Chapter 24: Debuff Gacha

‘That’s…’

Jo Sung-Il recognized the giant the moment he saw it.

‘That’s the Harbinger of Doom.’

Its name was Titan.
He remembered the description: ascending from Tartarus.

‘Was I really that loud?’

He didn’t think he had been, but then he realized.

‘Yes, I can feel it.’

He sensed an unpleasant aura from the giant.

If the giant had the same sensitivity, it might have detected his movements even with minimal awareness.

[A Harbinger of Doom does not cease activity until the world is destroyed.]
[Good luck facing this calamity.]

Jo Sung-Il chuckled dryly, seeing the system message.

“A calamity, huh?”

The appearance of a disaster-level giant monster.

As Jo Sung-Il looked forward, Titan met his gaze.

THUMP! KOONG!

Titan slowly advanced towards him.

Jo Sung-Il checked his energy level.

‘72%.’

Fighting Titan would undoubtedly consume a lot of energy. The question was, could he eat while fighting…?

[You can replenish energy by landing successful blows on a Harbinger of Doom.]

A helpful tip.

‘Don’t miss.’

Missing a Breath attack would be devastating.

GWAAAAAAAAAAAA!

Titan, now close, roared at Jo Sung-Il.

KWWAAAAAAAAAAAA!

Jo Sung-Il roared back.

The combined shockwaves from their roars shattered the windows of the surrounding ruins.

“Gah!”
“Take cover!”
“Uwaaaaaa!”

Shards of glass flew towards the Hunters watching the scene.

Kim Yo-Sep, ascending into the sky, momentarily folded his wings to shield himself.

“Incredible.”

Kim Yo-Sep, spreading his wings and resuming his ascent, watched the two monsters from a distance and murmured,

“Has this ever happened before?”

No.
Monsters always attacked humans first.

“I can’t comprehend the forces at play here.”

Kim Yo-Sep couldn’t leave. He was witnessing an unprecedented event.

A desire to witness it unfold consumed him.

THUMP!

Titan took another step forward and picked up a chunk of concrete.

WHOOSH!

Titan hurled the concrete at Jo Sung-Il.

BANG!

Jo Sung-Il turned and swatted the concrete away with his tail. Titan straightened up and stared at him.

『…Are you this world’s champion?』

It spoke.

Jo Sung-Il, surprised, replied,

“You’re sentient.”

『I was imprisoned in the abyss of the underworld for a long time.』

Titan nodded.

『But they could not contain me forever.』

“Judging by your appearance, I can see that.”

『I destroyed the world that imprisoned me.』

Titan confessed to being a calamity.

『Revenge was exhilarating, but it did not satisfy me.』

Titan finally declared to Jo Sung-Il,

『I will destroy this world as well, champion.』

A preposterous claim.

But Titan, with a serious expression, looked down at Jo Sung-Il.

Its intimidating demeanor seemed intended to assert its dominance.

“…Arrogant.”

Jo Sung-Il looked up at the larger Titan.

But his upward gaze wasn’t a sign of submission.

“Those with stiff necks are always the first to bow their heads.”

『We shall see.』

Without warning, Titan reached out and grabbed Jo Sung-Il by the neck.

『Everyone who said that is dead.』

Crack!

Titan shifted its weight and threw Jo Sung-Il.

“!”

Rumble!

Jo Sung-Il was briefly airborne, then crashed to the ground, skidding across the surface.

“Ugh…”

Jo Sung-Il pushed himself up, groaning.

“He’s strong.”

He hadn’t expected to be thrown like that, even though Titan was larger.

‘I can’t fight like I did before.’

As Jo Sung-Il stood up, Titan charged, attempting to ram him.

Whirr.

He quickly opened his mouth, gathering energy.

KWWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

He unleashed his Breath.

『Guh…!’

Titan, unable to stop its momentum, was struck in the shoulder by the Breath and staggered.

THUMP!

But it managed to catch itself with its other foot and blocked the Breath with its arm, then twisted its shoulder.

KWAAAAABOOOOM!

Jo Sung-Il’s Breath missed Titan and struck a ruined building in the distance.

“Uwaaaah!”

The Hunters who had been unfortunate enough to be near the building scrambled to avoid the debris.

Ratatatatatata!

Helicopters arrived overhead.

“A-Are they here for us?”

The Hunters murmured, but the helicopters weren’t there for a rescue operation.

“…They only sent low-ranking soldiers.”

The colonel piloting the lead helicopter clicked his tongue, looking down at the scene.

“Those d*mned Guilds.”

Most Guilds wouldn’t participate in unprofitable operations.

They might be hailed as heroes, but they were ultimately driven by profit.

That was why the military was often more involved in situations like this.

Crack!

Colonel Yoo Sang-Jin tightened his grip on the controls.

A sword emblem appeared on his gloved hand.

His skill, Weapon Activation, which enhanced the weapons of any equipment he touched, activated.
“I’ll show them that military spirit is the true essence of a Hunter.”

Yoo Sang-Jin fired a missile at Titan.

WHOOSH!

The missile struck Titan.

KWAAAAABOOOOM!

A deafening explosion.

A shockwave rippled outwards, sending dust and debris flying.

“That should have….”

Yoo Sang-Jin muttered, then his eyes widened.

GWAAAAAAAAAAAA!

Titan roared, emerging from the dust cloud.

『!%#@%@#$%.』

Uttering unintelligible words, Titan charged towards the colonel’s helicopter.

THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!

Titan, its face contorted in rage, approached, crushing the ground beneath its feet. Startled by the overwhelming presence, Yoo Sang-Jin fired several more missiles.

BANG! KABOOM!

Titan staggered with each hit. The weapons enhanced by Yoo Sang-Jin’s ability were not to be underestimated.

But Titan only paused momentarily, continuing its relentless advance towards the helicopter.

“W-We need to evade!”

The co-pilot shouted.

“Just a little longer!”

Yoo Sang-Jin wasn’t refusing to evade out of pride.

Titan, enraged, was taking the missiles head-on, so he wanted to land as many hits as possible while it served as a target.

“Colonel!”

WHIIIIR!

Finally, as the co-pilot yelled, reaching his limit, Yoo Sang-Jin pulled up on the controls, attempting to evade.

“Uwaaaaaaaah!”

But it was too late. Just as the co-pilot screamed, seeing Titan’s hand reaching for them,

KWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

A Breath attack incinerated Titan’s arm.

“Guh…!”

Yoo Sang-Jin gripped the controls tightly as the helicopter spun.

He saw another giant monster.

‘That’s…’

The monster was firing its Breath at Titan, seemingly trying to prevent it from grabbing the helicopter.

Then, the monster charged and rammed into Titan.

BANG! KABOOM! KABOOM!

Titan, pushed back by the monster, slid for a moment, then its foot caught on the ground, and it fell backward.

WHIIIIR!

The helicopter, miraculously regaining its balance, ascended.

“What the…?”

A monster had attacked Titan and saved the helicopter. It was too precise to be a coincidence.

“What is that?”

The monster pinned the fallen Titan down with its hands and feet and unleashed a barrage of Breath attacks.

[Energy ↑ : 48%]
[Energy ↓ : 47%]
・
・
・
[Energy ↓ : 41%]
[Energy ↑ : 49%]
[Energy ↑ : 53%]

Jo Sung-Il’s energy fluctuated as his Breath attacks hit and missed.

『Foolish.』

Titan, while being attacked, spoke.

『You don’t even understand what you represent.』

Grab! Crack!

Titan grabbed Jo Sung-Il’s left and right arms.

『Your world will be subjugated.』

Titan’s eyes glowed, and it pushed Jo Sung-Il.

Jo Sung-Il, thrown into the air again, landed and stumbled, continuing his Breath attack before closing his mouth.

Sizzle.

The Breath attack extinguished like a match dropped in water, and smoke billowed from his mouth.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, but…”

His fangs gleamed in his open mouth.

“Now that you’re in my world, let me teach you what a random debuff is.”

Clang!

Titan finally noticed a hole in its neck.