Suho looked down at the name he’d finally located and tucked the documents into his jacket, feeling a sense of relief. 

‘Found him sooner than expected. Now, I just need to bring him in.’

He turned to Choi Yoon. "You know that safe house Union has in Cheongdam, right?”

She frowned. "How do you even know about that?”

Of course, Suho knew. Coming from a later world where gate calamities were nearly wiped out, there was little information he didn’t possess. Korea was meticulous about documentation, and he’d once had almost unrestricted access to that information.

“Well, I do know. And I’d like to use it,” he said casually.

She sighed, leaning back in her chair. “Look, the safe houses have different levels, and the one in Cheongdam is high-security…”

"Didn’t you say you owed me one?”

Choi Yoon clicked her tongue in frustration. "Getting those documents wasn’t enough?”

“Is my saving your life worth only a few sheets of paper?” he countered.

“Come on, it’s not like that, and you know it! But still… of all places, it had to be Cheongdam?” she groaned.

“I can pay if that’s the issue.”

“Ugh… does it really *have* to be Cheongdam?”

“It does. Or do I need to spell out why?”

“Fine!” she huffed, pulling out her phone to call her superiors.

After a few minutes, she returned, looking exasperated. “They agreed.”

“See? I told you they would.”

“Of course, they had conditions,” she added. “If you accept them, you can use the Cheongdam safe house for half the usual cost.”

Surprised by the discount, Suho responded cautiously, “I’ll need to know what those conditions are first.”

She sighed, realizing there was no simple answer with him. "They want you to clear a gate for them. Apparently, it’s a newly-discovered gate they haven’t posted on the grid yet.”

“A gate? I thought Union had people for that?”

“The gate’s location is too visible. Normally, securing a gate involves a lot of red tape and attention, and this one’s in Namhansan.”

Namhansan? Suho raised an eyebrow, realizing it’d be nearly impossible to redirect public attention from there.

“What’s the difficulty and theme?”

“We sent in a survey team, and only players level 110 and below can enter. The place is called Sky Mountain, and it’s full of wyverns—extremely agile ones.”

“Sky Mountain?” Suho echoed, suppressing a grin. He knew exactly which gate this was.

“Yes, Sky Mountain. And they don’t expect you to clear it alone. Just join the existing team to help them. No one expects a solo clear, even from you.”

Suho chuckled to himself, his thoughts racing. He asked, “Do the wyverns happen to have a light blue color?”

Choi Yoon blinked, taken aback. “How… how did you know?”

His smile widened. It was exactly as he remembered. "Alright. So, just clearing the place is enough?”

“Yes, but all loot from the gate must go to Union. According to the scouts, there’s a large stone mountain inside with a wyvern nest at the top. The main loot would be the wyvern eggs. If you could collect all of them, that would be ideal.”

“And how many eggs are there?”

“Six, last the scouts counted.”

“Fine. When do they want it done?”

“They said right now is fine if you’re available.”

“Then let’s go.”

“R-right now?” she stammered.

“Yes, right now. Let’s add one more condition.”

“What now?”

“Tell them I’ll solo the gate. In exchange, I’ll use the Cheongdam safe house free of charge and get the largest unit—the 80-pyeong one.”

Choi Yoon was shocked. "You’re serious about going in alone?”

“When have I ever joked with you?”

Though she found his tone blunt, she wasn’t offended—in fact, she was intrigued by his confidence.

After some quick arrangements, Suho and Choi Yoon arrived at Namhansan, where Union personnel managed access to the Sky Mountain gate, which had yet to be posted publicly. As they stepped out of their cars, they were met by the gate manager, who greeted Suho respectfully.

“So, you’re Ahn Suho, the hunter? I’m Kim Soo-won, head of this operation.”

“Pleasure,” Suho replied, keeping his attention focused on the gate.

Kim Soo-won explained, “We’ve scouted the interior twice, and it’s formidable. You’ll need to scale a vast spiral mountain under constant attack from wyverns. The winds are fierce, too.”

“But you found the nest, right?”

“Correct, but we had to retreat due to the wyverns’ relentless attacks.”

Suho nodded, satisfied. “Good thing it’s accessible. And yes, I’ll be going alone.”

“Are you sure? It’s incredibly tough up there…”

Suho’s calm reply left Kim Soo-won speechless.

After some contemplation, Kim Soo-won finally replied, “If that’s your decision, then I’ll respect it. If you need any support items, we’ll provide them.”

“No need.”

Kim Soo-won was stunned at his casual refusal. Any other hunter would have jumped at the offer, but he reminded himself this was a man who had soloed two sealed gates. With nothing more to say, he stepped back, letting Suho approach the entrance.

As he entered, a series of notifications appeared:

[Entering Gate…]

[Loading Gate Information…]

**[Sky Mountain]**
- **Entry Level**: Level 110 and below
- **Max Entry**: 31 players

This was indeed the gate Suho had read about in the memory archives. He confirmed it was the one from his recollections before stepping forward.

Watching him disappear into the gate, Kim Soo-won turned to Choi Yoon. "Do you think he’ll succeed?”

She shrugged, though her expression held a trace of belief. “Knowing him, yes.”

“Just because he’s Ahn Suho?”

She smiled knowingly. “Exactly.”

Meanwhile, Suho’s surroundings shifted. He found himself in a dark cave, accompanied by the sound of howling winds. Exiting the cave, he was met with a vast view of Sky Mountain towering above him.

‘So, this is Sky Mountain,’ he thought, recalling the records in the association’s database. This gate was infamous in later years for devouring countless hunters. At the time, only the most carefully crafted party compositions—tanks, archers, and healers—had any chance of survival.

However, Suho had no plans to follow traditional strategies. Instead, he summoned his Blood Sword, a weapon versatile enough to handle both close and ranged combat.

The cold, gusting wind greeted him as he took his first step onto the mountain.

**[Leap Activated]**

Ignoring the winding path that spiraled up the mountain, Suho relied on the jagged rocks jutting out from the cliff face to leap in a straight line upward.

“Kiieeeeek!” The familiar screech of wyverns echoed in the distance as he climbed. A group of blue-scaled wyverns hurtled toward him, their agile bodies slicing through the turbulent winds.

Suho tightened his grip on the Blood Sword, ready to carve his way to the top. 

TL NOTE: Please don't skimp on the stars for the translation - it inspires me and gives me the strength to write more. Thank you~!

If you want to buy me a coffee ko-fi.com/kimsu