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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 119
Chapter Title: The Returned Hero's Streaming Life with the Saintess
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"Seriously, can you believe the price of a cup of coffee?"

"Why has the price of rice shot up so much? Did the harvest fail?"

"Ugh… this is insane… Why have fuel prices gone up like this?"

South Korea, Japan, Singapore, Europe, various countries.
Citizens were initially puzzled, then quickly grew furious.

Soon, they began hoarding rice, fuel, and daily necessities from supermarkets, and news comment sections were flooded with conspiracy theories like 'the government is hiding something.'

Accordingly, news headlines grew more intense.

[The entire world is in crisis, yet the government remains 'silent']
[Coffee bean prices surge 60%... Distribution industry in 'unprecedented chaos']
[Corporate cartels... Are our fears becoming reality?]

Now, it could no longer be hidden.

Eventually, the UN stepped forward.
Heads of state from various countries and representatives of major international organizations gathered at the New York headquarters, and the press section was, quite literally, packed with every broadcasting and news agency from around the world.

On the center of the stage, the UN Secretary-General stood silently at the podium for a moment.
In his hands were several reports.

"Citizens of the world. Humanity is now facing an unprecedented threat."

He spoke slowly, yet clearly.

"An underwater Gate has opened in the depths of the Malacca Strait."

At that moment, even the murmurs in the hall ceased.
In a silence so deep, only breathing could be heard, he continued.

"Due to its underwater nature, access is extremely difficult, and currently, 40% of global logistics are under threat. Significant impacts on food, medicine, and raw material supplies are anticipated, and some countries have already begun experiencing price surges and supply chain collapses."

As soon as he finished speaking, a buzz of murmurs began all around.
And soon, without exception, every single reporter raised their hand.
When called upon, one reporter stated his affiliation and name before asking his question.

"I understand this isn't the first underwater Gate... but has humanity never, not once, managed to clear one from the inside?"

The Secretary-General paused for a moment.
He closed his eyes, then quietly nodded.

"That is correct. Excessive deep-sea depths, high pressure, lack of accessibility... No one has even attempted to enter."

He continued.

"And above all, this is the first time humanity has suffered such direct damage. Previous underwater Gates merely remained under the surveillance of various nations and were not directly confronted."

Currently, the stance of nations was largely conservative.
They deliberately avoided Gates that weren't a direct threat.
Especially underwater Gates, which were difficult to even enter.
There was no way anyone would dare poke a hornet's nest like that.

"Is there a 'plan' for the current situation?"

"We have urgently requested cooperation from two Unknown Hunters."

As soon as he heard that, the reporter who had just asked a question raised his hand again and continued to press.

"Then what was their response? What is their stance on the underwater Gate?"

The Secretary-General's expression wavered slightly for the first time.
He leaned closer to the microphone and spoke in a low voice.

"They, too... said they didn't know."

At that moment, silence again.
Even the sound of camera shutters ceased.
This short exchange in the press conference, watched by the entire world, dropped like a bomb.

—Even those called humanity's strongest don't know.

That fear and uncertainty were etched into every reporter's mind.
As if snapping out of a trance, they all began typing furiously.

"This concludes the press conference."

The Secretary-General bowed his head and left the press conference room with heavy steps.

"...We're really screwed."

To the lone reporter's muttered words, the others nodded in agreement.

---

The highest floor of the UN headquarters, a confidential strategic operations room located on a floor even deeper than the Security Council meeting room.
The press was forbidden.
No filming or recording was allowed whatsoever.

"Everyone is here..."

Inside, there wasn't a single reporter.
Only government representatives summoned from around the world and S-rank Hunters whose mere names could shake an entire nation filled the seats.

"First, we'll show you what we've prepared."

On the wall screen, the bathymetric map of the Malacca Strait and the energy distribution map inside the Gate appeared.
Then, high-ranking military officials and strategic advisors from various countries took turns giving briefings.

"A multinational fleet from the South Korean Navy, Indonesia, Singapore, and India will be positioned on the outskirts of the Malacca Strait. They will dedicate all their efforts to securing an entry point into the seabed, providing emergency support, and relaying information."

"The inside of the Gate is a complete unknown. For now, 'reconnaissance' and 'information gathering' will be the primary objectives of the operation."

"And..."

The advisors' gazes turned to Laila Everheim and me.

"If the situation allows... the clearance operation will be entirely left to your judgment."

As the operation briefing proceeded, I scanned my surroundings.
There were familiar faces like Max Morgan, Chen Longwei, and Takamine Reina, but also many S-rank Hunters I didn't recognize.

Then, another S-rank Hunter raised his hand and asked.

"Are those Unknown Hunters going to command us?"

"Yes, that's correct."

He nodded as if understanding the Secretary-General's answer.
Then he asked an additional question.

"So what are we supposed to do? Go in with them? Or scout ahead?"

"That would be..."

The Secretary-General hesitated to answer.
I understood why.
What he was about to say...

"You'll be backup."

...was an answer that could completely crush an S-rank Hunter's pride.
Naturally, he couldn't accept it.

"What? I can certainly acknowledge their command... but we're just backup? Us, of all people?"

"Ah..."

I quietly raised my hand, cutting off the Secretary-General who was about to speak.
I stood up and looked at those who couldn't accept it, then spoke.

"We don't know anything about what's in the water."

"..."

"You'd be in the way."

"What? I respect you plenty, but... we also have our own..."

"How long do you think it would take me to kill all of you here?"

"What are you even...?"

"No, let me rephrase that. If I were to attack you, how many of you here do you think could escape?"

"…!"

"I respect S-rank Hunters plenty. But for now, don't let your pride get the better of you."

I deliberately spoke strongly.
There wasn't much time to convince each person in this situation.

"I was rash..."

At my cold criticism, he bowed his head, clearly frustrated but acknowledging the inevitability.
Even top S-rankers like Max Morgan, Chen Longwei, and Takamine Reina were silently nodding in agreement.

---

The Secretary-General's press conference was broadcast as news across the world.
Naturally, the media, as well as online communities, were abuzz with talk of the Malacca Strait day after day.

[Author: Anonymous]
[Title: Why don't we just drop a nuke?]
[Content: If we hit it all at once, the Gate might break.]

ㄴ Did this idiot sleep through geography class?
ㄴ Seriously, lol. You want to drown the neighboring countries too?

[Author: Anonymous]
[Title: Seriously, f***. I went all in.]
[Content: (Photo of piled-up daily necessities) I seriously won't need to go outside for years.]

ㄴ You bitch, release some of that stock!
ㄴ Ugh, seriously, people like that are the real problem.

ㄴ It's because of bastards like you that other people suffer.
ㄴ OP: Yeah, screw you lol. As long as I survive, that's all that matters~
ㄴ Watch out, I'm coming to your house to smash your head in.

Fear spread like wildfire.
SNS was flooded with posts saying 'the world is ending,' and cults declared it 'God's judgment' and held prayers in the streets.

"We had already anticipated the public's confusion."

Emergency control orders and military deployments for maintaining order began, and efforts were made to calm public sentiment by mobilizing information control and broadcasting systems.

[GodTierStrongHero: Gotta do what we gotta do.]

As expected, countless people tuned in as if they had been waiting for the broadcast.
The viewership was almost similar to when I streamed from Baekdu Mountain.

"Hmm... certainly a lot of people showed up."

As expected, chat messages poured in in various languages.
Though the languages differed, their meaning was the same.
It was 'So, can you fix this?'

"I don't know either."

[???]
[What??]
[Eh?]

I really didn't know.
I had fought above water, but never underwater.

"We'll have to try, won't we?"

But would streaming even be possible?
Actually, experts weren't too worried about that question.
It was an era where you could stream from a Gate, even from space.

'The only problem is whether the camera can withstand the water pressure and external elements...'

Laila Everheim had completely solved that problem as well.

—Anyway, it's not a situation threatening enough to require a protection spell on Hero-nim... So I can just protect the equipment, right?

[Saintess'sFootWiper has charged 50,000 Watts!]
—Chairman... my computer parts haven't arrived... Please, normalize things.

[God of Normalization lol]
[God Hero lolol]
[Me too, f***. I ordered parts, but delivery hasn't even started lolol]

'Oh...? Wait a minute...'

I decided to put into action my long-held contemplation of building a hospital.
The expensive equipment ordered from medical device companies...
Those couldn't be transported either.

"..."

Malacca Strait.
Normalization was urgently needed.

Chapter 119