Ch.16355. Flame Master Lee Min-soo (2)

Time was extremely tight.

While facing the high-ranking villains that appeared in Tokyo, I realized something.

‘I can’t deal with those guys one by one. It’s a waste of time.’

A large-scale spell encompassing all of Tokyo was unfolding.

And those S+ class villains—no, they were already evolving closer to SS class by increasing their sacrifices—were too threatening for the remaining allied forces, even though they numbered only about 30.

Especially with the demonic beasts moving alongside them.

The allied forces were essentially trapped in a terrible quagmire. At this rate, there was no chance of victory.

‘As things stand, we can’t save the civilians.’

The villains had divided their forces—half were massacring civilians, while the other half engaged the allied forces.

The allied forces were desperate to help those civilians. But now they had to abandon them.

[The massacre of tens of thousands will soon become hundreds of thousands, no, millions! Now is the time to make a choice! We must directly confront Seomun Yeom with all our remaining allied forces!]

At that moment, Yuri spoke to the hunters of the allied forces gathering in Sumida Ward.

‘Millions of sacrifices…’

As offerings for the spell increased, the villains and demonic beasts would grow much stronger.

Especially Seomun Yeom and the great demon he was summoning—the longer we gave them, the higher the possibility they would become monsters beyond comprehension.

‘So for the allied hunters to survive, we need to cut off Seomun Yeom’s head as quickly as possible.’

I devised a strategy to ignore the villains and demonic beasts scattered throughout Tokyo.

And I ordered the confused allied forces to gather in one place. After hearing my strategy, Yuri also gave real-time instructions to the allied forces.

Some hunters were still hesitating in their positions.

But most hunters were accepting the orders from the 7th Regiment, Flame.

[F-Follow Flame… follow the 7th Regiment’s orders! Flame has two daughters of the Five Heavenly Stars… the daughters of Grand Duke Andrei and Yeon Se-hwi! If you want to survive, following them is much…]

Certainly, at this moment, rather than Flame’s achievements, the names of those two giants carried much more weight with the hunters.

And the Flame guild members following my instructions guided the movement of the allied hunters.

‘A villain!’

I spotted a villain with a grotesque appearance that could no longer be considered human. It looked like a demonized villain.

“Don’t try anything funny! I will never let you reach where the Soul-Stealing Demon is! You worthless minnows… huh?”

BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!

That high-ranking villain whose skin had transformed like snakeskin. I blasted him away along with the demonic beasts.

The Vermilion Bird’s fire turned the SS-class villain to ash in an instant. Without time to dwell on it, I shouted into my earpiece.

[Guide our allied hunters to Sumida Ward like that!]

Sumida Ward. There stands one of Tokyo’s landmarks, a massive transmission tower. Near that huge tower is where Seomun Yeom is located.

‘It’s the most dangerous place for hunters, but also the safest.’

Most hunters’ MCI must have already reached the limit.

The magical energy filling Tokyo like a thick fog. They’re experiencing the curse of that magical energy without any resistance.

But I knew how to lower the MCI of the allied hunters.

‘The main factor that increases MCI is fear.’

Our side has nearly a hundred times more numbers but is relatively inferior in rank. Meanwhile, the Red Lake villains in Tokyo are few but extremely powerful.

Above all, the absence of the three strongest individuals who were responsible for more than 50% of the allied forces’ strength—those three from the Five Heavenly Stars—was severely lowering the morale of our companions.

‘Meanwhile, Tokyo has the Soul-Stealing Demon Seomun Yeom, and a great demon being summoned.’

That’s why they’re being more heavily affected by the magical energy.

I spoke to Flame’s executives through my earpiece.

[But if we can eliminate our allies’ fear, our forces are absolutely not insufficient.]

[Still, the enemies we’re facing now are too strong! What?!]

Through the earpiece, I heard the surprised voice of one of Flame’s executives, a guild master of a subsidiary guild.

[High-ranking villains along the route are being eliminated in real-time…!]

It seemed that Yuri, Soso, and Arini, who had received my instructions, were also helping. Things were going according to my plan.

I focused more mana into my mana heart.

‘More swift and decisive. And then cut off Seomun Yeom’s head with them!’

A moment later, I arrived at Sumida Ward.

***

SCREEEECH-

Jang Dong-hyuk slammed on the brakes. The bodies of the people riding in the special van lurched forward, but.

Jang Dong-hyuk had no time to worry about them. He hurriedly turned the steering wheel to drive the car.

“The roads are a mess because battles have been happening here. You’ll have to endure even if you feel carsick!”

Jang Dong-hyuk, a Flame guild member and tanker.

And next to him in the passenger seat sat Team Leader Seo Du-ho. He shouted.

“Deputy Director Han! How is Manseong’s status?”

“Casualties are coming in real-time, but… they’re still gathering at Sumida Ward.”

“And their MCI?”

“Most have reached the limit, but… it’s dropping considerably now.”

That was correct.

Just an hour ago, the battle situation had been hopeless.

Even before properly engaging the villains in battle, most hunters’ MCI had exceeded the limit.

But now it was different. The hunters’ MCI was decreasing. It meant the morale of the allied hunters was rising.

“It seems to be going well according to Team Leader Lee Min-su’s thinking. Indeed, having a single destination rather than panicking in fear is better for eliminating fear. Ugh!”

Jang Dong-hyuk sharply turned the wheel again to avoid flying debris. The seatbelt barely prevented him from lurching forward.

Regaining his composure, Seo Du-ho spoke again.

“The daughters of the Five Heavenly Stars are annihilating the villains along the route. At least until we meet Seomun Yeom, we can raise the fallen morale. That’s Team Leader Lee Min-su’s strategy.”

And Lee Min-su was identifying the optimal route in real-time.

To minimize damage from villain and demonic beast attacks.

He was personally selecting and providing the optimal routes through the allied forces’ communication channels, tailored to the ranks of the allied hunters.

Seo Du-ho checked Lee Min-su’s movements on his terminal.

As if he was grasping everything on the battlefield, he was surveying the battle situation one, no, three steps ahead.

‘It’s like Team Leader Lee Min-su has become an early warning system. This way, we can not only minimize allied casualties but also speed up the gathering at Sumida Ward.’

Indeed, his movements transcended common sense.

The villains who would pose the greatest threat to the allied forces—Lee Min-su and Flame’s elite team under his direction were eliminating them.

And not just Flame’s people, but the movements of other allied hunters as well—Lee Min-su was simultaneously guiding them through tactical instructions.

‘He seems to be predicting all reactions. As expected of Team Leader Lee Min-su.’

Though he had been with the company for less than a year, Lee Min-su had risen from intern to main operator and received the position of team leader. All of Flame’s leadership knew his abilities well.

And it wasn’t just Team Leader Seo Du-ho who was reading this fact.

A man sitting in the back seat behind him—the man called Deputy Director Han—spoke urgently.

“Team Leader Lee Min-su, what exactly is his identity? No, everyone acknowledges that he’s been making great contributions since the allied forces entered Japan, but… isn’t his current performance beyond common sense?”

“Well… honestly, even we are amazed by Team Leader Lee Min-su’s performance.”

Deputy Director Han was from Manseong’s information team, and he was well acquainted with Team Leader Seo Du-ho, who had once worked at Manseong.

Although Manseong and Flame had become rival guilds and weren’t on good terms,

Here in Japan, they were fighting as part of the same allied forces.

The elite guilds remaining in the allied forces were Manseong and Flame, so their information team members were also checking the battle situation together like this.

“Until half a year ago, he was a B-rank hunter and operator, but now he’s annihilating SS-class villains with a single spell. To the point where the title ‘Flame Master’ can no longer be denied!”

It was a shocking performance.

SS-class hunters reign at the very top among hunters. He instantly killed an SS-class villain of the same rank.

That alone meant he was already among the world’s top-tier dealers.

“I can understand the daughters of the Five Heavenly Stars, but… Team Leader Lee Min-su just doesn’t seem human!”

Deputy Director Han was almost in shock.

In fact, even Jang Dong-hyuk and Team Leader Seo Du-ho from the same guild were getting goosebumps at his current performance.

So it wasn’t strange at all that the deputy director of a rival mega-guild was surprised.

Seo Du-ho continued.

“That’s not all. The instructions being given by Flame’s guild master and Team Leader Yeon So-so and other commanders—they all probably came from his mind.”

“That’s…”

“He seems to have been the most calm in this terrible situation. He found the answer. If we hadn’t moved like this, the allied forces might have been completely annihilated by the villains after being divided.”

Jang Dong-hyuk continued driving the car. The van was approaching Sumida Ward.

Deputy Director Han spoke in a subdued voice.

“Perhaps… when the battle in Tokyo is over, there might be a proper generational change in the hunter world.”

Deputy Director Han was right. Team Leader Seo Du-ho thought so too.

‘The image Team Leader Lee Min-su is showing now…’

There was data overlapping in his mind. The Light Guild.

That great guild that was the predecessor of the Korean Hunter Association, and Hunter Gwangje Jeon Tae-hyun, who became a hero recorded in history as the guild master of that guild.

All the achievements of Jeon Tae-hyun in his prime were now overlapping with Lee Min-su’s image in the team leader’s mind.

Not only that. Although not as noticed by the public, Jeon Tae-hyun had a colleague named Chief Secretary Choi Seung-hoon.

The right hand and brain of Gwangje, a monstrous battle mage.

‘The current Team Leader Lee Min-su is like a combination of Jeon Tae-hyun and Chief Secretary Choi Seung-hoon.’

Choi Seung-hoon was not only exceptional in unique battle magic but also in tactical command on the battlefield.

As Deputy Director Han said, the people in Tokyo now might be witnessing new history in the making.

But Team Leader Seo Du-ho spoke in a cool voice.

“The atmospheric MCI around the transmission tower has soared above 500.”

At those words, Deputy Director Han hurriedly checked the magical energy readings on his information team’s terminal.

“The Soul-Stealing Demon Seomun Yeom and a great demon together…”

Deputy Director Han’s expression hardened again.

Clearly, the hunters had momentarily escaped a crisis where they almost self-destructed, but the place they were heading wasn’t a safe exit.

No, it might literally be an entrance to hell.

Although he was from Manseong, a rival guild to Flame, Deputy Director Han sincerely wished at this moment.

“I hope Flame’s elite team writes a new legend.”

Shortly after, the surviving hunters completed their gathering at Sumida Ward.

***

I arrived at Sumida Ward and was catching my breath for a moment.

I had moved very quickly to gather the allied hunters at Sumida Ward. And indeed, that thought was correct.

I can see the tower in front of me. That massive transmission tower rising sharply toward the sky. All magical energy was concentrating there.

‘The magical energy gathered here is already abnormally high.’

If we had delayed longer, more magical energy would have gathered here over that extended time.

Above all, the nearly 4,000 troops of the allied forces were the problem.

If they had been killed by demonized villains, the souls of the awakened would have become enormous offerings incomparable to civilians.

‘Then unmanageable magical energy would have gathered here.’

In that case, even if all of the Five Heavenly Stars were present, they couldn’t have handled the villains and great demon that would have been born.

I gathered all the hunters here while minimizing allied casualties.

And since their MCI hasn’t exceeded the limit and their morale is considerably raised, the stage is set.

‘Flame’s elites will directly confront Seomun Yeom, and the rest will deal with the remaining enemies here.’

Of course, numerous villains and demonic beasts had gathered here in Sumida Ward.

The remaining allied hunters need to face those enemies so that my companions and I can go directly after Seomun Yeom.

I checked the screen through my earpiece. Yuri and Arini would soon join us here.

The companions who had awakened as Sages of the East. And me, the Colorless Key. These are the only forces that can face Seomun Yeom.

‘Ordinary SS-class hunters can’t handle Seomun Yeom and the great demon.’

I carefully moved forward. I headed to the rooftop of a building. One of my companions had already arrived there.

“How are you feeling? Is your condition okay?”

I asked her.

A black-haired woman holding a blood-soaked sword in one hand. Soso turned her head toward me.