episode_0148

Jiyeon Lee was skeptical about this search operation.

There was no bad intention in wanting the missing child to die.

I just thought realistically that the chances of survival were not high.

[Team 2, confirmation of good reception, found]

“Huh?”

[Also confirmed survival. Coordinates shared]

Contrary to that thought, the location was measured.

Very quickly.

Jiyeon Lee’s eyes blinked at the unexpected report from her smartwatch.

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.

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“A branch of the association?”

The place we arrived at according to the coordinates was the association branch, which was set up in a small way.

The association establishes branches all over the world, and sometimes branches are also established in gray areas.

Of course, since it is a gray area where the influence is not as extensive, it is not built as big and as much as in the white area.

It was also noticeable only among aging facilities.

“This way, lady.”

A place a little far away from the association building.

Team Leader 2 checked Jiyeon Lee and waved her hand.

Beside him was a child sipping soup, wrapped in a large robe.

It was a child who went missing. It is exactly as I saw it after hearing the details in advance. Although he is a little thin, there doesn’t seem to be any immediate damage.

Although I was relieved, I approached that direction.

“What is the child’s condition?”

“Fortunately, there were no major injuries. There are symptoms of malnutrition, but they are not serious.”

“Did you perform a curse or black magic test?”

“Yes, no significant curse was found as a result of the measurement.”

“That’s a good thing.”

Only then did Jiyeon Lee breathe a sigh of relief. I feel like the tension I was trying so hard to hold on is breaking down.

Even now, I felt even more reassured seeing him gulping down his soup without paying much attention to his surroundings.

Should I say that I was lucky in many ways?

“Instead, defensive magic was applied.”

“…Defensive magic?”

“Yes, I analyzed it for a while, but it didn’t cause any harm, so I saved it for now.”

Lee Ji-yeon, who was already tightening her tension, tilted her head.

‘Not a curse or black magic, but protection?’

Jiyeon Lee narrowed her eyes for a moment and looked at the child.

I looked again at the robe the child was wearing.

I thought it was given to me by Team 2 Leader, but now that I look at it, it looks like a completely different robe.

Above all, it was only then that I noticed the simple magic spell engraved on the robe.

The level is high. Even though Lee Ji-yeon doesn’t have much talent for magic, she was able to figure it out right away.

Lee Ji-yeon is not talented at manifesting magic, but she knows how to destroy and destroy things.

In her opinion, that magic is difficult to break.

Even before its manifestation, the spell is complicated in many ways, making it difficult to destroy. It is also difficult to destroy the revealed defensive magic.

This is high-level magic. Also, it is not the structure of Team 2 Leader’s magic technique that she knows.

‘…Hmm?’

Lee Ji-yeon, who was looking at the technique, suddenly felt a sense of discomfort.

Should I say it more accurately, a feeling of déjà vu?

‘I think I’ve seen this somewhere before.’

It is a basic technique that is stacked according to the standard. It was as if the result was derived by drawing a line with a ruler and tapping on a calculator.

Jiyeon Lee’s eyes narrowed.

I don’t have much talent in performing magic, so I can’t perform the altar accurately.

Since magic is a very difficult subject, most spells are structured so precisely that it was confusing.

“This?”

“Yes, let me explain.”

After examining the technique for a moment, Jiyeon Lee asked for an explanation. Team Leader 2 nodded and began to explain.

The explanation did not last long.

This is because Team Leader 2’s explanation was concise, as if conveying his blunt impression.

‘Because it’s faceless…’

After hearing the explanation, Jiyeon Lee made a complicated expression.

No face, no face.

It’s not an awkward name.

This is because it is a name frequently heard in recent news.

A person who started his career at almost the same time as Lee Ji-yeon was conquering China.

He is said to be destroying dozens of anti-humanity groups overnight and indiscriminately extermination of monsters neglected near civilian areas.

There are still quite a few sightings of it, and its unique attire gave it the nickname Mu-myeon.

A pitch-black mask that blocks not only the eye holes but also the breathing pores, and a loose robe that doesn’t expose any skin.

There is even a recognition-impairing magic attached to it, leaving nothing to identify the person at all.

According to the 2nd team leader, this child had already been rescued by Mu-myeon and left at the association branch before they even rescued him.

Mu-myeon rescued a child who was being held captive by a cult and left him at the association branch.

Jiyeon Lee glanced at the association branch building.

In this area, which is not very lively and dull because of its not very good geography, the association building was especially crowded with people.

The one thing they had in common was that they generally seemed to be in bad condition. There were also some who were so thin that their skin and bones were almost the same.

These are civilians rescued by Mu-myeon.

“…If I belong to the association, I should go back and prepare a gift in return.”

Jiyeon Lee shook her head and approached the leaders of teams 1 and 2.

“There’s no need to waste time, so let’s return right away. What do you think?”

“I agree.”

“Yes, I agree. I can finally take a dip in some warm water.”

“Then, let’s leave without delay.”

The decision to return was made unanimously by the three team leaders.

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Unfortunately, there was no gate terminal at the branch of the association where the child was taken care of.

This is partly because the scale is so small, and partly because gates are not opened in gray areas.

Therefore, I plan to return to the nearest gate terminal… the gate that Jiyeon Lee used to enter China.

It’s a journey that lasted more than ten days.

The distance was a bit far.

Instead, this time we will just cross without searching, so the time will be much shorter.

“I guess the rumor that he was an agent of the association was correct.”

The time when the sun has set and night has come.

Jiyeon Lee, who was walking steadily, was placed on a chin on her shoulder.

It was Lee Da-hee, a female member of Team 1 led by Lee Ji-yeon.

“Nothing is certain yet.”

“But the answer has already been found. You can get the answer just by looking at the acceptance of rescued civilians. These days, people are reluctant to rescue civilians in gray areas because they don’t have the resources.”

The association is passive in gray area relief activities.

In the past, they were quite active, but recently, due to the turbulent situation in the African horse racing industry, they are focusing their efforts in that direction.

Meanwhile, the association is taking good care of the civilians that Mu-myeon rescued and delivered.

“Considering that they carefully hide their identity, isn’t it the executive branch?”

“The kids are busy these days with Magyeong. Is there any reason to come here?”

“I think I touched a high-ranking member of the association by mistake. You touched our child, right? I’m sure he touched someone by mistake and got kicked out of execution.”

The members of Team 3, who had been listening quietly, responded angrily.

Each of the returning team members talked about their absence.

The search target was found without any problems, and since it was the way back, the tension was relieved in many ways.

Considering that the mission is not over yet, this is not a good attitude.

Lee Ji-yeon thought for a moment about whether to point him out, but after confirming that the commands had spread far and were on guard in all directions, she decided to leave it alone.

Likewise, Lee Ji-yeon is spreading her commands in all directions.

These are miscellaneous spirits extracted from low-level monsters, and are perfect for scattering them everywhere and using them as a warning.

‘hmm?’

It was then.

I saw something unusual from one of the commands Jiyeon Lee had laid out.

When I assimilated my vision with the spirit, I saw a huge canyon, but its depth was so deep that I couldn’t guess it.

There was another unique part.

‘Fog?’

One side of the canyon is shrouded in fog.

However, the fog was not rising from the bottom, but was suddenly forming out of thin air.

The fog was quite mysterious.

For Lee Ji-yeon, who grew up wandering around the Taesan family’s territory and seeing all kinds of natural features, it was quite a dreamy fog.

‘What is that? Dungeon?’

If you think the environment in this world is strange, nine out of ten times it’s a dungeon.

According to that iron law, I thought that perhaps the fog was also a phenomenon caused by the dungeon.

Jiyeon Lee was curious and tried to send the commander down there.

– Stop.

Didn’t send it down.

The ghost closer to him disappeared in an instant.

Jiyeon Lee stiffened her face and looked away.

The team members who were moving together also realized the presence and turned their gaze in the same direction.

– Wow…

An eerie howl pierced through the bare tree trunk.

A sign approached.

It is not simply a material presence.

It is a sign of approaching spirits filled with grudges and musical instruments.

Lee Ji-yeon, the manifestation of Taesan, was able to feel him in more detail.

Jiyeon Lee said, raising her magic power.

“…a person who plays pranks. If you come out now, I will treat you as if you were axed.”

“We also classify construction work.”

A teammate who was also looking around with a stern expression responded.

Lee Ji-yeon sighed deeply at that obvious, but unexpected answer.

The presence gradually became more intense.

It’s not just one direction. The presence is felt everywhere.

“A C.”

Soon, along with Lee Ji-yeon’s sighs, the spirits appeared.

– chin

A cold-blooded hand was placed on the tree trunk. The hand of the corpse, which was not healthy and full of signs of damage, grabbed the tree trunk and crushed it.

‘Corpse doll.’

Necromancy that manipulates extracted spirits by inserting them into a corpse.

The number is quite large.

Jiyeon Lee rolled her eyes left and right in all directions to gauge the power.

There is a lot of quantity.

Lee Ji-yeon can pour out a considerable number of commands, but the number of commands surrounding this area right now is much greater.

Plus, the quality seemed good. There are many ghosts that have created strange monsters and humans, but there are also many that seem to be of a fairly high level.

But it’s not to the point where we can’t respond.

“Prioritize the protection of children. The siege is slowly broken through as you search.”

I don’t know if it would have been received well because the magic wave was so damn good, but it did send out a danger signal.

At the same time as the instruction was given, Jiyeon Lee raised her leg and hit the ground.

– Boom!

The ground where they stood twitched.

The tremors of the earth spread out in all directions, like ripples on a lake.

and

– Kwakagak!

– Ahhh!

The thorns of the rock rose up from under the feet of the spirits who had too many ripples.

The spirits that were on guard and approaching the group as if surrounding them were pierced by thorns and torn apart at once.

Among the monsters, there were some of high rank, but they were unable to offer much resistance to the thorns strengthened by the control of the earth and magic and died.

Also, the ground beneath my feet began to tremble, and a pile of dirt rose up and crawled up my legs.

The pile of dirt that suddenly surrounded his entire body was tightly packed into a shape resembling thick armor.

The movement of the earth did not stop.

The ripples continued one after another, thorns erupted, and the ground shook like waves, crushing the enemy.

All kinds of spirits crawled up from the cracked ground.

Taishan (泰山).

A unique ability to control the vibrant earth and the spirits that wander the world.

As a result, the spirits that had been subjected to the hostility of the earth were unable to offer any resistance and were destroyed one by one.

The commands that formed the siege immediately disintegrated.

The commanders summoned by Lee Ji-yeon and the others filled the empty space and began to push back at the enemy.

When Lee Ji-yeon stretched out her hand, the earth wriggled again and woven a large double-bladed axe.

He tightly grasped the hilt of the newly created ax and raised it above his head.

Pop! An eerie friction sound rang out between the handle and the palm. The veins popped out on the back of my hand under the armor.

Then, he suddenly swung the ax forward.

One blade of the ax tore through the air and struck the corpse doll’s head.

bang! The corpse doll’s head exploded.

It didn’t stop there, and the ax cut the corpse doll’s upper body to its groin… completely vertically and struck the ground.

Wow! A vibration rang through my legs as I stood on the ground.

The floor cracked. Then, a shock wave exploded along the direction of the ax strike.

A few corpse dolls! It exploded, and the corpse doll, which could have been a stomach, fell to the ground with its limbs torn apart.

‘hmm…’

Jiyeon Lee frowned at the strange feeling.

They attacked first from the other side.

Aiming for this… They must have known who it was and attacked, but they were pushed back without any warning.

Should I check the liver? Scouting to gauge power? Are you being cautious because you are afraid that the location of the body will be identified?

That said, it looks like a lot of effort has been put into it, but the command is not working properly.

It was simply an act of throwing away troops.

– Googoo googung!

It was then.

The movement suddenly stopped as an eerie vibration penetrated the armor and struck my skin.

Sense of crisis. A warning from your intuition.

Jiyeon Lee crumpled her face and turned her gaze to the source of the vibration.

– Kugugugugung…

The ground was completely cracked.

Something huge rose up through the crack, lifting the pile of dirt.

Due to the monster lifting its massive body from the ground, the moonlight that had been shining on the group disappeared for a moment.

“Oh… fuck.”

A vulgar curse was heard from behind, but Jiyeon Lee didn’t have a single moment to point it out.

A huge snake.

It was not a complete phenomenon.

The black, rust-colored scales are not tightly packed and are broken and missing in places.

The weapon, which resembles a greatsword and dangles from the end of its tail, has slight cracks and teeth that are a mess.

and.

Two necks that split at about the torso.

There is only one head attached to the end. Even that wasn’t intact, so much so that you could see the white bones through the empty parts of the flesh.

I couldn’t find any comfort in that.

– Sigh…

The snake’s snout opened, and its tongue moved inside.

Saliva was leaking out from the tongue, which was full of holes due to lack of flesh.

Saliva flowed from the snout and dripped onto the floor.

– Chiiikik…!

The floor melted. The venomous spit melted the ground and made an eerie sound.

The complexion of the group turned pale from the poison beyond imagination felt from that spit.

I realized it intuitively.

It dies the moment it touches it.

Will I die instantly?

Will I slowly die, writhing in pain?

Will I melt and die, or will my whole body become stone-like and die with my eyes wide open?

I don’t know the process.

However, I was confident in my intuition that I would die.

‘Oh, shit.’

Jiyeon Lee vomited a vulgar curse in her mind.

‘You shouldn’t come.’

What on earth is going on during vacation?

– Shaaa!

With belated regret, the snake’s snout opened up and down.

* * *

I have become quite accustomed to the sound of the waterfall reaching my ears.

‘It’s peaceful.’

As I splashed my feet in the water, strong ripples arose.

The calm and consistent ripples were swallowed up by strong and irregular ripples.

Some time has passed since I repeatedly dipped in and out of the lake.

I couldn’t shake the feeling that it was quite peaceful.

Unlike last time, I think this trip will end quite smoothly.

I’m going to take a dip like this and recharge properly before heading out.

Even now, I pushed back my wet hair with a satisfied smile as my core and circuits gradually increased in size.

‘…?’

At the same time, I felt a sense of discomfort.

I didn’t pay much attention to it because I wasn’t particularly interested, but the moment I became aware of it, the feeling of discomfort became stronger.

After gaping for a moment, he gently pulled a strand of hair.

hair.

It sticks well.

‘what.’

But the color is different.

It’s white, not black.

‘what…’

A question mark appeared above my head.

* * *

[Player Correction System: Measurement]

…

▶Mental state

“?affection” : ?

…

[The state of mind changes]