Even if This World Becomes a Mess, the Police Still Work(6)

A shootout in the middle of Seoul. No, the expression “shootout” seems a bit strange.

A battle between superpower users and armed police. Yes, using such words would be more appropriate for the current situation.

Gunshots and various superpowers in succession. Fire being shot, ground shaking, metal pieces moving flexibly like snakes rushing to kill people.

It was an unrealistic and deadly scene that we saw every day at the Special Investigation Team.

Yagi’s attacks were exceptionally fierce, as if Sai, that crazy woman, had ordered her to kill anyone who interfered while revealing her identity.

Well, I knew she wouldn’t hold back from the moment she took off that damn Hahoe mask and revealed her identity.

Still, this is really fucked up.

Ice chunks larger than humans are falling, and superpower users and mutants who have lost their minds are tossing people around like dolls.

Normally, we should all be falling like autumn leaves, instantly collapsing regardless of whether we’re holding shotguns or whatever.

But surprisingly, we were holding our ground.

So far, we’ve neutralized 9 superpower users and 2 mutants. Of course, we didn’t take them down with just police and SWAT forces.

The reason we could take down so many was thanks to the superpower user helping us—the Goblin.

The Goblin used his magic to make superpower users fight each other, make ice chunks miss their targets, and even made Yagi attack her own mutants.

Thanks to him, the detectives with guns weren’t engaged in chaotic close combat but could maintain some distance and fire in orderly formations.

But I could intuitively tell that if things continued like this, we would lose.

The instinct-driven superpower users and mutants were increasingly breaking through the Goblin’s illusions and attacking us more frequently.

It wasn’t that they figured out the Goblin’s illusions, but rather that they were mindlessly attacking in all directions, abandoning reason, resulting in more effective hits.

Although we were also continuously moving and firing, successfully subduing superpower users one by one as they fell.

They are monsters who remain unharmed even after being shot, while we are ordinary people who would be on the brink of death if just slightly grazed.

More than twice the number we’ve subdued so far remain, and the moment Yagi stops staying still and calls for reinforcements or another supervillain appears, we will certainly be annihilated.

And it seems someone else here had the same thought. Amidst the gunfire, someone urgently shouted!

“—This won’t work! Yagi! We need to capture Yagi first!”

“Shit, who doesn’t know that!”

As I shouted half-irritably at someone stating the obvious, I fired my shotgun at the forehead of a mutant that was reacting and charging at me.

The mutant with bull-like thick legs rolled on the ground after being hit by the shotgun, but soon got up unharmed, became angry, and ran to another location.

…I guess it survived thanks to the Goblin’s magic making its eyes go weird.

I released the pressure on the trigger I had half-pulled, expecting it to charge at me so I could shoot again.

I looked at the Goblin fighting Yagi away from the line of fire.

The Goblin seemed to be struggling with Yagi’s attacks, with frost covering his face, fighting frantically at a location somewhat away from the center of the scene.

Even if I wanted to support by shooting at Yagi, she was moving too fast to know which of the two might get hit.

Then, damn, are we just wasting time like this?

I bit my lip and wiped away my sweat. As someone just shouted, subduing Yagi is the priority.

Looking at how the mutants and superpower users seem to be moving systematically according to her orders, it’s clear she’s the commanding tower.

But how? Honestly, I didn’t expect Yagi to reveal her identity like this and turn all the remaining members of Special Investigation Team 2 into superpower users.

Ever since the research institute incident, there’s been a series of incidents that are impossible to handle. Given Sai’s personality, she’s not the type to act so recklessly without some purpose.

What exactly is her plan? What does that woman gain by brazenly carrying out such madness?

Swallowing the ominous feeling that wouldn’t go away, I decided to focus on dealing with what was in front of me first and closely observed the fight between Yagi and the Goblin.

Yagi created a path of ice between buildings and stood on it like a fixed gun emplacement, shooting out cold air and ice.

The Goblin evaded those attacks, toying with her using numerous clones and illusions, like a butterfly riding the wind.

At a glance, it looked like the flamboyantly moving Goblin was pushing her back, but looking closely, Yagi was slowly cornering the Goblin to kill him, like reducing chess pieces.

The method Yagi chose to break through the Goblin’s magic, which deceived human perception itself and prevented his ability to “pass on” from activating—

Absurdly, it was a wall of cold that didn’t care even if her own body froze.

I could tell this because I saw everything freeze and fall before reaching her body when the Goblin threw weapons hidden in illusions to attack.

She was a damn smart woman.

No matter how fast she moved, it would be difficult to break through the illusions the Goblin created when he was determined, so she found a way to cause damage regardless of what the Goblin did, ignoring the illusions.

Although her skin was turning blue with frost, visible even from a distance, she continued fighting as if willing to endure it.

Is this like a game of chicken now? We can’t afford to drag this out, but Yagi is also getting injured by her own ability as time passes.

Is there really no way to handle this? While I was thinking about this, shooting at a superpower user’s arm that had transformed into a whip to stop its movement.

Suddenly, a fire hydrant parked at the corner of the road caught my eye. The red fire hydrant and Yagi’s cold air that froze everything approaching. And she’s fighting near the Special Investigation Team office?

These facts combined in my head, and I recalled the location of the indoor fire hydrants in the office.

Um… honestly, it sounds crazy, but this might actually work.

I urgently signaled to the SWAT commander and told him my plan, saying I would go inside the Special Investigation Team office and needed support.

The SWAT commander looked at me like I was a total madman and said:

“Understood. Certainly, we need to do something to break the current standoff… Move according to my signal. I’ll support you.”

The SWAT captain looked dumbfounded, but I know it’s a crazy plan too. I feel like my balls are shrinking right now.

But even so, this is the only way to break through this situation.

The SWAT captain pointed to the smoke grenade launcher attached to the armored vehicle, and I nodded. I gripped the shotgun in my hand and waited for the signal.

“Now! Smoke grenades fire!”

As soon as the smoke grenades were fired, volley fire was directed from behind toward the direction into the building. I ran with all my might.

If I could just get inside without encountering any superpower users or mutants in this state of lost reason—

Just as I was thinking that, a mutant appeared in front of me, cutting through the smoke.

My heart rose and fell. The mutant, with hands transformed into huge claws and large ears like a beast, was staring at me with bloodshot eyes.

Its bizarre appearance, with a withered torso where ribs protruded and bulging eyes, looked like a human forcibly stretched and crumpled, and I immediately pointed the barrel of my shotgun forward.

Shooting first wouldn’t work. When it charges, I’ll shoot to push it back and enter the building.

With that thought, I put my finger on the trigger without even breathing as I watched the mutant gradually swelling its body, about to charge, but—

“Grk, gwaek…”

“Huh?”

For some reason, the mutant didn’t charge at me but headed elsewhere.

Its reaction now seemed like it was about to charge but couldn’t for some reason.

I wondered what was happening, but immediately after, with a thud, I saw the Goblin being hit by an ice chunk, rolling on the ground, then running off again.

And the terrifying scene visible through the smoke. The armored vehicle that had fired the smoke grenades was engulfed in an ice wall and crashed into a building, with countless weapons embedded in the ice.

Wait, where does that Goblin guy get all those weapons from? I grimaced at the surreal scene and ran without being able to ponder the strange situation that had just occurred.

Second floor of the Special Investigation Team building. The path was frozen with ice fragments rolling around, and the interior was chaotic from people who had come out causing a ruckus.

Inside the building, I found the indoor fire hydrant.

The reason I pretended to be crazy and came here was one thing: to neutralize Yagi.

If that guy is surrounding himself with cold air cold enough to freeze his own skin to deal with the Goblin, I just need to use that cold air.

Let’s see what happens when water is poured onto cold air that freezes weapons as they fly in.

With that level of cold, the water sprayed will freeze the moment it touches her body, and that would create an opening for the Goblin to attack.

With that thought, I broke the frozen indoor fire hydrant entrance with the butt of my shotgun and forcibly opened it. Through the broken wall and window, I could see Yagi and the Goblin fighting relentlessly.

She doesn’t seem to see what I’m doing because she’s busy dealing with the Goblin. I connected the indoor fire hydrant and aimed the hose so that I could spray water as soon as I turned the lever.

Alright, if water comes out now, it’ll be a success… but will the fire hydrant work when the interior is in such a mess?

I was a bit worried about this fact that I hadn’t thought of when entering. But there was no time to hesitate.

Sai was pinned against the ice wall connecting the office wall to the building across. As I watched Yagi getting up, shedding ice particles, I didn’t hesitate and immediately went for the lever—

“……”

“Sh-it?”

Our eyes met. And Yagi was smiling.

Thinking something had gone terribly wrong, I tried to drop the hose and run, but suddenly my vision flipped.

The ceiling and floor inverted, a feeling of floating enveloped my body, and something with a huge hand grabbed me.

“Damn—”

Shit, I knew this would happen. I gritted my teeth and tried to shoot, but before I could, the large hand that grabbed me pulled me in, and I lost consciousness.

---

Cold. I got up shivering terribly from the dreadful cold. White steam escaped from my mouth, and my body trembled so much my teeth chattered.

I rubbed my cheeks, feeling as if every cell in my body was frozen and immobile. How did I end up here?

As I forcibly moved my unmoving joints and tried to look around, a familiar voice reached my ears.

“Are you alright? I tried to be careful not to hurt you, but I was worried when you didn’t wake up, Detective Sergeant Lee Munsu.”

At the sound of the voice, my dazed mind quickly returned.

Yagi’s voice. I looked in the direction the voice came from, searching for where Yagi might be.

Yagi was sitting about 3 meters away from me.

She was still in her pitch-black coat, but one arm was gone, discarded somewhere unknown. The cross-section of that arm was frozen, with ice particles falling off.

Additionally, her body shook with every breath, and her complexion was so pale it wouldn’t be strange if she stopped breathing at any moment.

“No…”

I hurriedly examined my body but found no injuries at all.

What is this crazy woman thinking? I slowly rolled my eyes to look around.

An open space in all directions. In the sky, several helicopters that appeared to be carrying news reporters were circling around.

The place I was in looked like a rooftop of some building. Moreover, the surrounding scenery was familiar. This seemed to be near the school Mina attends.

No, not just near the school, could it be…the school’s rooftop?

I hurriedly stood up to look around, regardless of Yagi being in front of me. The place I was in was indeed the rooftop of the high school building Mina attends.

Moreover, familiar ice pillars were blocking all around, and through the windows, I could see mutants wandering around and the faces of frightened students.

The current situation was clear. These garbage people are holding the students hostage!

“You crazy bitch, now…!”

I ground my teeth and glared at Yagi. But she was just catching her breath as if tired, with a faint smile.

Her nonchalant demeanor made me even more furious, and as I approached her grinding my teeth, Yagi slowly opened her mouth.

“You already know about the person I serve. This is a message from that person: ‘This is proof.’ Of course, it’s a statement without context, but that person said you would understand well enough with just this.”

Yagi said this and waved her remaining hand. Instantly, my approaching body was trapped in ice and couldn’t move.

What the hell are these crazy people trying to do with the kids? I gritted my teeth and tried to use all my strength to break free from the ice, but of course, I couldn’t escape.

What the hell does she mean by “proof”?

What kind of proof is taking students hostage and pulling this kind of shit?

As I panicked in a situation where I couldn’t read their thoughts at all, Yagi suddenly began to look somewhere far away.

She slowly blinked and then got up. She began to mutter as if in a soliloquy.

“With this, I can move for that person’s will until the very end. I’m truly happy.”

No, it’s not a soliloquy. Her face looked like she had achieved her goal and was smiling with satisfaction.

There was something strange about a human who looked like a living ice sculpture, with half her face frozen, saying such things. Before I could speak, feeling ominous about that face.

In the distance, a black dot approaching caught my eye. New Hope, still clutching her chest as if her wounds hadn’t fully healed, was approaching by jumping from rooftop to rooftop.

“I have delivered the message that person wanted to convey. Well then, Detective Sergeant Lee Munsu. May you be happy. You have always been—a capable police officer.”

Yagi left those words and then threw herself to the floor below.

Not long after, New Hope arrived at the school. Then came impacts, commotion, screams.

After several minutes of chaos that seemed like it would collapse the building, silence suddenly descended. The ice encasing my body also disappeared instantly.

Although I couldn’t understand the situation, I went downstairs to rescue the students.

And the first thing I saw was the collapsed school wall.

And I saw a horrific scene: New Hope, with her eye mask that she usually wore removed, had her fist pierced through Yagi’s abdomen, who was sprinkling ice.

Blood was flowing. Children who witnessed this scene were screaming.

Blood on the child’s hands. Yagi, who died smiling as if she had achieved her purpose. A helicopter filming this from beyond the collapsed wall, and Mina sitting down with a pale face.

I couldn’t find words in the face of this surreal scene.

Mina, whose eyes met mine, looked at me with a face of despair. I gritted my teeth, unable to think of anything to say.