It was Sunday morning, and Junhyuk was stretching lightly. He would be back to the monster area for another training session that day.
The interphone rang, and Major Jiro could be heard from the other side.
âThe people sent by Guardians are here.â
Junhyuk walked outside. The new recruits gathered by Guardian would be arriving that day. As he stepped out, the security team guarding him followed him.
Walking down to the lobby, he saw someone unexpected.
âWe met again.â
Jennifer Rockefeller greeted him politely. She looked full of confidence as she smiled at him. He was not looking at her, but further behind her.
âI did not know they would send two experts.â
He wasnât interested in Jennifer. He was more interested in Helen and Jeffrey standing behind her. After staring at the two, he turned to Jennifer.
âAre they willing to participate in the training?â
Jennifer stepped aside and said, âThey are willing. However, the US is now providing two experts. Shouldnât you rearrange the order of priority?â
He looked at Helen, the blonde with the ponytail who was standing behind Jennifer. He did not know about her powers, but along with Major Sean, she would be the second expert from America.
âChinaâs already sent two experts, and they did so out of good will. Should I prioritize them then?â
Jennifer frowned, and Junhyuk said calmly, âI will make the decisions.â
Jennifer wanted to say something to him, but Helen grabbed her shoulder, and Jennifer sighed and said, âWe are looking for more experts, but if there are powerful people who donât agree with us in charge of them, we canât just take them.â
He smiled.
âJust find out where they are. Iâll be responsible for bringing them in.â
Even if the experts were able to fly or crawl underneath the earth, they would be no match for Junhyuk.
He added calmly, âIâll have you two talk to me for a moment.â
Junhyuk took Jeffrey and Helen and headed toward the meeting room, staring at them while in there.
âTell me about your powers.â
Jeffrey said nonchalantly, âI can tame monsters, and I can summon them.â
Taming and summoning werenât different powers. They were two stages of one power. However, Jeffrey was aware of Helen there, so he simply stared at her.
âI can use light to ensnare the enemy and I can make light swords to throw at the enemy.â
Helen put her hand forward and a light sword appeared on it.
âI can also wield it, but it only last for five seconds that way, so after I summon it, I usually just throw it.â
âCan the enemy dodge it?â
âI canât control it after I throw it.â
Junhyuk nodded. She had good powers. The light sword, from what he had seen, was a better power than most. If she could use it at long range, like she said, it might be a high-ranking power.
âWhatâs the cooldown?â
âThirty seconds.â
It was a high-ranking power. However, it wasnât as great as his Spatial Slash. She probably didnât have a lot of great equipment, but her damage was similar to Junhyukâs regular attacks.
The woman had nice powers, and since she could hold enemies down, she had to be loved by the heroes on the Dimensional Battlefield.
âOK. Letâs meet with the expertsâ team and adjust your powers. There should be five people per team, but weâll run it with seven for now.â
The two nodded, and Junhyuk looked at Jeffrey.
âJeffrey, talk to me for a moment.â
Helen nodded and went out, and Junhyuk stared at Jeffrey.
âWhy did you come here?â
âCongratulations on becoming a hero!â
He laughed.
âThanks.â
âSo, I have a favor to ask.â
Looking out the window, Junhyuk asked, âYou mean an A-ranked monster?â
âYes.â
Junhyuk looked at Jeffrey and pulled out the Ring of Promise, giving it to Jeffrey.
âYouâve looked into it,â Jeffrey said, laughing.
âRight. You did not tell me everything.â
Jeffrey shrugged and said, âTrue. Thereâs a difference between the body and the limb, but to have absolute trust we need these rings.â
âI heard about that, but when I put this ring on, I canât take it off. If you take the body ring, I canât form bonds with others, so I canât give you the body ring.â
After hearing him, Jeffrey shrugged again.
âWhatever. I donât have any other people in mind. I just want us to wear the rings.â
Junhyuk pulled out the Ring of Promise he had purchased.
âThen, put this on.â
He tossed the ring to Jeffrey, who took it and put it on.
Smiling, Jeffrey asked, âThen, am I getting my A-ranked monster?â
âIâll help you. Is it OK if itâs half dead?â
âIf I can control it, itâll regenerate when I return it.â
âThatâs fine then,â Junhyuk said and continued calmly, âAfter we are done training and everyone goes back, weâll advance alone. When you get your A-ranked monsters, youâll be stronger than ever before.â
âI can only tame one now, but Iâll get stronger so that I can tame more.â
He smiled.
âOK. Do you know anything about the A-ranked monster that just spawned?â
âI checked on it through a satellite feed. Itâs called Ghost White Tiger.â
âGhost White Tiger?â
âYou can normally see the Ghost White Tiger, but it must have a hiding power because it disappears from time to time, which is how it got the name ghost.â
Junhyuk sighed.
âYou want to catch an A-ranked monster that hides?â
âYou can do it.â
Junhyuk thought about Jeffrey. If the Ghost White Tiger had had a teleportation power, it would have been able to dodge Junhyuk. However, the Ghost White Tiger had a hiding power, which meant that it wouldnât be able to escape from him since Junhyuk could sense fluctuations in space.
âFine, but it wonât be easy.â
The two could deal with the Ghost White Tiger by themselves, but if they had a larger group, things could turn bad. After thinking for a while, Junhyuk said, âI thought we would go in after training, but now, I think we should advance first.â
âReally?â
âYeah. Thereâs no way the novices will survive an attack from a Ghost White Tiger. Or even the experts for that matter.â
A-ranked monsters could fight heroes. People without equipment or with shoddy equipment wouldnât be able to go head-to-head against them.
Jeffrey shrugged.
âHigh risk, high reward.â
Junhyuk nodded, and Jeffrey got up.
âCan we go right now?â
âYes.â
âThen, letâs go!â
Both of them walked out, and as they did, they saw the powered people waiting for them. They looked tense, and Junhyuk said calmly, âBefore noon, Iâll make an advance with the newly acquired expert into the monster area. You may train here.â
âOnly you two will go in?â Ling Ling asked hesitantly.
He answered, âThe new A-ranked monster has a hiding power. Itâs too dangerous, so just the two of us will go in for now.â
âTake our team with you,â Peyton offered, but Junhyuk shook his head.
âTraining is good, but your safety is the top priority,â he said.
âThen, why are you taking that man?â Peyton thought he had enough powers, even if his powers werenât attack-based.
Junhyuk addressed them all, âJeffrey, show them your powers.â
Jeffrey extended both hands and said, âAnywhere, anytime.â
Suddenly, four monsters appeared. They were all B-ranked monsters, and the others tensed up as they saw them and stepped back.
The expertsâ team was ready to engage, but Junhyuk raised his hand and said, âJeffrey can tame and summon monsters. We are going alone because of his taming power. Jeffrey will tame a monster, and it will help us eventually.â
Peytonâs eyes widened, and he stared at Junhyuk.
âAre you thinking about taming an A-ranked monster?â
âIf possible.â
A-ranked monsters were too strong for experts to deal with. If Jeffrey tamed one, he would shine among them.
The experts had no objections.
Looking at the others, Junhyuk said, âIf we can tame an A-ranked monster, weâll go a long way into stopping the monster areas.â
Then, he turned to Jiro and added, âItâs just us moving on. The others will stay here and train. Prepare a vehicle for us.â
âYes, sir.â
Junhyuk turned to Jeffrey and said, âReturn your monsters and get in the car.â
âOK.â
Jeffrey returned the monsters, and the others watched it happen, less tense than they had been previously. Helen, who had been staring at the two, stepped back.
Junhyuk got in the vehicle with Jeffrey, and it took off toward the monster area.
âThere is one problem,â Jeffrey said.
Junhyuk looked at him, and Jeffrey sighed and continued, âWhen I come up against the A-ranked monster, I have to cancel the contract with the B-ranked monsters. Whenever I do that, I wonât have any powers at my disposal.â
Junhyuk replied with a question, âDo you have your shield?â
âSure.â
Jeffrey had invested heavily in his defensive equipment, boosting his defense stat. Before Jeffrey could tame monsters, he had relied solely on defense.
Junhyuk remained silent as he looked out the window. He could see the soldiers in front of the border to the monster area coming up.
They went through the barricade and stopped right on the borderâs edge. Jiro was with them as they stood right in front of the monster area.
Junhyuk got next to Jeffrey and said, âWeâll head to where the Tokyo Tower used to stand.â
Jeffrey had also been there before. Previously, he had hunted at the border, but this time, they would go to the center of Tokyo, the Tokyo Tower. It wouldnât be an easy trip.
Jeffrey gulped hard, and Junhyuk patted his back, walking ahead first.
âDonât be scared. Iâm wearing the Ring of Promise. I wonât let you die.â
âYou are scaring me even more.â
âYou can always run away by yourself.â
Jeffrey shook his head.
âWhen I return my monsters, it takes a while before Iâm able to summon them again.â
âYour power isnât as good as I thought it was.â
âIâm aware of that too, but someday, Iâll summon a bunch of A-ranked monsters.â
âSure.â
He and Jeffrey stepped into the monster area.