Ch.123123. The Third Round Begins: Vengeance Faces Dragon King Squadron’s Number 6

“Gyaaak! Boksil is dizzy!”

As soon as we entered, Boksil screamed while rolling her eyes in circles.

The structure was certainly disorienting. The 3rd round battlefield was an aerial space filled with buildings of all architectural styles.

There was no ground. Buildings protruded in all directions—up, down, left, and right. And the direction of gravity changed with each block we moved through.

“Just fly. Focus only on the direction of the ground. That will be advantageous.”

“Boksil can’t fly!”

“I’ll help you.”

“My head is spinning…”

Lu-a assisted Boksil, but she still couldn’t adapt. However, we had no time to worry about that.

I focused on what was ahead. The buildings clustered and split, forming a three-dimensional maze.

“Has the Dragon King Sentai all entered too?” Sulphur asked. I checked the system window.

“They haven’t entered yet. Their demerit has activated. We have one minute until our victory.”

“Really? Are they moving in response to our city raid team?”

“Given the distance between the entry zone and Seoul, I doubt it. They must have some other scheme.”

“You’re right—they must have a reason for entering slowly. Let’s be careful.”

There would be no reason to delay entry if they wanted to scout the terrain and secure advantageous positions.

What are you thinking, Red Dragon?

“It’s not that large. Spherical, with a diameter of about 2 kilometers.”

“Their entry point must be on the opposite side. Let’s take position.”

We advanced while maintaining formation.

A notification appeared in the system.

“They’ve all just entered. Cutting it close.”

“Get ready. We’re approaching the center.”

“Master, I smell something! A rotten smell! It’s terribly foul!!”

Boksil reacted intensely. Soon, a monstrous form appeared in our view.

“That’s…!”

“Tsk.”

I understood Red Dragon’s strategy.

“They didn’t all enter late. They pushed this one in first and the rest waited until the last moment. To avoid getting caught up in it.”

Boom, boom!

A massive white monstrosity was twisting its body and charging toward us at high speed. Buildings crumpled and shattered like styrofoam in its path.

“Grgaaaaa—!!”

It let out a monstrous roar. The shockwave shook the terrain.

“What is that thing! A monster?!”

“That’s how it appears. What a filthy taste.”

Its smooth head and two mouths gaped open, showing teeth densely packed up to the palate.

An extra pair of arms protruding from its shoulders were bulging threateningly, as if injected with steroids.

A monster charging at us like a ferocious beast recognizing its prey.

I know what it is.

Though its skin is rotting and its eyes show signs of frenzy, traces of its original form remain.

“It’s Rakshasha, the leader of the Synthetic Monster Corps. It’s been given the black ability of Famine. And it’s a much higher-level effect than my black ability.”

It seems Red Dragon has been up to something.

He must have either kept it sealed without completely destroying it, or applied the Famine enhancement through a Pad after subjugation, keeping it in a zombie-like state.

So he planned to use it as a weapon.

He discovered quite an unusual bug.

What a pathetic guy.

After sacrificing so many to the Synthetic Monster Corps, he still wants to use this?

“It looks gross! Boksil doesn’t like it!”

“Let’s engage. We have no choice but to defeat it first.”

“That monster can’t distinguish between friend and foe, right? That’s why the rest of the Dragon King Sentai entered late.”

“That’s right.”

I confirmed Lu-a’s question.

“So we risk being ambushed during battle. That was their plan from the start.”

“I’ll handle the Dragon King Sentai in the meantime.”

Sulphur volunteered.

“I’d just get in your way if I stayed here, right? I know all about the Dragon King Sentai, so I can at least hold back all five of them.”

I nodded.

“Go.”

Sulphur looked at me for a few seconds. Though hidden by the helmet, I felt our eyes meet.

Soon Sulphur turned and broke away from our formation.

“GagraaAAA!!!”

The distance closed.

While the Dark Kingdom and Galaxy Empire used magical power and magic, the Synthetic Monster Corps used ki.

Close combat is their basic approach, but each punch contains a skill that can’t be ignored.

I gripped a card.

“Gluttony.”

I plan to use Gluttony for the first defensive move.

Three steps until contact, two, one.

Swoosh—CRASH!!

The monster struck down with a merciless blow to crush me. In response, I ducked and executed a Rising Blade. I channeled Gluttony into my right leg and kicked upward with all my might.

Our forces canceled each other out, creating a shockwave that collapsed surrounding buildings. The gravity direction changed from the impact, so I jumped from the ground and rotated my body.

The battle had begun.

***

“The enemy sentai has engaged Rakshasha in battle. They seem to have the upper hand. They’re strong.”

Red Dragon quickened his pace at Kang Yerin’s report.

“Rakshasha has been exposed to layered forced-release Famine. It’s much stronger than when we subjugated it, so of course they’ll struggle.”

Kang Yerin tensed. They had successfully pushed Rakshasha into the battlefield along with the sealed chamber, but if it survived and won the 3rd round, it was obvious the monster would destroy the world again.

She was worried that Jung Ui-seok might not have a way to deal with it.

“Let’s attack while they’re distracted and pick them off one by one. First the GM account with the strong firepower. It has low defensive capability.”

“Leave the infiltration to me.”

Shin Yukyong prepared her mirror. The warriors in red, blue, silver, yellow, and black moved in perfect coordination.

Woong—BANG!

A black hole appeared before them, blocking their path.

Red Dragon looked up to see a pure white hero standing vertically on a building like it was a wall.

“So you’re Sulphur. The last hero on your side. Have you abandoned your pride and joined those villains?”

Red Dragon mocked Sulphur and immediately began firing rapid shots of White Plague. The Pad-enhanced white ability was on a completely different level from what Sulphur knew.

“Eat shit, Jung Ui-seok. Don’t casually impersonate Red Dragon, you trash.”

Sulphur defended against the white ability by splitting space with Milky Way. Sulphur approached by jumping between buildings.

“You traitor, shut your mouth!”

“Why is a hero forming a sentai with villains?!”

Ji Se-hwa and Shin Yukyong led the concentrated fire against Sulphur, with Kang Yerin and Park Hayoung joining in.

But Sulphur dodged all attacks by a hair’s breadth. It was a fluid movement, as if knowing exactly everyone’s abilities and habits.

“This person…!”

“What are you? It’s like you’re reading our thoughts!”

“Ugh, with such skill, why?!”

Sulphur approached Jung Ui-seok and formed a barrier with Milky Way. A ring formed around just the two of them.

“A head-on battle, good. Blue of Death, Red of War. Cross Breakthrough!”

Red Dragon accelerated and struck Sulphur’s abdomen. Sulphur defended with Eight Extremities Boxing while looking for an effective hit, but couldn’t keep up with the blue speed.

“Tch!”

Sulphur tried to imbue a punch with the destructive power of a black hole, but Red Dragon, who had integrated his suit with the blue scythe, blocked it before the black hole could form.

BANG, BANG, BANG!

Red Dragon struck Sulphur as if venting his anger toward Gerogius. Sulphur twisted his body and quickly counterattacked with a spinning kick, but Red Dragon didn’t take much damage.

“Is this all? No wonder your heroes were annihilated!”

Hearing Red Dragon’s sneering voice, Sulphur scraped her vocal cords.

“Shut up, idiot. Heroes? Playing hero games until the whole world ends and you call yourselves heroes? You’re just losers!”

“How dare you run your mouth…!”

An enraged Red Dragon grabbed Sulphur’s head and kneed her in the face.

“Ugh…!”

THUD, THUD, THUD!

Red Dragon repeated the same attack.

It wasn’t efficient martial arts to defeat an opponent, but just venting to increase pain.

Gradually, Sulphur’s suit cracked and the lower part of her helmet broke.

The voice modulator lost function, revealing Sulphur’s real voice.

Sulphur was letting out small moans in a slender woman’s voice.

Hearing this, Kang Yerin shouted.

“Ui-seok, that’s enough! She’s a hero too!”

“What hero sides with Gerogius? She’ll disappear anyway if we win. All those people from that world will disappear too. They must all be rotten, dominated by villains.”

The Milky Way barrier flickered and disappeared.

Red Dragon grabbed Sulphur’s head. Blood flowed through the cracked helmet, and rough breaths escaped her mouth.

At that moment, all of the Dragon King Sentai witnessed it.

Through the gap in the helmet, something intense was still burning in Sulphur’s eyes.

All four except Jung Ui-seok were overwhelmed, as if drawn into that gaze.

Sulphur opened her mouth.

“You’re not Jung Ui-seok.”

Hearing those words, Red Dragon gritted his teeth and raised his arm.

“You…!”

Grip.

Ji Se-hwa grabbed that arm.

“Stop it. Our targets are the villains now.”

“What are you saying? We need to kill this one too, don’t we?”

Jung Ui-seok’s opinion was valid. Killing Vengeance’s core fighter to win the remaining rounds was the only way to turn the tide.

“But she… she’s a hero, and she said her goal is to kill Gerogius. I don’t think that’s a lie. It’s just a feeling, but…”

Kang Yerin pleaded. Sulphur raised the corner of her mouth.

Annoyed by that smile, Red Dragon punched Sulphur in the face. Sulphur flew back.

“Let’s go.”

As the Dragon King Sentai tried to move, a curtain of Milky Way blocked their path again and a black hole grabbed their feet.

“Sulphur!”

Kang Yerin grew angry. Sulphur was squeezing out her strength even in her fallen state.

Ji Se-hwa and Shin Yukyong split the weakened barrier with their swords.

“Why do you fight so hard?”

To Shin Yukyong’s question, Sulphur answered.

“Because that’s how my world survives. And I have a promise to keep. To Red Dragon and Blue Saber.”

Hearing Sulphur’s answer, the Dragon King Sentai lost the will to counterattack. Meanwhile, Sulphur still hadn’t let go of the strength in her fists.

“…Sulphur.”

Kang Yerin bit her lip.

“I can’t stand this farce anymore.”

As Red Dragon tried to finish off Sulphur, Kang Yerin blocked him. She pressed the yellow dragon switch on her transformation device twice.

And then.

“Ugh—?!”

The next moment, all five members of the Dragon King Sentai had vanished from Sulphur’s sight. More precisely, only her time had flowed instantly.

“Seriously, you learned time acceleration too?”

The yellow dragon had been hiding yet another amazing skill.

Sulphur let out a hollow laugh and got up, dragging her broken body.