Ch.2424. Invasion

# Dragon.

In fantasy novels, this creature is typically regarded as either a transcendent, powerful being or merely a stepping stone for the protagonist. Naturally, it has been implemented as a monster that has appeared consistently since the first installment of Project Monster.

Generally, a monster with four legs and at least one pair of wings, resembling a reptile, is called a dragon, and these are fundamentally known as True Dragons (眞龍).

On the other hand, monsters such as Drakes, Serpents (Water Dragons/水龍), Wyverns, and Wyrms are called Lesser Dragons (亞龍). Despite their different appearances, they possess dragon monster genes, meaning that by analyzing them, one could potentially recreate a dragon.

The Drake’s excellent physical capabilities, the Wyvern’s superior aerial maneuverability, and the psychic genes embedded in the Wyrm—after replicating these, I began additional modifications by combining them.

After incorporating various powerful close-combat specialized traits obtained from other monsters, I modified my monster genes to maximize my capabilities as a psychic user and injected them.

To recreate the dragon’s unique combat style, I implanted various skill usage methods into the brain, and as a result, the projected status of the dragon that would be completed over time began to take shape.

Dragon (Tentative Name)

Rank :: 1

Level :: 79

Stats

Strength :: 8250

Agility :: 2565

Vitality :: 9750

Intelligence :: 150

Resistance :: 6600

Energy :: 7500

Leadership :: 500

Traits

Monster Gene(A), Predator(A), Hive Mind(A), Subjugation(EX), Bio Core(A), Elemental Psychic User(A), Elemental Resistance(A), Psychic Resistance(B), Adamantium Scales(A), Synthetic Muscle Fiber(A), Superhuman Strength(A), Super Regeneration(B), Aerial Combat Proficiency(A), Close Combat Proficiency(B)

Skills

Psychic Flame(A), Psychic Lightning(A), Psychic Frost(A), Psychic Barrier(A), Telekinesis(B), Gravity Manipulation(B), Flight(B), Endurance(B), Superior Detection(A), Concentrated Firepower(B), Evasion(B), Psychic Stealth(C)

Bio-Weapons

Psychic Claw(A), Bio Flamethrower(A), Bio EMP(A)

The stats were well-designed as I had planned, specialized in both psychic and physical aspects, with 14 traits, 12 skills, and 3 types of bio-weapons equipped.

If completed as planned, the Dragon would become nothing short of a flying fortress, soaring through the skies while unleashing powerful psychic attacks and wide-area bio EMPs.

‘…Hmm? Ah, it’s about time.’

After being lost in thought for quite a while, I realized it was time to deploy my forces and directed Sia to the temporary production facility on the ground.

Gigigik.

Gigigik.

In the production facility, there were monsters that resembled Hive Spiders with bodies enlarged dozens of times. Though they varied in size, they all shared the same form, and there were easily over a thousand of them waiting and being produced.

‘Now, let’s go!’

And the moment the order was given, these massive monsters began to advance rapidly toward their assigned battlefields.

This was the true beginning of the war.

※ ※ ※

“…Hey, aren’t you nervous?”

“How could I not be? Of course, I feel like I’m going crazy…”

“Hoo, hoo, hoo, hoooo…”

Inside a fixed gun emplacement at the temporary defense line built in the southern part of Gangwon Province, three soldiers armed with all sorts of equipment were talking while scanning the outside from within the turret.

Normally, such gun emplacements are automatically aimed and remotely fired by computers, but they were designed to be manually loaded and fired as well, in case the connection was severed by monsters equipped with bio EMPs or external impacts.

Due to the unexpectedly frequent damage to the automatic control functions, soldiers had to be stationed at each turret, which is why these men were conversing in the cramped interior.

The weapons mounted on these medium-sized turrets basically consist of one laser cannon and two laser machine guns that move through separate small turrets on the upper part.

Since laser weapons use power to fire and don’t need reloading, it goes without saying that one gunner is assigned to each weapon.

BOOM! BANG! KABOOM!

“…Hey, are they coming?”

“Yeah. They’ll be here within a minute.”

As they naturally tensed up at the sounds of explosions and weapon fire from outside, the battalion commander’s voice came through the installed radio.

[They’ll be within firing range in less than 3 minutes! Stay sharp!]

It meant that combat would begin in just 3 minutes.

“Hey, hey! Put on your gear!”

“I know without you telling me!”

After securing themselves firmly in their positions, they connected their targeting devices to their helmets and placed their hands on the triggers.

They needed to be ready to switch to manual control and begin attacking the moment remote operation was cut off.

And while they were preparing, those 3 minutes passed in an instant. During that time, the location of friendly artillery explosions gradually drew closer, and just as the monster silhouettes began to appear on their helmet detection devices—

[Engage! Engage! Begin automatic engagement!]

Simultaneously with the battalion commander’s voice coming through the radio, the turret they were currently manning—and indeed all turrets deployed on the first defense line—began to move.

Whirr, whirrrrr—boom! Whirrrrr—boom! Whirrrrr—boom! Whirrrrr—boom!

PEEEEEEEEEEEE—–!!!!

PEEEEEEEEEEEE—–!!!!

As the rotating turrets targeted the enemy, one laser cannon and two laser machine guns spewed forth light.

The laser cannon fired a beam that charged for about 3 seconds and sustained for 2 seconds at large targets, while the laser machine guns shredded smaller targets with pulses of light flashing at 0.1-second intervals.

With such turrets densely installed across the entire defense line, most monsters couldn’t even approach the wall before being turned into swiss cheese and exploding… wait, exploding?

“Sergeant Park!”

“What! What is it!”

“Why are those bastards exploding?!”

“…You’re right, these are just lasers! There’s absolutely no reason they should explode!”

“Shit, then maybe… are they suicide bombers?”

At Sergeant Kim’s words, they watched the traces of explosions beyond with serious expressions.

They knew all too well from their anti-monster combat training. Engagement with monsters possessing self-destruct capabilities had a much higher casualty rate compared to other monsters.

“…Do you think we’ll survive?”

“What kind of talk is that?! Of course we’ll survive!”

“…I can see them.”

As they were trying to steady each other’s wavering hearts, Sergeant Kim said he could start seeing the monsters—and following his cue, the other two also began to see them.

“They look similar to spiders…”

“No, damn it, you think that looks like a spider? It’s just a monster, that’s all!”

“Hey, stop with all the cursing!”

The monster, as they said, seemed somewhat similar to a spider but was grotesquely distorted.

It had a round, spherical body from which dozens of spider-like legs or tentacles protruded, and two arms that were somewhere between pincers and hands extended from the front.

In the center of the body was a mouth blocked by dozens of irregular, long teeth, surrounded by dozens of black eyeballs arranged around it.

Such monsters, numbering at least in the hundreds, were charging toward them. Though similar in form, these spider-like suicide monsters of varying sizes kept coming like an endless wave.

“…It looks just like the battalion commander’s face.”

Sergeant Park tried to lighten the mood with that comment, but… it didn’t really work.

More importantly for them was the fact that with a loud boom and slight vibration, the automatic firing had stopped—meaning they now had to start firing manually.

[Fire! Fire! Fire as you were trained!]

The moment the battalion commander’s voice echoed through the radio, the three sergeants reflexively aimed at the visible monsters and began pulling their triggers.

It wasn’t as clean and mechanical as when it was remotely operated by the computer, but instead, these veteran soldiers’ firing showed experience.

They skillfully shot at the legs to neutralize the monsters, or fired at their abdomens to cause explosions that would catch nearby monsters in the blast.

Although they felt anxious from the occasional vibrations, they continued firing, covering each other’s blind spots as they always had, when suddenly—

Sergeant Kim… no, everyone fighting at the first defense line began to see something.

“…Sergeant Kim?”

“…Yes, I know. Damn monster bastards, they really want to see this through to the end.”

“Shit… tomorrow is my Yejin’s birthday.”

What made the three brave sergeants drop everything at once was an enormous suicide monster, so massive that it stood twice as tall as the first defense line’s barrier (10 meters).

Its body was wrapped in a blue psychic barrier and force field, but more than half had been damaged by artillery or various attacks, exposing its bare body.

Perhaps due to its weight, its relatively thin legs were barely dragging its body along, and even those had been damaged by howitzer fire, so it wasn’t moving very quickly.

But that wasn’t the problem. If that monster, now close enough to be visible, were to explode, the first defense line would certainly be annihilated, regardless of what happened elsewhere.

In other words, the giant suicide monster that should have been intercepted far away had essentially caused the first defense line’s defense to fail just by getting close.

‘…So that explosion earlier.’

And only then did Sergeant Kim realize that the mushroom cloud-sized explosion from beyond had been the trace of intercepting another monster of the same kind as the one before them… but it was meaningless now.

[Release your equipment and duck!]

As the battalion commander’s desperate voice came through the radio, and just before releasing their equipment, they caught a glimpse of the psychic barrier installed on the defense line activating.

Outside the turret, an anti-monster warhead missile flew toward the exposed flesh of the giant suicide monster—

WHOOOOOOSH—KABOOOOOOOOOOM!!!

With a tremendous explosion, the first defense line, with its deployed psychic barrier and other defensive systems, was engulfed in the massive explosion from the monster.