episode_0012

The moment I was about to go out, Hericia asked a question as if something had occurred to her.

“Hey Leos, when I think about it, Leos has shown overwhelming results on the gate side, right? Didn’t the Empire call you again?”

I didn’t even bother to tell Hericia that the Imperial Shadow Corps existed, or that they came to capture me and were killed. I didn’t think there was a need to talk in depth, so I answered briefly.

“I came from the empire. And I killed it. The blood you saw in the bomb shelter was the blood of those tracked down by the empire.”

Bendict, who was listening from the side, came running over, making a fuss.

“Brother! Is that true! Empire, you gave those damn bastards a beating!”

“Don’t make a fuss. At least they only killed some of them.”

“Hehe, you are my brother too! Are you thinking of killing the Empire bastards? When I heard that the empire couldn’t properly punish cheaters, I wanted to kill them all, but I couldn’t, but you are different!”

Unlike Bendict, who was indifferent, Hericia asked with concerned eyes.

“But…if the Empire pursues you, shouldn’t you keep quiet? Of course, since Leos killed all of the first pursuers, there is some time, but the second pursuers will come again after the first pursuers…”

“It was originally like that. That’s why I also sheltered in a bomb shelter for a while. But now it is meaningless. Because the Red Gate started a chain reaction a few hours ago.”

“Chain reaction?”

“To put it simply, the neighborhood started to become hell a few hours ago. The radius of the Red Gate is approximately 200 km. Until now, monsters had not poured out, but starting from the chain reaction that was first discovered a few hours ago, monsters will now pour out from the Red Gate within the radius. Within an hour at the earliest.”

“…is…that much? Shouldn’t I run away?”

“Where should I run away? With the Red Gates already opening in succession, we are in the center of the Red Gate Vortex. There are a lot of monsters within a 200km radius, so there’s no way they can escape.”

“Would you rather hide? I know Leos is strong, but unlike before, now he’s alone without a team… I’m worried…”

“Among mutant monsters, there is one called Debringer that can detect humans within its radius. He has the ability to detect the human species itself. If you get caught by him, you will be heavily attacked even if you are in a bunker rather than a cave. It has a habit of attracting monsters, so if you ignore it, there is a high possibility that the area around the bunker will become a literal hell of monsters. Then, they will be completely isolated inside, waiting for food to run out, and then they will all starve to death. Leaving thousands of monsters around the shelter.”

“Then, rather than removing 1km of the Red Gate, it would be better to remove just a small amount… What if the Empire finds out and pursues it again…”

“1km is the minimum value. Considering the detection range of Debringer, a monster with the ability to detect human species, there needs to be a range so that it can’t be reached even if it pops out of the Red Gate and walks around.”

While I was chatting, I checked my weapons. A few hours may seem like a small amount of time to some, but for me, it was a leisurely time, so there was no particular urgency, but I still thought it was important to shorten the time as much as possible.

If you think rationally, you could just leave them alone no matter what they say and go outside and break down the gate, but I thought that if I just left without giving them any information, they would somehow follow me outside or cause trouble, so I kept the information I knew for sure. Some delivered.

“…”

Hericia stood up as if she had no choice.

“Then I will help you too. You don’t have much time, right?”

“Brother! If you had such an urgent situation, you should have told me! I will help too.”

I knew it would be like this. If they had left it alone, they might have come out thinking about various useless things among themselves. I spoke to them with relief.

“Not necessary. Red Gate even when working at the gate management headquarters. Especially since I was in charge of all the mutant monsters. Rather, your presence is a hindrance. So wait inside.”

It may seem a bit excessive, but it is true. In a situation where life was at stake by the second, there was no time to protect the Redgate mutants by telling them their habits and characteristics one by one. Elements such as force or muscle strength were irrelevant. Anyone who doesn’t know their habits and characteristics is bound to suffer.

“… Then, I’ll make some useful artifacts inside… Instead… I need you to come back safely. If you think it’s dangerous, run away.”

“Brother! If you think there is danger, scream! Even though I may be a hindrance now, wouldn’t it be possible for you to need me in an emergency situation? I will go out even if it means risking my life!”

“Okay.”

With those words, Leos headed outside.

*

Bendict, who remained in the cave, looked concerned and asked Heresia.

“Your brother seems impatient. Did something more happen? In fact, even if monsters pour in, wouldn’t you be able to run away by just killing everyone in sight with Brother Leos’ skills? There’s no reason to go overboard like that…”

“It’s because of us.”

Hericia crouched in the corner, covering her knees with her hands and muttering.

“If Leos were alone, even if a human-detecting monster like Debringer appeared, he would kill it right away and run away from place to place. But we’re a huge burden… Probably the reason why you’re pushing yourself like that is because you want to keep us from falling into danger…”

“…”

When Bendict heard that, he thought deeply about something and then quietly mocked himself.

“Is that something like that? You must have had a lot of unnecessary worries. One is an idiot who doesn’t know anything about the world, and the other is an idiot who only knows how to handle artifacts.”

“What? Are you an idiot who only knows how to use artifacts? That’s not something a muscle pig like you would say!”

When Hericia got angry, Bendict responded with a chuckle.

“Now it’s back to normal. Don’t be so stubborn. Don’t you know? How great you are. He’ll be back soon. And if you don’t come back for too long, we can help you.”

“Well…I guess so. Since Leos’ abilities are so outstanding…what should I do if I’m still worried?”

“Do you like it?”

“What…what?!”

Herisiada was hitting Bendict’s massive forearms without any mercy, but Bendict ignored them and continued teasing her.

“Well, as expected, my older brother is a great person, has excellent abilities, and even has a very considerate personality… or does he have a bad personality? Anyway, it’s very popular!”

Hericia huffed with a red face, then heard a loud noise and looked towards the cave entrance. Red Gate Chain Reaction. Monsters began pouring out of the Red Gate that filled the sky.

The scene was as if hell had opened up.

“You should be safe…I’m worried…”

*

50 minutes. This is the time it took Leos to clear out all the Red Gates within 1km.

‘It took longer than I thought.’

Leos wiped the mutant blood from his entire body with a cloth and then placed his hand on the Red Gate.

◈Legendary Gatekeeper [EX]: The mana of the gate once defeated can be sealed.

[Would you like to use the attribute?]

“Use.”

[The mana of the gate has been completely sealed. Monsters no longer respawn over time.]

As a result, all 15 red gates within 1km were sealed. It only took a little over a minute per piece, but due to the distance traveled and the time it took to seal, it took longer than expected.

‘It’s still relaxing’

It took longer than expected, but the chain reaction was still taking place. The gate chain reaction cloud starts from the corner and moves sequentially to the center.

In short, monsters are pouring out of the Red Gate from the outskirts of where Leos is currently located.

‘Was it better because it was in the center? If I got caught in an ambiguous place, I wouldn’t have had time to prepare.’

Thinking as positively as possible, Leos walked towards the cave. Meanwhile.

-Weee!

I noticed an aircraft moving around in the sky and immediately hid myself.

‘Imperial airborne detection artifact.’

‘Perhaps the reason he even floated that artifact was to find me. Maybe the empire will realize that this area is my territory.’

But I thought as I looked at the monsters falling from the sky.

‘What if you know I’m here? What are they going to do?’

After about an hour more, there will be no one from outside who can come here.

This is the most dangerous place in the world, but ironically, it is also the most dangerous safe zone within the Feren Empire.

All they can do is just watch. I was curious about the Empire’s reaction. What plan are they planning now?

‘Even so, it wouldn’t mean anything.’

-Woe!

Leos threw a stone on the ground, smashing the artifact floating in the air, and then walked toward the cave.