Chapter 389

### Chapter 389

#### Chapter 69: The Path to the Tiger’s Den (3)

The Hole standing in the middle of the city was enormous, comparable to a ten-story building. Of course, most surrounding buildings were half-destroyed, leaving little for comparison. Lily let out a hollow laugh as she observed the ruins of Washington. The only relief was that there were no monsters blocking their approach to the Hole. A few hours ago, it might have been surrounded and protected by various monsters.

‘Among them, there might have been players turning into monsters,’ she thought.

Now, only corpses remained, likely due to the aftermath of the battle. Hyunwoo, striding across the empty street, muttered under his breath.

“Proceed right away.”

Though it was unclear exactly what he intended to proceed with, as Hyunwoo reached out and placed his hand on the Hole, its surface began to ripple. It was as if waves coursed through it, spreading a white light in ripples.

Suddenly, cracks began forming along the outskirts of the Hole. Snap, crackle. The swiftly spreading cracks covered the Hole’s surface, and soon, the Hole crumbled with a loud crash. The massive Hole that had appeared in the downtown area vanished.

“Haah,”

Lily inadvertently let out a sigh of relief before jolting and shivered. Hyunwoo’s gaze, after breaking the Hole, was fiercely gleaming. It was clearly the expression of someone angry. But why was he angry after destroying the Hole?

During the battle, when the system claimed to have found a way to penetrate the Hole, I was briefly in a good mood. All I did was follow the Damned System’s instructions to approach and place my hand on the Hole. It didn’t open but completely destroyed the place. Of course, it wasn’t something I or the Damned System did. The entity on the other side removed it.

“Does it not want me to come over?”

I wondered out loud. Was it because they still had no intention of coming out? Did they want to avoid direct confrontation with me? Or perhaps there was a reason we shouldn’t meet face-to-face.

My mind buzzed as I tried to gauge the unknown situation. Yet, I couldn’t let myself be idle forever. Though the temptation to cross over and tear it apart was strong, the risk due to the lack of information was substantial, and a battlefield still requiring my attention awaited me. In the end, I gritted my teeth, turned around, and spoke.

“Lily, I leave the rest to you.”

“Ah, yes, understood. Are you going directly to Mumbai?” she asked.

“Yes, once the situation is resolved, contact me. In the meantime, please sort any new reports that come in.”

Unlike Lily, who nodded immediately, aisa sought to say something more.

“Are you leaving already? Should we at least check your injuries…?” she murmured.

“Don’t hold a busy person back for nothing. Behave yourself,”

Sniper interjected to dissuade her.

Aisa struggled slightly as Sniper’s hand grasped her nape.

“Follow me,”

I instructed Sniper.

“Ah, I should’ve kept quiet and remained inconspicuous,” he retorted, entering the shadows.

His magic, which allowed him to pass through shadows, was perfect for countering the authority possessed by the entity, ombin. Indeed, thanks to him, it was easier to block the authority of Senoa.

“You have no choice in the matter,”

I stated, finishing my sentence just as Gilenios opened a portal to Mumbai.

With Sniper in tow, I crossed the portal and spoke to the system.

“What about Seoul?”

《System Message》

There are no significant changes around the Hole vicinity.

All players residing in Seoul and the Gyeonggi Province area are gathering, and civilian evacuation is underway in preparation for the worst Scenario.

Over one million people have already evacuated Seoul.

“Are you sure there are still no additional Holes?”

《System Message》

None so far. Even if one arises, we’ll delay it with our utmost effort, so please trust us.

The way the System assured me, there was nothing left but to have faith. Concluding my conversation with the System, I was abruptly met with chaos as soon as I passed through Gilenios’s portal.

“Please, snap out of it!”

“No! Don’t kill!”

“Step aside! If we don’t kill them, we’re the ones who’ll Die!”

“Hold out until Alpha arrives!”

Players rushing to kill their comrades, others trying to restrain them, and yet more players caught in-between—all unfolded in a pandemonium of human nature. It felt like one was tested on their humanity from just witnessing such horrors, involuntarily twisting my expression into a grimace.

“Whoa…”

Sniper, like me, was momentarily struck speechless as he took in the devastation. India, known for its densely packed population, could not escape the horrors of this transformation process. Swallowing a sigh, I activated my Trait.

“‘Trait Purification (lv. Max)’ is now active.”

“Alpha is proclaiming a domain.”

“Corrupted mana is detected.”

“Pathogen is detected.”

“A new pathogen is detected.”

“A large number of targets for purification detected. Immediate purification is required.”

Could the game’s program perceive the dire circumstances? The messages appeared faster than usual, with bold script. Even without such urgent prompts, I had already initiated purification.

“Purification! It’s purification!”

“K! Aah! It’s K!”

“Oh God!”

“Alpha is here! Counterattack now!”

Stirred by my intrusion, they clamorously called my name. While focusing on purification, I spoke.

“For now, wait here.”

“All right.”

Did he think it better to stay within the shadows rather than out in the open? Sniper vanished into one of the many shadows surrounding us. Leaving him there, I pulled out my cloak. After using the Invisibility function to conceal myself, I instructed Gilenios to send out Rice Cake. The entity emerged from the portal.

As I extended my hand toward Rice Cake, although I hadn’t given explicit commands, the form maintained its original size, instantly shrinking down. Holding the now miniature Rice Cake, I leapt into the air.

‘The Hole that appeared in Mumbai emerged underground,’ I recalled.

At the start of this war, india lost its capital, new Delhi, and moved to make Mumbai the interim capital. But now, a massive Hole opened beneath the very ground of that Mumbai.

Monsters spouting from the Hole laid waste to the city, transforming it into hell in an instant. Most tried desperately to flee, but ended up succumbing to the monsterization process. Undoubtedly, an unthinkably large number of people perished.

Swallowing such bitter thoughts, I ascended to a place where the Hole became visible. Immediately, Rice Cake linked our vision.

“Ha,”

I sighed.

Four threads extended from the still monster-spewing Hole. I considered what this situation signified. ‘In the U. S., the dolls boldly roamed the battlefield.’ Here, they orchestrated things to divert my attention with such pomp.

The number of dolls tallied by the players matched the number of threads linking them from the Hole. Conversely, in Mumbai, the visual confirmation of an entity was just one, yet the threads outside the Hole numbered four.

‘They intend to strike at my back.’

They must have guessed I’d approach openly as in the U. S. and hoped to ambush me. Such tactics were futile due to Rice Cake’s capabilities. ‘Chasing down and capturing the dolls one-by-one is the wrong approach.’

The upgraded physical abilities from the 5th Promotion rendered me resilient enough not to be easily taken by Ombin’s dolls. Thus, I’d remain patient, waiting for them to come before capturing each one.

‘Now, let’s deal with the monsterized entity possessing authority, which they’ve dangled as bait,’ I thought.

Following the direction Rice Cake’s vision provided, I raced toward the target. Thanks to the relic’s Stealth, approaching the target was not difficult.

‘Two of them lurk nearby, and the other one…’ The thread extending into the ground almost drew out laughter.

Clearly, my authority is something they find exceptionally coveted. ‘Their approach makes me all the more unwilling to share.’

Recalling the target, I took a step back to gather the apostles scattered across the battlefield. The five apostles distributed throughout Asia soon gathered at one spot, including Kirish, and Ra-lian, who served as my intelligence source in China.

Sharing intelligence from the recent battle against the dolls.

“The doll that appeared in Washington had only one authority each,”

I began.

One wielded Senoa’s shadow authority. Another one held Ombin’s monsterization authority. Lastly, another, wielding corrupted divinity without authority restraints.

“Then the entity here should only have monsterization, right? What about combat prowess? Are they about the same as us?”

Kirish asked first.

With composure, I answered, “They surpass the Platinum rank in physique. Dealing with them alone would be challenging, so stick with the group you trained with. And,”

I paused to correct the error in Kirish’s earlier statement.

“Don’t assume there’s just one. Merely relying on player sightings is complacency,”

I asserted.

Knowing there were more than shown, I spoke. Though I wasn’t sharing Rice Cake’s capabilities, I wanted them aware of the precariousness.

“Oops, that was complacent of me,”

Kirish admitted humbly.

“K is right; it doesn’t hurt us being extra cautious,” said Sniper, chiming in.

“On a tactical note, considering its hide is tougher than expected, inflicting superficial wounds is tough. We’ve hunted by initially inflicting a wound from K’s side and then focused attacks there.”

“But an entity coming right out of a recent battle wouldn’t fall the same way,”

I pondered aloud.

This could suggest that the strategy Ombin employed was a response to our recent engagement in Washington—a counter to our frontal victory by seeking underhand tactics. This implies that in subsequent areas where the dolls appear, they might devise other tricks.

Unless we extract and definitively end the core from beyond that Hole, it’s destined to cyclically recur. I needed a method to breach the Hole before Ombin decides to destroy it. I needed to think of a way to break through.

While I was momentarily lost in other thoughts, Sniper continued his discourse.

“And if you spot an entity utilizing shadows, let me know. The difficulty level changes drastically whether you restrict their movement or let them be.”

Nodding in agreement with Sniper’s plans, the apostles made final requests to each other before dividing.

“Don’t forget, under no circumstances allow it to reach K.”

Their purpose as apostles was reiterated countless times prior. Their existence was almost predicated on becoming shields against Ombin’s dolls. They had even trained for it numerous times.

They practiced fending off the likes of Horfe and Gretman, even catching them. Unlike the North American apostles, these fighters, experienced in battle, were still deemed reliable.

“Alright, let’s begin,”

I declared.

Despite the readiness, a casualty occurred as soon as the battle commenced.

“Argh!” cried an apostle, their screams slicing through the air as the lead team moving toward the target was drawn into a crack.

A strong iron scent wafted from the other side of the space fracture, and the apostle’s connection to me vanished. Without question, it signified death.

“Karklein’s authority,”

I quickly assessed the situation and conveyed the precise information.

Such unexpected circumstances could unsettle them, and yet the fighters remained steadfast, raising their authority and staying vigilant.

In their midst, I quietly called upon and addressed the apostle supposed to prevent the situation.

“Gilenios, report the situation.”

**New Elements and Characters Mentioned**:

– **릴리 (Lily) / 릴리 (Lily) 「She」:** An associate of Hyunwoo.

– **에이사 (Aisa) / 에이사 (Aisa) 「She」:** Another associate involved in the mission.

– **길레니오스 (Gilenios) / 길레니오스 (Gilenios) 「He」:** An apostle or entity with the capability of opening portals.

– **도시 (City) / 도심 (Downtown) 「It」:** Refers to the urban location and its destruction.

– **홀 (Hole) / 홀 (Hole) 「It」:** A significant magical or supernatural entity.

– **저격수 (Sniper) / 저격수 (Sniper) 「He」:** A strategic fighter adept with shadows.

– **옴빈 (Ombin) / 옴빈 (Ombin) 「Na」:** The entity on the opposing side or antagonist.

– **세노아 (Senoa) / 세노아 (Senoa) 「Na」:** A figure mentioned in connection with shadow authority.

– **안그라모티 (Angramoti) / 안그라모티 (Angramoti) 「Na」:** Mentioned in connection with monsterization authority.

– **백설기 (Rice Cake) / 백설기 (Rice Cake) 「It」:** An entity or tool aiding Hyunwoo, recognized for its abilities.

– **기리시 (Kirish) / 기리시 (Kirish) 「Her」:** One of the apostles under Hyunwoo’s command.

– **라위안 (Ra-lian) / 라위안 (Ra-lian) 「He」:** Another apostle, specifically a source of information in China.

– **카클라인 (Karklein) / 카클라인 (Karklein) 「Na」:** An entity associated with a particular authority used against the apostles.