper Go Yoon, the platoon leader of Bus 3.

Do Jung-rak was puzzled and about to ask, when he heard the voice.

-Captain Do… I'm in need of money urgently, can't we go to D-13?

“Ah…”

When one looks at the coordinates where the Gate is open, D-13 is a straight line.

And there was a high probability of encountering an alpha-type entity with a Gate Core.

The main task of the Gate Keepers was to handle the cores of Alpha types and keep the gate closed while the National Guards intercept the normal hazard level beings.

“Looks like you need an allowance. Our Yooni-hyung. Hehe.”

Tae-pyung, who was in the same platoon heard it and scoffed at him.

Gate Keepers were paid some of the highest salaries.

But like any job, the salary wasn’t the same for all the Gate Keepers.

It varied a lot depending on the class.

Because of that, Gate Keepers try to increase their pay by working hard on developing their abilities and increasing their class when the gates aren't open.

However, there was another special type of pay.

“Actually, if it’s the core of a C class alpha hazard entity, the bonus will be 4 to 5 billion won, and it's worth it.” (3.4 to 4.2 Million United States Dollars)

It was an unimaginable amount.

Considering that the annual salary of a B class Keeper is around 1 billion won, the extra pay was amazing.

And that was why the Keepers risked their lives in dealing with the Alpha type entities.

“Yoonie hyung. What are we supposed to do? There’s something that I was wanting this ti…”

Kang!

“Euk!”

Tae-pyung clasped his head and screamed.

There was a reason for it, he was hit by Do Jung-rak’s fist made of steel.

Ignoring Tae-pyung, he put his finger on his ear piece and said.

“I get it. We will go to the E-3 barrier.”

-Click… Thank you! Captain!

At those words, Go Yoon’s voice brightened.

Then, Do Jung-rak said,

“Instead, you shouldn’t lose the core to the Murim Association. Got it?”

-Click! Definitely!

Do Jun-rak grinned and spoke to the driver.

“Ha. Move to the southwest E-3 barrier.”

Meanwhile, a nearby road in the northwest of Shenyang.

A white sedan was quickly heading towards the Murim Association office.

In the backseat of the car, two men with colorful blades set aside were talking.

The person on the right was Moyong Yi-sun, the executive director of the Yeon Company.

And in the left seat was a man in his 60s, with dark eyebrows and half white half black hair, the chairman of the Yeon Company, Moyong Geum.

Tok!

To check if there was a message, Moyong Yi-sun raised his hand and touched his phone.

Moyong Geum asked.

“Are you saying that all the people of the association have gathered?”

“Looks like most of them have arrived. We just need to get there.”

Currently in a branch of the Murim Association, most of the branch’s registered Murim warriors had gathered.

They were waiting for the head of the Shenyang Murim Association Branch, Moyong Geum.

“Is that old man also there?”

“He refused the housing we provided but he has been with the Murim Association all along.”

“Huh.”

The one Moyong Geum was asking about was Peng Neung-gyeom.

Peng Neung-gyeom, a man in his 70s with a higher share in Murim, had come to meet him, but Moyong Geum didn’t let him.

As he couldn’t just turn a blind eye, he tried to send Moyong Yi-sun and provide accommodations, but he refused that and went over to the Murim Association.

“Everyone is old yet their greed doesn’t subside. That place will be heavily guarded. You’ll go around that place and covet the core.”

“There’s no way we can stop others.”

There were people who had come in the name of helping those working near the Gates out.

Even if Shenyang was run by their huge company, they wouldn’t drive out people who came on their own two feet to help.

Moyong Yi-sun sighed and said,

“More than that, the Gate opened at such a time.”

“Don’t be in a hurry. You are the person who will be the next head of the Yeon company.”

“…”

“It's never too late to solve the problem of the Six Road Toys and their inner workings.”

“But I sent pursuers…”

“Huh. I keep telling you to not rush.”

Moyong geum’s voice sounded irritated, so Moyong Yi-sun kept his mouth shut.

So far in his life, he hasn’t been able to overcome the strong hold his father had on him.

“First, focus on the core. If it's a C class core, you can enhance the aggression to get it one step further. Of course, you can do it.”

Cores.

Crystals of pure energy.

The governments of each country use them as an alternative energy, but the Murim Association has the technology to enhance internal energy by refining cores.

That was the reason why Murim warriors and the Murim Association came over to perform during the Gate Warning.

Holding his sword, Moyong Geum said.

“This time will be more difficult than the last time. Not just the Gate Keepers, but that old man is also aiming for the core.”

“Don’t worry. I will get the core.”

Getting a core was a huge deal.

This time, the Yeon Company was aiming to close the gate, and just doing that will gain them a huge name.

“Yes. Still, don’t overdo it. If it's a C class Alpha hazard, it might be difficult for your current level.”

“Understood.”

The two wealthy people, the descendants of the Moyong clan, were determined.

An abandoned factory in the southwest.

“Ahh! What kind of bullshit is that!”

Puck!

“Kuak!”

At Baek Jong-so’s kick, Neung Do-myung collapsed.

Baek Jong-so was unable to overcome his anger, as he grabbed the man by his collar and shouted.

“What did you say? The place is outside the wall?”

“Ugh…”

That was the reason he was angry.

After the Gate Warning was issued, he asked with a desperate attitude.

But what the man said was absurd.

“You crazy bastard! How could you do that!”

“Th-That's why I told you! You can’t do it without me…”

“Are you really spewing that nonsense!”

Puak!

“Kuak!”

Baek Jong-so kicked him again.

In the midst of the pain, Neung Do-myung was flustered in his own way.

‘Damn it. I gave up.’

The fact that he revealed this information could be a fatal blow to the Public Security Bureau.

Generally speaking, safe houses are places used by public bureaus or intelligence agencies to maintain confidentiality.

A place where one can be hidden.

Before the Gate, the deep valley or the sparsely populated place would normally be used.

However, after the Gate was created, the Public Security thought the other way around.

The most dangerous place to keep the people who needed to be kept secret was outside the wall.

‘Damn it! It was so people won’t be able to find out.’

Entry and exit from the wall was normally controlled.

It was because there could be unknown dangerous objects, or toxic substances.

“… how could you do that…”

Baek Jong-so’s eyes were red.

Everyone in the current age knew just how dangerous outside the wall was.

When he found out that his mother was being kept outside, he couldn’t help but cry out in anger.

To be honest, he wanted to kill the man right away.

‘Haa… haaa… no. I need to save my mother.’

The Gate Warning was issued.

He didn’t know what would happen if he didn’t save his mother in this situation.

Baek Jong-so grabbed the man and asked.

“Where? Where the hell did you place my mother?”

“Th-That…”

“Spill it. If you don’t want to die by my hands.”

“1 km to the west…”

Beep!

At that time, an emergency message from the National Defense Department appeared on Baek Jong-so’s phone.

[Gate Warning 26

Citizens residing within 30 km of the western wall should evacuate to a nearby designated shelter.]

‘!!!’

As he was still holding the man by his collar, even Neung Do-myung went stiff at the message.

He didn’t dream that this would happen.

Bewildered, Neung Do-myung said.

“Ah, the house is made of alloy more than 1 meter thick and our men are…”

“Shut the fuck up. Are you really saying…”

“Enough. Stop it.”

Chun Yeowun cut off their yelling.

As he lost his reasoning, Baek Jong-so shouted at Chun Yeowun with red eyes.

“But, but my mother…”

“Do you think you can save your mother by killing him?”

“I know that. But the Gate Warning has been issued. And the dangerous ones will flock to the outside of the wall. What can we even do now?”

“What do you mean by what can we even do?”

“Huh?”

“Do you think I’ll let a member of my cult die?”

‘!?’

Baek Jong-so trembled at Chun Yeowun’s words.

Leaving behind his shocked face, he spoke to Neung Do-myung.

“The location. Tell me the coordinates.”