Chapter 12: The Reason to Level Up (2)

Jang Ho-seop described his mother’s name and appearance.

And that she was a nurse at this hospital.

“Um…”

Then, a woman raised her hand and spoke.

“I’ve been watching from here.”

She said she had been observing the situation outside from the rooftop.

“I… I saw those green monsters dragging people away.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Towards the underpass.”

The group of Goblins on the ninth floor was only a part of them.

“Most of the people dragged away were women. Our staff members and expectant mothers. Ah, babies too…”

Hearing the woman’s explanation, Jang Ho-seop’s face lit up.

“Where is the underpass? Is it far?”

“You can see it from here…”

Standing at the rooftop railing, I looked in the direction the woman pointed.

It wasn’t too far.

“Hyungnim. Can you see it? I can’t see well.”

“Yeah, I see it. It looks like an underpass leading to Yeouido.”

It was an underpass that went beneath the Olympic Expressway.

“I had LASIK a while ago… I guess my eyesight has gotten much worse.”

Even though the sun had set, I could still see well.

It might be because it wasn’t deep night yet, but it felt like my night vision had improved slightly due to my level increase.

“Excuse me.”

“Yes.”

The woman called out to Jang Ho-seop as if she had more to say.

“But about those Goblins you mentioned.”

“Yes. The short, ugly-faced ones.”

“It’s not just Goblins.”

“What? What else is there?”

“There were also bigger monsters, the same green color.”

Jang Ho-seop asked the woman for more details.

How many such large monsters there were, and what their specific appearance was like.

“It was far away… so I couldn’t see their appearance clearly. I saw three of them.”

Something immediately came to mind.

“Orcs?”

I had encountered Orcs on the bridge too.

Their appearance was slightly different from Goblins, but their skin color was a similar shade of green.

In my opinion, Orcs and Goblins are different species.

Orcs had even attacked Goblins.

However, if a human was present, they seemed to attack the human first.

“Were they definitely the same green color? Wasn’t the bigger monster a slightly darker shade?”

“Huh? Ah… I’m not sure about that, but maybe… Yes. It was the same color…”

The woman answered with an uncertain attitude.

“Hyungnim. They might not be Orcs.”

“Really?”

“Yes. They could be Goblin mutations.”

“Mutations?”

“Things like Goblin Warriors.”

Jang Ho-seop suggested another possibility.

Indeed, monsters of the same species would likely have individual differences.

“We can find out by going there. Let’s go.”

“What? Right now?”

“Yeah.”

Even as we were having this conversation, Jang Ho-seop’s mother could be dying.

Assuming she was dragged to the underpass.

‘If I’m going to stick with Jang Ho-seop anyway…’

His mother being alive would make them shackles for each other.

“Um… It’s really dangerous… Those monsters were huge.”

As I acted like I was about to leave immediately, the woman added with a grim expression.

“They weren’t just big, they looked incredibly strong too. When they charged and hit things, even cars were pushed back.”

The other people felt the same way.

“Uh… Mr. Gyeongcheol? I understand how you feel, but the living must live on.”

The woman in the white gown called me Mr. Gyeongcheol.

My police uniform had ‘Kim Gyeongcheol’ written on it.

“It’s night now, wouldn’t it be too dangerous?”

“Wouldn’t it be better to call for support?”

The other women also added a word each.

The male survivors were silent but had similar expressions to the women.

“Going right now to save people isn’t courage, it’s recklessness.”

“That’s right. Since it’s night, let’s at least rest a little…”

The others also said they had seen what might be Orcs or Goblin mutations.

They clung to me, saying it wasn’t something humans could face barehanded.

‘Worry.’

I could clearly feel their emotions.

My level increase hadn’t only expanded the range of Target Detection.

The color of the emotions sensed from the targets had also become clearer.

“Jang Ho-seop.”

“Yes, Hyungnim.”

“Get ready.”

Only Jang Ho-seop obeyed my words.

It wasn’t just because he had to save his mother.

‘Trust.’

Jang Ho-seop trusted me.

The strongest emotion I felt from him was trust, and the second was hope.

“Ah… It’s really dangerous. It seems too reckless.”

“Think about it calmly. Acting so rashly like this…”

“Wait a minute. If you leave like this, what are we supposed to do?”

So, they weren’t worried about me, but about their own safety.

They mistook me for a police officer and thought Jang Ho-seop and I had come to save them.

Furthermore, they were convinced I would die if I went to the underpass.

“Mr. Gyeongcheol. There’s a restaurant in the basement. There’s also a convenience store… How about spending the night there and thinking things over?”

The female doctor gently grabbed my arm.

She asked if it wouldn’t be better to eat, wash, and then rest first.

Tuk

I lightly shook off her hand.

Because it was likely she wanted to eat, wash, and rest, not me.

“Take these people to the 8th floor. I’ll follow right away.”

“Yes. Everyone, let’s go.”

I told Jang Ho-seop to take the people down first.

“No, we’re not going to the basement?”

“Exactly. If we’re going anyway, to the basement…”

“I want to go home…”

Jang Ho-seop soothed the grumbling people and led them away.

“You two, the Director and the nurse, please stay.”

I stopped the male doctor whose fingers I had broken and the woman who had been pushed down by me.

Seeing them stick together, it seemed they were close even normally.

“Why? Can’t you see the Director is hurt? Whose fault do you think this is?”

The woman glared at me fiercely.

Her eyebrows were tense, and her upper lip was slightly raised.

‘Resentment.’

I felt a common emotion from both of them.

Resentment and a desire for revenge.

I couldn’t just leave people like this.

[Level has increased.]

I eliminated the future trouble and left the rooftop.

---

Exiting the hospital building, I arrived at the underpass.

Surprisingly, the inside of the underpass was quite bright.

‘Fire?’
The Goblins had lit fires in drum barrels.

No, looking again, it seemed the captured people had lit them.

‘Fewer than I thought, though.’

The number of Goblins itself was less than on the 9th floor of the hospital building.

But, as I heard on the rooftop, there were peculiar ones.

They were twice as big as ordinary Goblins.

Their appearance was the same.

– They’re not Orcs.

Jang Ho-seop quickly wrote.

They seemed to be Goblin mutations.

– What’s that?

Even though I hadn’t pointed at anything, Jang Ho-seop immediately wrote an answer.

There was a Goblin that stood out that much.

– It looks like a Goblin Shaman.

It was a Goblin covered in wrinkles.

It wore a flashy yellow dress it must have picked up somewhere.

Absurdly, it held a plunger in one hand.

– Goblin Shaman, Goblin Warrior… I think we can think of it like that.

Jang Ho-seop decided on the names for the mutations.

To summarize, three Goblin Warriors were sitting around the Goblin Shaman.

– The bones in their hands are small.

– Yes. It’s horrifying.

Human bones were carelessly discarded around them.

Hearing that they had kidnapped mostly women and babies, I thought the Goblins had a different purpose.

They didn’t. It was just food.

– Mother?

– I can’t see her well.

People were huddled together against one wall of the underpass.

Everyone was squatting, heads bowed.

Something like a waterproof tarp was spread on the ground, and they were stuck closely together as if they weren’t allowed to leave it.

Jang Ho-seop narrowed his eyes and diligently observed the backs of people’s heads.

“Huh?”

Jang Ho-seop was startled.

Jang Ho-seop had found his mother.

At the same time, I found her too.

Even though I had never seen her face, I could tell immediately.

Because the moment two ordinary Goblins lifted an ajumma who was sitting on the outside, Jang Ho-seop reacted.

---

Thank goodness.

Jang Ho-seop’s mother was still alive.

– Mother?

– Yes.

The unfortunate thing is that we really don’t have much time.

Two Goblins were dragging the ajumma.

Towards the direction where the mutant Goblins were gathered.

One Goblin Warrior stood up.

It held a Chinese cleaver in one hand.

– I’ll strike immediately.

With the situation like this, there was no time to observe the mutant Goblins.

Still, there was one comforting point.

The aura emanating from the Goblin Warrior didn’t feel overwhelmingly strong.

Though there was no exact comparison.

The one with the strongest aura was the Goblin Shaman.

‘My level is 24. I’m not sure…’

A little while ago, on the hospital rooftop, I killed the hospital director and the nurse, reaching level 24.

I couldn’t use Target Detection on myself, but I felt that the Goblin Shaman’s aura was weaker than mine.

– Just think about saving your mother.

– Yes.

After quickly finishing my thoughts, I stood up.

Jang Ho-seop bowed his head to me with a firm expression.

And just as Jang Ho-seop used invisibility and disappeared.

Shwiiik

I threw the rock I was holding with great force.

Thwack!

The thrown rock struck the abdomen of the Goblin Warrior holding the cleaver.

“Kiiik?”

The Goblins that had been lounging around stood up.

I charged towards them.

“Kiaaaaak!”

I pierced the chest of the closest Goblin.

A commotion quickly erupted.

The cries of Goblins echoed throughout the underpass.

“Kirik!”

“Kiririk.”

A group of Goblins with protruding bellies charged at me.

I swung the metal rod, striking them.

“Kiyaaaao!”

The Goblins surrounded me, but it was useless.

I deliberately kept moving while fighting.

At my strong showing, people began to flee, adding to the chaos.

It was when I had killed about 10 ordinary Goblins without taking much damage.

Thump Thump Thump Thump

A Goblin Warrior charged at me with heavy footsteps.

The Goblin Warrior was slightly larger than an Orc.

However, unlike Orcs, who were covered in large muscles like armor, the Goblin Warrior had thick flesh.

Whooosh

I lightly dodged the fist the creature threw recklessly.

I naturally sidestepped, moving to its nine o’clock position.

It was an ingrained pivot.

To the creature, it must have looked like I disappeared in an instant.

Thwack!

I struck its wide-open side.

My fist sank deep.

‘The reaction is good, but…’

Their strength and reflexes were good, but they lacked technique.

The Goblin Warrior collapsed.

Damage landed properly on its body, just like a human.

“Kieeeek!”

Another Goblin Warrior charged in succession.

It tried to grab me with both hands spread wide.

Did it not know I was holding a long weapon?

Pooook

The Goblin Warrior slid towards me, its neck pierced.

Tuk

I simply let go of the metal rod and dodged.

Then, other Goblins immediately rushed at me.

Tuk Tuk Thwack!

Raising my guard, I took down the charging Goblins one by one.

They couldn’t keep up with my movements.

Their chins were just left open.

No, I didn’t even need to aim for the chin.

Thud

Wherever I hit, it was a critical blow.

“Kukukuk.”

This is fun.

On the bridge, I had envied the Orc’s bare fists, its wrists and knuckles.

Now, my body itself is a weapon.

Even though I keep swinging my fists, there’s no strain.

The information provided by Target Detection and my superior physique grant me freedom.

I’m bringing to reality what I had always only imagined.

“Hyungnim!”

Just as I was thoroughly enjoying myself, surrounded by enemies.

Jang Ho-seop finished off a Goblin and rescued his mother.

But then, urgency appeared on Jang Ho-seop’s face as he looked at me.

“Watch out…”

“Kish Karag Kroom!”

Something unusual happened.

If the Goblins’ cries until now had felt like mere howls.

‘Language?’

My body felt heavy.

With difficulty, I dodged a Goblin and turned around.

“Kish Karag Kroom!”

The same words came out of the Goblin Shaman’s mouth again.

My body floated slightly into the air.

“No!”

The creature was pointing the plunger at me.

---

What did the Goblin Shaman do?

I was caught by a Goblin Warrior by the leg while floating in mid-air.

Just as Jang Ho-seop’s scream-like cry was heard, my vision spun.

CRASH!

I felt a strong impact on my back.

The Goblin Warrior had swung my body and thrown me against the wall.

Fortunately, I protected my head, but my breath caught in my throat.

“Kiyaaaak! Kish Karag Kroom!”

The Goblin Shaman’s voice was heard again immediately.

Thump Thump Thump

The Goblin Warrior ran towards me.

I barely managed to shout one word.

“Fire!!!”

My vision was blurry, but I had felt Jang Ho-seop running towards me.

And the moment I shouted “Fire,” his movement stopped.

Fwoosh

Jang Ho-seop lifted the waterproof tarp that was spread on the floor.

He covered the drum barrel with the thick tarp and threw his body on top of it.

Darkness fell upon the underpass.