Chapter 55: Search (2)

The members of the vigilante group approached the escort bus.

They scanned the interior of the bus with wary eyes before speaking:

“Everyone please exit the bus.”

“This bus has been confirmed to be used by the militia. We kindly ask for your cooperation.”

If that’s the reason for their caution, I can certainly understand. Han-seong immediately moved the Phantom to exit the bus.

Everyone else came out as well.

Perhaps because they followed instructions without resistance? The expressions of the vigilante members softened a bit.

“First, we’ll verify your identities.”

“Please tell us where you all came from.”

“Ah, well, we’re from Dungok-dong…”

A middle-aged man began speaking on behalf of everyone. Hearing the full story, it seemed these people were an extended family living together in one neighborhood.

After the Upheaval, they had created a base in their original neighborhood to live in, he said.

But recently it became difficult to obtain food, and hearing rumors that the militia was kidnapping people made them anxious. Then they happened to hear news related to the vigilante group and decided to leave their village.

“So we were on our way to join the vigilante group when we encountered the militia. At the time, we thought it was all over, but…”

The middle-aged man looked back at the Phantom.

“This person helped us.”

“Thanks to him, we were all able to make it safely.”

“He said he came from Sejong and is looking for his family in Daejeon.”

The introduction flowed naturally.

There was no need for Han-seong to step in and explain.

Meanwhile, at the people’s explanation, the vigilante members’ eyes sparkled.

“You subdued eight militia members?”

“And you did it alone?”

“Yes, we saw it clearly with our own eyes.”

“He dodged bullets while attacking those thugs one by one. It was like watching a movie.”

People spoke excitedly.

The vigilante members’ gazes poured down intensely enough to be burdensome. Han-seong briefly took his eyes off the Phantom and cleared his throat.

Some time later.

“I understand the situation.”

“Joining the vigilante group shouldn’t be a problem. However…”

“However?”

“This road can’t be used.”

“What? Why…”

“An elite monster subjugation operation is underway at the elementary school beyond that hill.”

Subjugation of an elite monster.

At those words, Han-seong’s eyes lit up.

Curious, he looked at the map and realized that what the vigilante member had just said was true.

‘Oh, it really is.’

About 3km away from the current location.

A red square dot and twelve blue dots repeatedly came together and separated.

As he was watching this with interest, the vigilante member continued speaking.

“So you’ll need to either take a detour to headquarters via another road, or wait here until the operation is over.”

The choice is yours.

The vigilante member concluded his words like that.

“What do you think we should do?”

“There is another route we could detour…”

“But we finally met the vigilante group, so it feels a bit wrong to go elsewhere, doesn’t it?”

“Y-yes, I think so too!”

Soon after, opinions converged.

They decided to stay put.

“Is it alright if we wait here?”

“Of course.”

The vigilante member smiled and said they could get back on the bus. He added that they would escort them to headquarters once the subjugation was over.

Han-seong, who had been watching this from start to finish, was inwardly impressed.

‘They’re quite systematic.’

It felt like watching well-trained soldiers.

Anyway, since all they had to do was wait for the subjugation to end, Han-seong turned his attention to the map.

The cooldown for Detection and Precise Observation had just reset. So he was about to examine the next area on the list when.

‘Huh?’

He felt a strange sense of dissonance.

Near the elite monster the vigilante group had mentioned.

At first, only one elite monster had been marked there, but somehow the number had greatly increased.

‘Is it an enemy type that summons minions?’

With his extensive combat experience, he could roughly deduce the situation just by looking at the map. But the real problem was something else.

‘They’re surrounded.’

Perhaps they were flustered by the sudden appearance of minions?

The twelve blue dots were huddled together, trapped, and then struggled desperately to break through the encirclement.

Some time later, they finally succeeded in breaking out of the encirclement, but a new problem struck. In the process, two blue dots disappeared.

Meaning there were casualties.

‘This looks a bit dangerous…’

Sure enough?

As expected, the survivors decided to retreat.

They scattered in all directions in pairs of two, and two of them quickly ran towards the direction where Han-seong and the vigilante members were.

But as luck would have it, the elite monster was also following those two in this direction. Han-seong moved the Phantom that had been on the bus outside.

“Sir? Where are you going?”

“It seems the subjugation failed.”

“What? What do you mean…”

Perhaps surprised by the sudden words?

The vigilante member who tried to stop the Phantom asked back with wide eyes. Han-seong answered while watching the elite monster marked on the map.

“So I’m going to prepare.”

Just as he quietly finished speaking.

Two motorcycles could be seen coming over the hill.

Soon after, the arrivals were a man in his mid-thirties with a scruffy beard and a woman in her 20s.

The man who got off the motorcycle approached the vigilante member and held out an ID.

“Yoon Sang-min. This is Jung Ye-eun.”

“Ah, yes! Confirmed.”

“By the way, is the subjugation over?”

A response with military-like discipline.

Then another vigilante member cautiously spoke up. At that, Sang-min and Ye-eun’s expressions darkened somewhat.

“The subjugation is suspended. Everyone retreat.”

“S-suspended?”

“Yes. Nam Yoon-jae and Song So-hee were taken out.”

The vigilante members’ faces turned pale.

I’m not sure who those two are, but judging by their reactions, they must be quite famous figures.

“There are several other injured too. This one here is no exception.”

“No, I can still fight!”

“No. If you push yourself and get taken out too, it’ll hinder the next subjugation.”

Ye-eun shouted as if arguing.

Sang-min shook his head.

He seemed to notice the people on the bus and frowned as he asked:

“Who are they?”

“Ah, they’re applicants hoping to join.”

“We were going to return to headquarters together after the subjugation ended, but now… Huh? W-wait! Where are you going?”

The vigilante members hurriedly reached out.

Because the Phantom had suddenly moved.

Meanwhile, Han-seong ignored the vigilante members trying to stop him and pointed to the hill road.

“The enemy is right in front of us.”

“What are you talking about agai-“

Kuuung!

No sooner had Han-seong finished speaking.

A dull noise was heard from beyond the hill. A sound like a heavy rock colliding with the ground. Soon after, a strange monster appeared on the hill.

“Th-that’s…!”

A moving statue over 6 meters tall.

Behind it, small statues marched like soldiers in formation, closing the distance.

Sang-min’s face hardened at this.

“Damn, did it chase after us…!”

“Wh-what should we do?”

“First, run away. I’ll buy some time.”

Sang-min steeled himself with a resolute face.

At those words, Ye-eun, who was with him, shouted with an incredulous expression:

“No, what nonsense are you saying? We barely held on with twelve people, how can you do anything alone…”

“Do as I say. This is the best option.”

“No. I’m staying too.”

“Jung Ye-eun!”

“Ugh, shut up.”

She snapped irritably and drew a knife that looked like it came from a Chinese restaurant.

Sang-min’s face crumpled, but he couldn’t tell her to run away anymore. The distance to the elite monster had narrowed to about a hundred meters.

“…I’m sorry. Please hold on for a bit.”

“We’ll request support from headquarters!”

Meanwhile, the vigilante members turned around.

The people also quickly reversed the escort bus and turned it around. To head to Daejeon City Hall via a different road.

Now only Ye-eun and Sang-min remained.

No, to be precise, there were three.

“Huh?”

Ye-eun’s eyes widened slightly.

She noticed a figure that hadn’t evacuated yet. It was the man wearing a motorcycle helmet, the Phantom.

“Hey! You should hurry and run awa-“

Ye-eun shouted urgently, but Han-seong didn’t listen at all. Instead, he moved towards the hill, approaching the moving statues.

There was only one reason.

To hunt them.

[Outside of skill’s effective range.]

[Cannot activate skill.]

But warning notifications kept appearing saying the skill’s effective range was insufficient, so he deliberately moved to narrow the gap.

When he had closed to about 30 meters.

The warning messages abruptly stopped.

Instead, a familiar notification appeared.

[Activating skill.]

[Light attribute: Call Lightning]

Rumble! Kwaaaang!

Lightning striking in an instant.

The lightning that split the night sky struck the moving statue directly.

“Kyaa! Wh-what?”

“Suddenly, lightning…”

Perhaps because of the lightning that struck right in front of them? Ye-eun screamed, and Sang-min squeezed his eyes shut. Meanwhile, Han-seong calmly watched the front.

‘The power is weak.’

Of course. Skills used through Soul Link were only 20% of their original output, after all.

But it wasn’t particularly a problem.

He just had to pour out more skills.

[Disruption: Decoy Dummy]

Starting with summoning a steel doll that moved frantically and attacked nearby enemies. Han-seong poured out skills one after another at the enemy before him.

[Water attribute: Water Blast]

[Light attribute: Chain Lightning]

[Area: Bleeding Wounds]

[Area: Poison Fog]

Skills used without the Blessing of Remote Support had noticeably reduced effective range, as well as impact range.

Even Poison Fog’s poison range was only about ten meters at most. This was about a tenfold reduction from its original range.

‘But this is actually better.’

Normally, he wouldn’t have been able to use Poison Fog in a situation this close to the enemy.

Meanwhile, the statue that had been hit by successive skills struggled to keep its balance. It must have already taken considerable damage at the elementary school, so the accumulated damage was taking its toll.

Now it was time for the finishing blow.

[Wind attribute: Wind Cutter]

Seven blades of wind.

Han-seong aimed all of the Wind Cutters at the cracks in the statue. When all seven hit without missing.

Crack! Rumble!

A large fissure appeared in the statue, and it collapsed in place. Soon after, a familiar notification message appeared before his eyes.

[Subjugation successful.]

[Elite Monster: Moving Statue]

[Rewards will be distributed based on contribution.]

[Reward]: 794 Coins

Judging by the low contribution, it seems Ye-eun and Sang-min’s comrades must have done quite well in the initial stages.

Han-seong made a disappointed expression.

He hadn’t achieved 50% subjugation contribution, so he couldn’t apply the special effect ‘Ultra-Long Range Barrage’ attached to the Mage’s Staff.

“Well…”

Meanwhile, at that time.

Sang-min and Ye-eun stared blankly at the scene that had unfolded before their eyes. Then they looked at the Phantom with eyes full of disbelief.

They couldn’t help it.

The moving statue that had just collapsed was a monster that they and ten of their comrades had risked their lives fighting.

‘And yet…’

He took down such a monster in less than a minute? And alone?

As they were looking at this unbelievable sight.

The Phantom, who had approached right in front of them, took something out of his pocket and held it out. Sang-min stepped back and asked in a flustered tone:

“Wh-what is it?”

“A photo.”

True to his words, what the Phantom had taken out was an old photograph.

It showed a smiling middle-aged couple, a boy in a school uniform, and a girl who looked about 3rd grade in elementary school.

“Do you recognize any of the faces here?”

“No, I don’t really…”

As he was answering in a daze.

Sang-min hastily gathered his wits. Then he began to question what he had just witnessed.

“More importantly, what did you just do?”

“I subjugated the elite monster.”

“I saw that, but how…”

“By pouring out skills.”

Han-seong answered nonchalantly.

He had no particular intention of explaining, nor any reason to do so. Anyway, since they said they didn’t know his family, he was about to take back the photo when.

“Oh? This lady…”

Ye-eun, who had been looking closely at the photo, suddenly widened her eyes. She pointed at Han-seong’s mother in the photo and turned to Sang-min.

“Isn’t this that person?”

“…Who?”

“The lady who comes to volunteer at the cathedral welfare center near the market entrance.”

“Ah, the one who came down every weekend…”

“Yes. She looks a bit younger in the photo, but I think it’s her.”

Han-seong was shaken by their conversation.

Could they really know her? Or were they just saying that? As he was pondering.

Han-seong’s eyes widened.

‘Ah, right. I have the Magic Eye.’

The eye that distinguishes truth from lies.

It was the reward he received for passing the 3rd Layer trial.

Remembering this, Han-seong focused and converted aether to mana. Then he injected mana into his left eye and asked again.

“Have you actually seen this person?”

“Yes. I’ve even spoken with her directly.”

Ye-eun answered without hesitation.

Soon, through the Phantom’s vision, a blue light swirled around her body.

Meaning it was the truth.

He never imagined he would meet someone who knew his mother so quickly. Unable to hide his trembling heart, Han-seong urgently asked:

“Then do you perhaps know where she is now…”

“Ah, I don’t know that far.”

Ye-eun shook her head.

“I did talk to her, but we weren’t that close. Do you know, mister?”

“I’ve never met her directly, so I don’t know. But the Commander might know.”

“Ah, right. The Commander! The Commander might indeed know.”

As if remembering a forgotten fact.

Meanwhile, Han-seong clenched his fist at their conversation. According to what he had observed through the Magic Eye, everything they had said so far was revealed to be true.

If so, there was only one thing to do.

‘Go meet this person called the Commander.’

It was a hard-won lead.

Even if it turned out to be fruitless, he wanted to meet and talk. Having made up his mind, Han-seong turned to Sang-min and said:

“I’d like to meet the Commander you just mentioned.”

“That works out well. We were actually hoping to request your company.”

Sang-min grinned.

Ye-eun also nodded.

“That’s right. By now, the subjugation completion notification should have gone out to everyone who participated in the subjugation. We need to explain what we saw.”

After finishing her reply, Ye-eun immediately got on the motorcycle. Then she patted the back seat and said:

“Get on. We’ll head there right away.”

“Yes, excuse me.”

The Phantom got on the back seat.

Then he reached out and carefully wrapped his arms around Ye-eun’s waist. As she was starting the engine, she looked back in surprise.

“Wow, your palms are really hard. They feel like mannequin hands.”

“…Haha.”

Well, they are actually mannequin hands.

More precisely, hands made from a mannequin mixed with various odds and ends.

Anyway, since he couldn’t reveal the truth, Han-seong just let out an awkward laugh.

“Alright, let’s go!”

The motorcycle carrying the Phantom sped down the road. Sang-min followed behind, and so the three of them headed to the vigilante group’s headquarters.